After a night’s rest, I then send Maeve a message telling her about what the mage’s guild has planned. She doesn’t seem too worried about it, but asks if I would be willing to meet with her just the same. After I agree, she even says I can bring Belinda along, which makes Belinda happy.
Using [Archjusticar Menu] I find Maeve’s location and using the screen that shows me her I am able to use [Gate] to her dungeon.
Maeve: “I know I invited you to my dungeon, but being able to teleport to any dungeon in such a way is rather scary to think about.”
“Well there are lots of dungeon cores out there that are stronger then I am. Madam Erin’s teleporting can’t be within a dungeon, but Dyson’s can. I can only teleport to a dungeon core, but I think Dyson can teleport anywhere, so with his strength if he had a mind to he could take out anyone.”
Maeve: “But that is why there are so many rules for the Elders.”
“Who enforces those rules though? With his teleportation and [Observation] he could take out all the other elders before they realize what is going on.”
Maeve: “So don’t do anything to make Elder Dyson mad. Got it.”
“Speaking of Dyson, you haven’t heard from him, have you?”
Maeve: “No papa… Your little girl is still being a good girl.”
Belinda: “Your daddy is just trying to look out for you.”
“Wait now that I think about, we were so rushed when going to Inari’s dungeon, I didn’t notice, but how did Madam Erin use her teleport to reach your dungeon?”
Maeve: “When Madam Erin told me what she wanted me to do, I removed one of the ruined buildings from my dungeon. They don’t cost much and a ruined building breaking down doesn’t really change things much, but with a wall large enough to hold a portal, not connected to my dungeon, Madam Erin was able to use it.”
“And that really worked?”
Maeve: “You made it in one piece didn’t you?
“I guess so, but your dungeons ground floor seems to work quite differently than mine does.”
Maeve: “Well Papa is quite special. Anyway, the reason I asked to meet was I wanted to know if you could help the adventurers get to my dungeon.”
“Wait you want them to reach your dungeon?”
Maeve: “You said they issued a protection order for my dungeon right?”
“But that doesn’t guarantee anything. If it is xp you need, I think gathering some near your sister’s dungeon would be far easier to do then having to worry about your dungeon being under attack.”
Maeve: “Oh I have, and I even had a nice long talk with big sis, but I didn’t build my dungeon like this to hide.”
“Then what was your intention?”
Maeve: “Well I don’t know about going as far as big sis did, but don’t you think this above ground area would make such a quaint little retreat for strong and high level adventurers that want to take a break from it all?”
Belinda: “You want to turn your dungeon into a tourist destination?”
Maeve: “Why not? If humans are enjoying their time here, they are far less likely to try to take my dungeon out.”
“But you could avoid the humans all together, why take the risk at all?”
Maeve: “What do you think our purpose as dungeon cores is supposed to be?”
“I don’t know, build a dungeon that humans can’t destroy in order to stay alive?”
Maeve: “I guess, but why did the old gods, or whoever is responsible for putting us here, and make us this way?”
“Well if the followers of the old gods I have met are any indication, I would say it was because some twisted sense of enjoyment out of it.”
Maeve: “I like to think our purpose is to further advance the humans. Just look how far the humans have come since dungeons were first discovered. Before dungeons, the humans could barely use magic, their living conditions were poor, and even their intelligence was far less then now. The challenge of facing dungeons has made humans what they are today.”
“Advancement of a species is only natural, I think you are giving dungeons to much credit.”
Maeve: “How many advances has the adventurer’s guild itself made for the lives of humans? The adventurer’s guild wouldn’t even exist were it not for the dungeons.”
Belinda: “I mean, she has a point, even if not directly the dungeons have helped humans grow. Just look what your dungeon has done for Tobes, and that is only one dungeon.”
“I understand all that, but there are still those who will try to take out your dungeon even if you help the humans, so are you sure you are ready to have adventurers roaming your dungeon?”
Maeve: “I will have you know I have been hard at work preparing my dungeon, and I am sure even with Papa helping the humans they still won’t reach my dungeon overnight.”
“I just want you to be safe.”
