He watched the person come into view from one of the torches around the outpost. She was a woman of average height and good looks. Her long brown hair trailed down to her lower back. She carried a small dagger in her hands as she looked around the area, stopping for a long time on the blood and gore all over the floor.

Must be a Mage, he thought. Her clothes were unstained, unlike his. No other class could accomplish that feat unless she was some sort of undetectable Rogue, except she didn't act like it. With this little information though, he hesitated to contact her.

But he honestly missed human interaction, he had to admit. So he deployed his pocket plane in the corner and snuck closer to her location while his minions remained on standby. Then he prepared to speak.

"Who are you?" he shouted over the wall.

The woman looked around in surprise. Bright fire erupted from her hands, but then extinguished once she saw no attackers. "You first," she shouted back.

"My name is Mark," he said. "I just came here and stumbled onto this empty place. I think something big happened here."

"I'm Elise," she said. "I came in with a group. We're exploring more of the cave and trying to figure out a way out."

For Mark, this was not good news. More people around meant more unknown variables who could discover his secret. Running and hiding wouldn't work forever, especially since he was a lone mage. If one of these people came across him while he was fighting, they would have too great an advantage over him. He had to try making peace with them.

"That sounds nice. I'd like to join, but how can I trust you?" Mark asked. "Can I come out without you attacking me? Easier to talk face to face."

"Okay, but I'm warning you, I've got friends around," she said.

Mark stepped out from his hiding spot with both hands up. She studied him at a distance for a while before nodding, allowing him to walk closer. "Hello," he said, "where did you come from?"

Elise waved her hand backwards. "Behind. A group of tunnels led me here, and my companions are slowly exploring the area as well. I'm one of the scouts sent to move ahead."

"Cool," Mark said. He surveyed his own destruction and asked, "Do you feel confident in dealing with whatever could've done this?" He gestured around and admitted, "I was pretty scared, but nothing's happened while I was here."

Elise remained nervous, but she nodded her head. "I don't know what did this, but you said there were no signs of movement for a while? Then it shouldn't be too much of a problem. My companions are really strong," she proclaimed.

"That sounds good." Mark winced. "Sorry that I don't have much to offer for your protection." He took the initiative to reveal his own prowess. "I can cast Magic Missile, but that's about it." The basic version formed in his hand and he shot it at the wall.

She nodded at his work. "It's a good thing you're willing to help us out. I know this place is very different from how we lived in the past." Then she turned around. "I think we can head back now. Scouted for long enough." Elise tried to hide it, but Mark could tell she was still trembling. He furrowed his brows. When did he get so good at reading body expressions?

"A personal question, if you're willing to answer. Can you tell me about your first days here?" he asked. Mark distracted her while secretly sending an Identify probe. It pinged her as a Level 10 Mage - quite powerful. "I don't know if we had the same experiences."

"Sure," she replied. Her willingness to share information made him think of Bruce, and how little they spoke with each other. Mark supposed human companionship did wonders for a person's mental health. At least they acted more normal and less paranoid.

Apparently, their group had reached a total of twelve people, discovered throughout the mines by their three leaders. Their mission was to gather enough people for the ultimate goal of escaping the mines. For now, they were ordered to explore the tutorial, gather resources, and gain levels.

"I was in a dark hole when I entered the tutorial," she said. "I climbed out alone and fought off a few giant insects." She grimaced. "It sucked, I'll have you know. I had to jump back down to hide."

"So you've never left this floor," he exclaimed. "I came from the floor above. Had to drop down when cornered by an enemy."

Her eyes widened. "That's really good to hear," she said. "It might be confirmation that there's a way out. I'm glad you got away safely."

"Have you met the goblins?" he asked. "They should be up there as well. An orc was the one who chased me down."

"Yes, and a few orcs too," she said. "There's also a lot more monsters out there in these caves we've encountered. Like walking skeletons and zombies."

Mark nodded. "I've seen those too," he replied, but neglected to mention where specifically.

"By the way," she said, "It's okay if you have your own secrets. We all do. As long as you contribute, no one will mind."

They stopped at a junction in the tunnels before she simply walked straight into a wall. Mark, although surprised, followed suit. His sight shimmered and then he found himself in a small room where one other woman sat watching over a sleeping man.

"Hey, Elise. Who's this you found?" The woman eyed him up. "He looks weak."

"A Mage I discovered poking around the ruins ahead. He's Mark."

The woman smiled. "My name's Carol. The sleepyhead next to me is called Hans. We're a team."

"Nice to meet you both, Carol and Hans." Mark shook her hand. "I'm new around here. Hope we can all get along."

"It won't be a problem if you can do your job," she said. "You're a Mage? What spells have you mastered?"

"Only Magic Missile for now. But I'm good at exploring by myself and quick on my feet."

Carol put a finger on her lips and thought deeply. She nodded. "Guess you'll be a scout then. Since you're not as good in battle."

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Elise spoke up to clarify. "Scouts like us do the exploring so that the others are more prepared to tackle the problems ahead. The accuracy of our information is vital to our success. We'll still get a share of the loot depending on how much we report."

Carol smiled. "There are three scouts in our group: Elise, Hannah, and James. Then we've got two battle teams consisting of four people each. Finally, we have a leader who makes the decisions, though he always consults the battle team heads beforehand."

Mark was curious, "How much loot have you found? I haven't been able to pick much up. Only a bottle of wine," he lied, taking it out from his pocket.

Carol's brows shot up. "That's good stuff. We've grabbed more weapons and armor than anything, and used up the consumables we found along the way. Did you know there are healing potions in these mines?"

"Goblin wine'll go a long way, Mark," Elise said. "You should wait until everyone gets back. Then you can try selling it. Some of my companions miss the taste of alcohol."

