The Shadow Labyrinth: A LitRPG Adventure Read online

  Working in close quarters will make this more difficult for them

  Reward: Boon of the Brothers

  Penalty: Loss of reputation, loss of morale, loss of fighting strength

  "I should be heading back to the Glen," said Terran.

  "How can I reach you should there be problems?" said the mayor. "We have few horses and I'm a shit rider."

  Terran chuckled. "I'll grow some green crystals so we can set up a communication network. That way we'll know what's happening instantly. I should probably grow several. One for Salt Luck, another for Wunderlust Keep."

  "It'll make Salt Luck a vassal state of the Glen," said the mayor.

  "It will," said Terran. "Do you accept?"

  The burly dwarf crossed the room and extended his hand, which Terran met in a tight handshake.

  Do you wish to add Salt Luck village as a vassal state [Y/N]?

  "Good grip for a bard," said the mayor gruffly.

  "Not a bad one either for a mayor," said Terran with a grin as he mentally accepted the notification.

  You have been given a quest: Create a communication network across your empire

  Reward: Increased production by 15%

  Terran silently whistled at the potential reward, making this upgrade a priority. He bid the mayor farewell, promising to send the crystal when he'd finished it, and returned to the Glen.

  Chapter Ten

  The Crystalline Conservatory buzzed with activity above his head as Terran climbed the ladder. The place seemed much more alive than it had when he'd first grown the seed. Terran paused at the threshold, listening to a surprisingly cheerful Zoras giving a lecture on the proper way to hold their mouths to project sound on the battlefield.

  The three recruits practiced in turn. Hedge and Echinacea both took minor adjustments from the head of the conservatory. Terran could picture Zoras adjusting their jaw to form the right note, but when Isabella sang, he heard the power in her voice.

  "Don't forget you'll be avoiding getting your head smashed in while you try to hit your note," said Terran as he stepped into the room to the delight of the trainees.

  He caught Zoras' shoulders deflate slightly, so Terran added, "But practice what Zoras is teaching you. If you can't master it in a safe environment, then you're going to struggle in battle."

  The head of the conservatory gestured towards the students as he returned to his position behind the desk. "Jondar should be ready for you in the clearing behind the Mother Tree. Go with speed. For Leaf and Stone."

  Isabella caught his eye as she hurried out, and he resisted the urge to wink, not wanting to show special favor even though she seemed the most talented of the group.

  He faced the head of the conservatory, reminding himself that his position was most difficult in the settlement because Terran's authority as the leader and a Crystal Bard always meant Zoras was second fiddle.

  "I need your help, my friend," said Terran.

  Zoras lifted his chin, sat up straighter, and ran his fingers across the smooth surface of the desk. "It would be my pleasure."

  "I lost my staff," said Terran.

  The elf had been deep in his thoughts, but the admission brought him straight out of his seat. "What happened?"

  Terran quickly recounted the tale, not leaving anything out.

  "Troubling. Troubling indeed," said Zoras, pacing around the room, hand to his chin. "The attack, the loss of the staff, even your choice to bring Aminata back into the settlement. I'm sorry. This will not go well."

  "We need him. There's too much for Lhoris to do," said Terran.

  "This will wound him deeply," said Zoras. "And there was a reason the others chose Lhoris. Aminata lacks tact."

  Terran nearly commented that coming from Zoras that was damning information, but he didn't want to injure his friend further.

  "You're not wrong," said Terran. "While we've added many resources, a new vassal state, a new captain, and a blacksmith, I fear that we're not a cohesive community. Things could unravel."

  "You've asked much in a short amount of time," said Zoras.

  "Only because of need," said Terran, even though he knew that wasn't true. He would have pushed to bring these groups together regardless, but the threat of the Howling Wind made haste crucial. "But let's focus on the weapon, and the crystals. For the first, I figure that I needed an upgrade anyway, and the second will give me a chance to spend more time in the Conservatory."

  Zoras moved to the books on his shelves, fingers touching the bindings as he spoke. "Do you have an idea of what sort of crystal you'd like to use on your staff? Or should it be another configuration of weapon? I heard you've mastered how to use it in combat using vibration to break through armor. There are ways to affix them to scimitars, or other more unusual weapons."

  "I like the feel of the staff. It's comfortable, and my methods don't require a lot of swinging skill. As for crystals," said Terran, pulling out the void crystal from his backpack, "is there a way to use this?"

  Zoras jumped back in fright, his eyes wide with wonder and concern. He reached towards the gray lump, both hesitant and eager as if he didn't know if it might burn him. "How did you get that?"

  "A Carykarak in Wunderlust Keep. Darkness Sighs accidently brought it in when she was trying to bring back Lord Ostric. We barely managed to defeat it," said Terran.

  "I thought creatures from the Between were impenetrable to our weapons." His fingers hovered over the crystal. "May I?" Zoras rotated the lump in his hands. "It feels...alive."

  "Can I use it?" asked Terran.

  "It is capable of being cut, that much I know, but 'its power will be unstable, difficult to control without...hmmm," said Zoras.

  "Without what?"

