NOVEL NEXT B2 – Lesson 41: “Let The Games Begin!”
"So, this is the dungeon?" Robert asked.
"Yes, sir," Antchaser responded. "This is the primary entrance. There are other places one can enter, but I wouldn't recommend it. From what I'm told, the dungeon break caused a lot of damage, so there's no telling what will happen if you try. The Dungeon Core said to return here once we'd gotten help."
Maggy wrinkled her nose at the sight of the walls. "Are we sure it's not already too late? This place is a… bit of a mess."
Robert had to admit, he wondered that himself. The massive white wall in front of them would have been an impressive sight… if it wasn't covered in quivering mud and tangling vines. The walls even appeared shattered in a few places, with repairs half complete.
Yet, despite that, the stone underneath the destruction and mess appeared pristine. Even this close, he couldn't see the wear and tear one would expect from an ancient structure like this. It almost appeared… new.
A wide grin spread across Robert's handsome face. That was a good sign.
Any dungeon able to source such high-quality materials with such fine craftsmanship is bound to have even greater riches inside, he thought to himself.
Garrelt, standing beside Robert, shook his head. "No, the walls show signs of being worked on recently. A mad dungeon wouldn't have bothered, and the goblins wouldn't be able to get out this far in numbers."
Big Bert raised a swollen, bruised brow. "You think the dungeon is actively fighting against the break as well? That's rather impressive. Most of them don't have the… imagination to do that themselves."
Garrelt shrugged. "They did say the dungeon was a unique type. That it could even ask for help says a lot."
Bert folded his arms and nodded in agreement.
Robert turned around and addressed the expeditionary party in a loud voice;
"Well done, everyone, for getting us this far! I'm proud of each and every one of you! It's because of all your hard work that we reached the dungeon in such a timely manner. With any luck, we can fix whatever problems the bandits have caused. Then we'll all share the bounty of the dungeon!"
The gathered group of Adventurers cheered. Robert then turned to the nearby goblins.
"I would also like to thank our generous hosts for sharing their home and dungeon with us. May this be the beginning of a long and beautiful relationship between our people!"
The goblin's reaction was far more muted than the Adventurers. Most of the goblins joining the expedition force weren't deep in the know about the details of what Alpha and the goblin leadership were trying to do.
Many of the goblin civilians were aware of the dungeon, but not its actual location. Even the projects the bandits were working on weren't widely known, as only the hunters and those the village leadership trusted could interact with the prisoners.
To most of the goblin civilians, this was the real dungeon. The one Antchaser, Boarslayer, and others had exploited to rescue them from Bosco and the bandits.
That they now had to share this place with even more Adventurers was controversial, to say the least. However, the goodwill generated by Alpha and the village leadership had gone a long way in keeping complaints to a minimum. Even if many of the civilians didn't know the details, they knew enough to understand why things had to be this way.
Antchaser approached with a smile and shook the man's hand.
"I'm glad we could be of help," he said. "The village would also like to thank Halirosa for their timely arrival and help in this matter."
Robert grinned and returned the shake.
Alpha found the entire scene stunk of politicking, but such was the nature of what they were trying to do.
Good thing he had other people to deal with it!
Antchaser and Boarslayer had quickly become the public faces of the village, while Dr. Maria often acted as an intermediary when needed. The older woman's talent for dealing with all kinds of people made her popular, both with the Adventurers and the goblins — even those still weary of the former.
As the expeditionary party set up a perimeter, leadership approached the entrance to the 'Dragon's Garden.'
At a meter thick, four high, and forged from solid industrial-grade Federation steel, Bert would have struggled to budge them.
The nanite locks ensured even that wasn't in the realm of possibility.
It was likely that going through the walls themselves would have been easier than busting through this behemoth. Not that the Adventurers knew that.
Going over the wall was discouraged by a shining barrier of light that extended several meters over the top. This was mostly for show, however. If someone attempted to cross that way, they would find it was little more than a projection meant to give the illusion of impenetrability.
