Edited by: KenChi死

I was sitting in the rented carriage driven by Gisele. Because this time our quest was not part of a bigger exploration, we couldn’t afford the comfort of having our own carter. But hey! Comfort breeds weakness! Atop of that Gisele wasn’t such a bad driv…

The cart hit some bigger roots, or maybe a stone, which made the whole vehicle jump slightly, which made me fall from the bench.

“Haha! Sorry! Hey? Are you alive back there?”

… Yeah. I lied. Or maybe, I tried to convince myself that the journey wouldn’t be so painful. Gisele had some magical ability that allowed her to locate and ride over every possible hole, hump, stone, root, calamity and puddle, leaving me shaken, stirred, wet, and sore.

You can do it, Zari…. Stay strong…. You have been put through difficult tasks… lived in dirt and blood, hungry and exhausted… you have survived witch hunters, the forest, a swarm of insect, even killed two dragons… you will do i…

“Are you all…” “ARE WE THERE YET?!”

I am such a weak and fragile being… I am so sorry I yelled at you but…

“Hm? About the whole day by cart…”

WhaDaYaMeanTheWholeDay!? WHATDAYAMEAN BY THAT?!”

“In the end it’s pretty logical, you know… no big city, especially the capital, would be built that close to a dungeons, as those are places heavily infested with twisted magic… so it can be dangerous… yet being in a day of travel still is worth it, because those are places where you can find various materials, artifacts and could train troops… yeah, even if dungeons are under the jurisdiction of the Adventure guild, from time to time they are rented to the military for training purposes. So… the distance of day by cart is optimal.” “But it means…. That there is about 10 or 11 hours of journey ahead…” “That’s about right!” “… I am wondering… shouldn’t… the road from capital be more…solid?” “Oh this? it’s because there is NOTHING in the place that we are heading to… you know, ground breeds no vegetables, swamps… even weather there is… pardon my words… fucked up. So the road is getting damaged by hailstorm over and over again and no one wants to pay to repair it… maybe once every 10 years some bricks are replaced but… … thahaha! Zari! You are distracting me! Wanna cause an accident?”

… Actually… I am pretty much sure that she rode for a bit with her head turned to me… does she… drive better when she actually is not looking at the road?!

Uno momento! There is something off… something about that location…

“Gis… aren’t we perhaps heading south-west?” “Hm? Now? Not exactly, we are going south-west at the moment, but it is only because we have to ride past a crossroad and then…” “No. I mean our final destination.” “Hm… I am not really sure where on map it exactly is… I pretty much know the way there more, ya know, like I have no need to remember every detail about every dungeon I have visited… but maybe you are right… Yeah, I think you are right… why do you ask?”

… just before my eyes were blown… I saw the world from “above”. Do you remember – I said that I saw a few pulsating markers. The voice said that in those “tools” are located. Few were pretty close to the capital of Neira – one of them about a days travel to south-west… Why do I feel like I was once again toyed with by deities?

“Nothing. It’s nothing. I am just checking my awareness of the surroundings.”

Maybe I will use my remaining time to peacefully think over the message that voice told me… if he only could not speak with those riddles all the time… never mind. I have time, I have space, I have peac…

“Sorry!”

… peace… This will be one long trip…

Over 9 hours and a few dozen bruises later we reached the destination. As we were getting closer, the weather indeed became… violent, unstable. The rain was supersaturated with magic. The storm we rode into was not natural. it was almost heavy to breath.

“So, we are finally here… Oh, if you could only see it, Zari…” Gisele spoke in awe “… no matter how many times I see it, it always makes me shiver…” “Feel free to describe…” “We call it the Temple of Shadows.(ED: insert thunder and echo) It’s non-natural dungeon – it looks like tower with its peak hidden in dense storm clouds. Always covered in mist, so you wouldn’t see until you almost walk into it. Some calls it the Black Hand, because it reaches to the sky from the ground, like a finger of Heira that threatens the Heavens. Ah, it would be nice to finally conquer it…”

… Wait, this insane berserk didn’t con.. nah, impossible… but maybe…

“It almost sounded as if it proved to be too difficult for you…” “It did!” She cheered “… you see, first 10 floor are nothing more but a warm up. 11-20? Barely better. 21-30? Can be annoying, 31-40? That’s where dun begins… Up to 50th. After that, each floor is like the gates of hell. Impossible for a team to conquer. Four years ago, with three other guild branches we formed a raid. The 38 most skilled. Ranks B+ and above. 38 good men. We reached 59th Only 12 came back. On the whole continent, there are only 7 Dungeons that were never conquered. Seven dungeons that swallowed more adventurers, than rest of them combined. It would be wonderful to conquer it, and then drink a mug of beer atop of it in memory of those who died here…”

… Gisele… where the fuck did you just bring me?!

