* New Quest: Dungeon Delver

* You have discovered a stronghold. Power and prestige await within, as do many dangers. Do you have what it takes to overcome them and seize your prize?

* Objective: Conquer a Stronghold.

* Reward: Large experience gain.

* Reward: 1,000 crescent coins.

* Accept? (Y/N)

* New Quest: The Tide of Bone.

* A stronghold of undead threatens the town of Lysara. Will you defend them?

* Objective: Conquer the 'Moonlit Meadow Quadrant' stronghold.

* Bonus objective: Rescue the abducted townspeople (0/10).

* Reward: Varies depending on results.

* Accept? (Y/N)

The quests didn't remain in Jade's vision for long. They blinked away, adding themselves to her journal. Apparently, the Voice was counting what she had said to Siora as tacit acceptance of the quests. She'd have to keep that in mind. It was fine in this case but could cause problems in the future.

"The quest says ten people have been taken." Naomi said, confirming that she and Luis had received the same notifications.

"But it sounds like we can save them." Luis added. He slung his sword over his back. "Let's get to it. You said a group is gathering to take it on? Can we join up?" He asked Ethren.

The elf nodded. "If you're willing to help, I'm certain they would welcome it. Come, we'll take you back to the village."

"But, what about Zentha?" Namys asked, eyes pleading. "We can't go back without my daughter."

"These woods are too dangerous to search in." Aylin cut in. "I can feel more undead in the distance. They're coming this way. We should leave, now."

"But-!"

"If the Voice has given a quest to rescue them, then they can be saved." The mage said, her expression softening. "It doesn't issue impossible tasks."

"We'll find her." Jade said, hoping that she was telling the truth. "But first, we need to learn more about what's really going on."

"I can lead us home." Siora offered. The elf sounded shaken, but she was doing an admirable job of keeping her head. "It's not far."

They set off through the deepening gloom. Night was rapidly descending on the forest, and it was growing difficult to see. Jade was about to pull out a lantern from her dimensional pouch when she remembered her upgraded 'Shapeshifter' ability. She eyed Siora and the other elves, who were navigating the darkening landscape with ease. Focusing, she shifted from her demon form into an elven one, maintaining her general appearance. She had been continuing to practice taking on different forms each night, and it was paying off.

"Wow."

Jade stopped, surprised by the sudden clarity. She hadn't experimented with this form much yet and hadn't realized how much better elven senses were. Her immediate surroundings were clearly visible again, albeit mostly in shades of grey. She pulled up her interface, checking what features she received. There were two: The ability to see in the dark, and a racial feature called 'mana-attuned mind' that lowered spell mana costs.

Interesting.

She'd have to do more tests later. Jade expected Namys and Ethren to be suspicious of her now that they were out of danger, since they had seen her demon form on full display during the battle. To her surprise, they simply allowed Siora to explain her circumstances and accepted her story. The two elves even thanked Jade for helping rescue them, although they still looked a little uncomfortable being near her.

It's a start… she thought, sighing internally. New plan. Introduce myself by rescuing people more often.

According to Siora, the hike to the village would take a little less than a half hour. The two elves answered her questions about the state of their home as they walked, and Jade took the opportunity to scroll through her notifications.

* Hidden Quest Complete!

* You have completed a hidden quest! For every 3 hidden quests you complete, your completed wayfarer quest counter will increase by 1!

* Hidden Quest: Lone Wolf

* Defeat an elite monster in single combat. You do know you're in a party, don't you?

* Reward: Medium experience gain.

* Hidden Quest Conversion Progress: 3 of 3.

Jade grunted, dismissing the prompt. Technically, she'd been buffed by both Naomi's speed boost and Luis's shield for at least part of her battle with the Wight. Apparently, the system still counted it as 'single combat'. Was it because she was the only one that dealt damage to it?

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

* System Notice:

* You have completed 3 'hidden quests'. Your 'completed quest' counter has increased by one. New total: 10/100.

Jade just stared at the number '10' for a long moment. After weeks of fighting, and climbing to the second floor, she was barely 10% of the way done with this 'Labyrinth Trial'. Not to mention that they hadn't even reached a Labyrinth Core yet, which wouldn't even show up until the third floor. It was a poignant reminder of the long road ahead.

The next notification was more exciting.

* Level Up!

* You have reached Level 10.

* Reward: New class feature.

* Reward: +2 stat points.

Jade assigned another point to agility, and one to intelligence. She was planning to work on her other attributes soon, but those two were the most immediately impactful. Agility made her better at everything from dodging attacks to landing critical strikes with her daggers, and intelligence increased both her spell power and her mana pool. She was already finding that, the higher her intelligence went, the less frequently her spells were being resisted. It might've been her imagination, but she suspected her memory was improving as well.

