by Matthew Peed
Looking back at the castle, I couldn’t help but be amazed by the power of a dungeon core. A castle that was made from the purest white stone I had ever seen made up most of the structure. The castle was floating, literally floating, on a small island that was only connected via a bridge of stone. The two towers that created the barrier that bent space also floated separately from the castle and island. They appeared to be held in place by several large chains that must have weighed several thousand tons, if not tens of thousands.
A deep pit that seemed to lead into an abyss was under the floating island. I wanted to ask Regan about it, but we were both busy as of late, so something like that never really crossed my mind while talking to him. I observed the people looking at the castle in awe as they entered. Barely any of them seemed to notice that they had just passed the lord of the valley, even with Lucifer under me.
As I made my way to the new barracks that had been built to house an actual force of soldiers, the people made way for the squad that Ezal had assigned to me. There were a dozen of them, not including Wrakras and Julie. For once I actually felt like a lord with this entourage following me. I wasn’t used to it, since Baden had basically left me to my own devices when the saboteur was in command of the valley security.
Lucifer took a bite out of a lamppost as we passed it. The first time this had happened, I’d freaked out, but the damage had quickly repaired itself. Lucifer munched on it as we walked the streets, while little kids would sometimes throw a pebble to the beast. I knew it didn’t like these as much as metal, but it still made a show of eating it.
We made it to the barracks a few minutes later. The wolf made really good time, after all. In the yard, which was a few meters sunken into the ground, were several dozen soldiers training with various weapons. Some were working on their forms while others sparred. One of Regan’s “doctors” stood to the side ready to help anyone who got hurt.
I wasn’t sure if this was a good thing. Soldiers tended to get overzealous with their training when they knew they could get back up and go again in only a few minutes. While in the town, this behavior was fine to a degree, but once they got out into the field, I was worried that it might result in . . . more than necessary recklessness. Being bold is one thing; being stupid is another.
As we walked around the training yard, a tall man brought around a large ax to try to strike his opponent. His opposite easily dodged with little effort, resulting in the ax colliding with the ground with a boom and debris flying everywhere. The nimble man ran forward, using the large man’s ax handle as a path to make to slices along his opponent’s back. I gasped as blood sprayed quite liberally from the wounds, but the large man paid it little heed as he twisted his ax in a circle around him, catching the nimble man in the side, and blasted him into the training yard’s wall.
“Medic!” yelled a soldier observing the match.
The doctor automaton moved forward instantly and strode toward the section the two were sparring in. It hopped down lightly, then shot a string of some kind that sank into the men’s flesh. White light was channeled through it into the men, and their wounds instantly started healing. Both their injuries could have been fatal without immediate healing.
As soon as both were healed, the doctor automaton disconnected the string tube, then returned to its spot. The two men had barely stood back up when a fireball collided with each of them, blasting them outside the training yard ring. Quite a feat considering it was almost a meter down. There was a wall around the barracks that I personally thought was too high, but when the men collided with the upper reaches of it, I understood the reason.
“How many times do I have to tell you morons?! If Malaki wasn’t here, what would you do then?!” Ezal shouted from near the barracks.
I wasn’t sure they were in the condition to heed her at the moment. Everyone else on the field continued training, though much more intensely than before. She turned toward the doctor, I guess Malaki. “Fix them up again, but only enough so that they can hear my scolding.” I guess she was aware of the fact that she’d probably blown their eardrums.
Malaki bowed to her, then went to attend the men. I made my way toward Ezal, although I wasn’t sure if it was safe yet. She saw me approaching, then glanced behind me. I looked as well and saw that all my guards were in tight formation, ready for anything that might happen. I almost couldn’t suppress the snicker that wanted to come out.
“Ezal! I see you have everything under control here,” I said when I got close enough.
“My Lady Louella, indeed. I have fixed the . . . mess left behind by my senior.”
Ignoring the mention of that man, I gestured to her and we made our way into her office. I looked around at the several piles of paperwork and some weapons that she appeared to be inspecting, and then at a small table to one side with a few pairs of baby clothes that were half finished. I couldn’t help but feel that I had a kindred spirit with the clutter.
Once we settled in, I said, “How is everything? Any issues?”
“Many complaints that my training is too harsh, punishments too harsh . . . everything is too harsh. But Bruce volunteered to train them to Royal Guard standards, so I expect nothing less,” Ezal said, rubbing her forehead.
“If you need more help, I’m sure we could hire more people,” I said, worried she was understaffed.
“It’s not that. Regan gave us something called a ‘lie detector.’ Pretty straightforward. Until we put it to use, that is. Fifteen spies arrested just yesterday. Here to gather information for the various lords in both countries. The gates are so backed up, people are having to wait two days to get in now. But if anyone tries to enter without taking the test, they get struck by the obelisks.”
“Can . . . can the jail handle this?” I asked, surprised. I knew Regan had said he would be working on things around the valley, but I didn’t expect something like this.
“No, that’s why I’m going to ask Regan to take them soon. Leave them to their fate,” Ezal said with a very cold look.
“Ezal? You ok?” I asked, concerned.
