Author Note:
Hi folks,
Thanks for the feedback. As I write this, there are 377 with the details as follow:
* 33.95% said the story is fine the way it is;
* 21.75% said the story has deviated from dungeon setting too much;
* 13.00% said the MC needs to use his head more;
* 10.00% said the heroine and the betrayal part is too annoying;
* 9.28%% said it's better not become a harem;
* Others that less than 5% each.
So, based on the result, I decide there will be no major change in the planed story as a whole. However, I need to put more attention in how I put things together and present them. Also, I've asked my brother and my old mentor to read the future chapters first before I post here, only when they're available, though.
Lastly, a new cover art is on the way, YAY! I'm very happy at the result so far, can't wait to see the end result. Hopefully at the end of this month or at the beginning of next month.
Okay, that's enough from me. Here's the chapter, I hope you enjoy it ;)
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It wasn’t a familiar scenery but we couldn’t be too far, since I was still able to recognize the [Firzoa] town walls in the horizon. Aside from the large crater on the ground, the place was really desolated, not even grass or small animals here. Of course, it was because the cause of the crater had wiped everything, its wave had even reached our previous standing place.
“Master!” Halili ran to the center of the crater. One glance was enough to see no one there, but I thought she wouldn’t be convinced until she checked thoroughly by herself. “How comes there’s nothing remaining at all…? Did she manage to escape…?”
Letting the girl did what she wanted, I talked to my demons through our link. ‘Haz, Ken, call your minions back to the dungeon. You two should go back as well,’ I said.
‘What about you, Master?’
‘My plan was to search for hints of how to fight Jiwa in [Firzoa] and continued to north regardless of the search result. Now I’ve found the hints I need, I’ll try to catch up with him.’
‘In that case, let me take you.’
‘No, I told you to return, don’t make me repeat, Haz. That goes for you too, Ken. Now that they know we've survived, I really need you two to stay on guard in the dungeon, understand? This dungeon lord is nothing but a replaceable avatar. If you really put priority to my safety like you claim to be, then do as I say and keep my heart safe.’
‘... Very well.’
‘Keek. We’re sorry for our unneeded meddling, Master. We’ll withdraw immediately, keek.’
‘I’m sorry too for making you worry, but I need to rescue father and it can only be done by myself.’
‘Why it can only be done by yourself, Master? Even if we aren’t strong enough in your eyes, we should be useful somehow. I prefer to accompany you in this dangerous task than to wait uncertainly at home. You said Fantastica will come, but with them being greatly outnumbered in that human den [Firzoa] I doubt they will send anyone strong enough to pass the firearm holding goblins in the first level.’
I sighed. ‘Listen. I don’t have a concrete plan against Jiwa yet. And to be honest, I don’t think any of us stand a chance against him at the moment. As I said, this dungeon lord is a replaceable avatar so it’s okay to die. Your case is different, however. I don’t want to waste your lives for nothing. Is guarding my heart not important task enough for you?’
‘... What am I supposed to do while waiting for enemy? Never mind, I will do as Master says. My apologies.’
With a bow, the two finally left the area. Hazard spread and flapped his wings, taking the sky route, while Ken disappeared from the sight, taking the land route. I could only sigh at the two’s departure, at least Hazard complied in the end. If he kept defying my order, I might need to set an example out of him.
Approaching me, Halili asked, “Arz isn’t going with them?”
“I need to take care something else first. Oh yeah, thanks for helping us escape from Fantastica.”
“Humm, shouldn’t I be the one who thanks Arz? If you didn’t stop Oki, I would… Uu, I don’t want to think about it. But, I don’t understand, why did you help me?”
“Why, you ask? Aren’t we friends? You came and warned me about Fantastica Executives being in [Firzoa] too.”
“Friends…? We barely know each other! I attacked you, remember?!”
“... You just followed what your master told you.”
“It doesn’t change the fact I attacked you with all my might! You might be killed!”
I scratched my head. “I don’t believe you came with an intention to kill. Besides, I don’t think I would lose either.”
…
…
“... Hng, I can’t deny that. Although I wouldn’t kill Arz, you might still be killed if you were captured, you know? But yeah, I guess from the start I stood no chance against Arz if you could handle two Fantastica Executives like they were nothing… Haa… And here I always thought I’m the best mage of our generation.”
“... Wait, two? You mean that Oki guy wasn’t the only Executive there?”
“Uh-huh. I may be wrong, but I think the charging woman was the Blinking Oki’s wife, Thianna the Savage Ax. And if I remember correctly, the high priest whom your demon friend attacked, Father Jaa, it’s also the name of one of Fantastica Executives.”
“Wha… Three…?!”
