Eleven different duos registered for dungeon races, and the closing ceremonies of the Gomi Games knocked out four of them. Hans was grateful they were mature enough to send a representative to let him know who had succumbed to their hangovers. That was better than calling names who would never answer. Devon hadn’t registered to compete, but he had done his part to stoke the flames on this, so Hans noted that the Paladin opted to stay in bed instead of coming out to watch.

  That little shit.

  Hans’ head didn’t feel the greatest, either, so he wasn’t about to complain about this ad hoc competition being significantly shorter. Devon was still going to get an earful, though.

  “Morning everybody,” Hans said outside of the basement dungeon, surrounded by bleary-eyed adventurers and the ruins of a city post-war. “I almost said ‘good’ morning, but I don’t think that tracks.”

  Painful chuckles rippled across the small gathering. Even Bert looked worse for wear.

  “We’re running this course for time. Every team gets one run, and the best time at the end wins. There are twenty enemies in the basement, but their positions will be different each time. The rules are simple: Defeat all of the enemies and come out the other side to complete the run. If you take a hit, even a small one, your run is over. The course itself must also be undamaged. I’m fine with a ding or two, but if you kick down a door or bust through a wall, you’re out, and that’s also it for runs for the day because we only have one course.

  “That rule applies to your summons as well. You’re welcome to use them, but you’re responsible for the damage they do. Any questions?”

  “What’s the best time so far?” Bert asked.

  “We’ve never done it with twenty monsters before, so there isn’t one.”

  “What are the monsters?” That question came from a human Hans recognized from the day before but didn’t know otherwise.

  Hans dug an acorn out of his pocket and dropped it in front of him. A wooden soldier emerged and stood in front of the crowd. “These. They’ll have blunted swords, but they’re stronger than a person, so don’t sleep on them.”

  “What spell was that?”

  “Something I picked up from a fae a little ways back. Any other questions about the course?”

  “What’s the prize?” Gunther asked.

  “Bragging rights only.”

  Gunther looked unimpressed.

  “Alright, so everyone but Master Bertram and Gunther will come with me to the viewing area. Gentlemen, wait for my whistle to enter.”

  “Come on, Gunny,” Bert grumbled. “They’re putting us first, so we’re at a disadvantage.”

  “I don’t care,” Gunther said.

  Bert laughed.

  While Bert and Gunther had a last-minute discussion about their strategy for clearing the course, Hans led the others to the viewing area on the walls of Leebel’s Rest. Though the crowd had dwindled a bit in light of the excessive drinking, the turnout was still surprising. Adventurers being competitive wasn’t unusual, but the interest in this simple fake dungeon run wasn’t something Hans had anticipated.

  “I can’t believe this many people want to do a training course,” Hans said as he settled into his position on the parapet, one hand on an exposed dungeon root.

  Terry shrugged. “I can.”

  The old guard looked tired, but he was far less green and disheveled than the other adventurers. Practice had a way of revealing itself like that.

  “You’re not surprised?” Hans asked.

  “Nah. I wasn’t an adventurer for long, but I picked up pretty quick that bullshitting other adventurers was part of the gig. There’s no real way to compare one party to another. Everyone knows that, so mouths just run.”

  “But this is standardized.”

  “Yes, indeedy. I put money on Kane and Quentin.”

  “When did people start taking bets on this?”

  “Pretty much immediately,” Terry chuckled.

  “And you’re betting on the boys over everyone?”

  Bert was the only Diamond competing, making his team the most obvious favorite. Terry likely realized what Hans did: Two Berserkers weren’t the best suited for a challenge like this one. Their signature abilities couldn’t last the entirety of the course, and they had to be mindful not to damage their surroundings.

  Kane and Quentin weren’t Berserkers, but their builds were not dramatically different from Bert and Gunther’s. As a Spellsword, Kane had some additional tools in his arsenal, but he and Quentin were still largely melee focused. Hans thought highly of the boys as well, but Terry’s confidence was strong enough to be certainty.

  “They’ve got the head for this kind of thing,” Terry explained. “More importantly, they understand how you think. They’ll anticipate more of the enemy placements because of that, I reckon.”

  “Interesting.” Hans turned to face the course. With two fingers in his mouth, he loosed a loud whistle.

  Bert and Gunther ran the basement, keeping a steady pace throughout. Unlike the adventurers waiting with him, Hans could see the full run as if he were right there with them. He was pleased that Gunther followed Bert’s directions, and even more pleased by how much of that communication was entirely intuitive. A summer training with Bert had been better for Gunther than Hans realized, and he had already thought it went pretty well.

