Duke didn't leave all the fighting to Kisha; he took care of the zombie that slipped through the crack, ensuring the street they had co from was clear of any further threats.
With only the two of them and no need to hold back, they utilized their awakened abilities to carve a path forward. However, as they approached the location marked on the map, the zombie horde thickened noticeably. Kisha sensed that sothing was amiss; a B-class mission was proving to be as challenging as the rescue mission she had undertaken with the Winters.
She struggled to understand the mission description; as far as her mory of the area went, there were no mountains or anything resembling one nearby. She pondered the possibility of it being a rescue mission, given the emphasis on "saving the 'mountain'" and the phrase "community savior" in the description.
As Kisha and Duke approached the location pinned on their map, about 500 ters away, they heard a distinct, nacing growl unlike any they had encountered from regular zombies. Kisha wondered if it signaled an evolved zombie leading the horde's assault. anwhile, she noticed the mass of zombies struggling to maneuver past one another, forming a dense crowd ahead.
Beyond them, they saw a circular arrangent of colorful buildings centered around a community fountain. The apartnts stood closely together, with small shops on the ground floor forming a mini-community of their own.
Roar-
Roar-
Another fierce roar echoed from the center of the encirclent, further agitating the zombies. Kisha also felt the ground trembling beneath her feet, unsure whether it was caused by the sheer mass of zombies moving about or by sothing significant happening in the center related to the roars they had been hearing.
Kisha and Duke faced a daunting obstacle: a dense throng of zombies blocked their path ahead. The creatures were too preoccupied with reaching the center of the encirclent to notice the two approaching. Uncertain of what awaited them at the center, Kisha and Duke hesitated to rush in, recognizing it as another reason to hold back.
Instead, Kisha and Duke opted to ascend the ergency stairs in an adjacent alley, aiming for an apartnt near the colorful building. The ergency stairs were roughly two ters high. Duke positioned himself behind Kisha, securing her waist before effortlessly hoisting her up the wall to reach the ladder.
While Kisha could have managed on her own, she appreciated Duke's assistance and allowed him to help.
Using his well-trained muscles, Duke leaped from the ground to the ergency ladder without difficulty. He quickly ascended, utilizing his upper body strength to pull himself up effortlessly. Together, they climbed until they reached the roof of the building.
Once they reached the rooftop, their objective was clear: they needed to move to the adjacent building in order to gain a full view of the central part of the community where the commotion originated, and where their mission was focused. The building they needed to reach was sowhat distant, separated by another alley below.
However, this posed no challenge to them, even without Vulture's assistance. Duke stepped back a ter and gestured for Kisha to follow him. He intended to leap from their current building to the next, bridging the gap swiftly.
Kisha raised an eyebrow at Duke, unsure if he still intended to throw her to the next building. She shook her head, knowing Duke's ability allowed him to jump from their building to the adjacent one. Without hesitation, she took the first step. Instead of stepping back like Duke, she leaped from the roof, causing Duke's heart to leap into his throat with nervousness.
Forgetting everything else, he almost instinctively prepared to follow her when he witnessed Kisha use her telekinetic ability to control her dagger, using it for leverage midair. Stepping onto the dagger, she propelled herself forward. However, her first leap wasn't enough to reach the other side. Adjusting quickly, she maneuvered the dagger again, positioning it ahead of her as a stepping stone.
With this final effort, she successfully reached the adjacent building.
Duke let out a soft, defeated chuckle as he followed suit. Thanks to his strong leg muscles, he managed to reach the other side with a single leap, unlike Kisha, who had to use the dagger as a stepping stone to make it across.
As Kisha and Duke gained a clear view of the central part of the community, they witnessed a peculiar scene: the zombies, eager to climb over each other, were held at bay by those at the forefront, fixated on a standoff between an evolved zombie adorned with earth spikes on its back while also covered in what resembled earth armor and on the other side was what appeared to be a massive, bear-like creature.
The creature growled nacingly towards the evolved zombie, dwarfing Kisha in size—perhaps standing next to it would reach her shoulder.
"That's a huge Tibetan Mastiff," Duke murmured, his gaze fixed on the intense standoff between the two creatures.
Kisha turned her head sharply towards Duke. As far as she knew, Tibetan Mastiffs were a large breed of dog, but not typically as large as a bear. Its black fur with a hint of brown made it resemble a bear at first glance, though its fluffy appearance made her uncertain. Moreover, it was standing on all fours, adding to the ambiguity.
And even when it was standing in all four, it was still massive and intimidating.
Roar-
The Mastiff's bark reverberated like a roar, its powerful sound shaking the ground as it stood firm and unmoving. Kisha observed the evolved zombie shrieking in anger; its face covered in earth resembled scales, its ear-piercing shriek also capable of shaking the ground. The zombie attempted to intimidate the dog by conjuring earth spikes from its feet, aiming them towards the Mastiff.
Despite its massive size, the dog displayed surprising agility, easily dodging the attack. However, in doing so, it nearly edged closer to the encirclent's boundary, prompting nearby zombies to lunge and attempt to bite it. Fortunately, the Mastiff swiftly noticed and stepped away, averting the danger.
"It's massive, like a mountain," Kisha murmured as she watched intently. Her words slipped out almost unintentionally, but as soon as she heard herself say "mountain," realization struck. "Mountain," she repeated, her eyes widening with understanding. Duke glanced at her, curious to know what had suddenly excited Kisha.
Kisha observed the dog again, then shifted her gaze to the evolved zombie. Recalling the mission description, she noted that despite the zombie's appearance resembling a mountain with its earth spikes and abilities, it didn't align with the "Community Savior" description from the hidden mission. Her eyes returned to the dog, their intensity growing.
The dog's imnse size was striking; it easily reached her shoulder while on all fours, and would be even taller if it stood upright. Its sheer bulk size gave it a mountainous presence, possibly fulfilling the role of the "mountain" in the mission.
She scanned the entire area. If the dog was indeed dubbed a "community savior," then it likely acted as the guardian of this community. Kisha's eyes wandered across the buildings. So people remained inside, appearing frail, and hungry, with sunken faces and vacant stares.
They observed the commotion outside with indifference, yet whenever they glanced at the dog, a glint appeared in their eyes—not out of gratitude, but of hunger.
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