  The head of the conservatory handed the void crystal back, hurried to his shelves, touched bindings until he found the tome he wanted, and quickly paged through it until he jabbed his finger into a paragraph.

  "Here. I remember reading about the use of void crystals by Crystal Bards. They require multiple gems affixed to the weapon, which will give you a wider array of abilities," said Zoras breathlessly. "To craft one will be to make a legendary weapon, befitting for such a bard as yourself. I would be honored to help you." His chest expanded with pride.

  "How many crystals?" asked Terran.

  "The void crystal goes in the center, with other, smaller crystals set around the middle." Zoras held up the tome, showing a picture of a cluster of crystals, like a flower unfolding, at the end of a staff. It looked heavy, but formidable.

  You have been offered a quest: Create a new staff using the void crystal.

  Reward: Legendary weapon.

  Moar power!

  A sense of excitement grew in Terran's chest as he stared at the illustration of the weapon. Maybe losing his staff would be a benefit.

  "What do we need?" asked Terran.

  "I'm afraid that the Conservatory will need to be level 4. We'll also need to find the proper material for a staff," said Zoras, clearly buzzing from the idea as he kept touching different items and glancing around the room. "Of course, there's the cuttings, and choice of crystals."

  "Wonderful," said Terran. "There's also the matter of the communication network. I saw we have some green crystals in inventory."

  "We do. To make a network, you'll have to cut them from the same crystal to keep them at the same pitch. The skill is beyond me, but I can explain the technique. When do you want to start?" asked Zoras.

  "Right away," said Terran. "We need them so we know if the Howling Wind attacks."

  "Very well," said Zoras with a succinct nod as he hurried from the room. "I'll gather the materials."

  While Zoras was away, Terran brought up the page for the Crystalline Conservatory. Each building in the settlement had more details, but he'd never really needed them before now.

  Crystalline Conservatory (Level 1)

  Head: Zoras Tomespeaker (Level 11)

  Members:

  Jondar Bright
song (Level 8)

  Hedge Rootline (Level 1) – Trainee

  Echinacea Winter (Level 1) – Trainee

  Isabella Rose (Level 1) – Trainee

  Crystals:

  Azure (Sonic Attacks)

  Emerald (Scrying)

  Green (Communication/Dislocation)

  Crimson (Defensive)

  Violet (Unknown)

  Status Effects (all members):

  +5% for Bard Songs

  The conservatory was only level 1. While the materials to get it to level 3 would be available in a few days, level 4 required the settlement to attain the same, which was still a few weeks off by his calculations. Terran spent 1,500 loam and 25 sap to bring the Crystalline Conservatory to level 2, then went in search of Ara for the next seed, which would be ready for planting.

  After receiving the seed for planting, he reviewed the settlement page, finding the population a healthy 348, which was a big increase from last time due to the new vassal state of Salt Luck. With the morale of the settlement still in the negative due to a lack of housing, Terran used the seed for additional housing, but that wasn't going to help when the people from Salt Luck arrived. He wasn't even sure if they'd want to live in the trees. The bounce and sway of the hanging bridges took time to get used to, and not everyone was good with heights.

  Before Terran returned to the conservatory, he found Lhoris in the clearing, working his new warriors through their paces. The young elves swung their weapons without grace, leaning too far forward and exposing themselves to counterattacks. Even Terran could see their inexperience.

  "Thirty laps around the hill," said Lhoris, barely hiding his disappointment at the trainees as he approached Terran.

  "You'll work them into shape," said Terran. "I have faith in you."

  The captain of the guard placed his hands behind his back. "You didn't come to visit to give me a pep talk."

  "You're right," said Terran, sensing Lhoris' apprehension. "I need to delay the training of your warriors."

  "I don't understand," said Lhoris, furrowing his brow. "First you want more warriors to protect the loamers, and now you want them...to do what exactly?"

  "I visited Salt Luck. There was a pirate attack." Terran explained the fight and the discussion with Mayor Arabast, leaving out the parts with Aminata, while Lhoris listened intently. "What I need is housing, and it's going to be a few more weeks until we have enough seeds for planting, and even then, I might need them for other purposes. I'd like you to take the trainees to the old Crag Troll caves and build housing for them. Either in the caves, or outside the entrance. It'll also help keep mischief away from Granite."

  "If my elves are going to become warriors, they need to be drilling, not building," said Lhoris.

  "Build in the morning, drill in the afternoon. It'll be a week until they arrive from Salt Luck," said Terran.

  The old warrior nodded as he searched his face. "You've purposely not mentioned my half-brother."

  Terran hesitated. "I offered him the position of leading the warriors. You will continue to train the troops." When Lhoris' face grew red, he quickly added, "But when it comes to battle, you'll both be there at my side. I need you both, but you said it yourself, you need help. You can't keep watch on the borders and train at the same time."

  "Have I not been at your side this whole time? Is this what my loyalty gets?" asked Lhoris, face wrought with pain.

  "I'm sorry, Lhoris. I'm trying to put the needs of the settlement first. I know this is difficult, but the Howling Wind will land on this continent eventually. If we're not united then we'll fail. Even the Lady of Shadows knows that," said Terran.

