Lewd Dungeon, Chapter 350

Chapter 350 – Interview

(Conference Room, Miami Adventurers Guild Headquarters)

Miguel Sanchez smiled happily as the adventurers walked into the conference room at the Miami branch of the American Adventurers Guild. Rising to his feet, along with the other five people who had been waiting, he said, “Welcome, Bargulg Parod, to you and your companions. Before we begin, I wanted to thank you for taking the time to meet with us. I know it has been a couple days since you got out of the Forbidden Chambers of Exotic Pleasures dungeon, but I wanted to get some of my fellow guildmasters here to talk with you about what you saw in the dungeon. If we could also pick your brains a bit about how guilds in the wider galaxy work, that would also be appreciated. We’re still trying to catch up, after suddenly getting the System, and all.”

He took a breath, and said, “Some introductions, first. I am Miguel Sanchez, Guildmaster of the American Adventurers Guild.” Motioning to his right, he said, “The elven woman to my right is Miya Den, Leader of the Japanese Adventurers Alliance. The dwarf next to her is Hans Kirstein, Guildmaster of the German Adventurers League. The man on the end, there, is Li Liang, Leader of the People’s Adventurers Commission, in China.” Turning to his left, he said, “To my left is Carina Rosa Guerra, the Chief Executive Officer of the Brazilian Adventurer Corporation, and next to her is Hana Baker, Commander-General of His Majesty’s Adventurers Corps, of Great Britain.”

Looking to his fellow Guildmasters (or equivalents), Miguel said, “I’m sure you’re already aware, but Bargulg Parod and his companions are the first people to break into Tier 3 on Earth, even if they were already on the edge of doing so when they arrived. According to his own statements, he came on a pilgrimage to visit Lord Kuronoth’s dungeon, as well as some of the other dungeons on this world, and give a report on their unique features to his people back home. His group is not only the first to clear the fifteenth floor of the Forbidden Chambers dungeon, but they did so on the highest difficulty that does not result in Lord Kuronoth declaring war upon you. Something that our own adventurers have yet to attempt.”

Bargulg nodded, and quickly introduced himself and his pets. Looking at the assembled guildmasters, he said, “I am happy to tell what I can of my God’s creations in the dungeon. The Lord does not wish what we saw to remain secret, since the dungeon only grows when people continue to delve and strive within its halls. As for the practices of guilds in the wider galaxy, I can tell you what I know, but I have never been in a leadership position in any Guild, preferring to have the flexibility to travel and experience new things.”

“Heh, don’t I know it,” chuckled Guildmaster Kirstein, a Level 23 Fighter/Blacksmith, according to the [Appraise] Balgurg sent his way. “This is the first chance I’ve had to travel since the League formed. Even with there being a portal in Berlin, in the same building, I barely have time to visit my forge or get to a dungeon myself, much less travel. Always so much to do.”

“With respect, Guildmaster” Ena said, “in most guilds that we have visited, the role of Guildmaster is given to ‘old hands’ who are ready to retire from the front lines, but still wants to be involved in Guild affairs, either as a mentor to new adventurers, or to keep the local nations from interfering. Even newfound branches are typically headed by older, more experienced adventurers. It is very rare for a Guild to have a guildmaster that is an active adventurer, and usually a sign that the guild is in flux, or the former guildmaster died suddenly.”

Bargulg nodded. “Indeed. That you have come as far as you have, as quickly as you have, is something you should be proud of.”

Kirstein chuckled. “Most of us just started these guilds off of half-remembered examples in stories. We didn’t even know there were other guilds out there, until the Ambassadors started talking to us.”

Lyrei nodded. “There actually might be some reasoning for that. While I’m no expert, from what I’ve seen from even brief information gathering sessions on your internet suggests that there may have been some psychic influence or leakage from the wider galaxy on this world. After all, the System still existed, in some form, even if it was offline. That would explain why you have races like your ‘elves’ and ‘dwarves’ which appear similar to the knelfi and krils we see out in the wider galaxy.”

Leader Miya nodded. “That is something we have considered, as well. However, we quickly decided that it was best not to focus on such things, as that would cloud our judgements, especially when dealing with creatures who are more like monsters, such as the different types of demons and others, which are frighteningly similar to those of our folklore, but different enough that one cannot count on the legends holding true. Better to train for things as they are.”

“A very sensible approach,” Bargulg nodded. “I believe that, in time, the System will eventually classify your ‘local variants’ as subspecies under the main categories. Especially as things become more intertwined with the wider galaxy.”

Miguel cleared his throat once to get everyone’s attention. “While I am sure that we can all talk about this subject as long as our schedules allow us, I am well aware that our guests have things they would like to do on our world, and we all have the demands of our offices, most of which are in very different time zones. If we could shelve this for the end, after we hear about the differences in the dungeon, that would be best.”

“As you say, Guildmaster,” Bargulg nodded. “When we are finished here, we have plans to seek out information on two dungeons that our Lord suggested we look at, for their uniqueness amongst this world’s offerings.”

“Which dungeons?” Miguel asked.

“I do not know what name they are called by locally, but our Lord named them Prisoner’s Lament and Silver Mercy dungeons.”

