Chapter 236: Those Who Lurk in the Earth

Having temporarily solved the ice cellar’s ice problem, we decided to search the town to find the main culprit.

“The cause of the ice in the ice cellar melting, huh… Isn’t it just because hot days have been continuing or something?”

The first one to come up was Jairo-kun’s opinion.

“But isn’t it strange that the ice is melting exceptionally fast only this year? At the very least, I don’t think the town’s air is that hot. Besides, if it reached a high temperature enough to melt the ice in the ice cellar, wouldn’t it affect not just this town, but neighboring towns and villages as well?”

“How is it around here, Tracy-san?”

To confirm Norb-san’s counterargument, we asked for the opinion of Tracy-san, who lives in the Holy Capital.

“Y-Yes, that’s right. It was only about a little hotter than usual this year, and I didn’t feel it got exceptionally hot. Since the warmth is similar everywhere around here, I don’t think it’s just this town that’s getting hotter.”

I certainly feel a little heat, but it doesn’t feel like a temperature high enough to melt the ice in the ice cellar all at once.

“Looking around the town, I don’t see anything that would get hot either. It doesn’t look like anyone is using magic, and I don’t see anything like magic items.”

“To begin with, if someone used magic, we would feel a corresponding amount of magic power. But it doesn’t feel like any major magic is being activated around here.”

Concentrating her consciousness and probing the flow of magic power, Mina-san asserted that magic was not the cause.

Yeah, I don’t feel any particularly strong magic power either, so I think Mina-san’s words are correct.

“If we can’t find the cause, and it’s not magic or magic items… Could it be the wrath of the gods!? Actually, didn’t the people of this town commit a sin that incurred the wrath of the gods!?”

While we were wracking our brains not knowing the cause, Tracy-san suddenly blurted that out.

“No, no, no matter what, what kind of wrath only melts the ice in this town’s ice cellar? If they were going to give such a petty punishment, a much flashier divine punishment would have fallen.”

“That is true, isn’t it…”

Perhaps realizing that even she was grasping at straws just now, Tracy-san immediately withdrew her opinion.

“Hmm… In that case, is it monster-related after all?”

“But I’ve never heard of a monster that just melts the ice in an ice cellar without attacking people, you know?”

True. A monster that loves pranks like that, even I… well, it’s not like I don’t know of any, but such rare monsters don’t show up that often.

First, let’s examine the surroundings with Search Magic.

“…Huh?”

When I investigated the surroundings with Search Magic, I sensed the reaction of some large monster deep underground.

“What’s wrong?”

“It seems something is underground.”

” ” ” ” ” ” Underground? ” ” ” ” ” “

Hmm, Search Magic can only confirm life reactions, so is further investigation impossible?

In that case, let’s use that magic.

I placed my hand on the ground and activated the magic.

“GROUND SEARCH!!”

Ground Search: this magic is for investigating ore deposits and ancient relics sleeping in the earth.

It sends a faint wave of magic power into the ground, and when it hits something other than soil, it creates a special reflection, telling me what is there in a fair amount of detail.

The magic wave I emitted spread underground, creating a hemispherical search barrier.

Then the magic wave contacted and reflected off the monster lurking underground, delivering detailed information to me.

“Hmm… This monster is quite large. And it’s so hot you wouldn’t think it’s a living creature…”

Yes, the giant monster lurking underground was unnaturally clad in high temperatures.

A monster lurking underground, plus this intense heat… the ice cellar’s ice melting…

It feels somewhat familiar… Ah.

“I see! It’s a Heat Stealer!!”

Having hit upon the true identity of the monster lurking underground, I unconsciously shouted its name.

” ” ” ” ” ” Heat Stealer? ” ” ” ” ” “

“Yes, a Heat Stealer is a very hot monster. It has high-temperature organs like lava inside its body, and it’s a strange monster that steals cold air from its surroundings to cool them down.”

“Stealing cold air to cool its own body… there really are such monsters.”

Liliera-san nodded repeatedly, looking impressed.

“Melting the ice in the ice cellar was this guy’s doing too. Normally it’s a monster that can’t live in a place like this, so I was late to notice it too.”

“It can’t live… here?”

Perhaps bothered by the words ‘can’t live here’, Tracy-san tilted her head.

