Tip. Tip.
The soft sound of dripping water echoed through the hall, a rhythmic pulse amidst the shattered masonry and jagged fragments of cobblestone.
Broken pillars pointed toward the sky like teeth, as if straining to support the endless sky above. Snapped columns lay scattered, their ornate carvings worn smooth by time and violence. Each step across the cracked tiles felt like treading upon the memory of a fall.
The floor bore dark stains that no weather could claim, long dried, soaked into the stone in layered histories of struggle and surrender. Banners hung in tatters from the inner walls, threads whispering as the wind moved through them. No emblem remained. Whatever had ruled here had been erased with intent.
And yet.
It was majestic.
The First Lord's castle still radiated a deliberate grace. Even in ruin, the geometry was precise, purposeful. This was no fortress built in haste; it had been designed to endure. It was the only structure in all of Old Eisbourg that still deserved a name.
The rest of the city was merely rock, lying forgotten, erased from history.
Inside the majestic hall, the reality was a horror story. Multiple bodies lay scattered across the floor, limbs torn and splattered against the ancient stone.
Tip. Tip.
The sound wasn't water. It was blood, dripping steadily from a severed head perched near the base of the staircase.
Hiding behind a jagged rock a few meters away, Neil's dark green eyes sharpened.
"What the heck? Rui, you said it was completely safe here!"
A few meters above the ground, a hawk circled, sharp eyes inspecting the carnage. A grave, feminine voice resonated in Neil's mind.
[I swear, none of this was here yesterday.]
"Hmm. Did you find anything?"
[I am looking. There is nothing near the castle... are you sure you want to continue?]
Neil remained silent, then slowly approached the castle, his boots careful not to splash in the cooling red pools.
Ten... thirteen... sixteen. Sixteen bodies, pale, rotten skin, festering wounds. They looked like ordinary grade-1 lesser rank undead, save for one, a ghoul, a grade-2. From how scattered they were, this seemed to be a work of a beast.
The question was what kind of beast was capable of doing that. Neil stopped near the ghoul's body and inspected it carefully.
Big hands with even bigger claws. No sight of eyes. A wide smile literally spreading from ear to ear, revealing it's razer sharp teeths. Bones visible throughout its body, the structure eerily resembling a human, only their skin turned inside out.
Overall, that thing was a nightmare. Even among the lesser ranks, ghouls were said to be quite troublesome to deal with.
[Neil?]
"Don't you think something is strange about this body?"
Neil asked, poking the ghoul with his short sword.
[What are you talking about?]
He stood up, taking a look around the ruins, then said.
"I mean, there are no wounds on the ghoul's body... and the claw marks on the undead resemble those of the ghoul."
[...So it was the ghoul who killed its own minions?... That's unusual. But then what killed the ghoul?]
"...I don't know. I suspect-"
[Wait! Neil, something is coming out of the pit at 3 o'clock.]
Neil's blood went cold. He sprinted back to his hiding spot, heart hammering.
He drew his revolver in one hand and his short sword in the other, sinking into a low, defensive crouch.
'What is it?'
[It's... It's a Ghoul!...but something is strange about it.]
Neil took a deep breath and carefully looked over the rock.
There, coming out of the shadows, was a hunched figure. Stumbling like a drunken man before collapsing on the ground.
"Argh!"
It let out a weak sound as its chest rose and fell with each breath. I was clear that it was breathing its last.
Neil remained still for a while. Despite the situation, his breath was calm and measured.
[It's dying.]
Rui's soft voice resonated in his head again.
"Haaa... Is there any more danger?"
[Not that I see.]
Only after making sure that the coast was clear did Neil start to approach the ghoul.
The ghoul, sensing something approaching, tried to raise its body, but it collapsed again.
"AGRRHH"
It let out a sharp shriek as Neil got closer. Regardless of its condition, its desire for hunger was still there.
Stopping a few meters away from it, Neil let out a sigh.
"Haa... there are no wounds on it, too. It is most likely a mind attack."
[A mind attack! a spirit perhaps... Well, let's give up and slowly back away. I co-]
"No, we talked about this before. If it's a spirit, then I need to check it out."
[...Whatever it is, it is dangerous enough to have killed two ghouls and sixteen undead, and there might be more. It is foolish to go any further. Let's retreat for now.]
"But we haven't found the spirit root yet."
[We can look for it later. Just reporting for this can get us some reward.]
"...Alright."
Saying that, Neil turned toward the pit and started walking toward it.
[Where are you going?]
"I will just take a look, then we can call it for the day."
[Agrh! I knew it! You damn psycho! Don't blame me if you die then. Actually, I am out. Go die on your own.]
Neil continued to walk toward the pit. He knew it was dangerous, even with his unique abilitly he wasn't sure he would be able to handle whatever was down there. He definitely didn't have any dead wish.
But he was desperate.
He was hungry.
And he could sense the large amount of spirit essence from that pit. Whatever it was he needed that essence.
Losing his tense shoulder, he looked over the dark pit.
Letting out a shaky breath, he steadied his heart.
'I-It will be fine....'
[Oye! Are you listening to me? Are you really doing this?]
'For survival...'
[Curses!]