(… And four with Maa’. Uwaah, I’m really screwed up, am I not? If they die, there’s no way I can fix the relationship with Fantastica, can I?
(Uh, why did I reflexively change my race back then? I should’ve let that Oki guy hack my head. I might've died, but so what, my consciousness would've just returned to the dungeon…
(... No, it’s not that simple. Hazard and Ken would've likely gone rampage if I had died. And with me in dormant state, no one would've stopped them. It might've turned even worse.
(Ah, I don’t know anymore…
(No, no, just calm down. I need a clear head now more than anything else.)
“... You okay?” Halili asked, seeing me in silence for a period.
Scratching my head and taking a deep breath, I replied, “I am, thanks.”
“... You sure?”
“... Maybe not,” I dropped myself and sat on the ground, before inhaling deeply once again. “I guess the event with Fantastica in my dungeon has been affecting me more than I’m aware of myself. I’ve been very short tempered these days and easily snap. Not in my best to make a judgement, that’s for sure.
“Like with that Oki guy, I could’ve handled the situation better. There was no need to fight, I could’ve just asked Dava to let you go. After all, he owed me for rescuing his sister, and I could’ve pressed further using their previous betrayal. I think aunt Ehrisya would've supported me in this too .”
“... Thanks.”
“What?”
“Your friendship… Thank you for never thinking of abandoning me. I- I’ll repay you somehow,” she said, looking away with a slight blush. “However!” she suddenly exclaimed. “I’m still not giving up of becoming the next generation’s best mage! Next time, let’s have a rematch next time… I’ll definitely get stronger! I’m Halili the Blue Flame, I won’t lose to a mage from the same generation twice!”
“Haha, good resolution. You’re welcome to try, as long as the situation at the time allows.”
…
…
“Humm, I think it’s time to go. I still need to look for master. Since I can't find any remnant of her, hopefully she managed to escape somehow. See you later, Arz,” Halili bid farewell.
“Wait. Halili, you’re good with magic theory, right?”
“More or less. Why?”
“... I thought, knowing I could fight a soul-mage with golems was enough. But now that I think it over, it’s a widely known theory, right? In that case, I should assume an experienced mage like Jiwa would know how to counter it.”
“I suppose,” she shrugged her shoulders.
“The way to counter I can think of… The first thing comes to my mind is his psychokinetic-like ability. I’ve only seen him sending living beings fly around so far, but it’s possible it’s not limited to living things. And the second way is, by having a longer magic range.”
“Magic range?”
“Yes. It wouldn’t matter whether I hide and send golems in front if he can still reach my mind from afar. I don’t know his magic range, I don’t know mine either since I've never tested my limits, but Maa’ could control his morphers quite far. And Dava, you don’t need me to say, this crater is the very result of the magic he shot all the way from [Firzoa] over there.”
“Humm.”
“Halili, what’re the factors influencing magic range? Do you know?”
“That’s a tough question...,” she replied as she took a seat on the ground as well. She considered her answer before continuing. “I’m not familiar with the term magic range, but if you’re talking about casting a long range spell, there are many theories. Among them, sight is one of the most important factor.”
“Sight?”
“That’s right. Because we need a clear image for casting a spell, what we can see becomes important. Of course, we can still cast a spell beyond that, but the effectiveness is dampened greatly and thus unadvised. And there’re things like heights, angles, and obstacle positions that determine sight range to consider.”
“... Maa’ controlled his morphers beyond many rooms in my dungeon. Obviously he can’t see the rooms, but those water guardians were still killing my creatures effectively.”
“I- is that so? Maybe the elemental guardians are special? Because, they’re almost like living beings themselves, right?”
“Hmm… What’re the other factors? I mean, although sight plays important role in giving a clear visualization, it’s not the range limit, right? You said it yourself, we can still cast a spell beyond what we can see. So what’s determining the range limit, where we no longer able to cast a spell there?”
“Uh-huh. I wonder… Isn’t it the magic power then?”
At the time, a small quake occurred. It wasn’t a natural one since I could sense a faint trace of mana. Then, an earth coffin similar but rougher to the one I had used to capture Halili’s pyros emerged just next to us with a minimum rumble and the quake stopped. The front side of the coffin slid open, revealing a tall man with well built muscles, reminding me of a bodybuilder. His thin blonde hair, mustache and sideburns were few of the dark skinned man’s visible features.
“Master Arret!” Halili quickly stood up when she recognized the man. “Long time no see,” she bowed politely to the mage, who took a step out of his stone case.
(Arret? As Arret the Traceless, earth-mage master whom Ethoria said looking for an apprentice?)
“Long time, indeed,” he replied. With a hand wave, the coffin submerged back to underground, leaving no trace like it had never appeared in the first place.
