Ethan stealthily guided the two toward the backdoor of the convenience store as quietly as they could.
He hoped the monster wouldn't see them.
The monster that growled wasn't a normal one. It was a parasite that had successfully gained control of its host's body.
'Why is there an evolved monster already on day one?' Ethan thought to himself.
His eyes narrowed.
'Did my reincarnation also affect the monsters? They're supposed to show up a week later,' the thought hit him hard.
It was just a speculation, but there was a possibility it might be the case.
An evolved monster.
It was the next stage of the mindless, zombie-like monsters they could easily kill by just hitting the head. But this one? It was different.
It didn't have a visible weakness, as the soft octopus-like head had already hardened.
They could only kill it by crushing its hard skull.
Killing it wouldn't be hard, but it would take time with only the three of them; the problem lay somewhere else.
"Can't we just kill it? It looks like it's alone." Claire voiced her opinion with confusion written on her face.
But she still followed Ethan's instructions.
Dan had the same thoughts, but Ethan disagreed almost immediately.
"No, don't rush… just follow me, and you'll understand what I mean."
They continued to stealthily walk toward the backdoor.
Looking left and right… there was no one.
Ethan sighed in relief.
The door was approximately twenty steps away from the last shelf.
"Hurry… on the count of three, we'll run. Okay?"
Dan and Claire nodded without question.
One…
Two…
Three—
Before they could finish counting in their heads, something barked at them.
And it was from behind them.
They slowly turned around and saw it.
A mutated dog stood behind them—its jaw split too wide, rows of uneven teeth exposed as black saliva dripped to the floor.
"Grrrr!"
The barking caught the evolved monster's attention.
"Shit… run!" Ethan grabbed Dan's hand and sprinted toward the backdoor, while Dan held Claire's hand.
Those were the longest twenty steps of their lives.
When Ethan reached the doorknob and twisted it…
The door didn't budge.
"Fuck—!" Ethan twisted it harder—
Then it gave way.
The three managed to get out of that cramped space.
But Ethan didn't stop. Instead, he ran faster toward the side road, still holding Dan's hand.
"Dude… you're acting weird right now," Dan said.
But Ethan ignored him and ran faster. He saw the mall and decided to head there.
He wasn't as fast as when he was running alone since he was dragging two people with him.
"Seriously! Why are we running, dude? It's just two—"
Before Dan could finish, Claire cut him off.
"No, we better run faster… look!"
The evolved monster was already out of the convenience store's backdoor. Its growling was getting louder and louder.
"Fuck! Just run faster!—"
Before Ethan could finish…
One by one, mindless monsters started gathering around the evolved monster. A horde of almost a hundred mindless monsters.
In his previous life, this evolved monster had a nickname: The Commander.
Then… they started moving.
This time, they weren't moving mindlessly. It was as if someone was commanding them.
The horror had started.
"Fuckkkkk!!! Damnit!"
Ethan looked at the shopping mall; it was still far away.
'Too far... If I guide them there, we won't make it,' Ethan analyzed the situation and changed their direction.
He headed toward a parking garage that was only one building away from them.
"Wait… something is wrong with the monsters… they're running properly…"
Claire was shaken. Her grip on Dan's hand tightened.
"Don't look back, just run! Throw your bags! This isn't the time to be carrying heavy things! We'll get them back later!"
Immediately, they threw their bags—except for Ethan. He only had whiskey in his, and he needed that.
The group moved a little faster after dropping the heavy backpacks.
After sprinting, they arrived at the parking garage and immediately ran toward the second floor.
No one looked back; they just ran for the stairs.
Suddenly…
"Help! Damnit! Let go!"
It was Claire.
Ethan looked back and saw a mindless monster grabbing her leg.
He immediately pulled out his battle mace, went down a few steps, and hit the monster's head precisely.
Thud—
Blood soaked the stairs, but the monster's hand was still holding Claire's leg tight.
Even though the monster was dead, it wouldn't let go.
"Dan, pass me the axe!"
Dan pulled out his axe and tossed it to Ethan. Ethan caught it and, without wasting any time, chopped the monster's arm off.
"Hurry! Go!" He tossed the axe back to Dan.
The monsters started closing the gap as they climbed to the highest floor.
When they reached a dead end, it was time for Ethan's plan.
Ethan exchanged weapons with Dan while Claire started chanting.
Dan took the front, tanking the attacks.
With his metal body, nothing could scratch him, and the battle mace helped slowly lessen his fatigue.
Ethan managed any monsters that got past Dan's defense, while Claire occasionally shot icicles into their heads. She was managing her MP well.
Their teamwork was actually not bad.
That was until…
"Shit… another one got past me! Watch out!" Dan warned.
Ethan was about to hit the monster's head when his arm suddenly started twisting on its own. He dropped his weapon.
"Argh! Not this time…" Black veins started bulging on his head. He couldn't move.
The monster closed in, but just as it was about to bite him, a glacier pierced its head, killing it on the spot.
"GAHHHH! Claire, seal the entrance immediately!" Ethan shouted as his whole arm twisted backward.
The sound of crushing bones echoed.
Even without knowing what was going on, she immediately took action.
"I can seal it… but I need five minutes!" Claire shouted.
She wasn't lying. She immediately started chanting, and Dan understood what to do.
Ethan couldn't fight anymore—so Dan held the line, making sure nothing got through.
It was the longest five minutes of their lives.