"Wow… you really have changed, Voker," Ryan said while giving me a broad smile and a pat on the shoulder.
"No, shit… did you get taller from the last time I saw you?" Nick asked, eyeing me up and down.
"A little bit, yeah."
"Ah, even your voice! Well, you still talk the same," Ryan chuckled to himself. "Have you been well? I heard you survived the dungeon and—"
"And you killed a Wyrm? Why didn't you mention that!" Nick yelled while shaking me on the shoulders.
"I have been well, Ryan. And I didn't bring it up because… well I had bigger problems."
Adrian bellowed a laugh into the sky. "I don't know about that one, kid! I saw it, and there is no way yours was as big as a Wyrm!"
"That's not what I meant…" I groaned.
My ears and face burned with embarrassment as Sylvia poked me in the side. "What are they talking about?" Ryan gave me a wry smile while Adrian looked about, ready to keel over from laughing.
Please… I already had a rough time last night with all my embarrassment, and I really don't need more today.
I tried begging with my eyes for somebody to save me, but it was at times like this that wearing a mask had its downsides. Finally, in the form of a Human man with short black hair, my savior came swooping in.
Nick had a wide grin showing off his pearly white teeth while extending a friendly hand to Sylvia. "Ah, don't worry about it, pretty lady, just a friendly conv—"
"Don't touch me," Sylvia said in disgust.
Nick slowly retracted his hand while his grin became more and more strained. Adrian started wheezing from laughing so hard while Ryan just continued to smile quietly.
A valiant attempt, Nick. Thank you for the save.
"I had no idea you were all so close," Bella said.
Sylvia narrowed her eye at me, and I could just tell she was pouting at me. "Yeah, it seems I missed something important."
Yes, you did, and you will never know what.
"I hope all this talking means you are all ready!" an angry voice yelled out.
A lanky tiger Beastmen man walked around the building. His orange and brown hair only slightly resembled a mane which made me think he was doing it on purpose. As for his build, he was by far the smallest male Beastmen I have ever seen. Including the ones starving from death and enslaved… and even some of them were bigger than him.
The Beastmen narrowed his cat-eyes at me while giving me an appraising look. Then turned his frustrations on Veme. "I didn't hire any Elves. Who are these people?"
Veme stepped forward and returned the man's glare. "They are with me. You won't be paying or feeding them. Just consider them to be extra protection."
The man didn't seem convinced, but eventually, his eyes fell on my Ruby tag that I had purposely placed out in the open. Then, he merely shrugged and hefted a bag off his shoulder, dropping it in front of Veme.
"You have the map?" he asked.
"Yes, Mr. Artemius."
"Pick that up, and let's get going. I don't want to spend any more time in this dungeon than I have to," Artemius ordered.
Sylvia watched Artemius leave and clicked her tongue in annoyance. "What's that cat's problem? And what are we even transporting?"
Veme already had the bag open, seemingly not caring about any kind of privacy. She swished her hand around and pulled out a handful of yellow grain that slowly fell back into the bag like sand. "Grain."
Ryan nodded his head and offered a kind smile. "We are transporting foodstuffs to Luminar. Nothing all that glamorous, I'm afraid."
"Fine by me," Sylvia said.
At least we weren't transporting valuables. But, then again, food costs quite a bit of money in Whieland. On the other hand, we probably won't have to worry about bandits in the dungeon… just the undead.
The group geared up, and we all took a small pack provided by Artemius. I offered to carry Bella and Ryan's load since they would be our Vanguards. Adrian, Nick, Veme, and Sylvia would be our warriors. And I was the lone mage of the group. On paper, we had no support roles in our party, but we always had Sylvia if things got tough. Well, I had the ancient Vampire medic.
Unfortunately for everyone else, I doubt she would be revealing herself to them regardless of the situation.
We walked through the small outpost that was set up outside of the dungeon. It was a hub for adventurers, merchants, and soldiers to mingle. Dwarves hammered away on anvils repairing gear for soldiers and adventurers alike. Merchants carrying large packs guarded by adventurers moved towards and away from the dungeon.
