“Son of a bitch!” he said as he kicked a pile of sand.

“Just how in the hell did she disappear so fast? If I had known that owning a snowwoman was like owning a pet, I would have returned her immediately or put a leash on her ass.” he said as he glanced around in a frantic state.

Checking the sand, he found a pair of big footprints that could only belong to his recent snow friend, Yukini, that were heading west from their location.

After double-checking the prints, he went into a dead sprint, following the footprints and hoping to catch up to her. Judging from the prints, it looked like she had not had any difficulties along the way.

After a while of following the footprints, he noticed that her strides had gotten larger like she had started to run. A sense of urgency hit him, causing him to pick up his speed.

“Damn it, why have I not caught up with her yet?” After running full speed for close to seven minutes, he was sure he should have caught up to her by now.

Just as his thoughts were about to run wild, thinking of each dreadful situation that might have occurred, he heard splashing. Coming to a stop, he saw that Yukini’s footprints leading to what seemed to be a small lake. “What the hell, why is a lake here?”

Scratching his head, he was at a loss for words. If it was not for the sound of splashing, he would have thought it was some kind of mirage.

After observing it for a moment, he moved closer with his guard up, ready to deal with any situation. He could hear the joy-filled sound of Yukini playing about in the water, lessening his tension.

The surrounding area of the lake was beautiful. The lively green vegetation accompanied by the deep blue water contrasted the empty feeling he got when he was surrounded by the Desert area. It made this tiny area a paradise. Even the air seemed to be much better than the harsh desert air that was only a foot away.

Searching for a bit, he caught sight of Yukini having a good old time in the water. He wanted to be angry at her, but there was something oddly soothing watching her play about.

“Did you have fun?” he said as he made his way over to Yukini.

Turing her attention from water, sounds of excitement left her mouth when she caught sight of Shango. Using both of her hands, she began patting the water. It seemed she wanted Shango to join her.

Looking at Yukini, he had a feeling she would cause more problems than what she is worth. After awhile, the sound of the Yukini urging him to jump in the water brought him back from his thoughts.

“Okay, I don’t mind a quick dip. I’m feeling icky, anyway.” he said, removing his clothing. Somehow, he was still covered in the blood of the ice serpent. He had thought the blood would have disappeared when he watched the corpse of the ice serpent vanish, but it didn’t. That accompanied with the sweat he had built up rushing here made him feel filthy.

Tossing his clothing to the side, he jumped in the water.

“Ahh, now that’s what I’m talking about.” he said while he laid back and floated in the water.

He had no shame being in the nude in front of Yukini, even if she was technically a female. He was not a furry or into bestiality so he would never have such thoughts about her.

Now that he had a chance to relax, all the stress that he had built up just seemed to wash away. His first battle was a successful one. Even though there were some unexpected events, he would still give himself a passing grade.

After sitting in silence for a while listening to Yukini play about in the water, he thought about his next course of action.

“This next creature should be stronger than the ice serpent. The only question is by how much. If this monster is only a bit stronger than the Ice Serpent, everything could be worked out but if this game goes from Hello Kitty to Diablo, it could be a real pain in the ass.

“I think after this little break is over, I should test out my abilities. I should also probably figure out the full capabilities of Yukini, I don’t want any friendly fire or any of that nonsense happening.” he said as he looked over at Yukini, who was now diving in and out the water.

“Ah, to be innocent and carefree.” he said as he drifted in the water.

After relaxing and playing in the water until they had their fill, they both exited when their stomachs started making rumbling sounds.

After searching for a while, Shango had found some familiar fruits that he had seen in the castle, along with a few other ones he thought might have been edible. While he did that, Yukini caught some fish by chucking ice spears at the water, getting them an excellent source of protein. Even though that nearly came to blow when she kept biting the heads off the fish.

“All right Yukini, let me show you what fine dining is.” he said as he used his gauntlets to fillet the fishes. He then chopped up the fruit into bite-sized pieces. Next, he took the lemon-like fruit and squeezed some juice on the fish before then wrapping them in a leaf that felt and looked similar to a banana leaf, but was red. He then tossed them into a fire he had made.

“Now Yukini, in a few minutes, prepare to have your mind blown.”

Crunch!

Turning his head, he caught sight of Yukini chowing down on the fish heads he had discarded.

“Damn it, I told you to stop doing that! You’re making me queasy!”