Tap, tap, tap.
Only the faintest footsteps broke the silence of the alley. Joey fought to steady his racing emotions, but the Fortune Teller's precognitive intuition sent his heart pounding.
For a moment, he even wanted to turn and flee, forgetting why he had come. The nauseating stench of rotten flesh filled his nostrils, and he thought he could hear something chewing.
The sticky sensation beneath his feet told him he was stepping in blood. His hand drifted involuntarily to the small of his back. Only gripping his pistol offered him any comfort.
Honestly, Joey regretted his recklessness. He had assumed that even if the Necromancer Sect dared show itself in the city, its people would be mere peripheral members. Judging by the situation now, however, he was probably dealing with a disciple at the officer level.
Corpses lay strewn across the scene. They all shared one feature: fungal patches covered their faces, and their skin was ulcerated.
He vaguely remembered that only one Sequence possessed such an ability: Sequence 7 of the pathway of the Defiler, Abomination Butcher.
Its advancement ritual involved infecting the ordinary people of an entire area, completing the advancement amid madness and bloodshed.
"Sequence 7. This is trouble."
Even with a revolver in his hand, he felt no sense of security. The urge to retreat took hold. He backed away slowly and cocked the gun, ensuring he could fire the instant anything happened.
Judging by the corpses, his opponent had probably only just begun preparing to advance. That meant he was still a Sequence 8 Apostle of Evernight, and specially made bullets could still hurt him.
The special firearms issued by the Survey Corps had been developed specifically for Transcendents. Against bullets, those at low Sequences were no different from ordinary people.
He had only one chance. Of his seven bullets, the first had the best chance of hitting. He had once had the dubious fortune of witnessing an Apostle of Evernight's abilities, and he simply could not contend with them.
"May today's luck stay with me."
Joey dared not expose his back. He could only inch backward.
"Heh... heh... guess what I found. A little mouse." A low voice abruptly sounded from the darkness deep within the alley.
Then a figure slowly emerged. He looked like an elderly man, his skin sallow and his steps unsteady. One glance was enough to tell he was not normal. His cheeks were sunken, his eyes hollow, and he was as thin as a skeleton.
The dark circles around his eyes and the blood lingering at his lips made him look even more pallid and frail. He forced himself upright, his body swaying, and appeared before Joey like a ghost. His sickening smell and wasted body inspired instinctive disgust.
There was no panic at being discovered in his gray-white eyes-only the excitement of finding prey.
Joey's brow twitched wildly. Every sign indicated that this man had already become half-corpse, with one foot over the threshold of becoming an Abomination Butcher.
Bang!
He dared not hesitate. The opportunity would vanish in an instant. A silver bullet streaked through a brilliant flash of flame, aimed at his opponent's head.
The instant the bullet left the barrel, Joey turned and ran without even checking whether it had hit.
His gun hand shook uncontrollably. He fired several shots behind him, not even realizing when he had emptied the cylinder.
The empty gun clicked several more times before he stopped.
Only after escaping the alley did Joey turn around in bewilderment. His opponent did not seem to have followed him.
From the darkness, only a pair of hawklike eyes cast a chilling stare his way.
"Huh...?" Joey could hardly believe he had escaped so easily.
But as the darkness in the alley receded and the corpses disappeared with it, he finally understood why the man had not pursued him.
Ultimately, his enemy was still an Apostle of Evernight. Only in darkness could he wield his abilities to their fullest.
He walked back into the alley. The corpses were gone, and so was the smell of blood, as though nothing had ever happened.
The street remained lively, with pedestrians passing by.
"It seems Evernight concealed my gunshots."
At least judging by the passersby's expressions, nothing was amiss. Ordinary people would have fled at the sound of gunfire, not continued strolling leisurely down the street.
This was West District 9. Before the coup, it had been a restricted part of the Inner City. Even commoners had struggled to enter, let alone disciples of the Necromancer Sect.
Has the infiltration already gone this far? Joey thought worriedly.
The noon bell rang. It was the bronze bell left behind by the Old-Era Sun Church, and its tolling could be heard throughout the Imperial Capital.
The ringing seemed to clear the mind, soothing tense nerves and allowing people to relax.
He looked up. Before the great fog, the bronze bell had stood there, radiating dazzling golden light like the sun. It had been Senegal's last remaining light.
The severity of the situation forced him to change his plans yet again. Or perhaps he could call it an opportunity delivered straight to his doorstep by the Necromancer Sect.
