Chapter 48

AN: Sorry for missing last week's upload. My partner and I caught Covid and I found it difficult to write. Thankfully we only had mild symptoms with no long-term side effects. I'm also going to be taking a two-week break from the first of August, to focus on re-writing earlier sections and planning future chapters.

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The Third Floor, The Dungeon, Medea Island

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Haythem was the first one down the passage. A short slide later, he emerged from the tunnel mid-way up the arena wall. As had been described to him, the Floor Guardian stood before the exit door, flanked by his five guards. One Mage, two sword-wielders, one was hefting a crossbow, and one slighter Lizard with dual daggers. The Guardian itself hefted its long-handled mace and stared at him across the dimly-lit room.

Unlike the lizard monsters from the jungle above, these seemed more refined. Their scales are smaller and more symmetrical. The placement of their various horns looked deliberate rather than the others' often random curves and twists. They also stood taller, straighter, and with a stockier frame. The smaller lizards were often hunched and wiry, while these had some noticeable muscle.

The monsters waited until the rest of Haythem's party and their temporary allies had arrived before moving from their formation. When Lilliette's feet touched the ground, the Guardian stepped forward and raised its long-handled mace challengingly.

"Guilders, to reach the Fourth Floor, you must pass through me." The monster declared in perfect Phenocian. There was barely a hiss in its tone, and Haythem felt a shiver run down his spine. There was something just not right about a monster speaking their language. He'd been warned, but it wasn't what he'd imagined. "With your little escape crystals useless, this will be a fight to the death." And with that, the guardian rushed forwards. The other monsters were moments behind it, guarding its flanks.

Petaer, the other party's leader, rushed to meet the Guardian and raised his shield to meet the mace's swing. The mace was repelled on contact with the shield, emitting a flash of light. Petaer quickly followed up with a slash of his longsword, taking advantage of his off-balance foe. Haythem lunged, raising his sword, and intercepted a strike from one of the lizard-swordsmen aimed for Petaer's neck.

While he engaged the swordslizard and Pataer kept the Guardian's attention, the others found themselves occupied with their own fights.

Between strikes, Haythem saw Lilliette, the lightning mage, engaged in a long-range battle with the lizard mage; the flash of her lightning matched blow-for-blow by the monster's bolts of blue fire. He caught a glimpse of Bertram engaged with the other sword-wielding lizard and Flasa slipping between pillars shooting arrows at the crossbow-wielding lizard.

The dagger-wielding lizard was in a deadly dance with Jessikar, who was equally as swift-footed and capable. All in all, the lizards seemed to match the guilders blow for blow. Haythem, who had grown in confidence since his promotion, was humbled. Even this level of strength... wasn't enough.

He knew the stalemate had to give eventually, and when it did, it was in their favor. The final member of their raid group was Vertrum, and he was a cleric. His healing spells kept the Guilders fresh and energized, whereas the Lizards kept accumulating cuts and wounds. Haythem could fight a bit more recklessly than he usually would have. Aggressive and dominating, rather than a careful dance. He could afford to trade wound for wound, with healing on tap.

Their victory truly began when Jessikar slit her opponent's neck, and a follow-up strike plunged the dagger into its heart. She quickly moved to help Bertram. Between the two of them, they quickly overwhelmed the sword-wielding lizard. Bertram struck the final blow, his sword radiant as it cleaved the lizard's skull in twain. He soon joined Haythem to help dispatch his opponent, and some coordination between Flasa and Jessikar maneuvered the crossbow lizard into an ambush.

The mage-lizard fell next; while its shield was very effective at grounding lightning, it was not designed to block crossbow bolts. A duo of bolts through the eyes later, and it crumpled to the ground.

With the guards removed from the battle, the guilders surrounded the Guardian in a rough circle, striking at opportune moments. Even with their entire group free to focus on the Guardian, the fight was brutal. It was a death-by-a-thousand-cuts. By the time they'd finally caused enough damage, it had a dozen crossbow bolts sticking out of its back and hundreds of cuts from various blades that had overwhelmed its regeneration. In a desperate final move, and with a defiant roar, the monster spun with its mace and threw it across the room. Directly at Vertrum. It would have struck him center-mass if he wasn't prepared for such a desperate strike and stepped aside.