“Yes, a Heat Stealer is a monster with a very high body temperature, and if it doesn’t continuously cool its body with nearby cold air, it will cause a massive explosion and die. That’s why they usually live in heavy snowfall areas or permafrost.”

“Huh, what a strange monster. To think it causes a massive explosion if it’s not cooled down.”

“Right, causing a massive explosion and dying on its own, what a stupid mons…”

” ” ” ” ” ” Massive explosion!? ” ” ” ” ” “

Hearing it would cause a massive explosion, everyone shouted with pale faces.

“I-Is the massive explosion real!?”

“Seriously!? Isn’t it terrible that something like that is nearby!?”

“N-No. The monster is underground, so even if it explodes, I don’t think it will be that huge of a disaster, right, Rakushi-san?”

Norb-san thought that it might not be that bad if it was underground, but that’s not quite right.

“No, if a Heat Stealer of this size exploded, it would easily blow away about the size of this whole town.”

” ” ” ” ” ” That’s no good!! ” ” ” ” ” “

“This is bad! We have to subjugate it quickly!!”

“Wait, it’s bad if it explodes while we’re fighting it. We need to evacuate the townsfolk first!”

“That’s right! We have to hurry and tell the townsfolk to run!”

Hmm, everyone is pretty shaken up.

Well, I suppose it’s no wonder people fighting a Heat Stealer for the first time are confused.

“It’s fine, I have a proper countermeasure.”

” ” ” ” ” ” Really!? ” ” ” ” ” “

Everyone looked this way with anxious faces.

“Yes, the underground Heat Stealer has reached a considerable temperature, but fortunately, thanks to the ice we just made in the ice cellar, it’s barely holding off the explosion. So let’s exterminate the Heat Stealer in that opening.”

“R-Right. We’re still okay. Thank goodness…”

Knowing there was no immediate danger, everyone let out sighs of relief.

“So how do we catch a monster that’s inside the earth? Dig up the ground and drag the monster out?”

Let’s see. The easiest extermination method is to heat it up.

After all, since it’s a creature that dies if it doesn’t cool its own heat, it’s extremely weak to heat.

But if I do it near the middle of town, I’m afraid of secondary disasters, and since the goal is to prevent it from exploding in the first place, this method is a no-go.

Besides, if properly collected, a Heat Stealer is a convenient material for thermal insulation.

In that sense too, I want to collect it as peacefully and cleanly as possible.

“No, the Heat Stealer is burrowed quite deep underground, so rather than digging it out, I’ll forcefully drive it out.”

“Forcefully drive it out?”

Being asked “How?”, I decided to actually show them by doing it.

“First is adjusting the area. ICE FIELD!”

First, I rapidly lowered the ambient temperature with Environment Reproduction Magic to create a pseudo-cold region.

“Achoo!? It suddenly got cold!?”

At the sudden temperature change, Jairo-kun shivered and repeatedly sneezed.

“I-I see, you make a separate cold place to lure it out. Achoo!”

“No, that would take too much time, so I’ll take a more direct approach. This is just the preparation for it.”

“Preparation?”

“CLAY CONTROL!!”

Next, using Earth Manipulation Magic, I created a river-like flow in the ground’s soil, pushing the underground Heat Stealer to the surface.

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE!!

“Wh-What is this shaking!? An earthquake!?”

Along with the shaking of the ground, the Heat Stealer I had sensed with Search Magic rapidly surfaced.

“It’s coming out!”

“Eh? What is?”

The next moment, the giant mole-type monster Heat Stealer leaped out from the ground into the air.

” ” ” ” ” ” Uwaaaaaahh!? A giant moleeeeee!? ” ” ” ” ” “

“Mooouuuu!?”

And the moment the Heat Stealer came out, the space filled with cold air rapidly began to take on heat.

Oops, this is getting hotter than expected. At this rate, Tracy-san will succumb to the heat.

“HEAT COATING!”

I immediately coated the Heat Stealer with Thermal Insulation Magic so its heat wouldn’t leak out.

“AIR SLASHER! WATER CONTROL!”

After that, I severed the head of the Heat Stealer—which was surprised from suddenly being thrown into the air—with Vacuum Magic, threw a heat-countermeasure magic potion at it, and used magic to smear it completely all over its body.

“There! Collection complete.”

Finally, storing it in the magic bag where it fell, I turned back to everyone and announced that everything was over.

