novelraw Chapter 169: Madness
Chapter 169: Madness
However, in the midst of such chaos, facing a force so impossibly overwhelming in front of them, it was not easy to calm everyone down with mere words, even when those words came from their chief.
"But Chief! It’s impossible! Look at the size of that thing! It can outrun us, and the sand is basically an ocean where it can swim freely!"
It was Eric, one of the hunters of the traveling group. Seeing even someone like him lose composure immediately made the others tremble even more.
"You might be right," Robert said firmly, his voice cutting through the panic, "but do you really want to stay here? Until all of us slowly die from thirst and hunger? Or worse, until we start eating each other?"
Robert pointed toward the shattered window behind him where the screams outside still echoed endlessly.
"Look outside. There are still members of our group trapped out there while that monster circles them like a shark waiting for exhausted prey. Don’t any of you care enough to at least try helping them?"
He slowly shook his head, disappointment clear in his eyes. "I truly am ashamed. We called ourselves family all these years, yet it seems I never truly knew any of you."
The crying gradually quieted after hearing those words. People began looking at each other uncertainly before turning back toward Robert.
He was right. Staying inside this building would not solve anything.
At best, they would only delay death for a little longer. They still had a chance to save the people trapped outside, and Eugene could not help feeling proud of his father at that moment.
Even now, in the middle of hell itself, Robert still refused to abandon anyone.
However, before anyone else could speak, one of Henry’s companions suddenly stepped forward. "You are right, Chief. We need a sacrifice to draw the Devourer’s attention away so we can rescue the others."
The moment Eugene heard that word, his brows instinctively furrowed.
Why did he say sacrifice instead of bait?
Even Eric seemed to notice something strange in that statement, and several surviving members of Freebound immediately straightened their posture as the atmosphere inside the building subtly changed.
"You," Eric suddenly said while pointing at the man, "your friend was the one who insisted on this route, wasn’t he? Don’t tell me all of you planned this from the beginning to trap us here?"
Another member of Freebound stepped forward with a dark expression. "He’s right. That strange man kept insisting this route was safe, and where did it lead us? Straight into the nest of a Verdant Devourer."
This time, the realization truly began spreading among the survivors. One by one, faces turned pale as they slowly connected everything together, and so did Eugene.
Henry’s earlier words suddenly replayed clearly inside his head together with those empty eyes and that strange smile he showed before they departed.
Even Daphne’s constant warnings now returned to him one after another, making a cold chill crawl down his spine as terror slowly tightened around his chest.
’Don’t tell me... did they really do all of this on purpose? But why?’
And then another horrifying realization struck him hard enough to make his stomach twist painfully.
If he had not supported Henry’s suggestion back then, his father would never have agreed to change routes in the first place because Robert trusted Eugene’s judgment.
Which meant this disaster was partially his fault too.
"Everyone, don’t start making wild assumptions like this." Robert quickly stepped forward, trying to calm the growing panic before it spiraled further out of control.
"Henry and his friends might genuinely not know anything. Even Freebound didn’t realize this was a Verdant Devourer’s nest, right?"
But for the first time in his life, Eugene felt irritated by his father’s kindness and naiveness.
"No, Father, there’s definitely something wrong with them." His eyes locked onto Henry’s companions. "They were too insistent about this route being safe. They kept pestering us to take it even before we reached the Deliric Desert. Don’t you think that’s strange?"
Immediately, Eric and the surviving members of Freebound shifted their attention back toward the men standing near the wall.
Yet despite being cornered by dozens of terrified survivors, their expressions remained strangely calm. Neither fear nor panic appeared on their faces. The solemn look in their eyes never changed.
Then suddenly, one of the members of Freebound widened his eyes as realization struck him.
"You..." his voice trembled slightly, "you’re part of them, aren’t you?"
His hand slowly tightened around his weapon. "The zealots... the ones who keep destroying settlements wherever they go."
His voice rose sharply. "The Scions of the Lord!"
The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere inside the building changed completely.
Several survivors jolted violently while others widened their eyes as though countless unanswered questions had finally begun connecting together.
"He might be right..."
"One of them kept talking about the God of Creation before."
