Warg slain. 8 Experience gained.
Warg slain. 8 Experience gained.
Warg slain. 9 Experience gained.
Total Level: 4 (3,992/4,000) => 5 (17/5,000)
Astrid couldn't keep herself from raising her hammer into the air and roaring in triumph. She dragged the hammer through the Dungeon's thick black grass and made her way back to the stairway that would take her to the second floor. She encountered another pair of wargs that she speedily dispatched, and for the first time in nearly two months, she remembered what it had been like to be under the influence of her father's talisman. She was, without any boosts, just about that strong now that she was level 5. When she crested this next watershed, she'd surpass the 36 Power and Fortitude she'd had in that brief moment of surging strength.
While in the stairway, Astrid took a moment to consult her Status.
Status
Name: Astrid
Class: Warrior (Bronze)
Total Level: 5 (17/5,000)
Attributes
Current
Per level growth
Power
33 (+1)
+5
Alacrity
22
+3
Fortitude
34 (+1)
+5
Magical Potency
10
+1
Self-Mastery
11
+1
Acumen
11
+1
She looked forward to talking with Moira and Guinevere about it, as they'd quickly become the only friends Astrid had here in this tiny town. Their lives were so wildly different, and all three knew that it wouldn't be long before Astrid moved on. She wouldn't stick around, and they avoided speaking about it after Moira had made her opinion on the matter known.
"Friends are friends. I'll enjoy the relationship we have, whether it lasts for a day or a year or longer. I love being with you, and when the time inevitably comes that we leave each others' lives, I won't mourn or grieve but celebrate."
As she reached the penultimate step to exit the dungeon as well as the figurative one to the level 6 watershed, Astrid mused over her delving path so far. Weeks and weeks had passed since the surge and summer was well and truly under way. Due to the strange surge, this section of the Dungeon had changed, though not too much. The floors were larger, and their darkness more oppressive. Grom had mentioned some technical specifics that didn't matter to her, but she nodded in affected understanding when he mentioned it.
Since the day that the Golden Fist had trapped her and half complimented and half threatened her, Astrid delved alone and with whoever would accompany her. She made sure to always get at least 150 experience in every day without fail. As the surge slowed and faded, that became harder and harer as Astrid, for the first time, encountered this entrance of the Dungeon without the bolstered numbers provided by increased mana levels. There, the first floor was painfully easy and underpopulated. As soon as she reached level 3, she'd only passed through the first floor to get to the second.
As she delved, sometimes Svana would work alongside her, and other times, Lariche or Thomas trusted her to protect them. That was, until the sole party that didn't lose any members phased away. Then, it was only Astrid, Svana, and Tobias, and, maybe once a week, they would delve together. Svana would descend every other day. Astrid refused to slow down. She made enough money to ensure that her armor, no longer shining and unmarred, remained in perfect fighting condition. Fortunately, Moira was more than willing to work with her to ensure that Astrid had no days where she couldn't delve without her equipment.
Then, a new party showed up just after Astrid hit level 3. They were fresher even than she was when she first showed up. Not a single fight under their belts. Frederick, Gustave, Quintus, Lyra, and Elpeah, and they were… humorously naive. Astrid could see why she'd been ribbed so easily upon her arrival in Schteldt. Even so, she didn't treat them that way. She'd only been delving for a bit over 2 months when they'd shown up, and she'd seen more people die than they probably would for a year. There was no reason to fault them for their age and availability.
They made for a stereotypical party, a frontliner, finisher, skirmisher/scout, healer, and ranged attacker. When she saw them in the inn, excitedly talking about what had gone wrong and how to improve, or when she heard them call out warnings to each other as they hunted, Astrid felt that familiar pang. She whispered to herself about how she'd come here not to make friends, but to pass that first watershed. Even so, months of being partyless wore on her. She didn't have the support system she so desperately desired, and as she'd reached level 5, she couldn't take it any longer.
Striding down the single, main road, Astrid nodded at the few passersby, happy to be accepted, if not as one of them, as a friend who'd tried and continued to try her best to keep them all safe and happy. She pulled her helmet off, taking note of the faint drain on her attributes as she did so. The helmet was, as Miriam said, "something to help grease these first levels". With a smile, Astrid thought of how she'd gotten the upgrade. The pair of Adamantite delvers had disappeared that night, only to return the next morning while she was dressing. As Astrid stood awkwardly in just her pants and breast wrappings, she'd watched while Isana carved a couple small engravings into the helm, and as soon as they flashed with a nearly imperceptible light, the Dungeoneer had tossed it over.
