I directed my gaze toward the dark passage that stretched before me. It resembled the threatening jaws of a beast, but as I well knew, every beast had its weak point. This one would be no different.
—There is a specific moment to shoot each arrow.
I muttered to myself, narrowing my eyes while analyzing the situation.
I needed to discover the precise moment. The steel arrow traps were complex mechanisms: first, the sensors detected movement, then the gears turned to calculate the direction, and finally, the arrows were fired from their hidden cannons.
The darkness made it impossible to detect the arrows with the naked eye, but before being fired, the gears would activate. If I could catch that sound, I would have a chance to identify both the location and direction of the arrows. It was my only option.
The challenge was considerable: the gears only took two or three seconds to rotate before firing, and the sound was barely perceptible. In that brief instant, I had to locate the origin of that tiny noise. Perhaps it sounded simple in theory, but executing it required exceptional senses and reflexes.
I closed my eyes and concentrated on the sounds surrounding me. It wasn't particularly difficult for me to reach that state of concentration; after all, I was accustomed to this type of exercise. I tried to distinguish each sound amid the silence, although it was extremely complex to separate the ones I needed from dozens of small noises.
I perceived water drops falling from somewhere on the ceiling. The metallic tinkling of arrows being reloaded in the traps resonated faintly. Besides these, I captured numerous sounds throughout the passage. Despite the cacophony, I strived to identify the specific sounds I was looking for, one by one.
What seemed like an eternity passed until finally...
There it was! An unmistakable rusty squeak: a gear wheel in motion. I opened my eyes immediately and threw one of my daggers toward the source of the sound.
Crack!
The dagger embedded deeply in the ceiling, and moments later the remains of a destroyed mechanism fell along with several steel arrows.
—Yes! —I exclaimed with satisfaction—. I can find them.
Although focusing exclusively on hearing had its disadvantages, what mattered was that I had found a way to traverse the passage.
I forced myself to stand up, ignoring the screams of protest from my battered body. I could barely move my left arm and was noticeably limping; it was madness to continue in these conditions, but I had no other choice. Despite my slow steps, I managed to reach the position of the next trap.
Whistle!
New arrows were fired.
Right shoulder!, I thought instantly upon hearing the familiar sound of the gear wheel. I turned my body to one side, calculating the arrow's trajectory.
The arrow that almost reached my shoulder lodged in the wall with a dry sound. I clenched my fists; my method was working.
Now sure of my strategy, I wasted no more time and advanced to the next section.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Four, I counted mentally.
The arrows aimed in descending order: temple, heart, abdomen, and knee. I dodged the first by turning my head while taking a step forward. The arrow aimed at my thigh passed grazing my leg before crashing into the floor. Simultaneously, I used the flat part of my dagger to deflect the one heading toward my abdomen.
Metallic sound!
My dagger vibrated with a clean sound. The impact sent waves of pain through my hand, but adrenaline quickly drowned them out.
In the real world, it took considerable time and constant training to improve one's skills. But here it was different.
This place was unique: achievements were possible with the right effort, thanks to the interface system that allowed accelerated user growth.
Although I could now dodge the arrows, my reflexes were still too slow. My dagger moved half a second later than necessary after detecting the arrows. It was useless to perceive them if I couldn't react in time.
I divided my consciousness, which until then had been focused solely on hearing, to also include my right hand. I took another step forward.
Whistle!
An arrow headed straight for my forehead. I deflected it with a movement neither too fast nor too slow.
I just had to keep my attention divided between hearing and my right arm, although it was complicated to control both senses simultaneously.
My eyes scanned the darkness while I repeated to myself: Little by little, but without stopping.
I resumed my advance with caution.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Each step triggered a rain of steel arrows. I dodged them with minimal movements or deflected them with my daggers when evading was too risky.
Gradually, I perfected my blocking technique: deflecting arrows with the flat side of the dagger, ducking my head to avoid them, turning my body or advancing to intercept them.
There was a moment when I failed and an arrow hit me in the back. Without making any sound, I extracted it with indifference.
After stopping the blood, I continued forward with limping steps. Walking in silence like a machine.
At some point, after walking for a long time, I decided to run. It was now or never.
I ran with all my strength. I couldn't afford to slow down. Not at that moment.
A flash caught my peripheral attention, the bright tip of an arrow approaching from the front.
My body reacted instinctively, years of training manifesting in a single fluid movement as I slid across the floor.
More arrows began to rain down at low height, but I had already dismissed the need to worry about projectiles coming from behind and the sides.
My current speed made those angles of attack less effective.
However, the situation demanded maintaining momentum. Reducing speed was not a viable option, so I was forced to perform a risky maneuver: rolling uncontrollably to evade the arrows.
The chilling sound of arrows embedding in the floor accompanied me, reminding me how close I was to death. With a precise movement, I deflected several arrows to my left using my dagger while continuing to roll.
A sharp pain shot through my wrist, probably a sprain resulting from the evasive maneuver. But the pain was irrelevant at that moment. I categorized it as a minor annoyance and continued forward. This trap was no place to stop.