  The wooden soldiers weren’t complicated encounters, but the “no hit” rule ensured that adventurers used smart room-clearing tactics, so even though Bert could one-shot most of the enemies, he still had to mind his position and be aware of the battlefield. Had course destruction been allowed, Hans suspected the run would have looked much different. With that rule in place, however, it looked like a methodical dungeon crawl.

  They finished with 16:43 for their time.

  Donbia and Marrok went next. The dwarf and human pair had spent a good bit of time training in Gomi. They were the first adventurers to visit the Hans’ Ultimate Training Dungeon back before the real dungeon was public. They were another pure-melee duo, so their approach wasn’t much different from Bert and Gunther’s. A room with four soldiers tripped them up, however, so they finished the course with a time of 21:11.

  Bert started gloating well before Donbia and Marrok could even hear it happening.

  Several duos of visiting adventurers followed. A few got tagged and were disqualified, but most managed to clear the course successfully. The best time to come out of those runs was 23:02, and the worst time was 39:57, not counting the disqualifications, of course.

  The races stretched into the afternoon, and while Hans liked the camaraderie this silly little contest seemed to inspire among the adventurers, resetting the course every time was tedious. He had to step away, hop down, activate Camouflage, run the length of the course, and then return to his lookout point every time. Anyone present would have gladly helped, but Hans was the only one who could summon the wooden soldiers and command them to use the blunted weapons on the course instead of their default blades. Those were wood as well, but they were as hard as bronzewood and as sharp as any iron Hans had ever handled.

  They also disappeared when the soldiers did, so he never got to keep one.

  Kane and Quentin had the last run of the day, and they were as technical with their tactics as Terry predicted. Early on, however, Hans noticed their pace falling behind Bert and Gunther’s. The boys were solid adventurers, but Bert’s power was exceptional. They needed two or three blows to take down an enemy that took Bert only one, so their ending time was 22:09.

  Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

  Hans thought that was pretty impressive for a pair of Irons.

  By that time at the end of the day, most of the adventurers had wandered away, so only a small crowd was present to witness that last run. Hans was happy to see, however, that Roland and Uncle Ed were among them. They knew their boys were exceptional, but they had very few chances to ever actually see them in action. A tournament sparring match was a far cry from a dungeon crawl, after all.

  “That was quite a sight,” Uncle Ed said when Hans called time for Kane and Quentin. “I’m still going to worry about them, but seeing that eases my heart a bit.”

  Roland nodded, smiling. He was quite proud of Quentin’s performance.

  Bert put a big hand on Hans’ shoulder. “Not to volunteer you for more work, but we should think about doing more of these next year.”

  Hans looked up at the big Berserker. “Yeah?”

  “Adventurers don’t fight adventurers, but that’s all a tournament is,” Bert replied. “I don’t know what doing more of this looks like, but I’m in favor of contests that are more about adventuring, if you get my meaning.”

  “I do.”

  Quest Complete: Host dungeon races.

  New Quest: Brainstorm more competitive dungeon games.

  “I’m open to ideas,” Hans added.

  “I’ll give it some thought. My mind doesn’t work like yours, but I’ll help if I can.”

  “You staying around long?”

  “A day or so. Duty calls, as they say.”

  Hans laughed. “Yes, they do say that.”

  “Join me for a pint this evening? I wouldn’t mind a catch-up, but I’ve got to get a nap in first.”

  “I can agree to that, but only if you come over. I can’t do another tavern night.”

  “Deal.”

  With that, Bert departed.

  “Sorry about your money, Terry,” Hans said.

  “I’m not. It was good fun. Bert’s got the right idea with going to bed, though. I’ll see you for class tomorrow.”

  On his way home, Hans stopped by the guild hall to drop off the clipboard and papers he brought along for the dungeon races. A few adventurers milled about, but Hans suspected most of them would soon follow Bert’s lead as well. As he stepped out of the guild hall, Shandi called his name.

  She and Luther seemed to be on their way into the schoolhouse. Classes were cancelled on account of the Games, but he wasn’t surprised to see those two working on a day off.

  Shandi gave Hans a big hug. “Congratulations! I’m so happy for you.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Are you letting yourself enjoy it?”

  “Yes. Olza is insisting on it.”

  Luther offered his hand. “I’m not versed in adventuring, but I know it’s quite an achievement. Congratulations.”

  Hans shook it.

  “You should have dinner with Thomas and me to celebrate,” Shandi said. She paused to look at Hans’ bedraggled appearance. “Not tonight. Give it a few days for you to recover.”

  “That sounds nice.”

  Shandi hugged Hans again and slipped into the schoolhouse.

  Luther hesitated and clenched his jaw like he was nervous. “Can I ask you something real quick?”

  “Yes…”

  “Maurice and I are officially making the move to Leebel’s. Would it bother you if I took the place next door?”

  “Next door to me and Olza?”

