<~> Chapter 49Raksha'va, the rge Tiger beastfolk, tapped her fingers on the wooden table while colleg her thoughts.

  "Well, obviously the good news is that we vouch for you. You did the right thing iroying the dungeon, you informed us right away, and yht the crystal back as proof that it was a legitimate destroy-on-sight dungeon. That es with pretty good rewards as well, finding a dungeon, a first explorer bonus, and the reward typically given for destroying a steel-tier demon dungeon."

  She tapped oable for a few moments before tinuing. "Frankly, you girls probably got lucky the thing did you alive and spit you out... dead." She picked up a file and flipped through it a bit before closing it. "This was the sed quest for the two of you, first quest as a party. You went into an unexplored dungeon with no re and got trapped. What you girls did was stupid. Still... you signed on to be adventurers and that's what you got. Holy it's hard to fault you for it, so many dumb recruits go into situations they 't handle ahemselves killed immediately, you were just lucky enough to be one of the ones who came back from it. Tell me holy, how close did each of you get to dying?"

  I had shrunk down into my seat a little, she was basically firming that my deaking was dumb and I very might well have gotten us all killed. Part of me said that this was why I didn't want to be the leader, but really that was just an excuse.

  I hesitated, I glossed over this bit but it robably better to be truthful here. "I almost died to the boss, I was saved at the very st moment when... one of my party members struck the final blow and saved me. By that point I had gotten badly hurt and probably would have died if Bel wasn't a healer..."

  "Hmm, any other close calls?"

  "N-no, the only other person to get hurt was Man before we realized the floor had mimi it."

  She nodded. "Hmm... just you then? That's holy better than I would have expected," she said crag a grin. "That means the four of you have skill, despite being kind of dumb..."

  She sighed before tinuing, "Here's the thing. You four now have the dungeoroyer title. The adventurer's guild vouch for you, I've determihat you were justified in your decision to destroy this dungeon. The downside of this is you four will have to be assigo a special team for finding dungeons and possibly destroying them if necessary. This is noiable, you must take os that we assign you for matters reted to those assigs. Before you pin too much, they are fairly well paying, and we won't assign you to any dungeons you 't handle. You'll only be in first explorer teams once we're sure you're strong enough to hahem, and evehey're usually taken by volunteers first sihey pay well despite the added danger."

  Raksha'va turo Mirianna, "Do you know if the area this party was in has been explored yet?"

  "This party was the exploration team. We don't have any other scouting on the area, other than some preliminary danger level scouting."

  Raksha'va turowards me with an unimpressed look. "So did you get anything of use or did you just immediately wander in the dungeon and e back right after?"

  I dug through my bag and came back with the map I had been w on during the trip. "Here, I drew out a map of the area. Most of it was pleted before we ehe dungeon but we filled out a little more at the end because we hadn't realized so much time had passed while we were in the dungeo."

  The tigress took the map and unfolded it in front of her. She studied it for a few moments before looking up. "Have you been trained in cartography?"

  "No ma'am."

  "Hmm." She looked down at the map a studying it. "I only see one monster listed in the area."

  "We only entered that monster after we came out of the dungeon. We specuted that the dungeon had suppressed the monsters in the area."

  "Mmm." She folded up the map. "You should go get trained in cartography. Looking at this map made me think you were a zy cartographer but if you actually haven't studied it, that makes me ihink you have a lot of potential in the field." She began making a note of it in what I presumed to be my personal file. "Until we get a measure of your petency I may have you e with some of our other dungeon searg teams. Even untraihis map seems reliable enough to use as a provisionary map of the area." She hahe map to Mirianna.

  Bel spoke up for the first time in a while, "Does this mean we aren't allowed to leave Traehall?"

  Raksha'va leaned ba her chair and studied Bel. "That depends. As much as what you've done is in all of our is, the adventurer's guild doesn't wield our influeo protect dungeoroyers for free. You're on the hook if you want our prote. You weren't thinking to leave the adventurer's guild were you?" The tigress' tone was steady and even, devoid of emotioe what could be perceived as an ihreat.

  Bel looked at me nervously before tinuing, "Lilith came across a book that seemed iing, so after we finished up this quest I was going to suggest going to the capital. We also talked about selling some of the things we found in the duo help pay for our party member's svery debt, which would also be easier there. But... I don't know how that is going to go now."

  As Bel spoke I could clearly see some of the tension in Raksha'va rex a bit. "If it's something like that robably aodate you. Even if you chose to relocate away from Traehall to somewhere else more permaly, we could probably do something about that as well as long as it's somewhere he froruthfully, the titles you've gained make you very useful in finding and dealing with the dungeons that have started to pop up more rapidly as of te. Dungeons are extremely valuable, especially if caught early."

