Following those words, Lucien collapsed to the ground.
Asti, who was about to check on him, quickly glanced at the symbol, but it had vanished. He checked the other cages, and the result was the same.
"How is that possible? The symbol is carved into the steel, and now it's completely gone, like it was never there!" Asti exclaimed, looking at Lucien with curiosity.
"What are you doing, Asti? Help Lucien!" Simone shouted.
He examined Lucien's condition: everything seemed fine, no injuries were visible. As a precaution, he gave him a healing potion to drink.
"So, Asti, the symbol—it's gone?" Simone asked.
Asti nodded to confirm.
Simone, who was constantly connected and no longer needed to close her eyes, felt her grip on the steel bars. She commanded them to bend. The door of Simone and Darlius's cage made a deafening noise as it collapsed in on itself, leaving a gaping hole that allowed them to escape.
"And what about me? You forgetting me?" Aconé called out.
"No, it's just that you're more than ten meters away, my limit. And weren't you the one who said you could break the bars?" Simone retorted.
"Yeah, but I'm still sore from that impact earlier," Aconé replied.
"Sure you are," Simone grumbled as she approached Aconé's cage. She took control of the bars and bent them in on themselves.
Stepping out of his cage, Aconé walked over to Asti and asked, "What's wrong with Lucien?"
"That's the problem—I don't know what's wrong with him. I gave him a healing potion, though," Asti answered.
"Speaking of which, you're gonna have to give us at least two potions each," Aconé said.
"Why should I do that?" Asti shot back.
"If I remember everything you've said, those lunatics are looking for us. With the noise we made here, I wouldn't be surprised if they show up any minute. We need one potion to be at a hundred percent and another in case we get hurt," Aconé explained.
"He's right. For all we know, they might already be waiting at the cave's entrance," Darlius added.
Looking to Simone for her opinion, she gave him a nod. "Alright," Asti said, handing each of them three healing potions.
"Now what?" Asti asked.
"We arm ourselves. They were kind enough to leave our weapons here, after all," Simone replied.
"With that kind of arrogance, it's no wonder they thought we'd never get out," Aconé said, grabbing his saber.
"And you, Darlius, how do you fight?" Aconé asked.
"Bare-handed," Darlius answered.
"Wait, what rank are you, anyway?" Aconé pressed.
"I'm rank eight," Darlius said.
Everyone turned to stare at him, even Simone looked surprised.
"Then why are you all so scared?" Aconé asked.
"Well, I've never used my techniques on humans. Honestly, I've never fought to the death. Today's gonna be the first time," Darlius explained.
"You're never done being surprised in this world," Aconé remarked.
Snapping out of her shock, Simone spoke up: "Listen up. Our goal is to escape this place. We need to get off this hill and reach the main road. Lucien's completely out of it, so Aconé, you'll carry him. I'll be up front with Darlius."
"What? But what about Asti?" Aconé protested.
Simone shot him a contemptuous look. "You've got no shame, do you? I hope for your sake you fight well. Asti, you take your bow and aim from their blind spots. Grab a sword too—you never know what might happen. Don't forget: our goal isn't to win, it's to escape," Simone ordered.
"Now, follow me," she said, walking past the cages and their debris.
She coated her hands in steel, shaping them into gauntlets with a spiked back like a blade, and a shield connected to the gauntlet on her left hand.
"Damn, that's impressive! I'd almost call that telekinesis," Aconé said, staring at the large chunks of steel floating in the air above Simone.
Somewhere in the sky, Tony and Hikiri had found the camp but were waiting to locate the others before attacking.