Return to Jorgaldur Volume V: Reunion (2)

Back in the depths (II)

Eldi came and went through the Gates a few times to make sure Gjaki and Goldmi weren't busy.

About the first, they had to confirm it with Kilthana. The countess finally took pity on her friend, after torturing her for more than a day.

The second was easier. The elf had been relaxing with her family for a few days, although the girls already had to go back to school.

Aside from that, he was teaching some recipes to his students. He was also practicing Ear to the Ground with the help of the mole-beings, and helping them train skills that he had taught them on his previous visit.

Tica, in particular, was delighted. Eldi had given her more than enough level 4 material to level up. Now, the problem was her mana, but she just needed patience to recover it.

She did her best, as the apprentice wanted to advance as much as she could, and make potions for the expedition. She was going with them too. No matter how much they wanted to convince her otherwise, she wasn't going to take a no for an answer.

With Eldi's permission, they had also notified the other town they had contact with. The mole-people weren't sure if they could enter the city, but they couldn't do it alone, without inform them. Their recent friendship could be broken if they did so. After all, with the power of the visitors, there were great chances to achieve it.

Now, they were discussing the details of the expedition.

"Several experts will come, but I don't know if we'll be able to open the gates in a short time. They were damaged, and the emergency collapse was triggered. There're many tons of rock," Vato explained.

"It's useless to speculate. We'll see how they are, and then decide. Even if we have to turn back, it'll be a good opportunity to secure some tunnels," Fita argued.

They intended to go a different path. It was shorter, but the enemies were higher level, above 50. The tunnels were sealed, but the hatches were intact, so they could be opened. It was too dangerous for the mole-beings, but with the help of the visitors, it would be a free ride.

In fact, with Life Detection and the Bats, it would be difficult any enemy could catch them by surprise. Besides, against enemies of that level, although the mole-warriors couldn't defeat them, they wouldn't die instantly either. At least, they could hold until the visitors came to their aid.

"Beep, beep, beep," a strange noise then sounded.

"It's time. I'm going to get them," Eldi announced, after taking a clock out of his pocket and stopping the alarm.

Next, he opened a Gate and disappeared.

"He has very strange artifacts," Vato assessed.

"Yes, although more than one need them. My brother is already late," Fita growled.

"Do we really look so ugly to them?" Gjaki doubted.

"They said that elves were considered the ugliest," Eldi half laughed, while looking at Goldmi.

"That's discrimination!" the elf complained, although she rather found it funny.

She had seen images of those beings, and from her point of view, they were quite horrible. Without a doubt, their concept of beauty was very different.

Besides, she was curious. It was like going on a strange tourist tour, since the levels of the enemies that could be found didn't represent any danger to them. Goldmi wondered if she could take her daughters someday. It would be good for them to meet such different beings.

She was also excited about the possibility of learning new cooking recipes. The ingredients could be hard to come by, and the flavors may not be to her liking, but she was sure that she could learn something.

"Shall we go?" Eldi asked.

"Let's go!" Gjaki exclaimed.

"Behave. Gjaki, don't break anything," Coinin said goodbye mockingly, to which her friend stuck out her tongue.

"Eldi, Goldmi, please, contact us from time to time. You already know that we can't trust her with it," Diknsa asked them.

"That's not fair!" Gjaki complained.

"Sure, sure..."

"Sure, she never forgets..."

"Luckily, Goldmi is tagging along..."

"..."

"Grumpies..." Gjaki growled.

Although, she was a little embarrassed. She knew they were right. More than once, the vampiress had gone days without saying anything while on adventures that involved danger. She had worried them, sometimes with a valid excuse, as it had been impossible for her. However, sometimes, she has just forgotten.

Goldmi nodded. She didn't mind taking charge, because at the end of the day, she would also do it for her family. In fact, if it were possible for her, she would go see them every day.

It was also true that the expedition would still take a while to leave. They were coming so that Gjaki and Goldmi could become familiar with the mole-beings, and to teach their crafts to those who were suitable. The entire population had mobilized to be inspected.

In total, Gjaki obtained four students, and Goldmi five. Three of each were children up to ten years old, while the other three were older, sixteen, nineteen and twenty-two. Although it wasn't true that adults couldn't learn, it seemed that the probability did decrease.

It was still too early for the apprentices to create outfits for the mages who were going on the expedition, or food of the appropriate level. Therefore, the two visitors took care of it, by following the mole-people's recipes.

Without a doubt, the mages were delighted, as were some of the workers accompanying the expedition.

As for the apprentices, they had more than enough materials to practice at such a low level. Besides, the number of orders kept increasing.

Even at a low level, the clothes that tailors could make were soon truly appreciated. Especially, the softness of underwear and baby clothes.

Gjaki, however, felt somewhat frustrated by the lack of success of her designs. It was also fair to say that the ones she had learned didn't inspire her much either. Nonetheless, variations of some transparent mole-clothes were quite popular with younger couples, even though few openly acknowledged it.

No less appreciated was the food. It gave small bonuses, which made those who ate it feel better, and the flavor was especially tasty. However, that was only applicable to the ancient preserved recipes of the mole-people.

With few exceptions, the taste of Goldmi's cooking was too strange for them. A larval lasagna was one of the few that was successful, and they soon adapted it to the local variety.

It should be said that Goldmi didn't find most of the recipes learned from them too appetizing either, although her sisters didn't think the same about a few. Anyway, she believed that with a few variations, she could cook some varieties of mushrooms that until now she hadn't known what to do with. They weren't the same ones that grew underground, but the same principles could be applied to remove the toxins.