Chapter 257: The Shaft Project
On the second floor of the Guild Headquarters.
This was the daily workspace for the Guild's internal management. Today, Eina Tulle found herself in the decision-making chamber.
Sitting here made her feel incredibly out of place. The lowest-ranking person present was a Section Chief, an individual who managed at least ten subordinates. She, on the other hand, was just a rank-and-file employee, only allowed here for the simple reason that the adventurer she advised had become a Level 6.
Although her own staff rank had been raised, she was still far from being a chief. Because Liam Moon had become the fastest adventurer to reach Level 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, she had received numerous bonuses and honors as a result.
She looked to Section Chief Remo. "Chief, is it really appropriate for me to be sitting here?"
Remo, a beastman, sat beside her and replied in a low voice.
"In just half a year, the adventurer under your guidance went from Level 1 to a first-tier, Level 6 adventurer. On top of that, he's accomplished a stunning number of great feats. That is his achievement, but it is also a credit to your record! A performance like that is more than enough to make you a management candidate!"
Eina's heart skipped a beat. So that was it. She had become a management candidate by riding on Liam's coattails. This was a place only managers and the Guild's top executives could enter, an area completely off-limits to a基层 employee like her. Her destiny had been changed by Liam.
Before meeting him, she was just a counter clerk. Now, she was a candidate for management.
Remo lowered his voice further, speaking in a tone only they could hear. "This meeting is extremely important. It will have a historically significant impact on the future of Orario. That's why we need an employee who has frequent contact with a frontline adventurer—to gain a clearer perspective and better advice! And it has a great deal to do with the Academy District."
Eina took a deep breath. Because of Liam, she had been noticed by her superiors and invited to this crucial meeting. She felt another wave of gratitude for both Liam and Section Chief Remo.
During the meeting, Eina learned a key piece of information: this year, the Academy District's production of Orichalcum, the hardest metal known, had increased by forty percent compared to last year. This metal was undoubtedly the strongest in the world, its quality reaching the level of a master smith's creation. Compared to it, the super-hard metal Adamantite was merely a secondary product.
Section Chief Remo's words gave Eina the courage to try and be useful.
However, the current Guild Director, Royman, was glaring fiercely at her. His expression was a clear warning: stay quiet and don't cause trouble.
After shooting her one last glare, Royman began to speak. He had none of the harmless demeanor he usually wore when being teased by Loki. "Alright, let's begin discussing the Shaft Project."
The Shaft Project?
Eina picked up the materials in front of her and began to read.
"Currently, Mr. Liam Moon has granted the Guild the rights to the artificial labyrinth. The Guild and the Hestia Familia will share management duties equally. Of course, any profits generated will also be split fifty-fifty with the Hestia Familia."
The gist of the Shaft Project was to construct vertical shafts within the Dungeon and install large-scale elevators inside them. The Guild would likely begin digging down directly from the 18th Floor, where the artificial labyrinth was located.
"Once the Shaft Project is complete, the exploration efficiency of every adventurer in Orario will see a massive improvement!"
At present, the artificial labyrinth was only used by the Hestia Familia, Loki Familia, and the former members of the Freya Familia. Moreover, it only provided a direct route from the 1st floor to the 18th. For any expedition, every Familia had to start their descent from the very top. The supplies, energy, and time consumed in this process grew exponentially with each descending floor. Often, by the time an expedition reached its previous record-breaking depth, its members were already exhausted.
If more adventurers could use the shaft to travel directly to specific floors, the output of resources from the Dungeon would skyrocket. The clearing speed of the Hestia and Loki Familias would also increase dramatically.
Therefore, for the Guild executives responsible for the city's operation, this plan had to be passed, no matter the cost.
Adventurers would break exploration records and acquire more resources from the Dungeon. They would then sell those resources in Orario or commission smiths to craft new equipment. This, in turn, would fund further expeditions. Whether adventurers used their gains for themselves or sold them to the city, it was a win-win for the top brass.
