A monstrous, three-headed dog rose from the molten cracks in the earth, towering over us like a living mountain. It stood as tall as a two-story building, its black fur matted with scars and streaks of blood that evaporated from its own body heat.
Rivers of magma spilled out its three snarling maws as it crept forward with slow, deliberate steps, shaking the ground beneath us.
I rushed to grab the helpless girl off the ground and hauled her over my shoulder before breaking off into a full sprint.
The wild beast stood beneath the corridor I'd come through earlier, leaving me no choice but to run the other way.
My legs moved desperately and carried me forward as if they were sentient, fearing for their imminent demise. Thankfully, the creature continued moving at a measured pace, allowing me to put considerable distance between us.
I sprinted with all I had until the rift guardian became a small speck in my peripheral vision. I would have ran farther, but the jagged walls of the cave stopped me in my tracks.
I turned to face the monstrosity, wary of any sudden movements, and slammed the girl's head on the wall in the process.
"Ouch! What's wrong with you? Let me down, you idiot!"
I gripped her tighter, refusing to comply with her haughty orders.
"It's too dangerous. The monster is heading towards us. I'll carry you and find a way out."
She squirmed in resistance, weakly hammerfisting my spine until I reluctantly dropped her on a bed of scalding rubble and dust.
She let out a deafening shriek and rolled over to her side as I blared out in frustration.
"Hey, are you crazy?! Why are you hitting me when that damn dog is coming after us?"
The girl let out a defeated groan and lied limp on the floor.
"Forget it, I give up. We're definitely going to die here, so just leave me alone and let me be. I was able to prevent my death so far by using my healing ability, but l've exhausted all my spirit energy in the process. I won't be able to fight it as I am now, and an amateur like you definitely won't be able to fight it. I can't even heal you if you get injured until my spirit energy is recovered. It's over. We're doomed."
"No."
"What? What do you mean no?"
I clicked my tongue and glared at her, my eyes filled with disgust.
"Listen, miss IS Corp princess. I'm not like you. I won't give up. Not ever again. I have somebody that's given everything they have to me, and I finally got the chance to repay her. Do you think it make sense for me to sit here and accept defeat?"
"Ye—"
"Hell no it doesn't! And why did you actually try to answer that? It was a rhetorical question."
I drove my palm into my face and shook my head.
"You just lie here and watch. I'll definitely beat this thing and get a generous serving of reward money. If you change your mind and decide to help me, you can restore your spirit energy while you wait here and heal me when I tell you to."
She struggled to sit up as she reached towards me and locked onto my face with her wide eyes.
"Wh-what are you going to do?"
I walked past her outstretched hand and shot her a wide grin.
"I'm going to get beat up until it dies."
"What?"
I ignored her question and sprinted towards the monster, leaving the girl coughing in a cloud of dust.
Alarmed by my sudden change of course, the three headed creature lowered its massive frame, blatantly preparing for something ominous.
Is it going to charge at me?
I braced my body for impact but was pushed back by a violent gust of wind instead as an earsplitting roar tore through the cave.
Six tall pillars of lava erupted from the ground, encircling me and cutting off any escape. The heat grew intense and made me lightheaded as my skin began to burn just from the proximity.
Then, from each of its three maws, torrents of fire burst forth, surging toward me at a blistering speed.
Shit. If that hits me, I'll be dead for sure. But I can't dodge it with these lava pillars around me…
I tried to take a moment to weigh my options, but the fire beams were now inches away from my face.
Aghh, fuck it!
I covered my face with my arms and rolled through the vertical streams of lava, barely dodging the blasts of fire as they burnt the edges of my ears and hair.
A considerable portion of my forearm melted in the process, revealing thin strands of muscle and bone with charred pieces of mangled flesh hanging loosely. The side of my torso was torn open, blood gushing out it like a broken faucet.
It hurt like hell. No, much worse than that, but I managed to stay on my feet.
An angelic voice suddenly serenetaed my ears.
[Passive ability Martingale initiated. Doubling your strength…]
Well, that's good. At least my ability works...
The monster lowered itself again, and I continued to run towards it, fully prepared to dash through another eruption of lava.
But the lava never came. Instead, the monster lunged forward and soared through the air, cutting the distance between us in just a few seconds.
I dashed to the side as fast as I could, but its claws were faster. A heavy swing ripped through my arm, tearing it off my body with an explosion of blood and shattered bone.
[Doubling your strength…]
The impact sent me crashing into the floor. My body bounced and tumbled across the rocky terrain, eventually landing on a pit of molten stone.
I struggled to move as loose rocks burned holes into my flesh, branding deep, bloody scars across my back.
[Doubling your strength…]
My screams echoed throughout the cave as I coughed a heap of blood and stumbled up to my feet. The world spun around me as my vision doubled, swaying my surroundings in and out of focus.
In a flash, the rift guardian appeared before me once more. I stumbled behind a stray boulder as three bestial jaws came crashing down. It tore through the boulder like gelatin, spraying shards and dust that sliced through my skin like razors.
[Doubling your strength…]
It spat out a massive chunk of stone that slammed me back onto the ground. All air escaped my body, and another mouthful of blood gushed past my lips.
[Doubling your strength…]
Urghhh, not yet. Just a bit more…
I lied helplessly on the floor as the monster stomped on my leg, leaving nothing but a splatter of meat and bloody mist where my knee once was.
[Doubling your strength…]
A bit more…
I turned my head to a voice screaming out in the far distance through the muffled ringing in my ear.
"I have enough soul energy to heal you now! I just need to get closer! Wait for me! Don't die! Please don't die! Please!"
No, not yet…
The rift guardian continued to attack me with everything in its disposal. It clawed at me with its feet, slammed my body around with its tail, and ripped my limbs to pieces with its fangs.
[Doubling your strength…]
[Doubling your strength…]
[Doubling your strength…]
I was a mangled mess. Everything below my stomach had been torn away, leaving only my torso, right arm, and my head.
My mind grew numb as the world around me began to fade away. A silhouette of a frail girl feebly crawled her way towards me as darkness crept in from the edges of my vision.
Not yet. Just one more..
The monster unleashed one final attack, blasting a surge of flames at my body, burning me to a crisp.
[Doubling your strength…]
Then, I felt it. My life was about to end in a moment's notice, but a wave of immeasurable strength was forming inside me. I let out a ghastly croak towards the silhouette writhing towards me.
"N-now… heal me now."
Suddenly, a ray of pure golden light illuminated around the girl's body as my senses flowed back into me.
I gasped for air, feeling my lungs work properly once again. I was alive.
But with my senses working fully and my adrenaline having worn off, the pain echoed throughout my body tenfold. My wounds were closed, but my limbs remained torn off my torso as every remaining nerve and muscle screamed for mercy.
I let out a blood curdling groan and barely managed to turn my head towards the rift guardian.
"Urghhh… That hurt you damn bastard."
Its snout was directly atop my face as it opened its maw to swallow my body whole.
"Ahh, shit. You won't give me a break, will you? Well, I hope this works..."
I faintly lifted the one arm I had left and swung it with all my might, producing a violent gale that reduced the nearby rocks into dust and formed cracks on the floor. My hand brushed across the monster's nostrils, and a deafening sonic boom shook the cave.
In an instant, the monster erupted, bursting into a storm of flesh and blood that splattered across the walls and rained down from above.
Large chunks of meat crashed into my face, forcing me to turn and stare at the girl, who lied frozen with her mouth agape. She stared blankly, mesmerized at the hauntingly beautiful explosion of violence. A wide smile crept across my blood-soaked face.
"I told you so."