Dungeon Noble - Squire

Rhew, Karl and Alan returned from their tax trip a few minutes later, and after a brief discussion, they decided on the undead Dungeon.

With Karl reaching rank seven and both Alan and Rhew being firmly into rank six, they were growing fast as a group. To the point that Jake was confident that they would find little issue completing the Dungeon.

The fast-moving empty ones would still pose a threat, of course, but with all five of them present, it would be far more manageable.

Felix’s warning rang in Jake’s mind as they crossed the town and made their way out to the Dungeon, but thankfully, they saw nothing unusual.

They already had their main equipment from the delves the day before, but they still made their way to Ivaldi’s first to stock up on things like potions and arrows.

“Jake, welcome to my domain,” Ivaldi said, emerging from the rear of the store to take his usual seat as they entered. “Varin has left your requested item with me, if now is a good time?”

It took Jake a moment to realise what Ivaldi meant. His thoughts were still full of everything that Felix had explained earlier. “If you have it, that would be good.”

“Of course, here it is,” Ivaldi said, reaching down to pick up something from out of Jake’s view before extending it out to him.

As Jake had asked, Varin had made a wand out of the Wyrd-infused wood that he’d given him. It looked very similar to the ones that Ivaldi provided as part of Rhew’s normal equipment, though perhaps slightly rougher in design.

“So, what sort of wand is it?” Jake asked, taking it from Ivaldi and turning it over in his hand.

“This particular one creates Wyrd-enhanced thorns that are fired out from the tip. A more physical effect than most wands, but that makes it all the more useful in the right situation.”

“Right, I can see that,” Jake said, thinking about how little impact Rhew’s ice magic had on some of the enemies in the fire Dungeon. Hopefully, the thorns were similar to the size of the icicles her wand created. If so, then Jake might have a new way to deal with zombies.

“Do you intend to use this yourself?” Ivaldi asked, his expression inscrutable as he regarded Jake with a level gaze.

“Yeah, I like the idea of having more options.”

“Very well, pass me back your belt,” Ivaldi said, holding a hand out. “Keep your sword, though.”

“Oh, sure.” Jake awkwardly shifted his things around so he could unbuckle the belt and pass it over. It felt a little odd to be standing with naked steel in the store, but thankfully, the others were too busy considering their own equipment to take notice.

“Thank you.” Ivaldi deposited the belt out of Jake’s eyeline before picking up a new one and passing it over. Functionally, it was almost exactly the same as the one Jake had returned. The difference was that where Jake’s old belt had an attached sword sheath, this new one also had a wand holster on the opposite hip.

“Here, let me help,” Nepthys said, coming over to take some of Jake’s burden so he could buckle on his new belt.

“Thanks for that. What do you think?” Jake asked, stepping back and sliding the wand into the holster before spreading his hands with a grin. Having another weapon to use if needed felt good; the slight weight on his hip was comforting.

“It looks good. Having both seems to suit you,” Nepthys said, giving Jake a smile that made him want to preen a little.

“I’ll admit that I’m a little jealous, how did you get a new one?” Rhew asked, coming over to examine the wand a little closer.

“Varin, that crafter I mentioned, made it for me using some of the wood we get given as rewards. Speaking of which, could you give him that other piece that I stored with you, Ivaldi?”

“Of course, I will make sure it reaches him,” Ivaldi said, inclining his head slightly.

“Speaking of which, will it be the same type, or will it be different?”

“The end result is dictated by the Wyrd within the item as I understand things,” Ivaldi said, the corner of his mouth briefly curling up at Jake’s blank look. “Yes, it will be similar, as long as the wood came from the same place. Similar does not mean identical, though.”

“Right, got it,” Jake said, giving everything a final once over before turning to the others. “Shall we get to it then?”

-**-

The holster for Jake’s wand was on his right hip, which meant that drawing it required either his left hand or an awkward twist with his right. Getting used to fighting with a wand was going to take a lot of practice, that was for sure.

