Syl

Chapter 202: Dungeon and Mirror

Chapter 202: Dungeon and Mirror

"So, is there any difference between this conquered dungeon and a normal one?" I asked.

Kaldrour nodded. "The spawns are more regulated, and in some cases, we’ve even ensured only certain types of elementals can spawn by changing the environment of the rooms. The spoils from the elementals are also taxed by the city."

Wow... The poor dungeon master, has it been bullied into submission? I wondered.

"And if you have any looting skills or emblems, you are asked not to use them!" Darmod quickly added. "We don’t want to starve the dungeon or break the delicate equilibrium that’s been established."

I nodded.

Well, it’s not like eating any elementals will help me out since they all seem to come from the same profile. But that probably means trying to coerce the dungeon into spawning a slime for me is off the table. I should probably hold back on sliming out, but there’s no reason for me not to use [Metal Slime] and hopefully get it to the next level!

"No problem. It sounds like a great place to train and get some levels," I agreed.

"Wonderful. I’ll ensure you have access and that someone guides you to the entrance," Kaldrour cheerfully replied.

"You need access? Is it not controlled by the adventurer’s guild?" I questioned.

"No," Kaldrour shook his head. "The dungeon is fully maintained by the city itself, and thus, it falls outside the guild’s regulation."

"Oh..." I mumbled, not really understanding.

"The Adventurers Guild was established by humans first; we dwarves took a while to accept its existence," Darmod explained. "We had our own way of doing things for centuries, and so concessions were made when we finally allowed it to operate within our borders."

"So... If I said I wanted to train specifically on spells, what would you recommend?" I questioned.

"What kind of magic?" Kaldrour asked.

"Corrosion," I replied and elaborated in case they weren’t familiar. "Acids and a few afflictions."

Kaldrour hummed in thought before finally responding. "Probably the rock elementals. That way, you can damage their outside body without too much fuss. If you went to train on something like the crystal or metal elements, you might get some people angry that you’re intentionally damaging the resources!"

"You’re serious?" I questioned.

"Deadly serious, we weren’t kidding when we said we’ve conquered the dungeon and maintained its equilibrium. We’ve turned it into a glorious harvesting ground."

"Oh... So as long as I keep the crystal cores relatively intact, people won’t mind?" I questioned.

"Pretty much," Kaldrour nodded in agreement. "There are fire elementals, too, but I worry with their partially incorporeal nature, your magic would immediately destroy their crystal."

"How do you usually go about gathering their crystal?" I questioned.

"Water, mud, or even enclosing them in an airtight room. Eventually, the elemental burns itself out and dies. It’s a rather brutal method but the best way to gather their crystals unharmed. They are one of the best sources of pure Fire Mana, and we use them to power some of our extreme forges."

"Makes sense," I said with a nod. "I guess we will hunt a few earth and rock elementals before eventually going on some quests."

"Sounds good to me! Earth crystals aren’t used often, so don’t be too beat up if you destroy a few."

As if sensing my next question ahead of time, Darmod quickly spoke up. "We sometimes grind them down and use them to enrich the soil. It can help with plant growth. Although sometimes they just throw the crystals in a dungeon room to shift the room’s elemental alignment toward Earth."

"To influence the dungeon spawns?" I asked.

"Bingo!" Kaldrour said excitedly. "If it’s high enough, we get some really good ones."

I wanted to question that mindset. As far as I knew, the dungeons could seemingly spawn anything they wanted, so either they’d tricked the dungeon, or the dungeon was tricking them.

Or perhaps there are certain rules around the spawning? Is it cheaper to spawn a monster that matches the element in the room? However, that wouldn’t explain the vast variety I saw in that last dungeon...

"Tamnaeth, reporting for duty!" He dropped deeper to his knees. "This sprout is honored for being graced by your presence, and I humbly ask how may I serve the great Feirelle branch on this blessed day?"

"First, confirm the name of the individual you saw," the assistant responded.

"[Identify] reported her name as Syl," Tamnaeth responded hastily. "It seemed like a shortened name or nickname, so I presumed it was modified."

"Describe her appearance as best as you can remember," the assistant spoke.

Tamnaeth hastily responded. The more he described, the more agitated the Feirelle branch head seemed to get.

"And she tamed a monster spider, you say?" The assistant asked.

"Yes, a Riftweaver Spider, tier five, named Vee," Tamnaeth replied.

There seemed to be a commotion between the assistant and the Feirelle branch head.

"Mistress, I understand your agitation, but..."

"Paeris," A commanding voice echoed out. Tamnaeth felt the urge to kneel even harder. "I do not know or care, but that sounds exactly like my daughter. She even bonded a companion!"

"Mistress... I understand... But, her leaf fell from the sprig; it can’t be her," Paeris, the assistant, pleaded.

"The description matches her perfectly; she even had her golden oak bag!" She continued. "And now it’s revealed that she has the Tamer class too; this is far too much of a coincidence."

Paeris tried to say something but was interrupted as she continued talking.

"Her sudden disappearance goes unexplained to this very day, and yet you wish me not to act? No. I will get my answers to why she left home. Either my daughter is alive, or another branch has the gall to imitate her," The Feirelle branch head spoke. "Dispatch Llewel to retrieve her by any means necessary."

"Yes, Mistress..." Paeris mumbled.

"Tamnaeth," She spoke. Tamnaeth flinched. "Keep an eye on her, but do not interfere. I do not wish for her to flee until Llewel arrives."

"I understand," Tamnaeth said, bowing his head.

The imposing woman looked ready to leave but paused and glared at the communication mirror. Tamnaeth thought perhaps he had done something accidentally to offend her when she suddenly waved her hand, and the watery reflection shimmered a vibrant spray of colors until a small black splotch was revealed.

"This device has been compromised!" She declared angrily.

Tamnaeth felt a pit in his stomach beginning to swell; he gulped and was ready to take some of the blame when she raised her hand and waved it again. A crack split the mirror in half, then shattered into countless pieces following an earsplitting screech.

He stared at the sight and let out a sigh of relief.

"At least I’m not taking the blame... But who would snoop on such a meeting?" He couldn’t help but wonder. "Were they interested in snooping on our ongoing relations with the dwarves, or is this related to the Feirelle branch?"

He paused and began thinking. The Feirelle branch was remarkably close to the trunk. Was someone plotting against them? Was one of the outer branches looking to increase its influence, or was one of the other inner branches trying to retain control?

"It’s all certainly possible..." Tamnaeth admitted.

He then thought about his meeting with Syl. She undoubtedly had the [Elven Glamour] trait at an extremely high level, indicating close ties to a branch. The fact that she might have been the Feirelle’s lost daughter was certainly plausible.

"If it is her, why did she disappear only to join the adventurers guild?" He continued to wonder. "Not to mention coming to visit the dwarven empire..."

He sighed and shook his head.

"This is far above my pay grade. I need a drink..."