The two of them trekked across the white wasteland for a long time.
To avoid the Hollows that could be seen everywhere, they had to take many long detours.
But even calling it a detour was a stretch; the environment here was so monotonous it was despair-inducing.
There was nothing but sand and rocks, without a single point of reference. After a while, they weren't even sure if they were just walking in circles.
"Over there!"
As they walked, Asuka spotted a sunken area ahead.
There appeared to be a massive cluster of rocks, stacked in a staggered pattern to form a natural barrier.
Deep within the rock cluster, the faint outline of a cave entrance could be seen.
"Is that a cave?" Kaien's eyes lit up.
"Perfect, we can lay low for a bit... If I don't rest soon, I'll collapse from exhaustion before the Hollows even touch me."
The two quickened their pace and ran toward the rock cluster.
Just as they approached the entrance.
A spine-chilling aura drifted out from deep within the cave.
It wasn't killing intent.
Nor was it berserk malice.
Instead, it felt like... an extreme loneliness, heavy and oppressive.
"Wait."
Asuka abruptly stopped in his tracks and reached out to block Kaien.
"There's someone inside."
"Someone? In Hueco Mundo?" Kaien froze for a moment before reacting. "You mean a Hollow?!"
In Hueco Mundo, when a Menos evolved to its apex, it would take on a form close to that of a human.
A Vasto Lorde.
Entities of that level were all monsters capable of rivaling Soul Reaper Captains.
Asuka's sharp Spiritual Sight felt as though it had been ruthlessly punched the moment he neared the entrance, leaving him somewhat dazed.
"I don't know." Asuka tightened his grip on his sword hilt, hesitating over whether they should run. "This aura... is strong. It feels absurdly powerful."
This feeling was dimensions stronger than that Metastacia.
But strangely, there was no hostility in this aura.
Instead, it exuded a sort of... lazy feeling?
"Are we still going in?" Kaien asked, lowering his voice. "There are Menos looking this way in the distance."
Asuka glanced back.
Sure enough, on a sand dune not far away, three Gillians were turning their massive masks, seemingly having sensed the Reishi fluctuations over here.
They were caught between a rock and a hard place.
The voice in his heart suddenly spoke up, startling Asuka.
"Seriously..." Asuka was somewhat puzzled, but that person did not respond to his distress.
Meanwhile, the heavy footsteps of the Gillians were already faintly audible; they were moving clumsily but steadily toward this direction.
He gritted his teeth. "Let's go in. If it's an intelligent creature, maybe we can communicate. If it's like those brainless hulks outside, we'll just have to fight for our lives."
The two held their breath and cautiously walked into the cave.
The cave was spacious and dry.
The ground was covered in a thick layer of white sand, which was surprisingly somewhat comfortable.
The most peculiar thing was that certain rock walls seemed to be embedded with faint, glowing ores like stardust, emitting a dim blue or pale green light.
'It looks like it's been decorated. Not bad...' Asuka thought.
At the deepest part of the cave, there was a flat boulder.
At this moment, a figure was lying on their side on the boulder, back facing them, seemingly asleep.
It was a middle-aged man with mid-length dark brown hair.
He was wrapped in a thin, heavily frayed black cloth, barely covering his body, revealing the rugged lines of his shoulders and back, along with part of his sturdy arms.
Other than that, no other Hollows could be seen in the cave; only that suffocating sense of loneliness permeated the air.
Hearing their footsteps, the figure did not jump up to attack, nor did he even change his posture.
He merely rolled over lazily, revealing a face that looked somewhat decadent but exuded a mature charm.
He had stubble on his chin and sleepy eyes, looking as if he had just been woken from a sweet dream.
"Ah... so noisy."
The man scratched his hair and glanced at Asuka and Kaien, who were standing at the entrance on full alert.
Surprise flashed in his eyes, but there was no anger, only a sense of helplessness at having his peaceful sleep disturbed.
"It's already full here... If you're looking for a place to sleep, go somewhere else."
He yawned, seemingly ready to go back to sleep.
Asuka and Kaien exchanged a glance, both seeing the astonishment in each other's eyes.
This wasn't how the script was supposed to go.
This was Hueco Mundo, right? This guy was a Hollow, right?
It was one thing not to immediately lunge at Soul Reapers screaming for blood, but what was with this lazy attitude?
"Um..." Kaien spoke up tentatively. "Even though we don't know what's going on... sorry for the intrusion. We just want to borrow this place to hide from the Menos outside."
"Menos?"
The man opened one eye and glanced outside the cave.
"Oh, those noisy guys."
He sighed, seemingly finding it troublesome to explain, but also not wanting the outside noise to continue.
"Then come in."
He pointed to a corner of the cave where there was a relatively clean empty space.
"Stay over there and keep quiet. If those guys outside spot you... a fight will be unavoidable, and that's really troublesome."
With that, he actually closed his eyes, looking as if he was about to fall asleep again.
Asuka was left speechless.
Kaien was equally speechless.
This was probably the most even-tempered and bizarre Hollow they had ever seen in their lives.
Why did this guy look no different from a human? Where was his bone mask?
But since the other party harbored no ill intent, the two were more than happy to oblige and didn't ask any questions.
They cautiously walked over to the corner and sat down, trying their best not to make a sound.
Asuka did not release the sword in his hand, carefully observing the man.
"Um... old man."
Perhaps feeling the atmosphere was too awkward, or out of some sort of curiosity, Kaien couldn't help but ask in a low voice, "May I ask what your name is?"
The other party fell silent for a moment, as if trying to recall his own name, or perhaps weighing whether he should answer.
Just when Kaien thought he had fallen asleep.
A lazy voice echoed in the cave.
"Coyote... Starrk."
Having stated his name, he seemed to feel his task was complete, rolling over to leave his back facing the two.
"Also... don't call me old man. I'm not that old."
As his voice faded, a small figure suddenly popped out from the shadows of the cave.
It was a manic young girl wearing half a bone mask, looking to be only thirteen or fourteen years old, resembling... a little demon.
"Stupid Starrk! Since you're awake, play with me!"
The little one jumped onto Starrk's head and stomped on it a few times.
"Get up! Get up! I'm dying of boredom!"
"You're too loud, Lilynette..." Starrk helplessly grabbed her and set her aside. "We have guests, so keep it down."
Watching this bizarre yet somewhat inexplicably heartwarming scene.
Asuka and Kaien felt their brains short-circuiting.
Was this really Hueco Mundo?