World Sphere - 63 - Dungeon Economics

Chapter 63: Dungeon Economics

Callem seemed to be enjoying developing a dungeon delve team more than I was. As we walked back toward the skyship platforms, he was deep in a one-sided conversation, rattling off a verbal training montage he was already compiling for Sammie. He had some guesses about her abilities, too—at least two, maybe four. He had done the same thing to Gareth when we first trained with him.

I shifted the topic. “Callem, what do you think about Gimble?”

He didn’t hesitate. “Above average fighter. Has a small suite of spells. As for his motives… I think he’s being truthful. Or at least mostly.” That was reassuring as I didn’t want to endanger Aelyn. If he could remove Aelyn’s brand, I would keep encouraging her to take him up on his offer.

Noticing my concern, Callem added, “I don’t think he’s a threat.” He glanced back at the Adventurer’s Hall. “He’s going to do everything he can to fulfill his promise to her mother. Honestly, Aelyn should’ve taken him up on his offer. As for leading your delve team? Brilliant move. I get the feeling he’s got some hidden leadership skills. The way he charmed Sammie and Remy—he’s also too proud not to put everything into training them.”

I nodded in agreement. “I was just hoping Aelyn might change her mind.”

Callem chuckled. “I think she understands your intent. She is a fiercely independent woman. She’s going to be mad at you for at least a month for trying to push her away.” My jaw fell as I guess she could see it that way. “She talks with Ennet and Wynna daily. I’ll keep my ears open and let you know if I overhear anything you should be aware of.”

I gave him a sideways look. “Callem, are you offering to spy for me? I’m flattered.” I tried to slap his back playfully, but it felt like slapping a brick wall.

We stopped at the Shiny Platinum for a progress check. The first floor’s walls were complete, and the second floor was already under construction. We spoke with the stone mage who was wrapping up for the day. He was using pure stone, no wood, and Isla had apparently paid for double-hardening. The mage found this excessive—even a single hardening, he said, was already overkill for a three-story building. I made a mental note to talk to Isla about the extra cost.

The artist had finished one interior panel and sketched outlines for two others. The completed one featured a sultry succubus draped provocatively across a throne that was a little too phallic in design. A silver coin danced between her fingers. It was blatantly erotic—definitely not family-friendly So much for a wholesome establishment. Still, from an artistic perspective, it was a phenomenal work and at least the succubus was clothed.

I found some sketches for the building’s massive exterior mural. It looked like the artist was moving toward a dynamic action sequence with six adventurers battling a hydra, each head doing something different. It was going to be epic. I considered the idea of giving the artist models—maybe the team I was forming.

On the second floor, Callem stood gazing out the newly framed windows at the plaza and the skyships beyond. “This is the view Wynna chose. Pretty incredible. I’d forgotten what it felt like to be in the heart of the city, Storme.” He turned to me, his expression serious. “One day you’ll tell me, won’t you?”

A chill crawled down my spine. Tell him what? The open-ended question felt like a trap—one Callem probably set on purpose. But he already knew most of my secrets. I trusted him like family.

After a pause, I answered, “Callem, if you ask, and I can answer, I will.”

He let a moment stretch before replying, “Some secrets are best kept. I have more than a few of my own that will never see the light of day. Anyway, our skyship’s due soon. Let’s not miss it.” The walk back from Solaris City to Hen’s Hollow was quiet. At the town square, Callem veered toward Ennet’s house, and I made my way to see Isla.

She greeted me warmly at her door, energetic as ever. “Storme! Come in!”

“Where’s the pup?” I asked, scanning the room.

“Bylura went back to Loriel. I think she’s helping Cilia and Loriel buy a small skyship.” She was brewing tea and setting out cookies with way too much enthusiasm for a simple visit.

She slid a steaming cup across the table. “Did you see the progress on the warehouse? Second floor walls should be done by the next 7th day.”

“It’s going up fast,” I agreed. Then I shifted to the real reason I was here. “The stone mage mentioned the double hardening on the stone. He said it was an unnecessary expense.”

Isla blinked, then reached into a stack of papers and handed me one. “Loriel got your warehouse zoned for skyships. So, I figured it’d be smart to reinforce the roof to support one.” I looked over the plans. It wasn’t a bad idea. Expensive and probably unnecessary, but forward-thinking. I was spending gold like water, however.

