Posts from United Kingdoms Auto-translated

After Mirna tied a cloth over her eyes, someone approached her.
“Follow them and don’t try anything,” Dorness said monotonously, “or instead of an answer to your question, you’ll get a problem.”

Mirna began to realize that she had probably made a mistake by trusting the taciturn innkeeper, who hadn’t even promised to help her. Now, she needed to assess how wise it would be to “try something” at this moment. Apparently, not very wise, at least not in the presence of Dorness and those “them.” So, she obeyed.

Ronard stealthily follows the aristocrat.

The aristocrat leaves the place of arrival and heads towards Astkirhen.

Myrna began to realize that she had probably made a not very wise decision by trusting the taciturn innkeeper, who hadn't even promised to help her. Now it was necessary to assess how appropriate it would be to "play tricks" at this moment. Apparently, not very much, at least not in the presence of Dornesh and those "others." Therefore, she obeys.

After a considerable time and quite a long journey, the group stops, and Myrna finally has the blindfold removed from her eyes, revealing a spacious and extremely unusual Dungeon. Judging by the "ceiling," which was nothing more than the vault of a cavern, it could only be that. What was strange was something else: houses, roads, and other infrastructure typical of cities. All around, illuminated by countless bright lamps, there were many people, even more than in Pilas.

"Newcomer?" After receiving an affirmative answer to his question, the young man who met them sent the escort group back and turned his attention to Myrna. "What brings you here?"

-- Uhm, -- filler words rarely interrupted Mirna's speech, but today, spent in Pilas, brought surprise after surprise. A city under a city? But how? Why?
-- I just asked Dornesh how to impress Girion Grimm, expecting... something much simpler. Something about winning a battle, for example.
Ugh. This was some kind of mistake, some secret that she shouldn't have learned. Well. It's too late to panic. If they now force her to live in these dungeons forever, then there's nothing she can do about it.
-- In principle, I can tell you in more detail why this is necessary. Do you know how to achieve this? -- the girl asked more confidently.

“Impress old Grimm?” the young man was surprised. “Is it the arena that interests you? … Well, I’m not in a hurry, so I can take the time to listen to your story.”

— Impress old Grimm? — The young man was surprised. — Are you interested in the arena? Well, I'm not in a hurry, so I can afford to listen to your story.

Mirna told him that she was traveling with an enterprising man who, in turn, had taken on a task from the merchants' guild to recruit Baron Pilas. Mirna's companion was not allowed into the city, so he made her promise that she would resolve the matter herself.
She was looking for opportunities at the arena, but it wasn't the right season, so she decided to ask the tavern keeper, hoping for his intuition. Tavern keepers always know everything, and they also said that Dornesh was a famous warrior. But she couldn't predict Dornesh's reaction.
That's why she's here.

— Well... Dornesh probably misunderstood you, but there’s nothing you can do about it now. It’s too early to say whether you’re lucky or not, but forget about that deal with the merchant guild. He won’t cooperate with them, you can be sure of that. How about I show you around the city and explain the rules?

The aristocrat leaves the place of arrival and heads towards Astkirken.

Ronard continues to follow him. If the entrance to the upper city is too well guarded and stealth is unlikely, he simply tries to figure out how else to get there – a sewer drain, a tree next to the wall, etc.

Well... Dornesh probably misunderstood you, but there's nothing you can do about it now. Whether you're lucky or not is still too early to tell, but that deal with the merchant guild? Forget about it. He won't cooperate with them, you can be sure of that. How about I show you around the city and explain the rules?

-- Since I'm already here, that sounds good...

I use the Charm spell on Wilda, and then suggest that she join us on a mission to deliver carpets, where she can also gain some experience.

Abigail goes back to base, and we split the money from the hide among the four of us again.

Ronard continues to follow him. If the passage to the upper city is too well-guarded and stealth is unlikely, he simply tries to figure out how else to get there – a sewer drain, a tree next to the wall, etc.

A quick look revealed that the Astkirhen stronghold was built with the potential to withstand even the strongest sieges and resist infiltration by the most talented spies, and therefore it had almost no weaknesses, and the only thing left to rely on was human error. The "Blue Cloaks" guarding the aristocrats' quarter were more vigilant and took their job much more seriously than the guards of the rest of the city, but they were still human and were not immune to fatigue and mistakes.

-- Now that I'm here, alright...