“So… how is walking into one of the most difficult dungeons on the continent going to help me improve?” “Hm? Oh! It’s because monsters here are really annoying! Like… really – really annoying! Many of them are quiet and sneaky, while a few are big and loud. The most fatal mistake that fresh adventures make here is focusing on those big ones, because their role is simply to drag attention. Then Shadowlings would creep on you from behind your back… but, answering your question…. If this place wouldn’t boost your senses, nothing will. Hey! Cheer up! If you would survive this place, nothing ever will be able to catch you off guard!”

… she said [If]… didn’t she? Jesus fucking Christ! Of course! She is the type that will throw somebody in the deep water… and then would push the poor bastard head under the water… and keep it there for a minute or two, saying that it’s for his/her own good…

Just… what have I gotten myself involved in this time?!

I felt a light push in the back

“Come on! The monsters will not slaughter themselves… wait… actually… if they are extremely hungry they actually jump on to each another… Ah! Doesn’t matter! Let’s tighten our bonds of friendship via blood and gore! Nothing brings people closer more than risking like in same place and in same cause!”

[Temple of Shadows]Floors100[Avarage] Level [of the Party] suggested to clear the dungeon:85Cleared:No

… what?! No. No, I am not going in there! There is no such possibility that I will ever step into this place!

“Zari? Something wrong! Just go in already! Hm? Fear not, there is no stairs in front of you, so you can walk freely…”

… NO! It’s not the point! Level 85! 85 damn it! It is almost a year since I was send]t here, and I am not even 20! If you would take into consideration, that it takes more and more time to level up, I won’t be able to conquer it till I am bloody 500 years old! Even WOMANH from Heira insane Lunapark wouldn’t be able to clear it! And yet you want me to…

“I wonder how far we will go this time…” Gisele said quietly yet again “… normally we go up to 45, but this time there is only two of us, you are not in your optimal form, and the purpose is not cleansing of the dungon, but simply training? 20? No… even that may be a problem? Let’s say that we aim for 15 now… and then we will see how easy or hard for you it is…”

… NOPE! Ain’t going to enter this hellhole – period! Knowing my luck I would in some magical way find myself in front of gate to level 99. No thank you.

It’s the time when I turn back and came back to the…

I was grabbed by the collar of my robe

“Zari! You silly you! Your walking in the wrong direction!’

No, trust me, I know what I am doin… stop that! Oy! Stop pushing me!

You have entered the [Temple of Shadows]

Fuck

Jericho, after a whole day of really hard work, left his cabinet and moved to his private room. His thoughts were wandering near a bottle of very old and very expensive whiskey he had stored in his commode. He was supposed to drink it after some kind of wonderful event… but as time was passing and his life was getting more and more boring, he decided that he would open it today. Yeah… he was getting old. Even if he was still strong and could deal with most of the adventurers… at the same time on his own, he somehow lost his ambitions. He no longer awaited the next journey and preferred a warm, comfy bed over a sleeping bag under a tree.

Ah… the whisky… its rich flavor… strong aftertaste… he could only imagine how wonderful the moment of opening the bottle could be…

He opened the door… just to see that someone already was in there, behind his deck, with a glass of already mentioned whisky in his hand.

“Nice treasure you kept in there…” Rogue said taking sip after sip “… sorry for the intrusion and using your properties… but I have some urgent matters that need to be…” “… My whisky…” Jericho’s mind was no longer in his body “… half the bottle… gone…” “Don’t you know that alcohol was meant to be drunk and not stored like gold? If you are not drinking it, you can as well let someone else enjoy it… but back to the topic…” “… 5 years. I waited 5 years, letting it mature… to bring its richest flavor…” “And I have to praise you. You did well. It’s one of best I ever tasted. And trust me, I drank a lot… here, check it by yourself.”

Rogue pushed the filled glass over the top of the desk. Jericho cached it a second before it would hit the floor.

“Thank you for treating me with MY OWN BLOODY WHISKY!”

Rogue only chuckled

“Now now… calm down there… It’s just one bottle…” “That bottle was worth 40 silvers!”

In that moment Rogue pointed at the corner of the room, where few small crates were located.

“Over there you have the first batch of freshly made potions. They are indeed a bit weaker than those from Alchemist guilds, but still, a potion is a potion. As it was agreed with Zariel, each of them will be sold for 10 silver, or equivalent of them, so almost half of the price or potions that are available on markets. The boy and I have live up to the agreement. Your turn. Sell them. 10% fee for you.” “How many?” “10 crates, 10 each. Those were tested, so there shouldn’t be any side effects.”

