CHAPTER 4

Almost two weeks had passed since Lark had escaped the monstrous beast to the west. No one he had told had believed him, but at least Serlin was willing to come along and have a look. A bigger party would have been preferable, but he would just have to be extra careful. Besides, he knew that Serlin was a wizard of some sort. Hopefully he would have some spells or other magic tricks to help against their foe.

Just as he finished stuffing the last of his supplies into his bag, there was a knock on his front door. Guessing it would be Serlin, he didn't bother with going to open it, but just shouted that it was open. A few seconds later, Serlin was standing in the doorway looking at him.

"Just how much stuff are you planning on needing?" He eyed Lark's bag with a disapproving frown. "We're not moving into the big tree, are we?"

Not appreciating his friend's sarcasm, Lark sighed and pointed to his bag. "These are just the necessities. I've got food for a few days, a bedroll, a tent, some bandages and other medical supplies…" He drifted off as he saw the unimpressed gaze upon him.

"You do know that from what you told me, it's only about a six hour trek, right?" Serlin sounded exhausted already. "If we leave right now we can be home again just after dark."

"You don't plan for everything going according to plan, Serlin. Even you should know that. Anyway, I'm all packed now, so we can just head out."

The walk from the village of Oberon was fairly easy, at least until the road turned south. Both men gave a slight grunt of disapproval as they left the packed dirt road and stepped onto grass. Luckily the weather had been kind so far this summer so the grass was dry, sparing their shoes and socks. That didn't make the trip much easier, however, since they had to be on a constant lookout for snakes. Though the grass wasn't much higher than to their shins, snakes seemed to love this part of the land. Almost every single rock that stuck up higher than the grass had a snake sunbathing on it. Most of the species around here weren't venomous, but neither Lark or Serlin could tell them apart very well. Thus, they had to tread very carefully, and it was making Serlin a bit grumpy.

All their effort paid off and the walk only resulted in Larking getting bit twice and Serlin four times. Luckily it didn't seem like any of the bites came from one of the venomous snakes, but they still had to take some time and effort to bind and clean the wounds. All these delays meant that they didn't arrive in sight of the giant tree until well past mid day.

"See, I told you it was gigantic!" Lark tried to keep his voice down, but his excitement was too great. "Have you ever seen a tree that big?"

Serlin had not. There was something else strange about the tree too, apart from its size. He couldn't put a finger on it, but something was definitely off about it.

"No, I haven't." Serlin whispered, being a little uneasy at the sight of the tree. "But I don't like the look of it. It's…. It's creepy."

He would get no argument from Larkin to that point. The tree was most definitely creepy. The pair were still a good few hundred meters away so they couldn't make out any details, but aside from the tree everything looked normal. They nodded at each other and, at a much slower pace, continued forward.

*****

I was just lounging about, trying to figure out what to do next, when Squirrel came running into the village. He, or was it a she, started squeaking and gesturing wildly at me. Sadly they didn't teach me to speak squirrel at veterinary school, so I called on Buddy. It took a few minutes before Buddy's giant form came strolling casually up to the core shack where we were 'talking' on the newly added porch.

"Hey, Buddy!" I frantically waved him over. "Little Dude here is trying to tell me something, I think, but I can't understand a single squeak."

Buddy plopped his furry butt down on the gravel path, cocked his head at the agitated rodent, seeming to listen carefully. His head started nodding slowly and after a few minutes he turned towards me.

"First of all, she is very offended." Buddy's voice was dead serious. "She says her name is, what in your tongue translates to, 'She who runs up and down trees a lot'. Little Dude is the other squirrel."

I was taken slightly aback by the look the squirrel gave me at that moment. It was somewhere between a glare and a triumphant smirk. "I apologize, Miss. I meant no offense."

She gave a short, curt nod before turning her attention back to Buddy, motioning for him to continue.

"She also says that there are, and I quote, 'large people with noisy feet and weird fur' coming this way. Apparently they're heading in this direction, but are a little way out. What do you want to do?"

I thought about it for a moment. "Can you speak to them?"

Buddy shook his head in the negative. "I'm afraid not, father. I can speak to you, and the other residents and denizens, but not anyone from the outside. I'm guessing it has something to do with us all sharing the same mana and it translates for us. I wouldn't be able to talk to a squirrel, or even another wolf, who came from the outside."

Well that sucked, but wasn't really surprising. "Bob, do you have any ideas?"

"I have a few suggestions." As usual, Bob's sudden appearance scared the shit out of me. "Option one is the simplest; we just scare them off, or kill them." I reflexively cringed at that. "But, I'm guessing that's not an option you want. We could send out a greeting party, hope they aren't hostile, and lead them here. I'm not sure what to do from there though."

A heavy silence fell over the three of us, plus Bob. "What did they look like?" I finally managed to ask.

Buddy said something to Runner. That's what I was calling her now. Now way was I going to use that long ass name every time. Eventually she answered, and Buddy turned back to me.