Every "building" was a tent, and everyone here was combat-ready. Despite this, the atmosphere didn't seem all that hostile. I was surprised to see that the soldiers didn't seem to be clashing with the adventurers as much as I was expecting.
After all, this place essentially had two standing armies here in the form of Whieland soldiers and adventurers. Perhaps they have been around each other so long that they have just gotten used to things?
Countries tended to foist monster-related work off to the Adventurer's guild so as not to waste personnel, time, and money. After all, why mobilize an army to slay monsters when you had a group of expendable people who were willing to do it for you? In the end, it was cheaper to hire adventurers than it was to mobilize the military. And an average foot soldier wouldn't be able to handle strong monsters alone.
However, Whieland had little choice but to defend these areas. Dungeons were notorious for leaking monsters, and if a nation didn't stem the flow of monsters, they would be quickly overwhelmed.
Which makes me wonder why the dungeon we cleared wasn't leaking monsters? Was it because it was a young dungeon that was big? Or was it an old dungeon that was hiding? Ugh…
It never got to this point most of the time since adventurers were called in to clear dungeons and destroy the cores, but when you had ancient, nearly unbeatable dungeons like the Iron Citadel, this was your only option.
I can only imagine the logistical nightmare of a dungeon that can sprout new entrances and exits which monsters can flow from. There must be a dedicated team for handling this abomination, and they probably work themselves into an early grave.
The mountains that separated City State Whieland and the Kingdoms of Krunbar and Luminar were looming over us. I haven't seen mountains up close like this in years. Even looking straight up, you couldn't see the tops of the mountains anymore. The gray, snowy rocks seemed frigid and uninviting.
Spring is still a ways away, so it was freezing cold in this outpost. Fires were being regularly maintained by children carrying wood piles while fire mages kept the flames roaring. Everyone who wasn't moving or working was huddled around these fires. I was surprised to see that Whieland could afford such expenditure on wood but it just goes to show how desperate they are to maintain this point.
Once we left the outpost, it was a mile walk to the dungeon entrance. A stone fort had been built into the mouth of the mountain, light and warmth leaked out from the embrasures, and a small patrol passed us, heading back to the outpost. The soldiers seemed to be in high spirits as they jovially bantered amongst each other.
Once we got closer, I managed to see the double stone doors that had been built into the entrance. Iron bands were hammered into the stone, and a White Dragonkin was rappelling down the door, performing maintenance on it. A small line of people headed towards a smaller person-sized door cut into the more oversized stone door. Guards were checking papers as adventurers and merchants alike funneled into the dungeon.
Huh, this really is like a passageway. Is it just me, or do these people seem way too relaxed about all of this? This is a dungeon… right?
"Papers, sir," a soldier asked Artemius.
Whieland's soldiers were less numerous than Sandervile or Ostela's, but they were all well equipped. Every single one of them had iron or steel armor along with chainmail. The very little leather they were wearing was barely visible, and their weapons were all made of Dwarven Steel.
They were also better trained.
Just from the way they stood and held themselves, I could tell. Even the guards standing at the sides watched people closely, hands on their weapons, ready to react. It was a stark contrast to the soldiers who were walking toward the camp to enjoy themselves. This means these men are highly disciplined.
The guard finished checking Artemius's paperwork and slowly looked over all of us as we flashed him our guild tags. His pace was steady, and since I was bringing up the rear, I was the last person, and of course, this guard stopped at me. I jingled my tag, but he kept looking at my face. We were about the same height and I could tell he was watching me closely.
"Why don't you take that mask off for me, sir?" he said. Sylvia flicked around and glared at him, but the guard paid her no mind.
I was about to leak some bloodlust and threaten him when a surprising person intervened. "Why are you bothering my employee? You saw my paperwork, and you can see his guild tag. File a complaint or let us go. What's it going to be?" Artemius hissed. The guard scowled at me, then turned to Artemius and shrugged.
It seems he was just trying to cause problems. I can practically drink the displeasure and hate rolling off of him. But he's middle-aged and Human, so I'm assuming he fought in the war and was less looking for a particular wanted individual. He must have a thing against High Elves.
