A protective wall had formed around me as we made our way deeper into the dungeon and toward the remainder of the exploration raid. Marisa and Alfred were guarding both of my sides from danger, with the shiny obsidian fox strolling right after us, doing its part of keeping me safe.
It wasn’t like there was anything to fear. The dungeon and its monsters would never even think about hurting me and the defeated paladins were too busy talking about all of the changes they noticed on their bodies and their clothes. At first, they had been simply confused, and rightfully so, and one of them was even angry for a time, but that had slowly shifted to them joking about the matter. Although they would have trouble explaining to their families just what had happened to them, they at least would return to them in one piece.
The only things they would be able to complain about were the loss of their weapons and armor, their humanity and, if the description of the blessing was to be believed, a part of their strength.
Naturally, I tried to fix the first of the issues right then and there by leading our group towards the site where they met their end, hoping they would at least feel better to find some of their items. But upon reaching the path of ash and the gaping hole in the landscape, there was nothing to be found, nothing but hundreds, if not thousands small dots of green and white that pocked out of the ash-covered earth - the plants were already regenerating.
As for the armor, shields, and swords that should have survived the attack, I could only shrug. It was likely my dungeon had already absorbed them by this point, although I had never actually come around to test how long that process took. It didn’t help that there were no green boards announcing it either, as the newly gained resources would likely only be revealed once the raid had escaped my dungeon - those that actually survived the ordeal.
After looking for possible weapons for several minutes, I was forced to realize that it wasn’t going to work out as there was absolutely nothing to be found on the slowly healing meadow. The paladins seemed as hopeless as me, pitiful even, urging me to at least try to give them something, but that couldn't possibly work with the set of rules I had to follow. Even if I was able to summon weapons out of thin air, I couldn't possibly do it for them, not for free. And as there were likely comrades of them waiting outside of the dungeon, it wasn't as if they were in any real danger to begin with.
Knowing all of that, I could only shake my head, which they immediately understood, given the immediate change in their expressions. Who knew how much those swords had been worth to them? I was just about to give them my reasoning when the obsidian fox suddenly nudged my side, before staring in the distance, indicating that something was going on.
“Something is happening,” I informed the group before already making my way back to the gravel path. “We should go!”
The paladins looked at each other, trying to guess just what to do, but they soon nodded and followed after me. Not only had we come to an agreement that they would help me with the raid before, but I had also just now gave them something precious, a weapon that could easily end up becoming a heirloom for some of them, if they didn’t decide to straight up trade it for a small house, that was.
I shrugged, leaving that matter to the men to decide for themselves. Instead, I followed after the obsidian fox, which now made its way around the volcano and towards the bridge connecting my main room to the neighboring geyser one. We hadn’t even made half the distance when I could already see flashes of magic and the sounds of battle.
Before I knew it, I was already running with all my might, trying my best to reach the raid before it was too late. The obsidian fox didn’t need long to realize what exactly I was trying to do and before I knew it my trusty guardian was already dashing past me, barking loudly as it did so.
As my monster grew smaller and smaller as it dashed into the distance, the noise of the battle slowly died off, leaving behind only the obsidian fox’s barks. Then there was nothing, nothing but the sound of our footsteps and rough breaths.
It took us about a minute to reach the raid, or rather the few men that remained of it. Eight of them were still standing out of the two dozen that had invaded my dungeon today, with five of them being mages and the rest being paladins. The leader of the raid had survived till now and was still trying to struggle with all of his might, as his brightly glowing sword showed. He was currently trying his best to threaten the obsidian fox while being surrounded by lava foxes to all sides. Luckily for him and thanks to the help of my personal guardian, not a single one of the monsters made any attempt of prolonging the fight. Instead, they just sat down one by one, while watching me with their burning red eyes.
It was only when Aspen saw me approach, that something in his face changed, something I couldn’t quite grasp. The man looked both pitiful and at the end of his strength and wisdom, but there was also a sense of defiance and pride to be noticed in his gaze. He also looked somewhat hopeful seeing me, but at the same time, he did not utter a single word even when I was in listening range. It was only when he saw his men rushing to my side alive and well, in new attire and with added fox attributes, that he spoke out in disbelief.
“You- you are alive?!”
