This Used To Be About Dungeons полностью

“But is this what everyone is wearin’, ay?” asked Hannah, looking at the other girls. “Because a dungeon can be a terrible place. Better to have paddin’, if you don’t have armor, and better to cover up if you don’t have paddin’.” She was giving Mizuki a skeptical look. “Your arms are bare, ay?”

“I’ve got a cloak,” said Mizuki, pulling it from her bag to show Hannah. “Besides, Alfric has been very clear that he’ll protect us.”

“You’re wearin’ culottes and sandals,” said Hannah, looking down at Mizuki’s feet. “How’s Alfric to protect you from insects and mud, ay?”

“I’ll be fine,” said Mizuki, frowning. “Bugs don’t like me, and mud doesn’t bother me.”

“Well, we’ll see,” said Hannah, clearly not buying it. “I can heal anythin’ that’s no more’n skin deep, ay, but if it’s into the muscle, there are limits to how much and how often, so you be careful not to rely on me overmuch. And a puncture to the guts, we’d have to bring you back into town. Very little symmetry to be found in the guts.” Her gaze went to Verity.

“This is the best I have,” said Verity. She was wearing a dress with small white flowers printed on it, with boots her only concession to practicality. “I don’t actually own pants.”

“What do you do in winter then, ay?” asked Hannah.

“I sing a song so I don’t feel the cold,” replied Verity.

Hannah laughed until it became obvious that Verity wasn’t joking. “But you’re still cold!”

Verity shrugged. “I stay inside a lot. And I do have a jacket. Plus some warming elements to keep my room toasty.”

Hannah clucked her tongue. “Well then, I s’pose we’re ready as we’re going to be. Who is our last?” she asked Alfric.

“Isra,” he replied. “She’ll be our ranger.”

“Not typical, is it?” asked Hannah. “To have a ranger?”

“Not really, no,” replied Alfric. “But she’s a skilled huntress, second elevation, and—”

“Available?” asked Mizuki with a bright smile.

“Yes,” said Alfric. “Better than the other options the censusmaster gave me.” He had done his asking around.

“Well, I’m in need of supplies, things that I couldn’t get yesterday when I heard you sniffin’ around,” said Hannah. “Does anyone want to come with me? We’ve got a bit more than a bell, but if the meetin’ place is to be by the warp, then we can all just warp there, so time’s not so much a concern.”

“I’ll come,” said Mizuki, looking down at her sandals. “You might have a point.”

“Do you not own proper shoes?” asked Hannah.

“None that I’d want covered in ichor, which seems to be what you’re saying will happen,” replied Mizuki.

They split off, leaving Verity and Alfric alone.

“I hope those two do well by themselves,” said Alfric. “I should probably be going back to my room to put on my armor and get ready to go.”

“I’ll do better with the song later,” said Verity. “I was pushing it.”

“It’s fine,” said Alfric. “I don’t really care what happens when we’re outside the dungeon, so long as it goes smoothly once we’re in. You only get to do each dungeon once, so I’m hoping that we do a full clear every time.” It wasn’t technically true that you could only do each dungeon once, but he was hoping not to be called out on that technicality, because it wasn’t the kind of digression he wanted at the moment.

“Except that not everyone has agreed to a second?” asked Verity, raising an eyebrow.

“True,” said Alfric. “A full clear this time, then.”

“This has been put together fast,” said Verity. “I don’t know anything about dungeoneering, but I would think that we’d have trial runs and training.”

“It might be better that way, yes, but I really don’t think it’s necessary,” said Alfric.

“I’ve played with other musicians before,” said Verity. “My current conditions might not suggest it, but I was conservatory-trained. You can sit down, three or four of you together, totally unknown to each other, and make beautiful music in accordance with your sheet music, but you only ever do that if you have very little time. It’s better with people you’ve come to know and trust, people who you’ve practiced with extensively. The music comes out much better.”

“Well,” said Alfric, sniffing slightly. “There are differences of opinion when it comes to dungeoneering. Sometimes you put together what is, on paper, a perfect team, you prepare everything perfectly, you do trial runs and theorycrafting… and it just falls apart.”

“I suppose I can see that,” said Verity. “I’ll trust you to know your business, if you trust me to know mine.”