Right. So, I've tried every single hiding place in the entire house. The attic, behind the door, in the closet, in different rooms… and NONE of them worked, it has been around 32 loops and nothing has worked, we keep dying.
Okay, that's it, I'm all done.
I can always just fight, this loop seems to be infinite and it doesn't necessarily hurt after I die, so I'll just keep fighting until I win? I'll try.
I got out of bed, grabbed the most ideal weapon near me; the sledgehammer and walked out to the main room.
Let's try this…
I hid near the door, waiting for him to step through.
And when he did, just like the fourth loop, I swung the sledgehammer straight into his face.
And after I hit him once, I stepped back before he could grab me and throw me into the wall just like he did in that run.
I stepped in again, sledgehammer raised to my shoulder.
*WHAM!*
I smashed the hammer into his knee, I even felt it shatter.
However, when I looked up, all I saw was one of his right arms, stretching unnaturally, headed straight for me.
And it hit me.
TICK… TOCK…
33rd loop, I swung the hammer into his nose, stepped back, smashed his knee and ducked under his swing.
Nice.
Instead of backing up, I vaulted to his right side using the sledgehammer, his arm still outstretched to attack me.
I didn't stop, I used my momentum to spin around and smash the sledgehammer into the back of his right leg.
He stumbled and I grinned.
And then it came, the outstretched arm swung around and smacked me square in the chest, sending me flying out of the house.
TICK… TOCK…
Okay, 34th loop. I swung the hammer into his nose, stepped back, smashed his knee and ducked under his swing. Dash to his right, smash his other knee and leapt back out of the way of the swing.
Great.
"You're pretty good, huh kid. Shame you don't hit hard enough." The demon scoffed, belittling my efforts.
But I didn't let it shake me, I dashed in again, aiming for a feint.
The moment I noticed a shift in his posture, I slammed the hammer into the ground and pushed myself back, narrowly dodging the attack.
Before he could regain his stance, with a roar, I swung the hammer with all my strength up at the monsters thick neck.
*SMASH!*
The monster stumbled back, I had actually crushed his windpipe.
But, I was foolish. I tried to follow it up with another attack, and the demon grabbed me by the throat, staring me straight in the eyes.
He chuckled faintly. And to my horror, his windpipe was already slowly regenerating. "You are but a mouse…"
However, before he could crush my throat, his eyes suddenly widened and I heard a door slam open.
*SLICE!*
My father had came running in with his axe in hand, he slashed at the monsters arm, severing it and setting me free.
I quickly got back to my feet, gripping the sledgehammer tight.
My father turned his head to look at me and flashed me a weird look, not a look of understanding, but a look of regret for not being here to protect me.
No matter, the demon had nearly already regenerated its arm, somehow.
I charged, aiming my sledgehammer at its chest, hoping to shatter it's ribs.
The demon tried to attack me, but before it could strike me, my father quickly slashed it's arm clean off.
The demon looked down.
And that's when my worst nightmare came true.
It chuckled.
The monster laughed.
"Blood demon art : Inhalation."
It's mouth opened wide and suddenly—
A huge gust of wind threw me forward, straight into the monsters mouth.
TICK… TOCK…
No.
It can't be…
How? How on earth…
How do I win that?
No. I can't give up now, not after all that.
Once again, I entered the living room with the sledgehammer, but before I could angle myself properly, I heard a noise. It was the sound of a clock ticking, only louder.
I turned my head to the destroyed clock on the floor. It read one minute to one in the morning, 12:59.
Hm? It'd been an hour?
And when the clock hit one… something shifted.
My head suddenly throbbed.
I fell to one knee, hand gripping my forehead as my mind suddenly flooded with images.
The images of my family being torn to shreds, slaughtered, heads being ripped off, shattered, the house being torn down, my own body being seperated from my head.
It all hit me at once.
Why hadn't it affected me before? I saw my own family being slaughtered, butchered like they were cattle.
And it didn't even phase me, until now.
