Eric leaned over the desk while the other Summoned stepped up to it. Darius’ voice was steady, as if he were delivering a lecture to eager students. “First off, so we are all on the same page: there is a Titan trapped in the world. It puts out mana, which built up under the crust until it ripped through—just like a volcano. That’s how the Ley Lines were formed.” He tapped a history textbook. “At least, that’s my inference based on historical accounts of when Ley Lines first appeared on the surface.”

  With a nod, Eric replied, “That’s what I learned when questioning In” —yet the name ‘Indedroma’ stuck in his throat, so he quickly finished— “dex. I asked the Index, and it confirmed the idea that Ley Lines originated from within the world.”

  Darius gave him a sympathetic glance at the slight hiccup, then finished. “If we kill the Titan, all mana goes with it.”

  “Societal collapse,” Naomi said bluntly, eyes intense. “The whole world will go through titanic upheaval. Pun intended.”

  “Correct,” Darius replied. “If mana was absent? Catastrophe would occur. It would take some time for the world to right itself. Hundreds of thousands would die as the Class system would vanish, since The Paths rely on mana to function. That leaves us with a few options.”

  He held up his index finger. “One. You focus on clearing the Twilight Depths and push back its awakening.” Middle finger. “Two. We put a stop to the two factions that know about the Titan. One seeks its freedom, the other its destruction—both mean Elyndor is doomed.” Ring finger. “Three. We look for another option.”

  “You’re so strong, why can’t you go into the Twilight Depths and just clear it in one go?” Shannon asked.

  Darius grimaced. “I asked the Index that same question. Only Eric, or another holder of a primal force, can activate the mechanism that will push back the timer. I could go right to the bottom floor, but that wouldn’t help at all.”

  “Can you accompany us down there?” Shannon asked. “Guide us?”

  Darius met her gaze and shook his head. “If people saw me escorting the Summoned into the Twilight Depths, they would know something is off. I have kept my cover as an Artificer and ‘weirdo-crafter’ in my little nook very closely guarded. And I cannot speak of my experiences, or write you any type of guide, as I signed a contract as a youth when I joined a diving organization. A Skill-empowered contract that I cannot break.”

  He gestured to Eric. “Only him and a handful of people in the upper-city know I am really a powerful dungeon-diver with an illustrious, heroic career. If I’m seen going into the Twilight Depths with you, I blow my cover, word spreads, and someone in power will know something is going on. That could lead to them investigating the books I have checked out of various libraries, and then others might grow interested in what we are researching.”

  “We can’t risk that,” Eric replied. “Those someones in power will be corrupt small council members. We have to keep our strength secret, and research on the Titan has to be kept concealed at all costs.”

  Darius grimaced. “Condolences. Enemies in high places.” He looked back down at the papers before him. “Now, back to the Titan business.”

  Peter asked, “Can we try to communicate with the Titan?”

  “We shouldn't risk it. For all we know, contacting it might wake it up.” Darius leaned back and grabbed another book, and said, “Now, I’ve done some research, made some requests, and only have a few books so far. I’m looking into sects of religions for leads on what the Titan could be.”

  Darius tapped a header. “This one from Flescion believed that the Creator Goddess had left a child in the center of Elyndor; granted, this was a tiny sect that ultimately was disbanded. But that could be a lead.” He gestured to the books behind his desk. “There’s more leads of a similar nature to follow up on, but that will take time, and might require travel.”

  Eric crossed his arms. “We can’t risk going overseas to investigate.” He glanced across his allies, then fixed his gaze on Darius. “There are problems here in Trok that need to be dealt with to prevent famine and heavy losses during the war in a few years’ time. Political shit that I’ll work on dealing with. Your focus should be solely on the Titan issue.”

  Darius frowned. “Then I guess I’ll call in some favors. I’d rather stick around to help out here if needed than go overseas.”

  “You’re being so helpful—why?” Shannon blurted out. “There’s gotta be something in this for you.”

  Darius chuckled. “I was a hero, once, like I mentioned . . . My name used to be well-known until I intentionally tucked myself away for privacy.” He shook his head. “I don’t want anything except survival. Eric’s experienced a future that seems to be repeating. Self-preservation is all the reason I need. I could hide out in another reality, but that would only be temporary. I can’t stay there forever. No Elyndian can stay away from Elyndor for long, and that includes you four.”

  “Fair enough,” Peter said. He looked to Eric. “What’s our next move?”

  “We take a little bit of downtime—a day or two at the most. Then, it’s back into the Twilight Depths,” Eric replied.

  Darius nodded. “It is the fastest way to get levels.”

  Naomi frowned. “You’ve got a lot of dungeon experience. What is the actual process for milestones? Sometimes we get a level after doing a chamber, sometimes we don’t.”

