Rushing Manticore

As the remnant echoes reverberated through my eardrums, I could not help but curse at my own incompetence.

The largest cause of this current predicament, the situation where we currently found ourselves at odds with a presumably Boss class monster, was without a doubt, because of the egg. There were a few determining factors as to how things had progressed into such a direction, but the underlying root cause was because of this egg… and my negligence.

A few seconds ago, I had unwittingly softened my guard. Overcome by the weariness and ensuing aftermath of post battle glow, my usual tension had decreased, to the point where I unconsciously entered into a “lost in thought” state of mind.

This state, and my own tendency to overthink and ignore my surroundings was a real problem. In fact, this wasn’t the first time this habit had brought danger to my doorstep. It was because of this bad habit that I wasn’t able to stop Narise from acting out in my moment of indecision.

Another factor to this was Narise herself. I knew she was somewhat fond of monsters, but I did not know that things had progressed to such a state where her fixation actually posed a threat to the group’s well being. Fervent fanaticism bordering on obsession… This was something I had never even imagined, further slackening my guard. If such a thing were to be left alone, then it would surely lead to numerous future troubles.

As the brief thought of abandoning Narise, and removing this budding trouble from the stem, flashed through my mind, another roar echoed through out the air.

This roar originated north, a bit further ahead of the streets of the residential neighborhood.

I glared at the far away rooftops for a split second before I turned back around, and forcibly ushered everyone back into the building.

“Hurry, the roars are getting louder!”

Everyone streamed past me in frantic haste, even Narise, who slightly brushed my shoulder as she cradled the egg in one hand, and a wriggling newborn Gila in the other, ran past me without much thought. I glared at her receding figure, but she stayed unaware. Her eyes were spinning as all her attention focused purely on the basketball sized egg in her arms.

Seeing this obsession which persisted even in this sort of life threatening situation, I could only resentfully sigh as I followed everyone back into the school.

***

We were momentarily gathered in the hallway overlooking the courtyard.

Under normal circumstances, there would be a sort of discussion as to our next course of actions. The type of setup that resembled the democratic process, which in my eyes, was just our own twisted attempt at staying civil within this hell hole of a world. Unfortunately, we did not have the luxury nor the time for that. Our backs were up against the wall, and danger was quickly approaching.

We needed fast, immediate response. We did not need group consensus, but simply a singular direction. Practically the whole group understood this. Their eyes unknowingly stared up at me, a mixture of expectation and fear glinting deep within their irises.

Without a moment’s hesitation, I quickly instructed everyone back towards the basement. Without a second thought, they immediately ran towards the direction I indicated. Even Cielle, whom I locked eyes with for a fleeting moment, outright sprinted after the rest of the group, her willowy legs pumping in utter desperation.

As the rest of the group progressed forward, I momentarily stayed behind.

While staying back was particularly risky, I wanted to verify with my own eyes the threat that was currently looming over our heads. In addition, since the weaker, less physically inclined members of the group would take a while to make it to the basement, catching up to them wasn’t a real issue.

I was fairly confident I could make it to the basement safely, even with me lagging behind like this.

As this sort of budding confidence sprouted in my chest, I solemnly glared out the window.

For a brief moment, the scenery remained unchanged. The desolate looking neighborhood, filled with its gouged out streets, and partially destroyed houses remained still, like a framed watercolor painting. This state of ephemeral serenity only lasted for no more than 10 seconds before a blurred figure jumped over a two story house and landed deftly on to the street overlooking the school.

The jump and the subsequent landing caused the pavement to crack and split, while a tiny crater formed where 2 pairs of imposing clawed paws stood. Thanks to my enhanced senses, I could make out a few of the monster’s finer details even from this distance.

Its legs and torso were covered in a layer of thin, dirty gold colored fur. The fur wasn’t all that thick though, so it could not hide the bulging muscles beneath. In addition, from underneath that fur and on top of those muscles, what was supposed to be skin was replaced by a layer of dark green scales.

