Exill carefully navigated the claustrophobic warrens of the back streets, taking care to memorize the twists and turns while glancing at the Labyrinth Tower to maintain bearings. It would soon be midday, meaning it had only been a few hours since he entered the Inner City. Having said that, his wallet was much lighter, only 90 Denars were left.
Returning to the Mercenary Guild, he found the same polite male clerk tirelessly processing a long queue of requests. A few minutes later, a woman with shoulder length black hair and kind grey eyes came out of the back office. She exuded a soft aura unique to older sisters of the gentle persuasion.
Exill walked up to her before a queue could form and asked, “Are you Iris? I would like to register for the guild please.”
“Certainly, can I see your Card?” even her voice had a soothing effect.
Exill summoned his Card, having unassigned all his jobs except [Warrior] and [Blacksmith]. The woman quickly jotted down his name, age, and professions.
“This will do just fine; can I take your address?” she asked brightly.
“Ah…” he mumbled, realising too late that he didn’t even know the name of the inn. “Can I get back to you on that tomorrow?”
“You really have to come back and tell me okay? You don’t want your big sis getting in trouble.” She teased him gently while filing away the clay tablet holding his records.
Nodding assuredly, he wondered how old she was.
“Everything looks fine! That will be 80 Denars” she said.
Exill visibly recoiled at the figure, having expected something closer to 30 Denars. As if understanding his discomfort, she continued with a kind smile while sliding a small, illustrated booklet to him.
“The 80 Denars is for the registration, but it mainly covers the cost of this field guide we issue to all members. It contains a list of monsters commonly encountered in Ark’s Labyrinth and tips on how to handle them. This field guide is mandatory for all new members after it was found to drastically increase their survival rate.” She placed the book warmly in his hands, “You will also need to show this at the entrance to enter the Labyrinth.”
Grasping the fact that he had no choice in the matter, Exill nodded solemnly before emptying out the contents of his pouch, holding back a single large copper coin - his last ten Denars.
Iris collected the coins and shot him a bright smile. “Welcome to the Guild! As I mentioned before, membership grants you access to the Labyrinth. We charge you an annual membership fee of thirty Denars, but that is only a token amount. Most of our operational expenses come from the cut of proceeds of the monster parts you bring in…”
Turning to a random page on the field guide, Iris pointed to the section detailing the harvestable components and their guide price. “Which means, you are obligated to sell all parts to us. It is alright to set aside some for personal use, but you are not allowed to sell directly to market, that is against the law.” Her kind face turned serious for a moment to emphasize the next point, “There are some monster parts we are not permitted to buy, but that doesn’t mean you can sell those to the market either, okay?”
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
‘I wonder what parts they are not allowed to purchase?’ Exill quietly wondered, but quickly nodded to her words.
“If you don’t feel like delving into the Labyrinth, you can always pick up one of the requests on the noticeboard. I’m usually here from midday to late evening. Try not to venture in alone, or take too many risks. Hope to see you again soon!”
Exill returned her smile and walked over to a corner to sit down on a bench. Things had not turned out as he had expected. An old mercenary at the refugee camp had assured him that it shouldn’t cost more than 30 Denars to sign up as a member. It had cost more than twice that amount!
However it wasn’t all bad news. He interestedly flicked through the short guide, familiarizing himself with the monsters of the lower strata. The guide had handy hints, describing which parts of the monsters were valuable and how to harvest them.
Satisfied that he had everything necessary for the next step of the plan, he strolled out into the busy streets, following the general direction of the looming Tower. Soon, he emerged into a small square that surrounded Ark’s most famous monument.
Mighty buttresses jutted out to support the landmark Tower, providing shade to the mercenaries standing in line as the sun shifted towards the north. Exill joined the queue, steadily walking past the row of stalls catering to waiting mercenaries.
He stood in line impatiently, the handbook clenched ready in one hand, a large copper coin in the other. Not just the old mercenary, but many other refugees who had visited Ark before the war had said it cost five Denars to enter the Labyrinth. This was the last money he had, and his mind was unwillingly fixated on the two Denars he had (so carelessly!) given away to the beggar earlier that day.
“Oi, they still waiving the entry fee?” a merc questioned behind him.
“Yeah, you know how it is. War may be over, but with every combat capable fighter still out in the fronts, King’s gotta incentivize us to suppress it somehow.”
“Sigh… I guess our milk run is gonna be over once they return to Ark.”
Perking up from the eavesdropped the conversation behind him, he returned the large copper coin to his pouch and salivated over all the delicious food that wasn’t gruel that could now be afforded for dinner and breakfast.
Once he reached the front of the queue, he raised his handbook and was quickly waved through the riveted double doors into the Tower’s interior. The first thing he noticed was how cool and quiet it was. Next was how everything, including the sounds and lights were suddenly muted. It felt strange to speak above anything but hushed whispers, and it was obvious the other mercs felt the same, conferring quietly with their party members while making last minute checks on their gear.
He was surprised to find the monumental tower was hollow, the upper stories supported by massive pillars interspersed throughout the ground floor. Light seeped in through cracks up above, and faint runes could be seen glowing around the room, yet strangely not casting any shadows.
In the centre lay the Labyrinth proper. Compared to the sheer scale and ostentation of the Tower, it would have been impolite, yet accurate to describe it as an unassuming pile of dirt, barely the size of a burial mound. Exill was disappointed as he walked up to a small stone archway embedded into its side. It was large enough to only let one person through at a time, and the door, or portal was a shimmering black surface seeming to absorb all light.
Exill tapped the surface with a finger, and it felt like it wasn’t there. Glancing over his shoulder he could see a small queue had formed behind him as mercenaries impatiently waited for the newbie to pop his dungeon cherry. Scolded by their silent amusement, Exill held his breath and pushed forward into the inky darkness.