Turning in that Wyrm and getting a rank up was the best decision I've made in a long time.
The guards ushered us through the door, and with that, we were talking in a dimly lit cave. Sporadic torches along the walls burned slowly. I picked up my pace to be beside Artemius. "Thank you for that."
The Beastmen just gave me a side-eye and huffed. "He was in the way. And I didn't like the way he was looking at us. Forget about it."
I merely nodded my head and decided to leave it at that. I was thankful for Artemius stepping in there. Most people wouldn't, and I didn't want to cause any unnecessary problems with the law if I had to.
I also didn't enjoy intimidating people. I never did it on purpose in my previous life, but I still remember the fear people had when they looked at me sometimes. I don't want that in this life…
I fell back into position, and Artemius joined me in the rear. As the only non-combatant, he needed to be protected. In typical dungeon fashion, the stone cave continued for well over thirty minutes. But eventually, we came to an end, and what I saw made my jaw drop.
"What is this place?" Sylvia murmured.
I've seen some fantastical things in my life, but this was a first for me.
"Welcome to the Iron Citadel," Bella groaned. Bella's nose wrinkled in disgust as she stared off into the distance.
The cave stopped abruptly and opened up into a wide-open area that was lit by a familiar gloomy blue crystal. However, these crystals were being used as sconces that were set inside of pillars along the many bridges—a bridge made of stone chunks lay out before us and headed off into the distance.
The massive space went as far as the eye could see in all directions. Only a single wall was visible on the far side. Platforms made of the same stone were floating in mid-air, seemingly connecting to nothing.
Even what appeared to be a small stone house passed by overhead. Sometimes the bridges would stop and connect to each other only to break away in the next moment and float off to reform somewhere else.
Peering over the edge revealed more pathways going in all sorts of directions and a bottomless pit that all but reminded me of my first encounter with the Wyrm.
Standing tall against the far rock face was a building. It seems to be a part of the dungeon, unlike the fort outside. The bronze architecture could be seen from here, and platforms floated around aimlessly. It appeared that the building didn't have any connection to the bridges around it other than the wall it was a part of.
The building must have been the first example of Dwarven architecture I had ever seen. It was a vast dome set atop a base. The dome was entirely made of what I was assuming to be bronze, while the base was made of a black and gray metal. Bronze or orange linings decorated the sides of the building, and I felt like my eyes could vaguely make out details, but it was too far away to see.
"Enough gawking. You are going to get sick and tired of this place quickly, so you might as well stop enjoying it now," Artemius said pointedly.
You are probably right, Artemius. I can say I've never once had fun in a dungeon.
Sylvia glanced over her shoulder and I nodded at her. This place was all kinds of funky. Dungeons are supposed to be different, but this was something completely different.
Could this dungeon be using gravity magic? Is that building the core? What's stopping an army from coming in here, building a bridge, and clearing the dungeon? No way the convenience overrides the safety benefits…
The party came to an abrupt halt as Veme called out. We had stopped at what looked to be a three-way intersection. The path in front of us kept going, and the other party that had gone in before us was walking that way. The one on the right only went for a few more paces. While on the left… there was nothing.
"What exactly are we doing?" Sylvia asked out loud.
"Waiting for our guests," Bella chirped.
"Guests?" Sylvia questioned.
Veme rolled her shoulders and looked back at me. "Hey, Voker, can you send a single Fireball into the group that will show up on the left? They should just charge right at us. Everyone else prepared to take on the stragglers."
I looked out into the empty nothingness and looked back at Veme. "What am I attacking?"
Veme's wolf ears twitched, and I followed her gaze as I heard the sounds of metal armor sliding against each other. There was also another sound that I was unfamiliar with, but I continued to watch as the stone bridge emanating the sounds floated into place.
The bridge aligned itself with ours and connected with enough force to rock our bridge, almost like a ship docking into a space station. I understood what Veme meant by enemies and launched a barrage of Fireballs toward our foes.
