Matthew went to the bathroom to wash his face with cold water. He didn't feel like he could control the demonic mana anymore. He almost assaulted Vanessa in the middle of the refectory. He looked at himself on the mirror. His blue irises now red faint red rings around its perimeter.
"Red eyes." Paula noted behind him. "That's a mark of those who have demonic mana." She said in a menacing tone.
Matthew kept silent. Looking down. Avoid his own gaze on the mirror.
"I saw how you were looking at Vanessa back there. I've seen those eyes before." Paula got closer. Lumi perched on her shoulder.
Matthew didn't move. His body trembling. His breathing uneven.
"I'll not let you harm her. She's blind because you're young, but I'm not. You are too dangerous to keep around in this situation." Her hand glistened with magic drawn from Lumi. As a sharp ice shard formed on her hand, she walked slowly towards Matthew.
When she grabbed his shoulder and turned him around. She stopped. His eyes were filled with tears that streamed down his cheeks. His face contorted as if he was in pain. His trembling out of fear. His breathing an effort not to cry out loud.
Paula's anger vanished in an instant. The ice shard disappeared in her hand. Her face now that of empathy. She hugged him. "How can I threaten you if you look like that?"
Matthew held her still shaking. Like she was a lifeline in the middle of a dark sea. Unable to contain his feelings he cried on her dress. "I don't want to hurt her." He mumbled.
Paula patted his head. "It's ok, kid. It's ok. We'll be soon out of here and we'll take this thing out of you."
Matthew calmed feeling her embrace. His breathing normalized. And then her perfume invaded his senses. His body tensed. He felt the need to feel her body dominating him. And that's when he pushed her away and averted his eyes.
Paula saw something she never did saw in her ex. Resistance. That kid was truly resisting the influence of demonic mana. Perhaps Vanessa was right. Perhaps he was different.
Her hand rested upon his head, she looked at him with the same eyes she did when she first met him. "I'll trust you kid. Don't disappoint me." She said with a smile.
Matthew dried his tears with his sleeves. "Thank you Paula."
Paula smiled at him, but then got serious when he continued:
"If I lose control… Kill me."
Paula looked into his eyes. Now the eyes of a man. "I will."
Five hours later, Matthew and Michael were on the roof in sentinel duty. Other than a few wolves appearing here and there, there was no other movement. Michael was still silent towards Matthew. Other than simple greetings, he engaged in no small talk.
Matthew was concentrating on a single wolf that was playing with a trash bag. It looked kind of cute. It was hard to believe they were under siege by them. The red moon was now faraway and it was just a big dot in the sky, though its light still reached them albeit very dim.
Then, all of a sudden, they heard it. A howl piercing the night. Michael looked at Matthew with his eyes wide open. "Warn the others."
Matthew went downstairs waking those who were asleep. Soon enough everyone was getting ready for battle.
The adventurers who were good at melee combat stayed downstairs. In case the wolves could breach the front door again. All the other adventurers and the soldiers took positions on the perches on the rooftop. The civilians stayed on the 3rd floor.
Matthew was the first to see them. Moving like a sea of red fur. At least a thousand wolves. They moved fast, but in formation. Clearly not a natural formation for animals. Behind them they could see the werewolf moving. Then not just one. Another. And finally a third.
"Hold your fire. Save your bullets. Make them count." The commander of the logging company's soldiers said out loud for everyone to listen. They had brought the stock of the encampment weapon store, but they had no idea how long they would have to fight. Or how many they'd have to kill.
"Focus your fire on the werewolves when you can." Paula said while Lumi was flying around scouting. "They are clearly the ones commanding the wolves. Killing them is be best bet we have to disperse the wolves."
Paula inspired the others. She was not only beautiful and composed, but she was also the adventurer with the highest level there, 12. The commander of the soldiers was level 10. Jacob, who was downstairs, was level 9. All the others were below 8.
A moment of silence came when the wolves surrounded the dorm building. No one was shooting and the wolves were not moving. What were the wolves to do? Bite the building? The danger were the werewolves. They were the ones who were strong enough to get in. So everyone waited.
Then a howl came from one of the werewolves. And then every wolf howled together with the werewolves creating a deafening sound. Not a moment after, the wolves charged. They threw themselves on the front door and on the windows. Some would bite and try to pull the iron bars from the windows.
"Don't shoot!" The commander ordered. "They can't get in. Just wait."
And then it happened. One of the iron bars on a window got loose. Suddenly tens of wolves moved to that window and started to pull off the bars until a second bar came loose.
"Shoot them down! Cover that window!" Paula screamed.
The shooting started mowing down the wolves who were attacking that window. Matthew ran downstairs together with another adventurer. They found Jacob already barring the window.
"You're already at it." Matthew said relieved.
"Yeah. It was hard to miss."
Suddenly, gunshots came from another side of the dorm. Matthew and 2 other adventurers ran in the direction of the sound. A second window was being attacked and having its iron bars removed. Matthew and the others started to gather furniture to bar that window when a third and a fourth wave of fire started to roar around the dorms.
"They are coming from everywhere!" Someone screamed.
"The windows won't hold for long!" Another person shouted.
Just as soon as it was said. One of the windows broke. A wolf got in the refectory.
Matthew was the first to engage. Using his shield to protect himself from a bite, he swung his machete at the wolf's side, but it was too shallow. The wolf tried to scratch him but missed as he stepped back.
Another wolf went in the same broken window at this point. Matthew was at the door fighting the first one when someone screamed that another window was opened. He dodged another paw and landed his machete straight on its nose.
"We can't hold the first floor! We'll hold them at the stairs. Go up! Everyone, go up!" Jacob ordered while killing a wolf himself.
Matthew saw another wolf coming in the refectory, this one with one of Michael's arrow in its shoulder. He closed the door, but it was easily rammed down. He fired some shots to keep the wolves away while he ran upstairs with the other adventurers.
They used some chairs to make a barricade on the stairs leading to the second floors. The ones with spears at ready in front. The sounds of gunfire roared from all around the building. Matthew gave his spare gun to an adventurer who had only a sword. It was not the time to save bullets anymore.
When the first wolf put his head on the stairs, Matthew shot it down straight between the eyes. He missed the second wolf that jumped upstairs and was pierced by Jacob's spear. The third wolf he hit, but didn't die. The next ones came in like a flood.
The barricade and the spear wall were doing their job. Michael, the adventurer he loaned the gun and another adventurer who had a gun of his own were shooting the wolves farther away. The smell of blood was overwhelming.
Matthew's senses started to become overwhelmed. His mana was turning red. His face changing from fear to a smile. He started to chuckle with every shot he take. He was now having fun.
"I leveled up!" someone said.
A minute later another person screamed: "Me too!"
A third person: "Me too! We will survive this!"
Jacob looked at his own stat screen. Level 10. He dared to feel hopeful. He quickly picked another Warrior class and increased his Imbue Mana skill. Put all his extra points in Strength. "We can do it!"
It was then that they saw. One of the werewolf coming in. Under the lights of the dorm, it was clear it was a female. I seemed like she was smiling when she looked at the barricade. She licked her snout as if anticipating food. Her hands covered in long claws. Her teeth glistening with saliva. She growled and then howled.
In this moment Matthew saw his own screen.
"You leveled up!
Rolling Gacha for class"