Day 551-560/Day 558

Still needs editing/proofreading. ~Miraclegrass
Day 558 / 88th day
Early in the morning, I wake up when I notice something approaching at a tremendous speed from the depths of the cave. I instinctively felt that it would be dangerous to sleep in the cave like this. Instinctively feeling this way, I run outside with the silver-gray wolf who woke up at the same time, and immediately move to the side of the cave.
Immediately after that, a scorching blast of flame erupted from the cave. The eardrum-destroying sound of the explosion and the intense shockwave that I was exposed to at close range. The burning rocks scattered at a tremendous speed, and the scorching sensation of ultra-high temperature heat waves burning my whole body.
It seems that what erupted from the cave was an explosion of flames mixed with volcanic gases that emitted a fierce smell. Fortunately, the eruption of flames ended in a few seconds, but it was a terrible morning.
Most of the lower part of my body covered by the biological armor, and the chest and part of my face covered by the mechanical arm were somehow suppressed with minor injuries. However, his eardrums were ruptured, causing temporarily strong ringing in his ears and burns on his exposed skin.
The treatment was quick because of the Black Ogre King's strong life force, as well as his healing abilities and the magic potion that could heal even serious injuries just by drinking, but it was the worst way to be woken up.
After it stopped, I took another look at the cave, but the heat was still on the walls, and all the dishes that had been left out after the fire had burned down. We had only taken out the bare minimum of items, so the loss wasn't too bad, but we would have to be careful of these natural traps that could kill us instantly.
I had no choice but not to return to the cave where the heat was still lingering, and decided to ride the silver-gray wolf down the ≪Lightning Cremation Mountain≫. I was hungry, but I thought I could just hunt down some worm monsters along the way. That's what I was thinking, but for some reason I didn't encounter any of them even after a while of going down. 
I tried to listen to the sounds around me, but all I could hear were the natural sounds of burning magma and strong winds blowing through. It was an eerie silence, a complete change from yesterday, when we were attacked in large numbers just a short distance ahead. It was as if we were hiding from something. The sense of discomfort grew stronger and stronger, and the gray wolf was looking around, as if distracted by something. My skin was tingling, and I had the same feeling that something dangerous was coming.
So I kept looking around, but when I looked back, I saw the summit of the mountain with a much bigger plume of smoke than yesterday. The plume was soaring high in the sky, and if you looked closely, you could see ash falling like snow. At that point, I didn't hesitate to drive the silver-gray wolf at full speed.
I ran down the steep slope at a falling speed, sometimes using my light wings to glide. As I approached the base of the mountain, I looked back again and saw the plume at the top of the mountain turning red from the base.
It was an eruption. Magma blazing high into the sky was spewing out, and a greater volume of smoke than ever before was rising. As if to show the force of the eruption, the clouds in the sky collapsed in a shockwave, and a little later, our whole bodies shook with a thud.
Then, a huge amount of volcanic ash poured down the mountain surface like an avalanche, gradually turning it into an ash color. From a distance, the erosion of the volcanic ash seemed slow, but under normal circumstances, the speed was unavoidable.
Fortunately, the silver-gray wolf, who could glide, did not get caught, but if it had been a little later, it would have been quite troublesome. Even if he was lucky enough not to die, he would have had to be prepared for serious injuries. In hindsight, the flames in the cave and the lack of appearance of the monsters that had been there were probably signs of an eruption.
As we have known since yesterday, the danger level of the ≪Lightning Cremation Mountain≫ is raised not only by the strength and diversity of the monsters, but also by the volcanic terrain itself. I was fine because I had taken countermeasures beforehand, but volcanic gases can kill you in an instant. Magma, too, can be fatal just by touching it.
Even a small stone can be a threat if it rolls down from above. Above all, environmental changes caused by eruptions like this one are among the worst. We will investigate the structures in the crater at a later date, but we will need to do as much research as possible beforehand and be careful while checking the environment of the mountain.
Satisfied that we had gained useful knowledge that would lead us to the next step, we made our way to the base of the mountain, where our mechanical arms caught the lava that had come flying from the eruption. The lava was about the size of a fist, but it was heavy and uncomfortable. If it had hit my head directly, it would have exploded. I hadn't even eaten breakfast, so I ate it just in time.
【Ability learned: Shell of the Emperor Lava Centipede】
I was able to learn the ability I was interested in. The possibility that a powerful person who can learn with a piece of molten ore, the Great One Hundred Footed Emperor, is lurking in the crater has increased dramatically. I can't turn back now, so even if I have some reservations, we ended up climbing the ≪Lightning Cremation Mountain≫. We passed through the plains at the foot of the mountain and proceeded to the next.
