An unknown beast-like sound came from outside the doors that shielded a transparent panel. It wasn't glass and I had a feeling it would disappear instantly when the monsters rushed in.
Everyone simultaneously became frightened as they clung to the wall, trying to climb high or daring to find a weapon with the desire to protect their bodies.
While I wondered what kind of monster I was going to face.
Of course, I was also nervous and panicked at the sudden situation. But if I let it out, it would mess me up and take me a while to process those feelings. In general, behaving like everyone else is just a waste of time.
I relaxed my body in preparation to swing my spear at any moment.
No one counted down. The transparent barriers at the large doors came down as if someone had turned off the water curtain. Everywhere were screams that erupted, not knowing if they were human or monster. Or both.
The sense of mystery brought about by the cries of monsters on all sides along with the space constraints made me shudder. Everyone was terrified of what was coming.
"Save me!"
"Please, save me! Please..."
"Phew... Help!"
"Pick up the weapon! Don't you hear? Pick them up, weapons!"
"it! I can't call the police!"
"Those guys, listen to me! Raise your shield! At this time! Put up your shield now!"
"Come on! Pick up your weapons! This isn't even a joke. Are you guys blind or crazy? Pick up your weapons or you guys will die! No one can save anyone right now!"
"Hey! The one holding the shield, she must know how to fight. Please help! After I get out of here, I'll leave you a favor!"
They were shouting or calling for battle. The woman I noticed earlier had also hung her bow and crossbow on her shoulder with two daggers in both hands. She was a little more active in lifting everyone up, including the kid I had noticed. It was one thing, and I was being pulled by an unknown woman who pulled my shirt and grabbed my shoulders for help.
I have no reason to help someone who likes to depend on others. So I didn't say a word as I brushed the woman's hand away and stepped back.
Because of that, the woman's eyes glowed desperately as she tried to chase after my silhouette that was slowly running away.
"Nope! Please, help me! Just help me! I'll do everything to pay you!"
I paused slightly as I wondered what kind of person she was. Then I saw her status window suddenly pop up in front of me.
[Character information
Name: Jamine Dane
Age: 39
God bless: None
Characteristic: Neglect of responsibility (Master)
Skills: Acceleration- Lv0(D), Goodwill Lie- Lv0(D)
Gift: None
Overall Ability: Strength- Lv5, Endurance- Lv3, Magic- Lv3, Agility- Lv7
Overall Rating: A rotten woman can abandon anything for her own purposes. Abandonment of responsibility, abandonment of parents, abandonment of children, abandonment of power, abandonment of honor,... She would do anything to be free and live. Even if she had to run away and hide all her life. I advise you to stay away from this woman as far as possible, she will only lie to profit from you, as she is, a trash with running legs]
Because of my delay, the crashes and howls of the monsters got closer and closer. And the woman sped up to catch up with me, grabbing my sleeve again to beg.
"Huh! Please! Please! You can see, I can do anything if you help me survive. I want to live, please!"
I had no intention of taking this woman with me, but something changed my mind. There was something I could assign her to do.
"At least pick up your arms if you want to live."
It had to be the kid following behind her. The child had blond hair and ocean-blue eyes like her.
The child's status window also popped up as soon as I spotted it. The much more modestly dressed child, the woman shuddered momentarily when she met my eyes.
[Character information
Name: Arianne Dane
Age: 11
Characteristic: Benevolent Woman (Master)
Skills: Protective Bracelet- Lv0(A), Healing- Lv0(S), Goodwill Lie- Lv1(D)
Gift: None
Overall Ability: Strength- Lv8, Endurance- Lv7, Magic- Lv15, Agility- Lv8
Overall Rating: She is the standard to be a priest. Be a person who is loyal to his views and benevolent to everyone. As long as you can pull her to your side, you can trust her care]
It looked like the daughter of a woman frantically searching for a weapon like what I said.
In order not to waste time, as soon as the woman with an axe approached me, I pointed to the child and asked.
"That's your baby?"
The way the woman slowly turned her head was a sight. She almost denied it with a spiteful stare that made the desperate child cringe. Then the woman turned to me again, her head shaking sheepishly.
