The teams split up. Mira, San, and Viviane headed toward the center, while the others headed right.

Suddenly, Kay's voice crackled over the radio:

"There's a wounded woman and her daughter here. The ghoul has been eliminated. How do we proceed?"

"He's already killed the ghoul?! We haven't even reached the enemy yet!" San muttered, impressed.

The veteran responded over the radio:

"Give the woman a red flare and ask her to throw it when she hears the helicopter approaching."

"I don't have a flare with me, and her legs are broken. I'll take them along with the other civilians and meet you in the center!" Kay informed.

"Go ahead!" the veteran replied.

Mira, still running toward the center with San and Viviane, said, trembling:

"Kay is coming. Let's eliminate him and wait for him here, then we'll go right together!" San noticed Mira's nervousness.

"She's scared... we all are. It's our first time facing a ghoul," he thought.

As they approached the center, they passed people fleeing in panic.

"We're close!" San said, alert.

Viviane looked around suspiciously.

"Why isn't there more noise up ahead?" San narrowed his eyes, trying to capture the sounds around them.

"I can hear sounds... He's close!" he said, guiding them to the ghoul.

When they reached the scene, Mira, San and Viviane were paralyzed by the terror of the scene. In front of them, the ghoul was crouched down, devouring the body of a person. The three of them couldn't take their eyes off the creature, and panic kept them still. With their hearts racing, none of them dared to move or make a sound.

Suddenly, the voice of the helicopter pilot sounded over the radio:

"Attention, helicopter on the way! Take the injured out of the city!" The ghoul, attracted by the sound of the radio, stopped eating and turned towards them. Eyeless, he guided himself by smell and noise, sniffing the air in search of his next prey. Slowly, he got up and began to move, sniffing and groping the air with grotesque movements, getting closer and closer.

Fear froze Mira, San and Viviane. Their minds screamed at them to move, but their bodies refused to obey.

"Move, move!" they thought, each trying to fight their own fear.

But the ghoul kept getting closer, each step making the ground shake slightly, his presence making the air heavy and suffocating.

“He’s coming! I’m scared, please, someone… please, Kay, help me!” Mira thought in despair.

The scene changes to a few minutes earlier.

“Thank you, uncle!” the girl said, trying to stay calm.

“You’re going to be okay. Help is on the way to take your mother!” Kay assured.

“Attention, helicopter on the way! Take the injured out of the city!” the pilot informed over the radio.

“See? They’re going to take care of you!” Kay continued, trying to reassure the civilians.

“Calm down, the army is dealing with the ghouls!” said the truck driver, observing the movement around.

Kay took the injured woman and her daughter closer to the truck.

“What’s the situation?” the driver asked.

“I informed you over the radio.” She's injured, and I've already eliminated one of the ghouls! — Kay replied firmly.

“A soldier... my family was in the city, but I can't see them!” — one of the civilians said, terrified.

“The army is taking care of the ghouls. We'll look for survivors later, but I need everyone to stay calm!” — the driver reinforced.

“There are six ghouls in the city. I've already eliminated one, and my companions are fighting the others. I can't guarantee that the people in the city are still alive, but you can search after everything is over. Just don't go in before then, or you might end up getting involved!” — Kay warned, carefully placing the woman on the ground.

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“Uncle?” — the girl called.

“Uncle will take care of the ghouls and protect the city. I need you to stay here and protect your mother!” — Kay said, with an encouraging smile.

“Okay!” — the girl replied confidently.

Kay waved to her and walked away.

“Be careful!” — said the girl, worried.

— I'll take it! — replied Kay, disappearing in the direction of danger.

Back to the scene of the ghoul.

"Move! Come on, move!" the three thought, trying to overcome their fear.

San grabbed his bow and an arrow, but his hands were shaking so much that he could barely nock the arrow. Suddenly, Viviane ran out.

— What? — thought Mira and San, shocked.

The ghoul heard Viviane's footsteps and turned towards her. Mira, realizing her chance, jumped back, drawing the ghoul's attention to herself. As soon as her feet touched the ground, the monster turned towards her. San took advantage of the moment and shot an arrow, but due to the tremor, the shot didn't go deep enough.

"I was shaking too much... it wasn't deep enough!" San thought, as he ran to hide between the houses.

The ghoul began to chase him, guided by the sounds of his footsteps. Suddenly, a shot went by near the ghoul, diverting its attention.

Viviane had run to a building and positioned herself to shoot with support.

"I could have warned you before! I thought you had run away!" San thought, relieved, seeing that Viviane had positioned herself to provide cover.

Inside one of the houses, Kay watched attentively as her friends organized themselves into formation.

