The corrupted

Fear gripped Rune and Nate as they stood frozen, watching the two terrifying monsters that had burst through the basement door. The sight of the creature, crawling on eight human arms like a spider, sent shivers down Nate's spine. Without hesitation, he took a cautious step backward and blurted out,

"Run!!!!!!"

Reacting swiftly, Rune didn't question Nate's urgency. Instead, he tapped him on the shoulder and urgently whispered,

"Please, stay safe."

With those words, Rune immediately bolted down the dimly lit staircase, almost stumbling along the way, clutching the key tightly in his hand.

Meanwhile, Nate bravely confronted the infected woman and the monstrous spider-like creature relentlessly scaling the walls. Focusing his aim, he directed his weapon at the hideous caterpillar and pulled the trigger.

Bang!

As Rune sprinted through the dimly lit basement, the piercing sound of a gunshot echoed through the air. His heart pounded faster with each passing second, a blend of exhaustion and fear overwhelming him. In that intense moment, his mind was consumed by the single objective of reaching the basement door.

Bang!

Startled by the gunshot, Rune suddenly stumbled over an unseen obstacle in the darkness, causing him to topple to the ground. Swiftly regaining his footing, he noticed the beam of light emitted by Miko's flashlight and urgently called out.

"Miko! Shine the light over here!"

After hearing Rune's desperate plea, Miko redirected the flashlight towards him. Now being able to see in the pitch-black basement, Rune realized he had tripped over a small brown box. Disregarding it, he rushed towards Miko and firmly grasped the doorknob, swiftly attempting to unlock it with the key.

However, with his body trembling and adrenaline surging, every attempt to insert the key into the keyhole proved futile.

Miko noticed something and quickly turned around, shining the light on the bottom of the stairs. After a moment, she redirected the light towards the doorknob.

"Give me that," she said, reaching out for the key from Rune. Without hesitation, she inserted the key into the lock and turned it, pushing the door open.

Turning back to Rune, she asked, "Where's Nate? Wasn't he supposed to come back with you?"

Upon hearing this, Rune's heart raced with fear. He glanced back and took a moment to close his eyes and calm himself. Once he felt composed, he spoke, "Let's wait and see, he should be back."

"They patiently stood there for some time, not taking any chances. To ensure their safety, Rune confidently activated his unique ability by uttering the words, 'Ink and Pen.' In an instant, the book materialized right in front of him on the ground, prompting him to seize it. Although he wasn't entirely certain about the book's capabilities, as he hadn't fully grasped its purpose, Rune thought, why not give it a try? After all, the book possessed the power to transform Duke into ink.

As they waited further, the sound of footsteps gradually reached their ears. Miko's face lit up with anticipation, and she eagerly called out, 'Over here, Nate!' Simultaneously, she directed her light towards the steps leading downward into the basement."

As they looked ahead, the footsteps gradually quickened, echoing through the air. From the shadows of the staircase emerged a horrifying creature, possessing human-like arms as legs that moved with an alarming speed. Rune feared that Nate wouldn't make it, but he dreaded having to explain it to Miko. He held on to a faint glimmer of hope that Nate might still be alive. However, as soon as the monstrous figure appeared, Rune had his grim realization that Nate was no more.

Without a moment to spare, they shouted, "Run!"

Immediately, Miko dashed out of the basement, followed closely by Rune. As they managed to escape, Rune forcefully shut the door, imprisoning the monster inside. The banging sounds reverberated from behind the door, serving as a haunting reminder of what they just encountered. With a concerned look, Rune turned to find Miko standing in the street, her face reflecting sheer terror. Confusion washed over Rune as he cautiously Miko in the street.

Duke, wagged both of its tails, then let out a loud bark as the infected lady from before stood by the side of the house, gradually inching closer. Duke's growls intensified, accompanied by bone-chilling barks that echoed through the air.

"Come on, Duke! Come on!" Miko and Rune attempted to pull Duke away, but the determined dog refused to budge, continuing to bark as the infected woman approached.

Suddenly, the infected woman ceased her forward movement, fixing her gaze on Duke, who was still growling fiercely without taking another step.

Observing this peculiar sight, Rune couldn't understand why the woman wasn't attacking. However, he decided to utilize his unique ability, hoping it would transform the lady into ink. He summoned his "Ink and Pen" ability, opened his black-covered book, and directed it towards the infected woman. Gradually, Duke's body began to transform into ink, swirling through the air and converging towards the awaiting book.

Shit! As soon as Duke transformed into Ink, the lady immediately started chasing them. So Rune and Miko hastily sprinted through the poorly lit streets, with broken lights flickering around them.

While running, Rune couldn't help but think about how useless his ability seemed. Instead of turning the woman into ink, it unexpectedly affected Duke. He was also puzzled as to why it only worked on Duke and not the woman. However, he didn't waste too much time pondering over it, as he focused on keeping up with Miko and their pace.

Glancing back while on the move, Rune noticed that the relentless woman was still hot on their heels. He realized that if they didn't figure out a different plan, they would likely attract the attention of another monster. Plus, Miko was starting to feel exhausted.

He considered abandoning her to face her demise while he made his escape, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Frustration welled up inside him, and he cursed silently, repeatedly, knowing that the forest wasn't as terrible as this situation. He grew increasingly enraged by the fact that his skills were of no use, to the extent that his fear vanished completely.

They kept running and running, but their faces instantly turned bleak as they took a sharp left and came face-to-face with a towering wall, a dead end. Their pace slowed down as they realized there was no escape. Rune's frustration turned into anger, yet in that very moment, he instinctively reached out for Miko, embracing her tightly, readying themselves for their final moments.

With each passing second, he could sense Miko's breathing becoming more labored, while the corrupted woman relentlessly pursued, drawing nearer and nearer.