Rise of the Living Forge - Chapter 172-173 (Patreon)

Patreon goofed, so I'm just going to re-upload this.

Am a bit sick, sorry.

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Busal’s jaw clenched and his muscles bulged. Arwin didn’t let his grip budge. He stared down into the warrior’s eyes, meeting all the challenge in them and giving back nothing but an icy gaze.

“You would be correct,” Selen said. “According to the terms both of you agreed on, I would profess you the victor.”

Arwin released Busal’s hand and let it drop. “Then I presume I have proven my abilities to a sufficient degree?”

“I would say that you have. You vouch for the abilities of the rest of your guild?”

“Yes,” Arwin said with a nod. “They are all more than capable.”

“Then you may enter. I do not think I have any logical reason to deny you any further access.”

“I—” Busal started, rising from the ground as anger flashed across his features, but Selen cut him off before he could so much as muster a word.

“You will not attempt to undermine my decision,” Selen snapped. “As we have agreed upon, you own the land. They will pay the entry fee, but it is I — the Secret Eye — that determines who may enter. Your jurisdiction begins and ends outside the entrance of the dungeon.”

“Fine,” Busal spat, rising to his feet and spinning away. “Do as you will.”

Selen shook her head as the man left, then held out a pouch, pulling its mouth open. “It will be ten gold for each of your entry fees.”

Arwin counted the requested coins out and deposited them into the bag. They fell into its depths without so much as a clink. She closed the pouch and returned it to her waist, then gave him a small nod.

“What was your name and guild again, Smith?”

“Ifrit, of the Menagerie guild. We aren’t fully established yet, but we’re in processing,” Arwin said.

“In processing.” A small smile played across Selen’s lips and she nodded to the dark cave entrance. “Very well. Continue, and do so hastily before the crowd gets too irate with us. Ensure you do not die.”

Arwin nodded and stepped past her. The rest of his guild followed after him as they headed over to the entrance of the dark cave.

“Godspit,” Reya breathed, hurrying to fall in step with Arwin. “That was incredible!”

“Save it for when we’re inside the dungeon,” Arwin muttered back. “We don’t need any more attention than we’ve already gotten.”

They stepped into the cave. It continued on for just under a minute before coming to a stop before a roiling wall of yellow energy. Power rose off the portal and prickled against Arwin’s skin.

“It’s one of these, huh?” Rodrick asked, sending a glance over her shoulder. “Something seems a little odd about this entire dungeon.”

“I’ve noticed the same,” Arwin said. “But the only way is forward. I’m not giving up the stuff that Jessen left behind unless we have a really good reason to turn back. You haven’t picked up on anything, have you?”

Rodrick shook his head. “On strange things? Yes. But on something that would make me think we should turn back? Not yet.”

“Then we keep going,” Lillia said.

The six of them linked hands.

Then, as one, they stepped into the portal.

The world snapped like the shutter of a camera lens had gone off. An explosion of color swirled through the air as Arwin’s foot fell on grassy dirt. He blinked, shaking off the effects of the portal.

All traces of the cave had vanished. Towering trees rose all around them, their branches thick and coated with large leaves but sparse enough to leave room for sunlight to filter through them. It fell on Arwin’s unprotected arms, warming them. Distant birdsong just barely reached his ears, joined by the loud rustling roar of wind through leaves.

“Whoa,” Reya breathed, her eyes going wide as she stepped away from the group to place a hand on the trunk of a tree. “What happened? Did we get tricked and sent somewhere else?”

“No,” Rodrick said, his face going grim. “This is a dungeon. Look behind us.”

A rectangle of rippling yellow energy floated just half a foot off the ground, waiting for them to pass back through it.

“Why’s it look like this?” Reya asked. She turned in a circle and squinted up at the sky. “We’re outside!”

“We aren’t,” Rodrick said with a shake of his head. “And now I know why they were so damn worried about people dying in here. The dungeon is overloaded. If much more magical energy ends up here, there’s going to be a Dungeon Break.”

“Dungeon Break?” Reya asked with a frown. “What’s that?”

