Dungeons Are Bad Business

Vee, Alforde, and Reginald walked into the first floor of the adventurer’s guild and were surprised to see that despite the early hour it was full of people. Adventurers milled about in partial suits of armor and traveling clothes, swapping stories as they sipped steaming cups of coffee and munched on biscuits and crackers. Even having seen something similar back in the Lobby, Vee thought it was more than a little strange to see so many people idling away their time instead of doing anything productive. Didn’t any of these people have anywhere else to be? Surely the guild had quests to undertake, right? There were bound to be monsters to track down and slay, or carriages to escort from one place to another.

Still, the presence of so many potential early bird customers got Vee thinking. Was there some way he could tap into this properly? New offerings at the lobby, perhaps? A reward program that combined food, drinks, and dungeon runs?

It was something to think about, and Vee resolved to go and talk to Juniper about the possibilities later. He was hoping to expand Crestheart’s non-dungeon influence as spring got properly underway, but for now he returned his attention to the task that’d brought him to the guild in the first place: putting up a bounty for someone to go see if there were any reservoirs that Reginald could use to recover his lost levels in the mountains outside of town.

There was a lengthy line leading to the counter Vee needed, but one of the [Clerks] on duty recognized him and waved him over to a different one so that he could cut most of the crowd. A few adventurers grumbled and gave him dirty looks as he did so, but none of them pushed the matter any further than that. The [Dungeon Master] thanked the woman profusely as soon as he stopped in front of her window, because waiting for his rightful turn would have likely meant that he would have been late to open the dungeon up for the day’s runs.

“You’re welcome, Master Vales. It’s the least I could do for another professional within the trade,” the woman said with a warm and friendly smile. “How can I assist you today?”

Vee reached up and tapped Reginald’s brim, letting the hat explain the needs of the quest. While his [Majordomo] talked, Vee contented himself by looking around and seeing more of how the guild operated.

The [Clerk]’s face fell as Reginald briefly described the reservoirs he was interested in, and when he’d finished his explanation she slowly shook her head.

“I’m not sure any of our members would be able to spot something like that. We don’t really tend to get many treasure hunting jobs around here, you see..”

“But surely at least a few of the adventurers here have [Find Treasure],” Reginald said. “It’s such a common skill!”

“I’m sorry, I can’t say that I know of any,” the woman said with a small shrug and a sheepish smile. She drew out a small black journal and opened it up, scanning each line with her index finger.

“I’m afraid that I don’t see any on our asset roster…but it’s entirely possible that some members have the skill and just haven’t updated their forms the way they’re supposed to.”

“Does that sort of thing happen often?” Alforde asked.

The [Clerk] nodded. “Sadly, yes. Improperly finished forms are a lot more common than you might think.”

“I have a hard time believing that [Find Treasure] would be so rare around here,” Reginald said. “A few years ago it was one of the first skills most adventurers learned.”

“Well, I’m afraid it’s not anymore. [Find Treasure] is a skill that tends to be favored by adventurers with what we designate support classes. Think [Rogues], [Scouts], and [Archaeologists]. Sadly, we don’t really have many of those here in Oar’s Crest anymore, though I can’t speak as to whether or not there’s any singular reason why that is. Classes are like clothes: styles and trends come and go.”

“But we’ve seen a few [Rogues] come through Crestheart,” Vee said. “Are you sure they don’t have the skill?”

The [Clerk] shrugged again. “They very well could, I just wouldn’t know about it. See, our handful of support class members are all the worst in terms of filling out their paperwork. Gawain’s beard! We could have someone capable of looting the Vault of the [Astral King] without any assistance and we’d have no idea! It’s an absolute crapshoot.”

Alforde chuckled at that – the vault of the [Astral King] was one of the few so-called unbreakable safes that actually lived up to its reputation – and the [Clerk] smiled before she continued.

