Ranus was sitting in his office reading a vellum sheet in his hand.

He was getting angrier as he read the word on the sheet. By the end, he crushed the vellum in his hand as his face was tight with rage, and his fist was gripping it so tight his fist went white.

He throws the vellum across the room.

"Damn them!" He snarls. Danrum entered the room when he did this.

"Problems, my Lord?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"My family is causing me issues." He was trying to calm down. "They are trying to disrupt my relations and trade routes with other nations in the area."

"I did not think they had that level of influence," Danrum admitted as he sat down across from his Lord.

"The family Matriarch recently died, and the Patriarch stepped aside, allowing my father to ascend to the position."

"Even with that, how can they still cause issues?"

"The Shi'Tan." That was all that Ranus said.

"Ah. I understand."

Ostrul had agreed to his terms and had set up a trading mission in the town. Two Shi'Tan had joined it. Ostrul supplied the security when they left the compound but was limited by the town's laws. Ranus had heard whispers that Ostrul was very unhappy but relented from pressure from the Imperium.

Ranus had to let them in, as that was the deal he had offered.

The complaints and criticisms came fast after as word spread.

He had been ready, but his family took advantage of this to stir the pot. Such actions were planned for, but still, they were a distraction that he did not want or need.

"How is the town, Danrum?" Ranus asked to take his mind off this problem.

"Overall, things are well. The introduction of the Shi'Tan has caused the expected reactions, with a few being sent to Arbiter Nextom." Danrum spoke from memory. "Petty crime is up slightly, as is the number of homeless people."

"New housing is coming. Vulus has some ideas."

"The people can see that, my Lord. The lack of buildable land is causing some concern."

"Understandable. Continue."

"With up to teams now accessing the Dungeon, the number of issues they are causing has fallen as none want to lose their position on the entry list."

"Then Guild Leaders Woodland's idea has borne fruit."

"It has my Lord." Danrum was sceptical at first but now supported it. Any adventurer causing trouble would be sent to the bottom of the entry list. It was a very long list.

"Anything else?" Ranus enquired.

"The southern land route project is still moving forward, and the number of attacks has fallen since last year."

"That is good news."

"For now, yes. But it might attract more organised groups later." Danrum was always planning for trouble.

"I am sure you will be ready if that happens. Anything else?"

"No, my Lord."

"Well, I shall not keep you from your duties." They both rose, and Danrum bowed slightly before turning and leaving.

Ranus smiled. He had tried to get his now-Watch Commander to relax more with him. Danrum's Path changed with his class, developing from Captain to Commander. His change had been a great source of pride for him.

Ranus went over and picked up the discarded vellum and placed it on his desk. As he looked at the stack of things needing his attention, the punishment for doing well was more work.

He sighed as he sat and got to work.

## ## ## ## ##

Elain was glaring at the pile of reports she needed to read. She was willing it to combust and burn away.

Alas, it did not.

The report from Vicdrum was before her. She had gone through it along with the floor plans he had created. They were good and she had to admit it. His figures and notes were straightforward and easy to read.

His report agreed with her that the Dungeon had a high silver tier rating. He added several personal notes to the report. He was concerned it had only seven floors, not the twenty-five to thirty it should have. The changing environments and monsters were another. Finally, he chaffed at the restriction on not locating the Core.

"There is no way in all the hells I am letting a Searider clan member see it." She snorted.

Guild members were loyal to the Guild, but many found ways to help others, especially those from prominent families. It was ignored as long as it did not damage Guild's interests.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The Searider clan was a classic example of this. They had controlled their territory and Dungeon from before the Old Empire and they knew how to play the game better than most.

"Well, I cannot just get rid of him now, can I?" There was something about him she disliked. No, that was not true. She knew it was his attitude of superiority over the other Guild members.

Albrot was away right now but had sent word that Dolton and Seela were making their way back here. That would be interesting, to say the least.

Reports from Folly's End were concerning. Nothing had crossed the river, but they were testing its defences. That was the only major issue she was worried about right now. Sure, there were problems, but she was dealing with them.

Demand for the Moonlight Rose was still increasing. She was getting requests from all over the continent and now from abroad. Albrot had gotten word to her that even more high-tier groups of adventurers were heading to the town to get one or more.

The ogre was also becoming another draw for the adventurers addicted to fighting. The only monster on the floor defending such a prize was like honey to flies. Minvar's group had taken it out again, and she had spoken to her. The report she got from her was concerning. The ogre was getting better after each fight. His team won, but the fight lasted longer and suffered more injuries. One of her team was still with the healers as his bullhood(?) had taken quite an impact.

She sighed, knowing things were getting crazier again.

## ## ## ## ##

Trixis looked around the small room.

There were five of them in the room. They were gathering in the storeroom of a longhouse. Trixis had arranged with the owner to use this place. Silma was in the room with her. Waiting for the last of them to enter and close the door.

They were all poor, the low Pathed and trapped in drudgery by circumstance or lack of will. They still had not found what they were looking for and were seeking like Trixis once was. It was Silma who revealed the truth to her.

