Chapter 54: Tunnels

"W-What is the meaning of this!?" Mister Applebaum's nasal voice broke into a high-pitched squeak as he came face-to face with the lower sanctum of Natalia's Tavern.

It was a dungeon. However, this particular sanctum was not the kind designed to impart unwanted bodily harm unto its inmates. No, this was of an entirely different design and function. Padded benches and ornate red seats dotted the space, along with whips, paddles, and canes. An immense black bed lay to one side, which contained several feathered handcuffs and leather restraints. A sprawling walk-in wardrobe sat upon the opposite end of the vast hall, containing various fancy-dress costumes and black latex suits. Mr Applebaum reddened and gaped at the slender items that assaulted his vision on the room's leftmost tabletop: elongated self-pleasuring devices of all shapes and sizes.

The confused man turned around robotically as Natalia broke down into hysterics, giggling at his 'fish-out-of-water' routine. He ground his teeth and bellowed at his captor. "I ASKED YOU A QUESTION! WHAT IS THE MEAN-!?"

"Calm down, Mr Applebaum! This is merely a front for what lies ahead.", interrupted a sly Natalia, who was revelling in her prey's discomfort. She strode onwards and patted one of her love seats, longingly. "Those Ganesha fools fall for this camouflage every time; especially when I offer them a few hours of my… services…"

Mr Applebaum trembled as he waddled after the dominatrix, cringing at the sight of blood stains that darkened some of the room's high heels. "T-These instruments certainly do not appear as mere fronts…"

Natalia giggled softly, turning to her follower with a predatory grin. "Fufu… I never said they were not in operation..."

The man gulped. "I-I'll take your word for it…"

"Now then…" Natalia kneeled down and tugged at a dark mat, drawing it to the side to reveal an inconspicuous stone floor. She then extended a slender hand down to the stone blocks and tapped her ring against four of the structures in a recognisable pattern.

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A chilly breeze blustered into the confined space as the stone blocks twitched and moved of their own accord! Up; down; left; right: the interlocked blocks moved in consortium to separate from one another and reveal yet another stone staircase, two metres in diameter. Faint dripping sounds and the wailing of faraway winds suggested that this barrier guarded a far vaster space.

"A-Amazing… My apologies for doubting you, Lady Natalia." Mr Applebaum discarded his prior grievances and wobbled up to the opening, the idea of seeing his family once more sending him into a trance.

Natalia harrumphed, crossing her arms in triumph. "Apology accepted. This time, I shall descend first. Stay close Mr Apple-"

Suddenly, she froze. An icy coldness passed over her, as if an unspeakable rage was mere inches away from her fragile body. As quickly as the sentiment arrived, it passed her, leaving the flummoxed woman to stumble down and clutch at her chest in fright.

Mr Applebaum had to perform a double take as he watched the imposing woman drop to her knees, seemingly defeated by an unknown irritant. "A-Are you quite alright?"

Natalia quickly quietened her heavy breathing and rose into a shaky standing position, eyes trembling slightly in hesitation. "Y-Yes… I-I do not know what came over me. P-Perhaps the stress of recent events is wearing me down..." She shook her head and readopted a confident sneer, with only her twitchy eyes giving away any form of weakness. "L-Let's keep moving, Mr Applebaum. Do not dilly-dally." With that, she descended the stairs, grasping onto the provided railings far more firmly than usual.

"R-Right…" Mr Applebaum gulped and readied himself for the next stage of his life: he might be penniless, but he would soon meet his dear wife, sister, and children again. Yes, the man was certain that this was the correct long-term decision. He put his best foot forward and descended into the underworld below…

Hit sighed to himself as he marched down an earthen tunnel, thankfully now devoid of any perverts or doormats. 'That was utterly mortifying. Her 'dungeon' is the textbook definition of a red herring… No wonder this space has remained hidden for so long. Hiding one illicit activity behind another… Not bad, Anisa.' Hit admitted that the lanky woman's deception was to be admired, but he did not appreciate running headfirst into a sex dungeon, particularly without receiving any prior warning. The man had frozen in place for several seconds as he short-circuited, beyond the limits of his time skip, gaping at a scene that should have never existed on this medieval planet. What truly surprised Hit was how deeply the instruments, and the materials that they were fabricated from, juxtaposed with the rest of Orario's level of technology. Why in the world would this specific field be so advanced compared to the rest!?