These fish like scales were mostly covered by the fur, but they could not be fully concealed as they poked out on various spots of the monster’s body. Aside from its scales, the beast had a mane of thick brown-white hair that ran all the way around its neck.

At the end of the mane, there was the scowling expression of a monster whose face resembled that of a middle aged old man. This face had veins running through its forehead, while its eyes were shaped like almonds, giving it a somewhat feline-like appearance.

These features, coupled with the pair of horns that jutted out from its mane, gave the monster a somewhat sinister appearance.

As the beast tensed its muscles and stared hatefully at its own nest, a thick, armor plated tail violently slammed into the street and houses nearby. At the end of this dark purplish tail, there was a sort of knob with a sharp object jutting out. Overall, the tail, which looked like a scorpion’s tail, completed the Manticore’s outer appearance giving it a completed impression of menacing dominance.

From this distance, it was too far for me to use [Identify] on the monster, but for a moment, I felt the Manticore’s gaze sweep past me, sending a cold shiver running through my spine. My body momentarily froze as my mind stalled. I immediately palpated while, deep within me, the intense desire to run bursted forth like a broken dam.

Calling this sensation fear would not be accurate. Mentally, I was not afraid. It was my body that reacted. Instinctively, every fiber of my being, to each strand of hair on my body down to all the cells on my skin, they all knew, they all felt the difference in strength. It was a primal drive that constantly yelled at me that, in front of this creature, I was nothing more than prey.

It only took a brief second for all this to wash over me. For a fleeting moment, the monster in question maintained its menacing glare, before it let out a rage filled howl and abruptly sprinted madly towards the school.

The monster’s sudden rush spurred my own. I desperately ran towards the basement. Even as the ground shivered and as dread clamped firmly into my heart, my legs did not stop moving. The concept of survival filled my mind and before I even realized, I was already in the basement, panting desperate pockets of air while trying to forcibly calm my rapidly beating heart.

I leapt down onto the basement floor and, following the familiar pathway illuminated by the light that leaked out from the open doorway, I ran towards the bomb shelter.

There, like I had previously instructed, the others were waiting for me. In the dim of light, I could clearly see the palpable fear and anxiety etched on their faces.

I motioned to open my mouth, but just as I was about to say something, a large force shook the entirety of the building to its core. Surprised and startled screams leaked out, the emergency lights momentarily flickered, and the very foundation of the school trembled as if in fear.

From above, another muffled roar could be heard, followed by the sound of crumbling concrete and collapsing floors. The Manticore had arrived, and going by that force alone, it had brought down half of the east building with it.

As chaos ensued, my mind briefly registered the faces around me. Narise practically threw herself over the egg and baby Gila, shielding them from falling objects and shaken debris. I don’t know since when, but the President had positioned himself in front of the weaker members of the group, while Cher was huddled up in front of Hina and Cielle, her shield drawn and raised above her head.

While everyone had differing reactions, there was one noticeable consistency that remained; fear, panic, anxiety, all these emotions were currently dominating the shivering room like a thick fog of heavy miasma.

Meanwhile, my own mind raced. What to do? How do we get out of this situation?

I had instinctively fled to the bomb shelter because I had thought it was the safest location within the east building. But after the earlier display, I knew that this flimsy location wouldn’t hold for very long. The Manticore above our heads was currently rampaging haphazardly, destroying the building in its mad chaos. In front of something that could literally shred concrete like it was tofu, this bomb shelter was practically negligible.

If we can’t hole ourselves up in here and wait out the rising tide, there was always the option of killing the monster itself. Of course, this option was only on the basis that the Manticore’s fighting ability was on level with the Dungeon Boss’s. Going by it's currently display, that assumption had long since been overturned.

Maybe in a one on one, the Dungeon Boss might stand a chance if it utilized its high regeneration and ten tentacle assault, but in terms of pure strength, the Manticore was superior by leaps and bounds. This sort of over specced enemy was currently the most annoying for our group to fight. Rather, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that we had practically no chance of winning.

The last, and most feasible option was escape.

