Worthy Core

The two Sinceres share a look before turning back towards Sansie, and one of them responds. "'Lost Treasure' is a term commonly used, referring to anything and everything from a minor artifact lost a generation previous, to a mythological relic from the days of demigods which may or may not have ever existed in the first place. And you speak of a 'Lost Treasure' from a dungeon? I presume this is some sort of reward the dungeon generated, given that dungeons can't exactly be stripped for parts."

Sansie shakes her head, slightly. "We don't know the details of its creation, but we believe it to be more than that. According to the recorded claims of Domain prisoners of the past, the Great Dungeon was special in some ways, able to do things other dungeons cannot. Many of these claims likely are legends, or misinformation, but some of it does have concrete evidence. Specifically, the Kingdom of the Rainlands possesses a captured artifact known as a Dungeon Link, supposedly crafted by the Great Dungeon while it was in operation."

Sincere searches his memory, but is forced to ask for more clarification. "I'm not familiar with such an artifact. What exactly does it do?"

The Noble Elementalist smiles, taking this as a sign of interest. "Well, we've never had cause to use it ourselves. But theoretically, it can be split into two parts and sent to different dungeons. This would allow them to communicate, share a certain amount of mana between themselves, and possibly perform a few other feats we have little confirmation of. The artifact was captured years ago, when a Domain infiltration team was attempting to use it to bring a Rainlands dungeon into the fold of their 'Collaborator Dungeon' system. It's possible they have more, but if so they haven't made any further attempts to use them within our territory."

Emmett chuckles while Sincere thinks on that some more. "I notice you refer to the Kingdom possessing it, not your House specifically. Is this yours to negotiate with?"

At that, Sansie does have to shift a little in her seat. "It is not in the possession of House Perlin, no, but in that of a house closely aligned with ours. It's never been used, as they've never had any dungeons they've wished to make friends of. We've reached out to them and have begun negotiations for a trade, which I believe they're amenable to. If this is of interest to you, we're even willing to utilize...special delivery methods to ensure it could be here within the week."

Sincere crosses his arms. "Mrmm, well, tell me now - is this a gift you offer us freely, or is this merely a bargain you make in exchange for our support for your claim?"

Arlon takes care of that question. "For this, all we ask is that you clear the slate in regards to our earlier misstep. If it leads you to view us more favorably compared to House Highbranch, well...that would be appreciated, but we'll bind you to no expectations on that front as far as this is concerned."

The two demons both turn to listen to their unseen employer for a few moments before Emmett turns back to them with another question. "The master of the dungeon is interested, but there is one minor problem. She's a bit of a homebody, as you might imagine, and she has no dungeon friends. This artifact is potentially useful but not without another dungeon to use it with. Did you have any intentions as far as that part of it goes?"

The Lord shakes his head. "At a minimum, we thought you might find it useful to simply have on hand, in the event that you did find a use for it down the road. If you'd like to make use of it more immediately, we could provide you with a list of older, more communicative dungeons within the Rainlands you might find to be of interest. Or you could speak with the Challenger's Association on the topic - they'd likely have far more access to dungeons than we do."

The demons listen again, and Sincere provides the official response. "We'll take both parts of this link for now, until we've found a likely partner dungeon. We'd still like for you to actually clear Floor Seven again if you wish for us to consider that properly done, but once we have the actual artifact and not simply a promise of one, we'll be willing to seriously consider House Perlin as an option for local lordship. You should be aware that Highbranch has already made their own initial offer, so you still have some road to hike left ahead of you."

Arlon nods deeply. "Understood, and I thank you for being willing to hear us out even this far. Your master is indeed a very reasonable dungeon, as they've been known to say. Depending on our own negotiations we could have the item in your hands in as little as a few days, but we'll let you know if it ends up delayed overmuch."

"We'll be looking forward to it. In the meanwhile, feel free to enjoy the hospitality of our inn or the lounge, or to challenge yourself upon Floor Seven, if you like." The pair rise to show their guests out, and the nobles follow.

"We'll perhaps rest here overnight and try it in the morn, thank you. I look forward to having our reputation cleared in the near future."

The expedition files out, finding a runner from their entourage waiting for them in the inn to pass on their messages, and in the meanwhile Xenia huddles back up with her negotiators. "So, you actually think this is going to be useful for us?"

Sincere's smile is wide, far more so than it had been during the actual talks. "Oh, yes. While I am not specifically familiar with this particular artifact, given what I know of dungeons, and of the Dragonlord? I think the Rainlanders don't realize what it is they actually have."

Xenia raises an eyebrow. "Eh? And what is that?"

"If there's a link that can provide mana, it can almost certainly provide more. Perhaps monster designs, crossbreeding...even a transfer of souls, perhaps. I do have to wonder now if the Domain does have a network of these among their Collaborator Dungeons, or if they've perhaps created something else based on study of artifacts like this. There is still the matter of deciding what other dungeon to actually link up with, but if they or the Association are willing to send the other link to one of the older dungeons of the continent? Well, the possibilities are significant."

A copy of his smile finally appears on Xenia's face. "Well, now that does sound useful. In the meanwhile though, I really wanna get this quest turned in to Kahlia before something else comes along. Ready to pop back to the Lounge, Em?"

The reflection raises his hands. "Hold up! Mind if I stay out here for a while longer? I know Sincere here's been hoping for the chance to give me a try."

The demon's eyes grow wide and he sputters. "I - no! I mean, not right this moment, anyhow! I just...had a bit of natural curiosity, that's all! I'm sure the others have at some point, as well."

Ignoring his denials, Xenia pats the man on the shoulder as she rises from her seat. "Hey man, you ain't gotta justify anything to me. Knock yourself out...well, not literally, do other things to yourself, I guess. See you later, with any luck we'll have a dungeon meeting tonight with some news."

