CHAPTER 37: What not to do in a dungeon

1)Slip

2)Sleep

3)Cross Paths with An Unlucky Person.

*****

Ashen woke up with huge undereye bags and sleep-deprived eyes not at all surprised to look around and not see any sign of Green anywhere, certain that he had disappeared to the same place he had been hiding all this while.

Still, he got up, stepping up to pick the bucket placed in front of his room, going ahead to have a quick bath before downstairs to eat after making sure to take along everything he would miss, not putting even an atom of trust in the inn doors.

He got downstairs, a little intrigued to see how empty it was compared to when he arrived the night before. Ashen had just sat down when a bowl of food was placed in front of him without a word from the innkeeper who simply nodded to him, with the same sleep-deprived look on his face as Ashen but for different reasons.

While he had been serving food and drinks all night long till the early hours of the morning, Ashen found it hard to sleep when the neighbours in the next room, after taking a short break, began their noise-making all over again.

"You look like you're going out?" The innkeeper asked, curious, and feeling the usual need to know everything about every one of his customers, especially Ashen who he hadn't been able to completely figure out, 

"Yes. I most likely wouldn't be back until nightfall," Ashen replied even as he ate, having no problems with doing both at the same time.

"Doing what? If there's anything you need help with, you can ask me," The innkeeper asked, his eyes glistening with the need for more information as he tried his best not to appear too curious so as not to scare Ashen away.

"Thanks. I have it all figured out though but If I need help, I'll remember to ask," Ashen replied with a smile, seeing the innkeeper's smiling face standing right in front of him, nodding once before moving away.

"I didn't know most townspeople were this caring," Ashen thought, having been stuck with the belief that most of the people in the section of the city he was in, were dangerous people that only looked out for themselves.

With no time to spare, wanting to get to the dungeon halls as early as possible before the skies fully brightened, Ashen finished his food and with a small bag slung across his shoulder, he stepped out to the streets.

Seeing only a few carriages and not enough people for him to get a ride at a cheap price, Ashen decided to walk as he began thinking of using this to boost his physical ability, choosing to take a carriage on his way back instead.

As fast as he could, he began walking in the direction of the dungeon halls which, as he remembered, was about twenty minutes away.

The dungeon hall was a big building, especially when compared to all the other buildings that surrounded it, beating them in both size and beauty as the building was not only well maintained but it was visible to every passerby that money was involved.0

From the big open black gates to the shiny floors and pavements that led into the building itself. Walking through the entrance on the ground floor, were people stationed permanently behind various counters to attend to dungeon divers, travellers, visitors and people willing to join the dungeon hall of the city of Lakod.

As sweat dripped down his face in between steady gasps for breath, Ashen finally breathed a sigh of relief on getting to the hall irrespective of the fact that the sky was already bright and more people were on the roads on their way to their workplace, shocked to discover that he had miscalculated and the hall was even farther than he thought.

Trying to hold his head high, after trying his best to wipe his face with his hands, thankful that he wasn't wearing his uniform which drew a lot of attention to him, Ashen finally stepped into the hall, having already passed the huge gates that surrounded the entire building.

"He...Hello," Ashen said in a deep voice to the first person he laid eyes on, who was also the closest to the door the moment he stepped through it doing his best to sound more manly like the sixteen-year-old teenager he was going to be in about two months, the moment he saw the young woman that was attending to him.

"Hello," she replied with a rigid smile but a smile nonetheless. "What can I do for you today,"

"I would like to go dungeon diving on the first floor" Ashen stated with a confident look on his face, not surprised to see the sceptical look that slowly appeared on the face of the woman he was speaking to.

Not at all used to people of his size without any muscles whatsoever asking to go down into the dungeons, Masha couldn't help but pause a little as she threw a cursory look at him,  

"Are you an adventurer? What's your grade?," She asked in a professional manner, regardless of whatever bias she had, as she continued with the fixed smile on her face.

"Oh...I'm not one but I'm in the second year of the academy and I have my magic wand," Ashen quickly explained feeling a little inadequate as he did. 

"I heard that it's allowed as long as it's the first floor," wondering if the rules in the Dungeon hall of the city of Drago was different to that of his city.

"Oh...in that case you'll be allowed to go in but you aren't under whatever condition allowed to pass the first floor," she warned, already shuffling through the cards in front of her before pulling out a plain white one, and passing it on to Ashen.

"Go straight through the corridor. Show the man at the end of that corridor the card and he'll let you in," she continued, going as far as to point the way out to Ashen.

"Thanks," Ashen replied, turning around to head in the direction he needed to, suddenly realizing that the hall was built directly on top of the dungeon.

"It's his first time so I don't think he'll run into any trouble as long as he stays on the first floor," Marsha thought watching the young man in front of her, rush in the direction she pointed out while she again turned her attention to a new customer approaching her side of the counter, slightly annoyed that they seemed to keep coming her way since she was the closest to the door, 

"Or maybe it's the smile on my face," she thought frowning a little, before foxing the smile back on her face, not wanting to get in trouble with her supervisor.