(Half an hour later)

Time crept forward, the Counter slowly ticking down as the number of remaining pairs fell from 199 to 175.

Leo sat near the edge of the terrace, his sharp eyes scanning the horizon while his mind wrestled with the growing tension.

Each drop in the counter number felt like a small victory, especially with the pace of eliminations having noticeably picked up in the last half hour.

"Twenty-four pairs in thirty minutes," Leo muttered to himself. "That's not bad at all."

Behind him, Felix groaned, rubbing his temples as he rolled back and forth on the concrete floor.

The swagger and reckless confidence he'd exuded while being drunk had completely evaporated by now, and was replaced by the familiar nervous energy Leo had come to expect from him.

"Ugh… My head's killing me," Felix grumbled. "Why did I drink so much?"

Leo glanced over his shoulder, raising an eyebrow. "Maybe because you thought being a drunken maniac was better than being your usual cowardly self?"

Felix shot him a weak glare. "Cowardly? That's harsh, man. I'm not cowardly. I'm… cautious."

"Sure," Leo replied dryly, turning his attention back to the horizon.

A sober Felix was of absolutely no use in battle, and Leo knew it. For the next hour or two, if trouble came their way, it would be up to him alone to handle it.

"Hey, Leo," Felix started, his voice tinged with guilt. "What do you want me to do, man? I can help keep watch too. Where should I look?"

Leo sighed, gesturing toward the staircase they'd used to reach the terrace. "Keep an eye on the stairway. And if there's any sign of trouble, run."

Felix groaned as he dragged himself across the ground, clutching his head while muttering something unintelligible under his breath. Still, he settled into the spot Leo had indicated and began his watch—though Leo wasn't entirely confident in how effective he'd be.

Regardless, having Felix keep watch on the stairway gave him some peace of mind, as at least for now, it seemed like they were safe.

'Can I handle another fight?' Leo wondered silently, the answer feeling far more complicated than he expected.

Like any other human, he was hardwired with an instinct for self-preservation—a natural fear of death embedded deep in his brain.

But while the thought of dying filled him with unease, it wasn't the fight itself that scared him.

Oddly enough, when he pictured himself being stabbed or wounded, the fear was muted, almost distant. It paled in comparison to the visceral dread he felt at the mere thought of drowning—an irrational fear that lingered at the edge of his awareness.

'Why does that scare me more than being brutally stabbed?' he questioned, the unsettling thought sending a faint shiver down his spine..

Somehow, it felt as though his body had already endured countless injuries—so many that the fear of receiving new ones no longer fazed him. Yet, with no memory of when or how those injuries might have occurred, Leo found himself once again unable to answer the questions that gnawed at his curiosity.

*Stumble*

*Stumble*

Just then, Leo picked up the faint sound of someone coming up the stairs, as looking across to the stairway, he immediately spotted Felix flailing his arms wildly to catch his attention.

'Get Away From There–' Leo lipped without uttering a sound as Felix pulled away as per his instructions.

Seconds later, a female figure stumbled onto the terrace, her body lurching forward as if every step were a monumental effort.

Blood trickled from a deep gash on her side, staining her torn tunic and leaving a faint trail behind her.

She was badly injured, her breaths coming in short gasps as she seemed to be desperately looking for safety.

However, unfortunately for her, the terrace was not the safe-spot she hoped for it to be, as the moment she stumbled onto the terrace, her eyes landed on Leo and Felix as her heart sank.

'No… not now. Not here,' she thought, dread gripping her chest like a vice.

For a moment, her knees threatened to buckle. The sight of two figures already stationed on the terrace—two potential enemies who could end her life in an instant—sent her spiraling further into despair, as she froze cold.

At this moment, her instincts screamed at her to retreat. But there was nowhere to go. No cover to hide behind. No time to plan. All she could do was hope for mercy, as she tightened the grip on her dagger.

"Don't–" She mumbled weakly as she pointed her dagger towards both Felix and Leo, only for a fresh gush of blood to burst out of her side, forcing her to fall to her knees and tend to her injury once more.

'They're going to kill me,' the woman thought, her pulse pounding in her ears.

However, as the seconds passed and neither Leo, nor Felix moved to incapacitate her, a small flicker of hope began to burn in her heart.

As she looked at her opponents again, she began to notice the details she had missed at first—the way Felix's oversized frame gave him the appearance of a lumbering pig, and how Leo's eyes held an unsettling innocence, as if they had never claimed a life before.

At that moment, she realized that her opponents, much like her, had come to the terrace to hide and not kill, and that she could potentially survive, if only she tricked them into thinking that she was surrendering.

*Clank*

Decisively dropping her weapons to the ground with a metallic clatter, she raised her trembling hands into the air.

"Please… spare me," she rasped, her voice sounding hoarse and strained.

Leo didn't respond immediately, his eyes narrowing as he assessed her. Felix, however, flinched at her plea, his grip tightening on his sword.

"I'm not a threat!" she cried out, her voice cracking. "I swear, I just needed somewhere safe. Please, don't kill me!"

Leo's gaze didn't waver. His voice was calm but cold when he finally spoke. "Where's your partner?"

The woman's shoulders sagged, and tears welled in her eyes as she shook her head. "We got separated," she admitted.

"We were being chased by someone stronger… too strong. He told me to run while he stayed behind to hold them off. I don't know if he's even still alive."

Her gaze flicked nervously between the two men. Felix's wide-eyed stare wasn't exactly comforting, but it was Leo's measured calm that scared her more.

'He's the leader,' she realized. 'The one I need to convince.'

She shifted slightly, wincing as her wound flared with pain. "I'll leave if you want me to," she added quickly, desperation lacing her tone. "Just… let me live. That's all I'm asking."