Just a few moments ago…
When Rean saw his blonde classmate got slashed across his chest, he couldn't stay still. He unsheathed his sword, turned around, and brought his sword down in the center of the big terrorist. The slash produced a reddish hue that cut the hammer's hold in half.
This resulted in the guy losing the hold on his hammer and it fell onto the floor.
The long iron bar on the battle hammer was made to adjust the balance of the weapon, so that the burden could be shared on both sides when the user lifts it up. But by splitting the hold in half, it eliminates the balance completely and the weight would completely be in one side only with no chance of lifting it up due to the short hold.
Also, due to the sudden imbalance, the big guy stumbled forward and was forced to kneel on one knee.
But Rean didn't just wait for the big guy to kneel, he did something else simultaneously. He turned back around while adjusting his hold on his sword. Then he posed like a spearman who is about to throw his javelin forward, and threw his sword to the enemy that had attacked his classmate.
The sword clogged onto the enemy's shoulder and the impact threw him backwards. It managed to pause the attack on his classmate, but Rean knew it wouldn't be for long.
Rean felt some movements beside him and acted immediately. Before the enemy beside him could stand up, he went around him with his sheath on the big guy's neck—holding him in chokehold. The redhead pulled the sheath to him, choking the guy. The guy tried reaching back for him, but he easily dodged the big clumsy hands without reducing his power on the hold. Instead, he pulled tighter.
As this was happening, a cadet entered the scene. It was a brunette whom Rean had never seen before.
The brunette held his bat high as soon as he saw Rean choking the big guy. "Junior! You good?! Need help?!"
The senior had come from the emergency exit, so he didn't see that there is a more important thing that was happening on the floor near the office area. So Rean guided him to his classmate.
Rean immediately shook his head. "No! Help my friend! He's on your right!"
The senior immediately looked to the right, and he saw them immediately. The senior gasped. "Gunner junior!!" He immediately approached the enemy with a growl. "You hurt my juniors! You will pay for what you've done!"
Rean watched as the senior swung his bat and beat the two enemies who were trying to get up. The senior looked very capable in using his bat, so Rean left those two to him while he took care of this one.
The guy had started making choking sounds when the senior appeared, but he stopped trying to grab him after a few seconds. Rean had to admit that this guy is strong. He had choked him for a few seconds now, but the big guy stayed conscious. He didn't choke him very hard, but still, the duration is frightening.
Eventually, the guy's hands fell to the floor and his movements receded. Rean observed the man's face, now revealed due to his rabbit mask cut in half, and watched as the man's eyes rolled backwards very slowly.
Something flashed in the man's eyes, like a blue light, but then it disappeared in a second. Rean thought he was imagining something, but he immediately released his hold on the man. If he choked the man any longer than this, the man would die.
The man then dropped to the floor, wheezing and twitching.
The senior had also done his part. Both enemies were sprawled onto the floor, unmoving and bleeding from their noses, but still breathing. Their chests were moving up and down.
"Senior! I'm out of potion!" Rean said as he knelt down beside Terrence to stop his bleeding.
"Don't worry. I brought this." The senior immediately took out a High Potion and both of them treated the blonde.
-
"I beat these two and he beat that one, then we saved you with this." Jake shakes the High Potion before keeping it in his pocket.
"Wow. So that's what happened?" I asked absentmindedly while checking all over my body.
"Yeah! So you better thank us later!" Jake lightly punches my shoulder.
"Ah, um! Okay!" I answer him, again, absentmindedly.
"How do you feel?" Rean asked.
I'm checking the muscles on my hands, the thin cut on my chest, then my stomach, my feet… Back to my head… And I can't help but admit this is like I've been cured by God.
I've known from others that High Potion works better for deeper cuts and worse injuries, but I've been staying far, far away from danger that I've never really known how it really does its wonder. But after experiencing it for myself, well, maybe these potions aren't that bad after all.
I give Rean thumbs up. "Everything's good!"
Rean nods. "Good. Let's go to the next floor." The great guy stands up.
"U-Uhmm…" It's a female's voice.
Rean and Jake look at a young woman standing timidly near the plant in the office's hallway.
"Ah, are you a worker?" Jake asked, standing up.
I immediately remember the worker I've saved before. "Miss! It's safe now!"
The female worker walks out from her hiding place and walks nimbly towards us. "Phew… It was scary. Are you boys okay?"
I stand up and we answer her simultaneously. "Yes."
"Are you? Do you need heal?" Jake asked.