“It’s finished.”

” ” ” ” ” ” Eh? ” ” ” ” ” “

Everyone looked this way with blank faces.

“With this, the cause melting the ice in the ice cellar has been eliminated.”

“Eh? It’s over already?”

“Yes. The extermination of the Heat Stealer is over.”

” ” ” ” ” ” Eeeeeh? ” ” ” ” ” “

For some reason, Liliera-san and the others groaned, looking unconvinced.

“If you injure a Heat Stealer, its high-temperature bodily fluids will overflow and cause a huge disaster, so when exterminating it, it’s better to finish it in an instant like just now.”

Because it would be terrible if it thrashed around and scattered its bodily fluids.

“No, but, unless we hear a slightly more detailed explanation, we don’t know what happened.”

Ah, right. It’s true that I thought I had to subjugate it quickly, so I defeated it before explaining in detail.

“Umm, you see, first I cooled the battlefield with Ice Field. This is to protect the town and everyone from the high temperatures emitted by the Heat Stealer.”

“I see, so that’s what that was.”

Everyone nodded, humming in understanding.

“Next, I manipulated the ground’s soil with Clay Control to push out the Heat Stealer’s giant body.”

“That earthquake from earlier.”

“However, the Heat Stealer’s body temperature had risen more than expected, so I used the Heat Coating magic so the heat wouldn’t leak out. This magic is like winter clothing that covers the body to maintain a constant body temperature so it isn’t affected by hot or cold places. I used it in reverse to prevent its high body temperature from leaking outside.”

“Huh, so there’s magic like that too.”

“Plus, using magic meant for your own body on a monster is a strange way to use it.”

“Because using it for one entity’s worth is easier in terms of magic power consumption and control than using it for the number of people.”

“Now that you mention it, that might be true.”

“Then finally, I severed the Heat Stealer’s head with Wind Magic. The inside of a Heat Stealer’s body is at a considerable high temperature, so poor weapons will melt. That’s why it’s more efficient to cut it with magic.”

“Melting weapons is pretty extreme…”

“If the magma sac inside its body is ruptured at this time, it would result in a huge disaster causing a massive fire in the surroundings, so it was necessary to attack while the Heat Stealer was surprised from being pushed out to the surface. Since it would start thrashing around once it came to its senses.”

“So you didn’t just chase it out of the ground.”

“After that, just coat it with a temperature-maintaining magic potion so the Heat Stealer’s heat doesn’t leak out even if the Heat Coating’s magic effect wears off, and collect it in the magic bag, and the extermination is complete.”

Because even after being defeated, a Heat Stealer’s materials emit high heat. Even more so if it’s fresh off being killed.

In order to dismantle it later, preliminary treatment to block the high temperatures is necessary.

“You thought that far ahead in this short amount of time and finished it in an instant, huh…”

Having heard the sequence of events, Liliera-san and the others crossed their arms and started groaning “Hmm” for some reason.

“Meguri, could you do what he just did?”

“Impossible. I can cut with Wind Magic, but to accurately target the vital spots of a monster thrown into the air without cutting the parts you shouldn’t is impossible. Norie, can you drive that monster out of the ground with Earth Magic?”

“I-Impossible. To begin with, I can’t use Search Magic, so I don’t know where it is. Besides, it would struggle to escape while underground, so if I don’t quickly carry it out to the surface, it would get away.”

“Moreover, after defeating it, you have to smear a magic potion all over its body before it hits the ground so the heat doesn’t leak out…”

“To begin with, you also have to prepare heat countermeasures to withstand the monster’s heat, right.”

” ” ” ” ” There’s too much to do… ” ” ” ” “

It seems everyone was thinking about countermeasures for what they should do if they fought a Heat Stealer themselves.

Yeah, everyone is brimming with ambition.

“Hau~, Rakushi-san is amazing…”

Tracy-san gazed at me with an admiring look.

“No, no, something like this is perfectly normal for an adventurer.”

“Is that so?”

” ” ” ” That is definitely not true!! ” ” ” “

Ehhh!? Why is everyone denying it!?

“…Hmm, what should I do to defeat that guy with my Flame Magic?”

While we were making a fuss like that, Jairo-kun sighed in a troubled manner.

Ah, since Jairo-kun is good with the Flame attribute, he’s weak with the Ice attribute.

