Chapter 71 Bitten

Chapter 71: Chapter 71 Bitten

Rowan kept running, his eyes darting from one direction to another as he desperately searched for a path that would lead him away from the creatures. But there was none. Everywhere he looked, there were only dark walls, strange blue crystals, and people running for their lives. Some were screaming while others had already fallen to the ground, unable to keep up with the monsters chasing them.

Compared to everyone else, Rowan supposed he was in a slightly calmer situation. At least nothing was chasing him directly. For now.

He slowed down for a moment, trying to think of a plan. Where am I supposed to go? There had to be an exit. There had to be something.

As Rowan looked around, his eyes landed on two people nearby. A woman and a little boy were struggling desperately to move. Something had wrapped itself around their feet, preventing them from running properly.

"Get it away from me, Mom!" The little boy cried as he fell onto the ground. His mother immediately tried to pull him up, but whatever was holding them refused to let go.

"Come on! Get up!" She was crying, her hands shaking as she desperately tried to free her son’s legs.

Then Rowan heard a growl. His head snapped toward the sound. More creatures were approaching. Several of them moved on four legs while others crawled along the walls. Above them, strange flying creatures circled through the darkness, their bulging eyes fixed on the woman and child. It was obvious what they were thinking. They had found their meal.

Rowan’s heart tightened. He couldn’t just stand there and watch them die. Without thinking, he rushed toward them.

"Duck, you two!"

The woman looked at him in confusion. Tears streamed down her face as she stared at the stranger running toward her.

"Get down!" Rowan screamed. He was still too far away. If he didn’t do something immediately, they would be dead before he could reach them. "I said duck!"

But instead of listening, the woman looked forward. Rowan’s eyes widened.

"No!"

A flying creature suddenly dove toward her. Its enormous beak struck her face with terrifying force, piercing through her flesh and digging deep into her eyes. The woman released a horrifying scream.

Rowan stopped dead. His entire body shuddered. He couldn’t move.

The little boy screamed for his mother, but another creature reached him first. Its enormous hand grabbed him.

"No!" Rowan watched helplessly as the creature squeezed. The boy’s body was crushed in its grasp. Blood and flesh burst from between its fingers. A terrible shriek echoed through the dungeon.

Then everything became silent. Every creature turned toward Rowan. Their eyes locked onto him. For some reason, it felt as though they were enraged. He had tried to take their food away from them.

The creatures charged. Rowan’s eyes bulged.

"Oh shit."

He turned and ran. He didn’t care anymore. Those people didn’t know him. They wouldn’t have thanked him if he had managed to save them. And now he had nearly gotten himself killed for strangers. What the hell was I thinking?

Behind him, the creatures roared. Rowan ran faster. He didn’t dare look back.

The blue crystals illuminated parts of the path as he moved deeper into the dungeon, but the further he went, the more hopeless everything seemed. There was no exit. No door. No staircase. Nothing. It was as though the entire place was one enormous abyss.

"How did I even get here?" Rowan grabbed his hair, staggering around in confusion. "How are these things even real? They’re not supposed to exist! None of this is supposed to exist!"

His voice echoed through the darkness. Then something moved.

Pain suddenly shot through his hand. "Ah!" Rowan looked down. A tiny creature was attached to his skin. It was barely the size of a cockroach, but its mandibles had dug deeply into his hand.

"Get off!" He shook his arm violently. The creature refused to release him.

"Let go of me!" He grabbed it with his other hand and tried to pull it away. Another sharp pain struck. Rowan froze. Another one had bitten his second hand.

"What the hell?!" He looked down. The floor was moving. Thousands of the tiny creatures were crawling toward him. Hundreds of them were already surrounding his feet.

Rowan’s face went pale. "No, no, no." He turned and ran. He didn’t know where he was going anymore. He simply needed to get away.

The creatures continued biting into his body, draining his blood. His strength began disappearing. His vision became blurry. His breathing became heavier. I’m losing too much blood.

Rowan stumbled. He couldn’t keep running. His legs were becoming weak. If he didn’t get them off soon, he would die.

Desperately, Rowan leaned against one of the crystal-covered walls. Then he noticed the sharp edges of the crystals. An idea came to him. It was reckless. It was painful. But he didn’t have another choice.

Rowan slammed his arm against the crystal. "Ah!" One of the creatures was struck by the sharp edge. Its body split open. Black blood spilled onto his skin, releasing a horrible rotten smell.

Rowan grimaced. "Disgusting." He did it again. And again. He dragged his arms along the crystal, using the sharp surface to crush and cut the creatures clinging to him. Eventually, they began falling away. One after another. Their black blood covered his arms.

Rowan’s breathing was ragged. He didn’t even have the strength to celebrate. He staggered away from the wall and continued deeper into the darkness. His body felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. He was hungry. Thirsty. Exhausted. His entire body ached.

Eventually, Rowan couldn’t continue. He leaned against another wall before slowly sliding down. His head dropped. "I can’t..." His eyes struggled to remain open. He needed food. Water. Rest. Anything. But there was nothing. His body finally gave up. Rowan collapsed onto the ground.

For a while, he didn’t know how long he had been unconscious. Then something cold and sticky landed on his face.