Maeve: “Aww, thanks Papa, but if you would really like to help maybe you can let me borrow some of your monsters like you are doing for big sis?”
“What do you mean borrowing some of my monsters?”
Maeve: “Big sis told me, she has a group of your monsters helping to protect her dungeon while they are gathering xp for you.”
“Well that isn’t exactly how it went. She summoned them and allowed me to bind them to my dungeon. She is basically just giving me xp from her monsters.”
Maeve: “That’s not how she told it…”
“I’m sorry, I mean I am summoning new groups all the time, and I don’t mind one giving you a hand, but I don’t see how that would really help any of us at the moment.”
Maeve: “Well I really expected to be able to summon elves by now, but even though I have met all the requirements, for some reason they haven’t unlocked yet. I was hoping maybe you could help me out with a few of them.”
“If you are talking about a trade, I can probably help you out.”
Maeve: “But what could I possibly have that papa doesn’t already?”
“Well you are a wind dungeon core, and as far as wind monsters go I am pretty limited. I have the fairy and pixie lines, a harpy, and a griffon, but that is pretty much it.”
Maeve: “Because of my boss monsters I have a lot unlocked for the pixie and fairy line, but other than that they are rather low on their own evolutionary lines. I should be able to scrounge up enough different types of monsters to make up for a dozen sentient elves, but I am going to have to take a trip back to sis’s dungeon to gather some more xp before I can trade.”
“A dozen?”
Maeve: “Yes, I won’t be able to summon humans, but I should unlock elves at any time, so I was planning on starting a little elven village up here. If you can trade me a dozen elves until I figure out what I am missing, they could at least get started in building the village.”
“I do have rules, if I am to trade you any sentient monsters.”
Maeve: “Given papa’s personality, I am sure you do, but you don’t have to worry I will take good care of them.”
“I guess I don’t have any objections to a trade then, but are you sure about wanting me to help the mage’s guild?”
Maeve: “Yes, I am sure.”
“Alright then, you can let me know when you are ready to trade.”
Maeve: “Are you in a hurry? I thought with bringing Mama you would like to talk a bit more.”
Belinda: “We wouldn’t want to impose, but I would love to hear how you have been doing lately.”
Maeve takes us around the surface area of her dungeon showing us what she has plans for the little village she plans on building, and we basically make a day out of just talking with Maeve. I wasn’t sure if Maeve really thought of us are her parents, and I still don’t, but I do think even if she doesn’t, she still at least thinks of us a bit like family.
Days like that aren’t that bad once in a while, and the good mood it puts Belinda in was well worth it once we returned home that evening, as we wasted no time retreating to bed.
The next morning I receive quite a shock when I am awoken by a warning in [Menu]. The bunnies handle most things regarding the dungeon, so the alarm was quite the shock. It was enough of a shock that I came bolting out of bed, waking Belinda in the process.
Belinda: “What’s wrong?!”
I quickly scan the message that appeared before me.
Divine Being available to summon. 4 days, 18 hours, 57 minutes remaining before Divine Being no longer meets requirements.
“It’s the divine being. I have met the requirements for it to summon, it says I have just less than 5 days to summon one.”
Belinda: “That’s great! You have the xp set aside for it right?”
“We do, but since we have that long, I think I will check with the bunnies to make sure it is alright before I do, because they aren’t exactly cheap and we aren’t quite sure what to expect from it.”
Belinda: “In that case, it is still a while before the sun comes up, so why don’t we celebrate a bit?” –She says flashing me from beneath the blankets.-
Now with only 4 days and 15 hours remaining to summon a divine being, I head to the dungeon core room to speak to the bunnies.
“I have good news girls. The divine being is currently available to summon, but I only have a few days before it becomes unavailable again.”
Lila: “There is 53,525xp available for emergencies, 12,310xp available for the main wing of the dungeon, 159,294xp available for the elemental wings, 100,000xp set aside for that specific purpose, so the summoning of a divine being should be no problem.”
“We have such a limited window, that I might summon a second one for Inari, because we did promise her one, but let’s see how the first one turns out first.”
Lilah: “Lilah wants to see what a 100,000xp monster looks like!”
