B3—Chapter 38: The Flavor of Fire

Leaving town, we walked for about an hour and saw a few people. There was a wagon pulled by two piggish horses, three people pushing handcarts, and a group of four that I suspected were adventurers. At first look, they didn’t stand out—all wore regular clothes, not armor. But two of them had swords, and one had a bow slung over his shoulder and a quiver of arrows. I assumed the last one was a mage, since he had no visible weapons. A few minutes after they disappeared around a bend in the road, I stopped and facepalmed. Why didn’t I use Identify on them instead of guessing?

Oh well, maybe next time.

When Rue and I were about an hour’s walk from town, we reached a fork in the road, waited until two separate people saw us at the fork, and left the road, walking deeper into trees. The forest contained mainly conifers, which at least somewhat resembled the trees on Earth. They were different, like cedars, but much rounder around, with a more pointed top end. Christmas tree farm owners would go crazy over these trees; they were so symmetrical. Still, the thread of familiarity was welcome. I already noticed that many things in different worlds looked different, but they were also similar. It is as if they all started from the same source but developed differently in each world.

Deeper in the forest, the temperature dropped, and the air was cleaner and fresher. The smell was amazing, green and alive, without the town smells of sweat and food. Here, it was just nature. A carpet of dry needles carpeted the ground, muffling my footsteps. Rue, of course, walked like a shadow. Despite his size. When he padded, I couldn’t hear him. I could hear the thump of his paws hitting the ground while running, but not when he was walking.

Once hidden from view, we both cast Invisibility and flew back toward the town, heading straight for the copper mine.

The townspeople built a half moon barricade at the entrance to the mine—they piled big stones with skins draped over them. There were buckets of water all along the barricade and three guards stood behind it: two with spears and one with a bow. The area seemed quiet, with no monsters in sight. Two guards were relaxed, leaning on the barricade and talking quietly, while the third was alert, looking into the mine entrance. I recognized two of them as people I had healed from burns. The third was unfamiliar; he was older and scowling. It was unclear if it was at the mine or at the other guards for not being alert like him.

Rue and I quietly flew past the barricade and toward the mine entrance. “Activate stealth,” I told him telepathically. “Let’s make sure they don’t hear us.”

When we entered the mine, the atmosphere changed again. The tunnel was about three meters high and wide, with rough-hewn walls that felt damp and cold to the touch. The air was stale and musty, with a faint scent of metal and sweat. We had to land just a few meters in because the ceiling kept getting lower. Al would have needed to stoop here. After another twenty meters, we reached a larger chamber with three tunnel openings.

“Can you smell which way to go?” I asked Rue, hoping his nose might give us a lead.

After a minute or two, he replied, “Rue not know,” sounding frustrated.

“It’s okay, buddy. We’ll find the right one.”

I chose the right tunnel, and we continued further in. The mine became even quieter as we went deeper into the right shaft. The air was thick with dust and had a more pungent metallic scent. It became darker and harder to see. I still saw where we were going, but I was sure regular people needed lanterns.

Or maybe miners have dark vision?

Who knows?

The tunnel wound and turned, leading us further in. We came to a fork in the tunnel three times, and I chose the right side each time. After what seemed like forever, the path abruptly ended at a solid rock wall. We turned around and retraced our steps. In the same way, we also checked all the branches, but each time, it led to a dead end. After what felt like hours of walking back and forth, we had to return to the main chamber.

In the main chamber, we now took the middle tunnel. The air here was cooler, and the walls were slick with moisture, making them appear darker. At first, the tunnel seemed like a good idea—it descended gently, the air growing damper, the scent of earth more pronounced. But soon, the passage narrowed, squeezing in on us until it was barely wide enough for me to walk through and Rue had to squeeze in. For a moment, I was worried he would get stuck, but it didn’t happen. Finally, the tunnel ended in another dead-end chamber filled with loose rocks, debris, and broken mining tools. Rue let out a short, angry huff, his frustration mirroring mine. We turned back once more. At least in this tunnel, there were no branches; it was just one long tunnel to the dead end.

