Chapter 05 I Will Lead You All to Death
Monica and Joaquim combined their strength while Mimi provided support with her light magic. Even with their combined strength, the two were being pushed back. It seemed that the minotaur was becoming more and more ferocious.
In a flaming attack, Monica's sword shattered as if it were made of glass, and fresh blood ran down her right shoulder. Luckily, Joaquim was right in front of her and managed to deflect the remaining force of the minotaur warrior's blow.
Roaring violently, the monster released smoke from its nostrils as it launched an attack that disregarded its own defense.
Joaquim was knocked down, colliding violently with the ground.
When the minotaur was about to take his life, the beast's eyes suddenly lost their focus.
Everyone looked at Paulo, who had just reached the designated area.
The moment he did so, the minotaur, which had been about to deliver a decisive blow to the agent, suddenly turned back into a statue.
Joaquim was the first to move. Even though he was injured, he quickly made his way to the gray area, followed by his two friends, Monica and Mimi.
Alex was already pale from losing a great deal of blood. He dragged himself along like a dying man determined to live at any cost.
When the two friends stood in the gray zone, it suddenly changed color to green.
But when Alex staggered toward it, the color changed again, this time becoming a vivid red.
The minotaur priest statue on the altar grinned from ear to ear as its eyes glowed an eerie crimson.
When Alex stumbled and fell, the crimson beam coming toward him struck Paulo's body hard, as he was standing right in front of him.
The body exploded into a bloody pulp, its entrails spilling everywhere and bathing the survivors in red liquid and internal organs.
Alex, who was beneath the corpse, was the most affected, with charred viscera and organs scattered across his body.
Once again, the area where everyone stood turned green amid everyone's panicked screams.
The minotaur priest rejoiced as it contemplated the screams of terror that sounded like music to its stone ears.
Now another person was dead in a way that terrified the living to their core.
Of the original nine hunters, only four remained.
A roar was heard before anyone could point fingers.
The eyes that had turned toward Alex, ready to question him, shifted toward the door, which opened with a deafening noise.
The door displayed the number one.
Amid pale faces whose hopes had long since vanished, and with dread practically radiating from their bodies, perhaps a spark of hope finally came to life with the opening of the door.
"We are saved. Finally, what a relief."
Mimi said this while hugging her friend.
Going back to prison no longer seemed like such a bad idea. In fact, the two were anxious to return.
Even with the door open, no one moved yet, fearing another trap.
"You go first."
With a cold tone, Joaquim ordered Mimi to leave the green zone.
Monica held her sword, which was burning with flames, ready to defend her friend.
Then she had a brilliant idea.
"Sir, this guy should go. He's practically dead already. Let's ration our resources."
Monica said this while violently holding the bloodied Alex.
Joaquim did not object.
After all, one of his missions that day had been to get rid of the rapist boy. He simply hadn't done it yet because Alex posed no danger and could be disposed of at any moment.
Alex trembled as his heart filled with rage.
"You fucking lesbian bitch, go fuck yourself."
Since he was going to die anyway, Alex vented his anger in a way that made little sense.
"You stinking pig, how dare you insult Monica with that dirty mouth of yours?"
Mimi retorted.
Nothing happened.
The statues remained motionless, and the priest maintained its frightening smile.
Joaquim moved, also leaving the area.
However, when the two friends did the same, the entire temple was painted red, leaving only the door green.
"Don't move. Whoever does so will die. I'm going to kill someone."
The priest's stone face remained expressionless.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"It seems someone must stay in the area so that the door remains open and the statues remain frozen."
Mimi said this in a shaky voice.
"You can't do this. Please leave me alone."
Alex crawled across the ground as he saw Joaquim walking toward him with a macabre expression.
Crack.
The sound of breaking bones echoed through the temple, mixed with a scream of pain.
Using his leather boot and the sheath of his sword, Joaquim enjoyed breaking the bones in Alex's leg.
"Please don't do this. I beg you."
Tears streamed down Alex's pale face, mixing with blood and sweat. He looked more like a corpse as he miserably begged for his life.
"You bastard. You raped young Miss Tiffany and thought you could save yourself, you little shit."
As he spoke, Joaquim continued breaking Alex's already shattered bones.
"I didn't rape her. She's..."
Coughing up a mouthful of blood and feeling his life slipping away, Alex struggled to spit out those words.
"Shut the fuck up, you piece of shit!"
Joaquim beat him harder and harder.
Monica stopped Joaquim for fear that Alex would be killed.
"Stop! You'll kill him like that."
She was afraid that if Alex died, her friend would become the sacrifice.
"HMPH."
Snorting coldly, Joaquim threw Alex's battered body aside, freeing Mimi from her responsibility.
"Hahahahahaha!"
Alex suddenly began laughing loudly like a maniac.
His eyes were red, and his laughter grew louder and louder.
"The number one on the door means that only one person can leave. It doesn't mean that someone should stay."
Alex did not know if he was right, but his intuition told him that this was the case.
The words came out of his mouth with great difficulty, as he no longer had any strength left in his body.
This realization also crossed the minds of the three, but they refused to continue down that line of thought.
Now that Alex had brought it to their attention, however, they could no longer ignore it.
While Monica was lost in thought as she looked at the dying Alex, Joaquim took his sword and held Mimi hostage.
"What are you doing?"
Mimi's words brought Monica out of her trance.
She quickly grabbed her sword, but it was too late.
"This piece of shit must be right. You seem to care about this girl here, so you'd better stay here while I leave."
Joaquim smiled as he moved toward the door.
Even though he was a one-star hunter, Joaquim was badly injured and could not afford to fight Monica.
So he decided to act this way.
"You son of a bitch! I'm going to kill you!"
All Monica could do was curse.
When there was only one step left before Joaquim could leave the temple, Alex's mind rapidly processed the situation.
How was he supposed to survive?
Was that even possible?
If not, how could he lead these sons of bitches to their deaths together?
He bit his tongue, ending his own life.
The moment death embraced Alex's soul, the temple was enveloped in red.
The door closed.
The priest's smile returned, and all the stone minotaur warriors began to move.
Joaquim and the girls trembled in fear.
The priest's eyes shot out two beams of crimson energy that instantly charred Agent Joaquim into two pieces of ground meat.
The terror of death could still be felt even after he was gone.
And in this way, everyone would end up dead.
Without exception.
There would be no survivor to tell what had happened in this place.