“Well Belinda and I are both divine beings and the others have the divine before their race as well. It doesn’t say anything about sentient, but humans can only be summoned as sentient as well. The cost is quite high, but I would assume it will look like a human like I do.”
Lylah: “What’s Master waiting for!?”
“I wanted to make sure we were ok on xp, Belinda wanted to see me summon it as well, so I will go get her real quick.”
Lilah: “Hurry Master!”
“There is still plenty of time…” –I say while transferring back to the house.-
“They seem really excited, so we better go do this.”
Belinda: “Here, put this on.” –She says handing me some clothes.-
“What’s this?”
Belinda: “It’s the first divine being you have ever summoned from scratch, so I thought it would be nice to dress up a bit like we do for the new dungeons.”
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
I store the outfit in the dungeon inventory and then equip it. “There, I am sure if we don’t hurry up the bunnies will summon it without us.”
Belinda laughs and grabs my arm. “Alright, I’m ready.”
We then transfer back to the dungeon core room, and the bunnies quickly stop messing with a screen in front of Lilah.
“Are you all using the same screen? I didn’t think that was possible.”
Lilah: “It is an option available in the [Advanced Menu], so it is of course limited to the dungeon core room.”
Lylah: “We can use it to help summon monsters together, to make sure they come out just right.”
“You weren’t going to try to summon the divine being without us were you?”
Lilah: “Of course not Master!” –She says while nervously chuckling and quickly closing the screen in front of them.-
Leila: “It’s ok Master, it still showed unavailable to us when we tried!” –The other bunnies quickly try to cover the littlest bunny’s mouth.-
Belinda: “Girls! You know better than that!”
The bunnies hang their heads, and then Lilah speaks. “But Master said he was going to summon 2 anyway, so we thought it wouldn’t hurt for Lilah and her sisters to summon at least one of them.”
Belinda: “Two?”
“We don’t know if or when the divine beastkin is going to become available, and the window to summon one is quite limited, so I thought I did promise Inari a divine monster for the group she gave me.”
Belinda: “She said not to worry about it, but I am glad you thought of Inari like that.”
“Let’s just see how the first one goes, and then we can check with Inari if she wants one.”
To get the most out of this monster I open up [Advanced Menu], but when I select the divine being all the options are showing as unavailable. I can’t even set the age or sex of the monster.
“It won’t let me change any settings, so I guess to summon a divine being everything has to be random. Well, here goes nothing.”
I then press the button…
“…”
Belinda: “…”
Bunnies: “…”
“What happened?”
Lilah: “Master must of done something wrong, try it again.”
I press the button again, and instead a message pops up.
Requirements for the summoning of a Divine Being not met.
“It says I don’t meet the requirements again!”
Belinda: “Did you wait too long?”
“We should have had days…”
Lila: “But Master, the xp is gone!”
“What do you mean gone?”
Lila: “100,000xp is gone from the dungeon.”
“So the summoning failed, and still cost the xp? Have you ever heard of such a thing?”
Lilah: “No Master, if you spent the xp the monster should have been summoned.”
I scan the list of monsters in the dungeon, but no monster appears. To be on the safe side we spend quite a while scouring all of the screens for the dungeon, but nothing turns up.
Lylah: “Should we go through the screens for Tobes as well?”
“It’s not showing up in monsters, so I think it would just be a waste of more time… I hate to rely on the elders every time a problem pops up, but I think I should really ask them about this.”
I then send a message to Madam Erin.
(Have you ever heard of a monster failing to summon in [Menu]?)
Madam Erin: (What do you mean failing to summon?)
(I tried to summon a monster and nothing happened. The monster had a special requirement that said I met, but when I tried to summon it the xp was removed from my dungeon, but no monster. I tried it again, but it said I no longer met the requirements.)
Madam Erin: (What kind of monster are we talking about here?)
(The divine being, I finally have enough xp that I thought I would summon one, but then it had a requirement that it wouldn’t display, and after [Menu] said I met the requirements I tried to summon it, and nothing happened except the deduction of the xp.)