Trixis was once a slave and then a menial worker, and now…. Now, she was looking at a new path to the future—one she had never expected to appear, but then she had been resigned to being a slave for the rest of her life.

She looked at the others. Silma's face glowed, and the others began to understand that they had more power over their fates than they had realised. The Dungeon had taught her that when it freed her. Such a thing should not have been possible, but it had done it. At first, she was amazed, but over time, she came to understand the magnitude of what had happened.

Once the door was closed and they were settled, she began.

"In a place of shadows and danger, I found freedom…"

## ## ## ## ##

"This new type of ogre added with his other creations is a clear sign of how dangerous this Core is." Nyralia was speaking, her concern evident. As the Goddess of Nature, she would be the first to deal with them if they entered the world outside the Dungeon.

"We understand that Nyralia. The local adventurers regularly kill the minions, making such an event highly unlikely." Hackyon sought to soothe her concerns.

"At the moment, Lawdrun is correct, but we must be prepared if this changes," Xandus added. "His two wandering minions are levelling and have not been killed yet."

She indicated the list of minions within the Dungeon and their levels and base "stats". The wandering ones, Larry and Puck, were the only ones who had kept their levels.

"This might be a more pressing problem than we have realised," Lawdrun spoke, drawing their attention.

"Why?" Nictor asked.

"Once "levelled" the Core can recreate them with increased cost but without losing their newly gained abilities."

The other four divine beings exploded into cursing at this revelation.

"Are you sure!" Nictor demanded.

"I am. The minion will be completely recreated as long as the Core can support the "CP" cost. The ogres improving fighting skills are a sign of it. He is recreated from the point of death, not a set point of creation. This allows him to learn from each death. The lower intelligence minions can only do this when they pass the levelling threshold." Lawdrun explained.

"That means the smarter the minions he creates, this will become an increasing problem as they learn from each fight." Xandus thought out loud.

"Yes. They will develop new skills and abilities from these clashes. It also means that the danger level of these floors will increase over time and will not be set like other Dungeons." Lawdrun confirmed grimly.

This led to another bout of cursing, then a heavy silence as each thought about the ramifications of this.

"We must instruct the militant orders within the town to destroy the minions if they ever emerge from the Dungeon." Nictor finally spoke.

"I agree, but it will be hard as many within the Dungeon are created with stealth in mind." Nyralia pointed out.

"Then we must establish a position next to the entrance to monitor it and look for void corruption." Nictor reasoned.

"We can use the danger of the corrupted to have this happen. Yes, it could work." Xandus agreed.

"We must ensure that the militant orders only stop things leaving and not entering." Hackyon pointed out.

"Of course…. Unless Folly's End becomes an issue." Lawdrun spoke.

This brought another bout of silence to the group.

"Badtor and Apharon have shifted much of their militant orders to the area. Both have reported growing numbers of corrupted but no major attempts to cross the river." Xandus said. "I have encouraged the nations along the path to the Dungeon and around the End to put aside their grudges and work together here."

"Will it be enough?" Lawdrun asked.

Nictor answered. "No. We have been scrying the area, and we have found many places where the corruption is dense and prevents the revelation of what is here."

"Concerning. What can we do?" Asked Nyralia.

"What we are doing. When they cross, and we all know it is when the battle will be horrific." Nictor admitted.

"Can we encourage the other aces to send aid?" Hackyon asked.

"No. The Folly hurt all of them. We cannot be seen as playing favourites or encouraging another invasion of the continent. We can only use limited resources outside the continent." Answered Xandus.

"When they cross, will we take direct action?" This came from Nyralia.

Nictor and Xandus looked at each other before Xandus looked at the other Goddess and answered. "Yes."

That caused a stir among the other three. Such action came with a cost and danger to the mortal plane. They had done such things in the time of the Folly and many still had not fully recovered from what they had done.

"We will worry about that at a later date. We will plan, prepare and deal with what happens when it does." It was odd to them that Nictor was the one calling for restraint and calm, as it was normally Xandus. Strange days indeed.

"Then let us word our instructions." Lawdrun offered.

## ## ## ## ##

The next day, Lord Goldwind met with the council of religious leaders. They informed him of what they wanted. He debated and argued but relented.

That day, funded by the churches and temples, a stone structure was built next to the Dungeon entrance on the other side of the Guild building. It was squat and built with thick walls - a strong point.

It took several days to build, but the churches had deep pockets, and things happened fast. In less than six days, it was finished and garrisoned by a rotating group of Militant Order warriors.

It was announced that the building would stop any twisted beat from emerging from the Dungeon if any got infected. This quieted the whispering but did not end it. This was a rare thing, and the town's population was worried. The number of orders warriors clearly showed something was concerning the Gods and it had to do with the twisted.

Word spread fast to the other nations and powers around the young town. They took notice and wondered where the danger was coming from. The number of twisted had been increasing, and the wise amongst them noticed a pattern. Nearly all those found were moving, and only the strongest were holding territory—those who were all moved towards the Dungeon in the Shadows.