Nathan didn't even have time to put his sword on his back, so he had to carry it on his shoulder while at the same time supporting Herfir, who was still trying to recover after almost suffocating to death.
To say the least, the speed at which they could go was just slow enough for the black tentacles to reach them.
Nathan had to stop quickly and swing his sword from his shoulder to cut off a tentacle approaching from his right. The problem came when one came from his left with the intention of attacking Herfir.
Nathan had no time to attack it, so he could only watch in awe as the tentacle approached Herfir. However, the tentacle suddenly lost strength and then Nathan saw it split in two.
"Don't stop!"
Nathan looked at the woman who was carrying a spear and who was defending herself from other tentacles. Without having time to thank her, Nathan continued running, trying to get as far away as possible.
Little by little they noticed how the mist began to thin, and with it the strength of the tentacles began to diminish radically.
Nathan felt a couple of light taps on his shoulder and then a whisper.
"You can let go now..."
Nathan let go of Herfir who wobbled slightly before leaning against a nearby pillar.
With the strength of the tentacles reduced, they no longer had as much trouble escaping, so they paused for a couple of seconds while Herfir recovered.
"Can you walk on your own?" Nathan asked Herfir worriedly.
Herfir coughed slightly as he massaged his neck.
"Yes... I can"
Nathan nodded and finally having a few seconds to breathe, he put the sword on his back leaving both of his hands free.
Not only had the strength of the tentacles diminished, so had their numbers. The further they moved away from the main body of the calamity, the weaker its power became.
Finally, after almost ten minutes of running, the tentacles stopped attacking them.
Everyone stopped for a moment to rest, while the woman kept her eyes on the surroundings.
Nathan leaned against a nearby pillar to breathe lightly and then all the adrenaline coursing through his body began to fade.
'Ughh!'
All the effort he had put into his arms earlier began to take its toll. His muscles contracted slightly making him feel quite painful cramps.
Nathan grunted and endured the pain, waiting for it to subside.
He barely had any essence left, so he used the last of his strength to raise his sword a couple of times and defend himself against some random tentacles.
Right now, he was pretty weak again, but at least he was past the biggest danger.
The woman approached them and looked at Herfir before Nathan.
"We have to go on, we are still very close to the main body"
Nathan sighed and nodded at the same time as Herfir.
"Good, then let's not stop" The woman turned and as soon as she walked a couple of meters she stopped abruptly.
Not only her, Nathan and Herfir also stopped and frowned.
'Shit…' Nathan cursed as he clenched his fists.
Light chuckles began to be heard all around as if they were mocking them.
The first time Nathan had heard the laughter he hadn't paid any attention to it or cared, he knew it was a sign of the hallucinations, but he didn't think much of it.
But now it was different.
Being so weak and after suffering such a bittersweet defeat, Nathan felt that the laughter was mocking him directly.
'Tch... damn calamities'
The woman turned and looked at them again.
"Let's run"
Nathan was momentarily silent before looking at Herfir who nodded slightly at the woman's words.
In the state they were in it was impossible for them to deal with the hallucinations, besides, Amelia was still asleep, and Nathan barely had enough essence to help him materialize. So fighting was simply not an option.
Without thinking twice, the three continued walking, and as soon as they saw the first hallucination appear in their peripheral vision, they began to run.
***
"Fuck!"
Nathan slammed the shattered lift doors in fury.
They had managed to outrun the hallucinations in exchange for taking a few hits. And they had only managed to do so because the hallucinations' job was to keep them from getting closer not further away.
In just under half an hour they had returned to the lift, only to find that the doors were destroyed and so was the lift.
"Where are those bastards?!"
Nathan didn't know where Mary, Roderick and Seinor were. But somehow he could understand what had happened, he just didn't want to believe it.
The woman looked at the destroyed lift, but Nathan could not tell what expression she had behind her gas mask.
Nathan ran his hand through his hair as he breathed in an attempt to calm himself.
Suddenly Nathan heard the woman smack her lips and looked at her. Even after a week of meeting her he did not know her name or who she was.
It was then that Herfir approached them and also looked at the lift.
"What do we do now?"
Nathan was also thinking the same thing, he simply hadn't found a solution. Without the lift it was impossible for them to get down, and looking for another way out was out of the question.
Simply going into the attic was suicide. If a group of more than ten had failed to make it before, how could the three of them make it?
Even if Mary was no longer there, Nathan couldn't help but ask.
"Why are we here?"
The woman snorted and folded her arms.
"She didn't even tell you?"
Nathan looked at her and frowned.
"What do you mean?"
Stepping away from the lift and sitting down on a nearby piece of furniture, the woman removed her gas mask revealing her face, taking advantage of the fact that there was no longer any mist.
"What you said about escaping is bullshit. There's no way to escape just by killing a simple calamity"
Nathan sighed internally.
'Simple...'
"We're here because of everyone's greed"
Nathan looked at her with confusion.
"Greed?"
The woman sneered again.
"How much do you think a relic that belonged to a third rank calamity costs? You don't have to think about it long, enough to retire for the rest of your life and maintain a modest living"
Nathan lightly rubbed his scalp as he thought.
"Wait... so we came here to look for a stupid relic?"
The woman simply shrugged, then Nathan looked at Herfir.
"You knew?"
Herfir remained silent without saying a word, answering Nathan's question.
"Really? ...We're going to die for a damn relic?"
Nathan gently let his head fall back as he chuckled lightly.
"You're all miserable...people whose lives cost a couple of coins"