Chapter 19 – Bound (Part 2)
"..." Jack sucked in a small breath before he closed his mouth and stared silently at the scene. His expression was blank, but his silence only made the group even more curious about what he was seeing.
"What is it, Jack?" Alex asked in a hushed whisper.
"It's… certainly something," Jack said as he exhaled. "You might've… underestimated their numbers."
"What?"
"How many are there, Jack?"
"..." The boy pursed his lips. "Outside? I can count… easily 200 or more." He said. And that was true — it was a vast sea of Undead, crammed into the cafeteria's garden and the area around the building.
It was a terrifying sight that would send chills down anyone's spine. This was by far the largest number of monsters Jack had seen so far. They all looked different in shape and size, indicating that some of them were already way beyond Level 1 and were tough enemies.
"200?!" Emi blurted out.
"Shhh," Luna warned, hushed. She didn't want the monsters to know their location.
"200… That's definitely way more than the number we saw… We counted no more than a hundred at most," Evan muttered, completely confused. "Did more of them emerge from the building…?"
"Who knows? It could be that more people were consumed?"
Nobody could tell, but the situation itself was bad. They had come expecting a certain number and ended up facing more than double that. If the chances of their plan working before were sixty percent, now they'd dropped a lot.
"What are you going to do, Mr. Jack?" Liliana asked curiously. "Are you going to push forward with your plan or change your mind?"
Her eyes flashed with a strange glint. Her question wasn't merely curiosity but a test of the human in front of her. What would he do faced with such a situation? Would he cower away or believe in himself?
Such a decision could change things Jack wasn't aware of. Liliana, however, knew far more due to her experience, and she wanted to see if this human was truly unique as she thought, or simply another "talented" individual.
Jack stared at the waves of monsters before he sighed. "Who said I was going to stop? It would be more illogical to retreat now. If anything, this is better." Jack said.
"Ohoh?" Liliana's smile widened. "How is that?"
"A bigger horde will be easier to lead and control because they'll move in a large cluster. They'll slow one another down, which makes it easier for me to deal with them."
It sounded counterintuitive, but it was true: a larger crowd doesn't move faster than a smaller group.
"We'll proceed," Jack said. "We'll make it happen either way."
His words made the group look at one another.
"Are you sure?" Alex asked.
"Yeah, we'll do it. You three just focus on getting the supplies we need, and let me and Luna take care of the rest. Don't take longer than five minutes. Beyond that, things will get out of control," Jack explained.
As much as he believed in his abilities, Jack wasn't a fool. He knew sooner or later parts of the horde could split and scatter — and that would be the end of the mission.
"You three will stay here, wait for our signal, then sneak in one at a time." Jack jumped down and started explaining the plan. "Luna and I will come in from the front gates and try to pull them in. There are bound to be monsters inside, but I doubt there are many. Deal with them and get to the third floor."
"When you're done, leave from the window on the other side of the building."
"I see."
"And what if an emergency occurs?"
"Simply run away. We'll take care of ourselves," Jack said. "Any other questions?"
"No…"
"We can do that for sure," Alex replied.
"Good. Now take your positions. Luna, let's go." He turned to leave.
"Be careful, Jack," Alex said.
"I will."
With that, the two started moving slowly alongside the wall, keeping their steps extremely quiet and deliberate. The sounds of monsters growling and moving were terrifying; one wrong noise could summon a wave of horrors from every angle.
Jack stopped every now and then to check their position before continuing. Luna followed silently, completely trusting his judgment. She knew Jack was extremely smart — easily the smartest person she had ever met.
He was the first one, perhaps the only person, who could keep up with her, understand her, and think like her.
Staring at his back, her eyes flashed with a myriad of emotions. This feels… nostalgic, she thought.
Seeing Jack close to her again, talking to her, acknowledging her existence, felt unexpectedly nice. The past few years had been brutal. Seeing the love of her life loathe her presence had been the most painful thing she'd experienced.
She couldn't talk to him or even approach him, and when she did, he would ignore her. She knew her mistake was grave and that she could never fully ask for forgiveness, but she dreamed and hoped every day that he would forgive her one day.
Yet she never expected that day to come so soon and under such circumstances.
'I won't let go, Jack… I won't let go of this opportunity. I will gain your trust again, even if it costs me my life,' she vowed. 'I will do whatever is necessary. I will make you look at me the same way you did before.'
Her eyes hardened with determination as she watched the back of her ex-lover.
"Hoho, that's an interesting look you have on your face, princess," Liliana muttered with an amused, almost sadistic smile. "I wonder what she's planning."
Meanwhile, Jack remained focused on the mission, oblivious to the emotional turmoil around him.
The two eventually reached the open spot Jack had chosen. The school wall stretched a bit farther than the cafeteria building, so he could climb over and remain out of the monsters' sight.
"We'll climb now," he said. "I'll go first and pull you up."
"Mhm."
Jack easily scaled the wall and stretched his hand for Luna, who hesitated a second before taking it firmly.
The two climbed over and landed outside. Looking at the city, Jack saw monsters scattered with broken cars and burning buildings, but none too close — perfect.
"We'll move to the gate. Hold your weapon," he said.
They crept toward the entrance. At that point they could see monsters outside the gates — at least seven roaming idly.
We'll have to kill those, Jack mused as he pulled his sword and took a stance.
With a swift swing, he slammed the sword against the wall, creating a small noise.
"Ra…" The monsters heard it and moved swiftly.
With that, the mission officially started.