Escape from the Red Eyes

Gentle and deliberate steps echoed through the crystalline chamber.

A brown-haired figure was visible within a cage of crystals as the girl approached.

She bent down, knees slightly bent, bringing her level with the young man.

Her hands, though soft, were covered with calluses, and they caused the surrounding crystals to melt into a liquid state.

What she saw was a motionless body, pale and with a blue tinge around the lips.

After rising to her full height, she kept her gaze straight ahead and walked in his direction.

Once again, cold and deliberate footsteps filled the chilly chamber.

****

The breath from Kaiden's mouth was visible due to his Irregular breathing as he continued to run.

"Damn, I hope she doesn't have any hunting skills. If she does, I'm definitely the prey being chased by the hunter,"

he muttered to himself while continuing his relentless sprint.

How many minutes, perhaps even hours, had passed since they were left here?

He also wondered how long he'd been running away from this woman.

He didn't want to admit it, but he had to. If she crossed his path again, he wouldn't live to see the next day.

No, even if he encountered anyone else, he would be finished, he thought.

While he could easily dispatch others individually with cyanide, meeting a weakling like Alex would be a different story.

He assumed there were probably others like him, but also others like the girl and the guy who was incredibly strong.

"I can't take any risks. I have to reach my goal as quickly as possible,"

His voice growing more irregular from the exertion. He just couldn't stop groaning, but the refreshing cold felt like a spring in a parched desert.

Although his hands were now huge and covered in white marks, he remained physically heated from the exertion and didn't risk turning into an icy statue.

The endless steps continued through the crystalline corridor, with long and rapid sequences, the light reflecting off the crystals at times blinding him.

"Wait, what's that up ahead?"

he wondered.

"Is it something? No, it's probably just another reflection of the crystals."

The steps continued until Kaiden was convinced otherwise.

Indeed, his grin widened even further. It remained fixed, as the cold froze his facial muscles and he couldn't relax them anymore.

But that was fine with him. It was almost over.

"Yes, damn it!"

he encouraged himself once more.

His steps were even more powerful and faster. He could feel himself heating up, the light source growing bigger and bigger with each stride, while the various walls of crystal grew fewer and fewer.

Finally, the immense light source filled his eyes with shrinking black pupils.

"Argh!"

he groaned, holding his hand in front of his eyes, casting a shadow over half his face.

He looked in every direction; it seemed like a dream before his eyes.

Everything seemed different from his own world.

The water, harmonizing in shades of red, orange, and yellow, danced with hundreds of reptilian creatures in the water. Hardly comparable to those on Earth.

He murmured to himself,

"The closest description would be… no, I can't think of a fitting animal. It's made of slime and feathers, massive, and black and white. Truly bizarre, and just one of many strange things,"

he thought.

In the distance to his right and left, behind the colorful lake, were gigantic mountains, or were they tree trunks?

It all seemed unfamiliar, but the only thing that seemed somewhat familiar, yet not quite, was the modern landscape right in front of him.

It appeared to be a normal terrain, filled with several buildings, yet it didn't feel entirely familiar.

It just felt different, he thought.

But aside from that, the ground also felt familiar.

It wasn't becoming liquid or hardening, too soft or expanding. It was more like asphalt.

But then he wondered why the color was different, he asked himself aloud.

"Even the ground is tinted in purple for no apparent reason."

His grin, though still somewhat large, was gradually frozen, as were the white marks on his slightly trembling hand. Nevertheless, he still emitted laughter in the form of loud laughs.

"Everything is crazy,"

he said with a joking tone.

It had been several hundred meters since he left the crystal cave, which reminded him of the box in his left hand.

"You, my friend, are hopefully going to make me rich,"

After a brief glance backward, his grin turned to terror.

His legs now took charge, switching to turbo mode. His energetic arms swung vigorously, propelling him faster.

"Damn it, I need to run even faster!"

he inwardly screamed at himself.

"Come on!"

His eyes, wide with horror, were fixed on the academy ahead.

Was it another kilometer, or only 500 meters? Panic overcame him; did he still have enough time?

When he glanced back again, he saw her once more.

It was the silver-haired girl, but this time, she was even closer.

"Why is she so fast?!"

Cold sweat covered his forehead, back, and everything in between.

"It's only a few hundred meters left."

The strides he took surpassed the scale of what he was capable of.

It felt like his legs were tearing, if he had any, and his reserves of strength were depleting.

His chest heaved up and down faster and faster, followed by even more irregular breaths.

He looked ahead and then back, but the girl seemed dangerously close, though it was only a few dozen meters now.

"Damn it, how the hell is she so fast?"

He knew she probably wouldn't kill him, but she would take his name tag, which for him, was as good as a death sentence.

"Why am I thinking about this now? I need to focus on running!"

But just as he had this thought, he heard the footsteps gradually getting closer. So close that they were almost at the same level.

His sky-blue-gray eyes met with her warming ruby-red ones.

"What heart-rending colors they had,"

he thought for a moment, but this thought was quickly shattered as he rallied himself and couldn't afford to pay attention to such things.

He glanced down at his hand and aimed it toward the girl.

"Hopefully this works,"

he thought, his eyelids squeezed together.

A small amount of airflow pulsed from his hand, heading towards the girl's leg, but it missed her.

"Why? Why?" he wondered in relief.

She ran away, but why?

Was someone stronger chasing her from behind?

"But I don't see anyone,"

he said.

However, the tension remained because she might just be playing with him. Did she want to humiliate him and expose him right before the academy?

But then why did she go into the doors? His brows created folds over his young face.

"Why?"

Nevertheless, he breathed out deeply, as if a weight had been lifted, and he could do anything he wanted.

"Huh"

The building seemed to stretch high into the sky, just like the barrier they had passed through. It seemed tall, but he hadn't anticipated It being this tall.

He was also shocked by its width. He couldn't even grasp the extent of the grounds from before in any way.

"Hey, youngster! Get a move on, or I'll disqualify you personally!"

A familiar and powerful voice snapped him back to reality.

"Uh, yes sir, I'm coming,"

Kaiden replied with a slightly nervous tone.

The gates, already open, were at least 5 meters wide and 8 meters tall. Majestic. His eyes fixed on them, and he couldn't stop marveling.

"Why are you gawking around?"

the sergeant shouted again.

"Give me your two or more name tags, or do you not have any?!"

"Uh, no, I mean, yes, I have two,"

Kaiden replied with a slightly scratched head.

"Here they are."

"Good. I'll pass them on for scanning. Wait in the waiting area to the right of us until you're called, understood?"

"Yes,"

he replied, scratching the back of his head, and headed into that direction.