The mace hit the wall with a loud bang. It didn't fall to the ground; instead, it remained stuck fast to the wall. Having thrown the weapon with the last of his strength, the Guardian fell to its knees, chest heaving and bloody. "Good fight." It admitted, coughing up a glob of blood. Despite its defeated state, the Guardian's eyes glinted with anticipation. "Next time, it won't be as easy." With that, Haythem's sword pierced its chest and went straight through its heart.

They didn't cheer; it would have broken the solemn mood. The monster was right, of course. Isid, Jerrad, and the rest of that party had explained the Guardian's immortality. In an hour or two, the monster and its attendants would be here again, ready to fight with all the knowledge they'd gained on how the guilders fought.

Haythem supposed it was turnabout, given that their tactics were similar back when they used their teleport crystals.

After healing the last of their wounds, they moved through the grand door that had swung open with the Guardian's death. The room beyond was small and contained only a medium-sized circular metal plate embedded in the ground. The plate was carved with strange writing and had two handles attached. With a heave, Haythem removed the cover, revealing the dark hole beyond.

Beyond, he knew there was a maze of tunnels filled with rats of enormous size and varied abilities. They wouldn't be going far today. Instead, they would be dipping their feet in and learning how to fight the monsters.

As he descended the ladder built into the side of the whole, he could hear the scratching and squeaking of dozens of the monsters approach. This was going to suck.

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The Dungeon, Medea Island

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I mentally applauded Haythem's party and the Clichés as they stood, victorious, over Mushu. It was a good fight, and I'm sure Mushu will train himself and his attendants hard before their next encounter. Their short experience on the Fourth Floor seemed to galvanize them. They made their way back up the sewer entrance and through Mushu's Arena. The enchantments designed to detect returning parties activated, and a section of the wall near the arena's entrance moved aside, revealing a short staircase that led up to the Jungle.

With the group returning to the surface, I let my attention drift downwards, casually scanning the floors as I pass them.

The Fourth remains fine. The rats are still challenging for the Guilders, and their unique evolutionary methods continue to weed out the weak. The Fifth is fine as well. In fact... from its mana density, one of the Shadow Golems is close to its evolution. I made sure to give it a Potentium body and mentally note to check back on it later.

On the Sixth, the Goat Demons have settled into their new home well, a small hidden village similar to the kobolds. Unlike the Kobold village, this one is very vertical. The paths to each dwelling are goat trails, narrow snaking paths that any human would be hard-pressed to follow without specialized equipment. You could say they lived inside an underground canyon. They've settled well among the other residents of the floor, though the Fire Spirit remains the undisputed strongest.

The Seventh was quiet, but for the industrious Drake-kin mining out the metal veins. The mines have expanded decently beyond what I had initially dug, and a quick sweep was enough to bring all the design elements of the mine into line. The Village was busting, and upon asking the Village's Shaman Council, they admitted space was a little tight. I spent a few hours carving out a second cavern, filled with dwellings and amenities, then connected it to the initial village. Unlike the Jungle and Peaks, I didn't want the drake-kin to form separate tribes here. This would be my experiment for larger populations in one area.

When I reached the Eighth, I stopped and spun up the enchantments on a whim to start a blizzard. They hadn't been stress-tested yet, and the monsters there needed time to acclimate to the conditions. First, the magic formed a thick cloud cover, then caused snowfall. The wind picked up, and suddenly the gentle snowfall was turned into a flurry, then a full-blown blizzard.

I set a condition on the enchantments to cycle between blizzard and calm days from now on.

The Wind Spirit had gained a cadre of free-flying wind-sprites that followed her around. It seemed she asked a wind-mage from among the Snowbolds to summon them for her and is providing them a portion of the mana I give her. It would stunt her own progress slightly but make her followers dependent on her. Is this how mana-beings organize themselves in whatever dimension they come from?

I'll let them do their thing. Perhaps I might be able to observe what level of strength a mana-being is supposed to be at, at the Spirit level.

The Ninth remains a desert. The ten Twister Golems happily dart around the dunes, shifting the landscape as they pass. The Scorpans have, to my surprise, started harvesting the trees on the riverside and are using the wood to build up the overhang outside their cavern village. They've built up a wall and gate and have sent a couple of aspiring smiths to Tear for training.

