Val slowly opened her eyes to a familiar bright light peeking through her curtains.
“W—when did I get home?” she muttered to herself.
She looked down and realized she was still wearing some of her dirty clothes from yesterday. Luckily she had kicked off her boots and pants before climbing into bed last night.
“Ugh… my head.”
Val slowly got out of bed and shuffled into the bathroom. She stripped once she was inside and got to work filling the tub with hot water.
I really hope things aren’t awkward with Mina today.
“Maybe she won’t remember it? She was kinda drunk,” Val mumbled.
Within a few minutes the tub was full and Val happily slid into the hot water.
She lay still, letting the water soak her aching body. After such a rough day—one that ended with something else stiffening—she needed to relax.
“I can’t waste too much time though,” she said, smiling. “Dungeon is waiting for us.”
As Val relaxed against the tub, she figured it wouldn’t hurt to look over her class one more time. Just to let it sink in.
“Status.”
[Name:]
Valnarei Rose Strouss
[Age:] 19
[Race:] Half-Elf
[Combat Type:] Hybrid
[Archetype:] Locked
[Level:] One
[Strength:] C
[Endurance:] D
[Agility:] D
[Dexterity:] E
[Resolve:] D
[Resilience:] E
[Arcana:] ?
[Mana:] ?
[Learned Techniques:]
None
[Passive Traits:]
None
Val tilted her head to the side.
Why are my agility and resilience stats… bold?
She didn’t remember anyone touching on that aspect of leveling up or choosing her class.
“I’ll just have to ask th—“
Val was cut off by a soft glow around the Passive Traits. It wasn’t something she recalled ever being told would happen.
[A latent trait has awakened.]
Val blinked in confusion. “A latent trait? What latent trait?”
She mentally “selected” the pop-up.
[Passive Available: Harmonizing Touch]
A seed left by divine grace now blooms.
Your partners’ bodies respond to your presence with ease and trust, adapting to your form in moments of true intimacy.
What was once overwhelming becomes seamless.
(Note: This trait only manifests during consensual intimacy.)
[Accept this trait?]
(Note: This passive cannot be removed once accepted.)
Val blinked again. And again.
“A seed left by divine grace? What?”
Then it all clicked. “Qhemeria?!”
Val looked upwards, half expecting the smirking expression of the goddess to be floating there.
She wasn’t. But Val had a hunch the Goddess was having a laugh at her expense right now.
“Well, I guess it makes sense. But a heads up would’ve been appreciated you know?”
Val then mentally accepted the trait and watched as a golden hue shimmered across her passive traits.
“Well, I guess that’s one thing I don’t have to worry about anymore.”
She grinned. “I bet Lynesia would be happy to know about it.”
The grogginess had all but vanished after checking her Class Interface.
Val finished up her bath in record time and rushed to get dressed. She chose a familiar outfit from before—a sleeveless shirt with leather pants.
With quick steps and palpable excitement she joined her family for breakfast.
Her mother seemed relieved to see such a different side of her after the past few days.
After breakfast was finished, Val practically leapt off her front porch.
It was a big day. Her first dungeon delve.
She wasn’t going to miss it.
In her excitement she cut down her normal travel time quite a bit.
Once again, she stood at the alley’s mouth, the open square ahead of her.
That same intimidating dark stone building stood with purple banners flowing in the wind.
“I’m not here to train today.” Val grinned down at her badge. “No. Today, I’m here to start my journey.”
The guards who gave her a hard time before weren’t manning the gate today. So that meant she was able to enter with a quick show of her badge.
Then it hit her—gear. She didn’t have any.
Fuck.
The realization was sobering.
Val knew nothing about gear prices. Where to get reliable gear, what kind of armor she’d need, nothing.
“Val!”
She turned in time to see Amarisse and Mina walking through the gate.
Amarisse was smiling and in her full gear.
Mina on the other hand was blushing and slightly averting her gaze.
I guess she does remember last night.
“Hey, where’s your gear?” Amarisse asked.
Val sighed. “In my excitement to get into the dungeon, I completely forgot to get some. I also have no clue how much it’ll cost or where to get it from.”
Mina giggled while Amarisse shook her head.
“Well, good thing the guild will give you a basic set. You’ll just forfeit a portion of your rewards until you pay it off.”
Val tilted her head. “What do you mean by ‘forfeit’ a portion of my rewards?”
Val started walking with Amarisse and Mina toward the front doors of the guild.
