The Hyrule Paradox: Worlds Collide | BOTW Isekai (Book 1)

Chapter 40: Scorching Sands

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Olivia and Link finally emerged from the entrance of the town an hour or two later. Link had obviously not been caught, and they kept their movements nonchalant as they approached them under the canopy.

"That went well. The Gerudo Commander figured out I was male, but the Chief said that since I was a champion, I should be given some slack." Link reported. "The Chief of the Gerudo is only 13? You should have told me."

"Sorry, I forgot to mention it. So are they asking you to retrieve the Thunder Helm?" Jordan asked.

"Yes. The Commander said that I needed to prove my skills as a champion, and so they decided it was a worthy task. From what I can tell after speaking to some of the soldiers, you were right about where the Yiga Clan Hideout is located." Link confirmed.

"The leader of the Gerudo...is she really younger than us?" Olivia asked. Jordan nodded.

"It's a bit of a sad story, her mother passed away from illness only a couple years ago and forced her to the throne. Her name is Riju, and as far as I know she doesn't really know what she's doing but she's trying her best, and she gets anxious about being a good leader." He explained.

"So is she one of the leaders of Hyrule that you would gather when you finally explain yourself?" Link asked.

"Yes. I could be wrong but I feel like since she's our age she might be open to new ideas." Jordan said. "But that's not important now. We've got a while before sundown, what do you guys want to do?"

They ended up deciding to split up. Olivia went back into town to do more shopping, while Link, Matt, and Jordan headed west into the desert. The agreement was to meet back at Kara Kara Bazaar in the evening before sundown. Matt and Jordan knew that there was a shrine in the area that was guarded by a molduga that Link would need to defeat if he were to reach the shrine safely. Molduga were massive creatures of the desert that swam like fish through the sands. They were the size of a school bus, and had powerful jaws like an alligator, and body spines on its back that made it an intimidating sight.

Despite the heat, they managed to find the location of the shrine within thirty minutes. There were stone pillars and other ruins half-swallowed by the sands all around the area, and a high ledge overlooking the area. From the edge of the small cliff, Jordan and Matt explained their strategy to Link as they watched the Molduga rampage around the area just under the surface of the sand.

"Molduga swim under the surface, which means they hunt by feeling vibration. Once it locks onto a target, nothing will stop it from reaching it." Matt explained, "However, it can't swim through rock, and as far as we know, doesn't attack anything atop a rocky surface, so those essentially become safe spots."

Link's eyes flicked down to the clearing, and it was like Jordan could hear his brain whirring. "If it hunts by vibration...then I can bait it with an object because it won't know exactly what it's chasing. I'd need to immobilize it somehow in order to utilize my sword. I could utilize a remote bomb with my sheikah slate–"

Jordan let out a chuckle. "Shoot, what do you even need us for?" he joked sarcastically, "You've already got it figured out!" Link only shrugged indifferently.

"We will be here as backup if anything goes wrong." Matt assured Link, "Just call on us."

Link jumped over the ledge and ran ahead to reach one of the ruined platforms before the molduga could get him. It turned out that he didn't need any help. Within ten minutes, Link had dispatched the beast, and turned away to light the torches around the clearing to trigger the shrine's emergence as the creature burst into purple dust. Jordan found himself nodding, quite impressed. Link was a natural with a sword. It was like he knew exactly what to do no matter the situation.