“Currently in Oar’s Crest, our members are heavily skewed toward combat classes. We probably have too many [Fighters] and [Brawlers] to be honest, but there’s also a good number of [Knights] and [Mage] variants thrown in as well. As you can probably guess, those classes tend to get so focused on their newest damage skills and levels that they don’t think about things like hunting for treasure. In a couple more years though, we might well have another crop of support class types. Like I said, tastes change.”

“We understand,” Vee said. “But be that as it may, would it be okay if we go ahead and put up our request anyway? Maybe someone will be able to clear it. One of those [Rogues] you were talking about.”

“Oh, of course. Of course! I didn’t meant to try and discourage you,” the woman said. “The fee for posting an exploration or recovery job like this one will be ten silver fleurs.”

Vee handed the money over, thinking that he was really looking forward to the end of the day’s runs where he’d have some money coming in instead of just flowing out.

Thanking her for her time – and again for letting them skip the long line – the trio made their way over to the job board.

“One last thing!”

Vee turned back to the [Clerk].

“Make sure you put your job request on the right side of the board, okay?”

Vee hadn’t ever really stopped and looked at the job board properly during his time in Oar’s Crest, as each time he’d come to it he’d had other things to do that’d been more pressing and deserving of his attention, but this morning there was something that caught his eye and gave him pause. He hadn’t thought anything of the fact that the [Clerk] had directed him to post his job on the right side of the board, but seeing the fact that left side was completely barren of any jobs was a little odd. What was the point of separating the jobs if they were all going to be on one side?

A quick scan didn’t really clarify the situation, either. There were combat oriented jobs and exploration jobs, as well as other tasks that Vee wasn’t entirely sure that an adventurer was the best choice to handle. “Help me settle my father’s estate, please!” was one of these, and so Vee found himself with even less of an idea of what was supposed to be accomplished by dividing the board in two.

When he brought that up and mentioned how strange it was, Alforde pointed to the top of the board, where there was a pair of handwritten signs.

Vee read the one on the left side: JOBS SUITABLE FOR ADVENTURERS LOWER THAN LEVEL 20. The one on the right was, of course, the same but for adventurers higher than level 20.

“That makes even less sense,” Vee said. “Most of these jobs don’t really seem terribly dangerous or difficult at first glance. Like this one: Collect and deliver groceries to my elderly mother. Why would someone need to be higher than level 20 for that?”

“They’re not getting done, either,” Reginald said, tugging toward a scrap of paper by the bottom right corner. “That one over there has been up for nearly a month already. Higher level adventurers aren’t exactly known for their willingness to do busywork. This is kind of like what we saw over at Crestheart after the open call finished, eh boss?”

Vee nodded, remembering the way that the lower level adventurers who’d been trying to power level to join the open call had been forced out of being able to do dungeon runs once the other adventurers returned. He hadn’t really thought much of it at the time – or rather, his attention had been pulled in other directions and he’d kind of forgotten about the entire thing, to be quite honest – but now he was wondering if this was a consistent issue in the city and how long it’d been going on.

“Why doesn’t the guild step up and put a stop to this?” he asked. “Without a strong pipeline of up and coming adventurers, the guild is just hindering its long term prospects and making itself weaker for the future. How do the people in charge not see that? Surely they have to be cognizant of the fact that prosperous futures require solid foundational presents…right?”

“You’d think so,” Reginald said. “Let’s worry about it another time though, eh boss?”

Vee shook his head. He couldn’t wrap his mind around why the guild would let such a thing happen, and like a scab that wasn’t quite ready to come off on its own, the mystery demanded his attention and invited him to pick and pick.

There had to be some other element that he was missing, Vee decided, though Gawain and Piper alone knew if he could figure out what it was.

He needed more information.

A heavyset adventurer walked past, clearly looking to replenish his coffee cup – despite the fact that it was nearly three quarters full – and Vee held up a hand to stop him in place.

“Uh…can I help you?” The man asked, looking a little confused. “Didn’t the [Clerk] tell you where to hang up your job posting?”

“I’m curious about this arrangement,” Vee said with a nod toward the division on the board. “Has it been going on long? Who was responsible for setting it up?”

