"What a weirdo," Lucius said. "Is there nobody sane in this facility?"

Vivi watched Ven's figure disappear into the public dungeon. He held himself like some prince, walking slowly and with confidence. None of the nimrods were a threat to him. His posture radiated authority to his surroundings. Ven was strong and influential, and he knew it.

He wanted us to lay low… Vivi thought. What did he even mean? He wants us to do nothing for a week? Then he'll talk to us again. What does he gain from this?

"I think he wants to slow us down," Lucius said. "Maybe we've caused too many problems for him."

"Eem, what do you think?" Vivi asked. "Did he look like an enemy?"

Eem was still making faces. It wasn't the most hateful face Eem had made, but she wasn't smiling either.

"We could just ignore his proposal," Lucius said. "Ven himself said we can do that. As long as we're willing to accept the risks. There's no way we're going to do nothing for a week."

Yes, waiting for a week would be a waste, Vivi thought. But I believe his warning was real. If we enter the hidden dungeon carelessly, we're going to die. Maybe I could defend myself with a stronger runesword, but I don't think I can get ether roots without going down to the hidden dungeon.

"So we can't wait a week, but we also can't enter the hidden dungeon?" Lucius asked. "That won't work. We'll have to take risks."

Vivi paused to think. She began walking toward the public dungeon.

Ven betrayed the black masks. He saved us from an ambush. He fought his own gang members. And he seemingly asked for nothing in return. If nothing else, he thinks I'm valuable enough to save.

"He has some sort of scheme prepared," Lucius said.

Probably, Vivi thought. But he also knows how the hidden dungeon works. He has been there for far longer than us. He knows who the enemies are, and what skills they have. Ven is knowledgeable. And he also wields a runesword.

"What are you getting at?" Lucius asked.

Vivi had one idea in her head… How much do you think he'd pay to have his runesword upgraded?

Lucius's head lifted slightly. He thought for a second. "You want to use his smithy?"

I could negotiate, at least, Vivi thought. Ven doesn't seem evil. I need his information. I need ether to pay my debts, and I need a hidden smithy to work in. It seems like Ven has all of that.

"He already admitted he wouldn't pay fifteen thousand ether for you," Lucius said.

"But he didn't know I was a runesmith," Vivi thought.

Lucius sighed. "I can't believe you're considering allying up with that lunatic. He said his gang is thinking of killing you. They've placed assassins after you."

We don't need to become allies, Vivi thought. I just want to negotiate. Would he be willing to trade ether and information for runeswords?

"I don't know, Vivi…" Lucius said. "This sounds complicated. Maybe it could work. But we could probably just rent a smithy now. A small shack or something. We have more than enough ether."

If Ven throws us a bad offer, we have no reason to work with him, Vivi thought. We can ask him how much he'd be paying for a two-runed sword of top quality. We don't need to mention that it's inside carved, or that we're the ones making the swords. If the offer is bad, we can call off the deal. If it's good, we'll make a two-runed sword for him, and a stronger three-runed sword for ourselves. Additionally, we can ask him about the dungeon. He might have information about the main boss.

Her last sentence made Lucius pause.

The main boss is what you want out of Zand, no? Vivi asked. We should defeat it before escaping. We need the skills, and I need the ether to pay my debts. Destroying this facility's respawns will be a nice bonus on top.

"You are starting to make sense, Vivi."

Vivi let out a slight smile. All of those goals seemed like distant dreams. Crafting a three-runed sword could take weeks unless she got lucky. The main boss's difficulty would probably match the skills it could drop. Vivi would probably die. And if she managed to kill it, she still had to escape Zand.

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But it didn't hurt to set goals, even if those goals were never realistically achievable. She and Grandpa had always dreamed of becoming rich with runesmithing. The dream never came through, but in the process of chasing payoff, they both surpassed the ancient dwarves' skills as runesmiths.

Trying to trade with Ven seemed like a good first step. "Eem, we're going after Ven. I'll explain to you later, okay?"

Vivi headed into the dungeon, chasing after Ven. Hopefully she was still in time to talk to him today.

The cavern's entrance hall was filled with shouting and the clinking of metal. Two groups of stronger demons with colorful weapons were arguing with each other, presumably fighting about who could have hunting territory for the next week. The two guards defending the double doors stayed perfectly still, ignoring the fighting.

Ven had already disappeared somewhere. Vivi cursed in her thoughts. She looked around for someone that seemed both sane and awake. After a quick scan, her eyes landed on a small demon near the back, who seemed to be waiting for the fighting to end so that he could pass safely.

He took a step away from the direction Vivi was walking to. Then he flinched when he realized Vivi was walking directly toward him. He looked around himself, identifying an exit.

"Um, sorry?" the demon said.

"Where did Ven go?" Vivi asked. "The Union official. Confident posture, black cloak and black eyes."

