I heard a monstrous footfall behind me.

I've heard this one before.

Loud and redundant breathings.

Groans and slithers.

"So here you are!"

I turned back to face it.

I heard it, I felt it, a few meters away from me, was the DeathSeeker from that day.

"It's been a while since that day, but I've finally come back to settle things with you today!"

We stood there for a moment as if judging the other person's strength.

It threw its spiky strand of furs trick on me again, which I simply avoided by creating a wall between him and me, with snake-like slithering and a swoosh from what I assume was its tail swing.

This useless trick will not work on me thrice.

But then something strange happened: it appears that the monster decided to use magic against me this time, as opposed to the previous time when he seemed more interested in torturing me than anything.

Spikes erupted from the ground, slamming into my barrier and some even passed through it missing to impale with a breadth of a hair.

Propelling myself onto the air, put some distance between myself and the ground, I was waiting for an opportunity, I knew would soon come.

The beast rushed at me.

But it didn’t come up as a surprise, I was expecting its attack.

I met its charge with a punch with my prosthetic claw onto what felt like its head.

Upon contact, it caused a resonant and metallic clang, and both of us were repulsed by the other's attack.

I immediately launched some of my appendages at it in an attempt to restrain it, but it easily avoided them all.

Something vicious, which I later identified as a tornado-like air magic attack, flew straight at me, destroying everything in its path, tree, and ground alike.

I managed to avoid it, but I was attacked again, this time from a different angle.

I avoided them all, but with everything going on, the noise, the incessant attack, it was difficult to pick out a trace of where that thing went, so I had no idea where it was now.

When I felt something heavy straight at me, I immediately assumed it was a tornado and evaded it.

It was indeed a tornado but I also noticed the sound of the heavy charge of that monster coming from where I exactly evaded.

I shielded and braced myself for the impact, knowing I wouldn't be able to avoid it.

A powerful blow carrying the weight of a mountain slammed at my barrier.

I was knocked several meters away from where I was hit and landed so hard against a large tree that three of them simply exploded, sending me to crash into another one.

With my head still foggy, I dreadfully heard that thing charging straight at me again.

“Tsk”

I stood up and planted my appendages firmly on the ground.

I let go of the spherical net-like barrier that had been protecting me, forming a cluster-like shield in my left, while sending out some of my appendages to restrain it, but each one was evaded by it.

What I did prompt the beast to charge and claw at me from my right, which I blocked as best I could with my right prosthetic claw.

I immediately sent out some of my appendages to restrain it, while also wrapping a spear-like object around my left arm and stabbing it repeatedly.

The beast fought back with all its might and was about to flee the tentacles I'd sent to restrain it when it caught fire and spit mighty fire in all directions.

I had covered my face with my appendage before the fire engulfed me, saving me from being roasted to death.

I clenched my fist with all the strength I could muster and unleashed a blow that knocked the creature several meters away.

It landed on its chest.

It wasn't enough to kill it, nor was it enough to penetrate its hardened skin, but it was enough to cause the beast to roar in pain and cause a satisfying bone-cracking upon contact with my last blow.

Since I knew very well that the same trick will not work twice, I re-deployed my barrier.

“How does it taste, huh?!” I was tempted to ask here but not only did I know it would be futile but I also knew that every second of inattention could be fatal for me.

When I prepared myself for this battle, I knew what I had to do.

I was able to survive this far because I kept my fight fast and lethal, being deprived of sight, I can’t afford such a thing as a battle of attrition.

Speed and lethality, are my motto while fighting.

This is why I tend while to always first aiming at vital organs such as the brain which provides an opportunity to end the fight almost instantly.

Each of my fights in Frozen Hell lasted less than a minute unless I was up against a flock of Wyvern, who could more or less evade my attack by flying away if necessary.

So I knew this fight wouldn’t be an exception.

The beast's breath was loud and erratic…

But I knew it would soon charge at me again.

Yet, it wasn’t quite what happened.

