Valknar
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Chapter 108
🕑 Added 2025-02-05 10:53:38 +0000 UTCI had mapped the routes through which corruption flowed through me and I would deal with that soon, but I had my notifications to deal with.
“Right, let's get this done.”
Opening the notifications triggered an avalanche of messages and levelling of skills alerts. It was too much and I dismissed them and brought up my character sheet, focusing on two sections.
Name Bhaldor
Essence 21%
Race Dungeon Core
CP 82(925) 8.4 phr
Level 7
Corruption 19%
Floors 7
Health 100%
Skills:
Mana Manipulation: 6 - 22%
Core Refining – 18%
Mana Sight: 12 – 52%
Aura Manipulation: 8 - 45%
Herb Lore: 2 – 0%
Spell Casting: 1 – 0%
Alchemy: 10 – 0%
Enchanting: 5 – 63%
Mana Manipulation and Mana Sight had jumped massively, but Alchemy had the most significant increase with nine whole levels. The corruption was not as bad as I feared, and I sensed it was draining faster. I will be focused on those pathways and my Core for the next few weeks.
But back to alchemy, I got windfall with some help from Krag, who had complained the whole time.
Materials Absorbed:
X5 Healing Potions (Uncommon).
X5 Stamina Potions (Uncommon).
X3 Confusion Potions (Uncommon).
X6 Dazzle Potions (Uncommon).
X6 Smoke Potions (Uncommon).
X6 Speed Potions (Uncommon).
X4 Acid Potions (Uncommon).
X3 Firestorm Potions (Rare).
“Daddy likes!”
Each had its own description and I could not reproduce any of them right now, but I had learned a great deal from just absorbing them. I would spend time investigating them, but I had work to do.
I was going to spend much of the next few weeks and all my CP trying to find the issues with my corruption processing and a few other things I planned on doing. I looked over my Dungeon one last time and then started.
## ## ## ## ##
Ranus walked through his now city and thought about the last few days.
Things change so fast here, he mused. Comus entering and being retrieved from the Dungeon had led to a very awkward conversation with the Guilds over his ability to communicate with the Dungeon.
At first, they tried to get him to give them access, but the Church leaders representing the rest of the churches strongly opposed that. They then sought to speak to the Dungeon, but it was not answering right now. Most left after this, but Albrot and Elian stayed for an extended conversation with him and the Church leaders.
Ranus has started fulfilling his agreement for the platinum coins and delivering some of the listed items to the Dungeon. These were the easiest to acquire and he had feelers out for the other items.
Word of the wealth he now had spread but not the source, as many were keeping that quiet for their own advantage. Ranus was no fool and knew that to would come to light. The unexpected result was the kidnapping attempt on him yesterday.
He had been walking to the Temple of Ilinia as he was now when three men tried to grab him. Several adventurers nearby saw this and stopped it, as others called for the Watch.
The event rattled Ranus. He was no stranger to violence, as he had to frequent the numerous docks in the cities and towns he had traded in, but its speed and brazenness were something new to him. Danrum was not happy. Well, that was putting it lightly and he assigned two Watch members to follow him everywhere he was outside of selected buildings.
The two burly men were following him right now.
People ahead of him stepped aside as he approached. Construction work was happening everywhere, and the new sewer system was now starting. Vulus was overseeing a dozen different projects, and Ranus rarely saw him these days, but that was to be expected. Ranus had instructed those working with the architect to send word if he was overworking himself.
The city was crowded and the sound of life was a constant in the air around him. So was the smell of civilization, and I hoped the sewers would alleviate that soon.
He made good progress and reached the temple district. Ilinia had one of the largest temples, as she always provided a place for all seeking healing to go, and it was an unwise Lord who did not take advantage of this. Ranus had granted the church more land and waived his rent for the temple, supplying more services. They had agreed as this was a typical arrangement but openly had their accounts studied to prove they were meeting the agreed-upon terms.
He approached the building and counted the line of people waiting to see a healer. He walked up the three stairs and entered the building while the guards waited outside. He reasoned that his approach had been reported as a temple initiate awaited him. Greetings were exchanged, and he was led to a room he was getting to know well.
“Greetings, High Healer Selmum.” The temple leader was in the room looking over Comus's sleeping form. They had arranged to speak today before she told the others, as she had finished a very extensive review of his condition and was willing to discuss it.
“Lord Goldwind.” She turned slightly and greeted him. Her main focus remained on her patient.
“How is he?” Ranus asked, looking at the man in the bed. His breath was deep and regular, but he was still pale and unconscious.
“Since we stabilised him, unchanged.” She straightened herself. “His case is most perplexing. Have you learned anything about what happened to him in the Dungeon?”
“Not as yet. The Dungeon is refusing all my attempts at communication.”
“Frustrating. Come, let me tell you what we are willing to confirm.” The woman motioned to the other side of the bed. Once he was standing across from her, she began.
“Comus’s body has gone through an incredible and prolonged event that has rendered him in this state. His essence channels display the effects of extreme mana drain to a degree I have never encountered. It was like all the essence in his body was forcibly removed.”
“As the Dungeon is not saying, do you have any theories?”
“I do not. I have forwarded his condition to all the temple heads across the continents and the central house of healing. What replies I have had are those of confusion. Not one has seen the likes of this before. The closest is the effects of some monsters that drain mana or lifeforce from a body. We have discovered that his soul was also affected by what happened. No damage was inflicted, but it is not as it should be and shows signs of restoration.”
“Then he was attacked?”