(That coffin, it can be used for a transportation method? I never thought of it. And what’s wrong with his appearance? He looks more like a warrior than a mage, doesn’t he? Ethoria was like that too, she looked more like a knight. No, appearance aside, why’s he even here?)
“Since Master Arret is here, does it mean master is safe? How is she?” Halili asked impatiently as I prepared continuous earth bullets, just in case.
“She is fine, do not worry. Healers are working as we speak,” he replied and sat down, followed by Halili. “More importantly, allow me to join in your interesting discussion,” he said, smiling in a friendly manner. At least it didn’t seem it would turn into a fight soon.
“Um, then, I’ll introduce you. This is Master Arret the Traceless, my master already told Arz about him. And this is Arz the Dungeon Master, I’m sure Master Arret has also heard about him,” Halili said.
“Indeed,” Arret nodded, his eyes staring at me. “Let us skip the formalities, Arz. About your earlier contention, it is sight not in literal meaning eyesight. You see, I can close my eyes here but still be able to see and hear you or even Dava through the vibration of earth.”
“Vibration of earth…?” I muttered, trying to digest his statement. “Does it work like an earthquake warning system? Wait, do you require to actively search in a certain direction, Master Arret?”
“I always have the spell activated in all directions. However, it is indeed as you guess, I need to focus to increase the sight range in a certain direction. I am proud to say that within the mages well-recorded in history, my range is among the furthest.”
“I see… I’m honored to meet a mage of your calibre,” I praised. “What about what determines magic range’s limit, Master Arret? Is it magic power like Halili said? If I’m not mistaken, magic power is a part of magic talent, right? Does it mean one’s range’s limit has been determined from when he was born? Can we train it?”
“It is magic power, indeed,” he nodded. “However, magic power does not equal magic talent, it is more of what determines magic output. Although some mages are blessed with strong magic power talent since birth, like Halili whose fire is always blue in color and hotter despite the same amount of mana used, one can always train his control over magic power.
“The easiest way is simply to channel more mana, and your spell will have more magic power. Depending on the spell's characteristics, it will either increase the spell’s range, covered area, or sharpness and damage caused. In relation to your question, the stronger the magic power is, the further one’s magic can reach.”
He paused and observed me, then said, “You are surprisingly lacking in basic theories for a mage with your skills. Are you the type who goes with his instincts?”
“Er… Not really, I did learn the very basic, from books. My training consisted mostly of making various shapes with earth, and recently I was told my magic precision is quite high.”
“Precision, huh? Yes, it is one of control training methods, indeed, although not the usual course.”
“Is it worse? What’s the usual?”
“Usually beginners are taught to spend all their mana until they nearly collapse, over and over. That way they will learn their limit and how to control their magic power. In addition, it will help them increase their mana capacity. Especially the last part, because mana capacity can only be raised at a younger age. Only after one passes that age he is advised to change his training method to such as magic precision or higher-level spells that require more mana and complex imagination.”
“Arz’s mana capacity is tremendous despite not going through the usual course, Master Arret. Probably because he is a dungeon master,” Halili interjected.
“Indeed,” Arret nodded. “And just looking at the previous battle results, we can tell how dangerous his control level is. To be able to penetrate Ethoria’s barrier and to instantly kill an experienced warrior using a basic spell like
“That was
Thinking for a moment, I asked, “Ah, Master Arret, since you watched the fight, do you know what happened during the moment Halili and I escaped? Dava’s mana was disrupted before it could materialize.”
“Oh, you can tell? Your mana perception is not bad either. Indeed, it was me. Actually, I intervened several times during the period after Ethoria’s defeat until you escaped, didn't you realize?”
I shook my head. “No, I didn’t.”
(This guy… If his claim is true, he can kill from very far without his victim, or anyone else, knowing what happened. He’s dangerous, but maybe just the person I need.)
“Back to the topic, I missed the reason why do you need a long range magic. Something about a soul-mage?” Arret asked.
“Yes, Master Arret. A soul-mage named Jiwa has imprisoned my father, making him a mindless puppet.”
“Jiwa? You do not mean Jiwa the Coward of Dragon Mountains, do you?”
“He has been living in Dragon Mountain, yes. But what’s with the Coward nickname...?”
“That man never dares to leave the desolated Dragon Mountains just because Mahza told him so long time ago, even though Mahza does not even care and already drowned in his immortality research for years. What else would you call a man like that but a coward? Are you sure it is him? I doubt Jiwa has the guts to do something outrageous like mind-puppeting someone, he is too fearful Mahza will come after him if he does.”
