Once we had weapons in hand with appropriate light spells cast on them to shine our way through the dungeon master Anstrom and I began our decent into the dungeon having left most of our packs and supplies in the tavern. He assured me we wouldn’t be clearing the boss today and we were only going in for a cursory inspection.

“Remember Oozes, slimes and the like often have a weakness to cold. Remember to cast your mana out in front of you and intone frost cone.” Master Anstrom demonstrated coating the ground ahead of us in a rime of white frost.

“I think I can envision a non-combat spell that will defeat this circular stairwell into oblivion.” I said ready to flex my magic.

“Summon Nimbus.” I said imbuing a cloud of mana between my palms and willing to take form as semi-sentient cloud. It was thick and yellow and left a ribbon of mist on its passing, it was thick enough to sit on top of, and it flew at my direction. I was quite satisfied with my favorite flying mount from a videogame having been transported here at my whim.

It took some time to teach the spell to master Anstrom. Once he understood the purpose of the cloud vehicle the look in his eyes was somewhere between shocked and speechless.

“Andrew, no one knows spells to summon a conveyance like this anymore. Not since a long time ago.” Master Anstrom said suddenly going quiet.

We floated on our summoned clouds down the two kilometers of spiraled staircases only to enter into a large chamber filled with stalls and people. The dungeon was bustling it seemed.

“People live down here?” I asked master Anstrom.

“Quiet a few my boy, quiet a few.” Master Anstrom

“Then why did we leave our bedrolls and all that above ground?” I asked him.

“To stay here in the dungeon costs around four gold coins per night.” My master the miser said.

I understood suddenly why he was hesitant to come here, it wasn’t the danger, it was what felt like an air of robbery.

“Get your fresh picked pellutos, from right here in the dungeon only twenty silver.” A hawker was asking twenty silver for a single fruit…

“Bear-i-corn steaks, get your bear-i-corn steaks, fifty silver.” Said another.

“Meat on a stick, one silver.” Said a tall man with thick facial hair. Unspecified meat on a stick was usually a copper coin…

“Magic Items, get your magic items here at Saul’s Emporium. Wands, weapons, wares, we gots it all.” A crier yelled.

“Should we visit this Saul’s Emporium?” I asked master Anstrom.

“No, we should take a direct route deeper into the dungeon.” Master Anstrom said looking a little lost in the tide of people. We hadn’t seen a solitary soul going up or down the stairs and yet there had to be a minimum of three hundred people down here. Humans, Orcs, Quasi-Humanoids, and even what looked like the most fetching elf I’ve ever imagined in a past life.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Once we were safely outside earshot master Anstrom said “Saul’s fair enough for a bugbear. I don’t know if you want to go supporting them on a whim.” Master Anstrom confided.

“A friendly Bugbear?” I asked unsure if I heard him correctly.

“I don’t know how friendly he’ll be, he is a haggling merchant after all is said and done.” Master Anstrom supplied.

“I have to meet this indifferent bugbear.” I finally said after long consideration as what to call them.

“We can consider it on our way back into the town before we make our assent to the inn.” Master Anstrom settled.

I’m not sure if master Anstrom was after my gold or just worried a merchant would part me from it. Either way gold was a lot less helpful than a shiny new magical item. I wondered at what I might be able to buy with fifty or so gold. I wasn’t will to so easily separate with my new nest egg either.

As we left the well populated passages and made our way deeper into the dungeon you could tell as the passages became less used. We passed some small orchards which provided the dungeon town with produce. The glow that came from the rock above our heads in the orchard rooms was so bright that you couldn’t look at it. Other passages were dead and dark and only the magic light on our bared blades illuminated them.

“How much deeper before we run into monsters.” I asked master Anstrom.

“It shouldn’t be too much deeper, we passed out of the town proper a few minutes ago.” Master Anstrom told me.

I followed him deeper into the darkness. I was the one with a map who had spent time memorizing it, but it felt like master Anstrom was taking the lead from experience. During his thirty-year stint in the royal army, he had gained a massive amount of raw experience that I could benefit from.

The first thing of significance we can across was a pit trap, crudely concealed and easily avoidable. Slimes however do not dig pit traps. Kobolds were nearby I could feel it. I could faintly hear scratching sounds from just outside the lighted radius.

“Master, I think we have found them.” I said.

“I think they have found us, as well.” Master Anstrom stated.

A shadowy blob moved forward resolving into a small scaled humanoid with a protruding nose and mouth like a dog. The kobold threw something at us. It was feces. It didn’t quite reach us. I responded with “Fire Ball”.

The smoking remains of the offending kobold weighted heavily on my conscience as I took in the surroundings illuminated by my spell. I was going to be feeling many more episodes of the guilties it would seem. I cast every buff spell I could think off and ran forward offering the kobold’s my sword. I sliced one cleanly in half and felt no more guilt than when I swatted and insect. It was something to do with using advanced magic on such a miniscule threat perhaps. I couldn’t be bothered to worry about it now, I ducked down avoiding a blow that would have scalped me. Jumping upwards I levered my sword in a rough jerking motion and swiftly decapitated the offending kobold. Roots jumped up from the ground ensnaring many kobolds. Many more were outside the range of the spell.

The root entrapment spell seemed to exclude me as I waded through enemies close to my own size. I swung my sword vertically blocking a blow intended to crush my skull and then rolled backwards toward master Anstrom. There were a lot more kobolds than either of us had been anticipating. A blinding light shone forth from master Anstrom’s sword that made all eyes turn away from it. In the time they were all blinded I cast Fire Cone and then Fire Ball to thin their ranks out a bit.

Kobolds exploded into paste on contact with the fireball’s explosion. They seemed to have mostly survived the scorching heat from my cone of fire. I panicked as three kobolds lunged for me in unison. They slew me. That was the second time I died. Master Anstrom lost a great pupil that day.

*Does not believe in plot armor. The End.