Before dawn on Monday, with my backpack on my shoulder, I head to Squad Z, carrying the five swords I bought in my hands. Even though there were bathrooms in the Common Crematorium, all my clothes and I smell like ashes, burnt flesh, chemicals, and who knows what else. If this doesn't hide the smell, who knows what will.
Upon reaching the entrance to Squad Z's territory, I cross the entrance and walk toward the building's entrance.
I greet the receptionist at the entrance.
"It seems they rotate often at the reception desk," I think to myself as I continue walking down the hallways, climb some stairs, and walk down another hallway until I reach the office of the hunter Lizand.
She is reading some documents, looks at me, and then places a document on the desk.
I take the document, read the address, and prepare to leave, as I must arrive before the trucks leave, but I stop when hunter Lizand begins to instruct me:
"James will accompany you. You will serve your punishment together. Be back on time. Next week, it's your turn for cleaning duty."
"As you command, hunter Lizand." I don't even reply, since she got me out of a tight spot.
••••
When I arrive at the entrance to the squad building, I see Watson carrying his backpack, wearing a gray long-sleeved shirt, brown pants, and worn boots.
I approach him, look in all directions, and then ask him calmly:
"Where's Lila?"
"She left before dawn. She told me to tell you to behave yourself," Watson said cautiously.
"What a problem. I never thought I'd meet such a troublesome woman," I think as I take Ghost out of my backpack.
"Here, take care of him. You can use it to kill monsters or supernatural beings with 1 or 2 skulls, and aspiring F and E rank hunters. It currently has 5 bullets." I say as I hand him the revolver and a holster.
Watson takes the revolver and asks me fearfully:
"How much did it cost?"
"I'm not charging you. Just keep working efficiently. I reply.
Watson nods, and then we head to the address written on the official document given to me by the hunter Lizand.
••••
After walking for a few minutes, we arrive at what I call the misery zone. The smell is nauseating, there is human waste and rotting corpses in the alleys, there are beggars and homeless people of all ages, some of whom will soon die, as is evident from their emaciated appearance.
We continue walking until we reach the red steel gate in the wall of Rodem City.
We are alone in the vicinity. I lean against the wall and Watson paces back and forth.
I reread the document.
"We were assigned to Area 2. A place called the Forest of Noisy Silence. The danger level in the shallowest part of the forest is rank D, which is why you should not enter the deepest part of the forest, as the danger can increase to become life-threatening."
I close the document. Now Watson is reading a notebook. I look around and see a group of 18 aspiring hunters approaching, dressed in black military uniforms with red armbands on their right arms. They are all women, some of them attractive, and they appear to belong to some kind of guild.
"Five bullets, I have five bullets in Scarlet Rose. I didn't waste any time at the Crematorium. I also have the five swords I bought at the blacksmith's. On top of that, there's Stoker and his five bullets in case of emergency. Yes, I think this is the time I'm best prepared," I think to myself and look back ahead after taking stock of the resources I brought for this mission.
I take a cookie out of my backpack and eat it slowly as we continue to wait. A few minutes later, eight members of Squad Z arrive, guarding 18 baits.
"Open the doors, we're all here!" exclaims a woman with a sensual body, an attractive face, and wine-colored hair tied in a ponytail.
Shortly after, we hear the sound of the doors opening, and we all walk outside, where three trucks are already waiting to take us away.
The women are divided into two groups of nine, one in the trucks on the right and one on the left. Watson and I choose the truck on the right, as the truck in the middle is already full of people used as bait.
Upon entering, I encounter the aspiring hunter with wine-colored hair.
"Hello, handsome. What's your name?"
"The Lady in Red says she's dating me," I replied.
A response that surprised even me, as all the women looked at me with discomfort, as if I had suddenly become a circus freak.
"It's better this way. I don't want any trouble with women in the middle of a mission where I could end up dead at the slightest mistake," I think to myself, and then I close my eyes to rest until we reach the vicinity of Area 2.
Shortly after, I hear the engine start, and the new journey begins...
••••
Time passes, and a few hours later we descend near a huge forest.
The trees in front of us are almost 20 meters tall, and the trees inside the forest seem to be much larger.
It feels like standing in front of a huge green wave.
"This forest has an oppressive presence," was my first thought.
I put three swords in my backpack and wield the others as I survey my surroundings.
The mission is to exterminate monsters in the shallowest part of the forest. It doesn't seem like anything out of the ordinary, but it's actually dangerous if you're not careful.
••••
"We'll split into groups of three. Remember not to get separated in the forest, especially when night falls," said Mira, the woman with wine-colored hair.
Earlier, I heard another aspiring hunter call her by name.
"What shall we do?" Watson asks me.
"Let's observe and see how the situation develops," I reply.