The Copper Mug was packed when I arrived.

  I spotted Marcus and Jorik sitting at a corner table, away from the worst of the noise.

  Jorik looked up when I approached, and something flickered across his face.

  "Vera." He stood up, awkward as hell, like he wasn't sure if he should hug me or shake my hand. "Thanks for coming."

  "Of course." I slid into the seat across from them, trying to ignore how my stomach was twisting itself into knots.

  Marcus was already waving down a server. "Order whatever you want. My treat, remember?"

  The server came over and rattled off the menu. I barely heard half of it. My mind was too busy screaming at me to just leave, to make up some excuse and get the hell out before I said something I'd regret.

  But I didn't. I ordered something and watched and listened as Marcus chatted with Jorik about the market, about everything..

  It should've been easy. Just sit here, eat some food, smile and nod at the right times. But every word felt heavy, like I was choking on them before they even left my mouth.

  "So," Marcus said, turning to me with that earnest look again. "Jorik told me you've been visiting Emil every day."

  I nodded. "Yeah. I try to."

  "Any progress?"

  I shook my head. "Still not talking. But... I think he's listening. Sometimes."

  Jorik's jaw tightened. "He's been through hell. We all have."

  The server came back with our drinks, ale for them, water for me.

  "I'm just glad you were there," Marcus said "For my grandfather. For all of them."

  Stop. I wanted to scream it. Just stop.

  But I couldn't. So I just nodded again, like some kind of broken puppet.

  "Vera?" Jorik was staring at me now, his brow furrowed. "You okay?"

  "Yeah." The word came out too fast. "Just tired, you know? Long day."

  “Right. Adventuring work can be rough." Marcus nodded.

  The food arrived, it was some kind of stew with bread on the side and for a while, we just ate in silence.

  "So," Marcus said eventually, breaking the quiet. "You've been doing well at the guild, huh? Garrick seemed impressed."

  "Yeah, I guess." I stabbed at my stew with the spoon. "Herb gathering's been... manageable."

  "Manageable?" Jorik snorted. "Marcus told me you found over two dozen moonbell flowers in one day. That's impressive as hell."

  I shrugged. "Nox helps a lot."

  "Most tamers start with smaller creatures. E-rank stuff at best. But you? You're already working with D-rank monsters” Marcus said.

  "I just got lucky," I muttered.

  "Luck doesn't bond you to monsters like that. You've got real talent, Vera."

  Then he cleared his throat awkwardly. "Hey, uh... about earlier today—"

  Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  "It's fine," I cut him off quickly. "Your mage already apologized."

  "Yeah, but still." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "We shouldn't have been so jumpy."

  Jorik raised an eyebrow at him. "What happened?"

  "Long story," Marcus said with a wave of his hand before turning back to me. "But seriously—thanks for not holding it against us."

  I forced a small smile onto my face.

  "Don't worry about it."

  The conversation drifted after that as Jorik turned to Marcus with a grin.

  "So," Jorik said, taking a swig of his ale. "How's life at the capital? Still as fancy as Grandpa Henrik used to describe?"

  Marcus laughed.

  "Fancy? I don't know about that. Crowded, definitely. Loud. The streets are packed at all hours, and you can barely walk ten feet without bumping into some merchant trying to sell you something you don't need."

  "Sounds awful," Jorik said, but there was something wistful in his voice.

  "It's not all bad. Remember when we used to talk about going there together? Becoming adventurers?"

  Jorik's expression softened. "Yeah. I remember." He paused, staring into his mug. "You made it though. Did what we always said we'd do."

  "We were kids," Marcus said quietly. "Didn't know what we were talking about."

  "Maybe." Jorik shrugged. "But you stuck with it anyway."

  They fell into easy conversation after that as they told stories about their childhood in Millbrook.

  How they used to sneak into old man Corvin's orchard to steal apples. How Jorik once dared Marcus to climb the bell tower and nearly gave Henrik a heart attack when he got stuck halfway up.

  "Your grandfather was so mad," Jorik said, laughing despite himself. "Thought you were gonna fall and break your neck."

  "He grounded me for a month," Marcus added with a grin. "Worth it though."

  Then Marcus turned to me suddenly, his expression curious. "What about you, Vera? What did you do before… well this.”

  I shook my head slowly. "Nothing much. My town was pretty isolated and I wanted out… so here I am."

  “Good for you..must be strange for you though.” he said thoughtfully. "Seeing all these new places."

  "Yeah," I admitted softly. "It is."

  Marcus seemed to take that as an invitation because he started talking about the different kingdoms, their cultures, their histories. I appreciated that. New knowledge was always welcome.

  "And then there's the Great Labyrinth of Arethia," Marcus said, leaning forward with obvious excitement. "It's the most famous dungeon in all five kingdoms. Been around for centuries, maybe longer."

  I blinked. "Dungeon?"

  "You don't know about dungeons?" Jorik looked surprised.

  I shook my head slowly, feeling that familiar embarrassment creep up. "My town didn't... we didn't talk about things like that."

  Marcus's eyes lit up like I'd just given him permission to lecture. "Oh man, where do I even start? Dungeons are these massive underground structures that just... appeared. No one knows when or how. They're filled with monsters, traps, treasure—the works."

  "Appeared?" I repeated. "Just like that?"

  "Well, not exactly 'just like that,'" Marcus said. "According to records, they showed up gradually over the past few hundred years. First one was discovered in Valenhall, then more started popping up across the continent."

  Jorik nodded. "Some people think they're natural. Others say they're ancient ruins from before the kingdoms existed."

  "The Great Labyrinth of Arethia is the biggest one," Marcus continued. "It's in Argus, actually. Not too far from the capital. Fifty floors deep—at least, that's as far as anyone's managed to explore."

  "Fifty floors?" My eyes widened.

  "Yep. And each floor gets progressively harder. The monsters get stronger, the traps get deadlier. Most adventurers can't make it past the twentieth floor."

  "Have you been there?" I asked.

  Marcus grinned. "A few times. Made it to the thirty-fifth floor with my party before we had to turn back. The deeper you go, the better the loot, but also... well, the higher the chance you won't come back."

  I processed that. Dungeons. Fifty floors of increasing danger. Treasure and monsters and death waiting in the dark.

  Just like a video game.

  Except this was real. People actually died in these places.

  "Are there other dungeons?" I asked.

  "Dozens," Marcus said. "But the Great Labyrinth is special. It's got something called a 'dungeon core' at the bottom—supposedly. No one's ever reached it though."

  "What's a dungeon core?"

  He shrugged. "No one really knows. Some say it's what generates the monsters. Others think it's pure condensed magic. There are even theories that it's alive somehow."

  "The Crown Guild regulates access to the major dungeons," Jorik added. "You need a permit to enter, and there are rules about party size, minimum rank requirements—all that bureaucratic stuff."

  Marcus nodded. "Yeah, they're pretty strict about it. Too many rookie adventurers died trying to prove themselves in the early days."

  I sat back, trying to wrap my head around it all.

  Dungeons. Actual dungeons, just like in the games and novels I used to read.

  Part of me was excited—the old me, the one who'd dreamed about adventures like this. But another part was terrified.

  Because unlike games, there were no respawns here. No save points. Just death.

  "You thinking about trying it someday?" Marcus asked, noticing my expression.

  "Maybe," I said carefully. "When I'm stronger."

  "Smart answer." He raised his mug. "To getting stronger, then."

  I clinked my cup against his, forcing a smile.

  Yeah. To getting stronger.