"A favor?"
Kris and Marceline raised an eyebrow.
"Ehh. I don't know if I want to do you a favor."
"Same."
"I haven't even told you what it is yet. Why are you two so impatient?"
He let out an exasperated sigh, already frowning at the two of them.
"You're fighters, aren't you?"
"Oh. Was it that obvious?"
Marceline replied with a smug grin and her chest puffed out, only to be completely ignored.
"All I want is to request an extermination."
Kris lifted his head slightly, while Marceline's expression turned serious.
"You've got a pest problem?"
"Pfft."
The two turned toward Marceline in confusion as she quickly covered her mouth.
"Well... you could say that."
The rat stepped out from behind the counter and approached them.
"You've probably already run into them."
"The Corrupted."
"Corrupted?"
"That's what we call them. Even though they retain fragments of their consciousness, they're never the same again."
"Oh."
A brief flash of the chase crossed his mind.
"Yeah. We've run into a few."
"Good. That makes this easier to explain."
He picked up the gauntlet and headed for the shop's door, with the two following close behind.
Once outside, he locked it and started walking down the road.
"About two years ago, those things appeared out of nowhere in the forest. Their behavior is completely unnatural—they attack anything that isn't one of them."
"Uhh. Doesn't sound that strange to me."
"Until they turn you into one of them. Otherwise, they tear you apart completely."
"Oh. Got it."
"And how do they do that?"
"No idea. We've never seen it happen ourselves."
"I see."
"But you don't seem that weak. Why not get rid of them yourselves?"
"We tried. Unfortunately, we're not a warrior race. We can't afford to lose the few fighters we have left."
"And what about your artifacts?"
"Making weapons isn't that simple. I'm a tool specialist."
"I see..."
As they walked, the rat glanced toward the children in the square, who were playing leapfrog.
"What we do know is that they only keep the memories they have use for..."
"Which would be...?"
"Outposts, routes, tunnels..."
"In the end, we've lost more than it seems."
Kris frowned, finally grasping the severity of the situation.
"Then how have you managed to keep this place going?"
"Fortunately, we haven't lost anyone here yet. But I don't doubt they'll find us sooner or later."
"On top of that, our supplies are running low."
"Supplies?"
"You're a curious one, so you've probably already noticed our main food source."
"The roots?"
"Exactly. We call them जीवन की जड़."
(Root of Life.)
"They grow from Sprouts—plants that lure animals in with bait. Once they catch them, they use the nutrients from their prey to sustain themselves."
"These roots use those nutrients to produce water, which makes them essential to us."
"When a Sprout grows too many roots, it eventually becomes rooted in place, leading to its death."
"So we've formed a symbiotic relationship. We harvest their roots to sustain ourselves, while preventing them from dying."
"However, the Corrupted aren't just wiping out their source of nourishment—they're attacking the Sprouts themselves."
"We still don't know whether they do it to hurt us, or simply to destroy."
Still frowning, Kris tried to say something before being interrupted.
"We'll help."
He turned toward Marceline in surprise.
Her brows were furrowed just like his, her eyes burning with determination.
The rat gave a small smile, turning his head away to hide it.
"I appreciate it."
He picked up his pace slightly, just enough to stay ahead while remaining within sight.
Marceline was about to follow, but Kris stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.
"Hm?"
"Are you sure about this? We don't really know how many of them there are."
"So?"
"Huh?"
Turning toward him with a raised eyebrow, she flashed him a teasing grin.
"You scared?"
He just laughed, shaking his head.
"Why did I know you were going to say that?"
"Because we know each other pretty well by now."
"Not that well."
"Oh? Hiding something?"
"Maybe?"
"By the way—"
He lightly bumped her shoulder.
"Hey. What was that for?"
"Don't go accepting side quests everywhere we go. Let's talk about it first."
"Eh."
She quickly looked away.
"My bad."
"It's fine. I still want that gauntlet."
Suddenly, they came to a stop in front of a lone building.
It stood two stories tall, with a small concrete platform and a set of improvised stairs leading up to it.
Each floor had several barred windows, some with panes missing entirely.
At the center of the platform stood the entrance.
Two weathered wooden doors, their handles hanging loosely in place.
They followed the merchant to the entrance.
With a gentle push, the door opened with a long, sharp creak.
Stepping into a large hall, with narrow staircases rising from each front corner, the rat headed toward one of them.
The hall was dimly lit, a simple crystal chandelier hanging overhead while a few candle holders lined the corridors.
The corridors and the hall were completely empty.
Marceline covered her nose, holding back a sneeze.
"You guys ever clean this place?"
"Why would we? We barely use this place anyway."
Climbing the stairs, they arrived at a long hallway.
A few candle holders and several doors lined both sides of the hallway.
