Dominik had several troglodytes guarding the last floor before his dungeon core on the inner side of the dungeon. He’d had them here, even sleeping here in order to act as honor guards for Fran when he brought in the freed slaves. He couldn’t trust any of his new visitors, nor did he have a contract with them, so he’d kept the troglodytes there guarding the entrance to keep her and her possessions safe.
Eventually he worried that the troglodytes might be in danger, so he began moving them over, further from the entrance of course, so the troglodytes, and the spiders he brought over in shifts, could guard the other troglodytes and the entrance.
He built long hallways and rooms, and gave them all small beds. One side had larger rooms for families, others had small rooms for single troglodytes. He’d also built a bathroom for Fran near her room, and many for the troglodytes in their new living area, by reworking the design of his outhouse trap, which had actually worked.
The troglodytes seemed happy with their new beds made of eldritch flesh, in their rooms with soft dirt instead of rugs or any sort of carpeting.
Now that there were even more freed slaves, including those of the hero, who were of questionable loyalty, this was even more important if they chose to stay in the dungeon. He could of course wall the rest of the floors off with this one, considering they were connected to the entrance, and he would if need be, but it would essentially trap everyone, including the troglodytes.
More importantly, even though it would have been safer for Fran if he simply sealed it off from the rest of the dungeon, she’d also be sealed off from the living area, from food, from everything else in the rest of the dungeon. He had considered a small gap for food delivery from the troglodytes, but then it would be more like being a prisoner in the dungeon. As of now, she just went and ordered food while wearing her mask, and had the troglodytes deliver it to her room. Sometimes she stopped and conversed with a few of the freed slaves, or took care of her mule. But mostly she just kept to herself.
Dominik had kept the crude, albeit improved kitchen, dining area, and some food on the second floor, but moved the rest to a much larger kitchen, food storage, and dining area he had crafted with his magic. A perfect design. He’d put this on the floor just above the troglodytes. It was easier for Fran to reach as well, though the freed slaves ate at the first kitchen on the second floor.
He’d made adjustments to her mask and the carapace she wore in combat after she’d had some experience using it, and had grown comfortable with wearing it all over her body. The lower half of the outfit was greyish blue eldritch flesh in long stockings going up to her thighs, and a long dress. On her upper body, long gloves going up to almost her shoulders, and a long sleeved blouse, finished with the mask.
The outfit could be activated and deactivated by Fran with a mental command and a bit of mana, or by Dominik. The clothing would form into a sort of carapace protecting her, but allowing great flexibility, easy to heal for dominik, and able to regenerate itself with Fran’s mana. The mask would cover her head completely, and she would wear her hair up in a ponytail or a bun, it would end at a point in the back, elongated in an ancient ceremonial style. Her eyes would be covered in hard clear material shaped from the eldritch flesh, and air for her mouth and nose would be filtered through it, allowing her to breathe perfectly, but allowing the mask to filter poison and toxins with just a very small amount of mana passively.
The suit of course, was sequined with small mana crystals all over, which allowed it to live when she wasn’t wearing it, and allowed it to dip into its reserves if she somehow ran low and still needed its use in combat. She of course, could wear her robes and boots over this, though not something she would wear in front of others outside of the dungeon.
Working on Fran’s suit made Dominik realize he was capable of making armor, of a sort. Rather than making earthen armor for the troglodytes, or any other citizens of his dungeon, he would focus on flesh and bone, carapace and chitin. Things he could make with his fleshcrafting, much more flexible and more easily repairable.
He’d had enough biomass after consuming so many corpses. He created armor, something between chainmail and gambeson, metal and cloth, or more like bone and leather. It would be harder where it needed to be, but softer and more flexible where needed, like the crook of someone’s elbow.
He made them thick boots, shin guards, tunics, gauntlets, shoulder guards, full helmets, and a cloth to wrap around their neck. This armor could shape itself around their bodies, and stretch to meet the other pieces. The helmet would contour around them, and even filter poisons and toxins similar to Fran’s. The armor had small mana crystals sequined on the inside, though none of these pieces were as complex or powerful as Fran’s more flexible full body suit.
Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.
Their armor wasn’t as thick, nor did it store as much mana, even for the size, and it sacrificed some of the mobility of her armor in order to provide more solid protection, as they were mostly expected to get into melee combat. But he had made many suits of this armor, first equipping the thirty core warriors with a sturdy set. Then the six rogues with a more agile, though less protective set, then Fran’s honor guard, and finally several others who would help guard the dungeon. In all, he made dozens of sets, each for a specific citizen, who all stored them in an armory he had created in the back of the trogoldyte’s new living quarters.
