When Hans entered the mimic lab, Chisel sat on the floor in front of an enclosure with a scattering of melon-sized rocks while Honronk read at one of the tables. Mazo was not present.

  Honronk looked up and glanced between Hans and Chisel. “I will return shortly,” the Black Mage said, closing his book and tucking it under his arm as he stood.

  Hans found a low stool–likely sized for halfling proportions–and set it near where Chisel worked.

  “Can I sit?” he asked.

  “Mmhmm.”

  “I’ve been thinking, and-”

  “I’m sorry,” Chisel blurted.

  “What?”

  “I’m sorry. You were clear about how dangerous mimics are, and I ignored that.”

  “I was coming to apologize to you, actually,” Hans said.

  “What did you do?”

  “Got angry when you were only trying to help Gomi.”

  Chisel frowned. “You were justified.”

  “If I was, I handled it poorly. I treated you as if Mazo were the one making the suggestion, and we haven’t had a great history there, but that’s me and Mazo, not me and you. That wasn’t fair. I’m sorry.”

  “Thank you.”

  Hans nodded.

  “Was something else on your mind?”

  “Not really. I expected that to take longer.”

  Chisel laughed. When she quieted, she said, “Party dynamics are strange.”

  “What makes you say that?”

  “My party… We were all so close there for a while. We were always together and always busy. Then Terry got hurt, and now that the dungeon is open, I don’t see Buru or Yotuli much either.”

  “You all have kind of pursued your own projects. That’s true.”

  “Is that bad?”

  “Why do you ask that?”

  “We could be training together more so that we’re better on runs.”

  “But then you each wouldn’t make as much progress outside of the party,” Hans pointed out. “Nobody has started adventuring in the way that you all did, and I’m confident that isn’t an exaggeration. We made a party out of who was there, and then we immediately started culls. Usually that time at Apprentice is used to help you decide what kind of adventurer you want to be and what kind of party would suit you best.”

  “It’s still strange for us to be so close and then separate.”

  “That’s fair. Frankly, you all did incredibly well as a party. Take any other six Apprentices and toss them together? It would never go that smoothly.”

  “But are we wasting our potential as a party?” Chisel asked.

  “Could you accomplish a lot as a party? Yeah. You can accomplish a lot in other ways too. What brought this to mind?”

  “You mentioned your history with Mazo, and I was trying to imagine what that would be like. You’ve spent so much time together.”

  Hans chuckled. “Twenty years or so. We can both be assholes. Sometimes we’re assholes at the same time.”

  “But your party accomplished so much.”

  “Remember that you only hear the good stories,” Hans cautioned. “We did this bugbear run, for example, and it was misery. It poured cold rain for days. We got lost twice. I left three Haynu books out one night by accident, and they got soaked. Gret was distraught over that. Boden gave Mazo a black eye. He pulled his spear back for a thrust and bopped her right in the face with the butt. One of Mazo’s spells knocked Boden into a bog, and he was certain she did it on purpose.”

  “Poor Gret.”

  “Oh no, he was an asshole too. He was irritable the whole time. He hated being wet and cold and made it everyone’s problem. He was always like that when the weather was shit.”

  Chisel laughed. “So I’m not missing out then?”

  “You can’t do everything. You can’t go through every door. No matter what you do, you’re going to miss out on something somewhere.”

  “That’s part of what worries me, I guess,” Chisel said. “If we can’t use this mimic research anywhere, am I just wasting time? Would I be better off working with a party instead?”

  “Ah.”

  “See what I mean? What are we even doing here?” Chisel closed her notebook and dropped it before dropping her face in her hands. “Sorry.”

  Hans looked around the lab. The space was still largely empty. Other than the enclosures along the back wall, the few tables and workbenches present were far enough apart that he could safely run sparring sessions in here if he wanted.

  “You have an idea,” Chisel said when she looked up.

  “I do.”

  “And you’re unhappy about it.”

  “Mazo is going to be pissed.”

  Quest Update: Apologize to Yotuli.

  New Quest: Talk to William about royal research exemptions.

  Quest Complete: Talk to William about royal research exemptions.

