Chapter 98. Sneaky Escape
Chapter 98. Sneaky Escape
As his eyes scanned the area around him, he could see hundreds of cells, if not more, all around the edges of the narrow hall, and inside each of these cells, a human could be seen. The sight was both haunting and overwhelming, with gaunt faces and weary eyes staring back at him from behind the bars.
Those humans closer to his cell could also see him, and when they saw him, they started begging for him to release them.
"God's gracious! Release me."
"Kid, you are our hope. Release all of us."
"Please, kid, I beg you. Please take me with you. I don't want to remain here. I have a family, and I don't know how they are faring now that I have been stuck here for a year."
"Help us escape, and God shall increase your karma."
Their voices, filled with desperation and hope, tugged at Orion's heartstrings. Pleas for freedom and mercy echoed through the narrow hall, amplifying the sense of urgency and despair. Orion clenched his fists, feeling the weight of their suffering.
He wanted to help them—he wanted to help them from the bottom of his heart. But he couldn't right now. He couldn't take that risk. He understood that if all these prisoners escaped, chaos would ensue, undoubtedly attracting unwanted attention to this place. Therefore, he steeled his resolve and walked forward, ignoring their desperate pleas.
As he walked and looked around, all he could see and hear were the pleas of prisoners. It made him feel slightly guilty, but he tried not to dwell on it.
After a moment of walking down the path, the narrow hall came to an end, and Orion finally understood the structure of the area. According to his observation, this whole place appeared to be a rectangular basement with rows upon rows of cells placed side by side. The layout was systematic, almost like a labyrinth designed to confine its occupants.
'This prison is huge.'
Orion thought as he looked around and walked in a random direction.
A moment later, he appeared at the junction where all the rows of cells met. From there, he could see the exit of the basement.
However, there were two guards who happened to be standing vigilantly, looking around the whole area.
'This will be a problem.'
He could defeat them easily; from what he could tell, these guards all appeared to be at the iron rank. However, he would have to be careful and make sure he didn't create any noise. Otherwise, instead of quietly escaping, he would be calling his own doom.
Orion weighed his options carefully, knowing that a hasty confrontation could jeopardize his chances of escaping this prison. He needed to find a way to neutralize the guards without alerting the entire facility.
'Let's first get close to them.'
He walked towards the guards, but not in plain sight. Instead, he moved through the walls of the cells. Using his intangibility, it wasn't difficult for him to pass through them. He crossed cell after cell before appearing in front of the guards.
However, he still hadn't revealed himself. He hid within the walls of the last cell, close to the two guards.
'I will have to make one decisive strike to knock them down.'
He thought as he observed the area, looking for anything that might aid him.
However, after searching for quite some time, he didn't find anything useful. There were only cells for prisoners and guards standing in the basement. Other than that, there was nothing that could help him. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
It looks like I can only use my strength. One decisive strike to knock them both out, and it has to be fast enough so that they won't see me coming.'
He thought as he pondered deeply for a moment and came up with a plan.
First, he made his body as light as a feather using Burdened Gravity. Then, he activated the curses of Unbridled Fury and Shattered Precision to boost his strength and sharpness, respectively.
'It's now or never.'
He looked at the guards standing and blocking the exit, then zoomed toward them. With lightning speed, Orion closed the distance between himself and the guards, his movements fluid and precise. Before they could react, he incapacitated them with swift, calculated strikes, rendering them unconscious.
With the guards out of the way, Orion quickly scanned the area for any signs of alarm or reinforcements.
Satisfied that they hadn't alerted anyone else, he sighed in relief. It would have been a hassle if they hadn't lost consciousness.
Looking around the exit of the basement, he saw that there were two paths available. One to his left had stairs going deep underground, and the one in front of him had stairs leading upward.
He thought that since this prison appeared to be a basement, the stairs leading upward would be his best route.
Thinking of that, he quietly walked up the stairs. Each step he took was measured and silent. Orion moved with the precision of a shadow, making sure to avoid any unnecessary noise that could alert potential threats.
After tiptoeing through the entire stairway, he found himself at the entrance of a large hall. Instead of stepping into the hall, he peeked through the walls at the side to scout around.
He saw about ten guards stationed in the hall, each standing vigilantly beside a door, carefully looking around.
'So many guards are guarding this hall.'
He wondered where he was to be guarded by so many. He suspected that he might be in General Dray's quarters; otherwise, he couldn't imagine any other place being this heavily guarded.
'I can't knock them all out. Even if I do so, it will probably cause chaos if someone were to see so many unconscious guards. So, confronting them is out of options for now.'
He thought deeply about this obstacle and came up with a brilliant idea. Since he couldn't walk through the hall because of all the guards present, he decided not to. Instead, he would walk through the walls here.
'Orion, you are a genius!'
He smiled as he looked around and chose a wall close to him and the stairs. Without much thought, he passed through that wall and appeared in a room.
However, the moment he arrived, a golden flash of light zoomed toward his forehead. It was too fast for him to dodge, so he wanted to let the golden light pass right through him to avoid getting hurt. But that would mean the golden flash would then collide with the wall behind him, creating noise. At that moment, the guards in the hall would surely come running.
'I have only one option.'
He reacted quickly and caught the golden flash of light in his hand.
'A sword?'
He then saw that the golden flash of light was a small golden sword the size of his palm.
Seeing that, a figure came to his mind before he turned his head forward and saw a girl in the mask staring back at him.