229 No place for two monsters
The goblins stopped throwing objects immediately after their bodies froze from fear, and their breathing became heavy under the pressure of dread.
From the goblins’ perspective, they felt as if down below them lurking in the fog was a monster more dangerous than the alpha grizzly bear hiding in the pit. The thought of such monstrosity climbing up and devouring them with no fighting chance terrified them even further.
*Roar!* The alpha grizzly bear fought back with its intent. However, it wasn’t potent enough to overpower the heavy pressure of dread escaping from Vincent’s body.
The alpha grizzly bear’s survival instincts urged it to flee. The twitching body hidden in the fog was inflicting the thoughts of escape.
The goblins regained control of their bodies thanks to the alpha grizzly bear fighting back intent with intent. The goblins helped each other and hastily moved away from the crater. They feared of accidentally falling and suffering a fate similar to Iris.
Iris’s father, however, held his staff tightly and remained looking at the edge. He remained standing with a pair of trembling legs with the hopes of seeing what was happening.
Iris’s father wanted to discover the reason why such a feeling of dread suddenly appeared out of thin air. ‘Is it god? Is god alive again? Please, save my progeny.’ He wishfully thought.
The alpha grizzly bear started to sweat. The fog dispersed after all the cold turned into the scorching heat. The layer of ice on the walls and the ground melted in a few seconds.
As a retainer of Vincent, Iris had resistance to Vincent’s mutated bloodlust emitting out of his body. She wasn’t feeling the same overbearing suppressing pressure of devouring intent as everyone else.
.....
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtHowever, Iris found it difficult to breathe and her skin touching the heated ground hurt. The air in the pit made it arduous to breathe unless a person was tall enough almost to reach the opening of the pit.
*Poof!*
A massive hot burst of steam carried by a forceful gust devoured all the fog. A cloud of green steam raised out of the crater and dissipated. The capability to see inside the pit returned.
Iris raised her hands and covered her mouth, but it wasn’t enough to hold the tears of joy sliding on her cheeks. Vincent was standing in front of her. He stood still like a statue, and the bleeding stopped.
“Vincent!” Iris uttered with her trembling lips.
*Crackle* Vincent abruptly bent his head. *Crack* Vincent clenched his fists so tightly that his fingers started to make a loud breaking sound. *Hah~ Hah~ Hah~* Was the breathing sound exiting his mouth. It was similar to an accelerated heartbeat after overexerting one’s body.
Steam began escaping from the laceration on his back. Soon, mutated green blood seeped from the wound and started dripping on Iris.
Iris became afraid of what was happening before her eyes, yet the mutated blood dripping on her broken leg felt warm and soothing. The pain in her leg felt less by the second.
Iris lowered her gaze and noticed the mutated blood entering her wounds. The mutated green blood moved as if it was a living being, spreading all over her body as if it was trying to devour her.
Iris tried to swat the blood off of her with her hand. However, the moment her skin touched the blood, it attached itself to her hand.
While Iris tried to shake the mutated blood away, her heart raced, overflowing with panic. However, anxiety and panic strangely decreased the more her body became covered.
Iris stopped struggling for a moment after it became harder to move her arms. She lowered her gaze and noticed how the mutated blood covering most of her body had a reflective sheen. Furthermore, the blood appeared to have become hardened instead of the previous lifelike mutated liquid.
Iris unconsciously moved both of her legs, and *Crackle* the thin layer of hardened mutated blood broke into clumps of ash. Iris became surprised when her broken leg wasn’t hurting anymore, and it looked uninjured. Additionally, her skin became smooth and rejuvenated.
“I don’t feel pain. My leg is fixed. ” Iris mumbled. She raised her gaze to look at Vincent. *Gasp!* She saw Vincent staring at her with a terrifying expression on his face with a few green veins protruding here and there.
The white of his eyes turned black, and the green iris radiated emerald blinding light. On his arms were a pair of mutated blood gauntlets covered in bright green glowing cobwebs-like cracks. Furthermore, the wound on his back wasn’t there anymore. It was healed.
“V-vincent, is that you? You look scary and feel different...” Iris asked with a wavering voice.
Iris felt terrified of his appearance, yet she thought it was going to be all ok deep down in her heart. Previously, Iris didn’t feel his pulse when she checked his condition, but now Vincent was bursting with life, powerful vitality, and consumed by rage.
