Nilbog sprang awake. He pressed his back against the wall with his daggers perked up. He swallowed a bitter lump as he paced the room, glancing around, and at some point, even looking under the bed.

Explosions sounded in the distance, their bright colors lighting up the sky. A moment later, the gusts of winds and heavy rain reached the windows, rattling them out of their hinges. It sparked movement above him and around him. He saw shadows move past his door.

Nilbog felt the walls closing in on him. The air felt horribly heavy in his lungs. His skin itched, and uncomfortable shiver sent his hair crawling. He paced the room quicker, clutching his teeth together.

Every part of him was irked. The way the bed was set, the way clutter was all over the floor. Everything felt wrong.

I need to leave. Seventh Sense was going haywire. He only felt like this when he was in grave danger.

Nilbog pocketed one of the daggers within the pockets of his coat, keeping one hand free. He stepped out of the room, holding the handle of his dagger with enough force to bend the wooden handle. Little sounds in the corner of the hall jabbed at his shoulders.

Was The Blind Mage here? Did she finally him?

He placed the knife in front of him, staring at the reflection. They stared back ragged and red, becoming more foreign with each passing step. He snapped his head up, searching for any lurking monsters.

It was too soon. The fear was still entrenched in him. Not just of her destroying him, but of the sorrow he felt when he heard her song, of the memories he recalled because of her. She brought him back to the day that started all of this. That cursed scene kept playing in his head, becoming more vivid the more he listened to her.

Rather than a noise that drew Nilbog’s attention, it was the lack of it. The explosions ceased and people above him no longer moved.

It became ghostly quiet.

Most people were asleep now, deep within their rooms, or other people's rooms, but Nilbog still felt like something was glaring at him from some gloomy corner.

Just him and a nearing sensation of doom. It got closer, and though he could not hear it he swore he could feel its pressure pulsing in all around him. He cursed, realizing he left his food in the room, but did not stop to fetch it.

As quite as he tried to keep himself the entire hall seemed to react to him. The building creaked with each step he took. He could already feel the walls collapsing around him, the dust falling on his heels.

He got half-way through the apartment complex before turning a corner to meet face to face with four humans.

He squealed while his body did the moving. It ducked below the first swing while the rest of his senses caught up. He tried dashing through the space in between them, but the second sword caught him at the hips. It didn’t penetrate but it did tip him off balance. He struck the cement with the back of his shoulder and rolled with the momentum, evading the final thrust. The sword missed him by inches and broke itself on the floor as Nilbog sprang up, his quads nearly ripping as it propelled himself forward. Sentient Killer, Short-Breath, and his Dodge skill all boosting his Speed.

They did not give chase once he escaped their range. When Nilbog glanced back, he saw that the icon above their heads was the same animated helm as the Anima but purple. They went around knocking down the rooms one by one. More of those filth. How did they pass the ones below? Did they let them go, or did they somehow sneak by? Nilbog gathered his breath, preparing himself for whatever laid there. Worst case scenario the entire floor would be overrun.

A staircase later, he found himself in the hallways of the first floor. He was alone in his panic. People were huddled together, covered by blankets and snoring peacefully. There were no signs of struggle.

The old man Nilbog had talked too was in the same spot, except this time he stood at the ready with his sword. “Ya back? Don’t be kid, you need to lea--”

Nilbog sucked sharp breaths, his heart still beating rapidly. “Did a group recently pass by?”

“A group? Nah, one or two harmless folks. Hav’ya been up from there—”

They turned purple upstairs. One mystery down, but the danger wasn’t. “You need to… leave,” he said, looking around. “It’s not safe here.”

“Kid, it’s not safe anywhere. You hear that?”

The explosions came back. He didn’t even need to hear them when he could just feel the vibrations in the ground. “You need to keep moving. You can’t stay still.”

What else was he supposed to say? That his gut-wrenching told him it was dangerous? That skill called Seventh Sense vaguely told him something bad might happen?

The old man sighed, shaking his head. He looked back from Nilbog to the others, fatigue heavy in his eyes. “Youngsters nowadays. Don’t got a second to listen. All they do is yap yapping. Yeah, I got that lousy Sixth Sense,” he said, hunching down in a whisper. “Things about to turn bad from worse, but we got injured. Anyone that can move I sent away.”

On a closer look, the old man was right. Those that were left were in no condition to breathe, much less walk. “And you? What are you still doing here?”

“Me? Oh, you flattering young man. I’m an old, old thing,” he said, plopping back on his chair. “If I’m dying, I don’t wanna die tired.”

“What’s your name?”

“Shaun The Easy, but didn’t I already tell ya?”

“I don’t know. I’m Nilbog. I’ll remember you,” Nilbog said, walking past him.

