Worthy Core

Two more days had gone by and, in what was probably a positive turn of events, both days had been marked by Challenger intrusions which could only be described as 'mundane'. Both parties were made up entirely of Initiates who had cleared only the first floor and then gone home. The most notable event from either party was when a Guard in the first party lost three fingers to BB, which they had taken back with them on the possibility that a healer back at the camp could still re-attach them. Unfortunately, this meant that neither day was exactly profitable for the dungeon in terms of unlocks or souls harvested, but as Guy reminded Xenia, this was the sort of thing that was supposed to make up the majority of a dungeon's activities. Xenia lost a bit of mana overall on the loot taken, but even modestly successful parties would attract more adventurers, which is what the dungeon needed in the long run.

In between intrusions, Xenia and Lollyp were continuing their work in the Garden. While Xenia was passing the time singing and summoning new plant life, Lollyp had begun putting more focus into examining what exactly they were unlocking on the dungeon schema side of things. What they were getting out of the forest biome was not exactly the same as what the spellsongs were putting into it, but more importantly, the new plant life finally provided Lollyp with the opportunities she needed to get her alchemy project truly kicked off. While she lacked the training of a true alchemist, and had never spent any time of note in a temperate forest before, the flowers, fungus, roots, fruits, and so on which the Garden provided meant she now had enough experimental components to keep her busy for months.

That came to a halt however when Guy suddenly flew into the room. "Ma'am! And Lollyp - Lady Beatrice's team is returning, I can feel them approaching the edge of my senses now! The full party, with...two guests, I believe?"

Xenia halts her fifth rendition of fern-summoning for the day to raise an eyebrow. "Two? I hope demons don't respawn by uh, mitosis or whatever it's called, that'd be kinda weird. Uh, right, the important thing, though! Lolly, where's that house-warming gift we set up!?"

Smiling, Lollyp picks up a large potted plant by the door - a bush, a small one, but already sprouting a few tasty red berries which would hopefully add a bit of life to Beatrice's apartment. The pair had already added a smattering of greenery here and there to the place, but this item in particular was to be their main surprise for the returning hero. "Right here, boss. Let's go give em a hero's welcome, eh?"

Returning to the core chamber, Xenia unseals the hidden door she'd set up leading to the lost dungeon hallway and waits. The glow of mystical lamps driving away the darkness announces the group before they come into sight themselves, but the first arrivals do eventually make their way inside - Roxxy and Taly entering first. The elemental takes charge of saying hello. "Hey! Uh...Lollyp, right? How's things, doing good? Good! Cause we've had a, um, pretty interesting week, let me tell you!"

Lollyp gives an awkward smile as she plants the bush down near the center of the room. "Why don't I like the way you used 'interesting', there? Is everyone okay?"

Taly relaxes a bit, having been focused on scanning the room for threats out of habit when she came in. "Well, the party's fine, no problems there. As for the 'package', well...I'll let Beatrice explain. Is it alright if we use the bed?"

After glancing at Xenia, the slime nods. "Uh, sure. I'd ask you not to let the demon bleed on the thing, if you had to get stabby, but I guess dungeon cleaning is pretty easy."

Beatrice's voice answers her from the tunnel. "No blood at least, but this guy lost the strength to walk on his own two feet this morning. Make way, coming through." Beatrice and Sely are the next two into the room, carrying a half-conscious demon between them on an improvised stretcher made out of tent materials. Grizza brings up the rear, for some reason carrying an upside-down helmet full of water. As her enchanted helmet activates, the team leader looks up at Xenia. "Hey, Xen! The good news is, we found your guy."

Xenia grins, though with a raised eyebrow. "Well, congrats! I kind of hate how that's the good news though, and the good news wasn't 'he was opening a puppies and chocolate factory' or something down there. What happened?" As the two adventurers transfer the man over to the bed, the dungeon master steps forward to take a look for herself. While intact, the demon seems almost feverish, and while conscious, his eyes dart around, apparently unable to focus on much for long.

Beatrice sighs. "Long story short, he wasn't really a threat to the dungeon I think, he just...didn't really take you into consideration much, I guess. But there was a bit of miscommunication, and a fight, and...well. Details on that aren't really important, but I think you should probably talk to him on the rest. Here, one minute." Pulling out a stamina potion, she brings it to Sincere's lips as she looks at the rest of the team. "Mind hanging around outside for a few, guys? We should probably keep the distractions to a minimum for a while."

Nodding, the rest of the group makes their way back down the tunnel as Sincere's eyes seem to regain focus. Realizing where he is, the demon takes a breath. "Ah, we've arrived, have we? One...one moment." Sincere closes his eyes, and when they reopen they briefly glow green as his attention focuses on Xenia. "Ah...so there we are. My apologies, dungeon master. I regretfully much underestimated what a dungeon of your age would be capable of, to my own detriment."

