Victor took the note in hand.
I don't know when you'll come out of that thing. I waited for you for several days but you showed no sign of returning.
Food was starting to run low, we couldn't delay our departure any longer, not to mention the fact that the Colossus's zone kept expanding little by little.
By the time you read this letter, we'll either be gone, or dead.
In any case, I hope you manage to get out of this mess.
Princess Lucie
PS: Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone.
Victor let out a sigh. Had it really been days since he'd been in there? That would explain the strange feeling he had when he came back here.
But that wasn't the most important part.
Lucie had mentioned in her letter that the area of that thing blocking their escape was spreading more and more.
He hadn't known that.
Without wasting another second, he headed toward the window.
The sight that greeted him made his blood run cold.
The moss was only a few meters from the building now. It had gotten closer much faster than Victor had imagined.
He didn't know how fast it was spreading, but one thing was certain.
He didn't have much time left.
Without hesitation, he headed for the roof. The doors were supposed to be locked, but that didn't stop him from ripping them off their hinges.
The view of the ruined city and the vegetation crawling into every possible corner was strangely beautiful.
It was like a magnificent painting depicting the sudden yet inevitable fall of a civilization.
At least, that was Victor's opinion.
He checked the surroundings nearby and, indeed, his building was the last one in the school that hadn't yet been overtaken by the disgusting fungus and moss.
But that was only a matter of time.
And very little time, judging by how fast those parasites were spreading.
Victor couldn't see the massive disgusting skeleton nor its army, but there was no doubt they were out there somewhere.
Maybe even very close.
Even though the fifteen-meter monster should have been easy to spot, who knew if it didn't have some way of hiding or turning itself invisible?
Victor's vigilance had sharpened after witnessing everything during the trial.
It had truly broadened his horizons.
This was also why he decided to rest before attempting anything.
Even if his speed was extraordinary now, who knew what that thing was capable of?
And besides, he was exhausted from the previous fight.
He settled into one of the many empty rooms. He no longer had his guard at his side, but he wasn't worried, the building was completely empty.
Worst case, he'd feel it if something approached.
Probably.
*
Victor woke up several hours later. Night had fallen, total darkness swallowing the room and the world outside.
The teenager yawned, his oversized mouth opening far too wide for a human.
He pushed himself up lazily, still half dazed.
Rubbing his foggy eyes, he headed toward the roof, unwilling to waste time.
Also, he was hungry. He needed to get out of here and find food quickly.
If he waited too long, he'd be too starved to escape the vegetative prison.
The darkness was absolute—no artificial lights, no stars, and even…
« Where's the moon…? »
He had never noticed it until now, but when he looked at the sky, something was clearly missing.
Something that shouldn't be able to disappear for no apparent reason.
Moonlight would have helped him tonight, but it seemed he would have to do without.
Before jumping toward his potential death, he decided to use the points he had accumulated so far.
Victor summoned his status window for the first time in a while.
┌───────────── STATUS ─────────────┐
Name : Victor
Title : [Larva]
Class : X
Level : 28
Free Points : 45
STR 33 | AGI 59 | END 27
PER 32 | SPI 48 | MAG 37
[Skills] :
[???] - [???] - [Child of the Swarm] - [Decay] - [Nest]
[Swarm]
[Symbiote] x1
└──────────────────────────────────┘
Honestly, Victor had considered putting all of his hard-earned points into Agility and running so fast the Colossus wouldn't even notice him.
However, if he used logic and physics, many things had to be taken into account.
What if he slammed into a wall so hard his body exploded because of his low endurance?
What if he moved so fast that his eyes couldn't follow his own motion?
He had no idea if these hypotheses were true—Beelzebub clearly hadn't thought it worth mentioning, and Victor hadn't thought to ask Helene or the demon girl what they knew.
That was a problem.
In doubt, Victor decided to balance out his Endurance and Perception, raising both to fifty.
Those were, in his mind, the stats that would keep him from destroying himself by accident.
For example, having low Strength wouldn't directly or indirectly kill him.
But having low Endurance might.
Even so, it left a bitter taste.
His forty-five hard-earned points reduced to just four in a matter of seconds was depressing.
But the sensation that followed erased that thought.
Victor closed his eyes, basking in the gentle warmth spreading through every part of his skin, like a soft caress.
It was intoxicating.
He wondered if, one day, he would slaughter every living thing in his path just to feel this warmth again—just like Beelzebub had.
He sincerely hoped not.
But who knew? Maybe he wouldn't be able to stop himself when the time came.
Only the future would tell.
The sensation faded. He could now feel the changes in his body.
His skin was several times tougher, and he could now see clearly in the total darkness engulfing everything.
Without hesitation, Victor jumped into the void.
His endurance would let him survive—he was sure of it.
Living beings have an instinctive sense of heights, especially when the fall would be fatal or seriously harmful.
Likewise, they also know when a fall is not dangerous.
It was instinct.
Just as a cat doesn't hesitate to jump from a height disproportionate to its size.
Humans and other animals share that instinct, though more subtly.
But for some reason, Victor had always had a heightened instinct.
Something between human and animal.
Maybe it was because of how he grew up—he didn't know.
He landed on both feet on the pavement, his shoes crushing a patch of moss.
Victor took off instantly, sprinting with all his strength.
He didn't know how big the Colossus's territory was, but that didn't matter.
He just had to run.
Being nearly six times faster than a normal human, he was covering almost forty meters per second.
It was unbelievable.
But he knew he couldn't keep that pace long—just a few minutes at most.
After that, exhaustion would catch him.
He maintained his speed for several seconds, covering several hundred meters before arriving in the middle of what seemed like the remains of a small battlefield.
Bodies—some human, some moss-covered creatures—littered the ground.
Judging by the humans' appearance, this was where Lucie's group had fought.
Some of those makeshift flamethrowers lay broken beside their owners, who had all sorts of fatal wounds.
There were only about twenty bodies—meaning roughly thirty people had likely survived.
A far better ratio than Victor had expected.
Surprising, especially from humans as weak as them.
Judging by the scorched corpses, technology had clearly helped.
Let them enjoy it while they can—soon their enemies would be strong enough to make all that worthless.
He didn't recognize any of the bodies, only their clothing identifying them as part of the group.
Victor didn't linger. He didn't know how long ago the fight was, but the Colossus was likely nearby.
He turned to leave, when a deep rumble stopped him.
A shadow moved a few hundred meters away.
A massive shadow.
His hairs stood on end, a cold shiver crawling down his spine.
The moss skeleton had spotted him.
And it was heading straight toward Victor.