<~> Chapter 152

When we finally made it back to the surface after waiting out the flood on the first floor, we went to go look for Celeste. It was almost evening outside now, so she should be back at her tent. Things looked pretty calm on the surface right now, and the soldiers were changing shifts, so the next group would be getting ready for the next cycle in the dungeon.

Maxwell knocked on the post by the flap of Celeste's tent. A few moments later, her assistant Emi let us in. Celeste looked over our mixed group with the face of someone who really hoped we weren't about to ruin her day. She looked stressed out right now, but she was still in better shape than when she was constantly helping with the water filtration.

"I hope you're bringing me good news," Celeste said flatly.

Valkin looked at Maxwell and gestured for him to step forward. Maxwell just shrugged and slipped his bag off his back to retrieve what we found. "Our two groups made it to the third floor around the same time, so we decided to poke around a bit. We didn't get a chance to explore it much, but we did confirm some of the enemies, and we thought we should bring it to your attention as soon as possible."

Celeste sat forward, intrigued. "Something that warrants a private meeting, rather than one with everyone present?"

Maxwell nodded and placed the five beetles we recovered on her desk. "The third floor has nests of these that swarm at you when you attack them. Each one carries a different kind of stone or crystal."

The dragon woman's eyes zeroed in on the one that had a ruby embedded in it. She quickly picked it up and examined it closely. "Swarms of these?"

"There were lots of them. Hundreds at least, maybe thousands of them. This is a small selection that Helena happened to hold onto, but we aren't exactly well-suited to deal with these monsters yet. The floor also seems similar to the first floor, with a moon in the sky that gets larger with time. We didn't stay long enough to see how that affected the monsters, though," Maxwell said.

Celeste's eyes flicked off the gem embedded in the beetle and met Maxwell's gaze. "You're telling me... that the equivalent of money is throwing itself at you on the third floor?"

Maxwell chuckled. "In a sense, yes. Enough money to be buried beneath it. They hadn't come out until we attacked their nest. I'm a little worried about what will happen when the moon is full. On the first floor, the few crabs we run into turn into thousands each cycle. What happens on a floor like this where there are thousands per nest? All of us were covered in painful bites trying to escape from them during the equivalent of the calm period between the floods."

She put the beetle down and ran her fingers through her hair. "I think this is it. This dungeon will start a war if we don't fully secure it before anyone else finds out about it. Forget valuable, with this, the dungeon has securely moved itself into priceless territory. This is only the third floor and so far it's a source of food, water, magically infused salt, perfectly reflective stones, and now thousands of gems and crystals that run at you on little legs."

("While these beetles are carrying huge rewards, the risk is just as large,") Luna said. Celeste had taken to wearing one of the telepathy amulets regularly now, ever since Luna's ring was still connected to it. ("We'll have to find a way to kill the beetles and recover them without being overwhelmed or letting them take their dead.")

"They take any of the beetles that we kill when they retreat, if they can. Helena managed to keep hold of some of them when we retreated," Piper added.

Aria crossed her arms. "We were hoping some of the crafters might be able to figure some way for us to deal with them, since my arrows aren't very effective against such small targets."

"Swords and shields aren't any better. The only ones able to do much at all were the mages," Valkin said.

Celeste nodded. "I see... yet these monsters are potentially valuable enough that you came to me first, before talking with any of the crafters. Thank you for your foresight." She sighed and leaned back in her chair with a deep frown on her face. "This presents a problem, though. This kind of discovery is more than enough for me to earn my place back, but I cannot risk this information getting out just yet. As I said, it is now imperative that we secure this dungeon while we still have the advantage. I'll need to talk with my brother... and maybe the king, but I also can't risk leaving, either." She looked around at our two groups. "Have you seen Jol'ket's team?" she asked.

Maxwell shrugged. "We haven't seen him since all three of our teams entered the second floor. Valkin and our teams both happened upon the stairs at the same time, and once we confirmed that none of us were changelings, we agreed to scout the third floor together."