"It isn't much. But if I tried to do something more, Miri would have broken it." She stuck her tongue out at her companion.
"Yes. Yes I would have. I don't want you to upgrade the item so much that Astrid dies of mana toxicity the second she puts it on. Honestly. She's not even Iron!" Despite the seemingly angry words, nothing about Miriam communicated anything except for genuine care for her companion. Isana rolled her eyes as she looked back to Astrid.
"Spoilsport. I wouldn't have upgraded it that much."
"Sure." Miriam shook her head. "Anyways. Last piece of advice: stay out of the capital until you're at least mid Iron. Your life will just be better if you spare yourself from that agony."
"What agony?" Astrid asked.
The damned delvers disappeared. Just as she was about to unleash an ear-curling string of swears, Isana's voice came from somewhere Astrid couldn't place.
"Your Skill. People will be able to see it. No need to get into politics before you have a real party. Maybe even wait until Mithril…"
Then, they were gone. Astrid couldn't help but be a little disappointed that she'd never seen Leah. Sure, her Class wasn't ever going to be one of the gish, but it still… she still wanted to meet her idol. Maybe if she'd said something… no. That would have been worse.
Regardless, the replacement helmet that Grom'd given her was now Astrid's first piece of magical armor. Sure, it gave a +1 to Power and Fortitude, but the best part was that the enchantments or whatever Isana had done to it kept the helm from cutting off her peripheral vision. In fact, it almost felt like she wasn't wearing a helm at all once the buckle was strapped under her chin.
While she walked through the front door of the inn, Astrid couldn't hear anything. Frederick's party must not have come in yet. That was weird, considering she hadn't heard any sign of them on the first floor of the Dungeon as she'd passed through it. Even so, there was something specific she was going to ask for, and other people's presence or absence didn't mean anything to her. Instead, she nodded at Stark.
"I'll have a triple portion. It'll be a little delayed, though."
He just nodded, squinting a little as she walked past the bar and to Grom's office. She knocked only once before his voice came out, "Come in, Astrid!"
Curious, she opened the door and walked in. Grom sat at his table, dealing with a small stack of paper that, when she peeked, seemed to be in reference to any ongoing changes within this small part of the Dungeon.
"How did you know?" Astrid asked.
"Heavy knocks." Grom grinned, gesturing at one of the seats for her to take. "Nobody else but Stark around here has the same strength as you, and Stark wouldn't knock."
"Could have been a visitor." She insisted.
"And I would have been wrong." He shrugged easily. "Nobody would disbelieve me if I told them that I was expecting a visit from our top delver. How're the rookies?"
"Holding on as best as they can." Astrid shrugged, willing to engage with him before asking her rather large favor. "Frederick's doing the best emotionally, so far as I can tell. He's well suited as a finisher, and he's a good Fencer. Gustave doesn't enjoy how little he can participate in the fights themselves, but as a Medic, he seems pretty sure he'll get a more combat focused skill at 6. Quintus… he's unsure. He's afraid of hitting his teammates, so more often than not, he misses hits he could have easily hit because there's a tiny chance of the shrapnel hitting his teammates. Lyra's learned a fair amount from Svana, and she's doing well, if unremarkably while Elpeah is a great Vanguard. She's just too hesitant to get out from behind her shield and use that poleaxe of hers. Once she gets over that, I think she'll be better than Frederick."
Grom nodded, his quill scratching across a piece of paper while she spoke.
"About what I was thinking," he said as he dotted the last 'i' in the line, "but I wanted your view as well. Have you given individual instruction to Elpeah?"
"A couple times." Astrid shrugged. "I think a part of her thinks she needs a weapon Skill to be able to do any real damage with that thing, and since she missed the first time she tried to use it in a fight, it's become something of a holdup for her."
"Mmm." Grom didn't speak.
"Anything else?" Astrid asked.
"Whatever the reason is for you to be here." Grom met her eyes, and something in her said that he knew what she was going to ask. Even so, he didn't offer anything beyond a patiently waiting face. Her heart in her throat, Astrid spoke.
