Eokimo moved first.
Mostly because standing still and dying sounded unpleasant.
The moment the creature lunged—
He threw himself sideways.
CRASH.
The stone floor exploded where he had been standing a second earlier.
"…WHAT IS THAT STRENGTH?!"
The creature twisted unnaturally.
Its limbs bent backward as it slowly turned its head toward him again.
Every eye on its body blinked separately.
Eokimo nearly threw up.
Behind him, Ashen remained at the stabilization pillar.
Blue energy flowed from his hand into the cracked surface.
The black corruption spreading across the pillar slowed slightly.
But only slightly.
"Thirty seconds!" Eokimo yelled.
Ashen didn't answer.
"THAT BETTER NOT MEAN MORE THAN THIRTY SECONDS!"
The creature attacked again.
Faster this time.
Eokimo barely blocked the strike.
The impact launched him backward across the chamber floor.
Pain exploded through his arms instantly.
"…Okay."
He stood shakily.
"Definitely stronger than the wolves."
The creature tilted its head.
Then suddenly disappeared.
Eokimo's eyes widened.
"…Wait wha—"
A violent instinct screamed inside his head.
He ducked instantly.
SHRRRK.
Something sliced through the air above him.
A chunk of his hair drifted downward.
The creature stood behind him now.
Smiling wider.
Eokimo immediately spun and slashed toward its torso.
The blade connected—
But the creature's flesh moved strangely.
Like cutting liquid wrapped in skin.
The wound closed almost instantly.
"…You have got to be kidding me."
The thing laughed.
Not normally.
Its voice sounded like dozens of overlapping whispers.
"Caaaaaandidate…"
Eokimo froze briefly.
"…Nope. Nope. Absolutely nope."
The creature lunged again.
This time Eokimo activated Chain Pulse instinctively.
Blue energy exploded around his arm.
The punch collided directly against the creature's face.
BOOM.
The impact actually sent it crashing backward into one of the statues.
The entire chamber shook.
Eokimo stared at his glowing fist.
"…Oh."
That worked.
The creature slowly stood again.
Part of its face remained crushed inward—
Then regenerated.
Eokimo's excitement vanished immediately.
"…Never mind."
The black corruption on the chamber walls spread further.
The blue lights overhead dimmed again.
System text flickered briefly.
[Corruption Level Increasing]
[18%]
Eokimo looked toward Ashen desperately.
"How close are you?!"
"Not enough."
"VERY reassuring!"
The creature suddenly stopped moving.
All its eyes shifted away from Eokimo—
Toward Ashen.
Eokimo's stomach dropped instantly.
"…Oh no."
The thing understood.
It understood who the real target was.
The creature's body twisted violently—
Then it sprinted straight toward Ashen.
Fast.
Way too fast.
Eokimo reacted instantly.
"HEY!"
He grabbed a broken statue fragment and hurled it with everything he had.
The stone smashed into the creature's side hard enough to alter its direction slightly.
Not enough.
The creature still reached Ashen.
Its claws stretched outward toward his chest—
Then stopped.
A blue barrier exploded around Ashen at the last second.
The creature slammed against it violently.
The entire chamber shook again.
Ashen's expression tightened.
Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth now.
The stabilization process was clearly damaging him.
Eokimo saw the pillar.
The corruption had almost reached the center.
[Corruption Level: 41%]
"…We are so dead."
The creature turned slowly toward Eokimo again.
This time—
Its smile widened further.
Like it had realized something amusing.
Then it spoke again.
But now the voice sounded clearer.
Human.
Almost perfectly human.
"Y̷o̴u̵… a̴r̸e̵ d̷i̶f̵f̵e̸r̶e̸n̶t̶."
Eokimo stared.
"…That sentence makes me deeply uncomfortable."
The creature took another step forward.
The walls pulsed.
The chamber darkened further.
Then the system suddenly reacted violently.
A massive warning window exploded across Eokimo's vision.
[Hidden Trait Resonance Detected]
[WARNING]
[Corruption reacting to Candidate Eokimo]