The Crafter's Dominion: A Dungeon Core Novel (Dungeon Crafting Book 5) by Jonathan Brooks (e ink epub reader .txt) 📕

It was then that Violet remembered her name, as a memory of one of her visits to the palace with her parents came bubbling up to the surface: Council Leader Brinda.  “After they arrived nearly 2 weeks ago, there was a day of mourning over the loss of life, before the King, Queen, and the council came together to discuss this new development.

“Honestly, I have to tell you that it seemed too good to be true after such a tragedy.  However, the King saw the potential in such an alliance, especially after seeing the samples that were sent along with the return of Junipar and the others.  Having access to such material in vast quantities would go a long way to recovering from our recent losses, as well as this ‘Enchantment Repository’ we were told about.”

She was silent for a moment, and Violet resisted the urge to ask what happened next.

“Needless to say, if you knew the King and Queen in any respect, you would know that they were more in tune with our Enchanters than anything, and such prospective knowledge was more than they could resist.  Not for themselves, of course, but for their people; they well knew the state of our land, and they were getting to the point where they were desperate for any aid, no matter the form in which it came.

“The Master Enchanters that survived the attack that killed your parents, Violet, were also eager to visit a place where they could share their knowledge; they were aging and knew they weren’t long for this world, and they saw this as the only way to pass on their accumulated knowledge for future generations.  Therefore, against the council’s warnings of caution, the King, Queen, four of our council members, all but 2 of the remaining Master Enchanters, and a small contingent of Warmasters and War Machines that we could be spared from our defense, left for the northwest as fast as they could travel.  Time was of the essence, so a smaller group was imperative because the more they delayed, the less chance our people would survive in the future.  Even I agreed with that, though I still don’t agree with them not considering their safety out in that direction.”

I have a feeling I know where this is going.

Council Leader Brinda was silent as she stared at Violet and Felbar.  She cleared her throat before continuing.  “The morning you arrived, we had just received word that their entire group had been ambushed somewhere just before Benchville; the King, Queen, council members, Master Enchanters, and all but a handful of their personal guards had been killed. The monsters from 2 different dungeons had attacked at the same time, as if they had been coordinating together.”

She looked towards Felbar to see if Brinda was telling the truth, and she could see it on his face.  “How?  How did it get so bad in such a short time?”

“I don’t know, but the fact of the matter is we caused this; not only because we sent the materials and the story of a dungeon as a potential savior with Junipar and the others, but from the destruction of that Undead dungeon,” Felbar explained.  “The effects of that are already being felt with the death of the King and the others, and it will only get worse.”  Violet sadly had to agree with him, as the news of the King’s death finally hit her.  We’re…leaderless, now, aren’t we?

“They weren’t the only ones who died during the ambush; Jortor and the others were also with the King,” Junipar suddenly spoke up, her voice cracking.

“What?  Why?”

“Isn’t it obvious?  So that they could help to introduce the King to the dungeon, and because they knew better than anyone where the entrance was located.  Plus, if you forgot, they could actually communicate with the dungeon, whereas no one else would be able to.”

That made sense, but it was also a horrible loss of life.  “That’s…I’m so sorry, Junipar.”

“I apologize for the silent treatment you and Felbar had to endure while we isolated you,” Brinda interrupted.  “I’m sure you can understand how distraught we were at learning what happened to our leadership…our friends…”  She choked up a little, before composing herself.  “And with you coming from that direction, on the back of a giant monster we’d never seen before, we couldn’t take the chance that you might be a threat to the remainder of the royal family, as well as the council.  So many strange and horrible things had happened lately that it wasn’t outside of the realm of possibility that you were working with the dungeons to destabilize our government by targeting our leadership.  We’re the only thing keeping our people together right now, and if the Princess were to be killed…well, I’m sure you can picture the chaos that would ensue.”

“Princess Celeste is still okay?”  That was good news.

“Yes, but she’s in a secure location right now until we can figure out what our plans are for the future.  I’m not afraid to tell you, it’s not looking good.”

Violet had a sudden epiphany.  “That’s why you’re finally talking with us, isn’t it?”

If Council Leader Brinda had been surprised at her intuitiveness, she didn’t show it.  “Partly.  We needed to isolate the both of you for a while to determine if you two were a potential threat.  If we had more time to investigate, you’d probably still be held in isolation even now.  Unfortunately, time is something we are rapidly running out of; Felbar can fill you in with the situation, but we are going to need all of the assistance we can get.  He also mentioned that you had been working on some interesting enchantments, some of which I’m sure could be a big help.”

“Anything I can do, I’m at your disposal.”  With her affirmation of her commitment, the council seemed to lose all interest in