The Lion-Cheetah felines I made have spread through the Canyon, the dominant predator there. Given my only 'real' monsters on the floor are the Stymphalian Vultures and the Scorpans, I think I might make another true monster out of these. I'll increase their bulk and give them metallic claws and teeth. I'll also throw light magic in there, too. Why light magic? Because I'm hoping for a different kind of camouflage than what the Chromatic Tigers use. Also, given the environment, I think giant feline monsters that can fire beams of light from their mouths will be cool.

Not that they can fire beams of light yet. For now, all they can do is make their fur glow golden, highlighting the black tooth-like markings across their coats. In a fit of inspiration, I adjust the black markings around their eyes to mimic Ancient Egyptian eyeliner. Perfect.

As for a name... Golden Sunlions will do for now.

And that's the ninth floor mostly done. I still don't know if I want Sarlac pits or how I would go about making them, but I'll keep the idea in mind for later.

I... don't really want to start work on the Tenth for the moment. I've got quite the buffer between myself and the Guilders, and while that will only get shorter, it won't do so with great speed. I'll have plenty of time to resume digging deeper in the future.

In the meantime... Why not check on the situation up above?

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Castle Plaised, Western Phenoc Kingdom, Theona

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Unlike the last time someone had brought him information on the Medea Island dungeon, Alto Plaised was in his private rooms. Much like the last time, the contents of the letter delivered enraged him beyond words.

"FAILURES! THEY'RE ALL FAILURES!" He raged, grabbing a vase from a side table and shattering it against the opposite wall with a hard throw. His chest heaved with every breath, his eyes wide and pupils dilated. The servant who had received the letter from the messenger and brought it to his lord stood stoic, his face carved from stone. The maids cleaning the room quickly slipped out through the servant's passages.

Alto closed his eyes and took several long, deep breaths. Slowly, he mastered himself, and the change was evident when he next opened his eyes. Where before he burned hot, his rage now simmered. The Duke returned to his desk and sat heavily on the cushioned chair. He leaned forwards and laced his fingers together; eyes narrowed in thought.

"Not only has the first group I sent been lost to the dungeon, but the second has made no progress and lost a member. Then I'm told They heard of the bounty and attempted to complete it. Not only have they failed, but they've lost three members and reached only one floor more than the other guilders delving into that cursed cave!" The duke took another few calming breaths. "More than that, a couple of them just decided to leave."

The servant, one of Alto's personal entourage, nodded calmly. "Yes, sire. I'm told Lina Laskiin was heard claiming that the bounty wasn't worth trading their lives for. She's spread rumors of the dungeon's difficulty and is warning any who asks that the dungeon is incredibly hostile to anyone who even attempts to shatter it. Other rumors, spread by the Guild and corroborated by the silvers who were forced from the island, claim the dungeon is difficult but manageable if you have no intention of shattering it." He took a breath, eyes focused on his lord's face and reactions.

"The Medea Island Dungeon has also proved to be an effective grindstone. It has produced five guilders who've passed the tests to obtain Platinum Rank." Alto's hands gripped the armrests of his chair tightly, then relaxed. When the servant didn't continue, Alto nodded and dismissed him.

When he was alone, the Duke stood and walked to the window. He looked down over his lands, letting his attention drift. The castle guard was training in one courtyard while he saw his daughter talking animatedly with her mother in another. Further afield, the city that sprawled around the base of the large hill his castle was built upon was bustling. He could just see carts of produce from the surrounding farms follow the roads, making their way to the markets.

The sun shone high overhead, the clear blue sky illuminating his lands. Roads stretched in all directions; merchants and travelers from all corners of the Kingdom traveled through his demesne on their journeys.

His eyes drifted to the eastern highway, a more developed road laid with brick that led directly to the Capital. Yes...

If Alto couldn't get this done himself, he'd have to convince the King of the danger this dungeon posed. The Dungeon would surely crumble with the full resources of the Pheonc Kingdom bearing down upon it. But how to frame it...

Perhaps, as a wild, uncontrolled dungeon that was able to repel their strongest warriors. Play upon the unknown monsters lurking and breeding in its depths that would surely begin to rise and overrun the surface. The island's isolation was a problem, though... Ah! Yes, he would emphasize the disruption to trade and the peering eyes of the Bahrain Empire to the east. They were always looking for weakness, to launch an invasion to claim the fertile Phenoc lands.

A letter wouldn't do here. He would need to deliver this warning to convey the matter's seriousness.

He swept from the study, ordering a servant to gather his Council.

He has a trip to organize.

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