The first house they tried was a disaster.
The moment Xu Kai pushed the door open, a putrid wave of rot hit them in the face. Liora gagged, covering her nose with her sleeve.
A dark, wet trail seeped from one corner of the room, leaking through cracked floor tiles. The source? Unclear—and neither of them wanted to find out.
"Next," Xu Kai said simply, already backing out.
The second house was worse.
The air was thick with humidity and something else… sharp, acidic. Muted skittering echoed inside. Liora stepped through the broken threshold only to freeze mid-step.
A swarm of glossy black rats scattered beneath a broken couch—and just beyond that, something long and slick slithered into view.
A centipede the size of a forearm.
Its antennae twitched. It clicked its pincers and began crawling straight toward her.
Liora didn't scream—she shrieked.
"Xu Kai, get me out! Get me out! I am not staying in here—I swear I will burn this whole street down!"
