Having survived the searing heat while trekking up Death Mountain’s trail to Goron City, Link finds that his reward is the pleasure of now needing to survive the even more unbearable heat of the lava-laden Abandoned North Mine. Link’s time in the Eldin Region has been brief, but the area’s fiery goal of testing his patience is already getting old.
Link is not there by his own volition, so he at least knows he’s not crazy. He’s there by request of the Goron Boss Bludo, who needs Link to collect Yunobo, the absent Goron youth who had ventured to the mine to fetch the boss’s pain killers. Link probably wonders why someone would keep their pain killers in an abandoned mine, but he also knows that it is not worth questioning why Gorons do any of the things they do. He’ll find Yunobo and get out.
The entrance to the mine offers Link a preview of what’s to come: The area where Yunobo should be is among a bunch of boulders rested in the middle of a lake of lava. Updrafts caused by the extreme heat are dotted around the terrain, and there is a collection of rotating cannons positioned on a number of the boulders. It’s perilous for the common traveler, but for Link it will be trivial — which is apparently why luck decided that a colony of Fire Lizalfos needed to make the lake their home. Link has run out of heat elixirs, which means battling the beasts in his new and clunky heat-resistive gear. He knows he’ll manage, but that doesn’t mean he needs to be happy about it.
Across a few of the boulders and after dealing with some of the Lizalfos by using his tried-and-true methods, Link reaches the first cannon and has a wonderful and awful idea. Down his Remote Bomb goes into the cannon’s chamber. The bomb now resting in place, Link’s swings his melee weapon of choice and smashes the control lever, and with the clanking of some gears, the cannon moves — and aligns itself with a batch of Lizalfos on an adjacent boulder. Link detonates the bomb. Two seconds and a massive fireball later, the enemies are nothing more than memory and ash. Link is starting to feel less annoyed.
What was initially seen as obstacles have now become sources of catharsis, and Link takes advantage of each offer. From one boulder and cannon to the next, Link watches from a distance as all of the scaly beasts explode. With the Lizalfos now gone, Link can focus his attention on finding Yunobo. He didn’t think of it at the time, but Link hopes he didn’t blast the Goron away as well during the pest control bombardment.
Link’s in luck, though Yunobo is not. On the last boulder Link finds an entrance to a hut that had been carved into the rock, but the entrance has been closed by a cluster of fallen debris. Link can hear pleas for help coming from the inside. Understanding what needs to be done, Link looks around and spots what he needs: one more cannon. He goes with what works, and one more Remote Bomb leads to one last detonation that frees the scared-sounding victim.
The trapped person is a Goron, who Link learns is Yunobo. Yunobo is still shocked by what happened, but he thanks Link for his help. Link informs Yunobo of the reason for the rescue, which prompts Yunobo to hustle back to Goron City to deliver the pain medication, leaving Link alone to loot an unprotected chest for some easy treasure. With more loot in his pocket, a lot of stress unloaded, and nothing more to blow up, Link returns to the city as well, curious of what new fire-laden task will await him.