The unfamiliar sound was the rattling of moving bones. The ten armored figures were short in stature and charged at us, weapons at the ready. Some carried spears, axes, or hammers, but they all had the same empty faces. I guess they didn't have any faces since they were all skeletons.
My Fireballs impacted the frontline of incoming enemies and sent bones and dark gray armor scattering into the void. Immediately an odd yet familiar feeling washed over my mind. It was the same feeling I got when I'd destroyed the dungeon core. Like I had done something good.
These feelings are not mine. I've never once killed a monster or person and felt this way so why are these undead any different? What the hell are the connections to a dungeon core, undead Dwarves, and this strange feeling tickling my mind?
Sylvia grabbed me by the collar and brought me face to face with her. "Hey?! Voker! What's wrong with you?! Snap out of it!"
"Sorry… just had a weird feeling," I said, unsure.
"A weird feeling? Like from back in the dungeon?" Sylvia asked.
"Yes… sort of. I honestly don't know how to explain it…sorry."
Sylvia let out a short breath and released me. "Just focus, for now, okay?"
I nodded and watched as Bella and Adrian made short work of the last two skeletons that had survived my blast. Adrian's scimitar was fast as it bisected the skeleton warrior, but Bella's was a barely visible blur.
The rings attached to the hilt of her blade clanged against each other, and the sheer force of her strike blew the skeleton apart. This was the difference between a Topaz and a Ruby adventurer.
A sturdy gauntleted hand patted me on the shoulder. "That was impressive. You've gotten a lot stronger since our last quest together," Ryan said with a wide smile.
Nick lightly punched me in the chest. "Not bad! How did you manage to put so much power into a Fireball! And you cast three of them at the same time! Are you sure you aren't looking to join a new party?"
"It was nothing," my voice cracked slightly.
Was it that special?
My mana pool and outage have increased, but I feel like I've been casting the same spells? Maybe months of being in the dungeon have changed me more than I thought. Those skeletons weren't much of a threat.
I heard the sound of moaning and something sharp scratching against metal. Sylvia heard it as well, and I shoved Ryan and Nick into position. Something was coming, and it was moving fast.
"We've got company. Three of something," I said aloud.
Veme scowled slightly, and her nose scrunched up in disgust. "Ghouls, for sure. They don't smell rotten enough to be zombies, and they are moving too fast. Get ready."
My ears told me the way, and I fired off a Fireball in the general direction of the incoming noise. My magic exploded against a stone bridge. A grotesque monster let out a screeching howl. It was in the rough shape of a Dwarf. Long black hair covered its face and watched us with empty sockets for eyes. The flesh was between rotting and normal, but the sickly brown and green color left nothing to be imagined.
The Ghoul's fingers were replaced with long bones sharpened into fine points. The creature ungripped the side of the floating stone bridge and leaped at us with surprising speed. Unfortunately, it caught a fireball directly to the face for its efforts and was reduced to ash as the nauseating smell of burning flesh filled the space.
Unfortunately, I couldn't engage the other two Ghouls as they had come from different angles, staying in front of the party. The second Ghoul jumped at Ryan and latched onto his steel kite shield. A metal grating sound assaulted our ears as it scratched the shield, trying to force its way to the man behind it.
Ryan let out a bellow and slammed the Ghoul into the ground. The Ghoul's bones broke as the total weight of an armored Human man drove it into the ground. The monster howled only for it to be silenced by Nick's twin daggers.
The third Ghoul was being kited by Veme and Bella. The two Beastmen deftly dodged and parried the monster's wild blows. The Ghoul swiped at Veme, and Bella closed the distance, her scimitar impaled the creature through the spine, and with her free hand and a roar, Bella ripped one of the Ghoul's arms off in one swift motion. Veme's steel sword sliced off the undead's head with one fast cut.
"You could have helped them," I whispered to Sylvia. Sylvia hadn't left my side the entire fight and stood guard in front of Artemius and me.
Sylvia rolled her head back slowly. "I'm not here to protect anyone but you."
"Less flirting and more body burning," Artemius groaned from behind me.
Sylvia's ears burned bright red as she was about to point her sword at Artemius, and I could already hear the torrent of words coming out of her, but I just dropped a hand on her shoulder. "Thanks."
