With the puppy quest resolved for now, Goliath redirected his attention to the opening at the bottom of the depression, which had deposited all the rats on them.

  ‘Alan, do you think this might lead to the underground storage?’

  ‘It’s certainly in the right location.’

  Goliath nodded, surveying the settlers he had there. In some ways, it was a stroke of good luck that the two groups had combined here. He hated to admit it, but the unexpected confrontation with the dire rats had shaken him. He didn’t even want to think about what might have happened had his smaller group walked into the confrontation by themselves. Similarly, he was grateful they had been near enough to hear the battle and rescue the puppy group. All in all, this encounter had been way too close.

  But now they could search for the underground storage location as a group. And at least the area was most likely safe after the fight. A dire rat pack that large certainly wouldn’t have allowed any other threats in their territory, and the fighting outside would’ve drawn out every single one of the cursed creatures.

  ‘All right, everyone. We’re going in to explore,’ he said. ‘Fred and I will be in front, followed by Alan to direct us. Samuel, Tony, and Gwyn will follow behind, and Micheal will stay out here to guard the entrance and care for … that thing that might be a puppy.’ The purported puppy whined and snuggled into Michael’s arms as Gwyn handed it over. Goliath hid a smile at the relief on Michael’s face. The young guard still had a lot of physical fitness to gain before he was ready for his new role as one of their settlement guards. The poor kid looked just about dead on his feet.

  ‘Yes sir,’ Samuel said. ‘If you’ll give me a moment, I’ll get the torches lit, and then we can go.’ He shook out his rucksack, producing five perfectly rolled torches and proceeded to strike a flint with a bit of smooth steel, lighting the torches and handing them out.

  ‘You had torches in your rucksack?’ Goliath asked, astonished. ‘And, how large is that ruck sack exactly?’

  ‘Why, yes. When you said we would be looking for an underground storage last night, I had Ana and Grandma Manon help me make torches. I figured we might need them underground. And, uhm, I’d prefer not to say too much about my rucksack.’

  Once again, Goliath adjusted his assessment of the old guard. He might not want to discuss the rucksack, but that was no ordinary rucksack. First, Samuel had no problem dealing with a monster-mischief of dire rats. Now, he has a rucksack that would be any adventurer’s dream. There was more to this paunchy, ageing guard than meets the eye. I wonder what his story is. Regardless, Goliath felt increasingly comfortable with the idea of Samuel leading their settlement guard.

  With their torches lit, they filed in with weapons drawn and ready to fight. That was until a notification flared in their view, and everybody froze.

  You have discovered the Dungeon of Cursed End!

  This dungeon was spawned as a side-effect of the Great Disaster. Plumb its depths to uncover the secrets of Cursed End!

  ‘A dungeon? A dungeon?! I’m not an adventurer, let met out!’ Fred tried to flee the newly-discovered dungeon, but Samuel seized him by the shirt before he could reach the exit.

  ‘Just hang on a minute. We’re not in danger right now, and there’s more to the notification. You wouldn’t want to miss out on a reward, would you? In fact —’ he pulled in a deep breath, then yelled, ‘Michael! Get in here!’

  ‘What? What?’ Michael yelled wild-eyed, puppy under one arm and gladius in hand as he stumbled through the aperture. Then he gasped as the notification became visible to him. ‘Oh, no.’

  ‘Will you all stop panicking for a moment? It’s fine. Just keep reading.’

  Goliath reappraised Samuel once again. Leader of the town guard? I think he’s just been promoted to Head of Adventurers. Then, he refocused on the rest of the notification that was now displaying.

  Welcome adventurers!

  As the first adventurers to discover the Dungeon of Cursed End and for performing an act of vital maintenance by culling the dire rat overpopulation, each party member receives a one-time personalised reward.

  Seven small chests plopped onto the ground as the notification disappeared. Goliath raised an eyebrow and looked at Samuel.

  ‘So, how do we handle this?’

  ‘Well, there is obviously a reward for each of us. Everybody pick a chest and open it.’

  ‘They won’t be trapped, will they?’ Gwyn asked, looking suspiciously at the chests. ‘I once treated a soldier who got his arm bitten off by one.’ At that, Fred looked like he was about to make a run for it again.

  ‘Oh no, those are called mimics, and it’s easy to tell them apart. If the system says it’s a reward, and a chest appears, it’s safe. You need to think twice if you find a random chest sitting in a dungeon when you haven’t achieved anything yet.

  The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

  ‘Everyone can pick a chest to open, and since it’s a one-time personal reward, your reward should be in there no matter which chest you picked. Adventurer etiquette dictates that we open the chests one by one in full view of the rest of the group and display the description for everyone to see. Having it all out in the open is a good practice for keeping trust with each other.’

  ‘You sure know a lot about all of this,’ Michael remarked.

  ‘Ah well, I used to do some adventuring in my younger days. That was long ago, but I still know a thing or two.’

  More than a thing or two, and a bit more than ‘some’ adventuring, Goliath thought to himself. And that was a conversation he and Samuel would have later. Another thing on the list, he inwardly sighed, before taking charge once more.

  ‘All right then, let’s start opening chests. Fred, why don’t you go first?’

