After an hour and a half, Naomi was back. She wore a blacksmith outfit, and her leather apron had an inscription: Use the forge, Luke.

  “I’m ready.” She simply stated after entering the tavern.

  “Good. Show me your new forge.” Grand forge master nod.

  Smithy was connected through the short corridor. It also had four towers, the three caches wind. The fourth one was a chimney for a mana forge. Next to the building, she placed a ten-meter-tall vertical windmill to move blowers and a few other machines. Inside was a fully equipped workshop and two benches big enough for sixteen people. Naomi placed next to them a barrel of ale. Like in the tavern, you get a full tankard for a small mana stone.

  Erirser inspected everything, and after some grumbling, he gave her a pass.

  “You, Mistress, like always love to show off.” He said.

  “Last time I checked, showing off was part of my job.” Naomi smiled.

  “Your dwarven soul is there. I will help you remember how we speak and behave. Soon you will be a proper smith.” Grand Forge Master nods, happy with her response. “For now, make me a pair of hinges.”

  “What kind of hinges?”

  “That kind of crap leave for nobles. Now cut one standard one-foot iron bar into equal halves. From them made one hinge.”

  “Spoilsport.” Naomi laughed.

  She materialized the mentioned iron bar, placed it in the forge, and moved the lever to engage the blower. Iron gets red hot instantly. Then she switched to a different lever, and an enormous hammer with a sharp tip started moving. With just two hits, Naomi got two halves of an iron bar. She placed them in the forge once again to reheat them. Next, she takes them alternately to form hinges. She properly hammers and uses exact tools for every step of work. However, like she warned, dungeon magic does most of the hard work.

  “And they are ready.” Naomi took them from the wooden bowl with water and placed them on the main anvil where she worked.

  “I start to understand your problem, Dungeon Mistress,” Eraser said. Both hinges were visibly made by hand. However, they were also perfect. There were no unexpected bumps, and the dimensions were the same. Also, they were part of the dungeon, so they weren't real.

  “I told you. It’s dungeon magic. The blacksmith will need a few hours to finish this work. And it took me barely an hour. The real iron doesn’t get hot instantly or form under the hits of a hammer so evenly. I can make anything, and the final effect will be the same.” Naomi sighed.

  “You don’t win yet, Dungeon Mistress.” Grand Forge Master smiled after realizing something. “Give me a moment. I need something from my workshop.” He said and ran.

  Naomi shrugs and sits on the bench where Nurmela drinks her ale.

  “Thanks for the show, Dungeon Mistress.” She smiled and raised her tankard. From the other bench, three other dwarves do the same.

  “You're welcome.” She raised her tankard.

  Within fifteen minutes, the dwarven priest was back.

  “Let's try once again. But this time, you, Mistress, will forge the hinges from this.” He placed an iron scrap on the anvil.

  “But this is the real iron. It costs you money.” Naomi protested.

  “One copper. In the dungeon, there is so much metal that most adventurers leave it because they will not get any money for scrap.”

  “That’s true, Dungeon Mistress!” shouted Nurmela.

  “Oh well. So be it.” Naomi gave up and started working again. This time, dungeon magic doesn’t interfere. It took her a few hours and a lot of hammering until she finished. But slowly, as the work progressed, a smile appeared on her face. She was happy, ecstatic even. At last, she was doing true blacksmithing. She knew she could only build small, simple objects, but they would be authentic. Wait, she reflected. She was now practically immortal. Time was irrelevant for her. So spending ten or twenty years building a golem won’t be a problem. Her grin widened.

  “I won.” Grand Forge Master said. The new set of hinges was much different. Naomi managed to make them similar, however, anyone could see differences. Unlike the previous pair, they weren't identical.

  “Ok. You won.” Naomi gave up theatrically, still smiling and happy.

  “Dungeon Mistress, you should mark them.” One of the gathered dwarves suggested.

  “Mark them? Why?” She was confused.

  “He is right.” Eraser nodded. “Those hinges are on the level of an advanced blacksmith at best, but still, they are special. They are yours, Dungeon Mistress, envoy of gods, first true creation. Hopefully not the last one.”

  “You can be as sure of it as the sun in the sky.” Naomi laughed.

  Suddenly, a cylinder ten centimeters long and two centimeters wide appeared on the anvil. Naomi takes it to see what it is.

  “It’s a marking stamp.” She gasped when she saw the bottom of the cylinder.

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  “And a gift from the gods. Use it.” Grand Forg Master said.

  Naomi immediately positioned it on the hinge. She hit the tool with a hammer, making a mark on it. On the bottom was an anvil. At the top was the silhouette of her tower. And in the background was a tree.

  “Thank you,” Naomi whispered, hugging the punching tool. “Grand Forge Master. I’m in great debt to you. Thank you.” Naomi bowed.

  “Nah. Keep doing what you are and don’t forget about my free ale. It will be enough.” He weaved his hand.

  At the Malena office, someone knocked.

  “Come in.” Grand priestess of the goddess of mischief and fun answered.

  “Mistress, I have a message for you.” One of her employees gives her a small scroll sealed with wax.

  “Was it sent by runner or pigeon?”

  “It was send by piguon, mam.”

  “Thank you,” She said. Pigeons were usually sent with urgent messages.

  Carefully, she breaks a wax seal of the Runners Guild. At the top was the usual and boring sentence: To the Great… and so on. This time, however, there was also a cat paw print. Malenas curiosity rise. So as not to miss anything, he slowly begins to read the short message. Then she read it twice more to be sure. Then she started laughing.

