Chapter 11
The noisy voices around the room suddenly died down.
Even the sound of footsteps stopped.
I turned my head—
and froze, forgetting to breathe.
“U-Uuuh...”
A man let out a stupid-sounding groan before collapsing onto the floor.
In front of him, I saw a woman dangling in midair.
No.
She wasn't floating.
A spear extending from the monster had pierced straight through her body.
Blood dripped steadily from beneath her suspended feet.
Krrrk.
As if trying to retrieve its spear, the monster twisted it.
The woman's body jerked once like a puppet hanging from strings before falling limply to the floor.
The man beside her wet himself on the spot.
Whirrr!
The spear that had pierced the woman shot back toward the monster.
I thought it was a spear.
But now that I looked closely—
it was its tongue.
“F-Fuck...!”
A curse rang out from somewhere.
My head snapped toward the sound.
“Oppa!”
My brother was rolling across the floor, covered in dust and breathing heavily.
He looked exhausted and completely wrecked, but he didn't seem seriously injured.
I was still terrified and anxious, but seeing that he was alive brought a tearful smile to my face.
Thank goodness...
This isn't the time for this.
I hurriedly wiped away my tears.
I had to—
I had to save Oppa.
Frantically feeling around the floor, my hand caught something.
It was the kitchen knife Han Si-woo had given me earlier.
I stared at the sharply honed blade and swallowed hard.
Let's do it.
The monster was huge.
Even if I just stabbed it somewhere, surely that would give Oppa enough time to escape.
I started forcing my collapsed body back up.
“Keugh!”
BANG!
Oppa's body suddenly flew through the air in a straight line and slammed into the wall.
I froze again, still half-crouched as I tried to stand.
It didn't make sense.
Even though it had happened right in front of me, I couldn't believe what I'd seen.
Can we really escape from that...?
Was this scene straight out of an action movie really happening in reality?
Oppa tried to stand, but something seemed to be injured because he couldn't properly control his body.
At this rate, it was only a matter of time before he died.
Don't be scared.
I have to do this...
The hand holding the knife trembled pathetically.
I took several quick, deep breaths and tried to stand.
Then—
a hand suddenly appeared and snatched the knife away from me.
I reflexively looked up.
It was Han Si-woo.
Was it because he was someone I knew?
The tiny bit of composure I'd barely managed to hold onto felt like it was about to collapse.
Afraid that I would rely on him like I always had, I spoke firmly.
“Give it back.”
“If you go in there swinging this thing around like an amateur, both of you are going to die. I'll do it instead.”
“He's my brother. You don't have to do that.”
I had to do it.
That was what was right.
“He's my brother too. And you're practically family to me. I can't send you in there when I know you'll die.”
You can't send me because you know I'll die?
Then what about you?
I got angry.
It felt like my own helplessness was being exposed right in front of me.
But...
he was right.
Han Si-woo took the knife from me while I stood there blankly, then immediately sprinted toward Oppa.
He was still close enough for me to grab him if I wanted to.
But I didn't.
I'd been persuaded by his words.
By an excuse that barely even counted as justification.
Wanting desperately to believe that I had truly been convinced, I kept making excuses in my head.
I was never good at physical stuff anyway.
I couldn't run well.
My athletic ability was terrible.
Wouldn't it be better for Han Si-woo to do it instead of me?
But I soon realized the truth.
All of those thoughts were nothing more than cowardly excuses.
By the time I raised my head again, everything had already happened.
Han Si-woo had somehow reached the monster and was driving the knife into its back.
What was the emotion I felt at that moment?
Relief?
Or disgust toward myself?
I didn't know.
But—
CLANG!
Whatever it was, I'd felt it too soon.
Something flew over my head before crashing onto the floor nearby.
It was the knife.
The same knife Han Si-woo had taken from me.
—Krrrk?
The monster turned its head.
I screamed desperately.
“Han Si-woo!”
He's going to die.
I felt it with absolute certainty.
Before I could think any further, my legs moved.
The spear-like tongue that had pierced that woman earlier shot from the monster's mouth and flew toward Han Si-woo.
I ran faster.
But I wasn't fast enough.
Thud!
Crash!
Lee Do-hyun suddenly lunged in from the side, grabbed Han Si-woo, and rolled across the floor with him.
My running gradually slowed.
“Hey, that means I've paid back my debt, right?”
After successfully saving Han Si-woo, Lee Do-hyun pushed himself up from the floor.
When I saw the tongue embedded in the spot where Han Si-woo had been standing, my vision went dizzy.
If he'd been just a little slower...
Han Si-woo would have died.
My friend had nearly died, and I hadn't been able to do anything.
Frustrated, I clenched my fists.
The wound I'd gotten earlier stung, making tears threaten to spill from my eyes.
A bitter laugh at myself rose inside me.
I couldn't even endure the pain from such a tiny wound.
And yet I'd arrogantly thought I could save someone.
That was when—
BANG! BOOM!
The single spear suddenly split into several branches.
Then they began violently stabbing throughout the classroom without any discrimination.
People trying to escape through the classroom door.
People hiding beneath desks.
Everyone—
was pierced through by the spears.
