"Huh?" What is this? Selina stared at the phone screen.
Mater had opened up an image containing the sewer map of the entire Aeliz City. The map zoomed into the section surrounding the NEO Mall.
"There is a sewer underneath this land?" Selina held the phone and asked.
Mater nodded.
"Do you think we should check this sewer out?"
Mater nodded again. His paw touched the screen and the phone flashed to a location on the plot of land. An image from the public map appeared, showing a large tunnel with metal bars and a small door on the side.
It was the entrance leading into the drainage system.
"Based on the map, the tunnel should be very near where we are. Alright. Let's go check that out." Selina said.
The pair continued on their path. Selina was wearing a pair of jean shorts. The tall grass kept poking at her which made her smooth legs itchy all over.
"I should wear something longer next time..."
They quickly found the sewer entrance. The metal door had a big lock on it. Selina examined the lock and tapped her finger on it. Crips metal sound echoed.
"This is very hard. We might need to find a locksmith."
Mater rolled his eyes. He jumped down from Selina and gestured to her to back off.
Selina blinked in confusion but she still gave him space. When she was at a safe distance, Mater turned to the door and opened his mouth. A purple energy sphere quickly formed around his mouth then shot at the metal door.
It slammed on the rusty metal and bent it inward. The lock clenched tight, holding on desperately to the frame.
Mater shot another Nether Sphere at it, blasting the metal door off the hinges. The heavy door fell on the cement floor.
"Woah! You learned new tricks, Mr. Mater?" Selina's eyes glimmered and clapped enthusiastically.
"These aren't tricks! This is Chaos Magic." Mater meowed.
"Hehe... Good boy. Good boy. You're the best." Selina pet Mater aggressively. He didn't hate it.
She lifted him up and hugged him in her arms once more. The pair entered the sewer system, leaving the fresh air and outer world behind.
The first thing Selina noticed in the sewer was the smell. It smelled like something died there. Probably because of human waste, dead rats and insects, and maybe even dead humans.
Selina turned on the flashlight of her phone and put it in the front pocket of her jacket.
Mater's slit pupils expanded, letting more light into his cornea. He was simply using the natural night vision that a cat had.
"The Chaos here is thicker." Mater meowed. He raised his paw up to a direction and guided Selina to where the Chaos was most concentrated.
The sewer tunnel was built very high and broad. Its ceiling was twice the height of an adult. The main sewage ran on in the middle, barely touching the walking platform that Selina was on. Its stone wall was filled with unknown dirty substances and an unlimited number of moss.
Selina was creeped out and didn't dare to touch anything. She couldn't imagine what kind of bacteria was living on these structures and didn't want to find out.
The light of the entrance slowly dimmed down the deeper Selina went. Up until the sunlight completely disappeared. There were no artificial lights in the sewer as well. The only light source was Selina's phone.
They wandered around in the sewer for half an hour before Mater hissed at a hidden corner.
Selina stopped her feet immediately. She whispered to the black cat, "Is there danger up ahead, Mr. Mater?"
The black cat nodded. It climbed on her shoulder and tapped on her backpack. Selina quickly got the Dark Grimoire out.
Mater jumped on the book and used it to fly.
"Follow me closely, Selina." Mater meowed.
The pair went over that corner. Immediately, a man jumped out to attack them.
Mater's eyes flashed red. He detected very few Chaos inside the man and could sense that he was alive.
"Not a wraith. He is probably being possessed."
The black cat opened its mouth and screamed at the naked man. The man was pushed back and his feet were lifted off the ground. He smacked heavily on the cement floor and rolled quite a few times before stopping.
Mater didn't use [Nether Shot] as it had much higher damage. So he used [Desperation Scream] instead.
Selina shined the flashlight at the man, seeing him more clearly.
The strange man was extremely dirty with black mucus and unknown substances on him. He wore nothing but a piece of dirty loincloth between his legs.
"Disgusting." Selina commented.
The strange man got up. His face was shone by the light. It was even dirtier than his body, filled with filths and questionable debris. His hair stuck together into one unmanageable lump.
"Yep. This time I agree with you, Selina. He is disgusting." Mather meowed.
The strange man rushed at them again. Mater used another [Desperation Scream] without any hesitation.
The strange man was knocked out cold by the second strike. He was barely able to keep his balance after the first one.
Mater approached the fainted man.
"I wonder if this is one of the missing people." Mater meowed.
Selina also had the same idea as him. She shined the flashlight at the man again, trying to match his facial details to any missing victim. But he was too dirty, preventing Selina from identifying any facial details.
"I can't confirm his identity. Let's just take a picture and send it to officer Carpenter. She should send someone over to identify this man."
Selina quickly sent a message along with the photos to Carpenter.
She didn't receive any reply right away.
"What should we do next, Mr. Mater?" Selina said.
The black cat jumped back to the book and pointed forward.
"Forward we go! We are already here. It will be a waste of time to come back." The cat meowed with conviction
"Alright then. Let's keep going. But don't lose me like last time, okay?" Selina pouted her lips slightly.
Mater approached her and touched her cheeks gently. "You have nothing to worry about, baby doll. I won't let anything happen to you."
"I bet you just said something dirty." Selina chuckled.
Mater rolled his eyes. "I was being genuine. If you can speak cat, you would have known."
The pair ventured deeper into the sewer.