Chapter 93: Chapter 93: Farewell to the Elf Lands
[Find me.]
[Dungeon Master.]
[Caelan.]
Arin stared at the empty space where the message had been.
The enormous creature lay dead behind him, its myriad eyes forever shut. The cavern was silent, save for the feeling of the creature’s presence that still lingered in the air.
"Arin," Arene said. "We need to talk about that message."
"I know."
"Do we?"
"Someone sent me a message that got through the System somehow. This someone identified himself as Caelan and told me to find him. I think that warrants a discussion."
"Good, because I was afraid that the blow to your head affected your judgement."
Arin rubbed his forehead.
"You’re getting too comfortable insulting me."
"I have been studying your actions extensively, and I think I have earned the right."
He ignored her and peered into the cavern.
"Can he see what I’m doing?"
"I picked up the message, but not the source. Whatever means he used to send it didn’t go through the System, so I can’t access its records."
"Can he send another message?"
"Possibly."Can he track me?"Possibly."
Arin closed his eyes.
"You’re really good at ruining a moment, aren’t you?"
"I prefer to think of it as honesty."
He opened his eyes and looked into the tunnel that the creature had come through.
The man had watched the battle with the ten Authorities. He had appeared during the Chimera attack, seen Arin grow stronger and had been in the shadows, pulling the strings ever since.
Now he sent a message to Arin.
It was obvious that the man wanted something.
Unfortunately, it was equally obvious that Arin had no idea what it was.
"Fine," he muttered. "We’ll discuss it later. Right now I need to get out of here."
He inspected his injuries. His shoulder still throbbing, his ribs in bad condition and, overall, he felt like he had been used as a test subject for a number of strength measuring devices.
The power he had gained from the quest might be useful, but he was too tired to experiment with it in an unfamiliar place.
Arin activated Dungeon Sense.
The cavern unveiled itself, its pathways and intricacies disclosed to him. He focused on the ground, seeking a passage that would lead upwards.
There were a number of tunnels, most of which led downwards, but two of them twisted upwards, vanishing into the unknown.
One of these tunnels had the scent of fresh air drifting from it.
"Found you,"
Arin followed the trail, the uneven ground proving to be quite a challenge. More than once he had to squeeze his way through narrow openings and once he almost broke his neck diving over a hole in the ground.
He relied on his new power to discern which of the tunnels was safe to follow and eventually he came upon a crossroads.
He paused.
The familiar scent of fresh air came from the tunnel on his left, but something else caught his attention on the right.
A trail of blood.
It snaked away from the crossroads, vanishing into the darkness beyond. Arin crouched to inspect it.
It was old blood, unlike the streaks of it that smeared the walls of the chamber where he had battled the enormous creature.
Something had passed through this tunnel before him. Something that bled.
Arin thought about following the trail, but the sight of his own mangled body reminded him that he was already injured.
Nope. Not today.
He had completed the quest, and he was not going to risk his life chasing another monster when his friends were not here.
Even Arene would have a hard time finding words to justify that one.
Arin followed the tunnel on the left.
The tunnel opened up to reveal a widening passage. Roots grew from the ceiling, letting occasional beams of light pierce through the darkness. The further Arin went, the more the air cooled, until he reached a narrow gap between two gigantic rocks.
He wormed his way through the opening and out onto the forest floor.
Sunlight warmed Arin’s skin.
He stood and stretched, marvelling at the fact that he could see the sky once more, when a shout echoed through the trees.
"ARIN!"
Saira came barrelling through the trees and came to a stop right in front of him.
She grabbed his shoulders and gave him a thorough inspection before slapping his arm.
"Ouch! What was that for?"
"For disappearing underground!"
"I didn’t plan on becoming part of the forest!"
"You could’ve told us before you did that!"
Arin blinked at her.
"Next time the ground opens up to swallow me whole, I’ll make sure to write a formal announcement."
"Good. Make sure it’s officially signed."
Adnan’s grin was visible even as he came up to join them.
"You’re alive."
"Last I checked, yes."
Adnan chuckled, but the muscles in his shoulders remained tense.
Ayan came up to them more slowly, his expression was carefully modulated, but Arin could see the worried look behind his companion’s eyes.
"You’re condition is worse than I expected," Ayan said.
"Glad I could surprise you."
"I will hold off any criticism until your wounds are treated."
"That’s thoughtful of you."
"It only lasts for a certain period of time."
Arin sighed.
"Of course it does."
Ayan placed a hand on his shoulder and allowed a trickle of mana to flow into his body. His expression darkened as he examined the damage.
"You have two broken ribs, extensive bruising and a wound on your shoulder. On top of that, your mana seems to have been depleted."Can you fix it?"I can stabilize you, but you’ll still need to rest."
"Good enough,"
Saira stepped back and Ayan began working on his injuries. Adnan tossed him a waterskin which Arin accepted with a grateful hum.
He drank deeply, then looked past them towards the opening in the rock where he had emerged.
"The creature is dead," he said. "The System indicated that the quest was complete."
Adnan exhaled.
"At least something went right."
"That depends on what you’re considering to be the plan."
Arin related the events that had transpired beneath the forest, the enormous creature, the multiple channels of mana that ran through its body, the way Dungeon Sovereign had helped him decipher the connection between the creature’s eyes.
He did not mention the message.
When he finished, Ayan’s expression was carefully schooled, but the chill in his eyes was unmistakable.
"Caelan contacted you personally?"
"Apparently."
"And the message was not sent through the System?"
"Arene verified that."
Ayan turned his gaze to the trees surrounding them.
"That is not a reassuring sign."
"I was just getting ready to launch into a diatribe of reassurance."
"If you don’t mind, I would rather not lie to you."
"I find that I’m being asked that a lot lately."
Saira folded her arms across her chest.
"What did he mean by telling you to find him?"
"I have no idea. Maybe he wanted a fight. Maybe he wanted me to follow him. Maybe he thought that cryptic messages were the best way to communicate."
Adnan shook his head.
"Regardless of what he meant by it, we shouldn’t take his invitation up on him."
"I agree," Ayan said. "Caelan knows more about Dungeon Masters than we do, and he has proved that he is capable of interfering with things that we don’t understand. We should not accept his invitation without preparing ourselves."
Arin glanced at his friends.
He did not fancy chasing the man through the woods while nursing his wounds. Finding him was one thing, but accepting every challenge he issued was a surefire way to get himself killed.
He was not ready to die, but Arin would not ignore what the other man had written either.
Find me, Dungeon Master.
Caelan had not signed his name, but he had identified Arin by his class, as if it was the only thing that mattered to him.
"Arene, did the message make any changes to my System?"
"None that I could see. The quest is still complete, and the reward has been given. Monster Management is still restricted, but your new power has allowed you access to its functions."
Arin accessed his System interface.
[Quest Completed]
[Monster Threat]
[Reward Acquired: Monster Creation and Control]
[Dungeon Master Authority: Level 1]
[Monster Management: Limited Access]
The last entry did not look particularly promising, but it would have to wait.
Arin closed the interface.
"Let’s head back to the settlement. I need a proper healer, a bed and several hours without someone trying to off me."
Saira’s grin was positively wicked.
"I can guarantee the first two."
"Care to specify?"
"That depends on your attitude."
Arin was already walking away before she could respond.
The sun was beginning to set when they reached the elven settlement. Mira was waiting for them near the entrance, her relief at seeing Arin alive quickly morphing into concern at the sight of his injuries.
"What happened to you?"
Arin studied his response carefully.
"I completed a quest."
Mira blinked.
"That’s what happened while I was gone?"
"Technically, yes."