Karl’s team sat down to write their reports on the trip into the dungeon, while the two researchers were intensely questioned about their experiences during the awakening, and the remainder of the research teams analyzed the data to confirm the power levels and create a basic guidebook for future visitors to the dungeon.
The actual report wasn’t hard, they just repeated what they had seen and done in the dungeon, and most of them were just observers, as they hadn’t fought anything but the boss.
“I hate that I’m actually starting to get good at these.” Karl sighed as he finished the report only a few minutes later.
The recollection of the dungeon hadn’t taken long, and Thor happily reminded him if he forgot anything or got an ogre’s positioning wrong.
With that done, all that they had to do was wait,
Or, in Karl’s case, wait and try to come up with a good plan for Dana’s birthday. He hadn’t expected them to get shipped off to the middle of nowhere in the last few days, and here he couldn’t even bribe supply staff to help him with something fancy.
Instead, he was going to have to turn to alternate sources for help.
[Ladies and Gentlemen, we have an urgent problem. Dana’s birthday is coming up very soon, and I did not prepare before we left the base. Now, we need to get her a gift, something that she will appreciate, and that she doesn’t already have.]
[What’s a birthday?] Remi asked.
[It’s an annual celebration of the day you were born. Normally, your friends try to get you your favourite thing to eat, and then they give you a present.] Karl explained.
[Ooh, I can make her new robes.] Rae suggested.
[That’s not a bad idea. Do you remember her size and what she likes from when you made the last outfit?] Karl asked.
[Yeah, I remember. I think I can do better this time. The other ones are good, but with some practice, I think that I can make a special outfit for her.]
Remi slid through her swamp for a while and then picked a plant.
[Give this to Sister Morgana, and she can make a special potion for her. I saw it in one of the Witch Doctor’s books.]
Thor made an annoyed noise. He had no idea about a tradition like giving gifts. He didn’t collect things for giving away.
[Don’t worry about it, buddy. One good thing from all of us is enough, and we’ve already come up with two. But I bet that when it’s Tessa or Lotus’ birthday, you might be able to do something for them.]
Remi looked up at him from her space. [If you can spare a bit of that purple flower, that would be good. It also goes in the potion.]
Hawk chirped happily. [Then I will find a good thing to cook. You said special food was part of the day. We’ve got lots of food, even Thor has many good things to eat.]
Thor nodded happily. He might not collect as much shiny stuff as the others, but he had more types of good plants than Hawk had types of good meat. He grabbed them every time he saw them, and some of them would even grow for him.
Karl looked over at Morgana, who was arguing with Doug about something, and got up to hand her the ingredients.
“Morgana, I have a couple of plants here that Remi says would be useful in a potion. I didn’t catch the name, so I’m hoping that you know which one it is.” He explained as he handed the two items over.
“Ghostleaf and Magebloom? Did she say why she thinks I can make it?” Morgana asked.
“She said that she saw it in your book.” Karl explained, then lowered his voice.
“As a present for Dana, on her birthday.”
Morgana thought about it for a second and then took out a book from her storage and began to flip.
“Oh, I see what it is. That’s not a potion, at least not exactly. This book is for beneficial hexes, a specialty of the Witch Doctor Class. The one she is thinking of is body butter. It removes the wearer’s scent and gives flawless skin. It will even remove most scarring. I wonder why Remi would have picked that.”
[Because Ogres smell bad, and nobody wants to smell bad.]
Karl laughed as he relayed the message, making most of the room look over to see what he was joking about.
Morgana smirked and nodded. “I can make that. The other ingredients are all simple things that I can actually get right here. Those are the two active ingredients, and then they get mixed with water and some mundane oils for the base.”
“Thanks. You’re a lifesaver.”
Morgana patted him on the shoulder. “Don’t forget that she isn’t the only one with a birthday coming up.”
That was true. Lotus, Ophelia and Tessa were all in the next month or two. He didn’t know the rest, but surely, he could come up with a gift for everyone. Or maybe he could enlist Lotus’ help, and he could be that friend who always gifts clothes.
It was Royal Rank silk, it would actually be a very valuable gift, even if it didn’t cost him anything.
Of course, for people who had all sorts of valuables, giving expensive gifts meant much less, and it would be the good meal that was likely to be the best remembered. He had grown up in the mines, and they didn’t give gifts often either. But that was just because they couldn’t afford it.
The most common gift for kids in the Lithium Mines Village was for someone to cover their shift and clock in as them, so they didn’t get a black mark for missing work and got a day off on their birthday. By the time they were adults, the tradition changed to putting them on the good jobs for the day.
Hawk flew out of his space to make a scouting patrol and look for good things to eat, while Rae started making plans for decorating her Dana.
They had been relaxing for most of the afternoon when the man in the expensive suit came over with a notepad.
“Can we get a volunteer team to see if they can go back into the Dungeon? Six hours is normally the shortest time period, with one day being more common.” He explained.
“Yeah, that’s not a problem. Did you need a whole team?” Karl asked.
“Full enough to efficiently clear the dungeon and reset the timer if it does let you inside.” He explained.
The Magic Knights laughed, and the bureaucrat gave them a confused look.
“He is a Royal Rank Beast Master. He could go in alone and clear out the dungeon. I guess you haven’t gotten a chance to read the reports yet.” Ruth explained.
“I normally don’t. It’s not like I will be able to make use of the information in them, and it’s not my department to prepare the Elites. My team is here to arrange the infrastructure for the protection of the asset, and to deal with the scheduling.
For a Commander Rank resource that has stabilized, it is of critical importance to the nation that we allow access in as efficient a manner as possible.”
That made sense. Sending Ascended Rank students and soldiers through here would be huge for them, as it gave Commander Rank rewards, and it would really help their growth rate. The difficulty wasn’t high, and the bosses hadn’t shown any particularly nasty tricks.
They might have if he didn’t kill them so fast, but they all looked straightforward.
“Alright, let’s get to work.” Karl agreed as he got to his feet.
Dana and Ruth stood to join him, then Ophelia and Tessa. Karl had expected Lotus to be excited about a chance to play, but she must have worn herself out earlier.
Karl leaned over to speak with Doug. “Can you check up on Lotus? She’s been a bit off, and we’re not sure if it’s something that she has been taking, or if the stress is getting to her. As a fellow nature cleric, we thought that you should be the best qualified to be able to help.”
Doug nodded back. “I think I have an idea of what’s going on. I will talk to her while you’re all out. It’s best that we talk in private.”
Karl patted him on the back and led his team out of the tent.
Two runs a day wouldn’t be all that bad.