  The rebuke diminished Lhoris, shrunk his shoulders. He couldn't meet Terran's gaze. "I will do as you command."

  The proud elf trudged away as if he were being led to a gallows, leaving Terran alone in the clearing.

  "If I don't solve the morale problem, none of the others are going to matter," said Terran.

  But since he didn't have any new ideas, he headed to the conservatory to grow some crystals for the communication network. Once he set that up, the +15% bonus would give him some breathing room.

  Chapter Eleven

  Terran stood alone, high above the ground on the platform that surrounded the Mother Tree. The crystals grew as nodes on the thick, whitish limbs, but expanded no further without the song of the Crystal Bard. He picked a healthy one, keeping a razor-thin knife in his right hand, while he settled his breathing in preparation for the long song.

  Growing the crystals took endurance, but this would push him much further, since he had to grow one large enough to be cut into multiple gems to be spread across his fledgling empire. The first note came out a little wrong, but Terran quickly righted himself, finding the melody that would give the tree the instructions for growing.

  Each crystal had its song, and the green, meant for portals and communication, felt different from the others, which were rooted in nature. When he'd sung the azure crystal song, he'd imagined his voice like a breeze through canyons, while the emerald had felt like the ebb and flow of ocean waves against the shore.

  The emerald, ethereal and effervescent, was the connections between people, the spaces and distances that affected relationships. He pictured the song like a web of thoughts, linking people together.

  He was vaguely aware that the pulpy node of tree flesh was expanding, but he stayed in the melody, letting his concerns flow through the song. When the crystal was half the size he needed, he knew that he could have never grown it before. The endurance required was already pushing him to his limits, and he wasn't near finished.

  When the growth was a massive lump of green flesh, sagging off the branch, threatening to snap off and fall to the forest floor, Terran set the razor knife against the skin, peeling away the exterior and revealing the crystal beneath. He kept up the same note, feeling the crystal answer back, even though the plant skin. It felt so alive under his touch, pulsing and warm as he stripped away the covering and finally cut the base from the stem. Without losing his note, Terran made his way down to the conservatory, where he set the raw crystal between the two brass clamps and let the song fall away.

  [You have increased the skill Bardic Endurance]

  Skill: Bardic Endurance 18 (CHA)

  If you ever decide to hold your breath to get your way…watch out!

  Terran collapsed to his knees, breathing heavily in the quiet of the room while the song still carried in his ears. He downed a couple draughts of water and ate a few handfuls of nuts and dried mushrooms for the energy needed to finish.

  After laying tools out around the table, he collected the hammer and chisel first, then let the note slip loose from his lips. His hands hovered over the crystal, preparing for the first strike, when he heard a slight wobble in the reflected note. Circling around the thick mineral, keeping his voice at pitch, he found an imperfection that would have caused the whole thing to fail if he'd started cutting at the obvious breaks. With the flaw in mind, Terran reoriented his position, setting the chisel against the crystal and striking true, knocking off a section in one blow.

  Cutting one crystal was a challenge, but shaping more than one was exponentially harder. He had to delay the final separation as long as possible or the crystals might shift to a different note, making them unusable for a communication network. As he circled the crystal, feeling the resonance in his chest like standing near a warm fire, he chipped away at the excess material, slowly bringing shape to the mass. At first, he thought he'd only be able to get three large crystals from it, but as he worked the material he realized he could make them slightly more slender and cut four medium-sized crystals and five smaller crystals, which could expand his network substantially.

  Terran worked the structure, shaping the outer sections while setting up flaw lines between the pieces, readying them for the final blow. Nearing the end, he was vaguely aware that the extended effort had drained his energy and a tremble in his hands threatene
d a miscut. He fought the urge to rush lifting and striking his hammer against the chisel with purpose until at last he was at the final blow. When he struck, the crystal exploded apart, and Terran feared that it'd been a complete failure, until the nine crystals landed on the cushioned table. As the song faded from his lips, his body lost its battle against fatigue and the last thing he remembered was the floor coming up rapidly to meet his face.

  #

  There were green crystal chips littered around the wood floor. Terran stared at them from his prone position as the song repeated through his ears, soaked into his bones. He felt like he'd been wrung dry, not a kernel of energy left, but mustering his will, he managed to pull himself to his knees to examine his work.

  Holding a green crystal in his hand, he let the note drift from his lips. It woke immediately, reflecting back at him with eight other echoes following. The force of the nine crystals knocked his mind on a journey that felt both infinite and brief. When the vibration faded, he was back in the conservatory on his knees, holding a single green crystal. He'd turned his notifications off during the work, but when he switched them back on, his screen filled with information.

  [You have increased the skill Crystal Harvesting]

  Skill: Crystal Harvesting 5 (CHA)

  [You have increased the skill Crystal Harvesting]

  Skill: Crystal Harvesting 6 (CHA)

  [You have increased the skill Crystal Harvesting]

  Skill: Crystal Harvesting 7 (CHA)

  You have gained nine extraordinary green crystals!

  The final quality pleased him. It was the third-highest quality, behind Exquisite and Legendary. There was still the matter of fittings and delivering them to their final locations, but he was certain Zoras and Jondar could help him with that part.