Chapter 48: Silent Zone
At the front, Kichou Arima began slowly retreating while making a silencing gesture.
Su Xiao was not a bad teammate. After nodding to Arima, the three of them gradually stepped back.
The reason for their caution was that after passing the corner, they encountered a large open area.
In this open space, at least a thousand monstrous ghouls were gathered.
The reason they were called monstrous ghouls was that these ghouls looked strange, even terrifying.
These ghouls had pitch-black skin, like charred coal after being burned, rough and uneven.
Unlike ordinary ghouls, these ghouls had their kagune fully released, and all of them were ukaku type, as if they had an extra tail behind them.
These monstrous ghouls had no red eyes; in fact, they had no eyes at all.
Their eyes seemed to have degenerated, covered by a layer of gray-white hard shell.
Su Xiao and the others were already exposed to these ghouls, yet the ghouls hadn't noticed them.
After retreating a certain distance, Arima let out a long sigh.
"I've seen this type of ghoul once before. They hunt by hearing and are extremely difficult to deal with. If we alert a group of this size, we won't stand a chance."
As expected, Arima knew some secrets about District 24.
At least in the original story, Su Xiao had never seen primitive ghouls or these eyeless ghouls.
"What do we do now?"
Yuna looked at Arima, apparently treating him as the backbone.
"Change route."
Su Xiao didn't speak, and Yuna had no objections.
The three began searching for other paths, but after two hours, they discovered something.
Except for the area where the eyeless ghouls were located, the other four routes were all dead ends.
According to the compass, that direction was the only way to the surface.
The three sat in a circle in a tunnel to discuss a plan.
A notebook had somehow appeared in Su Xiao's hand, along with a pen.
"Here, here, and here—we haven't been to these places. From my hand-drawn map, District 24 is somewhat funnel-shaped.
The direction leading deeper into District 24 is the wide end of the funnel, while the way to the surface is the narrow end. That's why, with a fixed direction, you can walk out of District 24.
Based on the 17 dead ends I led us through earlier, this is the only way out."
After Su Xiao scribbled in the notebook, a detailed map appeared.
The map even had latitude and longitude markings and a scale.
Yuna looked at Su Xiao with admiration.
"How did you do that? You remembered all the routes we took?"
Not only the neurotic girl Yuna was shocked, but Arima also looked at Su Xiao in surprise.
The carbon pen spun rapidly in Su Xiao's hand.
"My previous 'profession' was somewhat special. I often had to infiltrate places to find specific people. It's a professional habit."
Yuna thought for a moment.
"Sounds like an assassin."
"Same nature, different beliefs."
Su Xiao looked up at the two.
"So, what's the plan? Wait for the next terrain change in District 24, or take the risk and try to cross that dangerous area?"
Arima and Yuna considered for a while.
"Our supplies won't last until the next terrain change."
Yuna and Arima had only enough food and water for four days. They could stretch it to the next terrain change by going hungry, but their combat effectiveness would plummet.
Su Xiao had enough supplies, but he didn't want to be trapped here. Time spent in the derivative world was precious.
"Without making a sound, those special ghouls won't detect us."
Arima spoke, indicating he was willing to take the risk.
"Then let's take the risk."
Arima and Yuna stood up.
"Since we're taking the risk, I have a plan."
Su Xiao suddenly spoke.
"What plan?"
"Since those ghouls perceive sound, we can set up a sound source here on the map. Then we wait at this position. When the sound goes off, it will attract the attention of those special ghouls, and we can cross through."
Su Xiao didn't want to fight those eyeless ghouls head-on. From Arima's attitude, they were definitely not easy to deal with.
"Alright, I've used a similar method before. It worked well."
"Where will the sound come from?"
Su Xiao smiled and pulled out a phone, pressing the screen with his thumb and quickly operating it.
"Set the time for five minutes. That's enough."
After speaking, Su Xiao placed the phone on the ground, and the three quickly ran forward.
Soon, they arrived at a dead end, which was very close to the area with the eyeless ghouls.
"Beep, beep, beep~, beep..., aracha chacha chacha biribiri ri..."
A cheerful tune came from afar. The neurotic girl Yuna actually started swaying her body, rhythmically shaking her hands in front of her.
"That's my favorite 'Leek Song'."
Yuna's sudden change in demeanor left Su Xiao speechless, and Arima also turned his head away.
A few seconds after the music started, the sound of rapid running came.
"Boom, boom, boom..."
It was like thousands of troops charging, audible even from a distance.
Soon, the sound of many footsteps faded away. The three exchanged glances and sprinted toward the only exit.
Time was limited; who knew if those eyeless ghouls would suddenly return.
All three were fast. Arima took the lead, Yuna in the middle, and Su Xiao at the rear, maintaining the original formation.
In just over ten seconds, they reached the previous corner.
Arima suddenly stopped, raising one hand behind him, palm facing Su Xiao and the others.
Su Xiao immediately halted and looked at the large open space beyond the corner.
In this open area, a few eyeless ghouls remained. They hadn't all been lured away.
"What do we do?"
Yuna lowered her voice to the minimum.
"Don't make a sound. Slowly cross through."
Arima stepped forward steadily, with Yuna following behind him.
Su Xiao stood still, not moving. Arima looked at him with some confusion.
Su Xiao pointed behind himself, then at the two of them, and waved his hand forward.
The meaning was clear: moving together would make more noise, and the ghouls behind might return at any time. The two of them should cross first while he covered the rear.
Arima nodded and made a careful gesture.
Yuna gave a thumbs-up and also stood still, waiting for Arima to cross first.
Su Xiao wasn't doing this out of self-sacrifice. The three were in the same boat, and he couldn't afford any bad teammate behavior.
Arima's pace was slow but steady. The open area was about 200 meters across—not long, but certainly not short.
In less than three minutes, Arima crossed the area without incident.
"Growl~."
A low roar came, and the three froze. It was an eyeless ghoul lying on the ground asleep, awakened by a companion's kagune.
The eyeless ghoul roughly pushed aside the kagune and went back to sleep.
Yuna was already in the middle of the area, with four or five eyeless ghouls at her feet. Her movements were extremely cautious.
At the rear, Su Xiao pressed his ear to the ground, sensing the vibrations.
Safe. The eyeless ghouls lured away by the sound source hadn't returned yet.
Su Xiao began to walk slowly, each step extremely careful.
PS: (Updated early today. I deeply realize that cliffhangers are wrong, but the word count forced it. Next time this happens, I'll release a combined two-in-one chapter. So, please don't withhold your votes from me.)