694 We are... trapped
While the ripped mouth regenerated and healed at a far faster rate than Orso did, the colossal bear didn’t show a hit of emotion other than devouring what was in front of it.
No other injuries could be seen on the colossal bear. It was covered in fur with a lot of dried blood, and on many parts was fur hardened with dirt.
The front legs of the colossal bear appeared to be without paws. After Vincent took a better look as he approached, Vincent noticed it wasn’t the case.
The paws were deformed and spikes made of earth extended from its flesh. The claws were large and additional claws made from large spikes could be seen.
The view made Vincent wonder if the colossal bear dragged its feet, crushing and impaling anything found in its way because of this.
Regardless of the appearance of the monstrosity in front of him, Vincent needed to see the status window and determine if they could outrun the bear or not.
Vincent wanted to determine if the crippled legs were hindering its movement speed or if the effect was barely negligible. His eyes were mostly peeled at the speed stat.
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[Name] Test Subject ???
.....
[Race] Undead ???
[Age] ???
[Core] Pure Earth Core (Grade – Medium Stage Five)
[Condition] Reanimated, Starvation Of The Damned, Mutated High Regeneration, Mutated Devouring Stage Fifteen
[Stats] Strength 312 || Agility 82 || Perception 124 || Mana 9320
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt[Core Skills] Harden, Earth Spike, Earth Shard, Earth Cannon, Earth Manipulation
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Vincent and Kazumi couldn’t believe their eyes. The colossal bear before them was undead with the name Test Subject and question mark symbols. Additionally, it had regeneration more problematic than Orso.
Not only was the bear undead and couldn’t die from most slow killing conditions, but it also showed signs of possessing both the power of a magic beast and a demonic beast.
When Vincent closed the status window, he noticed the large yellow eyes were stuck on him. He and no one else had become the prime target.
Vincent knew the moment he became the target of the undead bear, his survival rate would drop significantly low. Furthermore, Vincent was in a dilemma.
The undead bear had enough speed to follow after them. Furthermore, even if the undead bear slows down as it passes the tree labyrinth, the possibility of the undead bear following them isn’t zero.
Although it was a great gamble, the possibility of the undead bear heading forward until it reaches the city also isn’t zero either.
Vincent saw firsthand the destruction the undead bear was able to cause. Before powerful people like Karta and Lucas could slay the undead bear, the blood of innocent people who would die during the battle would all be over Vincent’s hands.
Even if Vincent manages to suppress his guilty conscience, the possibility of getting a family injured or, worse, killed, isn’t zero as well.
Regardless of the destruction and tragedy that would transpire, Vincent, Plow, Zero, Awa, and the Dullahans needed to survive running for two days straight without sleep. It was an almost impossible feat to accomplish in their current condition.
Thus, Vincent was now in a pickle, and no one could save him. Staying or leaving, the situation was still horrible.
There was one way Vincent could think of that could allow the undead bear to be defeated. The more the undead bear ate, the more mana it would restore to remain alive. Only by starvation could the undead bear’s reanimation stop working and become a lifeless corpse.
However, with all the dead or unconscious Cefeyes in front of the undead bear and the massive pool of mana it possessed, Vincent would be dead before the mana pool reduces to seventy percent.
*Boom* Vincent caused a small explosion underneath him to alter his falling trajectory. *Tsk* He clicked his tongue and prepared both index fingers to shoot.
[Vincent... we entered the forest to relax, but we ended up in another disastrous situation.]
[First, it was Mimi’s father, and now this thing. Is the world trying to kill us, or were you actually summoned as a hero, unlike me and the others?]
“A hero to die...” *Sigh* “I need to let the others escape.”
[But that wouldn’t be enough to save your life with those large eyes locked on you. Furthermore, by the time help arrives from the city, it will be too late.]
[The Dullahans do not have the energy or supplies to spend two days traveling to the city. Not to mention, you can only last for a few more minutes, let alone two days for the Dullahans to reach the city and probably one or two more extra days for help to arrive.]
[Additionally, we can not forget about the chances of the Dullahans being seen as a threat and attacked upon sight.]
