Far to the east, beyond the borders of the Empire, a dungeon stood in the midst of a desert oasis. A stone structure rose from the center of the oasis, with a vortex swirling in place of its entrance. The air distorted near the entrance, and cracks of mana lightning shot from the vortex.

Inside the dungeon was a series of underground caves and tunnels, made of a combination of dirt and stone. And within those tunnels, the sounds of battle raged. The clanging of metal, the shouts of men and women, and the chittering and squealing of rodents. Lots and lots of rodents.

A small group of heavily armed warriors stood amidst a sea of fur and fangs, the ground drenched in the blood of their foes, with armored knights cutting down the rodents all around. At their center stood a man with a bow and light armor, golden and silver light wrapping around his arrows as they pierced through dozens of ratkin with every shot.

The Hero of Elteno heaved a sigh.

“Of course, it had to be a Verminflood dungeon.”

A battlemage to his left let loose a mighty torrent of flame, and then she shrugged.

“Speak for yourself. I much prefer this to that Inferno Dungeon. At least I can set these things on fire.”

A recovery knight in plate armor behind them raised an eyebrow as he struck down the Ratkin assassin sneaking behind them.

“Really? Weren’t you the one complaining every step of the way in that Overgrowth dungeon?”

The battlemage scoffed as she prepared another spell.

“Oh, I’m sorry. You try continuously casting spells for 48 hours straight.”

The recovery knight smirked.

“Clearly you’ve never gone through the Recovery Academy training.”

The Hero of Elteno sighed. Well, at least they were having fun. He turned his attention to the front.

An elf in silk robes danced across the front lines, lashing out with a curved glaive of Celestial design. He had clear, pale skin without a single spot or blemish, and his long, black hair was tied into a ponytail. He held the line not with shield and strength, but by a deadly storm of sword slashes that struck down any Ratkin foolish enough to approach. And yet, he somehow managed to avoid even a single speck of blood landing on his white robes.

“How are we doing, Liulëa?”

The Celestial Elf scoffed.

“I fear such filth stains my poor blade. This young master doubts he will find even a single worthy opponent in this place.”

A group of rodents tried to circle around him, only for a smoke bomb to explode in their face. A small Lizardkin in form-fitting black clothing appeared, tossing a fan of poisoned knives into the confused Ratkin.

“What the Young Master needs to say is he is about to collapse with fatigue, and very much hopes we are close to the boss.”

The Celestial Elf panicked even as an arc of mana flew from his blade, cutting down an entire squad of rats.

“Khokoh! You dare dishonor your master so?”

Khokoh shrugged as she tossed an explosive bomb into a pack of Ratkin.

“Young Master, we are in the midst of battle with trusted allies, not visiting some rival family. You are permitted to speak the truth and I strongly recommend you do so.”

The Hero of Elteno nodded at the Lizardkin.

“We could all use a break. Let’s rest up one more time before we push forward. Nolnyth, can we get an assist?”

In the center of the group was a group of elves in black scale mail armor. They all had dark, tanned skin and white hair. The woman at their center scoffed and stepped forward. She waved her hand and a massive magic circle appeared.

And then a wave of fire surrounded the group, burning so bright it appeared pure white. As the rodents turned to ash, the rest of the Sun Elves set up a perimeter, while the Hero of Elteno’s party set up camp. The women, Nolnyth, scoffed.

“Pathetic. I expected better from the ‘Empire’s best,’ not to mention a young master of those Celestial fools.”If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

The battlemage smirked at her.

“And which Sun Elf Archon was it that needed help from the pathetic Imperials again?”

Nolnyth scowled, then scoffed and turned to command the defense. The recovery knight crossed his arms.

“You’re going to pay for that, you know? How about you try not antagonizing the one Sun Elf with a lick of sanity?”

The battlemage grinned and shrugged.

“Worth it. She might be less insane than all the rest but she’s still a jerk.”

The recovery knight…did not respond to that. The Hero of Elteno sighed, and then tried to get as comfortable as he could. No matter how many times he did it, purifying corrupted dungeons never seemed to get any easier.

In the end, an Imperial Hero, a squad of elite Imperial Knights, a Celestial Elf Young Master and his retainer, and a Sun Elf Archon with her retinue were more than a match even for the endless waves of a Verminflood dungeon, and managed to reach the end. The Hero of Elteno smashed the core with a Holy-infused arrow, allowing the power of the world to connect to and seal off the corrupted dungeon’s connection to the Realms of Mana. The dungeon vanished, and the boundaries of the Material Plane held steady.

Nolnyth motioned and her retinue prepared to leave. She turned to face the Hero of Elteno.

“I must leave to participate in a Council of the Archons. I suggest you use the time to prepare yourself for a better showing.”