“Ah!” exclaimed Kirstein. “I know the Prisoner’s Lament dungeon well, as it is my country. It formed at a memorial for one of our darker moments in history. We were worried, for a while, since a dungeon forming in that kind of place could have been a horror show, but it turned out to be a surprisingly reasonable place. The memorial is in the best shape it has ever been. I’ll have someone send you the information.”

“Likewise, I know the Silver Mercy dungeon, since it is one of the better-known dungeons in Japan,” Miya nodded. “It is a dungeon that formed on the grounds of a temple known either as the Temple of the Silver Pavilion, or the Temple of Shining Mercy. The dungeon speaks to people through a fox spirit, and helps maintain the temple. There’s even a shrine to your god there.”

“Really?” Bargulg blinked. “Then this meeting is more fortuitous than I thought it would be. However, we should talk about the Forbidden Chambers before moving on to other things. Suffice to say, the ‘Intermediate’ difficulty for the dungeon is not something to laugh at. While the lower levels were limited to having creatures easily twenty or more levels below us, there were some situations that forced us into very tight spots. And that is without talking about the bosses. For instance, there was an area in the ‘Goblin Town’ floor that had a ‘false trap’ which created a kill box with multiple weapons firing from an elevated position, using guns and alchemical weapons in concert.”

Miguel nodded. “The goblin floor has always been nasty. The random layout means you can’t make plans, and the goblins are smart enough to make plans and set traps of their own. The guns are new, but probably something that is only brought out for the higher difficulty levels.”

“That is what we figured, since the report from the Guild we’d obtained hadn’t mentioned anything of the sort. It did, however, serve to put us on our guard in the future. While we outleveled most of the creatures on those early floors, they were still dangerous, even to us. And, by the time we got to the Black Temple floor, the bosses were in Tier 3, as were almost all the creatures after that point.”

“Ouch,” Guerra cursed under her breath. “If that is the true for everyone who goes in on that difficulty, then it will be a long time before anyone else can compete with them. Some of the strongest individuals on Earth are around Level 20 in Tier 2.”

Once again, Miguel cut off a conversation that looked like it was going to go on tangents, and brought things back to the dungeon itself. They talked at length, discussing the differences between the floors, as reported by other adventurers, and how they had appeared to Bargulg’s group. The information on what evolutions of different monsters might appear was invaluable, as was the confirmation that different armor types might be able to protect against some of the different monsters in the dungeon, especially the ‘breeder’ types, which served to demoralize groups early on.

The detailed breakdown on the desert floors was especially helpful. Those floors had been largely untouched, as groups that had been geared towards either the swamp levels of the early dungeon, or for swimming through the Water Temple, were rarely equipped with armor suitable for the desert heat. And those that did have the proper kit had often been worn down by their experiences so far, and were unable to avoid the predation of the sandworm boss.

“So, the best tactic for dealing with the giant sandworm boss is to lure it to the surface somewhere away from you, and then just hit it with all of the attacks you can manage, right down its throat, and hope it dies before it eats you, or falls on you. Not exactly what I was hoping for,” Miguel grumped, “but definitely better than anything we’ve had so far. And the confirmation that there are those damn Lewd Uranium Slime Lords in the dungeon is another reason to stay the hell out of the dungeon on that difficulty unless you know you can manage it. I’m mostly used to the things Kuronoth cooks up, but those things scare me. Barely affected by magic, hard to damage with most ranged weapons, and just getting close enough to hit it could be deadly to most people.”

Bargulg nodded. “While those bosses were difficult, there is something more problematic for those who want to progress past that point. On the fifteenth floor, you have to fight your way through a small army of the undead, to get to a pyramid. That pyramid is sealed, and the only way to unseal it is through sacrifice.”

The temperature of the room chilled ten degrees as he dropped that statement. Miguel was the first to speak. “What kind of sacrifice? And was the price a one-time thing, or something that must be paid each time?”

“We were given two options for the sacrifice. It is likely that the lower difficulty may have others, however. Our choice was to either sacrifice a sapient being and have one of our number eat their heart, or give up one of our number to be bred by the undead. From what the Lord told me, the sacrifice of a sapient allows any in that group to pass through without another sacrifice, though a new member of a party going through on a later date would need to make a new sacrifice. The breeding would only allow a group through that one time.”

“That sounds like Kuronoth. He likes to say that his dungeon is ‘tough, but fair’, at least on the normal difficulty. You went in on the ‘tough, but less fair’ version. The one for those who don’t sign the contract I’ve heard him describe as the ‘screw fairness’ version. On that one, you probably would have had to make both sacrifices, every time.”

“Thankfully, if we return, we won’t need to pay that cost again. We had to pay a sizeable sum of gold to arrange an expedited delivery to the dungeon, and the dungeon had to agree to allow it, but we were able to arrange for a sacrifice from the Minion Market. But that option might not be available to others, so the first group to challenge the fifteenth floor on the normal setting should either prepare a sacrifice beforehand, or give up a party member for breeding.”

“Yes,” Miguel sighed. “That is something we’ll have to figure out. Not just for the Forbidden Chambers, but for other dungeons. After all, Kuronoth got that idea from another dungeon, and things he puts in his dungeon have been spreading to other dungeons here on Earth. According to Ambassador Zygrash, they’ve been spreading in the wider galaxy, as well.”

Bargulg nodded. “Then we should tell you of the mechanics we discovered in some of the fights within the pyramid, then. There were a couple that I have not seen before.”