Amarisse waved her hand. “After every delve or quest we complete, you’ll get your portion of the reward and payout. From that amount, the guild expects you to give a portion of it toward paying off the gear they gave you.”
Val frowned. “How much is the set they usually give you?”
“Around one Crown,” Lucia said, appearing behind them.
Val whirled around, startled. “Christ, you scared the shit out of me.”
Lucia raised an eyebrow. “Who’s ‘Christ’?”
Val rolled her eyes. “It’s just a saying I picked up from someone my family spends time with. I have no clue where it comes from.”
With the group finally together, they decided to split off.
Amarisse and Lucia were going to check out the quest board. They both figured it wouldn’t hurt to see if there was something worthwhile.
Mina was the odd one out, but decided to tag along with Val.
“Alright, let me grab some gear and we can join back with the girls,” Val said.
A sudden tugging on her shirt stopped her.
When she turned around Mina was standing there biting her lip. Her tail was swishing behind her as she struggled to control the blush on her face.
“About last night…”
Val smiled. “Mina, don’t stress about it. It was fun.”
Val looked around for a second before pulling Mina into a hug. “I promise I’ve been thinking about it. A lot. Just give me some time to figure some things out.”
Mina let out a breath as she finally hugged back. “O—Okay. I just didn’t want you to feel pressured… that’s all.”
Val released the hug, shaking her head. “Not at all.”
She grinned. “Honestly, it’s a miracle I held myself back in the first place.”
Mina slapped Val’s arm, rolling her eyes. “Get your gear before we forget why we’re here.”
Val smirked, but nodded.
There was apparently a quartermaster that Val had never heard of.
Each guild hall had one. Especially since a lot of new adventurers either didn’t have gear at all, or enough gear.
“What class do you have?” asked the gruff man behind the barred desk.
He was huge. Biceps the size of Val’s head strained against the sleeves of his shirt. A scarred white eye stared back at her, paired with a deep green one.
“Oh. I uh, I’m a Hybrid.”
The large man scoffed. “What weapon?”
Val gulped. “A Halberd, please.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Bold choice. Not many use that one.”
He didn’t wait for her to reply.
Instead, he walked back into the room behind the desk.
Val heard the clatter of weapons, armor, and who knows what else. A couple minutes turned into five, then ten, and finally he came back out.
“Lucky I even found the damn thing,” he huffed.
He laid down an iron halberd—well-forged, if dusty—on the desk. It looked freshly smithed, aside from the dust.
Next came the armor. It reminded her of Cyrus’ in a way. A leather base with an iron plate over her heart.
Val ran her hand down the haft. “How much do I owe the guild?”
The gruff man rubbed his chin, looking it over. “Call it… One crown. That’s the usual rate.”
Val took the gear from the desk and threw it over her shoulder. “Thank you, I’ll make sure to pay it off as soon as I can.”
Val excused herself to a room nearby meant for changing in and out of gear.
Mina offered to give her a hand with a playful wink, but Val didn’t think she’d be able to resist a second time.
Now Val was inside the room.
Her halberd was resting against the wall while the armor laid on a bench in front of her. A mirror in front of her offered a way to check all sides when she was done.
“Not much different from a dressing room…” she muttered.
Even after everything she’d been through, it was still hard to believe this was real.
She studied her reflection. “I’m actually doing this.”
When Val stepped out, the others were already waiting.
“Looking good,” Amarisse said, grinning.
“That Halberd is… tall,” Lucia added.
Val looked at the halberd in her hand.
Mina giggled. “Yeah, it’s almost as tall as you!”
Val smirked. “I think it’ll be nice to have the reach. Plus, it’s got good weight.”
With everyone finally geared up and ready to go they started walking.
“Did you find a quest we could do?” Val asked.
Lucia shook her head. “Not for floor one.”
Val sighed.
“We can still make money though,” Amarisse cut in. “There’s always the potential ore that someone else might’ve missed.”
“Unlikely,” Lucia replied. “But there’s also various parts from the creatures as well. I don’t know their worth, but we can bring some back.”
It was a solid plan.
Any monsters they encountered could be worth something. If they brought back pieces of each one, and sold them, they’d get a better idea of their worth.
Val paused. “Wait, who do we sell stuff to?”
Amarisse and Val pushed the doors open for Mina and Lucia.
Once everyone was outside Lucia finally gave an answer. “Well, both private buyers and the guild. However, we need to make connections to have private buyers. So our only option right now is the guild. Less total payout, since they want to make a profit, but a reliable source of income.”