  “Thank you, goddess. I will find someone suitable.”

  Late in the afternoon, Lisusa entered the High Priestess's office. She was thirty years old and a lamia. She was almost a grand master-level tavern master. To be one, she needed a tavern. Lisusa, one week ago, petitioned a guild managing all taverns in Freyharf and the closest towns and villages for renting existing ones, or permission to start her own. Today she will know the answer.

  “Please sit.” Guild Mistress smiled at her. Lisusa sat, her tail wrapped around the chair. “You still want to start your tavern?”

  “Yes, Guild Mistress.”

  “I have some news for you. I have one brand new tavern for you. But before I tell you, I need to know how good you are with a sword.”

  “I’m decent. My sword fighting skill is at a late advanced level.”

  “And, do you prefer a place with moderate weather, or maybe a different one?”

  “I don’t like cold places. Or humid one. But if it is also warm, I guess it could be alright.”

  “What about the desert?”

  “Desert?” Lisusa was surprised. Then she understood. “New dungeon. Expedition is building a tavern.”

  “Yes and no.” Malena smiled mischievously. “This is confidential information, so don’t tell anyone. There is a tavern, already built. But it was Dungeon Mistress who built it. Her tavern is also on the fifth floor. She wants to rent it to someone. Also, our goddess blessed it.”

  Lisusa doesn’t know how to react.

  “And I…” She stammered.

  “If you're willing.”

  “I agree. I promise to work hard and not disappoint our goddess.” Lisusa said firmly after a moment of thinking.

  “Splendid. It’s time for some paperwork. My clerks will prepare a list of people who can be hired. You will get it in the next day or two. The caravan should be back in a few days. Probably you will have two weeks to organize everything before they will be sent back to the oasis.”

  “Understood.”

  “Also, do you have money to pay for the caravan?”

  “I have some savings. But it may not be enough for my employees. I guess I will borrow money.” She sighed.

  “Don’t worry. The letter mentioned that Dungeon Mistress would guarantee any loans and help cover travel expenses.”

  “It will help me to convince any undecided people.” Lisusa was relieved.

  Three days later, the caravan reached Frayharf. Under the heavy escort of paladins and city guards, chests with reports were distributed to guilds and temples. Additionally, one big crate was transported to the city lord's palace. Whatever was in there was very heavy because four people were needed to lift it. Before opening it, all guild masters and grand priests were invited for a formal briefing. While the herald of the city lord was reading aloud a short report about the dungeon and most essential events, helpers opened the wooden crate. Inside was a statue of a giant rat. All gathered expected a boring briefing, however, even the herald's voice started to shake. The first shocking news was the presence of two more gods and the quest given by them. Then there was a bandit's attack, and how the Dungeon Mistress single-handedly dealt with them. It was a bad sign. Bandits weren't that stupid, cultists most likely had a hand in that. Next was a description of the floors. The first floor was as expected. Only traps were there. The second floor shocked them. The layout was simple, but monsters? Magical artifacts imitating living creatures. All gathered started observing the supposed sculpture with curiosity and awe. Grand forge master Rakdrun steps forward to examine the sculpture up close. He immediately saw it wasn’t a solid piece of metal. The metal plates were connected in a way that they slid under the adjacent ones, allowing movement. Through gaps, he saw gears and machinery. In the scroll stored in a small chest, there was a warning about reactivating the magical array inside the head of the golem rat. Rakdrun grabs the set of tools stored inside the chest and immediately opens the lid, hiding the mentioned array. He was so absorbed in trying to remember and understand what he saw that he stopped paying attention to what was happening around him. After the initial shock at what Dungeon Mistress created, the description of the third and fourth floors was similar to the early floors of other dungeons.

  “Grand Forge Master.” Someone touches his shoulder. It was the Grand Priestess of the Sun.

  “Yes. Report.” He nodded absentmindedly.

  “It ended.” She smiled at him. “It looks like we have a lot to discuss today.” She said to the people in the hall.

  “Before we start boring stuff, I have a message about the dungeon.” Interrupted smailing and visibly agitated Malena. Eleana nodded, preparing for something bad to happen.

  “My goddess also takes a liking to Dungeon Mistress. So the list of the gods is a little bit longer.”

  “Do you have information on why that happened?” Eleana asked.

  “No. I was only tasked with helping with the tavern on the fifth floor, blessed by my goddess.”

  “Fifth floor is ready then,” Bumus said.

  “I only had basic historical records about other dungeons, but isn’t that fast?” Asked Lord Grivius.

  “No, my Lord.” The Adventurers Guild master said. “If someone dies inside a dungeon, the dungeon core gets much more mana than the usual adventurer visits. One of the expedition's goals is to ensure the dungeon master doesn’t become a murderer. But in the halls of this dungeon died a few dozen bandits. That gave Dungeon Mistress surplus mana for maybe two floors, and adventurers were exploring the maze in the meantime.”

  “Understood.”

  “That brings us to the problem with the cultist.” Elven grand priestess said. “It turns out our usual efforts weren’t enough. I propose to double the reward for participation in missions involving killing or capturing them.”

  All agreed. City Lord, all guilds, and temples had a shared budget for fighting against worshipers of twisted gods. That way it wasn’t an enormous expanse for anyone.

  The rest of the topics were typical: how to profit from the dungeon's resources. For now, they agree that it will be mostly work for crafters. Blacksmiths and smelters will be turning metal scrap into something useful. Enchanters and artificers will be building and repairing artifacts. And finally, merchants will buy and sell goods.