Jake considered what was best to begin with as they made their way into the Dungeon, eventually deciding to head in with the wand in hand rather than his sword.

It felt odd, to say the least, but when the first zombie came lumbering out of the mist, Jake channelled his Wyrd into the wand and put a six-inch thorn into its shoulder.

“That’s nasty, but you might need to work on your aim,” Alan said, smirking a little as he smoothly nocked an arrow and put it through the zombie’s left eye.

“Yeah, that’s for sure,” Jake said with a rueful grin. Moving over to the zombie, he made sure it was truly dead before examining the thorn in its shoulder a bit closer.

Testing the exposed tip, Jake let out a low whistle as he felt how sharp it was. He wouldn’t get through armour with this, but with its magical nature, he had a feeling it would do more than he had first assumed. The cost of firing the wand wasn’t that high either, so he could keep going for a while.

“If you’re done playing, shall we take this seriously?” Rhew called out with a mock serious frown and a dramatic roll of her eyes.

“Yeah, I’m ready,” Jake said as he straightened up, spinning the wand idly in one hand as he did and almost dropping it onto the zombie.

Another thing to work on.

-**-

With all five of them present, they cut through the Dungeon quickly, familiar with its layout and the challenges it presented. It helped that Jake and the others had ranked up in the meantime as well, increasing their advantage over the zombies and closing the gap between them and the empty ones.

Unsurprisingly, the Challenge room was waiting for them when they reached the end of the third floor. At this point, the lack of curious looks in Jake’s direction was enough to tell him that even though the others might not know what was happening, they knew who was responsible.

Defending their position was much easier with a third close-combat fighter and though it was close a few times, they got through the whole thing without anyone being injured.

With the Challenge behind them, the rest of the Dungeon sped by, and soon enough, Jake found himself beheading the final enemy and completing their delve.

Just over thirty Wyrdgeld was divided between them, and they still had all the potions they had started with. Two bandages had been used for minor scrapes, but it was by far the best delve they’d had to date.

Unsurprisingly, that left them all in a positive frame of mind, and they decided on a few hours of rest before doing the same with the forest-themed Dungeon.

The Dungeon had seating outside for classers who were waiting, so Jake suggested they take some food with them and have their lunch while they waited.

The others hesitated a little, but eventually, they ended up doing just that. Ari and Felix weren’t with them, so they had to pay for their own meals, but a few Wyrdgeld each didn’t feel like much anymore.

Karl ended up with a basket full of food that he carried out to the Dungeon, letting them divvy up what they wanted once they’d taken a seat.

All the food they’d got was from shopkeepers in town, who Jake now realised were classers in the first two tiers who’d never progressed to the next realm. Knowing they were classers was one thing, but Jake had imagined them to be old and retired, with secret strength, not this.

Jake didn’t think he could ever understand simply giving up on pushing forward, but perhaps that was part of the difference between them.

“Does this make us come across as arrogant do you think?” Alan asked as he bit into a savoury pasty that he’d chosen eagerly.

Jake chuckled to himself as Alan devoured the pasty with several rapid bites. All of the locals used dungeonous materials in their food where possible, and that seemed to add something to their flavour that was so moreish.

“I think they’re just jealous they didn’t think of it first.” Rhew said primly, a slight smile touching her lips as she picked out a piece of Wyrdfruit.

Jake nodded, eyeing the other classers around the Dungeon as he did and noting the looks they were getting. Most of them seemed confused more than anything.

“Don’t forget that most of the more experienced classers are in town at the fire Dungeon,” Nepthys said, giving Alan a reassuring look. “We’re making good progress, but not everyone is, and those that aren’t will have neither the funds nor the inclination for this.”

Nepthys’s words seemed to remind everyone of how recently they’d begun to gain traction on the Dungeons. It all still felt quite new and fragile, as though they were in danger of it all falling apart.

Eventually, the good cheer of their morning success resurfaced once more, and by the time they were ready to go back into the Dungeon, Jake’s face hurt from how much he’d been smiling.