I lightly activate my Dungeon Walker skill to sift through all the possible warp points I have in mind, but none of them seem like good options.
The ones out in the desert of the Dark Continent are way too far away from civilization, and the ones near dungeon hubs are too close to towns and have too many people currently farming in them.
I want to test this cursed item out on an abandoned dungeon, and not unnecessarily hurt anyone or be seen by prying eyes in the process.
I search a little further, then decide there's probably a faster way to find an uninhabited dungeon around here. If anyone would know where to find one, it'd be Bri.
"Hey Ember, I think I know where I'll find a good dungeon to test it."
He responds as I open my item storage to let him fly inside.
"The stronger the dungeon, the better. Weak ones will not be comparable to the titan's domain in mana output in the slightest."
As he disappears, I nod, teleporting back to one of the dungeons in the underground dungeon hub Bri showed me in the black market.
Activating stealth, I hop out and make my way through the dark underground markets below Vice City. It only takes me a few minutes to speed walk through using enemy detection to pinpoint Bri's level 488 status with light magic and a crafting skill.
Dungeon Walking directly here from now on for future meetings with Bri will be a bit quicker than using the capital's dungeon hub, and probably a bit less risky too. If someone with high enough perception skills can see me through my stealth skill, it's better they see me down here than up walking through the city.
Another minute passes, and I make it to the set of heavy metal doors and stairs that lead up to the workshop. There's a tall blond-haired guard out front with lightweight armor and daggers on his waist. To make sure I don't make a fuss, I shift my face and appearance using my conceal skill and the concealment attribute of my new cloak to look just like a generic businessman in a black suit and tie before confronting him.
With a doctored status to look like a random level 440 hunter with a swordsmanship skill, I reach into my pocket and take out a few brightly glowing items from my storage along with a handful of platinum bars.
"I'm an old friend of Bri's. I have a few items I want her to look at, and I'm on quite the tight schedule."
The guard is over 200 levels lower than my own doctored status, and I made sure to show off enough riches that he wouldn't think twice about letting me through.
It's not like I couldn't force my way past, but I'd like to be civil this time around.
He opens the metal door and leads me up to the first floor of the brick building without questioning my actions. It's clear he knows I'm far stronger than him as well, but I made sure to make myself look weaker than Bri to make him feel more comfortable with letting me up into her office. A few heads turn from the workers on the bottom floor, but once they see the guard escorting me up the stairs, they go right back to their usual tasks.
Bernard on the middle floor looks up from a new book but goes back to reading when he sees the guard as well.
The large blond tank goes back down to continue his guard duty while I step into Bri's dark office on the top floor, knocking on the wall as I enter and deactivating my concealment skills.
The lighting in the room brightens and the curvy craftswoman stands from her desk in a brand new jet black skin tight outfit. Her gear today gives off a strong mana shielding glow and the two daggers on her waist hum lightly with energy as well.
I either caught her off guard last time I stopped by, or she got a major wardrobe upgrade.
As I approach, Bri's voice echoes through the room.
"Back so soon? I'm glad you decided to knock this time."
I activate my Hush skill before responding, encompassing her whole study just to make sure our words are confidential. Bri continues, asking another question once the grey dome surrounds us.
"Do you have more important information on our deal?"
I shake my head.
"No, I think it will be a bit longer before I have any information pertaining to the trade and crafting agreement. The reason I stopped by now is that I need a favor."
She smiles and steps around from the back of her desk to meet me eye to eye in the middle of the room.
With her high heels on, she's even taller than me by a few centimeters.
"Oh yeah? What kind of favor?"
I pause for a second before answering.
"I need access to an abandoned dungeon. Or at least one with no people allowed inside. Preferably high C Grade or even B Grade if possible, and it needs to be far away from the city with no humans nearby."
She looks at me curiously, then nods and turns around to walk back over to her desk and sift through a few papers.
Without turning around, she responds.
"I know of one just perfect for you, 20 kilometers or so outside the city. However, if you don't mind me asking, what's this for? You need to do some last-minute training?"
I shake my head and respond as she pulls a paper out of the pile.
"No, I have the Labyrinth for training if I need. I just need to test out a dangerous item I came across recently. It would be best if there aren't any witnesses or innocents nearby in case something goes wrong."
I see no point in hiding what I'm doing, we will be close business partners in the near future, so it's best to come clean if I'm already asking for favors.
As she turns with the paper in hand, I see the craftswoman's eyes light up. I can tell she's thinking of more than just my mention of a dangerous magic item. Bri raises a corner of her lip into a smirk, tightening her eyes on my own before responding.
"I'll show you exactly where you can find a dungeon to do whatever test you need to do. But, did you just say you have labyrinth access?"
My eyes leave hers and track to the paper in her hand. The edges of it flop over and I can see it's a map of a forest region.
"Great- and, yes, I can get into the Labyrinth undetected to train. This dungeon access is strictly to test the item out. It may actually collapse the entire dungeon... so make sure you're giving me a location that you won't miss."
I let out a chuckle, but Bri's eyes widen in response.
"An item that can collapse a high-grade dungeon...? And unregistered access into the Vice City labyrinth...?"
There's a moment of silence in the room as I nod and she walks closer with the paper outstretched in her hand. However, the moment I accept it, she doesn't let go immediately.
"In return, could I ask two favors of you? One to pay me back, and another so that I owe you one."
I nod with a thin smile still on my face.
"Depends what it is, but I don't see why not. I'm sure they will be reasonable."
She releases her grip of the map and continues.
"Firstly, I'd like to go with you to see you use this mystery item, and witness what you say it might do... and- Second, If you have access to the Labyrinth, could you get me inside? I've been dying for a chance to finally reach level 500 and rank up."
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Hmmm
. . . . . That could be problematic although Bri is one of if not the only human that knows Jay has incorporated a demon core into himself. Still, nobody knows about him pairing with a dragon and as the saying goes... three can keep a secret if two are dead.