Capítulo 31: I win

The midnight stars shimmered like tiny beacons in the sky, casting a gentle glow over the thick forest. Moonlight filtered through the dense canopy, dappling the ground with a silvery sheen. In the stillness, a lone figure moved, his breathing uneven, his steps tentative as he regained his balance after narrowly escaping the jaws of death. Jack's chest rose and fell as he looked back at the shadowed spot where he had just been standing. Cold sweat trickled down his brow.

'I guess this is why perception is everything. A second slower and I'd be gone,' he thought, suppressing a shiver as he relived the scene in his mind. Reaching up, his fingers grazed the back of his neck where a sharp sting pulsed. When he pulled his hand away, he found it slick with blood. The beast had missed, but only just.

Before him stood the creature that had come so close to ending him. Its three heads all stared at him with glowing, predatory eyes, and Jack could feel their hatred rolling off them in waves. The beast remembered him all too well from their last encounter—and it seemed to hold a grudge.

"I guess you're not one to forgive and forget, huh?" Jack murmured, observing the creature's every move. His gaze flitted from one head to another, gauging the beast's stance. It hadn't forgotten. No, this creature wasn't just driven by instinct. It remembered him, and it wanted payback.

All three heads snarled, exposing rows of razor sharp teeth slick with saliva. The beast's growls reverberated through the air like thunder, and it stood poised, tense and eager to pounce. In a flash, Jack realized this wasn't an ordinary creature's hunger—it wanted revenge. Maybe it was just the way of this world, where the strong sought out the stronger, driven by some primal urge to conquer or be conquered. Or maybe it was pure spite. Either way, it had its eyes on him.

'Its speed… it's even faster than last time,' Jack thought, his heart pounding. He'd barely escaped it before, and now it was stronger—much stronger.

[Magomon Trion: Level 17]

When he first encountered it, the beast had been at Level 15. But Jack hadn't spent the last few days idly either. He'd trained, advancing his skills and sharpening his senses. Now, he was more alert, his instincts honed by the same power that drove him to wield his blade and harness his strength.

And he'd need every bit of it tonight.

In a split second, the Magomon Trion disappeared from his sight, leaving only a blur where it had been standing. He spun around, instinctively raising his short blade just in time to intercept the strike. He couldn't see the claws, only sense them—razor-sharp and deadly as they came at him with brutal force.

Jack gritted his teeth as he pushed against the beast's claws, his muscles straining under the weight of its strength. He could feel his entire body trembling from the force, like a taut bowstring on the verge of snapping. The beast was stronger than him by miles, but he refused to back down.

With a mighty shove, he broke free from the pressure, stumbling backward. His feet skidded across the ground, and he barely managed to stop himself from toppling over. He stared the creature down, a fire of defiance igniting in his eyes.

'Fuck you!,' he thought, clenching his teeth as he felt the tremors coursing through his limbs. 'This thing could break me like a twig if I'm not careful.'

He glanced around, scanning the area until his gaze landed on a massive tree with a trunk as thick as a boulder. 'That might just be enough,' he thought, a plan forming in his mind. He knew he couldn't win head-to-head. The beast was in a league of its own, but he might be able to use the forest to his advantage.

Jack didn't have any specialized sword skills, no intricate techniques. But he did have quick thinking—and desperation.

Without wasting a second, he broke into a sprint, dashing toward the tree. The Magomon Trion let out a guttural roar, clearly displeased. It saw him retreating and assumed he was making a break for safety. But the thought only enraged it further. This was what happened the last time, it could never let it repeat itself, tonight, it would savor every moment of ripping him to shreds.

The beast launched forward, its immense speed causing it to blur into near-invisibility. Jack risked a glance back, seeing only a streak of movement as it pursued him. He gripped his blade tightly, his heart pounding faster with each step. This was going to be close.

'I have to time this perfectly,' he told himself, calculating every move. He could feel the creature bearing down on him, each step closing the gap between them.

Just as he reached the tree, Jack made a split-second decision. He dropped his blade to the ground and braced himself against the rough bark. For an instant, he looked down at the fallen blade, feeling a pang of worry. 'If this doesn't work, I swear, Alogra, I'll haunt you even from my grave!' he thought furiously.

The beast was nearly upon him, its claws outstretched and ready to slice him in two. Its teeth gleamed under the moonlight, a flash of silver like deadly knives. Jack took a deep breath and, at the very last moment, threw himself to the side, letting go of the tree with a lunge.

The beast's claws missed him by a hair's breadth, swiping through empty air and burying themselves in the tree's trunk with a deafening thud. Bark exploded outward as its claws dug deep, the force splintering wood and sending shards flying. Jack stumbled, clutching his chest where the claws had grazed him, his shirt torn and damp with fresh blood. Pain seared through him, but he ignored it, grinning fiercely as he saw the beast's claws embedded in the tree.

'I win!'