Chrysalis

The energy in the village was electric.

The events of several nights ago, when Beyn had led the villagers to heroically defend themselves from the feared monstrous ant invasion had stoked the fires within the villagers hearts to unprecedented heights.

The story had grown and been embellished with every telling, from one ant, to five, to fifty! The villagers had weathered a storm of devious spells through the righteousness of their spirit! By the strength of their virtue and power of their arms they were victorious! Just like the legendary first Dungeon delvers in the time of Rending!

By the next day the word had spread to the nearby villages and farming communities of the goings on in the town of Malgate. The Dungeon had opened within the church of the Path! Monsters had emerged but not harmed the villagers! Surely this indicates that the town was chosen for great things!

The Dungeon occupies a special place in the hearts of these townspeople. Outside of the cities and far from the entrances, most people outside the cities have never set foot in that place. Asides from a few retired veterans and mercenaries, none had any firsthand experience at all. Dungeon monsters were things of myth and legend to them. More powerful than any creature on the surface, more ferocious, cunning and deadly! The riches that flowed out of the Dungeons were as rare to these farmers and shop owners as real gold and diamonds! Unheard of!

But now? To hear of an opening appearing within a small town on the outskirts of the capital? To hear of villagers battling and killing Dungeon creatures? Absorbing experience and gaining levels, changing their fate. It was surely a gift of God! The god of the System!

The morning after the victory over the ants the first pilgrims began to trickle into Malgate. By that night there was a steady stream of them, filling the town to bursting, packing the inn. When there were no more beds available they set up tents and slept under trees. Young, old, farmers and merchants, they arrived, dusty and tired, old weapons or farming tools over one shoulder and the light of belief shining in their eyes.

In the middle of it all was Beyn. The priest was indefatigable. Without sleep, without pause, he preached to the people. He never tired in his relentless energy. His gestures were fierce and his stride was long. His voice never faltered, strong and powerfully he spoke endlessly, invigorating the crowd or exhorting smaller groups with the righteousness of the cause. As time passed, the respect in the eyes of the people gradually changed to something deeper and more fervent.

Through it all the battle against the Dungeon monsters was never ending. In ones and twos they crawled out of the hole in the church like demons rising from hell. In battling the Dungeon monsters the villagers were able to reap a rich harvest of experience. To them, the monsters were not demons but oven fresh meals! Dungeon monsters gave far more experience than the surface variety, giving the villagers a chance to raise their combat skills and give them a chance to change their class, an opportunity that was as rare as hens teeth to people such as these.

Ruther. Is something

the young servant with a frown on her face. The girl was pleasant enough but a

"That young chap you've been hanging around with lately, what was his name?"

young maid Lilly blushed and turned to the side. "Why Mrs Ruther, what are you implying? There

trysts? "Has Burton been mixing with that

"You

Enid

know? Father Beyn started preaching that name this

A few villagers were

to the other end of the reading room where a suit of armour was mounted on a decorative frame, a worn training sword pinned to polished wood

weapon he used when delving. When he had retired from his career as a Dungeon Mercenary

business in the city and they had moved here to Derrion's home

these people to make them listen?" she whispered to his armour, "they sure as heck won't

in his prime. He had tirelessly practiced his blade techniques and raised his class to "Expert Swordsman" over the long years of delving. He

spoke on matters concerning the Dungeon, nobody

so many years, how could Enid not have learned about the strength of Dungeon monsters? Her husband had never hidden anything from her, that was the