"What!"

… It ran away.

The Death-seeker abruptly turned its heel and fled to the left.

I immediately ran after it.

To slow me down, the death seeker used its slithering noise to launch its spike-like fur projectile and its tornado attack.

I simply blocked with my barrier for the former and evaded for the latter.

I sent out my tentacles in retaliation, but it easily evaded them.

After running for a while it suddenly came to a screeching halt.

We'd arrived at a slope with few trees, which had been descended by a water stream that had drowned me up to my heel. I heard a pouring cascade not far away and assumed it was a water stream that led directly to the frozen hell.

Being on a slope, I was on the lower ground while he was on the higher one.

It turned to face me, its breath becoming increasingly louder; I had the impression it was about to charge at me at any moment, but instead he let out his distinctive scream.

Strangely, I had the impression that he wasn't making any special effort to get away from me during that attempt to flee, and now this abrupt halt.

What exactly is this thing attempting to accomplish?

Was it attempting to lure me here?

But why?...

Then I realized.

The stream of water!

I was trapped inside a water bubble that engulfed not only my body but also most of my tentacle, with the only part of my tentacle visible outside being the nine extremities I use as a cane to navigate my surroundings.

As if the sudden appearance of the bubble thing wasn't enough, I also noticed that I was having difficulty moving my tentacles within it.

When I felt the first signs of drowning, I used my appendage to grapple onto a tree to get out, but I was knocked down by a heavy blow.

Despite the barrier, my body crashed heavily on the ground.

As a result of the shock, I felt one of my bones, possibly my right shoulder black, break, rendering me completely unable to feel or exert any force on what was left of my right arm.

The beast jumped at the chance to climb on top of me and keep me pinned to the ground.

I immediately redeployed my barrier, but before I could fully equip it, I was shoved by its claw, and my body was sent flying and bouncing on the ground like a rock thrown and ricocheting at the water surface, to finally end up crashing once again against a tree.

“Aaaaah!!” I couldn't help but scream as a salty blood taste filled my mouth.

Several of my ribs were severely damaged as a result of the shock.

I felt that my left elbow was bent in the wrong direction even though I couldn't see it;

I'm beginning to think I'm predisposed to this type of injury.

Instead of attacking me right away, the Deathseeker roared, frantically striking the ground as if to intimidate me.

I'm not sure why it didn't attack me right away, but it's going to pay for it now.

I gathered all of my strength and tried to stand up.

“Fine, let’s end this… “

“Gaaaah!!!” I scoffed in pain.

By using Aina in the same way that I bend and control my appendages, I used it to return my elbow to its proper position.

Instead of erecting a barrier, I erected an interwoven full-body armor with two massive dragon claws in place of arms.

It hurt like hell to move a single muscle but I forced myself nonetheless.

I was dotted with small frames, but with that full-body armor, I grew three times my size, but I doubt I was any bigger or more intimidating than the DeathSeeker.

It charged at me, and so did I at it.

Every step I took was excruciatingly painful, but I persevered through the pain, using my appendage to keep my entire body from abandoning me.

“Raaaah!” I roared not only to get rid of the pain but also to keep myself moving.

It leaped at me just as I was about to reach it, and I grabbed it in midair and slammed it hard on the ground.

I used some of the remaining free tentacles to restrain the Deathseeker, who naturally fought back vehemently. He couldn't tear them off, but he could break free from their shackles in no time, which I would never allow him to do.

I immediately launched a barrage of punches containing all of my rage and frustration.

Each blow I landed on that thing made a small rumble on the ground; it hurt like hell, but I kept hitting it because I knew it hurt it as well.

The ground beneath me began to rumble, then suddenly and unexpectedly the huge plot of land we were upon separated from the Ivohy mainland, collapsing into the Frozen Hell.

The ground shook violently, and I had the unpleasant sensation of falling into nothingness.