He returned to the Sheriff's Office in West District 9. It had regained its usual quiet, with everyone out on assignments. Joey pushed open the door to Wade's office. A steaming cup of coffee still sat on the desk.
Captain Wade had clearly been there just moments ago. Joey waited quietly. That wait lasted all afternoon; the captain did not appear until it was nearly dark.
"Joey? Aren't you on leave?"
Seated on the leather sofa, Joey opened his eyes groggily and yawned. Only when he saw Wade's mottled face did he abruptly come to his senses.
Wade took off his hat and hung it on the coat rack, then opened a cabinet and boiled water for tea.
"Captain, I have something very important to report."
Wade set the freshly brewed tea on the table before Joey, gave him a searching look, and spoke unhurriedly.
"No rush. Take your time. Did you find traces of the Deathless Disciples?"
"Ah?" Joey looked stunned. He had guessed even that?
He nodded slightly, his expression grave.
"Yes. Not only did I find a disciple, I also discovered that he was performing an advancement ritual." He paused to observe Wade's expression before continuing. "The advancement ritual for an Abomination Butcher."
Worry and tension appeared unmistakably on Wade's previously calm face.
Before Joey could continue, he interrupted. "Really?"
Joey gave a helpless, bitter smile.
"I wish it weren't true."
As he spoke, he took out his empty revolver.
"I encountered a necromancer disciple in West District 9. He had already become half-corpse."
Rather than asking about the disciple, Wade said in surprise:
"Even being half-corpse means he already has one foot in Sequence 7. Light preserve us, you really are a lucky fellow."
"Joey, you're now a fully qualified imperial Sheriff."
The praise made him blush. He hurriedly waved his hands.
"Captain, stop teasing me. He didn't even fight me. I ran."
Wade laughed heartily and patted Joey on the shoulder.
"You've already done very well. You can go to the Storage Room and claim a Transcendent item of your own to use as a weapon."
"Of course, you can also choose not to. In that case, you can remain a peripheral member."
Sure enough, only those who had personally confronted and handled a Transcendent incident had a chance of entering the Survey Corps' inner ranks. His previous work had essentially been that of a Sheriff maintaining order in the city, serving commoners.
Only by possessing a Transcendent weapon could he move closer to the core. Those he served would begin to shift toward the nobility, and his pay would rise considerably.
Most importantly, a Transcendent weapon could help its owner digest a potion, greatly shortening the time required to advance.
Normally, digesting a Sequence potion took three years, if not longer.
Wade watched Joey intently, seemingly waiting for his answer.
Joey composed himself and nodded solemnly.
"I would be honored!"
The Survey Corps was more like a proving ground for recruitment. Various factions placed people in its ranks to seek out outstanding Transcendents.
Joey also had an inkling of Wade's intentions. He was trying to recruit him.
Katrin Winter, whom he had met before, had been dispatched by another faction. That was why Wade could not restrict her despite being the captain.
In a sense, Wade had been his guide. Joey felt no aversion to choosing to join him.
The two hit it off immediately. Only then did Wade ask about the disciple.
"Right now, we don't have any spare personnel to conduct a search."
Wade was helpless in the face of the current situation. Although there was a temporary ceasefire, both sides remained on high alert. No one could say when unrest might erupt again.
Joey turned around and declared confidently:
"There's no need to search. I can find them."
Wade looked startled at first, then smiled. "The Fortune Teller pathway really is a remarkable Sequence. I've long heard that it allows people to seek good fortune and avoid danger, granting extraordinarily keen perception. It seems the rumors were true."
Joey scratched his head awkwardly, unsure whether Wade meant it as praise or criticism.
At first, he had known nothing about the Fortune Teller pathway. Only later had he learned that it was a joke in Senegal. It had no offensive power and was not even useful for support. Everyone jokingly called it the mascot pathway.
"Don't be discouraged. Once you finish digesting your potion, I can apply to the Knights Templar on your behalf and have you switch to another Sequence. Light, for example."
Light was one of the Sun God's Three Pillars pathways, and its strength was beyond question. Wade himself was a Sequence 7 Punisher of this pathway. He possessed partial authority over lightning and could call down localized lightning strikes to attack.
"Captain, it seems very few people choose the other two Pillars pathways."
Wade considered this for a while before speaking slowly.
