Chapter Fourteen

  The third floor made the neancers’ words a lie and fears seem unfounded. Bohreshers, spinning balls of razor-sharp spihat rolled at the group, sat in pieces all over the floor. As they got absorbed, they left death-based alchemical ingredients as the floor’s base rewards. The semi-spectral fluardian of a white banshee exploded before it made a peep uhe well-practiced and bined assault of Len and Rose’s bined raacks.

  Five bundles of ghost ce y as a reward. Max pihat the sed-fluardian’s rewards were better, but it was a pint without vi.

  Harmony was happy enough to shove it int, gd to have collected that part of her pet scroll requirements. She could feel Hyath nudge her through their bond, about their [Familiar Bond].

  “I’ve gained a level. I’ve mao hit eleven!” Eleven was sidered a useless level as the step before hitting twelve and unlog one’s stats. It provided no skills and simply allowed for skill adva. Yet, it was aep closer tression.

  “Oh, I remember those days; when gaining levels was so easy.” Sir Maxwell quipped.

  “I bet she’ll hit level twelve by the time we finish this run,” Rose added.

  “Should we wager on what stats she’ll unlock?” Len inquired with the group.

  Harmony found herself surrounded by mumbles of agreement. The idea of her progression being a game to them didn’t sit well with her. However, none of her experience or social skills could pick up any maliciousness behind them. “Well, why don’t you tell me about the stats you unlocked?”

  “Ho ho ho.” Max chuckled

  Rose let out a groan.

  “Bance. Vastness. Quiess. Not a standard stat among them.” Max announced.

  “You say that like it is a good thing. What is vastness anyway? The representation of your infted sense of importance?” Rose tered.

  “Of course, it is a good thing. Increases to rare stats pay dividends in the long run. Aleric with his divinity, Walce with his ing. Vastness’s importance will bee clearer as I level.”

  “Until you faeoh an unlocked body stat at high levels, and they beat you in all the pces that matter.”

  Len stepped betweewo. “There is no corretioween what stats are unlocked and future potential.”

  “Like an un-evolved college would tell you the truth. Isn’t that right, Tyler?” Max pushed.

  The lord shifted unfortably. “Hazeldown’s education is sidered poor.”

  This wasn’t information Harmony knew. She eventually knew she wanted academy csses if possible. But if all the young lords treated it as a joke, apparently not because they were entitled.

  “My unlocked stats are dexterity, stamina, and spatial awareness. I’m betting you’ll get charisma, wisdom, and strength.” Rose told Harmony as she shot a miffed look at the others.

  “You would try to weigh it in favor of base stats. I’m betting she’ll get beauty, flexibility, and trol.” Max said.

  “I have resilience, intuition, and strength myself. I think she’ll get intelligence, persistence, and power.” Tyler wagered.

  Len groans. “Fine, but whoever has the wuess buys everyone a meal at The Up and Down. I unlocked intelligence, recall, and vitality.” The st stat, he said softly, clearly embarrassed. “You’ll unlock Perception, Reflexes, and Willpower.”

  The maid khis game reflected who they thought she was more than what she’ll unlock at the level. Most agreed that unlocked stats weren’t random but more a representation of who you’ve been. Not that you want to read too muto someone’s stats.

  “Now that you’ve decided my fate. I think we should head down to the floor so I actually hit level twelve, and you collect bragging rights.”

  Tyler and Max retook the lead, with Len following close behind. Rose as the archer, kept at the rear with Harmony. “It’s okay, little necro. We’ve all had some hazing while in a new group. Everyos anxious about unlog their first stats.” The archer whispered.

  “What’s it like?”

  The best thing ever, the worst experience, or I didn’t notice a thing, was on. Harmony had read ats of it in both fi and the books she’d mao get her hands on. Of the staff, she wouldn’t dream of asking the head butler, Bates, or be ied in Jessica’s opinion. It had e up with Lord Tyler once, and he quickly ged the topic.

  “I feel it ges you to be on a fual level to be more of who you are. That way, your soul hahe ge when your css and profession evolve. That’s my theory as to why you always unlock stats and increase their levels before you ge. That’s why it’s different for every perso happens. Good or bad, the feeling alasses.”

  “That makes sense.” More sehan what she’d read oopic. Carter and Thibodeaux both handwaved stats away si wasn’t something anyone could pn around. You got what you got.