  “You fucking did what?” Mazo bellowed.

  Without a word, Olza collected a small armful of books and papers and went up the stairs rather than linger in the lab to witness whatever was to come.

  “How fucking dare you.”

  Hans raised his hands. “It’s good news.”

  “You went behind my back.”

  “I did.”

  “And that’s good news?”

  “Give me thirty seconds to explain, and then you can lay into me.”

  Mazo crossed her arms.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  “I revealed nothing about your research or what we’ve done in the dungeon,” Hans began. “I asked William if the kingdom ever issued exemptions for dangerous research. They do.”

  “But only if-”

  Hans held up a finger. “Only if the right names vouch for the methodology and the circumstances are unique enough. We’ve got Honronk the Tamer. We have Mazo the Blue Mage. We have layers and layers of security. And we have the only domesticated dungeon core in known existence.”

  “Domesticated dungeon core?”

  “That kind of just came out of my mouth.”

  “It’s not bad,” Mazo admitted.

  “Thank you,” Hans said. “William thinks we are considering a start to this research. He has agreed to vet the safety of our lab. If he finds it satisfactory, he is willing to co-sign a request for an official exemption. That goes through? You’ll be the foremost voice on mimics. Behind Honronk and Chisel.”

  “Shoulder to shoulder with Honronk and Chisel,” Mazo corrected.

  “Sure.” He didn’t say it out loud, but in his mind Hans was surprised that she advocated for being equal to the Irons rather than their superior.

  “What did William want in return?”

  “He wants to study the far-dorocha and the durrachan in the Bronzewood Grove. And he wants a bunch of fairywood acorns too.”

  Mazo tilted her head. “That’s all?”

  “To anyone not living in Gomi, the acorns are still ultra-rare, so sure. I can send a few kids out to gather a bunch off the ground every reset, and locking off the Grove to adventurer runs for however long won’t hurt anything.”

  “That feels too easy.”

  “We’re doing the lab inspection in the morning.”

  Mazo’s eye twitched. “You want me to scrub the lab overnight?”

  Hans again raised his hands. “Hold on. This is where you trust me. All we have to do is hide the enclosures, right?”

  “That’s thirty-one mimics to relocate.”

  “Am I right or wrong?”

  “You’re right, but-”

  “I’ve got it handled. You don’t have to do anything but join us tomorrow morning. The mimics aren’t going anywhere, and he won’t see them. I swear it.”

  “Sounds unlikely,” Mazo said.

  “The box goblin comes late tonight, right?”

  “Yes…”

  “Yeah, we’re set for sure. You know I’m not reckless.”

  “Fine. I’m not going to prison for you, just so you know.”

  “Sure. If it doesn’t work, I’ll take the blame.”

  “Damn right you will.”

  William, accompanied by two other scholars, met Hans, Chisel, and Mazo at the gate to Leebel’s Rest. An imp followed Chisel, and an imp followed Mazo.

  There had been some discussion about who should speak for the research, but Hans encouraged them to choose Chisel. Mazo relented, and Honronk was okay with it too. He preferred to be absent entirely anyway.

  On the way to the Tainted Caves, Chisel explained that the dungeon grew mimics organically. They were so large, however, that the concern of them getting loose was low. Still, Hans forced them to follow strict culling and safety protocols to ensure the mimics didn’t breed and that no young mimic hitchhiked out of the dungeon with an adventurer.

  At the door to the Tainted Caves, Chisel detailed all of Dunfoo’s enchantments, the twenty-four-hour guard posting, and the lengthy process of signing adventurers in and out. Their belongings were thoroughly inventoried on the way in and then again on the way out. Furthermore, they had a steady supply of Truesight potions, which was possible because of their ready access to gazer eyes.

  In the caves and outside of the lab, Chisel told the scholars about the enchantments and locks on the door, pointing out that the dungeon core was protected by a similar door to give them an idea of how well-secured this passage really was.

  For the lab’s sallyport, they would eventually have Truesight enchantments in place, but for now, they would rely on Mazo’s Truesight spell and Truesight potions if she was unavailable. Assuming the research was approved, of course.

