MTLNOVEL Chapter 14: The Widowmaker I
"Ready?"
"Victor..." Evan croaked.
"What are you doing here? I told you to leave me be!"
Victor kept his eyes on the bear, carefully monitoring its movements.
"We heard the bear's roar. It was impossible to ignore actually. We packed our goods, ready to leave, but..." He hesitated, his gaze flicked to Evan for just a moment.
"We couldn't just abandon you."
Evan stared at him in disbelief.
As much as he appreciated Victor's untimely intervention in his bout with the monstrous bear, he truly did not want anything to do with Victor or Vin.
"You... you stayed for me?"
Victor nodded.
"Dont make it sound so weird. But yeah, you're one of us now, even if you don't want to be. We couldn't leave you behind."
Evan's thoughts raced. He was torn between gratitude and bitterness.
The thoughts of the Henry and Susan's incident still loomed in his mind—the betrayal, the blood—and yet, here was Victor, risking everything to save him. He hated how conflicted he felt, because, deep down he knew that if he was in the same shoes with Victor, he probably would have left either of the prisoners for the bear. Probably.
Victor reached out, gripping Evan's shoulder which cut off his thoughts.
"Can you walk? Or better, can you run?"
Evan nodded hesitantly.
"I think so."
"Good."
"Get back to the carriage and prepare to leave. I'll distract the bear. Once it's clear, we'll outrun it."
Evan's stomach twisted with dread. Outrun the bear? Was he dumb or just crazy. In any case it would be the former because no real human would choose to run from the monstrosity.
"Victor, that's suicide."
Victor smiled grimly.
"I appreciate your concern but it's the best chance we have. You're in no shape to outrun the beast, so obviously we're going to need a diversion. Do you understand?"
Evan paused for a moment and nodded in response.
"Yeah. Yeah, I do."
But before he even could move, a sudden, wet crunch echoed through the forest, attaining the attention of both men.
The bear reared back, roaring in pain, so loud that it almost made Evan and Victor's ears to bleed.
The beast turned to see Vin standing behind it, with Evan's blade buried in its right flank.
"Uh... " Vin stammered, his face pale as he began to shiver in fear.
The bear whipped around with a speed that defied its massive size. One claw lashed out, striking Vin with a sickening thud and sending him flying into a tree.
"Vin!" Victor yelped.
His body crumpled to the ground, and there he laid as though he was lifeless.
The bear's roar shook the air as it turned back toward Victor and Evan. Its eyes locked onto them, and its rage palpable, reignited by Vin's foolish actions.
"Run!" Victor shouted, his voice breaking through Evan's shock.
He bolted to the right, drawing the bear's attention at first. Evan hesitated for a heartbeat before running left, with all the strength he had in himself.
The bear wasted only a moment, as it turned its gaze from left to right, struggling to pick its target and then without haste it bolted towards the right- towards Evan.
Viktor, who hadn't ran too far in, noticing that they were no massive foot steps coming from his rear, turned around and there he saw the bear, chasing after Evan.
"Evan!"
***
The chase was one. With both sides running for the sake of Evan's life- the beast who wished to devour Evan and Evan who only naturally wanted to survive.
He risked a glance over his shoulder and saw the bear barreling toward him, its massive form crashing through trees like they were twigs.
"damnit!"
Evan gasped. He pushed himself harder, but the beast was relentless.
A claw slashed through the air, narrowly missing him. He stumbled, rolling out of the way as another strike gouged the ground where he had just been.
Right then, the familiar chime of the system rang out, displaying a new system menu for him.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, Player. New quest acquired: Slay the Widowmaker Bear.]
[ Failure to complete will result in HP reduction.]
[Progress: incomplete]
'Slay it? Are you kidding me?' he muttered through gritted teeth. His mind raced.
'HP reduction. HP is my life source, using game knowledge, right? So basically, this shit is telling me that I either kill the bear, or it'll kill me?'
"It's a death sentence either way," he hissed, his voice tinged with desperation.
"What kind of twisted game is this? If I knew I was going to be completing tasks like this I won't have played this damn game."
The bear roared again in annoyance from its failure to capture Evan ready, and Evan's focus snapped back to his immediate danger.
He ducked as the beast slammed its claws into a tree, splintering it into jagged shards.
The tree toppled, crashing into others and creating a domino effect.
Evan dodged the falling debris, but unfortunately, he tripped, falling to the ground..
He whimpered softly as he hit the ground. Although it was momentary, it had changed the field of play in their battle.
The bear slowed, its growls as it stalked toward him.
Evan's heart pounded as he scrambled to his feet, but in no time, the bear charged, each step shaking the ground, closing the distance between them in a matter of moments.
"No, no, no..." Evan whispered, panic gripping him.
He couldn't move, couldn't think. The world narrowed to the approaching beast and the inevitability of his death. He knew it, there was actually no escaped from this. He was but a man-unarmed for that matter- and the beast was a bear. There was no win for him, and he had no choice but to accept it.
But then in that very moment, in his mind's eye, he saw her. Maggie. Her black hair shimmered in the sunlight, her school uniform pristine.
She turned to him, her eyes wide with curiosity and a hint of mischief. His beautiful little sister, that was who she was. She looked so young, so full of life. So...happy.
The image burned into his mind, a reminder of everything he had left behind.
"Maggie...She's the only good thing I have." Evan whispered, tears streaming down his face.
"The only person that mattered."
The bear loomed over him now, its claws raised, ready to strike. Evan closed his eyes, Maggie's face the last thing he wanted to see.
"I'm sorry...Maggie."