"How effective were the troll crosses?" Celeste asked.

"I would say more effective than anticipated," I said, cutting in. "The changelings seem to be unable to transform into anyone wearing one, or read their thoughts. The best they can do is pose as random people and set up ambushes. Once you take away their ability to mess with your head, or slip into your group, they're not very difficult to fight."

"This knowledge would have been nice to know earlier," Celeste grumbled.

Norrik nodded. "They may be more of a challenge to deal with once there are more teams of delvers exploring the dungeon, though. They're rather obvious to identify when they don't appear as one of the only three teams that should be on that floor, but once you're talking about so many groups that you couldn't possibly know everyone, they'll become tricky to deal with. I'm not sure that even the troll crosses will help with that."

"Are they expensive to make?" Talia asked.

Celeste shook her head. "Thankfully no, just a bit of lightly enchanted scrap iron, which Ironcastle has in abundance. I'll see if I can convince Callisto to visit me in person to discuss the third floor. For now, don't talk with anyone about the third floor outside of the other delvers. I'll speak with Jol'ket's team once they return to the surface and fill them in. You can make another attempt at the third floor if you like, but for now, please refrain from involving the crafters. You can attempt to get me more samples of these, or explore other facets of the floor, but be cautious. If you don't wish to explore the floor without the additional help, you can just take the next few days as rest days. I'll make sure that you're allowed to participate in the culling of the crabs on the first floor if you like. For now, all of you are dismissed. Luna, Helena, will you please stay for a moment? I have something personal to discuss with the two of you."

Milana and Talia glanced at Luna curiously, but didn't say anything about it. There were lots of rumors about Luna's connection to Celeste after she all but admitted it when killing the changeling in the center of camp, but nothing has been officially said about it. Thankfully, the two snow leopardkin haven't asked about it or said anything, but I could see their curiosity every time a hint of their connection came up. They also haven't really changed how they treated us, which was nice. The two of them were some of our only friends outside of our party, so it would be a shame if things got awkward, even if it was an elephant in the room that no one wanted to talk about.

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Everyone but the two of us shuffled out of the room, leaving the three of us alone. Without having to be asked, Emi poured another drink for Celeste. I was starting to get a bit worried that Celeste was a bit of an alcoholic, but I haven't ever seen it impair her judgment, so I've never brought it up. The two of us stood around awkwardly for a moment while she downed the drink.

Celeste sighed. "Things have gotten a bit complicated. I warned Callisto about the spies you told me about in Ironcastle. Rather than handle them quietly as we hoped, it turned into a very visible fight. Despite our precautions, it somehow came out that you're related to me, Luna. It's now an open secret in Ironcastle, and that includes the king and my siblings."

Luna shifted anxiously. ("What does that mean?")

Celeste rubbed her eyes. "For the immediate future, it won't mean much. You're still on this mission with me, and even the king wouldn't interfere with that. Until we have a good idea of how valuable this dungeon is, they can't really do anything directly with the information. They'll be making plans and coming up with their schemes, but nothing that will affect us here for the time being."

I narrowed my eyes. "Except now, we know this dungeon is incredibly valuable."

"Correct," Celeste said. "We still need more information on the third floor, but once I deliver the news about these beetle monsters, I'm sure the king will do everything he can to secure this place. You can still delve the dungeon after that, but all of the secrecy around this place will fade once he's begun fortifications. That means that you will also lose a lot of your current protection from hiding here. The royal family may all come here themselves after this discovery. Which brings me back to the two of you..."

Celeste frowned and looked a bit like she bit into a lemon. Emi gently placed one of her hands on Celeste's shoulder. Surprisingly, the act bled away some of the tension in the woman, and she gently squeezed her assistant's hand in return. Celeste sighed and looked me in the eye. "How serious are you about marrying Luna?"

I hardened my expression. I've been waiting for this challenge. "I'm serious. I will marry her whether you, the king, or all of Ironcastle are against me."

