Chapter 93: Chapter93-Ambushed!
If it were anyone else, they'd have given up and gone after someone else by now.
What's this guy's deal?
Why is he so determined to kill me?
Do I have a bounty on my head or something?
If not, what's his reason?
After a few moments of thinking, I let it go and prepared myself with both daggers, ready for whatever comes next.
But then, suddenly, the pounding on my door stopped, and a heavy silence descended over the area.
Huh? What happened? Why did he stop?
Has something happened?
I was bewildered by his abrupt cessation. Why would he stop so suddenly?
I checked my watch, noting that it was 10:30 a.m.
Only about 40-50 minutes had passed since this all started...
Hmm, still 9 hours left...
For now, I needed to focus on being cautious and making sure I didn't fall for another trick.
I adjusted my stance, ready for anything, and strained to hear any hint of movement outside the door.
But after waiting for half an hour without hearing any sound, I became more and more confused.
A few minutes ago, he was relentlessly pounding on my door, trying his best to break it.
For a moment, I thought about going outside to check the situation, but I quickly dismissed the idea, considering it might be a trap.
He could be trying to lure me out, knowing he couldn't break the door.
If I stepped outside and let my guard down, he might swiftly attack and finish me off.
Which, of course, I wouldn't want to happen.
So, I decided to wait inside the room for another half an hour, hoping that guy would start pounding on my door again.
However, as the saying goes, not everything you expect happens, and just like that, the guy never knocked on my door again.
After waiting for several minutes, my mind began to wander with various speculations...
Is that guy even outside?
I mean, I know it might be a trap, but I still needed to know about the situation outside, given that I had been staying in my room for too long.
And for that, I had to go outside...
I quickly checked my dash skill to see how much time was left for its cooldown to finish.
[Dash skill: 1 hour]
When I saw the cooldown time, I sighed and muttered, "Still one hour."
I didn't know why, but my inner thoughts were not much pleased with the remaining cooldown time.
Even though, I knew I have to wait but still...
Anxiety gnawed at me, making me feel restless.
I just wanted to open the door and go.
My impatience grew with every passing second.
The silence of my room felt oppressive, and my mind raced with possibilities.
Should I go out now?
I couldn't shake the feeling that time was slipping away, that something important was happening outside, and I was missing it.
But...
In the end, I managed to control my urge to go outside until my dash skill cooldown finished.
Then, I moved slowly towards the door, making sure to be as silent as possible.
If the rebel was outside, I didn't want him to hear any sound or be alerted to my presence.
Then, I gripped the doorknob tightly with my left hand while clutching a dagger in my right.
In my opinion, my plan was straightforward but risky...
I would open the door abruptly, and if any rebel appeared, I would stab him wherever I could.
If the rebel were to somehow avoids my attacks, I'd be in huge trouble.
How?
Assuming the university is currently under attack by rebels, he would definitely shout or call his partners, making the battle more difficult for me and increasing my chances of getting injured...
I took a deep breath and slowly turned the doorknob, ready to act on a moment's notice.
Let's do it...
With a sudden twist, I flung the door open, my eyes scanning the corridor for any signs of the rebel but...
What?
He is not here...
To my surprise, nothing was visible.
No rebel, nothing...
The corridor was eerily quiet, with the silence almost tangible, pressing against my ears.
It was unsettlingly silent, especially given that people were supposed to be living here.
I cautiously stepped out, my senses alert to any sudden movements.
I turned left and right, carefully inspecting the hallway.
The corridor was now empty and quiet, with no sign of the rebel.
Every door along the hallway was slightly open, and the dim light from inside cast shadows on the walls.
Why are all the doors open?
Most people should have locked their doors since the building is under attack, but here, every door is open. This suggests two possibilities...
Either everyone was rescued by the group leaders and members, or the unfortunate thing I fear has already happened to them.
I hope it's the first one because I really don't want to face the second possibility...
I moved slowly, my footsteps muffled by the thick carpet.
As I neared one of the open rooms, my heart raced with a mix of tension and nervousness...
I couldn't help but think I might be next if the second possibility takes place...
Wait! What's that smell?
A disgusting but very familiar scent was in the air.
As I kept sniffing, a realization suddenly hit me.
"No, no, no..." I muttered.
I quickly peered inside the room and was met with a disturbing sight.
The room was lit, but what I saw was unmistakable.
Fuck, I knew it...
Two bodies lay on the floor with their throats gruesomely cut open.
Blood pooled around them, slowly oozing from their wounds.
The sight was so horrific that it took me a moment to fully grasp what I was seeing...
I forced myself to look away and took a deep breath to steady my nerves.
The chilling reality of what had happened began to sink in.
The silence wasn't just an absence of noise; it was a sign of the brutal murders that had occurred.
I calmed myself...
It wasn't hard to do since I had already seen many murders like this before...
After steadying my nerves, I carefully examined the room.
The bed sheets were torn, likely because the victims had tried to grab them for some reason.
There were also many scratch marks on the floor, made by the victims as they struggled in their final moments, judging by the blood smeared along the grooves.
Suddenly, a drop of blood fell onto the bed from the ceiling.
Blood falling?
Wasn't...?
My heart skipped a beat as the realization hit me.
I immediately looked up.
Two rebels were hanging from the ceiling, their eyes locked onto mine.
Damn, they were on the ceiling...
Without hesitation, they dropped down, and the fight began.
I quickly drew both my daggers and prepared myself for the fight.
