179 Momentary Relief
“It’s either jump or become food for them!” Korain said, “I don’t know about you…but I’m jumping!”
With a smile, the single-armed man took the lead, leaping from the edge of the building and across to the other, slamming through the window, shattering through it as crimson smoke billowed from the hellish atmosphere.
“–Right after ya’!” Yeong-Un shouted.
Hopping from the ledge, the spiky-haired young man followed behind Korain, landing through the skyscraper window.
“Well, here goes…” Sol gulped.
The others all made their jumps, successfully traversing the gap between both buildings, which was a good half-dozen meters.
It wasn’t exactly the fear of plummeting down to the ground that held onto the hesitant few, but it was the fear of falling into the horde of demons below.
The last ones left on the demon-infested building were himself, Eunji, and Ma-Ri.
“You two go,” Ma-Ri said, “I need to make sure everybody else makes it first.”
“Yeah,” he nodded, looking back at Eunji, “Let’s go.”
“But…”
As Eunji shook from the prospect of building-hopping, her trembling eyes calmed as a hand was extended to her from the vermilion-haired young man.
“Jeong-Hui?” She looked at him.
“Let’s do it–together,” he smiled.
Eunji looked at his hand for a moment before nodding and taking it, gently wrapping her soft fingers.
Without wasting any more time, they both ran together with him taking the lead before jumping from the edge of the building hand-in-hand.
“I’ve got you,” he assured her.
Eunji was left looking at him in disbelief, taken aback by the kindness he still held onto in the bleak apocalypse.
His hand…She thought, it’s rough…callused, yet still gentle.
It was just as they leapt off of the building that the barricaded door to the rooftop was busted wide open before they landed through the shattered window of the neighboring skyscraper.
“Ma-Ri!” Korain yelled out.
Though there was hardly a cause for concern as with a swift step, Ma-Ri traversed the gap in an instant, landing beside the group with a calm expression.
“Oh…right,” Korain awkwardly realized.
He stood back up to his feet, helping Eunji stand again before giving her a small smile, “That wasn’t too bad now, was it?”
“No…thank you,” Eunji nodded.
As the group finally looked around the dark, messy floor of the building, it looked messy from some panic, likely near the start of Armageddon, but not torn apart by stragglers.
“What is this place, anyway?” Yeong-Un asked.
“Looks like some big-shot corporation,” Xiaodan responded.
Korain walked around with his heavy boots stomping across the floor, kicking some loose papers out of the way, “Whatever it is, it’s saved our asses.”
“This’ll be as good a place as any to stay for the rest of the day,” Ma-Ri said.
“Yeah, looks like those guys didn’t catch on to where we went,” he said with a sigh of relief. ρꪖꪕᦔꪖꪕꪫꪣꫀꪶ
Glancing back through the shattered window, he could see the horde of hellborne fiends on the rooftop of the building across; luckily, it seemed they didn’t witness them leap from that building to the next.
“–“
He sat down on the old, out-of-use printer while the others either scouted the abandoned building or took it upon themselves to take a quiet moment as well.
“…Why does one day feel so long?” Xiaodan asked, sitting on one of the office chairs.
The floor they were on had walls made up only of large, tinted windows that served as a constant reminder of the hellscape beyond those fragile walls.
“I feel that…” Sol added, sitting on the floor with his spear held close.
“One place to another,” he sighed.
Yeong-Un paced around the room, keeping himself ready in case any of the prowling demons got smart to their location, “It’s been like that. Should be used to it now.”
“Yeah, doesn’t mean I have to like it, though,” he replied.
Yeong-Un stayed silent after that, continuing to march around the room as he glanced past the tinted windows.
He got up from his seat on the white, janky printer, looking past the windows as well. It wasn’t exactly a pretty sight that laid across the city.
They were everywhere; hundreds, if not thousands, of demons prowled the streets, clinging to buildings and tearing apart any Defects that crossed their paths.
“Shit…It’s gettin’ bad down there,” Yeong-Un muttered.
“It definitely wasn’t like this earlier…” He added.
Standing beside him, Eunji adjusted her glasses and gulped at the harrowing flood of demons far below.
“…I had a feeling something like this would happen,” Eunji said quietly.
“Something like what?” He asked.
“Yeah, whatcha mean?” Yeong-Un added in, folding his arms over his chest.
Eunji took her eyes away from the scenery of hell, “The closer we get to the opening of the Tower, the harder it becomes for us to get there…”
“So what yer’ saying is…” Yeong-Un trailed his words.
“God is making sure hardly anybody makes it?…” He finished the thought.
The hazel-haired girl nodded meekly as her amethyst eyes quivered at the begrudged confirmation.
“It’s never enough, is it?” Sol said, tucking his knees close to his chest, “…No matter how much we fight, and how much we lose…it’s not enough until we drop dead, is it…?”
Tears dripped from Sol’s eyes as he balled his fists up, keeping his head down as the others couldn’t help but share the same sentiment.
Xiaodan stood up, beginning to pick up some papers, “…There’s no point in being upset about it now, right? This is the battle we’ve been fighting since the start.”
“Yeah, you’re right…” He nodded, “What’re you doing, anyway?”
The silver-haired, feminine-faced boy had collected most of the white papers that were scattered over the floor, straightening them out as he tapped them against a desk.
“If we’re going to be staying here until tomorrow, I’d rather my last abode in this world not be a dump,” Xiaodan answered.
Yeong-Un sighed, leaning against the wall, “This whole world is a dump now, I don’t see the point in gettin’ picky with it now.”
“Maybe so, but…I guess this is just how I am,” Xiaodan smiled with a hint of melancholy.