"I'm sick of being here." She shrugged, feigning as much casualness as she could muster. "I don't have any future in Schteldt. I'm not finding anybody any time soon who'll party with me, and I just extended that gap when I hit level 5. Everyone who comes will be level 1 or maybe 2 at the outside, and I'm not waiting until the end of the year for them to catch up to me. That said, I don't want to leave here without clearing the Dungeon and hitting level 6. I could keep killing 20 to 30 wargs a day all by myself to get there in another month, but I can push further. The only reason I don't is because I don't want to upset the balance here. If, instead, I was given permission to kill every warg on the second, third, and fourth floors with a little assistance, I'd be able to, at least, quadruple the experience I'm already getting."
"And what are you suggesting?" Grom asked, his face deliberately unreadable. Astrid had to fight to keep herself from looking all around his office instead of meeting his gaze.
"That I be allowed complete hunting rights over the second and third floors of the Dungeon, and that, once or twice a day, I be accompanied by you on the fourth floor to ensure that I can draw the attention of all the monsters on the floor in a timely fashion."
"Why would I hurry your escape from here?" Grom asked dryly. "In case you didn't know, there are a grand total of 8 delvers in Schteldt. Five are level 1, two are level 3. Although this is a smaller Dungeon entrance, it still requires frequent clearing. What you're asking me to do is, if I understand correctly, do more work that I don't need to do right now so that the time where I have to pick up the slack and do more work comes more quickly. Why would I assist you in leaving my section of the Dungeon more quickly?"
"I… but… you said you wanted me to be able to move on as quickly as possible!" Astrid hadn't quite expected that argument. "You said!"
"Yes." Grom nodded, holding her gaze. "Months ago, when you were in constant conflict with the only other party that would accept your help while you were struggling to gain any experience without being in grave danger. Now, you're a valuable asset who can teach the rookies as they join and clear the lower floors without any assistance. I suspect that, now that you're level 5, you wouldn't have too much of a struggle in clearing the fourth floor by yourself. Why would I hurry you along?"
Astrid ground her teeth. Stupid as it was, she hadn't prepared for an argument. Just to present her case and then be told yes or no. She tried to roll with the points Grom had just made, and she rebutted.
"There isn't any benefit to the Guild itself by me staying here. You and Stark are assigned to be here because, in the event of no delvers appearing here for months at a time, you can keep the Dungeon cleared. This is merely an aspect of the job you willingly signed up for."
Grom shrugged. "Again, that's true, but why would I help you hurry along? You're benefitting me by being here. You have a bright future ahead of you, maybe I just want to have a little more influence over you?"
"That's a stupid point, because while you've assisted me in the past, you've also publicly chastised me for things that, per your own admission, weren't really my fault."
"True. But that's just a guess as to my intentions and reasons not to help you move on more quickly. Why would I help you move on?"
Finally, Astrid clocked the continuous repetitions. 'Why would I help you.'
"Because we're friends." Astrid shrugged helplessly. "And you believe in me? You don't want to keep me trapped somewhere that nobody will really benefit from my presence?"
"There you are." Grom grinned as he stood and walked around the table to sit not on his chair but the table's front. "I'm not every representative you'll come across. There'll be every type to find and fight with. Some will treat you like a friend, others like an asset, and others an annoyance. There's no way to be sure which it'll be, but you should be able to tell pretty quick what kind of a relationship a representative has with their delvers and their work itself. I'd like to think that, regardless of my total lack of a future delving, I'm one of the good ones. Representatives like me… we'll enjoy helping you because we can. We want what's best for the Guild, but that's made up of individuals.
"And you… you're done here." He shrugged. "As the individual Astrid, you just need to formalize your 'graduation' with some Boss clears in the Dungeon and that watershed. As the representative of the Delvers," he stressed the word, "Guild, I'm more than happy to help you with that. If there's anything else that I can help you with, just let me know, ok?"
Astrid nodded before standing and extending her hand for a shake. Grom grinned and took it tightly.
"I'm assuming you're wanting to get this started tomorrow morning? Take a little break and see your friends tonight?"
"Yeah. Stark should have a meal or three ready for me, then I'll visit town for just a little while. Bright and early, if you'll allow me."
"Mornings will be best for me." Grom agreed. "I can go with you to clear the Boss room and the fourth floor and then you work your way up the third and second floors. I do ask that you leave the first alone, since the rookies need it."
"Yes, sir." Astrid agreed as she walked out. Stark's stew, a nice bath, and pleasant conversation awaited her out there, and since she'd gotten permission, Astrid happily walked to do just that. After all, the morning loomed, and it would be at least as busy as the surge had been.