Mercifully, Mr Applebaum's heavy breathing, a quality earned from his life of idleness, alerted Hit to the approaching duo, and provided Hit with ample time to hide under the room's immense dark bed. This prone position offered Hit a perfect view of the inn's second secret pathway, along with the pattern that Anisa tapped onto her basement floor to access it. Hit had quickly skipped time and rushed past the pair once more, while sending Anisa a rueful glare he hoped would reach her through the infinite space that separated them.

It was fortunate that these obstacles were posed in such cramped spaces, as this enabled Hit to cover the necessary distances in the nick of time. However, as Hit finally reached the end of the tunnel, this quality vanished.

'Incredible…' Hit gasped as an immense open space greeted his tense body: it was an underground chamber of seemingly human construction. He overlooked an immense spherical space, filled to the brim with bustling activity. Looking upwards, rocky surfaces surrounded Hit in all directions, with each face possessing the tell-tale carvings of pickaxes. Pulsing magic stones were embedded within the rocky ceiling and its supporting walls, thereby illuminating the region in a whitish-blue glow. These were not the only light sources however, as embers of yellow light also trickled through cylindrical boreholes at equidistant points.

'Those openings must provide direct access to the atmosphere. They likely exit at the road's grates or hidden regions of the street above. Ingenious…'

The path upon which Hit strode across descended further and ended at a metal gate. The structure was comprised of oxidised copper, and armoured guards were easily visible standing on either side of it, looking proud of their fortification. Beyond this barrier, tens of multi-storey apartment buildings; eateries; and other amenities had been erected, providing ample living space and facilities for tens of refugees and fugitives. Hit marvelled at the sights and sounds that swept over him, not because of their actual complexity, but due to their comparably primitive creators. Somehow, these individuals and their forefathers had designed and constructed a safe haven to carry out their unorthodox lives in peace. Decades of their excavation had supposedly transpired right under the noses of Orario's law enforcement. 'This must be where the upper echelons of Daedalus have hidden away. Hm… Along with the families of those I removed." Hit shook his head. 'It matters not; they knew what they were getting themselves into.'

Hit focused on his current task and cast his gaze around the obstacle that faced him now: a distance that could not be covered in under 2.5 seconds. Unfortunately, only a single unbranching path extended through the rocky landscape, offering no obstructions or crevices that one could conceal themselves in between time skips. Frustratingly, Hit was also currently battling against the clock, since two other nuisances were steadily approaching him from behind. He needed to strategize quickly before he was caught in a 'pincer attack'. To make matters worse, the trail was bordered by earthen walls, likely to prevent any deviation from the set path.

'What have we here?' Oddly, these walls possessed hairline cracks in places, freeing pebbles and gravel onto the road as they became further weathered by changes in diurnal temperature. Looking down, the roadway itself was in an even poorer state, suffering from legions of potholes and muddy boot prints.

'Increased pedestrian traffic over the past four and a half days must have eroded the walkway, particularly if the flock is desperate to enter this haven. Any rain trickling in from ceiling boreholes would have exacerbated the faults…' Hit bent down and picked up a nearby loose stone, tossing it up and catching it in his palm. 'I can use this weakness to my advantage.'

Powerful biceps and triceps bulged as Hit drew his arm back, aiming for a faraway section of the wall. 'This must appear natural: they cannot notice my intention or trajectory. Time Skip is useless here, so I must resort to using my reserves. I did not wish to use my other ability again so soon, let alone against such a primitive barrier, but needs must.' Hit tightened his grip further, fracturing the stone internally.

*Shing*

Finally, Hit drew himself and his projectile into the alabaster shimmers of the Tides of Time, enabling the movement of exogenous materials within a separate pocket dimension. Hit's mind calculated the required angle and force perfectly, before relaying the instructions to his honed muscles.