That left the third tunnel. We descended a slope, steeper than before, with each step becoming more challenging as the walls and floor grew slick with moisture. Even Rue slipped a few times. I lost count of how often I had to steady myself against the wall. The air was thick, almost like breathing in coppery soup, making it hard to catch a full breath. We passed four intersections—three with two branches, one with three—and each time, I took the left. After what felt like hours, the tunnel twisted sharply, only to end abruptly at yet another enormous chamber, another dead end. It was getting frustrating, and I was regretting not asking more questions back in town.

We returned to the main chamber with the three tunnel entrances, and I tried to think what to do. As I stood there, trying to figure out our next step, movement caught my eye. A red lizard ran out from the left tunnel, claws clicking against the stone as it dashed toward the mine’s entrance. Instinctively, I tensed, ready to strike, but then relaxed. A single lizard wasn’t a threat, and the guards at the entrance could handle it. But I got an idea as I watched the creature disappear toward the entrance.

“Rue,” I sent, grinning. “We’re going to follow the lizards.”

We waited in the chamber, watching the dark tunnel entrances. It wasn’t long before another lizard ran out from the left tunnel, darting past us, following the same path as the first. I felt delighted that the lizards didn’t sense us. The chamber was relatively close to the entrance. If we fought, the guards would’ve heard us for sure.

We moved slowly and quietly down the left tunnel. We had to wait at every fork in the tunnels for another lizard to show us the way. Sometimes, there was just one; other times, two or three. The lizards seemed to know the mine better than any map could show, guiding us through the labyrinthine passages. It was slow, nerve-wracking work, but better than wandering aimlessly.

At one point, as we hid in the dark, waiting for another lizard, I heard faint voices echoing down the tunnel.

I tensed and sent to Rue, “Push yourself against the wall at the widest point, as high as you can under the ceiling.”

The voices grew louder, and soon, three figures emerged from the darkness. I recognized them immediately—the three adventurers from the inn.

We waited quietly, keeping a safe distance. They were moving carefully, holding oil lamps and always checking the map they drew on paper. Now and then, they stopped and talked quietly among themselves. We followed them, tracking their movements as they easily navigated the tunnels. They seemed to know the mine better than us, or their map did. After several more turns, they approached a narrow tunnel.

As they approached the opening, three lizards leaped out of the darkness, hissing. The lamp holders quickly got back and placed the lamps furthest away from the lizards while the third drew his sword.

“Stay back,” he growled in a low voice.

The other adventurer mocked an arrow, and the third held a sword in one hand and a wand in the other.

Rue and I remained in the shadows, watching the battle unfold. The lizards moved startlingly fast, darting in and out of the adventurers’ reach. Their red scales gleamed in the dim light, giving them an almost ethereal quality. The adventurers were skilled, but the confined space made it difficult for them to maneuver.

Suddenly, one lizard pulled its head back, thrust it forward, and spat fire at the group. The guy with the wand quickly cast a barrier. I couldn’t see it, but I could feel it. The magical shield blocked the fire and kept the rest of the party safe. The archer ducked just in time as one lizard lunged at him. His arrow hit the lizard in the side. It let out a high-pitched screech and fell over in a heap. As the last two adventurers pressed the attack, their blades flashed as they killed the other lizards. The barrier caster continued to protect them from the lizards’ fiery breath.

After the last lizard died, the adventurers looked around for any other threats. Once they were sure they were safe, they turned back toward the tunnel. The sharp and metallic smell of lizard blood hung in the air. The lizards began to dissipate.

Yep, definitely monsters.

We waited for them to move ahead before slipping through the entrance ourselves. We followed the adventurers, keeping a safe distance as they navigated the caves. Occasionally, they stopped to consult their map before pressing on, their path illuminated by the faint glow of their lanterns. They had to fight twice more, but it was much quicker since it was one lizard each time.

After about twenty minutes of following them, the adventurers reached the point where the miners had broken into the caves. Their movements became more cautious, their voices hushed as they discussed their next move. I couldn’t hear most of their conversation, but from the words I caught here and there, I could piece together the context. They had no map for this part of the mine and planned to rely on the lizards to guide them.

Ha! I thought of it first!

There was no need for Rue and me to continue tailing them—they were just as uncertain of the way forward as we were, and I wanted to reach the dungeon before they did. We passed through the hole in the wall and found ourselves in a large cave with a high, vaulted ceiling. The walls were jagged, lined with stalactites that hung like the teeth of some ancient beast, while the floor was uneven, scattered with sharp rocks and the occasional glimmer of quartz embedded in the stone. A faint, cool draft blew through, carrying with it the earthy scent of the underground.