Jericho mind started calculating quickly. 100 potion per 10 silver. 10% fee for him… he will be given 1 gold for… doing almost nothing? Just for being discreet? As soon as Zari would get back he would have to give him a hug.

“Give 20% to Zari and send rest back to me…” “… Aren’t you ripping him off?” “He was the one who suggested it. He said something about paying the workers first, then about supporting the Syndicate itself… he is in need of our services… then about investing the rest into development of our facility… this kid is frightening me. I simply can’t predict what he will do next, nor what he wants. I don’t like having nothing to threaten my coworkers with, you know?... speaking of the devil… where is he?” “He went on yet another quest.” It was a delicate matter. Jericho was not sure how much he could say without putting Zari is some kind of shit. “So quickly? Yet still, it’s weird. Each time he would finish his mission, he would visit the factory, just to see how it was going, check the quality of production and products themselves… Yet now he changed his pattern…” “Pattern? You have just said that you can’t predict what he was about to do so…” “No, no, no. Not like that. I knew what he was about to do in town, and so on, I simply couldn’t see the bigger picture of what he is about to do. In the facility he made his own pattern of tasks that he performed. First he would check the way workers did their job, then if the plants are growing without problems, eventually replenishing mana in the Hex bags, then he would show another trick or two to his students… Jericho… what’s going on?” “How could I know?” “Jeremy… Who are you trying to lie to? Me? I am who I am because I can lie and recognize when somebody else is lying. That’s my job. Together with putting parts of information together. Like the fact that you lie now intend to protect the boy, if he needs protection he screwed up and you are afraid that We may be… unpleased with his performances… the fact that he moved on a quest right away probably means that he wants to fix the thing, that was fucked up… and as you didn’t stop me while I kept talking and talking means that my bluff hit its mark…” “Rouge… look.” “And now my changing your attitude you want to calm me down and convince me to, whatever he did, let him fix it… To the point, Jeremy, to the point. He is far too valuable to discard him. Especially now, as we are in deep shit. If you would tell me what is wrong maybe we could help him… not directly. From the shadows, so he would be convinced that he did it by his own…” “He messed with some weird magic and his eyes are gone…” “I beg your pardon?” “EYES! EXPLODED! Have you ever seen kids pumping a toad till it exploded? Same fucking way!” “So now…” “He asked me if there was some quest involving slaughtering monster with strong regeneration ability. There wasn’t any. So Gisele took his to the dungeon so he could train his other senses.”

Rouge hissed in anger silently

“An alchemist without eyes is like a solider without arms… if he would pick the wrong flask… Catastrophe…” “What do you intend to do?”

Jeremy looked in direction of his training staff that was placed on the other side of the room, as he was thinking how much time he would need to jump there, pick it, and eventually smash Rouge’s head.

“Probably… Find a bloody monster with strong healing factor and send a quest to the guild asking for its elimination. You would get gold, Zari would have his eyes back and We would have our alchemist back. Win-win-win situation.” “Just curious… What will you be looking for and where?”

Rogue smiled before saying the name of the beast.

“You are insane. They almost never move to habituated areas, and are far too dangerous to casually hunt for them… You will never convince anyone to simply for a party against those bastards and…” “Oh, Jeremy, all I need to do, is to force it out from the swamps... smash its eggs and so on… enraged would leave it’s liar and head to nearest village… wouldn’t it?” “People will die!” “How many? A few? A few dozen? Life of a few farm boys is in my eyes worth far less than having that monster back on our side. Tell me, Jericho, haven’t you ever sacrificed one thing for the greater good?” “No. I didn’t!” “… Did I mention, that I like to have an informant or two to eventually threaten my coworkers? You did, Jericho, you did. Remember Selene?”

Jericho turned pale.

“Oh, fret not. I would never threaten you. It’s against my business. I am simply pointing out, that you are not as innocence as you want to be. Because of me, a few villagers will die, how many died because of you, just because you wanted to rescue one particular person? You have traded all of them just for this one poor soul, which in the end has also died… It’s sad… how different your story could be, if you had a potion back then? Potion that you could afford back then, Jeremy… You can’t save everyone Jeremy. All you can do, is to sacrifice a few hoping that your actions will save thousands.”

Rogue left the room shutting the door silently behind him. No one ever saw him entering nor leaving the Guild. Only a half empty bottle of whisky and used glass witnessed that he was indeed there.

Okay – sorry guys. I wanted to start blood and gore today… but I got carried away xD.

You will have to forgive me… not that you have any other option. You just have to. Period.