Chapter 76- Running Like There Is No Tomorrow (Part 2)
When one of them muttered those words, everyone immediately looked at the bridge ahead of them. At first, it was easily 80 feet wide. But, as they continued running, it was slowly but surely getting narrower and narrower, making them get closer to each other.
"Why is it getting smaller?"
"Beat me! We are barely keeping up with the professor and now we have to also mind whether we have enough space to run or not."
"It's turning really bad really quickly!"
"But, we have to keep going! We can't give up! Brace yourself, everyone!"
With that shout of encouragement, the flames of determination ignited again in their hearts as they forgot about their exhaustion and solely focused on running.
"We should also accelerate a little bit more." Rin suggestion.
His reason for that was that when the bridge becomes extremely narrow, they will eventually invade their space. Rin wasn't keen on the idea of running around sweaty dudes grunting non-stop like a bunch of dogs.
Elise seemed to share the same thoughts. So, with that in mind, they started closing the distance between them and the group.
"Huh?"
"What?!"
Everyone noticed the duo passing beside them and then moving ahead. The pure ease they showed when doing such a thing took everyone by surprise. Everyone was struggling to keep running and yet these two were simply running without breaking a sweat. How is that fair?
Phillipe, who was slightly ahead of everyone also noticed the two of them approaching him at an alarming pace.
His eyes followed Elise for a long time before shifting to Rin. A mere glance at his infuriatingly handsome face made him want to strangle him to death. He really couldn't bear the thought of another man being close to his beloved. Not even one single bit.
'Get away from her, you trash!!' He screamed in his head as his eyes turned a degree colder.
Rin did notice that change of expression but didn't try to even look back at him. He didn't have the patience or the time to keep arguing with that boy. Elise also ignored him completely as if he was thin air or something.
The two eventually passed him and now, they became the closest to Donnie. The latter also seemed to see that since he nodded his head at them.
'Since both of you are challenging me. I won't hold back.' Donnie thought as he felt a rush of excitement in his old and possibly dormant heart. He was extremely interested in these two youngsters. Donnie had seen many talents in his life, more than he can count. But, these two evoked some feelings in him he had never felt before.
'Something is different with these two. Who are they?' He wondered.
"His speed increased again?!"
"Ugh! I can't keep up anymore!!"
"Please! No more than this! I'm barely running at this point!"
"My legs feel like hot jello!"
Complaints erupted everywhere from the unfairness. At this point, the distance between the group and Donnie was increasing and they couldn't close it anymore.
'This fucking sadist! He enjoys tormenting them.' Rin thought with a small grin of amusement.
He figured out why Donnie was doing this and it was because of them. But, neither of them was going to back out.
'I can't let them get far away from me! I must protect Elise at all costs.' Phillipe clenched his teeth and exerted more strength to keep up.
He was already trying to find a way to get rid of whatever curse or spell Rin was putting on Elise. Even though at first, he only considered it as a mere probability, somehow, it turned into a certain thing for him. Love is truly blind.
A few minutes passed and the bridge was now less than 30 feet wide. Imagine hundreds of people running on a bridge that narrow. The sight was amazing, to say the least. That's when it started.
"Hey! You stepped on my leg, you fucking moron!"
"Fuck! You hit me in the back didn't you?!"
"Oi! Stay away from me, trash! I can't run when you are stuck to me like that!"
"Your breath stinks, you bastard! Do you have a dead pig inside your mouth, goddammit!! Go breathe somewhere else."
The accumulation of stress, anger, and frustration started to take a toll on the candidates. That's why fights ensued everywhere. No one wanted to fall back so they had to stick close to each other. On the other hand, they also didn't want anyone close to them since it makes them unable to run freely. This collision of emotions created a chaotic mess.
Everyone started shoving each other and pushing with their shoulders. The fights grew more and more intense as time went on.
At some point, they were even throwing punches at each other as if it was some brawl inside a bar.
"It started, huh?" Rin muttered.
"We are far. They can do whatever they want."
The sound of punches and kicks echoed in the silent void. At this point, the land was far gone and the only thing surrounding them was the black void of the Gate of Licaria.
The 4-hour mark quickly passed and from all the people running, only a few were still visible from Donnie's point of view. The others were still running but they were very far away. There were also a few that completely stopped as they couldn't continue running anymore.
Running for 4 hours straight was extremely hard for them as they weren't even that strong, agile, or had enormous stamina.
Meanwhile, Phillipe kept his speed. At some point, he had gotten rid of his shirt and was running with his bare chest out in the open. Sweat kept trickling down his body as if it was a waterfall. Even an idiot could tell he was getting exhausted but something was keeping him going.
'Her highness, her highness, her highness…. HER HIGHNESS!!!' He kept repeating the name as if it was some kind of spell for more energy.
Everything was going very smoothly for Rin and Elise. But, if they learned something from this world, it was that things never go perfectly according to plan at all.
"RAAAAAA!!!" A loud screech of a monster suddenly shook the bridge and made everyone close their ears.
Rin and Elise quickly looked to the side with extremely serious expressions. That's when it appeared… A huge figure flew from under the bridge and rose to the high sky. Its shadow completely covered the bridge as if it was a full eclipse.
"What the hell is that?!" Rin exclaimed.
Looking closely, he could see that it was some kind of bird… an unusually giant bird. Its body was at least the size of a building. The bird was hairless but with very red skin and a giant beck. Its most noticeable feature was its singular eye in the middle of its face.
"RAAAAAAAA!!!" After screeching again, it dived down at full speed, aiming at the bridge.
"Fuck! Be careful, ELISE!!" Rin shouted as he immediately used shadow manipulation and jumped on Elise. Then, he covered both of them in the shadow and vanished inside the shadow.
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*
The moment the bird hit the bridge, a huge wave was generated that propagated left and right.
"WOAAAAAAHHH!!!"
Screams erupted from the candidates as they held on the bridge for their dear lives. Fear took over their bodies and made them unable to move. The more unlucky bunch were even sent flying in the air and were about to fall into the black hole under them.
Donnie clicked his tongue when he saw the huge problem that occurred and then stopped before dashing toward them. His priority was to not let anyone die under his supervision. If anyone dies, it will be a huge scandal that will ruin the academy's reputation.
'What are my subordinates doing?! How can they let a demon hybrid just attack the bridge?!' He had many questions but he quickly forgot about them and focused.
*Swish*
Unleashing his aura in full, he blasted into the air aiming for the students. He was faster than the blink of an eye. Luckily, he was able to reach on time and he grabbed everyone before they fell down. His strong body carried the four or so students before throwing them on the bridge and moving to the next ones.
Meanwhile, the bird screeched again and looked around it searching for any delicious prey it could hunt Its eyes eventually fell on two silhouettes.
"Are you ok, Elise?" Rin asked worriedly.
"I'm fine."
"Good… What was tha-" Before he could even finish his words, his eyes fell on the bird and for a good 3 seconds, their eye contact didn't get cut.
Instinctively, Rin used his appraisal skill to scan the monster in front of him.
[Hybrid Clawing Bird.]
[Rank: E]
[Skills: Sharp Eye (Level 3), Intimidating Screech (Level 4)]
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