*SHOOM*

The stone sang as Hit flung his arm forwards, releasing the spinning bolide into a world of fractured twinkling lights. The moment seemed to last an eternity as Hit scanned its ascent, before his eyes fell into a crimson sunset as the stone plummeted down onto the rightmost wall's midpoint. Finally, Hit deactivated his Tides of Time, allowing his missile to interface with the planet's atmosphere and suffer from the limiting effects of wind resistance. Hit grinned as the rocky meteorite silently split in multiple positions, spraying the weakened wall with miniscule earthen fragments at point-blank range.

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This blight seemed to be too much for the barrier to bear, as the wall quaked and shattered into a pile of dust and mortar: A landslide of seemingly natural origin.

Hit rocketed into action and put his best foot forward, fracturing into his time skip and coming to a halt behind the newly created rocky heap. He then repeated the tactic and sailed ahead, passing a duo of incredibly grumpy-looking guards on his way, before leaping over the sanctuary's outer wall and into enemy territory.

The two ill-tempered guards soon broke into a sprint and grimaced as they came face to face with the collapsed barrier, none the wiser to the man-made quality of the landslide. The taller of the two men spat on the rubble and kicked one of the multitudes of loose rocks within. "Fuck sake, Mike! I told you this was gonna happen! We should'a done repairs on this days ago instead of slacking off! Now look at the mess we 'ave ta clean up…"

His companion grunted and scratched at his head, grumbling at their sudden vexing task. "Yeah, well… I didn't hear any complainin' when we were fleecing all those hordes… Just go grab a shovel and I'll get a wheelbarrow. We can't let the gaffer know about this, so be snappy… Miserable old git will probably dock our pay." The two men tutted and set about their task, languidly hobbling in opposite directions.

The moment Hit trespassed beyond the metal gates, he melded into the gloom and began analysing every aspect of the environment that he now prowled within. It was a simple task: being underground, the hamlet offered innumerable concealed spots and shadowy regions, making traversing the space an absolute cakewalk to Hit. As he slunk deeper and deeper into unknown territory, Hit made sure to analyse the faces and bodies of everyone he came across. Unsurprisingly, most of the bounties that eluded him were quickly identified, with some lounging within bars or on street corners. Others simply hid within their apartments, wasting the day away as they paced around or lay in bed in restless slumber. Interestingly, a considerable portion of the herd was on the move, congregating around a central region.

Hit now came face to face with this apparent region's centre, easily distinguished by its major crossroad and myriads of salesmen. The cacophony was almost deafening as the peddlers advertised their products to the shambling masses, who merely cast the stalls irritated glances as they went about their business.

"Rat sticks, get yer rat sticks! One hundred percent, genuine rat sticks! Absolutely no human content this time!"

"Snake oil™ here! Boils, colds, lesions: anything can be cured! My patented tonic will even keep that dreadful Stalker away with its time-tested mystical properties!"

"Extra! Extra! Read all about it! The spectre strikes again! Don't miss out on this issue, folks, if you want to stay safe!"

"Step right up to Joe's Crematorium, folks! You kill em' we grill em'! Rewards for repeat donors!"

Hit almost allowed his jaw to fall slack at the obvious scammers, who were beyond brazen in their attempts at swindling the multitude of newcomers here. He also felt absolutely no aversion to the watered-down swill advertised as mythical snake oil... This astonishment was exacerbated as Hit turned his gaze upwards to face a golden plaque, proudly adorning the rocky face with the region's name: Daedalus' Hope. Hit scoffed, flittering his gaze between the plaque and the juxtaposing sights and sounds that played out beneath it. 'Daedalus' Hope, huh? I highly doubt the fellow envisioned this shambolic assembly of grifters in his dream. Although, the madman did create Daedalus Street…And this dysfunction is partially my own doing.' Hit shrugged his shoulders and reengaged his sweeping search, now proceeding past the midpoint of Daedalus' hope and penetrating into its eastern region.

The phantom man glided from alley to alley and hovered from rooftop to rooftop, scanning the streets and dilapidated shacks for any signs of life. Drug addicts; huddled families; despondent bandits… They were all analysed and stowed away into Hit's memory as he trawled through the region.

Eventually, inexorably; the predator found its prey.

