"Why do these ghouls like to stay around the slums?" Zaen mumbled into the microphone, "Do they love this disgusting smell?"
He was on the hunt for the third ghoul inside a slum. However, it wasn't the same slum that he had visited last night. It was a different one that was situated on the outskirts of Lizan.
One of the great political leaders once said, "If you truly want to know about the greatness of a country, you should take a look at the lives of the ones living in the slums. Because that's where you'll get to see the real effects of corruption, and the damage it does to a person, a community and a society."
The parts of the cities, where these slums were located are quite congested. There were more people living in these places than the land could sustain. Because of this, people living there hardly enjoy even the basic amenities. Of course, the government promised to help them out once every 6 years, that is, during the presidential elections but no matter who won, the promises were never fulfilled.
The lanes were narrow and the houses were nothing but a single room without the facilities of a proper toilet or kitchen. Even the rooms were overcrowded, with around 7 to 10 people living, eating and sleeping in the same room. People were forced to use common washrooms and water taps to get by. There was no proper sewage system in place which led to a whole another issue.
Sewage water stagnated in open surface drains, hence giving rise to the horrendous smell that Zaen was forced to tolerate. Thankfully he had stored a black pollution mask inside the inventory which was now helping him breathe a bit more comfortably.
"Maybe it's easier for them to find prey there? I mean, no one would bat an eye even if they all go missing." Aeron's voice echoed in his ears, "Either way, I can't see any heat signatures within 3 kilometres radius around you."
Zaen didn't want to clash with the special force again, given how troublesome it proved to be. Also, there was the fact that he had killed an officer. Who knows what they'd do to him had he got caught.
Thankfully, Aeron had a solution for him. Just like Zaen had thought before, Aeron hacked into one of the 20 weather satellites Astranian media houses owned. Aeron planned to not only use the satellites to help Zaen complete his tasks but also keep a lookout for any disturbance.
He also broke into the local PD emergency frequency to gather as much information as he could. Zaen was thankful for Aeron's help, as he no longer needed to blindly follow the artifact's instructions.
Zaen had a couple of good reason as to why he chose to go in the slums to look for a ghoul, instead of other areas. Firstly, among the reasons being that the slums were more densely populated than the other areas in which ghouls were present. Even if something were to go against the plan, Zaen could use the people as cover and get away.
Secondly, most of the people there wouldn't know about his real identity. The slum-dwellers weren't like the rest of the population. They didn't have the resource or the time to waste on watching online streams. Hence Zaen didn't require the 'mask of secrecy' to hide from them. Especially, since the mask had run out of durability and the only way to earn 'uncommon repair kits' was gonna complete the daily quest.
Having these reasons in his mind, he decided to take care of the ghoul that was hiding within the slum during the day. He could hunt for the other two ghouls when the sun went down. He was hoping the darkness would aid him in hiding his presence from the crowd as well as the special force.
"Something is wrong..." Zaen whispered, "The slums are supposed to be densely populated right?"
"Well, yeah. But I don't understand why you're- Dang it! How the heck could I have neglected this?" Zaen could hear Aeron smacking his head with his hands, "Why is no one around you if you're in a slum!?"
"Mm-hmm. That's why I said something is off. Just where is everyone?"
"I'll expand the search radius maybe then I'll find something," Aeron replied and went to work. His fingers flowed over the keyboard like a professional pianist.
Meanwhile, Zaen didn't sit idle either. He took out his prized dagger from the inventory and hid it within his hoodie. He had grown quite familiar with the eeriness of the situation. Never in his wildest dream had he thought of a scenario where he'd have to use the skills he learned in military school after leaving the military, yet there he was, using his talents day in and day out to slay monsters that defied human logic.
Without wasting any time, Zaen started to look for any oddities around him. From what he had heard, there were over ten thousand residents inside the comparatively small slum. Yet he hadn't seen a single soul since entering the slums.
After searching for a minute, Zaen saw a slightly ajar door leading inside one of the houses. it was unlike any house he had seen so far. While the other buildings were maintained in some way, shape or form, this building looked as if someone hadn't lived in it for a long time.
For the first time in ages, sunlight came gushing inside the house as Zaen opened the door. The paint on the walls was peeling off, revealing the hues underneath. The place had been turned upside down. Broken furniture was scattered all over the dusty floor.
Zaen was pretty sure he had never been anywhere inside the slums. However, the scene in front of his eyes reminded him of something. In fact, the entire building reminded him of something. Something he never thought he'd have to see in the real world. His eyes opened wide in shock as his mind began connecting the dots.
There was a reason why this building stood out from the rest... this building didn't belong to their dimension. It belonged to the same dimension as the one in which the Frenzied Ghoul. Suddenly, all of it made sense. This was how the ghouls managed to get to the real dimension. But how did it happen? Did the artifact do this? Was this the reason why no one was around the slums? was everyone dead already? Was he too late?
While Zaen was thinking all this, his feet touched something. It was dark inside the room so he turned on the flashlight of his phone. And what he saw next, shook him to his core. There were dozens upon dozens of corpses inside the room. each of them were torn to pieces, with thick blackened blood splattered all around the floors and the walls. and the worst part? Someone was sitting in the middle, surrounded by the corpses, having the feast of its life.
"No... way..."