Chapter 21: Minotaur

Lucia agreed in the end. She had hesitated for so long because it felt so unreal to her. She was so unsure about it, but after seeing how serious Leon was, she believed that he was actually being truthful, and so she took the deal.

Since they had completed the deal, there was really no need for her to stay inside the gates anymore, but Leon wanted to stay a bit longer and hunt for some more monsters just to get the hang of the sword and fighting as a whole.

Lucia decided to stay because now that she was working for him, it meant that she had to heal him in case of an emergency. He tried to tell her that he was okay, but she refused to go and stated that she could not take such a pay and benefits and simply leave his side when he was inside the gate.

After that, Leon did not try to get rid of her anymore. He simply got back to hunting.

He moved through the forest, and not long after, he came across the next demon dog. The dog locked onto Leon fast. It lunged forward.

Leon stepped in and slashed forward. The dog tried to dodge like the others, but he reacted fast, and his blade turned. He cut right through the neck of the dog, and it hit the floor dead.

"That was much easier," he said casually as he sheathed the sword. He turned around to look at Lucia, only to see nothing but fear in her eyes. She was staring at something behind him, and she was trembling.

’She is looking at something. Shit, is there a monster behind me?’

He wondered, but his wonder did not last for long as his suit immediately sent out its danger alarm, a pulse that rushed through his body. He leaped out of the way and managed to get out in time as a massive mace swung through the air at the spot where he had just been.

He turned around to see what had attacked him, and standing there was a monster that had no business being in an F-ranked gate. It was a Minotaur, and it looked extremely angry.

"What the hell is that doing here?" He stared at it as it snorted through its nose and looked at him like he was some sort of meat.

"I don’t think it will allow us to get out of here easily, Lucia, so you rush ahead and give us space. I’ll buy you enough time to get away, and then I’ll run as well," Leon explained. He had no trust in his ability to take on this massive monster that was standing at a staggering seven feet tall.

"You could get hurt," Lucia managed to speak. "Minotaurs are C-ranked gate monsters," she said in a panic.

"Yeah, I know, and somehow it’s here. Let’s not talk about it much. Stand aside and allow me to handle it," Leon said.

The Minotaur was not allowing them to have their little talk. It rushed forward like a train, coming toward Leon fast. Leon had to react as quickly as he could as he saw that mace coming down. Its mace came down like a falling tree.

Leon threw his katana up and parried. The blade caught the shaft, and the force blew through his arms and threw him backward. He hit a tree trunk hard enough to rattle his teeth.

THUD!

"Lucia, go!" he shouted. "Run!"

She was already running.

The Minotaur did not bother with her. It charged at him, and the mace came around in a wide arc. Leon ducked, and the weapon took a chunk out of the tree above his head. Splinters rained down. A hoof slammed into his stomach, and he flew across the clearing.

He rolled, got his knees under him, and took a punch in the face.

BAM!

He crashed into another trunk. Before he could slide down, the Minotaur grabbed him by the leg and swung him through the air like a sack. He hit the ground, bounced, and was thrown again. The sky and the trees blurred together. Every time he landed, the breath left his lungs, and the suit’s danger signal buzzed against his skin.

Finally, the Minotaur dropped him.

Leon lay in the dirt, staring at the leaves overhead. His ears were ringing.

’I’m alive.’

He should not have been. A hit like that would have turned a normal person into paste. He was still breathing, still moving his fingers, and the only reason was the ninety-eight thousand credits wrapped around his body.

’Thank you, suit.’

He rolled onto his side and pushed himself up on shaking arms. His katana lay a few feet away. He crawled to it, picked it up, and stood. His legs wobbled.

The Minotaur snorted and watched him.

’Don’t just panic. Watch it.’

He stopped looking at the whole monster and looked at how it moved. Its swings were wide. Each one covered a huge distance, and the mace needed time to come back around. If he could dodge just one of them, there would be a gap.

’One clean dodge. That’s all I need.’

The Minotaur charged and swung.

Leon dropped flat. The mace roared over his head, and he rolled forward and slashed up at the exposed armpit.

SHING!

Dark blood sprayed. The Minotaur bellowed.

It swung again, back the other way. Leon jumped back and let the mace pass an inch from his chest, then stepped in and cut across its thigh.

SLASH!

It staggered. For a second, he thought he had it.

Then it roared, and its eyes went wild. It came at him with more ferocity than before, ignoring the wounds, and it did not swing the mace this time. It lowered its horns and rammed him head-on.

The impact lifted him off the ground. He flew backward and slammed down hard, the katana slipping from his hand.

He tried to rise and could not.

The Minotaur stood over him. It raised the mace high above its head with both hands, and its shadow covered Leon completely.

’This is bad.’

A stone flew through the air.

CRACK!

It hit the Minotaur square in the side of the head. The monster paused and turned.

Lucia stood at the edge of the clearing, bent over with her hands on her knees, breathing hard. She had run back, and in her fist was another stone.