It made sense to Val. The guild likely had their fingers in every pot of honey throughout the city. If anyone could figure out the best buyers for whatever they might find, the guild would be it.
“That reminds me…” Val started. “I uh, don’t know the conversion rates for coin.”
The girls shared some giggling eliciting a glare from Val.
“You lost your memory, so it only makes sense you’d forget. I’m just surprised you waited this long to ask about it,” Lucia said.
Val rolled her eyes. “Alright, so what are the conversions, exactly?”
Mina jumped in. “Ten Tacks for one Mark!”
Amarisse sighed and nudged the excitable cat-girl. “Let Lucia tell Val. She’s the bookish type anyways. She gets off on things like this.”
Lucia glared at Amarisse. “I do not!”
Val burst out laughing.
Lucia glared at her as well before trying to continue, a blush persisting.
“Mina was right,” she muttered. “As for one Crown, you’d need 20 Marks. Then 25 Crowns for one Lumen.”
Val made a mental note of the conversion rates — she didn’t want to get duped later.
Lucia led the girls back out of the front gate and into the empty square.
“Where are we going?” Val asked.
“The dungeon, silly,” Lucia replied.
Val never thought to ask where the dungeon was. Or at least the entrance to it.
“Where is it?” she asked.
“It’s not near the guild, if that’s what you think,” Amarisse chimed in.
Lucia nodded. “Exactly. The entrance is pretty heavily guarded, on the unlikely chance monsters could escape onto the surface,” she continued. “So it’s in its own secured square.”
Keeping a secure perimeter made a lot of sense.
However, the thought of monsters somehow leaking onto the surface?
That was enough to send a shiver down Val’s spine.
“Well then you’ll have to lead me every time until I can memorize the route,” Val said, shrugging.
Lucia nodded. “It’s only a few minutes away by foot.”
She wasn’t wrong.
A few minutes later, they stood at the edge of a large market. In the distance was a square gray stone building with multiple guards.
“You forgot to mention the pop-up market,” Val said.
Lucia giggled. “Of course I did—why ruin the surprise?”
“Pop-up” didn’t really do it justice.
A lot of the stalls didn’t look like the type you could easily disassemble and reassemble at will.
As they walked through the market all kinds of people tried to pitch their wares. It was overwhelming.
“You can buy just about anything you might want here, but don’t trust the quality from just anyone,” Lucia said, slowing slightly. “At least, that’s what I’ve been told.”
Val nodded as she looked around. “I could check with Cyrus and his group. See if they can point us toward the right people in here?”
“You lucked out bumping into them,” Amarisse said.
Mina’s tail flicked back and forth as she scanned the stalls.
“You don’t have to tell me that,” Val said. “I know just how lucky I got.”
It only took a couple of minutes to walk across the entirety of the market.
Then they came face to face with a heavily guarded iron door.
“Adventurers?” a guard asked. “If so, badges, I need to see them.”
Each of the girls produced their badges.
The guard made each of them come forward and hold it out. As they did so, his hand would glow purple before asking them to flip the badge.
When they had all finished, he moved to the side.
“You’re all brand new, I can tell. Remember, running is always an option, don’t get killed down there because you’re too proud or stubborn.”
Hearing such a cautioning piece of advice made Val’s heart race.
Before she could ask a question, the large iron doors started creaking open. The guards held the doors open allowing the girls to walk through.
The last thing Val heard before they crashed closed?
“Good luck.”
The air was thick with dust and damp stone.
Dim magical sconces lit the walls, leading down a staircase.
Odd sounds echoed from below, drawing their attention in.
“Okay... So I’m officially a little freaked out,” Val said, gripping her halberd.
Amarisse gulped. “Yeah. I uh, I don’t think I was fully ready for this, mentally.”
Lucia had already shuffled a little closer to Amarisse, while Mina did the same to Val.
“Val? D—do you think we can do this?” Mina asked.
Val tried putting on a brave face for everyone present. “I do.”
Lucia took a deep breath. “I agree with Val. We can handle this, we just need to be smart.”
The girls all exchanged a glance.
“Alright… stay behind me,” Amarisse said, taking a careful step forward.
And stay behind her they did.
Each step deeper down into the musty darkness felt heavy.
Val didn’t know what death or fear was supposed to feel like, physically. But right now?
She could feel something.
Well, let’s do this… right?
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