The corridor had fallen silent again.
Three ghoul corpses lay motionless on the floor.
Black blood had spread across the ground.
A sharp stench of decay filled the air.
Lucas leaned against his metal pipe, breathing heavily.
His chest rose and fell rapidly.
"Damn…"
"Are these things really dead?"
Kaelion didn't answer.
His eyes were fixed on the stairwell.
Predator Instinct was still uneasy.
That feeling hadn't disappeared.
If anything…
it was growing stronger with every second.
Lucas looked at Kaelion.
"Hey."
"Something wrong?"
Kaelion gave a short reply.
"Listen."
Both of them went silent.
The building was dark.
The silence felt heavy.
In the distance, the wind could be heard.
Then—
THUD
Lucas flinched.
"You hear that?"
Kaelion tilted his head slightly.
Yes.
Another step.
THUD
Lucas's expression tightened.
"That's… not a ghoul."
Kaelion thought the same.
Ghouls were fast.
But this sound…
was heavy.
Very heavy.
Predator Instinct screamed inside Kaelion's mind.
Danger.
Great danger.
Kaelion took a deep breath.
Then he turned to Lucas.
"Listen."
Lucas focused immediately.
"What?"
Kaelion pointed down the corridor.
"Narrow."
Lucas didn't understand.
"Yeah…?"
"That's good."
Lucas frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"A big creature won't move easily here."
Lucas slowly nodded.
"So we fight it here."
Kaelion tightened his grip on the knife.
"Yeah."
Then he looked at Lucas.
"Stay behind me."
Lucas immediately objected.
"No."
Kaelion raised an eyebrow.
Lucas lifted the pipe.
"I'm not running this time."
Kaelion looked at him for a few seconds.
Then gave a slight nod.
"Alright."
At that moment—
another sound came from the stairs.
THUD
This time it was closer.
Lucas instinctively stepped back.
The stairwell was dark.
But inside that darkness…
a shadow moved.
Then a hand appeared on the step.
But this hand…
was far larger than a ghoul's.
It was muscular.
Its skin was gray.
And its nails had turned into long black claws.
Lucas whispered,
"What the hell… is that?"
The creature slowly climbed the stairs.
Its steps were heavy.
Each step made the floor tremble.
👹 Ghoul Brute
Rank: E
Level: 6
Elite Variant
It was nearly twice the size of a normal ghoul.
Its shoulders were wide.
Its muscles bulged.
Veins throbbed beneath its rotting skin.
Black liquid dripped from its mouth.
Its glowing yellow eyes locked onto Kaelion.
Lucas's voice was barely audible.
"Kaelion…"
"…that thing isn't like the others."
The Ghoul Brute tilted its head.
Then took a heavy step forward.
THUD
The floor trembled.
Kaelion raised his knife.
Predator Instinct screamed.
This fight…
was going to be much harder.
The Ghoul Brute took another step.
Then opened its mouth.
A deep growl echoed from its throat.
Lucas tightened his grip on the pipe.
"Alright…"
"This one's going to be rough."
Kaelion's eyes remained locked on the monster.
Then he spoke quietly.
"Get ready."