Drip.

Rowan’s eyebrow twitched. Another drop landed on his cheek.

Drip.

His eyes slowly opened. "What...?" He wiped his face. The substance was thick and disgusting.

Rowan looked upward. His blood ran cold. A monstrous creature was leaning over him. It had three heads. Its body resembled that of an enormous snake, but hundreds of thin legs covered its sides, crawling and twitching across its body. Saliva dripped from all three mouths. It was preparing to eat him.

Rowan’s eyes widened. "AAAAAAAH!"

The creature lunged. Rowan instinctively raised both hands. A sudden force exploded from his palms.

BOOM!

The creature was blasted backward. Its enormous body slammed into the ground. The three heads convulsed violently as it struggled to rise. Then its body crashed down again. Hard. The creature stopped moving.

Rowan stared at it in disbelief. "What... just happened?"

Before he could understand, a strange voice echoed directly inside his consciousness.

[Congratulations, Rowan Asfaang.] [You have awakened.] [Rank: F-Class.] [Ability: Beast Tamer and Controller.] [Your ability possesses unlimited potential.] [You may advance to SSS-Rank.]

Rowan froze. "What?" He looked around. There was nobody there. "Who said that?"

Silence.

"Hey!"

Nothing.

"Wait! You can’t just tell me I have an ability and then disappear!"

Still nothing.

"At least tell me how to get out of here!"

No response came.

Rowan stared into the darkness. "Fuck this." He struggled to stand. His body was still weak, but somehow he felt different.

Then something caught his attention. A flying creature descended from above. Rowan instinctively prepared himself to run. But it didn’t attack. Instead, the creature landed in front of him. It lowered its head.

Rowan stared. "What...?" He looked around. That was when he noticed something strange. There were creatures everywhere. Abominations that could probably tear him apart within seconds surrounded the area. Yet none of them attacked. They weren’t even approaching him. They were simply watching.

Rowan’s eyes widened. "Oh." He slowly raised his hand. "Is this because of what that voice said?" Beast Tamer and Controller. That had to be it.

He looked down at his arms. The places where the insects had bitten him were no longer bleeding. Instead, strange green veins had appeared beneath his skin. They spread from his hands and moved throughout his arms.

Rowan stared at them. "What the..." Despite everything he had been through, he suddenly felt stronger. Not completely recovered, but stronger.

The flying creature lowered itself again. It almost looked like it wanted him to climb onto its back.

Rowan stared at it. "You want me to get on?" The creature didn’t move. He looked around. Staying here wasn’t an option. If these creatures really couldn’t hurt him, then perhaps this was his chance to escape.

"Fine." Rowan climbed onto its back. The moment he settled down, the creature spread its wings.

"Wait." It launched upward. "AAAAAAAH!" Rowan screamed like a child. "Slow down!"

The creature continued climbing. Higher. And higher. The dungeon became smaller beneath him. Rowan clung tightly to its body, terrified that one wrong movement would send him falling to his death.

Then he noticed the creature’s face. Its horrifying beak was only inches from him. Rowan’s stomach turned. "Oh god..." He looked away immediately. "Don’t look at me. Just fly."

The creature continued upward. For the first time since arriving in that terrible place, Rowan saw something that didn’t belong to the dungeon. Light. His eyes widened.

"There!" Above them was a massive opening. The creature flew straight toward it. Rowan’s heart began pounding. An exit!

The moment they passed through the opening, Rowan was suddenly thrown from the creature’s back. "WHAT?!" He fell through the air. "AAAAAAAH!" The wind hit his face. He flailed desperately.

Then—

SPLASH!

Rowan crashed into water. The cold shock nearly knocked the breath from his lungs. He surfaced, coughing violently. For several seconds, he simply floated there. Then he looked around. Water. Buildings. The sky. Earth. He had made it back.

Rowan’s eyes filled with relief. "I’m back..."

But the relief lasted only a few seconds. Something was wrong. Very wrong. The city was no longer the place he remembered. Buildings had collapsed. Cars floated through the flooded streets. Entire houses had been torn apart and swept away. Corpses floated across the surface of the water.

Rowan slowly turned around. His breathing stopped. Far in the distance stood what remained of his neighborhood. Or rather, what was supposed to be his neighborhood. The apartment where his mother and sister had lived was gone. Completely submerged. Nothing remained except the tops of a few structures beneath the water.

Rowan stared. His mind refused to accept what his eyes were showing him. "No..." His lips trembled. "Mom?" There was no answer. "Jacqueline?" Silence.

Rowan’s chest tightened. He looked around at the destroyed city. The people. The corpses. The endless water. Everything he knew was gone.

His argument with his mother suddenly returned to his mind. I wish you were the one that died instead of Dad.

Rowan’s face crumpled. He hadn’t meant it. He had been angry. He had been hurt. He never thought those would be the last words he would say to her.

"No..." He covered his mouth. Tears streamed down his face. "Mom!" His scream echoed across the flooded city. "JACQUELINE!"

There was no response. Only the sound of water moving through the ruins.

Rowan fell into the water, his hands trembling. The world he had hated only hours ago was gone.