At the front, Arima Kishou slowly began to back away, gesturing for silence. Su Xiao wasn't a clueless teammate; after nodding at Arima, the three of them quietly started to retreat.
The reason for their caution was that, after turning a corner, they had come across a vast open area filled with at least a thousand monstrous ghouls.
These ghouls were strange, even terrifying. Their skin was pitch black, like charred coal, rough and hardened. Unlike normal ghouls, their kagune were always out in the open, and all of them had tails like appendages extending from their backs—Bikaku, a type of kagune.
But perhaps the most disturbing feature was that these ghouls didn't have eyes. Their eyes seemed to have regressed, now covered by a layer of hard, grayish-white shell.
Despite Su Xiao and his group being visible to these ghouls, none of them seemed to notice the three intruders.
Once they had backed away a safe distance, Arima let out a long breath.
"I've encountered these ghouls once before. They hunt using sound, not sight, and are incredibly hard to deal with. If we provoke them in this number, we won't stand a chance."
It was clear Arima knew some of the secrets of the 24th Ward. At least, in the original storyline, Su Xiao had never seen these primitive ghouls or this eyeless variety.
"So, what now?" Yuna looked at Arima, clearly viewing him as the leader.
"Find another path," Arima said. Su Xiao stayed silent, and Yuna had no objections either.
They began searching for alternate routes, but after two hours, they discovered a troubling fact. Aside from the path where the eyeless ghouls resided, all the other routes were dead ends.
According to the compass, that direction was the only way to the surface.
The three of them sat in a tunnel, forming a small circle, discussing their next steps. Su Xiao had somehow procured a notebook and pen and was sketching out something.
"Here, here, and here—these are the areas we haven't explored yet. Based on the map I've drawn, the 24th Ward seems to be shaped like a funnel."
He continued, "The wider end of the funnel leads deeper into the 24th Ward, and the narrower end leads toward the surface. That's why it's possible to navigate out as long as we have a fixed direction."
Looking at the 17 dead ends they had already encountered, Su Xiao concluded, "This is the only way out."
Yuna stared at Su Xiao in awe.
"How did you do that? Did you memorize every path we've taken?"
Not only was Yuna, the usually erratic girl, shocked, but even Arima was looking at Su Xiao with surprise.
Su Xiao twirled the pen in his hand. "I had a rather unique 'job' before, where I'd often have to infiltrate certain places and locate specific people. It's just a habit from that."
Yuna thought for a moment. "Sounds like a hitman's work."
"Similar in nature, but different in purpose," Su Xiao replied, glancing at the two of them. "So, what's the plan? Do we wait for the 24th Ward to change its layout again, or do we try to sneak through that dangerous area?"
After a brief moment of thought, Arima spoke first. "Our supplies won't last until the next shift in the Ward's structure."
Yuna and Arima only had enough food and water to last four days. While they could survive until the next shift by starving, that would drastically lower their combat effectiveness.
Su Xiao still had enough supplies, but he didn't want to waste time being trapped here. Time was precious in this derived world.
"As long as we don't make any noise, those ghouls won't detect us," Arima added, seemingly ready to take the risk.
"Alright then, let's take the gamble," Su Xiao agreed.
Arima and Yuna stood up, prepared to move forward.
"Since we've decided to take the risk, I've got a plan," Su Xiao suddenly said.
"What's your idea?" Yuna asked, curious.
"Since these ghouls hunt by sound, we can set up a noise source at this location," Su Xiao pointed to a spot on his map, "then wait here," he pointed to another location, "and once the sound goes off, it'll draw their attention. That's when we make our move."
Su Xiao had no interest in fighting those eyeless ghouls head-on. From Arima's reaction, it was clear that they would be a formidable enemy.
"That could work. I've used a similar tactic before, and it worked well."
"But where are we going to get a sound source?" Yuna asked.
Smiling, Su Xiao pulled out a cellphone from his pocket, quickly tapping on the screen.
"I've set it for five minutes. That should be enough."
With that, Su Xiao placed the phone on the ground, and the three of them dashed off toward their destination.
Soon, they arrived at a dead-end, close to where the eyeless ghouls were. They crouched and waited.
Not long after, the cheerful sound of music echoed through the tunnels. "Doo, doo, doo… doo-doo-doo..."
Yuna, the eccentric one, even started dancing, her hands moving rhythmically.
"It's my favorite song!" she exclaimed, as if in another world entirely.
Su Xiao could only shake his head in exasperation, and even Arima turned his head slightly.
A few seconds after the music began, the ground started to tremble with the sound of rapid footsteps.
"Boom, boom, boom..."
It felt like an army was charging through the tunnels. The three of them heard it clearly, coming from the distance.
Before long, the mass of footsteps faded away, leaving the three of them standing at the ready, exchanging glances before they sprinted toward the exit.
Time was limited, and there was no telling when those eyeless ghouls might return.
Arima led the way, Yuna followed, and Su Xiao took up the rear, the same formation as before.
In just over ten seconds, they reached the corner where they had first seen the open area filled with ghouls.
Suddenly, Arima stopped and raised his hand, signaling for them to halt.
Su Xiao immediately froze in place and looked at the open area ahead.
Though most of the ghouls had been lured away by the noise, a few still remained in the area.
"What now?" Yuna whispered, her voice barely audible.
"Move slowly, and don't make a sound," Arima instructed, his voice just as soft.
Arima began to walk carefully forward, Yuna following right behind him.
Su Xiao stayed behind, not moving yet. Arima shot him a confused glance. Su Xiao pointed behind him, then toward the two of them, motioning for them to go ahead while he covered the rear. The message was clear: if all three moved at once, they'd make too much noise. He'd stay back to ensure nothing followed them.
Arima nodded, making a gesture for caution.
Yuna gave a thumbs-up, choosing to wait while Arima crossed first.
Su Xiao's decision wasn't some self-sacrificing act. They were all in this together, and there was no room for anyone to mess up.
Arima's pace was slow but steady. The open area was around 200 meters across—not too long, but not short either.
In less than three minutes, Arima had crossed safely.
"Roar…"
A low growl broke the silence, causing all three to freeze. One of the eyeless ghouls had been awakened by another's kagune.
The ghoul grunted, shoved the kagune away, and settled back into its slumber.
Yuna was now in the middle of the area, surrounded by four or five of the eyeless ghouls. She moved with extreme caution.
In the rear, Su Xiao knelt down, pressing his ear to the ground to listen for vibrations.
For now, it was safe. The ghouls they had lured away hadn't returned yet.
Su Xiao began to move forward, his every step carefully measured.
(End of Chapter)
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Translator's Note :- I am Not that familiar with a lot of the fictional worlds mentioned in the story. So if I make a mistake naming something please correct me by writing a paragraph comment on the mistake. Thank you.