Dungeon Tour Guide ch. 50 (Patreon)

Another long one. We hit the big 50! Let me know your feedback in the comments.

The level 2 squad—the Duelists of the Weave, apparently—were looking a lot better now than they had before, but there were still so many obvious holes in their fighting strategy.

I’d scaled back on this combat. There were still nine separate earth constructs, still a bunch of snakes, and I still turned the air vents on randomly from time to time, but I didn’t deploy the [Displacer Snake]s, the [Mephits], or the ECDVs.

“There are three rooms!” I announced to them as they fell into formation—protecting their [Moon Cleric], I noted, which was very nice to see—and readied their spells and weapons. “This is the easiest iteration of the first! If you manage to clear all three of them, I’ll be fully confident in your ability to fight off Kingsguard. I don’t expect you to clear all of them. Begin!”

This is such a bad idea. I had to go through with the training regimen, but the fact that mostly regular level twos were being sent against Kingsguard that would almost certainly be significantly stronger than them? That was just asking for adventurers to die, and even though this batch hadn’t left the strongest impression on me, I really didn’t like that the Guild and Alder Corporation had apparently decided this to be the best plan of action.

Well, what else could I do?

I mentally recapped the Duelists’ classes. [Swashbuckler], [Arcane Archer], [Moon Cleric], and [Time Mage]. One actual duelist, one and a half ranged attackers—the [Time Mage] was half support, in my opinion—and one and a half supports in the same vein. Their composition wasn’t terrible for taking on any foe.

Last time, they’d split up too much. This time, they were sticking too closely together, like they’d read the manual for how a party should act and had decided to religiously stick to it. Only Arthur the [Swashbuckler] was actively engaging monsters, and even then he was barely ten feet away from the rest of his party at any given time.

They were doing miles better than last time, though. Jess, their [Arcane Archer], was conserving special arrows as she sniped the snakes out of the air. [Time Mage] Sylva was being much more conservative with her special skills, instead using other rechargeable skills like [Chronal Blast] to chip away at the larger earth constructs. Finally, the selfish [Moon Cleric] whose name I still didn’t know was contributing as a [Cleric] should, his [Moonlit Clarity] applied to the actual brawler in the group.

Unfortunately for them, they were too clumped up. Whereas before they’d played it too active, they were being too cautious now, spending far too long before committing to a given target and aggressing it.

It cost them when the [Moon Cleric] spent a [Lesser Heal] on the [Swashbuckler] as he fought an earth construct when Arthur hadn’t even taken any damage. I knew for a fact that the [Moon Cleric] could’ve dealt a blow with a [Moonbeam] that would’ve hurt the construct enough for Arthur to make a deadly attack.

Instead, the [Swashbuckler] missed a step as excess mana infused his bloodstream and the construct made contact with his torso, a last-second order from me keeping it from taking his head off.

As his bones shattered, his body collapsing in on itself, I realized that I might need to [Revivify] him—

And then one of the girls snapped her finger and he was standing up straight again, a little startled but otherwise none the worse for wear.

Sylva stood in her position with wide eyes, her fingers poised.

Saving [Minor Redo] works, see? I couldn’t help but feel a little vindicated.

A glancing blow from a construct broke Arthur’s arm, and though I fixed that soon enough with my own heals, his combat performance suffered for it.

The [Swashbuckler] wasn’t enough to fight off all the constructs alone, and at one point, one of them managed to get inside the group’s formation and send them all scrambling off with some nasty bruises and scrapes.

They were still able to get it done in the end once the [Arcane Archer] started switching to [Explosive Arrow]s to help take down the constructs and the [Moon Cleric] finally brought out a [Moonbeam], but at that point all four of them had taken damage.

“Right then!” I shouted immediately after the last snake went down to the [Time Mage]’s [Magic Missile], feeling oddly vindicated when they actually listened to me for once. “Let’s chat!”

______________________________

“Target priority and flexible formations,” I said. “That’s the name of the game. I want to applaud all of you for taking my advice to heart—“

“No thanks to Arthur,” Jess said, defusing her words with a joke.