"Nope! Without! I have no relatives, much less any children!"
It was clear from her personality that I read that she was an outcast of her own child. Whatever, it didn't matter what choice she made. The problem is I need that kid.
"Bring it here, I can protect you both."
"Yes? He, he's not my baby! Ugh, it doesn't..."
"Who would care about that? Are you going to let a kid mess with my legs? Just bring her."
To the child's confusion, I waited for the woman to shake her overbearing hand to call the child closer. She was full of timidity and apprehension as she glanced back and forth between my face and her mother's disgust. Like she was coerced and threatened by me, she looked more scared of what I was going to say than the situation out there. Obviously, if she did anything different from what I said, her mother would get mad. However, I also intend to use that for my convenience.
"Kid, pick up the dagger over there."
She looked awkwardly at where I was pointing and then turned her head and rushed to pick up the dagger I said. As if afraid we would leave him behind, the child quickly turned around as he handed the dagger to me with both hands.
The sound of monsters out there is getting louder and louder. Even in the next minute, they could flood in.
I turned away to adjust my gear and spoke to the child in the softest voice possible. Basically, I don't want to be some kind of villain in her eyes. Partly out of pity for the pathetic child with a mother with personality problems, I half-turned to pat the shoulder of the child who was loosely holding the dagger.
"Keep it for self-defense. I never said it was for me."
"It's understandable if nobody wants to fight. I also don't want to understand this situation as true. But now, if we don't raise our weapons ourselves, we will die, none of us will be saved, no one will save us!"
"Yes! We have to mobilize ourselves. Whether this is real or fake, we have to survive and get out of here!"
Everyone was suddenly noisy excitedly.
"Think about our future! If we think we can do it, we definitely will!"
"Pick up your arms and fight for yourself! We will fight together! None of us will be left behind!"
"Yes, yes!"
Whether they continue my words or give moral support to everyone, it doesn't matter. All I knew was that there seemed to be a small glimmer of hope in my hip-height child's eyes as he looked at everyone around him passionately only to end his glance at me. It's just that as soon as he saw that I didn't show much expression, the child awkwardly lowered his head.
Ignoring the child's evasion, I looked at the general scene with my understanding.
Visualization will be far from the truth it has.
That is basic knowledge when one anticipates situations.
Now, one by one, raise their weapons. Some people may just unconsciously get caught up in the atmosphere and equip themselves with a defense.
The atmosphere quickly improved.
This flow is absolutely favorable.
However, most people are not used to fighting or have never even fought before.
A clear result, we can't win.
Oh no. This cannot be said from a winning or losing point of view.
This... At least three-quarters of the people here will be killed.
I didn't take into account the external variable because, anyway, I needed desperation to show up before there was hope.
Someone muttered.
"This is just a tutorial. Right! A tutorial, I can absolutely get through this!"
Positive atmosphere. And everyone is filled with aspirations that live in their minds.
"We're going through this tutorial together!"
"Yes, we will!!"
I don't think so.
-Kiiiiiiiueeeeee!!
"Aaaaaa!!"
The scream went away immediately after the shrill screech that made my head dizzy. I quickly looked to my left to see a blue-skinned creature that looked like a man biting and grinding off the woman's bleeding shoulder blades, trying to fight and run away. The amount of blood poured from the woman's body was relatively enough to look in the mirror.
'Blue Monsters' appeared from all over to everyone's fear and panic.
"Aaaaaaaa! Save me!!"
"Run! Blood run!"
"Holly sh*t! Hurry up and get out of here!!"
The screams began to spread. 'Blue Monsters' flooded in from all directions to tear people apart as if they were just heading into a hearty party.
When I became anxious like everyone else, my face was a little hot and my legs were shaking. It wasn't much, but it was enough to stiffen my body and hands.
Maybe it's been a long time since I forgot how to fight. People who normally enlist in the army will remember a little, but worse, I don't look like them.
I can't hit them too hard with my stats. If so, I would be suspicious and the tutorial could get harder.
When I was confused about how to take action. A monster rushed in front of me with its horrible screech.
