[Day 907 - Continued]
It shot another bolt.
This time, it hit me.
My body collapsed.Pain surged through me like wildfire. My nerves burned, muscles tore, and I couldn't even scream.
It walked toward me, its eyes fixed—like I was prey that couldn't run anymore.
The Lumen Core pulsed in my chest. I didn't care about the lock anymore. I didn't care about anything.
I reached inward, desperate. Tried to activate it.
Then—CRACK.Its claws pierced me again.
I felt nothing. My body was already numb. Broken.
Was it going to eat me?
Then—Gunshots.Bang. Bang. Bang.
I barely registered them. But the beast flinched, tossing me aside like garbage. I smashed into a tree—again.
Through blurry vision, I saw them—
Humans. From the southern shelter.
They came. Just in time.
Guns. RPGs. Grenades.
Nothing worked.
The wolf just stood there. Watching. Bored again.
The humans fired wildly, panic in their eyes. Despair creeping in. Some stopped shooting and just… stared. Some ran. Others just froze.
It charged again. Lightning swirled around its fur.
BOOM.
A massive blast.Half of them were gone. Just… vaporized.
The rest either screamed or fell to their knees, broken by fear.
Meanwhile, I forced the Lumen Core to work. I poured everything into it—forceful regeneration. It worked, a little. Enough for me to stand.
I didn't look back.
I ran.
I ran as far and as fast as my battered body allowed.
I didn't care about anything. I just wanted to get away from that thing.
I didn't care who lived or died.
I didn't care what happened to the shelter.
I was afraid.
Utterly.
And as I ran, I whispered to myself—over and over:
"If I survive this… I'll never fight it again. I'll get stronger. Strong enough that no one can toy with me like that."
I ran until my lungs gave out. Until my legs gave up.
And then—
I collapsed.
The trees swayed overhead. My body screamed in agony. Blood soaked the dirt beneath me.
I stared up at the sky, wide-eyed, teeth clenched.
I had never known fear like this.
Not even death scared me like that beast did. It wasn't just its strength—it was the way it looked at me. As if I was… meaningless.
Something inside me broke today.
I always believed I could overcome anything with enough time. Enough planning. Enough power.
But what do you do… when the world doesn't care?
What do you do when your will means nothing in the face of that kind of power?
I was no warrior. Not today.
Just a terrified, broken man, lying in the woods, shivering like a child who'd seen too much.
And in that moment…I didn't even want revenge.
I just wanted to live.