“I see… It’s him, alright. I’m Arz Mahzason. Jiwa has taken his revenge on Mahza, my father, and turned him into a puppet who is always obeying him.”
Arret was dumbfounded for awhile, before he finally nodded. “Mahzason, huh? Indeed, now I look closer you resemble the younger Mahza somehow. Heh, who would have thought Mahza the Ruthless would ever fall to Jiwa. But again, no one ever expected he would settle and marry a good woman like Mirana either,” he remarked, more to his own amusement.
“Master Arret, I’ve a request,” I said. “But before that, may I inquire why’re you answering my questions here? Am I not an enemy for [[Quwwat]]?”
“Are you?” Arret replied with a smile. “No particular reason, I am just curious. Besides, I do not know if you realize, but you have helped our alliance a lot. You can consider this small conversation as my way to repay you.”
My eyebrows raised. “I helped you? Where’s that statement coming from? Didn’t I mess Master Ethoria’s plan to kill Master Dava?”
“Dava has slipped away, indeed, but it is more because of Ethoria’s own carelessness. You got rid of Maa’, the biggest threat other than Dava, was that not a great help?” he grinned.
“I see,” I nodded in acknowledgement. There was a saying that your enemy’s enemy is your friend, Arret was probably following that logic. “Then, can I ask you a favor to help me to kill Jiwa?”
“... Kill Jiwa, huh? It will not be easy. What would you offer me in return?”
“... I heard you’re looking for an apprentice. I’m willing to receive your guidance if you really can help me.”
He smiled. “Would you not be the only one benefiting in such a deal, Young Mage? But indeed, you are a good apprentice material. In addition, having a dungeon master as apprentice is not an everyday occurrence. Hmm, what should I do…?”
“Just information, I think that dungeon master thing is rather misleading. I’m not a dungeon master, I’m the dungeon itself. Well, the dungeon consciousness to be precise. The dungeon is my body, just like this one,” I said, pointing to my own face.
“Oh, interesting information, indeed,” Arret nodded. “Very well. If you agree with the condition of never going against me and my kingdom, I will help you in your quest and teach you to the best of my ability.”
(... Never go against [[Quwwat]], huh? So he’s still their officer till the end, expected. Maybe this’s but a first step, he may try to recruit me later.
(Hmm. If I consider the old rivalry between [[Alishine]] and [[Quwwat]], it would be safe to assume they’re the main perpetrator behind this invasion. I don’t have any particular attachment to this country, but it’d leave a bad aftertaste if I let the people I know die in front of me. And this is the country Alv wishes to protect at all cost.
(Well, I should put priority on my own missions; saving father and survival. At this point, I can’t really expect anything from Fantastica or even Alv, can I? It’s already a good thing if they won’t try to kill me at first sight. In that case, would it be better to reach out for [[Quwwat]]’s hand?
(Nah. Having a country to back you is good, but only until they decide to abandon you, that is. I should play my card smart, not leave my back exposed but let them close enough to gain benefits.)
“So…?” Arret asked again.
“... That’s a too harsh condition, Master Arret. If your countrymen attack me, am I not allowed to defend myself?” I laughed. “I won’t directly go against [[Quwwat]], unless I’m being attacked first. What do you say?”
“What is with this directly? Do you plan to go indirectly against us?”
“Ah, that’s not it. You see, my girlfriend is a patriotic hardcore. I can always refuse her, of course, if I know her intentions from the start. But who knows what she’ll do to trick me into helping her. Women are sly creatures after all, they’re scary.”
“Hmph,” Halili snorted at my statement, but I ignored her.
“... I can’t argue, women are scary, indeed. Very well, that should still be acceptable,” Arret agreed. “Now swear in your father’s name that you will never directly involve yourself against [[Quwwat Kingdom]].”
“I swear.”
“Full words!”
“I swear in the name of Mahza my father that I’ll never go directly against [[Quwwat Kingdom]].”
Arret nodded with satisfaction. “Congratulations, Arz, you have acquired yourself the best earth-elemental mage teacher. However, regarding your request, a fight against a soul-mage is always tricky and I still have jobs to finish. Let us meet up a week from now, I should be free and have a plan ready by the time.”
I was dumbfounded. “A week… Ten days?”
“What is wrong?”
“I’m sorry, Master, I’m afraid I don’t have that much time. Jiwa is currently heading east with father. By a week, he’ll be somewhere unreachable.”
“Hmm. It would be troublesome, indeed. Do you know where they are going to?”
“I’m… not sure…”
(Wait, back then, didn’t he try to fish out how I had become a dungeon? Could it be…?)
“Do you happen to know a dungeon in the east, Master?”
“Dungeon? I do not know much about dungeons, but the famous ancient dungeon Mount Naar is just north from [[Toa Republic]] in the east. Why?”
