Violet stretched as she awoke from a short nap. Today was the day she was finally going to meet with Amara and Solas to discuss continuing her swordsmanship training. Violet wasn't really sure what it was that made it so she could sleep for just a short period versus what had made her sleep in for months the last time. Perhaps it was the dungeon's doing or, perhaps, it was similar to the phenomenon she often experienced in her previous life. The one where you tell yourself you want to wake up early the next morning and end up waking up half an hour before your alarm goes off or you decide you want to sleep in only to wake up at six in the afternoon instead of a little after noon. Violet was pretty sure that was because of the urgency associated with waking up, but she was hardly a scientist or anything, so it was just her best guess. Either way, though, she was hardly going to complain about it.

Just as they did every day, Solas showed up early in the morning with Amara. He stood around talking with her for a short while, ensuring she was alright before even thinking about leaving the dungeon. That gave Violet plenty of time to make the trek down to the first floor to meet with them. The two seemed surprised when they saw Violet, almost as if they had thought she disliked them and was purposely avoiding them. That wasn't quite it, though.

"Greetings Violet, it's lovely to see you!"

Amara said, Solas echoing the sentiment shortly after. Smiling, Violet replied

"I'm sorry for keeping you all waiting for so long. I thought it would be best to let you all adjust to your new surroundings before bothering you with anything. Besides which, I had some personal matters to attend to."

Solas visibly relaxed, the tension leaving his shoulders, and he smiled warmly as he said

"I'm glad to hear we didn't upset you already. Did you want to work on your swordsmanship this morning?"

"No, rather I just wanted to make sure I caught you before you left. I don't mind what you do with your free time, but I didn't want to take a chance on missing the opportunity to talk with you entirely."

Solas looked guilty as he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. Violet didn't really care, though, and she just continued to explain.

"Previously, I had an arrangement to take swordsmanship training for an hour or so after the sun began to set. I would prefer it if you showed up at that time as well. While I'm sure you're a capable adventure, in order to avoid you accidentally dying to any of my boss [Monsters], I will meet you here at that time each night. As it is possible that there might be adventurers on the second floor or in the boss room, blocking my path, I might not be able to show up every night. In that regard, if I fail to show up before night falls, you can feel free to go home and consider training canceled for the night. I'm sure that will be inconvenient for you, but I'm afraid it can't be helped."

Solas was well aware of the details in their contract. He was required to give half an hour of waiting time for every floor the dungeon had with a limit of six hours of waiting time in one day. However, there was enough freedom in the contract that they could come to a separate agreement so long as both parties consented. So, it wasn't really like the time from sunset to nightfall was much different from the hour and a half he'd have to wait anyhow. It didn't even sound like Violet planned to keep him waiting on purpose either, especially considering she was asking to do the training at a time when the dungeon would be less crowded. So, he simply offered her a smile and a nod in confirmation.

Violet then turned to Amara as she asked

"Alright, well, how about you? Have you been settling in alright?"

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Amara's smile was bright as she gestured to her clothes and did a small twirl for Violet, explaining

"Yes! The goddess has been quite generous and she even gifted me this lovely outfit. It has, actually, been a pleasant surprise to discover just how kind and thoughtful she is. She keeps asking me about you, though. It seems she is worried about you, Violet."

Hearing the Elven woman's words, she couldn't help but furrow her eyebrows in confusion as she asked

"You talk as if the goddess personally talks to you. Is that the case? I usually only have communication via my system, which mostly amounts to the quests I'm issued."

Amara laughed amusedly before explaining

"Ah! That's a perk of my class. Even my husband, a cleric, can't hear from his own goddess. Only priests and priestesses can hear the voice of this world's deities. I wasn't entirely sure if that was the case with Dungeon Masters as well since you're a rather unique existence, but that would explain it. I'm happy to pray on your behalf, if you'd like?"

Violet shook her head, waving her hand dismissively, as she replied

"That shouldn't be necessary. I appreciate the sentiment, but I have complicated feelings on the matter. I would like your help with something else, though."

Amara didn't press the issue and Violet was grateful. Everything about today's conversation felt like trying to cross a minefield. She had quite a bit of resentment built up about David and she knew it was likely that she'd feel a pit in her stomach when the sun began to set, if she could actually tell time in the dungeon. Her mind couldn't help but be overdramatic and hated being reminded of such unpleasant memories. She had only asked Solas to show up at the same time of day because it really was the most convenient. Violet did hope she could replace the unpleasant memories with more pleasant ones, but she knew that was impossible. The dungeon core would make sure she would never truly forget anything ever again.

"If I am able to, I am happy to help you with anything I can."

Amara said, bringing Violet back to the conversation at hand.

"As a Dungeon Master, there is a limit to what I can do, but I have several [Missions] from the goddess that I'd like to complete. Some things like couples visiting the dungeon together, children earning their first level in my dungeon, etc. I can do my best to create an environment that facilitates such things and do my best to treat adventurers with kindness, but that is too passive an approach.

I might need someone to communicate with the local adventurer's guild and local Lord in order to ensure everyone gets what they need. For example, I've been getting a lot of plants for tributes lately, but my newest floor has an indoor theme, so that isn't as helpful. It would be nice if I could get things like paints, written pieces of literature, maps, or even blueprints for the magic tech used in this world so that I could utilize it to make a better dungeon.

Your desire to appraise children to see if they have a class would help encourage the ones with futures as adventurers to level up in my dungeon. However, I don't know when that will happen. I'm happy to help with whatever quests you might have if it will allow you to gain that ability sooner. I just want to ensure my dungeon can meet the needs of the community, our shared deity, and that the dungeon core is safe from harm. I don't want to resort to violence unless I feel it is absolutely necessary."

Amara frowned, looking uncertain as she replied

"I'm not sure how much I can do to help, but I'll do my best to figure something out. I think I'd have an easier time getting a meeting with the local Lord and Lady if I had a gift to present them with. The guild leader should be easier to talk to, so I'll let them know what you want some time in the next few days. I'll have to think about the rest of what you've asked, but I'm not against helping."

Violet could understand Amara's hesitancy. She was happy to help with the gift part as well and offered to bring a gift she could use the next night when she met with Solas for training. More than likely, it would be a ceramic tea set since it would be the most fitting. It was luxurious enough to be appealing to a noble and it was a beautiful set, which fit the theme of their goddess. Some tea and cookies might be nice to pair with it as well, but Violet would need to carefully think that part over to decide which ones to include. It wasn't like she was short on mana right now anyway.