"She says 'They looked clumsy, and loud. Big feet make lots of noise. One had a long stick of some sort and poked the ground with it a lot. The other had a weird stick with a string on it on their back. Strange hats too.' She is very excited. It seems to make her somewhat less articulate."

I nodded slowly as I considered what she had said. A long stick that poked the ground. It could be a walking stick maybe. The other one was trickier. Maybe a fishing rod, or a bow, or… something else. I just didn't know. The only way to find out would be to either await their arrival, in which case I would have no influence over how things went, or to send a welcome party to meet them. Hopefully such a party wouldn't be attacked on sight, which was a possibility. But I couldn't prepare for every single eventuality, besides 'No plan survives contact with the enemy.' I was sure I had heard that somewhere, but I couldn't recall where. Regardless, it was true. Planning would only go so far.

"Buddy, why don't you take a couple of your wolves with you and meet them at the border?" I was hoping my voice sounded more confident than I felt. "Take two of the patrol golems too, I'll instruct them to follow you and only defend if attacked."

Buddy nodded as he rose to his paws. Runner jumped up on his back, and they both strolled away towards the squirrel tree, two more wolves coming up behind them. The two golems were much slower, but they were also trudging along in that direction.

"I hope this doesn't bring trouble." I muttered to myself.

"If it's only two people, we can deal with them." Bob's reply was firm and confident. "I can't see even a dosen humans being able to take down Buddy."

"Yeah." I agreed. "But I hope it won't come to that. We want to make friends, not war with the first people we come across."

"They did shoot wolf number three." Bob pointed out.

"They did, but if they're hunters, chances are they were just trying to get some food." I countered. "Not exactly a malicious act worthy of a war declaration."

Feeling like there was nothing more to say on the matter, we both grew quiet. I could feel Bob floating away to do whatever it was that he did when he wasn't hanging around me. I, for my part, grew more and more anxious the longer time drew on. Waiting was not something I did very well apparently. To keep my mind occupied I started fiddling with some small projects. I carved small shapes into the wooden railing around the porch. Starting simple, I made the rough outline of a wolf. Then, chuckling to myself, I made it chase a couple of simple stick men.

"Uhm, hello?" A small, feminine voice dragged my attention away from my artistry. "Is anyone here?"

I turned towards the sound and saw a small, purple, dragon-like figure dressed in a tattered tunic and a torn pair of pants, just walking along the path between the buildings looking confused. My patient seemed to have woken up. I looked around, but I had no one nearby that could help me out. The new upgraded wolves were smarter than they had been, but that wasn't saying a whole lot, and the golems couldn't talk. As far as I know, Bob could only communicate with me, and possibly Buddy.

"Well, shit…" I grumbled to myself as I started to make my way towards the small figure. "I guess I'm gonna have to figure this one out on my own."

As I approached her position, the kobold, or so I assumed, stopped and looked around confused. It was as if she could sense me but not actually see me. That was interesting.

"Hello?" I tried hesitantly.

Her attention snapped towards me. "Who's there?"

I could tell she was freaking out a little bit, but I was still uncertain if she could actually hear me. I decided to try again.

"Can you hear me?" I tried speaking a little louder this time, making her visibly flinch.

She still didn't answer though, so I assumed that meant she could not, in fact, hear me. This was getting frustrating.

"Bob!" I hollered, inside my head.

"You rang…" It was a pretty good Lurch impression, I had to admit.

"I should rename you Lurch." I gave a small chuckle before remembering why I called Bob in the first place. "Sorry, but I seem to have an issue. This… kobold? Well, she seems to sense my presence, especially when I talk, but she can't actually hear me."

"Ahh, yes." Bob sounded like this was an everyday occurrence. "You, as a dungeon core, can not directly communicate with beings that aren't currently living in your dungeon. Denizens, residents, contracted monsters and the like can understand you, and if they are capable of speech you can understand them. Buddy was granted the ability to speak to you when you made him a scion. I can speak to you and your scions."

Well, that cleared up that matter, though it didn't help much. "But, why can she sense me so clearly?"

"My guess… Kobolds live underground, in caves, dungeons and things like that. It could be that they, as a species, are more attuned to dungeon energy and mana than others."

As me and Bob had been talking, the kobold girl had been focusing intently on our position. I got the feeling that she was trying to hear something, or understand something. Then suddenly, it was like the penny finally dropped. She got a huge smile on her face and took off running towards the new dungeon entrance.

I exchanged looks with, well no one, before setting off after her. As she ran through the big doors, her attention was instantly grabbed by the green orb on the pedestal. She knelt down in front of it and started chanting something I couldn't hear. It felt super awkward seeing someone worship a symbol of me like that. I wanted to tell her to stop, but before I could get a word out, a notice box appeared.

"Kaiara wishes to become a resident. Accept? Yes or no?"

That made things easier. I poked the 'yes' option and immediately a name tag appeared above her head. "Resident: Kaiara". She slowly stood back up and turned in my direction.

