Fontea shook her head disbelievingly. “You… I was afraid you were injured or captured, but you’ve just been sitting here with Aster, not leaving the dungeon because… because… did you think we didn’t care, or…?”

Milo stepped forward. He shook his head. “It’s complicated. I… I can explain.”

“You’d better,” Fontea snapped, crossing her arms and looking him up and down.

Milo quavered. He glanced around at the unfriendly eyes watching him from all directions and crept toward the back, deeper into the dungeon. “Can we… in private, maybe?”

Fontea shook her head, planting her feet. “No. Right here, right now, explain what happened to everyone!”

Aster licked his lips. Not good. The last thing we need is drama. And besides, if Milo explains… Stella is as good as dead! Dungeon delvers and adventurers know what to expect from dungeons, but ordinary people won’t. They’ll be terrified if they learn what even a moderately safe dungeon like this one is truly capable of. I’ve seen it before. The villagers learn, they get scared, and then they board up or destroy the dungeon to keep themselves safe, totally ignoring the long history of the dungeon not hurting anyone except those foolish enough to choose to enter!

He stepped forward. “Fontea, please be reasonable. Come on. I’ll take you to a private room, the three of you can enjoy a peaceful pot of tea, and—”

“You’ve delayed long enough. Talk now, or we fight,” Fontea growled.

Jaro put a hand on her shoulder. Quietly, he whispered, “Fontea, you’re causing a scene.”

“So what? It’s time to cause a scene!” Fontea argued. “How long has it been since half our party vanished into this godforsaken dungeon? And now we meet Milo, and he’s just… standing there, and he still doesn’t want to tell us!”

“Please. You’re bothering the guests,” Aster said, reaching out toward Fontea.

She took a sharp step back, her hand darting to her hilt. “One more step, Zwei. I’ll claim the pitiful bounty on your head.”

A few of the teahouse’s patrons gasped. A few of the groups with children stood and started to escape, quietly fleeing the cave and hurrying down the trail back toward town. The rest exchanged nervous glances, shifting uncomfortably where they sat.

The dungeon’s crystals flickered again, momentarily darkening before turning bright again.

Aster sighed. He shook his head and spread his hands. “It’s a pitiful bounty for calling myself the wrong title once or twice, not a life-or-death affair. There’s no need to exaggerate.”

Fontea laughed loudly. “Calling yourself a Dungeon Keeper when you’re no longer even a member of the adventurer’s guild? Aren’t you just a fraudster and a cheat, trying to take advantage of this small town?"

The town council exchanged glances and began to murmur.

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

“I haven’t charged a single penny since I arrived, and I won’t until I restore the dungeon to working order. If you have a problem with my results, we can discuss it then, but don’t throw baseless accusations around before you’ve seen the fruits of my efforts,” Aster returned flatly, keeping his cool.

The town elder nodded, leaning forward to reassure the town council.

Fontea opened her mouth.

Before she could start again, Aster shook his head and continued. “I understand that you’re concerned about your friends. I would be, too. But here is not the place for it. Come into the back room, and we can discuss it like reasonable adults. Let’s not air our laundry in front of the entire town.”

“Fontea,” Jaro murmured. He shook his head.

Fontea scowled. “You’re such a coward. Fine! Fine. We can go into your back rooms. But if we never come out… you all saw it!” She spun around, pointing at all the villagers in the tea room. Stomping through, she pressed into the rear rooms and vanished. Jaro followed at her shoulder, turning to give apologetic smiles all around.

Milo glanced at Aster. Aster nodded at him and thumbed toward the back of the room. He turned to the tearoom and smiled. “My apologies that you had your meal disturbed like that. Please, take your time and finish your tea, but the teahouse is closed for the day and will no longer take new customers.”

A low murmur spread amongst the patrons. A few more of them got up and left, shooting nasty looks at Aster on their way out. Aster ignored them, keeping up a professional smile and waving as they left. Only when the last of them turned their back did he retreat into the back room, joining Milo, Fontea, and Jaro.

“So? No more delaying it. No more distractions. What happened to Silas and Alice?” Fontea asked, putting her hands on her hips.

Milo glanced at Aster.

Aster took a deep breath, then nodded, giving Milo a warning look in return. Tell them everything, but leave out Stella. “Go ahead.”

Milo swallowed, then turned back to Fontea. He opened his mouth, paused, then started again. “It’s, it’s a long story.”

“We have time,” Fontea replied.

Milo shook his head. “The important thing… the important thing is that Silas is alive. Alice…”

“Alice died?” Fontea asked. She shook her head. “Was it that hard to say? We all understand that death is a consequence of entering the dungeon. I mean, I’m not happy about it, but fuck, Milo. Was it really worth hiding for this long over?”

“Alice… is a monster now,” Milo said, nervous eyes locked on Aster.

Aster shrugged. As long as you leave Stella out of it, go ahead.

“She’s… what?” Fontea asked.

Milo nodded. He began to speak. The words came slow, then rushed out of him. Eyes locked on the floor, hands twisting nervously, he spilled out the story to Fontea and Jaro. Whenever he was about to bring up Stella, Aster cleared his throat. After the second time, Milo got the hint and stopped bringing up Stella.

About halfway through his story, a rock rattled down the hallway from where Daiyo stood. Aster glanced toward the golem, eyebrows furrowed, then looked away. Must’ve dislodged a rock on accident.

A second rock rolled down to Aster’s feet. He frowned, peering into the darkness. Daiyo, hey! Be quiet! You’re better than this.

Yet another rock knocked against Aster’s foot. He turned toward Milo and his party members and smiled. “I’ve got something to take care of. I’ll be right back.”

“You better not run away. I’ll have your head for taking Alice’s,” Fontea growled.

Milo shook his head. “Fontea, we were in the dungeon illegally. That’s punishable by—”

“Illegally? According to who, this Dungeon Fraud? He’s no Dungeon Keeper. He has no authority here,” Fontea snarled.

Aster cleared his throat, pausing mid-step. “Actually, it’s the town elder who closed the dungeon.” At my request, but the authority came from him.

Milo nodded. “It’s true.”

Fontea grimaced. Her lips twisted, but she said nothing.

Aster hurried off into the darkness, not hesitating another minute. He turned the corner and found Daiyo standing there, half hunched. “Daiyo. What’s up?”

Daiyo turned toward him, then uncurled, holding out his arm. Stella curled up on one of his massive arms, her eyes shut and her body curled into a tight knot, every muscle in her body tense.

Aster’s eyes widened. “Holy shit. What happened?”