One rebel swung a knife at me, which I barely managed to deflect with my dagger.
The force of the blow sent a jolt through my arm, but I twisted my wrist and retaliated with a swift slash, aiming for his throat.
He dodged, but not entirely, and my blade grazed his cheek, drawing blood.
I wasn't surprised since, when I used my appraisal skill on them, I saw that they were both silver rank, just like me...
The second rebel lunged at me from the side, aiming a vicious slash at my ribs.
I spun around just in time to block his dagger with my forearm, the impact reverberating through my bones.
Using the momentum, I drove my elbow into his jaw, causing him to stumble back.
The first rebel recovered quickly, coming at me again with a series of rapid, precise stabs.
I parried each one, our blades clashing and sparking in the room's ceiling light...
The fight was getting extremely tough since I was up against two opponents, but at least they weren't attacking me together.
I wasn't sure why, but if they had worked together, I might have already defeated them.
Why?
It's because of my dash skill. If I used it now, I'd almost certainly win easily, but I decided against using it when I saw their ranks.
I didn't want to waste it since I wasn't sure when I might need it in the future.
However, I would use it if these guys start to overpower me, otherwise, I'd hold off on using it.
I managed to get inside his guard and stabbed him in the side, twisting the dagger to maximize the damage.
He cried out in pain but still didn't go down, so I kicked him hard in the groin, causing him to collapse immediately.
I aimed to finish him off, but just as I was about to stab him, the second rebel blocked my attack and kicked my legs, knocking me off balance.
I quickly regained my balance and countered by kicking his legs, which didn't even make him flinch.
But, but, but...
My goal wasn't to unbalance him but to...
I struck his right hand, causing the knife to drop to the floor.
Yeah, to knock his weapon out of his hand.
Now that he was unarmed, he seemed as vulnerable as possible, and I thought finishing him off would be easy...
However, instead of panicking, the second rebel, furious, launched a relentless series of attacks with both fists and feet.
I dodged and blocked as best as I could, countering with swift jabs and slashes.
One of his punches landed on my shoulder, sending a sharp pain through my arm.
Ugh, that really hurt.
I gritted my teeth and retaliated with a knee to his gut, followed by an uppercut with my dagger, slicing across his chest.
Both rebels were relentless. Despite their injuries, they kept coming.
The first rebel, clutching his bloody side, tried to tackle me to the ground.
I sighed and, sidestepped and stabbed at his back, causing him to collapse, blood pooling around him...
Alright, one is dead, now just the other one left.
I received a system notification confirming that the guy I stabbed had died, which immediately prompted me to focus on the remaining rebel.
The second rebel, now more cautious, circled me.
We exchanged blows, each strike and parry becoming more desperate...
I feigned a stumble, drawing him in.
Come the fuck here...
As he closed the distance, I surged forward, driving both daggers into his chest.
Yeah, good, now die...
His eyes widened in shock as he fell backward, lifeless.
"What are you staring at? Didn't you see this coming without a weapon?" I asked the assassin.
"Your shocked expression shows you didn't expect this," I added.
"Interesting... I thought you'd be more aware."
The rebel didn't respond. He just whispered one last word, "El..." before falling onto the blood-soaked floor.
His final breath faded, leaving me with the valuable EXP points.
Panting and covered in blood, I stood over the two bodies.
The room was a mess of blood and broken furniture.
I took a moment to catch my breath, then wiped my blades clean.
I glanced at my watch to check the time...
Name: Michael Frostburne
Total Rules Broken: 1
Current Rules Broken: 0
Time: 12:00 a.m.
***
That took a lot longer than I expected...
There are 25 minutes remaining until the zone stops shrinking permanently...
I swiftly exited the room and meticulously checked the other rooms to make sure no rebels were hiding, ready to ambush me.
Though I didn't see any rebels, I did find numerous brutal corpses of the people who lived here.
Some had been sliced in half, while others had their throats slashed or cut.
It was hard to make sense how they were killed by only two guys...
Were there only two rebels here?
The variety in their deaths only increased my concerns.
The differences in the murders indicated that more than two rebels were likely involved.
Perhaps the others left the building to the two I fought, just to keep watch.
If that's the case, I might have been very fortunate. If all of them had attacked me at once, things could have turned out much worse.
Afterward, I cautiously approached the dormitory entrance and paused to peer carefully around the edge of the door.
What I saw made me even more worried because the situation outside was exactly as I had anticipated...
Fights were breaking out all over the campus.
I saw many familiar faces engaged in combat with the rebels, their battles adding to the turmoil around me.
But one thing confused me: How had I not heard a single sound while I was inside the building?
Was it somehow soundproof?
If I had known about these fights, I would have used my time to prepare better and devise a more effective plan.
Damn it, I missed all of that.
***
After a minute of pacing and fuming, I refocused on the battlefield.
Allen and Solos were each locked in combat with one opponent, while Anna and Zeras fought separate enemies.
Why couldn't they defeat those guys?
They should have dealt with this by now, especially Solos and Allen.
What were they even doing?
If everyone were gold rankers, it would explain why Anna and Zeras were struggling, but what about the others?
Solos and Allen were both attacking the black-masked rebel with their weapons, giving it their all.
Yet, none of their strikes landed. Every time they got close, the rebel dodged with unbelievable speed.
What kind of opponent are they up against?
This speed is crazy!
Wait, is he even moving?
I couldn't even follow his leg movements.
I quickly activated my appraisal skill, and a virtual screen appeared before me, showing his details.
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