"Thank you, savior." She bowed deeply, making me blush. "Your servant awaits your wishes."

What? Hell no. It was awkward enough when Bob started being all polite and formal, I did not need this.

"Whoa, let me stop you right there." She froze at my displeased tone, looking around like a deer caught in headlights. "There is no need for all that formality. I am…" I sighed deeply, once again regretting my big mouth. "I am Bro, the dungeon core for this dungeon. Welcome to your new home, should you wish to stay."

The confusion in her face was so obvious, I had to focus really hard not to laugh. "But you saved me. You are a mighty dungeon. I am only a little kobold. I must serve so I do not displease you and get thrown out, or killed."

I took a few seconds to let what she said sink in properly before I spoke again. "No one here is going to throw you out, let alone kill you. You're free to stay, or leave, without any obligations or expectations. All I ask is that you help look after the animals and, or people that live here. Well, there are no people yet besides you, but we do have a few animals."

"Yes, of course I will. I will do whatever you ask." She was still on that whole 'obedience and servitude' thing apparently.

"Only if you want to." I reiterated, as clearly as I could without sounding forceful. "I would consider it a personal favor to me if you would do it, but you are under no obligation to do anything you do not want to do."

Kaiara looked very confused for a long time before she hesitantly answered in the affirmative. "I shall do as you ask, Dungeon Bro. It will be my honour."

She gave another deep bow and looked around the room, as if seeing it for the first time. Her gaze stuck on the big statue of Buddy and she walked over to read the plaque. There were a few hums and other contemplative noises as she read and when she stood back up, she gave the statue a bow and a pat on the head. We were going to have to do something about all the formality, but all in due time.

Once Kaiara had somewhat come to terms with her new reality, I gave her a short tour of the grounds. Not that there was much to see yet, but she seemed genuinely impressed and intrigued by the different buildings and places I had made. The golems scared her a bit, until I informed her that it was two of them that had carried her out of the cave and put her in the cozy bed. After that she seemed to have more of a strong awe for them, rather than fear.

I showed her the pond area, together with Buddy's tanning spot, before starting to head over towards the squirrel tree. Little Dude came and met us as we drew closer and Kaiara crouched down, gave him some head scratches and seemed to be having some sort of conversation with him.

"He says that the big people have come closer and one of them looks sick" she translated for me.

"How do you speak squirrel?" It was all I could think to respond in that moment.

She laughed and quickly covered her mouth with her hands. "I do not speak squirrel as such. I can speak to the inhabitants of the dungeon."

"Then why can't I speak to them?" I was pouting and I knew it.

Just then, Bob chimed in. "You are the core of the dungeon. Normally, dungeons have little interest in things outside of growing and killing, so no real need to communicate much with the outside world. For that, dungeons normally use monsters or residents to convey their will."

That made some kind of sense I had to admit, however reluctantly. But I did want to communicate with the outsiders, so that would have to be amended somehow. For now though, communication would need to go through my new friend.

*****

Serlin was not feeling very well at all. There was a burning sensation in his left leg, and he was most definitely developing a fever. He tried his best to soldier on, but he had to lean more and more on Lark just to be able to stay upright. If they were attacked by this giant monster wolf now they were both done for.

The going was very slow now that Lark had to, more or less, carry his friend. If they made it to the tree before Serlin collapsed completely, he would consider them lucky. The problem was that he had no idea what to do once they got there. They were in no shape to fight, and going back to Oberon would take more time than Serlin had left. Well, one problem at a time. Firstly, Lark had to get his friend out of the sun. Even though it would be starting to set soon, it was still hot and too much exposure would be worse than whatever ailment had befallen his companion.

They weren't more than a couple of dozen meters from the large tree now, just entering into its shade. Lark had almost dropped his friend in surprise when, out of nowhere, there was suddenly a road in front of him. It wasn't a naturally formed path, but a wide stone road. Someone had obviously put a lot of effort into building it, and it went on straight through the tree.

"Everything about this place is fucking weird." Lark mumbled to himself as he set Serlin down and leant him against the thick trunk of the tree, just off the road.

No sooner had he stood back up, than he heard excited chittering from above. He tilted his head back and saw three squirrels sitting on one of the lower branches, looking at him. If he didn't know better he could have sworn they were talking about him. Such a ridiculous thought. He shook his head vigorously, trying to clear his mind from what he was sure must be heat exhaustion. A low, pained groan from Serlin snapped his attention away from the tiny critters and back to his friend. He had to try to do something.

*****

As we left the last of the buildings behind and started along the road towards the edge of my domain, Kaiara looked back over her shoulder.

"Why so many buildings?" She sounded genuinely curious. "I have never seen, or even heard of, a dungeon doing anything like this before."