“When something dies outside, their magical energy disperses. Some of it gets given to you by the Mesh as a reward for the fight if your class allows it, and the rest… well, nobody knows where it goes,” Arwin said. “But it goes somewhere.”

“Right,” Reya said.

“Well, that doesn’t happen in a dungeon. Dungeons trap magic within them. That’s the whole reason monsters gather in them,” Arwin said. “So when a huge number of people or monsters all die in a dungeon, all that excess magical energy starts to build up.”

“So all this is just magical energy?” Reya asked. She touched the leaf of a tree. “It seems real.”

“It’s real,” Rodrick said. “I mean, the light is fake. That’s just a fake orb of fire or something like that, but I digress. The extra magic makes the dungeon grow, but it’s a very gradual process in most cases. That is unless there’s enough latent magical energy in a dungeon to completely fill it to the brim. Then it expands all at once. Explosively.”

“I’ve heard of this before,” Olive said, her face going pale. “The dungeon basically swallows up everything in the area around it and pulls it in.”

“Milten is right next to us,” Reya said, realization washing over her face. She backed away from the tree and put her hand on the hilt of her dagger. “What happens if people get sucked in?”

“I don’t know about people, but I’ve seen it happen to some monsters,” Lillia said. “They get warped. There’s no other word for it. Magic infuses their bodies and rips their psyche apart. They turn into horrifying shadows of their former selves. The only thing you can do with a Dungeon Break is purge the entire dungeon. The warped monsters can’t reproduce or spread, so once you kill them off, it’s just a larger, higher ranked dungeon.”

Anna’s hands tightened around her staff and her lips pressed thin. “Why is the Secret Eye allowing anyone into the dungeon at this stage? It should be quarantined off until the magic dissipates. If it’s expanded this much, then just a few strong dead adventurers might be enough to tip the scales.”

A chilling thought struck Arwin. The Secret Eye weren’t exactly concerned with the lives of people in a random town far away from the center of the Kingdom of Lian. Their purpose was getting information and power.

They’re limiting the amount of people allowed in and have a member standing right next to the dungeon, so there’s no way they actually want a Dungeon Break to happen… but if one ends up going off after they leave, they won’t care.

“I get the feeling they really want whatever Jessen’s key unlocks,” Arwin said. “They probably threw people against it for long enough to gather all this power, then realized they’re going to lose the artifact if they keep feeding the dungeon and started doing preventative measures — but they still want the artifact.”

“Greedy idiots,” Rodrick said. “Clearing out the dungeon would reduce some of the magical energy in it, but it sounds like nobody’s managed to get very deep yet.”

“I can see why,” Arwin said as he cast a look around the forest. “And it leaves us with two options. We press forward and try to get the artifacts, or we leave and let them do as they will to avoid getting caught up in a Dungeon Break.”

“I’m not so sure we can leave. Not me, at least,” Lillia said. She swallowed heavily. “I’m stuck in Milten for the foreseeable future.”

Oh, shit. She can’t leave her tavern behind because of her class. I don’t know what the Mesh would do if it got transformed into part of a dungeon… but something tells me it won’t let her off the hook.

“Then we’ve only got one option,” Arwin said. His jaw set. “We clear the dungeon ourselves. That’ll reduce a lot of the magical energy here and, when the Secret Eye finds out that the door is open and there isn’t anything left to take, they’ll leave and the flow of adventurers will be far lower.”

“That’s assuming we manage to find it before a Dungeon Break goes off in the first place, right?” Olive asked. “I don’t know where the other adventurer teams are showing up, but every second that passes is time that one of them can get killed. Why exactly can’t we just leave Milten? I understand your street means a lot to you, but don’t your lives matter more?”

Arwin and Lillia exchanged a glance.

“It’s me,” Lillia said. “I don’t know if this is the right place to go into the details of my past and class but suffice to say that I am physically bound to my tavern. If I have to leave it behind, I’ll die.”

Olive’s eyes widened. “What kind of class binds you to a building?”

“I’d be happy to tell you when we get out of here, but I don’t think it would be beneficial to go into any revelations right now,” Lillia said. She hesitated for a second, then sighed. “But if you think it’s going to negatively affect you until you find out, I can tell you.”

