Volume 4 - CH 19.1

Chapter 4-19 : Salamander’s Cave Ⅰ (part 1)

「Finally… We’re finally doing our main mission…!」(Iris)

「Yeah… Finally… I almost forgot that we came here to investigate this Salamander’s cave…」(Kate)

After spending a lot of time investigating Lava Lizards, they finally entered the Salamander’s cave.

Iris and Kate were leading the way while Nord followed them from behind. Nord was dragging the tied-up Lava Lizards with one hand and holding a flashlight artifact with his other hand.

The Lava Lizards were heavy, but Nord pulled them while walking with a smile on his face.

He was happy that Iris and Kate were willing to do what he asked, unlike the escorts he hired the last time he did an investigation on another volcano.

「Iris-kun, Kate-kun, you really helped me a lot! Thank you!」(Nord)

「Yeah… You’re welcome…」(Iris)

「Don’t worry, it’s gonna be easy from now on. There won’t be any more difficult tasks to do.」(Nord)

「Really…?」(Iris)

「Yeah, trust me.」(Nord)

Nord smiled at Iris and Kate as he said that.

After experiencing how tough working for Nord was, Iris and Kate couldn’t easily believe that.

Nord was really grateful to them for doing whatever he asked, but at the same time, he also felt a bit guilty for asking them to do too much.

Actually, Iris and Kate could have just turned him down, but because they were raised by respectable parents with a strong sense of responsibility, they turned into hardworking and responsible adults who couldn’t refuse their client’s requests.

「Alright, if you say so… We will do whatever we can to support your research, but…」(Iris)

「We’re just ordinary people, unlike Store Owner-san. There’s a limit to what we can do.」(Kate)

If Sarasa heard what Kate said, she would definitely reply, “I’m an ordinary person too!”

「Hahaha… I know, I know. After this investigation is over, I will give you extra money, so I hope you can bear with me a bit longer.」(Nord)

「Oh? As a professional, normally, I would refuse to accept more money than the agreed amount, but…」(Iris)

「I think we deserve to be paid more, so Nord-san, you better do it.」(Kate)

「Haha… I will.」(Nord)

At first, Iris and Kate thought that the amount of money Nord would pay them was too much, but then they changed their mind after working so hard today.

「You know what, if I didn’t cuddle Kurumi from time to time, I would have lost it and released a wave of murderous intent against Nord.」(Kate)

「Me too…」(Iris)

「Gau?」(Kurumi)

Noticing that her name was called, Kurumi, who was clinging to Iris’ backpack, tilted her head curiously.

She might look like she hadn’t done anything useful, but in fact, she healed Iris and Kate’s hearts.

If Kurumi wasn’t around, Iris and Kate might have lost their minds dealing with Nord.

「A, haha… Looks like I should thank Sarasa-kun for that…」(Nord)

「You should thank Kurumi as well… Oo, looks like we’re here. This is the place where we fought the Salamander.」(Iris)

After walking for a while, they arrived at the open area with a river of lava.

The glowing lava made the surroundings look red, and the temperature at that place was so high that humans who entered without protection would definitely die from the heat.

However, Nord was excited to be able to enter such a dangerous place.

「This place… I can tell that a Salamander lived here! This is awesome!」(Nord)

「Well, in fact, there was a Salamander living here.」(Iris)

「But we killed it… It seems this place hasn’t changed at all since then.」(Kate)

The ice that covered the ground and the walls had melted.

The only difference from the last time they came was that there was no longer a Salamander there.

「Alright, it’s time for a fun experiment~!」(Nord)

Saying that, Nord put the flashlight artifact on the ground. He then pulled out one of the captured Lava Lizards, brought it closer to the river of lava, and put its tail into it.

He really looked like a mad scientist who was doing a cruel experiment on a poor animal.

SSSSSHH!!!

Naturally, the helpless Lava Lizard whose mouth and limbs were tightly tied tried to scream and wriggle but Nord held its body down.

After the lizard suffered in pain for a few minutes, Nord finally pulled its tail out of the lava.

「Hoo… I see, I see. Its tail didn’t get burned at all even though it felt the pain.」(Nord)

「Umm… Nord-san… What the hell are you doing?」(Iris)

Seeing Nord’s happy face when he did such a cruel experiment, Iris and Kate couldn’t help but look at him with disgusted faces.

「I want to know if Lava Lizards can withstand lava.」(Nord)

「They are indeed called Lava Lizards but according to Store Owner-dono, they can’t actually survive in lava.」(Iris)

「Of course, I know that. However, I want to confirm it myself. After all, I can’t just write, “That’s what the book said” on my research paper, right?」(Nord)

「So, you did such a cruel experiment just for that purpose?」(Iris)

「It may look cruel but it’s necessary. Besides, you can’t write research papers without getting proof yourself.」(Nord)

After saying that, Nord put the tail of the poor lizard into the river of lava again.

「Alright, let’s see how long it takes until the tail gets burnt.」(Nord)

He only put the tail for a few seconds last time, but he decided to keep it in the lava until it got charred.

A while after, the Lava Lizard, whose tail was charred, had gotten weaker. It was still resisting but its movements were not as vigorous as before.

「Hee~ It is more resistant to heat than I imagined… Alright, let’s try to put its lower body in the lava this time~」(Nord)

「「………..」」(Iris & Kate)

Iris and Kate could only watch as Nord tortured the poor Lava Lizard while making a big smile on his face.