“That’s it! They must be going to Mount Naar!”
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“Are you sure? Since when Jiwa is interested in a dungeon? He is not an adventurer.”
“Probably…,” I hesitated.
Ancient dungeon Mount Naar, known as the oldest and the unconquerable dungeon. Even if Jiwa was aiming to take over a dungeon consciousness like I had done, targeting the very dungeon that even the best dungeon-expert adventurers couldn’t conquer was too reckless. Something was still missing.
“Umm,” Halili raised her hand. “I don’t know if it’s relevant, but I heard Mount Naar has been conquered recently.”
“Huh? Are you sure?”
“Yes, Arz. Since I learned you’re a dungeon master, I’ve been following news about dungeons. This is from a reliable source.”
“That is new, whichever big-guild did it must be bathing in fortune now. It is not Fantastica, right? Otherwise they would have hired more people to defend [Firzoa] by now. Ah, that is if they decide not to use the dungeon heart for themselves, indeed.”
“No, Master Arret. I heard Fantastica sent their raid team, but the one who conquered it were the Dungeon Hunter and his band of elves.”
“Heh, Dungeon Hunter? He has his own party now? A lot of mages must be crying if they know.”
“Why?” I asked, unable to follow the conversation.
“Could it be, Arz doesn’t know who the Dungeon Hunter is?”
“No, who?”
“Uh-huh. He’s an infamous elf who destroys every heart of dungeon he has conquered, thus is hated by adventurers - who make profit from dungeon hearts, and mages - who use dungeon hearts as materials in various researches. Crystal heart of a dungeon as old as Mount Naar would be very hard to find, if not impossible, and it’s a dream material for too many mages,” Halili explained.
“I see… If he has a party, his range of operation as well as the effectiveness will increase.”
“Uh-huh. Oh yeah, he’s usually targeting famous dungeons. Arz should be careful, your dungeon’s famous too.”
“Am I? Alright, I will,” I smiled, before turning to Arret. “With this piece of information, the chance of Jiwa going to Mount Naar is increased, I think. I don’t have anything to support my claim, though, this is merely my hunch,” I said, deciding to hold information regarding Jiwa’s agenda. It wouldn’t be good if [[Quwwat]] started to hunt for father’s
“Regrettably, I can not come, indeed. Even if I make haste, several days from today should be the earliest I will be able to spare. It is still too late, right?”
I nodded. “In that case, I’ll go alone as per my original plan. Do you have some tips for me?”
“Hmm. You are already on good track for thinking of long range magic. And with your level of precision,
“Very well, thank you,” I made a slight bow to my new teacher.
(Let see… When it comes to long range warfare, my previous world had various methods. Nuke missiles, drones, aircraft carriers, bomber planes, chemical bombs, and so on.
(Hey, golems are like drones in this regard, right? What if I modified them into an aircraft? But the problem is… how far away can they go before I start losing control?
(Hmm. The stronger the magic power, the further it can reach… Doesn’t it sound like a radio signal? Maybe I can make some relay stations between my dungeon and Mount Naar?
(Alright, first thing first, let’s start.
(... Ah, I wish I would’ve an access to internet now. Oh, well. If I remember correctly, it has a fan to absorb the wind from the front and then convert it into a thrust rearward? Hmm. Let’s try several layers of fans, it should increase the wind output, I think. There, done. Time to test, materialize!)
The earth raised and started to form an aircraft like I imagined. It invited an exclamation of curiosity, especially from Halili.
“Hmm. A bird-shaped golem?” Arret commented.
“Golem? This is a golem? Is it supposed to fly?” Halili asked in excitement. She jumped from her seat and took a closer look at the aircraft golem - I would call it sky golem from now on, until I thought of a better name.
“That’s what we’re going to find out,” I replied while having the sky golem to start the rotation of its fan engine’s blades.
(Faster!)
The wind started to make a loud whooshing noise until it reached a stable frequency and the drone shook a bit as it held its wheels at their position.
(Is this enough? Okay, go!)
With my order, it released the brakes and the wheels started to roll. It went faster, the flaps extended and the face lifted slightly. Aaaand…
(Failed! It’s not strong enough, I suppose. Probably too heavy as well, I made it using a very dense stone out of habit, after all.)
“What’s wrong?” Halili asked as the golem turned back and returned after a long run without actually flying.
“It took too long to take-off. I need to make it lighter and increase the speed several-fold more.”
“Is it…?”
(Let see… Aside from adjusting the stone's density while maintaining the endurance, how should I increase the power output?
