Chapter 8. Moving out

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This is bad. Like on so many levels.

Deciding that I need to inspect the damage that I caused myself, I went down the sewers, trying to find the source of the infection.

Where the hell is that rat body? Did it get completely devoured?

I turned a corner, immediately stopping in my steps.

The good news was that I found it.

The bad one was that I found more than I expected.

The easiest way that I could describe it was this: I think I made a bloody hive!

The tunnel where I killed the giant rat, now became covered in the green mold, which from the ceiling created wine-like appendages, which blocked the view deeper in.

The whole place looked like the hideout of some sort of alien who came to eat our faces!

Terraformation? Did the mold create an environment where it could spread more easily? This must mean that this thin

When I tried to get closer to the construct, I could see some small appendages which belonged to who knows what, emerging from the murky water, grasping the air in my direction.

No, no, nope, no I am not going in there! No way!

I slowly walked backward, raising my hands as if I was giving up. which I was.

I need to burn this thing! Fast, before it spreads further!

Thinking about what I should do, I heard something approaching from the other tunnel.

It was one of those Steroid Rats, shambling in here.

Not noticing me, it turned towards the hive and slowly started to walk towards it.

What? Is this rat blind? Why is it going there?

I closely observed the rat body, noticing the wound on its behind. From what I could tell, it seemed like a bite wound. The wound seemed infected, with my mold growing in it.

Did the mold somehow invade the nervous system of the rat? How is that even possible? Could it be...a hive mind?

While I was boggled by this concept, the rat reached the edge of the hive.

Like before, the appendages emerged, grabbed the rat, and dragged it into the hive, without the rodent saying a word, or squealing in its case.

Yeah, I need to get rid of this thing before humans start to infect humans as well. And I think I know a way to get this done.

*****

-Midnight, in the adventurer guild. –

The night shift was going slowly and peacefully, which was rare for such establishments. The only customers were a small adventurer party who just arrived and were counting their reward alongside some warm food.

The only receptionist at the desk, slowly sorted out the papers for tomorrow while humming a little song that she heard in the early morning at the market.

When she was finally done, the front doors of the guild slowly opened, with a slight rusty sound.

Like an instinct, when the receptionist looked up with a bright smile ready to welcome the newly arrived with a cheerful expression.

"Welcome to our guild. How can...we...help?"

Once she laid eyes on the person entering the building, her cheerfulness faded away, only leaving shock.

The man who entered looked horrible.

It wore brown leather pants, gloves, boots, and a coat with a white shirt, each dirtied by blood and dirty water, accompanied by the smell of sewers. On its head, the individual wore a brown sack, with two holes ripped in it for the eyes which showed only darkness.

As he walked towards the receptionist, leaving dirty footsteps behind, the adventurers stopped talking and stared at the man, probably feeling the same thing as the receptionist.

Danger.

Working long enough in a guild specialized in killing things, adventurers as well as the staff, developed a sixth sense for danger, an alarm in their head, which was now ringing in everybody's head.

While it came closer, they noticed that the limbs of the newly arrived were longer than the rest of the body.

It was rare but sometimes mixed blooded would take on arms, but this one didn't feel like one.

Once it reached the desk, it towered over the girl.

"Wha-In what can I...help you in?"

The stranger kept quiet for a while, then it moved.

On the counter, it put a wooden box and a piece of parchment which was drawn in what seemed like...blood.

IN THE BOX IS THE MAP FOR THE NEST AND THE PROOF OF ITS EXISTENCE. BRING FIRE AND HOLY LIGHT.

When the poor girl read the note, the stranger turned around and slowly walked away.

"Not so fast, pal."

The adventurers stood up from their seats and blocked the way to the exit.

The leader, a muscular man, who reeked alcohol, smiled whirly as he grabbed the hilt of his great sword mounted on his back.

"We just learned a bounty which describes a man like you. Why don't you stay here for a little while, while we call the guards?"

The air tensed up in the hall, the two people looking at each other intensely.

The group was made out of six silver-ranked adventures who had just taken down an entire clan of goblins and killed several adventurers.

A single man couldn't possibly compete against them.

Yet against all odds, the stranger took a step.

"Take this!"

On alert, the team's archer released his arrow, aimed at the stranger's head.

The receptionist could already imagine the arrow hitting the man in the head, killing him instantly, but to her surprise, something entirely else happened.

The masked man grabbed the arrow in midair, turned it around, and threw it back at the archer, all this in a heartbeat.

When the arrow hit the poor man's shoulder, the group got distracted by his cry of agony signing their defeat.

The second, they turned their eyes off him, the stranger dashed at them, hitting each member of the group in the abdomen or the face.

"Damn you!"

The boss left last, he unsheathed his sword and swung at the stranger, who dodged it, by bending backward a little.

Once the sword got past him, he straightened himself up and punched the boss right in the throat.

Wheezing for air, he let go of his sword, grabbing his windpipe for air.

The masked man said nothing, he just walked out into the darkness.

