08 — Unyielding

08 — Unyielding

The next morning, I woke up well rested, but my worries had not magically disappeared. As I lamented the harshness of reality, I met eyes with something. Someone. And they were very close.

“Holy—” I shoved their face away with a start, swatting away the gross, lukewarm air of their breath.

“Oh, how love stings,” they crooned. “Oh-hoh, but that’s just how I like it.”

“These chills, that ‘oh-hoh’... Trett?”

Even being more awake now, it was a little hard to identify him as anything other than an old dude with eyeliner from ten centimeters away. I feared for my life.

“You can go back to sleep if you like. I won’t miss this time.”

I was right to be afraid. My heart continued to beat out of my chest. I took a deep breath. “I’ll pass. What are you doing here?”

“Would you believe me if I said I caught your scent? Probably not. I heard at Church HQ that you were in Rockford with your pals.”

“Perfect timing. I had a run-in with the Earth Dragon and almost died, so my clothes and armor could use some maintenance.”

“Oh? They should be able to repair themselves, but I can take a look later.”

“I appreciate it.”

“Get changed and hand over your armor.”

“Sure.”

I switched into another outfit with the transformation dresser and grabbed my armor from it to give to Trett.

“Drop by Pola’s station later. That’s where I’ll be. Oh-hoh, it’s been so long since I had my hands on such fine quality!”

Before I could offer to come with him, he flew out of the room.

“In and out like a typhoon,” I muttered. “I wonder if Trett taught Pola. It’d certainly explain her attitude and how smart she is.”

I sat back down on the bed and collected my thoughts about everything that had happened. The dragons were in pain. I wanted to do something about that, really, but it just wasn’t realistic. Not when they were all in the deepest reaches of various labyrinths. My only real option was to gather the strongest people from all over the world, but proving the actual existence of the dragons was another matter. Only I could see the doors leading to them.

The Earth Dragon’s earthquakes had extended dozens of kilometers outward. Its power was astounding, and that wasn’t even counting its breath attack. If something hadn’t been done, the ants could have caused immeasurable damage.

Wait. The Earth Dragon was supposed to be at the end. The hole I’d fallen down must have shot me past the rest of the labyrinth, in which case, assuming dragons had to be present, the monsters in each of the boss rooms were still a threat. I hadn’t fought a single one.

“If one of them’s an ant queen or something, then this place isn’t safe.”

I thought hard. I didn’t want Dhoran or the others to struggle any more than they already had. And although I’d supposedly obtained some kind of earth affinity, I had no way of making use of it yet. What I would’ve given to head out to the Mage’s Guild or maybe that neat City in the Sky, but there were things that needed doing first.

“Thinking’s gonna get me nowhere,” I said to myself resignedly. “Maybe I can get everyone else to fight and just hang out on the side and heal people. Yeah, right.”

Peaceful days weren’t going to come to me that easily, although I prayed otherwise as I descended to the workshop.

I found Kefin downstairs, but Ketty was nowhere to be seen.

“How are things outside?” I asked him.

“Sir. Are you feeling better?”

“Enough.”

“That’s good. We’ve had ants coming from the hole we left, but no more have opened up. We’re not overwhelmed.”

“Think the others could take, say, a thousand at once?”

Kefin chose his words carefully. “Given enough space, proper healing, and no one’s weapons breaking, I think we could manage. Why? Are we taking the fight to them?”

He wasn’t far off, but the only people who could possibly be itching to walk into such a graveyard were those seeking a warrior’s death or battle-crazed lunatics.

“We’ll see. The dwarves are sturdy, but they’re stubborn. If they don’t want our help, we’ll probably head to Merratoni after measurements are taken.”

“I’ll follow you wherever we go,” he said with fire in his eyes.

“I’ll let Dhoran and the others know too. I may need you to gather information or even take a trip to the kingdom directly.”

“You came to the right man. I won’t disappoint you.” He smirked as he opened the door to the workshop for me.

I entered and said, “Have a moment?”

Everyone stopped and looked my way.

