“Someone capable of ranged damage, it’s the only weak spot we have.”
Elza continued grinning. “Does it matter what kind of damage they do?
Val shrugged. “Not really. We didn’t exactly get into the details. As far as I’m concerned, any damage is better than no damage.”
Elza reached down and after a few seconds, laid the heavy tome on the table. “It might be mostly empty right now, but I’m a mage. I specialize in ice type attack magic.”
Val guessed the tome was for casting—just like the mages in games back on Earth.
“Do you have to, like… focus on the tome to cast?” she asked.
Elza rocked her head side to side. “Yes and no. I can cast without the tome, but it’s sloppy compared to when I use it.”
Val hadn’t seen Lucia using a tome, or any kind of other casting implement.
Or did she?
She never asked how Lucia’s healing worked, so who knew.
“Well, at least I know you don’t use magic,” Elza said, reattaching the tome to her hip. “Is there anyone else in your party that uses magic?”
Val nodded. “We have a healer.”
Elza whistled. “Lucky you. Finding a designated healer is hard. Most people put in a request for a healer from Sunthread.”
Val tilted her head. “Sunthread?”
“Wow, you must be brand fucking new to all of this,” Elza said, eyebrow raised. “Sunthread is one of the elite guild sponsored chapters. They specialize in healing and restoration. If delve parties don’t have a healer already, a lot of them ask for one from Sunthread.”
Guild Chapters again?
Val was mildly aware of Gilded Mire and Crimson Hollow, but nothing beyond that.
“A lot of people try and join any chapter they can. Usually has a lot of benefits but honestly?” Elza leaned in. “They’re a pain in the ass. Rules, rules, and more rules.”
Val burst out laughing.
“Hey, it’s the truth,” Elza said, shrugging.
Val nodded. “I think we are going to get along really well.”
Elza crossed her arms, smirking again. “Funny. I was just thinking the same thing.”
Val and Elza were now walking side by side, snacking. They decided to walk through the streets outside of the guild.
“So how close do we want to be to the guild?” Val asked, chewing.
Elza turned and looked at the guildhall. “Honestly, as close as we can without spending too much. We’re adventurers, so the guildhall is where we make our money. If it’s a fucking trek just to make it here? We’ll be exhausted before we even get to the dungeon.”
Hard to argue with that.
“I don’t know where to even start looking,” Val said, looking around.
“Well, we don’t want a bar. Probably not a tavern either,” Elza said. “I’d say we find a lodge.”
Val raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t bars and taverns the same thing? What’s different about a lodge?”
“The drinking,” Elza said. “Both a bar and tavern have alcohol on tap, with food of course. A lodge doesn’t.”
Val swallowed her bite of food. “Wouldn’t that hurt their potential income? Not serving alcohol?”
“Trust me,” Elza started. “There are plenty of people who don’t want to be woken up by drunks every night. We just need to find one with a decent room.”
They wandered deeper into streets Val hadn’t explored before.
“The Weeping Wagon?” Val asked.
“I’ve heard good things about it,” Elza said, opening the door holding it for Val. “Might be out of our price range, but doesn’t hurt to check.”
Val walked inside, shaking her head. “Such a weird name for a lodge.”
The scent of burnt wood and cinnamon hit her the moment she stepped inside.
Oh, wow. That smells really good.
Light ashen wood panels lined the interior, while dark beams framed the walls and ceiling. A beautiful hearth was crackling to the side with dark plush chairs circling it. Small plants dotted the interior, healthy and green, some already blooming.
Elza followed, pausing to admire the interior. “Alright, let’s see how much it costs.”
Together they approached a counter.
“Uh, hello?” Val called out.
“Just give me a minute lass!”
The strong accent almost gave Val whiplash.
Suddenly a dwarven man stepped through the door behind the counter, wiping his hands. “Mornin ladies, what can I do for ya?”
Val was still reeling from the accent, so Elza spoke up.
“We were curious if you had any rooms available?”
The man stepped up onto a much higher than normal chair. “Let’s see here… how long?”
Val’s brain had restarted, so she finally chimed in. “A week for now, maybe more.”
He glanced up at them. “Separate rooms?”
Both girls shook their heads.
“Runes? Plumbing?”
Val nodded her head, but Elza shrugged.
“I have a few available. Did you want a one bedroom then?”
“How much are your two bedrooms? With runes and plumbing?” Val asked.
“It can be small, maybe even the type of room that most people wouldn’t want,” Elza cut in.
The dwarf tapped his chin. “A two bedroom, runes, plumbing, small? I ain’t got nothing like that, lass. Best I can do for a two bedroom with both runes and plumbing, for a week.” He glanced at his ledger. “Eight Marks.”
Val paled immediately.
“We’ll take it,” Elza said, sliding her coins onto the counter.
Val’s jaw dropped. “Wait—what?”
“Excellent,” the dwarf said. “I’m the owner, Marxus. If you have any issues let me know, but first, some ground rules.
“Don’t damage my property. If you must have people over… keep. It. Down. I have other guests here. If you must give in to your urges…” He sighed. “Keep it down. No one else wants to hear ya fucking. Understood?”