"Well, I spawned out here on the open fields." I started explaining as she walked and I floated along next to her. "The first thing I could build was a little shack to house my core. Then Buddy came along, all tiny, starving and sad, so I made a little den for him. Then one day my wolves found Little Dude, that's the squirrel you spoke to, injured and took him back here. I couldn't just let him die, so I made another shack with some beds and stuff to bring him back to health. After that, things just spiraled I guess. I suppose I wanted a little taste of home if I was going to be stuck here. So I tried making my domain a little more… well… homely, I suppose."

Kaiara was silent for a long while, clearly contemplating my answer. "Where is home if not here?"

Now it was my turn to go silent. There was a very strong feeling in the back of my mind that I did have a home somewhere else, but I just couldn't remember where. I couldn't even really remember how I got here, only that I woke up in the field. That was strange. I was sure I knew all this before, but it had somehow gotten tucked away in my brain.

"I don't remember." I finally answered in a low, unsure tone. "I know I have another home, or at least I did, but I remember nothing about it."

Nodding as if she understood exactly what I meant, Kaiara commented no further on the matter. We walked together in silence, approaching the squirrel tree.

*****

Buddy could smell the human long before he could see them. One of them smelled normal, like a human was supposed to, but the other one reeked of death. There was something inside him that was killing him slowly. Buddy couldn't tell exactly what it was, but he was at least sure it was not magical in nature. He could sense no disturbance in the mana around the humans.

Looking behind him, Buddy saw his two wolves just a few steps behind and the two golems a few meters behind them. He was almost at the tree now, so he commanded his wolves and the golems to stay where they were. If these humans were a threat, Buddy had no doubt he could kill them both before they could even blink. But if the were friendly, he didn't want to scare them unnecessarily.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

With a confident, but hopefully not too intimidating, stride, Buddy rounded the massive tree and finally saw the humans up close. One of them was staring up at him, terror and panic radiating off of him. The other human was slumped against the tree, barely conscious. Buddy sniffed the sick one and quickly turned his nose away. Blood Snake venom, that would explain this human's condition. The venom would destroy something in its victim's blood, Buddy wasn't sure what or how exactly, making them more and more tired as well as making their heart work harder and harder. Eventually the victim would pass out and their heart either explode or shut down. This man was dangerously close to the end point.

Lark almost fainted when the wolf appeared around the tree. Only his sense of duty to protect his friend was keeping him from that sweet oblivion. He took up a guarded stance between Serlin and the wolf, which was about the size of a pony, hoping his death would at least be quick. Instead of attacking him, however, the wolf leaned down and sniffed Serlin. It got a strange look in its eyes, and quickly turned its nose away. It turned, looking back in the direction it had emerged from and uttered a series of low growls and barks.

Before Lark knew what was going on, two big stone constructs of some sort came trundling around the tree. The wolf had brought backup, but why the hell were there golems here in the first place? Before he had time to reflect on that question, however, one of the golems lifted Serlin up like he was no heavier than a feather, put him on its shoulder and started slowly walking back where it came from. Lark made to go after it, but one single look from the wolf seemed to root him in place. All he could do, once again, was hope for a swift and painless end.

"Greetings adventurer."

Lark heard a gentle, female voice from the other side of the tree. He was about to turn and run, not having the mental fortitude to endure any more strangeness in one day, when he saw a slight kobold woman coming into view. She was dressed in a tattered and torn tunic and simple pants, but she had an air of grace to her that told him that, in spite of her looks, she must be someone of importance. Once again he froze to the spot, unable to move as the small lizard woman came right up to him and gave a slight bow.

*****

When we finally reached the spot where the new visitors were, my two golems were already heading back towards the hospital. I could see one of them carrying a humanoid shape over its shoulder. That was something I definitely needed to investigate later. I hadn't heard any sounds of battle, but that didn't mean that Buddy hadn't had to defend himself and injured, or killed, one of them. I was snapped out of my musings by Kaiara's voice.

"Greetings adventurer." She spoke in her softest, friendliest tone. "You have entered the domain of Dungeon Bro, and if your intentions are friendly, he welcomes you. My name is Kaiara and I shall be your guide."

There was a long, drawn out silence as the visitor just stared at her with his mouth wide open. I was afraid he might faint from having forgotten how to breath, but Kaiara merely stood there and smiled at him.

"My…" The human started to speak, cleared his throat, then tried again. "My friend is sick, please don't hurt him. You can kill me if you wish. I was the one who suggested we come here to see the big wolf and tree."

Kill him? I was almost offended at the insinuation. At least until I remembered what Bob had told me about dungeons. Most of them cared only about growing and killing, so this man's assumptions were at least somewhat founded.

"He is safe, do not fear for him." Kaiara assured the terror stricken man. "And you are welcome as a guest of Dungeon Bro, should you want to rest for a while."

Lark relaxed a little, but couldn't completely overcome his fear and apprehension. He looked at the giant wolf, then back to the small kobold, then back to the wolf again. Neither of them seemed to be hostile, he supposed. The wolf could easily have torn him apart if it wanted to, but it seemed largely uninterested in him at all. Sure, it shot him a glance every now and then, but its main focus seemed to be on the kobold lady.