Hit's icy heart froze, and his brilliant mind raced as he rounded a dingy corner, recognising a trio of hunched humanoids in the distance. Their hazy outlines were incredibly familiar as they sat in a circle, unmoving, and piqued Hit's interest to its upper limit. The feeling was not intuition, since such a sentiment would be too vague to describe Hit's current mindset. Instead, it was as if Hit had developed a sixth sense. After completing the same complex task for bordering upon a thousand years, Hit's subconscious had aligned with his psyche perfectly, providing him with the 'supernatural' ability to hone onto his prey.

The detective quickly dashed ahead and ascended a dilapidated apartment building, before slinking into a rupture in its roof. As Hit lay prone in the damp space, he was provided with a perfect view of the trio's faces within the depths of a particularly wide alleyway.

'There you are. It certainly took me long enough…' Hit sighed and eagerly drank in the faces of three individuals: miens that matched the descriptions of Sicho, Finks, and Ripper perfectly. Red eyes gleamed as they affixed themselves onto each of the three beings, beginning with the leftmost male. 'Brown-haired Pallum, circa 3' 5". Matches descriptions of bounty listing Finks.'

The short boy wore a green t-shirt and faded canvas trousers, which hung loosely from his thin body as he sat atop a rolled up bedsheet. Pale brown eyes appeared quite melancholy as they stared at the ground below in a depressive slump.

Hit wrenched his eyes to the next target: the second pallum. 'Blond-haired male circa 3' 2". Matches descriptions of bounty target Finks.' This one was livelier, looking between his two colleagues with a worried expression as he chewed on his cheek, longing to find the words to reach them. Unfortunately, the boy could only fidget uselessly on a wooden block, ruffling the sleeves of his grey jumper.

Finally, Hit's charcoal black pupils dilated into fine points as they settled onto the apparent ringleader of the bunch: a tall human male. 'Human Male circa seven foot tall. Matches descriptions of bounty target Ripper.'

This was one of the burliest humans that Hit had ever seen. Herculean muscles were clearly visible as they extended past the sleeveless navy gambeson that covered the man's upper body. The supposed 'Ripper' was completely bald, which, along with the striking tribal tattoo that carved a path across his left eye, added to his intimidating presence. He joined his colleagues in relative silence, although faint grinding sounds emitted from his quaking jaw as he ground his teeth. The man sat on a simple wooden box and looked down at several worn playing cards, although, the picture cards were held in seemingly random orientations, providing any onlookers with a perfect view of the deck in the amber firelight. A stacked bundle of glittery Valis coins were held in his opposite hand, which clicked as the nervous commander fidgeted them between each of his fingers.

The two other males also held similar assortments of cards, whilst several of the pieces of paper also lay face-up on the dimly lit ground before them.

The Pallum fitting the description of Finks spoke first, coughing lightly into his own bundle of Valis. *Cough* *Cough* "U-Um… It's your turn, Ripper…"

Ripper sighed and nodded dumbly. "Yeah, yeah. Go fish…"

'Sicho' looked up from his slump and tilted his head in confusion. "Hm? We're playing poker, cap'n…"

Ripper tutted and shifted in his seat, seemingly growing in anxiety. "Alright, then king me!"

Finks tightened his lips and gazed up at his leader's face with a pitying grimace. "That's an entirely different board game boss… Y-You okay?"

"OH, TO HELL WITH THIS!" Suddenly, Ripper shot up and dashed his cards away, discarding the fragile leaflets into a dirty puddle. He continued to swear as he paced back and forth, worrying his little companions even further. "Damn it… How am I supposed to concentrate on anything right now? First, Hugo dies on us and now Naga goes missing? Then we have to run away to this hovel like pansies, 'cus of some insane vigilante!? How could our lives have turned upside down so quickly…?"

"Hm…" Sicho hummed in agreement, tears gathering in his dull eyes. "I can't believe it's been less than a week… I-I miss Hugo… He would always play with us and cheer everyone up…" The boy shivered and drew inwardly, and act that prompted a dismal look from Finks, who couldn't believe that such a lively person could devolve so quickly.

