"Is there sothing inside this one too?"
Hex sat on a branch, observing the do a few hundred ters in front of him. The shell seed undamaged. Aside from patches of short grass and forest flowers, the area seed clear.
The green moss growing on the shell covered the grey of the building. Not far from the do stood an imposing statue of a female on a massive horse. The sword she wielded seed to have broken due to wear and tear. The shield in her other hand remained whole despite being full of web-like cracks.
’I wonder what she did that earned her such a commoration. She was quite a beauty.’
Whoever crafted the statue was a master at it. Even ti failed to erase the beautifully crafted lines and curves, revealing the enchanting features of the heroic lady. The horse seed lifelike too, aside from the one horn on its head. But Hex had to admit, the horn gave the horn a more majestic feel.
The map missed information about this do. If Hex wished to discover more he needed to enter the do. It would require battling the occupant.
So far, the creature remained holed up inside the do. But Hex didn’t doubt there was sothing inside the building. After all, he could sense its powerful energy fluctuation.
’Although it’s not a Calamity, a Disaster is still not sothing I can take lightly.’
As soon as Hex reached within two hundred ters of the do, he sensed its presence. Although he rejoiced not encountering another Calamity, he didn’t fancy fighting a Disaster either.
The sole reason he didn’t escape the do’s area was the presence of weaker creatures in the vicinity. With so many normal and Demon beasts around, Hex suspected the do’s occupant to be slow or non-predatory.
’If I avoid this one, how long before I find one occupied with sothing I can guarantee a win against?’
Hex suspected all the dos to be ho to so kind of monster. He even cursed the mapmakers inwardly for omitting such an important detail. He of course didn’t spare Sterling from his curses. In his mind, the silver-haired bastard was perfectly capable of setting him up for so sick benefit Hex couldn’t phantom.
Ti ticked. Hex, however, remained on the branch, observing and waiting patiently. An unknown opponent was the scariest.
It was almost dusk when he sensed the energy of the creature inside the do spike. Hex imdiately raised his guard, covering himself with the cloak. He also used the Frost Armor technique to create a breastplate of sorts. The ice crystals stood outward instead of flat.
Sss!
The creature’s hissing noise scared many small animals away. Hex remained vigilant but at the sa ti, his interest piqued. The noise seed familiar to a snake’s hiss but he didn’t see track marks anywhere.
Sss!
The noise increased. Hex’s eyes were glued to the opening in the do. First, a black with white spotted snake-like head erged. Hex felt his heart speed up. If the creature was a snake then it should be monstrous because Hex estimated the head to be at least thirty centiters. But the next mont, when its feet erged, Hex felt more at peace.
The creature exited the do as the sun went under, revealing its more than five-ter-long body. It stood at a height of two ters and its large reptillian eyes looked around. Seeing its forked tongue move in the air, Hex thanked his wits to remain upwind.
Another thing he noticed was the ti needed for the creature to exit the do. Even with no obstructions in its path, the monster took five minutes to exit. Once out, it remained in one place, barely moving.
’This is indeed a very slow beast. Perhaps I stand I chance against it without resorting to the tools.’
The tools were a trump card he didn’t wish to use even if no one seed near. For one, he didn’t wish to rely too heavily on them and two, the explosions might attract attention he didn’t wish to get.
The creature seed to have found sothing and waddled slowly away. This confird Hex’s suspicion.
’This is a battle I can try.’
The monster stepped in his direction, blissfully unaware of Hex’s intentions or even presence. It seed to have found so large insect in the trunk of the tree Hex was on. While it munched on it, Hex aid and shot out.
Flex Step!
Crack.
He blasted him toward the Disaster, his newly-bought Knight-grade sword aid directly at the creature. Hex covered the short distance in a fraction of a second.
In the next instance, his attack connected, cutting deep into the creature.
Hiss!!
The slow creature hissed, attacking simultaneously. Its cold eyes locked onto Hex as a gas cloud spurted right into his face.
Frost Armor!
Hex hurriedly covered his face with ice crystals but to Hex’s horror, the ice started to lt as soon as the gas touched. Hex used more ice elents to continue his face cover while he urged the nature elent to recover whatever little gas entered his body.
But the creature wasn’t done. It struck out with its sharp claws. Luckily, it was slow, making avoiding it easy.
Flex Step!
Hex stepped off the ground and flew backward. As he flew in the air, he noticed the grass around his previous spot fall apart due to the gas. Even the bark of the ancient tree burst and fell onto the ground.
’Poisonous bastard.’
Hex landed on a branch and shot once more at the beast. His exercise with the Calamity inspired him to use the branches and his Flex Step to move faster and more unpredictably. It seed similar to how he used the mountain slopes and ridges in the past.
With each attack, he injured the beast more and more. The monster bled continuously but its energy decreased very slowly. Even with his near-infinite amount of stamina, Hex began to gasp.
Blizzard Strike!
Hex executed his elent-fused attacks to slow the beast even more. He hoped the elent could slow the recovery of the beast. But a Disaster stage beast’s resilience neared a plant creature’s.
’The ice slows it but the damage is not enough. Should I use a crystal infused with a little bit of the black swirl?’
He was tempted. On his own, the battle would ensue well into the night, inviting more trouble his way. After all, nightti was the favorite hunting ti of many beasts. These inclinations didn’t cease after ascending to higher stages.
’Wait!’
Hex blocked another claw, using his ice elent and nature elent in cohesion. The flesh around the claws was burnt. Hex tried to unleash his fire elents but it didn’t have a significant result. He lacked a proper technique to execute it.
While he pondered which other elent to use, his mind conjured the image of the black swirl. A thought took root. ’Why can’t I use the black swirl with a normal attack?’
Hex attacked the creature with more strength, giving it all. His cuts and slashes injured the Disaster even more. In the dark sky, Hex saw the moon partially hidden behind the clouds. The battle was raging for so ti now.
The creature’s hissing noises filled the air. It slowed down but it wasn’t dying yet. Hex ignored the prickling feeling of having his salty sweat entering his eyes. His focus was on the black swirl.
’The fire elent lacked in damage due to lack of technique. The black swirl can be combined with other elents...I think. What if...?’
From the ti he entered the slums, Hex adapted and learned to co up with innovative ideas. So saved him, so nearly killed him. But they always improved Hex.
At such a mont, instead of worrying about his lack of diversity, Hex improvised. He focused on the black swirl and moved forward. The edge of his sword gained a layer of ice. But the ice wasn’t clear. The ice elents had a faint dark luster to them. It gave Hex’s sword an ominous feeling.
The creature hissed loudly. A Disaster had a sharp instinct. It could feel the danger wrapped around the sword. It tried to retreat but its injuries prevented him from doing so quickly.
Dark Blizzard Strike!
Hex added the dark in his mind as his sword danced in the air, slashing and cutting deep into the creature. He landed almost thirty consecutive attacks on the beast.
When he landed back on the ground, panting loudly and trembling from head to toe, he finally sensed the energy inside the creature dwindle at a high speed.
Curiously, Hex observed the wounds he inflicted on the beast with his black swirl added. Even the creature’s black hide couldn’t conceal the eroding effect. Instead of recovering, the wounds deepened and widened.
Hex inserted more of the black swirl into his sword and glanced at the beast, before inserting his sword directly in its heart.
Thud!
The creature’s heart exploded. The creature moved and trashed around but gradually it died.
Exhausted, Hex crawled into the do’s opening and closed his eyes. His first day exhausted him greatly.
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