Chapter 50：First Floor (VII): Aftermath

This was weird, Lenore really couldn't understand what was going on, because in all honesty this wasn't something she's heard of before of had ever experienced. But here it was, and it was staring at her right in the face. Still in doubt she decided to move forward and try again, by this point she and everyone else that were gathered here had lost count of the amount of time she's tried to enter the dungeon, but the answer was the same every time, she couldn't.

[This dungeon is no longer accessible.]

And there was no explanation offered for it, of course the consequence of the dungeon being inaccessible was completely inconsequential, it was only there as a training ground for slaves that made it into the ranks of militia, there were no valuable resources to be mined from it as it was more of an instance dungeon than a traditional one. But all that aside it didn't change the fact that Rezar was stuck in there and that smug bastard Boris Ravenheart seemed to find it amusing.

Lenore couldn't help herself as she walked up to him and gave him a punch that caved half his face in and ruined his noble visage. He would live and be as good as new the moment Priest decides to heal him, but then again knowing Priest and how fond he was of Rezar she doubted Boris would be receiving any help from him, so this was still on her, dam it!

Lenore hated being indebted to someone and even worse she hated guilt, she was a woman who was always sure of her decisions and was just in her actions, no matter what the situation might be or call for. But twice now her honor has been called into question, the only thing that truly set her aside from the rest of her race. But twice being responsible or in one way or the other being responsible for the misfortune that befell Rezar has left her feeling all kinds of wrong.

Sure she pretty much didn't have much of a choice in any of the situations, the calls were made by people who for all intents and purposes her employers. Even her body doesn't really belong to her as even she has to give it up to survive and grow stronger. Truly everyone was a slave here, and now it seems there was one less slave too. Priest walked towards her as he made his way back to his church, but just before he left he said to her.

"that display of anger from you doesn't mean shit Lenore, not that ill argue that stuck-up prick Boris doesn't deserve it based on the story Reinhart had given, but you collapsing his face won't bring Rezar back, neither will it make up for the cowardice you've shown and your inability to protect an innocent person. If he survives this, I assure you…there will not be a third time, so shelve your worthless guilt and find a way to get him back! Or my hands will start itching and I would be the one doing the killing," with that said he walked off, leaving a very conflicted Lenore behind.

>>>>

MONTHS LATER

Lenore never did find a way to get Rezar out of the dungeon, she has tried every day since, and not just her, the now fourteen-year-old Reinhardt did too. But after almost four months of watching there was no change and she had pretty much lost hope, going over to the dungeon entrance now was nothing more than just a formality for her now, and obligation she just couldn't seem to get rid of, never the less she did manage to get over it. Hopefully he gets to have a better next life than the one he suddenly found himself saddled with.

But since that incident there has been quite a few changes around, about a week ago a high priestess of wild tribe was brought here along with eleven of her people. While it was hard to imagine that such people existed, the wild tribe were pretty much what you would expect hippies and barbarians to be like. They were uncultured, rough around the edges, and had a hard on for anything that had to do with death or the death classes.

Only problem was that the princess brought here was no ordinary person, even more so when she only ended up here due to a coup and betrayal from some of her people. She was a shaman, of course this wasn't too rare of a class, but shamans were known for channeling the spirits of monsters and draining on them for combat, it was similar to the druid class but not exactly the same. This shaman on the other hand could channel the spirit of the dead, and not just any dead; she could channel the spirits of people who had experienced true death from the hands of death class.

In a way it sorts of showed that maybe there was something beyond the true death for people who die from the actions of death class wielders. But her ability was eccentric, no matter how you looked at it, it was something that could pretty much change the status quo, in the wrong and right hands, her power would be extremely powerful, it would be entirely possible for her to unravel the secrets of the past and find the treasures left by the past reincarnations of many. It could make someone the most powerful being in all of Elysium, but therein lies the problem.

This woman will not be controlled, she wouldn't let it happen, not by her people and certainly not by the nobles who bought her, and even worse she couldn't be killed due to how valuable she was. She was sent here as a sort of punishment; to see if living like a slave for a few years would make her more susceptible to control.

Lenore was a woman too she knew such a method won't work, the priestess seems to have an iron will even she couldn't match up to. So to keep her safe and also to keep the rest of the camp from crossing paths with her she did the same thing she did with Rezar and had the princess live in the western Quadrant, however only a single member of her entourage was allowed to see her as the rest were thrown into harder labor than was necessary.

But this was the punishment, she also had to see the people willing to follow and support her suffer and die one after the other, it was cruel but just like before Lenore had no choice but to carry out. Everybody here was a slave herself included. Lenore could only hop that just like Rezar, the priestess would find a way to survive and make her life easier, because since Rezar left the western Quadrant…the darkness had gotten more dangerous.