James just sighed as he sat up from his nap on the 17th floor. He was once again at square one. He got up and acknowledged Naomi while rubbing his temples. This most recent loop had gone fairly well by his considerations. Together with the novices, they had hit a new record. He was certain that they could get to the 23rd floor this time if he fixed up a few things and played a more active role in the fighting. He could have ended fights quicker with his mana arrows, but he had pushed them aside in favor of more traditional attacks and improving his volley some more.

For now, he needed to deal with a problem. Wes was going to die eventually if his shield was not fixed up. Having Wes take up the spear as well helped to stave off the problems if only temporarily.

‘My only options for Wes are to get his shield repaired, replaced, or drop him from active duty. Dropping him is almost impossible and would cause problems when we get further into the dungeon. I can’t have him sidelined when he could provide the skills of a tank we need to survive. Replacement would require the dungeon to be lucky enough that we receive one on the 24th floor. I don’t think Wes can survive the 25th floor without a replacement by that point. Assuming the dungeon doesn’t give away any more free goodies we are left with the option to repair the shield. To repair the shield, we run into the problem of what materials and where to find them. Not to mention the repair process itself that we must complete in between a break fighting the monsters.’

As James led Wes and Naomi to the end of the floor he pondered his options.

‘Wes’s shield has mainly started to crack in the upper part of the wood and the joints of tempered metal. The only wood we could use to replace parts of the shield would come from the swamp. I never searched particularly well for good pieces of wood just acceptable ones for the traps and firewood. If I were to replace the wood of the shield I will need to spend a bit more time searching and then preparing the planks of wood cut from the trees. As for metal, unless I want to cannibalize our current weapons we will need to take them from the skeletal knight boss and the minotaurs. Transforming the materials into a usable shield will take some trial and error which will take some time that I currently have far too much of.’

James watched the skeletal knight fall dead before walking down the hill toward the others. He gave a simple wave and started repeating his quick speech about the change to the dungeon and the requirements they faced. Their faces lit up when he shifted the topic to that of treasure. The ring of agility went to Naomi. The necklace of strength to Derek. James decided to let Ian take the ring of fire resistance next time around.

With their business done on the 17th floor, James took the knight’s sword and strapped it to his back before entering the 18th floor.

The novices gave James looks as he collected the minotaur swords and Ian finally questioned him as he picked up a third minotaur weapon.

“We need them. Or more specifically the metal for Wes’s weapon. It is going to fall apart sooner rather than later.”

Ian sneered at that, and James ignored him.

“I’m hoping it isn’t too hard to fix so I am collecting more than should be necessary as a precaution. I will need your fire to reforge and shape the metal.”

Ian frowned at that but did not say anything.

“In return, I will give you an enchanted ring.”

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Ian perked up at the sound of that offer.

“So, you gave out the other's enchanted trinkets, but I don’t get any of the free items.”

“They aren’t suited for you, and you know it. And if I had any extras in my bag then they would likely go to you. I’m fairly certain that you will be happy with the reward on the 20th floor. Help me fix up the shield so Wes can have a better working shield and you will get your reward on the 20th floor. Now we just need to collect some good wood on the next floor and then we will be all ready to repair the shield.”

“If the item isn’t up to my satisfaction then I’ll take one of the other items instead.”

Ian looked at the enchanted items in the hands of the others. James knew that Ian was just looking at the other items for their monetary value and not for their usefulness to the team and individual holding them, but he didn’t make a fuss about it.

“If that is your wish you can trade the item if that will make you happy.”

James didn’t care to argue with Ian more than necessary. Ian huffed and moved on.

Their group cleared the 18th floor as they had done many times before and went on to the 19th. This time though James was weighed down by one skeleton knight sword, two minotaur swords, and one minotaur boss sword. He dumped them all on the ground soon after they entered the newest floor. It was time for them to get gathering, crafting, and assembling.

James directed the others to begin gathering the materials he needed for the traps and made sure to point out the unsafe areas where the spiders patrolled. While the novices gathered their items James did some searching of his own. He had become more familiar with the marshy swamps than most and used that knowledge to find the best tree for the shield. The tree he was looking for needed to be sturdy and not soaked with swamp water. It needed to bend with stress but not too much.

It took more time than James would have liked to find it. By the time James returned to the floor entrance with his supplies the novices had already returned from their gathering trip.

“Ian with me. Let’s begin melting the metal of the shield so we can pry it off. Once that is done I will realign the wood beams and replace them as needed. If you can get started with that I will prepare the wood.”

Ian nodded and James got to work. James held the tree pieces with one hand and began removing the bark with a knife before cutting it to the correct size. Next to him, Ian was working his fire with precision. His hands were like fire and heated the metal of the shield until it glowed red hot. With the metal softened he was able to peel it away after some pressure was applied. Ian kept his fire from spreading to the wood except on a few occasions.

After removing the metal Ian was able to slide the burnt and cracked wood pieces so they could be replaced by James.

James was quick with his knife and made quick straight cuts where needed. After he finished his latest plank he saw that Ian was finished with his part. Two planks had been removed by Ian and he had cut up two fresh planks that were ready to go.

Ian moved the metal off the shield and it left James room to do his work. James slid the new pieces into place after a few tries. He had to shave away at parts of the wood before it was finally finished.

Now that the new wood was in place it was time for the reforged metal. James had little to do as Ian liquified the old metal and brought in the new metal from the weapons. His technique wasn’t great, and he was burning a lot of mana, but the blades of the weapons liquified. Ian poured the metal into place and James threw some swamp water he had collected onto the metal. It rapidly cooled. The water steamed and hissed as its job protecting the wood from burning was completed.

After the main piece of the metal was applied Ian went in and added a bit more in spots to reinforce the shield. After a few more minutes they were done crafting the shield. James looked to the other novices and saw that they were already done crafting the traps they would need against the spider monsters.

“Good job Ian. I know precision isn’t your strong suit, but this turned out well,” said James.

He picked up the newly repaired shield and inspected it. His eyes widened a little and he shifted it in his hands.

“Strength of the Minotaur and Bones of the Knight. Only minor effects added to the shield but the fact that there are two of them will be of great help to you Wes.”

James passed the shield to Wes.

“The minotaur piece adds a bit of strength of course while the knight’s enchantment will give you some added health and vitality. It is perfect for you.”

Wes held the shield up and felt its power connect to his power and skills. He smiled wide.