Ch 19: Hiding To Live

Emrys felt his heart pound loudly.

He had only heard of this kind of thing, never truly seen it with his own eyes. Only now did he understand the cruelty of battle.

The scene of that terrifying explosion and many espers reducing to dust occurred not far from him. This caused him to Be terrified for a moment and stop his actions. Fortunately, an Esper was sent flying, colliding with Emrys's body. Due to pain, Emrys came back to his senses. He stood up and started firing the electromagnetic rifles again.

The battlefield was loud, full of shouting, explosions, and the buzzing of insectoids. Emrys's hands shook as he fired the electromagnetic rifle, aiming at any insectoid that got too close. Sweat dripped down his face, and he could feel his fear growing, but he forced himself to stay strong.

"Stay focused!" Emrys muttered inwardly and tried to focus on the battlefield.

More lightning bolts flashed in the sky. The Thunder Mandibles were relentless, attacking with sharp, bright bolts again and again. Each strike sent shockwaves through the ground, making it hard to stay balanced.

Emrys saw fellow espers falling, some trying to get up, others not moving at all.

"Keep fighting! Don't stop!" someone yelled from behind.

Emrys took a quick look around. The area was full of chaos. The Armored Beetles charged forward, their thick shells deflecting the bullets. Some espers tried using their abilities to stop them, but the beetles were also powerful. They pushed through with great strength. The giant Aphids leaped and stabbed with their sharp forearms, while the Thunder Mandibles sent waves of lightning across the battlefield. Other types of insectoids also attacked relentlessly, killing many espers in a very short period.

"Help!" one of the new recruits shout suddenly echoed in the air. He was trapped under the claw of an insectoid.

Emrys heard the shout, looked at the recruit, and immediately aimed his rifle and fired, hitting the insectoid's leg.

"Kreeeakkkk~"

The insectoid screeched loudly and turned, giving the recruit a chance to crawl away. But before Emrys could react, another blast from a Thunder Mandible exploded nearby. He felt the force push him back, and he hit the ground hard. His ears rang, and his vision blurred for a moment.

"Huff! Huff! Huff!"

Emrys pushed himself up, trying to breathe. His chest was hurting. He tried to look around but dust had already filled the air, making it hard to see.

Nevertheless, a strong wave of wind brushed past his face and the dust soon cleared up. It turned out that a swarm of mantis had also arrived at the battlefield.

Whoever saw another swarm of insectoids coming, their heart trembled and they fell in despair.

Emrys looked around and saw Dan fighting off three insectoids at once, shouting orders to the others. The espers were split, some running for cover while others continued to fight.

Far away, he could also see all the Squad Leaders including the leader of the 17th Suicide Squad battling giant termites and ladybugs.

"No no no... It can't be happening. No!"

Emrys suddenly sensed tens of thousands of insectoids coming from afar. His body trembled, for he knew they were gonna lose again. And once again, they'll lose before they can even walk deeper into the Insectoid Island.

Since that's the case, how would they even look for the nest of Hellfire Swarmflies and destroy it?

It was impossible!

"We need to fall back!" Emrys yelled, trying to warn everyone but his voice was lost in the noise. He saw one of the young espers getting hit by a lightning bolt. That esper fell to the ground and didn't move again.

Emrys felt anger and sadness mixed inside him. He aimed his rifle at a charging Armored Beetle and fired again. He continued to fire until the beetle stopped moving and fell to the ground lifelessly.

The sky grew darker as more insectoids swarmed. The air felt heavy with heat and smoke. Emrys knew this battle was bad. They were outnumbered and tired. Every second felt like a struggle just to stay alive.

His gaze suddenly fell on the fallen beetle. It was huge and had thick and hard wings.

Emrys continued to look at the fallen Armored Beetle in front of him for a long and suddenly had an idea.

"Since the battle is already a loss, I should hide and wait. This is the only way to survive... maybe!"

Emrys understood he needed to hide to stay safe. Quickly, he crawled under the beetle's wing, making sure to stay as quiet as possible. The wing was heavy, and the space was dark and tight, but it hid him well.

Outside, the battle raged on. Emrys could hear the screams and shouts of the espers as they fought the insectoids.

The ground shook from explosions and the pounding feet of giant bugs. Lightning from the Thunder Mandibles lit up the sky, making it flash with bright terrifying light. The sounds of gunfire, buzzing wings, and the high-pitched screeches of insectoids were loud.

Emrys's heart beat fast. He felt scared. His whole body was tense and shaking. He wanted to help, but he knew he couldn't win against so many enemies.

Heh, not to mention so many enemies, with his meager strength, he would fall as soon as an insectoid saw him. He was lucky enough to have the electromagnetic rifle. Otherwise, he would have fallen long ago.

Emrys stayed under the beetle's wing, breathing fast and sweating.

Just like that, hours passed, but the battle noises did not stop.

The cries of espers started becoming lesser and lesser, and soon, only the buzzing and crawling of insectoids remained.

With the help of his ability "Echo Sense", he can already tell that the battle is over. All the espers had already fallen here. Not a single esper managed to live... again... just him!

Emrys was trembling, but he didn't dare to come out. It is because, although the battle was over, insectoids had yet to leave the battlefield. They were searching for any sign of humans who might have managed to survive.

Emrys stayed still, holding his breath whenever an insectoid came near. He could hear the clicks of their legs and the hiss of their movements as they searched for any signs of humans.

At the same time, his mind raced. He thought about all the espers who died and the horror of this battle.

Sadness filled him, but he forced himself to stay quiet.

He knew he could not be found, or he would die too, just like all his comrades.