  I think I could see where this was going. Our titles made finding dungeons easier, aually, expl them easier. Dungeons are probably unique sources of new resources and experience. If we want to leave the guild now they could hold their prote over our head and potentially force us int for them or else. Raksha'va doesn't seem like she would want to do that, but I wouldn't doubt she would do it if she had to.

  "We don't io leave the Adventurer's guild any time soon if that's what you're worried about. But, hypothetically speaking if we did want to leave the guild eventually, how long would we be on the hook for to secure our prote?"

  Raksha'va crossed her arms. She didn't seem upset per se but she definitely read to me as defensive now.

  "The guild would never hold something like that against one of it's members. But as a member, the guild would have many more ways of intervening in flicts that might arise from such things." She looked to be choosing her words pretty carefully now. "Members of the guild be much more selective in the missions they take as they increase in rank. A steel or copper member of the guild, C or D rank members, would be able to retire or be trusted to go inactive for long periods of time without any issue. Provided they respond if there's an emergency. Any higher than that and they probably wouldn't need our prote anymore and even if we did want to force the issue it would probably be unenforceable by that point..."

  She rexed bato her chair and tapped her fingers on the arm rest. "In your case, if you make it to steel rank, I will personally give you my word the guild will protect your status within reason. Whether you go inactive or even private to cim a dungeon of your oon't force the issue. Until then I would like you to work in this area or another froown to uncover any dungeons you find. If you need a few months to go to the capital I will allow that with prior notice."

  She looked away for a moment while tinuing to tap her chair before looking back at me. "Actually, if you go to the capital to be trained in cartography I'll pay for it, including your travels. Provided you e back here within six months."

  I looked at Bel who o me. "That would be fine, unfortuhere's one pressing issue still. Two of our party members were taken back to the sver's guild and apparently have a buyer. I was hoping to... interveher buy the other person out or work out a deal with their new owner. Would you be able to do anything on that front?"

  She sighed. "Unfortuhere's not much we do. This situation is going to be a headache. We're going to have to set up a meeting with some of the higher ups in the sver's guild and work something out, especially if the buyer doesn't io use the sves as adventurers anymore." Raksha'va looked meaningfully at Mirianna who had been sitting here quietly this whole time. "If the new sveholder is a member of the guild, things will be less plicated but people will still have to be warned when w with them. If not, there's going to be a dispute about whether or not the adventurers guild damaged the value of the sves. If the guild is bmed for it, the seniuildmasters in the region will instead push hard to take custody of the sves. Then there will be another dispute about how much each side will think they're worth. It'll be a huge mess full of paperwork and infuriatiings if it goes that way."

  "What about the reward money? Will we be able to get that soon enough to do something about it?"

  "No. While I personally believe everything that you've said is true, it will take time for us to verify both your map and poke around in the dying dungeon. Sihere are demons inside we'll probably have to send a few groups in after you to kill everything they find. That will also give us a ce to verify the locations you told us and have the crystal yht badepely verified. Probably by the Tamin church as much as it makes my tail fur stand on end."

  "Why them!?" Bel smmed the table but was quickly cowed bato her seat by the gre the rge tigress gave her. I was shocked by Bel's outburst.

  The moment stretched awkwardly until Raksha'va decided to end it. "I'm not any happier to have those bigots in my towher deer. But it's precisely because they hate me that they're the ones I always have to call for this shit. If I try to get around it, some of the uildmasters that don't like me because I'm a beastkin will cause problems. It's politiecessary whether I like it or not."

  Raksha'va took a deep breath before looking over to Mirianna. "I'm sorry for taking so much of your time Mirianna. Please draft a letter and send a courier to the sver's guild to get that side of things started. I also need you to update the files for these four." She looked back over to me. "Give me a few days warning if you io go to the capital and Mirianna will sort things out for your trip. This meeting has gone on long enough. Dismissed."

  I felt a little awkward as Raksha'va stood up ahe room without another word.

  Mirianna stood up and put a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry, the guild master is... intense, but she really is an amazing person. I holy say I've never worked under a better leader. It's gettihe sver's guild will be closed to visitors by now so you should go get some sleep and front them in the m.

  The two of us stood up and I couldn't help but sigh. "Thanks Mirianna. I'll talk to you tomorrow after I see what we do about Torien and Man."

  She smiled sweetly, "Good night you two. I'm gd the four of you seemed to hit it off."

  We stepped out of the adventurer's guild and into the street. It really has been an exhausting week.

  Saine

  Hello! Lots of world building going on in this chapter as well as some dire for where the characters will go on from here. chapter we get some nice character development! Have a great weekend and thanks for reading!

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