Xenia tilts her head. "He can see me?"

Beatrice answers for him. "Apparently that's his specialty. He's a Seeker of Eternity class, whatever that means, from what he told me there's a bit of time magic in there but it's mostly about seeing like, the hidden constructs of magic and whatnot." Xenia nods along, but Lollyp's jaw drops.

"A Seeker of Eternity!? That's a Supreme-tier Mage class! I've never even met someone who's met one of those! If I remember right, it's not real combat-focused, but still amazingly powerful! And he came to our dungeon!?"

Sincere chuckles. "I'm glad my reputation can impress, even if I'm not at my best myself. Unfortunately, it's exactly those skills that caused my undoing. In attempting to manipulate the metaphysical powers of the lost dungeon, with a bit of help from our friend here, I managed to mortally injure my soul."

Xenia grimaces. "Well, that sounds...not great. Is there anything we can do? We've got healing potions, some magic spring water..."

Beatrice shakes her head. "Physically, there's nothing wrong with him. Apparently there's only a few specialists on the continent who could fix this, and even if we could find one before it's too late, they're not exactly the kind of doctors you pay for in coin. So, we talked, and the ultimate decision's up to you, but we were kind of hoping for, well...the Xenia Option."

Xenia sucks in a deep breath. "...Aw, Trish..."

Sincere speaks up, adding his thoughts. "I understand this isn't a simple matter, and that both of us have concerns we need answered before agreeing to such a long-term relationship. Am I right?"

Looking down at him, Xenia nods. "...Yeah, that's probably understating it. I hate to interrogate a sick man, but you're right. Now that I know what happens, I'm not lettin' anyone off themselves in here unless I'm a hundred percent sure they're the sort I want hanging around. I lucked out with Lollyp here, but I gotta be honest, you didn't make a great first impression."

The demon nods. "Entirely fair. Allow me to properly introduce myself then, and inform you as to what I can offer in my service. My name is Sincere, arcane demon, and I am currently now four hundred and twenty-five years old. I was born on the Viridian Twilight plane of Hell, and summoned to this realm in the midst of the Age of Warlocks. I was one of the original colonists to this continent following that turbulent age, and have wandered the land ever since. While I am an expert in many fields of magic, my particular interest in recent times happens to be dungeons, and not to put too fine a point on it, but I know many things about your 'lost dungeon' in particular I'm certain you would like to know."

While Xenia raises an eyebrow, Lollyp straight out gasps. "An original Warlock summon? Holy fuckballs!" She turns to her boss. "Xenia, I'm not sure there's even a hundred of those left on the continent, and I've heard estimates that there's not even a thousand left in the world. This guy is an incredible find."

"That's, uh, pretty impressive, sure, but that doesn't mean I want to practically marry the dude for the next millennia, you know? How about you tell me a bit about what makes this place so mysterious, for a start?"

Sincere clears his throat before grinning. "Well, there is one fact I've already told your friend Beatrice here: the dungeon below is in fact the birthplace of the elemental race, a fact the gods themselves later covered up and yet even now its remaining systems can still be coaxed into creating elementals from naught but base mana. As for the rest..." Trailing off, he sighs. "I understand you wish to extend your particular flavor of immortality only to those you trust, but there is nothing I can currently do to properly earn that from you right now. While I may survive a few days yet, the condition is more...taxing than I first hoped, and I'm uncertain if I'll be even able to remain conscious past the day. Therefore I feel I have little option but to hold on to what leverage I have. If you will save me, I will tell you more, but I can tell you this right now: while many on the continent are aware that this mountain is somewhat important to the Dragonlord, nearly all underestimate the importance, and very few understand why. That is knowledge which I possess, and will tell you, should you provide me with a new, healthy body."

Unimpressed, Xenia gives a pouting look. "Sincere, dude, you're going about this all wrong. First off, you need to know: this ain't no get-out-of-the-Well-of-Souls-free card. I can't offer you a body like you've got right now, best I've got for you is slimes and monster rabbits. Living space and amenities are at a premium, and you are never going to be able to leave. Those wandering days of yours are over. Second...yeah, okay, I'm a little bit curious about all that shit you said, but spots here aren't exactly up for being bought and sold. I need to know that we can get along alright well after you spill all the deets, and that you're not just gonna be doing your own thing all the time. Trish, you spent some time with him...anything about the guy that tells you we'd get along alright?"

Beatrice looks off to the side, somehow clearly blushing even as she mumbles through her helmet. "Well...he's not bad in bed..." Cautiously catching Xenia's eyes, she groans. "What? Look, okay, the guy's got an ego a valley wide and trust issues up the wazoo, but there is an actual decent human being...uh, demon being in there underneath all that. And he's a legit expert in dungeons, I believe him on that. I wouldn't have even mentioned the option to him if I didn't think the two of you could make it work. Like Lollyp said, where else are you gonna find an opportunity like this?"

