For a few hours, we killed every single rat that appeared near the inn. Martin also broke his limit and decided to increase his mental limit. According to him, that would be more beneficial, since he would be able to shot more times and get rid of his dizziness faster.

It was around midnight when I noticed something strange, somehow the sound of the wind became ominous, and I felt that something terrible was about to happen.

“I think we should stop killing these things for now.”

“Why?”

Martin looked at me puzzled, but that was expected, after all, get rid of these creatures would make the city safer.

“I think we went too far; we killed more than fifty of them. The smell of blood is becoming more intense, besides I feel that something is about to happen.”

Since he was too focused on killing the rats, he didn’t notice immediately, but once Martin stopped, he understood my reasoning. It wasn’t my improved senses alerting me of something; it was evident that something was happening right now in the city.

“You are right; let’s stop. The wind will spread the smell of blood for a few kilometers, even a few dozens of rats won’t do anything with us on high ground. But, better safe than sorry.”

However, it was already too late; the wind became stronger and brought a disturbing sound with it, the sound of screams and wings flapping; both sounds made my blood run cold.

“What the hell is this?”

“Bats! Quickly, let’s use the bed to block the way to the balcony!”

I didn’t want to believe in it, but a new monster had appeared. The sound was massive, they definitely weren’t ordinary bats, besides, and it was a big group. The bed was big, so it took some time to put in the right place. But only that couldn’t block the way to the balcony. However, we didn’t have time to worry about that; we used every single thing that we could find and put it near the bed, to offer some support. After all, we didn’t know how powerful those bats were.

“Get ready; they are coming.”

As he said that, Martin aimed his crossbow to the space the bed couldn’t fill since it wasn’t tall enough. That space was only half meter tall and one meter wide, but caution never killed anyone.

When I aimed my bow in the same direction, the bats had finally arrived, but to my surprise, they didn’t come to us. They stopped in front of the inn, and they began their feast, I could hear the sound of meat being torn apart and blood gushing.

“They are eating the rats’ corpses.”

“Be quiet!”

In a stupid act, I said those words carelessly, and Martin immediately reprimanded me while whispering. Fortunately, the bats were too busy eating, thanks to that they didn’t hear me. However, they still came to our direction and began fiercely to attack the objects blocking their way.

“Kill them all!”

It was useless to pretend since they somehow managed to find us, we didn’t have any other choice but to fight. Luckily for us, they were pushing one another trying to enter through the breaches. But they were too big for that, unable to force their way or to retreat, they became easy targets for us. I was grateful for that, because after seeing their rat-like face, fangs, pointed ears, and enormous wings, I wouldn’t be able to look at them for more than two seconds, much less appropriately aim at them. The rats looked cute in comparison to those bats.

If I were alone, I would have died for sure. I used all twenty-five arrows, but only eight of them killed the bats instantly. The other arrows only pierced their wings or legs. On the other hand, with every shot, Martin killed a bat, and I was thankful for that.

You have obtained 36 Evolution Orbs.

You have obtained 36 Evolution Coins.

The fight didn’t last more than three minutes, but it looked like an eternity. After losing more than thirty of their friends, the other bats decided to leave. Even I would lose appetite if my food had bow and arrows. Their retreat couldn’t have happened at a better time. As soon as their sound disappeared, I heard the sound of Martin falling on the floor. Luckily, he was alive; his theory about MP was correct after all. Thanks to that struggle, I also wanted to just threw myself on the floor and sleep. But I decided to stay awake; after all, those damn things could return. However, no more fights happened that night.

It took some time, but the sun finally began to rise. Physically and mentally drained, I began to eat a light breakfast to recover myself. Once again, the lemonade was making my life less miserable. With a jump, Martin got up and again aimed his crossbow at me.

“If you don’t kill me, I’ll give you all my lemonade.”

It was a stupid joke, but Martin laughed until he could barely breathe. Even though he passed out, he still remembered everything, and I didn’t notice any side effects, thanks to that we could still use MP without getting worried. This time, I insisted on sharing my food, but he refused again. I wondered if he would be okay walking alone in a city full of monsters with an empty stomach. But that was his choice, and I couldn’t do anything to change his mind.

