Book 8} The Forbidden Game
Chapter 67
The Forbidden Game, Part 2
禁断のゲーム、パート2

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Some People Fall In Love,
With the Wrong People...
Sometimes.

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Emma and I got down, listening for any footsteps.
Our eyes met and we both nodded.

{ There's no footsteps... Did we get away in time?
I don't hear or sense them, that's for sure. }

I sat up, pressing my thumb to my lip in thought.
{ What do we do from here? I need to get in touch with Ray.
No, no, before that... I need to come up with a plan... }

"You blockheads!"
the person from before said, whacking our heads.
I winced, touching my head.

"Are you crazy?! First, you take off... For what? These kids you've never met before?!"
They were obviously talking to Emma. I was lucky I got off on this.

"And you just follow her?!"
Yeah, nevermind.

"Yeah,"
Emma and I both responded.

"You both must be insane! That one's real scary. The one with the hat,"
They growled.

"Wait. So the demons... the monsters that come to this property... are always the same ones?"
Emma asked.

They looked confused but they nodded.
"That's right."

"How many?"
I then asked.

"Five. Not including their attendants,"
They answered.

"And how many humans?"
Emma asked.

"Usually up to 50, at most. I think there are that many now. Why?"
They asked Emma in return.

"And does this hunt happen every day?"
Emma continued her questions while I watched for any more demons.

"No. About once every three days. Forget that for now! We don't have time to rest.
We need to run and hide now. Even if they're not after us right now, they might come back soon. Or a different monster might attack us,"
they continued.

"But..."
Emma started.

"Go! We'll be fine, so go!"
One of the boys said.

"Thanks, all of you. You risked your lives to save us,"
he was noticeably shaking, so I felt bad for him. 
He also oddly reminded me of Lanni.

"I can run away. Don't worry, we'll get moving once we rest a little bit,"
he continued, but he looked in no condition to walk. Then or now.

"Got it. Then let's run away separately."
Emma smiled.

"But run where to? You're injured and bleeding,"
the girl said to him.

"You don't have to rush. Head downwind, then hide. Being downwind, you're less likely to be found by the smell of your blood or sound."
I said as Emma bandaged his arm.

"Try to not leave any footprints. If you find enemy footprints, run before they find you. But if you still get found and are about to get killed... tell the monster to instead look and hunt for me,"
I continued.

"Tell them, "She's from Grace Field. You better hurry, or she might get hunted by another." Just say that and it'll be okay. I'm Y/n, and this is Emma. How about you guys?"
I asked.

"Theo,"
the small boy said.

"Monica,"
the girl said.

"I'm Jake,"
the older looking boy said.

"Okay. Let's meet up again later,"
Emma said with a smile.

And so, we went off in different directions.
Emma, the stranger, and I.

{ It'll be okay. Five demons and 50 humans. Only replenished once a month. They only hunt about once in three days. That means the number of humans they can kill is limited }
I thought as we ran.

"I don't intend to die. In fact, I can't die. But... I can't abandon them. I'm not going to let them die without doing anything!!"
Emma declared.

"Then why did you agree to go separately?"
They asked.

"A few reasons. A group of six would be hard to hide. And Theo was bleeding. But the biggest reason was the danger of being with Y/n and I,"
Emma replied.

"I see. I guess that's the smart thing to do,"
they said.

"So you'll be in danger by staying with us,"
Emma then said.

"Shut it. I can't have you guys die for reasons of my own. Listen, what's key is time. You can survive this hunt as long as you can keep running until the music plays again,"
they told us.

"Oh, but... there's something I want to do as I run away,"
Emma said, soon stopping.

"Look. The demons aren't going out of their way to hide their presence. Even though they're highly intelligent,"
She said, and I looked at the footprints.

"Either way, we can know where the enemies are,"
she added.

"Meaning?"
"I want to stay near the demons. I want to find the scared humans first and help them run away. I might not be able to do much. But I want to help as many kids as possible."

"Because, you can't abandon them?"
they asked.

"Exactly!"
Emma and I smiled.

"Geez. You two are both huge hassles, aren't you?"
they said.

"I get that a lot,"
Emma said.
"I don't. Thank you,"
I said with a smile.

This... kind of hunt... toys with our lives.

"Fine. Got it. But if I see any of you in danger, I'm gonna grab you and run,"
They told us.

I chuckled and nodded. 

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5.4.2020
Word Count: 821