“In Jai… Janet-san’s case, on the contrary, I think converging ultra-high heat surpassing the Heat Stealer’s and burning it through in an instant is also an option.”

For things like this, it’s better to change the method according to the characteristics of the person fighting.

“Because my method is a relatively easy-to-do method suited for anyone.”

” ” ” ” ” ” Suited for anyone. ” ” ” ” ” “

“Well then everyone, since the problem was solved surprisingly quickly, let’s head to our next destination after finishing the report to the townsfolk!”

” ” ” ” ” ” Y-Yeah…? ” ” ” ” ” “

Alright, we’ll catch up to the other participants before reaching the next town!

◆ Priest of the God of Knowledge ◆

“Phew, it seems we were able to arrive safely at the town of Kasgal.”

We had a terrible time encountering unknown monsters during our camp last night, but I’m relieved we arrived safely in town.

…Fumu, the participants of the other temples are already going around asking the townsfolk if there’s anything troubling them.

“But it’s useless. Because there is only one trouble in this town: the ice cellar problem.”

Why do I know such a thing? That’s simple.

Because the ones who released the cause melting the ice cellar’s ice, the Heat Stealer, near this town were agents of our Temple of the God of Knowledge!

The reason being that the meeting on how to sabotage the other temples in this pilgrimage was facing difficulties.

After all, over years of dragging each other down, the temples in the Holy Capital had mostly come to understand each other’s hands.

While we were troubled that our thoughts would be read and we wouldn’t be able to effectively sabotage, a request for a meeting came in from a priest affiliated with a frontier church.

And the priest who came offered a sleeping Heat Stealer, suggesting we use this monster for the pilgrimage.

Actually, offers like this are not rare.

If one gets into the good graces of the temples that are the headquarters of the church, promotions within the regional churches go exactly as one desires.

Above all, the monster that priest brought was an extremely convenient entity for us.

After all, being a monster that inhabits extremely cold lands where humans cannot live, it was a monster with such low name recognition that even our temple, which boasts the world’s greatest knowledge, could only find fragmentary documents on it.

Expecting that the other temples would have difficulty investigating the cause with this monster, we ordered that priest to release the monster near this town with the ice cellar.

Furthermore, just to be absolutely sure, we had our agents solve all the troubles in the town of Kasgal, right down to the most trivial problems.

Yes, this means that in the town of Kasgal, there is only one single problem troubling the residents!

And the only ones who know the solution is us!

The folks from the other temples can just slowly look for problems after we brilliantly solve the issue and leave this town!

Looking for a splendid trouble that the organizing committee members would recognize as a trouble fitting for a pilgrimage!

Hahahahahaha!!

Now then, let’s have them guide us to the ice cellar right away.

“You there, is there anything troubling you in this town?”

I called out to a townsperson passing nearby, asking if they had any troubles.

“Eh? No, not particularly?”

“Hah?”

But to my surprise, the townsperson declared outright that they had no troubles.

Could this guy be unaware of the town’s major crisis!?

“No, no, there is, isn’t there? See, there’s a large ice cellar in this town too, right? Is there no problem with that?”

“Ah! The ice cellar incident!”

“Yes, yes, that!”

When I pointed it out, the townsperson finally seemed to remember it.

Good grief, making me surprised like that.

“That was solved this morning, you see.”

“…Eh?”

“The participants of the pilgrimage solved it in the blink of an eye.”

“Hah?”

Other participants? Wh-Who on earth did such a thing!?

Or rather, how did they notice that thing’s existence!?

“Man, I can’t thank those people enough!”

“Blank stare…”

Due to the extreme shock, we were left in a daze for a while.

“…Hah!? A-Anyway, we have to perform a good deed!”

I snapped back to my senses at the words of my colleague who recovered first.

That’s right, there’s no use staying dazed forever. We have to quickly accumulate a good deed and leave town!

“H-Hey! You there! Is there anything troubling you!?”

We immediately pressed the townsfolk nearby, asking if they had any troubles.

However…

“Eh? Ah, well, nothing in particular right now. Lately, whenever a problem occurs, someone immediately solves it for us, you see.”

“Oh craaaaap!!”

That’s riiiiiight! We were the ones solving them ourselves!

And so, we ended up getting stalled because of our own actions…