Crossover anime/manga, can you be my immortal companion for life?

It's estimated that patrols passing by can see it.

But it makes sense, those homeless people probably wouldn't really explore this underground world, they're already lucky to have found this place.

However, the door is not on the ground, but raised.

[Sato Kazuma: It's nothing...]

Kerry came in and squatted down to examine the area carefully.

Then some anomalies were discovered.

[Kerry: What's this?]

Kerry reached under the bed through his gloves and pulled something out.

Kazuma and Kirito immediately came over.

But what they saw in front of them made them swallow hard.

Those were fingernails, with dried black spots that looked like bloodstains.

[Sato Kazuma: This should be a human fingernail. There might have been a fight here before, but someone has already cleaned it up.]

Kerry nodded in agreement, but apart from that, the three of them searched around and found nothing unusual.

Kerry: Let's go.

Just as the three were about to turn and leave, they unexpectedly heard some strange noises outside.

"Plop! Plop!"

It was a sound like a canine paddling in the water, and the sound was very close!

The three of them suddenly turned around!

The lights from the three miners' hats suddenly shone brightly over them.

"squeak!"

Because of the bright light, a sharp cry suddenly came from there.

Immediately following was the sound of water entering the vessel.

But one glance was enough; its skin was jet black with smooth fur, yet it was the size of a small dog.

Moreover, there was more than one.

Without time to think about the sudden situation, the three immediately assumed a combat-ready stance.

Kirito, who was the last to enter, took the lead, threw his bass bag in front of him, unzipped it, and pulled it out with one hand.

He had already placed the katana horizontally in front of him.

The three reacted quickly, because the thing that had submerged in the water soon surfaced, along with tiny footsteps.

Soon, a group of "rats" appeared in front of everyone.

Its jet-black fur reflected rays of light, and it had a bright red nose, reddish limbs, and yellowish paws. It was the size of a medium-sized dog, more like a capybara than a rat.

However, these things are not at all as docile and cute as capybaras; instead, they have a kind of nauseating quality.

Simply because those rats had many strange features.

Those eyes had no pupils, but you could see a swollen white, as if they were made entirely of sclera.

Although their fur was smooth, there were patches of baldness, revealing the diseased skin, making them look like moving corpses.

If an ordinary person were to witness such a horrifying scene, their first reaction would undoubtedly be to panic and flee.

However, the others reacted differently. Although they didn't smell the familiar fragrance, all three of them could feel a sensation that seemed to emanate from deeper within their bodies. That sensation was urging them on and giving them a vague location in their minds.

Although it sounds strange, they felt like they were surrounded by a bunch of kebabs.

The only strange thing was the kebabs, which looked like roasted bamboo rats. Some people couldn't accept them, but they knew they were edible.

However, it seems that the other party thinks the same way.

The rats hurriedly gathered in front of the door where Kerry and his companions were, and hopped and pawed as they tried to get in. The three then realized that there were not just a few of these rats, but rather an enormous number, all swarming towards this place in dense numbers.

"Holy crap, how did those homeless people manage to live here for so long?"

Looking at those things, Kazuma Sato began to regret that they should have brought some crossbows or compound bows.

However, those things came extremely fast, surging towards them before they could even react.

Kirito raised an eyebrow and slashed with his katana.

A strange rat that had stepped on its own kind was now decapitated.

"Tsk!"

The surging horde of rats was relentless; as soon as one was dealt with, a second one would immediately jump in.

Without saying a word, Kerry also picked up a butcher knife that was supposedly used to chop cow bones, bent down and joined the fray. The two of them blocked the doorway, which was only wide enough for one person, and swatted any rats that came up.

Kazuma then pointed his headlamp at the two of them to prevent any misalignment in their vision.

Tiny particles of light drifted toward the two people in front of the door.

88

Chapter Eighty-Eight: Me, the Mouse...

A surging, black wave-like mass of rats, as big as dogs, relentlessly crashed against the spot where Kerry and his companions were.

But even the surging tides eventually recede.

Like two guardian deities, although the rat was not particularly large or weak, the raised steps became a fatal obstacle.

Dozens of them died in succession, and they never managed to get into the jar where the food was hidden. Instead, they were hacked and slashed by the food in the jar.

However, these creatures exhibited a bizarre frenzy. When the rat corpses were chopped up and discarded, their first reaction was to grab and tear apart the corpses of their own kind. Even some rats that were only wounded but not yet dead would be attacked by their own kind while twitching on the ground, their bellies would be torn open and their internal organs eaten.

