Aurealia rolled over onto Duke the following morning. “You feel better about things now?”
“I feel great. What about you?”
“I’m back to myself again. Do you have plans for the day?” She smiled at him with the smile that never stopped melting his heart.
“I don’t have plans specifically but there are two paths that this day can take for me. One is to gather the team together to take on a rather difficult dungeon and the other is to visit all the new dungeon inns that I haven’t yet had time to visit. Either path appeal to you?”
“Tell me about this super-dungeon.”
“It’s what’s called a siege dungeon where you are attacked by increasingly larger groups of incrementally higher-level attackers. It has 50 waves in total. I didn’t make it past somewhere around wave 20. I’m going to need some help to complete it. But the experience from the dungeon is unbelievable.”
“That sounds promising and dangerous at the same time. I assume we can quit after a wave completes?”
“Exactly. If it starts to get too hard for the team, we bug out at the end of the level.”
“That sounds like it could be fun. What was the other choice? Visiting other Inns like the LFD?”
“Yeah. I planted the dungeon cores for a bunch yesterday, but there are seven that I haven’t even set foot in yet. At some point, I have to visit them and at least meet the innkeepers. Getting a call from one of them for help and not even knowing which one it is would be an annoying problem.”
“Have you gotten a call for help from any of the Inns?”
“Not yet, but it is only a matter of time before something happens.”
“Then maybe we should prioritize that trip?”
“I’d rather get the band back together and take on the dungeon.” Duke confessed.
“You and your idioms…But do you think Elaine and Grat will want to come?”
“I don’t think they will want to leave their kid behind for what might amount to a month or two.”
“You really think it will take that long to do the dungeon? That would be a strain on all of us for sure. The Legion is growing and mostly back in dungeon training but I don’t think it would be wise for me to be away for that long.”
“No, it will likely only take a day for us, but Havenreach runs twenty-four times faster than we do. One day here is twenty-four there.”
“I didn’t realize it was so different. They are going to grow so far apart from us living there.”
“Yes, but that is their choice and I’ll not rob them of that happiness.”
“Then who will we gather for the dungeon run?”
“You, me, Baslin, and I don’t know beyond that.”
“We should bring Eihlen. Her healing Abilities would be good to have on hand for such a dungeon run. What about some of your Leviathan friends?”
“That’s a good idea. Go see if Eihlen wants in and I’ll go check in on my Leviathan friends. Ask, don’t order.” Duke clarified, getting a “well, duh” stare back from Aurelia.
***
Duke arrived in Havenreach via the established portal. He could have TELEPORTED directly in, but wanted to make it a habit to use the portal since he went to all the effort to establish it. Travelling through the Trading Center and then the Hall of Possibilities was still an experience and reminded him of the potential booming trade that should be happening soon.
The guards greeted him as he entered the new gateway building. Duke found it remarkably well-defended with murder holes, portcullises and numerous hidden traps that his DUNGEON SENSE picked up on. There was even a full barracks established alongside the gateway building. The other thing that struck him was the quality of the construction – it was remarkable. The seams between the stones were hard to find without close inspection and the entire place was beautifully carved depicting caravans and similar scenes of trade and tradesmen.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
“Greetings Your Majesty. Welcome back to Havenreach. I trust your journey was without issue?”
“Yes, very much so. Then again, this passage should be very secure at least for the short-term. Eventually, we may allow others to come to the city, but I doubt that is coming anytime soon. Anything I should know about the city before I head down there?”
“Nothing critical, Your Majesty.”
“Very well. Carry on, then.” Duke exited the gateway building and was astonished by what he saw. Havenreach had grown in size and splendor. Great spires rose from the alabaster city which gave Duke an instant flashback to the flying city he had just encountered. The construction was similar in style and set Duke’s mind to churning. He set down the road, eager to see what had changed in the city.
When he entered the city gates, he saw that all the metallic components of the gates had been gilded, and that styling continued into the city. It had grown into a spectacle of beauty and grand architecture. The resources spent to make the city so must have been immense. Duke decided to take a detour to the mayor’s office as well in this visit. He needed to find Axis, Gefolich, and Jablach if they were still in the city, but not visiting the mayor would be a political faux-pas that even he recognized.
Duke started towards the City Hall, looking around and suddenly realized that the mayor would likely know if these powerful figures were in the city causing him to step up his pace. The opulence of the city as he passed through amazed Duke. I know I told him to improve the city with the excess taxes, but how much excess tax has there been?