Madam Erin: (The divine beings are unique to you so I have no idea what their requirements would be, but if you said you met the requirements and used the xp, then you should have the monster.)
(I don’t… It doesn’t appear under the list of monsters, and we even manually looked though the screens to find it, and we were unable to.)
Madam Erin: (I don’t know what to tell you then, but I would suggest not trying to summon any more until you figure it out.)
(That goes without saying… Thanks for your help.)
Madam Erin: (Any time you are willing to give information about your unique dungeon I am here.)
(Other than the fact you now know I can’t summon divine beings like we thought, I don’t see how that is any helpful information.)
Madam Erin: (If you say so pup.)
Now what has she figured out…?
“Well Madam Erin hasn’t heard of anything like this before either. So I don’t know what is going on.”
Lilah: “What about the xp?”
“Well at least it wasn’t as much as we lost on the mythril swords that we placed the first time, but I guess it is just a loss as well.”
Belinda: “So we aren’t summoning another monster?”
“It doesn’t look like it…”
Lilah: “Lilah is disappointed…”
“I am going to leave [Menu] to warn me if it becomes available to summon again, along with all the other divine type monsters, so maybe we can figure out what the requirements are, but we need to figure this out before we try again.”
Bunnies: “Yes Master…”
The xp for the divine being was set aside for it, but not getting a monster after using the xp made it seem like such a heavy blow. Even when I was in a rush to use the mythril swords in the dungeon and ended up losing them, I still didn’t feel like it was such a pointless expense as this was.
I dwell on it pretty heavily for a few days until I receive a well-dressed elf knocking on my door.
Elf: “I am Kaelmathis. I believe we share a mutual friend? He said you would be expecting me.”
“I’m sorry, are you the one to teach my servant how to craft mythril items?”
Kaelmathis: “I believe that is what our mutual friend wishes of me, but I just had to meet the man that was able to not only reproduce, but even surpass the great dwarf Gardock’s work.”
“I am not exactly sure what he told you, but please come in.”
Kaelmathis looks a little hesitant as he looks at the house. “I’m sorry but I am a little paranoid when it comes to dungeons. Not that I am saying there is anything wrong with dungeons, but your house isn’t part of yours is it?”
“You know of the dungeons?”
Kaelmathis: “I was originally a boss monster of one myself, but our mutual friend killed my master. It wasn’t personal, but I was forced to work for him for a while after that.”
“You don’t seem to hold a grudge to him though, and what is with elves always referring to Dyson as our mutual friend?”
Kaelmathis: “Our mutual friend had a proclivity of targeting other dungeons that made use of elves, so his name has become sort of a sore spot for our race. I do have to admit though, even though he is a murderer of many of my people, his reason for doing so was not his own, and in the end he wasn’t the one that caused my peoples suffering, but our masters that saw to that.”
“You don’t hold Dyson responsible at all?”
Kaelmathis: “I would not trust my daughter to him, or even an enemy’s daughter for that matter, but I do have a respect for him that I acquired while serving him. He may not be the most noble or best his kind has to offer, but he will stay true to his word, even if that word is not the one you want to hear.”
“I see… I hate to tell you this, but you stepped into my dungeon when you entered town, so inside or outside of the house is of little difference.”
Kaelmathis seems to become highly nervous, but he calms himself to say. “Then I ask of you, please refrain from using your ability to transfer on me, as I find its usage rather unpleasant.”
“I can live with that, please come in. We wouldn’t want the villagers to hear our conversation especially if it remains on the topic of the dungeons.”
Kaelmathis nods and I lead him inside to the living room.
Kaelmathis: “Not exactly the most modest of houses, but for others of your kind it is rather diminutive when it comes to having dwellings among humans.”
“Well my wife is the kingdom’s princess, and she had it built. I would say its usage is to keep the humans unaware of who I am, but in truth I think I prefer it a great deal over living in the actual dungeon itself.”
Kaelmathis: “You really are quite the unique member of the dungeon cores. Our mutual friend informed me he couldn’t tell me how you were able to summon a sword of greater quality then the late Gardock, but he did say it was though your use of [Menu] is that correct?”
