[Even Naoi can feel how heavy and weighted this silence is, though he'd rather ignore it, all things considered. It makes it a little more difficult to focus, somehow, reminding him that a slip-up here won't just mean a few minutes in an unconscious state before being reanimated again. Who knew being alive again could be such a pain?

But he'll stride ahead relatively quickly, even though he's still exerting a fair amount of caution, listening closely. He scans the area as well, even though visuals aren't very helpful here.

Once they get to the grate, he starts to pry it open.]

If we follow this, it'll lead us under most of the stores and their storage spaces. I'm pretty sure that if we go down the right path, we'll end up at the end of the businesses and the start of the housing area.