The demon blinked, looking confused. "Down the Union's path? Third tunnel on the right?"

"Thank you," Vivi said. The tunnel led to one of the gang-controlled branches of the dungeon. One of the places that Uundref gave a warning not to enter without an invitation during his introduction. By appearances, there was nothing special about the entrance, and Vivi couldn't sense anything dangerous directly inside.

Vivi headed into the tunnel. The first fifty feet were empty, until Vivi reached two demons guarding an entrance. The gates to the gang's dungeon weren't covered with barricades or spiked fences like Andre's establishment. Instead, a curtain had been hung on the tunnel. Just an ordinary black curtain, no runes or other special properties about it.

Two men wearing green forest jackets were stationed before it. "Your insignia, please."

"I need to talk to Ven," Vivi said. "He just passed, right?"

The guard frowned. He seemed to be a nimrod. An ordinary member of the gang, acting as a guardsman. "And who are you?"

Vivi bit her lip. This wouldn't work. She breathed her lungs full and shouted, "Ven! Wait!"

Her voice echoed across the tunnel. The guards flinched by her volume. Vivi gave them an awkward smile. She may have added a little too much ether to her voice. But it should have been enough for Ven to hear.

The guards had their hands on their weapons, ready to defend in case Vivi tried something. She stood and waited.

A short while later, the curtains opened. Ven stepped out. "Well, that was loud."

"Let's talk in private," Vivi said. "I have an offer."

The guards glanced at Ven. "Do you know her?"

Ven stood with a thoughtful frown for a short while. Eventually, he said. "Let her through. She's indebted to me. We'll be discussing her debts."

Lucius and Eem both frowned. The guards didn't appear happy either, though they quickly followed orders. They opened the curtains, letting Vivi into the dungeon. Vivi walked after Ven.

"You lasted for a whole two minutes out of a week, huh?" Ven said. "Let's move down. Our voice will spread too easily in the dungeon. This whole place is filled with nimrods. I'll give you a tour in the meantime. Have you visited Aang's Union?"

"No," Vivi said.

The cavern didn't change much after the curtains. The upper levels were still a boring grey. The type of place that would make inhabitants gloomy through the sheer lack of colors in their surroundings. Light decoration had been placed to offer the place slight liveliness. Glow sticks hung from the ceiling, and a long worn-out carpet led the way down.

"I apologize for the lies," Ven said. "Rumors will start if we're seen together without explanation. It's best if we're not associated beyond debts and simple matters."

"Yes, that's fine," Vivi said. She kept herself calm ostensibly, but internally, she couldn't stop feeling nervous. She didn't know if Ven was an ally at all. He seemed friendlier than most. The long walk only added to her nervousness.

The tunnel led them to a larger cavern. Clumps of bones were spread around the room. The cavern didn't appear much different from the free dungeon. Here, too, demons were fighting respawning monsters. Demons of all kinds of appearances sat around, taking space to fight respawns.

Vivi had questions, but she kept silent for now. The carpet led the way down to the next cavern.

Ven must have seen the questioning look in her eyes. He smiled and said, "Those are all Union members. Membership costs fifty ether a month. Any nimrod is free to purchase a membership at the curtains we just passed. The pass grants access to all of the Unions services, including the respawn zones here."

"Who gets the respawns?" Vivi asked.

"Whoever waits the most, just like in the free dungeon. The rules state not to bully weaker nimrods out of the hunting grounds, though that's difficult to enforce. The Union's hunting grounds are heavily contested these days. I personally don't think it's worth it to wait for respawns here. The Union's real services are down below."

Ven walked past the fighting, following the threadbare carpet. "The Union is generally safer than the hub. Union members aren't allowed to fight inside the curtains. Causing an injury to another member will get your membership revoked without refunds. Same with stealing, destroying property, or otherwise misbehaving."

After a few more tunnels, they entered the lower levels. Crystals poked out from the ground and the ceiling, lighting the area. More ether could be sensed from the walls. Stronger monsters, worth around six hundred ether each, were fighting Union members.

A tiny nimrod, barely five feet tall, wearing a ragged tank top, walked past Vivi and Ven. He was the type of demon that begged before collection days. The man had the Union's insignia tattooed on his left hand. A circle with a star inside. Vivi was surprised. A demon of his size would choose to spend his ether on the Union's membership?

Another two guardsmen were stationed at the entrance to the next cavern. They lounged around next to their weapons. They didn't pay heed to any exiting nimrods. As Ven approached, they saluted, eyeing Vivi as she passed.

Ven ignored them, walking right past. "The next cavern has been dubbed the hub. Or Aang's Hub to be more precise. Because generally speaking, this place is far more pleasant than the mess up top."

The view on the other side made Vivi pause. Eem gushed out a sound of awe. Even Lucius dropped his guard for a moment.

Inside the dungeon was a small town, filled with workstations and demons.

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