The Flying Emporium

Magda didn’t hide anything. She revealed everything she knew.

Starting with the more subtle changes the dungeon had experienced over the last few days. Like the trap that had initially been deemed to be a solely psychological one, with its purpose being to put pressure on less experienced groups. It was usually the hallmark of a young and still relatively weak dungeon that didn’t yet have either the sense or the ability to opt for more deadly alternatives.

And yet the second group to ever step foot into the dungeon lost their tank when the very same trap suddenly put a hole in the man’s head.

At the time, people still speculated that the first group might just have been lucky, that the trap had simply been a dud; a foolish assumption in hindsight.

Fast-forward to the third group’s attempt to conquer and scout the dungeon, and those ideas had been proven wrong once and for all. The whole corridor was now littered with a wide variety of lethal traps.

Up to this point of Magda’s recount, the pacified crowd had listened with only minor interruptions, all of which were immediately suppressed by their fellow adventurers.

Now, however, a collective murmur of disbelief went through their ranks.

These were supposed to be just the subtle changes? People weren’t buying it and were quick to accuse Magda of embellishing and exaggerating her story to garner sympathy.

Magda remained unperturbed. In some parts, because she told herself to remain professional. But mostly because she wouldn’t have believed it herself if she hadn’t seen the recordings directly.

Without taking offense, she waited for people to quiet down before addressing the implicit question after the more drastic alterations the dungeon had experienced.

Or in this case, the ones pertaining to the enemies themselves.

Initially, that had been the skeleton warrior, the, at the time, presumed boss and singular enemy of the dungeon and whose skill-set had then further changed between dungeon dives.

And then, of course, came the revelation no one would have believed-not even the ones who were more sympathetic to her-if Magda wasn’t a relatively high-ranking representative of the Adventurers’ Society.

That was how, after defeating said skeleton warrior, the third group was not met with the exit portal but with four deadly, eight-legged foes instead.

Something like this was unheard of. At the same time, the claim of a dungeon changing its layout so drastically and quickly was simply too outrageous to be made up.

The present adventurers, even Jasmine’s usually so disciplined guards, were in total disbelief.

The loudmouths who had been so vocal early on had long been silenced. But even those interested in an actual challenge, those whose lust for battle and adventure had intensified with every one of Magda’s words, suddenly had lost all interest.

That was until Magda went on to announce what many people probably deemed to be the most important bit of information.

The drop of a class-orb.

This revelation momentarily reignited many people’s fighting spirit.

Class-orbs always had a great draw on people and this, of course, also included adventurers who didn’t have a practical use for them, simply because every single one represented large amounts of money. Large enough for people to risk their lives.

Now, with the class-orb removal device added to the equation, those orbs didn’t just present money, but the potential of real power. Enough so for people to willingly risk their lives; again.

But risking one’s life was one thing, deliberately throwing it away, was an entirely different one.

And so, despite some greedily flickering eyes here and there, Magda’s revelation did little to change the minds of the people who had already given up on taking even a single step inside this dangerous dungeon.

But why put fuel on that almost extinguished spark in the first place?

And then some people remembered.

While everything pointed towards this dungeon being a dangerous aberration which evolved at an unprecedented speed, Magda, early on, had pointed to a different possibility.

“So what about that other theory you mentioned?” someone finally repeated the question that had started all of this and which, to this point, still remained unanswered.

Magda acknowledged the question with a nod.

She understood this was the hardest part.

She was confident in her theory.

She knew she was right.

But this would be of little consequence if she couldn’t convince other people of this as well. People who would have to actually risk life and limb to verifying the theory in her stead.

Trying to convey her conviction, Magda didn’t hesitate as she shared her observations. Like how the only times people got gravely wounded or killed were only ever if they let themselves be distracted and let down their guard.

Even the group who had lost their tank so early on to simple overconfidence could have still made it out mostly unharmed if only they hadn’t let their emotions, their grief, and anger, and fear get the best of them; that they still weren’t completely wiped out was the best proof of that.

Similarly, the last group had celebrated too early and then fell into panic when they realized what was going on. It had cost them valuable time. Time the dungeon had afforded them to prepare; again, a clear sign, in Magda’s mind, that the dungeon wasn’t just out for blood.