If the resources were used to strengthen the adventurers, they would become more powerful, their death rates would drop, and their output would naturally increase. Furthermore, adventurers in Orario, both local and from abroad, would rarely leave the city or the Dungeon for good. As deeper floors were conquered, Orario would only grow more prosperous.
It was a perfect positive feedback loop.
Adventurers earn money in the Dungeon. They spend that money in Orario, stimulating the city's prosperity. A more prosperous Orario provides better services to adventurers, allowing them to replenish their bodies, minds, equipment, and supplies. In turn, the adventurers would conquer the Dungeon with even greater vigor.
Eina was reminded of a joke her colleagues often told: "What's earned in Orario, stays in Orario. Don't even think of taking a single Valis home."
Royman picked up his documents. "The primary material for the shaft will be Orichalcum from the Academy District. Their production is now so plentiful that we no longer need to use Adamantite as a substitute. The hardness of Orichalcum is more than reliable, so we won't have to worry about monsters destroying it. Of course, the construction of the shaft will have to avoid the floor bosses..."
Eina frowned as she listened to Royman's explanation.
The Academy District could refine various rare metals, including Orichalcum. It gathered resources and talent from around the world and possessed the most advanced technology. However, the Guild was ordering this Orichalcum on terms that were detrimental to the Academy's own interests. Such a partnership seemed incredibly unstable. Even with Orario's massive annual investments, the Academy was the one with a stable, world-leading output of Orichalcum.
Royman looked at the attendees excitedly. "Everyone, if the Shaft Project is completed, we will have accomplished a feat as monumental as the Babel Tower! Let us be the ones to achieve this epoch-making triumph!"
"Yeah!"
The managers in the room were all thrilled, inspired by Royman's vision. It seemed they were all captivated by the promise of immense wealth and fame.
This is wrong. Eina felt instinctively that the plan was flawed. She saw her own boss remain impassive; he clearly didn't want to get involved. While the managers' goal was to develop Orario, they were ignoring the need to be practical and grounded. These so-called objectives were completely detached from reality.
Eina's conscience wouldn't allow her to remain silent while her cowardice could lead to the deaths of innocent people.
"Excuse me, I have a few things to add."
Royman's expression turned ugly as he looked at her. "Speak."
"This plan is indeed promising, but could everyone please consider it a bit more carefully? In my view, the Dungeon seems to have a will of its own, and it is filled with malice toward adventurers. In the lower and deep floors, irregularities are frequent. Isn't it far too dangerous to be digging shafts in such places?"
Currently, Orario and the Dungeon were managed by the Guild. The relative stability of the Dungeon was maintained by the Babel Tower pressing down on it and the prayers—or perhaps, the Authority—of the city's founding god, Ouranos. Eina didn't know if Ouranos could use his divine power in the lower world, but she guessed he at least exerted some form of Authority or divine might to suppress the Dungeon.
"For example, the shaft could be overrun by monsters. What if a pitfall opens up nearby, or a Monster Party occurs? What if the excavation of the shaft causes a chain reaction, collapsing dozens of floors at once?"
"A collapse of dozens of floors? Are you joking?" one of the managers scoffed.
Royman frowned at Eina. "Even the cannon-fire of a Balor on the 58th Floor only managed to blast through to the 51st."
"We have discussed the various potential accidents from the shaft's construction countless times," another manager said. "We even consulted Lord Ouranos. With the success of the artificial labyrinth as a precedent, we are very confident in this next phase."
Eina thought of another problem. "But the construction of the shaft will affect the growth of adventurers. This kind of shortcut will diminish their ability to explore the unknown."
As had been discussed before, an adventurer was a professional who grew stronger by constantly exploring the unknown. The Shaft Project could very well make them dependent on shortcuts, causing them to lose their sensitivity to the unexpected. If they were ever forced to venture away from the shaft, they could easily encounter a crisis they were unequipped to handle.