  ‘Nuh uh, not me.’

  ‘Fine, I’ll be first,’ Tony said, impatiently kneeling before a chest and opening it. Nothing happened. ‘See, it’s safe, just like Samuel said.’ He reached in, pulling out a honing stone, as the chest vanished into nothing around his hand.

  Time-Saver Honing Stone

  Sharpen any axe in 25% less time.

  ‘Well now, that will sure come in handy,’ Tony smiled happily.

  ‘Oh, that’s nice,’ Fred said, impressed. He reached for the next chest to open. Only, as he flipped the lid open, a row of teeth suddenly appeared! Fred screamed, dropping the chest and jumping away while the others grabbed their weapons. A little giggle filled the space, echoing away as the chest dissolved, leaving a waterskin on the chamber floor. Everyone relaxed.

  ‘What was that?!’ Fred gasped, holding a hand to his chest to calm his beating heart.

  ‘Sometimes the system has a sense of humour,’ Samuel said, shaking his head. ‘Not to worry you, but once it has identified someone to mess with, it tends to continue. It’s never been dangerous to my knowledge, though.’

  Goliath shuddered a little at those words. Does this include wind spirits? he wondered. Fred certainly wasn’t amused, but he reached out to the waterskin anyway, triggering the description.

  Waterskin of Restoration

  Once a day, drinking from this waterskin will fully restore the drinker’s energy. This effect will trigger at a random time during the day.

  ‘All right, I’ve changed my mind. The system can mess with me all it wants. What a great reward!’ Fred lifted the waterskin to study it with a large smile.

  ‘Me next,’ Michael said enthusiastically, flipping open a chest which unceremoniously dissolved into nothingness.

  ‘Wait, where’s your reward?’ Gwyn asked.

  ‘No, I got it, but it’s not a thing. It’s a title,’ Michael said, displaying the text.

  Title: Pet Seeker 1

  You’re 10% more effective at finding lost pets. Find more pets to upgrade this title.

  ‘Pet seeker?’ Michael said, disappointment in his face. ‘When will I ever use this?’

  ‘Oh, don’t worry. You’ll have plenty of opportunities as the settlement grows,’ Samuel said darkly.

  ‘Fine,’ Micheal sighed. ‘You go next.’

  Samuel opened his chest, picking out a pair of soft leather boots.

  Town Guard’s Ultimate Boots of Comfort

  You have spent your life making towns safer for every inhabitant. Now you can do it with the most comfortable boots you will ever find.

  ‘Amazing, thank you, system!’ Samuel sat down right where he was, pulling his old boots off and replacing them with the new ones, as Michael watched longingly.

  ‘Gwyn?’ Goliath suggested, pointing towards the next chest. It was another title.

  Title: Physician’s Sight 1

  You have a 10% better understanding of a creature’s medical problems. Apply your greater understanding to upgrade this title.

  ‘That’s amazing!’ Gwyn squealed, quite uncharacteristically, performing a stomping victory dance. ‘This is going to be so helpful to my treatments! Wonderful!’ Goliath frowned, wondering about the term ‘creature’. Gwyn looked so happy, however, that he decided to let it go for now.

  ‘Wait, now me, now me!’ Alan rushed forward for the second-to-last chest, pulling a musty old book from it. ‘Look,’ he said, excitedly reading the ancient cursive script on the cover. ‘It says The Art of Earth Magery: An introduction.’

  ‘Magery?’ Gwyn said, stopping her happy dance, caution in her voice. ‘You do know that the wizards outlawed magery decades ago because it was so dangerous, don’t you?’

  ‘It was only dangerous because people were fooling around with it by themselves. What wizards do is also magery. The only difference is that they instruct apprentices and supervise their learning.’

  ‘And so you intend to fool around with it by yourself?’

  ‘Not by myself; I have a guide,’ he said, shaking the book. The two stared at each other.

  ‘All right, let’s let it go,’ Goliath intervened. ‘Gwyn, the system has rewarded Alan with this manual. There must be a reason for it.’

  Gwyn nodded reluctantly.

  ‘And Alan, you acknowledge that magery is dangerous. Can we agree that until you can control it, you won’t practice it within the settlement?’

  ‘Yes, that makes sense. You have my word that I won’t experiment with it inside the settlement.’

  ‘All right, then we can call it good,’ Goliath said, settling the argument.

  ‘And how about you, Goliath? Want to open your chest?’ Samuel said, pointing to the last chest.

  ‘Sure.’ Goliath picked up the chest, which dissolved, leaving a pendant on a chain in his hands.

  Founder’s Pendant

  The Founder’s Pendant serves as a symbol of the founder’s control and power over Cursed End.

  ‘That’s it? A symbol?’ said Tony, surprised.

  ‘I suppose so,’ Goliath responded. He couldn’t help feeling disappointed, especially after the wonderful rewards the others had gotten.

  ‘Well, put it on then, Founder,’ Michael said.

  Goliath lifted the pendant, studying it for a moment. Then, instead of putting it on, he dropped it into his pocket. ‘You know what, I’m not one for jewellery. I’ll keep it as a gift for Mirabelle.’

  He said nothing about the notification that had triggered as he had put the pendant away.

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