It feels good hearing that.
Sylvia immediately backed down while giving me a meek nod. I set to work and burned the monster's bodies while Ryan, Adrian, and Nick tossed the bones into the void.
"Were Ghouls part of the plan?" I asked Veme.
Her hair swayed side to side as she shook her head. "No. But nothing unexpected. Exact monster information is unreliable at times. We need to get onto the platform."
The party moved onto the bridge that had magically connected, and I couldn't help but notice that there were no seams at the point of connection. No indication that these were separate pieces at one point.
Magic is the worst. Why do dungeons get to break the rules?
The platform jerked and broke free from the three-way stop. Surprisingly, the sensation wasn't all that jarring, and although we were moving through the air on a stone bridge, it didn't feel like it.
Definitely gravity magic. No doubt about it. I wonder, if I were to reverse my gravity, what would happen?
I picked up a piece of splintered bone that had missed the clean-up and checked to make sure nobody was watching. I changed the gravity, and the Bone just ended up floating in place until my spell core fizzled out, forcing it back down to the ground. I tapped it with my foot and tried to reverse the gravity the other way, but the bone ended up floating again.
So these bridges have their own gravitational fields? How interesting. Not to mention gravity magic still costs so much mana. I need to train more.
I walked over to Veme, and she turned to face me. "I understand the map has its own cost, so sharing it with us before coming in here would have been disadvantageous for you. However, now I believe you should share what you have."
Veme nodded her head. "Agreed. I planned on showing the map at our first stop. We have two more platforms to cross and more skeletons to kill. Everyone gather around."
I was surprised Veme was willing to show the map to everyone, but it made our next steps easier. Traversing the platforms was a confusing mess, and I was unbelievably happy that we ran into Veme.
Without a map, there was no way Sylvia and I would have been able to travel this dungeon efficiently.
Besides the surprise ghoul attacks, everything went as planned. We took two more floating platforms and wiped out two squads of skeleton Dwarves. None of us have suffered any significant damage, and morale is high. But the mood began to change once a new obstacle showed up.
Upon waiting for another bridge to arrive, a tunnel appeared instead. The tunnel would connect us to a far-off structure somewhere that we would have to navigate. Despite knowing it was coming, it didn't make anyone feel better. Apparently, this four-person wide tunnel was laced with traps and fewer but stronger undead.
Veme looked back over her shoulder, and Nick nodded his head. "Guess it's my turn," he chuckled awkwardly.
Veme pointed to the space right where the bridge and tunnel connected. "First trap is a pressure plate trap on the left side of the bridge. Then, an arrow shoots out from the right."
"Right. Ryan?" Nick said.
"On it."
Ryan moved into position and extended his shield in front of Nick. Nick was almost being hugged by Ryan. He fumbled around in his pack and brought out a small pouch about the size of his palm. Nick bounced the bag a few times, and I heard sand moving inside. Then he tossed it.
The bag slapped the ground, and a stone mechanism moved, followed by a whistling sound. Then, sure enough, an arrow fired off from the right and bounced off the opposite side of the wall.
"One down," Nick said proudly.
Bella scoffed. "Yeah, and what seventy-eight more to go? You got enough sand for that?"
"The traps don't rearm immediately. So you should be able to retrieve your bags as long as we move quickly," Veme said thoughtfully.
Nick looked back at me and smiled. "What's the odds of you knowing wind magic?"
"Low."
"Ah…this is going to take forever…" Nick let out a deep breath, and Ryan consoled him with a pat on the head.
This was to be the longest portion of the dive. After this, we had a large room of skeletons to clear, and then we could camp out and get some rest. Then it was just smooth sailing to exit.
—
Clearing the trap hallway wasn't so bad as it was long. Stopping and going as Nick carefully diffused traps took more of a toll on your mental state than physical. The nagging feeling in the back of your head that every trap might be another trap was always present.
Veme and Bella were straining their noses and ears to the maximum while Sylvia and I were doing much the same. We listened for any oddities, but nothing came as a surprise. Two more ghouls assaulted us in the tunnel, but I carefully dealt with them. I couldn't miss a Fireball down this hallway if I tried.
