Chapter 88 - 83

With an ear-splitting roar, the ape kicked the other monster away the moment they hit the ground. Because of that, the said monster crashed into a nearby tree thereby creating another thunderous bang. But in the same instant that the ape flung the other monster away, I saw the Underclaw dashing in for a follow-up attack

At that brief period of time, I launched myself in the middle of the two monsters to stop the Underclaw’s charge. But probably due to being weakened as well as the sheer difference between our stats, the Underclaw easily flung me away the moment the two of us collide.

“Guh!”

Fortunately, I used the claws in my two front paws to block that attack. As a result, I was able to stop the Underclaw’s momentum, albeit for an instant. Of course, that moment was more than enough for the ape to roll away to safety before the Underclaw could catch up.

Just as the Underclaw and its backup recovered their bearing, I managed to stop my momentum by flipping into the air, and at the same time that I landed to the ground, the ape had already staggered back up to his feet, all the while clutching his left arm.

Whilst sandwiched in-between the Underclaw and its backup, I noticed blood trickling down from the ape’s left arm. From what I could see, not only were there three puncture wounds on his arm but his shoulder was also dislocated and banged up. But without any shred of hesitation, the ape held his shoulder up, then forcefully pushed it back in place with a grunt.

Despite that, I thought that there was nothing much that he could do about the bleeding on his arm. But to my surprise, the ape subverted my expectations by tensing his muscles to the point that the bleeding almost stops. And though it didn’t necessarily close the wound, it was at least enough so he could continue to fight.

'I doubt it will work in the same way as before, but that’s still very clever…' I praised with the utmost respect and sincerity. And much as I hated to admit it, this guy has been really growing in on me after all this time. 'Though, he’s still annoying most of the time. Well, at least not as much as that Dumb Wolf.'

Following that, the ape grabbed his weapon from the ground, before turning back to face the other side. And with that, the two of us stood back to back, with me facing off against the Underclaw in place of the ape and him dealing with the other one.

'That monster…' I thought as I stole a glance at the Underclaw’s backup. 'He looks a lot like that Savaga from before…'

Since Assess seemed to have worked against the other monster, I had already seen the monster’s race, level, and status. And if it wasn’t just some kind of illusion or ability to fool my skill, then the monster’s race was supposed to be called ‘Chaos Beast.’ Now, while I had a really bad feeling about that specific ‘chaos’ in its race, it wasn’t necessarily surprising given how varied and weird the races’ naming in this world was. But given that the monster almost looked exactly like the Savaga—except for the three different-sized horns on its forehead—I couldn’t shake off the feeling that this monster might be related to that one. In fact, it was even possible that this monster was actually that Savaga, only that it had evolved just like the Underclaw. The problem was…

'It excludes the same aura as the Underclaw…' From what I could remember, the Underclaw already has that aura before it even evolved. In fact, I even witness how the monster came to be that way. But for the Savaga, it was completely different since I never once felt this eerie and sinister aura from the monster before. Even when I saw it once again struggling for survival on the ant’s territory, that fact never changed.

'Is it the same as the Underclaw? Something happened, and it caused a drastic change? But then, why does Assess work on this one but not the Underclaw?' I thought as I squared off against the said monster. 'This is both concerning and also quite fascinating…'

Before my thoughts further drift away, I shook my head and focused my mind on the issue at hand—namely, how to beat the Underclaw. Luckily, the Underclaw had already lost two of its arms and was already banged up so all of that should be somehow enough to compensate for the difference in our stats. Though given how our midair clash earlier had turned out, I was certain that it wouldn’t be as easy as that.

'First off, I need to confirm if that weird mental attack still works on me…' If at least one of my theories were right, that skill’s effect should weaken the more the Underclaw uses it. And while I didn’t know the specifics of how that works, being aware of the general gist of it should still prove as an advantage for me. After all, such facts meant that the Underclaw wouldn’t be able to repeat that deadly ambush that it did earlier. 'This means that the biggest threat is the rot effect on its arms.'

As that thought flashed into my mind, the Underclaw charged forward, with such fervor that it was hard to believe that he was already banged up. At the same time, I felt the ape at my back lowering his center of gravity, before rushing in accompanied by an earsplitting roar. But unlike the two monsters, I chose to take a defensive position and plant my feet firmly into the ground.

*Swoosh! *

Before its scythe-like arms could reach me, I tilted my body slightly to the side without taking a single step away from my spot. And before the Underclaw could even defend or react, I thrust my right claws into the monster’s c.h.e.s.t, poking the most cracked part of that shell.

*Thudclack! *

It seemed like that attack was more effective than what I expected because I saw the monster’s eyes twist in anger in pain. Furthermore, I also didn’t feel that much resistance on my claws—this confirmed that aiming for the damaged part of its shell was really the way to go.

“SCREEEE!!”

Probably in an attempt to enact its revenge, the Underclaw unleashed a barrage of slashes using its two remaining arms. But because both of its left arms were already gone, the monster attacks only seemed simple and monotonous in my eyes. Furthermore, the loss of its arms had also messed with the monster’s balance, so its movements had lost their edge and had become sluggish enough to even hinder with monster’s speed.

Still rooted on my spot, I weaved through all the Underclaw’s slash all the while thrusting and poking all the visible weak points of its shell. At this point, my strategy had become to focus on the speed of my attacks, thus all the thrusting instead of a slash. Though of course, I was only able to pull off this tactic because the Underclaw was already banged up. If not for that, I doubt I would be able to pull it off considering the monster’s shell and stats. In other words, all of this was only possible because of what the ape had done.

Before I knew it, the Underclaw was already bleeding all over and its movements were further slowing down. At which point, I even noticed its increasing desperation through each one of its attacks. Clearly, the monster knew he was about to lose, so he was trying to find a way out. But for better or for worse, it seemed like the monster had noticed my plan. That was why instead of trying to turn back and run, the monster devoted his all to the fight, in an attempt to break my momentum and survive.

'I knew you would notice.' I praised as my mouth curved into a smile. 'Now, try your best to survive!'

Just as I had planned, the monster had fallen into my trap so he had no other choice but to defeat me in this deathmatch. 'Too bad your weird mental attack isn’t working anymore.' I quipped. After all, I had sensed that the monster had been trying to use his ability, only to be met by failure due to the effect of Presence of Mind.

'Seems like my theory is correct!' With that confirmed, I decided that it was about time to put an end to this fight. 'I’m short on time so try to keep up!' At that, I mustered all speed that I had, before weaving through and unleashing a barrage of thrusts.