I'm sick of wandering through a city reduced to rubble, its ruins nothing but graves hiding corpses beneath the dust.
The air is thick with ash, sometimes tainted with rot and burnt flesh. But after thirty days venturing in here, strangely enough, I've grown used to it.
Above me, the sky refuses to show mercy—forever pierced by that black sun, its light eternal and cruel.
People used to rejoice and welcoming clear skies, didn't they?
Oh, of course they did-basking in the gentle warmth of sunlight, with blue heavens stretched wide overhead.
But this light? This black sun is hell itself.
The skies are painted blood-red, the air foul and heavy, every breath suffocating, the heat blistering skin. No ordinary human could survive in this inferno, except there two kinds of being can: monsters or Slayers.
I am the latter though I stand far closer to the former than I'd like to admit.
Hell has become my daily life. And those damned monsters are basically my daily routine.
Yes, monster-hulking beasts with hides like steel, their bodies covered in fur like armored gorillas, eyes glowing crimson, fangs sharp enough to tear through bone. I call them "Gorrils Fiends" for their grotesque, or Gory for simplification purpose. But the truth is far sad- they were once a human, their souls long dead, reborn as abominations that exist only to destroy.
From a kilometer away, I can already see them closing in, surrounding me from every direction, eager to rip me apart with claws and fangs.
"Hah… still not tired of losing, are you? Fine. If that's what you bastards want, then I'll take you all on-right here in this pitiful hell!"
I charge first, straight toward the northern beast.
The horde bellows, pounding their chests like raging gorillas on the hunt, before breaking in a savage sprint on all fours.
But I don't back down.
My feet slam against the cracker earth, launching me forward like a rocket, the ground shattering beneath my force, a storm of dust exploding in my wake.
BOOM!
My straight punch smashes into the skull of my target, shattering its nose and fans into shards, its massive body flipping through the air like a spinning wheel.
Another one lunges for my throat. I shift, just a fraction, its fangs grazing past, then drive an uppercut right into its jaw. The crack of bone echoes as its teeth shatter like a glass. Before it can even collapse, I seize its fur with both hands and hurl the monster into the pack beside me-sending them scattering like bowling pins.
'Four ahead, three to my left, two behind.'
I count them in my head, no need to turn and look. My battle sense had readily locked onto their every position-their footsteps, their ragged breaths, their guttural roars. Hell, I can even smell their rancid stench, like sewers filled with rotting pigs.
A beast to my left swings a massive arm to crush me—I parry, then answer with a vertical palm strike, cleaving through its chest like an axe splitting wood. Another claws at my shoulder from behind; I grit through the pain, grab its body, and slam it to the ground, crushing its skull under my heel before it can arise.
I leap, dodging a barrage of giant fists that would've pulped me like a meat grinder. Before I land, I kick off mid-air, blasting forward to collide with two more skulls. Crack! Their death screams are music-sweet, violent music that makes my heart soar.
I land low, spinning on my palms, legs whirling like helicopter blades, smashing through the beast flanking me.
'One left.'
The last Gorilla Fiend no longer roars. No chest-beating bravado. Instead, it trembles, pale, watching me advance.
Ah… I savor this moment-the stench of fear from a monster that reeks like a dying pig.
It bolts, trying to flee.
Pathetic!
I chase it down, far faster, clutch its matted head, and slam it into the earth. Its spine crunches like brittle twigs. No mercy - I drop an elbow like a sledgehammer, caving its skull into fragments.
'Done.'
I spring back to my feet, brushing dust off my filthy uniform. No additional monsters on the horizon. I guess they're learning that, after thirty days on my venture in this hell, they should know better to move cautiously than to send weaklings against me.
I roll my shoulders, stretching, preparing for the next fight and my searching. Then—my comm buzzes. I tap the earpiece.
"How long do you plan to run in that monkey den?! You're not dead yet, are you?!"
Damn, that voice could shatter glass. Maybe life's kicking him harder than the monsters.
"Something bothering you, my friend?"
"Yeah, YOU, Alstair! You've been out there a full month chasing some Missing Person! You don't even know the girl you searching for! Why are you so stubborn?!"
"You wouldn't understand the meaning of a search… It's like chasing a star— burning, exploding, shining bright amidst the cruel darkness of the galaxy. You-"
"Enough, Alstair! I've heard this speech a hundred times! The commander ordered you to return! Stop wasting your life in that cursed wasteland!"
I sigh, like an old man weary from illness. We've had this argument so many times my tongue's gone numb. He nags like a furious girlfriend, begging me to quit. I keep walking anyway, deaf to his words, across the wasteland of ruins.
Then I see it.
A faint green glimmer, flickering within the wreckage of a collapsed apartment 500 meters ahead. My instinct's screams — it isn't a lamp, nor a flashlight. It's the glow of magic. A healer's light.
I sprint to the light, tear though rubble-stone, iron, steel, slab after slab- with my hands raw and bleeding. Finally, I uncover the source.
A woman, with a long white soldier's uniform, clutching a staff topped with a green gem, its light barely alive, signaling for help.
Her face is pale, weary-yet something stirs inside of me. A warmth I can't explain, like the simple joy of a random pretty cashier's smile after you pay or a beautiful waitress serving me hot food. I'm a simple man, too much simple, but such moments are enough to make me fall.
That same sparks ignite now, seeing her silver long hair, her tired eyes fixed on me.
"Avril Star…. Finally, I've found you, beautiful girl."
"Who…are you…?"
Of course, she doesn't know me. But I, Alstair, have already decided. If Avril Star is the one I choose, then I'll shake the world for her.
I dig her free, cradling her frail body. Thirty days trapped – no food, no water, suffocating heat, foul monster stench. She lucky to survive with her magical power.
I giver her a healing potion from my pouch.
"Thank you…"
Her weak face brightens, her blue eyes slowly regaining light. I smile back, relief washing over me.
I tap my comm. "Jeff, I found her – Avril Star. If only you could see this! My heart's exploding – like a comet blazing through a starry night sky, its tail cutting across the heavens, roaring with brilliance! With Avril by my side, I could fly straight to paradise-"
"Alright, Alstair, enough. Too much information. When are you coming back?"
"…damn, you're boring, Jeff."
"Good. Call if you need backup."
I exhale, shaking my head at his lack of imagination. At least Avril is her with me now.
Suddenly, her staff flares, bathing me in green light. Strength surges through me, a boost spell flooding my veins.
"We still have work to do…", Avril lifts her staff, pointing north. The Gorrilla Fiends are gathering again.
"Heh… Surround us again?! Fools! With me and Avril Star together, not even the world—or the galaxy—can tear us apart! Right, Avril?"
"Um… I… don't even know you…"
She's awkward, hesitant, staring at me like I'm insane.
Well, that's fine.
Love indeed takes time!