Log 9: The Walk

Log 9:

Date: July 6th, 2190 I.C.

Time: 09:58

Location: Royal Court - Training Field

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Emperor Magnus, the 217th Emperor of Imperium City, ascended to the throne eight years ago and was the 59th Commoner to become Emperor in Imperium City's history. Like his predecessors, no one knew his true face or background besides the members of Parliament and the Emperor's family. However, my family and I were an exception to this since we knew the Emperor well before his ascension.

The imposing figure in front of me stared down at my bowing head.

It was my turn.

"Ms. Rai, please follow me." The Emperor ordered as I lifted my head. The wandering eyes of the crowd drilled into my body as I followed behind. No one said anything, but I could hear the questions in their minds.

Who was she?

Why would the Emperor personally come out to escort her?

What made her special?

It was considered rare for the Emperor to take the liberty of escorting a guest with them. It would make sense if one was an important diplomat or a ruler of another country, but it made none for a Commoner like myself, even with the Imperial Decree. However, it made all the sense in the world to me.

I followed slowly behind the double doors to a grand garden opening before me. The sight of everyone else still in the Royal Court bowing in the Emperor's presence lingered in my sight. In an instant, the doors locked behind me, the Emperor and his attendant.

"You can drop the act, Your Majesty."

I smirk, glancing at the attendant and not the Emperor.

The attendant removed his glasses, causing an illusion to disappear, revealing an elegant middle-aged man. His brown hair faded into a brilliant blonde, the same color as the golden mask the 'Emperor' was wearing, which complemented his chiseled face devoid of wrinkles. His eyes were a vibrant green, the same color as Alistar's.

This man was the real 'Emperor Magnus' of Oriar, Tobias Lorain Jainor.

"Wonderful." The middle-aged man smiled.

I rolled my eyes and scoffed.

"You've been using that disguise for ages."

The Emperor chuckled, fiddling with his tie pin, a silver clip that Alistar bought for him over a decade ago for his birthday.

"Its practicality is astounding. Your craftsmanship has done me wonders, Arian."

I scratch the back of my head, feeling embarrassed by his compliment.

"I dabbled in it during my free time. Plus, think of it as a thank you for caring for me all those years ago."

"Oh, it's a small favor. No need for your gratitude. By the way, I'm sure you remember Ethan, who took it upon himself to be my step-in today."

I turn to the person clad in the Emperor's attire and bow to them. Since I was technically a Commoner, I had to pay my respects to someone of a high class than my own.

"I do. It's been a long time, Duke Sinclair."

"A pleasure seeing you back at the Royal Court, Ms. Rai. Also, fuck you, Tobias, for putting me in this damned suit again."

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Ethan Sinclair, also known as the Duke of Sinclair, a region to the West of Imperium City, was the real attendant to the Emperor and a member of Parliament. He was also the Emperor's underclassman from the Academy. Ethan would often take the Emperor's place because no one knew the Emperor's true face. Of course, no one knew that either. In public, he was considered a generous Duke, a respected commander, and a revered war hero. In private, he was a person who swore profanities every other sentence and couldn't even win a simple game of cards. Plus, he is terrible at holding his alcohol.

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"You lost the bet, so you get to wear the suit."

"Screw you, asshole. Next time I'll beat you in drunk poker!"

"Suit yourself! You'll never win! We all know you're garbage at it."

"Shitty Emperor!"

"Crass Duke!"

Man, if anyone saw them now, they would wonder how these two managed to get where they are today.

"Anyhow, Arian. Please follow me, and call me Uncle Toby while we're in private."

"Okay, Uncle Toby," I said stiffly. It's been a while since I've addressed him informally. "So why did you summon me so abruptly?"

I followed behind him on the stone path through the beautiful garden. Hundreds of exotic species of plants hailing from various regions worldwide were before my eyes. Some were delicate enough that their petals would fall upon making contact with them, while others had thrones sharp enough to pierce your flesh. Nature is beautiful, but it can also be dangerous.

"You've heard of the Mass Dungeon Outbreak."

"So I have seen in the media."

"Good, that makes things much easier to explain."

"We have a shortage of Investigators as they've all been dispatched across Oriar. The press hasn't released this yet, but an additional fifty Dungeons have spawned, and the numbers don't seem to stop. I need more Investigators before the situation becomes direr, but it's difficult to find talented individuals-"

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Dungeon Investigators, also known as Investigators, work for Imperium City's Investigation Corps to explore Dungeons, find their root cause, and provide the necessary information for Adventurers to close them. They're basically scouts but more skilled. However, thanks to Investigators, the death toll in Dungeons has decreased by over thirty percent in the last fifty years. Yet, the prerequisites for becoming an Investigator we're not easy. One had to have the strength of a 6-star Adventurer, proficient topography and Arcmagia knowledge, plus pass a rigorous assessment proctored by the Emperor himself.

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"So you decided to call me." I let out an exasperated sigh. "I can't refuse since it's an Imperial Decree, but why me?"

"I've seen your skills. No one can deny you have the ideal qualifications to be an Investigator. The Dungeons I need you to investigate require your expertise specifically, so no one else is able to do it. I'll also assign you a partner to protect you on your journey to the Dungeons. You will then meet with other teams of Investigators at the designated locations to conduct the initial dive. Your goal is not to close the Dungeon but to see what's in it and get out. Then, we'll dispatch the Adventures to close it. Here are the ones you need to take a look at."

With the snap of his fingers, a message popped up on my Liaiser. It was an encrypted file. I tapped on the file, and the locations of three dungeons popped up on my screen.

