Chapter 7 -7- Caracas Monster Snake

Chapter 7: Chapter7- Caracas Monster Snake I watched the hole, my eyes unfocused and disoriented. My mind was still on the knife; I could feel it, even after it fell to the floor. I could taste the hot blood spilling from that guy's neck. My gaze sharpened when something emerged from the hole in the ceiling. It was an enormous, pitch-black snake, its head barely small enough to pass through the opening. "What is snake doing here?" I shouted and the snake and I locked eyes, frozen for a moment. I could see intelligence in its eyes, though I might have been imagining it. Then the snake hissed at me and continued slithering out of the vent shaft, its body dangling from the ceiling. I sprinted for the door back to the cave, grabbing the lamp as I moved. New Quest: [Escape from the Beast] The Caracas monster snake has sensed the death of its master. Objective: Escape the [Caracas Monster Snake] 0/1. Reward: Appraisal Skill I immediately looked at the dead body and the snake. Grabbing my bald head with both hands, I said, "How in the world did this guy control a freaking snake?" I almost tripped when the window popped up, wildly flailing at it as I tried to close it. I ran through the metal door, dropped my torch, and grabbed the wheeled handle, pulling with all my adrenaline-fueled strength. The rusty hinges groaned shut, and I turned the wheel to latch the door. There was another wheel on the other side, but snakes didn't have thumbs. I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding and reached down to pick up the torch. I needed to go back up the well, but I'd rather dodge that monster than fight a giant snake. The danger at least snapped me out of the daze from killing a man. I was making my way along the pathway when I heard the grinding of metal behind me and had a horrifying thought. "What if that monster snake does have thumbs?" For God's sake, why didn't I realize that in this world anything can happen? After everything I've encountered, these things should be normal. But as the saying goes, when you're in danger, your mind goes blank and panic sets in. That's exactly what's happening to me now. Running along the pathway, forgetting to be cautious turned out be a mistake. "Oh, no!" My sandaled foot slipped on a slick plank and I fell hard. "Ouch." The sand scraped against my bare torso, but I ignored the pain, clutching the torch tightly. I got up and kept moving. As quickly as I could, I reached the end of the walkway and ducked into the tunnel, dropping the torch so I could crawl faster. My hands and knees banged against the hard surface of the narrow passage, and my shoulders and head hit the sides and top. I didn't let it slow me down and scrambled forward until I saw the dim light at the bottom of the well. Crawling out, I fumbled for the rungs set into the side. Hand over hand, I pulled myself up. Only after I was a good way up the well did I pause to look down. The snake isn't here. That's a relief, but there's no time to rest. It could come at any moment. I should stay cautious. I was just turning back to resume climbing when I heard the hiss from below. Wait, this fast? I saw the snake emerge from the tunnel, pausing to look up at me before sliding more of its body into the space at the bottom of the well. I watched in horror as its body started climbing up and around the outside of the well like the thread of a screw. Despite the wet and slippery surface of the well, the snake started winding its way up, as if adhered to the sides. 'Fuck it." I resumed my climb, more energetic than ever. The snake was fast, but its circuitous path around the sides was long. I clambered up as fast as I could, but panic made me rush and more than once a foot slipped before getting proper purchase. I kept pushing upwards, every hand and foothold a step closer to the outside. As I gripped the final rung in the brickwork above, I felt something wrap around my leg. This bastard... The snake was thick, as wide as my thigh, and I hadn't even seen its full length. Its weight made it impossible for me to climb any higher, and it tightened around my torso. I couldn't ascend further, but I held onto the top rung tightly. My hands were sweaty and growing weak, my fingers on the verge of giving out. Dang, at this rate I might actually fell down. But it wasn't my fingers that failed me in the end. The mortar in the bricks crumbled, causing the entire side of the well to collapse. "Now of all time, my bitchy luck always lets me down when I need it the most!" I shouted. The snake, myself, and a shower of debris plunged backward into the darkness. *** Suddenly, my eyes fluttered opened and I felt a slight relief in my head, indicating I might have been unconscious for hours. I miss those days from my past world when I used to wake up late in the morning, only to face regular punishment from my mother. As a rule, I enjoy waking up. I love that brief hazy moment between dream and reality, wrapped in warm, soft bedding. Even waking up in the soft grass of the hedge maze wasn't an unpleasant experience. But regaining consciousness at the bottom of a dark well, soaked in filthy water and entangled in the corpse of a dead snake? That was a whole different story. I ignored the screens that had popped up while I was unconscious. They shrank away to hover inconspicuously in the periphery of my vision. My left arm was pinned under some rubble, a chunk of fallen masonry from the well above. I didn't feel any pain from it, which was good, but then I realized I didn't feel anything at all from it, which was bad. When I tried pulling it free, the pain arrived in full force, my screams reverberating up through the well. "Ahhhhhhh!" Holding my left arm as still as possible, I rolled the chunk of masonry off with my right. It wasn't too heavy, but I had to bite down on the urge to scream. In the dimness, I couldn't properly inspect my freed arm, but it felt hot and swollen. Even the gentle touch of my good hand sent waves of pain through it. I was pretty sure it was broken, so I immediately opened my inventory and took out the newly acquired healing portion and drank it. I had hoped all my injuries would heal, but only... The swelling went down, and the skin cooled, but moving my arm still hurt a lot. The healing portion didn't seem to help the deep bone injury. There was so much of the snake that I was lying on its dead body instead of the well floor. Pulling my foot free from its coils sent fresh pain shooting through my arm. It took several tries to get to my feet, using my good arm to pull myself up with one of the wall rungs. Each time I managed to stand, my stomach churned, and I vomited, dropping back to my knees. Vomit kept coming out, worsening the pain in my injured arm. I couldn't take it anymore. Yeah, the pain was too much for me. As I knelt there, overwhelmed by pain and nausea, a desperate thought crossed my mind. I remembered that I had the option to switch to my new body. Immediately, I opened my system window, hoping for a quick reprieve from the agony. But what greeted me was a flood of messages, each one flashing urgently. The notifications seemed to multiply with every passing second, adding to my growing sense of panic. (Congratulations, Host, Human Core (Common) has been added to your inventory!) (Congratulations, Host, Healing portion (Iron) has been added to your inventory!) (Congratulations, Host, 10 Monster Essences of Caracas snake has been added to your Character Interface!) (Congratulations, Host! You've met the conditions for the upgrades!) (Do you wish to advance to [Iron] Rank?) (Congratulations, Host! You have completed the Bonus quest (Don't die)!) (Would you like to acquire the memories of the deceased?) "Fuck off." Frustration surged through me as I tried to navigate through the barrage of messages, my injured arm throbbing with each movement. Where is it? Where? Ohh, come on, where are you? Ah, here it is, I finally found it. With trembling fingers, I finally managed to locate the option to switch bodies. (Congratulations, Host! You've been given the body of the person you killed!) (Do you want to switch to your new body?) (Yes/No)