Hans set three books in front of Yotuli and joined her at one of the guild tables.

  “I’ve not read these, so I’m not sure how helpful they’ll be,” he said as she reached for the top of the stack. “That one is the official Adventurers’ Guild manual on the Cleric class. Those tend to be fairly broad, and they also tend to be a little dated. That edition is fifty years old, for instance. You’ll get a good view of the class and what it’s capable of, but you won’t get the latest insights into training or anything like that.”

  Yotuli nodded as she thumbed through the pages.

  “Then there’s a book written by a contemporary Cleric. From the little bit of skimming I did, it focuses on the philosophical side of being a Cleric. The other one is a biography of a Platinum Cleric from a few generations back. In my experience, these kinds of books can have some great nuggets buried in them, but you have to be willing to dig a bit.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Hans.”

  “I’ll give these a read when you’re done. No rush or anything like that, just saying I’ll do my part to make sure these are helpful as they can be. I hope we get a few more before the winter.”

  The Apprentice Cleric picked up the other two books, one after the other, and flipped through those as well. “I think I’m getting closer. I talked to Becky like you suggested, and I bet something in these will help too.”

  Hans asked how the conversation with Becky went.

  “Well, you know what Becky’s like,” Yotuli began. Her and Hans both smiled knowingly at that. “I caught her up on what you and I discussed and asked her about her faith in nature. She didn’t like describing her beliefs as ‘faith’ because, to her, faith suggested a veil between her and her beliefs, like she had to hope the right thing was on the other side.”

  “She described it as a veil?”

  “Well, no. That’s my word, not hers. She said she didn’t need to wonder what was under the outhouse lid because she could look for herself.”

  Hans laughed. “It is an interesting point to make, though.”

  Yotuli agreed. “She doesn’t doubt nature because she’s surrounded by it everyday. It’s a hard fact for her rather than a belief. Daojmot is like that too, I realized. We’re surrounded by the work of bastards and wanderers in Gomi like we are surrounded by nature. It’s a fact of our lives.”

  “Wow. That sounds like a breakthrough.”

  “It is. How could I ever doubt something I see every day with my own eyes?”

  “May I offer a suggestion?” Hans asked. “Hold on trying Inspiration again for a bit. If you’ve convinced me you have something here, then you probably do, but I’ve seen students undercut their own progress by testing themselves too early. If you want to lift heavier weights, you don’t try to set that new best after every workout. You spend a few weeks training and then return to the challenge. Does that make sense?”

  Yotuli said it did. Hans said he’d let her get to it and excused himself. Before he could return to his desk, however, Honronk asked for his attention. The Apprentice Black Mage had made a rare trip down the mountain to shop and to ask Olza questions about reagents for spells.

  Luckily, he had received new books in the delivery as well, and he started studying them immediately, seeming to forget everything else the tusk had planned for his time in Gomi. Honronk hadn’t lifted his head to look away from the books for several hours. Presently, he had a book on enchanting open.

  “Mr. Izz encouraged me to continue studying the enchantment process,” the tusk said. “He also warned me not to let my primary studies suffer.”

  That advice was sound, Hans believed.

  “What balance do you recommend?”

  “Between studying enchanting and studying to be an Iron-ranked Black Mage?”

  “Correct.”

  The Guild Master sat down across from his student, giving him his full attention. He and Honronk had already had the discussion about how enchanting and adventuring were separate paths. Mages chose one or the other because the material they needed to learn for either was too great to double up on. Hans still had that concern, not wanting practice with enchantments to take away from dungeon preparation.

  At the same time, Honronk had proven he could do both, but Hans wanted to restate that worry because Honronk’s development would only get more challenging as he progressed. As expected, Honronk said he had no such worries. He believed that with the right plan, he could continue growing in both directions indefinitely.

  But what should that plan look like?

  Hans suggested they use one of his adventuring rules as a guiding light: “Heal yourself first.” If you and a party member were both in danger, you should ensure your own safety before giving aid to someone else. Apprentices often thought that sounded selfish and callous, but the real intent was to prevent as many deaths as possible.

  If two adventurers were in danger of bleeding out and one of them was still capable of assisting a teammate, that adventurer should address their own bleeding first. The heroically minded adventurers defaulted to helping a comrade before they helped themselves. Though that sounded like the nobler option, it actually lowered the chance for survival for everyone involved.