Farther ahead, another corridor branched off in both directions.
Following the left corridor, they stopped in front of the nearest door.
"हमने एक और सुरंग खो दी। हमें जवाबी हमला करना होगा।"
("We've lost another tunnel. We need to strike back.")
"और तुम ऐसा कैसे करने वाले हो? क्या तुम वीर बनने वाले हो?"
("And how exactly do you plan to do that? Going to become a Veer?")
The thin walls did little to keep the argument from spilling into the hallway.
The rat raised a hand for them to stop, leaning against the wall as he waited.
"अगर ज़रूरत पड़ी, तो हाँ! जल्द ही वे हमारी गर्दनों तक पहुँच जाएँगे!"
("If I have to, then yes! Soon they'll be at our throats!")
BLAM!
The door burst open as a rat wearing a hat stormed out of the room.
Behind him came another rat, his chin held high and a monocle perched over his snout.
He glanced sideways at the merchant and gave a slight nod before raising an eyebrow at Kris and Marceline.
Watching them leave, Kris turned to the rat.
"What was that about?"
"The one with the hat is the Mool Pramukh. He oversees the harvesting of roots."
"The one with the monocle is the Sphatik Pramukh. He's in charge of crystal refinement."
"Basically, nobody's happy about the Corrupted."
"I see."
The rat gestured for them to enter, closing the door behind them.
Inside the room, illuminated by a chandelier and several scattered candle holders, an old rat sat at the far end of a long table.
"अरे, प्रकाश! तुम तो और भी बूढ़े लग रहे हो।"
("Hey, Prakash! You look even older than before.")
"वसंत। तुम आखिरकार आ गए।"
("Vasant. You're finally here.")
The rat briefly raised the heavy brows that hung over his eyes, getting a better look at the two standing behind Vasant.
"और ये कौन हैं?"
("And who might they be?")
"ओह? ये लोग? ये भ्रष्टों से निपटने में हमारी मदद करने आए हैं।"
("Oh? Them? They've come to help us deal with the Corrupted.")
"आह! बढ़िया! क्या तुमने उन्हें इनाम के बारे में बताया?"
("Ah! Excellent! Did you tell them about the reward?")
"बिल्कुल, बिल्कुल. बता दिया।"
("Of course, of course. I told them.")
They don't need to know about that.
He rubbed the back of his neck as he thought.
"और ये कितने काबिल हैं?"
("And how capable are they?")
"ये बेहतरीन हैं। इस बार हम उन्हें ज़रूर खत्म कर देंगे।"
("They're excellent. This time, we'll definitely wipe them out.")
"बहुत बढ़िया। तो तुम्हें कोई आपत्ति नहीं होगी अगर मैं उनका हिस्सा अभी दे दूँ, है ना?"
("Excellent. Then you won't mind if I give them their share in advance, right?")
"हैं?! रुको, रुको!"
("Huh?! Wait, wait!")
Prakash rose from the table and made his way toward an old desk in the corner of the room, his steps slow and weary.
The two visitors watched him in confusion, until Kris froze when the old rat pulled a pouch from one of the desk's drawers.
His gaze burned into the back of Vasant's head, who suddenly found the opposite wall very interesting.
He turned back toward the elder, who was already walking over with the pouch in hand.
When it was placed in his hands, it felt noticeably heavier than the bag of gold they had given the merchant earlier.
"लो, लो। लड़की के साथ बाँट लेना।"
("Here, here. Make sure to share it with the girl.")
Kris loosened the cord sealing the pouch and peeked inside, Marceline leaning over to look as well.
His face immediately twisted.
This is completely useless to us.
The pouch was filled with materials—silver, screws, small blocks of refined metal, and various other components.
From the corner of his eye, he noticed the merchant sneaking a glance at the contents.
But if that swindler wanted it this badly, then I'll gladly take it.
"तो फिर।"
("Then, let us begin.")
Prakash drew everyone's attention with a single clap of his hands.
"विश्कर इस कठिन युद्ध में आपका मार्गदर्शन करे और आपकी रक्षा करे, वीर योद्धाओं। आपका साहस आने वाली पीढ़ियों तक नीचरियों द्वारा याद रखा जाएगा।"
("May Vishkar guide and protect you through this difficult battle, honored warriors. Your courage will be remembered by the Neechari for generations to come.")
He bowed.
Caught off guard, Kris and Marceline returned the gesture with slight bows of their own.
When he raised his head again, he offered them a small smile.
A moment later, he began gently shooing the three of them toward the door.
"जाओ, जाओ। हम यहाँ जितना ज़्यादा समय बर्बाद करेंगे, वे इस शहर के उतने ही करीब पहुँच जाएँगे।"
("Go, go. The more time we waste here, the closer they'll get to this city.")
