Interlude: The Great Adventure of Yatogami – Part 2

As we drew closer, it became clear that what I had seen from afar was indeed a cave.

I had been worried that maybe nothing was there, but confirming its existence brought a sense of relief.

“There’s a cave! Let’s explore it and get the treasure!”

“I’m just glad there’s a cave. More than the treasure, I want to get out of the cold first…”

“…Same here. My feet have no feeling left. And since we’re on ice, I can’t even use fire magic. This is rough…”

Everyone agreed: “We need to get inside the cave.”

So, we hurried toward the entrance.

But just as we were almost there, Isabella, who was leading the way, suddenly stopped.

“Why stop all of a sudden? We’re almost at the cave!”

“Rose-sama, Yato-sama! Look inside the cave carefully!”

Peering in at her urging, we saw it: the cave was packed with Death Frogs, huddled together and filling the entire space.

Even I, who wasn’t particularly squeamish, instinctively recoiled at the sheer grossness.

“…Ugh, that’s disgusting. Are they hibernating?”

“No way! There’s no way we can go in there!”

“Isabella, stop complaining! We’ve come this far, so we have no choice! It’s not just about the treasure—we’re freezing!”

Honestly, I didn’t want to go in either. But turning back was no longer an option.

As Roze had said, we couldn’t use fire magic on the ice, leaving us no way to keep warm.

Going back meant freezing solid—so we had no choice but to deal with this disgusting mass of Death Frogs.

“…I shouldn’t have come. Yato said there’d be no Death Frogs…”

“I didn’t expect this either! But they aren’t moving, so they’re probably hibernating. If Rose and I attack together, we can take them out quickly!”

“…I hate this too. I’ll just blast them all away with magic.”

“Rose-sama, let’s do it.”

Rose and I exchanged a nod, then unleashed our maximum-power attacks:

Rose’s supreme-level lightning magic and my Black Dragon Cannon.

We practically drained all our energy, but entering the cave was the top priority.

The combined explosion of magic rocked the cave, sending thunderous shockwaves all the way to us.

“Impressive power. As expected of Yato-sama. Usually unreliable, but your strength is real.”

“Phew… exhausting. Let’s get inside quickly!”

Once we confirmed the Death Frogs were gone, we rushed into the cave.

Inside was far warmer than outside.

It seemed that the Death Frogs’ bodies had been keeping the space warm enough to rest in.

Truly, I was glad we hadn’t turned back.

“Ah… warm. I can’t believe how different the temperature is inside compared to outside.”

“…No wonder the Death Frogs gathered here.”

“Honestly, this warm space alone could almost be considered the treasure.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! According to the traveling merchant, at the back of this cave lies the ‘Spell Ring of the Magic Emperor’!”

Though I wanted to sit and rest, finding the treasure was the priority.

I pulled up the slumping Roze and Isabella, pressing onward deeper into the cave.

If our earlier attack had damaged the treasure, that would have been terrible, but it was said to be at the very back, so it was probably fine.

We advanced through the narrowing cave with a light, until finally a rusty iron box came into view.

“There it is! That’s definitely the treasure chest!”

“Is it really there? I thought it would be empty…”

“…Me too. But it’s still possible it’s empty inside.”

“Even so, it’ll be fine! Rose, open it with magic!”

I entrusted the rusty chest to Rose, waiting excitedly as she used magic to break the lock and slowly opened the lid.

Inside were what appeared to be the Spell Ring and three large gemstones.

Instantly, my fatigue vanished, and I jumped up with excitement.

“Yesss! There really was treasure!”

“It’s really here… and it looks impressive!”

“…The gemstones are huge and beautiful. I’ve never seen ones this big.”

“If genuine, they’re extremely valuable! We’ll divide the gems one each, and I intend to give the Spell Ring to Sato. Does that sound okay?”

“Of course. That’s why we came here in the first place, right?”

“…As long as you tell Sato that Isabella and I helped, I’m fine with it.”

“You two are amazing! I’m really sorry for thinking you were annoying just a moment ago!”

“Wait!? You thought that even though we were forced to come here!? …Now I don’t want to give it to you.”

“I-I’m joking! I’m joking!”

Though Isabella glared, she eventually forgave me.

Honestly, I hadn’t expected things to go this smoothly—but it became an unforgettable memory.

We had secured the perfect present for Sato—truly a “two birds with one stone” scenario!

“…Honestly, that was kind of fun. I guess it’s true what they say: all’s well that ends well.”

“Definitely. Seeing the Death Frogs made me regret it at first, but getting these jewels makes me glad we came.”

“If it became a good memory for both of you, that’s enough for me! Now we just have to return safely. After a short rest, we’ll head back to Mount Edelgius!”

We rested thoroughly in the cave to recover our strength, and departed the next morning.

The journey back was tough as well, but even that became part of the adventure.

Now, all that remained was to look forward to Sato’s reaction when receiving the present—my great adventure had ended in complete success!