  Darius grinned. “It depends. And yes, I know, that’s a shitty answer. I can’t tell you for sure. It seems to have something to do with the number of chambers cleared, as well as the difficulty of the chamber itself, and some Class-types seem to get more milestones than others. Perhaps there is something to do with the amount of participation in each chamber, who can say?”

  Peter cleared his throat. “What exactly causes a dungeon? Or these mega dungeons?”

  “Simply put, a dungeon is an echo of another reality. Just like the one you were ripped away from.” He put a hand on his chest. “My highest Class is a magic Strategist called Demonologist. I can summon demons from other realities for a brief period of time, as well as take on their forms, and even use their magics.”

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  Shannon made the sign of the cross, and when Darius gave her a curious look, she explained. “Demons are evil.”

  Darius let out a barking laugh. “What? Why would you say that? Wait, no, let me guess: some religion where you come from?” Shannon nodded emphatically and took a step behind Peter, looking worried. Darius continued, “Demons are just people; like you and me. Sure, they trade in souls as a form of currency, but in their reality it is no different from precious metals we use for coins.”

  “How’d you get a Class tied to another reality?” Naomi asked.

  “And you still haven’t fully answered my question,” Peter followed up.

  Darius grinned. “I learned the Class from a dungeon. Or rather, a demon inside a dungeon. One of the rooms was a puzzle, and in clearing it I freed a demon—its echo, at least. It taught me the basics of demonic summoning, and The Paths incorporated that knowledge to make a new Class.”

  He looked at Peter. “Mega dungeons, on the other hand? They have been on Elyndor since the Ley Lines came to being.” He tapped the history text on his desk. “It's why the capitals of the various world powers were set up where they were. Mega dungeons were a steady source of Monster Parts, as long as people either went deeper or new divers went in, and they are close to the deepest parts of the Ley Lines—the Loci.”

  “It’s not a coincidence,” Eric replied. “It can’t be. There’s got to be something tying those together. The same has to do with the lure that causes people to dive deeper, like Peter in the other timeline.”

  Naomi looked up at the ceiling. “I’d wager that the mega dungeon, its location in relation to a Ley Line Locus, and the fact that they popped up the same time Ley Lines erupted, means that the concentration of a population around those locales was intended.”

  “But why?” Eric wondered aloud.

  “No idea,” Naomi replied.

  Shannon spoke up from behind Peter. “It’s been a while now. Do you all think the king’s guards are going to be suspicious? We did say we would reconvene in thirty minutes, and it’s almost been that long.”

  Darius stood up. “We can’t arouse too much suspicion.”

  Naomi nodded. “We’ll bring one of the bracers in a few days.” She looked back at her allies. “Once we’re back at the manor, I’ll need some time to craft with my components, and honestly just some time to decompress.”

  “Fair enough,” Shannon said.

  Eric deactivated the Silence Node, and the monochromatic glow of the room faded. “Thanks for the Focus Grimoire.”

  “Not a problem at all,” Darius said as he sat back down and flipped open another book.

  The group of Summoned left D’s Diablerie and headed back toward their estate, each quiet and lost in their thoughts. Their guards fell in behind them, shadowing their steps.

  “Peter, help me out with something.” Eric walked over near the pools to the other Summoned, who was busy working a punching bag made of leather and filled with some type of cushioned cloth.

  Peter glanced over. “Sure. What’s up?”

  Eric activated Ashen Shell. His clothes were sucked in close to his body, and black armor formed over his body; it was thicker along the larger parts like the torso, shoulders, and thighs, and thinner everywhere else. A helmet rose up around him, leaving a small visor for his eyes to see through. “I want you to punch me. Start out at like . . . ten percent of what you can do?”

  Peter grinned. He kept his boxer’s stance. “All right, ten percent.” He jabbed forward, and Eric felt the impact.

  “That was like a tap,” Eric muttered. “Kick it up to fifty percent.”

  Peter pulled his arm back and jabbed, with more of his shoulder thrown into the punch. Eric let out a breath as he felt the force of the blow and took a step back. “You good?” Peter asked, clearly concerned.

  “I’m good,” Eric said. “No pain. Just the impact force. Okay. Give me a full-force punch.”

  “Want some Rotes empowering it too?”

  “Hell no.”

  “Okay, fair. Regardless, you might want to plant yourself a bit better.”

  Eric shifted his feet and nodded. Peter winded up and delivered a haymaker, putting his full rotational force and shoulder into the strike. Eric staggered backward, but did not feel any pain. Upon glancing down, he saw small cracks had formed along the front of the armor. “That held up really well.”

