Herald winced in agony, his arm throbbing intensely.

Another loud "bang" echoed as the other door was kicked open. Firdaus emerged relatively unscathed, with only minor cuts and burns.

"Sir..." Firdaus began, concern etching his face as he saw Herald's injured arm, but Herald seemed indifferent to his pain, training his binoculars ahead.

Through blurred vision, Herald surveyed the scene at the monument. He spotted figures hanging from the monster's tentacles—his suicide warriors.

"How is this possible?!" Herald exclaimed, dropping his binoculars in terror.

Firdaus, glancing over, let out a horrified scream at the gruesome sight. But what alarmed him more was the monster swiftly approaching them.

"Sir! We need to run!" Firdaus shouted urgently, scanning for a vehicle, but the shockwave had wrecked all nearby cars.

"I should have taken the armor too. It would've helped me run faster..." Firdaus muttered, remembering how Herald had offered him armor before they left, but he'd decl