The youngsters felt the air around them becoming gloomy and ominous as the number of Dreadlings that emerged increased.
At first, it was just one, and even that was enough to send tremors across their hearts. They had to risk their skins to kill it, and even then, they ended up losing one of their friends, who was like a family member to them.
But when they saw a second Dreadling crawling out...their hearts almost fell out, thinking how in the hell could they even face two of these monsters at the same time?
However, fate seemed to play an even crueler joke on them when a third one emerged, making their hearts drown in despair.
But a fourth, fifth, and the increasing number of Dreadlings only made them feel as if the world was going to end and that their deaths were set in stone.
The Dreadlings seemed to take their own time grouping together as if they were already sure that the human prey before them was already going to die between their venomous fangs.
Arion suppressed the tremors in his heart and pushed Cayden, "Go, Run!"
"Huh…" Cayden came out of his shock but couldn't help feel his legs and knees weakening.
However, the adrenaline spikes in his body due to his fear restored some strength in his legs and made his thoughts more clear.
He quickly turned around and grabbed Nena, who was standing still with a petrified look. However, her body jerked when Cayden suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her forward, "Run! We can't stand here anymore!"
But then he saw SIlvi lying on the ground unconsciously and quickly lifted her off the ground and carried her on his shoulder.
Since he was strong, he didn't find it hard to carry her. But in this situation, he doubted whether he could make it out with a person on his back.
The Dreadlings started to charge forward in a frenzy, numbering at least ten. Together, they looked like harbingers of death that could completely kill anything in their way, leaving behind horrendous corpses and destroyed settlements.
Arion already began to turn his wheels frantically to speed forward while Cayden kicked his feet off the ground but stopped when he saw Nena was still standing frozen on the spot.
"Nena! What the hell are you doing?? Come!!" Cayden said, raising his voice while Arion also stopped, not knowing why he was so concerned.
"W-We can't leave her like this…" Nena said as tears continued to stream down her eyes.
Apparently, it seemed as if she couldn't part away from Ina's body or abandon her even though she was dead. In her heart, she still hadn't accepted her death.
"You…" Cayden didn't know what to say since he also felt that he shouldn't leave her body out like this. At least her corpse should be brought back to her family so that they all could mourn her properly.
But he already had Silvi to carry, and Nena was too young and not that strong enough to outrun the Dreadlings while carrying a corpse along.
Nena bent her knees to pick Ina up, but…
"Stop! Nena, if you bring her with you, then you would not only be putting yourself in danger but also the ones who are alive around you. Look at Silvi. You can save her if you don't slow down since Cayden would surely try to help you in case the Dreadlings catch up. Do you really want to lose someone else again?" Arion asked in a serious tone.
Cayden was surprised at Arion's words as he had never expected him to say something like that. In his perspective, Arion was always a quiet and meek kid who always liked to be alone and bad at mingling with others.
However, even though he found Arion's words harsh, he felt that what he said was right. Even Nena's eyes flashed with hesitation, and she remembered that Silvi was hurt as well and looked at her unconscious body being carried by Cayden.
She bit her lips and said in a croaky voice as tears streamed down her tender cheeks, "Let's go...."
However, she picked up Ina's bow and quiver, strapping them on her shoulders to keep something that belonged to Ina in her memory, and immediately began to run along with Cayden and Arion.
But as she ran with all her strength, she felt pain in her throat out of regret, shame, and self-reproach and mumbled, "I am sorry...Ina…"
She felt as if she was the worst friend by abandoning Ina all alone amongst those monsters. Who knows how her corpse would end up after the Dreadlings finish tearing her apart completely.
Would there be anything left as proof that she once existed and lived among them? Will her parents even be able to hold onto her even after her death? Can she herself ever be able to come to terms with Ina's death?
With these thoughts in mind, she only looked forward and continued to run. Her sadness and devastation from losing her friend were clouding her mind.
*Kreee! Kreee! Kree!*
But the frightening screeches of the Dreadlings from a distance behind her suppressed her thoughts as her fear began to take dominance again in her heart, making her run even faster.
She then saw Arion getting left behind because of being slower than them and ran towards him to push him along.
Arion, who was moving the wheels of his wheelchair with his bare hands, was surprised by the sudden boost that came from behind and twisted his neck around to see that it was Nena.
He was surprised that she still had the mentality to help in such an emotional and broken state. He felt it a pity that a kind girl like her had to lose a friend at such a young age.
Thinking about the group of Dreadlings hot on their trail, he felt that the final screech of the dead Dreadling was kind of a panic or rescue call asking for help from its fellow Dreadlings.
However, the pace of the three was slower than the nimble Dreadlings behind them, thus allowing these monsters to close the distance between them slowly.
Arion, who was getting pulled along by Nena, noticed it as he constantly twisted his neck around to see how close those terrifying creatures were.
His eyes flashed with hesitation as if he was struggling to come to a decision. But finally, he gritted his teeth and said, "Nena, let go and run away on your own. I will buy time for you two!"
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A/N: This novel got contracted and thanks to everyone who supported this novel and hope you readers continue to support this novel with your powerstones if you enjoy it. This novel will be going premium from this month end onwards.