Ch 30: Running away before getting caught [pt1]

The entity controlling Shuppet tried to move out of the way, but Soma was faster than expected.

Plus, with the atmosphere getting cold, the area's gas condensed poisonous fog.

The blade of Soma's sword cut through the opponent's body and froze the parts simultaneously so that it could not form a complete body again.

-Do you not want to know what I am planning? I will tell you if you let me go.

The elder entity asked, but Soma's sword had already frozen over 90% of the body.

"I don't need your help. You should just die now."

The white mask showed nothing on the entity's face before its body disintegrated into dust.

[??? Power was found in the tower. Scanning a new threat. The player has leveled up.]

[You defeated the elder entity. You will be rewarded the title of 'entity ender level 1']

[Entity ender: All skills will double when you fight against an outer entity.]

"This is…a big deal. Wait a minute! Does a title like this exist? Isn't this like winning a lottery?"

Soma asked while looking down at the screen of his computer.

[You will be teleported back to the last room in 3…2…1…]

Soma's surroundings melted, and he should be thankful for his sharp instincts allowing him to dodge the attack.

"Hey, you stay still or else! Are you listening to me? Stop running away from me like a coward."

Elric asked as he rushed after Soma.

He had gotten to the last room as soon as possible, but his chances of resolving the issue had already been taken from him.

Soma was tired after fighting with Shuppet, and his leg spasmed, causing him to avoid Elric's fatal attack.

"Clair, back me up right now. I will go after our enemy, and we can distribute the points later."

Elric proposed to Clair, causing everyone else to look at him in surprise.

"You want me to help you out? Then learn to say 'please,' you arrogant man."

Clair yelled, but she helped Elric boost his damage.

Soma thought he avoided the first attack, but the second got him quite good.

Electricity danced across his body, causing Soma to feel electrified.

Despite that, he continued to stand up on his feet.

Not because it did not hurt but because he knew that he would fall unconscious the second he closed his eyes.

For the next big attack, Elric jumped high, and the electricity tried to blind Soma.

He unconsciously brought his strings out to block the attack.

[Your resistance to electricity has increased. You successfully resisted the opponent's attack.]

Soma breathed a sigh of relief as the pain he felt slowly began to push against Elric.

"W-What the hell? How are you even pushing me back like this? Fuck! I refuse to lose to you. Clair, I need more power."

Elric cursed and looked at Clair to give him more power.

"You idiot! What do you think you are doing? You will die if you continue to fight like this. I am not supplying you with any more energy than this."

Clair pulled her support back.

She refuses to kill Elric with her powers accidentally and then feels responsible for it.

"So, you are giving up on me? That's fine! I don't need your help to take out this person anyway."

Elric used all his power during this final attack. 

But he looked confident that his attack would kill Soma.

The crash was loud, and no one could tell what had happened during that attack.

Even the other players had to return to a safe place to avoid getting caught in the explosion's aftermath.

They all watched a blackened body falling from the rubble, and at first, no one knew which player had dropped.

But then Clair moved.

"This idiot! Is caring for an enemy more important to him than his own life? He is such a reckless idiot."

Clair was the first one to move and check out where the crash was.

Since she had been supplying support to Elric, she knew where the body had fallen and who it was.

Elric had a satisfied smile while he looked up at Clair with a proud face.

"I-I did it. I managed to defeat that fucker. Now I will become number one-"

The crackling sound of the electricity and the smoke slowly cleared the area, and Soma's figure emerged from below it. 

He looked slightly hurt, but he could keep his body standing while standing in the air.

"What the hell-! He's still standing even after taking that huge attack. How is that possible?"

People who watched this happen looked shocked beyond belief as Soma walked out of the cloud practically unharmed.

A cocoon of strings protected Soma from the harmful effect of Elric's electricity.

"That was a close one. I would have died if I had been a few seconds too late in protecting my heart."

Soma complemented Elric as soon as his feet touched the ground. 

Soma noticed how everyone tensed, and he was suddenly considered an enemy by everyone.

"I will take my leave now. I don't want to get stuck with you all in here. I am afraid that you people will kill me. I don't want to get killed before I achieve my goal."

Soma informed the group standing before him, and fog covered the area before anyone could react.

The fire and ice crystals Soma had thrown down collided, causing the fog to form.

"Where is he? Someone quickly watches that man and does not let him escape. In this test, we must defeat him to gain the title of 'number one'."

Clair yelled, and everyone quickly turned on each other. 

People caught each other by their collars and picked up innocent people, hoping to find Soma's location.

"H-Hey, stop! Where the hell are you going?"

Clair noticed Soma's location seconds away from exiting the room.

Angelia reacted to Clair's yell and sent her lance flying toward Soma.

The door closed seconds before the lance hit Soma, and Soma ran.

At first, no one moved because they were too stunned to notice what Soma was doing.

Katherine suddenly remembered a very important detail about their current situation.

"Oh fuck! We need to follow Soma right now. He has the key to this section, and we cannot get out without him."

Katherine reminded everyone, and they moved.

But by the time they arrived at the door, it had been temporarily closed, and Soma was nowhere to be seen. 

He quickly exited the chamber so that he would not be caught and temporarily closed the door behind him.

"He did this deliberately. Shit! That man did not want us to earn more points, so he locked us inside. How could we have fallen for such an obvious trap?"

"Once we get out of here, we must teach that man a lesson. How dare he make a mockery of us?"

A lot of people sounded angry once they noticed what Soma had done.

...

Soma dragged his body out of the chamber and quickly locked the door behind him.

He would open the door in about an hour once he had sufficient time to escape.

Once Soma was sure he was alone and had enough head-start, he lowered the shield and relaxed.

He also utilized Absolute protection space so that he would not be disturbed.

[You paid 500 coins to Absolute Protection Space. You can use the space for the next 24 hours.]

Soma realized and went to sleep.

His sleep was disturbed by the sound of footsteps, but no loud noises indicated an angry crowd.

Soma barely opened his eyes before he closed them again in agitation.

"Oi kid, you should get up and greet me when I've specifically arrived to meet you. Are you going to pretend you do not know me?"

The administrator asked while maintaining his presence just behind Soma's head.

Soma was forced to open his eyes and look at the administrator when the man stood right above his head.

"I am trying to sleep here. Can you kindly go back so that I can sleep? I am a little tired right now, and I just paid for Absolute protection space as well."

Soma tried not to pay attention to the administrator, but the bear-like man continued to look at Soma with an unamused look.

"I specifically asked you not to cause trouble for me, kid. But you did not listen to me. Look where that took us. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

 It was Soma's time to look at the administrator with a sheepish look.

"I tried to keep out of trouble for the most part, but the tower is dangerous. But I doubt you are here to catch up with me, right?"

Soma asked, looking at the administrator.

"Of course not! I do not have that much free time on my hands, kid. I am here to give you your reward for dealing with Shuppet. I still cannot believe a kid like you defeated a ranker."

The administrator asked in disbelief.