Useless slashes.
Yuna's blade sliced through the monster's tentacle, the steel edge cutting into the dark green shell, leaving behind a scratch so shallow it might as well not exist, no real damage, no trails of red pixelated blood falling.
Nautilus fared no better. Each thrust of his sword pierced the creature's pliant body, but instead of weakening or slowing it down, their attacks only seemed to enrage it further. Its tentacles whipped violently, as if mocking the useless efforts of the two.
The Large Nepenthes still had all three HP bars intact.
Untouched.
Unscathed.
They were stuck in this battle.
Yuna clenched her teeth, her voice a mix of fear and frustration."What's going on? Why isn't it taking any damage? We hit it!"
Nautilus stepped back, panting heavily as he narrowly dodged a powerful lash from the creature's tentacle.
The attack missed by inches, cutting through the air across his face. A second slower and he would've been flung into the trap of gnarled roots behind him.
They couldn't reach the flower petals, its real weak spot.
Every time they tried to charge in, the tentacles sprouting from the massive plant's body would lash out, forming a wall that couldn't be breached.
They weren't fast, but there were too many. The sheer density forced hesitation. They weren't strong enough to kill outright, but even a single mistake, a moment of carelessness, and the vines would wrap around them and crush them completely.
No breakthrough.
No way forward.
No escape.
The invisible pressure began to bear down on Nautilus.
He felt every muscle in his body tense up. Breathing became heavy. His heart thumped erratically in his chest, and a suffocating discomfort spread from his fingertips to his every step.
The monster's breath filled the air, thick, stifling, so dense it made breathing difficult.
The longer the battle dragged on, the heavier the weight became.
Cold sweat ran down his temple, soaking the bangs over his forehead. His sword suddenly felt unbearably heavy. He gripped the hilt tightly, but his mind had gone terrifyingly blank.
What should he do?
Their attacks weren't working. Every attempt to push past the tentacles had failed.
The monster's HP remained untouched, but they weren't so lucky. Every dodge cost stamina. Every time they were pushed back, his body grew a little heavier.
This feeling...
It wasn't just fear.
It was helplessness.
The helplessness of knowing they were fighting a losing battle.
With every passing second, every meaningless strike, every retreat forced by the monster, despair coiled tighter around Nautilus's mind like a snake.
There was a clear difference between fear and helplessness and right now, Nautilus was drowning in the latter.
He was grateful to Ren.
If not for him, he might not have reached Yuna in time. She might not even be here now.
If Ren hadn't stayed behind to hold off the Nepenthes, they might've both been trapped in that twisted maze forever.
He knew that.
But that only made him more anxious.
The pressure weighed on him, but what truly suffocated him wasn't the monster before them, it was the absence of someone else.
Ren.
He still hadn't arrived.
No sign of that familiar figure emerging through the mist. No sound of footsteps. No voice calling their names.
Because Ren had chosen to stay behind.
The last image burned into Nautilus's mind before rushing here was Ren, standing alone amidst the swarm of Little Nepenthes, holding them off.
He had no backup. No one watching his back. Just himself, with a single sword in hand.
He knew the danger.
He knew he could be surrounded.
But Ren didn't hesitate.
Ren made that choice.
So Nautilus could save Yuna in time.
And now, as the battle dragged on endlessly, as their swords remained useless against the monster, a thought crept into Nautilus's mind and squeezed his chest so tight it was hard to breathe.
What if Ren couldn't hold out?
What if there were too many Little Nepenthes? What if they wrapped around him like vines strangling prey?
What if he'd already been taken down...
What if Ren was no longer there?
Nautilus clenched his teeth. His chest rose and fell with ragged breaths, cold sweat soaking him. His spine stiffened as though crushed by an invisible hand.
He couldn't accept that.
He couldn't delay any longer.
He couldn't let Ren face this danger alone.
But the monster still stood tall. Its tentacles blocked every path, halted every attempt to attack.
Neither his nor Yuna's blade had left a single wound. There was no way through that terrifying defense.
He knew it. He understood it.
But his body continued to tremble under the rising tide of unease.
The longer this went on, the more hopeless it became.
The longer it went on, the more danger Ren was in.
And he couldn't let that happen.
Nautilus bit down hard, both hands gripping the sword so tightly his knuckles turned white. He knew. He knew what he had to do. There was no other choice.
No retreat.
