Saya quickly took out the three phones she had found earlier. Normally, people kept their phones in their pockets, so finding even three was already lucky.
Among them, one was locked with a password, while the other two were old button-style phones that were easy to unlock. Without hesitation, she set timers on both of them for ten minutes from now, placed them close to the microphone, and turned it on. Fortunately, the batteries still had power.
With that done, she began moving down to the second floor.
As she moved, Saya remained on high alert, straining her eyes and ears for even the slightest sound, ready to flee at a moment's notice. Luckily, she made it downstairs without any issues. Without wasting time, she slipped into a classroom, gathered a pile of desks and chairs to create a hiding spot, and concealed herself inside.
Not long after, an alarm rang out from the floor above.
Because the entire floor was completely silent, the alarm ringing through the amplified microphone became piercingly loud.
Almost immediately, Saya heard movement—followed by the sound of groaning. A rustling noise echoed through the air, accompanied by those eerie moans. Peering through a gap between the stacked desks, she saw it.
The Human Centipede.
It had crawled straight from the schoolyard up to the third floor, its massive body making the climb effortlessly. Saya waited until it had fully ascended before bolting down the stairs without hesitation. The soft, sickening sensation of stepping on flesh gradually gave way to the solid firmness of the floor beneath her, allowing her to pick up speed.
She didn't run directly into the open or dash straight for the schoolyard. Doing so would make the monster easily spot her from above. Instead, the moment she reached the ground floor, she veered through a door opposite the main entrance, heading behind Building A.
Behind it lay a narrow alleyway that cut through the sports field, gymnasium, and dormitories, leading toward the school's north gate. That was her plan.
But just as she stepped into the alley, she came to an abrupt stop.
There were people.
Students wandered aimlessly through the narrow passage. She wasn't the only survivor!
Saya immediately ran toward them, ready to scream a warning about the monster in Building A. They needed to know…
But just as Saya took a few steps forward, a shiver ran down her spine.
Something was off.
The so-called survivors just stood there, motionless, staring blankly into nothingness. They didn't move, didn't react.
Unease crept over her. She didn't dare get any closer. Instead, she picked up a small rock from the ground and hurled it at the nearest "student," about ten meters away.
She missed. The rock bounced and landed against the boy's foot. And then, he turned toward her.
Saya froze in terror.
No eyes. No nose. No mouth.
Its skin was rough and sagging, cracked as if molded from clay. The humanoid creature slowly stepped toward her. Above its head, a small floating sign appeared.
[The Faceless, Lv 3]
Another monster. This was bad. Really bad.
Saya immediately thought about turning and running, but behind her was Building A, the hunting ground of that centipede-like abomination. Running in that direction would be like throwing herself straight into its territory.
Panic surged through her as she kept stepping backward, only to feel the cold, hard surface of a wall press against her back. She was trapped and the creature was closing in. Then, it lunged.
"It can run!?"
Saya's eyes widened in shock. It had been dragging its feet like a sluggish zombie, so she assumed it was slow. But no, this damn thing could sprint!
The monster was fast. It rushed toward her, swinging its arm. Pure instinct took over. Saya threw herself to the side, rolling out of the way just in time.
CRASH!
"HOLY SHIT! It punched through the wall!!"
The spot where it had struck was now a gaping hole, the size of its fist. Saya didn't need to test it. For sure, if her body took a hit like that, she'd be dead on the spot.
The creature turned its featureless face toward her and let out a low, guttural growl… probably. All Saya heard was a distorted, rumbling noise from its throat before it lunged again.
Saya instinctively threw up her arms to shield her face, and a force like a truck slammed into her, sending her flying. With a sickening THUD, she crashed onto the ground. Pain exploded through her body, and a sharp, searing ache shot through her arms, as if they had snapped in half.
"Blood…"
Saya's eyes widened. This wasn't the old blood from the dried-up flesh clinging to her, it was fresh, still flowing.
"Did my arms… break? No… wait… that's not it!"
She could still move them, though they throbbed with a numbing pain. If her arms were fine, then where was this blood coming from…?
Saya had no time to figure it out, the creature lunged at her again. A swipe! She rolled to the side, barely dodging in time.
This time, she clearly heard the sound of bones snapping.
Just as she suspected, the blood on her arms wasn't hers, it belonged to the monster. Its left wrist was completely broken, the mangled fist barely recognizable. Perhaps that's why its punch was weaker when it hit her earlier. As for its right hand, four out of five fingers were snapped, and Saya could see claw marks on the ground… with its severed fingernails still lodged in the dirt.
"Does this monster not feel pain?!" Just by looking at it, Saya felt a wave of pain throughout her body, yet this thing seemed completely unaffected.
Grinding her teeth, Saya tried to sit up, but once again, it attacked. It charged blindly, like a rabid dog. Saya kicked it hard in the stomach, but it only paused for a moment before pinning her to the ground.
Saya tried to fight back, pushing it away, but this bastard was too strong! Its disgusting face was pressed right against hers, and no matter how much she struggled, it still pinned her to the ground.
Suddenly, Saya began to feel exhausted. It was as if she had just run a hundred miles; her chest ached intensely, and she could hardly breathe. She gasped for air, but immediately, it felt like all the air in her lungs had been sucked out. Pain! A burning sensation! It felt like her lungs were being roasted on a stove!
Then, the monster's face slowly began to change. The rough, cracked skin gradually disappeared, and the lower part of its face split open into a mouth, its nose protruded, and eyes began to form. The monster was growing a face!
But... why...?
"That's my face!" The monster's face now looked almost exactly like Saya's! The eyes, the nose, even the little mole!
"This monster... it's mimicking me!" Saya wanted to scream, but quickly realized she couldn't open her mouth. No! She couldn't even feel her tongue anymore! What was happening?!
"My tongue, my tongue, where is it?! You damn monster, what have you done?!" Saya could see the creature's mouth opening as if sucking something in, and the more it did, the more dizzy and tired she felt.
At that moment, as she saw the creature's mouth opening and sucking in air, Saya suddenly realized. The Faceless, what it was sucking wasn't air, it was her very identity and soul. It was taking her identity, which is why it was growing a face that resembled hers.
If Saya allowed it to continue, she would lose her soul and identity, and she would become it, another Faceless.
"NO! NO WAY! I must resist, I must fight back!" Saya screamed internally. She tried to reach into the outer pocket of her backpack to grab the scissors she had stored there. But in doing so, she stopped resisting the monster, and immediately, it began sucking even harder. Then everything went dark.
"My eyes! MY EYES! It's too dark, I can't see anymore!" The creature had stolen her eyes!
"GIVE IT BACK!!!"
Saya grabbed the scissors and used all her strength to stab the monster. Although she couldn't see anything, the creature was right in front of her, so she desperately thrust forward.
"Stab it, stab it, STAB IT!" The only thought in Saya's mind was to attack the creature. Soon, she felt something warm and liquid splatter on her face, but she didn't stop. She continued to stab, and the liquid sprayed across her body.
But before long, Saya felt the sensation in her hands fade away. The sound of the scissors dropping to the ground signaled her despair. Soon, even struggling became impossible, and Saya realized she had lost everything.
Is this it? Is this how it ends?
Suddenly, the suffocating feeling disappeared, and fresh air filled her lungs again.
THUD!
The creature collapsed on top of Saya, motionless. She had killed it! She survived!
"...a... ha... ha..."
Her mouth was back, and she continued to gasp for air. So this is what it feels like to almost drown?
Then Saya opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was the creature's rough, melted, mannequin-like face. It was dead, and she was still "Takagi Saya."
"Damn it! You think taking my face would be that easy?!"