Wearing a wide open mouth and a series of unevenly jagged pointed and coarse teeth, the monster looked frighteningly ugly. I shuddered untactfully as I restrained my shield at what was supposed to be the monster's flank. As a result, the place where they collided was where the sound of broken bones came out crunching.
I didn't even use enough strength to break an egg. This worked so magically that I got a little excited and swung my spear over the monster as if it were gliding on the wind. Then the monster's head fell to my unexpressable amazement.
The monster hadn't even squealed for its pain, its thick black blood had reached the tip of my shoe.
Out of fear of habitual dirt, I moved the toe of my shoe backwards while checking on the other mother-daughter pair. The mother was nowhere to be seen while the child stared at me in a different direction.
She 'abandoned' the child again.
Perhaps by the moment I was stunned, she guessed I couldn't handle the monster and ran away in the other direction the child had been watching. I sighed in disgust at her enduring personality. But the child who seemed to misunderstand my sigh shrank hastily.
"Do you want to follow me or the woman who ran away?"
"...?"
The child slowly looked up at me for a moment, but was frightened by the screech of the monsters that made his whole body tremble a little.
Freakish situation, choose someone who can help him survive or a mother who is willing to let him go. Obviously, this is extremely difficult for the 11-year-old. I was even mentally prepared to leave this kid behind. After all, even if the child has chosen death, it is still the child's preferred choice. So I don't have much hope for this either...
She shivered slightly, her hands clasped together in front of her chest with the dagger, her head not daring to lift as she muttered a few words choked in her throat.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry aunt... I'm sorry... I'm sorry but... I want to live!"
I almost didn't understand when I heard her muttering 'aunt' but wasn't sure what I meant. After a few seconds of explanation, I realized that the woman was not actually her mother. I was just a little confused as I guessed their relationship and quickly came to my senses when I saw the kid clutching my sleeve tightly.
"Please bring me with you! I want to live!!"
My voice continued quietly and slowly.
"Nothing is free, okay?"
I wasn't really going to pay her debt. But I want her to at least be wary of people's hidden hearts. I wonder if this is too rushed for a child when I speak too directly. Unexpectedly, she had an answer that pleased me.
"I will do everything in my power. He can do household chores, cook food, do laundry and even treat injuries simply. You, too, have a talent for caring for plants and, and... sewing... Maybe..."
She seemed to realize that the things she thought were useful were mostly useless in this situation. Gradually, her voice grew smaller as if swallowed by the screeches of the monsters.
I barricaded my shield on one side while swinging my lance in an arc with my other hand. I talked to the child who was shaming himself and fiddling with the hilt of the dagger under my gaze.
"That's enough."
I spoke slowly as if spelling it out to a child.
As soon as the child looked up at me with an astonished face, I looked away again to swing the lance once more at the monster behind the child.
My movements looked clumsy and full of flaws. However, the stab supported by my stats remained the same, ripping off one of the monster's arms.
Its screech this time was extremely pathetic.
Although I can handle the monsters within my range, it is still too much. If I stayed here too long without showing much sign of exhaustion, I would also be suspicious.
After a few seconds of deliberation, I lifted the child up with my shield holder and dashed to the nearest gate to the two individuals I had aimed them at earlier.
I'm a little short of breath because I'm not used to the bulkiness of running fast. But the child who wasn't heavy seemed anxious and troubled by my sudden expression of decline. I finally clicked my tongue as I gently dropped her when she was only a few dozen paces away from them.
"... Go get food and water that people drop. Only pick them up to the best of your ability, okay? If you encounter danger beyond your control, shout for me or run to me immediately."
"Yes!"
She nodded fiercely with a pale face. She was obviously scared, but she desperately wanted to prove her worth in this situation. Seeing this, I also nodded with a reluctant smile to comfort the child.
Naturally, I felt that adopting a child wouldn't be that bad.
The monsters around near us had been cleared by me. So as long as the kid doesn't go too far, I can still take care of him.
Next, I should help the woman who was standing in front of the crowd, trying to hold the monster with the bow she picked up.
