Chương 1312: 1311. Choked off by the bell

---Minas Mar---"... and then it just ended like that," Mina said, disappointed. It was still early in the morning when Seth called her after hearing what happened. They had spent the last hour just talking. Since they had been busy the past few days, they had little chance to call the other, so they made up for the lost time.

"Choked off by the bell," Seth commented jokingly. Once the fight started, the cat girl had been convinced that she could take him down without relying on luck. She was excited to show off through skill and strategy, making her fortunate victory all the more disappointing.

"Really! A little later Fin and the Eagles arrived and we finished cleaning up the place," she added with a depressed sigh. She seemed really down. This could happen sometimes. People with confidence in their skill, may sometime feel overshadowed by the items the carry, Seth understood that. But he also knew this was not the case for Mina. Still...

"Does it really bother you that much that you won by triggering an item effect?" Seth asked, playing morose with a hint of guilt. After all, he was the blacksmith who placed this "burden" on her. It was only to protect her. The stronger she was, the safer she was. To think he had made her too strong to be happy...

"No! That's not it! I love my items... especially our engagement rings. It's just.... I was all prepared to go all out and prove my skill, and then this dude just croaked. If anything, I'm probably more disappointed in my opponent!" Mina explained hastily, with a small blush. She had fallen for his act. Seth was glad that he managed to distract her from the unsatisfying victory.

"I know," he said with a warm smile.

"So, are you two returning now, that the business in Spring City is dealt with?" the blacksmith asked the most important question. He was starting to feel a little lonely and was looking forward to their return.

"We will return in a day or two," Mina gave a rough estimate.

"That long?" Seth couldn't help but exclaim, making Mina chuckle a little.

"Didn't you get all the pests? Why are you staying longer?"

"To be honest, Fin developed a fable for the pet egg gamble. She wants to return to Eggcelent Beasts tomorrow and blow the rest of her money on pets," Mina revealed Fin's not-so-dark desires. It was Seth's turn to chuckle a little.

"Then we will probably be returning together," Seth said with a mysterious smile.

"Huh? Why is that?" Mina asked, surprised. She didn't know about the late-night meeting yet, so it was up to Seth to reveal his not-so-dark plans of a day trip up the mountain.

"The volcano is going active again and you are going to to take look?" Mina asked shocked.

"Yeah, just a little hike. I'm gonna have a look around, maybe a bath in lava for a little. I doubt I will be able to find the reason, unless it is really obvious, but I'm kinda intrigued by it," the blacksmith explained. Seth had the Kin of Fire trait, which not only made him immune to fire damage and made him able to use <Pyrokinesis> almost for free, but even allowed him to heal by absorbing fire and heat. Yet, since he got that skill, he had been unable to take full advantage of it. Reading on this site?

This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. He had never gotten the chance to just sit in a bonfire or enter a lava pit. All the fun stuff one could think of with full immunity to fire had been barred from him, so far. Since the chance lent itself to him now, how could he not go and try to take a healing bath in a lava river?

"But make sure not to burn off your clothes again." Mina didn't try to stop him, but made a joke instead, hinting at an embarrassing moment in the past. It was linked to his first death in a dungeon and his appearance in the nude at the adventurer guild.

"So Fin told you of that story..." the blacksmith mumbled a little abashed.

"I mean, Fin DOES tell that story when she is drunk, but so did you. You actually told it in the bar, the very first time we met," Mina revealed with a grin.

"No!"

"Yes."

"No, that can't be true, you are messing with me!"

"I am, but it is also 100% true," Mina insisted, as she couldn't stop laughing at Seth slowly falling apart. He was sure that he kept that story a tightly sealed secret. Now he heard that he not only did he revealed it the first time he met her, but that Fin kept repeating it when drunk! That was actually even worse!

"That's it, no new items for Fin in the near future!" the blacksmith made a resolution. The blabbermouth had to be punished, so she would be the last to get dragon items.

"What about me?" Fin's voice could be heard from Mina's room.

"Fin? You were there?" Seth asked, surprised.

"I just came in to get Mina...?" the fairy answered a little confused.

"How dare you blabbermouth reveal the burned armor incident!" the blacksmith bellowed.

"How did you know?!" she asked, shocked, not even trying to deny.

"Whoops!" Mina said with a grin.

"Minaaa!" Fin cried tragically.

"Mina, you can tell her the punishment. I'm going on a hike now," the blacksmith ended his call. He was a little angry at first, but when he called out Fin, he was mostly messing with her. Seth was not actually angry, but he also intended to go through with the punishment. Fin really was a blabbermouth when drunk, and that needed to have some consequences.... After ending his call, Seth got ready for his volcano exploration. He packed lunch and drinks that he got from Link in his inventory.

For a moment, he felt tempted to use a picnic basket and pack a blanket, too, just for the joke, but he ended up not doing it. But he was serious about taking a dip in the crater of the volcano. With the Salamander Skin Set, Seth even had a bathing suit for the lava bath. No matter how great the scorpion armor was, there was no way it would resist that kind of heat without damage. Only his golden fleece and the salamander skin were immune to fire.

If he ever repeated his mishap and burned away his own legendary armor, he wouldn't be nude this time. Looking forward to taking advantage of his trait and seeing one of the greatest powers of nature up close, Seth was ready. He gave Mary a quick call to let her know that he was setting off, before he called out to the Tower Ego.

"Tower! Beam me up the mountain!" he exclaimed.

"Instructions can't be interpreted. Please rephrase the command." The tower answered monotonously, taking the wind out of his sails. Seth sighed.

"Teleport me as close to the Mt. Robere as you can," Seth specified, after he got his play at a famous phrase ruined. That Chorna's protections were gone was not all bad. Without the interference of their barrier, the Tower's teleport range spanned across the whole district and further. With the tower's help alone, he would- before he finished the thought, it had already happened. Seth had phased out of existence, Minas Mar, and appeared at the slopes of Mr. Robere, far above Delta.

It was a clear, cold day, and he had a great view of the massive tree before him and the city under its crown. Unlike his previous experiences with cold mountain winds, the Salamander Skin kept him nice and warm as he enjoyed the view. After taking in the scenery for a while, Seth turned his back to the city and looked up at the largest mountain of Urth. He started to have doubts. Even though he started at two-thirds of its height, maybe this was going to be a little more than a little hike.