Sometime later, Tisha lays against the wall panting from exhaustion as Glyn gets up from the ground and stares at her. He notices her exhaustion and nods, moving to her side as she looks at him.
“Thanks,” Glyn says.
“Maybe I earned some form of trust now?” Tisha asks.
“Well, you still need me to be alive, so….”
Tisha slams her fist against the ground. “Listen, you idiot slave driver! If I haven’t earned a little of trust at this point, then….”
Glyn pulls a small candy out of his pocket and hands it to Tisha. “I was playing a little too much. Sorry for that.”
“What is this?”
“It’s a small candy that’ll restore some of your Mana. I brought it for Mila, but you can use it too.”
“Thanks. But expecting me to work that hard after casting such a strong healing spell, you are such a slave driver.”
Glyn smirks. “I expected you to be able to shrug it off.”
“You’re a pain in the ass.”
“Come on, I have to use whatever I can to get an advantage.”
“Whatever. What’re we doing about him?”
Glyn stands over the Orc. “He should’ve woken up before I did. Why is he still unconscious?”
The pair go quiet and hear snoring coming from the Orc. “He’s asleep.”
“Well, nothing we can do but wake him up.” Glyn reaches down and shakes the Orc. “Come on, big guy, wake up. This isn’t the best place to take a nap. Come on!”
Tisha grabs her bow. “No other choice!” She yells out, firing her bow.
She strikes the Orc in the head and he leaps up from the pain, screaming from the pain. “Ow!”
“Good, he’s awake.”
The Orc looks down at the pair and sits down as he rubs the back of his head. “Where am I?”
“Jubert Island. Specifically, in the depths of a Dungeon on Jubert Island.” Glyn says. “Now I’d like you to explain to me how you got here?”
The Orc looks at the pair. “Elves? I didn’t think there were Elves on this island.”
“I’m a Half-Elf. That one is full-blown. And it’s not like we’re together or anything.”
Tisha stomps her feet. “We’re only working together to get out of this damned place. That’s when we came across you and we stopped your rampage and he healed your injuries.”
Glyn nods. “So, how long were you in here?”
“I don’t know. I lost track of time since I came in here. But it didn’t look like this when I came inside.”
Glyn pauses. “Wait. Did you come in here before the Dungeon stabilized?” He lets out a loud laugh as he pats the Orc on the back. “That’s a crazy move there. You’d have to be insane to pull off something like that.”
The Orc pauses. “I didn’t know.”
“Oh. Sorry.”
“I left my home to go on a quest to grow stronger. I came to this island after hearing rumors of the monsters and defense forces of the island. When I got here, I discovered this Dungeon and went inside, since new Dungeons are a rarity.”
Glyn nods. “It makes sense. But when you got inside, you couldn’t find the way out, could you?”
“No. I was trapped, and the monsters kept attacking me. I couldn’t escape and I had to keep fighting to stay alive.” The Orc pauses and looks down at his hand. “I felt like I would die here if I stopped for even a moment. So, I rampaged and I couldn’t stop myself. You have my thanks for stopping my assault.”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
“No problem, big guy.”
“But let me ask. Why are both of you here?”
“Well, I’m here for one simple reason. To prepare for the King’s Game.”
“King’s Game?”
The pair pause. “You don’t know about the King’s Game? The war happening on the Aloock Islands?”
“There is a war coming? I heard the king had, but I didn’t think it would go so badly, so fast.”
Glyn sighs. “Okay, listen up. I think you’ve been trapped in here for too long.”
“How do you mean?”
“There’s no way. If he doesn’t know about the war, then he’d have had to be in here for over a full month, at the very least.”
Glyn nods and smiles. “He’s not lying. But if he’s survived around in here for over a month, then that just makes me want him on my side more! Listen up, big guy. I’m going to tell you what you missed out on in this dump.”
Glyn explains the aftermath of the king’s death and the turmoil. How the King's Game was created to choose a successor and avoid the continent from falling into chaos. And the thirteen King Candidates who came to the Alook Islands.
“I see. To think I missed such world-changing events. Let me ask, have you heard anything of the Saberfang Tribe of Orcs?”
Glyn shakes his head. “Nope.”
“I see, so it is likely my Tribe has decided not to take a side yet.”
“Worried about your family or something?”
“Yes. If what you say is true, I have been trapped here for some time. I worry for my family, especially at this time of turmoil and chaos.”
Tisha nods. “I can understand it. But let me ask you, how did you sneak onto this island?”
“I did not sneak onto the island. I came on my raft during the night, sadly my raft sank before I made landfall, and then I found this Dungeon while looking for high ground to examine the island.”
Glyn pauses. “I just realized something.”
“What?” The two ask.
“The Dungeon has been acting crazy even before it solidified. But it was stable until now with no issues. That was until before I arrived. And you arrived before I did.”
“You’re not saying.”
“It’s likely what caused the Dungeon to go crazy and spit out Daemons and Demons like it is. Was this guy being stuck inside of it like some kind of virus?” Glyn explains.
The Orc pauses and then stands. “If what you say is true, then I have caused a major affront to the island and its inhabitants.”
“Well, we’ve already fixed it and it worked to my advantage, so it’s no big deal,” Glyn says.
Tisha rolls her eyes. “You are self-serving.”
“Come now, I’m trying to cheer the dude up.”
“May I have the names of my saviors?” The Orc asks.
Glyn steps forward with his hand on his chest. “I am Glyn Mattox, Half-Elf and King Candidate.”
“I am Tisha Miaro. Elven Warrior.”
The Orc reaches out his hand. “I am Zanrit. Orc Warrior of the Saberfang Tribe. It appears my quest for further strength has caused everyone quite some trouble.”
“It’s no big deal. We’re almost done with this mess. Once we take the Dungeon’s Core, it’ll settle down and we can get out of this place. I have some allies that should be on the way to it now.”
Zanrit nods. “Then I shall accompany you on this quest. As part of my penance for the dangers, I have brought to this land.”
“Calm down. Don’t get too worked up. He healed your injuries but there could still be some after effects. When this is over, you should go to a doctor.”
“I shall. But for now, I shall ignore any pain and face the path of a warrior. As a fellow warrior, you should understand this.”
“I guess,” Tisha says.
Glyn laughs. “Well, then, warriors, let's get a move on.” He holds out his hand and his king piece emerges, shooting a beam of light to the depths of the Dungeon. “My friends should be up ahead of us. They probably passed us while I was unconscious.”
“You could’ve done that this whole time!?” Tisha yells out.
“Yes and no. It wouldn’t have been any help until they were on the same floor as us or below. Besides, I wanted to investigate the Dungeon, anyway. So, we’ve done both in a single swoop.”
“Yeah, whatever. Let’s get this over with.”
Zanrit nods. “Yes, I can sense the flow of battle below us. I can’t pinpoint it, but they are fighting down there.”
“Right.” Glyn rushes ahead as the other two chase after him. “Mila, keep control over yourself. You better be in complete control when I catch up to you.” He whispers to himself.
As the group turns a corner, a pair of large four-armed monsters stand in their way. The creatures let out an inhuman sound from the mouths on their chest as they stomp forward.
“We don’t have time for this!”
Zanrit charges in, swinging his club and smashing it into the monsters. Their bodies shatter into bits and viscera as the other creature turns to him. As it goes on the attack, Tisha fires an arrow that pierces the area above its mouth and it collapses to the ground.
“I shall carve us a path to the Core,” Zanrit says.
“What he said. Now let’s move, rich boy!”
Glyn rushes forward. “Okay, for real this time. Let’s go!”