"Please, do not worry about your friend." Kaiara put a hand on Lark's shoulder. "We can go to him if you want, or we can get you a room with a soft bed and a…"

"A shower." I stated, almost chuckling a little. "I'll explain the concept later. In short, it's like a controlled rain in your house."

"A shower." Kaiara explained, sounding uncertain. At Lark's questioning look she just shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know what it is either, but Dungeon Bro says it's like having rain in your house or something."

The explanation did nothing to further either of their understanding of the concept, but I didn't mind. I would just have to show them later. But first I had to actually make one.

I chose one of the empty shacks behind the hospital and leveled it up, then expanded it to have three more rooms on the ground floor, as well as three rooms on a second floor. That was costlier than I had anticipated, but it in no way drained me. I made one of the smaller rooms upstairs into a bathroom, complete with a toilet, bathtub and shower. I connected a tin lined iron pipe to the toilet and dragged it through a perfectly cut out hole in the wall, down the outside, then under the ground a bit, into a large pit which I covered with a heavy stone lid. It wasn't a very good sewage system, but it would do for now. I did the same thing for the bathtub and shower, connecting those pipes to the first one just before it went through the wall. The next issue would be to get water into the facilities in a controlled manner while also being able to control the temperature.

"Bob! I have another dumb question."

I could hear a chuckle as Bob appeared next to me. "Yes, boss? Your questions are never dumb. Maybe a little naive, but never dumb."

"Wow, thanks." I said flatly, but I couldn't disagree with the naive part. I knew next to nothing about this world. "Anyway, if I use mana, could I make a button or something to control the heat output of one of those fire gems?"

Bob was silent for a long moment. "I mean, you could infuse the gem with more mana to make it hotter, or less mana to make it less hot." He started to explain.

"No, no. That's not what I want." I was a little frustrated that he didn't understand my idea right away. "Let's say I have a container of water above the ceiling with a fire gem in it, and it connects via a pipe down to this tub here. Is there anyway I can make some sort of… device, or mechanism of some sort that would let anyone adjust how hot the water was?"

There was an even longer pause as Bob clearly struggled with the concept. "You put your effort and energy into the strangest things, boss. But yes, it can be done. You have control over the mana in your domain, so you can make it do almost whatever you want."

Almost whatever I want. That was an interesting, and slightly terrifying, idea. But an idea I could work with. Firstly I needed to make the tank for all the water that would be needed. I raised the roof slightly, making a small attic space. A tin lined, attic shaped tank was the next step, followed by pipes leading down to the toilet, bathtub and shower, giving each of them a simple shut off valve near the ends. That was the easy part done. Now it was time for the complicated magic mana stuff.

I took a water gem and placed it inside the tank, using the same idea as for the fire fighting cart I had made earlier, only with less pressure. This tank didn't need to spray water, it just needed to keep filling up; gravity would take care of the actual water distribution. Next up was the really tricky part that I had no idea how I would pull off.

Making a small fire gem with a minimal amount of mana put into it, I placed it inside the water. The heat currently being created wasn't enough to overcome the cold temperature of the water, so that was helpful at least. I made a small metal disc, inserted it into a stone casing and attached it to the wall right next to the shower. So far, so good.

The thing that was difficult with creating magic things with mana, seemed to be that mana took intentions into account. If I wanted an electrical wire to connect a light switch to a light, all I had to do was close the circuit and the electricity would flow through and turn the light on. When doing the same thing with mana, I had to make the switch with the intention of it turning the light on, and the light with the intention of being turned on when the switch was flipped. While that made it easier in a way, like not needing to be an electrician, plumber or any kind of building specialist, it did present other hardships. The more different components you tried to get to work together, the bigger the chance that you would forget to include one or more of them at some stage. Thinking about it too hard made my head hurt.

With the hardware now created, all I should need to do, in theory, was to link the metal disc to the fire gem. I conjured a mental image of the disc and gem in my mind, then made the disc turn slowly clockwise at the same time as the fire gem grew warmer. Then I imagined the opposite, turning it counter clockwise and the gem growing colder, before I attempted to connect the mana between the two.

Nothing exploded when I attached the mana to the gem and focused my attention back into the room I was currently occupying. That was a good start. To test out my system I turned the valve over the bathtub. Water soon began filling the stone tub, so I tried turning the disc ever so slightly. There was no immediate reaction, so I turned it a fair bit more. Within seconds the water that came out of the pipe was steaming. I had no way to test if the water was actually hot, but the fact that the only window in the room was steaming up would have to be sufficient evidence. Turning the disc again, the other way this time, the steam from the water subsided.

"I can not believe that actually worked." The surprise in Bob's voice was slightly insulting, but I couldn't blame him. I had barely thought it would work myself.

"Oh yee of little faith!" I mock scolded. "Of course it works. It was my idea after all."

I could practically hear the eye roll in Bob's voice. "Of course, boss."

