Chapter 11: Desperate Actions

Things were spiraling out of control.

Levi had thought he could easily deceive the tall boy, but he had underestimated his opponent's intelligence, which had led to the dire situation he now faced.

"Don't hate me too much; I'll make it quick," the tall boy said, gripping his spear tightly as he stared down at Levi, who could barely stand but still had a confident expression on his face.

"You seem confident about killing me. Be careful—that might come back to bite you," Levi replied trying to appear as confident as possible.

It was a bluff.

In reality, Levi was barely holding himself upright. His wounds were severe, and blood loss had left him weak. His right leg, paralyzed, rendered him nearly helpless. Yet, he bluffed without hesitation.

The tall boy hesitated, considering whether Levi was hiding something. But after looking at Levi's condition, he dismissed the thought.

"Let's see if you're telling the truth," the tall boy said, advancing with a menacing look.

Levi's heart raced - once again, his attempt to deceive the tall boy had failed!

He was in no state to fight—his body and mind were on the brink of collapse. As he frantically searched for a way out, an idea struck him.

Desperately, Levi did something that made the tall boy halt in his tracks.

"Don't you dare take another step," Levi commanded, his heart pounding, though his face remained expressionless as he held the bell firmly in his hand.

The tall boy froze, taken aback.

"You said you didn't have it," he hissed, tightening his grip on his axe.

"I never said I'd tell the truth," Levi replied, his voice cold and steady.

The tall boy's gaze shifted from the bell to Levi's face. "Are you really going to ring it? You know what that will do. You'll bring every monster in this maze straight to us - You will certainly die!"

Levi however didn't falter, instead, he smiled at the tall boy. "I'm well aware. But if I go down, you're coming with me."

For the first time, Levi saw a flicker of doubt in the tall boy's eyes. It was brief, but it was enough to expose a crack in his confidence.

But that disappeared as soon as it had appeared. The tall boy was not a fool, he was sure that Levi wouldn't take the risk of ringing the bell, so he took a step forward, his voice low and threatening. "You may be thinking of escaping after ringing the bell but you won't survive this. Even if I can't, the monsters will tear you apart."

"Maybe," Levi nodded slowly not denying his claim, "but I'm not the only one here, am I?"

That's right! From the start, Levi had no intention of letting go of the bell.

'I will make a contract!'

That was the only thought running through his mind as he ignored his paralyzed leg and limped toward the path the bell had shown him.

Behind him, the tall boy cursed loudly, struggling to pull the spear from his side. But the growls grew louder, and soon, Levi heard the scuffling of claws on stone as the monsters closed in.

Levi pushed forward without looking back, fighting against his failing body. He dragged his feet forward—everything he had dreamed of was now within reach.

He could hear the tall boy's screams as the monsters reached him, but Levi didn't turn around. All that mattered was reaching the exit, surviving this nightmare, and making the contract with the god.

***

Fifteen minutes passed.

Levi was still moving toward his destination. Perhaps due to the magical properties of the bell, he knew exactly where to turn, and which direction to move.

The strange power of the bell was telling him—close....

He was so close to his goal! The exit was within reach; he could almost see the light at the end of the tunnel.

With one final burst of energy, Levi threw himself forward, collapsing into the narrow corridor that led to the exit. The light—he was finally going to embrace the divine light!

But then, everything went silent and dark.

'Huh?'

When Levi opened his eyes, he saw an axe lodged at the back of his left leg - digging almost half the way in and he was slowly collapsing.

'No...'

Levi didn't feel the pain yet, but his mind was screaming at him.

'No, no, no...I'm...so...close.'

At that moment, the tall boy emerged from the darkness behind him—his body soaked in blood, marked with monster claws, blood dripping from every wound.

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