The ground began to tear open, hot air bursting straight up from below. With every step they took, the heat grew worse—an infernal heat, even harsher than when Froggy had first arrived in this world. It couldn't be compared. Both Froggy and the dwarves felt it.
The dwarves tried to reach the city through the cave where Froggy had once built his old shelter, but the lake was boiling now. Just stepping inside would burn them alive. It wasn't an option anyone liked.
They could still take the other entrance, but it was far too distant to simply walk there. Under normal conditions it would've been manageable, but the heat made it nearly impossible.
—Damn it. —Twar complained.
He struck the ground with what little strength he had left. Nothing would have gone wrong if that demon hadn't been there—the one still following them like some animal you fed once and now couldn't get rid of. But it wasn't an animal. Far from it. It was something worse.
A demon.
—Twar… what do we do? —one of the dwarves muttered, barely able to speak through the heat.
Everyone looked at him expectantly.
—Comrades… I don't know.
His seriousness was absolute, and so was the disappointment in their eyes. Twar was no natural leader. He was someone who followed orders. Many times he'd wished someone else had taken his place, but no one ever had. Seeing the panic on his companions' faces affected him in a way he couldn't describe.
—We'll try to reach the other entrance. —he finally said.
—But we'll die before we get there.
—Better than staying here and dying. —Twar replied.
The demon began wildly waving his arms to get their attention.
—Where are you going? The entrance's over here! Over here! —Froggy shouted.
He pointed dramatically toward the cave entrance.
The dwarves stared at him with barely concealed fury.
But Froggy had found the solution to all their problems.
They just had to sit and wait.
At a moment this hot, they should sit down and wait. Maybe use some of that boiling water to brew tea. Couldn't ask for much under the circumstances. His reasoning was simple:
Wait until the water evaporated.
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
"Calculating estimated evaporation time for entrance…"
"Estimated time: 6 hours, 44 minutes, 56 seconds."
—...
The dwarves kept staring at him in confusion.
—Eh… yeah. Let's head that way.
Meanwhile, in the mining city of Kraft, there was no chaos among the citizens—only flawless organization.
The evacuation of the entire city had been ordered, along with every resource it possessed. It was obvious that either a demonic army—or at least a high-ranking demon—was approaching. They had no power to repel such a force, so the decision had been made.
The scarred dwarf slung his belongings over one shoulder.
The citizens showed little attachment outwardly; barrel after barrel of beer was loaded onto carts beside everything else. But many still looked back as they marched away. The home they had built, even if only for a few years, still mattered to them.
Cracks split through the city streets, hot air blasting upward and collapsing several houses. It was not a pleasant sight for anyone present.
But no one felt the weight of that loss more than the leader—the scarred dwarf—watching the place entrusted to him stand on the edge of destruction.
What would happen to the supplies? Could the resistance find another source?
The demons were truly cunning. Truly powerful.
But he swore silently to himself that if he ever crossed paths with the demon who caused all this…
There would be no second chances.
—Chief, we've collapsed every entrance. Only the main route remains—the one leading to the surface.
—Good.
The evacuation was complete.
All dwarves left the city.
The chief waited until everyone had gone. Then he personally collapsed the final entrance, burying the dwarven city forever.
No demon would ever claim it.
The so-called demon, meanwhile, staggered forward, nearly dragging himself along the ground. The dwarves moved quickly, and he was completely exhausted.
[STAMINA]
1/10
(Recommendation: Rest to recover stamina)
—Do you think… maybe… now… is the time… to rest?
He could barely walk between the heat and the exhaustion already weighing him down.
—Maybe… this is the end… of the great hero… Green Frogg—
He couldn't finish the sentence.
Another tremor hit.
They were happening more and more often, but they were strange.
What exactly were they?
What was causing them?
The system answered none of his questions.
—System… what… is that?
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
"Analyzing… Analyzing…"
[CONCLUSION]
"They are tremors."
Froggy sighed.
—Your answers… keep getting worse.
The march continued.
The exhaustion was becoming visible now, born from unbearable heat… from that primordial fire.
The lizard had seen its target.
It would not take long to reach him.
As it walked, it left a scorched path behind it—or rather, not scorched.
Only ashes remained in its wake.
It strode over a road of ash within an environment that refused to exist in its presence.
Before that being.
Before the absolute.