Endless Evolution As A Skeleton In A Game-Like World
Chapter 15: [15] The Price For Insubordination

Chapter 15: [15] The Price For Insubordination

Soo-Jin returned to the camp a few minutes after Nolan arrived. She glanced around, and when she saw Ark, she walked over and sat down next to him.

"I didn’t know you were the type to take walks." He commented as she settled down. She was staring at the campfire, the fire burning in her red eyes.

"I’ve always loved walks. The cool breeze, gentle buzz that comes after walking for hours..." her voice quieted, then she glanced at him. "It’s hard to replicate that feeling."

"What about you, is there anything you particularly like?"

Ark gave her question some thought. Something he liked... There were a lot of things he liked actually, but he was sure she wasn’t asking for anything superficial.

He gave it some thought before smiling, although his face remained the same.

"Heights."

Soo-jin blinked, just before she laughed, crossing her legs. "Heights huh... another unexpected answer. So what do you like about heights?"

"It’s hard to say but—"

Ark was cut off as the earth suddenly began rumbling. It felt as though a large engine had been buried right beneath their feet, and as the seconds went by, the rumbling only got louder.

Something was coming.

"What is that?" Isabella sprang up from where she sat and stared straight ahead. She had far begger senses than the rest of them, so he could probably piece out the location.

"Where is it coming from?" Soo-Jin asked calmly. She was the only one that was still seated in a comfortable position.

Isabella’s face flashed with panic. "Right in front of us!"

’In front of us? Wait isn’t that—’

Now Ark knew why she looked so panicked, the direction she was pointing out... it was the area Olivia had spotted the large tracks!

Meaning whatever horrid monster that lived there had now awoken!

"Everyone, gather around. We need to form a defensive formation." Soo-Jin ordered, as she stared forward.

Ark on the other hand sprinted to where Olivia lay. Even in such a dreadful situation, their scout was fast asleep.

"J-just... five more... mom. I’m not... I’m not a c—chicken—EEEK!"

She suddenly screamed as Ark yanked her up to her feet, her eyes widening.

"W-what is happening—"

Ark did not answer, he was already leading her by her hand to their formation, besides, it wasn’t hard to piece one and two together.

Now everyone was complete, everyone except Charles. Ark felt a bad premonition.

"Where is your brother?" Soo-jin asked in an icy tone, and Nolan seemed to melt underneath her gaze.

"He went on a walk... he’ll be back soo—"

Just then, Charles burst out of the forest, eyes wide in fear, panting heavily as he glanced around, trying to locate them.

"Did you guys hear that? It looks like that monster has woken up! We need to get out of here right now!"

Once he caught sight of the party, he was about to run towards them when Soo-jin’s authoritative tone froze him in place.

"Don’t take another step. Where are you coming from?"

Charles had come from the same direction as the sound.

He was still about to walk forward when a crimson spike buried itself right in front of his foot.

Ark glanced at Isabella. ’Blood manipulation?’

Charles gritted his teeth. "I went to scout out the monster, so what? I did it for our party, to give us information on what we were dealing with!"

Soo-Jin’s eyes darkened. "And what did the monster look like?"

"..."

Charles opened his mouth then closed it. A vein ticked on his forehead. Why did he have to answer to that girl? He was older than her and yet she spoke to him as though he were her subordinate!

Still, he had no choice but to swallow his anger. Soo-Jin was his key to escaping this hell hole.

Why was it that the monster only got active after he visited it? Now it looked like he did something, damn it!

"I couldn’t find it, there were no tracks either. Olivia lied." He pointed an accusing finger at the harpy.

"Lied? What the hell are you talking about?" Olivia snapped back.

"Yes, you lied! I had to go there because I was sure we couldn’t rely on the information you gave!"

Soo-jin’s brows creased up with anger. "If Olivia indeed lied, then what is charging towards us now?"

Charles’ mouth went dry.

"So not only did you lead the monster to us, you also could even get any reasonable information?"

The rumbling intensified and Charles swallowed. If that monster arrived, it would take him out first!

It was not something they could outrun, so there was no point in going around Isabella!

He needed to convince them of his innocence, if he could join them, then even if they failed to kill it, he could use them as meat shields while he escaped!

Charles placed his hands on his chest. "I didn’t lead the monster here. I swear this on my honour as a knight! I used my skill which turns me invisible, there is no way it would have—"

"Are you an idiot?" This time it was Isabella who cut in. "Did you really think invisibility will be enough to hide you—"

"Everyone shut up!" Ark suddenly screamed, his voice filled with panic as he glanced at Charles.

Save for the rumbling, the space grew quiet.

Ark needed to think, he needed the silence to piece it all together!

The rumbling, motorcycle like tracks, a monster that Charles couldn’t see—

"Don’t tell me..."

"Olivia, the place you found the tracks. What were the colour of the trees there?"

The looks on both Olivia and Charles’ face changed.

"Huh?" Olivia’s eyes widened. "How did you know they were a different colour? Well, they were red."

Ark felt strangely cold.

’Shit!’

They were fucked.

"Did you figure something out—" Olivia was about to ask when Ark cut her off.

"Nobody move an inch, and lower your voices!"

Ark glanced at Soo-Jin. "The monster we are dealing with... it is a corpse worm."

The moment they all heard the name, the students visibly trembled. A monster so large that it could devour a car, so disgusting that it tacked on corpses to its body.

It was so vicious that even veteran adventurers prayed to never cross paths with it.

"Corpse worms are sensitive to motion and smell. But as long as we don’t move it should pass by."

Soo-jin looked skeptical. A drop of sweat slid down her face as she spoke in a low tone.

"Won’t it smell us?"

Ark shook his head.

"If it is locked on to Charle’s scent, then it will go elsewhere. We left a bigger scent trace behind remember? The goblin ambush"

Ark glanced at the knight. "Just stay still Charles, it is almost here!"

GRRRRRRRRRR—!

The seconds passed in tense silence, and soon it felt as though the vibrations were passing through their very bones.

A drop of sweat slid down Olivia’s face, piling up on her jaw. She closed her eyes tightly, probably muttering a prayer...

Nolan was like a living statue, and Isabella had a tense look on her face. But as for Charles...

He was shaking like a leaf, his legs rattling as the vibration cut through.

’Just a few seconds...’

If they stayed still, the monster would pass by, but if a single one of them moved, then the monster would start attacking random locations, until it consumed them all—

’We are almost through the worst of it!’

GRRRRRRR—!

But just in the last moment, Charles suddenly ran, sprinting right at them.

"Like hell you’re going to use me as bait!"

"Ahh fuck..."

The ground below him suddenly erupted, sending dust flying up so high that it filled the skies before coming down like rain.

And then their hell began.