She shakes her head. "No, I'm fine. I have questions, though."
"What is it?"
She looked confused. "Why are Terrace students here instead of the police?"
"The police are nearby. But they cannot rush in because there are too many lives at stake. That's why they sent us to infiltrate from the back." Rean said fluently. It was if he had practiced saying it without cracking.
That's not wrong. The terrorists had their grip on the police and kept them in the front part of the building. They've tried infiltrating from the back, but many workers were killed in return and a barrier was activated to hold the police from entering. Weirdly, the barrier only rejects the police. That's why Terrace was called to assist with the rescue.
She frowns in concern. "A-Are there… Many people who… Died…?"
Judging by her reaction, she must be a normal flat character that's afraid of death and crime. I bet if she sees the two bodies on the left side of the receptionist counter, the ones in the lobby, she'll be more restless.
Rean paused before answering. "We don't know."
Jake immediately follows up to ease the situation. "But it's alright. You're safe with us now. Just stay close."
The woman nods hesitantly. "Alright."
Footsteps echo behind us. It's coming from the hallway on the left side of the receptionist. We anticipate it to be an enemy, but it's just a male cadet. In fact, he's that one who came with Jake on the hovercraft.
"Heey!!" He looks in hurry.
At the same time, our Arrows light up and Base Operator comes through.
"Emergency. I repeat. Emergency. Two vans have stopped at the back entrance and monsters are coming out of the vans in bulk. They don't seem to be stopping!"
There's static and we look at each other with grim faces.
The male cadet stops near us and tries to catch his breath. He's holding a sword and it has fresh blood on it. "Monsters! Stairs!"
"Breathe, Patrick. We don't understand. And why did you come from there? You were supposed to take the emergency stairs." Jake told his friend.
Patrick sucks in a few breaths before he points his sword behind him. "Monsters are coming up the stairs!"
The others but me are very surprised.
Well, I've known this would happen. This is canon to the story. The terrorists would bring monsters after we reached the 12th floor. As if fighting the terrorists isn't hard enough already, the developers gave us something more exciting to work our ass off.
The female worker inches herself to me in reflex. "N-No…"
"How close?" Rean asked.
"In a few minutes…? I've blocked the ground floor's hallway to the normal stairs." Patrick said.
"But the monsters will use the emergency stairs instead! Great! Gunner junior can just shoot them from the hovercraft!" Jake looks at me excitedly while I look at him like he just grew two heads.
While that may have been a good plan…
'I didn't reserve my ammo for those monsters, you flathead!' I curse him in my mind.
Well, I did save up some for them because I can't fight some of them in close range. But not for all of them!!
Patrick stands up and scratches his cheek. "U-Uhh… About the hovercraft…"
All of us looked at him.
"I… Blew it." He looks away with a small smile.
All of us blink in turn. "Huh…?"
"A-After I blocked the normal stairs' hallway, I knew they're gonna use the emergency stairs, so I use the hovercraft to blow up the stairs from the 15th floor downward. It blew up on the 8th floor." Patrick explained.
"That means… We can't use the emergency stairs before 15th floor… And the monsters will use the normal stairs in the 8th floor…" Jake tried to conclude.
"But there are terrorists in the stairs!" The female worker said.
"We have no other choice. That's our only way to get upstairs." Rean said. He walked back to our previous position and takes his sword.
"B-But…" The woman holds my clothes tightly. She's terrified.
I roll my eyes, but I pat her arm to comfort her. 'These flatties are sure into their role…'
This is also what happens in the canon. A cadet warns Rean not to use the emergency stairs because he blows something up in there to block the monsters from using it. But the game never reveals why. Now I know.
"We should go now. The more time we spend here, the more we're in danger." I said.
Jake and Patrick look at me nervously, but they know I'm right. They nod hesitantly before straightening themselves up.
"Let's go then." Rean said, waiting for us at the corridor where the normal stairway is.
"Stay close to us, ma'am. We'll protect you." Jake smiles at the female worker.
The woman is trying hard not to cry as she nods. I try to walk away, but she's holding on to my clothes tight. "M-Miss? Can you let me go—"
"Let me hold you! I'm scared!" She cries.
I look at her in surprise and disbelief. 'You're a grown-up lady! I'm just a teenager! I should be the one cowering behind you!"
I turn to the other for help, but they only stare at each other without saying anything. Then at the same time, they give me thumbs up.
'Betrayal!!'
I make sure to show them a very intense glare to let them know how disappointed and annoyed I am.