“Remember me, ay?” He held his sword with both hands in front of him, it’s tip balancing on the ground as he held his forehead against the hilt. “That's a comfort."

Nilbog left Shaun with an uncomfortable feeling in his gut. Why didn't he escape? Why was he so calm? Nilbog had so many questions, and all of them will forever be unanswered.

The moment Nilbog pushed aside the doors a blanket of rain smacked him, instantly drenching him to the bone. It was rather lukewarm and would have felt rather nice if they didn’t fall on him like nails. He had to fight for each step.

He spotted a few others running in the opposite direction. He looked at the structure behind him. It was tall, nearly six stories high and wide, and not much different than all the concrete blocks near it. Whatever was going to happen in this area, those walls had a good chance of protecting the ones inside.

He felt ridiculous, and for a second, he pondered whether he should return to his shelter inside. It might just be safer. His food was there, too, and Lady Viss did tell him to stay.

Hearing shouting, Nilbog bent his head upward in time to see someone being hurled out of the second floor’s window. They fell a short distance away from him heads first, making a disgusting squish sound.

Wretched. With a shudder, Nilbog walked away from the building. He’d had enough for today--more than enough. His stomach began to irk him, the irritating thing begging him for food again. He got a decent amount of sleep, five maybe, from the way his HP regenerated to 87, but more would be pleasant. He only needed to sleep an hour or two a day, but it did greatly help the regeneration of his HP and Overall STM .

Blood began to rise to his cheeks. He began to hear some type of whistling sound. It was an odd, high pitched noise that rose with intens--

Sentient Killer Activated

The difference in Danger Ranks has increased Sentient Killer’s effects by 50%.

You have received 8 damage.

You have failed to resist a Stun Status Effect.

The bricks found Nilbog before he found them. He groaned, his eardrums ringing themselves out of his head. He reached forward, surprised to find the ground pressing against his cheeks. He pushed himself up, glancing behind him as the world danced on its heels.

A couple of the buildings were missing their sides. A dust cloud had risen from all the debris, covering the streets in it.

The one on his side screeched as the fracture spread throughout the foundation, spitting bricks, sofas, people and entire floors as it fell apart. People ran away, dodging chunks of concrete and kitchen sinks.

The ground kept quivering. Lightning flashed from an abnormally close cloud, hitting one of the nearby buildings. Another one quickly followed its tail, spiking from above and crashing down at the same location. More gray dust flew into the air. Blue beams and fireballs followed.

“For fuck's sake, I just want to sleep!” Nilbog yelled, his voice a flicker in the heavy storm. Another flash brightened up the sky, revealing a woman's silhouette within the clouds.

The rubble she had struck began to move. Nilbog glanced suspiciously at the dust as a large figure rose from it.

It was at least 5 meters tall and nearly just as wide. The smell of burnt skin oozed out of him as he roared viciously, his boom on peer with the thunder’s own cry. It cut the dust in half, giving him a glimpse of his grotesque nature.

He was clad in a half-destroyed black and red armor. A good portion of his helm melted way, leaving one horn sticking up from the side. Underneath his skin was melting off. Blood seeped off from the cracks of the dense Life Force that covered him. It’s color alternated between red and yellow.

The giant bent down and lifted a piece of concrete nearly twice his size. With a grunt, his red aura infused itself into the stone, causing it to emit a dull red aura. He tossed it at the clouds the same time a bolt of lightning plunged his way. The bolt struck it, doubling her problem when it split into halves. The two pieces kept flying towards the cloud, their red blinking faster. More lighting came down but by then it was too late. The concrete exploded in the sky, hurling small stones like sharp knives through the clouds, spreading them thin.

A shriek was heard, followed by an increased barrage of more ferocious lighting.

The very sound of those two monstrosities exchanging tossing lightning and stones at each other began to lower Nilbog’s HP. His bloodshot eyes glanced at his status screen, feeling the familiar sensation of power in his muscles. He read the status screens.

Unknown Lightning Mage: Tiger

Unknown Giant: Tiger

Not monsters. Sentients. The ones he was supposed to “kill.” This was the type of power he was supposed to beat. Barlom and Olivia would be no different. No, by the time he got to them, they would be even stronger.

Nilbog began to limp away. No, not yet. It could still get worse. He couldn’t imagine how, but he knew it could, and it would, because that’s just the way things worked. He didn’t need more than a few months to figure that out.

He gave a quick glance to the building he had exited, but dust was everywhere. He didn’t know whether it had completely collapsed. He turned back and dragged himself forward. One step at a time, one step at a time, he whispered to himself as pieces of bricks landed around him. One of them might have struck a part of his body, but he could not tell. Everything was so loud that he could barely see.

Left leg, right leg, Nil, keep it up. You’re doing great. Just. Fucking. Great.