Heisen's Eye

Chapter 73

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Etsu's POV
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By the time I reached the Grotto, it was getting hard to see in front of me, but an area seemed to glow in the dark, an area I was confident in thinking was the Grotto.

The Grotto is clearly a place much more decrepit than the rest of the slums.

It stunk with such a horrid stench that I bet even rats would run away from it.

Of course, this wasn't the smell of sewage or waste, but rather the smell of rotting corpses.

This was clearly the place where the people of the slums disposed of their wrongdoings.

But why Ryu's letter would be here I have no idea. Unless I just interpreted that 'thing' those men were talking about was the letter when it was actually something else.

Either way, it'll likely be good for me, since if it isn't his letter, it'll still be a lead since it's for the No-Names.

Although, I'm not entirely sure what I'm looking for. The first man did say 'they', so I'm guessing it's a group, but I don't sense any presence in the Grotto.

It doesn't seem like it has any magic acting around it either, so unless the people in there can erase their presence, there is no one around.

But I'm not going to get anywhere sitting just outside, hanging against the side of an alley.

I start to walk into the Grotto, its smell getting worse and worse as I approach, a smell that I sadly recognise.

Its appearance was similar to that of the rest of the slums, with buildings made of rotting wood and the stone walls green with moss and slightly stained with blood.

Altough, in between a small cluster of buildings, small bridges could be seen hanging, connecting maybe 6 or 7 buildings together like a makeshift tree house.

They were shoddily built, but built none the less, and clearly worked well, as small shadows could be seen passing across them, causing it to shake slightly.

My intuition tells me that it isn't this area that is called the Grotto, but rather, that single cluster.

Much like the rest of its surroundings, it was lit up with lanterns, though slightly more than anywhere else, as if it was a beacon for those in the dark.

There weren't any windows on the buildings around, but holes were punched into the ones that make up that of the Grotto, allowing the light that was inside burst out into the street.

I inch closer towards the buildings, aware of anyone near me, but it seems like any one that would be in this area was in the Grotto.

Realising this, I ease my caution slightly and walk faster towards the buildings, catching some voices coming from the inside.

"So? What are you going to do with that?" (???)

"I'll have to send it, won't I? It's the damn No-Names, those bastards." (???)

"Well, you could burn it, say you never got it." (???)

"As if that'd fuckin' work, those fuckers got their ways, they'd know if I lied." (???)