Chapter 280 - Catching Up (Patreon)

Bonnie couldn't tell if Hera and Blue vanished at a good moment or not. There were more changes during the last 8 months than in the last couple of years together. For starters, the New Dawn rolled out the infrastructure update on some rooms. They were focusing on the lower layers and the highest ones at the same time. Brinefront was among the first ones to receive the new equipment, and apparently, this was due to the size of the room. Since it was over 400 kilometers wide, it was a perfect place to showcase the capabilities of their new communication towers, and being in the first layer made it easy to access it. In total, three new structures were built in the room. One in the city of Brinefront, another in Hazelpond, and a third underwater, closer to the cave's entrance. That allowed the entire room to have a stable connection to the internet.

They also added a sort of router in every dungeon, which allowed people to send messages or watch videos inside the dungeons themselves. However, that came with a couple of caveats. First, the speed of the connection was very slow. Even if you could watch a video, it would take an hour to load a five-minute clip at an ok quality. Second, each router had a limit on how much data it could receive from the dungeon. It wasn't like the router itself was blocking the signal, but apparently, each instance of a dungeon could only transmit a certain amount of data. No one could explain that phenomenon, but at least people could contact others while inside dungeons.

Oddly enough, those issues only arose when the messages came from outside a dungeon. With the router installed, most dungeons had a permanent network all around the area for communication among the people inside. At first glance, that wasn't that much different from what people already did with the communicators, but there was a new position that some parties were starting to look for. A navigator or a coach. Someone who would stay close to the exit and direct the party as they fought and completed the dungeon. They could use some advanced types of communicators to organize the party, warn people about incoming attacks, and develop strategies on the fly. It was all exhilarating for the high-level explorers, who saw a significant reduction in injuries during dungeons because of this added member.

Another thing that the New Dawn was doing was updating their tablets and bracelets. The bracelets would just have increased signal strength. They even showcased how someone could still be localized even if they were 5 rooms away. If Hera and Blue had that, no one would've thought they were dead during all this time.

The tablets were just new models which were faster, more durable, and had a few extra knick-knacks like a drawing pen and the ability to create small holograms of pictures or maps. This function required a lot of energy and had to be recharged with a specific type of mana, but the New Dawn was kind enough to start selling a new product; batteries that could be used to recharge precisely that function.

People weren't actually happy about that, but then again, it was just something extra. It didn't mess with the function of the actual tablet, so they weren't actually harming anyone by doing that. Also, the batteries weren't the only way to recharge it, but all other options were a bit more complicated. The last thing New Dawn was doing was an increased push in their recruitment. At first, people were still suspicious of the company, but then the perks started to roll in. New models of equipment and access to new training rooms that made an ATR look like a jungle gym. Not to mention the training programs taught by famous explorers like Frostbite and Azure Chain. In the end, anyone who joined would praise the New Dawn nonstop.

In other news, the guild had managed to open two new rooms in the 26th layer. It was the first time anyone set foot so deep into the MAZE, and they found something odd. In both rooms, there was a massive tower that could be seen from everywhere inside the rooms. The towers were identical and in pristine condition, even when one was in a room filled with seawater and creatures that lived in the area.

Anyone who entered those towers would get the chance of challenging a trial to receive a reward. So far, more than 300 people have tried to beat this challenge, but only 4 managed to do so. To make things worse, among the 300, 20 died, 50 were gravely injured, and 160 had to be admitted to the closest hospital for at least a week. This challenge seemed to change from person to person, which made it impossible to prepare for it. The first person who beat the challenge was Insomniac, but he failed several times before being successful. However, he never disclosed what his reward was. The other 3 people just told everyone that they received something they didn't understand and couldn't explain what it was even if they tried. Because of that mystery, many people were going to the 26th layer to attempt that trial.

That wasn't the only change with the MAZE, or more specifically, the System, that happened recently. A few months ago, some recruits started to see a new role when they were going to change their own. It was called 'Performer,' and its skill allowed them to increase any effects of their abilities or spells as long as they were performing them in some artistic way. No one understood the conditions to trigger that role, but the guild kept a close eye on the recruits who picked it.

On the MAZE side of things, this was about it. The rest was just business as usual, a Rampage here and there, people finding a new item in a dungeon and everyone going nuts about it, things like that. But more things were happening back on Earth. The guild started releasing information about the MAZE to the general public in waves at first, but after a while, it seemed like they got too tired to worry about that and opened the floodgates, so to speak. Everyone was more or less aware of how dungeons worked and the types of monsters around, but seeing that most resources inside the MAZE were renewable set a few people off. Activist groups tried to force the guild to harvest food and send it to everyone who suffered from food shortages, but the guild didn't have the manpower to do that.

Romeo, the new chairman of the guild, completely removed the stat restriction to become an explorer as an unexpected response to that outcry. However, the guild would still have control over the number of new explorers each month. During a press conference, Romeo explained that if too many new explorers start at once, it would cause problems for the rooms that don't have enough resources to share with everyone.

In reality, this was just a minor issue that Bonnie found very interesting. Most people were freaking out about the knowledge that monsters like the Wendigos existed and that other races like Elves, Dwarves, and Beastmen were real. This had turned into a huge deal that was being milked by the media for months. Some were worried about the possibility of a monster escaping to Earth, while others were more concerned with those civilizations deciding they wanted to come here. Even after explaining that this wasn't possible, people continued to speculate. They used the great war and the Hero Cyrus as an example of why things that we don't understand could happen.

Bonnie, Alex, and Helena were doing their best to explain everything, but they knew that there was much they were missing. During the last months, they weren't exactly the most social group. At the tail end of their discussion, Kara walked inside the meeting room again.