“Feelin’ all right?” Dhoran asked.

“Ignoring the intense mental trauma of waking up to Trett centimeters from my face, more or less. Got plenty of magic back.”

“You two’re acquainted then?”

“He made the robe I always wear, as a matter of fact.”

“I remember when he was just a regular ol’ fox-man.” Dhoran cast his eyes down, conflicted. “But Pola likes ’im so ta each their own.”

“Mister Luciel, you’re certain we can trust that jester with our equipment?” Lionel asked.

“Don’t worry,” I reassured him. “He’s as good as they come. We’re lucky to have his assistance now that he’s around. Let’s just hope he only wants money in exchange for his services.” I grinned. “Or else I’m going to need you to handle it.”

I preferred to keep my innocence, thanks. Lionel stared at me aghast, which I skillfully ignored as I relayed what I had told Kefin.

“...so plan on us possibly leaving once everyone’s been fitted.”

“We’d appreciate the help, Luciel,” Grand said. “Dhoran, we oughta write to His Majesty.”

“Right, brother. Knew we could count on ya, Mister Luciel.” Dhoran bowed. “I’m with ya all the way.”

He and Grand began to compose their letter.

“Sir, the caverns you traveled through weren’t terribly large, were they?” Lionel asked, his meaning plain.

“They were only about two meters tall,” I replied. “You’d only have room to thrust your sword, really.”

He was just itching for a fight and was already considering ways to simulate labyrinth combat.

Grand and Dhoran soon finished writing and subjected Kefin, their designated messenger, to a lecture on how to enter the kingdom.

“Be safe. Your first priority is coming back alive,” I told him. “Delivering that letter comes second. Don’t forget to register your mana, and you better learn a few answers for the golem.”

“I’ve already registered, but good point,” Kefin said. “I should study up a little or getting back will be difficult.”

“Good luck.”

As he left, I moved to Pola and Lycian’s stations.

“Hey, I want to ask you two to make some illuminating magic items,” I said.

“No stones,” Pola declared.

“Didn’t we make ten or so of those already?” Lycian questioned.

“Sorry, I should’ve explained. We may end up going into that tunnel to take out those ants ourselves. I’ll get you your magic stones from the corpses we haven’t dissected yet. You can use what we get out of them.”

“’Kay.” Pola nodded.

“Understood,” Lycian replied.

“Well?” Trett interjected. “What should I do?”

“I expect some fighting, so I’ll need you on gear maintenance,” I answered.

“Oh, now that’s just boring. But oh well. If I must.”

“There’re plenty of resources at the forge in there. I’ll pay your fee later.”

“Sure thing. Leave it to me!”

“Thanks.”

Everyone had their roles, and I suddenly found myself with nothing to do. Figuring we might need food for an extended battle, I decided to spend my time cooking.

I was having a relaxing cooking session when Ketty and Estia sprinted up in a panic.

“What is it?”

“The hole’s getting bigger,” Ketty reported quickly. “There’s gonna be trouble if we don’t get Dhoran or Grand over there.”

“Has anyone been hurt?”

“No, but I can sense monsters.”

It was dusk, and even though the fake moon and stars illuminated the town, it would be a disaster if the hole started to overflow when night fell.

“I need to check on the status of those magic stones anyway, so I’ll take a look too.”

“Try not to fall down it this time.”

“No promises.”

Joining with Dhoran, the four of us arrived at the plaza. At a glance, the other holes were still sealed, but the one I had fallen down was noticeably wider. Thankfully, nothing else seemed out of the ordinary.

“It’s definitely bigger,” I remarked. “Dhoran, how far is the Kingdom of Dwarves from here?”

“About an hour by horse.”

“Do you think this hole might be connected to the kingdom?”

“What makes ya say that?”

“If it is, we could maybe turn this into a staircase and attack from here, diverting some of the monsters.”

“Not a bad plan, but we don’t even know what we’d be diggin’ into.”

He was right. Feeling a little dumb for the idea, I informed everyone of the plan.

