Bastard Homunculus: Reborn in the Corpse Pit
Chapter 220: Bad Feeling

Chapter 220: Chapter 220: Bad Feeling

"I guess this is as good a place to rest as any. Go on, get some rest, I’ll keep watch," Remarked Akila, as he and Kia slipped into a space behind a wide, jutted rock formation.

"N-No, I should be the one who keeps watch. W-With my Detection Magic, I can sense any threats well before they show up," Pointed out Kia.

"True, but that would mean you don’t get to rest at all, and that wouldn’t be fair," Argued Akila in response.

"M-Maybe, but this place is absolutely crawling with Monsters, so I have no choice but to deal with it."

It was late in the evening now, the two of them had been walking through the dark, cavernous maze they’d found themselves in for several hours now, the fatigue starting to pile up, not to mention the stress, hunger and thirst.

"Even so, I can’t just-..."

"I-It’s fine, I’ll rest after we’re out of here...if we even make it out of here at all," She sighed despondently.

"Hey, come on...of course we’re going to make it out. It’s only a matter of time. We just need to keep heading in one direction like we’ve been doing, and eventually, we’ll get out," Reasoned Akila objectively.

Since there was no real way to get any bearings in their dark surroundings, they decided to just pick a direction and keep heading straight. They didn’t have to worry about walls thanks to Akila’s Phase Shift Magic, though they did have to go off-course several times to avoid the Monsters in the maze-like cave.

But they managed to more or less get back on track by making their way around any Monsters Kia sensed. They were still a bit off from the direction they’d initially headed in, but given the circumstances, it was impressive that they were even close to having stayed on track.

"Y-Yeah, but...can we last that long? I’m getting really hungry, and my throat is so dry," Sighed Kia, licking her lips to keep them from drying out.

"Same here. Food aside, I wish we at least had some water on us," Nodded Akila, while thinking to himself, "If it comes down to it, as a last resort, we might have to drink each other’s-...i-it’s pretty gross to think about, but our lives are more important. We’ll have to do what we need to in order to survive. I won’t bring it up yet, though, don’t want to freak her out."

"Hm? H-Hey, you okay? You feel tense."

"Huh? Oh, it’s nothing, don’t worry about. You should turn off your Detection Magic, by the way, you’ll end up burning through all your Mana. Just activate it briefly every few minutes or so," Suggested Akila, patting her shoulder.

"O-Okay. I wish we at least knew whether we’re heading in the right direction or not, walking around blindly is really stressing me out."

"Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever heard her complain like this before. Well, given the situation, I guess I can’t exactly blame her," Akila thought to himself, before responding, "It’ll be okay, no matter which direction we picked, so long as we keep heading straight, we’ll find our way out. Let’s have a feast once we’re out, guzzle down some water, gorge ourselves with reckless abandon, and then conk out for as long as we want."

"Yeah...that sounds nice."

Meanwhile...

"Hm, the rain’s really pouring. It’s not safe to walk around in such a heavy downpour, so I should take this opportunity to rest," Mused Nero, as he took a seat under a large tree.

He’d been making fairly steady progress, covering a lot of ground before the rains reached the area he was in, forcing him to halt his progress.

He had also encountered a number of Monsters along the way, but had no trouble handling them, also managing to secure himself food and water.

"It is rather cold, though. I hope the rains dies down quickly," He thought to himself, before sneezing as he shuddered slightly.

Elsewhere in the nation...

"D-Damn it, they’re not drying! The heat I’m using isn’t enough, but if I make it hotter, the fabric will get burned! It was only a few seconds, how did we get so thoroughly soaked so fast?" Frowned Jules, before sneezing.

"If they’re even a little damp, it’s still too dangerous to put them back on," Remarked Aster, shivering as he rubbed the sides of his arms.

"I-I know that, but...it’ll be a while. What should we do? I-I’m freezing," Shuddered Jules, goosebumps on her arms.

"W-Well, uh...this’ll be pretty awkward, but it might be our only real option. If our clothes aren’t dry, the only way to stay warm...is to huddle up."

"Huh? Y-You mean...you mean in our current state?" Responded Jules, her face heating up.

"I-...yeah. We’ll use our body heat to keep each other warm. It might be enough if we just lean against each other back to back, that’d be the least awkward way to do this, at least."