“Aw, come on,” the [Swashbuckler] said, holding his hands up in mock shame. “I came around, didn’t I?”

“As I was saying,” I said, clearing my throat. “You did very well to improve on your mistakes from last time. You successfully finished the easier variant of the first room—which, by the way, was harder than the first room from your first tour here—with over double the remaining resources. Sadly, that does not mean that you didn’t make any mistakes this time.”

“And there it is,” the [Moon Cleric] sighed, annoyed. He still had some issue with me, for some reason. “Of course.”

“I’m doing this for your own good,” I said, wincing once I heard myself. “Fuck me, that sounds so canned. But I gave you good enough advice to help you improve for this round, right?”

“That’s true,” Jess said, nodding.

“I’ll admit that much,” Sylva said, adjusting a device that I was pretty sure was just a magical equivalent of a watch. “[Minor Redo] is way better used on, well, that, than it is on, like, a trip.”

“You’re aware who we’re fighting, right?” I asked.

“Kingsguard,” the [Moon Cleric] replied, arms crossed. “We’ll be defending Ketz.”

“Right,” I said, ignoring the implicit and not defending you in that statement. “Frankly speaking, the Kingsguard will be higher leveled than you. I’m talking level 10, 15, at a minimum. Everything we do here is to ensure your survival. Are you ready to listen?”

Those numbers got the [Moon Cleric] to actually react, eyes widening, and they fetched me acknowledgments from each of them.

“Focus on the threatening targets first,” I said. “The ones that are likely to damage you or be massive pains in your asses. That means, in this case, the constructs. Unless the snakes are getting awfully close, you should focus on killing the targets that pose the most immediate issues.

“Beyond that, you need to move. You shouldn’t get as separated as you were last time, and I liked how you protected your healer, but you need to split up at least a little bit so you can all dynamically react to combat. I saw you nearly run into each other at least three times during that combat.”

I had a few more points to share individually, but declaring them out loud here was fine as well, so I gave some pointers to each of them on more effectively utilizing the skills available to them.

“Alright,” I concluded. “Do you think you’re ready for more today?”

“Absolutely,” the [Swashbuckler] said. “I can feel my level-up on the way. We need to level up, right? Or we’ll die?”

“And improve,” I said. “Understand how to fight. Come here. Practice. Again and again. Get a short rest. I expect you back in the afternoon.”

_______________________________

“Hello there, Lucas,” Lisa said. “Word has gone out that you’re training adventurers. The numbers that we are hearing about the Kingsguard are enough that adventurers are being called on to remain in their respective cities, so you likely will not see that many new adventurers, but expect more visits from the Ketz adventurers.”

“I get that, and that’s good,” I said, frowning. “But why the fuck is he here?”

Standing next to Lisa, sporting two new thin metal bracelets, was the same [Sharpshooter] who’d tried to threaten his way into a better deal.

“We looked over him when Minus One came with him,” Lisa said. “We have a psychologist or two on-site with analysis skills. They come in handy when we deal with nobles and businesspeople on the regular.”

“Okay, and he passed?” I asked. “That seems a little dubious, at best.”

Anderson looked pretty offended at that. There might’ve been some lingering anger in his eyes, but I couldn’t tell if that was real just me misinterpreting his gaze uncharitably.

“He has his issues, I’ll admit that, but at the core of his being is a functional human, albeit one that’s been broken by time, circumstances, and poor choices,” Lisa said. “Verbatim from the insight skill that our psychologist used. Ultimately, it was decided that his adventuring license was to be revoked for a year. During this probationary period, he would work with other higher-level adventurers like me and be checked psychologically regularly.”

“Right…” I was starting to get an inkling of the situation as a whole. “And that means he’s here because…”

“The call to action applies for everyone,” Lisa said. “He’s not a proper adventurer, but the situation is dire. We cannot call in more adventurers to our location because every other city is hoarding their own, and we cannot utilize the kingdom’s army because the obstinate fucker of a king will not acknowledge the fact that he is at war.”

Well, shit.

“You think he can be kept under control?”