Right before the wall's defense system kicked in and hit them with enough electricity to knock out a [Golden Spirit] Cultivator. The system wasn't perfect, but it was the best Alpha could do with their limited time. Nothing was stopping Alpha from abusing the native's fear and cultural understanding of dungeon etiquette, however.
Engraved in the door were several murals and carvings depicting two armies battling against each other. At its center, a swirling pool of water split the gate in two. To either side of the whirlpool, a massive, dragon-like beast stood.
To the right was one anyone from the goblin village would instantly recognize. In all its glory, the intimidating form of the Mud Drake towered over an army of writhing beings covered in mud.
The second was something else entirely. At the front of an army of ants stood a more 'classical-looking' dragon with four legs and two giant wings. However, the creature had insectoid features as well. Thick carapace armor covered its body, and the membrane of its wings was thin and transparent. Those same wings were tipped with vicious-looking pincers resembling an ant's mandibles.
Overall, the gateway was a rather impressive sight the first time you saw it. Alpha had never considered himself the artistic type, but he'd had fun with this one and had taken a lot of inspiration from the boxwood carvings native to Old Earth.
Moreover, the elaborate carvings allowed him to hide several arrays in the work. Alpha would later learn this was a rather common practice among Array Masters, and he felt it fit the theme he was going for rather well.
Five humans and two goblins approached a waist-high podium standing several meters away from the door. It, too, looked more like a piece of art than anything, and its centerpiece was five cat-sized dragons, each holding up a stone slab facing outward so that they formed a circle.
Once the group had gathered around, Antchaser stepped forward.
"This is the registration podium," he said, gesturing to the centerpiece.
"Registration?" Robert asked, raising a brow.
Antchaser nodded. "Yes. We mentioned this dungeon differs from others. Part of that is that it only allows up to ten trial takers at a time."
Bert's eyes widened while Robert frowned.
"Just ten? That's rather… disappointing," he muttered.
"Is there something wrong with that?" Maggy asked, tilting her head.
Garrelt was the one to respond, his arms crossed. "Aye. An entry limit isn't unheard of, but typically it's in the dozens or even the hundreds. After all, the purpose of a dungeon is to train successors."
Bert nodded and continued for the name. "Right. Such a low limit isn't unheard of, but it's not common by far. However… dungeons with such a low limit also tend to have substantial rewards and more powerful Inheritances. After all, the dungeon can concentrate its rewards on fewer trial takers."
Garrelt rolled his eyes. "And they're also far more dangerous, as well."
Bert didn't respond, only threw his head back and laughed.
Maggy bent forward and observed the podium, even taking out a notebook and beginning to sketch the various carvings with surprising speed and accuracy.
"Fascinating…" she said, more to herself than anyone. "The details are astounding, but I don't recognize this style. Typically, dungeon creators like to add certain flairs or embellishments to their creations. I'm not seeing any of that kind of thing here, though."
Robert frowned, then turned to Antchaser. "I assume this limit is why Bosco was able to cause so much trouble despite being on the back foot?" he asked.
Antchaser nodded. "Correct. When Bosco fled, he and six others entered the dungeon. That left only three slots for pursuers," the goblin explained.
Boarslayer continued after him, "The dungeon becomes more difficult the more people inside. So having to deal not only with Bosco and his crew, but with the dangers of the dungeon at max capacity with only three people… it wasn't worth the risk."
Robert nodded in understanding.
Observing the scene from afar through a [Wasp]. Alpha chuckled to himself. So far, so good.
He and the goblins, along with Dr. Maria, had discussed their story at length. They had eventually settled on such a limited entry for a few reasons. First, as Bert and Garrelt had surmised, a smaller limit means greater rewards, making the dungeon appear more valuable, thus, more worth protecting.
Some dungeons were little more than resource factories, built to do nothing more than pump out the resources needed for a specific Inheritance in large quantities. While they were still valuable, they were often seen as of lower quality than those meant to test and train a person directly.