Both girls blushed at that last rule, but nodded.
“Good, now where’s the other four Marks?”
Val reached into her coin pouch and slid her share of the cost over—four marks.
“Also, my wife likes to cook. If you’re hungry, just ask, but it ain’t free.”
With everyone on the same page, he handed over a single key.
“Second floor, room on the end.”
Val paused long enough to give Elza a chance to grab the key. When she didn’t, Val grabbed it and slid it in her pocket.
“Alright, we have a room for a week. Want to check it out?” Elza asked.
Val picked her bag up off the floor. “Sure, plus I can leave my stuff in there instead of carrying it with me everywhere.”
Elza chuckled. “I thought you might just like carrying your halberd with you all the time.”
Val rolled her eyes and started heading upstairs.
When they reached the second floor, Elza leaned in. “You’ve got a great ass by the way.”
Val immediately blushed, eyes wide.
“What? I can admire a nice ass—regardless of who it’s on,” Elza said, shrugging.
Val tried to ignore what was just said as they made their way down the hall.
“Last one on the end, right?” Elza asked.
Val nodded as they stopped in front of the last door. It took her a few seconds to finally get the lock to turn.
“Lock might need to be replaced soon,” she said.
Then with a push, the door opened.
Inside, the room shared the same design—ashen wood panels with dark wood beams framing it.
“Kind of small for a two bedroom, don’t you think?” Elza asked.
Val drifted through the main room and peeked into the first bedroom. It was small, very small. Especially compared to her room at home.
Home. That was still a very tender subject.
“It is small, but at least it works,” Val finally replied. “We won’t be here all that much since we’ll be in the dungeon often, though.”
Elza poked her head around the corner. “That reminds me, I should meet your party. See if they want me to join or not.”
Val turned, eyebrow raised. “You’re wanting to join? Just like that?”
Elza nodded. “Just like that.” She grinned. “Plus, I’ll be in the back line… watching your ass, right?”
Val rolled her eyes. “Alright, I’ll need to head back to the guildhall. I’ll write a note on our posting for the girls to see.”
Elza sat on the couch just as Val walked out of her room. “Why?”
“Because, I have no other way to reach them. So it’s the best way. I’ll tell them to meet us tomorrow morning.”
With that agreed on, Val left.
The walk to the guildhall was less than five minutes, much less than before. When she got there she borrowed a pencil and started writing on their posting. Once she finished she turned back around and bumped into something.
“You know, we really need to stop meeting like this,” Cyrus said, grinning.
Cyrus and his group had just gotten back from a delve, so Val sat with them for a bit.
“What’s this we hear of a group of adventurers making waves after their first delve?” Cyrus asked, openly.
Val shrugged. “I’ve heard it too. Any clue who it’s about?”
Dolf snorted. “Bright white hair, thrown over, one side shaved. I mean… that’s just you with extra words.”
Irina nodded. “They also mention a Leporcuni and Nyxari as well. Also a girl with bright red hair. It’s your party.”
Val had almost forgotten about the racial names for Amarisse and Mina’s people. Always felt easier just calling them “bunny-girl” and “cat-girl”.
“Well shit… didn’t realize that much had gotten around.”
Zennia sipped on her drink. “Well then? Spill.”
Val launched into a careful retelling of their first delve, skipping over none of the tension.
“The dungeon isn’t usually that bad on the first floor,” Dolf said, stroking his beard.
Cyrus nodded, expression serious. “My first delve, we had less than half that many monsters.”
Irina was flipping through a book. “I actually remember hearing about something a long time ago when studying. Some people think the dungeon reacts to those who enter.”
Zennia set her cup down. “Reacts? In what way?”
Irina kept flipping. “Ah, here it is. Research suggests those who enter the dungeon are ‘appraised’. Each ‘appraisal’ in turn, decides how the dungeon reacts to those entering.”
Irina slid her fingers down the page as she skimmed. “Some may find nothing worth fighting, while others are overwhelmed with numbers.”
Everyone looked at Val.
“S—should I be worried?” she asked.
“Well there were four of you,” Irina said. “It could be any four of you that it’s reacting to.”
Cyrus slapped the table. “Is any of that grounded in reality? Isn’t it all just a bunch of geezers who spend too much time thinking and not doing?”
Irina shot him a glare. “No one knows if it’s true, or just conjecture. Either way, Val, you need to be on guard when you go back in.”
Val gulped, but nodded. “I’ll be careful.”
After such a harrowing discussion, Val finally excused herself. The entire walk to her new place, she thought about what they said.
She looked up in the sky, eyes narrowing.
I swear, if this is because of you… we’re going to have a talk, you and me.
Elza was still lounging on the couch when Val opened the door.
“It takes that long to write a few words?” she asked.
Val rolled her eyes, again. “You’re real funny, Elza. No, I was talking to some other friends.”
Elza grinned. “You have those?”
Val grabbed a pillow and threw it at her. “Real fucking funny.”
The rest of the day dragged on for Val. She spent time getting the “apartment” set up with Elza.
Once that was done, all they had left to do was wait until the morning. Then they could discuss her joining the group.
