The Manaverse

Slatewell Safe Zone

Granite City

Mia Larken, formerly Michelle Larson, sighed as she watched the Dungeon Ranking window. She dragged her fingers through her long purple hair in annoyance. Having been assigned to the Dungeon's front desk alternating with Sylvia, it was her duty to endure the arrogance of the Adventurers who were preparing to enter the blasted place. Today was no better than any other since the Lock Down. Many of the assholes were currently milling about, waiting for their turn to attempt a clear.

A small ding sounded and drew her eyes to the list as it shifted ranking's again.

The Radiant Crusaders' name jumped from third to first over the Scarlet Harlots, meaning they had defeated the seventh hallway and were about to attempt the eighth. Her eyes widened as she reviewed the top three of the list again.

1st Radiant Crusaders 7th Hallway Cleared

2nd Scarlet Harlots 7th Hallway Started

3rd Cassanova's Delight 6th Hallway Cleared

Thank goodness those jerks have been knocked down another peg. Mia thought to herself, a small grin crossing her lips. She couldn't stand to see the team of womanizers so close to the top. It only made them more arrogant when they managed to clear the sixth hallway the day before. The Scarlet Harlots had knocked down Cassanova's Delight to second place just that morning.

Mia's grin widened before it disappeared as Charles Stanton, the Guardian of Cassanova's Delight, stepped up to the desk. He was tall with dark hair and was wearing a full set of chain mail armor, no doubt looted from the Dungeon. He was a very handsome man, for sure. Too bad he was a major asshole.

"Let's look and see. I am sure we will make it much further today seeing as we're next. Don't you agree, Ms. Larken?" Charles said with a cocky look.

Without looking at him, Mia could feel his eyes raking over her body. It gave her the willies. Sure, he was very handsome. The unique sclera of his eyes, an exotic reddish pink, gave him a debonair quality. However, his whole team treated women like property, thought they were the best adventurers to grace the Safe Zone, and were not afraid to let anyone near by know it.

Mia looked up at his face as he made the public leader board display appear in front of the table. She almost lost her composure as Charles' eyes darkened and his jaw clenched tight. She almost laughed when his fist beat against his shield in frustration.

"I anticipated the Harlots taking first, but who the fuck are the Radiant Crusaders?" Charles cursed, looking around as if to find the offenders waiting there just for him to chastise them.

"Aren't they that team that opened that new shop in the Plaza?" A random adventurer said as they stepped closer to the leader board.

Another adventurer stepped closer as well. "Yeah, and they have two members from that unnamed team that won the overall best Hunters award at the ceremony, right?"

A slight buzz of chatter filled the area as more and more people approached the desk to see the ranking.

Charles was becoming angrier and angrier as more and more people pushed past him. His face turned deep red and he was about to explode when his eyes widened and another ding made Mia look at the small window on her side, the text changing again.

The text behind the Radiant Crusaders now read "8th Hallway Cleared."

It had taken Mia a while to get used to the passage of time of dungeon runs. What was only thirty minutes to an hour for her was usually multiple hours for the teams in the Dungeon. She still didn't understand Time Magic at all, but knew time was slowed down inside the Dungeon. Without that being the case, they couldn't have had the dozens upon dozens of clear attempts per day, which helped give the adventurers something to do. It would have been chaos in the Safe Zone over the last eleven days without it.

"No way. They are about to fight the Boss. I wonder if it's the same one from the Solo runs?" An Adventurer said aloud.

"How could it be? That coffin is so much bigger in the full party runs." Someone else chimed in.

Charles crossed his arms defiantly. "They'll die, just like everyone else does when they fight the Boss in a solo run."

The crowd went silent as the text on the leader board changed again.

1st Radiant Crusaders Bone Horror HP below 100%

The silence became heavier and heavier each time the text changed.

1st Radiant Crusaders Bone Horror below 95%

1st Radiant Crusaders Bone Horror below 90%

It was after the number dropped below fifty when the Mia felt the hopeful energy of the adventurers build. It felt like a group of people crowded around a public television for the Super Bowl watching a team they either wanted to see win or lose very badly.

"They're going to do it. They're going to clear the Dungeon." An adventurer breathed into the tense atmosphere.

As if summoned by his words, the dungeon portal flashed and a body sailed out, rolling head over tail into the gap left by the crowd for that purpose. Too many people had been hurt by flying adventurers.

The adventurer in question was a Minotaur, clad in black fur and patchwork leather and chain mail armor. His arrival caused the crowd's tension to shift. The attitude of those who wanted the Crusaders to fail brightened considerably while the other camp became somber. When one member fell, that usually meant more were to follow quickly.

Sure enough, the portal flashed again seconds later. This time a woman appeared and she was helped to stand by the Minotaur.

"Got you too, huh?" The Minotaur asked the human. "I tried to stop you from taking a hit."

"Yeah and you did your job perfectly." She mumbled back, turning red and rubbing the back of her neck. "I kinda went off after I watched you eat the big one."

The Minotaur opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by Charles.

"How did a Race Traitor like you make it that far?" Charles poked the short and squat Minotaur in the chest, his tone nearly hostile.

Soon the room was filled with adventurers arguing, no one throwing a punch. Yet.

Mia rolled her eyes. Being a very human looking non-human herself, she wasn't subjected to that kind of treatment. She was also not looking forward to another brawl between Human and Non-Human adventurers. Thankfully, no one was hurt too badly last time.