Then again, I wish I hadn't. The stench of burning undead was awful, somehow even more repugnant than burning a living person. I should ask Veme for some of her Jinx Beans so I can shove them up my nose.
Then suddenly I heard something. I was the first to react as I launched another Fireball down the hallway. Another boom followed and a shockwave buffeted us, but the sound didn't cease.
Ryan took front center and raised his shield just in time as a decaying black two-handed ax crashed into his shield. One of the blades was wrapped in a weird-looking cloth while the other was disfigured and warped. It looked like somebody had tried melting the blade but couldn't produce enough heat.
The impact sent Ryan flying backward, but we all stepped to the side, letting him pass by us. The black ax freed itself from Ryan's shield and flew back down the hallway, whirling like a blade of death.
The gloomy blue crystals illuminated the figure clad in black armor barreling straight for us. Its hideous visage was covered in rotting flesh, and a pair of glowing blue eyes sat in the sockets of the skull. Curved horns protruded from a black metal cap, and despite being larger than a Dwarf should be, the monster was moving quickly.
A Dread Knight, huh? If my monster book was holding up, that thing was a threat level of one hundred and fifty. The same as a dungeon. Not to mention it was a "high level" undead, hence the glowing eyes.
The Dread Knight let out a snarling mucousy sound as it closed the distance on us. "Everyone, cover your ears and get down on the floor, now!" I ordered.
Thankfully everyone obeyed me as Bella and Veme flattened their fuzzy ears to their heads. The Humans covered theirs, and Sylvia had summoned a spare shirt from her ring to wrap around her head while she crouched down.
Despite being a backline mage, I was still a Ruby-ranked adventurer. Even if they didn't listen to me, I would have still fired off the spell if I was being honest. Why fight that thing when I can just do this?
The smell of ozone tickled my nose as the hair on the back of my neck stood up. Then, a deafening bang bounced off the walls, and my ears began ringing as a bright light blinded me.
My lightning bolt raced off down the hallway and went straight through the Dread Knight's chest. The creature fell forward and rolled across the ground, so I fired off another two Lightning Bolts for good measure.
By the time the smoke cleared and the stench assaulted us, the Dread Knight had been reduced to ash. The only thing remaining was its grotesque decaying armor.
Just like I thought. I pretty much fried it using its armor. Not so tough, after all.
Nick gave me a look of surprise. "What?! You can use lightning magic!? That's like, super rare!"
"Is it?" I asked. rubbing my ears to make them feel better. Of course, lightning magic in enclosed places like this wasn't the most ideal thing…
Ryan gave Nick a friendly shove and a wide smile. His deep blue eyes practically gleamed with excitement. "I told you he was probably High Elf royalty."
What does me being able to use lightning magic have anything to do with royalty? Magic isn't locked by blood even Grandpa taught me that much… unless you are Sylvia.
"AH! NO! We don't know that for sure! Right, Voker?" Nick squeaked.
I shrugged. Ryan slapped Nick in the face, and Adrian started crying from laughing. What a sight.
"Why did you just slap him?" Veme asked, sounding confused.
Nick rubbed his red cheek and sighed. "Slap bet… since gambling is forbidden in his stupid religion, we make slap bets to keep things interesting," he groaned.
"Isn't that still gambling? Just with pain instead of coin?" Bella questioned.
Ryan put a thumbs up and grinned. "As long as no money is involved, it's okay. Personally, I enjoy this much more. Gold goes away, but friendship lasts forever. Right, Nick?"
"Shut it…" Nick growled.
If you slap your friends, wouldn't they hate you? What an odd tradition. Then I looked over to Sylvia… maybe not…
Artemius groaned and started pushing everyone forward. "You Humans and your lack of working noses! Let's go already! This smell is killing me!"
"Agreed. We have eleven more traps to disarm. Voker, can we leave it to you to kill any more of those Dread Knights?" Veme asked.
"Consider it done."
I ended up killing three more of those monsters. They weren't supposed to be here either.