“The what? I’m afraid I don’t really know what you mean.” The adventurer looked a little uncomfortable and turned his head side to side, clearly trying to catch the eye of someone else who could help him escape the situation.

Vee followed his gaze and found a quartet of adventurers wearing dark clothes staring at him. They were scowling and muttering to each other.

It wasn’t really much to go on, but the [Dungeon Master] took their presence as a good enough sign that things here in the guild were as rotten as knife-pierced apple left to sit in the sun for a week straight. Stepping forward, he glared into the nearby adventurer’s eyes. “I don’t believe you.”

Despite the fact that Vee was a good six or seven inches shorter than the adventurer, the other man quailed beneath the [Dungeon Master]’s baleful gaze, though he shot a panicked look over at the quartet as well.

Keeping his voice perfectly level, Vee reached up and grabbed the adventurer’s shirt.

“My patience isn’t infinite, you know. Answer me!”

[Congratulations! You are now a Guy-Who-Takes-Things-Way-Too-Far Level 6!]

[Intimidating Presence +1]

“I don’t— I really don’t know,” the adventurer stammered, stepping back and freeing himself of Vee’s grip. Once he had some space his voice took on a more combative tone. “I’m just a mid-level so I don’t go around poking my nose into stuff like this. Besides, what’s it matter to you, anyway? You’re not a member, so guild business isn’t any of your concern.”

Technically true, for all that Vee didn’t care just then. The Expectation around his shoulders urged him to keep going, to press harder, but there was something else there that gave Vee cause for pause. It was an anger that didn’t feel like it belonged to him.

Mindful that his actions might not truly be in alignment with his own desires, the [Dungeon Master] bit back the retort that came to his lips right away, took a deep breath, and forced himself to count to four before he answered.

“It doesn’t need to directly affect me in order for me to have an opinion on it. This arrangement is short-sighted at best and absolutely moronic at worst. Plenty of the jobs over here on the right side of the board could be done by lower level adventurers.”

The adventurer shrugged. “Could be, sure. Like I said, Blue, I don’t know all the details. If you have issues, take them up with the [Guild Master] or something.”

Reginald tightened his brim around Vee’s head, and the [Ghost Maestro] let the man go. The adventurer scurried away, looking back over his shoulder every few steps as if afraid that Vee would come after him, though of course that was a foolish fear.

If Vee had been interested in doing so, he would have sent Alforde to chase the adventurer down.

The quartet got up from their seats and went to the adventurer, smiling and clapping him on the back as if he were their collective long-lost brother.

A few seconds of silence passed, and then Reginald said, “Look boss, I can tell that you’ve got one of your wild hairs right now, but you have to listen to me on this one, okay? This isn’t an issue we can deal with right now. The circuit is coming up and we have to do everything we can to make sure that everything goes well for it. That means we have to focus on getting Crestheart working properly again by restoring my [Core Spirit] levels. Back burner this one for now, okay?”

The Expectation around Vee’s shoulders bristled, but the [Dungeon Master] ignored it. He knew that his [Majordomo] had a point and that this wasn’t what he needed to be focused on. For all that he wished he had infinite time and energy, he didn’t have spare mental capacity to dig up the root of the problem and rip it from the proverbial ground, but he promised himself that he’d get around to it as soon as he could.

This was the type of thing that kept Oar’s Crest languishing, and he was going to put a stop to it. Somehow.

“You’re right, you’re right,” Vee said with a growl. “We’ll look into it later.”

Before he could change his mind, Vee slapped the small paper with their job details onto the right side of the board as he’d been directed to and turned to leave. Had it been a task that a lower-level could have handled safely, he would have absolutely thrown it onto the left side of the board and let the consequences follow as they might, but he’d heard stories here and there about the monsters that supposedly lived in the mountains – yetis, mostly – and didn’t want to put anyone in danger.

Aware of the quartet of nasty glares following his every step, Vee gestured for Alforde to follow him out. Sensing Vee’s mood, Alforde obliged with a bit of dramatic flair, giving Slammy a good spin before resting the hammer on his right pauldron.