“My dungeon is rather unique, and it allows me to do such stuff from time to time, so I produced the sword to Dyson in exchange for a trade.”
Kaelmathis: “And part of that trade was for me to train your elf in a way to craft items of mythril?”
“Well something to that effect.”
Kaelmathis: “I can’t promise I will be able to, but if she is a gifted elven crafter I may be able to help. Although I do wish to reserve the right to not teach her if I find her undeserving.”
“Well if you taught Dyson, I doubt Azami has anything to worry about.”
Kaelmathis: “So this is where Azami made off to, I am starting to understand a bit more.”
“I’m sorry, do you know Azami?”
Kaelmathis: “I have met her a time or two in passing while working for our mutual friend, but to say I know her is a bit of a stretch. I do think her personality might serve as a bit of a hindrance, but I do think she is a capable enough of a crafter.”
“Her attitude has seemed to improve a great deal lately, but I can see where you are coming from.”
Kaelmathis: “It must have. I would of never believed that the Azami I had known about to be taken in as a monster by another dungeon.”
“I learned about what happened to her from her sister, and ex-fiancé, but if after hearing you not holding grudges against Dyson, I am not starting to wonder if she is being too hard on herself about what she had done.”
Kaelmathis: “Even those of us that are not bound to a dungeon live long lives compared to that of a human, and we are known to hold grudges for centuries, and although I have no hostility towards our mutual friend, I do loathe him, so her feelings may be justified.”
“Well I would ask you not let her hear you say that, as she has only just now begun to come around.”
Kaelmathis: “And how about her spriggans? Do they still remain without form?”
“If you are referring to the elemental like creatures she commands, they do appear to have started to take a humanoid shape. I asked her about it once, and she made it sound like that was the form they were supposed to have.”
Kaelmathis: “An elven summoner like Azami uses spriggans as a weapon and shield, but their appearance is molded by their master’s personality. Most have a humanoid shape, but legend says there was a summoner who was so pure in intentions, that her spriggans appeared no different than their master.”
“I don’t know if Azami will ever make it that far, but if she keeps improving like she has I don’t see why they couldn’t at least take a solid shape.”
Kaelmathis: “You really are something else… If I am to be teaching Azami in the art of crafting mythril, I do suppose we should go pay her a visit.”
“She is staying in the forest, and I could call her to the house, or if you prefer I can take you to her.”
Kaelmathis: “I wouldn’t dare refuse a stretch of the legs in the woods.”
“Well if you don’t wish to be transferred, it will be a bit of a walk, but I will show you the way.”
I then escort Kaelmathis up the side of the mountain heading towards the small lake. I don’t recall ever taking this path, but before the placement of the secondary dungeon I must have, and it seems at least my body knows the way.
It’s not like we could have gotten lost, there is the trail the adventurers use, but still I feel that I know the path as we walk along it seeing familiarity in objects I have no memory of.
Once we make it to the lake we head into the forest to the location in which Azami resides with Moss. I haven’t been to where Azami lives in a while, because she has come down to the house, but where they were seemingly camping outside there is now a few trees twisted together resembling a dwelling like that I saw back in the village she was from.
She has been asking for a few items lately, so it is not a surprise, but the feeling of her making this place her home seems to make me feel quite good. When we arrive Azami and Moss are both working on crafting items, and although Moss seems to be trying to copy Azami, hers is a brilliant silver and emerald colored armor, and Moss’s is made of wood.
When Azami spots me she slowly lowers the item she is working on, but when she spots the other elf, the armor quickly drops to the ground and she rushes to Moss pulling him behind her.
Kaelmathis: “I see that you remember me… I see you are doing quite well.”
Azami: “I have respect enough to give Two-Twelve the benefit of the doubt, but what is he doing here?”
Kaelmathis: “Our mutual friend thought it would be nice for me to teach you the art of mythril crafting.”
Azami: “I do seek to wish to craft items from mythril for the aid of Two-Twelve’s dungeon, and for obtaining more power. I however must decline if the one that is to teach me is you.”
“I’m sorry, I must be missing something here.”
Azami: “This man traded the lives of all of his people to simply preserve his own when he asked our mutual friend to help destroy his master.”