  “May we see the lab itself?” William asked, looking into the sallyport from the Tainted Caves.

  Mazo shot a look at Hans.

  “We’ve been using it as a quiet space, so please excuse the mess,” Chisel said. She motioned the group into the sallyport, shut the first door, and then opened the second.

  “The fuck?” Mazo said involuntarily.

  “Is something the matter?” William asked.

  “Umm…” Mazo stumbled. “It’s more disorganized than I thought. I’m embarrassed by the state of the lab.”

  William looked at the two scholars with him. “I think we’ve seen far worse.”

  While Chisel walked the scholars around the room, pointing out how the room was inaccessible from no other point but the sallyport, Mazo elbowed Hans in the thigh.

  “Where are they?” she asked with a harsh whisper.

  The far wall of the lab, where the enclosures were once located, was nothing but blank dungeon wall. No cages. No mimics.

  “The Great Mazo can’t solve a simple mystery?” Hans grinned.

  Mazo glared, sighed, and then walked the room for herself, studying every crack and corner as she went.

  Chisel’s tour, meanwhile, looped around the lab and stopped at the entrance where it had begun. “And you’re familiar with Honronk’s taming work. If we can’t tame a mimic the way we can tame a griffon, then the research won’t move forward. We’re confident that won’t be a problem, however.”

  “This is impressive and comprehensive,” William said. His colleagues nodded along. “Mazo’s research discipline is well known, and we’ve witnessed impeccable management at every point in the dungeon. I feel comfortable co-signing a petition for an exemption.”

  “What are our chances of getting approved?” Chisel asked.

  “High, I’d say,” William answered to the agreement of his peers. “The topic of mimic research comes up every decade or so, but no one has presented a way that seemed truly safe. Nothing is free of risk, of course, but this is something I know will attract a lot of interest and support.”

  Chisel smiled.

  “Are you sure you want to adventure?” William asked Chisel. “You could have quite a career in academia.”

  “Hey!” Mazo shouted from across the lab.

  “Not that I would encourage you to pursue anything but your work with Mazo.” William coughed. “Thank you for the tour.”

  “May I walk you back to town?” Chisel asked as she guided the group to the door.

  “That would be lovely.”

  When the interior door of the sallyport shut, Mazo, still across the lab pondering the blank back wall, said, “Explain. Now.”

  “Explain what?”

  “The enclosures are behind this wall, right?”

  “How’d you guess?”

  “Don’t insult me. The room dimensions changed.”

  “So you can explain it already.”

  Mazo had her hands on her hips. She glared at Hans his whole way across the lab. “Explain how you put a wall here, smart ass.”

  “I’ve been trying to learn what my boon can do.”

  “You can still influence the dungeon. How does it work? How much can you change?”

  “I haven’t tried anything much bigger than this wall,” Hans said. “I have a lot more testing to do on that front, but I can change the dungeon layout, add monsters, remove monsters, and… Well, I can read the dungeon roots.”

  “Read as in scry?”

  Hans nodded. “I can see anywhere there’s a dungeon root.”

  “And this is all dungeon roots.” Mazo looked at the walls around her. “You can see the whole dungeon?”

  “And part of the surface, but only as far as I’ve grown the roots.”

  “You can expand them?”

  Hans nodded.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “It never came up.”

  Mazo scowled. She recognized that line. It was hers, and she used it whenever Hans was surprised by a new spell Mazo never told him she had.

  “I’m still getting my arms around all of it, is all,” Hans assured her. “It’s a process.”

  “I can respect that,” the halfling grumbled. “And I thought the cave crawler ability was impressive.”

  “The wall will come down in the next reset. Thank you for trusting me to do this.”

  Nodding, Mazo walked to a table and tore a piece of paper from the back of a Bunri book. She started writing.

  “What are you doing?” Hans asked.

  “You probably lost my list of monsters to grow, so I’m making you a new one.”

  “I’ve only tried with monsters we’ve already added.”

  “So we try and see.”

  Open Quests (Ordered from Old to New):

  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.

  Brainstorm more competitive dungeon games.

  Run future tests in a secure part of the dungeon.

  Apologize to Yotuli.