Chapter 33: The Escape

"Huff* Huff*"

“Faster!” Ivanic urged as they kept running, the sound of their footsteps barely audible over the chaos behind them.

The once peaceful forest had transformed into a nightmare, littered with the bodies of the fallen. A metallic scent of blood filled the air, forcing its way into their nostrils. The sharp tang of death made their throats burn, and their eyes stung with tears they were too hardened to shed. But the horror around them was undeniable—boars feasting on human flesh like it was just another meal.

Niko, who had thought he was getting used to the sight of death, was now retracting that belief. He felt dizzy, caught in a strange limbo between nausea and numbness, his stomach twisting with each step. It was one thing to face monsters, but witnessing humans being devoured alive was a new kind of horror.

“Ahead of us!” Zheng shouted, his voice cutting through Niko's haze.

A crimson-stained boar stood ahead, its snout dripping with the blood of its most recent victim. Its eyes gleamed with savage intent as it locked onto them, ready to charge.

"Powerful Beast Roar!" Candreva bellowed, his deep voice reverberating through the trees.

The boar froze, paralyzed for just a second, but it was enough. The four of them leapt over the beast’s hulking form, continuing their desperate sprint without slowing. There was no time to fight; stopping meant risking being overwhelmed by the hordes of boars behind them.

The forest blurred around them as they wove between trees and hurdled over bushes. Ivanic led them on a series of quick detours, skillfully guiding them away from unnecessary confrontations. Every second felt like a ticking clock counting down to their potential demise.

Niko’s mind raced along with his feet. As they passed the lifeless bodies scattered on the ground, he wrestled with the dark temptation to claim the spirits of the fallen humans. He shook his head sharply. No, not like this. He couldn’t bring himself to cross that line, to desecrate the dead for his own gain. Even in this world where the laws of Earth no longer applied, he wanted to cling to some shred of humanity. Besides, the consequences of taking a human’s spirit when others were watching could be catastrophic. Trust would be impossible to earn back.

Sighing inwardly, Niko felt a pang of regret. The settlement had seemed like a sanctuary, a place where they could rest, regroup, and maybe even thrive for a time. But everything had fallen apart so quickly. It was a stark reminder that no place was truly safe in this world.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Their path suddenly opened up into a small clearing, but what they saw made their hearts sink.

“Damn it!” Ivanic cursed, coming to a halt.

Ahead of them, three humans were locked in battle with two Boar Kings. The boars were enormous, larger, and fiercer than the normal Roughback Boars. Their tusks gleamed with fresh blood, and the ground around them was already littered with the remains of the fallen. The battle was even, but the boars had the upper hand.

The humans consisted of a muscular young man with a draconic tail, a lithe woman with legs made entirely of metal, and an older man wielding a large axe. Despite their obvious skill, the three were struggling to hold the Boar Kings at bay.

The old man’s face lit up when he saw Niko’s group. “Mind giving us a hand, fellers?” he shouted, desperation thinly veiled in his voice.

Niko’s instincts screamed for him to avoid the confrontation. We’re not heroes, we’re survivors. But there was no way to avoid this fight. The boars were too close, and the three humans clearly wouldn’t last much longer.

Sighing, Niko summoned two of his spirits—the Steampunk Bee and the Boar King he had recently acquired. As the ethereal forms materialized beside him, the others braced themselves for combat. Zheng activated his skill, his hands transforming into deadly claws, while Ivanic gave them all a silent nod of warning through their mental link.

"My skill can blind them!" the old man called out, already preparing his next move. "Cover your eyes, and when I use it, attack with everything you’ve got!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

The old man summoned a glowing orb into his hand, its light growing brighter with each passing second.

"Magic Flash Ball!" he yelled, hurling the orb toward the two Boar Kings.

Niko and the others shielded their eyes just in time as a blinding flash illuminated the clearing. The boars squealed in confusion, their vision momentarily lost. This was the moment they had been waiting for.

“Now!” Niko shouted through their mental link.

They struck as one. Niko’s spirits lashed out with ferocity—the Steampunk Bee darting in with its stinger, while the spectral Boar King charged its living counterpart. Zheng’s claws slashed through flesh, and Candreva’s fists slammed into one of the Boar Kings’ side with devastating force. The young woman with metal legs kicked with such power that the head of one boar nearly popped like a balloon. The draconic-tailed man impaled the other with his tail, leaving deep wounds that oozed blood.

In a matter of moments, the Boar Kings lay dead at their feet, their massive bodies torn apart by the combined assault.

"Thank you, folks! You saved our hides!" the old man said, grinning through his exhaustion.

“It’s nothing,” Niko replied, though his voice was tense. "We don’t have time to rest. We need to get out of here—now."

The others agreed. There was no time for proper introductions or pleasantries. The danger was still too close, and they needed to move before more enemies arrived. With the new trio in tow, Niko’s group cautiously continued forward, their minds constantly scanning for more threats.

As they moved further from the chaos, Niko couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of unease. What was happening in this world? The sudden appearance of so many powerful boars… the disappearance of the Protectors… something was wrong. And he feared it was only the beginning.