(Hmm. In level two of my dungeon, I’ve strong winds in many places. Wind will blow from a place with higher pressure to a lower one, thus I played with the rooms’ temperatures to change the air pressure. Maybe I should play with the temperature here too?
(The question is, how?
(Hmm. Heating up the air? Should I add a combustion room? But to sustain a combustion I need to give a constant supply of fuel, mana, other than the one to move the golem itself. Also, if possible, I prefer something that doesn't require me to control it directly, something that my golem can do with a simple order.
(What other options do I have?
(Well, in my early firearm research, I used a compressed air inside the cartridge. A compressed air… it has high pressure, but it will be dissipated as soon the cartridge breaks. So, it’s good as one time boost only.
(Then in my later stage of firearm research, I used a compressed flame instead, enveloped by a vacuum air. It has stronger propelling power, but this too is only good as one time boost. Well, maybe I can add some rocket boosters to help it take-off, like a space shuttle.
(Or… maybe I can insert a monster core to this golem? It should ease the automatic function set up. But wait, it’ll turn it into a monster, won’t it? Not good, a monster is considered living beings and an easy prey for Jiwa.
(... Is it possible to make it non-biological like the stone pedestals or the traps?
(What if... I make separate parts with cores, and attach them to the golem as an extension? Is it possible? It should be.
(And this will open whole new options for me. Like, I can finally graduate from that manually cocked semi-automatic rifle and go full-automatic. No, a rifle golem is enough for that without the extension parts. Anyway, let’s give it a try… Ah, but I need to be within my dungeon’s claimed area to create a new core. Okay let’s re- !!)
“Interesting, indeed,” Master Arret suddenly tapped my shoulder, pulling me back into reality. “I want to see the end result, but we need to leave. Dava is heading here.” He then offered his hand to help me stand.
“Ah, okay.”
After I got up with his help, Arret took a step backward. Then, each of us was taken in by an earth coffin. It was submerging underground, from what I could perceive from inside, when suddenly a strong explosion blew me out from my coffin. It most likely happened to the other two as well.
Landing head first, I felt dizzy. It was nothing compared to the pain in my ears, though, the sound of explosion made my ears rang non-stop. I quickly poured mana to recover the dungeon lord’s state. Only then I saw the entity floating above us, the said strongest mage of this era, wind was blowing hard from his direction. Dava had arrived.
“Are you getting faster yet again, Dava?” Master Arret greeted with a grimace.
“I’m here to collect my prize, and look what I find instead. Arret, I should’ve known you’re involved. Where’s Ethoria?”
“Heh, try to look through the entire [[Quwwat]] if you want to find her,” Arret replied as he raised two giant golems.
It had to be a diversion, since an earth coffin emerged to take me at the same time. However, the ground that suddenly moved with me on it made the coffin miss.
“You’re not going anywhere,” Dava declared, ignoring the golems which hands were destroyed for trying to break his barrier.
“See if you can handle this too. HAH!
Arret stomped the ground hard as he shouted, and a rock three-times human’s head size was thrown upwards. As the rock reached his hand’s reach, he punched it. The moment his hand touched, the rock was reshaped into a sharp cone and shot towards Dava with amazing speed.
*BANG!*
A crack appeared in mid-air from where the cone-shaped rock stuck. Arret didn’t wait, he already stomped the ground and had another rock up. He launched the second bullet, which hit the first bullet from behind right in the center, and the now sticked together bullets then broke free from the barrier and continued their way towards Dava the Elementalist.
Dava's reaction was canceling the swirling air ball around him, which had supported his flight. He made a free fall and escaped the deadly projectile. At that moment, Arret the Traceless was sliding through the ground in a zig-zag, evading a series of explosions from Dava’s magic. As he swung his fist, a fist-shape rock emerged following his swing example. However, the movement was stopped mid-way. Arret had been frozen solid.
“Grrrggg…GHAAAH!! Ack!”
Arret, who was able to break free from the ice with his muscles alone, had his face covered by a swirling air ball and choked. Dava quickly restrained his opponent again with layers of ice and decapitated his arms and legs with wind blades. No mercy. Unable to fall to ground, neither able to breath, Arret was facing a painful and slow death sentence.
In the meantime, Halili had made her way to my side and grabbed my hand. The space around us then began to distort.
“Wait, Master Arret is- Ugh!” “Kyaah!”
An emerging earth wall forced our hands to separate. Before we could recover, I watched Halili’s sitting ground moved towards Dava in high-speed. The next moment, he already took a hold of her chin, his face so close to her. Everything happened so fast.
“You’re quite a beauty, Ethoria’s Apprentice. Normally, I would offer you to join me for a dinner. Too bad, after just losing a good friend and what you’ve done to my sister, I’m not in the mood,” Dava said.
