The hysterical cackling of monsters echoed off the damp walls of the cave. Aiden's once snow-white outfit had turned a dark purple hue from the monster blood splashed upon it.
He was sprinting through the obscure, dark corridor, his lungs bursting. Behind him, hundreds of Four-Toothed Hyenas, their notched tongues lolling out, were pursuing him, laughing like death machines that had caught the scent of their prey.
Aiden furiously ripped open the buttons of his jacket, which was slowing him down and reeking of dense blood. He discarded his other upper garments as well, speeding up with a final hope to widen the gap. This marathon of death, lasting for hours, had drained him.
His steps grew heavier, his breathing turning into a ragged wheeze. Trailing his hand along the wall as he moved, he threw himself into the first crevice his fingertips touched. The annoying cackling of the hyenas began to fade into the distance.
Breathless, he collapsed onto his knees. "What the hell kind of creatures are these?! We've been running around like headless chickens for hours," he grumbled.
His parched throat stung with every swallow as if filed by sandpaper. He pressed his right hand to his chest; his heart was pounding against his entire arm as if trying to burst out of his ribcage.
"Ah... I need to bail before those things come back," he said, stumbling as he scrambled to his feet. He stepped out of the crevice and listened to his surroundings, trying to sense even a crumb of spiritual energy. But it was to no avail; everywhere held the same coldness, and there was not the slightest trace of energy. Aiden was truly blind.
"I've even forgotten where I came from..." he said, bowing his head helplessly. He walked through the desolate and narrow corridors of the cave with his hands outstretched, trying to pierce the darkness.
"Oh well," he thought with a bitter smile. "Even if I had eyes, I wouldn't be able to see anything in here anyway." His morale was low, but his survival instinct prevailed.
About seventy meters ahead, he heard a faint scuttling sound from a junction curving from the left diagonal. A rat. After a second's pause, he zeroed in on the sound and dashed at full speed. The rat, trying to flee in fear, was helpless against Aiden's superhuman reflexes.
Catching his prey in seconds, Aiden bit the rat's head off without hesitation and swallowed it without chewing. Holding the rat by its tail with his thumb and index finger, he squeezed firmly toward the severed neck. The internal organs spilled onto the ground with a wet splat.
While popping the remaining meat of the rat into his mouth and chewing, he gathered the offal from the floor into his left palm. He scattered the intestines, kidneys, heart, and other organs left and right.
He took a deep breath and let out a scream powerful enough to make the cave groan. Immediately after, he jumped up and grabbed onto one of the stalactites on the ceiling.
It didn't take long for the Four-Toothed Hyenas to find the source of the sound. When they found the scattered rat offal, they laughed as if they had won a great victory and greedily devoured what they found. Then, they continued on their way as if nothing had happened. What they didn't know was that the "Eyeless Hunter" was now on their tail.
Aiden let the hyenas pass, then began stalking them from the shadows with silent steps.
After hours passed, one of them grew restless and suddenly turned around. Exhausted, Aiden had no energy left to hide.
As soon as the hyena saw him, it attacked, firing the poisonous quills on its tail.
Aiden dodged all the quills except one with agile maneuvers. As that single quill grazed his shoulder, he thrust his hands into his pockets.
He felt the coldness of metal against his fingers. Within seconds, his hands emerged from his pockets, his guard up with brass knuckles slipped onto his fingers. And the rat tail hanging from his mouth? He slurped it up like a strand of pasta. There was a look of senseless joy on his face.