But in those final moments, the moving branches in front of the entrance showed strange movements.
Those cursed branches were gathering together and narrowing the exit.
When Zack noticed it, he shouted: "Hurry up, everyone!"
Zack, who had no more strength, used the last remnants of his energy with his trembling body to block those branches, then destroyed several branches with ice blades and did not let their narrow their exit path.
Joshua also increased his speed and was the first to reach entrance, with the hammer in his hand he pushed the branches aside, he grabbed Billy that was standing next to him and went out with him.
A little later, Zack and Tahel also reached the exit, the branches no longer intended to attack and their focus was on closing the labyrinth's door, Zack pushed Tahel out and he himself barely got out of the door and received several deep wounds.
When Zack left the entrance, he encountered a few familiar faces.
A man with long, auburn hair that reached his shoulders and a large scar on his right cheek; he knew the man well. "James...?!"
James grinned and said, "Oh... I long time no see you, Zack. Haha... What an interesting scene."
Zack gritted his teeth and a line of anger appeared on his forehead. "Tsk...!"
But he had no strength left and could not fight, and as soon as he wanted to speak, his eyes blurred and the last bit of his energy was gone, and all the pain he had ignored until now rushed towards him like a wild animal, and his body trembled violently and he passed out.
Their group was in a serious condition, and everyone had deep wounds.
Joshua and Billy, who were the first to leave the maze, passed out from excessive bleeding and exhaustion without even being able to examine their surroundings, and they didn't notice James at all.
The only one in the group who seemed better than the others was Tahel. He overheard the strange conversation between Zack and the man, it seemed like they knew each other.
But now he didn't know what to do or what decision to make, he wished he could faint like the others. But although he was in pain, he wasn't injured enough to faint.
James, who noticed Tahel, approached him with a sly look.
"Oh... you seem to be okay?! I'm James, the leader of the Hellhounds, what's your name?!"
Tahel introduced himself with a little hesitation: "I... I'm Tahel."
James grinned and said with a mocking expression: "Haha...Why are you talking like this, did the cat got your tongue?! You know, Zack and I have known each other for a long time, so don't worry."
James passed by Tahel and went towards his companions. He was talking to them, but Tahel could not understand what they were saying because of the distance.
Tahel's curious eyes were watching them, watching their every move.
James noticed a cold feeling on his back from a distance and realized that Tahel was staring at them. He smiled under his breath and walked towards him.
"Hey boy, all the members of your group passed out and it seems dangerous to stay here, what are you going to do now?!"
Tahel had already realized the situation, unfortunately the situation didn't seem good and he was unable to do anything alone and he wasn't yet familiar with this world and didn't know much, so he paid attention to James' words; Surely he has a purpose in saying those words, even though he was not sure, he asked him: "Can you help us?!"
James smiled, as if he had been waiting for this moment. "Haha... Okay, but I don't do favors for free, I have to get something in return, this is a business, you understand?!"
Although hesitating, Tahel accepted the deal with the man. "What should I do?!"
James put a hand under his chin and said thoughtfully, "Umm... We can talk about it later, because we don't have time to talk now, we have to get out of here very soon!"
He was right, they had to leave that place as soon as possible, anyway, the commotion that had happened in that labyrinth had definitely attracted the attention of not only the monsters but also the other groups, so they had to leave that place before the others arrived.
So James gave an order to his men and with their help, they carried the members of the group who had fainted. Fortunately, James' group had several carts to carry their belongings, so they loaded the unconscious bodies of the group onto them and set off towards the hellhounds' shelter.
Two hours later.
Two hours of walking had exhausted Tahel and he couldn't take a step anymore. His legs were no longer strong and he fell unconsciously, and just as his face was about to hit the ground, a hand grabbed his collar and pulled him up.
Tahel's throat hurt from that violent movement and he coughed. "Cough..."
James, who had saved Tahel from falling, asked, "Hey, are you okay?! You look so weak? You're new to Elaine's group, because I haven't seen you before?!"
After hearing James' question, Tahel's face showed a trace of fear and his pupils trembled. He remembered Elaine's words when they first met and knew that her condition was strange, so he couldn't trust this man and tell him anything.
So Tahel answered him with a little hesitation, "Umm...it's been a long time."
Noticing Tahel's restless face, James realized that he was hiding something. However, he didn't want to pressure him, because his plans might be ruined.
"Hey, you better get on that cart, the way you are, you won't last until the shelter and you'll pass out."
Tahel was relieved that James hadn't asked him any more questions, and he sighed in relief. "Ah."
After moving away from the labyrinth of roots, they reached a narrow road that only one cart could move on that road, and both sides of that narrow road were full of 4-foot-long thorns.
Fortunately, those thorns didn't move, but the sharp blades on them emitted a yellow slimy substance that smelled very bad, so James' group covered their mouths and noses with handkerchiefs to avoid inhaling the air.
After twenty minutes, the thorny road ended and they were able to see the view of the half-destroyed city. So, after passing through the rough roads of the city and passing through the ruins, they were finally approaching the center of the city.
From a distance, a large square could be seen with a large statue about 6 meters tall in the middle of it. The statue was wearing a long robe and its appearance was not obvious. Only its two hands were sticking out from under the robe and it was holding a book, and on the statue's head was a crown of thorns.
The statue was very beautifully carved, with many and precise details; this amazed Tahel. "Wow... amazing!"
James grinned when he saw Tahel's astonished eyes; now he was even more curious about him than before.
However, James' group did not go towards the central square, but towards the western road. They continued their path and got a little away from the center of the city.
After half an hour, they stopped in front of a 4-story building.