I looked at the mutant monster sprawled lazily on the ground, staring idly at the sky like some kind of vagrant, and said,
"This one doesn’t seem to eat people."
"Huh? Oh, no! It does eat people. When it first turned into a monster, it devoured all the patrons at the restaurant," Michelle countered hastily, as though panicked by my statement.
"Ah. But, well, somewhere along the line, its behavior seemed to change. At first, it was just like any other virus-infected monster. But when it dragged me out of the restaurant where I was hiding, something was different. It moved like it was smarter, like it had become more intelligent... And after that, I don’t think it ate anyone anymore."
It felt like it was evolving.
Mutant monsters were said to have the intelligence of a young child, full of curiosity.
But if evolution was still ongoing—could it develop even higher intelligence?
"That’s terrifying."
If that happened, it could truly mean the end. What if intelligent monsters took over the world?
At that moment, Nox returned from inside the mansion, carrying a first-aid kit.
Ethan and I held down the mutant monster to ensure it couldn’t move, while Nox injected it with a sedative.
The monster resisted weakly with a bewildered expression, but it quickly succumbed to sleep. According to Nox, it would remain unconscious for about a day.
"Now, it’s time to head to Vanilla."
Nox decided to take samples from the mutant monster, and the knights and Hamel stayed behind at the mansion in case of any emergencies.
Due to the narrow underground passage, Ethan, Theodore, Nikolai, and I decided to go ahead to where Vanilla was.
"Mr. Ludfisher, I’ll leave it to you."
"Take care, Miss Cherry."
At Nox’s worried farewell, I gave him a crisp salute with a clenched fist.
"Don’t worry. We’re just checking out the underground passage."
"Right, just like how you went to check it out last time and ended up taking over the Kintene Hotel?"
I had no rebuttal for that. Nox chuckled as though he couldn’t help himself, then ruffled my hair.
"Someone worrying about you is waiting here, so come back safely."
"Ah... worrying... Okay, okay. I’ll be back soon."
Feeling strangely bashful, I scratched my cheek and nodded.
Just then, Ethan, who had gone ahead into the fireplace, came back out and strode toward me.
"His Highness is asking for you, Miss Cherry."
Grabbing my hand, he pulled me into the fireplace passage without giving me time to react.
As I was dragged along, still processing what was happening, I waved at Nox, who stood with a bewildered expression.
Inside the underground passage, Nikolai and Theodore were waiting for us.
"You were looking for me?" I asked Theodore.
He widened his eyes in surprise, pointing at himself. "Me? Not me—him."
Theodore gestured toward Ethan, and I turned to see Ethan scratching the back of his head, avoiding eye contact. His ears had turned red, betraying his embarrassment.
"Honestly," I thought with a sigh.
Both Theodore and Nikolai shook their heads, clearly unimpressed with Ethan’s antics.
Anyway, Nikolai took the lead in the underground passage, and we followed him. When we finally arrived at the section where Vanilla and Victor were supposed to be, the place was empty.
"Where are Miss Ruskin and Victor?" I asked Nikolai, turning to him.
Looking flustered, he replied, "They were definitely clearing Route 3 here when I left."
We turned our attention to the now fully opened Route 3. To one side was a path marked with the number 8, presumably leading to the capital's waterway.
The path marked with the number 3 matched the one sketched on the back of the Happy House blueprint.
"It seems they went inside. When I left, the path had only a hole large enough for someone’s head," Nikolai said, pointing toward the now-clear passage.
It seemed we had no choice but to follow them.
I hoped the search wouldn’t take too long. I suddenly remembered the group heading to the stables.
"Is Harrison doing all right?"
I needed to relay this news to Harrison as soon as possible.
*****
Brunel Village Outskirts
The rain had stopped, and the number of monsters had significantly decreased.
Even so, there were still quite a few monsters, most of them gathered near the walls of Happy House.
Harrison briefly surveyed the inside of Brunel Village. The villagers were quietly continuing their work on the barricades, avoiding the monsters’ gaze.
They were following Cherry’s instructions to secure the path leading to the forest, even at the risk of their lives.
"They’re doing it to survive," Harrison thought.
The paths to Kintene and Hondofro were still blocked with carts and furniture, keeping the monsters at bay.