*****

Angela POV:

"-Are you sure that's all? Did he really not say anything? Not even a word?"

"Sorry miss, but he said nothing, not even when he was beating up those fools."

"Okay, thank you for your help. If you remember any other details, please tell us as soon as you can. Any clue can help us."

The receptionist nodded and walked away, probably going home.

Damn it, I let him escape!

We arrived as soon as we received the alert sent by the crystals set up under the desk and we still couldn't catch up to that guy.

From what I could tell from the description of the adventurers was that he got faster, probably using some movement skill.

Is his class [Weightless] or [Sky Runner]? If so then it would explain his ability to move faster than an arrow. But this is going to be a problem for me. Being a [Holy Swordsman], I can move quite fast with my movement skills, but I wouldn't be able to hold a candle to somebody who specializes in speed.

As I was thinking about the ways I could catch him, one of the knights assisting me, signaled him, meaning that they inspected the box, and found nothing dangerous in or around it.

Slowly I went to it and opened it.

In it was a small piece of a map, with several instructions written on it, and a small pouch with something moving in it.

What is this? Why does he want us to go there? What is the planning?

*****

Ever since I discovered my stats, I became faster. Or maybe the world became slower. It didn't look like those slow-motion scenes in the movies, rather I could respond to my surroundings a lot faster.

This is how I could beat up those guys. To me, they looked like they simply stood still.

As I ran, I tried to figure out the next thing I needed to do.

I can't go back down there; my hideout is too close to the place where I sent them, and I risk being found. It's a good thing that I prepared my bag and left. Now, I just need to find a place where I can hide for a while. Sigh, this is such a pain! Just when I found a perfect place to squat!

While running I arrived at the poor area of the town.

Here the houses were made from wood and other decaying materials, some seemingly abandoned for years.

A perfect hiding place.

When I jumped off the roof, I grabbed its edge, swinging myself through the open window.

The inside of the building was dark, cold, and unfriendly, with the wind blowing in through the cracks.

Perfect. If there were a cellar, then I might settle down here.

I looked around and found a stairway leading down to the ground floor.

As I descended, the stairs cracked under my weight, as if they were about to break.

The ground floor looked plain and uninteresting. A small table, a few chairs, a stone oven that collapsed for some reason, and a few pieces of rotten garbage on the floor. Once I looked around closely, I found another stairway leading further down.

So, there is a basement! I take this house!

I quickly went down the stairs arriving at a surprisingly big place. The walls were lined up with barrels covered in dust and spider webs.

A wine cellar? Is there any alcohol left here? Could use a drink.

I looked around, disappointed to find out that all the barrels were empty. Luckily for me, I found a bottle tucked away in the corner of the room.

Grandin Blood, 257. Probably a good year.

I took off my mask, opened the bottle, and tried to pour its content into my mouth. Sadly, I had no mouth, throat, stomach, or any other soft tissue, so all I managed to do was spill the stuff on my already dirty cloth.

Right, I forgot.

I put the bottle on top of a barrel and started to unpack my stuff.

Okay so these idiots should be done in a week, so in the meantime, I will relax and finally start experimenting. I should start with the most pressing matter: myself.

From the depths of my bag, I took a potato out, turned it into a bomb, and placed it on the floor.

Mental log one. Test subject, one potato bomb. Description: one potato turned into a bomb, by covering it in mold. The subjects seem to explode when touched. I will start the experiment by trying to... What the hell am I doing? I need proper equipment for this. It's time to set up a proper workshop here!

I emptied my bag and got to work.

First, I brought all the usable furniture down to the basement. Feeling like it won't be enough, I lined up some barrels, and using some wooden planks which I found on the second floor, I created a mix shift table. Using the rest of the barrels I barricaded the main door and windows so that no one could enter.

Once I was finished, I set up my equipment on the barrel table while I placed the books on the regular table.

Now then, let's get started.

Feeling that it was more important than the potato bomb I started the first test on myself.

Using a small knife that I found in my bag, I cut a small chunk out of the mold which covered my body and placed it on a Petri dish looking plate.

Surprisingly, even with the lack of nerve receptors, I did feel the pain of the knife cutting me, but it was faint, probably because the mold is unable to send the signals correctly to my brain.

Wait, do I even have a brain? No matter, it's not important.

To start the experiment, I put on my gloves and cut an uninfected potato into thin slices. Once I was done, I put a thin slice on top of the dish, without bursting any spore sack on top of it.

Unexpectedly, the slice did become covered by the stuff, but it was much slower than I expected.

Interesting, let us compare.

I placed the used sample in an open barrel which I decided to use as a trashcan.

Then I placed two potato slices, on the first one I placed the new mold slice I cut from my arm, while I infected the other with some spores.

Now seeing it again, I could tell that the spread by spores is faster than contamination with my 'skin'.

This is quite good news. This means that if I am quick enough, I can touch other people barehanded without infecting them. Still, I need to understand the limits of this mold before I can be certain. Tomorrow, when night falls, I will need to get some water, candles, and some chemical materials. Oh, this is going to be great!