Malik’s clan, the Wen, were barbarians. They were really good hunters and not just of animals, but also of sentient species like humans. And yeah, it seems humans were their favorite prey. And if they hunted, they did not kill.
They disarmed, captured, stripped and locked them away. The captured would be subjected to cruel torture and, when the clansmen lost interest in them, they were killed off.
What was truly fascinating was the foolishness of the captured ones. Individuals often gave up from the beginning, but groups often believed they could escape the clan and get their freedom back. At one point, they too, would realize that there was no point.
I had witnessed the clan crush the hopes, dreams, and ambitions of every person who refused to give in to their oppression. The clan's members were primitive and lacked the intelligence of a normal human, but wits did not matter. In this cave, these savages only needed to understand the language of strength.
They were experts at selecting their targets, ensuring that those they captured were the ones who had no hope of escape, lacked the strength to resist, and were unable to endure. Nobody would willingly piss someone off who was stronger than them.
Another batch of humans thought they could outsmart Malik and his dogs. It was a laughable idea, they were fools and I knew they were doomed to fail.
But in the end, I was just one of the fools who couldn’t help but hope that this was a chance.
Bennet, the dark-haired human male, was examining the cell door intently while Seth, the bald one, was rounding up the sword and nails they extracted from me earlier.
Then there was my new — newly discovered — status. Despite my high expectations, I couldn't spare any time to fully comprehend and explore its potential.
While the humans were at work, I looked through my status a little, but didn’t really know what to do, so I just ended up closing it again. Instead, I peered forward, through the bars of the cell.
The throne room was deserted, with no guards in sight. Malik's security measures were not lax, nor was he careless. He was simply so sure that no one would try or manage to escape.
It was arrogant, but even I couldn’t deny that it was true. After all, it was hard to believe in something you had never witnessed before.
At the same time, as unrealistic as it appeared, I was hopelessly hopeful.
What was certain was that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I couldn't afford to miss. And while I wouldn’t have tried to do it by myself, with the presence of these four, things took an interesting turn.
Despite my battered body, we had a unique advantage in our escape plan: me. As Malik's personal prisoner, I had spent a great deal of time within this cave and as a result, I had overheard many conversations among my fellow captives and clan members.
Thanks to that, I had, in a way, become a living map, with knowledge of the route to freedom. And right now, that was my only selling point.
It was time to secure me a spot in the first group that would make it out of the Wen hideout.
“Take me with you!”
As I looked over at the group of humans, I saw that all four of them had shifted their attention towards me. The two guys in the bunch looked pretty confused, like they were taken aback by my appearance.
Meanwhile, Lisa's expression seemed to be one of sorrow or maybe even pity. As for Redhead, the last person in the group, she just scowled at me, clearly not happy about the interruption.
In the end, it was the black-haired man, Bennet, who spoke up first.
"I am sorry, but we are determined to escape, and given your current state, it's likely that you would hinder our progress. While we have helped you, once the door is opened, you will have to fend for yourself," Bennet stated with a regretful tone, avoiding direct eye contact with me again.
“I can help you!”
Redhead raised an eyebrow, “How so?”
“I have been in this cave for as long as I remember. I know everything about it. The hallways, the rooms, exits and entrances, routes of patrols, position of guards!”
The latter two were basically useless right now, since none of the guards would be inside the cave.
Maybe if the Wen had more than free-spirited barbarians, they would hold true to their duties. Well, it only worked in our favor and the humans wouldn’t need to know that.
“We don’t need-“
Redhead began to speak, her mouth opening to protest something, but before she could say anything, Bennet cut her off. His voice was firm and commanding, leaving no room for argument.
“You know a way? A way that will let all of us escape without the bandits chasing after us?” Bennet narrowed his eyes.
I nodded.
Seth spoke up, addressing Bennet. "Hey, Bennet, I think we could really use a guide. None of us have any idea where we are since we were all knocked out when we were captured," he explained. He then turned to me and asked, "By any chance, are you familiar with the forest outside?”
My heart raced with excitement at the prospect of joining their group and escaping this cave. Although I had reservations about relying on humans, I knew that it was necessary if I wanted to achieve my ultimate goal of freedom.
"I know the forest outside,” I said eagerly, hoping to convince them of my usefulness. "I can lead you to safety, I promise.”
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As much as I wished I could say that I knew the forest like the back of my hand, the truth was that I had never stepped a foot into it. My knowledge was limited to the discussions I had overheard during my captivity — which was still enough to know the general direction we had to go to get to safety.
Even without personal experience, I was confident that I could do it. I had to. For my freedom.
“Who is for the girl joining?”
Seth's proposal was met with agreement from Bennet and Lisa, who raised their hands and nodded in approval. Redhead, however, expressed her disapproval by clicking her tongue and making no effort to hide her displeasure.
“Then it’s decided,” he grinned.
I was happy that they had agreed to let me be part of the escape and I was going to do my job and guide them out of here. I would help them, even if they were human, because it would bring me freedom.
With the issue of me joining settled, Bennet returned to work on the lock after snatching one of the nails from Seth.
Despite my doubts, I had to admit that Bennet seemed skilled at what he was doing. He inspected the lock with a focused intensity, almost as if he had done this before.
As he worked on it, I couldn't help but wonder what other skills he had hidden up his sleeve. He was a level 60 human after all.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity of loud hammering and clanking, the lock gave way with a loud click. Bennet stood up, wiping the sweat off his forehead, and turned to face us with a triumphant smile.
I couldn't deny the relief that washed over me at the sight of the open door. We were one step closer to freedom, and it was all thanks to a human. Not something I was too happy about, if I had to be honest.
