Hacking the Game Didn't Go as Intended [Part Two]

CHAPTER 257: The Great Escape

From the shadows, Midnight watched in silence as Lumielle, Lyndoria, and Zephyr staggered to their feet. The walls around them groaned with heat, and the air was thick with the acrid sting of smoke.

"P-Princess, are you hurt?" Lyndoria asked, rushing to her side with wide eyes.

"I'm alright," Lumielle replied, steadying herself. Then her eyes flicked to the girl's brow where blood trickled down from a deep gash. "L-Lynn, you're bleeding."

The girl touched the wound absently. "It's nothing. We don't have time—this place isn't safe."

Zephyr growled in agreement, the fur along his back rising as he faced the stairwell.

"What was that blast?" Lumielle asked, coughing slightly from the smoke. "It sounded like the whole tower shook."

"I don't know," Lyndoria said, scanning the corridor. "But if I had to guess... it was the Mhaledictus. This is retaliation for your speech at the memorial ceremony."

Lumielle exhaled, her expression grim. "I had a feeling."

Zephyr whimpered, ears twitching. Something was moving nearby.

"What do we do?" Lyndoria asked, eyes darting to the blocked stairwell. "The upper floors are cut off. The lower floors are likely a trap. And the window's too high—jumping would be suicide."

"That leaves only one feasible option," Lumielle said, already moving toward the stairs. "The rendezvous point in emergencies is the orphanage. We have no choice but to risk the lower floors and head there."

Lyndoria hesitated, then gave a reluctant nod. "...Do you think Haxks saw the explosion?"

"I'm sure of it," Lumielle replied, a flicker of hope flashing in her eyes.

"Haxks Starfrost," Lyndoria muttered, surprised at herself for bringing up his name. "Can we really trust that infuriating adventurer?"

A faint smile touched Lumielle's lips. "We've trusted him before... and he hasn't failed us yet."

Before Lyndoria could respond, a sharp clang of metal echoed from below. Zephyr snarled. From the stairwell, masked figures surged upward—soldiers clad in armor bearing the royal insignia and robed assassins likely affiliated with the Mhaledictus. Their aura radiated pure, unfiltered bloodlust. No one was here to rescue them.

"Brace yourselves!" Lyndoria hissed, already drawing the twin knives strapped to her thighs.

But just as the tide of enemies poured in, shouts erupted from the opposite end of the corridor and further down the stairs.

"For Her Highness!" a soldier cried.

A band of Lumielle's loyal guards stormed in, blades raised. Steel clashed against steel, fire crackled, and chaos swallowed the tower's innards, buying precious seconds.

"Go!" one guard shouted, locking blades with an attacker.

Refusing to squander the opportunity, the group bolted. Zephyr led the charge, fangs bared and flames spilling from his jaws. Lyndoria spun and slashed without hesitation, cutting down anyone who stepped in range. Lumielle followed tightly, heart thundering as blood sprayed the walls.

The stairwell was a scene from hell—and down its spiraling depths they ran. Smoke curled up the walls. The cries of the dying echoed off the stone. Blood slicked the steps and dripped from the railings.

Flames cast wild shadows across shattered portraits and broken banners. Dead soldiers—friend and foe—lay crumpled on each level, their lifeless faces locked in expressions of agony.