  What seemed more noble was actually more likely to lead to both adventurers dying. Helping someone else is hard to do when you’re dead.

  “If we apply that thinking here,” Hans said, “I’d say that would mean learning dungeon-ready spells only. The kind that keep you alive. Lots of spells are great for enchantments, but in this case, you don’t have the spare time to learn something you can’t use on a run. Keep practicing enchanting on the side, but let your adventurer training dictate what spells you master and not the other way around.”

  “I understand the logic. What logic should I apply in my enchanting studies?”

  That’s a good question.

  “What are our options?” Hans asked.

  Honronk explained that enchantments fell into these broad categories, each having its own idiosyncrasies:

  -Environmental (walls, pillars, doors)

  -Wearables (clothing, jewelry, armor)

  -Weapons (melee and ranged)

  -Shields

  -Traps (triggered by proximity, command, or a specific condition being met)

  Tattoos were another category, but Honronk was out of practice canvas.

  If he prioritized dungeon-ready magic, enchanting shields, wearables, or environmental objects would have the least utility. Nightsight and Summon Light had some merit there, but otherwise, Honronk would not be learning the Barrier and Attunement spells most commonly used in those kinds of enchantments. No buff spells, no debuff spells, no wards, no area-based magic shields.

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  That left weapons and traps.

  “Both of those could be very useful,” Hans said. “I doubt any of your party members would complain about having an enchanted weapon. Ultimately, helping your party members helps you, but the benefit to you directly is greater with traps. At Diamond and Platinum, Gret–my Rogue friend–included enchanted traps in his loadout. They were expensive as all hell for something he could only use once, but dropping a Greater Fire trap when a bunch of stuff is chasing you… pretty handy.”

  Hans asked for the Apprentice’s current spell list. Honronk opened his notebook and passed it across the table.

  The list read:

  -Prism

  -Nightsight

  -Repel Possession

  -Charm

  -Summon Light

  -Magic Mallet

  -Lesser Fire

  -Lesser Ice

  -Duplicate

  -Angel Shield

  -Wall of Stone (in progress)

  -Wall of Fire (in queue)

  -Wall of Ice (in queue)

  -Lesser Air Elemental (in queue)

  If Honronk learned to enchant weapons and traps, the spells that wouldn’t be applicable were Nightsight, Repel Possession, Summon Light, Magic Mallet, Duplicate, and Angel Shield. So six out of the fourteen listed. That sounded like a lot to sacrifice, but that ratio would shift drastically as Honronk’s spell library expanded.

  “Thank you, Guild Master.”

  “Of course,” Hans said. “Having this same conversation with Bel and Izz would be a good idea. They’re likely to see something I don’t.”

  One new book on White Magic arrived, this one focusing on tactics for using buffs and debuffs in battle. Chisel was working a shift at the dungeon, so Hans set the book aside with a note saying it was reserved for the Apprentice. If she hadn’t returned before his next trip up the mountain, he’d deliver it personally.

  Though a summer sun blazed outside, Hans’ thoughts were on preparing for winter. Tandis wanted an idea of what dungeon rotations would look like so she could stock up on the correct supplies ahead of the pass closing.

  The new crop of Apprentices were on track in terms of their development. With the first cohort, relatively little of the dungeon had grown yet. With this cohort, the dungeon itself could become a greater piece of their training.

  Typically, Hans kept Apprentices out of the field for several months, but those conditions were different. In Gomi, the growth of the dungeon was consistent and predictable. He used that to put Kane and Quentin in front of skeletons to safely and slowly build their field experience. It worked well enough that Hans decided to try bringing Apprentices into the dungeon even earlier in their training.

  Like he did with Kane and Quinton, the new cohort would fight skeletons only. They could potentially observe the more difficult encounters, but Hans wasn't decided on how to do that safely. Escorting a non-combatant was its own kind of run, and putting that pressure on the other Apprentices didn't seem fair.

  Should I bring the new cohort to the dungeon before or after Izz and Thuz leave for the Osare tournament?

  Quentin, Kane, and their eclectic entourage departed in a week, and would be away for about that long as well.

  Hans decided that for all future cohorts, they would plan for new Apprentices to spend two months training in Gomi before training at or in the dungeon.

  Assuming bringing Apprentices in the dungeon earlier did not become a complete disaster.

