A Rattling Monster

He wants a break, but we are not even truly fighting. I mean, does he want me to stop running so he can catch me? Or does he want me to stop destroying his tentacles with my orbs? Either way, not a single chance to happen. I will keep running until he dies.

-COME ON, STOP RUNNING!

Haha, if you think that only by doing this, I will obey you, you are truly mistaken. The moment I attacked, I knew it was a death battle, where only one of us would leave this place alive. The battle between two Heroes, ratman against human, a duel between two mages. The final conclusion in the war for this planet.

(Really? I thought you said that you wanted to leave this place by not even facing the Prophet. You said that since he will never catch you again, with his speed, you were free to just kill his Chosen and then flee. I really remember only that, not some death feud or stupid honor battle.)

Ok, maybe I made the current situation look a little better than it is actually. And maybe I add some new versions to my previous sentences. Like turning fleeing like a rat into battling like a lion, just some small stuff like that. But in the end, the meaning is the same, to survive. And that's the story inside my mind, why do you care about what I think? I am free to imagine you looking like a small little white rabbit if I want.

(I said it, I have not a real form, Krieg doesn't have one and that stupid Aria is not the angel that you saw. But maybe you should answer the Prophet, I mean, what do you lose? Time? You have plenty of that here.)

You are right on the time department, but I will still let him wait for a while before answering. I mean, he devoured one of my skeletons and killed number one. I can still see his white bones near the place he was dismembered. Just for that, I will wait an additional day.

-STAY HERE!

-STOP NOW!

-JUST STOP RUNNING!

-PLEASE, STOP!

After hearing his plea for help during the last day, and feeling that his patience is already gone, I answer the huge monster. Even after that many days, he is still alive and kicking, and still a terrifying creature capable of destroying an entire army by itself.

-Yesss, what do you wa-want, sleek sleek?

I can see him stop running, and if he was a human, I would be certain that he is currently sighing. Maybe he would even look relieved.

-THANK YOU FOR STOPPING. YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW UNCOMFORTABLE THIS FORM IS. AND EVEN AFTER SUCKING ALL THE BLOOD IN THE SURROUNDING, ALL THE BLOOD INSIDE THE INSECT AND THE LIFEFORCE OF THE PLANTS, I WAS NOT ABLE TO TOUCH YOU. YOU WIN, I CAN'T KILL YOU. SO LET'S MAKE THE OATH, JUST TO END THIS PARODY.

An interesting thing, so he absorbed all the ingredients he needed from the living beings around him. That's why the previous healthy trees that were cut are now rotten. I thought it was the effect of the arena. Since no matter what we do, they will be alive in the real world. And it was designated just to contain me and the Prophet, not to have some trees inside.

But to agree with his conditions would be a stupid thing. First, the range of the oath. While I can easily avoid his spells and his monstrous body, it is because I am really far away. I am at the limit of the range of my orb of acid, and I am never closer. At that distance, he can't really avoid my orbs without using his tentacles, while I can dodge the blood blades since they are slower than my spell. But by getting closer, the difficulty to do the same actions is greatly improved. If he manages to create a better tornado of blood than the previous one, this time I will probably not be able to escape. Because I can't blind him with [Nightfall] anymore. And therefore, he will be able to control it accurately to harm me and my precious body.

So instead of answering, I just keep running again. The monster looks at me for a few seconds, before resigning himself to his fate and follow me. I think that even the Prophet himself wasn't really sure of his proposal. Otherwise, we wouldn't have spent an additional day running without talking.

At the dawn of the day after, I can see his previously living blood turn a little darker. Like a blood coming from a recent flesh wound after leaving the body for too much time. As the day progress, it is becoming more and more obvious that something wrong is happening. Now, when a tentacle is destroyed, sometimes, he doesn't even bother creating a new one. The former innumerable is now reduced to barely thirty.

Even his body is shrinking, he is no longer bigger than the drake. He is still a lot bigger than a normal human, but he is getting closer and closer to the size of the guards of the Eternal Guard. You know, those big warriors of the djinns, they were giants compared to me. But seeing the monster in front of me reduced to that size in just one day make expecting the following days.

After that, the regression was visible every hour. Sometimes, it is a maw that I closed forever, sometimes, another tentacle disappears from the world. Each of my acid orbs is now really hurting him. I really want to know what will the Prophet do when he loses his mighty form. I mean, he should still be a magician with some deadly spells, but if he thinks it is the best to remain in that form, that means all of his spells are useless against me.

Because let's be real, if the best he got is those blood blades or the tornado, he is pretty much doomed. And since he is the strongest foe I have encountered and will possibly slay, I will definitely stay outside of his range of action. Getting closer? NAAAH.

Two days later, I can see him be barely taller than his human form. Even his appearance is very close to what he was previously. Only five tentacles are stuck on his body, and three maws are opened. No big muscles, no huge legs, and arms, just a feeble human. By the end of the day, he will have to discard the monster form and retrieve his humanity.

Right before dusk, I finally forced him to turn into a human. Because yes, strangely, the time is still going, I mean, why the sun is still rising if we are in a different area that reality? Well, the answer from Oslo was basically a virtual shrug. Apparently, it was designed that way, so when the different gods are bragging about the exploits of their Hero, they can say that he battled for three days and three nights but finally emerged victorious. With my comprehension of the gods, I find that answer to be perfectly logical and most likely the truth.

After the Prophet is back in his human form, I patiently wait for his first move. I mean, I don't want to be casting an orb when a sudden attack will arrive. Even if the spell is instantaneous, my concentration wavers a bit. And I absolutely don't want to be caught by surprise. But after many minutes, and seeing nothing, carefully examine the Prophet.

He is standing still, without moving a finger, but without falling either. I can see his mouth moves a bit, but I am not so sure. I ask spirit number one to get a little closer, to hear what he is saying. What dangerous incantations and terrible spells will he cast? Only when the spirit is close enough, I finally learn the truth.

(He is asking for blood and water. I think that while his monster form is capable of sustaining his body without drinking, his human form still needs to satisfy his thirst and hunger. And you have fought for nine days, and except the blood of some insects, he had nothing. So he is dehydrated and hungry, I don't think he can even protect himself anymore.)

Oh, that was unexpected. But even with the fact that he is a Hero, nine days without a meal is still very long. And I slowly withered him by repeatedly launching my acid orbs. So, that means I have won. I try to launch an orb at him, and he doesn't even move, but a magic shield protects him. After countless orbs, or exactly 41, I break his protection.

After that, I throw an orb that manages to touch his body, melting his right side. The next put him on his knees, his ribcage opened. The third blast a part of his face, burning an eye. The remaining launch a death stare at me, but that's literally his last action. The last orb partially melts his head, only with half of his brain remaining. I can see his body fall to the ground, signifying my victory. After that, I can see a distortion around me, and I end up in the same place, just with the forest intact.

It is at the same time, I hear a notification of the System, and a scream behind me, a human scream.