"I...I suppose that’s not too bad," She muttered, before scooting back as she glanced at him, her back bumping against his before she tentatively leaned against him, her eyes widening slightly, "Woah, you’re right...your back felt cold at first, but it’s getting warmer now."

"Yeah, that’s a lot better...huh, your back feels so narrow," He mused thoughtfully.

"I-I am more slender than you are, so that’s only natural," She replied with a slight huff, starting to feel self-conscious.

"Sorry about this. I’m sure you aren’t exactly happy about having to be in this position with some random guy, but we have to stay warm to survive," Remarked Aster sheepishly.

"N-No, I-...you’re not just some random guy. If I had to pick, I would definitely-...n-never mind!"

"Hm? Wait, were you about to say-...?"

"No! It was nothing!"

"If you say so. Crap, my glasses are all foggy, I can’t see through them at all," Sighed Aster, taking them off and setting them down on the floor of the cave.

"Huh, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you without your glasses before," Replied Jules, glancing back before stiffening a bit as she met his gaze, quickly turning back around as she thought to herself, "He looks good without his glas-...damn it, get a hold of yourself!"

"I mean, I only really take them off when I go to sleep or take a shower," He responded, before shuddering slightly.

"O-Oh, um, I see...," Muttered Jules, before shaking her head as she thought to herself, "N-No, stop...stop trying to picture him showering, I...I’m not a pervert! D-Damn it, I...I can’t keep lying to myself. My...my feelings for him are..."

"Huh, you suddenly feel a little warmer," Remarked Aster in surprise, right as Jules sneezed again.

"I-I do feel a bit warmer now, but that’s mainly around my back, the rest of my body is still really cold," She replied, while thinking, "I-I don’t know why, but I’m feeling so...so impulsive right now. Even though I’m cold, there’s this strange heat inside me, it’s making it hard to think clearly. Maybe...maybe I should just let my impulses take over, for once..."

"Yeah, same here. I think we’re warm enough that we aren’t in any real danger anymore, but it would be nice if we could get a bit warmer," Aster sighed wistfully, before glancing back as he felt Jules shift.

"In that case...," She muttered as she stood up and turned around, her face bright red, Aster’s eyes widening before he quickly looked away, as she added, "I-I guess we have no choice but to huddle closer."

"H-Huh? I don’t-...I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to get a look at you, I didn’t expect you to turn around-...," He began in a flustered tone, before he tensed and trailed off as Jules walked over and took a seat on his lap, wrapping her arms around him, her chest pressed against his.

"Yeah, this feels a lot warmer," She whispered, her heart pounding as she thought to herself, "What in the world has come over me?! I-I...I need to stop, I know that, but I...I don’t want to..."

"I-It does, but-...!" Stuttered Aster, his face a deep red as he trailed off, his mind racing as he thought to himself, "Why does this feel so...seductive? I feel like she’d normally be getting really flustered in a situation like this...but this feels so deliberate. This unexpected side of her, it’s so...so..."

"Wh-Where is all this coming from? I didn’t know I had it in me to act like this. It feels...it feels good. I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders somehow," Jules thought to herself.

Her chest was pounding, her face warm and visibly flushed, and yet, she felt strangely calm. She’d been denying her attraction towards him for so long, her own sense of embarrassment holding her back...and the moment she let her impulses take over and stopped holding back, something clicked in her.

"We should do everything we can to stay as warm as possible, don’t you think? Put your arms around me...touch me...," She whispered, surprising even herself.

"O-Okay," Nodded Aster, wrapping her arms around her body, his chest thumping.

"Yeah, I feel a lot warmer now."

"I...I do too," He replied quietly, starting to run his hands across her skin, before catching himself and stopping, stuttering, "S-Sorry, I don’t know what came over me, I-...!"

"It’s okay. And you don’t have to stop," She responded as she lowered her voice, letting her impulses guide her as she leaned in and pressed her lips against his.

Aster stiffened as she kissed him, his mind blanking for a moment, before he reciprocated and kissed her back, the two of them getting swallowed up in the heat of the moment, steadily melting into each other...

Meanwhile, back in Persona...

"Ah...ah...CHOO!!!" Sneezed Ravella, a chill running down her spine.

"Hm? You okay, Miss Ravella?" Inquired one of her squadmates.

"Yeah, I’m fine. I just suddenly got a really bad feeling for some reason," She muttered with an uncertain frown.