Meanwhile...
Munch. Munch. Munch.
A certain young man around Jax's age was sitting by the bonfire and roasting something like a skewered tentacle of a big red octopus. He had one tentacle in his hand and another one still being roasted on the bonfire. He ate the roasted tentacle as if there was no tomorrow anymore.
When he finished the roasted tentacle in his hand, he took the other and also munched it off. It only took him a short while to finish digging in.
''Burp! I need some water.'' The young man spoke as he looked around but found no water. He sighed as he stood up and walked aimlessly to find something he needed.
Looking at the young man, he seemed to be a normal person. His pale purple shoulder-length hair was all over the place. His clothes were much more of a mess than Jax's as he gave off vibes as if he had lived in the mountains his entire life.
But the way he appeared and the way he stood were both intimidating. The gaze of his blue eyes had as if seen all the vicissitudes of life already, and deemed them meaningless.
But then, as he was walking, he seemed to recall something as his nonchalant expression suddenly swayed and was replaced by frustration.
''Damn it. Just how the hell can I get out of this shitty place?'' The young man grunted with a deep tone. Thinking again of the only way out of that place could only make him frustrated more and more.
In the end, he sighed and shook his head slowly. There was nothing he could do now. Perhaps, if fate permits... then...
''Aaahhhhh!!!!''
The young man was still in the midst of his hopeful thoughts when, suddenly, he heard a panicked shout somewhere ahead of him. He paused his steps and narrowed his eyes to see clearly and then, there he saw a young man who was running so desperately.
''Huh? What's that? Another human? In this place? How?'' The young man was taken aback seeing another human in that place, and a weak human at that.
But more than that...
The young man looked further behind the young man he saw from a distance and, to his shock, he was being chased after by countless puffer fishes.
He couldn't help but doubt his own eyes. How could that brat attract so much attention that those annoying things were flocking at him so eagerly? Was he an idiot?
The young man he was talking about was obviously Jax in the actual flesh.
His lungs burned as he raced through the twisted, overgrown foliage, his feet pounding against the uneven ground. Behind him, the eerie, gurgling cries of the Cute Puffy grew ever louder, their bulbous forms surging forward in a relentless pursuit.
Thankfully, Jax was quick at his feet. He managed to runaway earlier even before those Cute Puffies could surround him and give him no room to escape.
However, it didn't mean that the Cute Puffies had already lost track of him. On the contrary, they chased him more furiously than ever. It was as if they were determined to catch him dead this time.
''Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! I thought they were afraid of sunlight! Why are they chasing me in this broad daylight now?!'' Jax muttered through gritted teeth, his eyes darting left and right, desperate to spot the elusive sanctuary he sought. ''I must find a Cave of Concealment as soon as...''
Jax was just about to finish his words when, suddenly, he saw something that immediately caught his attention. He blinked thrice, but seeing that he wasn't seeing things, he gritted his teeth before he shouted, ''Hey! You there! Hurry up and run away now if you don't want to get caught up with this swarm of puffer fishes!''
He never expected it, but to think that another human other than him would be there in that place. And he was also a young man just like him. Was he a native here? Or was he also on a mission just like how he was?
Jax didn't know. And he didn't care about that right now.
However, that young man was on the way. He needed to warn him, or else he would get killed.
Step. Step. And more and more furious steps.
Jax was finally closing his distance to that young man, yet he still stood on the same spot.
That young man was even looking at him as if a question mark was floating over his head and was looking to a complete fool.
Damn it! What kind of gaze was that? Jax couldn't help but grit his teeth even more tightly.
Swoosh!
Jax finally ran past him, but to his shock, that young man still stood on the same place.
Gritting his teeth, Jax paused his steps for a moment. He turned around and then yelled out, ''What the hell are you doing? Can't you see those monsters? Hurry up and run now if you don't want to get toasted!''
''Huh? Why?'' The young man simply asked nonchalantly, his expression remained unfazed of the current situation. He didn't even turn around to speak with Jax. He scratched the back of his head as he continued. ''I don't see any problem here though.''
''Ugh...'' Jax found his eyebrows twitching violently as he found it hard to reply. It seemed like he was talking to a dead man. Or perhaps, God sent him a helping hand for him to escape. Thinking about how that young man could serve as a good bait, he definitely would have a good chance of escaping now.
But would his conscience allow him to see an innocent young man die because of his ignorance?
"..." Jax thought for a moment.
Of course, his conscience would! He didn't even need a conscience in this shitty place. All that mattered now was surviving. And since he already warned that young man, it wasn't his fault anymore if he really died.
With that in mind, Jax finally turned around, then fled, and then thought, ''You better give me a good time to escape.''
''Begone, you insects.''
Jax had just ran a few meters away when he suddenly heard a cold and sinister voice. That caught his attention as he was forced to turn his head to look behind him.
But when his eyes met reality, he couldn't help but stop and turn around completely to confirm if he saw it correctly. However, as terrifying as it was, all those furious and lively Cute Puffies that were chasing him relentlessly a moment ago, were now all down on the ground, twitching and were on the brink of death.
All of which looked lifeless, their bodies that looked more like corpses piled one after another. As if a great plague had just swept them off, making them suffer something worse than a massacre.
''What the hell...'' Jax gasped, he began to sweat as he swallowed a mouthful of saliva. That guy... Did he just taken down all those monsters in one fell swoop? How did he do that?
Who on earth was that guy? What was he? Was he still a human? Or a demon in human clothing? Many questions flooded Jax's heart. But in the end, fear struck him the most.
Should he run away now? His guts were telling him to do so. He believed that with that guy around, his life was in a much worse situation than it had ever been.
Jax was still thinking of running away now, but then, a wild thought surfaced in his mind. He shifted his gaze to the pile of fishes stacking up with each other and, sure enough, their souls were calling out to him.
Looking at how much of a number of souls there was before him, he couldn't help but drool. Wasn't this a God-given opportunity? All he needed was to loot all those souls and boom, his mission would be completed just like that.
''I shouldn't let go of this opportunity!'' Jax decided as he muttered with a low excited voice. As afraid as he was, excitement was also knocking to his door. That gave him some courage as he walked forward to talk with the young man he just met.
If he was a friend, then that was a good thing. But if he was a foe, then bye-bye.