Chapter 206 - Panda Is A Panda

Is that thing also functioning as a damn gun?! Ren thought. 

As he narrowed his eyes to watch this barrage, there was just one issue with this form of brazen attack from the draconic warrior. The launched fireballs sprayed out in no coherent direction, some spewing left, some right, some even shooting overhead. 

She's missing every shot! The same thought came to everyone's mind. 

At the very least, the rapid launch of fireballs worked as suppressive fire; the worm danced in the sand as it evaded the incoming shots, finally being struck with one of the pint-sized balls of heat as it was blown back several meters. 

"I got it!"

Holding a triumphant, smug smile across her face, Valerie pointed her ivory weapon up as if easily dismantling the enemy. 

"...No you didn't! Watch out!"

"Eh?"

Macheo's sudden yell completely stole her glory as a confused, blank expression took over Valerie's proud glow as she then noticed the obsidian worm slithering through the sand towards her all the same. 

"What the?!--A blast like that should've turned it into gunk!"

"Its skin is made out of some sort of stone-like material, fire probably isn't as effective against it!"

The call from Macheo from up above roared down below, his worried, exasperated tone came from a place unknown to him. 

It was a feeling he wasn't quite familiar with; hanging back and giving orders, not being on the frontlines. 

"S-still!..."

Not wanting to admit her fire wasn't enough, Valerie muttered quietly as she kicked back into gear, pointing the barrel of her amalgamation of weapon towards the creature. 

On the other side, Iris' designated worm-opponent seemed to take a different approach; keeping itself buried underneath the thinnest area of sand as it slithered towards her under the guise of the dark sediment. It continued to fake her out, poking its tail up to draw in a thrown spell before quickly sinking back into the depths of the shadowy desert. 

It's smart!...That's a creature of Purgatory for you, Iris thought. 

"Do you need some help?"

Ren called out from the front of the group, hearing the multiple light spells being flung without a conclusion to the battle. Hearing this, Iris could only register it in her mind as pity--striking a nerve in her looming sense of inferiority. It was the one thing she didn't want the most--to have to rely on the power of the boy who she knew in her heart had surpassed her. Doing such would only cement in her mind just how weak she truly felt she was. 

"No!...No, I've got this…"

Wiping the cold sweat from her cheek, she answered without removing her eyes from the scenery of darkness, watching the trembling surface of rough grain shake before her azure gaze. 

The answer isn't always to go for the decisive blow right away, being able to expose the enemy to reach that ending--that's what I need to do! She thought. 

"Helios: Exo-Bind!"

Following her call, a pillar of radiant light extended from her position through the sand. Once it reached a sufficient length, limbs of mystical luminescence sprouted from the original pillar, forming six in total, three on each side. 

It was a spell the others had yet to see her use, especially coming as a surprise to Ren's eyes as he couldn't help but avert his eyes from his designated point for a moment. 

A rib-cage...It's like a layed-down rib cage. Nice, Iris, Ren thought. 

The newly formed tendrils of light dug through the skin of the desert, wriggling about as they searched for the target of her intent. Under the pressure of the six, multi-meter long arms of flexible light, formless in nature yet powerful in reality, the worm was siphoned from the veil of sand, hoisted up into the air by a pair of light strings. 

Found you! She thought. 

"Licht: Judgment!"

Finishing her short-lived battle with the oversized worm, the spell uttered from her lips altered the state of the bastion of light she had already manifested, shifting the tendrils that held onto the creature into an even more vibrant, radiant form as a divine heat radiated. It wasn't just a change in temperature; the arms of divine brightness squeezed tightly around the worm, twisting and pulling until it was split into a rain of rocky chunks raining down onto the sand. 

Ah...That was a lot grosser than I intended, Iris thought. 

"Nice!"

"Thanks!"

Although succinct, the exchange she had with Ren filled her heart with a certain throbbing warmth as she couldn't help but smile. Even though she found herself somewhat envious of her companion's growth, she respected his power all the same. 

I'm such an idiot. I shouldn't be jealous--I shouldn't. He worked hard; he bled for this strength. I...I just can't help but feel this way, she thought. 

"More coming!...A lot more coming!"

The yell from the airborne boy up above their heads cemented in what they all saw before their eyes; dozens of spots within the sand geysered up into, tremors generating waves through the area at which they stood. 

"...That's a whole lot."

Aiko muttered loud enough for them all to hear, speaking out loud the thought they all shared at the sight of the army of obsidian worms approaching their position. 

"Bring as many as you want! I can take them!"

After incinerating her opponent, Valerie resumed her usual, sky-high confidence as her vertical pupils glowed with a thirst for further glory, her tail thumping against the sand. 

Despite the open-air boastfulness of his draconic companion, Ren wasn't liking the number of enemies lurking within the sand; feeling tremors far more powerful than before. With the unorthodox minds of creatures within Purgatory, a group was always something to be wary of. 

Think, Ren, think, he thought. 

Looking around, he tried to find anything that might prove invaluable against the approaching herd of worms. Looking at the tall, round panda that stood by him, his eyes met with that oversized, exuberant hammer held in his fluffy hands. 

Bingo, he smiled. 

"Hongse!"

"Mm?"

"Hammer time."

It took only those words accompanied by a guiding smile from Ren for the panda demi-human to understand what was wanted from him. 

"O-K!"

With an affirming nod, Hongse rose his dense hammer above his head, mustering all of his strength as the muscles lying underneath all of that obscuring fur showed itself; veins popping as his black, beady eyes shined with an overwhelming radiance of luster. 

"What the hell is he planning?...Oh!"

Muttering to himself as he watched from up above, Macheo couldn't hear what was said between Ren and the crimson panda, however, from the stance Hongse took as if preparing to smite the desert itself--it was clear as day. 

I get it now; this is the perfect way to fish all of them out at once--no, this might even take some of them out! It's easy to forget from that fluffy, carefree exterior of his...Hongse's strength is no joke. Out of all of us, he likely holds the greatest raw physical power, Macheo thought. 

As a clean, refreshing aura ran along the form of the panda as he charged up all of his strength, vibrations began to emit from underneath his feet. 

"Macheo!"

Realizing just how powerful this smash was going to be, Ren turned his attention to the boy still hovering in the air. 

"Yeah?!"

"Get us up!" 

It didn't take even a moment for Macheo to realize what was being asked of him, nodding his head as he snapped his fingers, manifesting a staircase of magical platforms for the others to ascend with. 

"I don't need such parlor tricks; that's the birthright of one of draconic blood."

"Who cares! Just get into the air!"

Shooting down Valerie's predicted boast as she looked down at the platform near her feet, Ren's anxious yell brought her head back into the game, her powerful wings guiding her body into the air. With the rest of the group now hovering in the air, there wasn't anything holding the panda back from unleashing his full might. 

"...I can't hold this for very long! This is much past my limit, Ren!..."

Gritting his teeth, Macheo's complexion shifted to a strained crimson as veins pushed against his skin, holding the flickering platforms into their solid form. 

"Right!--Hongse, do your thing!"

Given the go-ahead by Ren as he threw his fist to the air, the wide, toothy smile that put onto display the array of both sharp and flat teeth belonging to Hongse flourished as a wave of mystical energy propelled itself from his position. 

If calories really do have some correlation to mana, then the tens of thousands of calories that Hongse takes in per day is put right into that hammer swing! That's what makes him such a fearsome warrior--the blubberous nature of a panda! Ren thought. 

All around the large, red-furred panda, the black sand shook and vibrated; trembling as the obscured worms tunneled towards him in droves. 

"Art of Zao Shen...Mallet of The Inner Hearth."

The calm, yet mighty aura around Hongse shifted into a fiery essence that exemplified the raw power he conjured, stretching across the form of his precious hammer; scaling over each ridge. Watching this, Valerie narrowed her sharp eyes on the demi-human companion of hers. 

It's a mystic art lost to time; the people of Vesta treat it like a joke now, a mysticism only used by cooks--an art passed down for generations. But I know, Hongse, I know that Zao Shen used to be one of the players in the Great War of Immortals--those who used the art inhabited strength far surpassing any others. You were the one born with it once more; the original Zao Shen--unable to use the "modern" form of it to inherit your father's restaurant, you were treated like an outcast. But in reality, you're extraordinary! That's why I accepted you to join me on this quest, Hongse! I want to see it! Valerie grinned. 

"...Thanks for the meal!"

Roaring out, Hongse reared the pristine hammer down as far back as he could before sending it back through the air with a swing that made the air howl out. As the flat-end of the hammer reunited with the surface of the desert, a shock wave generated between the minuscule space between the material of the weapon and the grains of sand below. 

Stretching into existence, the new force traveled through the surrounding desert, kicking up a storm of black sand that put the natural efforts of the wind to shame. Even from up above, they were completely safe from the effects of the smash, feeling the generated winds pelt against them as if a storm had just arrived. 

"...Woah, woah!..."

Planting her feet down against the circular platform, Aiko had to focus as to not be blown back by the resulting wind. 

From the comfort of their sand-filled pathways, the obsidian worms were plucked from hiding, most having their innards completely turned to liquid by the force of the shock wave. Any residual worms found themselves put down by a simple drop of the hammer onto their wriggling forms. 

"Awesome! That was amazing!"

"Heh. It was thanks to your quick thinking!"

Exchanging a quick high-five, Ren met with the panda once more, both sharing victorious smiles as the others followed closely behind. 

"Damn, I can still feel it in my bones…"

Macheo muttered, looking at his one organic arm, squeezing his fist a few times to make sure his nerves still existed. 

"I'm glad you're on our side."

"Yeah! I'm just happy you took care of all those gross, wiggling worms…"

Complimented further by Iris and Aiko, Hongse held his humble smile, resting the hammer on his shoulder as he watched the group of his continue onward on their path. 

All my life, my family treated my unnatural strength like some sort of curse. 

I couldn't cook, I was too clumsy to clean or serve dishes--the only thing I could do was work they saw as "too low". If it wasn't belittlement, it was fear. I couldn't make any friends, after accidentally breaking someone's arm when playing tag--I was treated like some sort of monster.

But now, people are thanking me for my strength; I don't think it's a curse or a blessing--it's just my own power, Hongse thought. 

"You coming or what?"

Stopping together, the whole group looked back at Hongse as he was surrounded by his own thoughts as Valerie called back to the panda. 

"Yeah! I can go for a bite!"