"So…you come here often?" Arthur asked as the three walked down an old alleyway filled with debris. Their footsteps echoed through the patchwork ground as the misaligned tiles created an uneven surface.
"Don't even start with me." Welt disgruntledly tapped the end of his staff against the murky tiles and bitterly cursed, "That jerk of a Captain! Making me babysit when I'm bad with kids!"
"I'm not that young, you know?" Arthur responded with a light tap on Paul's shoulder, a subtle hint for him to cue in.
"Yes, Arthur is a fine young man who can even use aura, which is an extraordinary feat for someone his age," Paul calmly added.
"If he can use aura, then I can cast tier-four magic. Besides, weren't you against him joining the strike force?!" Welt couldn't help but scoff at Paul.
"Well, I was, but then Carl brought up a good point that I didn't realize." Tilting to one side than the other, Paul carefully stretched his neck as a subtle cracking sound resonated through the area.
"Oh, and what's that?" Welt muttered, pretending to care about what Paul had to say.
"Arthur would be safer by my side than patrolling the streets alone," Paul confidently replied.
Paul pridefully held out his chest as if he were stating the obvious intentions behind Carl's actions. It made sense that David would have been careless the last time he and Arthur went out on patrol. After all, he was probably recovering from a hangover, so it was a miracle that David even showed up for work.
"Okay, and why am I here?" Welt asked.
"Isn't it obvious? It's for team synergy." Paul's short and concise answer made them stare at him dumbfoundedly.
"And how do you suppose we synergize if we aren't doing anything?" Welt sarcastically asked.
"Simple, that's why we're here in the slums. Usually, someone will pick a fight with us, and then we just beat them up and move on. If we need more training, we can rinse and repeat this tactic until we're satisfied." The elaboration from Paul on his usual training tactic caused a weary smile to surface on Arthur's face.
"Paul…that sounds like we're terrorizing the citizens." Arthur pointed out with a sense of guilt.
"That's exactly what this muscle head wants us to do, kid." Welt returned a sharp remark that saw through Paul's actions.
"Don't worry, it's not terrorizing if they're criminals." Paul dragged the winged spear across the ground, creating a faint line as it bounced against the rocks sticking out of the ground, and added, "Though it is odd…back in the day, we would normally get into a fight the moment we step foot here."
Welt stood still as he carefully thought about Paul's words. Back when Welt patrolled the slums with Cain, they had to walk around with their backs towards each other at times to finish their route safely. It was beyond odd, to say the least, as homeless people would be seen at each corner. Yet they had been wandering around for the past hour without seeing a single soul.
Welt stared at the opened windows on the adjacent buildings. Noticing this, Arthur and Paul both stopped in their tracks and scanned their surroundings.
"What are we looking for?" Arthur's eyes frantically scanned the open windows and empty clotheslines that stretched beyond the skies in the confined alley.
"Anything, whether it's a shadow or stray animals," Welt replied.
A clear blue orb of light formed near the tip of Welt's staff as he swung it in the air. The light emitted from the orb peered through the thin white window curtains, bringing light into the dark houses.
"Do you see anything, Paul?" Welt asked.
"No…the room looks deserted," Paul answered as the orb moved towards the next window on the other side. "This room also looks abandoned."
Soon, they repeated this process several more times with a growing concern. Even Arthur, who occasionally looked through the window as well, was in disbelief; it seemed as if the rooms were ransacked as furniture was broken and thrown around. Despite the poor conditions in the last ten houses they examined, no blood was seen.
"This is going to take too long. Step back, Arthur." Paul gestured for Arthur to move out of the way. In front of him was a wooden door, and judging by the hinges on the door frame, it was clear the door swung inwards. "Keep quiet for a bit, Arthur. I need to listen."
Taking a firm stance, Paul slightly bent his knees as his foot landed with the entire weight of his body beneath the doorknob. A faint splintering sound could be heard as the rotten wooden frame gave way under the initial blow. Seeing the door fling open, Paul waved at Welt to send the orb in first to illuminate the room.
Paul placed his spear against the wall near the entrance and unsheathed the iron sword hanging on his belt. When he entered the room, an awful stench permeated the air. It was revolting to the point that Welt nearly puked the contents of his stomach the moment the door opened.
Welt quickly reached into his pockets before pulling out two navy blue handkerchiefs. As his staff hovered over them, a tiny magic circle formed on the fabric's surface. It was a simple design, featuring two wavy lines in the center to cleanse the surrounding air with an outer circle that would set the spell's duration.
"Tie this around the lower half of your face before going in. Make sure it covers your nose and mouth," Welt said while handing Arthur the fabric.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Arthur nodded as he followed Welt's instructions. Each step they took caused the wooden floorboards to creak loudly. Multiple cobwebs were in each room's corner as Arthur dragged his finger across the surface of a wooden table. Examining the dust that covered his fingertip. From the amount of dust coating each furniture, it was clear that what happened here occurred within the past two weeks.
"We'll check the first floor together, then move to the second. Stay no more than one room apart." Paul's strict instructions caused a sense of urgency as Welt and Arthur nodded in response.
Once they began their search, Arthur closed the door that Paul kicked open and followed their lead. Room by room, they scoured every inch, checking for any possible clues, but as the stench grew stronger, Paul and Welt looked at each other with uneasy gazes. Each room they investigated looked like a storm had blown by. Any wooden furniture that wasn't blown to bits was toppled onto the ground, and the decorations that were hung on the wall were smashed into pieces.