Feeling frustrated, Vee headed over to Crestheart to start the day’s runs.

The trio made it through the gate to Westown without further issue, but as they approached the tower, Vee saw traces of mud smeared across the ground as well as some of the walls of the empty buildings on the street before it. They were so conspicuous that the [Ghost Maestro] wondered how his Light Section had failed to notice them and clean them up as part of their daily sweep. His fiends had never failed in such an obvious way before.

Before he could truly ponder it though, a shrill sound coming from one of the upper floors of the tower got his attention. Alforde and Vee tensed at the sound.

“What is that?” Vee asked.

“No idea,” Alforde answered. “I’ve never heard anything like it before. Reginald?”

“I’m stumped too. It sounds…vaguely like words, though I can’t make them out.”

They quickened their pace and stopped in front of the tower door.

Grabbing Slammy and wrapping his gauntleted fingers around the hammer’s handle, Alforde took two big steps so that he was in front of Vee and looked up at the top of the tower.

“I’ll go up first and you follow after me, okay? Get your [Ghost Baton] out, okay? You might need to use [Banish] or something in a hurry.”

“Be ready to use [Summon Miasma] too,” Reginald said. “Could be anything up there.”

Nodding, Vee followed his friend up toward the office. The smears of mud were increasingly plentiful as they climbed, which had to be a bad sign. Walking slowly and cautiously, Vee and Alforde listened as hard as they could for any hint of movement inside the tower that wasn’t coming from their own feet.

Nothing but the strange wailing filled their ears.

When they reached the eighth floor, Vee realized what the noise was.

It was Dheart.

The [Dungeon Master]’s stomach sank as he managed to make out the screching words clearly.

“Unsanctioned vault entry! Unsanctioned vault entry! Unsanctioned vault entry!”

Swearing, Vee broke into a run.

Main Character Sheets:

Main Character Sheets

Vee Vales

Primary Class: Ghost Maestro (Locksmagister University), Level 30

Secondary Class: Dungeon Master (Oar’s Crest), Level 21

Tertiary Class: Guy-Who-Takes-Things-WAY-Too-Far (Self), Level 6 (+1)

Might: 14

Wit: 35

Faith: 21

Adventurousness: 7

Ambition: 14

Plotting: 20

Charisma: 15

Devious Mind: 24

Leadership: 18

Guts: 14

Intimidating Presence: 10 (+1)

Citizenship: 21

Public Relations: 8

Determination: 2

Persuasiveness: 3

Bargaining: 1

Patience: 1

Competitive Spirit: 1

<3***Infatuation***<3

Alforde Armorsoul:

Primary Class: Hammer Afficionado (Self), Level 26

Secondary Class: Right-hand man (Vee Vales), Level 14

Tertiary Class: Dungeon Champion (Oar’s Crest), Level 16

Additional Class: Glaciernaut (Sacha Silverblade), Level 9

Might: 48

Wit: 13

Faith: 28

Adventurousness (Bound – Vee Vales): 9

Endurance: 26

Intimidating Presence: 12

Heart of a Champion: 11

Citizenship (Bound – Vee Vales): 8

Vigilance: 7 (+1)

Vanity: 1

Reginald:

Primary Class: Core Spirit (Unknown), Level ??

--~%@(%$@ &% (*$ #&#e !i$$ (#$%#$%#$@!)~--, #$v@& ????

Secondary Class: Loudmouth (Self), Level 40

Tertiary Class: Majordomo (Vee Vales), Level 17 (+1)

Additional Class: Announcer (Vee Vales), Level 8

Might: 1

Wit: 33

Faith: 15

Ambition: 27

Greed: 23

Deceptiveness: 27

Manipulativeness: 38

$#&*!@!!: !!!

Loyalty: 47

Patience: 9 (+1)

Irritability: 22

Remorsefulness: 16

[#&%%%@%!#@__--#%]

Hop@#!! @#$@!@#

@#$@%%^

#4^5#*&_!+++#(@$#

Citizenship (Bound – Vee Vales): 8