Chapter 59: Preparations

Sorix:

The shifter doesn't take long, to give up the location of the bear. Poor man, has been stuck in this forest for 40 years. If I were him, I would have hunted down the dungeon core. Which just so happens to be the bear we are looking for.

This dungeon is called the Primordial Forest Dungeon. The elves could have warned us about which paths led to it, but they kept quiet. If I ever come back to Amestavora, I will teach them a lesson. Maybe make some black miasma block out the sun, and give them a scare?

Nate and I follow the moss, towards the cave. How we didn't figure out to follow the white moss ourselves, is beyond me. The bear shifter didn't want to come with us. That is ok. I didn't expect for him to.

We hear growls as we near the mouth of the cave. Two ember eyes blaze in the darkness. I grin, and pull out my spear. Nathaniel takes out his dragon slayer sword.

He really should learn to use a different weapon. After all, most bears and what have you are not affected by the magic in the sword. Not that I will remind Nate of that. For all I know, he simply doesn't have the funds for something better.

The bear runs deeper into the cave, instead of charging us. Clever beast. Definitely smart enough to be a dungeon core. I stop Nate, as he is about to make a step inside.

"Look, don't go in yet. The place must be loaded with traps. Let me sent scouts," I pull out my bottomless bag, and then dump the corpse of a puma out of it.

The puma will be quick on its feet, thus managing to avoid most of the traps. More than that, it has the added benefit of not being harvested from a graveyard. Nate blinks, as the puma runs inside the cave with far more grace, than its rotting body would suggest.

"Where did you get that animal from?" Nate asks. I have been waiting for this question. So, I simply smile at him, and take a hold of his hand. He stares at our linked hands, with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Will you believe me if I tell you, that I hunt for my corpses, from time to time?" I ask him. He shakes his head. "Have more faith in me, dearest."

I accompany my words with a wink. Before Nate can retort, a stream of fire blazes out of the cave. Nate sucks in a breath.

"Is your scout..." I can see that he is unnerved at the fact that there was such a trap so close to the entrance. I hum, and sent off a mana signal to the puma. It is well, not even singed.

"Looks good, despite being dead," I say, as I begin to lead him inside the cave. So far, the puma has intentionally triggered all the traps, in the first five-meter stretch.

We walk in, and hear, from time to time, sounds that would have spelled our doom, had I not sent the puma first. Poisoned darts hitting the stone, tar being emptied from the ceiling. Fireballs smashing into the walls.

Nathaniel doesn't let go of my hand the entire walk.

"First time in a dungeon?" I ask him, as the sound of a water being gushed out in a thin and cutting stream comes from ahead of us.

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"Most dragons don't hide in dungeons," Nate says. I hum. Yes, I figured as much. "What about you?"

His question catches me unawares. I tilt my head to the side, to get a better look at him.

"I have been in a couple. The mini-bosses and the bosses are not to be skipped, if one wants to call themselves necromancers. That is even more true, for Dread Lords," I hear falling rocks, and grin.

"You have to admit, that this dungeon gave its best," I tell Nate, who simply tightens his grip on my hand.

"Have you ever thought you'd do this? I mean, instead of being a Dread Lord, you help others?" Nate asks. I hum at that.

"You have to remember that I wasn't of a sound mind, when you found me. You are lucky, to not have been chosen as someone's champion," I pull him closer to myself, when we come across a patch of ice on the floor. "Watch your steps."

Nathaniel does his best to not slide across the ice, as I support him. He is rather adorable, clutching at me like that.

"What does it feel like? To be a champion, I mean?" He asks me. I shrug.

"No different from having a mental illness. Erik has a hard path ahead of him. The Elder Dryad hasn't picked a champion in centuries. It is going to pile up all its frustration on Erik," I don't like the idea of telling Nate that, but I can't mince my words either. He will be the one who feels responsible, when Erik begins on his path of destruction.

"Can it be stopped? This whole champion business?" We finally pass the ice patch, when Nate drops this bombshell on me.

"Well, one way is to wrestle ownership of the soul of the champion from the deity. Just like how Giv did it," I let my words hang in the air. Nathaniel stops walking then.

"An honor duel can result in the loss of a soul?" He sounds close to panicking.

"More or less. It is why it is outlawed," I wonder if he has ever been in an honor duel. "Have you been in one?"

"I was thinking of challenging Ajax to one," Nate tells me. I sigh.

"That is a bad idea. If Ajax is to fall, it will have to be a group effort. Nate, I don't know why you hate him so much, but you have to think about your family first," I tell him. Growling noises come from ahead of us. Ah, so the puma has found the bear. "Hold on that thought, will you? I really don't want to lose Sandy."

I let go of his hand, and rush in. Determined to protect my puma.  

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