It took a few minutes, but we managed to clean our exit. The smell of blood was making me sick, and the bats’ faces were making my blood run cold.

Without wasting time, we left the inn when our surroundings were bright enough. We walked together for one kilometer, and then we stopped, it was time to split up.

“Well, I guess it’s about time.”

“Thanks, Martin. You taught me a lot and saved my skin many times. I hope one day to return the favor.”

After I said that, I offered a handshake to him. He was older, but he was the first friend that I made since that incident. A bit of gratitude was the only thing that I could offer him at the moment, but surely one day would return the favor.

“Don’t exaggerate, Ethan. You made my work a lot easier, you are young, but you are competent. I wish you luck, and I hope that you can find your parents.”

“You too, good luck.”

After that, he accepted the handshake showing a content expression, but soon he became serious again.

“Be careful, Ethan. Those guys are still around, and I think you will face many more rats if you follow St Louis Street. Something is up ahead, don’t do anything stupid. If the way is blocked, you can always find another route, but you won’t meet your family if you insist on the fastest way and die in the process.”

When it comes to family, I was a bit impulsive, but even I wasn't dumb enough to try to do the impossible, right? I wanted to meet them as soon as possible, and nothing would stop me from doing so. But I knew that I would have to learn that in the hard way, instead of just following someone’s advice.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

After I said that, Martin smiled again, and then he turned to the right. He looked like an elite soldier walking with that crossbow ready to shot at a moment’s notice and never putting it down. When he was one hundred meters away, I also began to move. With my bow ready to shot, I moved forward towards downtown, and I even could feel my body becoming full of energy as I approached those huge buildings. But, soon, I had to stop because I found another group of rats.

“Already?”

Martin warned me; something was up ahead. The encounters with the rats were becoming too frequent, and I could see five enemies coming towards me. I took cover behind a power pole while I prepared myself. That was the first time that I would face so many monsters alone, but that couldn’t be helped. Without wasting time and letting them approach, I began to shot.

Before the creatures could react, I shot three arrows, only the second killed a rat, while the other two arrows only made they scream in pain. Thanks to that, they wouldn’t attack me immediately, but the others were already running towards me. I waited for one of them to jump to shot again, because of that, the arrow pierced the creature’s head. However, that made me vulnerable to the last attack. I threw myself to the side, but since I wasn’t skillful enough, I felt a piercing pain on my back.

‘It is just a scratch, don’t stop!’

After convincing myself of that, I retook my shooting stance. The fifth rat was trying to gain speed again, but before the creature could try anything, I killed it. I looked to my back, and I could see the two remaining rats slowly approaching me, the arrows didn’t kill them, but it made them feel a lot of pain. They died before they could even think about attacking me.

After the battle, I could feel my back a little wet, but as I thought, it was just a scratch. Since that was the case, I began to move again. However, I stopped because, in the distance, I could see a huge black shadow on the way.

“What the fuck is that?”

I didn’t have any idea about what that thing was, but it wasn’t a good thing, after all, it was blocking my way. I was only four kilometers away from home; I could reunite with my parents even before lunch. But Martin’s words made me hesitate. Something dangerous was up ahead, the smart thing to do was to take a detour, but I wasn’t smart. Like always, I would only learn some things after feeling them in my body.

Without thinking, I moved forward, and another group of enemies appeared, eight rats were coming in my direction.

“That’s okay; I can get rid of them. I’m getting better with my bow, and those monsters are just too dumb.”

The rats were dumb, but they still had the upper hand. Besides they were natural fighters, while I was just a civilian with a single day of experience with a bow. The first rat died with an arrow in its forehead, but the others didn’t even flinch. The second and third fell with arrows on their stomachs, they were still alive, but they wouldn’t attack me for the time being. But from that moment onwards, I didn’t fight; I struggled to keep my head in the right place.

