Chapter 8

I closed the door and the automatic lock activated. The door was really sturdy and since there's no way to open the door from inside, they won't be able to get out no matter how much they tried.

"H-huh? Who closed the door? HEY OPEN UP."

"What the hell...hey where's the Jolkev kid. He isn't there anymore."

"Shit did that bastard escape somehow? Shit shit shit...boss is gonna kill us if he finds out."

"O-OI KEZ, OPEN THE DOOR. We can give you m-money and stuff."

'What a bunch of dumbasses. Couldn't you at least make a decent offer at least...sigh. I wanna head home right now but I don't think I will find another opportunity like this to start my business.'

BANG!!!

"Huh what was that?"

I immediately snapped out of my thoughts and hid in a room. The sound I just heard now was likely from someone opening the front door or aka the exit door I was aiming for.

'Shit was there a 4th npc? How did I not think of that? I got this complacent because I haven't done anything similar in a long time???'

I couldn't believe it. I forgot to consider the possibility of there being a 4th person. It was very unlike me.

'No…it was more as if…I intuitively knew there were only 3 people. So who opened the doo-...'

"Fuck. I recognize that door slam…That's definitely Jerome."

As if to confirm my hypothesis, a loud roar reverberated across the whole building.

"I'M GONNA KILL THAT CHEEKY LITTLE BASTARD. I'LL DEFINITELY RIP YOU APART."

'Well, it's definitely Jerome. But how did he come back already? Sh-shouldn't he be dead? I'm pretty sure that demon at the warehouse was pretty powerful. W-weapon…I need a weapon.'

I grabbed the crowbar on the floor that I previously didn't use. At the very same time, I heard footsteps heading towards Clinton's room.

'This is bad. Should I try running? No, I can't run away since the exit door makes a loud noise when anyone opens it and I can't outrun someone who has a better rank than me. Then should I fight? Then I should fight him 1v1. I'm not sure about the differences between rank and rank but if I recall correctly from the book then there shouldn't be too much difference…or is there? Ah fuck it, we ball. I'm definitely more experienced in fighting than someone who can't even knock a kid out with a punch to the solar plexus.'

I took cover behind the door. I picked a chunk of a brick that was on the floor. I realized that I couldn't let him free the other three. I have to grab his attention and deal some significant damage with a sneak attack and continuously attack him. Normally something like that would be as easy as taking a cand-...never mind let's use a different phrase. Hmm ah yes, it'd be like a piece of cake however there are two problems. One, I have a body that is weaker than my previous one and two, this Jerome guy is higher ranked than me. I still didn't understand how big the difference between two ranks can be. However, I do have the element of surprise on my side. Also that insanity skill…

'Well, you never know until you try. Activate Insanity'

…

…

…

'What the hell, why is it not activating? Should I just act insane? I still don't understand the condition for activating insanity.'

"Vfnvfivfvfou vnjofvnofviof pfnfovnofvnfoiv"

'I tried mumbling some random bullshit but it still didn't activate. Sigh, do I have to fight without it? Shit I don't have any time to waste since he's getting closer to the door…why is my luck so shit?'

I peeked into the hallway and found Jerome's back turned towards me. I strained my tricep muscles as hard as I could. My heart started pounding. Throwing was fortunately one of the skills that I somewhat mastered in my previous life. I aimed perfectly at the back of Jerome's head but…

BOOOM

I instinctively dodged to the side and looked back at the place I was hiding with horror. On the concrete wall, there was a rock stuck to it and the wall around it was cracked. For a mundane rock to deal that amount of damage to the wall…it definitely wouldn't be humanly possible.

"Y-YOU…DID YOU THINK YOU COULD HIDE FROM ME?"

I quickly snapped out of my thoughts and threw the brick aimed perfectly at his forehead. I knew it wouldn't do any damage but I just wanted to distract him so I could think even if it was just a few seconds.

"Shallow tricks like that won't even be able to scratch me…RAHGHHH"

Jerome rotated his shoulder and straight up punched a brick I threw with tremendous force. The brick I threw exploded into countless pieces as soon as the punch perfectly connected. I couldn't help but be in awe.

' T-this…So this is what someone with mana is actually capable of doing..hahaha it was dumb to even think for a second I could win this fight. I'm going to die for sure..aha..haha..hahahah'

[Insanity has been activated]

I didn't have the time to rejoice the sweet notification of the system. Jerome instantly charged at me like a raging bull. Normally, I wouldn't be able to dodge this charge even if I was in my previous body, however with insanity's buff, I barely dodged to my left. Jerome's figure collided with the wall behind me headfirst and broke through the wall.

'What kind of drug is this guy on???'

I hoped he might be a little injured after hitting the wall at such a force but I was dead wrong. Before the dust cleared, Jerome lunged forward with a thunderous blow again, aiming to overpower me in a single strike. But I was ready this time. I dived to my sides again and started running towards the exit room. I heard a thunderous crash behind me but I didn't have the luxury to look back. I approached the steel exit door which was tightly shut with a bolt and reached out to the bolt.

But before I could even touch the bolt, I sensed danger behind me. But I wasn't nervous. The next sequence of actions were pre-planned and as if I was robot controlled by a remote my back leg anchored me firmly to the ground, providing a stable foundation for a rotation. As I shifted my weight from the back leg to the front leg, my quadriceps and gluteal muscles also engaged, propelling my body forward with controlled force. In a split second, my whole upper body rotated and I tightened my grip on the crowbar that I was now holding with both my hands. I made sure to coat my triceps with mana fused with insanity. Then with my triceps, I extended my arms and swung the crowbar with as much force I could possibly muster and it collided perfectly with Jerome's fist that was a moment away from smashing my skull.

BANG