Chapter 8 – The Pn

  I strode into the room to see Mirabel leafing through the books.

  “What did I say about not touching anything?” I demanded, looking at her sternly.

  Startled from my gaze, she skittered over to the chair, saying, “Nothing. You were just taking too long, so I decided to have a look at the books. There’s nothing even remotely interesting there.”

  “Let’s forget that,” I said, seating myself at the table in front of her and folding my arms, “there’s been a change of pns. You will help me in making the dungeon grow.”

  She looked perplexed. “Helping the dungeon grow?” I nodded at her inquiry. “How do you do that?”

  “I just got off the mirror,” I pointed towards the other room, venturing a guess, “killing a dungeon somehow involves starving it of mana by not letting it absorb anything, so maybe by feeding it mana?”

  “Perfect theory, it goes well with the principles of dungeon killing,” she said dryly, “but how are you going to feed it mana?”

  “You’re the mage looking for the truths of the world,” I shrugged, “You tell me.”

  “*Sigh. This is why I dislike dealing with simpletons,” she shook her head, massaging her temples and her tone dripping with disdain, “Everyone knows there are two ways for a dungeon to grow, either you let it stew – which takes ages – or you stuff it with corpses, a bor intensive affair, and both are impractical. It’s like burning your house to stave off cold.”

  “Look, the communication just now? It was from Raakwell. The crown and guild bigwigs have decided to extract the core,” the subtle widening of her eyes indicated she knew the weight of this matter, “The reason given is that the dungeon is small and insignificant, and I’ve been given three months to ensure the dungeon starves.”

  She listened attentively as I continued, “You like creation magic? Forget about it. Every other dungeons is under established guildmasters – you won’t even be able to see their cores before being put down.”

  “And you want to grow the dungeon to you keep your position here?” she asked in a sharp tone.

  I spat to the side. “Who wants the job? I just want them to know I’m no pushover.”

  “You’re gonna insult the crown for this?” Her tone was incredulous.

  “So what? The king is also human,” I retorted with a scoff and she looked at me like one would a madman.

  She started talking after thinking for a bit. “I can help you a bit, but you have to let me stay in the core room.”

  I easily nodded, adding after a bit of thought, “Prepare a goblin crystal for me too. The one that resurrects. I’m gonna make it an aura master.” The only dungeon with master level monsters was in Raakwell, and I wanted to have something close by.

  Her face twisted, but she still nodded before continuing, “And you’re going to bring bodies for dungeon. The more the better. You’ll have to go to the mountains since I’ve already scoured the forests for a mage, that you destroyed.”

  I ignored her protest.

  “Then let’s get to it,” I said, moving towards the artifact room. Thankfully, the storage cubes were more robust than normal artifacts, so they had survived my outburst.

  “I’m gonna depart immediately, so you better get ready,” I said, already thinking of various pns. Unfortunately, there was no artificier in Niege, limiting me to my two storage cubes, so I’ll have to make do with 2 cubic meters of storage. I emptied the one with my clothes in the office, while taking the armour.

  “Wait, I’ll need a bit more help,” Mirabel spoke suddenly, causing me to look at her sternly. She did not turn away. “You’ll have to protect me when I engage in magic combat there.”

  For a while, we held each other’s gaze, my mind repying the formation of goblin mage in the core room.

  “As long as you help me with the aura master,” I agreed in a low voice.

  “Great!” she was bubbly with excitement. “It will be most efficient if you only took the monster crystals, as they have the most mana in the monster’s bodies.”

  I nodded and moved out. It was already evening as I descended the stairs, and all three of my staff were waiting for me there.

  “Has everything finished, guildmaster?” Carmel asked.

  I remembered my duties. “Everything is fine. This is Mirabel, from the tower of Cujor,” I said pointing to the trailing Mirabel. “You all can head home after locking the guild. I might be out for a few days, on a confidential mission. Carry on as you have been.”

