The Crafter's Dilemma: A Dungeon Core Novel (Dungeon Crafting Book 3) by Jonathan Brooks (miss read books .txt) 📕

the one that had found Echo’s bow more than two weeks ago she was able to send the larger construct back to its semi-permanent home in Sandra’s workshop.  The Shears, however, she brought down lower to hear the conversation between the two – and she was a little shocked and saddened by the male Elf’s reaction.

She couldn’t understand his reaction any better than Echo apparently had, and she hesitated to intervene; some instinct told her that making her presence known any more than she already had probably wouldn’t be a good idea if Sandra wanted the Elf to ever return to her dungeon.  Therefore, she just watched and let Echo do her thing in the village, hoping for a better result.

Fortunately, the village inhabitants seemed to receive her with guarded open arms; they welcomed her back and were ecstatic over the delivery of Energy Orbs, but they seemed to shy away from the gear tattoos on Echo’s face when they saw them.  Thinking back to when the Elites had defended them from the reptile force, Sandra couldn’t remember them flashing around their own tattoos on their palms; it was quite possible that they deliberately hid them, so the villagers had no idea of their import – other than as a possible “slave” mark.

The Elder of the village took the remaining Energy Orbs and arranged for their transport back to the capital, where they would be put to good use – and then asked when more would be coming, which Echo had no answer for.  Sandra hadn’t really discussed any type of regular deliveries with her – mainly because the Dungeon Core didn’t have a clear idea of how that would work quite yet – so the Elder was left without an answer for the moment.  Still…it was a start to a (hopefully) profitable business relationship; the Elves would get Energy Orbs and the Dungeon Core would get cooperation in the future – and hopefully some samples of some rare materials that she could utilize in her dungeon.

After meeting with the Elder, Echo went back to her artificially grown tree-house and went to sleep on her sleeping mat almost instantly; the run out from Sandra’s dungeon had obviously taken more out of her than she expected, and she was still recovering from her coma.

Sandra put the whole unfortunate reception of the newly bonded Elf out of her mind for the moment, mainly because there was nothing she could do about it – and trying to do something would probably hurt more than help.  You would think that helping them defend against a hostile force would make them show some gratitude toward me, but I guess the distrust of dungeons goes pretty deep.  When she thought about it a little more, she realized that most of her actions regarding that defense was mostly behind the scenes; most of the fighting was actually done by the Elite group that Sandra had bonded, and none of her constructs had participated – mainly because most of them had been wiped out by those same Elves.

So it was now obvious that the villagers didn’t really know about everything that had gone on, other than as a source of the Energy Orbs they now possessed a few more of.  It meant that Echo was likely facing an uphill battle to convince them that Sandra and her dungeon weren’t there to hurt them, which would be hard – especially when the Elf was clearly not entirely convinced of that herself.

Sandra was hopeful that would come in time, though, and it wasn’t something that could be forced.  Therefore, she turned her attention to her next project that was going to require some of the Mana she saved from her other endeavors; she still kept her excavation of more rooms and the expansion of her AMANS running with two minor parts of her mind, however.  They were important to her overall strategy, and she didn’t want to handicap them with her…passion project.  But first she needed to have a conversation with her other Visitors.

“So…what exactly are your plans, Sandra?” Violet asked as soon as she and Felbar were fed and ready for the day.  “Because, as much as I’ve enjoyed learning about your dungeon, helping to avoid your destruction by negotiating with dangerous Elves, and helping to develop this wonderful enchantment on these Energy Orbs, Felbar is awake and recovering quite well.  His well-being was my primary reason for staying, if you remember, and I estimate that in a couple of days he’ll be recovered enough to travel back to Gnomeria.”

“I’m ready to go anytime, child; I could outrun you—” the gruff older Gnome interjected, before being cut off by Violet.  Sandra had noticed that she had become quietly more confident in herself ever since the incident with the Elite Elves, and it showed in how she treated her obvious elder and superior; she wasn’t rude or inconsiderate or anything like that, though – but the time she had been in charge had changed her.  From all that the Dungeon Core could see…that change was for the better.

“No you couldn’t, at least not right now.  You still need a few more days to get your strength back up, and then we can head out.  Until then, you need to rest those old bones as much as you can,” she said.  When he looked like he was going to protest, she cut him off before he could even get a word out.  “And no, that wasn’t a crack about your age, but you have to realize that you just woke up from a coma, and even someone younger like me – or even that Elf – wouldn’t be up to traveling that far without at least a little more recovery.”

That definitely shut him up; it was more than evident that morning that Echo still hadn’t fully recovered from her incapacitation, so to expect him to be even further along was