"Hey, sorry, this took so long. I never had to deal with a Returned before," she pulled up a chair and sat by the table.

"A Returned?" Blue asked.

"Yeah, it's what we call people who went missing, were considered dead but came back. On lower layers, that's very rare, but deeper, this is kind of a regular occurrence. Since there are so many rooms, dungeons, and things that no one ever saw. I remember this story about a guy who spent three years inside a dungeon because he hit his head and went into a coma, and when he woke up, he had amnesia. But the dungeon was in a city, and the people there took care of him, and since his party left without completing the quest, he just stayed there. Living until he remembered and came out," Kara spoke while she prepared a few forms and a laptop.

"Oh man, that must have sucked. Imagine knowing that the people you talked with for years were just dungeon mobs," Blue said.

"Yeah. He ended up retiring after that, and I can't blame him," Kara typed something in the laptop and turned to Hera and Blue, "Can I have your tablets just for a moment? I need to send you two a file."

"Sure," Hera pushed her tablet towards the clerk, "What's that for?"

"I'm unfreezing your guild accounts and giving permission for you two to access a file we have for this type of situation. It's basically a timeline with everything you two missed. Any major events will be there, elections, natural disasters, award shows, big movie releases, scientific advancements, and things that happened inside and outside the MAZE, like the tower or the performer role that started to pop up for some people. You will want to read about that, trust me," Kara said.

"Oh, we were just talking about that. Do you know if that's the only new role that appeared?" being an explorer, the idea of new roles was very enticing. After all, Hera could get a weaker version of those skills. However, the performer role wasn't something she had even the slightest interest in.

"So far, that's the only new role, but…." Kara whispered to the table, "a few rumors are running around that the changes are bigger than they seem."

"How so?" Helena asked.

"Well, you didn't hear it from me, but apparently, there was a party in an elven city on the 22nd layer that got new role skills," Kara said.

"Is that all? Do humans not get new role skills? I mean, I got a few quests from the Voice of the Mountain and got new skills as rewards," Silah turned to Hera.

"We do. My Treasure Map is an example of that. Why is getting these new role skill such a big deal?" Hera turned to Kara.

"Because it wasn't just a skill like the treasure map or a sneak attack. It was a full-on role skill. Like Control, Sync, or Learn. It seems that even their status screen changed. There was another role, aside from what they already had. But this is just a rumor for now. The party was entirely made of elves, and they vanished after that. I don't have any proof of that and only know because my sister works there, and she is such a gossip," Kara continued typing.

Hera held back a chuckle. She had forgotten how common it was to see the pot calling the kettle black among humans. The dwarves from Boothudurn rarely did something like that, not so much for lack of opportunity. It just seemed like they weren't that worried about giving excuses.

Kara kept typing on her laptop, "Ok, so your bank accounts are unfrozen. Luckily you had under fifty thousand gold saved up, so the authorization was automatic. If you had more, we would need to put in a request, which can take some time. If you got any gold in the bank app on your tablets, it should all be in your accounts by the end of the day. I also got you three rooms in the new hotel we have here. I hope that's enough for you."

"That's perfect. Do the rooms have a balcony?" Hera saw how Silah kept staring at the sky when they were outside. It would be nice to sleep under the stars with her.

"Yeah, and some hammocks, too. It's great to sleep by the moonlight," Kara replied.

"How big are these rooms?" Bonnie asked.

"Well, they are supposed to be full apartments, so I guess medium-sized? There is a living room, a bedroom, and a kitchen. If you need to wash anything, there is a laundry room in the basement. Oh, and speaking of which," Kara took out four gift cards from her pocket and passed them to Hera, Blue, Silah, and Sevaris, "You can use those in the store by the guild to get some basic hygiene products and a change of clothes. If they don't have the right size for shorter people, let me know. I can place an order that will be delivered in just a couple of hours. You can also get some food. You can pick the set meals they have there or get groceries and make them at home."

"Right," Hera turned to the dwarves, "Remember how we told you guys about purchasing food and other things? This is one of the ways we can do that. Another option is to use gold."

Kara stared at Hera after that comment, "They… don't know how to purchase things?"

"Not really," Blue replied, "Their society is kind of… socialist. Like, food, water, and other things are freely available to everyone, and they just trust each other not to get more than what they need."

"Oh… that is going to be tricky to change," Kara replied.

"It's their life. I don't think it's right to change how they do their own things. We can just figure out a way to make sure people don't abuse that," Hera said.

"That's a stretch. When did that kind of thing ever work?" Blue sighed.

"Either way, it's not my problem, or yours, actually. Tomorrow the ambassador will arrive, and they are much better equipped to deal with all that. By the way, we are all done. You two are officially reinstated as living people. The hotel is on the other side of the street, it's the tallest building around, you can't miss it."

"Well, I believe I should head back to let the King know of what happened here," Sevaris got up.

"True, we need someone to send him a message," Blue nodded.

"Yes, and honestly, this is all a bit… too overwhelming for me. I think I'd rather stay close to my people while I get used to the idea of being in a place so different," Sevaris added.

"Sure, we understand," Hera turned to Silah, "How about you? Do you want to go back with him?"

"Can I stay? This place is incredible! Like, what are those glass things with moving pictures outside?"

"You mean the monitors?" Blue asked.

"Yeah."

"Oh, boy. We have a lot to explain to you. Luckily we have all night to do that," Bonnie smiled.

"All night?" Hera turned to her friend.

"Of course, if you think we are not all sleeping in the same room, you two are crazy," Helena replied.

Hera chuckled before they returned two of the keys to Kara and headed out of the guild.