One was located in the Al-Moat Dessert, fifty miles from the oasis capital, Jannad. The second was twenty miles west of my hometown, Eloimale, deep in the Morias Valley. The final Dungeon was right at the foot of Lengeheim Mountain Range, where my brother said the mining facility was to be built, a hundred miles away from two other Dungeons in the region and the walls of the Lengeheim Duchy.

"Understood. What exactly makes these dungeons so special?"

"Their Veins. Their Veins are not something that can easily be read."

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Every Dungeon is made up of some code called Veins.

These Veins can tell a lot about a Dungeon, from its origins, what monsters will appear to even the tales left by previous Adventurers who took part in it. Think of it as a record book. But the issue with Veins is thousands of kinds of them exist in Dungeons, each written in their own language of the sort, and the knowledge of deciphering Veins is highly specialized. It's also one of the unwritten prerequisites for Investigators. Back in the Academy, I was planning to become an Investigator, so I took multiple classes in deciphering Veins. More specifically, Alconian Veins.

I hated that everyone chose an easy Vein to learn, so I picked one of the most obscure ones out there. Turns out the number of people who can decipher Alconian Veins is so few they can be counted on both hands, and I just so happened to be one of them. Plus, I was the only student in that class for three years, so my professor, Professor Karina, made me do Dungeon dives on the weekends as practical training to impart every last bit of her knowledge to me before she retired, including her knowledge in twenty other Vein languages. Though, I didn't think there would be a day I would use that knowledge again.

When you are highly specialized in a certain field, you don't hunt for a job, the job hunters come for you.

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"Alconian Veins."

"That's right. I'm sure Professor Karina taught you everything she knew. As you know, we can't exactly send her into the field due to her age."

"That's true."

Although she might object and beg to come.

"However, she did tell me to give you this."

Another notification appeared on my Liasier.

The glowing title wrote: Research on Alconian Veins (For my Favorite Student ;3).

I snicker, closing the file.

Professor Karina must be bored out of her mind with her retirement.

"Just what I need. Thanks for reaching out to her. If I may ask, who will be my partner?"

With a clap of his hands, another set of doors leading into the garden opened. A figure, who I knew very well, stepped forward. That silver mask, overbearing stature, tattered cloak, and the strong stench of blood were unforgettable. I cup my hands over my mouth.

I knew exactly who that person was.

The bane of my existence, Blank.

"Blank. But why? How does he know your face?"

Yet, Blank just gave me a blank stare.

Ha, punny, but I can't tell what he's thinking.

"Why you are both acquainted with each other already, excellent. Let me reintroduce you to him. This person before you is Blank, a 5-Star Adventurer, a member of Parliament representing the North, and one of our Uncials Experts."

A member of Parliament! No wonder why he's allowed to see the Emperor's face. More importantly, he's a Uncials Expert?! Never would've expected that.

"Blank is a Uncials Expert?"

"Indeed."

Blank nodded, acknowledging what the Emperor said was true.

I hated to admit it, but the Emperor's choice was probably the most ideal.

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Similar to how the number of individuals who could decipher Veins was low, the number of people who could comprehend Uncials was just as few. If Blank was a Uncials expert, then it would make sense why his Dungeon completion rate was perfect.

In a Dungeon, there are traps. These traps are activated by complex Uncials, which are often concealed in various spots within the Dungeon. With a Uncials Expert like Blank, finding those hidden Uncials and dispelling them before the traps could even activate was an asset that could increase an Adventurer's safety. Add the fact that Blank had good combat abilities, made him all the more valuable to this investigation.

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"Alright," I heaved out a heavy sigh. There was so much I needed to process. "When do we depart?"

"Tomorrow morning, you will head to Jannad using Terminal 7 at 7:30 AM. I've also got a few more gifts for you before I send you on your merry way."

The Emperor guided Blank and me to a glass round table in the garden's heart. On top of the glass table was a black case that spanned the diameter of the table and a backpack. I open the backpack to find the necessary equipment for my journey. An Ether box the size of my palm, which could expand several thousand times its size; an Investigation Corps uniform that was pretty much the same as my Receptionist uniform, except the jacket was a dark red, almost maroon, and was made of some nearly indestructible material; a canteen that could store an infinite amount of water; and some other miscellaneous items.

I then flick open the weapons case, the silver latches coming off with a satisfying snap. Before my very eyes, I look stupidly at a clean silver Gleavafer with thousands of engravings in its body and a blue core the size of my fist embedded into its body. It was a Gleavafer model available on the market, not just any ordinary one.

No!

It was the most expensive model one could purchase, the Cryptic-GWC34, almost entirely made out of Mithril and costing a whopping Platinum coin. Oh my! It even had a rectangular compression weapons case with slots for 30 weapons! Holy smokes, I couldn't even buy this weapon in my lifetime. Heck, even got an artificial Dragon Core embedded into it. Artificial Dragon Cores are extremely expensive to produce, and one was used on this Gleafaver.

A Core like this could power Imperium City for half a year!

"Are...you sure... I can take this?" I stuttered, feeling the weight of the weapon even without touching it.

"It's necessary. Don't sweat the details."

I was at a complete loss of words looking at this beast of a weapon/

"Thank you, Your Highness."

A smile crept its way onto the Emperor's face. Guess he was happy that I was satisfied with his expensive gift.

"Excellent. Now that all has been addressed, I'll send you back home. You have much to prepare prior to departure. Oh, say 'hi' to your parents for me."

"I will, Uncle Toby."