Seth and Redhead followed Bennet out, leaving me alone with Lisa. I could feel her gaze on me, but I avoided eye contact. It was then that I attempted to stand up, using my hands to push myself off the ground. The pain in my body was excruciating, causing me to grit my teeth and groan in agony.
As I struggled to stand, I stumbled forward, nearly falling until someone caught me. I flinched at the contact, fearing that it was one of our captors. However, I quickly realized that it was Lisa who had grabbed onto my shoulders.
But in my mind, I saw Malik's face and my instincts kicked in, causing me to slap her hand away. I stumbled backwards, crashing into the wall and crying out in pain.
My entire body screamed at me, and I struggled to regain control of my breathing. I couldn't let my fear and pain consume me, not when our freedom was at stake.
I lifted my head to see Lisa holding her hand, looking apologetic. I could sense the concern in her eyes, but I couldn't bring myself to let my guard down just yet.
“I-I’m sorry,” she stammered, bowing her head in an attempt to show her remorse.
I raised my hand to signal that everything was alright, even though I knew it wasn’t.
“No, don’t apologize. You did nothing wrong, human. I just… just don’t get too close,” I said, struggling to catch my breath.
As much as I hated to admit it, Malik's actions had left a deep-seated scar on my mind. The memory of his touch, his scent, his voice, it all made me shudder with disgust.
I loathed Malik and his dogs but what I didn't expect was that I would react this way to mere physical contact from other people, who weren’t part of the clan.
The thought of being touched by another human, even in a non-threatening manner, sent chills down my spine.
“Let’s… just go,” I told her, walking along the wall to support myself. This was going to be a torturous escape.
In that moment, I remembered the skill that was listed in my status. Pain Tolerance. Yep, did not feel the slightest tolerant over here. Maybe I had to activate the skill, just like Identify.
“Pain Tolerance,” I whispered and nothing happened.
Well, guess that would have been too easy.
Despite the small incident, Lisa remained by my side, a proper distance away. She still looked very concerned.
My progress was slow, but with each step, the pain seemed to subside a little.
Lisa asked me, her voice barely above a whisper, "How long have you been here?”
I found the question intriguing and decided to entertain her curiosity.
"I don't have an exact timeline, but it's been about one human lifespan," I answered truthfully.
Although I had lost track of time, I knew that I had been here for a long time. I was here when Malik was a little boy, and now he was an old man in the twilight of his life.
Lisa's eyes widened in disbelief. "What!? H-How?" she stammered.
"What do you mean 'how'?" I asked.
"A human's lifespan is around a hundred years, but you look far too young to have been here for that long," she explained, confusion etched on her face.
I simply shrugged my shoulders. My sense of time was as poor as my social skills, but I understood that a hundred years was a long time for humans.
It seemed that Lisa had made the misconception that I was a human, which I was obviously not. There was no way I was one of these… creatures. They were abhorrent and repulsive, despite a few exceptions like Lisa.
However, I could tolerate the few exceptions. They were a rarity, and while they didn't change my overall view of humans, they at least gave me some hope that not all of them were absolutely evil.
I didn't really see the point in correcting Lisa's assumption about me being a human. I had no idea how humans outside the clan reacted to it, but the Wen sure didn’t like me for not being of their kind.
It could only lead to more trouble revealing that I wasn’t human. I mean, what am I supposed to say?
”Oh hey, by the way, I'm not actually one of you guys and I can't tell you what I am, because I kinda don't know"? Yeah, no thanks. It's just easier to let them think what they want to think.
“Well, it is how it is…” I had finally reached the door of the cell.
My feet and hands were equally hurting. There was also the wound in my stomach, which felt like a hot poker being twisted around inside me. It constantly made me want to crouch down and wail in pain.
I covered the wound with one hand, holding my stomach, but considering the hole in my hand the entire thing seemed nonsensical.
As I approached the threshold of the cell door, I leaned against the door frame, taking a short break. Looking at the loose chain and open door, I felt a strong sense of freedom and liberty. It was strange, as our escape was still ongoing — or to be precise, had just started
Pushing through the pain, I forced my body out of the cell. It was hard to recall the last time I had the chance to walk freely like this. Most of the time, I was always bound or restricted in some way, like with those cursed nails. It was a pleasant and liberating experience, except for the throbbing pain that came along with it, ruining all the good vibes in an instant.
As I slowly made my way out of the cell, the pain in my body made every step feel like an unbearable struggle. My cell was tucked away behind the throne and as I stumbled forward, my movements were hindered by the agony pulsing through my body, causing me to collide with the big bone chair.
The throne was large and imposing, but it was not fixed to the ground. My weight caused it to topple over, and it crashed down the stairs with a loud clatter. I winced at the sound, hoping that it hadn't attracted any unwanted attention.
When the throne finally stopped falling, it was nothing but a pile of broken bones. The once-imposing seat of power now lay in ruins at my feet. Despite the pain, a small sense of satisfaction bubbled up inside me.
Of course, my celebration was short-lived. The noise had caught the attention of the others, who quickly made their way over to investigate. I let out a small groan, but managed to sit up and give them a thumbs up, trying to signal that I was okay.
I scrambled out of the pile of bones, relieved to have escaped without any injuries. But as I stood up, I noticed a thin rug under me, made of red cloth with golden embroideries depicting a big sword and shield in the middle. It was obviously of high quality.
I grabbed one end of the rug and began ripping it into scraps of cloth. With these scraps, I wrapped my hands and feet, providing some much-needed relief from the pain. I also tore a bigger piece of the rug into a makeshift shirt to cover myself and conceal the wound in my stomach.
With my injuries temporarily dealt with, I was determined not to let them be the reason for this escape to fail. I refused to let anything stand in the way of my freedom.