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Ranus opened the doors from the Dungeon's surface building. The sunlight blinded him for a few seconds; he blinked to clear his vision.

He stopped, surprised at the number of people waiting to hear what he had been doing in the building. Hundreds possibly stood there waiting for him. Over the last few months, rumours had grown about the relationship between him and the Dungeon.

People were desperate and were ready to cling to anything that could bring hope in these times. Ranus needed to say something. The faces before him were hungry for anything at all.

"I suspect many of you have heard the rumours of my ability to speak to the Dungeon. This is true. The Tower in the Shadows is one of the few places that can heal those who are corrupted or twisted. Only this place could do it, and I have called upon it to help us in this time of need. I have succeeded in this. The Dungeon has shown me a possible path for us all."

Smiles spread across the faces of many before him. The fire of hope had not been extinguished, and there was a chance that the horrors they had witnessed and those yet to come could be prevented.

"Away with you all now. There is much work to be done, and we will have our parts to play."

Ranus watched as many turned and walked away. Some held back, watching and listening to what was still to be said. Looking around, he selected the individuals he needed to speak to and nodded to them. Once he had selected them all, he walked on, followed by them and a few other stragglers. He returned to his administration building and went to his office. Along the way, he saw Naru.

He gave her several names and told her to let them into his office straightaway, as he would be waiting for them. She was to hold back everyone else.

Ranus sat down at the table and waited.

It did not take long for them to arrive. He waited until they were all present, sitting at the table with him.

Nextom, Selmum, Averance, Albrot, Elian and Comus all looked at him expectantly. He took a breath before starting.

"You all know I have spoken to the Dungeon. I have spent most of that time in negotiation. We have reached an accord that can work." He told them. Several let out a tense breath. "It will not be easy, but we have hope."

"What will happen?" Selmum was shaking slightly from the emotion swirling within her. The time since the twisted erupted from the temple district had been wearing her and the other members of her church down. More were showing signs of corruption, and they were barely slowing its spread.

"High Healer Selmum will be granted access to the Dungeon and will be permitted to bear witness to the removal of void corruption from an infected citizen. She will be allowed to witness up to five such events and will be allowed to ask questions. However, be warned that the answers may not be easy to understand. The speaking crystal will be your means of communication, as the Dungeon will attempt to explain what is going to happen before it begins. The crystal will run out of mana quickly when I'm away from it."

"At what cost?" Averance asked.

"It is in two parts. First, High Healer Selmum must swear an oath of silence in the surface building of the Dungeon in front of Arbiter Nextom. She cannot speak of anything she sees or learns outside of how to deal with void corruption. She was to swear this on her Path, goddess and her life."

There was a shift of unease at this, but Selmum spoke. "Lord Goldwind, I am more than willing to make this pledge if I can help even one of my patients."

"The second part?" Averance asked again.

This will take me deeper into debt with the Dungeon, and I am willing to bear the burden myself. Do not fear, High Guild Master; it is something I can handle." Ranus looked at her as he spoke, but then turned his attention to the rest of the table, seeing that many were unhappy with his answer, yet would respect it for the moment.

"Prepare yourself, Selmum. You enter the Dungeon tomorrow. We need to ensure that the person you're taking with you who is infected is adequately secured."

"Fear not, Lord Goldwind. I have some thoughts on that." She told him confidently.

"I trust you in that, but that's not what I must prepare you for."

## ## ## ## ##

It had been a busy night.

Today, I was getting guests, and not the type I liked. I had agreed to help Goldwind, and I realised that having corrupted individuals swamp the city above was not a good idea.

I was going to expose myself in a way I had never done before, and I was deeply uncomfortable. When he came to me with his request, I quickly understood what I needed to do. That didn't mean I was happy with it in any way, shape, or form.

I had added a pedestal to the seventh-floor stairwell room. I was presently sitting on it, with the doors to Krag's hall open, and he was standing in the doorway. Upstairs in the main room, the High Healer, or whatever title she held, was administering her oath of silence.

Goldwind, another individual, and one of the affected parties, were with her. The victim was a man who was bound in a hood. I had looked over when they entered the surface building, and the signs of corruption indicated that the infected body was still in the early stages.

This was not going to be a pleasant day.

I was still suffering the effects of processing the corruption from the recent incursion. I got rid of most of it, but I was planning to add some more to it today, which didn't make me a happy dungeon core.

The minute they brought the affected man into the Dungeon, a red alert was triggered.

My minions were agitated, but I had made sure that the stairwell was clear, and she would not be stopped from coming down to the seventh floor.

I received a surprise notification informing me of the oath of silence and the terms that both sides had agreed to. It also listed the cost of breaking it, and as I looked them over, I realised that if she did this, it would cost her an incredible amount, if she was lucky, and her life, if she was not.

