Chương 78: You Said Just a Little Shell

The giant monster had not fallen yet. Riphiel backed the saber-toothed tiger away while catching her breath. Valkyrie spread the water screen wide, bending the hot steam away from them. Dust had somehow slipped out and was staring down at a gleaming heat crystal behind a rock. Even in the middle of the fight, Kichan did not miss it.

"Hey!" Kichan shot out an arm and snatched Dust up.

"Do you jump on everything that shines?" Dust twitched its legs rapidly, as if wronged. Kichan shoved it into the bag with one hand and pressed the opening shut. In that instant, the giant monster swung a forepaw. The saber-toothed tiger barely escaped, and an entire boulder shattered. Kichan watched both the broken pieces roll and the steam escape through the creature's opening. Whenever heat leaked from its body, its balance faltered for an instant.

"Valkyrie. Make the water screen thinner." Valkyrie stretched long and divided the screen into two thin layers. A thick barrier boiled too quickly and only blocked their vision. They needed thin layers to press against the hot surface. Kichan drove the wake-up rod into the ground, opening another groove for the heat to escape. As underground heat rushed toward one crack, the color beneath the monster's belly faded for an instant.

"Now." Kichan ducked and went in. The space beneath the belly was suffocatingly hot, but definitely softer than the outside. The tip of the wake-up rod pried up the edge of a thin shell with a crack. It did not peel away in a long strip like tile, but he managed to remove one piece the size of his palm. If he had stopped with that piece, everything would have gone according to plan. The problem was what Riphiel saw. She stared through the steam into the monster's belly and froze.

"There is a heat sac inside its body." Kichan's hand stopped.

"A what?"

"An organ that stays hot for a very long time once heated. Northern craftspeople pay a fortune for them." Kichan's face changed. A moment ago, he had meant to take one shell fragment and leave. Not anymore.

"Why are you only telling me now?" Riphiel defended herself with complete sincerity.

"Because you were not planning to catch it."

"I am now." Argaon added,"It will explode if handled badly." Kichan let out an irritated laugh.

"You say that part first." The monster was already breathing hard. As the heat beneath its belly shifted, its movements grew more violent. Warm earth erupted like small craters beneath every strike of its forepaws. The air warped where the heat outside its body met the heat within. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it. Instead of ripping the belly open, Kichan read the paths of heat first.

Heat rose from underground and gathered in the sac, then spread from there to the outer shell. Touch it directly, and it might all burst at once. He needed to drain it first.

"Valkyrie, right side." The water screen pressed against the right underside. Its hot surface cooled for a moment. The saber-toothed tiger circled to the opposite side and drew the monster's gaze. Riphiel called out short warnings whenever danger came.

"Behind you! Left foot! Its head is turning!" Those words alone were enough for Kichan to twist out of the way. When he widened the channel in the ground with his wake-up rod, heat poured out at once. It ran beneath the floor like stored power finally finding a drain. The thin part beneath the belly came fully into view. Kichan drove the tip of the wake-up rod in without hesitation. Crack. One tough membrane split. Inside was a red organ the size of a human head.

A leathery sheath wrapped its surface, where tiny currents of heat raced like veins of light.

"There." Argaon spoke.

"Remove it slowly."

"I know." Kichan gritted his teeth and reached inside. It was hot—not merely hot, but like gripping a stone that had been heated for hours. The pain ran to his forearm. Even so, he refused to lose that organ. Valkyrie spread an even thinner film of water over it to bring down the surface temperature. Using the butt of the wake-up rod, Kichan tapped the surrounding membrane loose a little at a time, then pulled the heat sac free. The monster twisted once more. But the heat supporting its center was gone.

It staggered two or three steps before collapsing onto its side. The warmth in the ground began to die with it. Kichan held the heat sac and caught his breath. Steam continued to rise from the organ even outside the body. In his hands, it felt like a living brazier.

"Perfect for a griddle." Riphiel stared at him in disgusted disbelief.

"You saw that and immediately thought of cookware?"

"You said it stays hot for a long time."

"That is true, but…" Kichan was no longer listening. He rolled the heat sac across the ground and measured the shape of a plate above it with his fingers. Shell fragments as supports, a stone plate on top, and it would become an instant griddle. Then the saber-toothed tiger buried its muzzle in the fallen monster's flesh. It tore at the meat more fiercely than usual. Tiny puffs of steam popped around its mouth whenever it chewed. Kichan looked up.

"Good?" The tiger answered by tearing off more. Riphiel narrowed her eyes at the sight.

"If an animal reacts that strongly, there may be heat left in the fat as well."

"Say that sooner."

"I only just saw it." Kichan immediately cut away a piece of flesh. The outside looked tough, but when he laid a thin slice with fat from near the heat sac, it reacted at once. Tiny bubbles burst one after another inside the meat. Pop. Pop. The surface swelled and fell, scattering fine drops of oil. It did not smell like ordinary meat. A smoky flavor seemed to have soaked in from within. Kichan sprinkled on a little valley rock salt and hot seed. As the aroma rose, even Riphiel stepped closer without realizing it.

Argaon silently smelled the air. Kichan tasted the first piece. Hot juice burst once across his tongue, and warmth rose again with every bite. The meat was not so much tough as powerfully springy. The hot seeds struck after it, while the salt pulled more juice from the flesh. Kichan's eyes widened.

"What is this?" He grilled another piece. This time, Riphiel received a small bite. Surprise spread across her face. Now she understood why the saber-toothed tiger had attacked it so eagerly.

"It… pops in my mouth."

"Exactly." Kichan was nearly laughing.

"A whole new world." Argaon quietly took one piece. For a long while, he said nothing. The longer the silence lasted, the wider Kichan smiled.

"You look like you really like it." Argaon finally spoke.

"Not bad."

"That's what you say when you like something best." This was no longer a matter of taking a little shell from the giant monster. Kichan set the shell pieces aside and rolled the heat sac beside them. The meat still made soft popping sounds, and its fat gleamed without cooling. He could leave none of it behind. The problem began now. The heat sac and meat were too hot. If he shoved them into the magic bag, they might spoil the other materials inside. Kichan opened and closed the bag with a frown.

Its interior was cool and stable, but bringing in this much heat could twist the structure.

"I need partitions." Argaon pointed toward the northern road.

"The market may be able to solve that problem."