Another large tremor shook the building, and from outside the bomb shelter, I could tell that the basement ceiling had collapsed. The Manticore had broken through all three floors and finally reached the ground floor.

I don’t know whether its large size was a blessing or a curse. Because of its stature, it could not outright pursue us through the halls, but at the same time, its size was closely tied with its immense strength. Now that it was on the ground floor, the obstacles that stood in its way had drastically gone down. Going by how things were currently progressing, It wouldn’t take long before its attention would unavoidably point in our direction.

With sweat pouring down my back, I swallowed all the hesitation I had bottled up, and immediately ushered everyone into the winding pathway.

As we entered the darkness where light could not touch, I hastily formulated a plan based on what little information I knew, and on what little assumptions I could conclude.

“Everyone, run towards the refuge, and climb up to the first floor. Without stopping, run west. Leave the school grounds and hide out in the residential neighborhood… if possible you can try to escape to the city.

Whatever you do though, don’t stop. Ignore the Manticore and keep running.”

My voice echoed throughout the dreary pathway without pause. I recited all this with a grim and somber expression, but thanks to the darkness, nobody in here could make out what sort of dreadful face I was currently making. Of course, the source of my dark mood was because of the rather dangerous, and somewhat reckless plan I had hastily devised.

The current plan I created was quite simple. While someone draws the monster’s attention, everyone else will use the opportunity to escape. Without question, I had decided to be bait. After all, as bait, I was the person with the highest chances of survival.

Now, to keep the Manticore’s attention focused solely on me, there was only one object that could do that…

“Narise, hand over the egg.”

I set of footsteps abruptly halted, as a surprised “Hah?” sounded out from a few feet ahead of me.

“W-what did you sa-”

Narise’s incredulous words were cut short. I did not have the time to listen to her inevitable protests, as I forced my body to move into action.

Even in the dark, to the me who painstakingly practiced [Echolocation], pinpointing Narise’s location was a relatively easy task. In the middle of her ramblings, I used [Shadow Sprint] and instantly teleported in front of her.

I don’t know whether she had seen me or felt my sudden presence, but Narise’s shoulders trembled as a sharp intake of breath echoed throughout the pathway.

Before she could properly react, I took a quick step forward, and thrusted my arm out like a readied spear. My hand had jolted forward and snaked around the egg in her arms. With one yank, I took hold of the egg before I retreated backwards, increasing the gap that had already formed between us.

“Wha-!” Narise’s surprised exclamations reached my ears, but I turned a deaf ear towards it all. “Fuck, what…? Shit, Boss, gi-give it back! Hey” Even as Narise’s protests grew increasingly fierce, I did not respond. I could tell that Narise was currently groping the empty space around her, her footsteps slowly shuffling in a careful, probing manner, but in here, it was utterly hopeless. In the dark, she could do nothing but stomp her feet in frustration.

“Boss, give me back the egg!” She desperately pleaded, as she continued to stagger around in a hopeless daze.

In actuality, a small lump of irritation had formed in the back of my mind. This girl, she was the sole cause of this predicament, and yet, her eyes were blinded by the obsession she possessed. I wanted to yell, to berate, to punish her for not only her recklessness, but for her total lack of disregard for everyone else’s safety, but I knew that we had no time. That sort of thing would have to wait until after we escaped.

Hearing Narise’s pleading shouts, which grew increasingly louder to the point of surpassing the constant booming noises from above, the rest of the group stopped and turned around. Their strained attention focusing in on the two of us.

“Give them back! Shit… I need that egg, Boss!”

“Stop being an idiot. I need this to lure the Manticore to me.” I said simply, not bothering to hide the irritation in my voice. The Manticore was only rampaging because of this egg, and it was highly likely that it had some way of locating it. As long as this egg was with us, the manticore would not stop. This sole fact was the reason why this egg was so important. In this situation, it was the perfect bait.

A simple solution to such a dreadful reality. I just needed to take the egg, and distract the Manticore while the others escaped.

