After party

The opening was a hit, and even the people who were skeptical about the quality one could expect from dwarves who, until just a few years ago, were still in the dark ages, were surprised. In fact, they were all amazed by how modern everything here was. There were some holographic displays in each and every forge and laboratory. Machinery that could help any crafter make, analyze and improve their designs and even very advanced computers with a new type of AI that could work as a personal assistant while there. Going as far as being able to control the temperature of the forges and give warnings about the optimal time frame to remove a piece from the heat. Everything was also heavily customizable, from how it looked to how it sounded to the types of warnings it would tell the user.

The laboratories also had a variety of equipment, and if something was missing, those renting the place could order it. Boothudurn would pay for it, as long as it was reasonable and it wasn't something so specialized that only a few people would ever use. There were a lot of other details about all that, but most people would be able to get the equipment they needed without too much of an issue. And, of course, if they had their own machines, they could bring them here. Boothudurn wouldn't go out of its way to renovate a lab if the device didn't fit, but some concessions could be made to help deliver the equipment.

Hera didn't care much about most of that since this wasn't something she intended to worry about. When Rutigan and the others were giving the tour, Hera talked with Helena about the plans for the classes. Their idea was to start with a 3 month period where they would go over the basics, from camping to gathering food and some survival skills. There would also be some classes about politics so everyone could understand what was going on in the MAZE, and if they didn't have the basic skills that the guild required, they would add classes that helped them get those. There would be discussions about the different biomes and lectures about the dangers and various types of monsters. However, since the goal was to make a group of explorers, Hera also wanted to have gym, parkour, and sprinting classes. Since those were the types of things that would help anyone in a pinch. Another huge part of the program would be healing with spells, potions, and regular medicine. If something were to happen and they were far away from everything else, Hera wanted her team to be able to do some first aid and maybe even more.

Aside from all that, Hera also had a unique plan for the weekend classes. She had decided to make the training something more intense, to mirror a situation where they were facing hardship since no one in Boothudurn was familiar with that kind of thing. Even so, she would have what were essentially game nights for the weekends. She was going to make some treasure hunts in the city and make them play escape room games or some challenges in games that required exploration. She was even considering running some tabletop role-playing games just to help with their problem-solving skills. That was the only reason she considered the game night. It wasn't because she liked those games and always wanted to play tabletop RPGs. Not at all. Then again, she needed something to trigger their sense of exploration, and this seemed like a great way to start.

"Hey, Hera. Or should I call you Countess now?" Shane appeared from the crowd with Milo right behind her. It was amazing how he was able to stay hidden so far. There wasn't anyone even close to his size around here.

"Oh, please don't. I'm getting tired of being called royalty of any kind already," Hera sighed and turned to greet her friends, "Hey Milo. How are things going?"

Milo was currently eating some of the food that was available at the event, and he ended up choking when Hera talked to him. Shane passed some water to him and turned back to Hera.

"Really? Does your dad call you princess too?" Shane asked.

"No. He calls me goldilocks, like the children's story you know. I was being called Flame Princess because of a dungeon in the Charring Wastes, and I have those… friends that call me Empress all the time."

"Those friends, you mean… the one's kind of like the one I have," Shane asked. They never discussed their legacies much since both agreed that talking about them through messages wasn't exactly safe. Even when talking to Ninelyn, they were careful not to say too much about what they could actually do unless they were talking face to face.

"Yep. Do they do that to you too?" Hera tilted her head in a confused expression.

"Yeah, and it's weird. We need to talk about it. There are things I can help you with," Shane smiled, "Either way. You said you needed me for something, and that's why you wanted me to come. Not that I would only come for this, but I'm curious."

"Yeah. How are things going in the Wailing Valley? Is the excavation over? Did you guys find the second doorway?"

"Things are going well. We still have many tombs to comb through. Everyone is doing their best to catalog everything and, at the same time, don't disturb the actual mausoleum. It's taking a while. Not to mention it is enormous. About one-sixth of that room is made out of crypts. And no, we haven't found the doorway to the next room. Why?"

"Well. We will have a group of explorers who never actually explored anything. So I was thinking about a trial by fire, so to speak," Hera had a mischievous smile.

"Which means?"

"Don't you want some interns for a couple of months?"

"Oh...oh…OH! Girl, I like that idea. We can put them through the wringer," Shane started giggling.

"Exactly, and since there is still the matter of the second doorway, we can give them a proper test. In a more or less controlled space. I don't think anyone who is going to try to be a part of this will be under level 20, anyway."

"And since we are aware of most of what is in that room, we shouldn't get any surprises," Shane nodded.

"Exactly. It's a good place to start, isn't it?" Hera smiled.

They continued talking on the central floor, where the classrooms and such were located. Shane wasn't interested in the forges or laboratories, at least not right now. Some of the dwarves came by and asked her about the Royal Explorers and what they would actually do since her explanation seemed a bit vague in the details. Hera did her best to explain, but the reality was that it was a vague job by definition. They were supposed to go out and look for new things, whatever that may be. She could only give them one piece of actual information, which was to somehow look for things related to Boothudurn. Even if there was another hidden agenda behind this group, that was all she could say for now. In the future, after the training, the council would call all the explorers in that group and explain their secondary objective. Finding a place where they could build a second city if needed.