Olive studied Lillia for a few moments. She looked to the others. “They already know?”

Lillia nodded. “Yes.”

“Then I’ll wait. I trust their judgement enough at this point,” Olive allowed. She pulled her sword free of its sheath and held it before her. “Let’s get this over with, then. If we can’t leave, then we need to be fast. I just have no idea how we’re going to find anything in a bloody forest.”

Arwin banished his helmet as a small grin pulled across his lips. “I think I might be able to help a bit there. Olive is right. We’re going to have to move fast, so let me guide the way.”

And with that, he drew on his magical energy and activated [Dragon’s Greed]. Energy hummed in the air around him as he felt invisible lines of force attach to his body. There were dozens of them at the minimum.

They pulled with different intensities, each leading in a different direction. A bead of sweat rolled down Arwin’s forehead as he tried to sift through them. There was so much magic in the dungeon. It really was just a small push away from a Dungeon Break.

[Dragon’s Greed] definitely wasn’t meant to work inside an area that was completely laden with magic. It was almost impossible to tell the direction of any one line of force. But, as he worked through them, one felt ever so slightly stronger than the others.

Arwin opened his eyes, turning to the left and pointing through the trees in its direction. He released his magic to save energy. “I can’t be certain, but I think the strongest magical aura is over there.”

“New skill?” Rodrick asked, tilting his head to the side.

Arwin nodded. “Yeah. It would have been a lot better in a normal dungeon, but we make do. That’s our best lead.”

“Then let’s get to it,” Rodrick said. He drew his own sword and walked to stand beside Arwin. “You and I at the front, Olive takes up the back to make sure we don’t get ambushed? Reya, Lillia, and Anna can stay between us.”

Everyone moved into formation and they set off.

None of them knew how long they had before a Dungeon Break occurred, but there was only one option that remained. They had to clear the dungeon before anyone else got themselves killed.

Chapter 173

An eerie feeling enveloped the entire forest. It was difficult to place exactly what it was, but there was something deeply wrong. The closer he looked at anything around him, the more he found slight inconsistencies that just didn’t match up properly with real life.

Leaves sprouting from tree branches were just a little too symmetrical. The twigs on the ground had strange patterns in them that shouldn’t have been there and the birdsong was just a bit too close to a loop.

The dungeon was trying to emulate life, but it couldn’t quite do it. Even though it had enough magic to make what almost felt like a whole recreation of a world, everything was fake. As far as Arwin was aware, people didn’t know what dungeons were.

They were simply part of the world, placed there by the Mesh. And, like the mesh, their ultimate purpose was difficult to discern at best. There would have been a time when he’d say that the dungeons weren’t any more alive than the Mesh was. But, given the messages it had been sending him recently, Arwin wasn’t so sure he was willing to make any assumptions about the dungeon.

In the end, it changed nothing. The dungeon had tried to replicate life, but it had failed. It was still just a dungeon, and it couldn’t make real life from just magic. It needed more — and it would get more if a Dungeon Break happened.

Arwin’s hands tightened around Verdant Blaze. He was grateful that the trees were spread so far apart. Fighting in an enclosed space with a hammer wasn’t exactly ideal. It gave him room to maneuver the weapon and himself.

“Where are all the monsters?” Reya whispered from behind him, her dagger clenched in her hands before her. “I almost wish something would happen. Walking like this is nerve wracking.”

“No clue,” Arwin whispered back. “Just keep it together for now. Rushing isn’t going to get us anywhere. Do you hear anything, Rodrick?”

“Hear? No.” Rodrick shook his head, then nodded up to the rustling leaves above them. “It’s impossible to pick anything up with this. I’m doing my best, but it’s like trying to hear someone whisper while a baby screams in your ear.”

Arwin grimaced. “Figures. Just keep your eyes out, then.”

They continued on. Minutes passed as they crept deeper into the forest, doing their best to balance moving quickly with not making too much noise. It struck Arwin that it took exactly five same number of steps to pass between every single tree. He started counting them off idly in his head.

