Underworld - Book 4 - Chapter 1

Staring up at the dome overhead, I was looking at the depiction of Waldemar. He’d appeared just one slot shy of the mural’s prime position. It wasn’t the image of the Captain Minotaur at his best, but just moments away from his death. The intelligence had bled from his eyes as he suffered mana sickness and his innate ability, Wild Bull, had taken affect. It allowed instinct to take over when his mind hadn’t been able to continue and quite literally turned him to a raging bull. He wasn’t bent over in the mural as he had been during his final stand, but his crazed look told the full story.

To Waldemar’s left, Lady Contessa still stood in position as the chief enemy we’d defeated. Her pale skin and gown of shadow gave the entire image a gothic feel. It didn’t truly surprise me that she was considered more powerful than the Minotaur Captain. He’d been impossibly powerful, but we, the people of Sanctuary, had overcome him and his herd together. Lady Contessa had been arrogant, and even then, it was a desperate move on my part that had given us victory over her. I wasn’t sure if we’d be able to win against her even now. Lady Contessa had her dwarf tank, elf shapeshifter, and numerous wargs, but Waldemar had eighty minotaurs in his war party and it was impossible to forget how his war cries had allowed them to share health points and strength. Watching the two of them fight would’ve be fun.

I leaned forward in my chair to glance at the stone panel that acted as our dungeon map. There were no signs of invaders in our territory, not even a rogue monster that was out exploring for food. We’d yet to turn on our Dungeon Aura to attract more mobs. Richard had taken the beating of his life, so I was letting him have the night off. Somehow his talent with armor had still allowed him to return to his feet after each time a minotaur had backhanded him across the room. His abilities baffled me, but I was starting to understand physical abilities better than before. Observing my human friends like Russ and Travis had given me clues to where their power came from. After facing off with Waldemar and seeing what a real master of the melee arts was capable of, it was clear that people with physical talents used mana similar to magic users, but in a unique way.

The silver glow of my Wind Sprite girlfriend drew my attention to where she floated about a meter of the ground. Aeris was curled up like a cat and had fallen asleep. Flying seemed like her new default state. 

I had healed her less than half an hour before, but despite having her physical endurance restored to full, the mental stress of the day must have been too much. Temperature seemed to affect her very little after she’d changed to her new form. She wore a pair of black shorts and a plain white t-shirt with no blanket, yet she seemed as comfortable as could be. I also wore just a t-shirt and shorts but felt a chill in the air.

She’d suffered mana sickness at least once today and then went after the last minotaur with Travis and me. Hunting him down had been surprisingly easy. He was moving quickly enough and had to have had incredible endurance, but compared to Aeris and Travis, who were literally designed for speed, he might as well have been standing still. Travis’s tracking ability had only improved with his stat increase and his forced transformation to Werewolf. I’d kept up with them well enough in Hell Hound form, but Aeris hadn’t given me the chance to help. With only one of the minotaurs in her sights and at close to full mana… He’d been the minotaur’s champion, but he was no Waldemar.

I wished Mistress Nava would find something better to do with her time than threaten to end us. There was nothing else I desired more than to just remain sitting and admiring Aeris’s new form. That probably sounded worse than it was. I was attracted to her, of course, but I still didn’t quite believe I was miles underground in some magical world that had existed here as long as the world above. Aeris’s skin had a very real physical presence, but there was also something intangible about it. It was a mystical contradiction that fascinated me to no end.

“Master.” The dark purple Dungeon Spirit, Khun, appeared before me. “Your Werewolf—forgive me. I mean your friend, Travis, has calmed down and is no longer trying to claw through the wall. Clarissa raised to seal him off. His air levels are good. The small holes she made in the wall seem to be doing the trick.”

I shook my head. “Is it going to be like this every night?”

“For now, yes. He needs time in the form to fully grasp it. Throwing him into a fight while he’s transformed won’t change that.”

I sighed. “Thank you.”

Khun bowed at the waist before popping back up and giving me a peculiar look. “If you wish to sleep, I’ll wake you the moment I see something.”

“I appreciate that, but there’s no way I could sleep. There’s too much running through my mind.”

“I thought as much but know that the option is still available. Is there anything I can help with?”

With a twist of my head, I looked at him closer. He’d lost some of his arrogance since we defeated Waldemar and was being uncharacteristically proactive to offer help. There was no mystery as to why in my estimation. He was starting to accept that we weren’t as easy to kill as he’d originally thought.

I brought up the popup I’d received after eating the cave swine bacon. I still hadn’t closed it.

From eating a mana-rich food, you have received bonuses for a limited time!

+1% Strength

+1% Dexterity

+1% Constitution

+1% Intelligence

+1% Wisdom

Bonuses expire in 48 hours!

The cave swine we’d slaughtered for our celebration had only been eating the grain we’d grown for a few days, and yet the buff was going to last three times longer than if we’d just used the same grain to make bread. And this single swine would give us enough meat for a week. It was only the beginning. What would happen if the cave swine ate nothing but a diet in mana rich grain for a month? Or even better, what if they were raised on it their entire lives? What if we ate such meat daily? Would these buffs have an accumulative effect?

It was incredible. Sanctuary had so much promise, especially now that it looked like we’d be able to sustain ourselves without relying on outside help. There was still much to do, but this place could become our real home. And yet, I felt closer that night to losing it all than any other time since I’d been dragged into the Underworld. We’d survived the Belly, cheated death by defeating Lady Contessa, and even thwarted an ancient Succubi’s Captain of her personal guard. But now, she had no other choice than to come to us herself, or perhaps send an even more powerful and nasty pet.

I didn’t think she was a match for the Head Mistress, but she was centuries ahead of us in experience and power. How could we possibly win against something like that?

“Do you think Waldemar found us because of my Light Magic?” I finally spoke.

“I can’t say for sure, master, but I think it’s a real possibility.” Khun replied.

“With all the Light Magic I used—do you think Mistress Nava already knows we’re here?”

He shook his head. “Her Captain wouldn’t have sent someone to report to her if he’d thought she already knew.”

His logic was sound, but I was still uneasy. “I need to find a place to train that won’t put the others in danger…”

“We could add more layers of stone.”

“We could, but if it wasn’t enough, our mistake could very likely bring death to our doorstep. No. There’s an Ireki Wraith in a Tomb not too far from here that might know how to block it. There’s also a Vampire Lord’s vault that I might be able to lock myself in.”

“Neither of those sound like safe choices.”

“They’re not. I’m a single level from reaching the Master rank in Light Magic, so I have to do something. It’s not safe to do it here, but I don’t think we’ll survive if I don’t continue training.”

“When will you tell the others that you’re leaving?”

“Soon.” I looked at Aeris who was still sleeping. “There’s a very wise woman that I must first discuss it with when she wakes up.”

“Flattery, good. Should I tell her what you said when she wakes up so that you gain favor?”

“What? No.”

“I’ll be discrete, master. She must know that you think she’s wise and that you fear her.”

“Okay, tell her just like that. She’ll think it’s hilarious.”