Nephilim or not, I was going to continue to be a healer in Forest Glen. I would do my monthly job at the Adventurer’s Guild, but I wasn’t going to be looking for fights. No dungeon diving for me. No ‘kill’ quests either. Gathering quests would be my preferred jobs. Probably. I would not choose Whisper’s Path of violence.

  I finished up with my last patient for the day. A crotchety old man that somehow smelled of Bengay and peppermint candies. He had a bad case of arthritis, and I had to use Cure All to fix it. While I was doing that, he kept asking if I could make him younger. I would say no, and two minutes later he would ask the same question. It wasn’t that he was senile, it was that he was just a crotchety old man.

  Fabia came in just as Crotchety left. “There is some type of emergency at the Adventurer’s Guild and they need you there immediately.”

  “Okay, I am on my way.” I had improved my teleport skill over the last few months and so was able to teleport directly outside of the Guild.

  When I entered, it was mass confusion, but Gorver spotted my and waved me over to his office. I entered Gorver’s office expecting the worst.

  “We have discovered the dungeon.” Gorver said.

  Dungeon, what dungeon? I thought to myself.

  “It was right where you said it would be. We are mounting an expedition to go there and explore it.”

  Oh, that dungeon.

  “Congratulations, but Fabia said there was some type of emergency and you needed me here immediately. What’s the emergency?” I replied.

  “I didn’t say emergency. I said it was imperative that you come to the guild. This is a monumental discovery because of you. A dungeon only two week’s travel away. Do you know what this means?”

  I thought about it for a second, then replied. “The only thing I know is that clearing it will stop the monster waves for 10 years. Other than that, nothing.”

  Gorver sat back staring at me for a few seconds, then says “It means prosperity for Forest Glen. If we can clear it, then others will come to explore it. If we can clear it, it will be one of only five repeatable dungeons in the kingdom. If we can clear it, we will have access to its treasures. Rare metals, gems, and plants that don’t exist outside a dungeon. These can be used in alchemy, blacksmithing, enchanting. A whole new industry in Forest Glen. Forest Glen will no longer be a frontier city, but a real flourishing city. We may even expand the borders of the kingdom. That is what a dungeon means.”

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  “If we can clear it. You said that several times. Why?”

  “That’s the problem. We don’t know the level of the dungeon. We won’t know until after we clear it and it resets. Because it has been untouched for decades, the monsters inside are all higher level than normal. After a while, a dungeon break occurs, which results in a monster wave. We need to go in, clear it and then determine its level.”

  “You keep saying ‘We’. Do you mean the Guild?”

  Gorver stares at me and gives me his best Guild Master look. “By ‘we’, I mean, Earl Donnert, Count Justinian, Brakford, Tayla, Yuri, myself, and you will be clearing the dungeon. Countess Majora wanted to come, but the Earl said it was an either-or situation. Her or Brakford, and we need a tank. She chose Brakford. She will come along with the expedition but not into the dungeon itself for the clear. She will lead the first run afterwards though.”

  “That is a very powerful group. Why do you need me?”

  “Silent was summoned to the main Guild headquarters in Decharte City. Aldra and Fralley are coming and next to you, are the best healers the guild has, but frankly, they aren’t you. Noone knows exactly what we will be facing in the dungeon. What we do know is that it will be dangerous and that we need the best Forest Glen has to offer.” Gorver paused for a second and then continued.

  “Listen. People may seem blasé about the monster waves, but they not. Everyone knows the waves are getting stronger and stronger each year. Soon, Forest Glen will have to be abandoned if nothing changes. The Earl and Ruberm have estimated we have another 5 years before staying becomes untenable. And that’s if we don’t get another unexpected wave. The Earl almost died in the previous normal wave. He would have if you didn’t show up out of nowhere. In the last wave, the Demon Lord would have killed everyone, if you hadn’t worked out your deal with it. That includes your friends and family, all the nobles, and every adventurer you know. He was that powerful. If we don’t clear this dungeon, it’s the end for Forest Glen. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but soon the waves will be too powerful to stop.”

  “I can see the importance of the expedition, but …” I stuttered.

  “Look Trevor. You are the best healer in the world. Yes, I mean that. Magical healing didn’t exist until you came here. You taught others Minor Healing and that is wonderful for normal adventuring, but first clear of a dungeon is anything but normal adventuring. The Dungeon is breaking, that means the monsters inside are way more powerful than normal. Each break is more powerful than the last, and each time the monsters inside become more powerful. This has been going on for decades. Without you, I don’t think we stand a chance. Noone has your Heaven’ Heal or Cure All spell. I know you are trying to teach people, but as of now no one has it. This expedition needs you, not a lesser version of you.” Gorver sat there staring at me waiting for an answer. Silence hung in the air.

  “You’ve given me a lot to think about. My tendency is to say yes, but I need a day to think about it. I’ll give you an answer tomorrow. Is that good enough?” It’d better be, because I am not going to be bullied into this, I thought to myself.

  “Of course. I know that I came on strong, like a used carriage salesman, but that’s because of the expedition’s importance. Please keep that in mind. Besides, almost the entire guild is going on the expedition, and you don’t want to be the only one not to go.” He said the last with a big smile on his face.

  I stood up, shook his hand and said, “I will let you know tomorrow.”, then teleported back to Covern House.