  “Yes. I understand if-”

  “Gods, Luther. I thought you were about to drop a mess of bad news in my lap. I don’t own the street, you know.”

  “I don’t want to be a bother.”

  “I’d love to have you for a neighbor. Let me know which place, and I’ll help you get it ready.”

  “You’re sure?” Luther asked.

  “Completely.”

  Luther’s shoulders dipped. He had been holding far more tension about this than Hans would have expected. “Thanks.”

  Mazo joined Bert, Hans, and Olza for dinner that night. They sat on the deck after their meal and passed around a box of cookies from Charlie’s bakery.

  With crumbs in the corners of his lips, Bert said, “You all have put in a lot of work down here. I can’t quite get my head around how much has changed.”

  “Gomi stays busy,” Olza replied. “Someone is always working, which is great for the town but a little rough on your sleep schedule.”

  “How did our boy Gunny do in Kohei?” Mazo asked.

  Bert wiped his mouth but missed most of the crumbs. “Did just fine, I’d say. Worked hard. Did what he was told. Never missed a training session. You all had me believing he was some kind of wild hellion.”

  Everyone laughed.

  “He’s growing up,” Hans said. “He was always a good kid but is too headstrong for his own good sometimes.”

  “I can picture that.”

  Mazo broke a cookie in half to make it easier for her halfling fingers and mouth to handle. “Any insights? I’ve never trained someone like Gunny. I’m not above copying your homework.”

  “I worked off of the notes you all gave me, for the most part. Only thing that comes to mind is getting him in the field more. The training room isn’t enough to occupy his mind at this point.”

  Hans and Mazo locked eyes.

  As if finishing a telepathic conversation, Mazo returned her attention to the Berserker. “How do you feel about him doing Bronze jobs? His other three party members are all Bronze.”

  “He was serious about that? I figured he was bullshitting me for the laughs when he said he ran with three Bronze Assassins.”

  Mazo nodded. “All of my Blue tactics assume a backline position. I’ve worked with a few Spellswords over the years, but never one that was a solo frontliner.”

  Bert thought. “Any other kid, I’d say you’re out of your mind putting them into those kinds of encounters this early. If they’re smart about picking jobs and these Assassins have their heads on straight, Gunny’s got the tools.”

  “What makes you want him to do more fieldwork?” Hans asked.

  “He’s a killer,” Bert answered. “Pulling his shots in the training room doesn’t do the trick. He needs to not hold back to really get the anger out of his system. There’s not enough violence for him if he isn’t allowed to finish the fight, you know?”

  Out of the corner of his eye, Hans noticed Olza blanch and drop her gaze.

  “Moving on from work,” Hans said, trying to be subtle about his hint to the group, “Any good rumors coming out of the kingdom?”

  “Same shit. Different day. You dying is probably the most interesting news I got, and boy did you put me through it. I got both letters the same day. Read the first one, and I couldn’t figure how to break it to the boys but knew I had to. Then I read the second letter, and you’re alive again.”

  Hans and Mazo laughed.

  “And by the time I get to Gomi, I hear you got your boon. How’d you find time to hit a quest in the middle of all of that?”

  Wobbling his head, Hans answered, “It’s uhh… It’s not a traditional boon, if there even is such a thing.”

  “I’m all for being respectful of other folk’s business,” Bert said, “and I know it’s rude to ask, but shit. This is a weird one. Is the boon what brought you back?”

  Hans nodded.

  “No shit? Is the dungeon growing boons now?”

  “It’s not.”

  Bert narrowed his eyes and considered the Gomi Guild Master.

  “I’m still learning how to use it, but the simplest way to describe it is that it's kind of like Blue Magic.”

  Mazo scoffed.

  “I said ‘kind of.’” When Mazo didn’t reply, Hans resumed his conversation with Bert. “I have a few monster abilities I can use.”

  “And Druid magic,” Bert added, referencing the conversation earlier that day.

  “Right. That too.”

  “I take it this boon isn’t going to smooth anything over with the Guild, huh?”

  Hans shook his head.

  Bert leaned back. “Well, from what I’ve put together and from what I’ve heard, I’m very grateful to be on your side of all this.”

  “Thanks, Bert.”

  The Berserker raised a cookie. “To Hans the Diamond!”

  Open Quests (Ordered from Old to New):

  Monitor for independently grown sections of dungeon.

  Complete the next volume (Bronze to Silver) for “The Next Generation: A Teaching Methodology for Training Adventurers.”

  Learn to help your advanced students as much as you help beginners.

  Relocate the titan bones to the dungeon entrance.

  Master your Diamond boon.

  Get Dunfoo the materials he needs for a Holy enchantment.

  Learn more about the limits of the dungeon roots.

  Test the extent of your dungeon influence.

  Brainstorm more competitive dungeon games.