บท 35: Dungeon Life (II)
Eventually, they arrived in front of the apartments. There were a few bumps on the way, like fighting large groups of monsters, broken wheels, and a bit of dispute, but all were easily handled without a problem.
All the remaining monsters were swept away, allowing them to set up.
The clearing of the apartment floors were done with such proficiency that all Snow had to do was unpack. She set up shop in one of the rooms on the second floor. It was a tedious task, moving out of the unwanted furniture and cleaning up the place. Many rooms were filled with pools of blood, which they didn't use because of the foul smell.
Snow had thought there would be a large number of people found in the apartments, but surprisingly they were only five new awakened Sleepers that were hiding in the closets from the monsters or in their homes. Most were killed off or left the apartment to find help.
The top four floors were quickly used as "hotels" for Hunters and Players to occupy for a temporary recluse, while most of the second floor was explicitly for the Dragon Express people and store that they were sent to create. On the third floor, the Red Flower Nation company took the floor for themselves.
A temporary barricade was quickly built; the other few apartments were left alone. They knew they couldn't protect it except the ones that they had.
Heather had set up a makeshift desk, placing a telephone onto the side. She brushed it off a few times, pleased at the handiwork in the apartment. It wasn't bad, it took most of the day to wipe out the bloodstains in the two-bedroom apartment. Compared to the other apartments, it was the cleanest, allowing her some leeway to decorate the place to her liking.
Heather had a bit of talent in interior design, making the place feel a lot more homely than before. She even stuck a trident up on the wall, saying it was to remember home. Honestly, Snow wondered if it was to show off the weapon itself. There were times when she mooned over it, blabbering off on and on how it was passed through generation.
Mr. Everrett walked in the Dragon Express opening, bringing with him a gift. "Well, isn't this a good look." He looked down, placing the red flowers he picked on Snow's desk.
"It's all Heather." Snow smiled, thanking him. "I'm not that creative when it comes to interior design. Still, Mr. Everrett, I have a question to ask."
"Yes?" He stopped, turning towards hers.
"If you don't mind, would you be willing to teach me some basic training. I had past training before, but living in this dungeon for god knows how long, I need to get stronger to survive. I don't know who else to ask." Snow felt nervous; she almost hiccuped her words but was able to smoothly spit out what she wanted.
"Yes." Mr. Everrett looked at her, "but only the basics. Your foundation is horrible."
Snow cheeks turned red. "Well, I'm really out of it. I'm lucky I'm able to pull off such a feat when we fought against the Dullahan."
"Either way, I suggest you talk to Tamaki for a sparring partner." Mr. Everrett waved away her words as if it was nothing. "Instead, I'll see you in three hours."
Snow eyes became wide, realizing how soon they were starting.
"If I hear a complaint from you, Ms. Snow, I will stop my teaching."
"Yes, sir." Snow quickly replied. She knew that this was going to be difficult, but she hoped that wasn't the case. She watched him leave as she sunk into her chair. Hopefully, she chose the right thing by asking for help.
A couple of weeks had quickly passed. Snow took four hours out of the day to learn under Mr. Everrett's tutoring, which immensely helped keep her body in shape. She knew that danger was always lurking in every corner, and her life was on the line.
Snow got used to the simple lifestyle of cleaning and keeping track of the monsters that the Hunters and Players have hunted. She took care of booking monsters that the Players and Hunters have brought. She then sent the bodies to be dismantled by a butcher. Most of the time, it was Tamaki, who handled such a task, but she felt bad for taking up his precious time.
Surprisingly there were a large handful of people and even companies taking the risk to enter into the dungeon themselves, setting up shops specifically for the Hunters. Snow knew that the materials bought from the dungeon were a lot higher quality than the ones found outside the dungeon. Even unique plants that were rarely seen in the outside world were plentiful, making it a dream place for the alchemist.
It was like a treasure trove, and the magical community knew the danger and the risk involved in it. Greed fueled the people. Droves of specialize people were brought over: weapon specialist, herbal alchemist, tailors, butchers, cooks, and even miners arrived to take a slice of the pie.
Snow had a clipboard in hand, tagging notes as she counted how much each was sold. Following after, she would give an okay to store the fur, bones, meat, herbs, and scarce crystals. A few men came over to help lift up the materials as they placed the items into a large box.
"How many boxes do we have left, Ralph?" Snow clicked her pen, writing the last of the items that needed to be packaged away. She had meticulously divided the boxes into categories and even got it neatly packed for the Dragon Express to get through them quickly.