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RAWS
“八十八日目　／　五■五■八■目”
早朝、洞窟の奥から凄まじい速度で迫る何かに気が付いて目を覚ます。
このまま洞窟で寝ているのは危険だ。
本能的にそう感じ、同時に起きた灰銀狼と共に外に飛び出してすぐに洞窟の横に移動する。
その直後、洞窟から灼熱の爆炎が噴出した。
至近で浴びる鼓膜が破れるほどの爆音と強烈な衝撃波。凄まじい速度で飛散する燃える岩石の散弾、超高温の熱波が全身を焼く灼熱感。
洞窟から噴出したのは、猛烈な臭いを発する火山ガスなどが入り交じった爆炎だったようだ。
幸いな事に爆炎の噴出は数秒で終わったが、朝から酷い目にあった。
生体防具で覆われた下半身の大部分と、機械腕で覆った胸と顔の一部は何とか軽症で抑えられた。しかし鼓膜が破けて一時的に耳鳴りが強く、露出していた肌に火傷を負ってしまった。
黒小鬼王が持つ強靭な生命力に加えて治癒能力を高めるアビリティや、飲むだけで重傷も回復できる魔法薬があるので治療はすぐに済んだが、最悪の起こされ方だ。
止んだ後に洞窟を再度覗いて見たが、洞窟の壁にはまだ熱が残っているし、焚火の後も少し外に出していた食器類の類も全部焼失している。
最低限の品しか出していなかったので損失は大した事はないものの、今後はこういった即死級の天然トラップには気を付ける必要がありそうだ。
仕方ないので熱の残る洞窟には戻らず、そのまま灰銀狼に跨って≪燈蟲火葬山≫を下山する事にした。
腹は空いていたが、道中で魔蟲系モンスターを狩ればいいか。そう思っていたのだが、どういう訳か暫く下っても一匹も遭遇しない。
周囲の音を聞き分けてみても、グツグツとマグマが燃える音や吹き抜ける強風など自然音だけしか聞こえない。
少し進むだけで大量に襲ってきた昨日とは一変し、不気味なまでの静けさだ。
まるで何かから隠れ潜んでいるような、といえば近いだろうか。
違和感は次第に強まり、灰銀狼も何かに気を取られるのかしきりに周囲を見回している。
ピリピリと肌もざわつき、何か危険が迫っている感覚は俺にもあった。
だから周囲を見回していたのだが、ふと振り返ってみると、昨日と比べて明らかに大きな噴煙を上げる山頂が見えた。
噴煙は高く高く舞い上がり、上空をよく見ればパラパラと灰が雪のように降って来る。
その時点で俺は迷わず灰銀狼を全速力で走らせた。
急勾配の斜面を落下するような速度で駆け抜け、時に光翼を使って滑空する。グングンと麓に近づいていく中、再度振り返ると山頂の噴煙が根元から赤く染まっていくのが見えた。
――噴火だ。
天高くまで燃えるマグマが噴き出し、これまで以上に大量の噴煙が立ち上る。
噴火の勢いを表すように空の雲が衝撃波で崩れ、少し遅れて俺達の全身をドン、と震わせた。
そして溢れた大量の火山灰がまるで雪崩のように山肌を下り、徐々に徐々に灰一色に染め上げていく。
遠目では遅く見える火山灰の侵食も、通常であれば回避できない速度がある、
幸い、滑空できる灰銀狼が巻き込まれる事はなかったが、もう少し遅れていればかなり厄介な事になっていた。
運良く死ななかったとしても、重傷は覚悟しなければならなかっただろう。
今にして思えば洞窟での爆炎も、あれ程いた魔蟲系モンスター達が姿を現さなかったのも、噴火の予兆だったのだろう。
昨日から分かっていた事だが、≪燈蟲火葬山≫はモンスターの強さや多様性などからくる厄介さだけでなく、火山という地形自体が危険度を底上げしている。
事前に対策をとっていたので大丈夫だったが、火山ガスなどは一瞬で命を奪う事もある。マグマも普通であれば触れるだけで致命的だ。
それにただの小さな石でも、上から転がって来るだけで脅威になる。
そして何より、今回のような噴火による環境改変は最悪の部類だ。
火口の構造物の調査は後日行うつもりだが、出来る限り事前に調べた上で山の環境を確認しながら慎重に行う必要があるだろう。
とりあえず次に繋がる有用な知識を増えた事で今回は満足しつつ麓を目指すが、そこに噴火で飛んできた溶岩を機械腕で受け止める。
溶岩は大きさは握りこぶし一つ分くらいだが、ズッシリと異様に重い。頭部に直撃していたら爆散していたところだ。
朝飯も喰っていなかったし、丁度いいので喰ってみた。
【能力名【溶鉱百足大帝の帝王蓋殻】のラーニング完了】
そして気になるアビリティがラーニング出来た。
溶鉱百足大帝という、欠片でラーニング出来る強者が火口に潜んでいる可能性がグッと高まった訳だが、今更引き返せないので心残りはありつつも、こうして≪燈蟲火葬山≫の登山は終わった。
麓に広がる平原を抜け、俺達は次へと進んで行く。
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Category:Novel
Category:Re:Monster ~ The Dark Continent ~ Vol. 3