The men in question quickly greeted their commander, before explaining how they had woken up in the prayer room unwounded and changed just minutes prior. Of course, this explanation left him quite baffled, and it was only when the oldest of the mages who was about to make his final stand walked up to us to inform him of a discovery of his that things seemed to click for him.
“The blessing is gone,” the old man revealed.
It didn’t take Aspen more than a single glance at each of his men’s faces to confirm this. The white flower most of the raid members had received on their forehead was gone for the four men I had brought with us, revealing that the blessing itself had become undone and, as he could very clearly see, had done quite the number on his men.
“What- what is happening?!”
I took a deep breath before explaining just what had happened. “It is called Blessing of the Second Spring,” I revealed. “When you get kil-” I hesitated. “No, when you get defeated in the dungeon, you will be transported to safety and healed.”
Aspen almost dropped his sword upon hearing this. “Then my men?”
“They are all safe,” I readily answered, before shily adding: “I imagine they are a little confused about the whole… thing that happened to them.”
Aspen thought for a moment before staring at the newly acquired ears, tails, and outfits of his men. For a moment it almost looked as if he was about to chuckle or straight-up laugh about his subordinates’ misfortune, but he quickly thought better of it. Instead, he decided to ask me directly what those changes were all about.
“What is up with all of… that?”
“Cilia has changed them,” I answered with a shrug. “Just like she has changed everything that lives in the dungeon.”
This time Aspen didn’t need to take a look, as he had already spent hours in the dungeon, more than enough time to discover all the colorful plant life I had planted in this room.
“Then those monsters?”
“The foxes?”
“Foxes… right…” He mumbled more to himself than answering to me. “Why are they so strong?”
To that question, I could only shrug. Becoming Cilia’s chosen dungeon had given my monsters quite the boon, making them both stronger and more intelligent, but it couldn’t possibly be to such an extent. A whole exploration raid being defeated, and Aspen’s group certainly looked that way, was already rare and entirely unheard of for newly created dungeons. Even with the exploration raid being hastily planned and filled with Abervale’s comparatively weak and inexperienced fighting forces, there shouldn’t be many losses, a fact both Alfred and Marisa had made sure to nail into my head.
Seeing just how devastating the abilities and teamwork of my foxes had turned out to be was an eye opener to say the least, as simply building a good home for them had turned into a whole mess. This was even more obvious when compared to what the place had been like when the past groups of adventurers and invaders had traversed my dungeon.
Still, Cilia herself seemed to think of my dungeon as fine the way as it was, as she would have otherwise intervened in some way or another. Was she simply overestimating the strength of those who would come to visit my dungeon? Or was it me that had the wrong perspective due to living in Abervale my whole life, thus far away from any strong monster or dungeon?
I shook my head. There was no way to answer any of my questions without asking Cilia directly and doing that had to wait for later in the evening when I was alone again.
“Why are you here,” Aspen suddenly asked, tearing me out of my thoughts.
The man was now staring at me, silently urging me for an answer with his eyes alone. But before I could even find the words, Marisa stepped up to answer in my stead.
“She is here to end the raid before it is too late.”
“Too late?”
Marisa was now pointing at three of the mages one after another, all of which lacked the distinct white flower on their foreheads. “They will die if you continue,” was all she said.
It would be an understatement to say the men in question were shocked about her harsh words, but they soon realized that she was right, as none of them had received the blessing for one reason or another.
“I made it so the blessing can only be gained by those who dedicate an honest prayer to my mother,” I added to her explanation.
“I don’t know what you came here for,” Marisa scolded them. “But you are no longer welcome here.”
The men in question were stunned by our statements, but I could soon see feelings of guilt in two of the faces, while the third man seemed angry instead. He even looked as if he was about to make a fuss when the obsidian fox stared at him intensely, causing him to take a few steps back. Not a single word left his mouth.
Alfred took this chance to make his way into the group before asking the three mages in question to follow him. It took him a few exchanges to finally get them to listen, but he soon made his way to the dungeon’s entrance with three rather discouraged-looking men in his tow. Even Aspen, the raid leader, did not dare to do anything about it, as a single glance of the obsidian fox made him stop right in his tracks.