Before he can issue any further denials, the dungeon master pops out, leaving the man with his own grinning reflection. "So...ever had anyone try a time magic trick on you, nerd boy?"

After popping back to her meditation chamber and going through a very quick set of relaxation exercises, Xenia had Guy once again activate the dungeon's divine connection to Kahlia. Unlike her last trip with Deylia, this time Xenia felt the connection open up nearly immediately, and within moments the dungeon master found herself once again within the Eternal Forest. After blinking a bit to adjust her eyes, she looks around and notices that she's not in the usual small forest clearing, but rather on the border of a forest and a large, hilly meadow of flowers. A copy of Kahlia's organic throne is still there however, with the goddess herself seated upon it, and so Xenia quickly bows. "Your Fertileness! I'm glad you were willing to talk to me so quickly. I take it now's a good time? It's occurred to me that it might be more useful to set up appointments ahead of time, if you'd prefer that sort of thing..."

The statuesque divinity smiles down at the much smaller woman. "No need, within these personal realms time can flow a little differently than it does in other realms. I did expect you to come a little sooner after you completed your quests however, so we have been waiting somewhat for your arrival. My companions got rather bored in the process, as you can see." She gestures to a hillside behind Xenia, elevated a little lower than their own current position, which affords her a rather clear view.

A view of what, she's not entirely certain. "Is that...a pink-haired dwarf sucking a dude off?"

"Indeed, Taina does tend to get a little...frisky when left with time on her hands. I'd have joined in, but as I think I've mentioned, it takes rather intense effort on my part to not end up getting someone pregnant when I play around, and I wanted to be fresh for our meeting. And speaking of which, congratulations. Both quests completed with a single coupling, very elegantly done."

Xenia looks back and forth between Kahlia and the pair on the distant hill. "Thanks, wasn't really planned, but did work out well enough, I guess. I'm sorry, did you say...Taina? Like, the Goddess of Love, Taina, right? And...don't tell me that's Palain, is it? What sort of party did I crash, here?" A moment after she says that, her eyes go wide. "Wait, were all three of you waiting to talk with me?"

The goddess nods. "We were. However, we have two matters to discuss, and they're only here for one of those, so since I'd hate to interrupt their fun how about we deal with the smaller matter first? You've completed a divine quest on behalf of your dungeon, and so you have won yourself a new Divine Favor. Surpassed it, even, with seven conceptions out of five which I found rather amusing. Have you considered what you would like? Within the limits of my divine portfolio, of course."

Xenia nods. "I have, yeah. Although first I was wondering if I could ask for, like, a lower-case-f favor. Would it be possible to still get a notification when someone gets knocked up in my place? That's turned out kind of handy for more than just quest tracking."

Kahlia considers that for a brief moment before agreeing. "That's rather basic functionality, equivalent to a spell even most low-level acolytes can perform, and if it encourages more visitors to 'try their luck' in your dungeon, I can see that being beneficial indeed. What else did you have on your mind, though?"

This time, Xenia chews her lip for a bit before making her request. "Well, I did want to check with you on what the options might be. I don't think we need another general fertility buff or anything like that, I think what we've got is pretty good. Do you have anything that'd be a good fit for dungeon combat, though? I've heard some gods offer champions or unique monsters, or stuff like that. Or even rewards like, I don't know - revival potions we could use for loot drops?"

The towering woman raises an eyebrow. "Resurrection is a very different beast than reincarnation, so that is not something I could casually give out, no. Every such potion capable of reviving the dead would drain upon my own personal energy, and if I started reviving dead Challengers all willy-nilly - no, I cannot grant that. As for champions - I see. You wish for Bill."

"Bill?" Xenia tilts her head. "I dunno, am I asking for a Bill?"

"Bill of the Blue Hair, a legendary figure you may be familiar with. He was not one of mine in life - he took on the title of Paragon of Valor, actually. But I did try to make him a Paragon of Fertility, he had so many children, and I offered him a place in my halls when he died. Apparently he preferred an eternity of the pleasures my halls offer over the pleasures of eternal combat, and that time he did accept my offer. He is perhaps the most combat-capable of my Paragons, and the only one I would consider for a role as a dungeon ambassador."

"Wait, Sable's grandpa Bill? That...could be interesting. You can really have him join the dungeon just like that?"

The goddess snorts. "No, not just like that. For starters, I will not require him to do anything he does not wish to, he has earned his rest. Furthermore, as I said, he chose not to enter into an eternity of fighting for his final rewards. If he agrees, he would not just be another of your floor guardians. Instead, he would be more of...oh, what's the term, a 'wandering boss' type? Someone for you to call upon in your moments of need, should things take a dire turn. A champion to come, defeat a great threat, and then leave." Having said that, she then stirs slightly in her seat. "...Although knowing Bill, you could probably get him to stay longer if you plied him with beautiful women."

Xenia narrows her eyes a little, but eventually shrugs. "Eh, fuck it, an ace up the sleeve to pull our ass out of the fire is too good to pass up. If he's down for it, I'll take it. I don't suppose you've got another quest for us to tackle next, by any chance? I think things are pretty well set up now for getting the Challengers all nice and frisky."

"Just how many Divine Favors do you think the average dungeon receives, Reincarnator? Two in a year is quite enough I'm afraid, although I do of course appreciate you continuing with your...successful program. That said, if the matter of dungeon-related favors is out of the way, shall we proceed to your personal quest?"

Xenia quickly grows more serious as she nods. "Yeah, let's. You've found a way to get in touch with the gods from that other realm?"

"Indeed. Let me gather my colleagues, and we shall speak further."