Of course, I briefly played with the idea of simply leaving the egg within this pathway, and running away together with the rest of the group. But as quickly as the idea had formed, I dismissed it with haste. There was the possibility that the Manticore could sense whether or not its egg was in danger, or whether or not someone had the egg.

If I left the egg in here, and the Manticore deemed that it was safe, before it went back to secure its offspring, the Manticore might go out of its way to kill us as revenge for taking its egg. In order to prevent that scenario, it was necessary to make the egg the priority for the Manticore. That’s why, not only does the egg need to stay behind, but another person also needs to stay with the egg and act as the “threat”.

So, despite Narise’s desperate pleas, this situation I could not budge on. In fact, it was her fault we wound up in this mess in the first place. In her obsession, Narise possessed no self realization towards this fact. Again, I wanted to reprimand her for this, but now was not the time.

“Give it ba-” In the middle of her continuing speech, I once again used [Shadow Sprint] and teleported behind her. I struck the back of her neck with the side palm of my empty hand. Her body immediately went limp, as she fell backwards. Surprisingly enough, even though she was unconscious, the grip on her Gila never once loosened.

I hoisted her up over my shoulder, and in the darkness, I half jogged towards where I knew the President was standing.

I immediately propped the unconscious Narise over the President’s shoulder. The sudden action caused him to jump in surprise, but after realizing “what” I had given him, he relaxed and accepted.

“Also, take these… just in case.” I handed him all but two of the basic fireball skill books, one of the Lesser Draconic Boosts, and the Savage Blow skillbook.

In case they ran into trouble, it was better for them to increase their fighting capability with these new skills. After all, who knew how long we would be separated for.

“Make sure to do what I said,” I once again instructed in a heavy voice. “Escape the building and run west. I’ll keep the Manticore distracted, and then I’ll meet back up with you guys later.”

“That-” The President hesitated, but before he could formulate a sentence, a sudden voice from somewhere in the dark immediately interrupted.

“Let’s meet back up at my place.” From the intonation and pitch of the voice, I could tell without needing to verify that the source of the voice was Cielle. “My home is nearby, and it's to the west of the school… so promise.”

After hearing this, I hesitated for a second. The possibility that we would not be able to immediately meet back up was high, so I did not want to make any sort of reckless promise. It was only after another tremor shook the pathway, did I finally speak up again.

“Okay. I’ll try, but if after two days, and I’m not back again, I want you guys to keep going. Find somewhere safe, escape the immediate location. And, under any circumstances, do not go back to the school.”

“A week.”

“Hah?”

“We’ll wait for a week.”

“Wha- no, Cielle, I said-”

“We don’t have time to argue about this, one week.”

“Two days.”

“...five days.”

As the brief thought, “why the hell am I arguing about this?” flashed through my mind, I paused for a split second, before I uttered in an exasperated sigh.

“Three. That’s final.”

I could hear Cielle’s quick uptake of breathe. She paused, hesitated for a moment, before I finally heard her grunt in acceptance. I could almost imagine her bobbing her head up and down in response, but there was no time for such idle thoughts. With haste, after Cielle told me her address, I quickly told them to continue moving.

As the sound of hastily stampeding footsteps receded, I turned back around and walked a few dozen meters backwards.

Right now, I should be approximately at the midpoint of the pathway, and directly on top of the main building.

As if following the egg, the Manticore had moved away from the East Building, and over to the Main. It was currently rampaging directly above me, destroying the almost impossibly large structure that almost took my very life on numerous occasions.

With the Monster egg tightly held in place underneath the crook of my armpit, I unsheathed my sword, as I unconsciously glared upwards.

The ground shook, loosening a few pebbles and unearthing some ancient dust that fell from above. A resounding roar once again echoed out from above me. Although muffled, the roar was incredible close, enough to cause my whole body to vibrate along with the rest of the passageway.

My ears were ringing, while the hair on my scalp stood on ends. Again, the innate instinct to run overwhelmed my body like a rushing tide, yet even with all this, my eyes stayed resolute. In the darkness, with an egg in one hand, and my new sword in another, I waited.

I waited and acted as bait.