"That's easily solved," Royman retorted. "We'll simply set access restrictions based on an adventurer's level and stats. We can specify which levels can use the shaft to reach certain floors."
Royman slammed his hands on the table. "We are building this shaft so that the Loki and Hestia Familias can reach the deeper floors! Floors like the 71st, once reached by the Zeus and Hera Familias! At the very least, we must help them reach the 72nd!"
He continued, "Our main priority right now is not to drill straight through the lower and deep floors! We will connect the upper floors first, then the middle floors. We will proceed with construction step-by-step."
Listening to Royman's explanation, Eina understood his thinking. Orario had a massive population of adventurers, and Royman's goal was to push them to the next level, to trigger an explosion of growth in their overall strength. Orario already had the most adventurers in the world, and in this profession, the gap between levels was immense. Even a Level 1 was practically a different species from an ordinary human, let alone the difference between a Level 1 and a Level 2. Upon reaching Level 5, one could live for centuries.
Once the shaft was complete, adventurers' clearing efficiency would soar, and so would the rate at which they leveled up. Both low-level and high-level adventurers would benefit, but the impact on low-level adventurers would be significantly greater, simply because there were more of them. By connecting the upper floors first, they would be the primary beneficiaries. When the quality of the foundation is raised, an explosion in the number of high-level adventurers is a natural consequence.
Even after hearing Royman's explanation, Eina was still not satisfied.
"There's one more critical issue. It seems you intend to take the Academy District's entire output of Orichalcum. A significant portion of that metal is essential for reinforcing the armor of their ship!"
That was the truth. Although the Academy District had the world's largest production of Orichalcum, their ship was so massive that it required a steady supply of materials to strengthen its own defenses. This purchase contract, which seized all of their production without any regard for their own development, was utterly predatory. It was a tragedy that, even with humanity facing the threat of the Black Dragon, they were still consumed by this kind of infighting.
"Silence!" Royman roared. "Lord Ouranos has already approved it! This plan is now authorized to begin!"
He stamped the parchment with his seal. The executives erupted in cheers.
All Eina could do was pray in her heart that this project wouldn't end in disaster.
...
Within the Academy District, Liam Moon was oblivious to the high-level meeting taking place in Orario. He was in his Ancient History class.
Professor Adra was supposed to be teaching, but according to Nina, the gods sometimes got a whim to teach, so the instructor would occasionally be replaced. That was the case today. The goddess Idun had begun to lecture Liam and his classmates.
"Before the advent of the gods, what was the reason for the frequent famines in the northeastern part of the continent?"
"Gieg, you answer!"
Called upon by the stunningly beautiful blonde goddess, Liam quickly stood up. "It was due to dragon incursions. Dragon-type monsters would emerge from the Dungeon and wreak havoc on the surface, causing disasters."
Thanks to his cram session with Nina, Liam was familiar with the material. The Dungeon existed long before the gods descended to the mortal realm. It was already brewing with monsters. In that era, without the gods, the various intelligent races could only rely on their willpower, their own strength, and their inherited knowledge to fight back.
In the age before the Falna, these races fought using sword techniques passed down through generations, magic, and powers gained through extraordinary means like consuming rare treasures or bathing in dragon's blood, writing and creating epic tales one by one.
After receiving praise from Goddess Idun, Liam sat back down.
She began writing key points on the blackboard, and from a god's perspective, she asked the students why the facts as known by the gods sometimes differed from the history recorded by mortals.
In Liam's view, all intelligent beings, be they human or otherwise, had their biases. When recounting history, they would always embellish their own past, just like personal memories. The brain had a way of polishing and beautifying things that happened. Coupled with the short lifespan of humans, this led to discrepancies between mortal history and the truth as known by the gods.
To a god, a year and a century were virtually the same.
But to a human, a century was a lifetime.
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