Pleased with my work, I made the finishing touches on the bathroom. A few fluffy towels, a nice shower head, a mirror on the wall and a few hooks to hang your clothes on. Once I was done I floated back out into the hallway and just beheld my creation for a bit. Looking at it did give me a slight stab of homesickness, I had to admit that. But if I couldn't go back, then I could at least bring the best parts of home to this place.

Having spent way longer than I anticipated on a way too complicated plumbing system, I hurried to make a simple bedroom in one of the other rooms upstairs. Just a simple bed, dresser and some comfy blankets and pillows would do for now. If this visiting human wanted to stay for a little while, he would at least be comfortable. And if there was anything else he required, I was sure that Kaiara could forward a request to me.

*****

"What are all these buildings?" Lark asked, with no small amount of amazement in his voice.

Kaiara looked around as they followed the road through the small village. "That one over there by the pond is what Dungeon Bro refers to as a fire station. I don't know why. I haven't been here very long myself. That one with the porch out front is Bro's own shack. It used to be the core room, but I believe he has moved it somewhere else, though I don't know where. And that one, with all the golems around it, is the law keepers building. I think Bro calls it a 'police station'. Though I don't know what that means exactly, its purpose seems pretty clear. The one we're going to is the healing house, or 'hospital' as Bro calls it. That's where your friend is."

Lark let all that sink in for a few seconds as they walked. This 'hospital' they were going to was a massive building, at least i his experience. The only building he could remember seeing that rivaled it was the church in the next town over. No building in Oberon even came close to this size. Even the town hall was only about three quarters of the size. It seemed strange to Lark that you would build such a huge building and use it only to care for sick people. How many sick people could there be in one place at one time that they needed that much space?

As they neared the hospital, Kaiara suddenly stopped and seemed to be listening to something Lark couldn't hear. She nodded a few times and gave a couple of 'uhu' and 'yes' agreements before she turned to Lark again.

"Dungeon Bro says he has allocated a house for you, should you want to stay while your friend recuperates. It is located just behind the hospital if you follow that path." She pointed to a small dirt path that lead from the large road and up behind the hospital.

"Oh.. I, uhm…" Lark struggled to think of something to say. Did he want to stay? Could he just abandon Serlin here and go back home? Should he go back to town and get some more people? In the end he decided that he would stay until Serlin recovered. The dungeon didn't seem dangerous. Hell, it couldn't even really be called a dungeon from what he had seen so far. It was more like a little village or hamlet, though it was inhabited mostly by wolves and golems.

"Thank you, Dungeon Bro." he said finally. "I think I will stay and keep an eye on my friend, if that is okay."

Kaiara nodded in the affirmative and led him the rest of the way into the hospital. The inside of the big building was far less impressive than its size. There was a central corridor with six doors on each side, hinting at the number of rooms available. Kaiara led him into the first room on the left where he saw Serlin laying on a bed, covered in blankets and with a wet piece of cloth on his forehead. Standing next to the bed, seemingly not doing anything at the moment, was a golem. Lark didn't know if this golem had some kind of healing magic, or what other capacity it filled in this hospital, but at least it didn't seem to be doing any harm. In fact, Serlin was looking a little bit better already. He wasn't as pale as he had been and his breathing seemed stronger and more stable.

"He looks better already." Lark turned towards his guide with a surprised look on his face.

"Yes, this place is imbued with mana." Kaiara explained calmly. "Anyone who is injured or sick can rest in these beds and they will heal slowly over time."

"Why would the dungeon make such a place?" Lark was astonished. An entire building that was enchanted to heal people. He had never even heard of such a thing.

"I do not know." Kaiara stated honestly. "Maybe to heal those who get injured in the dungeon itself. Or maybe Bro just likes to make strange things. Nobody knows except Bro himself." She shrugged and started leading the human back out of the room. "Now come. There is nothing you can do for him just now. Let me show you the house that Bro has prepared for you."

Lark hesitated for a second. A part of him wanted to stay with his friend, but he knew that the kobold lady was right. So he let her lead him out and followed her around the hospital.

To say that his jaw dropped when he saw the house would be an understatement. To call it a house would be so inadequate he didn't even have words for it. This was no house. This was a royal mansion. The sheer size of the place made Lark slightly light headed, but he managed to keep his balance somehow.

"Come, let me and Dungeon Bro show you around."

Kaiara was beaming at his reaction. He assumed there was more than a little pride in being accepted by such an obviously powerful dungeon. She led him through the front door and stopped in the main hall. This room on its own was bigger than Larks own house back home. It was very sparsely decorated, only a small table and chair located next to a grand staircase leading up to a second floor. The rest of the rooms on the ground floor were empty.

"Dungeon Bro apologizes for the lack of furnishings." Kaiara sounded apologetic herself as she conveyed what was apparently the dungeon's message. "He didn't know if you wanted to stay, or what things you would like. But if you need anything, he says to not hesitate to ask."

