It took the squad a few seconds to process Taehyun’s sudden and unexpected revelation. They knew that they couldn’t get anywhere without a proper formation; they needed a plan, and they always relied on Taehyun and Yeosang’s intuition.

Beomgyu groaned visibly and glared at Taehyun, his eyes throwing daggers at the younger. “What do you mean there’s no plan?!? Didn’t you and Yeosang-hyung devise a plan last night for this exact moment?!?” He resisted the urge to scream, knowing that his voice would waver in front of the monstrous slimes.

“That was a backup plan in case things go wrong. We won’t be using that for now.” Yeosang tried to assist Taehyun, but he didn’t expect the team to be scowling at him so aggressively. He feared the team would fall apart.

“A backup plan?!? A backup plan without a primary plan, just incredible! Hyung-deul, I thought you both were working on something!” It was Kai who seemed agitated now.

Before either of the team could respond or add to the youngest’s words, they had to jump back as the claws came flying towards them, sharp and dangerous. There was a lustrous touch to the claws, but there was no time to admire its shining feature.

Kai put his hands out just near his abdomen instinctively, slowly raising his palms to the level of his shoulders. He had his brows furrowed with utter determination, quickly looking over his shoulder to see the team hide behind him. Instantly, a wall of fire rose from the ground, only partially blocking the slimes.

“They’re too tall, too big!”, he complained as he stumbled backward in response to the sheer heat of the flames.

The two slimes finally began to restrict their movement, the limbs dangling around helplessly, still melting away. Behind them, the rest of the creatures that were persistently thrashing against the wooden and ice walls, slithered forward with their crooked eyes moving awkwardly on the surface – the walls were no longer a form of protection for the team.

“This is not going to work!” Jungeun quickly pulled Kai by his hand, pushing him behind herself. She took a few steps back, and with a firm expression and a flick of her fingers, a familiar wooden wall ascended from the centre of the road that she stood upon, the bitumen breaking up and leaving rubble at the sides.

The wall bent and curved over the team, arching into a hemisphere, now completely shielding the squad from the monsters.

Soobin quickly switched on a torch and pointed it towards the ground, letting the others adjust to the sudden darkness, all due to the sturdy creation. He soon realised that it was almost like another barrier engulfed them, though not translucent and not in the shape of a capsule.

“Tae, please tell me there’s a plan! What are we even doing?” Beomgyu’s voice was now reduced to a whisper, his throat sore from all the previous screaming, but he couldn’t deny that the dreadful feeling of fear was making things more difficult for him.

Taehyun let out a heavy sigh as he buried his face into his hands. He gulped down a lump in his throat – he was also getting thirsty – and cleared his throat. He lifted his head to look at Beomgyu with a glare. “You’ve got to start trusting me more.”

He then glanced towards Yeosang and nodded, not at all bothered by the curious glances of the rest of the team. Bending over to scratch his knee, he explained: “I was just trying to observe the scene. There are five slimes, two of which are closer to us than the rest. We need to stay in sight of these two slimes, and their big bodies will prevent us from being seen by the other three. There is no need for a plan because you’ve just got to trust yourselves!”

He groaned at the clueless expressions of those whose faces were visible with the torch’s light. Trying his best to focus on his words instead of the dangerous sounds of the claws hitting against the wooden barrier, he explained further: “We’re all a bunch of performing arts students! Regardless of our majors, we’re all used to moving around constantly due to our supplementary dance class! Be agile, be calm, move swiftly. More importantly, fight the slimes altogether. Formations and plans only muddle things up whenever something unexpected happens!”

“Wait, you want us to just throw out our attacks randomly?” Yuqi tried not to laugh at the ridiculous idea, but she soon realised that the other was being as serious as he could.

Yeosang felt guilty for staying silent all this time, so he added, “Just be careful not to have fire and water interact. Two big slimes, so just attack at different spots. It’ll reduce the load on your shoulders, and you won’t have to think about sticking to a certain plan.”