"Hera. Can I ask you a question?" Milo stepped forward when he finally found a moment when no one was talking to her.

"Sure, what's up?" Hera turned around, quickly swallowing the quiche she was trying to eat.

"Are the dwarves the only ones that can join that exploration group?" Milo asked.

"Honestly… I'm not sure. I know I'm supposed to be the leader, but there are some details that I still don't know. Do you want to join?"

"Yeah. The excavation is kind of boring, and I just carry things there. I wanted to do something else. Every now and then, I just go do my own thing and leave Shane there. She's a big girl and doesn't need me to protect her all the time," Milo seemed a bit down.

"Did anything happen between you two?"

"Nothing much. We just had a fight."

"Want to talk about it?"

"Maybe later. So do you think I can join?"

"I think so, but let me get back to you, ok? I'll talk with the King later. But if the answer is yes, you will have to be a part of the training. It should last two or three months. We are still ironing out the details."

"Humm… ok, I'll think about it," Milo replied as Blue, and the others got close.

The whole crew was there, Helena, Blue, Bonnie, Quinn, Alex, and even Adriel. They continued talking for a while, with Hera being stopped every now and then to answer questions from reporters or prospective explorers. Luckily, it didn't take long for the reception to end. The problem was the after-party back in the palace. Hera had no option but to go since she was one of the guests of honor. At least most reporters didn't stay for the party, seeing it as just gossip material. Here, the Countess of Exploration had a bit more breathing room. The person who ended up swarmed by the people was Quinn. The hairstyles she made were a huge hit. Not that they were that much different than what the people of Boothudurn were used to, but the sheer speed and volume of people who had their hair done by her was staggering for them. The reason for that was simple. Boothudurn was still using manual tools to do hair. Sure, some. We're aware of the existence of hair dryers and other electronic tools that were second nature for Quinn to use. Curling Iron was something that they were particularly impressed with, but it was hard to get someone to teach the people here how to properly use it. Fethy even offered Quinn a place to stay for a while and teach the hair stylists of the city how to use modern tools properly. Of course, she would be paid handsomely for it and have as many customers to practice with as she wanted.

Fethy wasn't the only one putting pressure on Quinn to stay for a while. Helena and Bonnie really wanted her around. The reason wasn't simply because they wanted to catch up with their friend, but they wanted someone they could trust to make more of what they were calling hair spells, a name that both of them hated, but no one else came up with a better one so far.

At some point during the night, Hera managed to pull Rutigan aside and ask about having other people, not just dwarves, among the royal explorers. The King liked that idea, but he was worried about one aspect of it. He didn't even have to say anything about it, and Hera assured him that said topic was going to remain a secret until the council decided to tell the explorers together.

In the following week, Quinn was giving hair styling lessons in the R&D building while Hera was doing interviews with everyone who showed some interest in becoming a Royal Explorer. In total, about 30 people came to know more about the project. 16 refused when they heard more about the specifics. Especially the staying months far away from Boothudurn part. 3 of them had to be dismissed because of their ability. Two were dwarves that turned 18 this past year and, unfortunately, were still too weak to participate. Even if one of them was the first dwarf that got the explorer role in centuries. Hera told them they could participate in the training, but the parts that included going to another room were off the table. Unfortunately for them, Hera made a hard rule that no one under level 20 could join them. That being said, she also liked the idea of having a support crew back in the city. People who could do internet research and compile information that was being sent by multiple teams. If they were willing to take that position as a trial run, she wouldn't be against it. This also meant that when they leveled up enough, there would be two new royal explorers who would potentially be much more prepared for the job.

The last person she refused was because of his temper. As part of the interview Hera would make small hypothetical scenarios and ask what they would do in those scenarios. She would spend about 10 minutes placing obstacles in front of obstacles for whatever she created to see how far they would go and what they would do when met with failure. All those who passed got somewhat far enough before giving up, saying they couldn't find a way out of the situation. Hera simply nodded and said this was the point. She wanted to show that despite their best efforts. Things could go wrong. One particular dwarf, the one who got rejected, was already angry and complaining about the obstacles, and when Hera explained the reason, the man started shouting and saying that none of that made sense. Sure, Hera exaggerated a bit in his scenario since she was starting to lose her creativity. At one point, she said that bears were underwater chasing him. But still, having someone snap because of this didn't bode well.

In the end, before the training started, she had a total of 11 dwarves, 3 humans, and 1 elf under her command. The humans were Alex, Blue, and Milo, while the elf was Adriel. He said that having a steady job was better than working only when there was work, but Hera was half sure he was just there to spend time with Alex, but then again, he offered to be more of a logistics guy. Carrying heavy equipment for those who could need it, and that was a solid idea. Either way, this was just the start of her work. Now came the hard part. Train all those people into actual explorers. Helena helped with that by tweaking her proposal for the guild recruit training, but there was still a lot of work to be done.