Wait now, Ben didn't read the full message before reacting.
He wiped his eyes and read everything in full. And this time, it read:
< Ben Scott >
< I'm sorry for bringing you into this >
< You're going to die >
< Unless you listen to me very carefully and do exactly as I say >
Ben swallowed hard. He was confused but ateast he knew his system had him in mind and whatever happened in the next few minutes would be in his favor. This was his guess. A hopeful guess.
Thunk!
Just a few feet away, a massive axe fell from the sky and slammed directly onto someone's head.
The sound was loud. Blood exploded outward in a thick spray, pooling around the crumpled body.
The crowd gasped in unison. "Ooohhh!"
The witch smirked and floated overhead, eyes gleaming with delight.
"Oh my, what a splendid surprise I'm I right? It went right between the eyes. Well, where the eyes used to be!" She chuckled at her own joke and not surprisingly, the crowd exploded with laughter too.
Ben didn't find it funny though.
The Werewolf holding Ben flinched at the sound. It turned its head instinctively toward the noise, distracted for just a split second.
When it looked back down at its claws, Ben was gone.
The werewolf blinked. Its yellow eyes darted from left to right. But there was nothing. Ben was nowhere to be found.
It snarled with confusion, then dropped to all fours and let out a loud howl. The werewolf bent its head and sniffed the ground.
Its nostrils flared. There it was. It found Ben's scent and his foot steps in the dust with droplets of blood that showed Ben was injured while he escaped.
The Werewolf's lips pulled back into a grin. It started moving quickly, it's nose to the ground, taking one step after another, as careful as possible so as not to loose the scent or the foot steps.
A lizard creature stepped into its path, hissing and gripping a long silver spear with both clawed hands. Its scales shimmered with red and black. It took a quick scan at the werewolf and lunged into action.
The werewolf didn't even slow down but he was alert.
Mid-way the lizard disappeared.
It blinked reappearing to the left. Then the right. And then disappeared again and appeared behind the werewolf.
It had the 'Teleportation' ability.
It materialized in the air, just above the werewolf, its spear raised high and mouth open in a war cry.
"Haiii…!" It cried.
Spear coming down slowly with the intent to land a perfect killing slash on the werewolf's back.
The werewolf reached up without even looking in insane speed and grabbed the lizard's face mid-strike.
Crack!
It crushed the lizard skull. Blood and brain matter oozed between the werewolf's fingers. It didn't pause, he tossed the body aside like trash and kept moving, nose to the ground.
The crowd exploded with cheers, screams and howls of excitement. The witch clapped her hands together in delight.
"Oh, magnificent! Ladies and gentlemen, I do believe we have ourselves a speculated champion!"
She gestured dramatically toward the werewolf. "A beast of pure instinct and brutality. Unstoppable and unmatched."
She paused, tilting her head with a sly smile. "But tell me, dear Eryndites... can a 'monster' ever truly wear a crown?"
Her voice dripped with mock curiosity as she exploded with laughter. "Can savagery alone make a king? Or does it simply make... a soldier?"
The werewolf stopped in its tracks.
Its ears flattened against its skull as he met out a low growl.
The witch's grin widened. "Ooh, touchy are we?"
The werewolf howled. The sound made Ben shiver from where he was hiding.
Then it started grabbing things. Rocks, chunks of rubble, severed body parts, anything it could get its claws on and threw them at the witch, one after another, roaring with rage.
"shut up! shut up! shut up!"
Anger and rage were evident in it's voice, but every object he threw hit an invisible barrier above the arena and bounced harmlessly back to the ground.
The witch threw her head back and laughed. "Oh, sweetie, you're adorable when you're angry. Like a little puppy mad at mummy." She laughed along with the crowd.
The werewolf snarled and pointed a threatening finger at the witch, preparing to lunch itself at her. It took a step forward and just when it was about to move,
The werewolf suddenly crashed face-first into the dirt.
The crowd went "oohhh!"
"W-what!" The werewolf was caught by surprise.
It looked down. Its legs were bound together. He tried to move them but the bound was tight. Something was wrapped around its ankles, cutting into the fur.
He screamed in pain. He thrashed, trying to rip free, but the binding only tightened.
The witch leaned forward on her broom, eyes sparkling. "Ohhh, what do we have here?"
The werewolf twisted its head, confused, scanning the area and then it looked up only to see someone he wasn't expecting
Ben.
Ben stood a few feet away, panting, drenched in sweat. Blood dired on his clothes. His hands gripped a strange, shimmering roll of tape. It was translucent, almost glowing faintly in the green light.
His face was set. Focused but visibly terrified. The werewolf's eyes widened with panic. It growled and tried to break free.
Snap!
In less than a second, its arms were yanked backward and twisted behind its back. The tape wound tight around its wrists, binding them together tightly.
The werewolf screamed in time as the crowd let out sounds of horror.
"Shhh!" The old witch lady said to them. "It's just getting started."
The werewolf screamed again as it tried to break free and failed. Blood gushing out slowly as the tape bound tighter and tighter.
The crowd gasped. "Ooohhh!"
"What did I tell ya, huh?" The witch's eyes lit up. "Erydites, do you know what that is?!"
She gestured wildly at what Ben held in his hands and he looked up at her.
There was excitement in her voice. "That, that is a Thornbind Tape." she explained.
"A rare, exceedingly rare item. When it's applied, it binds the target with invisible threads that twist and constrict the muscles. Oh, and let's not forget the best part. Millions of microscopic thorns burrow into the flesh, tearing and shredding from the inside out of the target."
The werewolf thrashed on the ground, howling as more blood was beginning to seep through its fur where the tape dug in.
The witch floated closer, eyes gleaming. "How our clever little participant found this treasure, I haven't the faintest idea as it wasn't part of a weapon released for the contest, but I must say," She spread her arms wide. "Citizens of the Seven Realms, we have ourselves a Competition!"
The crowd erupted. "Who's that?"
"Is that a human? What's a human doing here?" Some had echoed but the sounds of cheering, roaring and stomping of feet from the others excited, buried their quarry.
Ben stood there, chest heaving, as he stared at the bound werewolf. His hands were shaking and his heart was pounding so hard he thought it might explode.
But for the first time since 'this' nightmare began, he felt something. It wasn't hope or confidence, but it was something close to peace. Just a little.
Ping!
< Hey, don't do that >
"Do what?" he rolled his eyes, still feeling the moment.
< Pride kills faster than anything Ben >
< And the job is not yet done >
"Right."
Now he remembered everything. When the system had told him he was going to die, unless he listened carefully to what it was about to say, something drastic had happened.