Some men ran to the gate and were using their bodies to hold the gate closed.
"What should we do?" questioned Beompal shakily.
Officer Min said, "We will make sure Your Royal Highness can get out of here."
"Are you saying I should sacrifice everyone just so that I can survive? I cannot do that. Not even to her." Chang said seriously while looking at me.
I looked away and tightened my grip on my sickle.
Officer Min spoke up, "Your Royal Highness. Someone has to get out of the palace and let the people know."
'The people need to know the crimes the Cho have done.' I thought angrily.
The banging of the monsters continued with their growling increasing.
Officer Min then said, "The rear garden isn't far from this building. We cannot go to the main gate, but we may be able to escape that way. There is no time to lose. Let us escort you to the rear garden."
Changs stance faltered for a second and he whispered, "The rear garden..."
I see that Chang is looking at the roofs around us.
I quickly asked, "How many bullets do we have?"
Yeongshin answered, "We can't take down all of them even if we use all the bullets that we have left."
"The bullets are not for them." Chang says.
I thought for a second and understood what he meant.
I said, "If we use ourselves as bait, it may work."
"Everyone to the roofs." Chang ordered.
Quickly everyone went to get on top of the roofs. The men holding the gate quickly let go, running to us. Some men grabbed their hands lifting them on top of the roofs.
I took a dagger out of Yeongshin's pocket and aimed it to the side of my hand. I drag the dagger making a trail of blood flow through the cut. Dripping down the side of the roof.
The monsters burst through the doors and ran to where the blood is dripping from, their mouths wide open trying to get a sip of my blood.
I move away from the edge to see that Chang and other men are doing the same thing. I started running followed by Chang and the others.
Half of us split up. This is going to probably make this go faster.
I run to the edge and squeeze my fist making blood drip out of my cut. The monsters underneath it, the growling growing louder. I run away from the edge and go back to the others.
While we ran, the men with us split off from us leaving me with Chang.
Chang turns his head for a second and says to me, "Keep your eyes up. Don't look at the ground." I nodded my head at him.
I hear screaming making me turn my head to see a man fall off the roof to the ground making me shudder.
Chang grabs my uncut hand and says, "Let's go. We continue forward."
I ran with him hearing a gunshot rung through the air.
'That's Yeongshin.' I thought worriedly.
Chang and I continued throwing our blood off the edge of the roofs.
We stop when we hear snarling in front of us. Chang lets go of my hand and holds his sword pointed at the noise. I followed with my sickle pointed to the noise.
Monsters ran up the roof tiling but most fell off. I ran ahead first and sliced the first monster's neck making the monster fall off the roof. The next monster ran at me and I pushed it off the roof. Another gets in the way, I stab my sickle through its body but the monster is trying to get to me.
Making me slip a bit back. I yelp making Chang slice the monster's neck.
I quickly pulled my sickle out of the body before my sickle could land on the ground.
I hurridely say, "Double team!"
Chang nods his head.
A monster runs at us and Chang stabs its chest. I take my sickle and slice its neck making Chang pull his sword out.
I kick the next one that got near us making it fall off the roof. Chang slices the next one and we continue that pattern.
Chang drops his sword and I stand in front of him on guard. He hurriedly picked up his sword but that didn't stop a monster jumping at me. I grabbed the monsters clothes and threw it back towards a few other monsters making them all fall off the roof to the ground.
Chang used his sword to slice the next monster. I stood behind Chang breathing a bit heavily. Chang uses his sword to hold himself up so that he can breathe. I see more monsters coming our way.
I see the tiles loosening. I quickly went in front of Chang and used my sword to take the tiles off the roof. After three swings of my sickle, the tiles came crashing down making the monsters follow tumbling down.
With my breathing being heavy, I stumbled a bit backwards but held myself up. A snarl came from behind us making me and Chang look behind us just to see a monster getting shot in the head.
The monster fell off the roof, showing Officer Min in view. Him and one of his men ran to us. I ran to the direction we were going followed by the other men.
Once off the roof, we were met up with the others. I smiled when I saw Beompal and Yeongshin. We ran after Chang in the direction of a forest.
Some of the men stopped to shoot fire arrows making way for our destination of the garden.
I followed right behind Chang to the rear garden.
'I need to survive for all the people in Jiyulheon. My mom and dad. Muyeong. Lord Ahn Hyeon. They lost their lives for me. I need to live in their memory.'
We stopped and formed a line at the rear garden. I see that the lake is frozen over.
'This just got harder.'
Bows, guns and swords pointed in the direction of the woods.
Five men behind me pointed their guns at the ice.
I hear whimpers in the dark making me squint my eyes to the darkness to see Beompal running towards us but he slipped and slid on the ice.
I couldn't help but chuckle at him.
'He never fails to make me chuckle just a little.'
Beompal gets up and runs towards us getting in line with the other men. I stood behind Chang.
I hear the stomping of feet hit the ice.
I yell out to the men, "Get ready!"
The monsters got closer and Chang yelled, "We must do it now. Shoot!"
Gunshots were heard hitting the ice.
I let myself focus on what was happening before me. Men beside me ran to kill the monsters, some of them getting back in line but others continuing to fight.
I tried my best to keep up with the men but being on ice and already exhausted made it difficult. I slice my sickle at a monster coming to me. The monster fell followed by another one. I use Yeongshin's dagger and cut the monsters neck.
I see in the corner of my eye, Yeongshin sliding on the ground to kill some monsters. Yeongshin meets my eyes and nods his head. I understood what he meant.
I readied myself and slid on the ground to the approaching monster making it fall and I quickly stabbed it with the dagger. I got up and took out a monster nearing Chang.
I could hear Beompal screaming, "Get away from me! Get back! Get back! Don't come closer."
Two monsters run at me and push me to the ground. I shove the dagger at its head but I couldn't reach the other one. A sword went through its head. I get the monsters off of me just to see that the sword belongs to Chang.
I got up off the ice just to see Officer Min get bit on the shoulder. My eyes got teary. I angrily sliced the necks of monsters near me.
'Were losing!'
I fail to see a monster come up behind me making the monster bite my upper arm. I cut the monsters neck.
"Kwan!!" I hear someone yell.
I look up to see Chang fighting to get to me. Tears finally fall down my face.
'I can't give up. I must break the ice.'
The men that were once trying to break the ice were no longer there. I use Yeongshins dagger and stab the ice with force.
The ice was cracking but not just enough. I angrily continued stabbing the ice. Not looking at my surroundings.
'I mustn't fail.' More tears rolled down my face.
My hands are becoming bloody. I throw the dagger at the head of an approaching monster making it fall.
I start hitting my fists on the ice.
The pain grew but I didn't care. I felt my insides starting to change. I held it in and continued punching the ice. More of the ice cracked.
'My promise will be kept! To stay alive for them, my family.' I angrily thought while tears went down my face.