“Release her!” I yelled, seeing the girl shaking in fear. I prepared my
“Hmm. Is she your woman?” the guildmaster of Fantastica asked. It surprised me that he actually let her go. With a hand gesture, the girl and her sitting ground moved to me.
“You okay?” I asked as I caught her, to which she replied with a nod.
“Now, can we talk, Dungeon Master Arz?” the red-haired guildmaster asked as he approached.
“... Before that, please release Master Arret as well.”
“Why? He has nothing to do with you, right?”
“He’s my master.”
“Pardon…?” Dava looked confused.
“Master Arret and me are master and apprentice from today on.”
He frowned and tensed up. “Does it mean you’re working for [[Quwwat]] now?”
“No.”
“Is that so…,” he looked unconvinced but relaxed a bit nevertheless.
Seeing him hesitate, I asked again. “Please, I’ll ransom him. You name the price, just release the air ball first. He’ll die of suffocation.”
“Ransom? You’re going that far? Even if you’ve a master-apprentice relationship, I don’t think you've known each other for long, haven't you? Aren't you too loyal?”
“I'm always loyal to my allies. Just release the air ball first, will you? He’ll die, you know!”
“No, he won’t. And you can save your money. Why don’t you take a look by yourself?” he said. Another hand gesture from him made the crystallized Arret come closer.
Inside the air ball, where Arret’s head should be, was… nothing, only dirt that swirled following the wind’s direction. As Dava cancelled his ice prison and the water splashed, it revealed nothing either. There was no body or whatever looked like a remnant of one. It made my eyes widen.
“What’s this? What’ve you done to him?”
“Nothing. Originally, this’s how he got the Traceless nickname, not because he’s never left a trace whenever he comes and goes with his weird underground carriage like most people thought. I’ve completely forgot about it myself until now, though,” Dava shrugged. “Don’t worry, your master is still alive somewhere,” he smiled.
I exchanged a look with Halili, who seemed as confused as me. It didn’t seem she understood what had happened, but after a moment of thought I could roughly guess. “It wasn’t his real body, was it? A golem?”
Dava nodded. “That’s my guess as well.”
“Right, just like Maa’.”
“Oh, you’ve figured his trick? Yes, it’s similar, except it seems Arret was controlling his double from a different location. That’s probably why his presence is always so thin and hard to detect.”
“Um, there should be a mana thread if that’s the case, but I didn’t see anything like that,” Halili whispered in my ear.
I stared blankly at the girl in front of me. Was I mistaken, was the question that went through my mind. In the end, I decided it wasn’t important to figure how Arret did it, at least not now. What important was that he already escaped.
“Anyway, Dungeon Master Arz, now that it’s been settled, I’d like to have a private conversation with you.”
Seeing how friendly Dava’s attitude was, I didn’t see any reason to refuse his demand. Besides, if possible, it was also my wish to reconcile with Fantastica. Like an old saying said, thousand friends aren’t enough, an enemy is too many. Of course, I wouldn’t repeat the same mistake of letting them crawl on my back.
“Halili, can you leave us?”
“... Are you sure?”
Nodding, I smiled and said, “If he wanted to kill me, one or two of us here won’t make any difference, you know. Isn’t it better if you check your master’s condition and look for Master Arret for me?”
She hesitated, switching her glance between me and Dava, before finally agreeing. “Uh-huh. Okay, but please be careful,” she said. The space then distorted, and Halili transferred away from our sight.
“She has nice assets,” Dava commented with a serious face.
“It’s okay to let her go, right?”
“It’s not, normally. But since it’s the only way to start a conversation with you and her role was only as a support, I’ll overlook just for this once. Please tell your girlfriend to stay away from us, though, there’ll be no next time.”
My eyebrows raised. “Halili? We’re just friends. I’ll tell her your message the next time I meet her, but I won’t guarantee she’ll listen. Now, what do you want to talk about?”
“Alright,” Dava replied. He then raised two earth pillars about one third of our height. Probably not exactly pillars, since Dava took a seat on one. It was supposed to be seats, it seemed. With a gesture, he asked me to sit on the other pillar. As we faced each other, he began to talk in a formal tone.
“First, we of Fantastica deeply apologize for what happened in your dungeon,” Dava, one of the most important mages in the whole continent, said as he lower his head. “We both have been suffering from the incident, but I admit Fantastica was in the wrong, thus we’ll compensate you somehow.
“Unfortunately, another incident occurred just earlier today outside the south wall of [Firzoa]. Although it started as a misunderstanding, since several good people have perished, including an Executive, we can’t just pretend it has never happened. So, how do you intend to settle it, Dungeon Master Arz?”