  “See, even us pers have a bit of wisdom, even when my stats don’t reflect it.” Then she picked up the pace as they were gging behind again. “Should be hitting the fourth floor soon.”

  Poor wasn’t what Harmony would call Rose unless she had the same background as she did, with Tyler buying all her gear. That wasn’t the vibe the maid got at all. With a sigh, she chased after.

  Up ahead the lead had stopped. Len argued with Maxwell.

  “What does it matter?” The knight huffed.

  “It matters because this never happens. We’ve walked at an ine long enough to have passed the fourth floor entirely.” The wizard insisted.

  “Maybe we should head back. We’ll be rewarded for inf the guild about the new sed-fluardian. We always e ba the m.” Tyler joined in.

  Harmony’s nostrils started to burn.

  “You called in favors so we impress this new girl. Rose will probably hit fifteen on this run. And you want to back out now, Little Lord, because we’ve been going downhill too long?”

  The taste of death was so thick it coated her mouth. The deeper into the dungeon, the more potent it would be. In that way, it made sense.

  “Don’t brio this. I’m almost out of this family arra. I would have bailed with Addy if I didn’t o get my levels.” Rose interjected.

  If the sense of death got stronger as she went deeper, the neancer wondered why it was getting stronger while they were standing still arguing.

  “Why stay if you didn’t want to be...” Tyler started.

  “Guys! There is something bad ing!” Harmony yelled.

  “Not you too.” Max groaned, but Rose readied her bow, and Len put a shield around the party.

  The floor went out from uhe team’s feet. Falling down knee height onto a steeper, slick stone dee. Amongst them were the fine white grains the rock beh them had transformed into, and they slid deeper, accelerating downward. Other than an initial yelp of surprise, the team held off screaming as they went down.

  They slid to a stop, and Len’s crow familiar fpped down after them, settling onto his shoulder after he sat up.

  Harmony checked Hyath through [Familiar Bond]. He shook himself out of the sandy rubble. The only thing damaged was his pride.

  “We’re not going back up that way,” Rose stated while dusting off and looking at the steep ramp they came down.

  “This must be what happens when you domihe duoo mud aim to plete it yet aime. Sorry, Harmony.” Maxwell boasted nervously.

  The rest of the team doesn’t even show a hint of support for that statement.

  “Len, how many floors deep do you think that took us?” Tyler asked.

  “If the depths of the floors remain stant, I’d say we are on the eighth or ninth floor. Officially, there are only five, but Old Bones’ creations and rewards must e from somewhere.”

  “A dungeon’s treasure room! Must be eveer than a dragon’s hoard.” Maxwell added, his voice shaking slightly.

  Harmony winced, the team’s tired rea to the knight. They’d been barely holding it together as a group whe them. Rose is halfway out the door, annoyed she hasn’t been able to leave yet. Max and Tyler’s flig personalities are both abrasive and off-putting in different ways. Gone was the easy dungeon run she’d promised.

  “We’re only getting out of here once we plete this part of the dungeon,” Tyler announced with fidehat usually wasn’t there.

  A wave of inspiration energized the maid. Everyone’s spiraightened, eyes smiled, and rexed a bit. The maid’s brain quickly picked apart the effects of the skill used on her as it flipped the opposite of what she had been feeling. Yes, she could accept the bes. fiden Tyler leading them out of here. She could use that to pretend it might be true. If she could abide the lie, but she couldn’t.

  The neancer moved closer to the front rather than stay back with the archer as the team begrudgingly went ahead.

  “I’ll get you through this,” Tyler assured her.

  Harmony had to activate [Poise and Bearing] to keep a pleasantly ral fabsp;

  Forward into the unknown, the path ahead of them looked eerily empty. No monsters charging out of the shadows or along the dungeon walls. When the first attack came, Harmony was saved by her neancy skills.

  That foreboding sense of death ing quickly from above. [Small Armor] worked to avoid rather than bloy attack, pushing with a feeling that the maid acted on, tumbling away until she nearly smacked into the side wall.

  Red waves from the ceiling crashed down where she’d been. Max, Tyler, Len, and the two familiars were utterly engulfed by bodies of blood, causing them to float ihe monsters. The first-fluardian they’d faced earlier had desded, four of them.

