“You were a leader before?”
“In the Serpent guild. I oversaw dungeon raids.”
“So don’t you think you’d be perfect for this?” I said.
The giant shook his head. He had a look of defiance. “Sorry Janus, but no. I won’t be the leader.”
“I’ll do it,” said Smoglar, getting to his feet.
I didn’t want to be rude to my friend, but I knew that he wasn’t cut out to be our leader. Smoglar was one of the strongest, bravest people I knew, but he wasn’t the greatest strategic thinker. That just left me and Feidan. I was still new to the game, and I didn’t think I’d be able to do the position justice. Feidan was a higher level than all of us, but he was an alchemist and had hardly seen his share of combat. Besides, I still didn’t completely trust him. I needed to convince Brian to step up.
“I guess if Brian isn’t up to the job…” I said.
“You’re not getting me like that,” said the giant. “I wrote the book on reverse psychology. Listen, Janus. Back when I was a Serpent, I led a unit of 5 dungeon raiders. After Herelius betrayed me and Smoglar, I found out that my unit was killed, too. I let them down. I should have seen the betrayal coming. After that, I don’t think I can lead again.”
“That wasn’t your fault,” I said. “That’s the whole point of betrayal; you don’t see it until it happens. We all trust you, Brian. We have faith in you. You’re the most experienced one of us here and let’s face it, you’re the cleverest.”
Brian sat in a silence for a few seconds. He sighed, and then nodded his head. “I’ll do it, just this once. Okay? After that, you choose someone else.”
“So what now then, boss?” said Smoglar, putting heavy emphasis on the word ‘boss.’
Brian sucked in his cheeks. “Smoglar, you’re the tank.”
“I feel like I'm getting typecast here. Can't someone else tank up for a while? I have a sensitive side, you know.”
“It can hardly be Janus, can it? And Feidan, since you’re an alchemist and a healer, you’ll be our healer. Square pegs in square holes.”
“That should free up my role,” I said. “and give me more time to inflict bomb damage.”
Brian nodded. “We’ll buy some casings and gunpowder and make as many bombs as we can carry. We need to get Smoglar’s attack points up and get him some resistance armour, and I also want Feidan’s endurance to be a little higher.”
“Not that I don’t like the sound of better armour,” said Smoglar, “But all this costs money. And until our friend here pays up, we’re not flush with CR.”
Feidan reached into his bag. “I found a mythril-coated gem a while back. Selling it would probably pay for all our stuff. But if I do that, I want a bigger share of any loot.”
“You owe us money anyhow. How about you pay off your debts?” said Smoglar.
“I said I’d give you the CR from my bank. This isn’t it.”
“Fine,” said Brian. “You get 40% of the loot, and Smoglar, Janus and I get 20% each.”
The city square was busier now. One man walked through the streets with a broom in front of him and tried to sweep away the litter that had been left there for days. A group of elves stood with a long trail of paper and tried to make a register of everyone who had survived the plague.
I remembered how our last dungeon raid had gone. I pictured us following the twists of the tunnels without having any idea where they would lead. I didn’t want that to happen again.
“Last thing,” I said. “Is that we need a map of Gorgefall.”
“There’s a problem with that. There are maps, sure. But guess where they’ll be?” said Brian.
I sighed. “In the library?”
Brian gave a grim nod.
“We’ll have to do without it, then,” I said.
The idea made me uneasy, but if we could get into the library, then we wouldn’t have had to go to Gorgefall in the first place. I had learned things from our last dungeon siege. I knew that if we could handle a den filled with plague-infested rats and a pit demon, then we could handle Gorgefall.
Someone tapped me on the shoulder. I turned and saw a man behind me. He wore a hat that covered his forehead, and stringy brown hair trailed over his ears and to his neck. He smiled at me, and I saw that he had two teeth missing. He looked like he had just stepped off a cabbage farm.
“I couldn’t help but overhear you lot gabbing,” he said. “I’ve got a map for Gorgefall here.”
Smoglar glared at him. “And what’s a yokel like you doing with a map to Gorgefall?”
“My dad was an adventurer,” said the man. “Or he wanted to be, at least. He bought a map to Gorgefall when he was in his fifties, but he never used it. Died on his armchair in front of the fire with a tobacco pipe next him.”
“How much do you want for it?” said Smoglar.
“Not much, but I lost a couple of paralegals to the plague and I need to recruit. CR100 and it's yours.”
“You’re a lawyer?” I said. I didn’t know what surprised me more; the fact that this man was in the legal profession, or the fact that there were lawyers in Re:Fuze.
“Yeah, what did you think I was? CR100. What do you say?”
That was too much for a map, but I was starting to understand that most people in Re:Fuze hiked up their prices and expected to be bartered down. We didn’t have much money between us, and I didn’t want Feidan to buy it because I knew that he’d expect even more loot.
I looked at the man and used my Animal Whisper ability. As I spoke to him, I heard my voice change. My tone became hypnotic, and my words burrowed into his mind.
