They stepped out of the portal. Natsuo squinted as the harsh desert sun beat down relentlessly. The air was dry, the heat oppressive, and the sand stretched on endlessly like an ocean of shimmering gold. It was hard to tell how far they had traveled, but wherever they were, it was hot enough to fry an egg on the ground—or an eyeball, apparently.
Natsuo: "Huh..."
Luci (already whining): "What?? What is this place?? It feels like I'm gonna fry to death!" Luci's voice carried a mix of exaggerated horror and sarcasm as she fluttered around in her bat-winged eyeball form, clearly not a fan of the desert climate.
They were, indeed, in the middle of a barren desert. A wasteland. No shade in sight, just endless dunes. The only sound was the faint, distant hissing carried by the wind. Something was lurking.
Luci (groaning): "Heyyy~ can't you control where you open these portals? What are we doing here??" She sounded like someone who'd just realized they were in the wrong neighborhood.
Natsuo (calm as ever): "No. I can't. I don't know how to open a portal to where I want to go." His voice remained flat, unbothered by their situation. If he was sweating, it didn't show.
Luci (mocking gasp): "Wait...you mean to tell me that Mr. 'All Knowledge' doesn't even know how to control his own portals?? You sure you're not just being lazy?"
Natsuo: "I know how. But I haven't multiplied that power." He answered coldly, dismissing her taunt.
Luci (fluttering around dramatically): "Multiply? Oh, right, because that makes so much sense. You have to multiply knowing how to do something? You're telling me you could have a roadmap out of this sandy hellhole but you're just... holding back?"
Natsuo (frowning slightly): "If I multiply it... I'd need to multiply it by 88 billion."
Luci (sarcastic): "Pffft. Well, that's easy—just do it! Snap your fingers, bam! Knowledge overload! Who's stopping you?"
Natsuo (seriously): "No. My mind can't take that much knowledge. Even if I multiplied my brain's capacity by a million, this body wouldn't handle it."
He paused, his gaze fixed on the horizon, then continued, his tone as dry as the desert around them.
Natsuo: "The brain would be bigger than the sun."
Luci (blinking rapidly): "Bigger... than the... what? Are you even hearing yourself? Did you bake your brain in this heat or something?"
Natsuo: "It's the truth."
Luci (laughing in disbelief): "So, lemme get this straight—if multiplying by a million makes it bigger than the sun, what happens if you crank that baby up to a trillion? What would it be, bigger than the entire solar system?? I don't even wanna think about it... and that's coming from me!"
Natsuo: "Exactly. So, we'll leave it at that."
Before Luci could fire back with another sarcastic comment, Natsuo's sharp gaze shifted. His entire demeanor shifted as well, as if he had just noticed something.
Natsuo: "...Let's talk about this later. For now, I've got other things to deal with."
Luci's curiosity piqued, and she followed Natsuo's gaze. Off in the distance, something was moving. A horde of figures slithered and stalked across the sand, their shadowy outlines becoming clearer as they approached.
And then, they were close enough to see.
Humanoid bodies, but with long, sinewy snake necks and serpentine heads. Muscles rippling under scales, fangs gleaming in the sunlight. The creatures hissed and slithered, a grotesque fusion of man and reptile. There was something feral about them, their movements fast, predatory, and coordinated. These were no ordinary beasts.
Luci (eyes wide): "Whoa... check out the muscles on those guys! What do they bench? 500? 600? I bet their neck exercises are intense!"
Natsuo remained unfazed, observing the horde with cold precision.
Natsuo (calmly): "There are 12,363 of them."
Luci (mock screaming): "TWELVE THOUSAND THREE HUNDRED SIXTY-THREE??" She spun around in the air, almost dizzy with the sheer number. "I'm sorry, did you say twelve thousand? That's... that's an army! Are we... fighting an army of buff snake-men in the middle of a desert?!"
Natsuo (casually): "It's not a problem."
Luci groaned, almost theatrically. "Oh, sure, why not? No big deal! Just a casual Thursday afternoon brawl with twelve thousand snake mutants. No sweat!"
As the snake mutants got closer, Natsuo took a few steps forward, his eyes narrowing slightly as he analyzed the situation. He was calm—too calm, like someone who had already figured out every move his opponent would make before the fight even started.
Luci (eyeing the horde): "Soooo, what's the plan here? You're not gonna pull one of your 'I-don't-care' speeches and walk away, are you? 'Cause, uh, I don't think they're big fans of peace talks."
Natsuo ignored her quip, walking steadily toward the horde, his posture relaxed. He wasn't in any rush.
Luci floated next to him, trying to keep pace. "Wait, wait, wait! You're seriously just... walking toward them? You're gonna fight all of them?!"
Natsuo (without a hint of worry): "Yes."
Luci: "Wait for it... wait for it... aaaand he says it like it's no big deal. Classic Natsuo. Man, I love this job."
The snake mutants began to circle around them, their hissing louder, more menacing. Fangs bared, muscles tensing for attack.
Luci looked at them and back at Natsuo, now a little more concerned than she was earlier. "Hey, uhh, just a quick suggestion, maybe a portal outta here would be a great idea right about now?"
Natsuo ignored the comment, his eyes fixed on the approaching horde. As the first of the snake mutants lunged forward with incredible speed, the scene froze for a split second.
Luci (sarcastic sigh): "And here we go…"
Natsuo raised his hand.
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