If they managed to finish the barricades at the forest entrance, Brunel would be safer than most other towns.
"Not that way, Amy. According to the map, it’s this direction," said Jose, standing at the village’s outskirts with a map Cherry had handed him.
Amy glanced at the map in Jose’s hand, furrowing her brows.
That’s when their argument began.
"Look, it’s this way! Sugar Star said we should go this way."
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"The doctor said we should head this way instead."
"Sugar Star is right."
"The doctor’s probably more accurate. Look, doesn’t this path seem faster?"
"No, it doesn’t. I like you, but I’m not going to agree with you when you’re wrong."
"...What?"
Jose froze, startled by Amy’s sudden confession.
"Oh my," Aurora, who had been watching from the side, clasped her hands over her mouth in surprise. Her eyes sparkled with curiosity as she watched the standoff between Jose and Amy.
At that moment, the village chief of Brunel approached them. He had come to explain the path to the stables at Harrison’s request.
“The shortcut to the stables can be a bit confusing...”
The chief began explaining the route but paused mid-sentence. He seemed to be deliberating over something before nodding lightly.
“I’ll guide you myself.”
“That won’t be necessary. Just explaining is enough—it’s too dangerous,” Harrison interjected.
The chief chuckled at Harrison’s concern.
“What do I have to gain from living any longer at my age? Don’t worry about me. I won’t be a burden. Besides, this place isn’t easy to find with just a map and directions.”
With a hearty laugh, the chief took the lead. Harrison slung his crossbow over his shoulder, quietly watching the old man’s back.
Bringing the chief along meant another person to protect, but guidance would certainly save them time.
“See? Sugar Star was right. My sister has a better sense of direction than you think,” Amy said, poking Jose in the side as she glanced at the direction the chief was walking.
Jose scratched the back of his head, embarrassed, before smirking playfully at Amy.
“I knew that already. Cherry’s got a better sense of direction than you do.”
“What? Hey!”
Harrison sighed and took a step forward. Looking at Aurora, who stood awkwardly nearby, he said, “Let’s go.”
*****
The end was nowhere in sight.
The length of Route 3 suggested that it might be located far from Brunel. Even Kintene hadn’t required this much walking.
I unfolded the underground map that Susanna had prepared. From behind, Theodore cast curious glances at it, clearly fascinated.
Nikolai and Ethan led the way, while I followed behind them, with Theodore trailing me.
“To carve out a passage of this scale, a year or two wouldn’t have been enough,” Theodore remarked, breaking the long silence.
I nodded /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ in agreement. “It must have taken at least ten years.”
“Maybe it’s been here even longer. It could’ve been an existing path,” Ethan added to my response.
The truth remained unknown. Unless Baron Ruskin returned, we might never find out.
Silence settled over the underground passage once again.
Clack, clack.
The sound of shoes against the dirt floor echoed faintly in the deep, still tunnel.
By my estimation, we had been walking for at least one or two hours. Unlike the maze-like, winding paths of Route 2, Route 3 was a straight and narrow path.
“It’s the opposite of Route 2. Could this be heading all the way to Hondofro?” Ethan joked, though no one laughed. It felt like a real possibility.
After what felt like an additional two or three hours, we finally reached the end of the passage.
“Isn’t that Lady Ruskin?”
Ethan raised his lantern, illuminating the area ahead. Sure enough, someone stood at the far end of the dark tunnel. A woman with blue hair tied in a high ponytail.
It was Vanilla, just as Ethan had said. Victor stood next to her.
However, neither of them moved. Despite the quiet surroundings amplifying the sound of our approach, they remained eerily still.
Vanilla and Victor stood at the very end of the underground passage.
Beyond them lay an open area, like a vast plaza. The scale of the darkness beyond was impossible to gauge.
“What’s going on? They look like they’re under some kind of spell,” Ethan muttered, staring at Vanilla and Victor.
“Lady Ruskin, Mr. Victor. Are you okay?”
Following Ethan’s lead, I approached to check on their condition.
Vanilla and Victor’s eyes were unfocused. They stood frozen, wearing the same vacant expressions, gazing into the empty, shadowy expanse ahead.
It was as if they could see something that wasn’t visible to us.