The Death seeker set itself ablaze again in an attempt to break free from my shackle, and he succeeded, but we both kept hitting each other, despite the ferocity of the flame it exuded, even though we were falling onto the Frozen hell, we both kept hitting each other.

I heard bone-breaking noise from its body, I also heard the same on mine.

The way things were going, it was obvious that we were going to die from fall damage, but at this point, I'd gotten to the point where I didn't care since the only thing I needed and wanted, for the time being, was to tear that thing apart, and I could tell it was the same for it.

We free-fell past through the first layer, and after hearing some rumbling crashings onto some platforms in the middle layer, I I came with an idea.

I restrained its two arms with my two dragon claws and maneuvered it midair so that his back would crash on the platform.

It appears to have realized what I was up to since it fought back with all its might, but it lost in the end because it was his back that crashed heavily onto the platform.

As a result of the shock, my body was sent blasting somewhere on the platform.

"Graaaaaah" It groaned painfully and so did I.

Even if my landing was cushioned by the DeathSeeker’s body, it didn’t mean that I was completely spared.

My entire body was in excruciating pain.

My 206 bones all felt like they had been smashed to powder.

I heard the beast let out weak and pained growls.

While weakly lying on the ground, noticing that it wasn't dead yet, that it was still alive, and that the job wasn't finished yet.

With all the strength I could muster, I crawled toward it.

Just a little bit…

Just a little bit …

As I got closer to it, I became drenched in the beast's hot blood that was pooling on the ground.

I immobilized the beast's bloody body with my tentacles and proceeded on its stomach, where I could feel bones sticking out of his rib cage.

I could hear the noise and the warmth of the death seeker's weak, inconsistent breathing.

There was no doubt about it, it was about to die.

“Hahahaha…What does it feel to be the weak one now!? Huh!!!” I screamed at full lung at the already dying beast.

Ah~ I wish I could see its face.

I forced its ribcage open with his already protruding ribs; the beast debated itself but was too weak to break free from my tentacle's shackles; it could only scream helplessly.

After roaming through its bloody organs, I arrived at what I believe to be its heart.

With a firm and determined move, I tore it away from its body.

I moved toward its head, where he would clearly see me, and chewed its still tenuously beating heart right in front of it.

I had no means of confirming whether it saw or not what I did, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

It tasted terrible, but it felt great...

After a few minutes, the Deathseeker died without even me noticing...

And suddenly yet not so unexpectedly I had the sensation that all of the energy in my body had suddenly vanished, leaving me unable to control my own body.

I heard earth crumble from the Ivohy, falling onto the platform we were on, causing it to lose balance; I was spared from the falling crumble, but from the shock, my body was expelled into the air and sent falling I surely to the bottom layer or potentially onto one of the platforms of the middle layer; in either case, it's both messy and both would most likely result in my death.

I was in a very messy situation, but I remained serene.

After all, I was the one who came out victorious in this fight.

It hurt but I felt great, how long has it been since I felt something like this … it wasn’t happiness but something approaching it.

I haven't felt this good in ages... I felt a sense of accomplishment… I finally felt that I finally made a step to my goal of exacting vengeance on them, for what they had done to me, to them, and to Syrus.

“Syrus, … did you see that … I won… right?” I said as I felt my body head first diving to a painful and very death.

“I don’t know who is Syrus… but if you don’t do something you will die.” I heard a voice saying.

A voice … a voice?

I saw … or rather I felt light, similar to the Aina light I used to see when I was younger but this hundred time their sizes;

“You are …”

“So what will it be?…. I can help… all you have to is to ask for it.. So what will you do ?”

Even without being said I knew that with each second going I was getting closer to my funeste death.

So I did what I thought to be the wisest thing to do here.

“Help…me”

“Bah… Voilà …” The voice said satisfied.

Suddenly I felt my body being embraced by something warm and my fall coming to a sudden stop.

I let out a sigh of relief.

Reliefs immediately let place to exhaustion.

Just like that, I fainted, or so I thought.