Her eyes softened, then she replied, “Sorry, the lie detector has let me hear a lot of information that makes me a little sad for us mortals. I know for a fact that two lords in Lecazar are necromancer supporters . . .”
All this information in just two days. That was a bit scary. All from this lie detector that Regan had made. I wondered what magic it used, as using magic in the mind was tricky. The slave crest was a type of overall magic that just inhibited surface thoughts; otherwise, the slave would die from their hate for their master. As the mind wasn’t exactly an element per say, all cultivators were able to do a bit of magic with it, but in that same thought no one was able to focus on it like they could their main element so it’s hard to gain experience working with the mind magically.
“Well, I’m sure Regan will enjoy some new toys to mess with,” I said with a laugh. I did feel bad about the people, but they brought this fate upon themselves.
“Haha. Last I heard, someone finally made it to the thirteenth floor. Never knew of an actual dungeon that held off adventurers from their floors for such a long time.”
“Regan is probably listening to us right now anyway,” I said with a shrug.
“Considering Princess Izora had a fancy execution last night and the obelisks didn’t make a peep,” Ezal said as she pulled a report from her desk. “I don’t know what interests him and what doesn’t.”
I looked it over quickly, frowning deeper the farther I read the document. It seemed Izora had had a pretty hard night. According to this, the gnome queen had been killed in an attack that had not only split the gnome airship force in half but had also put the gnomes into a lockdown.
We would have to tread carefully going forward from here. I doubted any of the gnome airships would come here with the princess in the valley, but other areas could be easily attacked with the magic contained in them. While I was worried about necromancers, there was also the issue of the pr
incess herself. I hated the thought, but we would need to keep an eye on her as well. Just as a precaution.
“I’m sure you don’t need me to say anything, but I assume the airdocks have been reinforced with more guards?” I asked just so I could be on the same page.
“First thing I did. Not only more guards, but everyone on the ships is required to sit through a lie detector test as well,” Ezal said with a nod. “Thanks to Regan’s obelisks, crime is, as I stated, at an all-time low, but a lot of the people who would have been fine living on the streets are now required to get jobs. Right now, there is quite a bit of competition in town for any open spots.” She paused as she spread her arms. “That’s where we come in to grab up all the trainable ones looking for a job. Of course, some of them quit right away, but the ones who stay are the better ones of the batch anyway.”
“Nicely done.”
“Thank you,” Ezal said with a small bow.
We conversed about the happenings of the town for a few minutes before Ezal asked where my little elemental had gone. The elemental I had . . . summoned during the horde battle didn’t return back to nature like I expected, so I named him Gulv. He tended to do whatever he wanted, but I would see him every now and then when he came back to my manor or the castle.
“I could ask the same thing, where’s Feuer?” I asked.
“He likes to bask in the sun around this time of day,” Ezal answered after she thought for a moment.
“Gulv should be around somewhere,” I said with a shrug.
~~~
I took Ezal to one of the many new restaurants that had opened over the last month or so. It was a decent time for lunch, and I wanted her to take a break. I know I was the one to put her in that position, but I could also be responsible for her. I was a hundred percent sure this restaurant would be lacking compared to Regan’s, but I needed to be fair to my people.
The place was fairly new, having only opened a week ago, but I could see it was very popular from the amount of people gathered around the entrance. As we made our way over, the person standing at the front of the line saw us and quickly gestured for us to take his place. I tried to refuse, but he and everyone else in the line basically pushed us inside.
“My lady!” a server squeaked when he saw us. He quickly bowed, then ran into the back. Shortly, another man, obviously the owner, came out with him. He was dressed nicely, and even though he was dotted with a bit of food from cooking, his clothes spoke to how well the restaurant was doing for him.
“Lady Louella! It is a pleasure to have you in my humble establishment. I can’t thank you enough for the opportunity to be allowed to open a restaurant in this amazing town,” the owner said with genuine happiness on his face. “Please come in and order whatever you want. It’s on the house.”
“I thank you for your kind words, Sir . . .”
“Sir Herbert, my lady!”
“Sir Herbert. Do you have a table for all of us?” I asked as I gestured to Ezal, Julie, and Wrakras. Unfortunately, I would be breaking etiquette to eat with the other guards, but Julie and Wrakras were more like guests that Regan had stuck with me.
“Of course!” he said and led us into the building. He gave us an out-of-the-way seat that was partitioned off. I wasn’t sure if my hunch was right, but it felt like an attempt to copy Regan. He left, saying a server would be there to assist us in only a moment, and sure enough the server was there even before he got back to the kitchen.
“Here are the menus. Please let me know when you are ready,” the woman said as she handed over some sheets of parchment.
I was surprised as I examined the items. They were all things I had never heard of before. “Where did the master of this establishment learn to cook?” I asked curiously.
“He was a cook for a B-rank adventurer team that came to town for the horde mission. While they stayed here, they always went to the restaurant opened by the dungeon, so he was very free. One day he went to the library, where he found several cookbooks. They were so simple that he learned four dishes in only a few hours,” the server gushed with starstruck eyes as she looked over to the owner, who was helping another person.