The Hero of Elteno nodded.

“You know where to find us.”

Nolnyth turned and left without another word. The battlemage scowled.

“As if she didn’t beg us to help. Jerk.”

The Hero of Elteno sighed and shook his head. Neither the Imperial Knights nor the Sun Elf Archon were happy about working together. But neither had any choice. An alarming amount of corrupted dungeons had appeared within the Empire of the Sun over the past few years…and the High Archons weren't doing anything about it. Nolnyth was one of the few Sun Elf authorities actually concerned about the situation (at least within her own territory), while the last thing the Elteni Empire wanted was monster hordes appearing on its borders. Worst of all, the Exploratores had found evidence that the Heralds of the New Dawn, that cult that had killed Aedinia, were involved. And so came about this unholy alliance, which had spent the last few years destroying dungeons and trying to investigate those responsible.

Or as best they could while maintaining a low profile. If it became public knowledge that the Hero of Elteno had infiltrated the Empire of the Sun and an Archon was working with him, there would be consequences for both parties.

The recovery knight sighed and shook his head.

“What now, boss?”

The Hero of Elteno shrugged.

“Like our jerk said, we best take the opportunity to rest, and follow up on our contacts.”

The knights nodded and got to work. They removed their armor and hid it within a magic box specially prepared for this mission, and put on their disguises. Fortunately the Empire of the Sun was home to many more races than just the Sun Elves, so they wouldn’t stand out too much.

Unfortunately, most of those races were little more than slaves, so it was still dangerous to interact with any Sun Elves. But fortunately, Celestial Elves were not counted among them, so Liulëa had some ability to cover for them. They, in fact, all carried the symbol of Liulëa’s family with them, should they get into any…complicated situations.

And so the group left the oasis, traveling to one of the cities of the Empire of the Sun. Most of the knights made their way to the safe house they normally stayed at, while the Hero of Elteno made his way to a local bar that was a front for the Exploratores.

“What’s the news?”

The barkeeper shrugged as he cleaned a mug.

“Lots of movement and conversation between the Archons lately. Might be planning something big. The Eastern Court is already prepping a response, just in case.”

The Hero of Elteno sighed. Another war would complicate things. Nolnyth was not so concerned about the dungeons that she would defect to the Empire, after all.

“And…what of the North? Didn’t you say there was some sort of incursion in Turannia?”

The Hero couldn’t help himself. He trusted Tiberius and Canus to keep an eye out for Ateia, but even their hands might be tied with a full-on Dobhar invasion.

The barkeeper’s eyes lit up.

“Oh, you haven’t heard, have you? Get this, story goes a wandering knight wiped out the entire invasion, single-handedly.”

The Hero of Elteno just raised an eyebrow at that. The barkeeper grinned.

“I thought as much too, but then Magister Caelinus revolted, and apparently the same wandering knight put him down before the Northern Court even organized a response. Again, I thought there’s no way, but then the Northern Emperor invited her to the court. Even promoted two Exploratores to Inquisitors solely to act as her assistants. Don’t know how much of the stories are true but apparently she’s the real deal, or at least the Northern Emperor believes so.”

The Hero of Elteno hummed, and then exhaled his breath. Well, an unknown like that was concerning, but if she was stabilizing the North then it was good news. He...did not like hearing about all these incursions and revolts, after all. His heart sank as he thought of the girl he had left behind, but he couldn’t let the Heralds of the New Dawn corrupt all the dungeons in the Empire of the Sun. He would not allow them to destroy the world, and render all of Aedinia’s sacrifice for naught. Still…he couldn’t help but try to keep tabs on Turannia in the meantime. As long as his daughter stayed safe, then it all would be worth it.

He couldn’t help but be curious about this wandering knight though, and the Emperor’s interest in her.

“Is that so? Which Exploratores got promoted?”

He took a sip of his drink as he waited for the answer. Any tales about the knight’s exploits or character would be largely distorted by the time they arrived here, and couldn’t be trusted. But he knew most of the veteran Exploratores in Corvanus, so finding out who the Emperor had assigned might hint at the Emperor’s perception of the powerful stranger.

The barkeeper nodded.

“That’s interesting too. It was two new kids who came in with the knight, from Turannia of all places. Let me see, what were their names again? Tag, or Taog, was it? Some sort of foreign name, I'm not entirely sure. The other one was an Imperial, Ateia if I remember correctly.”

The Hero of Elteno spat out his drink. He leaned over the counter, almost grabbing the barkeeper.

“Ateia?! You’re sure?! As in, Ateia Niraemia?!”

The barkeeper lifted his hands.

“Whoa there, um, I think so? That sounds right?”

The Hero of Elteno ran from the bar.