Chapter 204 - Traversing The Untraversed

"They really got friendly with each other, huh?"

"Well, they have a lot in common. And in a place like this, that sort of thing...Well, it's important, right?"

Iris' assuring words to Ren hit a spot that he didn't know if she intended to poke, giving her a half-smile before nodding his head. 

"Right."

"What about you two?"

Popping into their conversation suddenly, Hongse's fluffy face appeared between both of theirs--making both of them jump back. 

"Huh!?...What about us?"

It didn't take more than a moment for Ren's cheeks to shift into a burning pink, darting his eyes between Hongse and Iris rapidly. The azure-haired girl was subject to the same fluster, though her entire complexion was dyed to a tomato-red. 

"...Y-yeah, what're you talking about?"

Iris stammered out, both of the Outlanders were looking at the panda-man intently, who seemed to enjoy what he had stirred up. 

"Ho-ho-ho, nothing!"

Satisfied with the reactions he garnered, Hongse stood himself up straight again, towering over the others as Macheo and Aiko returned to the group. 

"Getting used to that arm finally?"

"Yeah; it's still a bit difficult to adjust to the lightness of it--but it's better than nothing."

Macheo answered Ren's smile-fueled question, rolling the shoulders of his wood-inhabiting limb a few times. Some adjustments had been made to its form; new slots were carved in, filled with small, spherical objects that contained magical energy. 

"Still, your tinkering is really something."

Looking at Hongse, a smug look came over the panda's face as he received his compliment from Macheo, bashfully rubbing his finger against his lip. 

"Yeah, no kidding. I didn't take you for some sort of mechanic, Hongse."

"Just a little something I picked up on my travels, that's all."

As Ren watched the group converse with one another, somehow finding it within them to share a laugh in the dreary, hellhole they were now forced to traverse, a single tear traveled down his cheek. He quickly hid this just in time as Iris looked back at him with a smile, sharing it with her. 

I was so close. An inch away, a second away, one wrong action, and I may have ended up down a path I could never stray from. My heart was surrounded by nothing but darkness and angst; constantly on the edge, I almost did it--I almost killed. If I truly found myself walking down that road, I might not have been able to live with the guilt any longer, Ren thought. 

Moving on, the group ventured into the bowels of the Boundary of Bloodshed, the air hanging around them grew thicker, smelling of a foul, sour sweetness that filled the atmosphere. It was the sickening aura that attached itself to such tainted mana; hanging around the repulsive creatures awaiting them. The deeper they traveled within this new sector of the cavern, the more twisted the environment became. Rocks began to jutt out in unorthodox ways; pointing outwards like the swords of forgotten, withered statues, the rocky terrain they had grown used to traversing began to shift into a land of black sand, sparsely encountering patches of dirt. 

"We need to find a fountain to check in at."

Saying this to nobody specific, Ren's eyes did indeed choose someone to say this to--looking directly at Macheo who let out a bit of a sigh. 

"I know. I wasn't around here very long, my memory isn't exactly perfect, alright?"

It wasn't as if there was exactly much to look for. The area they found themselves in was one that Macheo warned them was difficult to navigate. 

"The Obsidreen's Frontier", a desert that occupied the center of the Boundary of Bloodshed; filled with dark, moist sand that stings any uncovered skin. 

What's really bothering me is what he warned us about--the "Obsidreen" itself, some sort of monster said to lurk within the sand, Ren thought. 

The scenery sucked away any hope; seeing only darkness in the beyond as they dragged their boots through the endless, shadowy plains of sand. Hongse began to fall behind, breathing heavily as he slumped his broad, fluffy shoulders. 

"...Want to take a break?"

Ren finally stopped after listening to the panting from the giant, red panda for five minutes, looking back at the desolate sight of the exhausted demi-human. 

"Hungry...I want to eat."

The shallow words left the panda's mouth in a whisper, his stomach roaring out in yearning for precious grub. Each sway Hongse made side to side looked as if the wind would carry him away at any passing moment. 

That's the downside of a panda, even if they're a demi-human: the amount of calories they need to intake per day is insane! In Purgatory, it's not exactly like they serve you a buffet on a silver platter, Ren thought. 

"Do you see any good places to rest at?"

Ren asked the group, placing his hand over his brow as a visor as he scanned the area--seeing nothing but more and more obsidian sand in his view. Only the artificial winds that existed only by the whims of the gods of this realm carried over waves of the black sediment, carrying it through the moist, ominous plains. 

"Nothing here."

"...I don't see anything."

Macheo and Aiko returned their gaze with nothing found, putting them back to square one until Iris piped up, calling their attention. 

"I see a spot...Over there!"

Pointing towards what she saw, it looked to be a large tree overlooking a section of sand-less soil, occupying an isolated section away from the sea of darkness. 

"Looks like as good as a spot as we'll get…"

Starting to take a step towards the isolated, shade-covered area to prepare for lunch, Ren was stopped by the familia grip without any warmth. Turning to look at the wooden hand grabbing onto his bicep, Ren raised an eyebrow.

"We can't recklessly deviate from our path. We've been lucky so far because we've found this path, but that part out there—it's no man's land."

Macheo clicked his boot against the stone ground placed slightly above the black sand they were surrounded by. 

"Mm…We can't really just stop here though, right?"

In response to Ren's question weaved with a sigh, Macheo nodded, "They're constantly swimming through the sand, eventually, we'll be found if we're just sitting around on our asses."

Posed with this dilemma, all eyes were set on the hungering panda who seemed to grow meek as his stomach continued roaring out.

"There, there, big guy…"

Attempting to appease his gluttonous abdomen, Hongse massaged his stomach while quietly mumbling. 

"You can eat and walk, right?…"

Aiko asked, looking up at the gargantuan demi-human with her violet jewels. After a long inhale and heated exhale through his mouth, Hongse steadily nodded.

"…It goes against everything I stand for; you're supposed to eat while sitting and laughing with your comrades, letting all of your worries be shunned by your tastebuds' joyous celebrations."

Going off on a tangent, Hongse was interrupted by the sudden existence of a slab of meat stuck into his maw by Valerie.

"Come on already, get a move on."

"Y-yesh."

Answering with his mouth full, Hongse began chewing the meat as he followed the group onward.