Ripper quickly gathered himself and trudged up to the boy, ruffling his hair. "Chin up, Sic. Yeah… Heh… The brat was always fun to mess with. Never did find out why he was always so skittish." The commander crossed his arms and looked skywards, bathing his scarred face in golden light. "I guess losing his sister really messed him up. God knows where that poor thing is now…"

Finks got up and began to gather their cards away, smiling lightly at the memory of their lost companion. "He and Naga were always so close… Literally, not emotionally. He was always chasing after her, almost desperately. I wonder why... She was never that nice to any of us…"

Ripper guffawed and grinned, knowingly. "Heh! The lad probably had the hots for her! Can't blame him… That lass was definitely a looker with that svelte body of hers. Plus, she could contort herself into all sorts of entertaining positions. Heheh!" A crimson blush became the newest decoration on Ripper's tattered mien as he chuckled to himself, lustfully.

Sicho narrowed his eyes at the pervert. "I'm sure your wife would love to hear that, cap…"

The word 'wife' seemed to drain Ripper of most his vitality, reducing him to a zombie-like state. "Ugh… Don't remind me… I love her, but she's been on my back for months. And now that we're down in this shithole, well… It's practically a nightmare whenever we're together."

Finks tightened his fists, seeking a light at the end of their gloomy situation. "I-Is there really no way to contact Naga, boss? I'm sure that she knows a safe place for us to hide! There must be something we can do… We haven't even tried anything yet…"

"That's 'cus it's pointless!" Ripper stormed around and dashed any hopes asunder. "She's almost definitely skulking with our… benefactors… and they'd kill us for even thinking of contacting 'em! We'll just have to find a path to stability ourselves."

"…But Naga was allowed to deal with them, right…" Finks furrowed his brows, not giving up on salvation. "Why did she get special treatment?"

Ripper rolled his eyes at the memory of their venomous companion: the most gifted smuggler and thief he had ever met. "Naga was always their favourite… Not surprising, considering her limitless talent in our line of work. Not to mention her cutthroat ruthlessness… Doesn't explain why she was so interested in Hugo, though."

Noticing that his companions seemed to come to an incredibly erroneous conclusion, Ripper shook his head, repeatedly. "Not interested, interested. More like a cat interested in a mangled mouse. Huh... Maybe Hugo was gonna join those bastards with her. That would explain why the kid went along with her on one of her routine disappearances. Why the hell would they want the kid, though? He was a subtle worker, but nothin' special…"

"I guess we'll never know.", sighed a despondent Finks as he finally finished gathering the cards away into his backpack. "Anyway, I'm getting pretty hungry, boss. Wanna join us for dinner?"

Ripper waved a hand back and forth, shaking his head at the tempting offer. "Nah, I'd better go see to my wife… She said that if I don't bother coming back home tonight, then I shouldn't bother coming back ever again…"

"Ouch… That's rough Rip…" Sicho cringed at his commander's collapsing marital status, which had been well and truly tested over the past few days. The two pallums nodded to each other and skipped ahead, bidding their leader goodbye for the day.

"See you tomorrow, I guess."

"Good luck, cap…"

Ripper chuckled at his lifelong friends. "Oh, I'll be needing plenty of that! See you later, guys." Terror seemed to dawn on the man's face as he realised that the twin pallums would be raiding the town unaccompanied tonight. He cupped his mouth and bellowed after the two runaways. "AN' DON'T GO SPENDING ALL OUR SAVINGS ON GALS AND BOOZE, GOT IT!"

Sadly, the pallums gave him no response as they skittered away with catlike expressions. This may have been due to the great distance that now separated them, but Ripper was absolutely certain that the frivolous teens were simply ignoring him.

"Damned brats… Oh well. Guess it's high time I faced the music…" The scarred man sighed and finally began traipsing in the opposite direction, towards a large housing complex.

For reasons unknown to him, Ripper felt a foreboding dread slink its way up his spine as he neared his destination. He ignored the odd presence and attributed the sentiment to the fierce monster that he would soon be at the mercy of.

Author's Notes

Daedalus' Hope is not canon to Danmachi. I thought it was an interesting way to explain why the Ganesha familia has trouble catching the city's criminals. Also, it could be a minor project of Daedalus in preparation for his other underground passion.