19 – A Dungeon?!

“Oh,” Claire said. “It’s risky, but we could help out with the dungeon?”

Ari blinked at the announcement, her previous mulling over their future plans cut off. “I’m sorry—dungeon?”

“Yeah,” Claire said. “The Hive’s been having trouble with it. It’s leaking out all kinds of nasty monsters … and I know you don’t have any obligations to the Hive, but I’d really like if we did? I’d feel better if we could help them in that way. Cut off some of the flow.”

Well, even if Ari had had reasons not to, she wouldn’t have stood a chance against those huge, begging honey-colored eyes. It really wasn’t fair how devastating Claire’s puppy-dog eyes were.

Or, ‘honeybee eyes’ were?

But that wasn’t the part that had Ari’s brain tripping over itself.

“Dungeon?” she emphasized. “As in … a dungeon? A real one? Not …” She didn’t even know what. Something a monster girl would mistake for a real dungeon? A natural cave complex?

Claire nodded rapidly. “It popped up recently, on the edge of Hive territory.”

“But …”

The implications of a dungeon spawning so close to Molehill was almost hard to comprehend. It depended on just how profitable, deep, and friendly—for a sense of the phrase—the labyrinthine, magical complex was, but even the worst dungeons attracted droves of adventurers. If Claire was right about this, then Molehill … might be seeing an insane influx of adventurers over the coming weeks.

“A dungeon? Really?”

Claire tilted her head. “With the amount of mana it’s pumping into the air? The number of monsters escaping it?” She nodded, completely certain of herself. Ari’s doubts over whether she knew what she was talking about disappeared.

“Wow,” Ari said. “A dungeon.”

It was hard to understate the effect a dungeon had on a local community. Dungeons weren’t the rarest thing in the world, but they were so absurdly lucrative that it had anybody in a week’s travel flocking to the nearest town … which would be Molehill, in this instance. If Ari had thought the bustling adventuring town had been busy, what would follow over the next several weeks would have her brain hurting.

And what does it mean for us? Clearly, Molehill hadn’t discovered the dungeon yet—she’d have heard something. Probably. Ari was hardly the first person who’d be informed about such a discovery, but dungeons were strictly public resources; their emergences didn’t stay hidden for long.

In fact, however much she wanted to keep it hidden for personal gain—because a private dungeon would be a mind-bogglingly valuable resource—she had an obligation to report to the Guild. If it was found out—though unlikely, if Ari was smart about keep it a secret—that she knew of its existence without reporting it to appropriate authorities, she’d be screwed. Extremely screwed. The Guild took dungeons deadly serious. Ari would be looking at jail time, or worse.

Still. She could report it tomorrow morning, then head off immediately. She’d get the first delve. Seeing how dungeons accrued resources consistently, in the way a forgotten space did dust, it meant the first delve—Ari’s and her party’s—would be obscenely valuable.

A grin crept across her face. Yes, she knew what she, Lori, and Claire were doing tomorrow.

“The dungeon,” Ari agreed. “First thing tomorrow. I’ll bring extra stamina potions, so we can go all day.”

Though they’d only undergone three encounters, it had been encounters of several members each—with a party size of three, Ari had been willing to take risks. She’d made a decent profit, today. Or, they had.

She hesitated, realizing something.

“If you guys are okay with that, of course.”

Lori and Claire stared blankly at her.

“Seeing how you two are entitled to two-thirds of what we earned,” Ari clarified.

They continued to stare.

“Because … we’re a party.”

“Huh?” Claire said.

“Our earnings are yours,” Lori said, confused. “You’re the pack-leader.”

“The Queen,” Claire agreed. She looked up at Ari with a furrowed brow. “You want to give us some of what we earned today?”

Ari blinked rapidly, taken aback.

Somehow, she kept forgetting these girls had different understandings of social dynamics. Reasonable, considering their … unnatural origin. Their memories from their previous lives carried over, but in odd ways. Or maybe their existence prior to their sapience was odd. Lori had been a leopard prowling the Forest of the Golden Lake, and Claire, a Honeybee Defender assigned to the Royal Guard. Obviously not roles compatible with Ari’s understanding of society.

“Of course you two are getting some,” Ari said. “Even splits. We’re all equals here.”

Claire looked horrified at what Ari had just said, where Lori just seemed perplexed.

“No,” Lori said. “We’re not.”

“Equal to the Queen?” Claire said. “No. No.” She shook her head, black and gold hair bouncing. Like before, she seemed distressed at the implication.

“But …” Ari said lamely. “You guys don’t want anything?”

Claire’s expression answered for her, and Lori said, “You’re the pack-leader,” as if that was all the response she needed to give.

Ari stood there, at a loss for how to handle this situation. Lori and Claire deserved rewards for their efforts today, obviously, but neither seemed to want it? Claire especially.

Ari chewed her lip, looking down at the two girls. They were under her authority, for a bizarre sense of the phrase. However strange her circumstances, these two girls were hers to care for … and clearly they saw Ari as an ‘absolute leader’ of sorts. They were utterly deferential to her—even Lori, who had presented herself as fiercely independent.

I’ll just have to be good to them. Maybe they didn’t see their dynamic as one of equals, but Ari would do her best to make it such. They weren’t comfortable taking a ‘fair share’ of their earnings … but Ari would set aside the money and feed it back to them, even if they didn’t request it explicitly.

Not much of a problem at this stage, to be honest. Their money would be going to stamina potions and adventuring supplies. Though, maybe she could pick something up for them at the market. Food, or something … she didn’t know what. But they deserved a reward that wasn’t strictly practical.

“Okay,” Ari said. “I’ll handle the finances stuff.” Even if she felt uncomfortable with her assumed position of authority. “But, the rest of today. Before I come back tomorrow. What are you two doing?”

“Hunting,” Lori said instantly. Even in her exhausted state, she intended be staying productive. That made sense for what Ari knew of her.

Claire glanced at Lori, then nodded her head in agreement.

Ari picked up an implication there that Lori likely didn’t.

“As a team?” Ari prompted.

Lori paused, looking at the bee-girl next to her.

Before Lori could respond—because Ari predicted what it would be—Ari said, “You’ll look out for each other, right?”

Lori’s brow furrowed.

“Please?” Ari asked. She took a few steps forward and crouched in front of Lori, leveling their postures so Ari’s face was next to hers. “I’m really worried for your guys’ safety. I’d be a lot more comfortable if you hunt in pairs.” As much as for Claire’s obvious desire to be working in a team, Ari was saying this for the sake of herself; every word was true.

“I … I …”

“You prefer solo hunting,” Ari agreed. She could tell that much. “But please? For me?”

Maybe Ari’s pleading face was as effective as Claire’s was on Ari, because Lori blushed, looking away.

“I don’t normally hunt in a group, but … if you’re asking.”

Ari beamed. She leaned forward and kissed Lori’s cheek. “Thanks,” she murmured. “It means a lot.”

“Whatever,” Lori said.

She reveled in Lori’s blush—now a bright red.

Then, a second later, Ari wondered what it meant. Both how easily Ari had shared the intimacy, and Lori’s reaction to it. Were they girlfriends? Her, Claire, and Lori? That was probably too much. They’d only known each other for a few hours and a day, respectively. But the affection she felt toward the two monster girls wasn’t lust only, that much was certain. But neither was it necessarily romantic? Protectiveness, camaraderie, maybe?

Either way, she wanted to get to know these girls better. It was a shame they had so many practical matters to attend to.

Still, she’d find a way to make time. A date with each of them, maybe, somewhere in the future? Silly as it sounded?

Ari would like that.