However, just as they exited the room, a sudden cry, originating from the second floor beneath them, suddenly echoed throughout the building.
"My child! My poor child!"
The cry, carrying anguish and deep resentment, caused Naib's expression to drop. Even without pondering, he knew that someone had died again.
However, despite that, Naib's movement didn't halt; instead, he increased his pace as he descended through the staircase at swift speed, dragging Jerome with him, planning to get out of this place as soon as possible.
Having experienced "The Great Darkness," Naib naturally learned a few things that can increase their survival rate.
One of those is that, in times when there's a threat around, the smartest move is to distance himself from the origin of the chaos; the farther he is, the higher his chances of survival are!
In an instant, upon descending from the third floor to the second floor, where the sound of an anguished cry originated, Naib immediately saw a woman hugging a detached head of a child in the dim hallway.
Blood splattered everywhere, while in the short distance, the headless body of the child, bathed in his own blood, could be discerned.
Noticeably, the stomach of the child seems to be ripped open by a sharp object, unfolding the flesh within that was missing a couple of innards, one of which was the long intestine of the child.
Gulped~
"Naib... The killer, could he/she be killing the residents of this building?"
Swallowing the saliva that began forming in his mouth at the sight of the corpse, Jerome strengthened the force he was putting on his palm, gripping Naib's hand with force, causing it to become paler in the process.
"Let's go."
Not replying to Jerome's inquiry, Naib continued advancing.
Soon, arriving at the ground floor of the building, Naib and Jerome rushed toward the exit of the abandoned school, planning to escape this dangerous place first before calling for help.
However...
Upon almost reaching the exit — both already seeing the gate that separated the abandoned school from the outside world — a sudden change that alarmed them unfolded in front of them.
As they were about to reach the rusty gate, Naib, who was about to heave a sigh of relief, suddenly hit an invisible barrier in front of him, creating a rebound force and causing him to fall to the ground in pain.
"This... What the hell had just happened?"
Standing up from the ground in disarray, Naib hurriedly stared at the empty void in front of him, only to see nothing.
Although he couldn't see anything in front of him, he knew deep within — from the sensation he had experienced earlier — that there was something in front of him that was blocking them from advancing, preventing them from exiting the place!
Wanting to ascertain his guess, Naib raised his palm, touching the empty air in front of him, only to land on something solid the next second.
"An invisible barrier. It is preventing us from exiting this place. Let's check if we can find another exit."
Cough~
"No need for that; this invisible barrier indeed covered the encompassing of the abandoned school. We wouldn't be able to escape."
As Naib and Jerome were about to check the other location, planning to search for another exit, the irritated voice of a man suddenly entered their ears.
In an instant, upon hearing the voice, the two immediately shifted their gaze in wariness, only to see a tall man wearing familiar bifocal glasses fidgeting with his phone in anxiousness in the corner of the gate.
"Moreover, it not only blocks all the exits, but it also blocks signals from the outside world. I guess we are all trapped here."
Hearing the other party, Naib immediately took out his phone.
Sure enough, upon looking at the screen, Naib saw that there was indeed no signal, causing him to grit his teeth in frustration.
"Then what should we do, Hans?" Seeing the expression on Naib's face, Jerome hurriedly asked the man opposite them.
"The screen already specified it. I think everything will be solved if we accomplish one of the goals..."
"Kill the "Tsanak" or survive till the day arrives? Do you think that would be easy?"
In an instant, after Jerome uttered those words, the man immediately fell silent, thoughts unknown, as the only sound that could be heard was from the shout that originated from the abandoned building far away — increasing in volume as seconds passed by, a testament that another death had occurred.
Although they lacked knowledge regarding the "Tsanak" that the panel was talking to, they knew deep within that someone capable of killing two people without being seen or making a sound isn't something that they can face; hence, the only option they had was to survive until the day and hope that the panel would stick to its words.
With how large the abandoned school was, if they don't do anything stupid, they should be able to hide and survive till the daytime arrives, right?
"There are still 2 and a half hours before the day arrives. Let's find a place to hide. It's better if it's far away from the building where there are lots of people."
Speaking those words, Naib was about to head to the west part of the abandoned school, where lay a warehouse — planning to hide there with Jerome — when suddenly, Hans, opposite them, spoke.
"Why not group up with the people in the first building? Wouldn't it be increasing our chance for survival?"
(There are three 4-story buildings in the abandoned school, but only the first building was inhabitable; hence, all of the residents who lack financial resources choose to live there. Although not much, there are at least 20+ residents currently staying at the place right now.)
"Don't you know the saying? The more crowded the place was, the more dangerous it was. Moreover, what if the killer was among those residents?" Taking a deep breath, Naib then thought.
"Not speaking of the human heart, in the face of death, their true selves would surely unfold. If there's a time that danger is in front of them, I wouldn't know to what extreme they would go just to survive.'
Although it's already been 5 years since the large portion of "The Great Darkness" turned into shrines, Naib wouldn't forget the lesson he learned during those 100 days.
"You can only trust yourself in these difficult times."