A New Star Chapter 78 (Patreon)

Anastasia

The dungeon delve that we had been prepared for was both a big opportunity and a big risk, and in more ways than one. There was the physical risk, of course, but there was also the reputational risk should one fail or cause issues within the dungeon. It lent an air of nervous tension to the camp that I hadn’t felt since our finals in the academy more than a year ago. Well, more than a year ago for many of us; there was one exceptional student that had been selected to take part in the delve even while they were still attending the academy. I also had heard, the rumors running wild, that we were having a special guest joining us for this delve, someone powerful enough to earn a place all on their own without any kind of recommendation. There was speculation of everything from a mysterious new talent to a hidden expert to someone from one of the other countries, all of it practically setting the camp alight with gossip.

“You think the mysterious expert is showing up today?” Sasha asked me. The slightly older girl had graduated the class before mine at the academy and was considered one of the strongest of the group. She was also known as the strongest gossip among everyone present, the parents and guardians included, so it was no surprise she was always trying to figure out the new rumor, or spread, depending on the circumstances.

“They have to be, Sasha,” I replied with a slight sigh. “We’re entering the dungeon right after lunch. If they don’t show up today, when will they? After we’ve cleared it?”

“That’s true. I just had some idea of them riding in late and dashing into the dungeon, slaughtering their way to us to get us out of a real bind.” She also had a bit of an…over-enthusiastic imagination, one that went off on silly tangents at the drop of a hat.

“I doubt that would happen, whoever it is that they pulled in at the last minute,” I said, just refraining from rolling my eyes at the last moment.

“Gather up!” one of the guardians barked.

“Looks like it’s time. I can’t wait!” Sasha exclaimed, hurrying towards where the rest of the group was gathering.

As I walked over I noticed right away that there were several people I had never seen before engaged with Thompson—er, Baron Thompson, that is, in conversation. Two of them were older and I didn’t need any demonstration or the weight of their attention to understand they were serious powerhouses, the air around them more than enough to inform me they far outclassed not just us, the recent grads, but the other adults as well. My sensitivity, born partially of my mind affinity, gave me some clues to the strength and surety of those around me, and the older man and woman that I didn’t recognize practically had that sense going haywire. The young woman standing next to them, one I didn’t recognize at all, even from passing mention or rumor, also radiated strength and confidence, though something about her also really set my teeth on edge. It was, in fact, a confusing jumble of signals that had me feeling the edge of a stress headache coming on, which was just brilliant for the day of our first exploratory delve.

Many of us had been in dungeons before, even doing trips with just other students during our academy days, though we had always suspected the professors had some way to monitor us while we were in the dungeon, but this was going to be our first time exploring a new dungeon. Dungeons cycled often enough, new ones popping up as old ones were depleted of mana, that exploring an unknown dungeon in the middle of the Settled Lands wasn’t unheard of, but most explorers would only encounter such a thing in the Untamed Wilds. This dungeon was totally unknown except a basic analysis of the enemies, done from just inside by a skilled assessor, but we would largely be in uncharted territory for this delve. It was both exciting and more than a little terrifying all at the same time.

“Alright! Listen up!” Hans, Thompson’s chief guard, bellowed. The man didn’t have a sound affinity, I was sure of it, but he certainly projected his voice like he had one.

“Sir!” we all chorused. All, I noticed, except for the new girl, the one that had the hairs on the back of my neck standing up. Looking at her, she looked a bit younger than I had first guessed, but she was still very much of an age to attend the academy, or had already graduated. One thing they drilled into us was showing respect to those with seniority, and, when on expedition, anyone who had a commanding role was considered to have seniority, regardless of noble rank or peerage.

“I know we planned this delve around the ten of you, and also that you’ve all been spoiled that we had a last minute addition,” he said, giving us a stern look, leading to a bit of whispering and exchanged looks between us. “Enough! Enough. This here is Alexandra Tabitha Mirriam D'Crough, youngest of their excellencies the grand duke and grand duchess. She will be joining in on this delve, though she will have special secondary status. Any questions?”