  Rose’s support from a distance role saved her. The ranger’s bow was already shooting one of the floating skulls oer edge enough that she wouldn’t hit the other teammates.

  Hyath’s pain shot through her bond, but she still saw him g down on a skull ihe creature with him. The toad was determio show that he wasn’t trapped in the body of blood. The skulls were trapped with him.

  The humans inside, without amphibious instincts, were filing. Harmony acted. [Manipute Dead] empowered and indiscriminate. She trusted the fact that the team was still alive to save them. Pop. Pop. Pop. She started bursting the skulls with enough wide-range force to guaraheir destru. One of the skulls was chewing on Max’s shoulder, so a small k of pink beard was also destroyed. As the st skull burst, the liquidy bodies colpsed, spshing to the ground, unceremoniously dumping those trapped inside.

  Len started puking up the blood he’d actally swallowed. The others were luckier, only drenched and decorated by minor cuts and abrasions.

  Of the loot, Harmony snatched up a ic core, pleting that part of what she needed for her scroll. A champion’s tooth was one of the drops from the final dungeon boss, the st thing she couldn’t easily get her hand on. A goal was easier for her to focus on than their current mess.

  “Potion.” Len rasped.

  Rose summoned oo her hand, revealing her own ste device. Tyler stepped in front of her before she could deliver it.

  “We don’t know what’s ahead. Unless an injury is debilitating, we should save those for when needed. I brought six restorations only because Harmony was joining us today. How many do you have?”

  “Three,” Rose answered.

  “Used my st one for my hangover from the ht,” Max answered glumly.

  Gres shot his way.

  “What? We haven’t o use one in months. All it meant was less space for loot.” The knight replied to the looks.

  “One sewn into my robe in case of emergencies,” Len answered hoarsely

  “Four minor ones,” Harmony stated. They were part of her basic kit that she’d kept in her loot bag.

  “That’s perfect. Give oo Len, and I’ll repe with one of the ones I brought.” The lord answered.

  He pulled out a vial from his ste. The red liquid in the gss emitted a faint glow. What Harmony hahe wizard was a light pink co. The rept was clearly a major restoration potion that could help in near-death situations. Maybe even the kind that didn’t have some nasty side effects.

  “Thanks,” Len said after downing the potion. The shredded vocal cords are already clearing up.

  “We’ll o be careful. We should be fine if all we face is a mass of four or five first-fluardians. We’ve all soloed the first floor at one point.”

  Rose snorted. “If this is what us all pleting an achievemes, then I don’t think I want to do that again.”

  “The rewards are worth it.” Len tered automatically, sliding into their old argument.

  “Look, we only have two restoration potions each. I doubt this floor sends us anything weaker than a mass of early guardians. We were lucky Rose and Harmony could take them out so quickly.”

  “Our little necro was right beside me. How did she avoid that when we didn’t?” Maxwell inquired as he wiped goo from his body.

  The underlying tone in his words caused Harmony’s heart to speed up. “I have a skill that helps with attacks. It was all I could do to get out of the way.” The half-truth bothered her. [Small Armor] was there to block or deflect attacks, and while it had helped, she k was still up to be activated.

  “Half-cursed css in a half-cursed dungeon.” The knight snipped.

  “Enough of that!” Tyler stepped up. “You want her not to save you ime we’re in trouble?”

  Harmony didn’t know whether it was the bluntness of the statement or aowledgment that such a thing could be possible. She watched the knight’s aggravated look leave his face as his back straightened, shoulders rexed, and he gave her a half bow.

  “My apologies, dy. I’m just a bit vexed by my ret performance.”

  She would have gambled that he’d used a social skill like [Chivalry] but didn’t think any bookie would take such a wager.

  “I uand. This is not how I expected this durip to go either.” She suspected she’d have to rely on the knight to protect her at some point in this run, and it would be best if they could smooth things over. Proudly she didn’t even use her skill to respond.

  Tyler patted Len on the bad thanked Rose for her support. Hawo potions to Sir Maxwell, whose tensioed a little as he had the valuable potions under his trol.

  Harmo some pride in her lord. The came to her, his eyes didn’t meet hers. They went up and down, pausing on the more exposed parts of her armor before settling on her fad giving her a wink. [High Kick] growled inside her.

  Tyler cleared his throat and spoke to the team. “We’ll get through this. We simply o serve our resources and push through.”