Isekai Nonbiri Sozai Saishu Seikatsu - Chapter 126

After defeating the lizardman, I traveled further in and the amount of lava in the area increased.

As a result, the temperature inside the cave has been rising, getting hotter and hotter.

I constantly cloak myself in cold with ice magic and rely on items to avoid hardship, but I can’t even bear to think about marching without them.

Heavy-armored adventurers would surely suffer from the heat if they wore armor. I’m truly grateful for my lightweight mage style from the bottom of my heart.

The distance to the summit is not that far in a straight line, but there are many detours I must take, and the presence of monsters lurking in the magma slows down my progress.

It’s frustrating that I can see the route ahead but can’t just charge through it.

However, if the surface temperature is only somewhat high, I can use freezing as a means to make a path.

Of course, I don’t have the guts to cool down magma and cross it, but just being able to do that much makes for a significant shortcut and makes things easier.

Despite experiencing various cool moments in many senses considering the harshness of the environment, I make sure to hydrate frequently.

Even though it’s cool, there’s still a risk of heatstroke if I don’t replenish fluids. It’s common to hear stories about elderly people in my previous life collapsing from heatstroke despite staying indoors in the middle of summer.

It’s important to replenish fluids regularly, even if you don’t feel thirsty.

I moisten my throat with spring water from my canteen and lick a small amount of salt.

The spring water in the canteen actually increases over time.

Although I sip water frequently, it seems to fill up to the brim as time passes.

As long as I don’t gulp it all down, I shouldn’t run out of replenishment.

Having a large amount of water stored in my magic bag is reassuring; it’s comforting to know that there’s an endless supply of water.

“Ice Ball.”

After I finish hydrating, I create small round ice balls in the palm of my hand with ice magic.

Just tossing them into my mouth feels wonderfully cold and refreshing.

Ice magic is undoubtedly a reassuring magic in the volcanic region.

I progress through the cave while holding ice in my mouth. Near the nearby magma pools, the magma flows like a boiling pot.

Come to think of it, I’ve heard stories about being able to cook fried eggs on a game console that has heated up from prolonged play.

Similarly, in such hot places like this, wouldn’t it be possible to cook ingredients?

“Let’s try grilling some mushrooms or something.”

I know it’s a foolish challenge, but my curiosity has been piqued, so I decide to give it a try.

I take out some mushrooms from my magic bag, skewer them, and hold them over the heat.

Soon enough, the mushrooms start to wilt, giving off a grilled aroma.

With further curiosity, I gradually move closer to the magma…

“Oh no, it caught fire instantly!”

The mushrooms catch fire and burn up in an instant, along with the skewer turning into charcoal.

I quickly move away from the magma in a panic.

Well, of course. If you get close to magma that’s several thousand degrees, it’ll burn up just fine with its residual heat alone.

It’s not a good idea to equate a heated game console with magma.

Playing around with magma is too dangerous, so let’s stop here.

When I use magic stone detection, there were multiple monster reactions within the magma.

In my line of sight, silhouettes resembling small fish are floating, as if swimming in the magma like it’s the sea.

They didn’t come because of the smell of grilled mushrooms, did they?

【Magmare – Danger Level B】

A fish-like monster that freely swims through lava. It shoots out magma stored inside its body in spherical form.

It has a very cautious nature and often attacks from a distance.

Upon appraisal, it seems to be a creature that can freely move within magma, much like a magma crab.

It’s truly nonsensical that fish can swim in magma. That’s why it’s interesting, though.

However, it’s concerning that they shoot magma in spherical form. Even if it’s just a minor hit, it could cause a major disaster if it lands on something.

It’s doubtful whether a fire resistance ring could mitigate it.

I try to avoid getting too close to the magma, but the Magmare pops up and spews magma.

A glowing orange-hot substance flies towards me.

Thanks to the thorough detection during the investigation, I manage to avoid it without being caught off guard, but the magma hitting the ground bursts with a splash.

It seems like some of it faintly flew towards me, making a sizzling sound.

“Whoa!?”

Instinctively, I jump backward and check my body, but there doesn’t seem to be any sign of burning.

However, the freeze surrounding me emits a strong blast of cold air.

Perhaps the freeze managed to shield me from the minor magma that came flying my way.

“I’m glad I had the cold wrapped around me…”

Once again, I was saved by ice magic. Without it, it wouldn’t be strange if my clothes were burnt with holes and I suffered from severe burns.

I underestimated the danger of the magma spewing out.

I need to be mindful of the ball of magma and either avoid it by a large margin, strengthen the freeze to fend it off, or chill it with ice magic to bring it down.

As I raise my alert level, the Magmare once again spews out magma. And this time, there are several of them at once.

I make a wide leap and evade the incoming magma.

While the power of the magma balls is immense, the good thing is that their ejection speed isn’t that fast.

“Freeze!”

I try to deal with the magma that arrived late with ice magic.

However, with ordinary magical power, it’s impossible to completely freeze magma, which boasts high heat.

So, I decide to use an even more powerful ice magic than Freeze.

“Blizzard!”

Then, everything around me freezes.

Not only the incoming magma but also the magma flowing within the cave itself.

Surpassing the Freeze I used against the Blue Grizzly in Fermi Village, everything around me is frozen in terms of both scope and intensity.

It’s as if an ice age has arrived here alone.

“I never thought I could freeze even magma…”

I hadn’t even considered the possibility of freezing magma, and I’m taken aback despite being the one who caused the phenomenon.

Even the Magmare swimming in the magma is frozen.

In places away from the range of the magic effect, super-low temperature ice and super-high temperature magma coexist, emitting steam.

It’s frightening that I was able to freeze magma, but it’s even more frightening that I have enough magical power to use such a powerful magic. I wonder just how much magical power my body holds.

“I had thought to use it in case of a Volkanos attack…”

At worst, I thought I could at least immobilize them, but it seems like I’ll freeze the entire body at this rate.

Just trying to freeze the flying magma, and it ends up like this.

To accurately freeze only the feet, I still need more practice.

However, it’s a significant discovery that with Blizzard, I can even freeze magma.

I try walking on the frozen magma and there’s no problem at all. It feels just like walking on regular ice.

“For now, practicing freezing magma like this seems to be the best approach.”

I decide to proceed by walking on the frozen magma.