“We were going to have to solve this problem sooner or later,” Hans said, taking a seat on his deck after pouring Devon and Mazo beers. “It’s looking like we’ll accept the Hunter’s Guild membership, which means giving them Diamond quests. Does anyone feel differently?”

  Devon and Mazo shook their heads.

  “What quest do we give them? We all agreed that group runs were a better approach than assigning Diamond Quests to individuals, but the entire party getting the same boon doesn’t make a ton of sense either.”

  “What quests are on the list?” Devon asked.

  Hans counted on his fingers. “We’ve got five. One that’s for an Archer or Assassin, one that’s for a Bard or a Rogue, one that’s for a Rogue, one for a Druid, and one for a Cleric. I think we should do the search a few more times to get something more appropriate for their Fighters, but that doesn’t change the fact that if we send them on a Fighter quest, they all come home with Fighter boons.”

  “And sending one party after multiple boons is off the table,” Mazo stated.

  Hans nodded.

  “We could divide the party,” Mazo proposed. “Send the three Fighters after a Fighter boon, and then do our best to pick a type of boon that would be useful for all three of the backline folk.”

  “Do you think we could find a boon that versatile?”

  “Not likely, especially with the fuzziness of our Path assessments.”

  The group sat through a silence as they all pondered the problem.

  “If we go back and test the assumptions,” Devon began as Mazo grinned. She knew exactly where the Paladin learned that process. “We are assuming that we have to be the ones assigning the quests. Any other time, the adventurer picks the job.”

  “Go on,” Hans encouraged.

  “I’m just saying we’re talking about trying to decide what’s best for a party we’ve only just met. If we’re saying we’d let them split the party, shouldn’t they be the ones to decide how they do it, if they want to do it all?”

  Thinking, Hans rubbed the knuckle of his missing pinky, a new nervous habit that he strongly disliked but struggled to break.

  “We sent Izz and Thuz after a boon as a duo,” Hans said. “Were we biased in that choice, or would we let other duos take quests? We’ve talked about splitting the dwarves in half, but that’s different from letting them pair off if they wanted.”

  “That doesn’t really solve the problem, though,” Mazo replied. “If two different classes go after the same boon, it’s going to be more relevant to one than the other.”

  Hans grunted and reached for his beer. Mazo was right. That approach still took agency away from one of the adventurers.

  “What would we want if it were us?” Hans asked.

  Mazo gagged. “No way in hells would I be happy with a Paladin boon.”

  Hans smiled. “But I would have been happy with Devon’s, Gret’s, or Boden’s boon.”

  “I’m more useful to my party because I have a Mage boon,” Mazo replied. “You might be that flexible, but I don’t think I could be.”

  “Which is fair,” Hans assured her.

  Devon reached for the pitcher and spoke as he poured a refill for himself. Hans held out his cup, so the Paladin refilled that one too.

  “We’re still forcing them into an arbitrary process,” Devon said. “If one of their party members feels like Mazo and the others don’t, that sucks for that one person. They’ve trained hard, and their right to make their own choices is still taken away from them.”

  “That sounds like we’re drifting back toward solo quests,” Hans said.

  Mazo straightened her back. “Not necessarily. I agree with Devon. Any single dissenter in a party shouldn’t be forced to compromise, but that doesn’t have to mean they go alone.”

  “What do you propose?”

  Leaning forward, Mazo used her pointer finger to divide up an imaginary party as though they were miniatures on the table. “Okay, using our dwarves, we can take the three Fighters out of the equation because their answer is easy. Let’s assume the Black Mage is a little religious and kind of stupid, so they’re okay with a Cleric boon. That leaves our Rogue. With me so far?”

  Hans and Devon nodded.

  “What if we let the Rogue wait for another Rogue, even two, before they go for a Rogue boon?”

  “They could end up waiting for a while,” Hans said.

  “And that’s up to them. Or maybe someone comes along who wants to take our Archer boon. If that person was solo, the Rogue could go with them.”

  “What if they don’t like each other?” Devon asked.

  “I don’t give a shit who they like,” Mazo scoffed. “We’re not running a dating service. If they don’t want to go, then don’t go, but that makes the wait longer.”

  Hans pulled his mug from his lips and released a small sigh of refreshment. “I don’t hate that idea. Either of you opposed to moving forward like this?”