“That is pretty interesting. I’m glad that the library has helped someone,” I said as I smiled at the obviously lovestruck girl.
~~~
The atmosphere at the restaurant was so nice that Ezal and I wasted nearly two hours there. I wouldn’t say it was completely unproductive, as we managed to come to a decision on a few topics for the town. I was taking a sip of tea when a loud voice traveled over to us from another part of the restaurant.
“Chips! Would ya check out the price of some of these meals! I could eat like a king for a week in Jade Port with this much gold,” a scrawny man said as he looked at the menu.
“Good . . . smell!” the large man next to the scrawny one said. I assumed he was Chips.
“Aye, I have to agree!”
The waitress walked up to them carefully, as Chips was obviously a half-orc, and they tended to have bad reputations. The scrawny man looked up as she approached and gave her a twisted grin.
“Guests, what . . . what can I get for you?” the waitress asked, only squeaking at the end.
“Aye! I would like this . . . salmon filet! Being away from the sea has given me a hankerin’ for some seafood.”
“Meat!” Chips said with some volume.
“I know, I know! The biggest meat dish you have for me friend here,” the scrawny man said as he smacked Chips’s shoulder.
The waitress nodded, then basically fled from the pair. Ezal and I returned to our conversation. The restaurant was relatively busy, so most of the tables were full.
“Hey! Me and me friend here want some grub!” the scrawny man shouted suddenly.
The noise drew my attention. It’d only been ten minutes or so. One of the waitresses ran over and tried to assure him that the food would be out as soon as it was done.
“What, did ya have to catch the bloody fish?!” the man exclaimed.
“Sir, it will only be a few more minutes,” the waitress said, desperately trying to calm the man.
“We’re tired of waitin’!” the man said, then two or three dozen orbs of red light appeared in his hands.
The waitress screamed, Ezal jumped up, and the guards moved to restrain the two. Even before they took a step, the orbs shot off randomly about two meters each, then detonated into a spherical explosion. Ezal managed to get a barrier up just before the blasts reached us.
Ezal’s barrier protected our side of the restaurant, but the other half looked pretty bad. All the other patrons of the establishment were on the ground, groaning as they grabbed their ears in pain. The owner had covered the waitress with his own body and suffered a few burns. The scrawny man looked at us in surprise, as if he was used to bringing everyone down with the first attack.
“Crap, Chips!” the little man shouted, and the half-orc grabbed a wicked-looking blade off his back.
Before he could do anything, the wall to the street collapsed from the damage it had sustained. I sensed a surge of mana from just down the street, then a moment later, the little man’s face twisted in pain, but he kept standing. Another wave followed that brought Chips to his knees.
The scrawny man started to gather mana for something when another wave hit him. His features drew tight in pain again, but he was able to shake it off somehow. A moment later, the obelisk sent a much stronger wave of energy that forced the small man’s knees to buckle, cracking when they hit the floor.
I was more amazed that even after that he was still conscious. Finally, as if getting pissed off, the obelisk surged with enough mana to bend the light around it. Another explosion literally pushed the man into the ground with how much force it used. Unfortunately, the building couldn’t handle it and started to collapse.
We rushed outside while the guards helped the injured patrons. After the building finished collapsing, the owner stood outside with tears running down his
face, the waitress who’d served us holding his arm. The guards managed to drag the two culprits out of the debris a bit later and cuffed them with mana-regulators. A step down from a slave crest, they stopped a person from using their mana by interrupting the internal flow.
“Was anyone killed?” I asked, looking around at the patrons who were being helped by nearby guards.
“No, my lady. Only some injuries,” a guard answered, then went back to helping out.
Ezal sighed as she looked at the mess. “Looks like I have work to do,” she moaned.
“Shouldn’t Regan’s dungeon repair this automatically?” I asked, confused.
“No, he only does that for government buildings. If a business owner wants it done, they have to pay him a protection fee, in mana. Most normal citizens can’t afford it by themselves. That’s also why the obelisk didn’t do anything until the building wall came down. Unless it’s necromancer related, they leave the insides of a building alone,” Ezal explained.
I nodded, then called over an automaton that was nearby. “I want to pay the mana cost for this. Can I?”
“Affirmative,” it said, then held out its hand.
I saw a mana crystal embedded in its palm. Getting the gist, I placed my hand over it and channeled my mana into it. A minute, and roughly half my mana, later, the automaton nodded to me. It looked over to the building and said something in a language that I felt shouldn’t work. There was a glow and the building started to reform.
When it was done, I had a thought. “Couldn’t someone murder a person in a building and get away with it?” I asked, surprised.
“Ah, that would be true except for two things: the victim can ask for help, and Regan has an automaton that delivers reports of such things to us every two days. Regan stated it was a compromise for the . . . less violent crimes,” Ezal said.
“I . . . see . . .” I said, trying to take all the information in.
There were so many things to do as the lord of the booming valley that I hadn’t really been able to keep up with security, deciding to trust Ezal and Regan. Other than my own general safety, I really didn’t have any control, anyway. I had to trust them even though Baden had burned me in the past.