No time to hesitate.
He charged forward.
But his body didn't move.
A freezing chill raced down his spine, like thousands of needles piercing into every muscle. His heart clenched. His chest felt like it was being squeezed so tightly he couldn't breathe. His legs, once poised to spring, suddenly froze.
As if invisible chains were anchoring him to the ground.
Nautilus wanted to move.
He had to move.
But the scrambled signals from his brain were all screaming one thing.
Don't do it.
Don't charge in.
Don't be reckless like that.
It'll kill you.
It'll kill you instantly.
Fear.
Fear surged through every cell like a crashing wave, drowning everything. Nautilus couldn't control himself.
His fingers clenched, his breath came in rapid, choking gasps. His vision blurred, not because of the mist in the forest, but because panic had seized his mind.
This feeling… he'd experienced it before.
The first time he stepped outside the Starting Town.
The first time he realized this wasn't a game anymore.
The first time he truly faced death.
The first time… fear had shackled him.
No. Not the first time.
Again.
Once again, he was trapped in his own body.
Once again, he saw the monster before him but couldn't lift his feet.
Once again, he was frozen.
And this time, someone would pay the price.
A scream tore through the air.
"Aaaaah!"
Nautilus flinched.
He saw...
The massive tentacle of the miniboss sweeping across like a scythe of death.
He saw Yuna, directly in its path.
Saw her eyes go wide, filled with terror, unable to dodge in time.
Saw her flung through the air.
Saw her HP bar plummet into the red in an instant.
One second.
Just one second.
Time slowed for Nautilus, but he knew...
That moment could be fatal.
Yuna's body was hurled far, rolling across the ground before slamming into a tree trunk. A sharp, dry sound echoed, cold and final like a death sentence.
She trembled.
Tried to get up.
Tried to move.
But she couldn't.
And Nautilus...
Still stood there.
He could've moved.
He could've blocked the attack.
He could've done something.
He should've done something.
But he didn't.
He let the fear take hold.
He made a mistake.
And that mistake nearly got Yuna killed.
Nautilus trembled.
His chest heaved violently, every breath jagged, like invisible hands were squeezing his lungs.
His heart pounded wildly, thundering inside his ribcage like it was about to burst.
His hands gripped the hilt of his sword so tightly that his knuckles turned white, his fingertips numb....but even with the weapon in his grasp, it felt frighteningly unfamiliar.
Too heavy. Too cold. Too hollow.
Inside his head, a voice rang out, poisonous, bitter, cutting deep into his nerves like a cold blade.
Run.
You can't beat it.
He used to believe in his own promises. Used to tell himself he would get stronger. That he'd protect Yuna. That he wouldn't let anyone hurt her.
But faced with this brutal reality, this towering nightmare, he could only freeze. Paralyzed. Helpless.
He couldn't beat it.
He couldn't save her.
He wasn't strong, or brave, or decisive like Ren.
But then...
His eyes landed on the small, unmoving figure on the ground.
Yuna.
A different kind of fear surged through him, burning away every thought in his mind. It wasn't fear for himself anymore, it was something far deeper. The terrifying realization that he could lose her.
No.
No way.
He couldn't let that happen.
Old memories flooded in like a tide, dragging him down into their current.
"I'll bring you back."
"No matter what happens, I'll protect you."
That voice, that promise, it had once been everything he clung to. The only light guiding him in this cold world. And now, he was the one betraying it.
He couldn't lose her.
Not like this.
Not again.
He had let the moment slip through his fingers before. Had hesitated, held back, lacked the courage to say what he truly felt. Had stood by helplessly as what mattered most slipped away like sand through his hands.
But this time...
This time, he wouldn't stand still.
Nautilus took a deep breath, his chest expanding as if to swallow the thick, suffocating air around him.
The pressure of the monster still weighed on him like a shadow, but for the first time, it no longer controlled him.
His feet planted firmly on the ground.
His arms no longer trembled.
A rush of heat coursed through his body, incinerating the remnants of fear. Burning away the hesitation.
The sword in his hand, once cold and unfamiliar, now felt more familiar than ever.
Nautilus tightened his grip, raised the blade to eye level. His eyes widened, locked onto the roaring boss in front of him.
No retreat.
No hesitation.
He knew he might lose.
But this time....
He would fight.
For Yuna.
Nautilus slammed his foot into the ground.
And he charged.