Vincent remained silent. He understood today was possible his fate to die.
Large amounts of yellow steam were escaping from the undead bear’s mouth. The undead bear gave the impression it could be preparing to shoot another boulder.
Vincent flicked his fingers, and two seeds were shot into the ground. Thick tendrils emerged from the ground and started wrapping around the undead bear’s legs.
Vincent flicked his last two seeds on the ground but in different places.
One seed landed in front of the temporalty immobilized undead bear while the other seed was not too far from Vincent’s falling location.
Both seeds sprouted at the same time.
A thick tendril rose from the ground. It started wrapping around the undead bear’s mouth until it temporarily shut close.
The second tendril was thin. It rose far faster, and the longer it got, the more it wobbled. Vincent grabbed the tendril and started sliding down to the ground.
While Vincent was sliding down, Kazumi noticed a familiar object. She took a second glance to be certain her eyes saw properly.
[Vincent! About three meters from this tendril is the same female Cefeye we met. She is wearing the same fabric you gave her, and she is also wearing the tiger’s skull.]
[If she is still alive, how about we at least save her life? She wasn’t a bad Cefeye, to be honest.]
Vincent moved his gaze to where Kazumi pointed out. He used inspection and learned that the Cefeye was only unconscious.
*Thud* Vincent landed on his feet. He went to the female Cefeye and placed her on his shoulder.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmVincent noticed there were more unconscious Cefeyes beside him. However, he didn’t know if he could save the Cefeye on his shoulder, let alone the lives of dozens upon dozens of Cefeye.
The eight Dullahans holding spears approached Vincent. They shivered at the thought of fighting against the undead bear, but if their noble sacrifice could mean the survival of their people, they were ready to die an honorable death.
“This is my new order.” Vincent gave one of the Dullahans the female Cefeye and continued, “I do not know the enmity between each other, but the more of these little guys the bear eats, the longer it can survive.”
“The longer it survives?” The Dullahan placing the female Cefeye on his shoulder, questioned.
“Yes. I suggest picking as many living Cefeye as you can and escaping with them, even if you have to drag them.” Vincent glanced at the undead bear and continued, “That bear is an undead with nightmarish regeneration. It survives by eating others.”
“Look up. The ripped mouth is almost completely healed, and I fear the moment the mouth heals, tearing the tendrils would be the first thing it will do.”
“What will you do, clan leader?” Another Dullahan asked.
“It is targeting me for some reason...”
“Then I can act as bait for you, clan leader!” Another Dullahan exclaimed, interrupting and astonishing both Vincent and Kazumi.
Vincent and Kazumi didn’t expect they had acquired enough trust to exchange their lives for Vincent’s. Instead of abandoning Vincent or using him as bait, the Dullahans showed their intention of facing death for Vincent.
The undead bear saw Vincent gathering the Cefeye. The moment it saw Vincent and eight Dullahans carry more than five Cefeye each, the cold dead heart began to beat.
*T... th... thu... thud... thud... thud* As the heart started to beat and mutated blood coursed through the undead bear’s veins, an angered contorted face started to form on the cold and dead face.
The undead bear started showing the emotion of anger. The more emotion the undead bear began to display, the more mana swirled chaotically around it.
[Vincent. Something is wrong with the undead bear, and the situation is becoming dangerous. It... its mana is becoming more potent and more condensed.]
[I think the bear is about to use magic in a way that we are not going to like it.]
Vincent looked at the undead bear. He didn’t need to bring the status window to know the undead bear was growing stronger and more ferocious.
The skin of the undead bear began to tear, and faint yellow-glowing cracks were becoming visible. The undead bear gave the impression of undergoing a mutation similar to Overload.
Vincent turned around and shouted, “Hurry!” before he started running with four Cefeyes total on his shoulder.
The ground trembled greatly, and it became difficult to remain standing. One second later, the log wall fell to the ground, and spikes made of earth started to poke from the ground.
[Don’t tell me...]
As Kazumi feared, tall and wide earth spikes emerged from the ground one after the other. It was a frightening view to witness being trapped with such a deadly monster.