"Twenty." The buff man closed the box and picked it up. "This would be the last free box we have."
"Okay." Snow nodded. She then went to her desk, taking the stack of paper and putting it together in a file. "How many Hunters have we rounded up for the transfer?"
"Twenty-five in total. Three level C Hunters, seven D Players, and fifteen level E Players. "
"Not bad." Snow placed the paper on top of the box for Ralph to take. "You know what to do, right?"
"Yes, Ms. Snow." Ralph nodded; he placed the box down for a moment to store away the paper. He picked it up again, leaving the building as they packed the boxes onto a rover. Around it was the guards that patiently waited as they were ready to set off. "We'll be handing it off to the next group upon exit."
"Thank you." Snow was a bit nervous at the first round but knew that Ralph was a trusted Hunter.
Ralph rounded the group, getting ready to leave. Snow watched them off as they disappeared into the plains.
"You know, you don't have to be standing here." Heather came over as she rested her hand on Snow's shoulder. "Leave it to Ralph. He is a B class Hunter. Always punctual too." She snickered.
"I'm not worried." Snow pushed her hand away from her shoulder. "We got a few others to notate."
Heather groaned at the thought of more work. "Let's take a break, shall we?"
"Well…"
"Come on." Heather grabbed her hand, pulling her towards the first floor. "Let's go eat something. There is a stall downstairs that just arrived this morning. I heard she makes a killer shish kabob with the fresh meats that the hunters caught today. Plus, you haven't had lunch or breakfast."
Snow thought it over, she had forgotten about eating since this morning. There were just too many things to do that needed her attention that she had forgotten. The Players were getting better and better in hunting, and the speed of bringing in monsters was quite extraordinary. Right now, the amount of monsters brought over that was useful was over fifty a day.
Eventually, she felt like the days went by, and the amount of work piled up. Luckily, she also sent a mail to bring more people to help out.
They came downstairs. Snow noticed how much it changed in the past week. Walls were cut out, allowing a large room that could be used for a marketplace. Small stalls were opened as delicious food wafted through the air.
Snow saw a flamboyant stall with pink and white lettering present. A young man with green hair was diligently cooking. Heather ran over, chattering away at the man. She winked and then waved to call Snow over.
"Well, what a cute lady." The young man smiled at her. "What would you like?"
Snow looked at the whiteboard. There were only four different types of food and mostly meat.
"I would like the beef shish kabob, please."
"Coming right up." The green-haired man wiped up something for her as he handed it to her.
Snow gratefully took it as she slid five coopers towards him. The smell was excruciatingly delicious, making her stomach grumble. Taking a bite, a burst of flavors erupted her mouth, making her smile.
"It's good, right?" Heather coyly smiled, wiggling her eyebrows.
"Yea." Snow replied, gobbling it up as she licked her lips. "I'll have a few more." She slid some more money.
"Honey, I'll give you some more." He handed a few more. "Enjoy."
Snow couldn't help but take the rest. They left the stalls as they walked around.
"You know, the amount of exploration around the area had been almost completed." Heather was munching the food as she licked her lips. "I think in a few days, we will have some results on what's going on."
"That quick?"
"Right? I'm impressed too." Heather walked over towards the digital board that was up against the wall at the front entrance. She waved her hand, bringing up the full map. "Right now, it seems the northside is still unknown." She pointed up towards the plan that was still black.
Snow took a good look at the map, realizing where she was pointing at. It was up in the forest where the gas station was.
"We haven't been able to figure out what's going on. The Hunters and Players are always getting turned around. I believe some kind of magic that keeps making people go in a circle. A curse specialist will be coming in today to see if they can unlock whatever it is that is doing that."
"A curse…" Snow mumbled under her breath. She remembered the creepy forest that made her skin crawl as the forest floor was deathly quiet.
"If we can find out what's going on there, it's a step forward to getting us out of here."
"True."
"Look." Heather pointed towards the distance.
Snow noticed a large group of Players coming in with a new batch of unknown mages that had the emblem from the Red Flower Nation. Red and Ivy came walking down as they went over to greet them as they excitedly conversed with one another.
"I think it's the curse breaker." Heather ate the last of her shish kabob. "I'm going to put money on it that in a few days, we will have our answer. Oh, and look. It's your fan club coming over.
Snow tilted her head, wondering what she was implying. "Fan club, I don't have any fan cl-" A silent O appeared on her lips.
Waving over his head was Mike as he came trotting over with Dairen behind.
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