Kaelmathis: “That is harsh coming from you.”
Azami: “I had the courage to take that burden on myself, and even expected it to cost me my life, but you did the opposite, you traded their lives so you wouldn’t have to fight.”
Kaelmathis: “The end result was the same, was it not?”
“Azami, I understand that you don’t like him, but I made a deal with Dyson that allowed him to come teach you how to craft mythril items. I will respect your decision if you cannot work with him, but I ask if you can put that aside at least while he teaches you.”
Azami: “If you made a deal, that means there was a cost.”
“Well nothing I would risk you for, so if you can’t do it I understand. I can keep him away from you and maybe summon another for him to teach.”
Azami: “No… I made a deal with myself I would do what I have to if it meant I would gain more power, and if Two-Twelve went out of his way to grant me this power I must accept this responsibility. ”
“I don’t want to force anything on you.”
Azami: “I do wish to ask for some stipulations however. He cannot stay here in the forest, if I am to learn mythril crafting from him I will come to the village and learn it there, if it does not involve the crafting of mythril he doesn’t speak to me otherwise, and he must keep far away from Moss.”
Moss: “I want to learn to craft mythril too!”
Azami: “You are still a long way from that, and once I learn how, and you become ready, I can then teach you.”
Kaelmathis: “I can accept those terms as long as you don’t mind me speaking in general, if you choose to speak back however is up to you.”
Azami nods her head.
“Are you sure you are ok with this Azami?”
Azami: “Location is not important when we craft, so is it acceptable for me to train in the house in which you and Belinda reside?”
“Well I guess, if you want to use the ballroom, or the living room that would be alright. I was told this could take up to a year though, so are you sure you are ok with this?”
Azami: “I guarantee I will acquire the skill in as little as a few months.”
“Don’t rush it ok…?”
Azami: “Rushing is not the issue, I am just confident in my abilities, and speaking of which, there is no time like the present, so we shall begin now.”
“We haven’t gotten him set up in town yet.”
Kaelmathis: “That is quite alright, If Azami wishes to start now, I will gladly begin the lesson.”
Azami: “Well no time to waste then.” –She says then transfers away.-
Kaelmathis: “She knows I don’t like to be transferred… Alright, Two-Twelve go ahead and transfer us back, but I would suggest outside as I may throw up…”
“We could just walk back, and she can wait.”
Kaelmathis: “No, this was a challenge, and as her teacher I can’t back down.”
“Alright…” –I then take Kaelmathis’s shoulder and right before I transfer back to the house I hear Moss speak.-
Moss: “Don’t mind me! I will just go play with my wood...”
When we arrive back at the house Kaelmathis really does begin to throw up. After Kaelmathis quits throwing up I ask him. “How was it you were a boss monster of a dungeon and can’t handle transferring?”
Kaelmathis: “It was after my master died, I took a blow to the head that blew out one of my ears. It was just after I was no longer bound to a dungeon, so I didn’t realize the damage would become permanent, and my equilibrium has been off ever since. Sudden spontaneous moving like transfer or teleporting will cause me to get sick every time.”
“That does sound quite unfortunate, but are you sure you are ok with all of this and Azami?”
Kaelmathis: “Azami hates me for the same reason she hates herself, I can’t fault her for it anymore then I can fault myself. You have seemed to make great progress with her. I learned to move on after what happened, and maybe in turn I can help Azami a little as well.”
“Well I am sure Belinda would welcome the help as well, but I will say, Azami is a valuable ally to me, so treat her as such.”
Kaelmathis: “I understand.”
I then lead Kaelmathis into the house. I watch Azami and Kaelmathis begin, but everything is far beyond me. Azami doesn’t seem to like Kaelmathis at all, but she doesn’t seem to let that affect her either. It is more like she uses that as a reason to try harder. After I can no longer follow what they are even speaking about any more I excuse myself and hear another knock on the door.
Vetala starts making her way to the door, but since I am already here I wave her off, and answer it myself. When I open the door it is the older priest that runs the Faron church in town, and he looks rather distraught.
Faron priest: “Two-Twelve… They are here!”