Chapter 267

"....!?!"

Crimson droplets sprayed through the air as a head flew a second later, followed by a body dropping to the ground with a wet thud.

The survivors in the room screamed in absolute horror as they saw one of their own hit the ground... unmoving and headless.

In front of the shattered entrance, a spider beast could be seen with one of its scythes dripping with fresh blood.

More screams tore out from the throats of the terrified civilians as the beast moved again with blinding speed.

Another person’s head rolled off like a ball across a pitch, and his body fell to the ground the very next second.

Before anybody could fully react to the carnage, the ceiling above could be heard and seen cracking loudly.

Lifting their gazes in unison, they watched as deep fissures spread rapidly across the plaster.

"Come on! Come out from there!" Trisha shouted desperately at the survivors huddled under the conference table.

They didn’t need to be told twice as they all frantically rolled away from underneath the structure.

It was just in time, too, as the ceiling shattered into heavy pieces.

Another spider beast crashed through, landing directly onto the long table and immediately turning the wood into a shower of splinters.

Its scythes slashed wildly through the air during the descent, accidentally catching the female Aspirant’s side and drawing a deep gash that sent blood splattering into the room.

Trisha landed in a rough roll as the screams from the remaining survivors echoed louder than before.

Gritting her teeth tightly and angrily bashing her hand into the ground, the girl forced herself to bear through the burning pain and shot back up to her feet.

She rose just in time, as a deadly thrust was heading directly for her chest.

Acting on pure reflex, she immediately intercepted the incoming scythe with her blade.

The immense force of the collision sent her sliding backward on her knees, causing her to squeeze her teeth together tighter than before to hold back a groan.

Quickly glancing behind her, she saw that the other survivors had finally snapped out of their paralyzing shock.

They began sprinting frantically around the perimeter of the room to escape the clutches of the first beast.

Out of the ten original workers, two had tragically lost their lives in an instant.

The remaining eight ran to the far end of the room and pressed their backs tightly against the wall, weeping and praying to the heavens to escape this horrific predicament.

The first beast locked its cold eyes directly onto them.

Trisha caught sight of its trajectory and quickly parried the strike of the beast in front of her to the side, acting just as the first monster tried taking a step toward the cornered civilians.

Before it could advance any further, thick ice crept across the ground with rapid pace.

The frost soon rose high enough to trap the creature’s limbs, causing the beast to stumble.

It almost crashed headfirst into the tiles, but it quickly planted its sharp talons firmly into the ground to keep from collapsing completely.

The second spider’s scythe flew her way with deadly speed, but the girl quickly vaulted backward in the nick of time as the blade cut through the air harmlessly.

Springing back up to her full height, she brandished her sword and glared fiercely at the two beasts on her flanks.

The monsters had immediately locked eyes with her, staring as if they shared a long-term vendetta against one another.

Abandoning the thought of chasing after the helpless survivors in the room, the spiders briefly glanced at each other, seemingly coming to a silent agreement.

It was an agreement to first rip the troublesome girl to shreds before taking their sweet time to feast on the remaining humans trapped in the room.

"Control room, come in. Come in, control room," Trisha communicated sharply through her earpiece.

— Yes, Aspirant?

"Are there any more beasts inside this entire building?"

There was a brief pause on the line.

— Negative. These are the only two left.

For the slightest fraction of a second, a warm, confident smile curved the girl’s lips.

She shifted her weight and took a firm stance, lifting her frost-coated sword directly in front of her face.

"Beautiful."

The beasts threw themselves at her almost instantly, attacking from two sides.

But with incredibly sharp instinct, she quickly vaulted high into the air, almost touching the ruined ceiling as the heavy scythes crashed into the empty space below with a low, resounding thud.

Mid-air, Trisha snapped her fingers.

The ice covering the floor shifted instantly, shooting upward toward the underbellies of the beasts in the form of razor-sharp spikes.

Spinning around, the first beast lifted its scythes.

The ice spikes immediately shattered against its hard natural armor.

Whirling around fluidly, the girl landed directly behind that beast and right in front of the second.

A scythe shot toward her head, but she pivoted around the limb in a flash.

Clang!

Deflecting a second strike, she pounced forward with explosive force.

The spider’s sharp mandibles surged toward her with rapid velocity.

Still, she looked totally unfazed while staring at the jaws rocketing toward her.

Then, with uncanny agility, she bent low under the snapping mandibles.

Twisting her wrist for a split second, she swung her sword to the side, bashing it hard into one of the spider’s legs.

The blade severed the tendons holding the limb together, forcing the beast to stumble.

Feeling the second beast rushing toward her position, she immediately vaulted into the air, ice coating her sword at an impressive rate.

Bashing the frost-laden blade downward, she ripped the beast’s head clean off.

Simultaneously, the remaining beast’s scythe flew toward her with deadly speed.

Lifting her sword in front of her in a firm horizontal stance, she blocked, but the scythe struck with powerful force.

Her hands trembled and vibrated from the impact, and the sheer momentum sent her crashing backward into the splintered remnants of the table.

Trisha landed in a roll and used one hand to stop herself from sliding across the marble floor.

As drops of blood fell from her injured side, a cold expression ignited in her eyes.

Her boots activated instantly, and she lunged forward with explosive speed.

The beast lifted its scythes high above its head, waiting for the girl to arrive within its range.

And she did.

The scythes descended in a vengeful wrath.

Bang—!

They tore through the marble flooring, kicking up a chunk of debris and dust into the air.

However, Trisha had already slid past the descending blades in the nick of time.

Taking full advantage of the sudden dust cloud, she appeared directly behind the beast and swung her sword with all her might.

Faster than the spider could react, the sword sliced through its neck.

The head rolled across the marble flooring, followed by the heavy body thudding against the ground.

The female Aspirant landed on her knees, panting in deep exhaustion while holding her bleeding side with a dark grimace on her face as the dust slowly settled around the room.