Her reaction was... unexpected. Rather than the fury, or even some kind of determination to test me, all I saw was mirth in her eyes. "I see you were expecting me to try and stop you. That's not what this is, Helena." She shook her head with a wry grin. "As far as I'm concerned, you are already my daughter-in-law. After you saved my daughter's life and then trained with me to better control your instincts, I believe you to be a reliable partner for her. I have come to trust you, maybe more than I should under the circumstances."

"Then what is this about?" I asked with a confused frown.

Celeste sighed. "I believe you're a good fit for Luna, but I'm not the only one who might try to interfere with your plans. I believe the best course of action would be for the two of you to get married sooner, rather than later..."

I turned to Luna, who looked just as shocked as I did. My stomach did flips, two parts fluttery excitement, one part nervous anxiety.

Luna awkwardly rubbed her hands and blushed before turning toward Celeste. ("Are you sure we should marry so soon? How would that help?")

Celeste leaned back in her chair and ran her fingers through her hair. This might explain the complicated mood she's been in since we came back from the dungeon. Stress, worry, anxiety, and irritation have all been warring inside her since we returned. The emotions were plain on her face. "It would be for your own protection more than anything else. I refuse to let them use you the way they used me. From the way they talked about your looks when they met you earlier, I have no doubt that they will try if something else isn't done about it. But to that end... I wanted to ask a few personal questions if you don't mind." For maybe the first time since I met the woman, a slight flush came to her cheeks.

Luna tilted her head. ("I suppose I wouldn't mind answering a few things...")

Clearing her throat, Celeste tried to recompose herself, but still looked flushed. "Am I correct in my assumption that the two of you would only accept... female partners?"

Luna's expression turned dark. ("I am not attracted to men, and from what Helena has told me, she is not either. The two of us also do not wish for any additional suitors at this time,") Luna said firmly.

Celeste actually looked a bit relieved by the admission, though I wasn't sure of exactly which part or why. "And of the two of you... I assume that Helena is the dominant partner in the relationship? At least according to beastkin culture?"

Luna shared a glance with me before nodding. ("Yes. It's a bit more... complicated than that due to Helena's views on relationships, but we are presenting it that way to others, yes.")

Celeste nodded and continued. "According to dragon culture, it would normally be the one with the most magic that would be the dominant, not the one with the most physical strength. But if you two were married as beastkin before any of Luna's draconic traits manifest, then it would make you less valuable to them. It would also make them have to go through Helena if they wanted to add to your marriage," she said as her gaze shifted to me.

I crossed my arms. "I am not going to share Luna with anyone."

A grin spread on Celeste's face. "I am happy that you are so loyal to my daughter. If the two of you marry, then they would have to practically beg you to take another bride or husband, which you would be able to refuse. The laws concerning marriage are actually handed down directly from Dragon Tatianna herself. By their laws, the dragon royalty wouldn't be able to force anything since you are not related to us by blood. Once you're married, I will also be able to help the two of you rebuff any suitors they throw at you, both man or woman."

"What would Luna be forced to do if we didn't marry in time?" I asked.

Celeste's expression turned to a frown as she looked away. "Once Luna is recognized as my daughter and formally as a dragon princess, some of my responsibilities could be transferred to her. The potential for a political marriage is one of them. It wouldn't be as simple as commanding her to marry whomever they choose, but they would have a lot more leverage and could legally force her to meet possible suitors. If she continuously refused, they could even charge her with treason for failing to fulfill her duty to the city-state, in an extreme example. With you, you could be as obstinate and refuse as much as you want to, and they wouldn't be able to do anything about it. Short of attempting to have you assassinated, I suppose, but I think that would be difficult for them even if they were to sink that low."

Luna frowned. ("Would they go that far to get to me? I don't... want Helena to be in danger because of me.")

I grabbed Luna by the shoulder and pulled her against me. "We face danger together all the time. You don't need to worry about that. You're worth any amount of danger."

Taking a deep breath as I tried to get my squirming stomach under control, I turned to Celeste. "So... when would we actually be getting married, then?"

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