Duke was quickly allowed entry into the mayor’s office. “Good to see you again, Your Majesty. What can this humble mayor do for you?”
“First off, I have to say that I’m impressed with how much you have spent on making the city something special. Care to fill me in on your efforts?”
“Oh, yes. I would be very glad to.” The mayor’s voice rang with excitement at the prospect, and he jumped right into it. “The excess we are receiving from the dungeon has been, well, excessive. We’ve had to raise the dungeon tax rate to 85% as more and more wealth keeps pouring out of it. We are receiving fifteen to thirty thousand gold on a slow day from the dungeon. But the most amazing thing was when the exchange market was set up near the dungeon. All manner of interesting crafting materials became available then and it served to siphon off a lot of the excess gold floating around in the hands of our citizens. It allowed us to spend so much of our excess to beautify Havenreach while providing resources for our learning crafters, mages, and artisans. We now boast several of the most talented crafters I have ever seen. The quality of goods coming out of our fair city is mind-boggling. I love it! And adventurers? Well, we now have dozens of tier two and even a few tier three actively running the dungeon. Can you believe it? No one has completed the dungeon yet, but I’m confident that we will soon.”
Duke rolled along with the mayor’s excited report. He had been worried about the sheer volume of wealth pouring into the city’s coffers breeding corruption. From what he had seen to this point, it had done just the opposite. He almost lost the mayor’s next statement in his thoughts.
“And the exchange market will even exchange gold for crystals.” He pointed to a single blue crystal on the shelf behind himself. “That there is a Grand Crystal. Have you ever seen one before? I certainly hadn’t. This is just one of many from the city’s treasury. You need to take them for the benefit of the kingdom. There is simply too much wealth here and I do not want it to affect the city. I can’t spend it fast enough and that is becoming a problem.”
“Now that has to be the most unique thing a king has ever heard from a city’s mayor.”
“I’m sure, but I am serious. There are eight such crystals in the treasury that you must take. The kingdom needs them much more than this city. What we really need are more people willing to either take up the adventuring life, become crafters, artisans, resource-gatherers, or find some other way useful to the city.”
“So, what I am hearing is that you want me to take your money, send you adventurers, crafters, and those willing to learn?”
“That is my request. Each and every one of them will prosper as we all do..”
“I’ll see what I can do. I am looking for a few people that may be in the city.”
“Who would that be?”
“Axis, Gefolich, and Jablach. They would have been from-“
“Leviathan. Oh yes, they are here. They are acting as the elite trainers of the Adventurer’s Guild. What do you need with them?”
“I might be borrowing them for a while.”
The mayor’s expression dropped at Duke’s words. “If you need them, I’m sure they will assist you, Your Majesty.”
“Would that be a problem?”
“No, of course not, Your Majesty.”
Duke decided to leave that one alone as he could see the disappointment and worry in the mayor’s expression. It wasn’t going to stop him from his own mission though.
“Well, thank you for your time, Mayor Shellenberger. I’ll be on my way now.” Duke TELEPORTED to the treasury before leaving the new grandly decorated City Hall and picked up the grand crystals with a nod to the tax collector before returning and exiting out the main entrance of City Hall like nothing had happened.
His journey over to the Adventurer’s Guild took him across the square that had been inlaid with beautiful tiles and decorated with exotic plants and lifelike statues. People milled about, looking as happy as they seemed the last time he was in the city. It all struck him as artificial, like a carefully cultivated resort from back home.
Stepping up to the Adventurer’s Guild, it was clear that the building had been expanded significantly. It now sported a spire that increased the building’s height to nearly fifty meters tall and the overall structure had been expanded outward by at least thirty percent. It was now a mammoth and imposing structure. The bright paint and golden accents did “cheer” up the building some, making it look a bit more inviting.
Duke observed smiling adventures entering and exiting the building, most looking quite happy with their situation. More and more, the happiness around him just started putting him on edge. People were too happy, almost as if it were a forced condition. I know I talked to Sam about this happiness effect, but it almost feels like they are drugged. I might have to do something about it. Duke put the thought on the back burner as he entered the Adventurer’s Guild and saw someone he had not seen in quite some time – Greslarnier, the receptionist for Leviathan. Seeing it, his mood shifted, and he entered with a smile on his own face.