"So then, abilities related to the souls and the mind can not be used as it seems these Bizarre creatures feed on it," Chara said with a slight nod.
Misaka sighed. "Well, it can't be helped. We can't really risk getting infected now, but we have ten chances at living and ten chances at not being infected, so we would have a few sacrifices to defeat some infected."
"That is true, but we should also try to conserve those chances. And we also haven't opened up our item tickets. For now, I think we should split up and investigate how to defeat the infected and purge this world of corruption." Chara said as he took out the true knife and spun it around.
He then pointed out towards Ruby. "Also, you three really shouldn't be staying here and being depressed or losing your sanity. If you do that, you will just rot away, and the corruption will consume you much faster."
Ruby flinched, and she pursed her lips. "That's harsh, don't you think?"
Chara smirked. "I wouldn't call it being harsh, I am just motivating you all so you can stop wallowing in sorrow and try to rid your world of this corruption."
Ruby smiled awkwardly and rubbed the back of her head. "Well, I guess we should have a bit of hope, right?"
"Whatever, I don't want to go out now, it's dark and the Grimm are rampant," Blake said as she now turned her eyes to the people who spawned in their room all of a sudden.
"Still...we really should move on huh.." Weiss quietly spoke and then sighed, she turned to look at Chara and spoke. "How are we supposed to help you guys? In fact, why should we even trust you?"
Chara shrugged. "Eh, trust wasn't really an option, it's either you help us save YOUR world or we save it ourselves while you all rot in here."
Kazuma, who has partially calmed down again from his panic attack, immediately spoke out. "Yeah, and I don't particularly want to get lost in a school filled with creepy teachers and students who could most definitely cause me trauma."
Weiss frowned but didn't refute any of their words, she huffed and got down her bed while flicking a bit of hair away from her eyes. Her eyes were dull but there was a faint light in it. "Very well, we shall help you all."
Chara smiled and began spinning the true knife–Rael–on his arm. "Well then, since we are in enemy territory, we all are splitting up and try to avoid Ozpin as we try and find a clue to this worlds corruption."
He continued. "Me, the red girl, the white haired girl and itadori will be going together, Homura, Misaka, Kazuma and the black haired girl will be together and as to why we are going now...well we won't achieve anything by staying here."
Kazuma groaned, he blankly looked at his teammates and shuddered once he met Misakas gaze, Misaka raised her brow and scoffed at Kazuma. He turned to Chara with a pleading look. "Can we change teammates?."
Chara gave Kazuma one last, dismissive glare before turning to the door. Nero, the Shadow Spider, clicked its mandibles softly on Chara's shoulder, its crimson eyes tracking the gloom beyond the doorway.
"Rael," Chara whispered, his fingers flexing around the True Knife in his hand.
The knife glowed faintly red. "I'm ready, Master. If we find something worth cutting, let me know."
Chara pushed the dorm room door open, ensuring he made as little noise as possible. The hall outside was swallowed by shadows, the only illumination coming from the broken, flickering emergency lights at the end of the corridor. The academy, usually a symbol of light and hope, felt like a silent, waiting tomb.
"Stay close, and keep quiet," Chara instructed, looking first at Itadori and then at Ruby and Weiss
Ruby, having found a sliver of hope, gripped the shaft of her dormant Crescent Rose, nodding tightly. Weiss, visibly uncomfortable with the danger and the darkness, kept her hand near her weapon, Myrtenaster.
Staying still for a few seconds to determine that the surrounding were safe, Chara signalled the others and they began to move and as they left someone from the opposite side of the darkness stared at them, their bright red eyes looking at them with cold calculation. "It Seems....that my lovely roommates are not yet corrupted, strange, my 'death' should have already made them insecure and they definitely do have a seed of corruption on their souls."
The figure, now barely seen by the illumination of the moon pondered. "It may have been a miscalculation...hmmm oh well I luckily have another plan for such a situation, I dont want to kill you Ruby so a dear friend of yours would have to go little sister."
The corrupted Yang Xiao Long, whose yellow hair was burning red said with a sinister smile "Ah, all this thinking is getting on my nerves, it's time to let loose and go on a rampage."
Yang disappeared back into the shadows, her red eyes fading slowly into the dusk.
Back in the hallways, Charas team were slowly walking along, they had separated with the other team a few moments ago.
Ruby and Itadori were at the front while Chara and Weiss stayed at the back. Of course Chara had some measures to know if anyone is appearing here.
Nero did come with them and despite being a newborn her identity as a shadow spider is not to be taken for granted. Currently she was within the shadows, patrolling around and would notify Chara of any dangers in the dark.
He was confident in fighting them off though but not so much if they were strongly corrupted, his Trial by error at the moment seemed to be in a strange state, it felt like it was analysing the corruption and finding out a way to resist it.
If Chara did get Infected he could also try to resist it by engulfing himself in HATE or use the power of the Seven human souls to stall them from reaching his actual soul.
His knife was in his arm though he didn't really mentally try to connect with Rael even though he could feel she did want to talk to him.
"So what kind of dangers are we supposed to be expecting." Itadori asked a bit curiously.
Ruby replied to him quietly. "Currently it's ozpin and a few corrupted students and then if we go out of the school we would be met with a flood of Corrupted Grimm so it really depends on the environment."
Chara nodded, his eyes scanning the walls where the "sludge" seemed to have stained the very wallpaper of the academy. "So, the corruption isn't just a status effect; it's an ecosystem. The Grimm aren't just monsters anymore; they're carriers."
Suddenly, Nero let out a sharp, high-pitched click in his mind. The Shadow Spider had detected a ripple in the darkness ahead. Chara's arm shot out, barring Weiss and Ruby from taking another step.
"Stop," he hissed.
The air in the hallway grew impossibly cold. A faint, wet dragging sound echoed from around the corner—shhhhk, shhhhk, shhhhk.
Weiss's breath hitched. She recognized that sound. It wasn't the tapping of a cane; it was the sound of metal scraping against stone. "No... not him. Not yet."
A figure rounded the corner. It was a student, or what used to be one. Their uniform was tattered, and their skin had turned a translucent, bruised purple. From their back, several jagged, black "arms" made of hardened corruption sludge protruded like a spider's legs, dragging a heavy, rusted locker behind them.
[System Notification: Encountered Corrupted Student — The Hoarder.]
[Current Rule: Do not touch what is your or it will be owned.]
Chara was initially confused by the rule but he soon understood, Rael was no longer in his arm and was on one of the hoarders arms but it was nit only his own weapon that was there, Crescent Rose and Myrtenaster were also victims of the corrupted.
The corrupted student turned towards them and smiled ominously.
The locker he was dragging shuddered before it began to slowly open
[Warning!!!. Make sure the locker is not open or risk losing your weapons.]