  Peter looked very excited. “Oh, that’s freaking awesome.” He poked the cracked part of the armor. “I think if I took another solid swing, I could crack it open. With a Rote? I bet I’d smash through, no problem. Want me to try with a Rote?”

  Eric shook his head. “A full-strength hit from you is pretty strong. I don’t want to test something that might injure me without a healer around.”

  “Aight, fair enough.” Peter looked back to his punching bag, then to Eric again. “Want to learn how to fight?” He jabbed the bag a few times.

  “I probably should,” Eric said as he let Ashen Shell fade. “Not that I plan on ever going fists-only.”

  Peter grinned and gestured in front of him. “Okay, you’re going to want to stand like this . . .”

  Eric lay down in bed and stared up at the ceiling as he set his mana channels to their usual evening undulations. The warmth in his chest spread and grew before surging down his limbs as he contemplated his build choices.

  I have Cinderburst, Blackflame Beam, Flashstep, and Ashen Shell all at Rank three. That means they’re eligible to use the Ember on. Combining Flashstep and Ashen Shell seems like the most reasonable choice, but combining Blackflame Beam and Cinderburst would mean I get some combination of increased range, piercing, and an explosion.

  I have four Loadout Slots. I need to have Ashen Shell for survivability given what I saw with the test earlier, Flashstep for movement, and Combustion Trigger for detonating the Blackflame Blaze DOTs. That leaves me with one slot.

  I’ve also got Backblast at Rank two and Sootshroud at the same Rank. I haven’t used Sootshroud at all, but combining that with Backblast would be a good ‘get the fuck away from me’ ability while dropping a smokescreen all in one go.

  “Index,” he whispered.

  [Remember, you don’t need to speak aloud to talk to me anymore.]

  Ah, right. What are your thoughts on the various combos I can Polymerize with an Ember?

  [You almost died this last go around. I think if you combined Backblast with Ashen Shell you’d have a potent defensive option—some type of armoring with a knockback when struck? At least, that’s what I’d guess they would Polymerize into.]

  Backblast is a Rank behind Ashen Shell.

  [Then go burn something and hit a milestone.]

  Indedroma let out a cackle of glee.

  [It is part of your Path, after all.]

  Eric frowned. The thought of going to find stuff to burn was tempting. “What would I even set ablaze?” he muttered.

  [Garbage?]

  Eric chuckled, and had a nice, sarcastic thought for her.

  Yeah, sure. I’ll go to a landfill. Oh, wait! They don’t have those on Elyndor, because Street Sweepers quite literally destroy trash with a Rote when they touch it.

  He groaned and covered his face with his hands.

  I’m not going to have that as an option. I doubt burning garbage is good for the environment, either.

  [I’m just trying to help you brainstorm. If you don’t want my help—]

  Eric shot up in bed, interrupting the response, and stopped undulating his mana channels.

  I want your help, but an idea just popped into my head. I know of criminal enterprises run by an abomination of a man. I can start to disassemble the Steward’s underworld empire.

  Another thought flickered through his mind.

  Blackflame burning a building will instantly mark the person who caused it. Fuck. It’s too noticeable.

  [Ah, true. I hadn’t considered that part.]

  Eric sighed, and laid back down.

  I’ll have to keep brainstorming out-of-dungeon means to progress my milestones.

  He closed his eyes and set his mana channels to undulating once more. “Thanks, Index. Goodnight.”

  Alright, I keep getting pissed off messages and comments about the dungeon guidebook thing.

  So I went back and re-revised Chapter 25's explanation. Here it is in the spoiler box to save space. Hopefully this satisfies you critics out there. The changes are in green text, and I shuffled around some paragraphs to ensure the readability wasn't affected, but the content of those paragraphs didn't change.

  And if it doesn't? Well, too bad, I'm done changing it. This is the third revision, and I need to get on with writing more of Book 2.

  rare to find, as they were bought up almost immediately by dungeon organizations. Eric doubted they would come across one for purchase, since every one that went on the market was snatched up, and the near-mafia-like organizations would visit the people who wrote them, encourage them to not do it again, and kept any type of printer from making mass-produced copies with either bribes or threats of violence.

  hefty cut of the Monster Parts, or just a fee up front.

  but, they would come out with milestones and a Dungeon Core for their efforts.

  However, they would have to sign a special contract, binding them through a Skill that some of the Clerks that worked for the Consortium had access to. It would quite literally prevent them from conveying anything about their experiences.

  and the contract binding them via The Paths that could never be broken. The few people that did go into the Twilight Depths on their own and successfully cleared the first floor in their blind run were often holders of Combat Classes, and thus were rapidly recruited into the dungeon organizations, so they wouldn't write guidebooks and break the rules that group imposed on them.