Bang!
A gunshot echoed from the building where Ethan had disappeared.
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Luckily, there weren’t many monsters nearby, and the few that were seemed too distracted to notice.
I let out a shaky breath and turned my gaze back toward the clock tower.
A considerable number of monsters were clustered around its base. Without Ethan diverting their attention, there was no way I’d be able to approach it.
I tilted my head up to look at the top of the tower again.
Please let Nox be up there.
Just then, I caught a glimpse of fabric fluttering near the railing at the top.
Something moved.
I shifted my focus to Ethan’s position. He was lying flat on the roof of a nearby building, already aiming his gun at the entrance of the clock tower.
Our eyes met. Despite the distance, the daylight made it easy to see each other. Ethan raised two fingers and mimed firing a gun.
It was the signal.
I tightened my grip on the axe and sprinted toward the tower.
Two monsters lunged at me. I cleaved through them with quick swings of my axe, and as soon as I reached the clock tower’s door—
Bang!
Another gunshot rang out. The monster charging at my back crumpled to the ground, hit by Ethan’s bullet.
I threw a quick glance at Ethan before shutting the door behind me.
The interior of the clock tower was silent.
A spiral staircase stretched all the way up to the top.
I ran, skipping two or three steps at a time, my breath quickening with each stride.
I prayed Nox Cornell Ludfisher would be waiting at the top.
And when I finally reached the top, there he was.
Nox.
His silver hair was a tangled mess, and his white coat was stained and torn. He was slumped against the railing, his legs drenched in blood.
Wide-eyed, he stared at me.
“...Cherry Sinclair?”
Panting, I wiped the sweat from my chin.
“What the hell are you doing up here?”
To my shock, Nox was lounging against the railing, a cigarette dangling lazily from his lips. He looked like he’d just stepped out of a casual break, not a life-or-death situation.
Seriously? He’s smoking right now?
He exhaled a puff of smoke and shrugged, his voice calm and unhurried as always.
“Resting. Didn’t expect to see Lady Sinclair here. Weren’t you supposed to be somewhere safe? How did you end up here?”
Even as he spoke, Nox leaned back against the railing, gazing out as if this whole disaster had nothing to do with him.
Safe? Was he talking about Happy House?
“Not sure how you ended up here, but it’s ironic, isn’t it? After fighting so hard to survive, you’re going to die here with me. What a shame.”
Nox took another drag from his cigarette and blew the smoke toward me.
His eyes were brimming with bitterness.
Dying, my ass.
“What the hell are you talking about?”
I frowned, unable to make sense of his words. But there was no time for explanations.
“We don’t have time for this. Get up.”
I stretched out a hand, ready to pull him up, but my eyes fell to his right thigh.
It looked even worse up close.
The wound was nasty—his pants were shredded, and blood covered his leg. I couldn’t tell if it was a cut or a bite.
“Were you bitten?”
Nox raised an eyebrow, cigarette still between his lips, clearly not understanding my question.
“Bitten?”
“By those fucking monsters. Were you bitten or not?”
There was no time to waste, but this wasn’t something I could ignore.
Even if Nox was one of the main characters, if he’d been bitten, there was no saving him.
At my harsh tone, Nox’s eyes widened before he suddenly burst out laughing.
“Is this really the Cherry Sinclair I know?”
“This isn’t the time for jokes! Answer me. Now.”
“I wasn’t bitten. I got stabbed by a broken railing while climbing up here.”
“Good enough. Can you stand?”
“No. My leg’s useless. Even if I could, there’s no way I’d make it past those monsters.”
“That’s fine. I’ll carry you. As long as you’re not bitten, we’re good.”
“Wait, what? Hold on—!”
I didn’t wait for his protests.
Ignoring his complaints, I hoisted him onto my back.
He was tall, so his legs dragged slightly against the floor, but that didn’t matter right now.
“H-Hey! Wait! What the hell?!”
“Keep quiet. And hold this.”
I shoved the axe and an empty bag into Nox’s hands, then adjusted his position on my back and started descending the stairs.
“Cherry Sinclair!”
“For fuck’s sake, shut up!”
Nox finally clamped his mouth shut after my outburst.
Yeah, I knew it. A normal woman wouldn’t have been able to carry Nox at all.
But I wasn’t normal—and I had more than enough strength to haul him around like a sack of potatoes.
Still, carrying a man who couldn’t even support himself down a flight of stairs was no easy feat.
“...What the hell are you?”
Nox asked quietly as he hung onto my back. I didn’t bother answering.
When we reached the first floor, I grabbed the door handle and turned to him.
“If something comes at us, swing the axe. I don’t have any hands free right now.”
“...What?”
“Don’t make me say it twice. Unless you want me to leave you behind. I’m exhausted.”
“Leave me behind? Are you serious right now?”
“For fuck’s sake.”
“Fine, fine. No need to get snappy. I’m good with an axe, so don’t worry about it.”
Hearing my sharp words, Nox quickly switched gears, grinning as he swung the axe casually—while still piggybacked on me, no less.
Then he suddenly burst out laughing. I felt his body shaking against my back.
“This dream’s way too realistic. Cherry Sinclair, coming all the way here to save me? And carrying me, no less?”
As I braced myself against the door and tried to steady my breathing, I heard him mumbling behind me.
I let out a short laugh and set him down on the stairs. He tilted his head and looked up at me, puzzled.
“This isn’t a dream. And yes, I’m here to save you. Why wouldn’t I?”
“Well... wasn’t it you who threw the rocks? I saw it from the mansion. You used the village as bait to save yourselves.”
What the hell? How do you even come up with that kind of misunderstanding?
I swallowed a laugh and let out a deep sigh.
“Those rocks? I threw them to save you.”
“Now you’re just making excuses—”
“You were trapped in the square. I threw the rocks to draw the monsters away so you’d have a clear path.”
Nox’s eyes widened as his mouth opened and closed silently, like a fish.
“Then...”
“I already saved your ass once, and now I’m back to save it again. And this is the thanks I get? Shit. I should’ve just left you here. This is a fucking nightmare.”
“W-wait!”
I turned back toward the door, gripping the handle, but Nox quickly called out to stop me.
“I—I misunderstood! Cherry, I’m sorry.”
Well, at least he apologized fast. Ethan had done the same earlier.
Maybe people around here were just quick to admit fault—though it probably had more to do with the fear that I really would leave them behind.
“It’s not because I’m afraid you’ll abandon me!”
As if reading my mind, Nox added hastily,
“Thank you. Really. For saving me.”
I rubbed my temples, already tired, then asked him,
“Can we go now?”
He nodded without argument, and I hoisted him onto my back again before turning the handle.
The area outside the clock tower was quiet, thankfully.
A massive horde of monsters was visible in the distance, but they didn’t seem interested in this direction—for now.
I looked toward the building where Ethan was supposed to be.
But he wasn’t there.
“Where is he? I was supposed to meet him in front of the tower.”
“Lancaster came with you?”
“You think I came here alone?”
“Why are you so snappy?”
“Look at the situation. Do I have a reason not to be?”
Jeez, Cherry. I didn’t know you were this scary.
I ignored Nox’s muttered complaint and scanned the area again.
Still no sign of Ethan.
Was he making his way here? But there was no movement near the clock tower.
Instead, what I saw were monsters starting to approach the tower.
“Hey, Cherry. I don’t think this is the time to just stand around. We need to move.”
Nox gripped the axe tighter as he spoke from my back.
Without another word, I adjusted my grip on him and started running.