The sound of tiny teeth chewing bones, along with the screams of rats, echoed in the sewers.

I, the little mouse, am really going to die.

After several attacks, these ugly creatures were forced to retreat.

But it was not a rout, but rather an action that seemed to come from wisdom.

They dragged the corpses of their companions, gnawing at them as they retreated into the water or elsewhere, but they never dispersed.

An eye, white and bloodshot, met the dim yellow light above the three people's heads.

It was as if it had anticipated that the three would not stay, or as if it was waiting for them to show signs of fatigue.

Yes, once they lose that terrain advantage, they are just three prey less than five times their size. All they need to do is swarm them and they will surely become delicious meals.

However, they might be mistaken. For something that can emit white light, even if they run away, the three of them would have to chase after it, let alone if it came looking for them.

"Let's go."

Kerry glanced back at the two people in the room, rolled up his sleeve, and made a small cut on the blade with the butcher knife, dripping blood soaking the blade.

Both of them sighed helplessly.

They weren't as lucky as Kerry; they suffered minor injuries, and to fully recover, they had to die all over again.

The thought of either enduring the pain or starting over after getting injured still made them shudder. However, seeing that Kerry had already jumped down, they didn't back down. Kirito sheathed his katana, took out his twin swords from his waist, and Kazuma took out his small scythe and jumped down together.

As expected, once the three of them lost their advantage of terrain, they could no longer fight the monsters as easily as they could indoors.

Their feet were instantly filled with these things. If this were some kind of game where being bitten by a rat would leave you stiff and helpless, they would probably be filled with resentment on the spot.

Fortunately, this is reality.

As the headlamp swayed incessantly in the sewers, the killings unfolded with lightning speed.

Even Kirito, with his weakest constitution, could kill one of these creatures with a single strike if they had no protective measures.

If anyone is surrounded by giant rats and someone tries to pounce on them, the other two will quickly come to their aid.

Kerry stepped on a rat's tail and slashed down, only to feel a bite on his foot. The immense force sent the rat crashing against the wall, spraying a pool of blood.

Kirito moved swiftly through the swarm of rats, occasionally leaping up to dodge and then slashing them, leaving them bloodied and mangled.

Kazuma, with quick sliding steps, repeatedly jabbed and hooked with his small scythe while bouncing back and forth in front of the door.

As white light continued to enter their bodies, the three of them showed joyful expressions.

Awesome! Even though the quantity is small, it's still much more satisfying than fighting fishmen to the death!

This was actually a misperception on the part of the three people. Ordinary people would not be able to deal with these rats so easily. Just three or four rats would be enough to kill an adult, let alone an endless stream of them.

Even the most powerful martial arts masters, like the Martial Saint Shechuan, would inevitably have a few pieces of their flesh taken away if they were to act rashly.

You can say that all that food you ate before wasn't for nothing.

Kirito even felt a sense of familiarity, like when he used to play games and grind through dungeons. His body was becoming increasingly able to keep up with the fast-paced thinking he had developed in the game.

Just as the three-player game was gaining popularity and they were indulging in the fun, the rats retreated.

As one rat left, more and more rats began to retreat instead of emerge.

The three wanted to give chase, but the rats had too many escape routes.

Some burrowed into narrow waterways that were clearly inaccessible to humans, while others simply jumped into the warm sewer pools and disappeared.

After chasing and killing a few rats that were running on the ground, the rest of the way was cleared out.

The three only stopped when the last poor creature that couldn't escape was slashed open from behind by Kerry.

Kerry glanced back and saw that the once-clean passageway was now covered in blood, with fallen rat carcasses and mangled entrails everywhere, resembling a scene from hell.

"Hoohoo!"

Kazuma and Kirito were struggling to breathe under their masks.

Kirito's injuries were relatively minor, while Kazuma suffered bite wounds in many places because his weapon was too short.

"Let's... let's go back and rest first. This place will probably be searched in a few days, and dumping a body here would arouse suspicion. Let's go further away before I kill myself; the pain is just unbearable."

Kerry actually wanted to say that it didn't matter. The level of corruption that the Metropolitan Police Department could drop the warrant for their arrest with just a word, the case-handling principle of letting Yujiro, a murderer, wander the streets at will, and the security quality of Celty in Ikebukuro, who could always deliver contraband, were all irrelevant.

"Anyway, we know roughly why those homeless people died. If you see one of them tomorrow, tell him not to come to this place unnecessarily."