"What do you mean?" Vivi asked. "The black masks shouldn't be that strong. We can raid them."

Aang's expression barely changed. "Raiding them is too risky. My goal right now is to make sure my men survive. All of us want our ether back, but it's not as simple as walking in and fighting for it. The Reapers are much stronger than the Hollows. Inside-carved runeswords will give you an advantage, but is the difference enough to defeat tens of maxed-out fighters? The Hollows combined can gather, at most, one and a half fighters to help you."

"I agree with Aang," Ven said. "I watched you fight, Vivi. Your swords bring your power up by at least two elevations. But your technique with the sword, and your control over ether, show that you're clearly still a craftsman. You haven't reached the first elevation yet, and your form is subpar. With your venerium sword, you might rival Bwern himself in strength, but you won't win if Bwern has even a single advantage, trap, or any trick at all to confuse you. Attacking him is stupid."

"Are you saying there's no way to defeat his gang?" Vivi asked.

"I'm saying that a craftsman like you really shouldn't be in Zand," Ven said. "I don't know much about inside-carving or runesmithing, but your swords are the strongest weapons I've ever heard of. Your work is wasted here. We're all small prey. The best nimrods are second elevation at most. Even the Stewards aren't that amazing in the grand scheme of things. Uundref has reached the third elevation. The others are second or below.

"Your swords are something that fourth, maybe even fifth elevation fighters, loaded with exalted skills, would consider wielding. You should be looking to get out of Zand, not to dominate this little hierarchy. The ten thousand ether you offered is a ridiculously small sum for a sword like yours."

"The exalted knights themselves would wield Vivi's swords," Rensfig said. "Inside-carving is the largest breakthrough runesmithing has seen since its invention."

"And using swords like those in Zand is ludicrous," Ven said. He sipped his drink, eyes wandering away from Vivi's direction.

"I'm really not selling anything amazing," Vivi said. "It's just a quick two-runed sword. It would shame my smithy's name to sell a two-runed sword to anyone influential. I won't cry if a sword like that is lost here."

Ven snorted with an amused look on his face. "Bwern would try to enslave you if he knew of your swords. He's probably searching for you right now. Andre would probably do the same."

"Andre already tried to enslave me," Vivi said. She hesitated for a moment, then said, "Honestly, I'm confused about why aren't you doing the same."

Ven shrugged and glanced at Aang. The leader still looked serious. His expression had stayed nearly identical the whole conversation.

"Why won't I enslave you?" Aang asked. "When a nimrod begs for ether on the streets, do you have an urge to punch them?"

"No?" Vivi said.

"Neither do I," Aang said. "I also don't feel an urge to enslave a lost craftsman who's imprisoned four levels down from home. You should reach out to the Stewards, Vivi. Show Uundref your sword. Uundref is the most loyal Steward to Ingfried. He will take you directly to Ingfried's castle."

"I have business with the humans on the upper levels," Vivi said. "I can't work with Ingfried."

"You're looking for an escape, then?" Aang asked.

Vivi thought for a moment. "Is escaping possible?"

"Everyone thinks about escape," Aang said. "But escaping is widely considered too difficult. There are too many challenges. Black hardstone walls are as good as impenetrable. The only way out of the facility is either with a hidden tunnel, or through the front gates. Both are difficult."

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"There's already one hole in the wall," Vivi said. "How was that created?"

"That one has existed for decades," Aang said. "The Stewards made it as a way to get inside the wall. The hidden trapdoor is also an old one. I'm not sure who made that one. Escaping through the wall is nearly impossible."

"The bigger problem is what you do after escaping," Ven said. "The fourth level is a wasteland. There's one town fifty miles from here with farmland, but that town will provide nothing for escaping nimrods. The nearest descent to the fifth level, Klausport, is four hundred miles to the west. Excluding the blight, of course—nobody can survive in the blight.

