-SWOOP!

I skidded at the turn and quickly peeked behind to see how far I was from that cadet.

"Lark"

Realizing the identity of the cadet, my face hardened.

Suddenly, I felt rage boil inside me. This was the third time I was in danger because of Lark.

"Stop! We can take him on if both of us fight!"

"How can he keep up with me?"

My brows knit. As a mage Lark shouldn't be able to keep up with my pace. Did he have some kind of agility buff artifact?

"I said wait!"

I was about to take another turn when something hit me from behind, and I tripped. Unable to stop my momentum, I hit the wall.

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Hissing in pain, I tried to stand but stopped when I saw a rope in Lark's hand.

"You bastard!"

For a moment, I almost lost myself in rage. He was trying to use me as bait to escape.

However, I quickly managed to regain my calm. This wasn't the time for this.

Unfortunately for me, by the time I calmed myself, Lark and the minion were already upon me. I couldn't escape anymore.

"No, not yet!"

Gritting my teeth, I bought a sword from my ring.

Defeating minions with pure physical strength was impossible for me but it was better than using my art.

"I'll live! I'll do anything to live!"

I glared in Lark's direction and swung my arm, aiming the sword at him, when….

"GRAAA!"

"N-no way"

Deep helplessness crushed my heart.

In front of me was a new minion, blocking the path ahead. Then, I looked at the other path from where Lark was coming, with another minion behind him.

Closing my eyes, I unconsciously bit my lips. There was no longer a way out.

PHZZT-!

'Construct'

Two swords materialized in the air behind me.

SWISH-! SWISH-!

The minions were able to react and blocked my swords. Yet the moment they did, I fired another round.

***

PHZZT-!

Lark stepped back in fright as he saw what was happening in front of him. Swords were materializing in the air in sets of two and attacking those abominations.

Despite their attempts to defend themselves, injuries slowly accumulated on their bodies. Their deaths were only a matter of time.

Yet his expression didn't improve. It only got worse, realizing that Nathan could hurt those abominations.

"Lark"

Hearing the voice, Lark felt his blood turn cold.

This time, three weapons appeared in the air. Seeing them, Lark unconsciously stepped.

SWISH-! SWISH-! SWISH-!

Two swords punctured the minions head and the spear…

"Arrghh!!!"

…Stabbed Lark's leg.

Nathan felt no pity for Lark. After all, now he was going to be hunted until the Royal Demon was defeated.

According to the plot, there was still over half an hour left before the student council comes to their rescue and kill the Royal Demon.

This amount of time was enough for the Royal demon.

Soon, Nathan was going to get swarmed by minions spread all over the maze. He did have the ability to fight back against minions, but their numbers were overwhelming.

It will empty his ether reserves before he could kill half of them.

Nathan knew he had to run, but before that, he had to do something.

Lark's wails slowly subsided, hearing Nathan's steps get louder, and he stared at him with eyes that held no light in them.

"If you want to blame anything, blame yourself."

Nathan coldly stared at Lark's figure.

Lark's hairs were disheveled, his breathing ragged and his eyes were bloodshot while his body twitched every so often.

If someone saw Lark, they would think that it was the end of the world.

Ignoring his miserable appearance, Nathan raised his sword high.

Nathan had enough of him. Up till now, Nathan left him alone because he wasn't worth Nathan dirtying his hands over him. But this time Lark crossed Nathan's bottom line.

Had Lark tried to help Nathan fight the minions, Nathan might have done something different.

Seeing his reflection on the silver blade, Lark understood what was about to transpire.

This area was a dungeon with no surveillance. No matter what crimes they do here, only these ancient walls would be the witness.

Closing his eyes, without any resistance, he waited for the sword to fall.

"Just do it. Death it better than that."

Pointing at the corpses Lark accepted his death without any resistance.

-SWISH!

"GRAA!!"

The blade stopped inches away from Lark's neck. Turning to the right, Nathan saw a minion at the end of the tunnel.

The time was up. The demon has started its hunt.

"You are coming with me."

Nathan declared. He decided that killing Lark here was a waste. There were other things that he could use Lark for.

Playfully smiling, Nathan grabbed Lark by his neck and was about to run when he remembered something.

Closely looking at Lark's shoes, he asked.

"Is this an agility artifact?"

"Urgh"

Seeing that Lark wasn't answering, Nathan tightened his grip around Lark's neck, following which Lark weakly nodded.

***

CLANK-!

A chain stopped the minion's claw that was about to land on Anna. Cadmus quickly controlled the chain and pulled the minion back before it could harm her.

Realizing that it couldn't move forward, the minion turned back and tried to attack the next closest prey, Leon.

Seeing the sharp claws, Leon ducked and simultaneously slashed upwards. Leon bit his lips while he backed away.

His attack didn't do any damage.

Looking down at Leon, the smile on the minion's face stretched.

BANG-! BOOM-!

But before the minion could move, Lilith appeared behind it, blasting its abdomen to smithereens with her shotgun.

Confirming the kill, the group quickly started moving.

They had been moving as fast as possible toward the central room. But with only 4 of them, the fights were tough. More so when Lilith was the only one capable of injuring those minions.

Lilith's stigma [Blood Bang] allowed Lilith to use her blood as a medium for an explosion. Coating the bullets with her blood was how Lilith made her bullets explode.

In their group, only Lilith had the stigma with direct attack ability. Anna's stigma could only strengthen her brain capabilities, while Cadmus' had chains with no attack power.

Leon looked at the group as they walked. Both Anna and Cadmus were looking exhausted. Dust covered them, and their clothes were torn in many places. But the worst was Lilith.

Her skin was pale and her breaths short. She was barely keeping her eyes open and managing to walk straightforwardly.

The symptoms of blood loss were apparent, yet Lilith wasn't slowing down in using her stigma.

Leon had repeatedly asked her to use her stigma less frequently, but she kept dodging the topic.

Leon couldn't bear to watch her like this.

"Can we rest for a bit? I'm tired."

"No, we can't. The Royal Demon is using everyone it has captured to recover itself. Wasting time will only reduce our chances."

From the corner of his eyes, Cadmus peeked at Lilith, while answering Leon. Cadmus understood why Leon asked to rest, but they couldn't waste time resting. Every moment they spend moving, the demon was getting stronger.

As the group moved further, Lilith slipped behind Leon and whispered in his ears.

"Don't worry, we'll win easy peasy~ We still have to spend our nights together~"

Lilith winked at Leon and went back to the front.

Looking at her back, Leon helplessly bit his lips. Lilith was trying to cheer him by joking as usual. Even though she was the one who was shouldering the biggest burden.

Blood began flowing from Leon's lips.

'If only I was stronger.'

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