Solo Dungeon Runner

The knife was blown off-course, he could see its slightly distorted outline heading out of the stage.

The dread only deepened.

He then diverted back to Streak, who was still dashing at him.

It hit him like a train.

A knife smashed into Alexander's shoulder, under the crowd's gasps.

Blood splattered everywhere, the warm liquid dripped through his clothes.

The white robe quickly turned red, the knife tightly stuck in his shoulder.

The shame was sharp at first, then grew larger. It rivaled the rune on his chest, and the heat in his head.

His body recoiled at the impact, he took a step back.

He pulled my attention to the left on purpose.

Alexander's enraged gaze went back to Streak.

He was nearly upon him.

Rifts bloomed onto the field, half a dozen tendrils slithering like snakes across the stages reaching for Streak's feet.

He jumped over the first, and cut down the second one, only to be smashed by the third one as he tried keeping track of all of them.

He was sent rolling on the ground.

Alexander's eyes were eerily staring at his opponent, like a predator with its prey.

Every twitch, every muscle activated, he saw it.

You think I didn't see it, this time?

As he rolled on the ground, Streak had thrown yet another knife.

A tendril quickly rose upright, directly hitting the knife.

Impending doom overtook him once more, as Eldritch Perception activated.

Alexander's eyes frantically scrutinized all the information he was getting.

A ton of information made its way through his gaze.

His eyes shot up.

He tried moving back, the second knife only grazing his arm.

The knife became visible as it stuck into the ground, planted upright.

Streak was now back up.

Again?

Alexander looked at Streak's hand.

In-between his fingers?

Streak's fingers were spaced on the daggers' handle, an odd way to hold them.

He's holding additional knives in-between his fingers. He's throwing them whenever he's able to make a natural move with his hands.

He glanced at the knife at his feet.

"Really?" said Alexander.

Streak walked sideways on the stage, wiping his bloody nose.

"Having a hard time?" he scoffed.

"The wire was to throw me off. I'm guessing you're able to completely control knives from a distance, without a wire."

Alexander then looked at the ground before him once more, and a somber chuckle grew into a louder one.

"Let me guess, you knew I would dodge this knife planted in the ground, and you planned to use it later when I forgot about it?"

Alexander's smile grew, as Streak's expression started to unravel.

"I told you earlier," said Alexander, "you're out of your depths. I wanted to save myself a headache, but seems I'll have to use this against you."

Through Alexander's body bloomed eyes. They were all shut, but tiredly opened to reveal the frantic pupils beneath.

Each eye was in a frenzy, jumping around in their sockets as they provided Alexander with the [ Will Breaker ]'s sight.

Streak's pale expression forced out a smile, pretending confidence.

He took a few steps back, and took another stance, ready to dash at him.

Even more mist exited his body, the red glow in his eyes brighter than before.

He pushed the ground with all his might, his speed even faster than before.

As he ran, he threw each invisible knives out, all describing wide arcs around Alexander.

The 360 degrees attack wasn't blocked, Alexander side-stepping each dagger as they stuck themselves into the ground.

He raised his staff, Streak was already upon him.

He diverted Streak's dagger thrust by bashing his staff sideways into his hand.

Each follow-up was batted aside by a quick wave of his staff.

Alexander's smile grew larger, and scarier, as his frantic eyes kept watch for him.

The knives stuck in the ground started moving, making a straight line toward him.

He dodged them easily, his movements barely affected despite countering Streak's attack.

After dodging a dozen strikes an abyssal rift opened behind Streak.,

A tendril slithered up his feet and yanked him to the ground, his body sliding a few meters before coming to a stop, displacing dust along the way.

Streak hurriedly got on all fours, trying to get up.

Slowly walking toward his opponent, Alexander spun his staff in his hand.

It felt like his head might explode, as if the pressure had reached its threshold.

Yet he smiled, chuckling to himself as he got closer to Streak.

"Is this it?" he said.

He grabbed the knife stuck in his shoulder, and chucked it at the ground. The metal hitting the stone echoed on the stage, the clinking sound almost deafening despite how quiet the stage felt.

Streak's expression had gone from confidence to desperation.

He rushed up, and took several steps back.

The steam that exited his body, empowering his speed, had greatly reduced.

"You're a monster! A cultist! You'll be put down! If it's not me, it'll be somebody else!" he screamed.

Alexander chuckled.

"You keep laughing…" said Streak, holding onto his head.

He was hyperventilating, his eyes sneakingly staring at the ground.

"I have to do it… I don't have a choice… he was right," said Streak under his breath.

Alexander stopped spinning his staff, pointing it at Streak's feet.

Streak then looked up, matching Alexander's gaze.

Alexander's eyes then lowered, watching as Streak slowly opened his mouth.

On his tongue was a pattern drawn, the moment his eyes laid upon it he felt the full force of Eldritch's Perception.

The pattern went up in flames, smoke dissipating from the ink on Streak's tongue as it burned up.

Streak's eyes turned fully red, the steam exiting his body now resembled a heavy fog.

He could see his every movement, [ Witness of All Paths ] followed through as Streak released the daggers he held, letting them drop to the ground.

The moment the tip of the daggers touched the stone, Streak sprinted forward, reaching him faster than he could react.

This fast?!

Alexander tried blocking Streak's punch with his staff in an effort to stop the surprise attack, yet the punch followed through the staff.

Alexander slid backward, then opened a new rift nearby, yet Streak had already repositioned himself to the side.

A punch connected, he could feel his ribs breaking as his breath was taken out of his lungs.

Alexander folded forward. Another punch directly hit his cheek on the right, then a second hit on the left which sent him rolling to the ground.

Alexander spun several times before coming to a stop, the dust slowly settling around him.

His cheek rested against the ground, as his eyes tiredly looked up from where he was.

This time, Streak was the one standing tall.