"That's not looking so good," Jung said, taking one step back.
The abomination he saw wasn't something worth going against. Not because it was weak and wouldn't yield loot and pills—on the contrary, slaying it would guarantee some hefty amount of money, but it would be impossible to do so.
"Run!" yelled another guard. This time it was a woman, and she appeared as scared as the previous guard.
'Tier VI lovers, jesters, and innocents.' Jung concluded after seeing their marks.
Individually, these monsters weren't unbeatable, but their strength came from their sheer numbers.
After the second guard ran away, leaving the post and carriage, chaos erupted. Elders panicked. They didn't know how to act and stood in one place.
The driver couldn't manage any better. He sprinted behind the guards and left his passengers, too terrorized to care about their well-being.
As for the teens, Leora wanted to display stupid bravery and stood in front of them. The monsters drew closer, their presence illuminated by the firelight.
They looked identical to each other. Sinister, tall figures swallowed all light around them; no shadows could be detected, and their entire bodies were covered in darkness, while only red, shiny eyes presented different colours.
Long limbs and necks made them somewhat human-like.
Jung observed as he retreated and called Astra. "Get your dumb sister!"
Ronan was the first one to run. Mira followed quickly after, and Jung was beside her.
Astra swiftly grabbed Leora's hand and tried to sprint with her. The girl obeyed, dashing with his brother, she was quicker than the others.
Seeing their withdrawal, the monsters cried in dissatisfaction, rushing after them and selecting their target.
'They are fast,' Jung thought as he glanced back with one eye. 'We can't outrun them.' He concluded and looked for the way out.
The surrounding area was nothing but a flat field, covered in trees, slightly big rocks, and a small pond in the middle of it. Based on the route they moved, their destination was Arcane City, but it was at least eight hours away.
There was no chance they could last that long, and with no place to hide and turn, the only thing they could do was hope to last that long while the monsters wouldn't eat them.
It was a rough situation. Jung hated the idea of not controlling the position he was in.
"Guys," he said. "Who wants to be a hero?" His voice was loud; everyone could hear him. Including seniors and guards.
Of course, no answer came. No one would risk their lives just to save others. Even Jung wouldn't do that unless it was to protect those he held dear, and, unfortunately for them, he couldn't care less about the people around him.
He had two concerns. His life and the Chosen One, based on his talks with the system, he/she was someone from the teens, so he didn't want to endanger their lives.
Luckily for him, both guards were the hero archetype, and he had the perfect skill to influence them. The trigger for activating this ability was weird, but it was fairly easy to use.
"Guards, friends and mighty heroes!" His voice wasn't just loud; it retained his passion and anger like a thirst to vanquish evil from this realm.
"There is no escape." Now, his face, along with his tone, turned grim. "Either we fight right now or we fall tired." Jung wasn't the only one who felt how his Revolt Mind formed. It was a skill that was essentially lost, yet still lingered in him.
He was almost done. With only words at his disposal, Jun did everything in his power. "Fight to your last breath, and may the next generation chant your legends."
Those guards knew Jung. After spending nights together, they liked the boy. He was witty, humorous, somewhat cute, and most importantly, a child they had to protect.
As for Jung, he knew their sentiments, figured out what should have been said, and he followed through without hesitation.
All of them were running to save their measly lives. However, Jung's words and skill worked, and the guards rebelled.
They didn't rebel to oppose someone or something. It was a revolt against themselves and the sole emotion called fear.
Abruptly, one guard halted. The woman, who had been so frightened only a minute ago that her face was a different colour—but now, she had the expression of a woman who wanted to protect.
She was a hero and acted like one.
The second guard saw her actions and was driven to do the same. He stayed beside her and drew his lonely weapon. His determination, appropriate to the hero archetype, made him ready to lose his life.
"You won't be forgotten," Jung roared at the top of his lungs, knowing the monsters were getting closer.
Even one old man decided to stay. He was a Tier VI creator; Jung remembered the fellow as he reminded him of his second life.
There was no time for goodbyes. The remaining runners kept sprinting as the guards and geezers tried to stop the approaching beasts.
No one saw their struggle or their demise, still, the crimson blood was easy to notice, and the screams echoed in the air.
Mira was crying, not because of fear, but because of the sacrifice and death she thought she witnessed. Her full face was shown for the first time, and the mist covered her cheeks.
Maskera was a dangerous planet, and most of its surface involved monsters, yet not everyone knew how death looked.
Ronan was calmer. He didn't even look back. It was obvious he had witnessed death before, and such a sight had no impact on him.
Leora and Astra showed their pace and watched the last moments as they appeared even more stunned now than when they first saw the monsters.
The twins' expressions didn't look good, and Jung had to shout at them to keep running.
"Why would you do that?" Leora urged Jung with a voice full of hatred.
Jung thought that her reaction was excessive and out of control but said nothing.
Astra acted the same way, but he was better at hiding his anger as he held his sister's hand and forced her to run.
Jung heard about the trial and knew that it meant to begin at the academy alone. 'But why has it started so soon, and why are they testing us this way?'
Yes, the monsters and the deaths were part of the examination that had started way earlier.