  When Hans leaned back in his desk to rest his eyes, he took in the guild hall. Yotuli and Honronk both still read. The job board had seven Junior jobs pinned to it, and those postings were surrounded by water colors and drawings gifted to Hans by his younger students. His shield with the same kind of artwork painted on its front was in storage behind him.

  His first complete manuscript sat on the shelf for the rest of the guild to reference. A map Roland gave him hung opposite the job board, covered in the hunters notes about game movements and shifts in terrain.

  The guild library looked pretty respectable now too.

  And the dungeon campus had become a small hamlet, with build progress still going.

  You might not get Diamond, but no adventurer has done what you're doing in Gomi. Isn't that better than a Diamond rank?

  It is, but I can't get myself to believe it.

  “I'll be doing lessons and managing runs while the boys are in Osare. You've probably guessed from the new faces that a few things are going to change.”

  The newest recruits for adventuring and harvesting sat amongst the more veteran dungeon teams–minus Terry, who was on his way to Osare with Izz, Thuz, Kane, and Quentin. Bel and Lee stood behind them. They all listened to Hans.

  “Everyone new, you're going to be challenged. Those of you with more experience, remember what it's like to be a newbie. It's surprisingly easy to forget.”

  Hans ran through dorm assignments for the new trainees and harvesters. Then he talked through training schedules and dungeon run rotations. The new arrivals wouldn’t go farther than the training area in Honronk’s front yard, so dungeon shifts would remain the same, for now.

  In a few weeks, they would gradually add more field experience for both the new Apprentices and the new harvesters.

  “The rest of you are getting new challenges as well,” Hans continued. “Apprentices, the ogre valley is up next. Harvesters, you'll be going as deep as geode geckos. Don't freak out. You'll all be prepared.”

  With orientation concluded, the group dispersed.

  “Hard to believe we were sleeping on top of each other a few months ago,” Sven said, approaching Hans. “Any Rogues among the new blood?”

  “Remains to be seen. Your crew didn't follow the normal path. I'm not sure if you know that or not.”

  Sven laughed.

  “They'll make their choices in another month or so. Shadowing you guys first will be good for them too.”

  “Do you mean to say I'm a role model?” Sven asked, failing to suppress his grin.

  “Gods, that is what it means,” Hans said, feigning shock. “You'll do fine. More importantly, how has your training been?”

  “I've learned it's easier to sneak by goblins if they're dead.”

  Hans smiled. “You've discovered the secret technique.”

  “In all seriousness, stealthing the Bone Goblins has been good for me, and I try to kill fewer each run to keep the challenge going. I appreciate the assistance, Mr. Hans. Four and a half floors to go.”

  The Guild Master congratulated his student and said he also talked to his merchant contact about a lockpick training box. Couldn't be sure if it would work out though. Sven appreciated the effort regardless.

  “I'll leave you to it, Guild Master. Just wanted to give you the update.”

  Hans thanked him and escaped to his cabin. He opened all of his windows and propped open the door. Mountain breezes were rare in this heat, but if one came through, he intended to make the most of it.

  As Hans settled in with a Haynu novel–Volume 15, The Legend of The Celibate Succubus–he had a realization.

  When all of the Apprentices, harvesters, and upper-ranked instructors were at the dungeon, the operation totalled twenty seven people. That count didn't include Becky, Olza, or Uncle Ed’s wagon team. Or Petal. Buru would want him to count Petal.

  The Gomi Chapter was a proper guild. Plenty of chapters were in bigger cities and saw more activity, but for a small town chapter, Gomi’s numbers were on the higher side. Having their own dungeon was an unfair advantage, but still.

  Active Quest: Find a way for Gomi adventurers to benefit from their rightful ranks in the Adventurers’ Guild.

  Can't be a proper guild if your adventurers can't practice their trade.

  “Yeah, how are you going to do that?”

  Maybe Haynu has the answers.

  Open Quests (Ordered from Old to New):

  Progress from Gold-ranked to Diamond-ranked.

  Mend the rift with Devon.

  Complete the next volume (Iron to Bronze) for "The Next Generation: A Teaching Methodology for Training Adventurers."

  Find a way for Gomi adventurers to benefit from their rightful ranks in the Adventurers’ Guild.

  Secure a way to use surplus dungeon inventory for good.

  Finish transcribing the manual and decide on the next course of action.

  Help Izz and Thuz bring new opportunities to their home village.

  Investigate the locations of old Diamond Quests.

  Await the delivery of lockpick training tools.