104 Chapter 104: Massacre (2/2)

Nobody bothered to save her. They were either dead, too heavily injured or running away for their lives.

Mercifully, the monster didn't prolong her suffering. With a single flick of its claws, it beheaded Sheng Ri Kuai Le. Her head rolled to a stop on top of what remained of her birthday cake, her mouth frozen in a silent scream and her eyes gaping in horror at oblivion. Her blood had splattered across the remains of the chocolate cake, mingling with the red raspberry sauce, the two fluids becoming one and no longer indistinguishable from each other.

Stepping over Sheng Ri Kuai Le's headless corpse and crunching it, the monster uncaringly progressed forward. Its inner jaws slowly clicked out, and it disappeared into a blur.

The scene of fleeing survivors had turned into one of carnage. The monster had caught up with most of the teenage mages and torn them to bits. Many of them lay in pieces. Some were still conscious, screaming from horror or holding their detached limbs in shock. Pearl and the healers were going around, trying to heal whatever wounds they could, or preserve the lives of those in critical conditions, despite the massive risk to their own lives. Currently, the monster paid them no attention. It was more attracted to those students who were running and screaming instead.

Ironically, the healers' decision to stay where they were, keep a low profile, and continue healing their severely injured comrades was what saved their lives.

Pearl looked up, shaken. She had stabilized Craig's condition, and was now tending to a stunned Alicia. Neither of them had regained consciousness. Lily was helping Dong Fang Yue Chu up, her shield shattered after an engagement. Blood streamed down her face, and she gritted her teeth in frustration. However, a blow from the monster had shattered her spear, and unarmed, she stood no chance against the creature.

”We should run,” she murmured to Pearl. Sheila nodded, as she limped forward while supporting an unconscious Craig.

”Wait!” Pearl hissed as she tended to Alicia, who was slowly waking up. The Black Rose president looked up, dazed.

”The…the monster,” she whispered. Pearl shook her head.

”We can't fight it. It's too strong.” She took a deep breath and glanced at the distance. Four more screaming students had just gone down, their corpses resembling victims in a slasher film. ”We should go now, when we still have the chance.”

The number of survivors were pitifully low. The healers had done what they could, but the vast majority of the people left in the wake of the monster's rampage were killed. Dong Fang Yue Chu muttered something as he stared blankly at the corpses of Stan and Wang Fei. Only Harvey had survived, but he was staggering, his mind still numbed from the effects of the blow he had received.

”What about the others?” Alicia demanded, her voice hoarse and soft. ”We can't just abandon them! We have to…”

”If we try to help them, we'll all be wiped out,” Pearl told her gently. ”And there's nothing we can do. Either we all die together, or some of us escape.”

”And…we have too many wounded here,” another healer added as he helped up another student. Alicia recalled his name being Usato Ken. He shook his head bitterly. ”None of you are in any condition to fight. And it's our responsibility to bring the injured to safety. We can't allow you to risk yourselves in a meaningless battle.”

”What he said,” Pearl agreed.

”This isn't meaningless!” Alicia argued hotly. ”There must be something we can do…!”

”If you want to risk your life, that's your choice,” Usato Ken said. He wasn't trying to sound cold, but he looked resigned, as if he recognized that Alicia wouldn't change her mind. ”But…think about the casualties we suffered. If you engage the monster, you'll draw its attention to the injured here. I ask of you to at least allow the people here to survive.”

Alicia gritted her teeth as she turned to watch the berserk monster, which was advancing in the opposite direction, where there was still a mass of mages left. Ken was right. While Alicia had no compulsions against risking her own life, she had no right to ask the wounded and critically injured to do the same. She had no right to put the healers and other students in life-threatening danger.

”Go,” she said as she rose to her feet and checked her guns. ”I'll hold the monster off and buy you guys some time…”

Her vision swam and she fell over. Pearl quickly caught hold of Alicia before the latter could hit the ground.

”You're seriously wounded,” the Super Power Society president explained kindly. ”You've done more than enough. Your job now is to lead the survivors and injured to safety. Can you do that?”

”I…” tears sprang to Alicia's eyes, especially when she saw the dead. Miranda was gone, her body torn apart. Elliot was lying near the barbeque pit, his body in a pool of blood. Nicholas was nowhere to be seen. Jin Hao and Aoi had survived, just barely, and were helping each other up. It was clear that they were in no condition to fight.

So many Black Rose members dead. So many injured. Alicia wondered briefly that if Troy's presence would have made a difference. That man was so strong that he could probably destroy even a rank B monster with astonishing ease.

There was a reason why he was ranked number one in Jing Tian Academy, above even Holy Saints president, Harrison Reed.

But he wasn't here, and they were. Taking a deep, shaky breath, Alicia rose to her feet and nodded.

”Let's go,” she ordered softly. Everyone complied and began organizing their retreat in an orderly fashion, as opposed to the panic escape of the majority of students in the opposite direction.

”?!”

A hiss from behind them drew their attention back to the monster. Their sudden movements had seemed to attract it, and it slowly turned toward them.

Her face paling, Alicia raised both of her guns in determination and took aim at the approaching demon.

”Seems like we've to fight after all,” she murmured quietly.