Dante hit the ground hard as a sickening crack sounded; pain radiated through his body as a warm trickle of blood came from the deep, ugly gashes on his arms.
Dazed and unsteady, he staggered to his feet, fists trembling at his sides.
Just then, the hound pounced on him again.
This time, Dante was ready; he ducked beneath its ferocious leap, feeling the rush of air as its claws sliced through the space above him.
This time, Dante stood his ground.
With all the strength he could muster, he launched a punch, his fist connecting with its throat.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
He punched three times in fast succession. Each punch broke and split open his knuckles, although these punches were nothing to the hound, but they were enough to make it stumble back.
"COME ON! KILL HIM...!"
"DRINK HIS BLOOD!"
The crowd roared in disappointment; laughter mixed with boos and curses.
They craved to see bloodshed, not a child swinging wildly like a drunk fighter.
The hound, seemingly triggered by the crowd's curses, had its eyes burn brighter. It snarled, crimson liquid drippingfrom its mouth before it charged again.
This time, the speed was much faster and more savage than before.
"Oh....no," Dante's eyes widened, and before he could react, the hound slammed into him with immense force that made his bones creak.
The hound opened its huge maw; fangs flashing ominously sank into his shoulder while its claws sliced through his chest, leaving deep wounds with blood pouring out.
"Ahhh.. this is too painful!" Dante screamed in agony, his face twisted in unbearable pain.
He hammered its head; eachpunch left him weaker.
The hound's fangs sank deeper as blood sprayed everywhere, the metallic scent driving the hound even crazier.
The crowd erupted into loud cheers; they were alive with energy, their chants filling the pit with thunder.
DIE!
DIE!
DIE!
The crowd screamed, their eyes burning with frenzy, filled with crazed excitement.
"No, I can't die here... I can't leave her with that monster..." Dante gritted his teeth. Something snapped inside him, a primal instinct igniting an indomitable will to survive.
The hound thrashed its head and threw Dante across the cage; he slammed against the bars of the cage, and a few bones were broken.
Dante staggered to his feet as he held his shoulder, which had been torn open with his bones visible; the deep gashes on his chest continued to bleed.
His entire body was wracked with pain. He looked at the hound, gritting his teeth as he bore with the pain, standing in a boxing position, his entire small build soaked in blood, his eyes burning with determination, with the crowd shouting with frenzied expressions behind him.
The hound lunged at him once again, teeth bared. Dante's eyes were locked onto the hound's exposed throat as desperation demanded action.
When the hound was above him, its fangs bared towards him, he ducked under it, opened his mouth, and bit down hard; his teeth sank into the throat of the hound.
His teeth sank into flesh, the taste of hot blood flooding his mouth and over him; the stench was both foul and intoxicating. Holding the hound, he slammed it down hard on the ground, making the cage shake.
He bit deeper as he held it down. The hound's body thrashed on the ground, desperately clawing at the ground, yet he clung on tight, refusing to let go.
With one forceful pull, he tore open the throat of the hound, ripping out its esophagus with his mouth.
Blood sprayed everywhere and dripped down like rain; the entire cage was covered in blood as Dante was soaked in it.
The hound convulsed violently, its chrome legs scraping against the ground as sparks kept flying everywhere.
Dante knelt beside the hound with his head lowered, the hound's esophagus still in his mouth.
The entire underground pit was dead silent as everyone looked at the brutal hell in front of them... and then, a moment later, the entire pit erupted into thunderous roars.
"YEAHHHHHH....!"
"BLOOD!"
"BLOOD!"
"BLOOD!"
"THAT BOY'S A DEMON!"
"A FUCKING DEMON!"
Dante collapsed beside the lifeless hound, his small frame trembling violently as blood poured from his deep wounds: his arms, chest, and shoulders.
Each breath he took felt like a knife being driven into his heart; it was really painful.
He lay there, on the brink of losing consciousness, as the cheers and roars of the crowd washed over him like a cruel wave.
"HAHAHAHAHA....."
"THAT BASTARD IS MY SON....!"
"HAHAHAHA....!"
He could hear the maniacal laughter of his father. His frail figure pushed through the crowd as he ran towards the betting booth with his hands outstretched; his father didn't even spare him a glance.
No thoughts of concern,only thoughts of winning filled his mind: how much liquor he could buy, how many debts he could pay, and how much he could gamble.
As he ran past Dante's cage, he spat out one final insult: nothing but meat. And just like that, he was gone.
The handlers dragged Dante away carelessly and tossed him aside as if he were garbage.
Lying on a pile of other corpses, Dante felt his vision blur.
"I won... I won... I won... she is safe... she is safe..."
This was all the thoughts running through his head; he didn't care much about his injuries; all his mind was on his sister.
After a while, he struggled to his feet, pain screaming through every fiber of his being.
Using the bandages that were thrown at him, he wrapped them around his injuries, but they offered little comfort as blood seeped through them instantly.
Walking felt like he was carrying a mountain. But still… he limped on towards home.
The shack reeked of mold and rust; its roof leaked ominously overhead while dirt covered the floor.
Dante limped into the shack, looking around frantically, and there she was, his little sister, waiting for him with her tiny two-year-old frame curled up on a ragged blanket.
The moment she spotted him, she sprang up, her small feet pattering against the ground as tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Brother!"
She wrapped her arms around his legs but froze when she noticed the blood soaking through his clothes.
Her hands trembled as she tried to press the scraps of cloth against his wounds, her little fingers fumbling desperately in fear and love.
Dante knelt down despite the agony he was going through and looked at her with happiness in his eyes.
"I'll get us out. I promise!" He looked at her and said with determination in his voice.
"When I grow up...we'll run away from here. We'll see the sky and not this hell"
She looked at him with wide eyes full of innocence and hope, tears streaking down her face and smiled softly.
"I know you will".