Iris didn’t think the kind and caring Vincent was the same vicious-looking and blood craving Vincent standing before her. Iris thought Vincent became possessed at the moment of death. Iris started thinking like this after the mutated blood covered her body and later healed all her wounds.
*Gulp* Iris courageously got up even if her body trembled in fear. She bravely approached Vincent and extended her hand. Vincent kept glaring at Iris until he felt a caring trembling hand touching his face.
*Grunt* Vincent deeply frowned and revealed his teeth. He pushed Iris away, slamming her against the wall. *Boom!* A large chunk of thick earth fell on Vincent with great force.
“No!” Iris screamed after witnessing Vincent getting crushed by an almost hardened thick ball of earth about twice the size of a large yoga ball. Vincent lay underneath without moving an inch.
Iris rushed to Vincent’s side and started removing the thick earth off of Vincent. “No matter how you look, it’s still you. I’m sorry for becoming afraid of you. Please don’t die because of me.” Iris cried while digging Vincent out.
*Roar!* The alpha grizzly bear roared loudly, satisfied for finally achieving vengeance. However, the unsettling feeling of dread didn’t go away.
The alpha grizzly bear raised its paw and swung it at Iris with a lot of force behind it. *Graa!* As if Vincent was covered with soft and light mud, he pulled himself up in the blink of an eye. Vincent pushed Iris on the ground with one arm and viciously swung vertically with the other.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm*Splatter... thud* Two of the alpha grizzly bear’s fingers fell on the ground, and a couple of meters away, a deep cut on the wall appeared.
The remaining fingers still attached to the swinging paw left a deep laceration on Vincent’s upper body. The alpha grizzly bear whimpered in pain, but Vincent remained with the same violent expression he had before. Not even a fraction of a flinch or wince did he express.
The alpha grizzly bear was thinking about attacking again. However, it decided to stop after hearing a strange sizzling sound.
The monstrous bear focused on Vincent’s upper body and saw green steam exiting his fresh open wound. The mutated blood bubbled as if it was boiling hot, and the injury started closing rapidly.
*Haaa~* Vincent opened his mouth and exhaled. A puff of green steam escaped his mouth, yet the radiant emerald eyes pierced the steam as if nothing could hide his soul devouring gaze.
*Grrr* Vincent growled and curled his fingers. Vincent regressed to the basic functions of survival of the fittest, yet he protected Iris multiple times and even took blows for her sake.
Vincent looked at Iris from time to time. It appeared he wanted to check on her condition since Iris is connected to him with her soul. However, every time Vincent pushed Iris and injured her, Vincent’s rage drastically increased, and the murderous intent empowered even further.
The alpha grizzly bear swung his paw at Vincent upwards, causing a couple of deep lacerations and tossing him high in the air. Vincent was thrown so viciously that he exited the crater.
Vincent moved his head while in mid-air. He noticed dozens of goblins staring at him while trembling in fear. Soon, his eyes saw Ester and Lupa on the cart.
The moment they entered his sights, a potent wave of murderous intent blasted. Half of the goblins immediately fainted while the rest fell on their knees and breathed heavily. Only Iris’s father remained standing, but it was because of the staff.
*Thud!* Vincent slammed in the ground after an over twenty-two-meter fall. However, none could stand in his path of rage.
Vincent raised both his hands and slammed them against the ground while pushing with all his might. The force he placed tilted his body upwards and left two deep imprints of his hands in the ground. Vincent pushed his body up in the blink of an eye.
Vincent started stretching and flexing his body. Every move he made let out a sound. The popping sound of joints going back in place, the cracking sounds of broken bones fixing themselves, and the sizzling sound of the seeping mutated blood healing the laceration. A few seconds later, Vincent stopped, and he looked brand new.
The alpha grizzly bear felt evergrowing fear at the immortal-looking Vincent in front of it. The killing intent was echoing in the monstrous bear’s mind, and it couldn’t take it anymore. The alpha grizzly bear fell on all fours and charged at Vincent.
*Roar!* Vincent loudly roared with a terrifying hoarse pitch. He gave the alpha grizzly bear a death glare and curled his fingers with the intent to rip anything in his path to shreds.