GREED: ALL FOR WHAT?



He is so angry. He roared to the sky because of it. He fought and fought. He swung his battle axe and gave it his all. He has to win. They have to win. It is their part, and they must not fail. They must not fail. He knows this, so he fought with all he has. 

He swung his axe and created vales of wind blades with every swing. He tore the ground asunder and fell trees in waves. He and his enemy moved through the forest like twin bolts of lightning. He tried his best. He really did. But he couldn't put his enemy down.

He stepped on the air and walked on it as if it were the ground. His affinity with the wind also makes him very light and fast. The ability to walk in the air allowed him to attack from every direction. He became a whirlwind of rage and violence. His blood sang within him. It roared in his ears. He could hear what it wanted clearly. It wanted vengeance. No, it craved vengeance.

Unfortunately, his enemy can also utilize air walking and is even doing it better than him. He has two legs, but he can't surpass the range of movement that the single tail grants the Viper. A single twitch of its muscular tail is capable of shifting its position and posture in a myriad of ways. 

The Viper is capable of matching his omnidirectional movement in the air by simply slithering, and if he gets too close to the tail, then he will receive a lashing capable of tearing chunks out of him for his error. So he has to be wary of the tail and not let his anger get the best of him.

The movement of the tail and the body aren't independent either. Sometimes, the tail stays still while the body is made to move and bend as if it were the tail. The Viper was able to use this ability to weave through this attack without being touched. Vipers have somehow made having a single limb better than two.

Vipers are weak. They lack physical strength. That's why his enemy didn't try to parry or block his attacks. They also have poor talents for magic and weapon innovation. So the Viper isn't capable of ranged attacks either through spells or through ranged weapons. But that's where their weakness ends. The rest of their features are strengths.

Vipers are fast. They are very fast. They are mind-boggling fast. Whatever is important should be repeated for emphasis, and it is important to know that Vipers are fast. Their speed is the type that makes you widen your eyes in shock moments before you die. 

They don't have an abnormal top speed for their level, but they can accelerate to their top speed in a flash. That's why this Viper can dodge his attacks very easily and why it can always counterattack. This speed is not a product of their divine ability. Meanwhile, he needs the use of his divine ability to keep up with the Viper.

Vipers also have sharp claws. They have four fingers on each of their two arms, unlike ocular monkeys with five fingers. Ocular monkeys have the numerical advantage of appendages, but their fingers are blunt, while the claws of Vipers can shred rock into pieces. That's why he is losing more of his flesh the longer the fight is going. 

He is strong and fast, but it is all for naught if he can't hit his prey. Meanwhile, his prey is always able to get within his guard and counteract. The Viper just needs to touch him to gorge him of his precious flesh. He, on the other hand, has a powerful weapon, but it is going to waste in his hands. He is angry because of it.

The battle ax in his hand is not a complete waste. At least it is dangerous enough to make the Viper evade. If not for the battle-ax, then he won't be standing right now. He is just dying slowly instead of dying immediately against the Viper.

Vipers have highly defensive scales that make injuring them very difficult. They are like Apex predators. They hunted the ocular monkeys with impunity. The creation of weapons that can harness mana is a boon that gave ocular monkeys the opportunity to fight back. But that's all he has been able to achieve it. Unfortunately, fighting back is not nearly good enough.

He is trying his best, but his best is not good enough to kill his enemy. His best is good enough in the grand scheme of things. He may not be able to kill this Viper, but he is at least holding it back. This Viper is one of the favored of their so-called gods, so it is very strong. By holding it back, he is giving his comrades the chance to eliminate the others. 

So he is not wasting his effort and his lost flesh in a futile fight. He knows that, but he is still angry. If this is the strength of one that is favored by their gods, then what about their so-called gods?

He didn't think about the answer to his question. He focused on his anger, and his anger made him focus. He pushed his enemy back as they fought. He looked to be the superior fighter, but he was the one losing flesh and bleeding. He didn't feel pain, but the accumulating wounds exerted their toil on him. 

Bleeding means he is losing blood, and losing blood means he is losing mana. Mana needs his blood to get to his muscles. So while he feels like he can fight forever, his body can't. He is slowly weakening, and that means death.

Fortunately, there are others besides him. They have finished killing the other defending vipers, and they have come to help him. 3 ocular monkeys appeared beside him and tilted the battle in his favor. They whittled down the Viper even as it slithered and curled away from their strikes. It couldn't avoid all of their attacks, so their new weapons could finally cut into it.