In the end, only the very first group, the most inexperienced and therefore, she argued, the most careful, had made it back outside without casualties.

When she had finished, no one accused Magda or her staff of being incompetent or malicious anymore; everyone seemed to understand the seriousness of the situation.

Still, people were quick to point out the obvious flaw in her theory. Or rather, in the methodology it would take to either verify or falsify her claims.

So far, procedures had demanded that each subsequent scouting party had to be stronger than the last one; after all, the danger level had risen and people had been lost.

But the only way to be certain was to break with these procedures. In case Magda’s hunch was incorrect, the consequences would be most dire.

By now, even the slowest understood where Magda was going with all of this.

Though not nearly as derisive as before, people still let her know, in no uncertain words, what they thought of her plan.

“No way we will do your dirty work for you.”

“Yeah, we’re not your guinea pigs.”

“At least some proof would be nice, you know?”

“Not even the Society could pay us enough for a trip like this!”

Magda had already half-expected these reactions and was carefully thinking about her next words when a group of four stepped forward as one.

“You said a class-orb was dropped? In that case, we will do it.”

“Ah?” Magda should have been delighted by this turn of events. Instead, her bad conscience flared up.

‘They are only doing this for the orb. I shouldn’t have mentioned it,’ she lamented to herself. If not for the power or just the thrill of it, then most adventurers’ biggest motivator was the loot. So strictly speaking, it wasn’t her fault; without the prospect of valuable booty, virtually no one would ever dive into a dungeon. And yet, at this moment, Magda felt she had lured these people into a trap.

She hesitated for an instant, but quickly shook off her doubts, all while maintaining her smile.

“In that case, why don’t you follow me so you guys can study the recordings? You can still change your mind after,” she offered.

Her words elicited another round of objections from the many curious bystanders.

“Recordings? What recordings? Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

“Right. Why wouldn’t you start with this? Let us make our own impressions.”

“For real. What is she thinking?!”

“Just show it already.”

Magda, however, deliberately ignored these complaints and maintained steady eye contact with the woman who had accepted the challenge; at this moment, hers was the only opinion that mattered

“No,” the latter shook her head, to the surprise of most people. Excluding the three men flanking her.

Magda, in a questioning gesture, cocked her brow.

“What? Are you surprised? I mean, surely there was a reason you didn’t do like those fools demanded from the get-go.

Either your assumption is right, in which case any preconceived notion of what might await us in there would only lull us into a false sense of security and will ultimately come to bite us.

Or you are wrong, and we are jumping headfirst into a rapidly evolving deathpit that even the Hanvian exploration forces couldn’t handle. In that case, we are doomed no matter what. No?”

Magda was stunned by the sobriety of the woman’s words, as were many of the onlookers. But the ensuing silence was short-lived, as the woman herself interrupted it with a hearty laugh that was echoed by her three companions.

These antics quickly snapped Magda out of her thoughts.

“I don’t,” she agreed with a smile on her face that had lost most of its previous tension.

“Great! In that case, let's not waste any more time, I say.”

Magda didn’t immediately catch on. She didn’t believe anyone could be so reckless; even if they declined to check the recordings, surely there were other preparations that needed to be done first.

Her unspoken questions were apparently written all over her face.

“We have been waiting for this opportunity for days. So why delay this any further?

A good adventurer is always prepared.

That’s what your organization keeps preaching, isn’t it? Now don’t be surprised someone is actually listening and let's get on with it.”

Without waiting for a reply, the woman turned around and headed towards the dungeon’s crypt-like entrance. As if this matter wasn’t one of life and death, her men followed her without a hint of hesitation, almost as if they were headed for dinner and not into a potentially lethal anomaly of a dungeon.

Magda, who felt her control over the situation slip away, could only hasten her steps to catch up and join them as the crowd parted ways to let them through.

“Excuse me, good Sirs and Madams,” a high-pitched voice suddenly called out to them. “Just a moment of you time please. I am sure to make it worth your while.”

Magda turned her head, as did the group of four.

What they saw was a young boy, previously concealed by the crowd, standing behind a small wooden stall near the entrance of the crypt.

“I understand you are heading inside? On behalf of the Emporium, let me offer you a five percent discount on your next purchase. All you have to do in exchange is to take this [Transmitter Crystal] and let us be part of your adventure. What say you?”