I had asked Saya before to tell me about the 24th Ward. But she had simply given me a strange look full of confusion and asked if I actually believed in urban legends.
She told me she didn't know much about that legend apart from it supposedly being a battlefield between extremely powerful ghouls many years ago.
Of course, she added that since things like alien parasites and human-devouring ghouls exist, what was believed to be just an urban legend might possibly be something that actually happened in the past.
'To be honest, that information wasn't particularly useful.'
I think while walking through the bookstore aisles.
Besides being a bit curious about the battle that took place there, what I really wanted to know was the exact location.
In the anime I watched in my past life, they weren't clear at all about the location of the 24th Ward, or at least, I might not remember since it was many years ago. So the only option left is to search for information in books.
Of course, I hadn't forgotten to ask Touka about it during one of our nightly training sessions. However, she replied that she'd already told me everything her parents had informed her about before they died.
That the 24th Ward is an extremely dangerous place since it's full of wild and crazed ghouls without rationality.
Since it's full of powerful monsters, for me it's the perfect place to evolve quickly.
"Oh, here it is!"
I grab a book from the shelf. It's a book about Tokyo urban legends. But actually, there might even be quite a bit of truth hidden in these legends when you analyze them.
The cover shows an image of a completely destroyed part of a city.
It's the only book that mentions the 24th Ward, so I consider it useful. I pay for it at the register and leave the bookstore.
I walk toward a nearby park that's relatively empty, sitting on a bench under a tree.
Opening the book, I begin reading carefully.
I only find a couple of useful pieces of information scattered among superstitions and, as expected, exaggerations.
'So it's not actually an official ward like Tokyo's twenty-three recognized wards. And it's not a visible city that you can visit on the surface either.'
24th Ward is beneath Tokyo. A complete underground city, so to speak. And it's made up of numerous interconnected labyrinths of old and ancient tunnels.
'Interesting.'
I keep reading.
It also seems like a tale created to make children afraid of sewers. Since it's said that if you carelessly enter through the sewers in certain areas of Tokyo, you're likely to encounter the entrance to these dangerous tunnels.
And get lost there forever in absolute darkness.
I close the book after finishing reading everything relevant.
"So I shouldn't look for the 24th Ward on the surface like it's a normal city. But search through the sewers. Huh..."
The problem is there are literally thousands of sewers scattered throughout Tokyo. And finding one that leads there could be even more difficult and would take a lot of time.
If there are as many interconnected tunnels as the book says, some must be safer than others to explore. While other tunnels might have no exit and be death traps, right?
Makes sense.
So I set my objective.
Find the right entrance to the 24th Ward to venture in there. Consume as many ghouls as possible to increase my evolution.
And at the same time search for clues about hidden vampires. Since it's far more likely that vampires are hidden in that underground place than wandering freely through the other upper wards where the CCG patrols.
Then the probability of evolving from this current state of "zombie, ghoul or whatever I am" toward something much closer to a vampire would be considerably higher.
And that outcome would undoubtedly give me other types of new powers.
Considering if that future is successfully fulfilled, then it would even be possible to make Saya and Rei their best possible versions.
Meaning they'd be much stronger than they are now.
How exactly would I do it? Well, by turning them into vampires obviously.
But I don't know if those two would agree to that so easily.
It's a huge decision after all. To stop being human.
So another important point must be considered. The matter of my own true identity.
I should reveal to them what I really am.
It's inevitable if I want them to trust me completely.
They might reject me upon discovering the truth. But there's a higher probability they'll accept me anyway.
Because of how I've treated them up until now all this time. It's true I've hidden my true monstrous being from them. But I've never hidden my true personality from those two.
I've always been genuine in my interactions, in my concerns and above all, in my friendship.
That gives me a bit more confidence to reveal my true self little by little when the appropriate moment comes.
Anyway, this world is going to go completely to hell.
So it's better that they're strong too so they can survive what's coming.
Setting aside the apocalypse that would take a few more years to arrive, there's plenty of danger lurking.
For Rei and Saya, even the parasites are a threat.
The parasites haven't been in this world very long, and unlike ghouls who already have a solid foundation and can interact freely with humans, they're a bit socially awkward. Whether it's a classmate or a school teacher could at any moment use their tentacles to carry out a massacre.
And for me, the dangers are...
'Well, for example there's the old owner of Anteiku.'
In the anime, Touka worked there as a waitress along with other ghouls. But now it seems she hasn't met them yet.
'Another is that man dressed in white who works for the CCG.'
If I remember correctly, his name is Arima. He's quite dangerous. Probably the strongest investigator in the CCG.
And I definitely couldn't defeat him with my current power.
Leaving them aside, there are vampires in general.
And the most terrifying of all...
'Alucard.'
"Damn it..."
What a dangerous world.
Maybe someday with enough evolution I can obtain the necessary strength to defeat the old man from Anteiku. And Arima too.
However... could I ever really defeat Alucard?
I can't even imagine what kind of powers I'd need to defeat that monstrous existence.
It's like comparing an ant to a dragon.
Seriously thinking about all that, my idea of going to the 24th Ward as soon as possible only became stronger and more urgent.
I need power.
Much more power than I have now.
"All right!"
I jump up from the bench and slap my face hard a couple of times.
"I need to prepare properly for this."
I need a mask to hide my face. A deodorizer to change my body odor. And some long black cloak to cover my figure and height.
Then no one could discover my identity even if I ran into CCG investigators or different organizations.
It's a necessary precaution.
By afternoon I've already gathered everything I need for my expedition.
Of course I didn't buy everything from the same store.
Instead I visited many different stores scattered throughout the city. I bought the mask in one. The cloak in another. Gloves in a third.
Because it would be strange and at the same time suspicious if I buy long black cloaks, full-face masks, and those kinds of things from the same place.
I return to the Takagi mansion before Saya and Mrs. Yuriko get back. Then I hide my new purchases in my room.
Tonight I'll rest.
But tomorrow I begin my search for the 24th Ward.
×××
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