Floor ??? — Labyrinth of the Deadly Embrace
The labyrinth stretched endlessly before Adonis, its towering walls casting eerie shadows under the dim, flickering light. The air was thick with an unnatural silence, broken only by the faint echo of his own footsteps. He had been walking for what felt like hours, his senses on high alert.
Remembering the teleportation stone in his inventory, Adonis pulled it out and crushed it in his palm. But instead of the familiar rush of magic, a glitching interface flickered before his eyes, displaying a single word:
"Error."
A cold dread settled in his chest. He was trapped.
Shaking off the unease, Adonis pressed forward. The labyrinth seemed to breathe around him, its corridors shifting subtly as if alive. Then—a presence. He stopped mid-step, his hand instinctively resting on the hilt of his sheathed sword. Slowly, he turned, scanning the empty passage behind him.
Nothing.
Yet the feeling of being watched clung to him like a second skin.
He resumed his pace, but the sensation only grew stronger. Then—movement. A whisper of air, too fast, too deliberate. Adonis barely had time to react as an unseen force slashed toward him. He pivoted, drawing his sheathed sword just in time to block the attack. The impact sent a jolt up his arm, and for the first time, his assailant revealed itself.
A humanoid figure, its body and head shrouded in darkness, emerged from the air like a nightmare given form. Its fingers ended in razor-sharp knife-like claws, glinting ominously in the faint light.
"What the hell is that?" Adonis muttered, his grip tightening on his weapon.
The creature didn't answer. With a flicker, it vanished again, only to reappear an instant later, slashing at him with terrifying speed. Adonis dodged and weaved, but the creature's invisibility made it nearly impossible to anticipate its strikes. Claws raked across his torso, his arms, his legs—each cut burning like fire. Blood trickled down his skin, staining his clothes.
He couldn't fight what he couldn't see.
Gritting his teeth, Adonis forced his mind to focus. The creature was fast, but it had to move—and movement meant vibrations. As he felt the air shift once more, signaling another attack, he acted.
With a roar, Adonis raised his sheathed sword high and brought it down with all his strength, smashing it into the ground. The force of the impact sent a shockwave rippling through the labyrinth floor, shattering stone and sending debris flying. The invisible creature staggered, its balance lost for a split second—but that was all Adonis needed.
He lunged, driving the hilt of his sword straight into the creature's head. A sickening crunch echoed through the corridor as darkness splintered, revealing the monster's true form for a fleeting moment before its skull caved in. Blood and brain matter erupted, splattering the walls as the creature collapsed, lifeless.
Adonis staggered back, gasping for breath. His body screamed in protest, every wound a reminder of how close he had come to death. His vision swam, but he forced himself to stay upright.
Reaching into his inventory, his fingers brushed against a healing potion—precious, limited. He hesitated. The wounds were deep, but not fatal. There would be worse battles ahead.
With a grimace, he let his hand fall away.
"Not yet," he muttered, wiping blood from his lips.
The labyrinth loomed around him, its dangers far from exhausted.
And Adonis had no choice but to keep moving.