Will of Vienna

The descent into the lower floor made him extremely nervous. As Michael moved past the bloody corpses of hound-foxes, it got quiter with every step he made downwards. He might have a willpower of 10. No it should be 11 by now. But he was still a civilian and was forced to become a fighter just recently.

Step by step, he counted. Twenty steps down to the first landing. A sharp hairpin turn. Another twenty steps.

When his boots finally touched the floor of the lower level, his nervousness peaked and his grip on his recruit’s spear tightened. He waited for the immediate rush, the snap of jaws, or the wet sound of breathing in the dark, and was ready to run at any tike.

But nothing came.

The air was heavy, stagnant, and cold, smelling faintly of old paper, mildew, and dust. The vast expanse of the university’s underground archives stretched out before him, a maze of towering floor-to-ceiling metal bookshelves, completely shrouded in shadows. There was no movement. No scratching of claws.

For a fleeting second, the thought crossed his mind that the two waves on the stairs might have actually depleted the nest. *Is it possible we really wiped them all out?* he pondered.

But Michael’s high Willpower crushed his dangerous optimism. In this new reality, carelessness and ignorance was a death sentence. He didn’t relax his grip for a single moment. Keeping his back close to the concrete support pillars, he began to move deeper into the labyrinth of metal shelves, his boots making no sound on the dusty floor.

He navigated the rows with care, his eyes tracking every corner, every intersection. He had advanced roughly fifty meters into the core of the archives when a distinct, sickening sound broke the silence.

*Squelch. Crunch. Rip.*

It was the horrific sound of tearing flesh and the sickening crack of bones being splintered by powerful jaws.

Michael shifted his weight, walking silently around the edge of a massive, overturned shelf holding historical books. Peering through the gap between two metal frames, his breath hitched.

Ahead, in a wide clearance where the archive desks used to stand, a massive pack of 15 hound-foxes was gathered in a tight, frenzied circle. They were fighting over the remains of three bodies sprawled across the floor—outfitted in the distinct uniforms of the university’s facility and administrative staff.

Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

The monsters were casually, brutally tearing them apart, snapping at each other for every piece of flesh and meat.

Seeing the lifeless, mangled faces of the university staff being consumed like cattle triggered a sudden, violent fury inside Michael’s chest. These were people who had just been doing their jobs, caught in a cosmic nightmare they never asked for. The raw injustice of it, the sheer savagery of the sight, made his blood boil.

Yet, even in his fury, Michael didn’t lose his composure and remained at his place. He didn’t charge blindly. He channeled the wrath directly into execution.

He had the absolute element of surprise. The beasts were entirely focused on their gruesome feast.

He put aside his nervousness, pushed his limits and lunged out from the shadows of the bookshelf. He closed the ten-meter gap in a second, his spear whistling through the air.

*Thrust!*

The iron spearhead driven by his full weight pierced straight through the back of the skull of the nearest hound-fox, bursting out between its eyes.

[You have killed a Hound-Fox – Level 1]

[You have received 10 Experience Points]

Before the creature’s body could even slump to the floor, Michael wrenched the shaft back with a brutal twist.

*Slash!*

Using the momentum of his spin, he brought the spear around in a vicious arc, the iron edge cutting cleanly through the throat of a second monster right next to the first. Blood sprayed across the metal shelves as the beast choked on its own life force, collapsing instantly.

[You have killed a Hound-Fox -- Level 1]

[You have received 10 Experience Points]

Two kills in less than two seconds.

But the sudden attack and the noises it caused immediately broke the pack’s feeding. The remaining thirteen hound-foxes whipped their heads around, their crimson eyes locking onto Michael, who stood over their dead packmates with a dripping spear. A collective, deafening chorus of snarling and guttural growls erupted through the basement.

The entire pack rose as one, abandoning the corpses and tensing their powerful hind legs to spring.

Michael didn’t hesitate. He didn’t stay to fight thirteen-to-one in an open room. That was never his plan in the first place.

He spun on his boots and bolted back toward the corridor, sprinting at full speed. Behind him, the chaotic, terrifying thunder of dozens of claws tore into the concrete as the furious pack gave chase.

The frantic breathing of thirteen predators echoed through the basement. Michael didn’t look back. He literally ran for his life, as he tore through the labyrinth of metal bookshelves.

Behind him, the hound-foxes were after him, they were agile, leaping over fallen stacks of archives and scrambling across the sides of the shelves to cut him off. One particularly large monster lunged from a side aisle, its claws grazing the fabric of Michael’s jacket as he zipped past.

With a tight, controlled burst of speed, Michael pivoted around the final concrete support pillar.

He could hear the chaotic clatter of claws growing louder, echoing violently off the enclosed walls. They were closing the distance, driven by the predatory lust for murder.

Up ahead, the first step of the staircase appeared before him. Michael threw himself forward, leaping over the first few steps in a single bound. His heart hammered in his chest, from fear, but also from pushing his limits and sprinting as fast as he could.

“Get ready!” Michael yelled, his voice booming up the stairwell like a thunderclap, alerting the twelve waiting students above.

He didn’t slow down. He took the stairs two at a time, rushing upward toward the hair-pin turn, leading the furious, snarling pack straight into the mouth of the funnel they had so carefully prepared.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!