Realizing the dire situation he was in and with most of his men gone, Aspen grew rather restless. There was no chance for his remaining party to defeat all of the lava foxes surrounding them, and that wasn’t even accounting for the likely much stronger three-tailed monster.
“What do you want,” he asked after a long moment of consideration.
“I want you to give up.”
To this, Aspen immediately disagreed, before explaining just what was at stake, like a possible war being started right at the doorsteps of my dungeon or greedy adventurers coming all the way here solely to exploit my resources rather than complying with Cilia’s wishes. To that, I could only shake my head. Not because he was wrong, no, I knew he was right about his fears as both Marisa and Alfred had said the same. But the thing was…
“I never said I would not work together with you. But I will do it on my terms.”
“Your terms?”
I nodded, causing Aspen to fall silent. He took a look at his remaining comrades, seemingly searching for an answer or solution in their faces, before staring at the foxes that were still surrounding them to all sides. His eyes then fell on the obsidian fox, who was easily the biggest of them all. For a few long seconds, he simply stared at the monster, his hand gripping his sword ever so slightly tighter.
“Is that your strongest monster,” he finally asked.
I could only shrug. “I think so. I have barely ever seen it do anything but sleep.”
The fox in question only waved its tails at my accusation, likely knowing exactly that it really wasn’t the most active of my monsters. It didn’t help that it indeed had never seen combat before. What would it even do? Was it simply a stronger, more durable version of the earth fox? Would it even use magic?
Aspen spent about a minute in silence, likely thinking about the same questions, but he soon sheathed his sword to instead pull off his right glove. Before I knew it, he had already tossed it at the black monster’s paws.
“I challenge you to a duel!”
I could only stare at him in confusion, no, all of us did. Had he really just challenged a monster to a duel? Sure, it was a very intelligent one going by all I knew about foxes, but it would care little about a nobleman’s pride and honor being at stake. What could the man even offer in case he lost?
Even the fox in question did not know what to do about the piece of clothing. It simply lowered itself to look and sniff at it, before taking it in its maw. Soon, its three, shiny tails began wagging from one side to another, with it seemingly expecting some sort of game. I could only shrug.
“It accepts…”
A protective wall had formed around me as we made our way deeper into the dungeon and toward the remainder of the exploration raid. Marisa and Alfred were guarding both of my sides from danger, with the shiny obsidian fox strolling right after us, doing its part of keeping me safe.
It wasn’t like there was anything to fear. The dungeon and its monsters would never even think about hurting me and the defeated paladins were too busy talking about all of the changes they noticed on their bodies and their clothes. At first, they had been simply confused, and rightfully so, and one of them was even angry for a time, but that had slowly shifted to them joking about the matter. Although they would have trouble explaining to their families just what had happened to them, they at least would return to them in one piece.
The only things they would be able to complain about were the loss of their weapons and armor, their humanity and, if the description of the blessing was to be believed, a part of their strength.
Naturally, I tried to fix the first of the issues right then and there by leading our group towards the site where they met their end, hoping they would at least feel better to find some of their items. But upon reaching the path of ash and the gaping hole in the landscape, there was nothing to be found, nothing but hundreds, if not thousands small dots of green and white that pocked out of the ash-covered earth - the plants were already regenerating.
As for the armor, shields, and swords that should have survived the attack, I could only shrug. It was likely my dungeon had already absorbed them by this point, although I had never actually come around to test how long that process took. It didn’t help that there were no green boards announcing it either, as the newly gained resources would likely only be revealed once the raid had escaped my dungeon - those that actually survived the ordeal.
After looking for possible weapons for several minutes, I was forced to realize that it wasn’t going to work out as there was absolutely nothing to be found on the slowly healing meadow. The paladins seemed as hopeless as me, pitiful even, urging me to at least try to give them something, but that couldn't possibly work with the set of rules I had to follow. Even if I was able to summon weapons out of thin air, I couldn't possibly do it for them, not for free. And as there were likely comrades of them waiting outside of the dungeon, it wasn't as if they were in any real danger to begin with.
Knowing all of that, I could only shake my head, which they immediately understood, given the immediate change in their expressions. Who knew how much those swords had been worth to them? I was just about to give them my reasoning when the obsidian fox suddenly nudged my side, before staring in the distance, indicating that something was going on.