“Why special secondary?” Jhan immediately jumped in with, giving Alexandra a glare. I hadn’t ever met the girl, or heard much rumor about her, but Jhan’s glare looked personal. I wondered if there was some kind of history there.

“As you know,” Hans began to explain, though he was giving Jhan a glare that had him shifting uncomfortably, “special secondary is a status giving to someone joining a group for a delve or an expedition that is outside the usual chain-of-command or party structure. Deals have been made, deals that you need not ask about, to allow Alex as a special secondary in this delve. That means, yes Jhan, that you cannot give her orders, but you also don’t need to listen to her orders. Based on what I know, I will tell you, if she were to say jump, it would be a wise idea for your feet to already be in the air. Are we clear?”

“Sir!” we all exclaimed, though I could see Jhan clearly had a look on his face like he’d just been forced to eat crow.

“So, this is what we’re working with?” Alexandra then asked, clearly rhetorically, running her eyes over our group. Despite her being young, much younger than us I was just realizing, remembering her age was at the point where she should just be joining an academy, her sharp gaze sent shivers up more than one spine, causing a lot of said spines to straighten up. I remember just such an analyzing and piercing glare; the last I had been under such a look was when the headmaster had looked our class over, just before we graduated. The man had always given me the impression of a great beast looking over prey that he was training to be just a little stronger.

“Easy, Alex,” the old man that had come with them said, getting her focus to turn to him, which I think was his intention. We all breathed a sigh of relief as she stopped glaring at us, even Jhan, who looked even more sour at that.

“I’ll show you what’s easy, old coot,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

“I say!” the old man exclaimed, waving his cane at her. A cane that moved surprisingly fast, one that darted at her with a precision and power that had the hairs on my arms standing up. I really was a mess today, wasn’t I? It must be nerves.

“This,” Hans said as the two bickered, “is Count Emmanuel du Forchaine, whom some of you may recognize from his time tutoring in the capital.”

“Emmanuel du Forchaine, Y-ranker of wind, steel, and space, knight chevalier of the Holy Order-“ he started before Alexandra (Alex?) interrupted him.

“Alright, enough of that. If we let you do the whole thing, we’ll have white hair like you before we even get into the dungeon,” she said, causing the Count to sputter and poke her once again.

“Heavens. The temerity!” he exclaimed, either intentionally missing, or showing that Alex was very, very good.

“Are we ready to start?” Alex asked, still dodging the Count’s cane while turning back to us.

“We haven’t even had lunch yet!” Jhan exclaimed, seemingly offended at the thought of entering the dungeon without having a second meal of the day.

“Oh, good Gods,” Alex replied, not at all quietly, rolling her eyes. “I thought this would be babysitting duty, but this is just pathetic.”

“Why, you! You-“ Jhan started before his father showed up beside him, seemingly from nowhere, and cuffed him on the side of the head. “OW!”

“You’ll get a lot more than ‘ow’ next time, you lout!” he snapped, glaring down at his son. “Watch your manners.”

“I could beat some more into him, if it’s not that much of a bother,” Alex added languidly, giving Jhan an inscrutable look.

“’Some more,’ did she say?” Sasha whispered to me, clearly already loving what was happening.

“Yes, I did say that,” Alex said, looking over at us.

“Ah, sorry,” Sasha said in a very not-sorry voice, covering her mouth with the fingers of her left hand and bowing slightly to Alexandra, who just rolled her eyes.

“Well, come on, then. Let’s get this dog-and-pony show on the road,” Alex said, an expression I hadn’t heard before.

“Guess it’s no lunch for you, you lout,” Jhan’s father said, shoving him towards his tent.

