“What the hell is going on!?” Ajax exclaimed with confusion and a hint of fear.
Through the cameras, he saw a horde of unidentified monsters entering through the various cardinal entrances of the labyrinth.
One monster stood out more than the others. Its appearance was different from the rest, which seemed like copies with only minor differences between them.
Ajax instantly knew these monsters were not from his family. First, he had never seen them in his life, and second, he saw how they brutally murdered the guards stationed at each door of the labyrinth.
BOOM!
“We’re under attack by those creatures, master! We must evacuate!” a servant shouted, running toward Ajax.
The monitoring room was very close to the labyrinth, so the monsters, sensing living presences there, attacked as well.
“We can’t let those monsters roam freely in the labyrinth! Tell the servants to go in and start eradicating them, and someone notify my father immediately!” Ajax ordered without hesitation. It would cause many problems if they died in his family’s labyrinth.
As for his true friends, he knew their strength would keep them safe. As for Luke and Wednesday, they were the danger to the monsters.
‘I need to warn Luke…’ Ajax thought, watching as three of those ugly, deformed, and muscular monsters charged toward him and his servants. Fortunately, he had a telepathic link with Luke.
“But, master, your safety comes first…” said an older man with white hair, a mustache, and some wrinkles.
“It doesn’t matter. Three of you stay here and fight; one of you notify my father, and the rest go into the labyrinth and fight these monsters,” Ajax commanded, and everyone obeyed immediately.
The girl who had been speaking with Ajax earlier and the white-haired man stayed by his side, battling alongside him. A fight of four Gorgons versus three monsters ensued.
“Master, if my knowledge serves me correctly, these creatures should be demons,” the white-haired man said, kicking one of the monsters and sending it flying into a wall.
It didn’t seem to do much damage, as the monster quickly got up and charged again.
“What!? Demons?” Ajax and the servant girl exclaimed.
“Yes… Lesser demons, to be precise. This is the first time in my over a hundred years of life that I’ve seen so many of them together,” the man replied with a serious expression and a furrowed brow.
‘This doesn’t look good…’ Ajax thought, watching the demons charge again. He never imagined he’d be facing the legendary demons on his birthday.
…
“Damn it, they’re so persistent!” Nao shouted irritably, unleashing another powerful electric blast behind her, hitting four of the monsters chasing them. If it weren’t for her lightning’s stunning effect, they would have been caught long ago.
“We should be close to the intermediate chamber… if my memory serves me right,” said a servant named Julie. She was being carried by one of the two boys.
Ahead of her, Eugene was running while carrying the injured girl Julie had saved. Luckily, they had found her; otherwise, she might have been killed by a trap in the labyrinth or by these monsters if they had encountered her.
“And how can you be so sure? This place constantly changes,” the other boy asked, throwing nervous glances at the dark hallways as they ran.
“I’ve worked here long enough to learn some signs,” Julie replied.
“Take this!” Yoko exclaimed. She raised a hand and, with a swift motion, cut her palm. The blood that flowed began to float around her, transforming into sharp crimson spears that shot toward the pursuing monsters.
The spears struck with force, piercing the closest creatures and momentarily slowing them down.
“That should buy us some time…” Yoko murmured as she rejoined the group. The cut on her hand healed quickly, thanks to her vampiric nature.
Yoko and Nao’s ranged attacks allowed the group to stay one step ahead of the monsters chasing them.
The servant, weakly clinging to the boy carrying her, gave directions with a barely audible but determined voice.
“If we reach the intermediate chamber, we can use a secret passage to lose them. But if the giant statue is still guarding the area, we’ll have to avoid it,” said Julie, who had managed to catch her breath.
“I hope you’re right because these things don’t seem like they’re giving up anytime soon,” Nao replied, firing another electric blast that lit up the dark corridor with a blinding flash. Rather than harm them, each attack seemed to only enrage the monsters further.
As they turned a sharp corner, the werewolf boy who wasn’t carrying Julie stepped on a tile with a strange engraving.
A loud click echoed through the air, and suddenly, dozens of arrows shot out from the walls. “Watch out!” Yoko shouted, her crimson eyes glowing behind her glasses as she leapt nimbly to the side.
The group scattered in the corridor, Nao staying close to Eugene to protect him and the girl on his back from being pierced by arrows. Yoko followed the boy carrying Julie, assisting him to
avoid injury.
This brief mishap and delay gave the monsters enough of an advantage to catch up. All four of them lunged at the boy who had triggered the trap, as he was in the worst position and had to dodge more arrows than the others since the trap was centered on his location.
The first monster lunged at the boy with claws ready to tear him apart, but he managed to dodge at the last second, rolling desperately across the floor. However, his luck ended there. Before he could fully get back on his feet, the second monster reached him, driving its sharp claws deep into his torso, making him scream in pain.
Before anyone could come to his aid, the third monster arrived, opening its massive jaws and brutally biting into the boy’s neck, its fangs tearing through flesh and bone with ease.
The monster let out a low growl, and with a swift and merciless motion, wrenched its jaws to the side. In an instant, the boy’s head was ripped from his body, leaving a trail of blood that splattered across the walls and floor of the labyrinth.
“NOOO, LIAM!” his friend screamed, coming to an abrupt halt and staring at the scene with horrified eyes. One of his closest friends had just died in the most gruesome way, and his body
trembled with rage and sorrow.
