Leon's eyes widened, and he carefully covered his mouth. His breathing slowed until it completely stopped.
The monster's elongated arm raised and thumped on the tree trunk. Its tall figure bent even more and caused its body to lean forward.
Leon had to lean his body backwards so he wouldn't touch the echo stalker. His knees almost buckled when he tried to take a step back. He removed his hand from his mouth just so he could balance himself.
Clack. Clang!
Leon's lips pressed into a thin line. The echo stalker was a few inches away from him when its head split open and made the clanging noise from its teeth hitting each other once again.
"Hello?... Help!"
Leon's chest tightened. The longer he tried to hold his breath, the harder it was for his frail body. He knew that he had to gamble for his life.
One small move would make a noise. And the echo stalker would surely hear it.
He would either die from asphyxiation or from the monster's hand. However…
'I refuse to die.'
Leon gritted his teeth. In that instant, he forced his wobbly legs up. His hands raised and pushed the echo stalker away. And as soon as his palms met with the echo stalker's body, he felt a searing pain shoot through his palms.
A scream found its way out of his lips as he turned around and sprinted with all his strength.
One look at his palm and it was clear to him that the searing pain wasn't caused by heat, but by extreme cold. His pale palm easily caught a blue-ish color.
'That thing is so cold it burns!'
His fingertips tingled as the blue-ish color started to disappear. However, Leon had no time to watch as his palms returned to their usual paleness. The trees were blocking his way to successfully escape from the echo stalker. But at the same time, Leon saw opportunities in them.
Under the gray sky, the ashen forest continues to stretch before his eyes.
"Help me! Please!"
The echo stalker continued its mimicry. With each step it took, dust rose from the ashen ground. Its long arms occasionally hit the tree trunks. Each time it did, a small frost mark appeared on the tree trunk.
He scoured his brain for anything that could help. Finally, a single sentence popped into his mind.
'Gunshots were heard in the south, but that place is hazardous because of the extreme cold.'
It was a testimony by a bystander written in one of the interview reports of an allegedly illegal hunt to the south of the slums. But Leon knew better.
'That place is a training ground for Channeler hex bearers.'
Nature didn't cause the cold—it was man-made. People's beliefs changed the second the Hollow was revealed to the world. The things that used to be impossible became the next natural thing.
But it caused a drawback to their instinctual suspicions, believing that things were caused by the mysterious Hollow and not their fellow people.
'South to the slums is a forest, and trees under extreme cold can cause frost cracks.' Things slowly pieced together inside Leon's mind.
However, coming up with a plan was the easy part. Putting it into action is a different topic. Leon might be smarter than ordinary people, but he was also weaker than most.
"Fuck!"
Leon took a right, tracking the path where he was. Circling the area a few times made his legs scream with agony. His pace has slowed considerably, and the echo stalker loomed behind him like an incoming tsunami.
But he couldn't stop because if he did, losing a limb or two would be the nicest ending he could receive.
Crack.
Leon's head snapped towards one of the thin trunks ahead. A small crack appeared on its gray bark. But he was certain that his plan would come to fruition any minute now.
Crank!
Another cracking noise reached his ears, but this time it was louder. His hope grew, and with his newfound strength, Leon dashed toward the tree with cracks. And before he could run through it, a booming sound echoed throughout the forest.
The small crack had split the thin trunk into two right in the middle. Leon didn't waste the opportunity to grab onto one of the split parts and tore it off from its roots. He threw his body down to the ground and raised the split trunk upwards.
"Ahhh!" A bone-chilling scream left his lips. His voice filled with both fear and resolution.
The echo stalker had no eyes and could only hunt its prey with its strong hearing.
Following Leon's voice, the echo stalker's feet thudded on the ground. Both of its long arms reach forward, ready to grab its prey. But because of its lack of eyesight, it wasn't able to see a surface root right in front of it.
The echo stalker tripped helplessly. Its body fell forward, and underneath it was Leon, clutching half of the tree trunk. As it impaled the echo stalker's body, a sundering sound filled Leon's ears.
An earsplitting screech tore through the ashen forest, but something else filled Leon's mind. The monster's body lay on top of him and caused the same searing pain he felt earlier.
Just like the echo stalker's dying shrieks, Leon let out a visceral cry. And with his numbing limbs growing ice solid, he pushed the monster's dead body away. But the agony persisted.
His fingertips were the first to look waxy until they spread fast into his hands and arms. Ice crystals formed at the same place, spreading indefinitely. He could feel the sensation on his chest feeling as if a boulder was balancing atop.
His heart hurt as it got harder to breathe with each passing second. And as if mocking him once again, the runes shone in front of his eyes.
[You have met the qualifications to use the Hollow Hex. Congratulations!]
[You have killed an Echo Stalker!]
His victory felt meaningless in front of his impending death.
As the frost reached his neck, the numbness slowly engulfed his entire body. He became still like the lifeless carcass of the echo stalker beside him.
'It's not like I have anyone important back on earth.' He couldn't believe that was his final thought.
'At least, I don't feel pain anymore.' His eyes slowly closed, above the gray sky, something wriggled as if dancing to the tune of his slowing heartbeat.
"Hoho."
Leon's eyes opened wide.
A man appeared atop one of the tallest trees and jumped right beside him. The man was old, and he looked benign, but the viciousness he hid under his facade didn't slip past Leon's eyes.
He couldn't help but frown at the old man's dark suit and leather shoes.
Inside the Hollow, everyone was dangerous. Be it a child, an elderly person, or even the most innocent-looking ones, all hide their strengths.
Leon knew that the old man staring down at him was someone who hid his strength. He looked like a man in his early to mid-sixties, but Leon knew that he was not to be underestimated. How else would he have survived this hell?
"You actually killed the echo stalker."
The old man's eyes drifted to the monster's carcass beside Leon. His amused gaze studied the halved trunk piercing the monster's body before shifting his gaze back to Leon.
"You look like you couldn't kill an ant, but you actually…" The old man's voice trailed off.
Leon might have gone numb, but his instincts screamed at him that the old man was dangerous.
The air had grown cold and still as soon as the old man's expression turned from amusement to something unreadable. His eyes were fixed on Leon's collarbone.
'What is he looking at? I'm sure that's where my mark is.' Leon had his Hollow Hex in his collarbone.
Each person bears the Hollow Hex in their body, but the marks appear at different places. Theorist, back in reality, thought that the mark would appear in a place the person held dear. Or a place where the person had an unforgettable memory.
Leon never believed them. That was why when he got his own mark, his disagreement had only grown stronger.
"You… You shouldn't be here. How interesting." A smile crept into the old man's face.
He crouched next to him and grabbed something out of his suit's inner pocket. However, Leon couldn't make out what it was. His vision started to blur as the frost injury he sustained from the fight continued to spread.
His frail body gave up on him. The lack of oxygen was driving him to unconsciousness. But right before it slipped through his hands, a whisper resonated inside his mind.
[You are…]