Fuck. I really am cooked. A poisonous lizardman who has poison and probably a unique skill to boot.
My vision got more and more blurry. Okay then. Seems like biology class was kinda useful.
His saliva acted like a poison. Basically a Komodo dragon. And they did say a Komodo dragon is immune to its own poison, so what should I do now?
Ren pulled my hair up and looked me in the eye. "At least you can die knowing you fought well, Zain."
Fuck it. If he's using literal hax, then I'm cheating too.
I moved my leg back and kicked his groin. Over and over until he let go and crouched down on his knees.
I kicked his leg, throwing him back. I ran to grab the blades and dropped into my stance. "Come at me."
My legs shook. My vision was still blurry. The only option to counter this poison—I tightened my jaw, flexed my muscles, and concentrated.
My vision shifted to the black background, Ren's silhouette standing ahead. My senses improved, but they were deteriorating. My vision was better, at least, thanks to the concentration.
I dashed toward him and swung my blades. "Vrikni Barrage!"
He moved back and dodged each slash. Crap... my slashes have gotten slower.
He spun around, his tail wrapping around my arm to stop me. Then he spun back and punched my face.
I moved back, kicked his ribs, then jumped forward and slashed his chest with my free hand—my injured hand, shaking violently as I moved.
His tail let go of my arm. I dashed toward him and kicked him, sending him flying.
"Where do you think you're going?"
I grabbed his tail, pulled him back, and slashed his chest again. This time, blood came out. So the armor was finally getting weaker.
I took three steps toward him and uppercut him. His head snapped back. He grabbed my head and kneed me, sending me stumbling back.
Ren dashed forward and threw a barrage of punches—my jaw, my forehead, my nose, my chin. I took a step back, blinked, and he was gone. I looked up to see him in the air, his foot slamming into my chest, kicking the air out of me and throwing me far. I lost grip of the blades.
I got up quickly.
Oh, he wants to box? Then I'll show him.
I dashed toward him. He dashed toward me. We threw combos at each other—my one arm against a literal lizardman.
I dodged each combo. Kick. Punch. Roundhouse. Hook. Uppercut. Tail whip.
I ducked and uppercut him. He took steps back, processing the impact.
Nah. That's not enough.
I dashed toward him, grabbing the sword as I moved, using the speed. I swung it with my whole body.
The blade connected with his shoulder, digging into his flesh as his blood spilled.
"Air Slash!"
I moved my body, and the wind moved through the blade, sending Ren flying into the crowd. They parted like the Red Sea.
That's enough. If an Air Slash can cut flesh, then Ren is finished, right?
Oh, fuck no.
Ren got up almost immediately. Lumin glowed on his shoulder. He stumbled slowly. His mouth was full of saliva, but it was different. It was blue. Bright aqua blue.
His mouth was glowing.
Something's wrong.
As if time had frozen, he snapped his head directly at me. His mouth glowing. Then—
BANG!
I looked at my shoulder. A chunk of my trapezius was gone. Blood spilled out as I saw smoke rising from the wound. I gritted my teeth, holding back a scream.
I knelt, clutching the severe wound.
What was that?
I looked back at him. A small hole in his mouth. Almost like a tube.
There's no way...
He had a whole fricking gun in his mouth. The tube extended. The silver shone. I looked back at my shoulder and saw some of his blue saliva on it.
I saw it now.
He wasn't aiming to kill me. That bullet ball had his saliva. So the poison could get into my exposed flesh.
That smart bastard.
I started coughing profusely. But this wasn't normal. I kept coughing, my body heaving with each one, until I saw blood on the floor.
I was coughing up blood.
His poison was taking full effect.
Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.
The poison. The exposed flesh. The aching muscles. My deteriorating senses. The sweating. The fatigue. The bleeding.
All from a psychopath.
But the moderators were right.
Ren wasn't a rookie. Or an adventurer.
He was a psychopath.
---
But I wasn't afraid.
Why wasn't I scared?
It was like my fight-or-flight instincts were just screaming—
Fight.
Fight.
Fight.
Why? Why, after all this, was I feeling excited? Like my life had purpose. Like a dopamine rush. Like my body was actually feeling good even while it was suffering.
Was I a masochist or something?
It was like... it was like—
I couldn't even describe it.
All of this was exciting.
I was enjoying this.
I wanted more.
Ren dropped back to all fours, ready to pounce.
"Are you ready to die, Zain?"
I smiled.
The biggest smile I'd ever had. My eyes opened wide. All my teeth showed.
"Oh, I'm ready! But I'm not sure about death. I should be asking YOU that question!"
My arms felt warmer. The same warmth I felt from the jaguar.
I looked down. Lumin flames covered my forearms completely. They were taking form. A jaguar. The flames looked like the arms of a jaguar, wild but shaped—spots and everything. And my hands... now claws. Sharp and ready.
My teeth felt different too. My fangs were longer and sharper.
I've done it. I've become one with my jaguar.
This is it.
This is my Unique Skill.
BLAZING PREDATOR!
I crouched down in the same position as Ren. Flames appeared, covering my mouth—the mouth of a flaming purple jaguar over my own mouth and nose.
I looked at Ren.
His expression had changed. No longer confident. His eyes were wide. His stance was tense. Like his own body was reacting to my transformation.
Two blades in my hands, now completely engulfed in purple flame—like the blades of a cherubim.
This time, I would win.
For Kora. For Dominio. For Aurelia. For Rela.
Because this was no longer a battle of a predator...
This was a battle of a predator facing its hunter.