“I’ll be fine,” Anderson snarled. He paused, heaving out a long-suffering sigh, and repeated himself with a more normal tone. “I’ll be fine.”

“The bracelets are Alder technology,” Lisa said. “We’ve been using them for a while, but there hasn’t really been a reason to use them in Ketz in the decade or so since they were created. It feeds him conscious feedback about what he’s doing and it’ll make him totally freeze up if he comes to blows against one of us.”

“Understood,” I said. I didn’t like this situation much, but Lisa hadn’t been exaggerating when she said the situation was dire. We needed anything we could get. “Then shall we get ourselves a little more prepared for the oncoming battle?”

The [Spellblade] tapped Anderson on the shoulder, indicating the dungeon path that we were to take, then met my eyes. “Please.”

__________________________________

Anderson was still level 2, but he was paired with a level 10. As a result, I hadn’t been completely sure what monsters I’d choose to send at him. I’d eventually settled on sending the same set that I’d sent at the Duelists of the Weave, though I replaced three of the nine earth constructs with [Rock Snake]s to give him a slightly easier time.

It still proved to be too hard for him alone. Granted, Lisa was there to support him, so he was never at real risk of death, but the [Spellblade] was giving him space to develop his skills and that cost him.

He’d apparently gained some mana or figured out how to be more efficient with his [Void Bullet]s, because he wasn’t sweating after a single casting anymore. With five well-placed shots, he was able to cripple or flat-out destroy four separate earth constructs, but then he was backing up, exhausted.

Lisa stepped in to support him, using her [Enemy Attunement] on her blade and infusing it with a [Steelswarm Strike] to absolutely annihilate two of the constructs that Anderson had tagged in a single strike. With her backswing, she killed another one, using her [Agility Boost] to dash ten feet before smashing a construct to smithereens.

With that done, she backed up. She’d bought Anderson enough time to recollect himself.

Arrayed against him now were two earth constructs—one of them hobbled by the gaping wound where his [Void Bullet] had punched straight through its midsection—and at least forty snakes.

He started targeting the quicker snakes, ignoring the construct as it lumbered towards him. The [Sharpshooter] was fast enough to kite the construct around with only one of them left mobile, so focusing on the snakes that could actually catch up to him was a pretty good play.

His ammo wasn’t infinite, though it didn’t look like he was running out anytime soon, and he was making quick work of the snakes. One shot, one kill.

Unfortunately for him, he wasn’t paying enough attention to the snakes, probably assuming that they would always drop in a single shot, and a [Rock Snake] easily survived his shot, the unmodified bullet pinging off it as he went to [Aim] at another target.

That cost him. Two [Rock Snake]s that survived his regular bullets blended against the rocky ground enough that he didn’t notice them when he wasn’t specifically [Aim]ing at them, and they bit him at the same time.

Anderson screeched in pain as they hit him, and the break in his firing pattern meant that the remaining snakes—still twenty strong—were free to swarm him.

As the snakes started piling on, around, and over the [Sharpshooter], Lisa stepped forth to kill the last construct before it could annihilate her charge.

I pumped enough [Antivenom]s and [Rejuvenating Pulse]s into the man to keep him alive, but it was rapidly becoming apparent that he wouldn’t be able to get them off alone.

With a sigh, I ordered the snakes to back off, and they did, retreating into strategically placed holes around the room.

“Discussion time!” I called out, walking over to the prone adventurer.

__________________________________

“Never assume something is dead until it actually is,” I said.

It felt a bit weird giving actual advice to Anderson when he’d been shoving a gun in my face and threatening my life just a couple days ago. Still, even though he didn’t seem happy about it, there was something about this situation—probably Lisa’s presence combined with the looming threat of the Kingsguard—that was making him behave.

Anderson still looked like he’d just bitten down on a particularly sour lemon, yes, but he was actually listening.

“What you encountered there was a particular race of snake that generally only exists in dungeons and the far south where the sun burns hotter than you can imagine,” I said. “[Rock Snake]s. Did you know of their existence?”

He shook his head no. Lisa nodded along.

