Number 7

She had to fight back.

There was no other option.

Kristina had given up on resisting at first, throwing it away as pointless.

But even if it was pointless, she couldn't allow this man to do such a thing without at least fighting back.

'Even if he kills me... even if he beats me... I can't let him do this to me.'

For if Kristina had allowed this man to do as he pleased and impregnate her, then the consequences wouldn't just be limited to her.

They would spread to her father's name.

'Right now... he can just throw me aside.'

'But if the rumors spread...'

'He won't even be able to do that.'

'For his name will have already been ruined.'

Yes, this was the thing that her father cared for more than anything else in the world.

His name.

His status.

His position.

And if Kristina dared to tarnish the Engel name, then she herself would no longer be an angel in the eyes of her father - but a devil.

----

She began by doing as the man ordered.

By acting as if she was going to obey him, the man would let his guard down - and there would lie her chance to escape.

She didn't care what happened afterwards. As long as she could get out of this room without any bindings on her, that would be enough.

If she needed, she would escape into the fields of corn.

If she ended up dying somewhere in the wilderness, then at least this man wouldn't be able to use her against her father.

"Al... right."

The girl shyly obeyed the order of the man, who drew closer as he too began to undress himself.

However, the moment he began to do so, the girl ran.

Her bindings had been freed so that she could perform the action with him, and her gag had been undone in order to speak to her father.

Because of these things, and because she had not once shown any sign of disobedience, she had created a temporary lapse in the judgment of the man - which allowed her to run at that moment.

"HEY!!! GET BACK HERE!!!"

The man shouted out to her as she darted out of the room, however she rushed down the hallway, almost jumping down the flight of stairs while followed by the man.

"You little..."

Tripping over his pants, the man was delayed according to plan, unable to run as fast as he would otherwise have been able to.

In any other situation, he would have caught her immediately - but that was exactly why it worked, if only for a moment.

The girl rushed downstairs, bursting out into a living room where a group of thugs looked up to her with confused expressions.

"Huh?"

"Hey, what's the girl doing here?"

"Isn't she supposed to be locked upstairs?"

"YOU IDIOTS!!! GET HER!!!!"

The shouts of the man atop the stairs reached the men, who quickly realized what was happening.

"Ah."

However before they could get up, Kristina darted the other way, heading back into another room.

She closed the door, locking it as quickly as she could before the banging of numerous people filled her ears.

"HEY!!! OPEN UP, GIRL!!!"

"IF YOU DON'T, THEN WE WON'T LET YOU GO SO EASILY!!!"

The girl backed away in fear, the darkness of the room enveloping her.

Where was she?

She didn't even know. Some sort of storage closet, to be sure.

There was no light, so she was trapped in the dark, forced to listen to the banging and shouting of the men outside - numerous of which had gathered at the door.

"If you don't get out of there right now, we're going to kill you!!!"

"Hurry up and unlock the door, girl!!!"

"There's no escape! Now get out here!"

However, as the girl listened to the screaming and banging, she came to a realization.

'They keep on asking me to unlock the door.'

And as she came to this realization, a smile slowly drew itself across her face.

'If they want me to unlock it so badly... then that must mean they don't have a key to unlock it themselves.'

Slowly, the girl's eyes adjusted to the darkness as she looked around her to realize that she was surrounded by a number of shelves, filled with all sorts of kitchen foods and ingredients.

Bags of flour, barrels and crates of vegetables and oil, and the likes.

While the shouting continued, the girl waited.

She didn't know for certain if her theory was true.

However, soon enough, the shouting died down.

"Tch... keep watch over this room. Wait until she comes out. You hear me? Don't take your eyes off this door for a second."

She heard the voice of the one who was almost certainly the boss - the head kidnapper who had called her father.

'They don't have a key. If they did, they wouldn't have to watch over this room. They'd just get the key and unlock it, and that would be that.'

She was cornered.

Opening this door would mean giving up.

However, on the other hand, if she were to remain in this room forever, what would happen?

Perhaps she could dig her way out, or find some other means of escape. If she could catch them off guard, she would be able to run off.

There were jugs of water in the corner, so food and water wouldn't be an issue. She could remain in here as long as she needed to come up with a plan.

All the while, the man's plan had been delayed.

The door was metal, unlike most of the building, so even if they found an ax or something along those lines, breaking in wouldn't be so easy.

'And if they really do intend on doing such a thing... I suppose killing myself will always be an option.'

The girl's eyes made their way to a particular shelf which had numerous supplies and tools for preparation of food - knives included.

As soon as she noticed this, the girl grabbed a nearby stool, standing atop it as she found herself faced with the blades.

Taking one that resembled a butcher's knife, the girl looked at it with intensity as she held it.

Then, bringing it close to her own neck, she gulped as she pressed the blade to her skin.

Her breathing intensified, and she froze in that position, waiting there for around 30 seconds before slowly taking the blade away.

'Not yet.'

----

'Just how long should I wait here?'

As she had planned, food and water wasn't an issue.

There were numerous barrels and buckets, so she was able to make a corner of the storage room into a restroom. As unsanitary as it was, it would allow her to wait in here for at least a week, if not more.