Similar to how basic training was designed to field as many soldiers as possible, special training was available to those who really excelled in a particular field.
Limiting the number of people who could enter at a time also lowered the chance of someone noticing anything unusual about the 'dungeon.'
It seemed their ploy had worked, as well. The expeditionary party didn't really question it.
"That's understandable," Robert responded. "As our current goal is to meet with the Core and observe the problem, let's keep the group small. We can test the limits of what this place can offer at another time."
He then turned to Garrelt. "Garrelt, I'll ask you to accompany me this time. As our best scout, I trust you to keep us safe." He then turned to Bert, but the large man held up a hand before Robert could speak.
"I think I'll pass. Sure, I'm curious, but like you said, our goal right now is scouting and figuring out what the issue is. I'm not the stealthiest man. Don't worry about me, none. We'll hold the fort down out here." The large man laughed again, smacking Boarslayer's shoulder. The goblin only folded her arms and sneered.
Robert frowned but nodded, not pressing the issue.
"OHHH! I'll GOOOO!" Maggy said, raising her hand into the air and shouting a tad too loud.
Every eye turned to her, and she blushed. She slowly lowered her hand and turned her eyes away. "I-I mean, I'm r-really interested in the construction of this dungeon, and it might help my examination to see it from the inside."
She turned back to face the group, her eyes harder than before. "Besides! I can fight, too! I might be a researcher, but I'm still a Mage."
Robert frowned deeper, but nodded after a moment. That was true. While technically joining the expedition as a non-combatant, Maggy had proven herself rather competent at defending herself during the trip. There was also the fact that having a ranged specialist was always a benefit when heading into the unknown.
Maggy squealed in delight before blushing once more when she noticed the grin on Dr. Maria's face.
"In that case, I'm coming along as well," Antchaser said. His heartbeat spiked as the group turned their attention to him this time. He took a deep breath and stood tall.
Well, that hadn't been part of the plan, but Alpha didn't intervene. He'd see where Antchaser was going with this one.
"I might not be as strong a fighter as you lot, but I can hold my own," the goblin said. "I know how to scout as well, and you need someone who's been through the dungeon before."
Robert shook his head. While he understood the goblin's desire to help, they couldn't risk having to protect him.
Before he could speak, however, Garrelt did.
"We should let 'um come," the scout leader said.
Robert turned to the man and raised a brow.
Garrelt shrugged. "He's right; having someone with experience in the dungeon will be a boon. Besides, if Bosco and his lot could get far enough to cause trouble with seven people, then it should be a breeze for us with four."
Robert stared at Garrelt for a moment before sighing. "That's true. Fine, I'll allow it. But keep in mind it is dangerous to underestimate a dungeon, more so one of which little is known."
Garrelt grinned widely. "All the more reason to bring him along."
Robert shook his head and turned to Antchaser. "Ok, Mr. Antchaser, what do we do now?" he asked.
Instead of responding, Antchaser walked forward and placed his open palm on the stone slab one of the dragons held.
Instantly, it lit up, the slab's surface rippling like it was made of water. A green line of light moved up and down the slab until the entire slab finally turned white, and Antchaser's hand sank in.
When he pulled it out, he was wearing a thin metal bangle — in the shape of a dragon eating its own tail — around his wrist.
"This is your 'pass' to the dungeon. Anyone without one is denied entry. If it's lost or destroyed, you get kicked out," Antchaser said, holding up his wrist for them to see.
Garrelt, Robert, and Maggy exchanged a look, then nodded. Simple enough.
One at a time, they approached one of the dragon slabs and mimicked Antchaser to similar results.
Once all three had their 'pass,' Robert turned to the group again.
"Well, now! What do you say, people? How about we get this show on the road?" he said with a bright smile.
The group cheered, and the four who were to enter the dungeon made their way to the gate as one.