Finally, they reached the last door on the first floor, and judging by how putrid the smell had gotten, it was most likely where the body was. Paul stared at Arthur and then at the stairs leading to the second floor. His eyes examined the nearby surroundings before gesturing at Arthur to push the wooden drawer over. The wooden drawer scraped against the floor as it was dragged down the hall and pushed against the white door.
"Seeing how this door opens outwards, we'll block it for now and check the second floor," Paul stated.
Arthur knelt down and inspected the faint traces of the paint peeling off from the small gap between the door and the floor. With a worried look, he turned to the other two.
"Don't worry," Welt tapped the wooden door and then the drawer with his staff; soon, two translucent rectangular boxes formed, encasing both objects. "This should be good for now; if there's anything in there, it won't be able to get out without me noticing."
"Arthur, the space on the second floor is less open; keep your spear close and make sure it doesn't get obstructed." The words that came from Paul were the last bits of instructions left for him to say. At this point, he couldn't shake off the awful feeling in his gut that something was off with the entire building. "Also, could you use your aura to bring me my spear?"
"Yes, give me a second," Arthur replied.
Arthur looked back the way they came and saw Paul's spear resting at the entrance of the building. He extended his hand toward it, and a transparent white aura flew out and embedded itself into the weapon. In a blink of an eye, it flew towards them and hovered beside Arthur.
I guess Paul was telling the truth.
Welt's eyes followed the spear as it remained suspended in mid-air; a brief moment of surprise flickered in his mind, but now wasn't the time for that. Paul had already taken a step onto the staircase, and Arthur was right behind him; since he was the last one, his job was to support them and secure an escape room just in case.
"Good, keep it there. If anything makes any sudden movements, hurl my spear at them," Paul advised.
They slowly advanced up the staircase as Paul's gaze focused on what was before them. Once he could see beyond the top of the stairs, numerous doors came into view. It was a long hallway with three doors on each side, all leading towards an open space at the very end of the hall. The murky atmosphere on the second floor made the hairs on their necks stand at all ends.
Witnessing Paul's change in expression, Welt tapped the empty space behind him, creating a translucent barrier. Similarly, he repeated the same actions to his left and right, making another set of barriers roughly two meters long to block the two closet doors.
It was odd, no matter how Paul looked at it. Normally, he could see a hundred meters in front of him regardless of how dark it was, yet it seemed like something was preventing that. The moldy hallway and decaying wood were signs that the house had to be abandoned for years as the maintenance was neglected; however, the first floor's condition was nothing like the second. It was as if the second floor had aged greatly compared to the first. The paint on the wall was peeled off, accompanied by a musty odor. While the air was thick with humidity.
"Welt, can you send a light source forward?" Paul calmly asked without looking back.
"Leave it to me." Mana particles slowly gathered at the tip of Welt's staff before forming a sphere. Once the sphere was complete, it flew past Paul and remained several feet in front of them.
"Is that as bright as you can make it?" The sudden question from Paul made Welt frown as his lips pressed together, forming a displeased smile.
"It's as bright as it can get." Welt bickered back at Paul, sending the light closer to the end of the hallway.
"That's not good." Paul's discontent caused Arthur to look past him and towards the end of the hall in confusion.
"Well, I'm sorry I can't do better." A hint of annoyance could be heard in Welt's voice as the sphere reached the end of the hall. Even if he had a small mana pool, the orb should have been able to fully light the entire hallway.
"No, I'm not saying that to spite you. I really mean that's not good. Come over and take a look." With a wave of his hand, he signaled for Welt to come closer. Regardless of how much Paul tried, he couldn't see beyond the end of the hallway. It was as if pitch-black curtains had been drawn, preventing any source of light from entering that one room.
Unable to listen to Paul's nonsense, Welt moved beside Arthur and followed Paul's gaze to the end of the hallway. He then looked at Arthur and asked in a hushed tone. "Arthur, do you see anything?"
"Yeah…I see someone sitting in a chair with their back facing us. They haven't moved the entire time we've been here." Arthur's quiet answer caused Welt to swallow the saliva in his mouth as a single trail of sweat glistened down his cheek.
"It's black magic, but I've never heard of one like this before," Welt whispered into Paul's ear. "We need to send word to the other guards."
"Do you think it'll let us go?" The moment they stepped foot into the house, Paul knew that whatever was in front of them was aware of their presence the entire time. It just didn't bother to do anything until now, and the sinister aura that became stronger with each second was proof.
Even Welt, who could feel the intimidating atmosphere from the dark room, tightly gritted his teeth in silence. With heavy steps, they all walked onto the second floor, knowing that it was pointless to stay on the staircase.
"Arthur." With his index finger, Paul pointed at his spear that was floating in mid-air, then moved it down to the figure sitting in the chair.
Arthur gave a firm nod as the spear slowly inched in front of Paul. Once nothing was in its way, Arthur carefully solidified the aura that suspended it. In a blink of an eye, it hurled towards the figure at an astonishing speed as it tore through the open space and collided with the black energy surrounding the doorway.
A loud, terrifying scream could be heard throughout the entire house as the black wall of energy shattered and sent the spear bouncing back towards them. Slowly, Paul and Welt could see the figure described by Arthur as the energy that prevented their vision from extending beyond the hallway crumbled.
"Oh my, I was hoping you three would come closer before doing anything." A guttural, childlike voice filled the hallway.
It sounded like a whisper but was loud and clear as the menacing tone within made Arthur take a step back in response. In an instant, the head on the body snapped backward, twisting its long, charred hair around its neck and staring at them with a devilish smile that stretched ear to ear. Its lips had been forcefully torn off as decaying flesh hung loosely from its head. It welcomed them with a childish laughter, delighted at the fresh bodies that walked into its beloved home.