Zane's back slid against the wall as he tried to stay upright, smearing blood along the door
"The twentieth Heir, my disappointment exceeds the sky. That said, you are not like the others, since the beginning, you heartbeat has not changed."
'Wait, twentieth Heir? Does that mean the dark disciple I have to survive from is a Gemini? I should observe for a bit more before making any moves.'
"What does it matter? You're going to kill me anyway," he said, his voice was broken, an effect of the strain the Whisperkin put on his neck when he squeezed it. Blood dripped from his temple, tracing a slow path down his left cheek.
"A few of the Heirs screamed at the mere sight of me, yet you have yet to utter a single sound."
'At last, it looks like I would have to eliminate yet another candidate.'
"Sorry about that, I'm fresh out of screams." Zane rasped as he shifted his weight.
"You are, a curious specimen, a shame you'll have to die. Tell me Nay... do you know why you're still alive?" Its voice slithered into Zane's head in a curious tone.
"Because I'm hella charming?" 'Patient, Zane, it's not time yet.' He thought while offering a sarcastic answer.
The monster didn't laugh, instead, it took a single step forward.
"You're alive because I permit it. The previous nineteen were found... lacking. Yet each one of them could wipe out your pathetic race without breaking a sweat. You're by far the weakest, your only advantage is your calm state of mind."
'It seems I was right, he really is the dark disciple. That means the system means every bit of information. Gaining his approval is already out of the question since he considers me incompetent. That leaves the other option.'
"For an ugly monster, you sure yap a lot, you say I'm alive because you permitted it? As if. You couldn't kill me even if you had a hundred arms." Zane taunted with a wide grin.
'It's still not time yet.' He thought as he stared at the monstrosity.
'He's either an idiot or has something to gain from provoking me. Either way, I'll humor him, let's see what gives him that confidence. After all, every candidates had something special about them.' The Whisperkin thought.
For a full heartbeat, nothing happened. Zane took deep breaths to limit the number of beatings of his heart in a second. This way, he could temporarily hide his presence.
Zane heard footsteps outside the door but paid it no heed. A single moment of distraction could mean certain death.
'Now,' Zane thought as he sprang into motion as soon as he noticed the tiniest shift in the monster's stance.
One moment, the Whisperkin was a few meters away from him, the next, his elongated claws were slashing downwards from above his head. But Zane was already moving.
He leapt to the side to evade the fatal slash. Not because he was faster, but because he had jumped a few seconds before the Whisperkin struck.
Zane felt a sharp pain as he jumped. He turned to the source of the pain.
That was when he noticed that his right hand had been severed from his elbow.
It was then that the pain registered. His vision blurred and he clenched his jaw so tight to prevent himself from screaming in sheer agony.
The monstrosity had severed his arm, breaking the door along with it, and creating a wide hole in the corridor.
Zane was analytical to a fault, he didn't waste time to whine over the insane amount of pain throbbing in his arm.
'Feel the pain, accept it, let it flow through every corner of your body, be familiar with pain and it shall hurt no more.' He thought, then..
With his severed arm tumbling through the air, Zane snagged it by the wrist with his left hand mid-fall and, using the momentum, slammed it into the Whisperkin's head."
The Whisperkin staggered two steps back.
"You might be right, Nay... You're quite lucky, though I'm holding back, my every attack was meant to kill you. Lets see how long your brain will keep you alive."
Zane didn't look at the monster, blood gushed out of the stump on his arm. He tore a part of his school uniform and wrapped it around his wound to stopp the bleeding.
Just as he was about to run through the door the Whisperkin had smashed down, he heard a voice.
"Please, help me." Zane turned to the direction of the voice and found an upperclasswoman holding an elongated iron rod extended from the concrete where the hole in the corridor was formed. Blood dripped down her fingers, falling in drops onto her face as she held onto the rod tightly to prevent herself from falling into the hole. She looked at Zane with pleading eyes as another drop of blood dripped onto her face.
'Amilla? Then the footsteps I heard earlier must have belonged to her. She must've been caught up in the attack earlier. But what is she doing here, she should've long escaped with the others, it's not like she was trapped like I was. Wait, don't tell me she was searching for survivors. That self righteous idiot.'