"This formation... They know what they're doing," he thought, keeping himself hidden but ready to act if necessary.

Mira held her sword, but her hands were still shaking. She stared at the ghoul in front of her with wide eyes, fear weighing on every fiber of her body.

"I haven't seen this ghoul fighting before... How am I supposed to face him? Can I really kill one of them?" thought Mira, her heart racing as she tried to gather her courage.

Seeing the fear written on her face, Kay knew it was the right time to put into practice what Rem had taught her in case Mira got scared in battle.

Mira then picked up a rock from the ground and, taking a deep breath, threw it forcefully in the opposite direction to distract the ghoul. The monster turned its head immediately, attracted by the sound, and Mira, without wasting any time, began to run towards it, raising her sword, ready to attack.

"That's it. I just need to draw his attention to the noise so that Mira can attack," Viviane thought, aiming carefully.

The ghoul was completely focused, following Mira's footsteps and scent. When Mira finally attacked, the monster took a long leap backwards, skillfully dodging.

"He dodged!" Mira thought, frustration taking over her.

"Keep calm, Mira! You're not alone!" Kay muttered to herself, with a touch of pride.

It was at that moment that an arrow cut through the air, coming from San. The ghoul raised his arm to defend himself, but the arrow hit him straight in the forearm, making him pull it away with a grunt and throw it to the ground. However, as he did so, he noticed a strange burning sensation in his arm.

— It’s not a bomb, but if I draw the arrow fast enough, the friction could cause it to catch fire when released from the bow, burning the ghouls’ skin… But it only works well at a certain distance, or he would have smelled it! — San explained, with a smile of victory.

— Good job! — Mira said, acknowledging the advantage San had given her.

— His arm will go numb. This is your chance, Mira! — San encouraged.

Mira nodded, concentrating again, and quickly assumed an attacking stance. She began to advance, sword in hand. Viviane, taking advantage of the situation, prepared herself and fired her weapon.

The ghoul heard the sound of the shot and turned around, distracted once again. Mira dragged her sword on the ground as she ran, creating sparks and a high-pitched sound that caught the monster's attention even more. It was torn between the sounds and the smell, confused and disoriented.

At that moment, Viviane's bullet was close enough that the ghoul had no time to escape. Mira raised her sword, ready to finish the blow. The bullet hit the ghoul straight in the head, knocking him down. He fell dead in one blow, and Mira, still moving, stumbled, slowing down suddenly when she saw that the monster was already on the ground, inert.

San and Viviane approached Mira, observing the ghoul's fallen body on the ground. Still panting, they looked at the creature with a mixture of surprise and relief.

“Ugly creature!” San muttered, trying to catch his breath.

“That was it? One shot and he died?” Viviane said, in disbelief, her heart still beating fast.

“Yeah…” Mira replied, shaking her head, still astonished.

“And to think we were so scared…” San said, letting out a nervous laugh, unable to believe they had won.

At that moment, Kay appeared, approaching with a calm smile, as if he hadn’t been there the whole time. “You managed to kill the ghoul! Good job!” he said, in a light and calm tone.

“You took your time!” Mira replied, irritated.

“Good job!” Kay said, giving him an affectionate pat on the head. Then he turned to Viviane, repeating the gesture with his other hand. “You too!”

“What?” — Mira and Viviane exclaimed, surprised, exchanging embarrassed glances.

— Tell me how that arrow of yours works, San. It seems very interesting! — Kay said, giving San the same caress.

San immediately moved away, disconcerted.

— I'm already sixteen! Don't go doing that to another man! — he said, trying to keep his composure.

— Sorry. My master always praised me like that, I ended up getting used to it... — Kay replied

— Your master? — San repeated, raising his eyebrows in curiosity.

— Mira's mother — Kay said, casually.

— My mother? — Mira repeated, still processing the answer. After a few seconds, she seemed to realize what he had said. — What do you mean, my mother?! — she exclaimed, surprised and confused.

Kay quickly realized that she had said too much. — Damn, I shouldn't have told you...! — she thought, looking away. — Well, we don't have time for that now! Let's go help with the other ghouls! — he said, trying to change the subject, already turning to move on.

Mira, San and Viviane followed Kay as he advanced through the city. Mira, however, could not ignore what Kay had said before.

“Why did you call my mother a teacher? You said that!” she exclaimed, irritated and confused, trying to get an answer from Kay.

Kay looked away, keeping a casual tone. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I never said that!” she muttered, trying to avoid the subject.

“Do you think I’m stupid? You just said it! Explain it properly!” Mira insisted, determined to understand.

Suddenly, the sound of gunshots echoed through the city, interrupting the discussion. The four of them became alert, and the tension increased.