They really looked a lot harder than me.
In order not to be too exposed to this kind of faulty system and distinct stats, I stabbed my spear directly into the shoulder of the monster that was concentrating on the woman with a single touch. The monster let out a deafening sound like a metal mutilation as its shoulder was punctured with a small hole and oozed black blood. Next, it left the woman's bow and rushed towards me eloquently and angrily.
At that moment, I stepped back slightly and raised my shield as if I had been scared by the monster. The grip of my lance where loose caused it to fall to the ground while the hand holding my shield clenched to white, cutting off no drop of blood. But perhaps because of the aggression, my shield gradually cracked just in time for the monster that was enthusiastically colliding with the shield to break it.
Before the sudden shatter of the shield, greeting my vision was the terrible and ugly extraordinary monster. Without looking at myself at that moment, I could still imagine the sight of my irises retracting intensely, my lips crushed, my rigid limbs pulling out the dagger and piercing the monster's brain in horror.
I would probably lose sleep because of their ugly faces as if to punch my eyesight.
I even felt nauseous when the monster dropped out a pupil with brain fluid soaking my hand.
Mom, they're slimy. My hands trembled with terror and shuddered.
Maybe I should learn from this experience and never strike them in the head again. But I regretted that the dagger was still attached as one to the monster's head, so I stared at it for ten seconds. Then I turned my head only to meet the woman's surprised eyes.
I involuntarily frowned as I reread her status window. I couldn't believe she was only 22.
I mean, it's not that she looks too old. She was young, and her face was also a little bulky and immature. But she was tall and muscular and well-proportioned. It wasn't much, just enough to overwhelm my view as she watched me from the higher mound.
The incident happened right then.
A group of equipped people suddenly rushed in and mixed with the monster. Perhaps they are allies coming to our aid. They kill monsters in simple attacks and guide refugees to flee the open space. This is lucky, but in return, the monsters are also flooding in more.
They also count as a kind of variable.
I hurriedly picked up the spear I had dropped earlier and looked around for the child I had picked up.
"Kid!"
I saw her holding food and water as she ran up to me.
I also approached her to help her tie water and food to her belt in the same way I had done before. Then I led her by the hand and ran through the crowd towards the large door that our allies had prepared for us. It's just one step in my plan.
I acted hesitantly as if my conscience was bitten for leaving them. I led the child back into the crowd, screaming like I was in a hurry with fear and irritation.
"Hey! Do you guys want to die here? Hurry up and run to the big door, the allies have come to help us!"
Plus, to make myself look convincing, I pushed my hand twice into the shoulder of the woman with the bow and pulled the kid I was aiming at who was stunned by shock to stand up and follow me.
If I was normal, I really looked like a kidnapper. However, in this damn situation, I almost became the guardian of the children.
Following my instructions, the crowd began to rush towards the large door guarded by the allies. I walked the two kids right behind them to avoid the kids getting hurt by the collision and shoving. And after us, the woman with the bow ran last to ensure the safety of the rear.
On this side, I could still hear people screaming and the shrill screeching of the monsters.
"Help, save me!"
"Hah__ dammit!"
"Someone... please"
"Aaggghhhhh!!!!!!"
My head naturally jumped numbers, I thought I needed to build my character in a deeper way... to be able to have these people on his side.
My legs stopped at that moment and my hands gradually let go of the two children's hands. The way their fingers gripped me slightly and stopped when I had no intention of continuing to run made me smile happily.
In case the other woman was going to run past us, I would make her regret it at some point. Thankfully, she also quickly stopped.
"Bi- big sis? What's wrong?"
I slowly shook my head as the three worried in silence observed my expression. I replied as my hand squeezed the lance tighter.
"Everyone go first, I'll follow right away."
"Miss?"
"Big sis...."
The little girl spoke in her throat with a pale face and the little boy groaned and rolled her eyes at me sadly. Meanwhile, the woman finally became both panicked and confused when she called me.
I nodded to them as I pushed the woman to the two children. He turned his back and walked away when they were still stunned and finished his sentence softly.
"Go careful!"
I've at least completed the first step in building my character.