It makes sense for there to be less monsters near the locations that adventurers arrive. There are definitely several different spots the portals drop people off, or we would have run into another group by now.

This is a bit much, though. It almost feels like we’re completely alone. I bet the dungeon has been patching over any damage it takes from fights with all the excess magic. That could make it hard to find a way back to a portal.

“Maybe we’ll get lucky and there won’t be a single monster between us and the door,” Rodrick muttered to Arwin.

Arwin went to nod, then paused. Something was wrong. He stopped walking beneath a tree and the others all froze. It took him a second to realize what it was. His mental count had only reached four. The pattern of the trees had changed.

“Ready up,” Arwin whispered. “Trees changed. It might mean nothing, but dungeons like separating things. I think we just entered the equivalent of the next room.”

“What happened to the first one?” Reya asked in the same tone.

“Probably cleared by all the people they sent through here,” Lillia said as they studied their surroundings with renewed vigor.

Nothing was immediately apparent so they continued forward. But, this time, it wasn’t long before the changes became more apparent. Distant grunts and grumbles reached Arwin’s ears and they drew up on a line of bushes hidden within the trees.

Everyone lowered themselves and crept up to the foliage. Arwin poked his head over it and bit back a whistle. A camp composed of a hide tents had been erected in a large clearing. Large, red-skinned goblins strolled around within it. The majority of them had gathered around a small campfire in the center of their camp. He studied one of the monsters.

[Hobgoblin – Journeyman 4]

The others were roughly the same tier. He ducked back down before anything could spot him. 

“Hobgoblins,” Arwin said, the distaste clear in his tone. “Looks like there are around fifteen of them.”

“That’s a lot,” Anna said, her face paling.

Rodrick looked over the bushes to size them up himself. He lowered himself a few moments later and gave them a grimace. “We aren’t the first party to find them. There’s armor around their campfire.”

A flicker of confusion passed over Reya’s face, only to be replaced with disgust. “They’re eating people?”

“Is anyone still alive in the camp?” Olive asked. Her face had paled a tone, but her voice remained steady.

Arwin looked back over the bushes. He spotted the piles of armor around the campfire and directed his attention away from whatever it was they were cooking. There were some things he didn’t want details for.

He couldn’t find any signs of cages or humans anywhere. Arwin ducked back down and shook his head.

“Nothing that I can see. They could be in a tent, but I doubt a tent would hold someone very well.”

“Can we take 15 hobgoblins?” Reya asked. “If they’re like goblins then it shouldn’t be too hard, right?”

“I think we can,” Arwin said after a moment of thought. “Hobgoblins are distant cousins of goblins. They’re a bit smarter and a whole lot burlier. They also aren’t as blind as goblins are. Lillia, any thoughts?”

“They’re far from intelligent,” Lillia said after a moment. “They won’t be able to adapt well to any sort of surprise and are incredibly self-centered as a standard. None of them will go out of their way to protect each other, so we can try to pick them off.”

“How do we pick off monsters that are all in the same camp?” Olive asked. “They’ll spot us the moment we get close. Arwin could use that huge bow of his to take out one, but what then? Are they too dumb to see where the arrow came from?”

“Probably not,” Lillia said with a frown. “But they aren’t actually all that fast. I think I’ve got an idea that should let us take them out without too much difficulty.”

They all looked to her.

“That’s a relief,” Rodrick said. “I was just going to charge down there and swing my sword around until everything was dead.”

“We know, dear,” Anna said with a sigh. “Which is why we’re even more thankful for anything that gives you a chance of making it out of this with your pants intact.”

“My pants will be perfectly fine. Don’t forget who made them.”

“With you, I wouldn’t be surprised,” Anna said with a wry smile. She sent an apologetic look to Lillia. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt. What’s your plan?”

Lillia told them.

***

Olive watched Rodrick and Reya sprint out of the forest and into the clearing, her heart rising up into her throat. Sending two people charging straight at a hobgoblin camp seemed like a strikingly stupid idea.

She hadn’t fought them before, but she’d heard stories. Hobgoblins definitely weren’t the strongest monsters. That didn’t mean they were weak. Even a talented adventurer could go down under a horde of them, and these were a higher tier than they were.

