Outside the store, Lloyd created a wind barrier that deflected the bullets coming towards him, while the other cadets shielded themselves from the few agents that were still alive.
Seeing that their attacks were ineffective, the agent leading the reinforcements raised his hand for them to stop.
Seeing that he had stopped firing, Lloyd quickly stepped back and moved toward the others.
"Let's get out of here!"
Neither cadet hesitated and they quickly followed him down the alley where he had come from. The moment they disappeared, the reinforcements moved in to apply first aid to the agents in addition to Faye.
Nathan, who was still in the store, cursed internally, hiding behind the counter.
'Why doesn't this store have a back exit!'
He had been looking for an exit leading to the back of the building, but was unable to find one, so he had no choice but to stay hidden, praying they wouldn't start looking for him.
A couple of minutes passed as they treated the wounded. The calamities had stopped coming thanks to the gorilla's body blocking the street, so they allowed themselves some time to rest.
Suddenly, a couple of government agents stood in front of the store and stood watching the inside from outside.
"You saw it didn't you?"
"Yes... it was the one with the mask. If we catch him we'll take the bounty on his head"
Both agents went silent again, then one looked at the other.
"Do you think he's still inside?"
"...I don't think so"
Behind the counter, Nathan listened to the agents' conversation.
'That's it...it's obvious I'm not here, you have no reason to come in'
One of the agents frowned in an attempt to get a better look inside the store.
"Yeah...I don't think he is there, how about we just go in and check?"
"...Fine, but let's do it quickly without the captain seeing us"
Reaching a consensus, they both stepped forward and entered through the window Nathan had broken earlier.
'Damn, what was it costing them to stay outside!'
Nathan cursed the decision of both soldiers but had no choice but to adapt to the situation.
Both agents walked slowly through the store, pointing their rifles straight ahead so they could react quickly to any movement.
The store was not very big, perhaps five meters from the entrance to the counter, where Nathan was hiding.
Silently, one of the agents motioned to the other, telling them to move together towards the back.
The other agent nodded and approached the other to walk behind him.
Then, both began to walk slowly towards the counter, being more on guard than before, suddenly, something was heard to their right, so they both pointed at the same time.
On one of the shelves, one of the exhibits had fallen. Seeing that it was nothing, they pointed back to the front, to the counter.
The agent in front stopped as he reached the counter, then gave another signal to the agent behind him to be on the lookout for anything that might happen.
Then, he stepped slightly around the counter and in the enveloping silence that flooded the store, the agent quickly peeked behind the counter pointing his rifle.
He stood still for a couple of seconds as he saw that it was empty, then turned to his partner sighing as he saw that the store was empty.
"Forget it, there's no one there. Let's go back before the captain scolds us"
"Yeah..."
Both agents started to turn back.
"Damn... I really wanted that reward"
"Well, we'll get a bonus at the end of all this--"
The soldier fell silent as he felt something next to him, then turned his head and saw the face of a demon next to him.
Without thinking twice, Nathan punched the agent in the neck, knocking him out instantly. At the same time, the other agent was turning around when he noticed something strange, then he saw the body of his partner falling unconscious to the ground.
"Roonie!"
At that instant the agent saw Nathan leaning out from behind his partner's body, so he reacted and fired without almost having time to aim
Nathan dodged all the bullets taking advantage of his speed and reached the agent, who trembled slightly when he saw his mask and how he was approaching him.
Slamming the rifle upwards, Nathan then kicked the agent's feet, knocking him to the ground and getting on top of him.
The agent struggled trying to resist, then Nathan punched him in the abdomen and squeezed his arms.
"Stay still, it will be less painful"
Hearing his voice completely serious, the agent stopped moving and nodded.
"Y-yes... please don't kill me"
Nathan grabbed his arms and pulled him, forcing him to stand up.
The agent was shaking with fear, and as he saw Nathan pick up the rifle he had dropped, he paled.
"P-please... I have a family"
Nathan clicked his tongue.
"I said shut up!"
The soldier trembled again but didn't dare say anything else, simply letting Nathan push him toward the exit of the store.