Chapter 35: Run, Cliff!

A fist collided with a person, kicking up a wave of air.

The surrounding wind and sand made it hard to see what exactly was happening between the two inside.

“Siloque’s hand is probably broken… It’s my responsibility.”

Hiding in the shadows, Cas could no longer hold back and drew his straight sword.

Everything happened in a flash—Cas had no way to stop any of it and could only watch as the two crashed together.

Just as Cas tried to intervene and help Siloque escape, the wind and sand parted…

As if timed perfectly, LINE displayed a new message:

I’m fine, proceed as planned.

He can still send messages in this situation?!

Cas clearly saw Siloque being punched, sent flying, scattering dust all around, finally stopping only after smashing into a tree that bent and broke from the impact.

***

Cliff furrowed his delicate brows, staring at the fading dust with doubt.

It was as bizarre as when he used a skill to attack Cas a few days ago.

Even if he couldn’t use skills or Talents right now, the physical stats of an Lv10—just a casual punch could cripple this Lv2 who was barely stronger than a Goblin.

His fist should have felt the squish of flesh, but what Cliff actually felt was smooth and hard, like…

A slab of incredibly heavy rock.

Inside the crushed, sunken Great Tree, an unbelievable scene was revealed.

Even Cliff’s underlings looked uneasy.

Not only Cas was stunned, even Bried, hiding and watching, forgot to breathe.

“You still love sneak attacks, huh.”

Siloque stood unharmed, black hair flowing elegantly, brushing dust from his clothes.

Cliff and his lackeys were dumbfounded.

“Norius said he was a Lv2 small fry? Did Boss go easy because he’s cute?”

“Idiot! How could that be—did you forget the woman Boss beat to death before? Show mercy to a man? Get real!”

Cliff looked down at Siloque, his gaze like he was staring at a monkey that suddenly learned to speak.

“Two days ago, you could barely act as a cushion for that self-proclaimed strongest blue-haired guy. Today you can take my full power blow… You used a tool, didn’t you?”

Siloque took a step back and turned, vanishing deeper into the coniferous forest.

“Trying to run? Mude, Yorion.”

The two lackeys exchanged glances, instantly understanding, and charged past Cliff in pursuit of Siloque.

Cliff followed Mude and Yorion, all three entering the coniferous forest, leaving only the [Priest] Lar behind to maintain the Barrier.

He actually pulled it off?

The last message Cas received was:

I’ll lure them away, you handle the Priest.

It obviously referred to Lar, who was maintaining the Barrier—take him down and they could call for help!

Cas confirmed Lar was ahead to his right.

He had his back to Cas, leaning on his Staff, yawning as he stared forward.

Cas originally wanted to rush over and finish it with one slash, but Siloque sent another message:

A surprise attack has to take away mobility in one go, or else he’ll alert Cliff.

Cas didn’t even want to question anymore how Siloque could type while running—was he using voice input?

Not knowing Lar’s Lv, Cas didn’t dare use magic detection.

According to Siloque’s message, those with the [Priest] class specialized in using buff skills to enhance allies’ physical abilities, making them sensitive to magic flow.

They were also physically fragile and often even more sensitive to their surroundings than Warriors.

Cas felt nervous.

He had always fought head-on as a [Warrior], lacking any experience in surprise attacks like an Assassin.

After thinking it over, Cas quietly climbed along the wall from his hiding place.

He forced down his urge to help Siloque and reminded himself not to act rashly.

If he gave Lar time to react, the guy might cast a buff for Cliff and make things even worse for Siloque…

Suddenly, Lar shivered for some reason, turned his head, and raised his Staff.

Discovered?!

Just as Cas was about to risk it all and charge—

A flash of pale orange light filled his vision.

Lar had already reacted and began chanting to activate a skill, dark green motes of magical energy swirling around him…

The orange flash struck Lar.

Ding—

The sound followed a moment after the light.

Lar was blasted away like a cannonball, spinning 2880° in the air before crashing head-first and gouging a trench into the ground. He landed with his eyes rolled back, butt sticking up, unconscious.

“This speed… Bried?”

Bried activated her Talent again, shattering the Barrier deployment tool with a high-speed kick.

The purple twilight vanished and the surroundings returned to normal.

“Bried!”

Cas reunited with Bried.

“Cas, you—no, forget it. Siloque’s in danger. I’ll call the Rescue Team, you go help Siloque.”

“The Rescue Team won’t make it in time! Wouldn’t it be better if we both went to help him?”

Bried shook her head helplessly.

“An Lv10 against an Lv2 can’t win. Only you can stand up to Cliff’s intimidation. That area is too cluttered, and the terrain is complex. My Talent only gives me straight-line speed, so I can’t fight there.”

“We could look for nearby Explorers to help.”

“It’s almost evening—no Explorer would be wandering around! The strong ones have already gone to deeper levels. No one would stay on the first floor. I’ll get the Rescue Team as fast as possible. Cas, be careful too. Your Talent is unbeatable in close combat—send me your location when you find them, and whatever happens, hold out!”

Before Cas could get out “Siloque is actually Lv8, and Cliff’s Skill was sealed by the instructor,” Bried stomped the ground, vanishing in a burst of sound and dust.

No time to waste.

Taking advantage of the fact that Siloque and the others had just left, Cas pushed himself to full speed and gave chase.