She didn't know exactly how many hours she had been trapped in the room, but she knew that it was more than just a few. Had it already been a day?

There were numerous kitchen tools which she was able to use in order to saw through some of the wooden walls, however she had to be quiet about such a thing.

As difficult as it was for them, her kidnappers would barge in with every effort if they felt that she wasn't trapped inside the room. She had to make them think that she was just being stubborn and waiting it out.

'If they believe that I'll come out at some point, there isn't any real reason for them to make any huge effort to get me out of here.'

Earlier, she had heard an immense amount of shuffling and banging from outside the door. From the noise, Kristina predicted that they were barricading the door just in case she decided to come out.

'In case someone who is on guard falls asleep, I still won't be able to get out. There will have to be someone present to move the furniture out of the way so the door can be opened.'

With this, the kidnappers had covered every possibility.

The thought that she would try to carve her way out likely didn't even cross their minds.

'The thought that I would kill myself probably didn't either.'

With these thoughts, the girl continued to work, cutting into the wooden boards as she made progress.

'A bit more... quietly... quietly...'

And finally, a piece came loose.

The girl held it so as to not create a ruckus, slowly putting it down before witnessing what was behind it.

'Ah.'

A metal sheet.

She wouldn't be able to cut this.

'What if I go down instead?'

The girl looked at the floor with this thought in mind, however the thought was immediately purged from her mind.

Even if she went downwards, she would hit the soil. When this happened, she wouldn't be able to dig a hole with mere kitchen tools. Using a spoon or a ladle would take weeks before she got anywhere.

She would run out of food and water well before then. In a worst case scenario, the tools might even break before she was able to escape.

So what?

Was she supposed to just resign to her fate?

Was she just supposed to accept whatever her kidnappers had intended, without putting up any further fight?

Or perhaps she should just kill herself here and now and be done with the matter?

'No... there's another option.'

"Hey. I want to get out. I'll open the door, so can you move the furniture?"

Speaking up, the girl spoke with a fearful tone - putting on a perfect act which wouldn't be seen through so easily.

Perhaps because the fear was real.

"Huh? Oh... oh.... you wanna come out, don't you? Hahaha... I guess being in there for so long has made you really bored. And you've probably realized that you can't escape anyways, so you're just prolonging the inevitable."

With a smug tone, the man replied to the girl as the sounds of shuffling and scraping could be heard from behind the door.

"Everything's been moved. You can come out now."

Opening the door, the girl found herself faced with a fat man - likely around 20 years old if she had to guess.

He smirked as he approached the girl with a rope - he had likely been ordered to bind her as soon as she came out.

"Now just be a good girl and don't make any sudden movements. Alright?"

"Hey... could you... could you help me?"

Looking up to the man with pleading eyes, the girl held her hands behind her back in a timid manner.

"Hah? Help you? Why would I do something like that? You should understand your position-"

"If you help me, there might be a reward in it for you... something much bigger than whatever your boss has promised you."

Beckoning for the man to come closer, the girl seemed to call him to lean in as she whispered.

"Hmm... I guess I'll hear you out."

The man shifted his eyes around him, making sure he wasn't being listened to before he leaned in as the girl spoke into his ears.

"If you help me escape... then I'll let you get away with your life."

These were the chilling words that the girl whispered to the man, immediately followed by a sharp pain to the back of his neck.

"EH?"

However that pain was immediately quenched, for at that moment, the man's neck had been sliced clean through with a butcher's knife.

His head fell limp as the body dropped to the ground, a pool of blood forming around it as the man's expression stiffened with shock.

"Ah... sorry. I lied."

Flicking the blood off the knife, the girl looked down on the man with satisfaction, a devious smile slowly drawing itself across her face.

She quivered, and everything within her body told her that such a thing was horribly wrong.

But in that instant, glaring down upon the man who laid dead on the floor, the girl could only feel a single emotion which far overwhelmed any fear she had experienced.

"That... felt good."

And then, her eyes focused on the bedrooms upstairs.

"I want to do it again."

----

It was late at night, so sneaking around wasn't exactly difficult.

While the dropping of the body and the movement of the furniture had made some noise, it wasn't exactly earth shattering. All the doors upstairs seemed to be closed, so anyone sleeping in a bedroom wouldn't have heard much.

'How many are there?'

She tried to recall how many she had seen before coming up with the number five.

'So there are four left... but if I take care of that one, the others won't have a head to rely on anymore.'

If there was one thing her father had taught her, it was to never bother with subordinates of another.

"Try to cut off a subordinate, and a replacement will be found. It's like the head of a hydra. You can destroy them as many times as you want, but they'll never stop growing back. However if you aim for the heart - the very thing that those heads cannot live without - there is where you will find victory."

She would aim for the heart - or the head, in this case.

'Which room is he in?'

The girl looked around the hallway, however the answer was obvious.

The biggest one.

'People are pretty predictable, aren't they?'

Covered in blood, the girl slowly approached the door, quietly opening it to reveal a large bedroom.

This one was in far better condition than her own, and on opening the door Kristina heard the snores of a young man.