Isla read my expression. “Loriel only pulled off the zoning change because your warehouse is right next to the skyship platforms.” The implications clicked into place—Loriel was buying a skyship, crewing it, and now planning to land it on my roof. I decided to shut that down.

“The reinforcement can stay. But I want a garden on the entire roof. It can double as an emergency landing pad, but I don’t intend to use it as such.” My tone was laced with finality.  Isla slowly digested my words. She opened her mouth, then wisely closed it.

“Loriel needs to understand this is my building,” I added. “If she wants a skyship dock, she can buy her own damn building.” The rest of our visit passed in tight-lipped formality, Isla no longer as happy to see me. Isla was clearly figuring out how to break the news to Loriel she wasn’t getting a private skyship dock.

I returned home for dinner with my family. They had roast chicken, but I made a pot pie with vegetables and heavy gravy. It gave me a chance to catch up with everyone.

Freya complained about her tutors. They wanted more of her time, but she was obsessed with running her mini delivery business empire. She had nearly twenty kids working for her—even older ones shuttling goods to the city, while the younger ones doing local errands. A budding crime boss, minus the crime.

Mother was preparing to retake her master engraver’s exam. This time, she planned to go to Aegis City instead of Solaris. Father’s promotion had him away more often. Pascal had missed dinner tonight but stopped by for lunch.

I shared my news that Callem and Wynna bought an apartment building in Aegis City. I was opening a restaurant on the ground floor. I also planned to attend the academy in Aegis City next year. Freya was ecstatic. The rest of the family jumped into a lively debate over which academy I should attend.

After dinner, I returned to the barracks. Gareth was nose-deep in a book. “Where are the twins?” I asked.

“Their brother’s wife had the baby. They’re out at the farm, be back tomorrow morning.”

I cleaned the room with my spell, then lay down to cycle through my focus and aether exercises. A knock. Mia peeked in. “Storme… can you help me study for the enchanting exam?”

“We have an exam?” I asked, caught off guard.

“Just the practical. I need to write two runes with the stylus. You’re already past that, though.” Mia said with a half-smile.

She glanced at Gareth. “We can use my room if you don’t want to disturb—”

“You can use my desk.” I indicated. “Call me over if you need help.”

She considered, looking at Gareth and then me, before she nodded. “Okay, I’ll be back in a minute.” She practiced quietly, calling me over now and then to inspect her work. After two hours, she left. Gareth shut the door and seemed to shake his head at me.

I set my privacy spell and pulled out a dungeon resource book. In a few weeks, my team might go on its first resource-gathering delve.

Only one dungeon near Aegis City had what I needed for my skyship: oak trees. It also had frost berries and honey on the same floor. I tallied the numbers. Even at best, we’d barely break even. Ten gallons of honey turned into forty gallons of mead—about 12 gold at market prices. Aether-rich frost berries sold for 30 silver per pound to alchemists. The returns would be weak. Still, it was a start.

The week of training passed quickly, and Aelyn was still not happy with me. Being harder on my conditioning than normal. I was glad when the sixth day arrived, as tomorrow, my delve team was coming to Hen’s Hollow for their readings.

But today? Today, we had a match. Callem finally found a new opponent after our rout of Solaris' academy. This time, a team was coming to us from the capital island. The whole town had pitched in to build a temporary arena. Tension buzzed through the air like static. The prize was on everyone’s lips: four hundred gold to the winning academy. That didn’t help my fellows nerves all week leading up to today.

I spent my week time learning the aether shield spell, designing an ice cream churn, and getting pummeled at night out at Twin Rocks. Aethon wanted to sell the ice cream churn exclusively in his family’s store after tasting my chocolate ice cream.

By the end of the week, the aether shield spell was close to imprinting. And if I had a day with Selina, I was sure she could have helped my finish imprinting it. Instead, I’d be watching my delve team get their readings.

At breakfast, silence hung over the dining hall like a fog. Gareth stood on our table, he probably had planned to give a rousing speech. He ended up saying just two words, “Don’t lose.” I facepalmed.

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