Val also figured it would probably be a good time for everyone to exchange information on where they were living, just in case.
When nighttime finally came, she headed downstairs to ask Marxus if his wife was willing to make her a small plate.
She did, and it was relatively cheap, only a tack. Val thanked them and went to her new room to eat.
After eating, she got comfortable for the night.
Finally—after the day’s events—she broke down.
It was just too much for her to keep bottled up any longer.
Val didn’t know when she fell asleep, but she was woken up by Elza.
The girl was in just her underwear, shaking Val awake. “Hey, dumbass, you need to get up or else your friends might think we forgot.”
Val heard her, but was temporarily distracted by the sight.
Elza caught onto it when Val’s eyes raked across her body. “Oh? Like what you see?”
Val then remembered what she was hiding, and bolted upright. “Sorry, I just realized what you said.”
No morning wood… thank god.
Val shooed Elza out, and they both started getting ready.
Today would be an important day. Either they had their fifth member, or they would need to keep looking.
As they walked down the street, Val spoke up. “If the rest of my party decides not to give you a chance, that isn’t going to affect how you treat me, right?”
Elza thought for a few seconds. “I doubt it. I mean, it’d be hard for me to ignore or be rude to such a nice ass. Goes against my religion.”
Val shook her head in confusion. “Against your religion?”
Elza grinned. “Absolutely, I thank the gods every day I get to see a nice ass.”
Val burst out laughing.
When they both finally reached the guildhall they walked inside.
“So, where did you tell them to meet us?” Elza asked.
“Let me see if they each checked the page. I told them to leave a check-mark if they read it.”
When they reached the posting board Val had to worm her way to the front.
Three checkmarks—good. They should be outside.
“Alright, let’s head outside,” she said. “They should be waiting around back.”
As they headed for the front door, Elza spoke up. “Why are we meeting in the training grounds?”
Val shrugged. “I figured you could show us a couple of things. Nothing flashy, just something basic. Let us see what you’ve got to work with. It might increase your chances of them saying yes.”
After leaving the front doors, they made their way around the building.
“There they are,” Val said.
Sitting at a table to the side were the girls. Mina’s face lit up and she poked Amarisse in the arm.
“We wondered how much longer you’d be,” Lucia said, standing up.
Val rubbed the back of her neck. “Sorry, I might’ve overslept a little. Anyways, everyone, this is Elza. She’s an ice mage.”
Elza stepped forward.
“Elza, this is Lucia, Amarisse, and Mina. My party,” Val said, motioning to each girl in turn.
She watched as Elza looked over each girl, then finally spoke.
“Holy shit, you didn’t tell me your party was full of hotness. I’m really feeling religious right now.”
Lucia and the girls exchanged confused glances while Val just face-palmed. “Ignore the flirting—she’s not that bad otherwise.”
Elza grinned. “Oh, I could get even worse if you wanted.”
“Please don’t.”
With introductions finished, they all sat and began talking.
“So, you’re a damage mage with ice as your main affinity?” Lucia asked.
Elza nodded. “I might learn some water magic in the future as well. Maybe after I get a good foundation for my ice magic.”
Gone was the casual and flirty personality from before. Now she was strictly business.
“What kind of attacks can you do?” Amarisse asked.
“Do you have anything defensive?” Mina asked, not waiting for her to answer the first question.
“I’ve learned three attacks and I do have a defensive spell. I can launch a spike of ice at an enemy, I can freeze their feet to the ground, and my final one is an orb of ice. When it lands, it slows them down for a little bit and stiffens them. It’s especially good against anything shifty.”
Every attack sounded like something that would benefit the party.
“And the defensive ability?” Val asked.
“I can summon a shield of ice. It can’t take much damage, but it can hold up to a couple of attacks. I don’t do well against Emberfang Wolves. Magma and fire don’t really bode well for my ice. It’s one of the reasons I want to learn some water spells in the future. I hope those can help.”
Val was feeling even more confident about choosing Elza, but it wasn’t solely up to her.
“Elza, do you mind giving us a minute to discuss?” Lucia asked, smiling softly.
Elza nodded, standing up. “Sure, I’ll just go and stand over there.”
For the first time since meeting her, Val saw Elza acting nervous. It was a stark contrast to her normal demeanor.
“Alright, so what is everyone thinking?” Val asked, once Elza was far enough away.
“I don’t know how you found her, but she sounds like the ideal fit,” Amarisse said, glancing at Elza. “I mean, she is attack focused, but was smart enough to learn something defensive as well.”
Lucia nodded. “That kind of forward thinking is rare in low level mages. Even without a showcase of her spells, I can easily agree to accepting her.”
Amarisse and Lucia were on board—as was Val.
“Mina? Do you have anything to ask or add?” Lucia asked.
Mina tapped her chin, her tail moving lazily behind her. “What level is she again?”
The girls looked to Val. “Level two, why?”
Mina smiled. “Then I’m on board as well. I just wanted to make sure she wasn’t too high of a level compared to us.”
Val looked amongst her party. “So, that’s a yes?”
The girls all nodded.
“Yes,” they said.