This was no ordinary upperclasswoman. Amilla was the school president. She had helped him multiple times. Under her watchful eyes, the bullies stopped tormenting him during dining and other activities. The only time Mario and the others could bully him and get away with it was when they were in class.
Zane looked at the face of the girl, at the deep hole, then at the Whisperkin. ' Even though the bullying was my own doing, she really did help me. I have to do something about this situation.' Zane thought as he immediately went into motion.'
He ran as fast as his aching body would allow with the blood from the stump marking his path. Each step felt more of a stagger than a sprint. He may have stopped the bleeding, but that didn't change the fact that he had lost a lot of blood.
The girl stretched her hand while her other hand clenched the iron rod in a firm grip.
"It's you, Zane, thank goodness." Her gaze then fell on the monstrosity who stood rigid in the classroom as though lost in thought.
"Please, take my hand, quick before it notices us." The girl pleaded.
'With no active abilities, his mind should have long succumbed to the void of blood loss. Is this the shadow of the Throne protecting him? Even I do not grasp the secrets that seat hides. Nonetheless, he is a fascinating contradiction. I am curious... how does he intend to save another when he can barely tether his own soul to his body?'
"Look up, and be quick about it." Zane shouted.
"Up? Is there a rope?" The girl wondered as she looked up at the broken ceiling, searching for something that could help her survive. However, there was nothing of interest at the ceiling, the only thing she saw was the sole of Zane's school sneakers.
"I've had my fun." The Whisperkin lunged, but Zane was already in the air. He had jumped, aiming for the girl's face. The girl had looked up, making her face the perfect flat board. He had intended to use the elongated iron rod, but that was too risky. With one arm gone, his balance was off and would definitely fall down the hole if he used the rod.
As soon as his leg touched the girl's face, he leapt to the side in a right angled jump and dodge motion.
The impact placed a lot of strain on her neck, forcing her to let go of the rod she so desperately clung onto.
'What the..' The girl didn't have time to register what had happened as the claws meant for Zane slashed down her face. The force sent both the Whisperkin and the girl down the hole.
***
Outside the classroom, the world was falling apart. Chaos exploded like wildfire—news reports flooded every screen, and social media buzzed with wild theories. Some claimed it was the end of the world, others believed it was a test from the gods. But none of it changed reality.
Survival was now the only thing that mattered.
The Elites didn't come alone, portals opened across the world and several Geminis, with ranks below an Elite, poured out from different parts of the world. The scene was nothing short of a nightmare.
In the middle of the madness, Mario and a group of students managed to seize one of the school buses. Ms. Jasmine, their English teacher, sat tensely at the front, her knuckles white around the steering wheel. The rest of the students squeezed into the seats, barely speaking. The bus was hot, cramped, and had a foul smell of sweat—but nobody cared. They were alive, and that was enough.
"Aaaah, help, Please, I don't want to die. Somebody please..." They watched through the windows of the bus as a teacher was torn apart by a low ranking Gemini. It had it claws extended in an unnatural way, and its face was so rough and uneven the sight sent shivers down their spines.
"Ms. Jasmine... Zane is still inside the classroom, we should help him before it's too late." The red-haired girl who had protested against using Zane as bait, felt the need to report their misdeeds, this way, she could free her guilty mind. She wasn't part of any group—never picked sides, and never joined in the bullying. In panic, she had joined them, after all, she needed to be alive before she could worry about someone else's safety.
Jasmine didn't turn. She stared straight ahead with a frown.
Mario scoffed. "Are you stupid or something?"
The girl flinched in fright.
"If you're so worried," Mario continued, sneering, "why don't you go back and save him yourself? You saw that demon too didn't you? Whipaku or whatever. Yet you want us to be heroes for a loser like Zane? Do you think he's better than those who were killed by that monster? Sit your ass down if you've got nothing sensible to say."
"If he was left behind, then he only has himself to blame," Jasmine replied coldly. She then drove off in high speed.
They couldn't afford to wait. A single F-Rank elite Gemini had wiped out nearly half the school in minutes. If it spotted them, it was over. Everyone knew it.
The girl opened her mouth as if to speak again but said nothing. Her lips trembled. In the end, she just looked away, drowning in guilt.