Chapter 88 [Bonus ] Pushing The Limits

Dan thought as he looked at this human-looking but definitely not a human thing. Its face was like dried bark, its pupils were red, its hair had all fallen out, and its mouth was drooling, which the monster wasn't able to close due to his overgrown teeth.

These monsters never left this area, and the people who lived nearby never came here either. As a result, anyone who saw these things, including Dan, had no idea what they looked like because they couldn't even see their faces due to the clothes they always wore, so they assumed they were just drug addicts, but after seeing one, he realized how wrong he was.

''This thing is definitely a monster. ''

Dan turned around and started running after seeing the monster rise slowly from the ground. But as soon as he turned around, he saw that another of these monsters was moving in his direction.

"Sh*t, why did they show up now? Is it because of the gunshots? '' Dan immediately turned and started running again, but no matter which way he turned, he kept running into these monsters.

'They're too many; I have to get through them somehow.' In an effort to locate an area where there were fewer of these monsters, he muttered before resuming his run in a different direction.

As Dan ran, they continued to appear from the left and the right, hitting him with their claw-like hands. Although he managed to avoid most of the attacks, he had cut marks on his hip and legs from trying to protect Rayn.

Dan, who was already tired and sore from pushing himself so hard, was now pushing himself even harder, hoping to save himself and Rayn from the onslaught of monsters.

'I'm not going to give up now. I have to get us both out of here.'

Dan continued to run helplessly. Using the shadow technique he had learned, he was dodging the creatures in front of him. However, every time he managed to get away from one, a new one would appear out of nowhere, leaving a few cut marks on his body. As a result, he had to alter his escape route once more.

This technique worked wonders against one enemy, but he was powerless in the face of these numerous creatures.

'No, I'm not going to use that as an excuse.' Dan screamed on the inside. He was only fooling himself into thinking that this technique could only work against one foe. If it worked on one, he could use it on two, three, or even four additional monsters.

And he did exactly what he thought. He used his technique to avoid the first monster he encountered, then the second, but when he got to the third, he was caught again, inflicting another wound to his chest with another claw attack.

'I know I can do it.' He escaped one of the alleys once more while gritting his teeth. And once again, he was confronted with a monster. He avoided the 1st, the 2nd, and the 3rd,

''Gaagh.''

…and this time was caught by the fourth monster, causing him to suffer another injury.

''Huff, huff…I-I can do this… ''

Dan appeared to be in total exhaustion, but he had to escape this monster siege. There was no other option for him.

''Again. ''

He began to move once more after clenching his teeth to numb the pain he was experiencing. He took off running once more, searching for a spot where there were fewer monsters, and dashed in that direction.

When the first monster saw Dan, it waved its claw in his direction, but it was completely ineffective. Dan, who had just dashed towards it, was no longer visible.

'First one…'

Dan avoided the first monster, and then the second one jumped at him from his right, but the same thing happened.

'Second one… '

'Third one… '

…

'Sixth one… '

…

'Thirteenth one… '

There were only a few left after Dan successfully avoided the 16th before he was able to escape this monster encirclement.

'Finally. '

Dan eventually arrived at a plain where he no longer saw any monsters on his escape route, after successfully avoiding the 17th and 18th ones. He could now continue his escape unhindered by the monsters. All he had to do was move his body, which he was already pushing to its limits, and his muscles felt like they were going to tear.

''Look, Rayn, we did it. We managed to get away. Rayn, who had been awake for some time but was so tense he couldn't even open his mouth, heard what Dan said.

''Mhmh, You really did it boss. 'Rayn's voice trembled as he spoke, and tears were streaming from his eyes. His emotions were conflicted, torn between relief at getting out of this place and guilt at adding to Dan's burden while escaping.

Dan kept running with a smile on his face, but at that precise moment, all the pain he had previously repressed came crashing down on him like an avalanche due to the relief he was experiencing.

Finally, he had reached his breaking point.

His pace slowed at first, then he began to stumble until he could only walk, but even that didn't last long, and he fell face down with Rayn on his back.

''Boss?! '' Rayn cried out in distress.

''I-I'm fine, g-get back on my b-back quickly, we're almost out.'' Dan said as he made an effort to raise his body off the ground using his hands. Even in this situation, he was thinking about Rayn.

''Boss, you should get out of here. Just don't worry about me.'' Rayn looked at Dan, who was struggling to stand, and said. He had just used all of his willpower to stop the tears from falling. He was afraid that if Dan saw the tears in his eyes, he would want to save him at any cost.

''W-What are you talking about Rayn? I-I just stumbled on a stone, so hurry up. ''Finally, Dan struggled to sit up and waited for Rayn to get on his back. But it was obvious from his trembling body that he wouldn't be able to stand up again, with or without Rayn on his back.