We walked up the steep hill to the crater.

　There was almost no vegetation and the terrain was craggy and rocky.
　It was probably formed by a lava flow.
　This is why it was difficult to walk up.

I thought to myself, "Wow, do we really have to go up this?　It's so annoying.
Hmm. I'm tired.

　Libby and Befi follow me, complaining.

'Behemoth, beat me!
No,
Why not?　I hate walking on land!
I hate being awake. I'd rather stay awake.

　You're both lazy for being mythical demons.

Don't complain. Just follow me. ...Mm, you're a demon.

　The one that appeared was a bipedal lizard demon, a lizardman.
　The red scales, perhaps adapted to living in this volcano, seem to be tougher and more resistant to heat than normal species.

''Gah!''

　I took their heads off with a flash, though.

　Apparently, this place has become their one big breeding ground.
　After that, we were attacked by a large number of lizardmen, but as we fought back, they became afraid of us.

　But as I was fighting them off, they became frightened and began to run away as soon as I got close enough.

　I'm not sure I'm going to be able to find the right one.

"A red dragon?
"Ooh-oh-oh!

　The one gliding in with a roar is a red dragon.
　Probably its total length is more than twenty meters.
　Befi, who was on the outermost side, did not fall prey to its sharp, thick fangs.

''Hmm?''
Huh?

　The Red Dragon is puzzled when its fangs can't get through to the little human.
　Well, it's not a human.



　Befi still looked sleepy but moved her eyebrows a little uncomfortably, and she pushed the Red Dragon away with her hand as if she were a fly.

　Zdooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

　It wasn't an easy thing to "push away" in reality, though.

'Guaaaaaahhhh!

　The Red Dragon blew away at a furious speed.
　It rolled over and over on the rocky terrain and finally stopped around a hundred meters or more down the slope.

''Geeeeeeeee!''

　Just nearby, in the shade of a rock, there were some lizardmen who had been following us secretly, perhaps to keep an eye on us.
　They seemed to be hiding, but they were obvious.


'Giggling, giggling, giggling!　Geez! A single shot of the Red Dragon!　(No way!)

　I don't know what he's talking about, but he seems to be insanely surprised because the Red Dragon was defeated in one punch.

''Gigi-gi-gi-gi!　Giggling, giggling, giggling! I hope you don't mind playing a dangerous role like this.　Let's get out of here while we're still alive!
'Giggling, giggling! (Seriously, I agree, Panay!)

　He left in a hurry, either intending to report it to his friends or simply getting scared.

　He encountered the Red Dragon several times after that, but he proceeded to defeat it without any problems.

''Well it's getting pretty hot.

　Have we already reached the middle of the mountain?
　Normally, it should get colder at higher elevations, but the temperature is rising rapidly.

　It's because of the hot water that occasionally erupts here and there.
　It's called a geyser.
　If I were to get hit properly, I would get severely burned, but that steam alone is hot enough.

　I decided to use my blue magic to generate cold air and prevent the heat.
　Hm, this is comfortable.

　The environment becomes even harsher.
　Up until now, the slopes have always been just a normal walkable slope, but there are several places that could almost be called cliffs.
　You can go around it, but it's a hassle, so you go straight ahead.

''It's a piece of cake with green magic.

　I flew through the air.
　I went over the precipice in one fell swoop.

'Wait a minute!　I can't use green magic!
I can't fly.

　Little Libby came running after me, kicking dexterously over the unevenness of the cliff.
　Befi, on the other hand, dug her toes and fingers into the rocks as she climbed.

　It had been about half a day since we'd left the base of the mountain.
　About half a day after we left the base, we finally reached the top of the crater.

"Wow, it's hot!
"Hm.

　A high heat steam that was already rising.
　Behind it, a bright red, burning hot magma could be seen, occasionally erupting as if it had exploded.
　Even though the cold air of the blue magic was clothed in his body, the heat of it made him unable to stop sweating from earlier.

''Is there really someone using that place as a nest?''
I don't know!　It's not like I've seen it in person either!

　That demon might be in that ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma.

''........Let's just try attacking it at random for now.

　I sent a slash at Magma's eye.

　Zubaaan!

　The magma split vertically.
　It was much more viscous than seawater, so it slowly returned to normal.

'An outlier.'

　Well, it's as big as a lake, and it's not going to be that easy.
　However, after repeating it over and over again, there was no indication that anything would appear at all.

　Maybe the bottom is too deep for the slash to reach.

'Oi, if you're there, come out!　We came all the way out here for you!
"Hm.

　Befi and the others are calling out to him, but that doesn't stop him from showing up.

　And that's when.
　Suddenly the sunlight overhead faded, and I looked up to the heavens.

'There they are,'

　What I witnessed was a huge bird that flew in the sky with ease.
　Its entire body, glistening red, was engulfed in flames, and every time it flapped its wings, scaly sparks of fire rained down on it.

''It's a phoenix.''