Core of Knowledge

[Storyteller]: Come Into My World detailed the Skills the class would grant, and it was clear to everyone who read the book that it was a truly terrifying Class at the higher levels. At the lower levels, the [Storyteller] wasn’t that good. A [Storyteller] could tell stories to lift the spirits of people, even improve the mood and emotions of a Classed, but other classes also provide such benefits.

However, the [Storyteller] class truly showed its potential at the higher levels. At around level 30, a [Storyteller] gained a Skill that allowed him to confuse a massive number of enemies. At level 50, there was a Skill that could trap enemies in a story world that they could never escape from.

No [Storyteller] had reached such levels with the class before, so no one knew these Skills existed. At least, till the dungeon created the book. And it was clear the book was created by the dungeon. In theory, dungeons could only recreate books they had absorbed before, but that was clearly not the case here. No one knew these Skills existed, so no one could have written a book about them.

[Storyteller]: Come Into My World was a book that should not have existed, so how the dungeon managed to create the book was something that had caused a lot of debate. Some had spectacled that the dungeon core wrote the book itself, while the more religious-minded says that the goddess, Gressian, gifted the book to the dungeon core.

Both suggestions were terrifying.

Worse than the knowledge provided by the book was the political war it had ignited. The scholars who wrote, updated and published the Books of Levels had demanded that the Adventurer Guild hand the book over to them for research and safekeeping. The Adventurer Guild’s offer of giving the scholars a copy had been rejected as they wanted the original. Several kingdoms had sent messengers to Viaggia to enquire on the authenticity of the book, and more than one had indicated that they would be willing to bid high if the Adventurer Guild put the book up for auction.

Putting the book up for auction might be for the best, but no one knows how the Goddess would react to it. The Matron of Warmth might not be known as a vengeful god, but who want to run the risk of offending a Goddess. Several small cults had popped up claiming to worship Gressian and they demanded the book, stating it as part of their Holy Text. Pos didn’t know the human Goddess of the Hearth even had worshippers! He was just glad he did not have to go through that pile of goat shit. That was Claudio’s job.

Pos did not envy the Guild Master. Outside the strange sword and book, the Guild Master must also deal with the dungeon. One of the reasons for a mass delve was the thinking that a big group of new adventurers would be able to gather more information on the dungeon than a small party of high-level adventurers. That turned out to be true for the Tomb of Ten Thousand Techniques.

The Adventurer Guild now knew what would happen when one member of a party completed one of the jig-saw puzzles in the Lake Room, and that no monsters would appear if every member of a party completes their puzzles. That party, a brother and sister duo, even managed to gain a strange treasure out of it. A blue dress with long sleeves with embroidered flowers and swimming fishes. At least, it looked like a dress. No one had seen the designs of such dresses before.

With all the information gained, the Adventurer Guild believed that the Lake Room had been fully explored and Pos heard they would now concentrate on the other two rooms on the second floor. One of the two remaining rooms was now considered a death room, and the other was close behind.

Despite Claudio’s warning, several parties had attempted the two rooms. That was to be expected, but of all the adventurers that ran the rooms, only one managed to survive. That adventurer was a minor noble, a [Mage] who had some sort of Recall Spell that allowed him to escape the room. Traumatized, he was jabbering about how his party was swiped out by a black-and-white Bear Boss which could both fight and cast magic. From the information gained, the room was now known as the Bamboo Forest Room and that was the good news.

Two parties entered the Bamboo Forest Room, nine adventurers in total, and there was one survivor. Seventeen adventurers entered the last remaining room, and no one came out. That was the death room, and the Guild intend to send Bazel and his group into the room to explore it. Pos wished the [Dragoon] the best of luck.

“Out of the way! Knights coming through!”

Pos quickly rushed to the side along with everyone on the street as a bunch of horsemen came riding down the street. Several people silently glared at the passing horsemen, and Pos noticed that the horsemen were riding in the direction of the Adventurer Guild. The horsemen were either the latest adventurers in town, or representatives of some local power.

As everyone went back to what they were going, the dwarf noticed all the hustling, bustling people filling the road. Before the discovery of the dungeon, Viaggia was a quiet sleepy town. Now, men and women of all sizes and species were walking the streets in all sorts of fantastical armor and weapons. All this, and it has been less than a month since he went into the Adventurer Guild to announce the discovery of the dungeon. Not for first time, Pos wondered how the town would look in a year or two?

Pos reached the inn where he regularly stayed when passing through Viaggia. The squat stone building was only two story high, with rooms for rent on the second floor. Pos entered the spacious front room that served as the dining area of the inn, and one could tell that the innkeeper took great care of the inn by how clean and well-run it was.

Despite being the middle of the day, there were already a few customers in the inn, but Pos ignored them and turned to head up the stairs to his room. The bedrooms at the Blooming Jug weren’t furnished with any particular luxury, but they had comfortable beds, clean sheets, and a rough wooden chest for his belongings.

An adventurer needs nothing else, but Pos wondered if he should get a more permanent place. As a caravan guard, it did not make sense for him to purchase a house when he drifted all over the place, but with the dungeon and his new Skill, Pos may be staying in Viaggia for some time.

“Pos!”

Pos turned at the sound of his name and saw the innkeeper walking towards him from the bar. Pos was surprised as he seldom spoke to the human, theirs was a purely financial relationship.

“Innkeeper Sandro.” Pos greeted, noticing that the innkeeper looked a little nervous.

“Pos, glad you’re back. There’s a dwarf looking for you. He’s quite insistent.” The innkeeper said as he quietly pointed at a corner of the inn.

Pos looked over, and his brow raised at the sight of the waiting dwarf. The dwarf was wearing a light red shirt, black leather jacket and pants, and boots of silver. His hair was well-combed, and he had a handlebar mustache with a long beard. Pos did not recognize the dwarf, but he did not need to. Everything about the dwarf screamed that he came from home. Worse, Pos could not pretend he did not see the dwarf. The dwarf was looking straight at Pos.

With a mental sigh, Pos walked toward the dwarf. “By the Stones and the Earth, I greet you. I hear you were looking for me, but I don’t think we had met.”

Pos gave the dwarf a nod of acknowledgement which was returned. Then, the dwarf got down to business. “By the Stones and the Earth, I greet a brave [Warrior] of the Dwarves, Pos Opalhand. I am Maglor Stonekeeper, here on behalf of King Maglor Goldenaxe.” Pos fought hard to keep his face neutral when he heard the name of the hated double-crossing [King]. Maglor Stonekeeper either did not notice, or he choose to ignore Pos’ struggle. “By the order of the [King] of all Who Dwell Beneath the Earth, tell me everything you know about this new dungeon.”