“Give it to us for nothing. Your father would have wanted a group of explorers to use it.”
“You’ve got a deal,” said the man.
Animal Whisperer ability increased by 20%! (45% to next level).
Item Received: Gorgefall Map
After that Smoglar and Feidan went to find a weapons dealer, while Brian and I moved to a quiet part of the city and started assembling bombs. While I spread gunpowder over a casing, Brian looked up at me.
“If anyone else had asked me to be the leader,” he said. “I’d have told them to get stuffed.”
“So why did you accept?”
“I’m learning a lot about you, Janus. Your Chaos points might say otherwise, but you’re a good guy. Now listen, you know that Gorgefall is dangerous, don’t you?”
“Even the newbie village is dangerous in this game,” I answered.
Brian shook his head. “Gorgefall is a dungeon people usually only attempt when they reach level 20. What level are you, 15?”
“13,” I said.
“We’ll have to watch out for each other.”
“Keep an eye on Feidan,” I said. “I still don’t trust him.”
Feidan and Smoglar soon returned with their goods. Smoglar wore armour made of steel, and he seemed to walk with an increased air of pride. I could barely see where the plates joined, which was the sign of good craftsmanship. With that, the bombs, and our new healer, we had a good chance.
It was time to go to Gorgefall.
Chapter Fifteen
Obsessed with the idea that his wife was plotting to kill him, wealthy wine merchant Floris DeGyle moved into Gorgefall Dungeon. He had his servants carry his wealth there coin by coin, garment by garment, gem by gem. Soon, the muddy tunnels were filled with the sparkle of gold and shimmer of jewels.
As is often the case, word got around that riches were to be found in Gorgefall. Adventures arrived ready to kill Floris and take his wealth. Floris wasn’t a fighting man, and wouldn’t have been difficult to kill.
What the adventurers didn’t know was that Floris spent 2 of his teenage years as a Tinker, and still had knowledge of explosives. He wired Gorgefall with trip wires and bombs. The first adventurers to arrive triggered an explosion, and neither Floris nor his wealth was ever seen again. His wife, heartbroken at his paranoia and separation, never remarried.
W
e found Gorgefall east of Iskarg. It was one day’s quick march away, but we didn't want to unnecessarily burden our stamina, so we took our time. The lands around Iskarg were blighted by Dagmares, an aggressive breed of clawed horses. Brian assigned us all times to stay on watch at night.
Gorgefall itself was deserted. The tunnels were much better developed than the ones we had found in Margar dungeon. The walls were made of stone cut into blocks, and the ceiling was supported by wooden beams that were slick with dew. Streams of daylight managed to get in through unseen holes, and the thin light mixed with the darkness and gave the place a misty feel.
“Remember,” said Brian, walking in front of us all. “If we come up against something physical Smoglar takes the hits, Feidan heals, and Janus and I do damage from the sides.”
Every so often we walked by openings in the walls that led to rooms. We didn’t stop in any, but I glanced at them as we went by. I saw tables draped with dust and cobwebs, with abandoned wine glasses and dinner plates still in place. It was as though it had been occupied for a while and then had suddenly been abandoned.
“How about some light?” said Feidan. “I can cast an orb.”
Brian shook his head. “Better not. We don’t want to draw any attention our way just yet.”
“How far will we need to go, do you think?” said Feidan.
“Scared of the dark?” asked Smoglar.
“My father used to map cave systems in South America. When I got old enough, he started taking me with him. I was nervous on the first trip, but it’s been a long time since tight spaces or the dark bothered me.”
Smoglar huffed and then looked away.
“They don’t like to talk about the outside world,” I said.
As we walked deeper into the dungeon, the only sound we heard was our footsteps. It felt like the further we went, the more committed we were to this, and I got the strange feeling that the dungeon was closing behind us. I held my bag strap tighter. I had prepared seven screw bombs and three healing bombs, and I had my dagger tucked into my belt in case I needed to use it.
“Why would Ozreal come here?” I said.
“Most of the dungeons in Re:Fuze weren’t made by NPCs or players,” said Brian. “A lot of them were already here, meaning they had been created long ago. Some say that if you go deep into a dungeon and dig in the right places, you’ll find secrets and loot from civilizations long dead.”
“Yeah,” grunted Smoglar. “And others say if you dig in the wrong places you’ll poke a goblin in the arse with your spade.”
I heard something to my right. There was an opening that had once been an entrance to a room, but most of it was blocked off by rubble. The room beyond was too dark for me to make anything out.
“Anyone else hear that?”
Brian looked at me and shook his head. I thought I might have imagined it, but then I heard the patter of footsteps on the stone floor, and I heard raspy breaths behind us.
“I definitely heard that,” said Feidan.
Soon the pattering of feet grew louder, and the wheezing breaths increased and seemed to be joined by others. Soon it sounded like dozens of creatures were whispering around us.
“Think it’s time we had some light,” I said.