“Okay, I’m gonna remove the barrier. Everyone, get ready!”

With Jungeun’s command, the team immediately forced themselves to stay alert and wide awake, their bodies already on the verge of acting out recklessly. Just as the wall retracted back into the ground, the team scattered across the road slightly, all the while making sure that they were positioned within the two slimes’ enormous shadows.

They didn’t want to be seen by the other three slimes.

At once, flaming spheres were launched forward, forming ghastly holes within the creatures. However, the holes began to repair rather quickly, merging to patch up the wounds, yet the healing was drastically slowed down with a strong draft of wind that forced the pits to enlarge. Similarly, large droplets of boiling water hovered over the slime, and just as the holes continued to expand, the water poured down like a waterfall, puffs of steam diffusing into the air – one slime was already weakened.

Prickly thorns and suffocating vines wrapped around the other creature, squeezing the slime until its limbs twisted and whirled around in defeat; meanwhile, a blade of ice pierced through the centre of the gooey body, causing icicles to form from the interior, freezing the insides.

“Wait, let me try something!”, Soobin called out as he took a step forward. Cautiously, he put out a hand, loosening and tightening his fingers alternately, gently motioning his hand around. His eyes showed a layer of concentration.

The icicles within the creature began to move according to Soobin’s gestures. The sharp rods of ice poked against the gland hanging at the back, penetrating through almost instantly.

A loud groan resonated from the creature’s unidentifiable mouth as the limbs and claws momentarily lost balance, the slime jerking to the side when a wooden cone grew out of the ground and punctured through the body – it was almost defeated.

Taehyun took that as the chance to usher Yeonjun to jump into action; he gestured the older to use his gun.

“You don’t have to tell me twice! Just watch me!” Yeonjun had a grin on his face as he firmly wrapped his fingers around the pistol he pulled out from a holster he borrowed from one of the officers back at the mall. He pulled the trigger.

Two bullets flew out, one after another, impaling the piece of flesh within the creature wrapped in a blanket of fire and adorned with gaping holes, causing the slime to shudder in its place.

He then shifted his body towards the other slime, firing away just like before. A small smile laced his lips as he saw the monster start to lose its sense of balance, its claws slowing down.

But it was not enough.

“Yeonjun-hyung, watch out!”, screamed Taehyun as he hurled himself forward with his hands reaching out for the older, who was too occupied with his shooting.

It was too late.

A limb rocketed forward, swerving quickly as it reached out to grasp Yeonjun by his waist, the claws tightening around his body; blood trickled down his sides as fresh wounds developed, his skin now covered in sharp bruises and cuts, his shirt ripped to shreds and barely clinging to his figure.

A shrilling screech echoed within the area as Yeonjun screamed out in pain, his gun falling out of his hand and dropping to the ground.

Soobin’s heart dropped at the sight, just like the metallic weapon. He felt his lips quiver, his hands weakening with every second, and he feared that he would lose control of the icicles. He felt his head start to ache, feeling helpless and as worried as he could ever be.

It was all happening far too quickly, and before he knew it, he saw Yuqi get captured by another claw, yet another scream filling the air.

“Yeosang-hyung, shatter the claws! It’s what you can do, just believe in your strength!” Taehyun’s advice was crucial in saving not only Yeonjun and Yuqi, but to put an end to the two slimes that were already on the verge of death.

Yeosang hated the pressure on his shoulders, but it was also the catalyst that made him concentrate and prove himself. He in a deep breath, carefully taking a few steps back to avoid being harmed by the approaching claws – but they were far too fast.

He felt panic rise to his chest, almost numbing him in place, knowing that he was about to meet his cruel end. However, as he prayed for the ordeal to end, he noticed the incoming cluster of claws hastily being pushed away by a large block of ice. Quickly glancing to his side, he nodded gratefully at Jisu.

“Withstand it!”, he yelled out. With his brows creasing in, he raised his arms slowly like a zombie, pointing the tips of his fingers towards the t