“They have tough skin,” I said. “That’s about the extent of it. You didn’t actually need to know that before hand. In fact, I expect you to not know it beforehand. It’s not like we’re going to know what the Kingsguard’s capabilities are before we fight them.”

“Makes sense,” Anderson said, eyes downcast. “I didn’t know how weak I was…”

“Hey,” Lisa said. “Remember what we talked about. You just need time and practice and, well, better social skills.”

Assuming you survive. He had good fundamentals, really, and even though he’d been an utter asshole, I could see the potential for him to be an utter badass of an adventure later down the line.

But all of that was thinking too far ahead. For now, I had to train him to live through the week. I still didn’t like him at all, but that didn’t mean I wanted him to die.

“That’s why you confirm your kills,” I said. “Confirm everything. Don’t go too hard on it, but you can’t just shoot something—especially if it’s just with a regular bullet—and assume that that’s going to be enough.”

Anderson shrugged. “Alright.”

“Practice that,” I said. “I assume you have other tools in your repertoire beyond [Void Bullet]. Anything explosive, anything with enhanced penetration, even just a stream of multiple bullets targeted on their skin—that might’ve done it. When something won’t die, try killing it harder. Silly advice, I know, but it’s important.”

“Understood,” he said.

“And Lisa,” I said, meeting the [Spellblade]’s eyes. “You’re level 10—oh, hey 11. When did that happen?”

“Shortly after the battle against the [Displacer],” she said, eyes twinkling. “But yes. Level 11.”

“That’s lower than the Kingsguard’s elite,” I said. “We don’t know how many people they’re going to send to us, but…”

“But I can’t assume that I will be strong enough to stand aside and only step in when I’m most needed,” she agreed. “I’ll have to take steps to make myself as effective as I can be, and I can’t assume I’ll be stronger than them.”

“Yes. There’s two more rooms behind this one, each of them with progressively more difficult enemies. I highly doubt any party below level 10 is making it past room 2, maybe with the exception of Minus One on a really good day. Do you have a party on hand?”

“The trainees still aren’t in,” Lisa said, shaking her head. “I know the folks that Alder keeps in town, though, and I can party with them. Ed and Jack. I believe you have some experience with them?”

“They’re still here?”

“Indeed they are.”

“I’d like for them to come in at some point,” I said. “Can you swing that? We need everyone on this.”

“I can,” Lisa replied. “I’ll be in touch.”

“And as to Anderson,” I said. “Can he come back later today?”

“I need some time to regenerate mana,” the [Sharpshooter] said.

“I can bring him around at…” Lisa looked upwards, tapping her chin. “Half an hour after nightfall, probably. Until then, I can leave him in the care of the Guild or the local knight order.”

“Works for me,” I said. “Come back soon. You’ll do better next time.”

Anderson glanced at me, filled with an angry determination that I hadn’t seen from him before. “I will.”

_____________________

The second and third room still needed some work. I’d gotten enough mana back from the three training sessions I’d run in the morning to actually apply those changes, so I got to it.

No puzzles in these rooms. The Kingsguard weren’t going to trap us in labyrinths and laugh as we got lost. They were just going to kill us.

In terms of training, that meant I needed to put my most murderous beasts possible inside these rooms. Well, as murderous as I could get without killing someone beyond the range of a [Revivify]. True [Resurrection] spells were expensive and few and far between, and I doubted that we had anyone who could perform them on-site, even if this was Ketz. Those kind of [Cleric]s were one-in-a-kingdom talents.

I had planned to set up two [Fake Hydra]s and four ECDVs set up in the second room along with another slew of [Mephit]s, but I’d run out of mana for the [Fake Hydra]s midway through the night.

Now, though, I could actually finish that up.

The third room was still incomplete. For the time being, I doubted anyone was going to be able to access it. Room two was already way, way harder than any of my existing bossfights.

Still, it was worth creating. I hoped that they’d be able to access it by the end of the week.

Today was day 1. Assuming the Kingsguard attacked on day 7, I’d want training to be just about wrapped up by day 6.

We were off to a good start. The initial assessments were done, and each adventurer had gone home with specific feedback.

If all went well, they would soon avoid having a lifespan measured in days.