Feidan spread his palms out in front of him. He began to mutter under his breath, and as he did a ball of light began to gather, growing stronger with each syllable. Finally the ball stopped glowing and began to hum and vibrate in the healer’s palms. He lifted his hands up suddenly, and the light flew up to the ceiling and then spread across the dungeon.
Sometimes, it’s better not to turn on the light. With Feidan’s light illuminating it, we saw that the corridor around us wasn’t empty anymore. Instead, it was filled with creatures that had gradually crept up on us. They had dome-shaped heads covered with skin so smooth that the dew of the dungeon ran down it. Their backs were spiked with horns, and they walked hunched over. I saw that they didn’t appear to have eyes, and must have worked their way through the dungeon using their hearing.
I looked at one nearest me and focussed on its stats.
Trogologon – Level 24
HP: 460 / 690
Strengths: ???
Weaknesses: ???
Somehow this creature had already been hurt, but by who? It wasn’t by us, so I wondered if they fought each other. If they ran in a pack, then it was likely there would be leadership contests from time to time. When I looked around the tunnel and focussed on each creature in turn, I saw that all of them had lost a little HP.
It was clear they weren’t a welcome party. For a few seconds, nobody moved. The creatures hung back warily, and I wondered if we were the first strangers they had seen since Ozreal visited the dungeon. I wondered what had imprisoned him, and somehow I doubted these creatures had the intelligence to do so.
One of them snapped its head in Smoglar’s direction. The dwarf lifted his axe in the air. Suddenly he grunted in pain and dropped his axe to the floor. None of the creatures had touched him yet, so I had no idea what was going on.
“My hand,” he said. “Where that bloody plague woman bit me. Hurts so much I can hardly hold my axe.”
When I answered him, I found I was speaking quieter so as not to alarm the Trogologons. “You’ll have to go one-handed for now,” I said.
“I’m worse one-handed than you are with your dagger. Dammit!”
“Keep your voices down,” said Brian.
It was too late. The clang of the axe and the volume of Smoglar’s voice had unsettled the creatures. The one nearest Smoglar opened its mouth and started to make a whispering noise. I couldn’t make out the words, but there was a pattern to them. One by one each creature took up the whispering until soon the whole tunnel was alive with the sound. The noise was so eerie that I wanted to put a stop to it, but I knew that it would be a mistake to attack so soon.
If the whispers weren’t strange enough, there was the fact that all of the Trogologons now stared at Smoglar as they chanted. Their breaths were raspy, and the volume rose until I just wanted it to end.
Smoglar put his hand to his ears. Without warning, he started shouting at the top of his lungs until the passageways echoed with his deep voice. The sound didn't seem to perturb the creatures around us.
When he finished shrieking, Smoglar turned and looked at us. Feidan’s light was starting to fade, so it was hard to see clearly, but there was a strange look on the dwarf’s face. He seemed twisted in anguish one second, and deliriously happy the next.
Suddenly, Smoglar gripped his axe in his uninjured hand. Facing Feidan, he swung his weapon at the healer. I pulled Feidan back, and the arc of Smoglar’s swing only grazed his shoulder instead of catching him in the middle of his chest.
“What the hell?” said Feidan. “What’s wrong with you?”
The creatures snapped their heads away from Smoglar and stared at us now. A couple of them started moving in.
Something was wrong with Smoglar. I needed to use Appraiser on him, but I had to be able to see him clearly.
“Can you cast another light orb?” I said to Feidan.
“They're a mana drain. Do you really need it?”
I nodded, and Feidan grew a ball of light in his hand and then sent it across the room. As he did, all the Trogologons jerked back. I looked at the one I had already appraised, and I saw its stats again.
Trogologon – Level 24
HP: 315 / 690
Strengths: ???
Weaknesses: ???
The creature was too high a level for me to see its strengths and weaknesses at a quick glance. To do so I’d either need to raise my intelligence, or spend longer focusing on appraising it, and I didn’t have time for that. Luckily, I didn’t think I'd need to. Since I had last appraised the creature, its health bar had fallen even further. It was obvious, then. The creatures’ weakness was light.
To my right, Feidan cried out. Smoglar had swung with his axe, again barely missing his chest and hitting
his arm instead. I used appraise on Smoglar, and I saw that he had a status beside his name.
Smoglar - **Confusion **
The creatures around us began whispering again, but this time they stared at Brian. We had to stop this, now. One by one they were going to turn us against each other until we went mad in the depths of the dungeon and killed ourselves.
“We need more light,” I said.
“It’s gonna drain me, Janus.”
“We don’t really have much of a choice.”
The whispering rose around us. Smoglar turned his attention away from Feidan and stared at me now. His face looked like it did when he was drunk. He held his axe in one hand and swung it at me. He was so used to using his two-handed skill that his one-handed was under-developed, and I was able to dodge the blow.
Tinker, Tailor, Giant, Dwarf ( LitRPG Series): Difficulty:Legendary Book 2 Page 14