We flew up, taking advantage of the height to navigate in the air. I sent a telepathic message to Rue, “Stay as close to me as possible.”

The cave connected to another, and then another. We had to land and sneak on foot in the second cave because the ceiling was much lower. The third opened slightly, its floor littered with broken stones and lizard tracks winding through the dust. The fourth was bigger, with a low ceiling that forced us to fly close to the ground, but not low enough that we had to walk. Like the maw of some great beast, the fifth had a jagged arch at its entrance with stones sticking out like teeth, and the air inside was thick with the smell of damp earth and sulfur. Occasionally, a lizard would run past us, disappearing into the shadows as quickly as it appeared. I could hear the group fighting behind us and judged that they were further and further back.

The last cave was the largest, easily the size of a football stadium, with a ceiling that soared high above us. Massive rock outcroppings jutted along the walls, forming natural platforms Mahya would have loved. They were perfect for her to jump on. In the far corner, almost hidden by the gloom, was the portal of doom. We found the dungeon.

When we entered the dungeon, the atmosphere shifted dramatically. We entered a cave identical to the one we had just left, down to the last rock outcropping. It was strange, like entering Alice’s mirror world. It was that identical. The only difference was the air. Outside, the air was musty and humid, and it clung to my skin. Here, the air was dry, hot as a desert breeze, with a sharp, biting scent of sulfur that burned the back of my throat.

At the end of the cave, we stepped through an opening, and it was like walking straight into hell. The ground, scorched and cracked, had rivers of molten lava winding through the landscape like fiery snakes. Off in the distance, a massive volcano loomed, its peak lost in ash and smoke. The heat hit like a wall, the air thick with the stench of burning sulfur. This dungeon was huge—a sprawling wasteland of destruction stretching as far as I could see.

I remembered a story Lis told me when we were still living in London. He described an ancient dungeon he cleared that had no floors. Instead, the dungeon expanded in width, and he described its size as bigger than the English Channel. In the middle of the dungeon stood an enormous mountain, and because of the sheer size of the place, it took him and his party several days to reach it.

Inside the mountain was a labyrinth, and the final Guardian was at the center of the labyrinth. Looking at the size of this dungeon, I was sure it was the same scenario. It was too vast to have floors along with this immense space.

The volcano loomed like a hulking beast, a fiery giant that looked ready to tear the sky apart. It belched ash, with rivers of lava spilling down its sides, carving bright, blazing paths across the scorched ground. The lava’s glow cast an eerie light over the jagged rocks, making everything look sinister.

Dark clouds churned above, lit up by bolts of red lightning that crackled with energy, each strike booming across the empty landscape like a drum. The air reeked of sulfur, and the heat from the molten earth made it feel like we were breathing in smoke.

This wasn’t just any mountain—it was pure destruction. The whole thing felt alive, angry, like its rage was vibrating in every tremor under our feet and every lightning bolt cracking through the sky. I had no doubt this was the spot for the dungeon’s final guardian. Or maybe it was the final guardian—a massive force of fire and fury, ready to obliterate anyone who came close.

We retreated to the entrance cave. I had to come up with a different strategy that accounted for the sheer size of the dungeon and the hundreds of lizards I saw. Charging in blindly would be suicide.

While thinking about what to do next, a lizard dashed into the cave. I fired a lightning bolt at it without a second thought. But to my shock, the lizard merely touched the ground with its tail, grounding my lightning as if it were nothing more than a mild inconvenience. Its eyes locked on my locations, and with a swift, sharp motion, it pulled its head back before thrusting it forward, spitting fire in my direction. Only the reflexes honed by countless hours of playing aerial hockey saved me from being scorched.

Two more lizards ran into the cave, their eyes glinting with malice. This was bad—my most effective weapon, lightning, was useless against them. The first lizard looked unfazed, as if the lightning had no effect. The thought of the fire hitting Rue sent a jolt of fear through me—his thick fur would ignite instantly, which was a risk I couldn’t take.

I quickly instructed Rue, “Stay at the top near the ceiling, don’t go down. I need to figure out what to do.”