Lark didn't respond. How could he? What was he going to say? It wasn't like he was going to complain about being offered a roof over his head, let alone a house of this size. Whatever he might need, he was sure as hell not going to bother asking the dungeon to make it for him.

"Now, up here is where your bedroom is." Kaiara pointed to a door that stood slightly ajar. "There's a bed and comfortable bedding to go with it."

She grew silent for a moment, intensely listening to something, Lark would guess the dungeon. After a few nods and a couple of amused affirmations, she turned to a door further down the hall.

"So…" she started, sighed and shook her head, then started again. "In here is what Bro describes as 'his masterpiece'."

She opened the door wide and both of them stood looking at the room in utter confusion. The only thing that either of them recognized was a large stone bathtub along the far wall, but this one seemed to have some strange pipes connected to it. Next to the tub was some sort of glass cubicle standing on a small stone base. This too had weird pipes going into it, as did the strange stone chair that stood just inside the door. None of this made any sense to either of them.

Kaiara listened carefully, a confused look on her face. She didn't understand most of what the dungeon was saying to her, but she caught a few of the more simple concepts. Water somehow came through the pipes in the ceiling and into either the bathtub, the cubicle or the chair. There were small levers on the pipes going to each thing that you could turn to have water flowing into it, then turn again to make it stop. So far it sounded fairly simple. It was the other thing that she found nearly impossible to comprehend.

"I am not sure if I understand correctly." her voice conveyed the uncertainty she felt. "But… he says that if you turn this little disc here…" she pointed to the metal disc on the wall. "...then the water should heat up."

She looked over at Lark with an almost desperate look, but all he could do was give her the same look back. How could turning a little metal disc have any effect on the water in a bathtub? It made absolutely no sense.

"Yes, yes, Boss." She sounded almost like a scolded child as she reached for the lever on the pipe above the tub. "I will do as you say, of course. I apologize for doubting…" She cut herself off mid sentence, getting a sheepish look in her eyes. "I will try, Dungeon Bro."

With those words, she pulled the lever down and water immediately started pouring into the tub, and disappeared again through a hole in the bottom of it. Strangely though, no water was running out on the floor. This house was indeed very strange.

Next, the kobold woman placed her hand on the metal disc, looked apprehensive for a second, then determined, and turned the dish about a quarter revolution to the right. Within seconds the water coming from the pipe was steaming as it poured into the tub. Lark suspected that if he put his hand under it, he would be visiting the hospital to heal a very burned hand. This was absolutely incredible. He had never before heard of anything like this. At home, and everywhere else as far as he knew, if you wanted a hot bath you went to the well, put the pot of water over a fire, poured it into the tub, then waited for it to come to a non scalding temperature. To be able to do all that just by pulling a lever and twisting a small disc was, well it was magic. He couldn't think of any other way to describe it.

Before leaving Lark alone in the house, Kaiara showed him, with instructions from the dungeon, how to use the shower and the toilet. That was another thing that completely blew his mind. To not have to run to the outhouse in the middle of the night to relieve himself. Such a thing was unheard of.

*****

Once I had shown Kaiars and our guest how to utilize everything in the bathroom, I left them to their own devices. I suspected that the visitor was tired and needed some rest, and my kobold interpreter seemed eager to familiarize herself with the area. That worked out fine for me as I still had work to do. After checking in on the patient in the hospital, I floated myself down into the dungeon proper. The tunnel leading down was still barren and the room where we found Kaiara was very much the same. If I wanted to attract adventurers and delvers, that would have to change.

First I had to decide what kind of dungeon I wanted to be. Everything on the surface was just my way of making myself feel at home. Down here would need to be purpose built for whatever theme I decided to go with. I knew I didn't want to be a murderous dungeon. Having people come and visit just to kill them off so I could hoard mana and build more death traps didn't appeal to me in the least. I would much rather have a lower mana income, but have people coming back because they had a good time, or at least an interesting time.

I consulted with Bob on what direction I should go in. He was very helpful with the details of my choices, but not at all with the actual decision. Basically, he told me that there were several different kinds of dungeons, and an endless variety of mixes. The most common one was the 'fighting dungeon'. It was pretty much what it said on the label. Adventurers would fight their way through levels of tougher and tougher monsters, gaining experience and loot on the way, until they either turned around or died. That sounded both boring and cliché, no thank you.

Variety number two was what Bob called a 'challenge dungeon'. Instead of fighting monsters, or at least only fighting monsters, adventurers would have to complete challenges in order to progress and get rewards. Examples could be to cross a room with a floor covered in snakes without harming the snakes or using magic to fly over or getting bitten. This sounded more like my kind of thing. I had always loved watching 'Ninja Warrior' on TV back home and I could think of some pretty hilarious challenges.

Another option was the 'puzzle dungeon'. Again, it was pretty much self explanatory really. Solve puzzles, get loot. Also an interesting option to be sure.