"Reaching Klausport means four hundred miles of trotting through uninhabitable wastelands. You're surrounded by monsters with very little food. Finding shelter is difficult. And if you manage to survive all the way to Klausport, you're welcomed as a wanted criminal and a Zand escapee. Meaning that you'll most likely have to walk another two hundred miles to the next city, Domron.

"There have been a total of three successful escapes during my time here," Ven continued. "Another escape is being investigated right now. An outside raid with ten wolves and three guards went missing four days ago. Nine wolves and the two guards were found mutilated and paralyzed with poison. The Stewards suspect that the last wolf was the culprit. Ah, and this is classified information. Don't ask me how I know this."

Lucius's head perked up in Vivi's core. "Vivi. Ask him about the poison."

What, why? Vivi thought.

"Just do it. Ask him about the poison. This might be important."

Okay… Vivi thought. "What kind of poison was it?"

Ven lifted his eyebrows, surprised by the question. "I'm not entirely certain. I heard the corpses had purple eyes due to its effects. I'm not as involved with the wolves and outside raids as I should be. But I've also heard that monsters are rare outside the walls for the last few weeks. Rumors have started that some lone crazy person is hunting monsters outside the walls."

"Oooh, big trouble," Lucius said. "Vivi, this might be our fault."

What do you mean?

"Do you remember the boss we spawned?" Lucius asked. "The Twilight Shaman. It sounds like the boss is still alive. Purple eyes definitely come from the poison of its spiders."

Vivi paused. Oops. What does that mean for us?

"Shaman-type monsters grow stronger by gathering an army of monsters. The larger their army grows, the more ether the boss monster gains. The Shaman's presence would explain why outside raids see less monsters. The boss is gathering an army."

Is that a problem? Vivi asked. She pretended to look thoughtful while she talked with Lucius. The demons waited.

"Well, we might have created a calamity-level boss," Lucius said. He sounded strangely excited. "If the Stewards don't defeat the boss in the next few weeks, it might grow strong enough to cause problems. Usually, shaman bosses send their armies to attack a town or something."

There are no towns nearby.

"It will probably attack Zand, then."

Great…

So many problems clouded Vivi's head again. Escaping Zand. The main dungeon and its boss. Defeating the black masks, or at least surviving their attacks. Growing stronger as a fighter. All the while her debts ticked down. She still needed to earn a hundred thousand ether.

"Rensfig?" Vivi asked. "Do you have iron lacquer or a roll of white obsidian?"

"I have both," Rensfig said.

"Could I borrow them for a bit?" Vivi asked. She needed iron lacquer to protect the runes for both of her swords. Right now, the hilts were completely open, and the runes could be freely scraped.

"I'll bring you whatever you need," Rensfig said. "I'd give you my smithy if it wasn't destroyed." He bowed, then left to grab the equipment.

Vivi drank the rest of her glass of water. "Is it okay if we set a truce?" she asked. "I don't have many allies in Zand. I don't think our goals match—I won't join your gang—but I would like to be friendly."

"That depends on how much trouble you get yourself into," Aang said.

"As long as I don't bring trouble to you, am I free to visit and ask questions?" Vivi asked.

"The Union accepts all nimrods," Aang said. "I'll grant you a membership. If you need to talk to us, contact one of our officials. We will get in touch as quickly as we can."

"Can you defend the Union without my help?" Vivi asked.

"We'll use Zand's guards," Aang said. "As long as guardsmen are nearby, Bwern can't attack. Not at full force, at least. The Union will rebuild."

"What about you?" Ven asked. "You're planning on getting yourself killed?"

Rensfig arrived back before Vivi could answer. He had both items as Vivi had asked. Iron lacquer and a roll of silk-like white obsidian.

Vivi thanked the dwarf and summoned Abyss Destroyer. She began brushing lacquer on its runes. Then she said, "I'm planning on earning ether. You'll see me again for the next collection day."

The demons furrowed their brows.

"Ah, and before I go, you wouldn't happen to have another venerium antidote for me?" Vivi asked.

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