Chapter 3: Survival

Ayen, even with how nonchalant he was, still couldn’t help but be shocked by this sudden turn of events. He was mostly emotionless, but that didn’t mean he was incapable of feeling any emotions.

A higher-level dungeon suddenly appeared without warning, and immediately, it had a dungeon break. No matter how unfeeling someone was, they would still be flustered about it.

He knew something was about to happen, but not this much! It was clearly not something a yellow zone and the active espers in this place could handle.

It didn’t take long for him to recover, and he was woken up from his initial shock. Standing there foolishly while the creatures inside were beginning to wreak havoc was tantamount to being an easy target for them; he needed to get inside the building at least and wait for the espers.

They only had little hope, and unless the headquarters was prepared and deployed A-rank espers in this place, they would be wiped out. Ayen proceeded with running inside when he caught sight of Keeran, stupidly looking at the gate as though the soul had left her and didn’t have any intention to escape.

He took a deep breath, strode over to Keeran, and gave her a nudge, waking her up.

“Do you want to die?” he shouted, holding her wrist, wanting to drag her as she was shaking.

Keeran seemed to come back to herself, but her face was still pale. “A-Ayen…” she called, her voice quivering in fear.

Ayen forced himself to be calm; fortunately, he did have a stronger will than most, and his ability in this area was astonishing.

“Do you want to die or not?” he repeated.

Keeran shook her head; there were still tears in her eyes.

“Then, stand up, or we will both die here.” Ayen barely pulled her up and dragged her, and yet her legs were wobbly, and running was out of the question.

Keeran cried, “I-I’m sorry… y-you can leave me… sa-save yourself.”

Ayen, without any expression, put her on his back and carried her while running. He didn’t have time for drama; they were racing for time. Once those monsters set their eyes on this location, they were dead.

There was no way he could leave her there when he could carry her. He wasn’t the one who would abandon someone unless he didn’t have any ability or relationship with them.

He might not have admitted that Keeran was his friend, but the woman was always there and treated him as a friend. She was also the only one who talked to him and tolerated him. That was enough.

“Come on!” shouted someone at the entrance, and Ayen ran with Keeran on his back and went inside the building.

As the base for espers and guides in this zone, this building was undoubtedly the most sturdy. At least for a short period of time, the monsters wouldn’t be able to breach inside.

The people inside were also in chaos, and everyone was panicking. Ayen strode to the side and put down Keeran. She was still shaking but had mostly recovered.

“Thank you, Ayen,” she gratefully said before putting her face in both of her palms, and as she cried. Ayen didn’t interrupt her.

There were a lot of guides who were also crying inside; the espers were deployed outside. He knew that these espers would only be a sacrificial lamb, as the rank of the gate also determined the rank of the monsters residing inside. Obviously, this dungeon was a high-level one that only an A-rank or above could contend with.

These guides were those only deployed and assigned in the safe area, so seeing a dungeon break and a gate that large, it was no surprise that their spirits had taken a big blow.

“Are we all going to die?” A shivering voice echoed inside.

“We are, we are going to die.”

The crying intensified as fear enveloped everyone. Ayen sat in the corner; it seemed he was the only one who wasn’t crying, as though the situation didn’t have an effect on him.

He was still expressionless and composed, but his eyes simply roamed inside. Ayen cast a glance at Keeran, who was crying, before he leaned against the wall.

They were still fairly lucky. This yellow zone was still a city with hundreds of thousands of citizens, many of whom were of poorer backgrounds and couldn’t afford the life in a green zone. At this moment, they might have become a meal for those creatures outside.

A dungeon break was no joke. It was the reason headquarters always reminded espers to do dungeon clearings regularly. However, their luck didn’t last long either. In fact, they were like those caged individuals, waiting for their death.

Half an hour later, the building shook as though there had been an earthquake. Ayen’s eyes flickered… It’s here.

The monsters were already at their location and attacking this building. The commotion became so chaotic that they could barely think anymore as they cried and shouted for help.

Ayen stared at them, and he couldn’t help but think of one word: pathetic. However, he was the same. Every one of them was weak and pathetic.

He looked at Keeran, who was now silent, as though she had lost hope. His brow moved; he stood in front of her and leaned to whisper.

“Come with me… or wait here to die?” His voice still had a listless tone to it, despite everything.

Keeran lifted her absentminded gaze, looked around before returning to him. “What about them?”

Ayen didn’t even bat an eyelid as he responded, “If they die or survive, what does that have to do with me?”

He was sincere in his words. Everyone had nothing to do with him. He wasn’t a saint.

“Just answer.”

She swallowed, and with some hesitation, she nodded. Ayen stood straight and walked further inside; with people crying and panicking, no one would think of their surroundings anymore. Keeran consciously followed him.

Ayen didn’t have a solution either, but waiting pathetically for those monsters to enter brought a bitter taste to his mouth. Being mocked and disdained for his aptitude and inability was one thing, but dying worthlessly would only prove that he was useless.

No matter what, whether he was going to survive or not, Ayen did something.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep