King Of Limbo

They were forced to continue researching the continent they were currently on after making such a finding since they lacked clear evidence that additional continents existed in the area of Limbo they were in.

…

The group came across numerous human bodies as they traveled north, north east, and lastly east.

These ones were more scattered and at most would be five. This meant that most groups that had traveled together had dispersed, possibly of their own volition or for other reasons.

…

"I spot another dead body."

Jin nonchalantly pointed at a cadaver as the group was moving eastward in a region between the north and north eastern directions.

Even Jezir and the two ladies, whose names were later revealed to be Mrah and Kalel, did not appear surprised; for them, seeing dead bodies had long since become the norm.

It was a difficult reality to embrace, especially for those who had once been common people. However, while traveling with Aron, finding food and water wasn't at all challenging.

The constant movement may have been the hardest part, but they never dared to complain because they had come to accept it as their new normal.

"That's the fourth one within a kilometer radius, there's likely a beast lurking around so stay sharp." Aron offered passive advice without having to look at the corpse; he was also accustomed to seeing it by this point.

Something unexpected happened as they were walking through what was suddenly a swampy forest with murky water.

"Ow!"

Mrah who was the mother among the two women let out a yelp and grasped her leg while showing a slightly pained expression.

But while Jezir and Kalel quickly stopped, the others carried on.

"What's wrong." Jezir questioned and went over to her right away.

She pointed to her leg which was submerged in the murky water as it reached their knees. "Something poked me, maybe a thorn," the woman said.

Considering that there was hazardous plants everywhere and she had no protection from the outdoors, her reasoning wasn't at all unusual.

"Raise your leg, let's see." Jezir gave serious instructions.

When she did, Jezir took a close look at the region above her ankle and noticed that something resembling a sharp needle was obstructing it.

When he saw that the region it was penetrating now had a purplish tinge and vein markings were apparent, a clear indication of poisoning, his attention abruptly changed.

"She's been poisoned!" He declared with great concern.

Usually Jin was the one to assist them if a problem arose, but this time Aron chose to approach himself after taking a look back at the wound.

When he was close enough, he examined the wound and took out the needle that resembled a thorn before bringing it up to his face.

"This was created artificially."

Aron made that revelation, and Jagu snapped his tongue in annoyance.

He briefly slapped his palm into the water after that in a rage. He raised his hand and spread it open to see a number of the same thorn-like needles on the ground.

But none managed to get through his skin; instead, they were all smashed by his weight. "I had thought it's just the land below but these things are everywhere!"

Evanora and Jin, who were also walking in the water, reached down and grabbed a few as he said those words. Lady Rose avoided the murky water totally by moving on her scouter, so she only observed.

"Right, we didn't notice since they're negligible to us but them…" Aron looked at the three and trailed off.

They would have passed the location nonchalantly had they not made it clear that it was there.

The skin of Aron, Jagu, and Evanora was impervious to anything so commonplace. Jin retained a strong mana covering around himself passively, despite the fact that it was conceivable given that he was a human.

Aron had no idea how Rose was doing because she had never interacted with any living things. She wouldn't be as delicate either, he could only suppose.

Jagu's half-cut ears twitched slightly and his countenance shifted before the talk could continue.

"I can hear motion in the distance; something is approaching." He issued a caution.

Aron pushed the thorn away and cast a sidelong glance at Jagu. "Which direction?"

"All of them." Jagu answered with a grave face.

When they heard Jagu's comments, Aron and the others didn't react with any fear; instead, they just got ready for conflict.

The murky water began to show ripples in the following seconds, arriving from all sides as Jagu had foretold.

They each kept their attention in a specific direction and waited patiently, but after another instant the ripples ceased.

Splash!~

The water surged violently upward as figures started to emerge from the murky water, abruptly ending the eerie calm.

Aron could see the figures surrounding them well, though it was hard for humans to see in such bad illumination.

Webbed hands with thin, clawed fingers and hunched humanoid bodies with upward-facing noses at the end of their long, rounded snouts.

Perhaps as a result of their slumped postures and bent stances, their frames appeared to be no more than two meters tall.

"What are those things." No creature in Pesia resembled them at first appearance, and only Aron could identify what they were.

Splash!~

The creatures began to emerge in greater numbers, swinging their powerful tails against the murky water as if to frighten the people they were around.

They had no weapons, but Aron saw greater intelligence in the torn clothes that covered their genitalia. In other words, they were Komi.

Are you who or what?" The creatures stumbled back as if they had come across an abnormality when Aron questioned in Dim.

His enormous stature alone made him appear extremely frightening, but the fact that he could speak seemed to particularly catch them off surprise.

"Take back to Gragar, it speaks!" One of the creatures made an extremely dense and difficult to comprehend announcement.

With such a structure, it was evident that pronouncing the words would be challenging.

"Who is Gragar?" Aron replied in a neutral tone, if possible he wanted to avoid conflict with a known native but judging from their hostile mannerisms, it already looked impossible.

"You must do so! Must meet Gragar, Follow!"

Cack!~

The creature's teeth clanked loudly as it spoke from the force of its powerful jaw.

In an obvious attempt to intimidate, it even dropped down on all fours and plunged its palm into the water while shaking its nose.

The other creatures, who together numbered around twelve, imitated the motions while making a route for the company to follow.

Aron grinned and told them, "Well, let's go."

The others had been expecting a blood bath to erupt but his words shocked them, more especially Jagu who could sense these creatures weren't stronger than even him.

But no one in the group questioned Aron because he always had his own agenda. Only Jezir and the two women experienced heart-related anxiety.