"I heard them mention the God of Chaos too!"
"Oh my God... don’t tell me they’re really part of that insane cult?!"
"We were deceived this entire time!"
"They brought us here to die!"
Panic and fury exploded throughout the room at once. People started shouting over one another until even Robert’s voice could no longer be heard beneath the chaos. Grief, fear, exhaustion, and despair that had been building inside everyone finally erupted all at once.
"Oh no," one of Henry’s companions suddenly said while slowly raising both hands, trying to calm them down.
"Why would we do such a thing to all of you? We are here with you too, aren’t we? If we truly wanted you dead, wouldn’t we have escaped already instead of staying here?"
He tried to reason with them calmly, but it was already too late.
The survivors had reached their limit.
"Stop listening to their bullshit!"
"Kill them!"
The roar of the crowd exploded through the building like wildfire.
Dozens of people surged forward at once like starving animals. The two men barely had enough time to react before they were dragged to the ground violently.
The survivors start attacking, beating the men with their fists, boots, elbows, and anything they could grab. Someone smashed a lantern against one of their heads while another repeatedly stomped on a man’s face until blood splattered across the floorboards..
One of the zealots tried to scream something about God’s salvation, but his words were drowned beneath furious blows before turning into wet gargling sounds.
Another survivor grabbed a rusted pipe and slammed it down repeatedly onto the man’s ribs with enough force to make cracking noises echo through the room.
Eugene stood frozen. He could only watch as the crowd continued beating the two men long after they had stopped moving.
Blood spread slowly beneath their broken bodies while people still kicked them with trembling legs, screaming curses through tears.
"They killed my husband!"
"My son died because of you bastards!"
Some cried while attacking them. Others looked completely hollow, as if they had already lost their minds from terror.
Even the women joined in eventually, striking the corpses with shaking hands while sobbing uncontrollably. The rest only watched, too shocking to move, but they didn’t try to stop them either.
Meanwhile, Eugene quickly pulled his mother into his arms, forcing her face against his chest so she would not have to witness the horrifying scene unfolding in front of them.
The two men on the floor no longer even looked human.
Their bodies had been crushed beneath countless fists and boots, blood spreading across the ground while the survivors continued attacking them like mad beasts that had completely lost their minds.
"Stop it! Stop this madness!"
Robert’s voice finally exploded through the room.
He had grabbed a metal pipe and struck it hard against the wall with a rock, producing a sharp metallic sound loud enough to cut through the frenzy inside the building. The sudden noise finally forced the survivors back to reality as one by one they realized the truth.
The two men were already dead.
And yet they had continued beating the corpses until flesh, blood, and broken bones no longer resembled human bodies.
The survivors slowly stepped back with trembling hands stained red. Their rage gradually faded, replaced first by confusion, then horror, and finally the crushing realization that they themselves had become killers.
"Look at what all of you have done!" Robert shouted furiously, his voice shaking with disappointment and grief. "Right now, all of you are no different from the monster outside!"
"Beating those two to death will not solve anything!" Robert continued while pointing toward the entrance where the distant screams outside still echoed endlessly through the darkness.
"Our families are still out there! Injured, terrified, and waiting for help while all of you waste time venting your anger on corpses!"
The guilt inside the room became suffocating.
Some survivors lowered their heads immediately while others stared blankly at the mangled bodies on the floor as if only now understanding what they had done.
Then Robert suddenly threw his arms wide open.
"If any of you still want to release your anger, then do it to me!" he shouted. "Punch me! Kick me! I am your leader, and this disaster happened under my watch! I am the one who brought all of you here!"
"Dad..." Eugene murmured weakly.
His fists tightened until his nails dug painfully into his palms. Shame burned heavily inside his chest because deep down, he knew he had also wanted those men dead.
"If all of you understand the situation now," Robert said more calmly while taking a deep breath, "then cool your heads and listen carefully to my plan. Understood?"
This time, everyone nodded silently.
Some people desperately rubbed their bloody hands against their clothes, trying to wipe away the stains covering their skin, but no matter how hard they scrubbed, the blood remained there stubbornly.
And Eugene knew that even if the stains eventually disappeared, none of them would ever forget what happened today.