Liam’s decapitated body fell heavily to the ground.
“Keep running!” Nao shouted, pushing Eugene forward.
One thing became clear to her during this escape: with two injured and only four capable fighters, they stood no chance against these ferocious monsters radiating a murderous intent
so palpable it was overwhelming.
The monsters had incredible resilience. Her electric attacks only seemed to stun them temporarily, causing no apparent harm. Even Yoko’s blood spears failed to inflict any serious
damage.
Yoko had to shove the boy forward to get him to start running again. Despite his immense rage at witnessing his friend’s death, he wasn’t foolish. Charging at the four monsters alone would be suicide. His survival mattered; if he lived, there might be a chance for revenge in the
future.
Luckily for the group, the monsters stopped chasing them.
Nao, still running, couldn’t resist casting a quick glance over her shoulder, driven by curiosity. What she saw left her confused and slightly terrified.
The four creatures swarmed around the fallen boy’s body, mercilessly tearing it apart. Their claws and jaws worked frantically, ripping chunks of flesh and bone as if they were competing
for something more than mere sustenance.
Suddenly, the creatures’ behavior shifted. The growls of satisfaction turned into furious roars. Out of nowhere, they began fighting among themselves.
One of them tried to grab something in the air, as if claiming it, but another intercepted with
a vicious bite. Nao, unable to comprehend what was happening, turned her gaze forward, focusing on staying alive and escaping the labyrinth.
After a while, the monsters stopped fighting and resumed their pursuit, but the group had gained a slight lead, just enough to give them the advantage they desperately needed. Finally, they reached the intermediate chamber. Eugene, sweat dripping from his forehead, was the first to step into the room.
The room was large and circular. At the far end, there was an open door. Debris from what appeared to have once been an imposing statue littered the area, but none of them paid any attention to these details.
“Run in that direction!” Julie exclaimed from the boy’s back, pointing toward a spot that wasn’t the door Luke had previously used when he defeated the knight.
“You, lightning girl, go first. There should be a switch that will open the secret passage,” Julie ordered, her tone urgent as she looked at Nao.
Nao nodded and, without hesitation, took the lead, moving with incredible speed thanks to
her electrokinesis.
Barely seconds had passed since Nao dashed ahead when one of the monsters burst into the
room with an ear-splitting roar.
Eugene, his heart pounding nervously, turned to face the creature. He immediately noticed it was different from the others. Its skin was reddish, as if it were boiling, in stark contrast to the bluish tone of the other creatures.
With a massive leap, the monster crossed the room and landed directly in front of Nao’s path, blocking her way. Before she could fully react, the creature launched a colossal punch straight
at her.
‘Damn it!’ Nao thought, instinctively raising her hands.
In the blink of an eye, a crackling shield of lightning appeared in front of her, blocking the
blow.
However, the impact was so powerful that the energy of her shield barely managed to absorb
it. The force sent her flying backward like a rag doll, tumbling across the floor until Eugene
intercepted her.
“You piece of crap!” Yoko shouted, charging toward the reddish monster. If they didn’t get it
out of the way, they wouldn’t be able to use the secret passage and would have to face all the
monsters in the room.
Yoko conjured a long, razor-sharp spear of hardened blood.
“Try dodging this!” she exclaimed, thrusting the spear directly at the monster’s small head, which contrasted sharply with its incredibly muscular and toned torso.
The monster, however, showed no hint of fear or intent to evade. It clenched its massive fist,
its claws glinting with a reddish hue, and raised it just before the spear reached it. With a brutal strike, it collided with the blood spear.
For a few seconds, it seemed the two attacks were evenly matched. The spear vibrated
intensely as it withstood the force of the blow. But the monster’s pressure was relentless. With a sharp crack, the spear began to fracture, small fissures spreading across its surface until it finally shattered into multiple fragments that flew in all directions.
After destroying the spear, the monster’s fist continued its trajectory, striking Yoko. She
barely managed to brace herself before being sent flying in the direction of Nao and the
others.
Yoko was caught mid-air by the boy carrying Julie.
‘This isn’t good,’ Eugene thought, holding onto Nao as she coughed up a bit of blood.
The reddish monster began to charge toward them. Eugene was at a loss for what to do; he
had an injured girl on his back, and while he wanted to fight, it was impossible for him to face these monsters.
Nao staggered to her feet, wiping the blood dripping from the corner of her mouth. Her gaze
was fixed on the monster.
Eugene noticed that Nao’s back, though upright with determination, was trembling slightly. It wasn’t from the injuries she had sustained earlier but from the sheer ferocity and murderous intent emanating from the monster.
Just as the monster raised its fist to strike Nao, a flash appeared out of nowhere. A blur moved
at a speed none of them could clearly follow.
Before the monster’s fist could connect with Nao, the blur collided directly with its face with
devastating force.
The sound of the impact echoed like an explosion, releasing a shockwave that shook
everything around them.
The once-unstoppable monster was sent flying like a ragdoll. Its body careened across the room before crashing violently against the wall of the labyrinth.
“I made it in time,” murmured the one responsible for sending the monster flying. Eugene barely managed to react, his eyes darting between the fallen monster and the blur that was now slowly coming to a stop, revealing Luke standing calmly in front of them. “Luke…” Eugene, Yoko, and Nao said in unison, each with different emotions but sharing one:
relief.
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Link: [email protected]/Nathe07