Xenia narrows her eyes at her friend, before pointing fingers at her. "Okay, one...good on you for getting some, that was barely even a week, I'm impressed. Two, I am insulted that you thought that would be the first thing to sway me. Three, I am embarrassed and mortified that it's not even entirely wrong. Sidenote, Sincere, man, please ignore Trish. As I made clear to Lollyp, sleeping with the dungeon master is not a floor boss obligation."

Lollyp interjects. "It's a really good job perk, though!"

Xenia buries her face in her hand. "Oh my god, I do have a reputation." Following the exchange, Sincere breaks out in laughter.

"Haha, oh, you truly are unlike the other dungeons I've spoken to. For the record, well, I am admittedly not much in the state of mind for such matters right now, but perhaps that is a matter we could revisit at a later date. And you make a fair point. While I will trade you my knowledge of this mountain and its history for whatever form you can provide me with, I am not proposing a simple one-off exchange. It's not how I might have imagined my retirement, but I have no concerns about providing my services to you and this dungeon on a continual basis. Whether it be as a floor boss, an advisor in dungeon design, or simply as a magical expert, I am at your disposal. Including, if you wish, spending me in your 'soul store' when you're tired of me, if you've gained access to that tool. At this point, I'll take every extra day I can earn for myself."

Staring at the man in her bed, Xenia eventually sighs. "Well, you know about the store, and even Lollyp and Guy couldn't warn me about that one. So you're the real deal." She looks off at nothing for a minute, before taking a breath and returning her gaze. "I guess it'd be pretty stupid of me to turn you down. I would like to get to know you better, but I guess we'll have time for that after, and I can tell you're not doing so hot right now. So...fine, I'll take you in. Do you have anything you uh, need to do first?"

Sincere shakes his head. "I have no farewells to write, and I know your friend has my research secured outside. Even more than my own life, that is my legacy. So as much as any man could be, I suppose I am ready."

Holding out her hand, Xenia generates a vial of green liquid. "This is heartrend poison, supposedly the deadliest in my list. I don't really know how it feels to use, I haven't actually added in poisons to any of my traps yet. I could give you a sleeping potion first, if you like?"

"Heartrend? A full vial of the stuff at once should be sufficient to do the job quickly. I can put up with the moment of pain, thank you."

Xenia hands the vial over, feeling like she should be doing something more in a moment like this, but unable to think of anything sufficient. "Here you go. I'll do my best to set you up with something nice, and, uh...I wish we could have met under better circumstances?"

"Likewise." The demon takes the vial and drinks it down in a single gulp, gritting his teeth afterwards. The death that follows isn't nearly as quiet or clean as Lollyp's - his chest spasms, groans forcing their way from his throat. His hands clench at the furs beneath him, twisting and tearing...but not for long. With such a large dose, it's not much more than twenty seconds before the spasms halt and the man's body goes slack.

It's Lollyp who breaks the silence first. "...Why does it feel harder to watch when the dude's actually asking us to kill him? Back when we were flinging magic at each other, trying to kill him was actually kind of fun."

"Wish I knew, Lolly Pop, wish I knew. God, I hope this works out. And I really, really hope this doesn't become a trend. Hear me, Trish?"

Beatrice raises her hands. "Totally, I absolutely get it. I really do hope he helps you out."

"Yeah..." Xenia turns to Beatrice once again. "Not bad in bed, huh?"

"He never did get to show me his supposed fancy tricks...uh, right, I need to leave before the 'intrusion' or whatever closes off, right? How about I just do that, yeah?" Pausing on her way back to the tunnels, Beatrice reaches out to the room's main table and spawns a few items from her Item Box; a number of blue-tinted spheres, as well as a pile of rocky fragments. "This is some elemental core stuff we scooped up, maybe you can use it? Anyways, we can chat more after, I'll just...make my way out now."

The two watch the embarrassed warrior leave down the tunnel, and a moment later both Sincere and the elemental leavings melt away. Hovering forward from where they were watching in the corner, Guy produces a report. "Here we are, ma'am. And...my, this is interesting."

Reeling, Xenia falls back into her seat as greater knowledge of the world floods into her mind. Not just bits and pieces of the nearby continent this time, not merely flashes of villages and cities, but everything from the mountain to the oceans and beyond, with coastal capitals, endless steppe lands and steamy jungles tearing through her mind at a record pace. That's followed up by more knowledge of life in academia than Xenia ever wanted to know, and between it all she's only just barely able to note that her 'Undead (Mortal)' schema shot up into the B ranks with just a single life. As Lollyp moves to try and comfort her, the dungeon master makes out a few halting sentences. "Holy shit, this guy was powerful. And holy shit...what a nerd."