Before the scene could turn violent, the portal flashed again and everyone looked over to see the new arrival. The two Crusaders both deflated a bit and the crowd went silent. Mia looked at the leader board.

1st Radiant Crusaders Bone Horror below 15%

They were so close too. That sucks so bad. I really wanted to see the look on Charles' face when another team beat him to the clear, even if it meant a fight would break out. Mia thought in frustration.

The returning adventurer made Mia frown harder when she realized who it was. It was the Crusaders' Guardian. He was usually the first to return. She knew Brick would feel like he failed his team by not holding the line.

The handsome, blonde, ex-soldier rose, a grimace blossoming on his face. He looked around until he found his teammates.

"We were so close." Brick looked between the Minotaur and Charles. "What's going on here?"

Charles smiled widely, his tone was sickly sweet. "Why is such a supreme specimen like you running with a Race Traitor and a woman? You should join Cassinova's Delight. Then you won't have to deal with almost clearing the dungeon." While Charles spoke, he slid closer to Brick without appearing to move and stretched out a hand for Brick to shake.

To Mia's surprise, Brick's face remained neutral the entire time. After Charles finished speaking, Brick grinned widely. The back of his hand smacked Charles' hand away gently but was deliberately disrespectful.

"I couldn't possibly join the number three team when I am already part of the number one team. Oh, and those two will get the clear." Brick said, pointing at the Dungeon. "I meant we," he gestured to his two teammates who had taken up positions behind him, "were close to seeing the clear. Just watch." Then he turned to watch the leader board.

Mia caught herself just before she was about to laugh. Charles turned redder than before and was about to pick a fight, but he quickly sized Brick up and thought better of it. He, too, turned to the board to watch the end of the run

The crowd remained on edge as moments felt like eternities. When the number ticked over to below ten percent the crowd held its breath. The silence was almost eerie.

1st Radiant Crusaders Bone Horror below 5%

Then the portal flashed. An Elven woman was tossed out and was swarmed by her three teammates. Mia recognized her as a popular streamer from before the crash. She wondered if the elf would get back into streaming now that she had access to the Aethernet, like all Stone Rankers. She leaned forward on her desk, propped her chin on her laced fingers, and watched the group to see what the Elf would say.

Everyone else in the room turned to the Elf and when she pulled her platinum blonde hair aside, she was grinning widely. She lunged forward and hugged human woman from her team who went momentarily rigid at the contact.

"We did it! There is no way he will fail." The Elf cheered happily as she began to dance the human woman around.

The crowd started up again, some voices mocking or doubting her statement. Others were cheering loudly. The cheers turned deafening when the leader board changed for a final time.

1st Radiant Crusaders 1st Clear Best time: 7 hours, 34 minutes, 23 seconds.

A new window popped up in Mia's vision. Based on the text, the dungeon clear wasn't only a boon for the Crusaders. Their victory benefited the entire Safe Zone. She eagerly read it over again and again.

Congratulations! The Crypts City Dungeon has been Cleared.

The Safe Zone receives the following Rewards:

+200 Raider Capacity within the Dungeon.

Access to the [Crypts - Floor 2].

Access to Three and Ten Person Team Run Settings for the [Crypts - Floor 1].

Increased Loot Drop Quality and Quantity.

Access to [Easy Mode] and [Hell Mode] for the [Crypts - Floor 1].

+1 City Dungeon Slot

OK

Mia would explore each option later as she would still be running the booth in the future. The increase to Adventurer capacity was the nicest reward for her and her job. It would make the amount of people waiting to run decrease, even if only slightly. The three and ten team runs will also assist some of the less fortunate and the more successful team's in the long run by allowing them access or helping them collaborate.

The following window sapped some of Mia's enthusiasm. The crowd must have felt the same. She felt a wave of tension wash over the crowd.

Although Clearing the Crypts before the end of the end of the Lock Down is commendable, your Safe Zone's future is yet unclear. Clear the City Dungeon, take advantage of it's Loot Drops and monsters to grow stronger. If you do, your Safe Zone may yet survive. Many challenges and opportunities await. How will you rise to the challenge?

A Safe Zone Wide Quest has been issued:

Quest: Farm The Dungeon

Objectives: Clear the Dungeon faster and more often

Rank: Stone

Rarity: Common

Difficulty: Hard

Description: Clear the Crypts - Floor 1 in less than 6 hours. 0/1

Clear the Crypts - Floor 1. 1/350

Clear the Crypts - Floor 1 on Hell Mode. 0/1

Clear the Crypts - Floor 1 on Normal Mode. 1/10

Clear the Crypts - Floor 1 on Easy Mode. 0/10

Clear the Crypts - Floor 1 on Hell Mode while Solo. 0/1

Clear the Crypts - Floor 1 while Solo. 0/10

Clear the Crypts - Floor 1 while in a party of 3. 0/10

Clear the Crypts - Floor 1 while in a party of 5. 1/10

Clear the Crypts - Floor 1 while in a party of 10. 0/10

Reward: 3 System Generated Safe Zone Structures

2 City Dungeon Slots

1 Mana Gem for each registered citizen of Granite City

Mia gasped as she read over the final reward. A Mana Gem? Everyone will reach Stone Rank over night... Maybe there is hope for this place after all. Looks like I'll need a team.