“Yes… and no.” This was the first time Ranus had seen Selmum so hesitant. “Something I am sure was removed from his body. But everything that I expected to see was there. Even his essence is recovering now.”
Ranus fell silent as he thought about that and then asked. “Then what about something that should not be there?”
“That is an interesting question.” Selmum looked at Ranus and then back to Comus. “If everything expected is present, then something that should not be there was removed. But what?”
The two fell silent as they racked their memories for a possible answer. Ranus thought over the time he had known Comus and how they had reached this place. It all started with….
“…. The twisted break out at the Alchemist Guild.”
“What was that? Lord Goldwind?” Selmum looked up sharply.
“Comus started to act differently after that day. It was slow, but he started doing different things.”
“Yes, I remember he was checked and found free of the corruption that causes the twisted to form.”
“I must ask could you have missed something,” Ranus asked.
“If you asked me that yesterday, now…. Now, I am not so sure.” Selmum responded with a growing look of concern. “We have not been able to purge the corruption from the affected, and it is only contained.”
“What! You have not been able to purge the corruption from those affected.” This was a revelation to Ranus. The implications were terrifying even to consider. “How many are affected here within the town?”
“Few, the town had surprisingly few with corruption considering the number of twisted that have been sighted.”
“You have no other option but to contain it?”
“Unfortunately, we have not, Lord Goldwind. Once the corruption affects someone, we cannot remove it.”
“Has the Dungeon found a way?”
“Maybe, maybe, Lord Goldwind,” Selmum said thoughtfully. “That might explain everything we see with Comus. But we need to know how and what happened to him in the Dungeon.”
“If I could tell you, I would High Healer.”
“There is so much to study here, Lord Ranus. If you discover anything else, please inform me at once.”
## ## ## ## ##
Heading back to his administration building, he thought over the last few days. Ranus had continued fulfilling the debt to the Dungeon but found its lack of communication frustrating.
He needed to do so much work. Comus’s little jaunt into the dungeon had thrown off all of his schedules, putting him into disarray as he worried for his friend's safety. He knew he would need to get back on top of this, as his workload could easily drown him.
It was later in the day now in the town, no city was a bustling place. As he walked, he could see examples of all the local humans and many non-humans now amongst the crowd. The watch had been tasked with keeping the peace and we're doing an excellent job. Of course, there had been a few problems, but they were quickly resolved, and the perpetrators were punished.
Ranus passed the market near the docks, which was the main hub of trade in the city. Here, traders hawked their wares, and buyers looked for deals from both the city's population and the adventurers.
He briefly paused, watching the scene. He could only see a little of the market from the edge of it, but he knew what was happening inside. He could not lie to himself and missed it on some levels. His station in life dramatically improved when he became a Lord of a dungeon town, but part of him still missed that simpler life of being a merchant plying his trades along the rivers.
With some sadness, he left the marketplace and returned to his administration building. Here, Naru was waiting for him with the daily reports in her hands. He smiled at her but sighed inside, knowing that the demands of his position would once more dominate his day.
He was soon back in his office, seated with the reports piled in front of him, and he went to work. The new sewer system was the most dominant thing, with some people praising it and others complaining. He made sure that Vulus would be kept abreast of both groups. He did not want him to be surprised by the sudden interdiction of an angry plot owner.
Next came the list for the dungeon that he had promised. Numerous items on this list had been found and procured, then supplied to the dungeon as arranged. Many of these items he could understand why they were needed. However, some baffled him as he wondered what the dungeon would want with such things.
With the discovery of the speaking crystal, Ranus was forced to have several unpleasant conversations with the church and Guild leaders. The Adventurer's Guild, of course, was the most upset that they were not aware of his ability to communicate with the dungeon. Albrot had ranted and raved for a time, but Ranus suspected that it was mostly a show.
Of course, he had supplied them with the full list of what was demanded in return for the wealth he had gained in order to build his new sewer system. He had not let on that the amount was actually far more than he needed, but it was suspected that he was figuring that out quite quickly, as he was finally happy to have a reserve in case of emergencies.
Reports from Folly’s End are starting to concern him more. The churches have been surprisingly willing to supply him with the information he asked for when he inquired about the status of that cursed area. What he had learned had taken his concern and turned it into genuine fear. Many now considered it an when the twisted would cross the rivers and not and an if. If these scrying reports were to be believed, the numbers and power of those twisted monsters far surpassed anything that had attacked the dungeon. In his conversations with the dungeon, he learned that they would come for him and the city of Shadow Vale due to their location right next to the dungeon.
Between here and the danger with several kingdoms and standing armies. He would have thought that would have been sufficient to protect his little domain from harm, but the more he learned about the twisted, the less sure he became. Discovering that it seems only the dungeon could remove corruption from an infected person was a truly terrifying discovery.
He realised he needed to review his contingency plans again, and as he searched for them, Naru barged into his office.
“Apologies, my Lord.” She said breathlessly.
“What is it, Naru?” he asked, concerned. The woman was known for her decorum, but he had told her many times in the past that if it was an emergency, she could find him no matter where he was or what he was doing. It seemed that this was one such time.
“A ship is approaching from the South. It bears your family Crest.”
Ranus said nothing at first. To put it lightly, he and his family were not on speaking terms. Lords was still fresh in his mind, as he was still dealing with their machinations.
“How soon are they to be docked?”
“The message indicated that they will be birthed within the hour. Several merchants are about to leave and will take one of those slots at the dock.” She replied.
“Very well. Inform my guards I am going to the docks. Let us see what my family desires now.” Ranus said as he stood up. In some ways, he was relieved, for this was something he could deal with right now.
