"Are you really sure this is enough, Thino?"
"I guess? Even if they scream or make noise, no one will hear it."
The young man replied to Ella's question. After tying up Turko and Trina's bodies with rope, he also thought to cover their mouths—just in case they got startled or scared by what was about to happen. At least they could scream freely if that happened.
"I see. Now you heard that, right? So stop being stubborn and let me finish my job."
Everyone was restrained—except for Trina, who, even after several seconds, still hadn't been taped by Ella. Not only was she uncooperative, but she'd even managed to bite Ella's hand as the girl tried to keep her still.
"Dream on! No matter what, I'm not letting you tape me!"
"Seriously, were you born from a monkey or something? You're so annoying! No one's even asking for your answer. It's not like we need your permission, so just give up."
"I said never!"
Their argument continued to escalate. Thino couldn't help but wonder if Ella was the one being bullied by this girl—or maybe they were both just stubborn, and Ella only had the upper hand because they lost.
"Ouch!"
Ella winced again as Trina managed to bite her finger, wasting no time.
"You! Piranha!"
Her irritation was obvious as she ripped off a long piece of tape, signaling that she was completely out of patience.
"If you don't want to do this in an easy way, then I'll do it the hard way!!"
"E-Ella?"
Thino murmured in disbelief at what he heard. But it was already too late to stop her—Ella had climbed on top of Trina, who was still dodging the tape.
"What the hell?! Why are you forcing me?!"
"Because you won't follow!"
"What's so hard to understand about the word 'no'!?"
"Nothing! You don't have the right to say no!"
Their back-and-forth grew louder, and Thino began to worry. Even if they were whispering, they seemed to forget the danger they were in.
Before it could get worse, Thino jumped in.
"Guys, enough! You're getting too loud—"
RINGGGG!!!
The sudden blare of the alarm clock shocked them all into silence. The previously quiet room was pierced by the loud ringing, and just as Ella was about to stick the tape on, she and Thino both rushed toward the noise.
"H-Hey! Where are you going?! Don't—"
"AAARRGGHHHH!!!"
A creature's roar interrupted what Trina was about to say as she tried to stop Ella from leaving. Fear surged through her body when she heard the monster's voice.
"Move your leg! You're blocking me!"
Ella hissed quietly as Trina blocked her escape path.
"P-Please…"
But instead of obeying, Trina just cried, begging through tears.
"Tsk! You had so much attitude earlier. Turns out you're scared to die too."
Ella grumbled as she pulled Trina's body toward her.
"Ella, hide!"
BLAG!
"Ahh-mmpp!"
But before they could fully move away from their position, the door was flung open with force, knocking the two girls off balance and sending them crashing to the floor.
"GRRAAHHHH!!"
RINGGG—
The creature howled again as it entered the room—only to find it filled with smoke, thanks to the fire extinguisher Thino had set off earlier. At the same time, he slid the ringing alarm clock outside across the floor.
RINGGG—
"GRRAAHHHH!!"
The monsters were now drawn toward the sound of the alarm.
After a few minutes, Thino decided to move from his spot to search for Ella.
"Ella? Are you there?"
He called out, but got no answer. So he made the choice to go look for the two himself.
"Oh, there you… are? Huh?"
It didn't take long for him to find them—but what he discovered was not what he expected. Trina was now on top of Ella, their faces are way too close with Trina's lips practically covering Ella's lips.
What's going on?
Was all Thino could think while watching their stunned expressions.
…..
…..
…
"Filthy."
"Disgusting."
"Yuck."
"F*cking disgusting."
"Gosh, filth—"
"One more word, and I swear I won't hesitate to feed you to those monsters."
Ella sharply cut off Trina, who had been whining nonstop. After what happened earlier, the two of them snapped out of it at the same time. And though they both wanted to rant, they also knew they had to hurry and leave.
But as they walked, Trina still couldn't stop herself from complaining.
"Ugh, seriously, don't show me your face. I feel even more disgusted—though you're not even the same kind as them."
She said with disdain, turning away from Ella's glare—who was clearly holding back the urge to snap.
Grr… If Thino hadn't taken pity on these two, I wouldn't waste a second being civil with this girl, Ella thought as she yanked the rope sharply, making the complaining girl stumble.
"Ack!"
"Ah—!"
Trina lost her balance and fell—dragging Ella down with her. In the end, only Thino and Turko saw what really happened.
Ella landed in a crouch, while Trina ended up kneeling close to her backside.
I think… they're getting along just fine, Thino thought, even as the two girls clearly looked like they wanted to murder each other.
"Grrrr! You're the worst, Ella!" Trina shouted, red with anger.
"And you're the one who's pissed? My knee took the hit!" Ella snapped back, glancing behind her at their awkward position.
Meanwhile, inside one of the school rooms, they didn't notice a creature silently watching them.
"You're not just the worst. You're dense too!"
As the two girls kept bickering, the creature slowly began to move toward the noise.
"E-Ella?" Thino called out as the girl started walking away.
"I just want to be alone, Thino. Because if I don't, I might forget I'm still human."
She replied coldly. Thino had no choice but to respect that.
"…Let's go," he said softly after approaching Trina to help her up.
But before she could fully stand, she flinched.
"Arghhh!"
Even without looking, the cold touch on her foot and the look on Thino's face told her everything.
"N-No…"
Trina whispered shakily. Thino quietly grabbed the rope. But before he could secure it, the creature noticed—and lunged.
"NO!!! AAHHH!!"
Trina screamed, vanishing from Thino's reach in an instant. The sound drew Ella's attention—and the other monsters.
"ARRRGGHHK!!"
"Tsk!"
Thino quickly swung the fire extinguisher at the monster lunging for Trina's leg. The blow landed just in time, knocking the creature back before it could sink its teeth into her.
"H-Help me…"
Trina sobbed, snot dripping from her nose as she shook uncontrollably.
"C-Come on, get up, quickly!"
Thino helped her stand while keeping his eyes on the recovering monster.
Trina was about to run—but then she froze.
Turko was in front of her, covered in blood, with a creature sinking its teeth into his shoulder.
"T-turko…"
She whispered, her voice weak.
The monster dropped Turko's body and turned toward Trina.
"Arrrghhh…"
"A-Aah…"
Trina stood paralyzed, staring into the monster's red eyes.
"Trina!! You need to run!! As long as you can still—TRINA!!"
Thino screamed the moment he saw what was happening to the girl.
No… we're already surrounded.
A sharp screech echoed behind him—
"Iiekkk!! Arrgghhh!!"
The creature he'd struck was recovering fast. Thino snapped his head back toward the front, just in time to see the monster's jaws opening wide in front of Trina.
Is this really the end? Am I going to die here without saving anyone? If I hadn't interfered… maybe they would've lived.
"Trina—!" he shouted.
But before he could reach her—
"You two, get down!!"