Everything hinges on Reya and Rodrick being fast enough to stay ahead of the hobgoblins. I don’t envy their positions. I don’t think I’d trust myself not to trip.

The first hobgoblin in the camp glanced up. It spotted Rodrick and Reya sprinting toward it and let out a snarl, grabbing a roughshod iron sword from its side and drawing the weapon — only for a streak of green light to carve through the air.

A massive arrow slammed into the monster’s chest and pinned it to the ground in a spray of viscera. Crystals jutted out from the monster’s chest, ripping through its body. The arrow vanished a moment later and the hobgoblin dropped to the ground, dead.

The rest of the camp let out snarls and scrambled to ready themselves for a fight. Several of them pulled out bows and started trying to string them, but Rodrick and Reya didn’t complete their charge.

As soon as they reached the edge of the camp, they skidded to a halt and started running in the opposite direction, running back toward the treeline. The hobgoblins were only confused for an instant.

Seeing their prey turn and flee, the monsters broke into pursuit — and they started gaining ground quickly. They were definitely faster than humans. Olive’s grip tightened around her sword.

I can’t move until they make it back to the treeline. That’ll spoil the ambush. Come on. Push!

Rodrick and Reya were only a short distance ahead of the monsters. Every single second brought the hobgoblins closer to them. They bore down on Rodrick and Reya’s backs, gaining ground with terrifying speed. The monsters hooted and hollered, waving their weapons in the air.

A hobgoblin that had stayed back in camp with its bow raised the weapon, taking aim.

Oh, shit. It’s too soon for Arwin to shoot again! His bow takes too long to prepare.

Olive opened her mouth to call out a warning but caught herself at the last instant. Hobgoblins weren’t smart, but if they realized there was someone waiting in the trees for them, their whole ambush would be ruined.

Who cares about the ambush if Reya gets run through the back with an arrow?

She prepared to yell despite the plan — and an arrow screamed through the air. She stared in disbelief as it slammed into the hobgoblin standing in the camp, turning its head into a fine mist. There hadn’t been any green energy around it this time.

Arwin had literally thrown the arrow, but it had flown with such force that it looked like it had been launched from a cannon.

What kind of smith is he even meant to be? That kind of strength should be impossible for someone our Tier.

Olive didn’t have time to wonder any longer. Rodrick and Reya were just moments from the trees and the hobgoblin horde was right on their tail. The closest monsters were so close that they were nearly in swinging distance.

“Now!” Arwin roared, launching from the forest. He stepped straight into the surprised monster’s path, his hammer roaring with flame as it hurtled through the air. It pulverized the head of a hobgoblin in a single bow, killing the monster before it even knew what hit it.

Strands of shadow whipped out from the trees and bound at the hobgoblin’s feet. The monsters at the front of the group stumbled over them, causing their compatriots to trip over them like a bunch of ugly red dominos.

Olive joined the fight alongside Reya, sending her blade flicking forth into the eye of a hobgoblin as it tried to rise. Fire hissed as the sword punctured the creature’s skull and melted its brain. Olive twisted the sword to make sure the monster was dead before jumping back to avoid a swing from another monster.

Reya ducked under a rusty sword and stepped into its owner, driving her dagger up through the bottom of its jaw before ripping it down through its throat. It lunged for her, but a tendril of shadow wrapped around Reya’s waist and yanked her out of the way before the hobgoblin could reach her.

A hobgoblin landed a blow on Rodrick’s arm, but a ripple of water swirled around the monster’s sword and stopped it from connecting. Rodrick’s blade drove into the hobgoblin’s chest a second later and he kicked it back into the crowd.

Olive was tempted to press forward, but Lillia had been firm on their orders. She took several steps back, joining the others as they formed a wall in front of the treeline to cover each other’s sides.

Over half of the hobgoblins were dead, but their ambush had run its course. The monsters regrouped and gathered into a formation, snarling and roaring.

“Get ready!” Lillia called. “Here they come! Remember the plan!”

Olive’s hands tightened around her sword.

The hobgoblins charged.