  After saying that I was about to leave them all behind when I remembered something. “Mirabel, you can continue your research as you were. Your rent contract is valid, and sorry for barging in.”

  With that, I was on my way out. A shout summoned Jericho, and together we set off for the mountains. Dungeons went unchanged for years, feeding on adventurers, and I only had three months to achieve what otherwise would take decades.

  We passed through the town and veered off the main road towards the peak. As we kept ascending, the cold air on my skin felt refreshing while the approaching darkness sent an invigorating shiver down my spine.

  Soon, we reached a vantage point from where I could see beyond the mountain. Above me, the stars twinkled, their gaze anticipating my adventure, before being cut off by a never-ending expanse of dark clouds. Below y an expanse of gray snow on steep slopes, beckoning me with the promise of unknown. Ever since I had left the town, my lips had been stretched, as if held by a perpetual force, and this view only served to make it stronger.

  I directed Jericho, and he turned, galloping down into the valley.

  However, my spirits started waning as I explored the mountain-scape. The valley contained a ke and sparse scattering of trees – the final bit of greenery before snow. Crossing it finally led me onto a snow-covered mountain, but except for a few trees and giant boulders, nothing else stood out.

  *Sigh. Why can’t anything be simple?

  “Jericho,” I addressed my loyal companion, patting his neck, “can you smell anything buddy? Any monster?”

  A snort and a flick of the ear ter Jericho started sniffing around, moving to and fro the mountainside. In the end, however, he stopped with a snort. It was dead end.

  Are you really going to do this?

  “Look who’s awake,” I jeered, my face splitting back into a grin, “had a good night, sweetheart?”

  Argh. Can you not, for once, stay put? I’ll deal with this mess.

  “Hmph. Why would I? I’ve emerged after years, and I’m not going back until I’ve had my fun,” I decred. “I’ll show you how to put these people in their pce.”

  Ah, I’m so gonna regret this. Alright, if you’re going to do this, you need to do it smartly. Aldric gave us three months, but we only have one if we are to pull this off.

  “Why?” I tilted my head.

  He will ask a report after a month, and you’ll give it to him unless you want him to come here directly, with force.

  My brow furrowed. While the proposition was interesting, I will not be able to face Aldric head-on in a month.

  Now that you understand why you’ll need to do it, here’s what you’ll do.

  I listened to the pn, gradually coming to terms with the fact that the other me was able to use his head a little better than me. Dismounting Jericho, I put down the cube hanging on my waist, expanding it to see the armor pieces jam packed inside.

  Pulling them out, I scattered them on the snow, freeing up space. Then, with a scarlet fre, I grabbed the pieces with my aura, and the armor that would’ve been a pain to wear attached itself to my body.

  “Got something to say?” I addressed inside me with a smile, not getting a reply. “Your silence speaks volumes. This! This is the gap between our skills.”

  I turned to Jericho.

  “You have a very important task, my friend,” I said in a somber tone. “Shift, and find some prey for us. Strong ones.”

  Jericho did not make a sound, yet a wisp of smoke began to curl from his body, coiling around him as his form shifted. His neck shortened and thickened, his head broadened into a more rounded, ferocious visage bristling with fangs. Where once there were hooves, savage cws now reigned; his limbs swelled with muscles. His shoulders and hips grew more robust, resembling twin humps, while his once hirsute tail split into five spindly tendrils tipped with bony spikes. After the shift, his body became even bigger.

  In front of me was a horned monstrosity, dark, leathery and ferocious, its form igniting both fear and respect. The thing I most needed now was his enhanced sense of smell, depicted by his enrged nostrils. In his demon form that cked both eyes and ears, he could perceive the world with much greater precision.

  Putting one hand on his back, I jumped, mounting him as he started sniffing the ground and moving. Soon, he caught a trail and we were on our way, the reassuring thuds of his transformed bulk echoing the night.

  Brago130sf