“Ketty, I want you to watch for monsters. Estia, handle healing injuries. I’m going to shine a light down there, and if there’s a lot of those things, I want you to shut it, Dhoran.”

“Got it,” Ketty replied.

“Those monsters’ll take this city when I’m six feet under!” Dhoran cried.

Holy Dragon spear in hand, I approached the hole and shined a light down into it. The glow agitated the ants peeking out, and the swarm began to skitter up all at once. I thrust my spear as Ketty danced around, taking care of the many ants that were now crawling out.

“Dhoran!” I shouted.

He put a hand to the ground and began to seal the tunnel, but before closing it all the way, I followed up.

“Not all the way. It’s better to funnel them into one place so they don’t start popping up everywhere else.”

We had to figure out what was aggravating the swarm or there’d be no end to it. Monsters hadn’t invaded the town since Lord Reinstar had founded it, and the earthquakes clearly didn’t explain everything. There had to be something else going on.

“We should’ve brought Pola so she could help reinforce the earth,” I moaned.

“Want me to fetch her?” Ketty offered.

“No, I need you to help me keep the ants back, and we can’t have Dhoran gone if things get bad again.”

The dwarf grunted. “Who do we send?”

“Um,” someone faltered, “I’ll go.”

“Estia?” I said in surprise. “It’s up to you.”

“Yes, sir,” she replied.

Estia ran off towards the workshop. We were lucky we hadn’t needed the healing. All we had to do was hold out until Kefin got back. No rush. And if push came to shove, the people of this town wouldn’t sit around and do nothing, but still, Pola’s help would go a long way.

Dhoran was starting to worry me, though.

“You okay? Does sealing holes take a lot out of you?”

“Woulda run out o’ mana if you hadn’t stopped me,” he said.

“You really should tell me stuff like that beforehand,” I reprimanded him. “Ketty, Lionel was a general. He should be able to supervise and command things here, right?”

“Sure,” she replied, “but doubt he’ll do it. He likes fightin’ more.”

I sighed. “Fine. If I end up having to do it, would you mind helping me out?”

“This kitty’s gotcher back!”

“That’s only if this turns into a full-on defense. So, do monsters, like, eat each other’s corpses or anything?”

“Dunno,” she said. “Maybe.”

“I’ve heard of ’em fightin’ over territory,” Dhoran commented.

“We’ll just have to try to stop them from falling back down,” I said. “I don’t want these things eating each other and getting stronger.”

Ants were scavengers, after all, and although I didn’t know if that tracked for monsters, I didn’t want to chance it.

The three of us hunkered down until Kefin returned. Only about three ants emerged at a time, and taking them out was easy enough. But when I shined the light back down, I saw tons of them packed tightly together. I tried using cleansing magic on them to no avail. Could we really keep cutting them up like this? Should we have just sealed the hole and crushed them?

As I wavered indecisively, visitors arrived.

“Sorry it took me so long, sir.” Kefin had returned with two dwarves.

“Good, you’re back. How did it go?” I asked him.

“This is Grios and Aleslei, attendants of the Dwarf King. They insisted I bring them along so they could speak with you in person.”

To save face in a time of crisis or as a show of courtesy? Either way, as long as they genuinely asked for our help, it didn’t matter to me.

“I see. I know you just got back, but I need you to switch places with me. Ketty, hang in there a while longer. Dhoran, stay with me. I want you as my adviser.”

The three promptly replied in agreement, much to the surprise of the two newcomers. Whether that was because I was taking charge, Dhoran had actually listened, or any number of other things, it was clear that they didn’t like it. Unfortunately, there was no time to pander to them.

“I’m Luciel, S-rank healer with the Church of Saint Shurule,” I introduced myself. “I’d like to hear your king’s reply.”

“Here?” one asked incredulously.

“In front of Dhoran? The crimin—”

“Finish that sentence and you can consider my aid rescinded,” I interrupted.

“Mister Luciel...” Dhoran said, moved.

“I’m not interested in being your enemy,” I told them. “But you’re defaming the R and D lead of Luciel and Co. right now, and I’d like you to refrain from doing so in the future.”