My breaths came out slow and heavy.
And then the demon stepped in, looking down at me on the floor, hyperventilating.
My eyes were wide, my whole body was sweating profusely, clothes sticking to me.
"T-they… all died?" I stammered, my voice barely a whisper.
Then I heard a door creak open. What?
My father, he must've heard me drop to the floor, no. NO.
"Father, RUN!"
But no, he was the first to get attacked, before he could defend himself, he got split in two.
My eyes widened. "No… no…"
The idea of my father, the man I aspired to be, dying…
No. It couldn't happen. He was so kind to me, such a hard worker, he worked day in day out to provide for the family.
That kind smile, that kind smile that brightened my day, that always made me want to work to the best of my abilities.
It was gone. My father was dead. He had died tens of times by now, and I had just simply brushed over it, why?
Why had none of it affected me, until now?
Before I could think more about it, the demon wasted no time in ending my life too. My head was splattered on the ground.
TICK… TOC—
"AAARRGGHHHH!!!"
A guttural roar escaped my throat before I could even wake up fully, the pain was unbearable.
No way.
There is no way.
I actually felt it. I felt it all. The feeling of my skull being smashed down into the ground as if it was a fruit being hit by a sledgehammer.
The feeling of my eyes popping out of my skull, the feeling of my teeth biting into eachother and smashing, the feeling of my jaw being forced through my skin and more.
My scream woke everyone up, Riku started crying, Father, Mother Rina and Yui started scolding me and I just sat there, holding my head.
I was drenched in sweat, head to toe, my eyes were bloodshot, I had been crying in my sleep. My whole body felt itchy, the visions of the people around me screaming all being slaughtered, over and over.
"W-we need to leave, please, NOW!" I spat, my voice breaking.
I stood up, my whole body shaking violently, my vision was blurry, the sound of my family scolding me for waking up the whole house blending with the wind, blending with the screams… wait, screams?
My eyes focused. And yet again, I saw my family being slaughtered.
I fell to my knees, waiting for my turn.
It was all I could do.
I was hopeless.
And once again, I died.
TICK… TOCK…
I woke up all sweaty again, no scream this time, I felt the pain before waking up this time, but I still felt it nonetheless, this didn't happen before. I didn't feel the pain of death before, so why now? Because an hour had passed? That isn't fair. That's cruel.
I stood up, legs shaking, barely holding up the weight of my body.
I needed to do something, anything…
NOW.
My gaze suddenly sharpened and I stood up straight.
I can't just stand around, this isn't going to solve itself.
Gathering all of my remaining grit, I walked to the front door with a determined gaze. Standing right there in the doorway.
I watched as the demon approached from behind a tree, it's gaze hardening slightly.
"Who are you, demon?" I said, sledgehammer in hand, the night air making my rusty red hair flow dramatically in the wind.
But this was just an act, deep down, I was petrified, I couldn't move, I could barely breathe. Seeing this creature up close, it was overbearing.
The demon squinted at me, not taking another step forward.
"Are you human? I've never seen anything like you before, care to enlighten me before I die? Consider it a dying wish." I said, my voice a little shaky but I got it out without stuttering.
It was hard, really hard to not just attack him. This was the bastard that had repeatedly killed those closest to me.
He tilted his head, gaze softening slightly before his grin twisted with interest. "Oho?"
I leaned on the sledgehammer, my gaze firm despite my shaking hands. "Tell me, what are you."
I needed to get as much information as possible, I wanted to see if I could stall and how long I could stall for. The clock read 01:02 when this started, before I die, I'll check what it reads, to see how long I can hold him off.
Maybe I'll be able to help my family escape?
The monster chuckled, "You don't know anything about demons?"
My eyes narrowed, "Demons?"
What is he talking about? was I right? Is he actually a demon?
He took a step closer, licking his lips. "Yes, demons. I am a demon. I cannot die, I am stronger than any human, I eat humans to get stronger. That's how I live."
My eyes widened. "Cannot die? Are you serious?"