Like that was the starting bell to a race, we all dashed for our tents, quick to grab the last of our gear and get ready. Despite being nobles, we had been through the academy, trained for survival and adaptation under the harshest of conditions. In point of fact, many of us had expected something a little tougher, so being thrown into the dungeon a little early and in a hurry wasn’t any great surprise, though it clearly caught Jhan off-guard. Then again, he was the fanciest piece of china on the dinner table, so I expected little else from him, other than to stand in front and keep the group moving.

We assembled at the dungeon entrance in record time, all with our packs ready, the tents we used in camp different than what we were taking into the dungeon. The camp tents were much larger and fancier, something that was a luxury of the elite when they went on campaign, but we had learned quite quickly in the academy that such luxuries very quickly became burdens, if one didn’t have the necessary power to keep up with them. I remembered that lesson well, the first time many of us had been camping at all, and the first time any of us had done it alone. Well, not entirely alone, as we were in groups of just students, but none of the nobles had ever set up their own tent or managed a campsite before. Just that was enough to demonstrate the difference, especially as we watched our instructors set up a small camp of their own with magic in just seconds, laying out a defensive perimeter that would protect them from anything the heart of the Settled Lands could throw at them.

“You’ve got a rather small pack,” I said to Alex, only after a second realizing I was being a bit too casual, though that was usually the atmosphere on these delves, even if Jhan had a stick up his ass.

“Better to carry the basic supplies than over-encumber yourself,” she replied coolly, giving me a quick glance out of the corner of her eye. “Besides, I can stay awake for several days at a time; I doubt this dungeon is going to take that long. I may not even sleep.”

“Even if you can, staying awake excessive hours leads to sloppiness,” I said, paraphrasing an instructor from the academy.

“Teaching tautologies are cute until you get on the battlefield and have to live in the mud and the blood. Then you learn what’s really necessary,” Alex replied, shaking her head slightly. Strange, it really felt like she had a lot more wisdom than she should for an academy freshman, and the feeling of my teeth being on edge hadn’t really gone away, either.

“I hope it isn’t a battlefield in there. It hasn’t been explored before now, but it’s supposed to be at a level that we can handle,” I said back to her.

“The first rule of staying alive on the battlefield is to understand everywhere is the battlefield and never let your guard down,” she replied with just a slight smirk on her lips.

Jhan interrupted us before I could follow up, shouting, “Now that we’re all ready, we’ll move in formation! Melee to the front, casters to the center, rangers and distance strikers at the rear!”

I could practically hear Alex roll her eyes at that, but she made no comment as we moved into the dungeon. She also moved back to take the rearmost spot, which was strange, considering she was wearing a sword on each hip, marking her as a swordswoman, but I didn’t ask any questions. Based on the fact that a Y-ranker, and someone that I was just now noticing had avoided being introduced at all, had accompanied her here, I was expecting her skills to be pretty good. If she wanted to take up a strange position in the formation, I wasn’t going to question it.

“Why are you in the back?! Melee to the front, Alex!” Jhan, apparently, was going to question it, and only twenty paces into the dungeon. That seemed a bit of a stupid idea, but, again, Jhan was really not the brightest lamp in the restaurant.

“I’m just where I need to be. Think of me as additional backup, Jhan, and focus on the dungeon. I am, after all, a special secondary, unless you want to test why I got that position another time?” Alex replied coldly.

“What happened? I just have to know!” Sasha exclaimed, the mage slipping back to walk beside Alex behind us.

“Jhan decided he didn’t like the thought of me joining the expedition, so he thought he’d prove he was in charge,” Alex replied with a shrug. “I just beat his ass, pretty pathetically, in a spar, and that shut him up, at least for ten minutes. I don’t understand why he’s running his mouth again, but maybe he needs a reminder.”

“Oh, I’ll give you a reminder-“ Jhan started before one of the others interrupted.

“Quiet! I hear movement!” Gorge snapped, stopping and silencing the group. I glanced back at Alex, only to see her slouching at looking into the distance, that slight smirk back on her face.

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