"The information related to this is still blurry." Rhizen frowned, gazing at the 3D model of the dog he had created based on all the accounts, "But, it should be this species that has been recorded during the night."
"Still, what are they? And, where do they disappear to during daytime?" He was still unaware of a lot of things. The first time he obtained a clue was from one of his overseas friends a year ago.
It seemed he had discovered a species of fish in a lake that was strangely larger than what it should have been. That was the first photo of evidence he obtained.
Unfortunately, his friend had underestimated the creature while clicking its picture. He had been standing on the shore while sending the photo to him on the internet, telling him about what he saw through a video call.
The two of them had been classmates throughout their school days. So, once his friend went abroad for his Bachelor's, he remained in touch with Rhizen all along, sharing with him everything that happened.
This was one such incident. Unfortunately, it also happened to be the last when the creature suddenly opened its mouth as its tongue shot out, grabbed hold of his friend's leg, and pulled him into the water.
As it was a live video that his friend shared, Rhizen had witnessed the entire scene. But, he didn't even have time to react to his friend's death when even more horrible news came crashing onto him.
It was the death of his family, devastating him.
Based on the investigation, it seemed some bird had been carrying a large rat in the air that it dropped by mistake. And, this had just happened to crash into the head of Rhizen's father that had been driving the car.
As the windows had been kept open, it directly landed on his face. In reflex, his body reacted, unaware that his hands had been holding the steering wheel, causing the car to make such an abrupt turn that it toppled immediately.
His father, his mother, and his elder sister died from that crash. But, the autopsy report said otherwise. It seemed his father had actually survived the crash. But, the rat-like creature that had hit his face also survived.
And to recover, it had clobbered through his wounded body, obtaining enough strength to escape after that. The only clues of it being a rat-like creature were the bite marks on his father's body.
The news devastated him, sending him into an emotional shock for two months where he had to undergo psychiatric treatment. But, as a strong-willed person, he got back to his feet and began to investigate into the origins of these disasters.
It was the motive that spurred him into investigating the changes around the world. And, the deeper he dug into this field, the more he noticed that the number of deaths caused by these mutated animals seemed to be…already over a thousand.
It was just that there were all sorts of animals in the world. And, unless one was an animal expert, they wouldn't know whether something was unnatural or not. And generally, those from the police usually paid more attention to people than animals.
Their line of thought would go into seeing whether or not it was a human impersonating an animal's behaviour to murder people. Moreover, unless the case happened to someone famous, people wouldn't become privy about it.
And until now, the victims had always been part of the vulnerable group, the common populace that were alone during the time of the incident or had been vulnerable enough to become victims.
"There is a general trend here." He pulled up a digital map of the world, one that he had been editing using photoshop. There were two such maps. One was the satellite map, and the other was the regular map outlining roads, buildings, etc.
They were superimposed upon one another as he alternated between the images, zooming in and out of many areas to see the places that he had marked on them, muttering, "All these accidents had happened in areas with thick vegetation or in surroundings of a rural or forest area. There are plenty of highways passing through or alongside such locations."
"So, if any animals are indeed mutating, the signs would be more prone in the rural area." He concluded, opening up the nearby drawer to take out his passbook, looking at the balance, "I have 76,850 Paise. This is all that remains of what mom and dad saved."
He then sighed, "If these changes continue to happen, property prices would plummet. So, no matter what it is, I have to find the source and ride the wave to survive."
"I'll get more than enough money to do whatever I want once I sell the house." He then surfed through the internet to buy property, soon coming across a villa that was situated on the outskirts of the city. It was the ancestral home of a businessman that had fallen into debt.
And, as the ancestral home hadn't been maintained properly, and since it was located on the outskirts, it was pretty cheap. He looked at the price, muttering, "It costs around 35 Lakh Paise. My house is being sold for 58 Lakh. So, even after buying it, I'll have 23 Lakh remaining with me. That'll do."
He directly contacted the seller, deciding to visit the place the next day. 'The villa has high walls and a large enough garden. It has a well for water supply, not to mention all the necessary municipal connections.'
"No matter what happens, I should experience it first hand to get accustomed to them. Otherwise, when the changes hit me, I'll be damned." He then dialled up a number, speaking, "Chenger, are you free tonight?"
"Yeah, I have something to talk to you about."
"Yes, it's somewhat urgent."
"What? No, who the hell cares about that?"
"Listen, I don't care whose birthday party you have to visit. Just be at my home soon, no arguments."
"Ugh, if they eloped, then they eloped. Just push aside all that nonsense and get here asap."
After a lot of banter, he cut the call, grunting as he felt a headache, "Damn her, she has zero sense of danger."