He’d also created spears and knives out of bone and chitin, as well as shields. They were better than cheap iron weapons at the least, and he could repair them with mana. From minor chips they could repair themselves with the mana stored in their mana crystals, which they would passively take from the excess mana flowing up out from the bottom of the dungeon.
Dominik had also received a letter from the guildmaster not long after the grand opening had finished, it was long, but most of it was uninteresting. Except that the lord of the nearby town had been requesting aid to deal with the nearby dungeon, requesting a full clear after the slaves were taken the first time by some man working for the dungeon lord. But after this incident, he was immediately denied. He was sent a response from the king himself.
The quote was “After losing the first royal battalion, and now a hero of the kingdom, I won’t waste any more valuable resources of the kingdom on the dungeon. Unless the forces start invading one of our major cities, and even then, we will only fight them on our territory, not in its dungeon.”
Apparently word traveled to the kingdom quickly after the death of the hero, and whoever else the kingdom may have viewed as important. The guild leader said the lord of the nearby town was now seeking more money, or guards, to help defend the town from attacks at the very least. But the guild leader didn’t find it very likely.
Dominik wrote his own long letter over the next day, working on it occasionally, then sent it off in the early morning, after the crows had plenty of rest.
Now that it was over, and everyone involved had completely withdrawn from around the dungeon, he knew it was safe to release the hero’s slaves, though he wasn’t exactly interested in talking to them.
He had already spoken to the other freed slaves. The dwarves were willing to stay in the dungeon for now. The two halflings were thankful, but asked if they might live somewhere just outside the dungeon. Dominik offered to build them a burrow near the village, and to introduce them as free men to the mayor of the small village. Hopefully they could secure the rights to live near the village. He doubted anyone else would offer to live near the village with an active dungeon, especially this specific dungeon, and to cultivate the land. And they could use more crops.
The lizardmen had found a nice place with some water in the cave, and they seemed to enjoy it here, but the largest of them, the translator, asked if he might visit their village soon to see if the others were safe now. Especially the others who had been captured. Dominik offered to escort him to his village in the next few weeks to see what had come of the lizardmen’s village. For now the lizardman was still helping the others learn basic gothic, to at least say yes or no, and understand the most important things with the language of the men.
But now he finally spoke to the hero’s slaves, and unceremoniously entered through a hole he made in the wall of their main holding area, wearing the mask of course.
The young women were terrified, but they quietly came together and waited for whatever would come, Dominik asked “Do you wish to stay in the dungeon, or to leave?”
The other women looked at the one in the center, and she answered for them. “We want to leave, please.”
“Then so be it.” He cast spells to help them travel for at least a day or so and told them. “I’ll have someone escort you to the kitchen and you may eat before you leave. Or I’ll take you out now.”
The women spoke amongst themselves, before deciding they’d eat first. Dominik had a troglodyte take them to the kitchen, but he followed not far behind them, not trusting them, watching them through the dungeon until they left. After they at their fill, and the troglodytes offered them some extra meat for the travel, he led them to a hole in the wall on the second floor, leading them out to the main dungeon, which would allow them to leave through the main entrance. He wouldn’t be showing them the hidden entrance.
As they went through the wall, one woman stayed behind. She looked as if she were from a far off country, with a slight tan and dark hair, from some far eastern kingdom. He’d only seen a few men like her. She stood there, planted her feet at the entrance, and didn’t move an inch.
“What’s wrong? Why aren’t you coming?” asked what had been the de facto leader.
“I don’t want to go with you.” the woman said. “I don’t want to be captured again, there isn’t anything left out there anyway.”
“But you said you wanted to train, you said that you wanted to see the world.”
“I can train here, it doesn’t matter where I am, and I’ve seen enough of the world. I won’t be a slave again. I don’t want to be around people anymore, I’m sorry.” with that she left the others, and hid away in a corner of the room waiting for them to leave. The women stood there for a few moments, still trying to convince her, but none of them stepped inside to try and convince her, and none of them stayed. After a few more moments of time, they began walking toward the entrance. Only the blonde girl looked back, but she continued on with the others after pausing one more time, alone, at the entrance, before continuing on with the others.