Dungeon of Niflheim

“Further north you’ll find a monster lair that crosses the fringes of the gamma sector and the epsilon sector. If you are confident in your strength or wish to hunt for monster materials, it’s a good place plus there’s a small enclave hidden underground nearby. They’re more welcoming than the others and may allow you to stay if you make a good impression.” Callie continued to speak about the glacial mountains as well as the known enclaves, villages, and other camps as well as the history of the order of the ice shield. They talked for an hour before she finished, a couple people came into the office to book a room. Callie quickly dealt with these known faces and assigned them a room before returning to her talk with Frost. She enjoyed chatting with newbie adventurers hoping that her experience and knowledge would one day save their lives.

“Hopefully that’s answered all your questions young Frost.”

“Yes you’ve answered them all and more mother Callie, thank you for entertaining me for the past hour.” Frost thanked her while steadily rising from his chair, his legs had grown rather stiff after sitting for so long.

“No problem I love to chat, especially with handsome young boys such as yourself hehhehehe.” She laughed lightly causing Frost to shake his head in dismay. As he got up to leave the office Callie couldn’t help but tease him one last time.

“Oh, and young Frost, my chambers are always open in case you change your mind about experiencing the wonders of a mature woman such as I and I promise you it won’t be a night you’d forget, chuu.” Callie winked flirtatiously, emphasizing her abundant chest with her arms, and blew him a kiss.

Frost visibly trembled, fumbling his steps he almost fell out the door, much to Callie’s enjoyment.

‘I really am constantly teased by women haaaaaaa.’ He couldn’t help but complain as he blushed from his head to neck. Rushing out of Callie’s office he ventured towards the centre of the camp to take a look at the notice board. Focusing on work should help clear his mind of the provocative images that were currently running around in his head.

The night was still young and there was much to do before dawn, thankfully the merchants all remained open throughout the night so he could take his time.

.....

Rumble

However, the moment he drew close the centre of the camp the tantalising smell of food filled his nose causing his stomach to rumble in protest. Though he could delay rest it seemed as though eating could not be.

“Well, I can always check the notice board later.” Frost shrugged as his stomach urged. He didn’t store any meat in his backpack to avoid it reeking as he walked so he swiftly changed his direction to the canteen where ingredients could be purchased. There was a residing chef on hand that prepared all the guards meals and could prepare yours for a price, but Frost quite enjoyed trying his hand at cooking even if it was subpar at best.

There was a small queue in the canteen, so he had to wait his turn, there was a board above the vendor that showed what they offer. It was presented by monster type like thus, vegetables were also available for purchase.

Frost wolf:

· Ribs, 50 coppers per half rack

· Sausages, 40 coppers per set of three

· Rump steak, 65 coppers

· Liver, 30 coppers

The prices weren’t exactly cheap, but the ingredients would be incredibly fresh. There was even a hotpot special which included a bunch of ingredients for one silver. Frost quite fancied that, so when it was finally his turn, he requested it.

The butcher if you will, frequently got such a request so it didn’t take him long to prepare.

“One hotpot special that’ll be one silver lad.” The butcher handed Frost a container filled with pieces of meat and veg (separated of course), as well as another filled with broth, the helping was quite generous. Frost fished out a silver coin and took the containers gladly. Now he just needed to find a free firepit to cook on. Thankfully he packed a large pot for cooking and could use the ignition lifestyle magic meaning he didn’t need to rent a pot and light the fire the old fashioned way.

With his stomach continuing to rumble Frost quickly found a free firepit on the outskirts. A few of the more forward female adventurers tried to wave him over to their fire pit but he smiled and shook his head. He had enough teasing by woman for one day.

“[Ignition]” with the command word the fire pit was set ablaze, generating a comforting heat. Well for others at least, Frost wasn’t adverse to warmth but fire such as this still irked him slightly. Removing his cooking pot from his spatial ring he set it up over the fire pit and once it warmed up he tossed in the meat, causing it sizzle. Once it was browned he added the broth and brought the mixture to the boil, finally he added the vegetables and stirred, he raised the pot slightly to reduce the cooking temperature. Now all he had to do was wait and occasionally stir.

Hot pot was not a complicated dish to make especially when one lacked spices such as pepper, salt etc... that’s why it was so popular among the adventurers in the camp. It was very rare for one to have good cooking skills amongst such a profession.

After ten minutes or so a pleasant smell escaped from the pot, Frost’s stomach rumbled once again, the dish was done.

“Alright, alright quiet down, the food’s ready.” He admonished his roaring belly, still finding it awkward to have such cravings. And thus, Frost appeared like every other adventurer in the camp, eating at the firepits as they enjoyed the safety of the camp.

“Huuuuu much better, not the best dish but certainly palatable.” Frost rubbed his filled belly after finishing every drop of the hotpot, not willing to waste his hard earned work.

“[Clean up]” he casted magic to clean the pot and containers before putting out the fire, since no one else was waiting to use it. The containers had to be put in the camp’s recycling bin, to be cleaned and re-used by the canteen.

With his belly now filled he moved toward the notice board in the centre of the camp, even now it was still a popular area, many adventurers and even merchants were gathered around the large board looking for work.

As Frost arrived, the group moved to open up a space before continuing their own investigation, acting quite friendly. Frost smiled and nodded in thanks before taking up the space and looking over the large board before him.

‘Hunting a large group of frost wolves that have been causing disruptions to the trade route in sector 15 of the Beta sector, need members for party, please at least E-rank.’

‘Needing D-rank crystals from spirit monsters, paying 3 silvers per crystal.’

‘Wanting guards of E-rank to D-rank to defend merchant caravan travelling to the Theta sector, 20 silvers, meals provided.’

‘Requesting Frost vine leaves, 1 silver per vine.’

‘Delivery request to the lambda camp, 2 silvers.’

A great range of quests were posted on the board, all for the external regions of the glacial mountains. Frost even had some materials in his spatial ring that a couple merchants were looking for. Not only would one gain money from completing such quests they’d gain reputation amongst the order of the ice shield as a substitute for not being a quest of the adventurer’s guild.

Frost noted the names of the merchants that sought the materials he had on hand before leaving the area, heading to the east where the merchants were. Mother Callie mentioned that he should speak to Ryan, the merchant leader of the camp. So, he planned to do just that, perhaps there’d be a few items he’d like to purchase himself. Something stronger than simple leather armour was quite high up on that list as well as alcohol.

He’d actually discussed brewing their own alcohol with Maya once the dungeon was expanded a fair bit more. He could purchase the plants after all through the dungeon menu, leaving only the process. He thought it would make for an enjoyable hobby the two of them could share. But for now, he’d have to purchase at least one bottle while he was out exploring as a gift otherwise, she’d definitely hold a grudge.

The merchant area was less busy than the fire pits but still a fair amount of people were talking with merchants, trying to haggle for a better price or learn more about a job request.

He quickly found the merchant leader who’s office was upon a hill and looked a fair bit more lavish that the other managers, which was to be expected give that he handled the money.

Ryan was a rather obese human that wore a lot of jewellery but had an affable expression, appearing warm and easy going, similar to that of Callie.

The moment Frost walked in the door Ryan analysed him from head to toe and smelled the scent of money. He quickly got up off his large backside and greeted Frost with great enthusiasm. When it came to money, Ryan was always full of energy despite his weight.