I fired a mana dart at one lizard. Two mana darts streaked toward it, but the lizard was too quick. One dart missed completely, and the other only grazed its leg. It did slightly injure the lizard, making it turn slower with a limp, but the damage wasn’t nearly enough. These lizards were too fast, almost impossibly so.

As soon as I released the darts, the three lizards reacted with unnerving synchronicity, pulling their heads back before flicking them forward, spitting fire in the direction the darts had come from. But I wasn’t there anymore—I’d learned my lesson from the first lizard.

I opened my profile, trying to think of a solution as I flew around, positioning myself behind the lizards. With a quick decision, I cast Exude Mana on one of them and immediately shot back up into the air. The lizard I targeted slowed noticeably, as if the spell drained its energy, but the other two remained as fast and deadly as ever. They both spat fire at the spot where I had been, and then the third one joined in, unleashing its flames after completing its turn.

This wasn’t good.

I drew out a crossbow and quickly shot at one lizard, immediately shifting my position. The bolt struck true, embedding itself in the lizard’s body. This time, the lizard wasn’t too fast to dodge—but the bolt ignited, burning as the lizard screeched in pain.

Again, I had to dodge the incoming fire spits. My mind raced, searching for a solution. I tried something different. Once again, I flew behind the lizards and cast Exude Mana on one of them. When the third lizard turned and pulled its head back to spit fire at me, I quickly clamped its mouth shut with telekinesis. The lizard began convulsing violently. As the third one prepared for another attack, I shot it with a mana dart. This time, it wasn’t fast enough to dodge. The first lizard collapsed, dead, and so did the third. The second one continued convulsing before it, too, fell lifeless to the ground. I relaxed, but just then, two more lizards ran into the cave.

My method was effective, but limited. I couldn’t keep it up with too many lizards. As I searched for another solution, I remembered the guns Mahya had left for me. Turns out she was right—”just in case” happened. I quickly pulled out a rifle and loaded a magazine, but I realized too late that the gun wasn’t invisible. The two lizards immediately charged at me, forcing me to dodge more fire.

I flickered into visibility and then quickly returned to invisibility, this time ensuring the rifle vanished along with me. I aimed and squeezed the trigger, the sharp crack of the shot echoing through the cave. The noise worked to my advantage; one lizard fell dead instantly, and the second lizard whipped its head around, searching for me but unable to locate my position. Probably, the echo confused it.

Just then, three more lizards ran into the cave. I floated even higher, knowing how far their fire can go, and aimed my shots carefully. I picked them off one by one. Only one dodged the first shot, but not the second. The other two died immediately. The solution I found didn’t thrill me—I preferred to handle things with magic, and still strongly disliked guns, but this was the situation. I had to adapt to the circumstances.

I turned all the lizards into crystals and said to Rue, “Stay in the cave. If more enter the cave, don’t go near them unless you want to get set on fire.”

I flew out of the cave and practiced sniping on the lizards scattered across the area. The heat in the air was intense, making my lungs feel like they were drying out, and sweat immediately began pouring down my face.

After taking down a few lizards, I descended to a lower altitude and turned them into crystals. However, I quickly encountered two significant problems. First, more and more lizards started swarming into the area where I was, making it impossible for me to land and transform them into crystals without risking being burned alive. The second issue was that the rifle in my hand was heating rapidly, becoming so hot that it was already hurting my palms.

I retreated to the cave, but six lizards followed me inside. I couldn’t tell if they had sensed me or if the entrance was just conveniently located for them. Without wasting a moment, I shot each one, turned them into crystals, and quickly healed the minor burns that blistered on my hands. I slipped on a pair of leather gloves—much better.

Steeling myself, I flew out again and resumed sniping at the lizards. But as I continued, a creeping sensation of dread settled in. Little by little, I felt worse and worse. My breathing became labored, each inhale dragging in the air that seemed to scorch my lungs from the inside out. The oppressive heat was relentless, searing my throat and making every breath a painful effort. My skin, already slick with sweat, felt like it was burning from the inside, the heat radiating from my core.

But it wasn’t just the heat. There was something else, something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. My limbs felt heavy, as if invisible chains weighed them down, and my head pounded with a dull, throbbing pain. A strange weakness crept over me, seeping into my muscles, making it harder and harder to stay in the air. My vision blurred at the edges, and I blinked rapidly, trying to clear it, but the feeling only intensified.

