Ghoul.
The term originates from Arabic mythology, used to describe monsters that feast upon corpses.
While myths and legends typically erode under the relentless passage of time, for some reason, the name "Ghoul" has persisted into the modern era.
Over time, its meaning evolved beyond that of a simple corpse-eating monster.
A monster that hides among humanity in human form, unable to survive unless it consumes human flesh.
In the modern world, they are known as Ghouls.
***
The first thing that greeted him was the darkness.
Then came the noise. The faint scuttling of a rat in the sewers echoed low against the concrete walls.
Then came the stench. In a place where fresh air never reached, the air was thick with the oppressive smell of mold.
Dark, grim, and foul.
It was a place any ordinary person would avoid at all costs.
Yet, precisely because they were far from ordinary, there were those who had no choice but to seek refuge in such depths.
Step. Step.
A lone figure walked deeper into the sewers.
Clad in a grime-blackened coat with a hood pulled low, he looked like little more than a vagrant.
But no ordinary homeless man would venture this far into the abyss.
Beneath the hood, narrow, slit-like eyes scanned the surroundings with sharp vigilance.
Step.
The man suddenly came to a halt.
...He felt someone behind him.
“...!!”
Whoosh!
He spun around violently, his coat billowing outward.
From beneath the fabric, something reddish flashed, and for a split second, a flame-like light ignited within his wide-open eyes.
However, before he could strike, he recognized the figure and froze.
“Kuzen, was that you?”
It was an acquaintance.
A man wearing a stiff suit and a luxurious fedora, looking utterly out of place in such a wretched environment.
The man in the fedora had approached without a sound or a trace of presence, but the slit-eyed man, accustomed to such things, let it slide.
“Is that the child?”
The slit-eyed man's gaze shifted to the bundle cradled in the other man's arms.
Wrapped in soft cloth, the bundle emitted a gentle, hopeful breath—like a sprout pushing through the barren earth of this desolate place.
“May I entrust the child to you?”
“I understand. I will do my utmost to raise the child.”
“I am sorry. To burden you with such a task...”
“Not at all. Compared to the debt I owe you, this is...”
As he spoke, the slit-eyed man reached out to take the bundle.
It happened in an instant.
Squelch!
““...!!!””
Blood suddenly sprayed into the air.
Something had violently pierced through the slit-eyed man's chest. Simultaneously, the man in the fedora reacted with lightning speed, swatting away whatever had tried to snatch the bundle.
“H-How...?”
The slit-eyed man stared down at the gaping hole in his chest, then followed the other man's gaze to look behind them.
This was supposed to be a place where only the two of them existed.
No one was supposed to know. No one was supposed to find them.
Yet, from the far end of the wide corridor, multiple presences were emerging.
A mechanical, cunning, and blasphemous horde was closing in.
“We finally found you, Kuzen.”
Chomp, chomp.
From the center of the black shadows draping the passage, a man stepped forward, chewing gum with blatant indifference.
He wore a fedora similar to the one Kuzen wore, but the red gaze peering from beneath the brim was not that of an ally.
“Kuzen!! Run!!”
Despite the hole in his chest, the slit-eyed man summoned every last shred of his will to block the advancing shadows.
“Noroi! No!”
“Go, now! You cannot fight in this state! Think of what you are carrying!”
Kuzen instinctively tried to step forward, but he froze at his friend's command.
In Kuzen's arms,
unaware of the malice pouring toward them, the child continued to sleep soundly, breathing softly.
His friend was right.
He could not fight like this.
“...I'm sorry.”
“Do not be sad. Neither of us were ever destined for a peaceful life, were we?”
With one final smile for his friend, the man named Noroi threw himself at the approaching shadows.
KWA-GA-GA-GA-BOOOOM!!!!
Leaving the thunderous explosions and murderous intent behind, Kuzen sprinted away from the scene.
He had trusted his friend, yet that very contact had exposed them to the enemy.
Now, all that remained was...
“...Only this child.”
Emerging from the darkness of the sewers, Kuzen launched himself toward the city skyline.
Like an owl gliding through the midnight sky.
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