“... Hmm, suddenly asked how I want to settle it. How many people are we talking about, exactly?”
“Four people died, including Executive Thianna.”
“And the wounded?”
“Three with minor injuries, they’re already fine so it’s okay if you don’t count them. Executive Oki lost his legs and an arm and have severe burns, however. Those wounds should no longer endanger his life, but it’ll take time for him to completely recover.”
“I see. Any other victims?”
“No, that’s all.”
“I thought there was another Executive present, the high priest?”
“Father Jaa? He had his holy protection, so he’s fine.”
“I see… Hmm. Then, if it’s acceptable, I want to settle this with monetary compensation. A hundred gold for each of the three members and a double for your Executives, amounting seven hundred gold in total.”
“Se- *Cough!*, I mean, are you sure? You can even buy a fair-sized fief with that much money.”
“No problem, I can afford them. You’re short of war funds, aren't you? So?”
“Then, we’ll gladly accept your goodwill,” Dava said, once again lowering his head.
Seeing the mage-master bowing so deep, I couldn’t help but grin. Once again money proved itself to be one of the strongest powers in the world. Since I had raised my bargaining position with this, I thought I needed to use it wise. “You can send your man to take it from my dungeon later, Master Dava, but only if you agree with my term,” I said.
“What term…?” Dava raised his head with knitted brows.
“Hey, no need to get agitated. You see, the number of my creatures that died in the dungeon incident exceeded a thousand, maybe two, including the level one’s boss monster. It’s only natural that I demand a good compensation, don’t you think?”
“... You’re right. But still, with our tight situation, if you ask something too h-”
“Oh you can afford it, I believe,” I cut his words. “What I want is mana, the same way each member of your guild paid me the mana-tribute before using my dungeon. But this time, I want it from every healthy person older than ten years old in [Firzoa]. That’s of course including you, your Executives, your members, the townspeople, and every single soul according to the criteria,” I said with a smile.
Dava seemed to think hard on what I had said. He shook his head in the end, however. “That was Fantastica’s mistake, why do you include the civilians? Moreover, if you take our mana when there’s an ongoing battle, it’s the same as you asking us to forfeit our lives. Unacceptable term,” he declined.
“Makes sense. Hmm…,” I muttered.
“As you probably know, we’re greatly outnumbered in [Firzoa]. If you can help us, I may be able to persuade the townspeople afterwards.”
“Huh? You’re called the strongest, why do you even need my help?”
“I’m but a single person. My mana is limited and I can’t be in more than one location, or divide my concentration on too many places at once. It may be different if Executive Maa’ was here with me, since the old man’s mana capacity seemed almost infinite and he could simultaneously control his morphers in many different locations.”
“That’s a surprising confession. Alright, I’ll lend you a hand. But even if I send a thousand monsters, the enemy is more than seventy thousand man-strong. Even combined with the town defenders, it’s still one to more than twenty ratio. Therefore, I want a different payment, I want the right over every captured enemy, dead or alive. You can have your members and the townspeople to pay my compensation after we drive [[Dragora]]’s army away. What do you say?”
“... What do you want to do with the prisoners?”
“Why do you want to know?”
…
…
“Very well, I agree,” Dava said.
I nodded. “Then what’s left is the collateral, to guarantee you won’t stab me from behind again.”
“I swear in my name, that won’t happen.”
“I’m sorry, Master Dava, I need more than a verbal promise,” I shook my head. “Aunt Ehrisya will stay in my dungeon until it’s over,” I decided.
It made the guildmaster glare. “Don’t involve my sister in this, Dungeon Master Arz!”
“... Why don’t you ask for her consent first?”
“No!” he stood up, trying to intimidate. “I said don’t involve my sister, which part is you don’t understand?!”
“... Then we don’t reach an agreement?”
“Pick something else for the collateral.”
“Look, I’ll be vulnerable once my monsters go. Not only my dungeon will be thinly guarded, they’ll be an easy target if Fantastica and [Firzoa]’s town guards decide to betray me. What can keep them from doing that is you, and the only one I know who can keep you from breaking your promise is your sister. Take it or leave it, I’m not going to risk myself without sufficient collateral.”
…
…
…
“You need to hurry and decide, I doubt [Firzoa] can hold until dusk without you there,” I urged.
“... Fine. Only if my sister agrees, though. And Dungeon Master Arz, assuming she agrees, if you ever hurt even a strand of her hair, I’ll make you see hell, you hear me?!”
“I won’t do such a thing to the woman that may become my step mother, you know. Do we have a deal, then?” I offered my hand.
“Keep your word,” he replied as he shook it.
“You too.”
‘Haz, Ken, where’re you?’ I called through our link. ‘We’ve a change of plans.’