Chapter 38: Rat King Dungeon
The dungeon glowed faintly in the afternoon light, as if it were a beacon to let the students know that it was ready for them. Only, nobody actually wanted to go in.
There was no doubt that the dungeon was a dangerous place, they already heard what the team who cleared the actual mission had gone through, and it was not pretty.
What they couldn’t understand is why the System wanted them to do it again.
The Rat King was dead.
They had eliminated the nests, blocked off most of the entrances, all the ones that they could find, and burned all sign of the rat demons from the tunnels with magical fire.
Apparently that had been enough for the system to call the task complete, but the heroes had some serious questions about its version of rewarding them. What sort of reward was it for them to go back into danger and risk their lives against an enemy they already killed?
The portal didn’t give them any more information about the dungeon, other than it was level one and easy mode, with the name [Rat King Dungeon].
Perhaps if it gave an idea of what rewards they could get, someone would have felt more immediately adventurous, but none of the students were keen to try it that night.
"Alright, just make sure the Academy is locked down, we don’t need any more surprise visitors. If anyone needs to exchange points, I will be down for breakfast after my late night shift in the towers," Kalli called out to her classmates.
She was about to head to the cafeteria when she was stopped by Gerry, who had a concerned look on his face.
He stepped close so he could speak softly without being overheard.
"The boar meat seems to be the only thing that satisfies the appetite of people anymore. They’re going through even more of the regular items than usual, and only get full when they take a portion of the meat.
Do you have other foods that you can trade me?
I need to try something instead of the leftover supplies, or we’re going to run out in no time at all," he whispered.
Kalli nodded. "I will drop off a sack of flour and a sack of rice for you. If those are better than what you’ve got, we can work out a way to switch what you’re using in the kitchen. I’ve got a few System Points, so I’ll make this batch, and then we will work out a way for everyone to pay for their meals later.
If we push them for work rotations or payments the day after so many arrived, we will just look like villains."
Gerry chuckled. "And that wouldn’t do. We’ve finally got a large enough force to defend the Academy without losing sleep."
"Exactly. We gathered so many new students today, we just need to make sure that they think it’s worth it to stick with us."
Kalli went to the storage room, where Gerry was preparing to make dinner, and purchased a sack of flour and a sack of rice, both of which turned out to be 25kg at a time.
That seemed like an enormous amount, but when it was spread over a hundred or more students, it still wouldn’t last long.
They were going to need that boar hunting quest soon.
Kalli made notes of everything that she needed to do so that nothing got overlooked. Then, she wondered if there was an easier way to do this. It was likely that she was supposed to keep the base supplied so that there was a reason for people to come to her to get quests. That was the key to her gaining power, so she shouldn’t be too stingy with the spending.
But she didn’t actually have much experience with budgeting, she had been a cybersecurity expert with a specialty in fraud detection, not a housewife or a shopkeeper.
She didn’t even do her own grocery shopping. By the time she got home, she was so tired that she just ordered delivery.
But four points were nothing compared to what she had already spent today opening that dungeon, and hopefully, she would keep getting points as the others went to clear it. If that was the case, she would have a stable source of income, and she could spend a bit every day generating food for the Academy, while the others completed quests.
That seemed like a win for everyone, in her opinion.
She really did wish she knew why it had picked her to have this Coordinator Class, though.
"[System? Is there some help menu? How are Classes assigned?]" She tried, focusing on the system interface.
Surprisingly, a response appeared.
{Classes are assigned by Suitability. User Kalli was detected to have a System Administrator level security clearance at the time of her death, and was assigned an appropriate administration-based Class.}
Kalli stared at the message. That was not the sort of System Administrator that she was. She worked on computers. COMPUTERS. She didn’t volunteer to be in charge of whatever it was that she was supposed to be doing right now.
{The Coordinator Class specializes in maintaining growth rates for heroes, as well as provisions for a way station where the heroes may resupply and improve their equipment before their next adventure.
All System Rewards will be issued through the Coordinator, as no other users with Administrator level clearance have been found within range.}
"[ So, you expect me to just stand here and hand out rewards like a glorified game show hostess? ]"
{Game Show Hostess outfits are available in the first tab of the store.
Such clothing is not mandatory.
As an Administrator level user, you may freely choose how the heroes are guided on their mission to survive the awakening of their world. Without your guidance, the chances of success have been calculated at 0.0002 Percent.}
Well, that was not exactly a glowing recommendation of their chances.
"[ What about with my assistance? ]"
{The System has not calculated those odds. Estimated chance of successful outcome is greater than 10 percent.}
That wasn’t great either. But, compared to two in a million? She would take it.
At least now she knew what she was supposed to be doing. Making a plan that would see them not all die. In theory, it was simple enough. It was getting everyone to go along with the plan that would be the hard part.
But that was what the quests were for.