"In a sense, Giant and Blazing Sun are merely extensions of the pathway of Light. And in Senegal, the apotheosis rituals for those two pathways are very difficult to fulfill. As a result, they have very few high-Sequence Transcendents."
"Moreover, after the sun stopped rising, the Blazing Sun pathway lost its route to advancement. Now it doesn't even have a complete set of Sequence potions. As for the Giant pathway, although its Sequences are complete, it's far too unstable. The slightest mistake can turn someone into a mindless mythical creature."
"By comparison, the pathway of Light is more stable and has the most high-Sequence powerhouses."
No wonder the Demigods who controlled the Elder Council all belonged to the pathway of Light.
It was possible to switch pathways at low Sequences, though this was limited to Sequence 9. The changes wrought by the potion at that level were not particularly severe and were easier to reverse.
"Only the true Eternal Blazing Sun, the Radiant Sun, can lead Senegal out of the darkness." Vade Wisker rose and walked to the window, his expression sorrowful. The endless fog seemed to conceal all his emotions. "Only light can illuminate the earth and bring abundance."
He seemed particularly fond of the pathway of Light and was, consciously or otherwise, steering Joey toward it.
Sun sounds pretty good. It's just completely wrong for me, Joey grumbled inwardly.
By temperament, Joey was more of an ordinary man, content with modest prosperity: three meals a day, a steady income throughout the year. A quiet, uneventful life was what he wanted.
He did not want to shoulder some great responsibility. Becoming Senegal's sun and saving Senegal were far too lofty goals. That burden was too heavy for him to bear, and he had no desire to try.
Perhaps it had been destined all along, but Joey felt that the Fortune Teller pathway suited him well.
Those rather heavy words seemed to have touched Wade's deepest pain. Losing interest in further conversation, he sent Joey to the storage area to collect a weapon.
"You may leave."
Joey said nothing. He withdrew quietly, gently closed the door, then turned toward the Storage Room.
Until now, he had only heard rumors about this place. This was his first opportunity to enter it.
Security was much tighter than he had imagined. He passed four or five checkpoints before reaching the Storage Room deep underground.
An ancient, decaying air emanated from the great door. Its surface was covered in intricate, elaborate patterns that seemed to be some kind of sealing inscriptions.
Under the cold, dim lighting, an ominous sense of menace greeted him. He took a deep breath and bowed politely.
"I'm here to select a Transcendent item."
The design carved on the door depicted an octopuslike monster, its body covered in eyeballs and its tentacles lined with countless barbs.
As soon as he finished speaking, one of the eyes snapped open. Joey immediately felt an icy, heart-stopping gaze pierce straight into his chest.
It was as though something had pinned him in place. His entire body went rigid, unable to move. Only when the eye closed again did sensation return.
Clack, clack, clack!
With the creaking of the door swinging open, the feeling of being watched by a savage beast finally disappeared.
Beyond the door lay a pitch-black passage. The instant he stepped inside, faint lights flickered to life. Rows of shelves held a dazzling assortment of items. At the far end stood another great door, bearing the same octopus monster design.
"That door must lead to the second level!"
On his way here, he had learned a little about the Storage Room.
The Gate of the Abyss was a door that drifted between reality and dreams, a guide for Travelers. It was also Sealed Artifact 0-09.
No one knew why it was in Senegal, or where its true body was.
"Is it watching me?"
Joey turned abruptly and caught a half-closed eye looking at him. The instant their gazes met, it quickly shut again.
"This feeling really is unpleasant." He shuddered involuntarily.
There were many Transcendent items on the shelves, including every sort of blade, spear, sword, and halberd. His intuition told Joey that these were all merely low-grade items.
The truly good things would never fall to a Sequence 9 like him.
In the end, he chose a small knife. Of everything on this level, it stirred his intuition the most strongly.
The Weeping Blade was a cursed dagger, also known as Quenching. Its Transcendent ability was to release a psychic toxin that numbed an enemy's entire body. The toxin grew stronger with its owner. Its side effect was diarrhea.
"They say Transcendent items always come with strange side effects. They weren't kidding..."
At least it gave him another measure of protection. As a Fortune Teller, Joey still felt terribly insecure.
As he prepared to leave, the closed Gate of the Abyss opened of its own accord before he even reached it. The eyes on its surface rolled wildly, and he could even sense its agitation and excitement.
"Hm...?"
In his daze, he thought he heard a baby giggling.