More importantly, this level came with a class feature. She pulled up the list of options, which had grown even longer since the last time she'd seen it at level 6. She scanned the new choices.

"Damn…"

"Somethin' wrong?" Luis asked. He was holding a lantern now, lighting their way. Unlike Jade, he couldn't see in the dark at will.

"Just checking my spell and talent choices. I just hit ten."

"Just when I thought I was catchin' up." Luis shook his head good naturedly. "Gotta leave some experience for the rest of us."

"From the sound of it, there's about to be plenty to go around." Jade said. She paused, considering that. "But now that you mention it, I wonder how many of those undead I can take on at onc-Ow!"

Naomi lightly smacked her on the back of her head.

"Don't get cocky, Jade." She rolled her eyes. "We already had the 'we're a team' talk. We work best together, remember?"

"She's right." Aylin added. The mage was examining the two items they'd looted from the skeleton group, the sword and the circlet. "It was risky enough that you took on an elite by yourself."

"I didn't have much of a choice, it was going to shoot Naomi." Jade protested.

"Yes, this time it was the right decision." Aylin conceded. "But I suggest you don't make a habit of it. They're usually more dangerous than they look."

"Telling Jade not to be reckless is like telling water not to be wet." Naomi sighed.

"I'm not that bad…"

"Yeah, you are." Luis said, slapping her on the back hard enough to make her stumble forward. He grinned at her. "But it's part of your charm, amiga. We like you anyway."

"Speaking of charm." Aylin raised the circlet, offering it to Jade. "You'll make the best use of this."

Jade accepted it from her, careful not to touch the mage's wounded finger. She examined it.

* Item: Mana-link Circlet

* Rarity: Rare

* One of the more popular accessories for aspiring enchantresses and summoners, this golden circlet combines excellent utility with graceful elegance.

* Effect: You may use the mana of your summoned minions and charmed creatures to cast your spells and talents. The closer you are to them, the more of their energy you may use in place of your own.

"This is incredible." Jade said, her eyebrows shooting up. "You're… giving this to me?"

"I don't know any charm or summoning spells. I'm a defensive specialist and a researcher. And we're about to take on a stronghold together." Aylin shrugged, pragmatic as ever.

Considering how they'd met, Jade would have expected the mage to be more hesitant about giving her the means to grow more powerful, but she had a point. She slipped the circlet onto her head without further protest.

"That's a nice look." Naomi said, nodding her approval. "I hope I get something pretty, soon. Aylin, do they make fashionable armor in Illysport?"

"Most certainly. It's quite popular, although it generally isn't as effective as a purely functional design."

"That's fine. People underestimate the value of appearances."

Jade wasn't sure that applied to monsters, but she just shook her head and returned her attention to her level up window. She had been torn between two options, but this new item made her decision much easier. The choices that stood out to her were a ranged talent that revolved around throwing daggers and a charm spell that was meant for monsters rather than intelligent creatures. Jade was in desperate need of a reliable ranged attack, but between the automatic rank boost her succubus form gave to charm spells and the new circlet, the optimal choice was obvious. After a brief discussion with her party, she selected 'Charm Creature'.

"I'll have to pick up 'Hail Blade' at level fourteen…" She muttered, closing the window.

They ended up giving the wight's sword to Luis, who had also levelled up during the battle, bringing him to '9'. The weapon was a longsword, somewhat less destructive than his current greatsword, but it was enchanted with supernatural sharpness alongside a 'disarm' ability that could knock an opponent's weapons from their grasp.

"Alright." Naomi said, crossing her arms. "I'm next in line for magical gear. What're the chances one of these undead will have an enchanted guitar?"

"Somehow, I doubt we'll be that lucky." Jade said dryly.

"You might be surprised." Aylin said, causing all of them to look at her.

"What, there might really be zombie rockstars?" Luis asked.

"Why do you sound so excited about that?" Jade gave him the side-eye. The large man responded with an incredulous look.

"Because it would be awesome."

Jade thought about that for a moment.

"I… actually have to give you that one." She conceded. "It would be."

"I don't know what a 'rockstar' is, but that's not what I meant." Aylin said, casually crushing their hopes. "But as dangerous as they are, strongholds are coveted prizes for those with the means to conquer them."

"Why's that?" Naomi asked.

"Because the party that conquers it, which usually means defeating a powerful monster at its heart, are each granted an enchanted item by the Voice. One tailored to meet their needs. So, Naomi, if we succeed, you very well could end up with a magical instrument." The reserved half-elf gave her a slight smile.

Naomi's eyes lit up. She spun towards Jade, jabbing a finger at her. "That's it Jade. We're going to be the first ones in. I want that guitar."

So much for being the timid one… Jade thought, bemused. Before she could reply, Siora called back from the front of the group. She followed her pointing finger, just able to make out a collection of lights glistening amongst the trees.

At long last, they'd reached Lysara.