If this was hell… this thing was the executioner.
Intuition suggested that it was this creature that had devoured the heart of the previous owner of his body.
"..." It walked slowly, still licking the blood from its jaws.
Massive mechanized paws with red claws slowly descended, causing the ground to tremble.
"D-damn…" he whispered in a trembling voice.
His feet involuntarily began to retreat.
"...!" Retreating methodically, he tried to steady his trembling hand to hold the gun and the severed finger together.
"..." Predatory red eyes watched his actions, moving closer and closer.
A massive mechanical predator—more tiger than machine.
It was a natural predator, and its fearsome mechanical body matched that description.
And yet, the most striking feature was its sharp muzzle.
Its muzzle was red—not from blood, but by design, as if the creator had assumed that his creation would have to be smeared quite often and had taken care of this in advance.
"…" And now he had already found his gun in his pocket and even placed the severed finger on the trigger.
The creature was about 10 meters away from him, and he was about to shoot...
"...!" But he was unlucky enough to catch a glimpse of the mechanized monster's open mouth.
His mind instantly imagined hundreds of people who were unlucky enough to end up in that mouth. Their terribly cruel, ground-up demise. The same agonizing end awaited him.
He knew it.
'I'll be next.'
Someone whispered:
"It'll tear you to pieces..."
'Those things in its jaws will tear me to pieces!'
This made him want to just kneel and accept his fate, but...
"TO HELL WITH IT!!!" he yelled, finally raising his gun.
Ryskar leaped forward with a terrifying mechanical roar.
Somehow, he managed to hold the dagger, his severed finger on the trigger, and the gun with just his two hands.
Ryskar lunged—cutting the distance in half.
At that very moment, he firmly grasped the pistol with both hands and focused his attention on the crosshairs.
Ryskar took a running start and wanted to reach its prey with his next leap.
He waited for that moment and pulled the trigger with all his might.
*Bang-bang-bang!* The pistol roared, and bullets poured out in a torrent.
The pistol, resembling a high-tech nail gun, turned out to be incredibly rapid-fire. Seven shots in a blink.
Unfortunately, due to such rapid fire, the recoil was simply monstrous.
"...!" Initially, he aimed at the creature's face, but after the first bullet, he was forced to change his plan.
He was thrown sideways, nearly crashing to the ground, hoping to control the burst of fire at least that way.
The first bullet hit the metal that formed the creature's cheekbone. The second flew higher...
But all the others, except for the last one, hit their target and left sparks on Ryskar's body.
Unfortunately, because of the sounds and flashes, he closed his eyes and did not see the results of his actions.
"Ha...!" he exhaled in shock, because he smelled the thick, metallic stench of blood right under his nose.
This made him open his eyes, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ryskar's bloody muzzle a mere inches from his left shoulder.
It froze midair—its jaws inches from him. However, the predator's narrow eyes met the pitiful eyes of its prey.
They flashed with bloodlust because the lamb had miraculously dodged its jaws.
"…!!!" What was happening made his heart race wildly.
He hit it with almost all his bullets, but It didn't even slow down!
Without understanding what he was doing, he forced his trembling legs to move and took off running.
Glancing back, he saw the massive beast breaking with all its paws, causing the earth to scatter in all directions. But it didn't stop it, and the creature's snout slammed into a tree.
A moment later, he heard a terrible roar behind him, telling him that the creature was angry.
All other thoughts left him. He thought only of how scared he was.
...
"Ha... ha... ha..."
His eyes were wide open, filled with terror. He ran as fast as he could, zigzagging between the trees. His wildly beating heart was ready to burst out of his chest from fear and adrenaline.
He turned around while running and raised his gun again. The predatory red eyes were not far away and were following close behind him.
*Bang, bang, bang!* Hardly even looking, he emptied the rest of his magazine into those red flashes.
And although he did so, he already understood that even if he hit it with all the bullets, it would cause absolutely no damage.
"DAMN IT!" he yelled.
His hand reached into the quick-access pocket on his backpack and pulled out an oblong oval object of pale red light.
He pulled the red string, and a moment later, sparks flew from the object.
He exhaled and turned around.
The ground beneath his feet shook, and the charging Ryskar rushed straight at him.
"Try eating this!" he shouted and threw the projectile.
And although his whole body was shaking with emotion and convulsions... Luck was finally on his side again — he hit it.
The projectile sparkled in the air and flew straight into the creature's mouth. A feeling of anticipation arose in his heart...
And, as if obeying his cry, Ryskar opened its mouth and swallowed the object.
Sparks flared inside its jaws, foreshadowing something loud.
His eyes opened in disbelief, and he waited for the next second to hear and see...
Clearly not this.
*Pssh...* A hissing sound rang out, and orange light spread across the creature's face.
Just light, no explosion.
'It's not dynamite?!' The realization made his heart sink and his eye twitch.
Without realizing it, he stood still and waited for the explosion. But instead, Ryskar simply absorbed the signal flare and continued to chase him.
It felt like the end. His gun was unloaded, the monster was rushing forward, and the ground was shaking from its footsteps...
And he didn't move.
"Damn..." he spat bitterly and tightened his grip on the dagger.