A few moments later, all four of them were deep in conversation. They had explained to Aiden how Tam died and how he fought his hardest against the demons.
Mazrath had personally ordered his death, and he was decapitated right in front of them.
There was nothing more they could have done without a mage, and physically, there was only so far they could go to compete with demons.
The whole story had left the atmosphere somber for everyone.
Alaric then said, "Well, that were our last raid. Every minute I spent in that cage I kept thinkin’ to meself: would I ever see me beautiful wives an’ me princesses again?"
"What will you do now then?" Aiden asked, curious to know what was next for Alaric.
"Don’t know, might just open a pub down in the Lowercity an’ spend the rest of me days nice an’ quiet." Alaric said, though it didn’t even sound like he knew for certain what came next.
The only thing that felt certain, however, was that he was done being a dungeon raider.
"But that’s enough ’bout us. What’s the chief’s daughter doing here?" Alaric was referring to Laela, daughter of the chief of Rivendale.
Without letting Aiden even get to an answer, Alaric turned toward Rakan and Ingrid, then said, "Remember that evening how Aiden kept staring at her like his eyes were gonna drop out."
The others laughed, and Rakan added, "Man was in love, first sight."
They laughed and talked for a few more moments, though it was mostly them teasing Aiden.
After some time, however, Aiden had to go, though he promised that he’d be back to see them by evening before they left.
He then returned to the guild’s wing, hoping to get on with daily tasks as quickly as he could. But upon entering the room, he saw that Katherine had been waiting for him.
"Good, he’s back," Katherine said, then made a louder announcement. "Until I am done speaking with the Grand Magus, every mission request regarding a dungeon is suspended."
She started moving toward the exit with Laela following behind her. She turned toward Aiden, who had only just stepped in, and said, "Come with me."
"Yes, Captain," he nodded and went with her.
....
Soon after, they were all in the chambers of the Grand Magus. She sat on a seat behind her table while the others sat on seats across from her.
"I was told by the infirmary that you brought some people into the ward, and apparently they were victims of a dungeon. When they described their experience in this dungeon and the monsters found within, it all sounded to me like it was a Dynamic Dungeon. Was that correct?" Thamoryn directed her question to Katherine.
"Yes, it was," Katherine answered simply.
Then Thamoryn turned her head toward Aiden and Laela and said, "From what I was told, the people who saved them were you both."
Aiden and Laela nodded to confirm what she had said, then the Grand Magus proceeded with another question. "I’d like to know how you both, initiates for less than two days, were able to accomplish that?"
Katherine interjected with a reply. "They weren’t the only ones. I was there with them."
Thamoryn then looked toward Katherine briefly and said, "I’d like them to answer, Captain Katherine. Thank you."
The thing was, based on the information Thamoryn had gotten from the infirmary, none of it told stories of any major involvement from Katherine, especially regarding the saving of the victims.
Aiden then spoke up. "How else, Grand Magus? We fought them with our magic." He had a straight face as he spoke.
Thamoryn looked at Laela briefly, and she nodded firmly in agreement.
Thamoryn smiled, then said, "In my experience, I can tell you for certain that out there in the field, it’s not just about having the most powerful magic. It’s also about wit, team coordination, and having just the right techniques to fit different scenarios."
There was a brief pause before she added, "Or perhaps you mean to tell me that in a few days, you have created and mastered different spells and developed enough experience to deal with a dynamic dungeon?"
"Like I said, we fought them with our magic and won, Grand Magus," Aiden repeated, with an expressionless face still.
Katherine cut in again at this point. "I would expect that you’d be glad and maybe even impressed with the kingdom’s newest mages who were able to survive such an ordeal." She sounded almost perplexed.
"Oh, of course I am," Thamoryn said with a smile, then leaned back into her seat and added, "Call me curious, perhaps."
"I see. However, this is my bother. Is there a reason why a Dynamic Dungeon suddenly appeared after decades?" Katherine asked.
"As a captain, you should understand how randomly they appear."
"And what if my members or any other guild runs into one but this time becomes victims themselves?" Katherine asked again, unsatisfied with Thamoryn’s answer.
"Then we better hope they would be able to deal with it..." she answered bluntly, then sighed. "It’s a rare occurrence, Captain. I don’t expect this to happen anytime soon."
You could still see how discontented Katherine was, but she let it be and said nothing more.
Thamoryn then turned toward Laela and Aiden, who stared right back at her. Her lips broke into a smile, and she said, "You both have done a good job surviving and clearing that dungeon. Your merit stars will be awarded to you both by the end of the day."
With that, the conversation came to a close, and the members of Ravens Grave left the chambers of the Grand Magus.
Not long after they left, Thamoryn’s crow flew in from her window and perched on her shoulder. It cawed right after.
"Yes?"
The crow spoke: "They are meant to leave the infirmary this evening."
"Good," she said with a smile on her face.
The crow had reported a message from the mage who was in charge of the infirmary.
...
Katherine had an annoyed look on her face when she and the rest arrived back at the guild.
Then she announced again, "From now on, mission requests for dungeon clearing at any rank will require at least four mages. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Captain!" they all said in unison.
Given the sudden Dynamic Dungeon situation, Katherine had probable cause to want to exercise this much caution.
"You both, come with me," Katherine turned and said to Aiden and Laela.
They followed right behind until they got into her chambers. Katherine then went over to another room within her chambers as both her mages stood waiting. She came out with two pouches of gold in both hands, then said:
"That was supposed to be a D-rank dungeon mission, and the reward was 50 gold coins per party member. However, it turned out to be a Dynamic one..."
She then stretched her hands holding the pouches of gold toward them and said, "This is 300 gold coins in each pouch."