The Dungeon Fairy: Two Choices: A Dungeon Core Escapade (The Hapless Dungeon Fairy Book 2) by Jonathan Brooks (free e books to read .txt) 📗

spread the word.  No guarantees that it will stay right here long, but hopefully it will help for those coming after us to have some warning, at least.”

After that, the Scout annoyingly triggered the other pit trap to confirm that it was still in the same place, and then the group finished their delve without any problem.  Tacca couldn’t help but think that if they hadn’t been as experienced as they were (that was at least the third time the Dungeon Core had seen them, though she also had to admit that they were all starting to blend together – so it was hard to tell), one or more of them could have died as a result of her trap.

She wasn’t necessarily disappointed, but rather excited to see that the change didn’t cause them to get extremely angry and call out for her destruction.  She was relatively sure they were ready for it, but confirmation of her assumption felt like a form of vindication.  See!  They handled it quite well.

“True, I’ll give you that.  They even chalked it up to just another one of the ‘strange quirks of this dungeon’, so that’s a plus, as well.  You have to consider that, if that Raider had fallen in, they might have a different opinion.”

She had to agree, despite it cooling her enthusiasm somewhat.  As a result, and because she needed more time for the Pits to reform, she waited to call in another group of Raiders to delve through until the first group had already left the exit staircase up top.  She then gave them more than enough time to pass on word of the change to those waiting up above, so at least they would have some warning.  The second group to come in complained loudly and vehemently of the change as soon as they got to the fifth room, despite the fact that she didn’t move the trap from where it was now.

“It looks like that other group wasn’t lying – there’s a tree where the trap used to be!  If they were also accurate on where it’s now located, then the location is precisely where we used to fight all of those vicious wolves!  That means we have to change up our strategy a bit.”

They didn’t seem to appreciate having to change their previous “strategy”, but they did it – and succeeded in not getting themselves killed.  Even with their success, they still weren’t happy; none of them called for her Core’s destruction, though.  That was a win as far as Tacca was concerned.

She kept the Pit traps exactly where they were for a few days, before she moved the second one – putting a tree in its place again to mark the change.  She was a little worried when the next group – a brand-new, raw bunch of Raiders – managed to lose their Scout to the new placement of the trap.  It was really his own fault, though, because he ran from the battle, deathly scared of the Wolves for some reason, and ran right into the trap.

“Why did he run?!  We had that under control!” the Fighter of the group asked, looking down into the pit where the Gnome Scout was thoroughly dead with a spike through his chest.

“I think I remember Chester mentioning – when he had been drinking a bit too much one night – that one of his family members had been torn apart by wolves, but I don’t really know any other details,” the Healer said sadly.

“Oh.  Well, if he had at least told us that, maybe we could’ve done something to prevent his death.  Still, this trap wasn’t even supposed to be here, at least according to our information.”

The Healer looked around and spotted the tree where the trap used to be, before looking at the path the Scout had taken.  “I’m not sure that would’ve even mattered.  From where he was running, it looks like he probably would’ve hit the spot where it was before, anyway.”

Whether or not that assessment was correct, the others spent a few minutes in silence looking down at their dead groupmate down below.  After that, they went on to the sixth room of her dungeon, killed all of the creatures inside while taking a few wounds, and then left morosely afterwards through the exit staircase.  Either they weren’t up to the Boss room and the danger it represented in their present mood, or they were ready to grab an angry mob that would come back and call for her destruction.

“I think it’s the former.  They don’t seem too mad at you; they appear to be more angry at the situation and the needless death of their group member.”

Shale always seemed to know the right words to assuage her worries.  Or to incite them, depending on the situation.

Whatever the reason they left, the point was that they left – and didn’t seem to bear her dungeon any particular malice.  After that, there were a few more grumbles and annoyed comments – as well as a few more deaths – from those delving through her dungeon, but the ratio of deaths to how many made it through without trouble was extraordinarily low.  So low, in fact, that Tacca thought that her “luck” played a part in saving quite a few of those that should’ve died; missteps in the right direction (right as in good for them); the soil covering the pit collapsing even before anyone was close enough (which she still didn’t know how that happened); and lastly one of the Wolves launched themselves at a Fighter’s throat, which caused the Raider to trip and fall to the side, activating the trap just barely, and the Wolf shot past and landed on the collapsing pit cover – which killed the creature as it hit the spikes on the bottom.

At least they couldn’t retrieve the reward for that last one.

Still,