"Yes. I cannot die, under no circumstance."
I gripped the handle of the sledgehammer a little tighter, "But demons… you can't be out in the sun, right?"
It was just a guess, call it a gut feeling.
"Hm? I can be out in the sun. I cannot die, I told you." The demon said, seemingly unfazed.
Oh but he definitely wasn't unfazed. I noticed it, his eye twitched, his muscles tensed and his posture straightened slightly.
It's easy to tell when someone's lying, just look at them.
The small muscle under his left eye twitched, his lip quivered. All of these subtle details, they meant he was lying.
His weak spot. Finally.
"So, the sun, huh? That's your weakness?" I grinned despite myself.
A forehead vein bulged on the monster and just like that, he moved.
I dashed back into the house, not bothering to attack.
The moment I entered, I checked the time.
01:08
So it had been six minutes, okay. Surely that was enough time to get out.
One small issue though, there was only one way out. The front door.
Shit. How would we even go about escaping? He'd know. He has a good sense of smell, he could smell through the hard wood ceiling.
No. I can't give up. His weakness is sunlight, meaning he can burn, maybe I can light him on fire? let's see.
I charged at the demon, hoping to get one hit in before I die.
I didn't.
TICK… TOCK…
The pain hit again. The feeling of my chest caving in hit me, hard. It hurt, it hurt so bad, but I needed to move, for the sake of my family.
I stumbled into the kitchen, not even bothering to look at the clock. I grabbed a large pot and then two bottles of my fathers favourite rum, it had about 75% alcohol content, highly flammable.
Sorry father, I'll work hard to buy you more once this nightmare is over.
I grabbed a pack of matches, poured both bottles into the pot and carried it over to the front door.
The demon wasn't here yet, somehow.
I placed the pot on the doorframe, balanced on the slightly open door. Thank goodness I was tall enough, if I had taken after my mother, I wouldn't be able to reach.
After placing it, I stepped outside, ready to confront the demon, to ask it more.
The moment it stepped out from behind the tree…
"You're a self proclaimed immortal demon and your weakness is the sun. What are you doing here? What brings you to this house specifically?" I asked, my voice clear, not shaky this time.
However, the moment I locked eyes with the monster, it all came flooding back, that grin as he devoured my sisters. That damn gaze…
My hands started shaking again, the visions of my family getting butchered replaying around me.
"You know me? You one of those demon slayer core members? Sure don't look like one." He mused as he stepped closer, not stopping this time.
"W-what are you doing here?" I asked, my voice quivering slightly.
He chuckled, "No reason, just passing by. Might grab a snack or two." But then he sniffed and squinted slightly, "Is that alcohol? Have you been drinking? You naughty boy. You humans taste worse when there's alcohol in you…"
That evil glint in his eye, my vision blurred and my eyes twitched in rage, but I ran back into the house despite my feelings. Slipping through the crack in the door to not tip the alcohol on myself.
The demon didn't run after me, he walked slowly.
I pulled the pack of matches out of my back pocket, sledgehammer resting on the wall next to me…
…And the moment he stepped through the door, the pot fell and the alcohol spilled all over him. In his confusion, I lit the match and threw it, watching as the demon burst into flames.
I didn't waste any time, grabbing the sledgehammer, I dashed forward and instinctively used the technique my father used to cut down trees.
Inhale…
1.2.3.4
…
…Exhale…
My muscles bulged and my veins popped out as I swung.
*CRASH!*
The sledgehammer slammed into the flaming demon's head.
And when I looked up, its head had been fully crushed.
It stumbled back, the flames seemingly working in hurting it, and it was more damaged than I had ever seen it previously.
My eyes lit up, was this it? I had destroyed it's head, that should kill it, right?
"Blood demon art… inhalation."
Fuck…
And just like before, I was sent flying toward the demon and into it's mouth, the flames enveloping me, burning me as I was devoured whole.
And that, was the worst pain I had ever felt in my entire life.