“Look, there is light ahead of us. Suna, is that light coming from your location? Can you see us as well?” Nao called out which caused Maria to look up from her phone screen as well.

She could spot the light one Nao was talking about and quickly checked her phone screen to confirm whether this was Suna or not.

“I cannot say for sure but I do see a faint light. But we seem to be at a lower height than you so it’s faint. Alester, can you climb on my shoulder to check” Suna seemed to have it off great with her company.

Maria still held doubts about the kid who had somehow survived such harsh conditions but she chose not to word them. It was not her place to question Suna’s choices without any knowledge.

Her map showed one dot at a little distance which could only mean one person. The other two dots that represented her and Nao were close together a little distance away.

“It’s Suna. let’s hurry up and meet her. I want to conserve resources if possible” Maria hurried through with Nao right behind her. It was a short sprint for the pair.

The light they were seeing did seem to be at a lower level than theirs and it was fortunate that the pair stopped when they did. Otherwise, their hurry would have resulted in a sudden fall from a considerable height and it would have hurt if they had not prepared themselves to take the fall.

“Clear the way. We will be jumping down” Nao yelled and saw Suna drag a teen out of the way. The pair jumped down and made a clear landing.

Once that was done, Maria willed her lamp away so that she could use it again. Since she only had one of them, it would be crucial for her to conserve it.

“Here is the safe. I cannot open it myself but the kid here can. Or so he says. But even so, how do we get out of here with that monster still around?” Suna asked. She somehow managed to not jumble her words with her fast pace.

Maria could only look at Suna with a fond look, her eyes taking in the unhurt form of her friend. It had been foolish for them to send Suna in here alone but the demoness had made a considerably good effort to keep herself steady.

The kid at Suna’s side seemed amused as well and his neck instantly moved his face toward Maria’s direction when she looked at him.

There was something eerily familiar about his smile but Maria was sure she had never seen him before. Maybe she was projecting someone onto this kid from her previous life? Did she not have that cousin that visited her once and grinned the whole time.

“So you are her friends? Wow, it must have been tough to get here without any previous preparation. How did you know to carry a holy lamp? I carried this chain as a family heirloom but you are different right?” the kid asked, just as hyper as Suna.

Suddenly, Maria felt like she was seeing two Suna in front of her and that did not feel like a pleasant thought to have.

“Calm down. We are not going to tell you anything till we are sure we can trust you. Also, we will need an activation key to get out of here safely. The guards should have had it but I never bothered to check. The only other way out of here will be to slaughter the monster but that would attract all kinds of attention to us” Nao explained, her voice tense.

Both the alternates seemed impossible for them to achieve. Well, they could kill their way out but it would be the worst-case scenario.

“The guard carries the key? We might be in luck. I have been observing the guards for a few days and noticed a pattern in their movement. Someone would be here in a few hours to collect the prize. We can just swipe the key then and get away with the loot” the kid injected himself into their conversation with a grin.

The kid seemed unbothered as he received three bewildered looks aimed his way. There was a cheer in his tone which made Maria think of happier times.

This kid was not worried about what would happen to him. Anyone else in his condition would have been scared shitless but not the kid.

He seemed to be finding this situation to be humorous.

“And why should we believe you? What if you are trying to lead us into a trap and are actually on the guard’s side?” Nao asked with a suspicious tone. Her concern was valid since Maria was afraid of the same thing.

Suna was the only one who still felt strongly that this kid was more trouble than it was worth. It felt like being saddled with babysitting duty when you did not sign up for it.

“Well, you have nothing to lose here. And the beast will also be weaker in the morning hours with natural sunlight. The book said that so you can at least trust it if you don’t want to trust me on this topic” the kid replied and Maria nodded.

The book had said that and the kid was right. Sunlight and day hours did make for a better escape time than the dark hours of the night.

Maria was curious about the kid and his ability to gauge time. He had somehow been able to tell what time it was but that could also be because he had a watch or phone. Maria did not need to be tense in his presence.

She also had her friends with her so it was going to be alright even if the kid did attack them. He would not get very far and Nao would have an excuse to kill him.

“Fine kid. We’ll take your suggestion and co-operate this time because there is no downside to your plan. But try anything funny and you will be killed by me” Nao positioned herself in a threatening way in front of the other two.

She was trying to be intimidating and scare the kid. The kid flinched at the look but his body was not tense.

Maria felt like the kid was putting up an act of being scared but Nao seemed satisfied enough with the reaction she got. Maybe Maria was just reading too much into things here and nothing was wrong.

Kids were known to be rather unpredictable and this one seemed a tad bit unusual as well.

And then the countdown begin and they started to plan their escape. Their window of opportunity was slim and crucial.