She would soon start down the stairs.

My feelings of exposure were on the increase now as I felt like I was naked and exposed to all I could see. I focused on knowing that what I was doing here might save me a great deal of work in the long run.

She was coming now. The void corrupted man she was bringing with her staggered and swayed as he walked. I was sure now that he was drugged in some manner.

It took about five minutes to reach me, helping the man walk, but it felt far longer to me.

As she approached, Krag became more agitated.

"No violence unless I instruct it."

He grunted unhappily at my orders, but in this, I knew he would obey.

She came down and stepped off the stairs with her charge, looking around. She spotted Krag first, and her face paled somewhat, but her look of determination never wavered. She continued to looked around and then spotted me. Her look of determination turned to one of surprise and wonder.

I sense the crystal in her hand. I connected to it. As he got closer, the infected man became more agitated and animated.

"Let's get this done. I don't have all day. Put the man in front of me on his knees, and then step back up the stairs. You will get a good view of what was happening from there."

She obeyed my instructions, but her face suggested that she wanted to ask me many questions.

Once she stepped away from the kneeling man, he came over and put his hands on my Core, while Krag held him in place. He tensed up instantly and tried to struggle, even in his drug-induced state, aware that he was in some form of danger.

"I am going to reach in and pull the void essence that is corrupting him out of his body. I did this to Comus, and it is not a pleasant thing to see or do. My minion will hold them in place; do not interfere."

"I understand. I will observe everything using my abilities." She was watching everything like a hawk. As she spoke, I noticed her eyes changed slightly and began to take on a faint blue hue. I wasn't sure what she was doing, but I didn't feel it was a threat.

I shifted my attention back to the man before me and began working.

I altered my vision and looked over his body again. The void essence coursing through his body was reaching out, trying to snare more around him to help accelerate its expansion and while also feeding on the essence within his body.

I felt the connection to the crystal sever as the mana within it ran out.

One less thing to worry about now.

I reached out and slowly connected to the void essence. It latched onto my mana, not realising the danger that I represented. It started to pull my connection in as I planned, and I waited until I had a good grip on it.

The corruption in his body was not as advanced as Comus's had been, but it followed a very similar pattern. The void corruption also involved his nervous system spreading out into individual cells. But it was also one solid thing that was forming a core close to his heart.

Once I was sure I had a good hold on it, I started pulling back, dragging it with me.

I was vaguely aware that the man had started screaming.

I ignored it and continued to pull slowly.

The void essence reacted like a living thing, trying to pull away while holding onto the body it was corrupting. With a slow, measured pace, I continue to pull and pull. Until it had reached my core, and I began to absorb it.

I narrowed my focus to this task and nothing else. I was vaguely aware of things happening around me, but I was determined not to have my concentration broken. Krag and the healer knew their parts in all of this.

I lost track of time as I pulled and absorbed.

I didn't stop until everything was removed from his body, leaving the damaged sections behind. The process had seriously weakened him from the way the energy flowed in his body, but he was still alive, and I was sure that he would make a recovery in time with a lot of help.

My vision returned to normal as I shifted back. A wave of exhaustion swept over me, amplified by the corruption I was still dealing with. I looked around to assess the situation and wondered how long I had been working on him. Krag was leaning on the man, holding him to the floor in a way that prevented him from moving. I had to wonder if he was breathing.

I quickly checked. Yes, still alive.

I shifted around to the healer, and I was now concerned about her. She was sitting on the steps, looking at everything shaking. Her face was white, and I wondered if she was suffering some form of emotional breakdown.

"Krag, you can get off him now. Tell the woman she could take him and leave."

Krag got up, lifting the man with him, and chucked his unconscious body over to the stairs. "Take and go."

Ever the conversationalist.

The woman was startled when he moved and became concerned when the body hit the ground in front of her. She rushed quickly to the man and began checking his vital signs. Her face was now contorted with worry and concern.

Once she was satisfied with his condition, she lifted him with surprising strength and began to move slowly up the stairs. She had slung him over her shoulders in a similar manner to a fireman's carry. She was careful not to bang his head on the stone pillar that made up the centre of the stairwell.

I was surprised at her strength, but then I remembered that in this world, those following their Path could be a lot stronger than you realise.

As soon as she was up on the next floor, I brought Larry up from the eighth and had him take me back down to my alcove on the ninth. I felt a lot better once I was secure in it again, surrounded by my mana stones.

I received a notification informing me that the raid was over as soon as I removed the last of the essence from the man they had bought. There was at least one thing taken care of today.

In the surface building, Goldwind and the other man had been waiting for the healer's return, and as soon as she appeared at the top of the stairwell, they rushed to help her.

As soon as they left the surface building, I closed the doors behind them. The feelings of exposure finally ended when I sealed the alcove, hiding myself away from the world once more.

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