“Something is happening,” I informed the group before already making my way back to the gravel path. “We should go!”
The paladins looked at each other, trying to guess just what to do, but they soon nodded and followed after me. Not only had we come to an agreement that they would help me with the raid before, but I had also just now gave them something precious, a weapon that could easily end up becoming a heirloom for some of them, if they didn’t decide to straight up trade it for a small house, that was.
I shrugged, leaving that matter to the men to decide for themselves. Instead, I followed after the obsidian fox, which now made its way around the volcano and towards the bridge connecting my main room to the neighboring geyser one. We hadn’t even made half the distance when I could already see flashes of magic and the sounds of battle.
Before I knew it, I was already running with all my might, trying my best to reach the raid before it was too late. The obsidian fox didn’t need long to realize what exactly I was trying to do and before I knew it my trusty guardian was already dashing past me, barking loudly as it did so.
As my monster grew smaller and smaller as it dashed into the distance, the noise of the battle slowly died off, leaving behind only the obsidian fox’s barks. Then there was nothing, nothing but the sound of our footsteps and rough breaths.
It took us about a minute to reach the raid, or rather the few men that remained of it. Eight of them were still standing out of the two dozen that had invaded my dungeon today, with five of them being mages and the rest being paladins. The leader of the raid had survived till now and was still trying to struggle with all of his might, as his brightly glowing sword showed. He was currently trying his best to threaten the obsidian fox while being surrounded by lava foxes to all sides. Luckily for him and thanks to the help of my personal guardian, not a single one of the monsters made any attempt of prolonging the fight. Instead, they just sat down one by one, while watching me with their burning red eyes.
It was only when Aspen saw me approach, that something in his face changed, something I couldn’t quite grasp. The man looked both pitiful and at the end of his strength and wisdom, but there was also a sense of defiance and pride to be noticed in his gaze. He also looked somewhat hopeful seeing me, but at the same time, he did not utter a single word even when I was in listening range. It was only when he saw his men rushing to my side alive and well, in new attire and with added fox attributes, that he spoke out in disbelief.
“You- you are alive?!”
The men in question quickly greeted their commander, before explaining how they had woken up in the prayer room unwounded and changed just minutes prior. Of course, this explanation left him quite baffled, and it was only when the oldest of the mages who was about to make his final stand walked up to us to inform him of a discovery of his that things seemed to click for him.
“The blessing is gone,” the old man revealed.
It didn’t take Aspen more than a single glance at each of his men’s faces to confirm this. The white flower most of the raid members had received on their forehead was gone for the four men I had brought with us, revealing that the blessing itself had become undone and, as he could very clearly see, had done quite the number on his men.
“What- what is happening?!”
I took a deep breath before explaining just what had happened. “It is called Blessing of the Second Spring,” I revealed. “When you get kil-” I hesitated. “No, when you get defeated in the dungeon, you will be transported to safety and healed.”
Aspen almost dropped his sword upon hearing this. “Then my men?”
“They are all safe,” I readily answered, before shily adding: “I imagine they are a little confused about the whole… thing that happened to them.”
Aspen thought for a moment before staring at the newly acquired ears, tails, and outfits of his men. For a moment it almost looked as if he was about to chuckle or straight-up laugh about his subordinates’ misfortune, but he quickly thought better of it. Instead, he decided to ask me directly what those changes were all about.
“What is up with all of… that?”
“Cilia has changed them,” I answered with a shrug. “Just like she has changed everything that lives in the dungeon.”
This time Aspen didn’t need to take a look, as he had already spent hours in the dungeon, more than enough time to discover all the colorful plant life I had planted in this room.
“Then those monsters?”
“The foxes?”
“Foxes… right…” He mumbled more to himself than answering to me. “Why are they so strong?”
To that question, I could only shrug. Becoming Cilia’s chosen dungeon had given my monsters quite the boon, making them both stronger and more intelligent, but it couldn’t possibly be to such an extent. A whole exploration raid being defeated, and Aspen’s group certainly looked that way, was already rare and entirely unheard of for newly created dungeons. Even with the exploration raid being hastily planned and filled with Abervale’s comparatively weak and inexperienced fighting forces, there shouldn’t be many losses, a fact both Alfred and Marisa had made sure to nail into my head.