"Thank you."

Hans awoke in the middle of their conversation and said with a smile, "Is that wine I smell? Hello there, Mark. Good to see a new friendly face around here."

"Make sure you get some sleep," Elise said. "We'll meet up with the others after a few hours. Then I can introduce you to everyone else." She slung her bag over her shoulder and walked out.

"She's quite nocturnal," Hans explained. He seemed to be looking at the system clock to the side, which Mark pulled up as well.

Tutorial Time Remaining - 700:08:06

Picking up all the bodies had taken quite a while. Mark did feel sleepy, but he didn't exactly trust these people with his life just yet. After saying his farewells, he moved back to the goblin outpost and settled down on a tattered bed.

---

Tutorial Time Remaining - 696:38:26

Mark walked with Elise to their meeting location. He had to admit, he balked at meeting an entire group of twelve people with unknown intentions. If he had stronger minions, it would be a lot safer, but his status as a lone mage made him extremely easy to kill. He debated running away but realized they might not take that too kindly. After all, Hans and Carol were walking behind him.

Would they kill me on the spot? He thought it possible. After all, they had to have seen blood in the past few days they lived in these mines. And Elise's strength as a Level 10 made him wary of their three leaders.

But peace was important, so he suppressed his nervousness and continued walking. They didn't seem to want him dead. At the very least, he could pretend to be compliant and escape if needed.

The sound of rushing water appeared once they drew close to the reported meeting place. His eyes widened. The tunnel had opened up once again into a massive cavern, and opposite them flowed a stream of water. It ended in a small pool where nine other people sat on nearby rocks.

"Welcome!" The man standing at the head beamed brightly towards the four of them. He beckoned them closer, but Mark paused.

He stared at the man sitting in the back of the group with his head slumped into his arms. That was his ex-manager, Jack!

"Oh, you two know each other. That's good," the man said, shaking Mark out of his surprise.

A shiver suddenly ran down Mark's spine. Had someone cast a spell on him?

"You're above Level 10," the man stated matter-of-factly. Many of the onlookers appeared surprised by this statement. Elise made a small gasp at his side, but Jack remained despondent.

So it was Identify. Mark immediately changed his stance to become more confident. "I came to work out an agreement with your group," he said. "I found something I couldn't deal with."

"This won't be a problem. You've definitely made the right choice by coming to us."

"We'll see," Mark boldly said. Surprisingly, nobody grew angry at his treatment of their leader. They just smiled instead, as if they knew something he didn't.

"I'm Theodore. So, what was it you wanted to say?" the leader asked.

"There's a huge vine back on the opposite side of the caves I came from. It came out the wall, exuded sap from its many mouths around its body, and it used that substance to attract insects. I think there's a huge secret there."

Theodore put a hand on his chin. "Agreed. If you're telling the truth, then that vine should be very powerful." After mulling it over for a while, he placed a finger up in the air. "We shall do as you say and attack it. But," he mentioned, "we need to assess your abilities first."

"Not a problem. The better I do, the more rewards get distributed to me, correct?"

"It's good that you understand. I think this trip will be good to teach you how we operate." The leader nodded his head at Elise. "Since you led him in, you'll guide him towards our next point of interest. A little test to see what level of authority he should get. Feel free to take another member of the group with you if you want."

Elise glanced at him while she walked past to the leader. She picked up a map and walked back with a silent burly warrior, James. "Is it true?" she asked. "Are you really Level 10?"

"Yes," Mark replied.

"Then did you kill all those goblins?"

"No," he lied. "It was something else." Which was true - his minions did most of the killing. It was enough for Elise though, whose shoulders visibly relaxed.

"Right. You couldn't have made all those bodies disappear." She chuckled. "Anyway, I'll just be your guide for your test."

Elise and James led him through a vast network of tunnels before exiting into another cavern. It had a tunnel which caved in downwards, revealing little to no light.

"Is this the next floor?" Mark asked.

"Yeah. We haven't been able to explore much of it yet, so this place is where we go when we really want to challenge ourselves." Elise seemed very nervous. She was looking all over the place and studying the darkness. "There's a lot of different monsters here, so watch out."

Elise took out another torch from her hands. It glowed much more brightly than the ones he had. At Mark's questioning look, she said, "These torches were things we found inside treasure chests. They're better for dark places."

"This place is huge," Mark whispered.

"Yeah. Try to remember where everything is. As a scout, you're kinda expected to never get lost. It's a part of the test."

After coming to a fourth bend in the network of tunnels, which had grown more complex than the previous floor, Elise stopped. "This is it," she said, shivering. "We only need you to bring back some info. After our leader comes down to clear it, he'll go with you to attack that vine of yours."

"He has that much power?" Mark asked.

Elise nodded. "I haven't personally seen him in action, but he was apparently a powerful fighter even before the apocalypse. Now that he has access to magic, he's even better at combat than before. You were smart in coming to join us," she said.

Mark was really curious about what the man's level was, but he knew if he tried to use Identify, the man would immediately know. And he didn't want to test their patience just yet.

But gaining a harder place to explore made Mark happy, though he realized it wouldn't be very wise of him to try and kill everything inside like he did with the goblin outpost. He didn't want them to be too wary of him just yet. And two, the test was timed. He had around twelve hours to go inside, pick up hints about the environment inside, and then return through the maze of tunnels without running out of time. Fortunately, Elise gave him one of their upgraded torches.

"And what if I fail?" he asked. "What's the penalty?"

"I don't know," Elise said. "You're the first Level 10 to join us." She opened her mouth again, then shrugged. "I'm sure you'll be fine. Our leader's pretty good at seeing everyone's potential."

Mark took a deep look into the darkness and wondered what mysteries were inside for Level 10s to avoid it. He smiled in excitement.