Standing at one of the hills with the door, Norbert turned around, seeing Hyeon puffing in the distance as she ran, catching up. Norbert shook his head. "We're going to need to figure something out, or else this entire plan is stuffed", Norbert said, surprised when a single mote of light appeared.
Growling to himself with the confirmation, not wanting to deal with another issue. Wondering why Hyeon didn't just transport herself with her shadow. Sitting down, Norbert waited for her to come; if she couldn't transport herself, she should have been able to stop him from running so far ahead.
Hyeon coming to him, started slowing down to a walk, breathing heavily after her run. Norbert turning his head to the side, asked, "Have you had any elixirs?"
Hyeon just gave him an odd look, wondering what he was on about. Getting to his feet, replying to himself, "Never mind."
Opening the door, Norbert looked, this one different from the two prison chambers he found himself in. Hearing steam blowing out of something, Norbert slowly descended the stairs. Surprised at what he was seeing.
"Did you have any idea of this?" Norbert asked, having stumbled upon a mad scientist's chemistry lab. This entire room had only one floor, down a spiral staircase to the bottom. Near the stairs, he spotted the usual wooden trap door leading down. What was in the rest of the room caught his attention, though.
Tables set up everywhere, a sea of glass on them. They were connecting glasses and beakers over tables with glass tubes. Staring at it all as steam was formed in some places, liquids chilled in others, solids going to liquids and gasses back to solids. Magic circles were everywhere under beakers, and frost was forming on tables in some areas.
Standing still, Norbert stared back at Hyeon's jaw open—there was no movement between there. Norbert went to the trap door, not wanting to disturb whatever was happening. Opening the door, the heat buffeted up, this time feeling hotter than before.
Staring down, he saw it was the same chute as before; kicking the trap door open, Norbert started climbing down the ladder, hoping the extra heat wouldn't ruin any experiments above for whoever was there.
At the bottom, Norbert walked off to the side of the overhang again, seeing this cave was similar to before. As he looked down, he nodded, ticking one thing off his list of tasks to do. Staring down, Norbert saw a pool of lava bubbling up. Flecks of the liquid shoot up far into the sky and splatter around. Around the pool was a larger town than before, the lava creatures hanging around it.
The same stone material is seen before, black against it. Norbert wondered what it was made of for some lava creatures to survive. Looking around the cavern, Norbert saw the pool form off into a river, flowing to the left-hand side. Nodding his head, confirming his thoughts, Norbert returned up the ladder again, shouting for Hyeon to climb.
Once in the lab, no longer sweating, he stared at the room, not seeing anyone else there. Wanting to leave before he disturbed something by accident and caused a reaction that would get him in even more trouble, Norbert made his way up the spiral staircase, making it to the top and stopping with the sun on his face.
The door closed behind him as Hyeon stared, feeling the coins by his side. Norbert turned to her. "So, know where we can get something for the heat?" Norbert asked her.
"No", Hyeon replied dryly, coughing slightly as her mouth was parched.
Shaking his head, Norbert started walking off to the ravine's side, hoping to find a shop to serve his purposes.
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
***
After hours of searching, Norbert found nothing to assist him with the extreme heat. Having run back and forth multiple times, things that were supposed to help did, but not for the amount of heat the lava beings generated.
Having tried armour, potions, shelters even buckets of water, it all failed too close before he could make it there. Going with the backup plan of taking as many items as possible, Norbert looked for items they would need.
Having two backpacks, Norbert held torches, ropes, potions for healing, mana, and other odds and ends. Having been told the potions and where to buy them from Hyeon, when walking in, the shop attendant smiled as they entered.
The potions had significantly hit his current funds, and he did not want to return to the casino after going so quickly there, not knowing when Elizabeth's kindness would end and if he would ever need something else from her.
The sun setting again, Norbert turned to Hyeon. "Do you need to sleep?" He asked her.
Seeing her yawn in response as she tried to protest, Norbert just shook his head; not taking anything else, he went across the bridge, not needing to pay anything, with Hyeon following him.
Turning left to be on the other side, Norbert walked along, heading to a familiar place. Stopping once more in front of a thin building nestled between two larger ones, Norbert smiled as he looked at the sign. Unable to read it but recognising the graphic of the Bursting Barrel, he opened the door.
"Hey Krrrasna, I didn't expect to be back so soon, but I will need a room for the next five nights," Norbert said as he walked to the cat man at the waiting desk.
"Well, of course, any room in particular for you?" Krrrasna asked Norbert.
A thought came to him. "Would you have the room we went in before, the one on the left on the third floor?" Norbert asked.
"Well, of course, that can be arranged", he replied, bending behind the desk and looking for the appropriate keys.
Norbert waited as two keys were produced. Norbert thanked him as he placed several silver on the counter, remembering the cost from last time.
Krrrasna pushed the coins back. "Oh no, for you, no charge", he insisted. Norbert just shook his head as he left them.
"You've helped out a stranger; it's the least I can do. Also, is there somewhere we can eat a good meal?" Norbert asked, walking past the coins on the desk; no reason to collect them.
"Yes, you're just in time. You can go to the fifth floor and say it's on the house. And I insist," Krrrasna responded. Norbert just nodded, not wanting to argue with them about free food. Waving and saying thanks, Norbert made his way up the stairs, reaching the third floor. He walked there, spinning the key on its ring around his finger.
Reaching the end of the hall, Norbert turned to the left, placing the key in the hole and twisting it. Hearing it click unlocked, he opened the wooden door, hearing it squeak as he opened the vision of Dousan, Azalea, Macky and Rachel sitting there and welcoming him in, ready to plan their heist.
As he stepped in, their image faded, replaced with a dark room overlooking a city street. Taking his pack off, Norbert left it by the door; taking his sword off, he leaned it against the window as he sat on the frame, looking out at the city below.
Hyeon walking in, just stared at the room, seeing it empty and with no bed. Turning to Norbert, "Going to get some food? Coming to join me?" she asked.
"In a minute, meet you up on the fifth floor", Norbert said in a distant voice, looking down at the street. Hyeon bowed slightly as she closed the door, Norbert hearing it creak again. Taking a rattling breath, he looked down at the bridge currently under repairs, the one he destroyed only days before.
With Hyeon gone, it would be easy for him to lie out like nothing ever happened and escape. He had coins and supplies, enough for him to get to the village and find the next place his company had gone to, chasing after them and continuing his adventures.
As he stared at the construction happening, wondering if any innocents had risked their life doing the stunt he did. He was sighing, having wasted enough time lamenting what could have been. If his expedition had never been captured, any of this would have happened.
Standing up and groaning like an old man feeling his age, "Am I even meant to be here?" Norbert asked the empty room. Their eyes closed as he shook his head, not wanting to see a response from Luck. "If I weren't meant to be here, I would have died falling into the forest. Time to roll my socks up and sort this mess out," Norbert told himself. Clapping his hands on his face to wake himself up, he opened the door.
Eyes meeting Hyeon's as she stared at him. Stepping back, she started walking to the stairs. Norbert closed and locked the door behind him, asking, "How much did you hear?" He asked.
Hyeon replied, "Good to hear you're not a complete beast."