After resting for a few hours in the hidden chamber, Su Xiao opened his eyes.
"We're leaving."
This chamber was not a place to stay for long; it was only suitable for brief recovery. The poor conditions could cause infections to open wounds.
Yuna, who had been sitting beside him, had unknowingly leaned her head on Su Xiao's shoulder, gently snoring.
Su Xiao nudged her shoulder, and Yuna immediately jolted awake, jumping to her feet.
"What is it? Are there ghouls?"
Her reaction was perfectly normal. In the 24th Ward, if you didn't stay alert, you were as good as dead.
"The ghouls have left."
Su Xiao got up and moved toward the narrow opening in the flesh-like wall, squeezing through it.
Yuna hesitated for a moment, her claustrophobia showing, but she clenched her teeth and followed Su Xiao through the gap.
Back in the underground tunnels of the 24th Ward, the place was eerily quiet.
Su Xiao had only just entered the 24th Ward and had already encountered several deadly dangers. Compared to his previous missions, like clearing out ghouls in the 14th Ward, this was on a whole different level.
Using his hand-drawn map, Su Xiao navigated through the labyrinthine tunnels, marking each path they took.
After two hours of walking, Su Xiao suddenly stopped.
"Why did you stop?" Yuna asked.
"We've been here before."
Looking at a marking he had made earlier, Su Xiao realized they had looped back. He marked an arrow on his map, indicating they were moving in the wrong direction, further into the 24th Ward instead of toward the surface.
Getting lost was common in this maze of tunnels, but Su Xiao wasn't discouraged. As long as he kept trying and using his map, he was confident they would eventually find their way out.
A sudden thud echoed from nearby, from behind one of the fleshy walls. Someone was fighting.
"It's Arima! That's the sound of his 'Narukami' discharging."
Yuna exclaimed with joy, happy to know that Arima Kishou was still alive.
Su Xiao remained silent, focusing on pinpointing the location of the sound. If they could meet up with Arima, it would be advantageous, as Arima had saved his life by covering their retreat in the first place.
"This way."
Su Xiao quickened his pace, shifting from a fast walk to a run, navigating the tunnels with increasing speed as he got a better understanding of the area.
The sounds of battle grew louder until, finally, Su Xiao spotted Arima Kishou in the distance.
At that moment, Arima wasn't his usual composed self. His upper body was bare, his white hair stained with blood, and his glasses were gone.
"Why won't you talk to us? Is even speaking to us beneath you now?"
An old ghoul with white hair stood before Arima, his voice full of pain and frustration.
"Save your breath. He's no longer..."
Before the other elderly ghoul could finish speaking, Arima raised his 'Narukami' and fired two electric blasts.
Both ghouls dodged quickly, but Arima's 'IXA' was already moving underground. With a swift, brutal motion, spikes shot up from the ground, skewering both ghouls in place.
"Why... Why did you..."
One of the ghouls, his life quickly fading, looked at Arima with a mixture of sorrow and disbelief. He wanted to say more, but death took him before he could utter another word.
Arima's lips moved slightly, as if speaking to the dead ghouls, though no sound came out.
From Su Xiao's vantage point, he could see Arima's side profile, and strangely, his expression seemed melancholic. Was he grieving for the ghouls he had just killed?
Su Xiao's brow furrowed. The two dead ghouls seemed to have respected Arima, almost as if he had once been their leader.
Could it be that the strongest investigator in the CCG had once been the leader of ghouls? The thought was absurd.
"Arima," Yuna called out cautiously, sensing that something was off.
Arima turned to look at Su Xiao and Yuna, his right eye tightly shut.
"You've made it. This mission is over," Arima said.
The atmosphere was tense. Su Xiao didn't say much. The CCG was full of mysteries, and it wouldn't be surprising if Arima had secrets of his own.
Su Xiao's priority was to earn more CCG contribution points. Once he had enough, he could redeem the [Human Gene Enhancement Serum] and the [Crushing Spirit]—both valuable rewards he needed to continue improving himself.
While the situation was strange, Arima had not betrayed them. He had continued fighting ghouls throughout their mission in the 24th Ward and had not done anything to harm them.
"Arima, what was that about? Who were those ghouls?" Yuna asked, not hiding her curiosity.
"They were old friends of mine. They once posed as humans, and I was young and didn't notice. It was many years ago. I never expected to meet them again, this time as enemies."
Arima's lips curled into a bitter smile as blood dripped from his chin.
"Oh, I've had friends like that too," Yuna said, "They were my classmates. I killed them myself."
It wasn't unheard of for ghouls to blend into human society and form friendships with humans, including investigators. The lines could sometimes blur.
Yuna believed Arima's explanation. After all, they had fought together for over half a year, and the bonds forged in battle weren't easily broken by something like this.
But could it really be that simple? Su Xiao wouldn't be so quick to trust. Everyone had their secrets, and it was unwise to spend your days trying to pry into others' private matters.
Leading the way with his map, Su Xiao guided them toward the surface. Arima and Yuna followed close behind.
Each tunnel they passed was carefully marked on the hand-drawn map, which grew more and more detailed. A red arrow indicated the path to the surface, extending longer with each step.
"Footsteps."
Su Xiao halted, listening intently to the sound coming from an adjacent passage.
"Run! It's the White Reaper!" shouted a ghoul, as a group of ten or so ghouls appeared at the far end of the tunnel, only to flee as soon as they saw Arima.
Su Xiao, Yuna, and Arima remained still. All three were exhausted and needed to avoid unnecessary fights.
Arima's reputation clearly preceded him, as most ghouls in the 24th Ward fled at the mere sight of him, allowing the trio to proceed unimpeded.
After another hour of walking, Su Xiao finally saw the large metal door they had passed through when entering the 24th Ward.
Arima opened the door, and once the three had passed through, he slammed it shut and locked it securely.
This door was meant to prevent ghouls from the 24th Ward from escaping to the surface, but how effective it would be was anyone's guess.
As they moved through the straight passage beyond the door, bright light appeared ahead.
It was sunlight. After spending so long underground, Su Xiao had almost forgotten what it felt like. The sunlight was blinding, and he squinted as he stepped into it, returning to the surface and to the human world.
Though their time in the 24th Ward hadn't been long, it felt as if they had been gone for ages.
Taking a deep breath of the fresh, clean air, Su Xiao relished the absence of the faint, bloody stench that had permeated the air of the 24th Ward.
(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.