'It's him.'

Slowly but surely, the door opened just enough for the girl to slip in. Closing the door and locking it, she tiptoed over to him, looking at the man who laid with his mouth wide open, drooling on his pillow as his body contorted in an uncomfortable position.

'Where do I start?'

Sliding the knife out as she brandished the blade, the girl looked up and down the man.

'I suppose after all... it has to be there.'

The man's legs were spread, almost begging the girl to attack him in the unguarded spot.

Raising the knife, the girl grinned to herself, whispering to him as she held it.

"If you planned on using that to ruin my life... then I'll just take it away and ruin yours."

----

"AGH!!!! AGH! UGH! UGH!!! AGH!!!!"

The man was unable to even move, his shouts of agony piercing the ears of the girl who held the knife, dripping with fresh blood and bits of flesh.

The man couldn't even speak as he continued to shout and blabber in an unintelligible manner, the pain far overwhelming him to the point where any reason was impossible.

Blood covered his pants as he held his groin, shouting out with tears and writhing on the ground.

"Do you really have the right to make such a fit... after all you threatened to do to me?"

The girl looked down upon the man, a horrifying smile overcoming her as enjoyment overcame her expression.

"I'll teach you a lesson - peasant."

Walking over to the man, the girl grabbed his hand, forcefully taking it in her hand with a smile.

He was far too weak. The pain must have rendered him unable to even fight back against a small girl.

"When someone is born an elite, it isn't because they've been handed everything on a silver platter."

Slamming his hand to the ground, the girl placed it flat as if the floor was a cutting board, raising the knife as she spoke to the man with a demented tone.

"The only thing they've been handed is expectation."

Slamming the knife down, the girl chopped off the tips of the man's fingers, yielding another screech out of him.

Yet even so - he was powerless.

His struggle contained not the slightest bit of strength, allowing the girl to easily hold him down.

"The expectation to be better than everyone... in everything."

Raising the knife once more, the girl began to chop the fingers as if slicing carrots, making one cut after another as the screams continued.

"And yet... you underestimated an elite - and merely wrote her off as an incapable little girl."

Once she had finished, the man's agony continued as he shouted, lifting up his arm which was now handless as he glared at the girl with horror.

Then, with a delighted smile, the girl gathered up the pieces as she investigated them, blood dripping from her hands all the while.

Throwing them up into the air like confetti, the rain of flesh, bone, and blood scattered onto the ground around them as she giggled to herself.

"That was your mistake."

----

"HEY!! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON IN HERE!?!?!"

"OPEN UP!!!"

The shouts of the other thugs and the banging of the door was a familiar situation to the girl, however she didn't pay it any mind.

Once again, she was trapped.

Trapped in a room where exiting would lead to a scenario where she would be doomed to the wills of the men outside that door.

Looking at the butchered body of the man, the girl smiled to herself as she plopped into the bed - this one far more comfortable than the previous.

Once again, she had food.

She had something to drink.

And she would stay in here as long as it took to catch those men off guard.

'Being an elite... means being able to overcome any situation - no matter how impossible.'

----

A certain story was reported in a backwater ranch - one so removed from society that the story eventually died down as an urban legend.

Five men were found in a home, butchered and sliced up, completely torn piece by piece from their bodies.

Many bite marks had been found on one of the bodies, and the culprit had escaped without a trace.

Numerous suspicious things were found inside the house. One storage room had boards which had been ripped up, and even a bucket with human waste in it.

Blood was absolutely everywhere, dripped all over the house as if someone were walking around covered in it.

The bodies were all of different levels of decay, as if they had all been slaughtered a few days after another.

It was a nightmare.

The police who had discovered the incident quickly covered it up to avoid the spread of panic, and no similar incidents ever occurred.

However, to those who had discovered the scene, it was forever burned into their minds as a house of madness.

And the fact that the culprit was likely still out there somewhere in society was a terrifying thought indeed.

----

Marcus was made aware of everything.

At the moment of her death, Seven had invaded the mind of the woman temporarily, reading her life's memories before returning to his Host.

'That... is the woman I killed.'

She was a tool of slaughter.

Someone who had gone on to kill countless people, having developed a taste for mutilation unlike anything imaginable.

The experience she had as a child had corrupted her, destroying her mind to the point where she couldn't live without such sensations.

This was what brought her to the hotel.

'A place where humans are procured like livestock, for the customers to feed upon.'

That... was the thing that Marcus was fighting.

'After all... this place needs to be destroyed... without mercy.'

Gripping his fist, Marcus turned as he left the scene of the woman's death, not looking back as he headed to the hotel.

'Seven. No matter who I face... if they are a supporter of this hotel, I won't hold back on them. I'll give them a single chance, and if they refuse that chance, I will destroy them.'

[Heh... that's right, Marcus.]

[Towards such people... towards such filth... there isn't any need to hold back.]

[Now you're sounding a little more like a MONSTER.]

'If destroying them makes me a monster, then what does that make them?'

Posing this question, the man asked the creature within his mind, after which a period of silence ensued.

However after a few moments, he received an answer.

[Humans.]

----