>Nod and carry on.
>Having said your peace to Kiku, you fall silent again, thinking on that odd reaction your ring had just then. It was like the one you had outside, with both Kiku and Chie, but weaker. Like it was only half of what you sensed before. Perhaps they both triggered a reaction before, but why? The fear Kiku showed? But why would your ring respond to that? And what is she even afraid of?
>Lost in thought, it is not until you hear the loud 'clunk' of a door opening that you become overtly aware that you have crossed the lobby and Lily, in the lead, had opened the door on the west wall marked EXIT, which you now see had a sign for stairs emblazoned on the door itself. The stairwell is a complete concrete affair, the walls cinderblock, a rather start contrast to the modern, comfortable building you'd seen otherwise. Another door, clearly marked as an emergency exit, is on the wall in front, and two sets of stairs are to your right, one leading up, one down. You lead the way down, Kiku right behind you. You note that putrid stench is even stronger here, as has Lily, by the look on her face.
>As you head down the stairs, Kiku asks you, in a hushed tone, after Lily closes the door, "The youma you fought earlier. Did it have any abilities in common with the one we fought earlier?"