The surrounding air seemed to grow thicker, almost like it was getting solid, as if it was more than just heat—it was like I was breathing in something heavy and unnatural, which clung to my lungs and weighed down my entire body. My thoughts became sluggish, and I struggled to focus, a deep sense of unease settled over me. I was getting weaker and more dehydrated with every passing second, my energy draining away as if something was leeching it right out of me.

I returned to the cave again, feeling the oppressive heat finally taking its toll. I quickly drank at least two liters of water, gulping it down as if it were the elixir of life itself. No lizards followed me this time, and the momentary reprieve was a relief. After finishing the water, I felt a little better, but something was still off—I wasn’t completely fine.

Curious and concerned, I checked my profile. Health: 1,208/7,150. That didn’t make any sense! I wasn’t injured, and the fire didn’t touch me, so how come my health dropped so much?

I cast Healing Touch, expecting the usual surge of vitality. My health increased, but only by five points. That was even more illogical. When I first got this spell, I had to cast it multiple times to close a cut or wound, but as the spell leveled up, it became significantly more effective. When it maxed out at level 25, a single cast was enough to close a gunshot wound, even after making a deep cut and digging out the bullet. And now, my health has increased by just five points. I didn’t understand what was going on here.

The situation felt increasingly bizarre, and I couldn’t shake the growing dread that something was wrong, something I couldn’t yet see or understand.

I continued to cast Healing Touch, but my health only increased by five points each time. After five casts, frustration mounting, I tried something different. I cast Fortify Life Force, and my health jumped by two hundred and fifty points this time. I stared at my profile in disbelief for a minute or two, trying to process what was happening. Then it hit me—the air inside this dungeon wasn’t injuring me in the usual sense. It was draining my life force.

For the first time, I truly understood why health was tied not just to Constitution but to Vitality as well. The dungeon was sapping my vitality, the very essence that kept me alive. I might be more resistant to this effect with a higher Constitution, but the actual victim here was my Vitality. This dungeon was a relentless, unseen predator, slowly wearing me down without leaving a visible mark.

As I mulled over this revelation, four more lizards ran into the cave. I quickly shot them down and turned them into crystals, my mind still racing with the implications of what I’d just discovered. I also understood why Mahya was always so affectionate with the rifle and kept kissing it as if it were some lucky charm. While I didn’t feel the urge to kiss the gun myself, I felt an almost overwhelming need to give it a reassuring pat and say, “Good boy.” I held back to avoid making Rue jealous.

I stayed in the cave, repeatedly casting Fortify Life Force until my health was back to full. With my health restored, I returned to the hellish plains again, shooting more lizards. But when I wanted to turn them into crystals, I couldn’t. A swarm of over thirty lizards ran toward my location, forcing me to retreat once more to the relative safety of the cave. Again, I was losing focus and becoming disoriented. The cave was still unbearably hot, but at least it wasn’t the inferno on the other side.

Once again, I restored my health and began thinking of another solution. Some lizards ran in, but with the rifle, it was easy to handle them. Meanwhile, Rue had to land—he was running low on mana. I instructed him to stay in the farthest corner of the cave, well away from the opening.

I tried a different tactic. Standing at the mouth of the cave, I made myself visible and shouted, “Hey, you stupid lizards, come and get me!”

Immediately, I retreated into the cave, turned invisible, and floated in the air, ready for the onslaught. A hoard of lizards charged into the cave, drawn by my taunt. I picked them off one by one. Only three of them required more than one shot. I also closely watched Rue’s area, first killing any lizards that ventured too close to him.

This strategy worked much better. I turned the lizards into crystals, but I had a new problem. The fire they spat during the fight had raised the temperature in the cave even further, and the air became more oppressive, thick with the lingering heat and the stench of burnt blood.

I checked my profile, and sure enough, my health had dropped again, though more slowly than on the hellish plains.

After healing myself, I rested and waited for the temperature to drop. It was taking too long, so I asked the wind for help. In this place, it was much harder to connect to her. There was air here, so she was here, but diminished, or maybe weakened. The breeze that generated was weak and hardly made a difference, but it was better than nothing. It took a while, but the cave became tolerable again. I went out, became visible, shouted at the lizards, and returned to the cave invisible.

Another swarm of lizards.