Act II - Responsibility, ability, and happiness.
"Stop that!"
"Stop what?"
"Stop leaving hidden traps in the pathways!"
"Why?"
Not listening to Daedalus' response, Icarus thought about why he is now stuck with this team of adventurers who constantly criticize him. Yesterday, as he was leaving the dungeon, he was intercepted by a guild employee who gave him an ultimatum: "You can give up being an adventurer, or you can dive with a team we choose for you for at least a week. »
Finally, with no other choice, Icarus agreed. And so now he's stuck with these annoying 'nannies'.
"Hey, are you listening?"
Icarus looked up at the sturdy swordsman who was still lecturing him. Rolling his eyes, Icarus replied:
"What do you think, boss?"
In response, Daedalus simply, turned around and said softly:
"Just try to keep up, newbie."
As he watched the ninety-plus-year-old man walk away, Icarus wondered: How deep do you think we'll even go with this bunch of old-timers?
As it turned out, much deeper than Icarus ever had gone on his own.
Aaaaaah!
SLASH!
GRRRRR!
TSSSS!
— Change places!
BOOM!
— Piou!
Icarus sighed in relief as he switched places with Daedalus. They were fighting much deeper in the dungeon than he had ever been before, but the fights were still somehow relatively easy. Dédale's team worked with great ease which could only be the result of years of practice.
While being healed by John, the team's cleric, Icarus observed the fight.
BOOM!
With newfound respect, Icarus looked at Elise, the team's mage. She just launched a new explosion which destroyed a monster which was advancing discreetly towards Daedalus' side.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
SLASH!
Without stopping, Daedalus took advantage of the distraction created by the explosion to kill a monster just before Silas, the rogue of the team, who was watching from behind, shouted:
"Change places!"
At the signal, Icarus replaces Daedalus, once again taking the front. This cycle continues until finally Silas says:
"I think it was the last of them!"
"Finally!"
"I vote to take a break before continuing!"
"Hear! Hear!"
The team sets up a temporary camp in the spacious room they had just cleared of monsters. Icarus takes a look at all his winnings and realizes that he has already won more in this dig than ever before.
A few hours or days later, the team had set up camp again, although this time it was for the night. Not that Icarus could say what time of day he was all those floors underground. He didn't even know that the Évreux dungeon was so deep!
The five of them, including Icarus, were sitting around a fire that Elise had lit in a flash (in both senses of the word), joking and sharing stories.
Over the crackling of the fire, Icarus heard John begin to tell another of his stories, "so there I was, having just finished the tutorial, trying to get my bearings when the biggest wolf I'd ever seen jumped on me!"
Icarus thought back to when Daedalus stopped him from leaving hidden traps. Finally, he whispered to Daedalus who was next to him: "why did you stop me from leaving my traps hidden, is that an easy way to get the cores?"
"Like stealing other people's kills, leaving out hidden traps is bad manners for adventurers."
"Why would this be?"
"So that other adventurers don't step in another adventurer's traps. I've already heard at least one story where someone set off one of your traps."
This makes Icarus think about how his new team hadn't taken the kills from the others and didn't capitalize on the weaker monsters. These actions that he had once considered stupid were starting to make sense to him. Maybe Icarus thought, I haven't thought enough about the consequences of my actions until now.
Suddenly John's voice rose in excitement, bringing Icarus out of his thoughts.
"So, despite all my promises to never see her again, I managed to stumble into this old charlatan's shack while I was half dead and bleeding everywhere before passing out from the loss of my blood."
Icarus in a sudden moment of peace, looked around and absorbed his surroundings. He could hear his team's laughter over the faint crackle of the fire. Somewhere in the darkness, he could hear the sound of running water and in his chest, he could feel his heart beating contentedly. He smiles.
"Elise pinch me! I must be dreaming, I think I just saw Icarus smile!"
“If you say so, Silas."
"Hey, it's not that rare!"
"Ouch, I didn't want you to pinch me so hard!"
Working as a team wasn't so bad after all, Icarus decided.
Épilogue - Déjà vu
Many years after Daedalus retired and finally married Bella, Icarus, senior adventurer and the new leader of the 'Glorified Nannies', headed to 'the Adventurers' Guild'. The nickname that dated from Daedalus's time as leader stuck and over time became the official name of the team.
As he walked, he complained that he would settle down and get married when he turned 100: "Just like Daedalus!", even if Icarus is approaching his third race evolution.
Icarus finally stopped at the guild building, the same unchanged building he entered all those years ago as a seeker for adventure, even though the building looked new. He pushed open the thick enchanted doors before saying to the employee on reception duty:
“I was informed that Connla had work for me to do.”
Knock! Knock! Knock!
A short time later, Icarus knocked on Connla's office door. Connla, a young man who took over the role of Bella, opened the door saying:
“Sit down, I have work for you.”
[A SIX story.]