Reborn Financier-Chapter 62: Trapped Between Monsters

The tunnel narrowed.

Rocks scraped their shoulders as they sprinted through the tightening corridor, their breath loud in the darkness. The flickering light orb from Seren’s magic bounced wildly on the rough stone walls, shadows dancing like phantoms. Behind them, the abomination—the Demonic Maw—howled, its warped voice echoing like tortured steel.

"Don’t look back! Just run!" Leonhart barked, voice tight.

Bran stumbled beside Kaidën, sweat soaking his tunic, face pale. The boy was fast, no doubt, but he wasn’t built for this kind of relentless pace. Kaidën could hear Bran’s strained breathing, the way his boots skidded awkwardly over loose gravel.

The tunnel forced them into a single-file line, limiting movement. Leonhart led, his eyes scanning for any sign of an exit. Seren followed behind him, her magic orb barely keeping the shadows at bay. Kaidën kept to the rear, Bran in front of him—the furthest point from the chasing terror.

The Demonic Maw was not giving up. Its claws tore through the walls behind them, its guttural snarls growing louder. It was closing the gap.

Kaidën could’ve easily picked up Bran and vanished ahead. He could’ve taken Seren too, if he pushed himself just a little further. But he didn’t. Not yet. Not until it was absolutely necessary.

Then, ahead of them—a roar.

The sound stopped them in their tracks.

A second Demonic Maw leapt into view from the shadows ahead, this one larger, plated in glistening black armor that throbbed with a demonic pulse. Before anyone could react, it lunged.

A blur of black and red.

Bran let out a cry as the creature’s clawed hand smashed into his side, sending him crashing against the jagged wall with a sickening crunch. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he collapsed, unmoving.

"BRAN!" Seren screamed, rushing toward him.

"Back!" Leonhart pulled her behind him, stepping forward, fists clenched.

The four of them were trapped. One Demonic Maw behind, the other before them, snarling and stalking closer. Both were unmistakably 5th-grade beasts, the equivalent of 6th-level martial experts.

The scent of blood soaked the air.

"This is bad," Seren said, voice trembling. "We’re boxed in... and they’re intelligent. They’re coordinating."

Leonhart didn’t answer. He stared at the forward beast with grim eyes, then turned toward Kaidën.

"Protect the wounded," he said flatly, before stepping toward the Demonic Maw with deliberate calm.

***********************************************

The beast lunged first. Leonhart vanished.

A clash of flesh and steel echoed through the chamber as he appeared beside the creature, his fist wrapped in condensed mana slamming into its armored shoulder. The impact forced it back, but barely.

Kaidën watched carefully.

Leonhart wasn’t just strong. He was surgical. Each movement flowed into the next, defensive and precise. But Kaidën also saw the tension in his limbs, the fatigue barely hidden in his posture.

He was holding back collapse.

Behind them, the second Demonic Maw crept forward through the passage they came from. Seren raised her hand, magic glyphs glowing in the air around her. A barrier flared to life.

"You think that can stop it?" Kaidën asked, voice low.

"No," she said honestly. "I just need time."

The beast smashed against her shield, dark claws screeching. Seren winced, blood trickling from her nose as her mana strained.

"Kaidën... watch Bran. I can hold it a little longer."

But Kaidën didn’t respond immediately.

He was staring at Bran. The boy was broken. His chest barely rose, and his eyes fluttered closed. One of his legs was bent at a wrong angle.

The Demonic Maw at the rear roared, forcing another crack in Seren’s shield. The other one, the one Leonhart fought, struck the older man square in the chest, sending him sliding back. Blood stained his mouth.

This is where they die, Kaidën thought. Unless...

He sighed.

"Seren. I’m sorry."

"Huh?" she glanced back, and her eyes widened.

Kaidën stepped forward.

There was no dramatic explosion. No crack of power or blazing light. Just a subtle shift.

His posture straightened. His aura surged.

Seren felt it instantly—a suffocating pressure, controlled but undeniable. Not mid 3rd-level. Not early 4th. This was late-stage 4th-level martial expert, at the cusp of breaking into something far greater.

Kaidën blurred forward, vanishing from sight.

The Demonic Maw that attacked Bran turned toward him too late.

With a single strike to the beast’s lower jaw, Kaidën lifted it off the ground. His fist rotated, following up with a brutal elbow to the temple that sent it crashing into the wall. Dust erupted. The monster tried to rise.

He didn’t let it.

Kaidën gripped its skull with both hands and slammed it down onto the stone floor with a cracking thud, dazing it. He pulled back, not to kill, but to warn.

The Demonic Maw shrieked and scrambled back, limping into the darkness.

Seren stood frozen, the remnants of her shield flickering. Her heart pounded in her ears.

That wasn’t a fluke.

**********************************************

Leonhart stumbled back from his own opponent, blood on his lips, when Kaidën stepped past him.

"Let me help."

Leonhart didn’t argue.

The second Demonic Maw saw its kin retreating and roared defiantly. Kaidën approached slowly, eyes like frost, and struck once—a low kick to the side of its leg. Bone cracked. The beast dropped to one knee.

He didn’t follow up.

He stood there, gaze burning into the beast. It understood. Somehow.

Both Demonic Maws fled.

**********************************************

The silence that followed was suffocating.

Seren collapsed to her knees. Leonhart exhaled sharply and sat down against the wall, clutching his ribs.

Kaidën kneeled beside Bran, checking his pulse.

"He’ll live. But we need to get him treated soon."

No one said anything for a long time.

Finally, Seren broke the silence.

"That wasn’t third-level." Her voice was small.

Kaidën didn’t look at her. "No."

Leonhart chuckled bitterly. "Late fourth, wasn’t it? That’s no beginner aura."

Still, Kaidën said nothing.

Seren turned toward him, eyes sharp. "Who are you really?"

He met her gaze at last.

"The one who’s keeping us alive. Let’s move."

They did.

But the silence that followed them into the deeper tunnels was colder than before. And far heavier.

To be continued...