Next to the dungeon core, the dungeon fairy sat bolt upright. His mouth hung open slightly as he looked around at the small, green cavity inside the main dungeon vine.
“Some sort of plant? What?” He turned and got a clear look at the glowing dungeon core. “Oh! Um, hello.” He batted at his stained clothing and ran a hand through his violet hair. “Goodness, how long was I asleep?” He squinted at the dungeon core. “Judging by the mana flow… a year? Wow, that wasn’t supposed to happen.” The fairy closed his eyes and accessed the basic System information he was allowed by default, as a dungeon fairy. “Dang, only a couple months or so. Seems like you’ve been doing really well on your own.” The fairy grimaced and looked ashamed. He stood up and sent a wave of mana from head to toe. The stains and filth vanished to reveal bright yellow clothes and sparkling silver wings. The fairy snapped his wings out wide and bowed to the dungeon core.
“Greetings dungeon core. I am Violet Danderpuff and I have been assigned as your dungeon fairy. I apologize for the terrible impression I must have given on my arrival due to my… terrible… condition. I feel… terrible… about it.” The fairy scrunched up his eyes brows and shook his head slightly as he straightened back up. “Is there anything that you wish to discuss with me? Any questions or needs that you have? I hope you have not suffered terribly (damn it, stop saying ‘terrible’).” The fairy whispered the last part to himself. He watched the dungeon core and waited for some response. As each second crawled by, he cringed more and more due to the silence. Eventually, he coughed and tried to relax.
“Not much of a talker, eh? Hey that’s fine by me, I’m not here to criticize or judge, just to advise. And entERTAIN!” The fairy nearly shouted the last word as his face lit up with hope. “I play music, I’m pretty good, see?” The fairy summoned a flute to his hand. “I mostly just play at friends’ birthdays and things like that. I couldn’t get enough money to play full time, which is why I became a dungeon fairy, but never mind, you don’t want to hear my life story; you want to hear music, yeah?” The fairy looked intently at the dungeon core, fiercely hoping for the slightest permission. Out on the vine, the acid snail burned off a small offshoot vine and the dungeon core drew more heavily on its mana for a split second. The mana draw caused the core to briefly flash.
“Excellent! Aw man, this is gonna be great! Here, everyone likes this one.” The fairy began to play the flute. As a magical creature playing a magical instrument, the fairy imbued the music with a small amount of mana. The mana and the music sank into the vine body. The mana of the dungeon core vine carried the music all over the dungeon. The fairy played music for hours and hours. He took breaks to sleep or sometimes to tell stories about the music and the friends who had loved it.
After the fairy woke up, people who visited the dungeon would sometimes hear snatches of faint music. The music stirred their souls and calmed their minds. Many people started to think that the creatures’ actions were affected by the music; that they would move differently as they attacked or hunted or hid. Occasionally, the dungeon music was interrupted by a buzzing sound as the void bubble thrashed in its prison.
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Hildred sat in the roundhouse and was eating hazelnuts when Hill Lord Andebert arrived. It had been a day and a half since Oz had left. Andebert walked in without announcing himself and sat facing Hildred. The hill lord was not wearing his furs or leathers, just grey wool clothing that exposed his well-muscled arms and legs. Hildred took a moment to decide if he felt more like Hilda just then but decided to remain Hildred.
“Greetings, hill lord.” Hildred nodded to Andebert.
“Hildred. How did Arna know about our observations of the state of the dungeon?” Andebert asked this with a stony expression.
Hildred swallowed nervously. “I thought she might have worked for you, like Leta and me.”
Andebert shook his head. “She did not.”
Hildred shrugged. “Perhaps, She heard from some of the harvesters.” Hildred felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. What would the hill lord do if Hildred didn’t know anything useful?
Andebert’s expression softened a little. “I’m not asking you to speculate, Hildred. I want you to look through your memories and tell me anything you overheard that could help my investigation.”
Hildred flushed a bit in relief and embarrassment. “Oh, of course. Let me think.” Hildred closed his eyes. It had only been a few days, so Hildred could clearly picture every moment with Arna and Baggi. Most interactions had been practical and brief. Arna hadn’t had a talkative personality. After a minute of searching memories, Hilda had an answer for the hill lord. “Two things. Arna said to Baggi, ‘He said there are two portals on the first floor, left and right.’ And inside the dungeon, Baggi said ‘This must be the side the monsters left to go fight something on the other side.’ Hildred opened his eyes and saw that the hill lord looked intrigued.
“Do you remember the words exactly? Can you picture their expressions while they said these things?”
Hildred raised his eyebrows then stopped when the scaring made his expression uneven. “Yes. I can.”
Andebert have a brief smile and a nod. “I apologize, I got distracted. The people who sent the four of you to die have sent many others to die as well, mostly travelers with moderate ability like you and Leta. You and Leta worked for me for only a short time, but your answer just now will allow me to finally identify their leader.” Andebert took a deep breath. “I release you from your obligations to me. This has happened in my domain, and I bear the responsibility to avenge the deaths of those who should be under my protection, including Leta’s death.”
Hildred looked away and grasped Leta’s vial of ash, which hung around his neck. “Thank you, hill lord.”
“Now, what will you do next? What plans do you have?” Andebert leaned back and placed his hands on the ground behind him.
Hildred sighed and shook his head. “No plans. I thought I might head west to find the coast, but there is nothing drawing me anywhere.”
“You remind me of someone I know from my time training with the adventurer society.” Andebert smiled with a hint of mischief. “I think you should study magic under a certain old wizard.”