Seeing just how devastating the abilities and teamwork of my foxes had turned out to be was an eye opener to say the least, as simply building a good home for them had turned into a whole mess. This was even more obvious when compared to what the place had been like when the past groups of adventurers and invaders had traversed my dungeon.
Still, Cilia herself seemed to think of my dungeon as fine the way as it was, as she would have otherwise intervened in some way or another. Was she simply overestimating the strength of those who would come to visit my dungeon? Or was it me that had the wrong perspective due to living in Abervale my whole life, thus far away from any strong monster or dungeon?
I shook my head. There was no way to answer any of my questions without asking Cilia directly and doing that had to wait for later in the evening when I was alone again.
“Why are you here,” Aspen suddenly asked, tearing me out of my thoughts.
The man was now staring at me, silently urging me for an answer with his eyes alone. But before I could even find the words, Marisa stepped up to answer in my stead.
“She is here to end the raid before it is too late.”
“Too late?”
Marisa was now pointing at three of the mages one after another, all of which lacked the distinct white flower on their foreheads. “They will die if you continue,” was all she said.
It would be an understatement to say the men in question were shocked about her harsh words, but they soon realized that she was right, as none of them had received the blessing for one reason or another.
“I made it so the blessing can only be gained by those who dedicate an honest prayer to my mother,” I added to her explanation.
“I don’t know what you came here for,” Marisa scolded them. “But you are no longer welcome here.”
The men in question were stunned by our statements, but I could soon see feelings of guilt in two of the faces, while the third man seemed angry instead. He even looked as if he was about to make a fuss when the obsidian fox stared at him intensely, causing him to take a few steps back. Not a single word left his mouth.
Alfred took this chance to make his way into the group before asking the three mages in question to follow him. It took him a few exchanges to finally get them to listen, but he soon made his way to the dungeon’s entrance with three rather discouraged-looking men in his tow. Even Aspen, the raid leader, did not dare to do anything about it, as a single glance of the obsidian fox made him stop right in his tracks.
Realizing the dire situation he was in and with most of his men gone, Aspen grew rather restless. There was no chance for his remaining party to defeat all of the lava foxes surrounding them, and that wasn’t even accounting for the likely much stronger three-tailed monster.
“What do you want,” he asked after a long moment of consideration.
“I want you to give up.”
To this, Aspen immediately disagreed, before explaining just what was at stake, like a possible war being started right at the doorsteps of my dungeon or greedy adventurers coming all the way here solely to exploit my resources rather than complying with Cilia’s wishes. To that, I could only shake my head. Not because he was wrong, no, I knew he was right about his fears as both Marisa and Alfred had said the same. But the thing was…
“I never said I would not work together with you. But I will do it on my terms.”
“Your terms?”
I nodded, causing Aspen to fall silent. He took a look at his remaining comrades, seemingly searching for an answer or solution in their faces, before staring at the foxes that were still surrounding them to all sides. His eyes then fell on the obsidian fox, who was easily the biggest of them all. For a few long seconds, he simply stared at the monster, his hand gripping his sword ever so slightly tighter.
“Is that your strongest monster,” he finally asked.
I could only shrug. “I think so. I have barely ever seen it do anything but sleep.”
The fox in question only waved its tails at my accusation, likely knowing exactly that it really wasn’t the most active of my monsters. It didn’t help that it indeed had never seen combat before. What would it even do? Was it simply a stronger, more durable version of the earth fox? Would it even use magic?
Aspen spent about a minute in silence, likely thinking about the same questions, but he soon sheathed his sword to instead pull off his right glove. Before I knew it, he had already tossed it at the black monster’s paws.
“I challenge you to a duel!”
I could only stare at him in confusion, no, all of us did. Had he really just challenged a monster to a duel? Sure, it was a very intelligent one going by all I knew about foxes, but it would care little about a nobleman’s pride and honor being at stake. What could the man even offer in case he lost?
Even the fox in question did not know what to do about the piece of clothing. It simply lowered itself to look and sniff at it, before taking it in its maw. Soon, its three, shiny tails began wagging from one side to another, with it seemingly expecting some sort of game. I could only shrug.
“It accepts…”