***

The longer the pursuit went on, the more Cliff felt something was off.

Mude and Yorion got close to grabbing Siloque several times, but after a few turns, his silhouette vanished again.

“Damn it, is that guy a monkey?!”

Yorion cursed.

“Boss, we’re too deep in. We’re from the same school—there’s plenty of time to corner him at the School Gate.”

“Keep chasing.”

Seeing Cliff’s determination, Mude fell silent and continued pursuing Siloque’s flickering figure with his teammates.

Heh.

Siloque glanced at their positions.

Even though his head was sweating as he ran, he didn’t panic at all.

On my first day in the Dungeon, the only thing I learned was “run”!

After leveling up, Siloque ran even faster.

He knew the Map like the back of his hand—this little grove was more familiar than his own backyard!

Unlike the terror of being chased by Goblins back then, Siloque now felt nothing but exhilaration!

Cliff gave relentless chase, his massive body as agile as an Ogre in the woods.

Cliff had looked into it later.

There was a tool called the X21 that could completely block a single physical attack.

It didn’t sell well, so few were in circulation, and even fewer people knew about it.

Cas must have equipped a similar tool back then.

By the same logic, Cas might have given Siloque something with similar effects.

In truth, Siloque was bluffing.

Cliff had originally wanted to see what other tricks or tools he had, but now it was clear—this was just a last-ditch struggle.

He had overestimated him.

Why take an Lv2 so seriously?

He’d even sent two lackeys ahead as sandbags, but Siloque didn’t do a thing.

I’m getting bored of this.

Cliff focused his will and suddenly exploded with power.

“Boss!”

“…He’s fast.”

Cliff shot past his two underlings in a flash, closing the gap to Siloque to just three steps.

Siloque glanced back, showing his first hint of panic.

As expected.

Cliff felt bored—he really had been bluffing.

Cliff lashed out with a kick.

This time, it felt like kicking a sandbag—firm, with the resistance of flesh.

But Cliff was no longer surprised.

“Got enough tools left?!”

With a powerful impact, Siloque was sent flying, tracing a perfect arc to the edge of a cliff.

At the end of the coniferous forest, the ground split into a deep ravine.

Beside it stood a suspension Bridge.

Without pausing, Siloque rolled to his feet and sprinted onto the Bridge.

Cliff slowed, realizing Siloque was just flailing.

Got him.

—A naked Siloque, pale body covered in bruises and scars, collapsed on the ground like a dog, gasping for breath—

Cliff knew this was the end.

Crushing the weak could be fun, but if they were too weak, it didn’t even stir his heart.

The three gave chase, reaching the center of the Bridge—

Suddenly, Siloque exploded with unbelievable speed, sprinting to the end in a blur.

“What?!”

Cliff found Siloque’s speed outrageous—not at all like an Lv2.

He used another tool?

This brat…

Wait, did he take the hit on purpose to make me drop my guard…?

Thinking back, if Siloque was really an Lv2, that kick should have shattered his bones.

Yet he still had the strength to run?

Glancing upward, he saw the purple twilight of the Stasis Barrier had vanished.

Something happened to Lar!

This was already outside the Barrier’s range.

Cliff felt the suspension Bridge sway beneath his feet.

The abyss below gaped like a black maw, ready to swallow him whole.

Could it be…

A certain thought struck Cliff, sending chills down his spine. He broke into a desperate sprint, leaving Mude and Yorion far behind.

Cliff reached Siloque, just one step from solid ground at the Bridge’s end.

Time seemed to stretch.

This time, he saw Siloque’s twisted grin.

Click.

A cold flash—Siloque used a broadsword to instantly sever four ropes at the head of the Bridge.

“You…!!”

First, Cliff felt emptiness beneath his feet, followed by a surge of terror.

Then, as rage took over his mind, he screamed.

“Siloque————!!!”

“Help me———!!!”

“….” (Yorion’s eyes rolled up, already unconscious)

The three voices echoed in the abyss, fading from loud to soft, near to far.

“This is the fate of minotaurs.”

Siloque declared his victory.

He didn’t sheath his sword, nor did he leap and cheer.

Instead, he wiped his sweat, cautiously approached the edge, and peered down.

He found something.

“Huff… Huff… Ugh…”

Cliff’s eyes were bloodshot, muscles bulging and red, clinging to the cliffside with all four limbs.

Bit by bit, he crawled upward.

“Siloque, I accept your proposal—to post the video online.”

But the footage will be of your pathetic, beaten face!

Then the whole school—no, the entire world will laugh at you!

That’s not all—I’ll find the best Priest, and every time I beat you into a pulp, I’ll revive you to full health and beat you again until you can’t even cry.

That’s the price for making a fool out of me.

Cliff climbed with a blank face, but in his heart, he murdered Siloque countless times.

Anger gave him strength.

The bright cliff edge was in sight.

Cliff reached out for hope.

“?”

Instead of the hard feel of stone, his hand closed around something cool and soft—

A hand.

He saw Siloque’s friendly smile as he gripped his arm.

Cliff braced himself, straining to climb up.

“Wait!!”

But Siloque showed no mercy.

Without hesitation, he let go and kicked Cliff in the head.

“Ahhhhhhhh!!——”

Along with an indelible bite mark, a size 39 shoeprint now adorned Cliff’s face.

His scream was louder than any before, shrinking as he fell.