CHAPTER 432: RESCUE EFFORTS

Golden threads slid through the cracks, wrapping around a large piece of rock, before slowly and carefully lifting it. Only when it was a good few inches above the ground did the speed increase, swinging the rock away, tossing it far into the distance through the hole in the ceiling, through which a velvety black sky could be seen. A loud crashing noise came from afar, as the rock crashed onto the ground, but no one paid it any mind. The strings just dug into the rockfall once again, wrapping around another rock.

Clara exhaled deeply, wiping the sweat from her forehead, and tossed another rock out of the cave, before taking a glance around. A few feet away from her, another Esper was disintegrating the rocks with his ability, while some of the others were picking the rocks with their bare hands...

Like her brother, for example. He didn’t have an ability particularly suitable for the rescue efforts, but he refused to let that stop him. He worked so hard that his hands were raw to the point of drawing blood... Even though, as an S-rank Esper, he could endure far more damage than a regular person. And his efforts still couldn’t compare to what Clara and some of the others could do with their abilities...

Clara just let out a sigh, though, and got back to work. Even though she wanted to tell Damien to take a break, she knew how pointless that was. He would have refused to stop no matter who was trapped underneath, and even more so, when Lane was among the victims...

And she could understand his anxiety. As their work progressed, they were able to hear some of the things that were happening down below. And, while it was difficult to make sense of most of it, it sounded very unsettling... They were monsters underneath, it seemed.

It didn’t bode well for the four men who had fallen down. They must have been injured from the collapse, and after that, they had to fight the monsters? If they were even conscious and in any condition to fight...

Her threads dug into the ground again, squeezing in between the rocks to remove another piece, when all of a sudden, she paused.

She encountered no resistance!

Of course, it could very well be that there was just a gap between the rocks, but...

She grasped the rock with her threads and slowly lifted it. It had to be done with utmost care, to make sure that she wouldn’t disturb any other rocks and lead to another rockfall, but after digging for a while, she was getting the hang of it. The rock moved from its spot...

It was like pulling a plug. All the sounds and smells that had been partially blocked by the rocks separating them suddenly erupted with full force. They weren’t intense, but the difference was undeniable. All the team members gathered at the side had been so on edge, that they instinctively turned this way, some even flinching.

There was a moment of pause, before...

"Ah! We’re here! Help!" someone screamed from underneath the hole. Judging by the voice, Ethan, although it was a bit hard to tell by how hoarse and weak his cry for help was.

Just as they had noticed that they had finally gotten through to the tunnels below, the people underneath them could tell as well. Even more so, because they had gone from being stuck in absolute darkness, to finally seeing the light!

Before anyone could respond, Damien had already abandoned the digging. He rushed to the hole, and jumped right in... It was still rather small, so much so, that it was difficult for anyone with larger, muscular frame like Damien to pass through, but after a bit of a struggle, he managed to squeeze in. He dropped down onto the level below, stumbling on the loose rocks before catching his balance...

His appearance instantly attracted the attention of the monsters, but Damien didn’t seem to care. He just took out his sword, as he looked around, trying to make sense of his surroundings in the dim lighting... It was difficult at first, but as Clara removed more pieces of rock with her threads, widening the hole, more light flooded the tunnels, finally allowing Damien to take a good look at the scene.

The first thing he saw was Ethan, wrapped in pale blue threads, with a monster sucking on his arm, its petal-like lips almost reaching his left shoulder...

Damien’s face turned pale in terror. His first instinct was to glance around, looking for someone else first...

And there he was. Lane. Also trapped in the web. However, not being eaten just yet. Although he had been rendered immobile, Lane could still defend himself with his ’air’ ability. Any spider monster that attempted to approach him was either pushed away with Mana shield or slashed with Wind Blades...

As for Jasper and Adrian, they were nowhere to be seen.

With the hole widened and Damien leading the way, the other Espers started jumping down, starting with the other four Team Leaders. Having reinforcements, Damien didn’t have to feel guilty about leaving Ethan, who seemed to be needing help the most (due to being eaten alive and all), to someone else, and rushed to Lane’s side. He swung his sword, slashing through the spider that was in his way, even going so far as to use his ability to freeze the legs of some of the others to lock them in place, just so that he could get to his boyfriend sooner...

"Don’t touch the web!" Lane called out in warning, just as Damien was about to reach him.

Damien instinctively paused, with his hands inches away from Lane. "But..."

"Don’t touch it, or you’re going to get stuck as well," Lane repeated. "I’m fine, don’t worry, just... Deal with the monsters first."

Damien looked him up and down. Lane didn’t seem alright at all... Being stuck in the web aside, from the gaps between the thick, pale blue threads, Damien could see that Lane had countless injuries...

As much as he wanted to get Lane out and treat him, though, he knew that the man was right. He didn’t even know how to deal with the sticky web, and trying to figure it out with the monsters surrounding them hardly seemed like a good idea...

So, he let out a heavy sigh, and turned around, lifting his sword and facing the monsters.

"Hold on a bit longer... I’m going to get you out soon."

"Sure thing," Lane shrugged his shoulders. In all honesty, being stuck in the web wasn’t so bad... With his resistance to multiple toxic and corrosive substances, the threads didn’t burn him. They were only a little bit tingly.

And at least it all served as a valid excuse as to why he couldn’t have helped Ethan...