The two dwarves looked at each other and exchanged whispers.

“Our apologies,” one said. “I’m Grios, attendant to His Majesty. There have been casualties within the kingdom, and as such, His Majesty would like to request aid. However, there were concerns as to whether we could cover the costs of a healer, so we were sent to confirm.”

“I see. Kefin, how did things look to you?”

“The defense was tired,” he reported. “Not every citizen is a combatant, so I expect their forces to hold for a few more days at most.”

“How dare you, beast!” Grios spat. “We are dwarves! Know your place!”

Really? This was the best the Kingdom of Dwarves had to offer? Dhoran and Grand were a handful but hardly insufferable, so what was this pair’s excuse for such behavior?

“I’m speaking with my subordinate,” I cut in firmly. “Know your place and keep your opinions to yourself, please. I greatly appreciate his ability to provide accurate reports, so I won’t abide any impoliteness towards him. Now, I would like to return to hearing the facts, if you’ll avoid interjecting this time.” I turned back to Kefin. “How were their supplies? Do they have enough food?”

“It seems like they have enough to last, but their weapons are worse for wear,” he replied. “And there were a lot of wounded as well. I met with monsters quite a few times on my way there.”

“Go get everyone. Including Grand and Trett.”

“Yes, sir.”

Kefin vanished, leaving the two dwarves dumbstruck. I would have been equally startled if I wasn’t used to seeing him literally disappear into thin air.

“As you can see,” I said to them, “Rockford has come under attack because of the earthquakes too. What we need is information. Are there monsters other than the ants? Is there a queen? If so, how many? I need to hear everything you know. Also, this is a guide for healing costs.” I handed over a copy of the guidelines as one of the dwarves sputtered in response. “Let me know once you’ve made your decision. I have monsters to fight.”

I left the two and rejoined the extermination effort with Ketty.

“We gonna cooperate?” she asked.

“Hard to say. It’ll depend on them. Certainly not if everyone’s going to be like Grios. I have no obligation to put people in danger for the Kingdom of Dwarves like I did for Yenice.”

“Coulda used some of that assertiveness back at the council.”

“I was in over my head then. I already had my hands full with you guys.” I flashed her a joking smile as I beat down an ant.

“Such a meanie. Dhoran and Pola, yeah, I could see that, but us? We were good kitties!”

“You’re jokin’, right, lass?” Dhoran huffed.

“I can’t blame Lionel and Ketty too much,” I confessed. “We were up against a lot.”

I didn’t offer the attendant dwarves a single glance. I was interested in how their attitudes would change upon reading through the guidelines and seeing Grand with us. Whatever he and Dhoran had written in that letter, I had to trust them.

As we fought the monsters, neither of the dwarves approached us or said a word. When Kefin returned with everyone, Grand ignored the attendants, came right over, and lowered his head.

“I’m sorry, lad. But this is my home we’re talkin’ about. I’m beggin’ ya, help ’em out.”

“I thought you’d say that,” I said. “Don’t worry, I’ve already considered who to take and who to leave here. Dhoran, Pola, and Lycian, I want you to hold the line while Estia heals. You’re only to defend. No going into the hole. Work together and keep the town safe. Use whatever magic stones you get from the monsters as you like.” They responded in the affirmative. “Seems like you came at a bad time, Trett. I need you to back them up. Only you can.”

“Oh-hoh!” he cheered enthusiastically. “I love the fire in your eyes! Anything for my cute little apprentices!”

Ignoring his suggestive wink, I continued, “Lionel, I want you to fight with your shield and a short spear. Ketty and Kefin are on hit-and-run duty, and I’ll heal. Grand, I want you to join us to handle negotiations.”

“Me?” he said, startled.

“Well, you, Dhoran, and Pola are pretty much the only dwarves I know and trust.”

“Understood.” He huffed. “You’ve changed, lad.”

I smiled. “I’ve got a lot of friends at my back now.”

No matter what happened, even if the Kingdom of Dwarves crumbled, I would protect them.