Like it was planned, three rats jumped towards me. I still could manage hit one of them and avoid the other, but the third would kill me for sure. Instead of trying to kill one of them, I just threw myself on the hot asphalt. The other two were approaching, but I could shot at them. However, only one shot managed to hit the target. The other attacked my left arm and made me drop my bow.

‘Holy shit.’

The bow fell in the direction of the three rats, and that made me feel shivers. Once again, I had to use the arrows to fight instead of just shooting them.

With the bow in my hand, those rats were just targets to me. But without it, I was the prey, and the rats were the hunters. In that situation, I could see those creatures grinning at me. Maybe that was just my imagination, but at least thanks to that, my courage returned.

“All right, you damn beasts, if you want a piece of me then come and get it. But it’ll cost you dearly!”

Again, the tree beasts jumped towards me. But I managed to evade two of them and pierce my arrows in their faces. I didn’t kill them, but at least the blood would blind them for now. However, the time stopped when I saw the third rat claw approaching my neck. I didn’t know how, but I managed to avoid the attack, but I didn’t escape unharmed. I felt a sharp pain at the side of my head, and when I touched, I understood what happened, half of my right ear was gone.

“YOU SON OF A BITCH, YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT!”

That’s me in a nutshell, dumb and crazily impulsive. In a fit of rage, I forgot about the last and still not wounded rat. And the creature used that chance to attack me from behind. The result was me feeling the agonizing pain of the muscles of my ribcage being cut like butter.

“FUCK!”

Thanks to the adrenaline, I managed to stay conscious and kill the two damned monsters; for some reason, they seemed slower, than the first time, but I didn’t care about that. Even though I was alive, I didn’t have anything to celebrate. Without wasting time, I took my bow back and looked for the other half of my ear. Thank god those beasts’ claws were too sharp, I could easily find the other part, and it wasn’t damaged.

“Damn, fucking hell. I hope that I can find a doctor to put this back or, AHHH. DAMMIT.”

Now that the fight was over, I could easily understand and feel the total damage that I received. I didn’t have any choice but to retreat. Only a lost cause would try to continue in that state, I was almost at that level, but at least I learned my lesson.

Just like Martin thought, the rats were coming from the ST Louis Street, probably from that black shadow, it was evident since I didn’t have to fight until I returned to the place where we split up. That place was free from danger, so I decided to change my clothes. Thanks to that, I could see how I was in trouble. The cut was too deep, I wasn’t bleeding a lot, but I had to close that wound as soon as possible. I threw away my dirty clothes and wore the new ones, but soon those also become dirt thanks to the blood.

“I have to find a hospital or pharmacy to treat my wounds, and I also need food and water. Damn it; I really need to take a shower.”

Since I didn’t have any other choice, I began to walk towards the eastern part of the city. Maybe I could even regroup with Martin, after all, he probably knew that part of the city better than me.

I quickly found his trail, dozens of rats with crossbow bolts in their bodies. However, even after following his path for the entire day, I didn’t see him. On the other hand, I quickly found more of those rats. Their numbers were fewer, but the encounter rate was annoying. I even managed to break the limit again before lunch. I choose, to break the sensorial limit again and for some reason, the pain I felt in my wounds lessened a bit. But instead of relief, I was angry, very angry.

“Who the hell planned this part of the city? For God’s sake, where are the hospitals, the pharmacies and the supermarkets of this area?”

I didn’t walk a long distance since my wounds were killing me. But it was too strange not to find a single supermarket. I never felt so frustrated like that before; not a single good thing happened in the entire day. I was dirty, in pain, bleeding, feeling like crap, and I couldn’t meet my parents. What could get worse?

But then I finally found a supermarket and a hospital on the other side of the street. All my problems wouldn’t disappear, but a few of them would, and that was enough for now. However, luck was never on my side. The hospital and the supermarket looked perfectly fine; nothing was destroyed, everything was in the right place, but, I didn’t find a single remedy in the hospital, and the supermarket’s shelves were empty. It looked like the medicines and the other products just vanished into the air.