"हम अच्छी खबरों के साथ लौटेंगे।"
("We'll return with good news.")
The old rat let out a weary sigh as he settled back into his chair.
"मुझे भी यही उम्मीद है।"
("I hope so.")
Once they stepped out of the room, Marceline turned curiously toward the merchant.
"Who was that?"
"The old man? His name is Prakash. He's been guiding our people since before the war. Without him, we'd probably be scattered across the wasteland by now, starving to death."
Kris frowned in confusion.
"Before the war? Then where did you live?"
"I'll answer as many questions as you want later. Right now, we have something more important to deal with."
"Right..."
They made their way back to the stairs and descended into the hall below.
Near the entrance, a rat was leaning against the wall as if waiting for something.
The moment he spotted them, he adjusted his hat and waited for them to come down.
Vasant stopped in front of him, a puzzled look crossing his face.
"वसंत, ये कौन हैं?"
("Vasant, who are these two?")
"मूल प्रमुख? तो गुस्से में भी तुमने उन्हें देख लिया, हाँ?"
("Mool Pramukh? So even angry, you still noticed them, huh?")
"बिल्कुल। मैं इतना तेज़ नहीं हूँ, लेकिन अंधा भी नहीं हूँ. और तुम जानते हो कि मुझे सिर्फ़ हरिश कह सकते हो।"
("Of course. I may not be the sharpest rat around, but I'm not blind either. And you know you can just call me Harish.")
"हाँ, हाँ. ये दोनों योद्धा हैं जिन्हें मैं मिला था. क्यों पूछ रहे हो?"
("Yes, yes. They're warriors I happened to come across. Why do you ask?")
Harish lifted the brim of his hat, taking a closer look at the two standing behind him.
"ज़्यादा खास तो नहीं लगते। लेकिन अगर तुम उन्हें यहाँ लाए हो, तो मैं तुम्हारे फैसले पर भरोसा करूँगा।"
("They don't look like anything special. But if you're the one who brought them here, I'll trust your judgment.")
"तो, तुम्हें क्या चाहिए?"
("So, what do you want?")
"थोड़ा रूखा नहीं था ये?"
("A bit blunt, don't you think?")
He lifted his hat and pulled out a dirty, crumpled sheet of paper tucked beneath it.
Handing it over to Vasant, the merchant looked down at it in confusion.
"ये क्या है?"
("What's this?")
"ये हमारे बचे हुए सुरक्षित रास्तों और सुरंगों का नक्शा है। काश मैं इससे ज़्यादा मदद कर पाता, लेकिन अभी मेरे पास बस यही है।"
("It's a map of the safe routes and tunnels we still have left. I wish I could help more, but this is all I can offer.")
"कोई बात नहीं। ये भी बहुत काम आएगा।"
("Don't worry about it. This will be a huge help.")
With a nod, he lowered his hat and walked away.
Vasant unfolded the crumpled sheet, while Kris and Marceline leaned in to take a look.
All three of their eyes widened.
The map was surprisingly detailed, filled with simple sketches of trees, marked trails, tunnels, and two large lakes.
Of the many tunnels shown, the vast majority had been crossed out with large X's. Several were accompanied by warnings:
झुंड। दूर रहो।
(Swarm. Stay away.)
A handful of small houses had also been drawn across the map, but only two remained untouched by the red X's.
Scattered across clearings and ruined structures, several circles had been drawn around specific areas.
स्रोत?
(Source?)
Kris and Marceline frowned.
A bead of sweat ran down Marceline's forehead.
Vasant swallowed hard.
I didn't realize it had gotten this bad.
He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to find Kris looking at him.
"Can you translate the labels?"
"Ah. Right... Right, of course."
His dirty fingers slid across the paper, tracing lines and circles as he spoke.
"These are our tunnels, and these are the trails. The houses represent outposts and trading stations."
"The circled areas are places with a high concentration of Corrupted. They might be where new creatures are being transformed."
"So we're going to have to check every single one of them?"
"Yes."
He hesitated for a moment.
"But I don't know if we have that much time."
"And what if we narrow it down based on location?"
"How so?"
"If you were building a base, what would matter more? Staying hidden, or having reach?"
"That makes sense, but even then..."
Vasant's eyes drifted back to the map.
"If we're wrong, we'll lose precious time."
...
Kris snapped his fingers.
"I've got an idea."
"And that would be?"
"Well... I'm just not sure you're going to like it."
.
.
.
.
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Author's Notes:
Hello, dear readers!
Sorry for the missed uploads, but I can finally say that my exams are over.
Yaaay!
...
Anyway, I'm back to my regular posting schedule.
Thank you all for your patience and understanding!
See you in the next chapter!
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