The final example that Bob had was the 'secluded dungeon'. I could tell from the name alone that this wasn't really for me, but I didn't interrupt. Basically this was a dungeon that had no interest in delvers or adventurers. It usually just stayed hidden, feeding off whatever critters or monsters would stray into its domain. It was a slow way to progress, but usually pretty safe if you could steer clear of settlements and other dungeons. It also sounded mind numbingly boring. No thank you. In the end, a mixture of challenges and puzzles, and maybe some non lethal fighting, sounded like a pretty solid gameplan. I already had a decent start in my mining room.

*****

Several hours and many headaches later, I stood at the bottom of my finished entrance tunnel. If it was going to take this much effort just to make a tunnel, I wasn't sure I was going to survive making a whole complete level. To make a multi level dungeon was currently feeling way beyond me. But at least I had gotten this tunnel finished.

It started out simple enough, with a couple of pressure plates that would trigger sticks to come out of the wall and sweep your feet out from under you, making you slide down and land in a pit of mud a little ways down the tunnel. Pretty basic stuff, but also pretty good for a first try.

After the mud pits I put a couple of false trap doors mixed in with two real ones. All of them looked identical and were camouflaged with some branches and leaves. The only difference was that the real ones made you fall through them, into a portal and deposited you on your ass just outside the main doors. Thinking that one up made me chuckle for a solid minute.

The last trap before Kaiara's room was as simple as it was hilarious. A hidden tripwire opened a cavity in the ceiling above, dumping a whole lot of water over you. I would eventually upgrade it to dump tar over people, then the next step they took would be onto a pressure plate cause the walls on both sides to slide open and shoot feathers at them. Simple, non lethal, annoying as hell to the delvers, and absolutely hilarious to me. What more can I ask for?

Just to be a little bit more of an asshole, I inscribed a detailed walkthrough of the tunnel in the entrance hall, hidden amongst other carvings of monsters and heroes fighting each other. You could get the complete layout of the first half of the tunnel if you looked hard enough, but I was counting on the people of this world being just as oblivious as they were back home. Focusing back on the tunnel I noticed that I had some options available.

"Upgrade tunnel to 'challenge tunnel' 10 mana. Turn the first half of the tunnel into a single challenge with a reward at the end." Under that were a few more options that were more trap focused.

"Upgrade all traps to automatically reset themselves after one minute. 5 mana."

"Upgrade mud pit trap to mudslide trap. 10 mana. Turns the whole first section of the tunnel into mud, further obscuring the trap triggers and making it harder to stand up after falling."

"Upgrade pitfall trap to randomized pitfall trap. 5 mana. Randomizes which two trap doors are real."

"Upgrade waterfall trap to tar and feather trap. 15 mana. Turns the water into tar and placed launchers of feathers in the walls, shooting them at whoever triggers the tar."

I was very, very pleased. I immediately purchased all of the upgrades, and was then tasked with coming up with a fitting challenge for the section. I pondered the question for a long while, trying to think of any and all ways that delvers could beat the traps I had made. Then I tried figuring out how long it would take someone just to walk through the first part of the tunnel if they knew where all the traps were. In the end I figured I would make two separate challenges, which could be completed together or separately, depending on your luck and skill.

"Challenge one: Speed Demon. Traverse the corridor ahead and make it to the sanctuary within the time limit to receive a reward. Time limit: five minutes."

Five minutes would be difficult, but definitely doable if you knew what you were doing. I figured that people who returned often,and would learn where most of the traps were, would be able to do it much faster, and should be rewarded for their patronage.

"Challenge two: Sure Footed. Traverse the corridor ahead without setting off any of the traps within. Make it to the sanctuary clean and unbruised to receive a reward."

It definitely wasn't the most difficult challenge ever, but this was technically only the entrance, so I figured it was ok. In the sanctuary room, as I had come to think of it, I made a small pond of water where those who got unlucky on their way could clean themselves a bit. I also dug out a small fire pit, put down a pile of firewood to use as fuel, and a couple of bigger logs to use as benches. On the wall nearest the tunnel I cut a sizable chunk out of the wall, filled the hole with mana that I connected to the two challenges, then covered the whole thing with a metal plate with a hatch on the bottom. The idea was that after completing one or both of the challenges, the delvers would come here to receive their reward. The system would keep track of who had succeeded and who had failed and the big swirl of mana in the wall would conjure up a suitable item as a reward. I didn't know how well it would work, but in theory it should. I would ask Kaiara to try it out later if she wanted, or maybe one of the visiting humans if they felt up for it.

The bottom half of the tunnel I would leave empty, at least for now. Partly because I didn't have any good ideas for interesting challenges or puzzles, and partly because I didn't want to overdo it in the beginning. Do too much and it might put people who just wanted to come down here to mine off the whole thing.

I was pretty low on mana, as well as ideas, at this point, so I decided to pay a visit to my favorite giant wolf. Knowing just where to find him, I floated up through the tunnel and through the ceiling of the entrance hall. To no one's surprise, Buddy was sleeping in the sun.