— Well, that's great, — the guy clapped his hands and walked towards the city, — follow me. My name is Vilas, by the way, but you can just call me Will. Actually, I would prefer that. The similarity of my name to the name of the city doesn't do me any honor, you know.
A few minutes later, Will and Mirna reach the source of light that could be seen from the place where the blindfold was removed from the donor.
— The city has several names. In fact, it's "Lower Pilas" with its "Lower Arena" and the like, but we prefer to call it "The Abyss," and Dorneesh's tavern "The Gates of the Abyss," or just "The Gates." Whatever is more convenient. These are formalities, but they help avoid certain problems, especially when returning to the surface. — Vilas patted Mirna on the shoulder. — I understand that this may seem overly complicated and too difficult, but you will get used to it.
Having finished with this, he stopped in the middle of the street, which was filled with various establishments decorated with bright signs, and spread his arms to the sides. — This is Arberion, the main part of the city. Well... maybe it's not quite so, considering the existence of the Arena, but it is here that the heart of the Abyss is located.
Next, Mirna had to stop near a tall and very impressive building that looked more like a miniature castle than a simple house in the middle of the city. — This is the "Exchange Point." And before you ask what is exchanged here, I will tell you about the first rule of the Abyss: all monetary transactions must be carried out using special coin-like tokens. We call them tokens. Of course, using money in the Abyss is strictly prohibited. Well, the exchange point is needed for this – to exchange money for tokens and back. It is important to remember that the tokens themselves have no value, and therefore they cannot be used on the surface. Okay, let's go on. — On the sign of the next building where the two stopped, it said "House of Oaths." — The second rule of the Abyss: we don't talk about the Abyss outside of it. This is not so important now, but if you want to return, you will definitely have to visit here; they will tell you the details.
After that, Will led Mirna through various establishments in Arberion.
"House of Swords." — The name speaks for itself, doesn't it? This is where those who like to wield steel sticks, and not only them, hone their skills. — "House of Shadows." — Also a combat school, but with a less straightforward approach than the previous one. I have the rank of master there, by the way. — "House of Pleasures." — It's easy to guess from the name – a brothel. Many girls and women end up here, due to a lack of other ways to earn a living and the inability to get out. If you want relatively easy money, you can try to apply here, but I wouldn't recommend it – there are plenty of services of this kind here, and the market is simply saturated with them, and therefore the pay is more than modest. — "Elysium." — To be honest, even I don't know who they are and what they do; they are shady people. But if the baron trusts them, then I can only silently agree with his opinion. Of course, you can't get in there without an invitation. — "Blue Rose." — And this is a house of pleasure for women. They are very rare in the world, but since there are many ladies with thick wallets in the Abyss, the creation of such an establishment was only a matter of time. They only hire the most attractive and charming, and therefore the cost of services is quite high. I even worked there for a while, but I didn't have the right character and had to leave them with big debts. — "Hellfire." — A forge, a weapon shop, and other combat equipment. Nothing special or unusual, but anyone who participates in battles comes here often. — "Belfast." — A gambling house. — "Sapphire," "Sonata," "Seipodon," "Champion's Fury," "Nostalgia." — If you need to have a snack or quench your thirst, this is a good choice. If there are absolutely no tokens and it is not possible to earn them, then you will have to rummage through the garbage, as many do. Therefore, you need to prevent this. Remember, here everyone is for himself, and no one will help you just like that. — "House of Secret Knowledge." — They practice a science called "astrology" here, but I don't know much about it. — "Secrets of Magic." — As you can see, this ancient art has not yet died out, although it is approaching this, thanks to the efforts of Astrometry, as well as the fact that without talent, it is impossible to achieve success in this craft. I tried, but I didn't succeed. — "Kaiten." — Some call it the house of pain. Let's just say that some rich people have very peculiar needs, and this establishment satisfies them for a lot of money. — "Anacreon." — A clothing and jewelry store; the prices there are quite high, so there is nothing to do there until you get rich. — Market. — Here you can find anything, just like in the market of any other city.
Having finished with Arberion, Will led Mirna through other parts of the city.
— This is the arena, the main attraction of the Abyss. You can fight here against both animals and monsters, and against other people. Each fighter has his own rank, which increases in case of victory, depending on the rank of the opponent, and decreases in case of defeat. Of course, the higher the rank, the more money. But you will learn more about this later, if you are interested in this. The only thing I will say right away: it is forbidden to finish off a defeated opponent in the arena, because investors do not want to lose potential fighters, but this does not mean that the fights there are safe. — Having finished with the arena, they went on and soon stopped at the slave market. — Here you can buy a slave. Their origins are very different; some are brought from above, and some end up here because of debts. — Their next stop was the circus. — A gathering of tricksters, acrobats, and all sorts of guys. If you want to visit this place, watch out for pickpockets.
And finally, they headed to the residential area. It was divided into three parts, depending on the cost. — The last thing I will tell you today: it is forbidden to sleep on the streets, so you must definitely have somewhere to spend the night. Whether it will be something like a squalid barracks or a luxurious estate depends on your finances and willingness to spend money on it. Well, that's it, — Will patted Mirna on the shoulder again, — I think that's enough for today. I may have forgotten to tell you something, and you yourself will probably have questions, so if you need me, you can find me either at the exit, if it is my shift, or at "Sonata," I am there often. Goodbye.

I use charm on Wilda, after which I offer her to go with us on a mission to deliver carpets, and at the same time learn there.

Are you using it on Valdila?

Yeah, I meant the driver.

Goodbye.

-- I want to ask right now. Are lethal techniques prohibited in the arena? Can battles take place at any time?
From conversations with Lex Mirn, I understood that he is looking for a way to liberate his country and a way to learn real magic. And here... Within this cavern, there was a real sense that people here could do anything and the church had no say. Stumbling upon such a place was an incredible stroke of luck.

- Yes, hello, Vikhl, I'm Helmut. I asked the elder for a hunter, so you must be him. Are you familiar with the surrounding areas? Can you set up traps and alarms, or any other kinds of snares? What weapons do you use? You're going to be hunting a man, although I wouldn't really call him that. I won't hide anything from you, buddy: we took out the bandits, but according to the testimony of your former hostages, there's one more left, a rather vicious one, who we didn't find on the scene. But we have a lead - there's reason to believe that tomorrow or in the next few days, he might visit Riverside, so we need to detect and neutralize him in advance. We need a system that will alert us when he's approaching and where he is specifically, after which we and the guys will go out and take him down. Some traps, a tripwire with shards of glass, a watch, maybe something else. All of this needs to be placed around Riverside on the right sides so that it works. Can you handle it?

vihl-mihl-shishel-myshel