  Neither adventurer had objections.

  “Good. Whenever you want to schedule search time, I’ll be there. Maybe sometime in the next two weeks?” The search Hans referred to meant using the Takarabune.

  “Sure,” Mazo answered.

  “Perfect. We can talk to them after that. For now, we can drink in peace.”

  Devon raised his mug. “Cheers.”

  Quest Complete: Finalize a process for distributing Diamond quests.

  New Quest: Offer Diamond quests to Ewan and his party.

  “We already don’t have enough rooms,” Galad said. “We’re rushing to get more finished.”

  “Most of ‘em are adventurers, but some of them aren’t,” Charlie added. “Not a lot, but more than I pictured.”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  Galad continued leading Hans and Charlie to the fairgrounds. “Yeah,” Galad echoed, “Leebel’s is getting a bit rowdy, and I don’t know if we’ll ever have enough beer for all the adventurers we get.”

  Hans laughed. “Are they causing trouble?”

  “From what I understand, not really. No serious fights yet. They’re just loud and rough, is all.”

  Charlie spoke wistfully. “I’ve never sold much out of the oven, but the bakery is cleaned out each day now. We can’t keep up.”

  “Don’t worry,” Galad said, “We are already working on new fields. Wheat and barley are at the top of the list. As for this project, you can see we’re about ready to plant.”

  The land for the fairgrounds was now completely cleared, and a team of five tusks worked to expose the soil beneath the cobblestone streets and building foundations. The space was mostly flat with a few gentle rises, and it felt bigger than Hans imagined it would be. Then again, a stretch of open land in the middle of the city rather than on a farm had a starker edge, making the proportions easier to appreciate.

  “The sedis are amazing,” Galad continued. “I think the tunnelers want more work just to keep them busy.”

  “They start on the bypass tunnel yet?” Charlie asked.

  Galad shook his head. “Mazo’s got them working on something. After that, they’ll break ground.”

  “Good, good.”

  “Is something on your mind, Charlie?”

  Charlie puffed his cheeks and exhaled long and slow. “Galinda and I gotta move down here, and I need you to convince her.”

  “What made you change your mind?” Galad asked.

  “I saw how happy Galinda was with the kids when we visited. She likes the idea of being the one who watches the gate, though, so even if it made her happier, I think she’d tell me no.”

  Galad considered his brother-in-law for a long moment. Shaking his head at what he was signing up for, he said, “Fine.”

  “Mighty kind.”

  “If she likes to be the one watching the gate, get a place close to the docks,” Hans said.

  “I thought of that too,” Charlie said. “Best ones are already claimed, I’m afraid.”

  “That’s a shame.”

  “Aw well,” Charlie gruffed. “My fault for waiting so long to come to my senses.”

  Hans laughed to himself. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I wish the core was still growing so I could add something for you two.”

  “You want us to live in a witch hut, or are you thinking a crypt?” Charlie joked.

  “Might I also interest you in a goblin castle?” Hans joked back.

  Charlie stopped walking. Hans and Galad were a few steps ahead before they noticed the Mayor had fallen behind. When they looked back, Charlie looked up over the farmlands. Four griffons criss-crossed high enough that they needed to mind the ceiling overhead, else they hit Gomi’s artificial sun.

  “I’m trying not to let that sight feel commonplace,” Charlie mused, “but I have to say I warmed to it pretty quickly. A griffon is no more remarkable to me than a bird? Ha!”

  Hans recognized the silhouettes of Devon and Honronk. The other two griffon riders were guards Terry recommended. One was a human man who had been in a cavalry unit when he served. The other was a tusk who cleaned a stable on a nobleman’s estate. He snuck in a surprising amount of riding practice when no one was looking.

  A griffon wasn’t a horse, but the tusk and former calvary member were naturally more accustomed to rough rides than the Paladin and the Black Mage.

  Devon could ride. He had not, however, entered combat on horseback or trained with a warhorse. Honronk had sat on a horse exactly once, and that was because Galad let him.

  Hans could see how much of a difference that experience with horses really made. The newer griffon riders seemed more in sync with their mounts. They had a better sense of when to lean and when to ease up and had noticeably more commitment in their maneuvers.

  Hans, Charlie, and Galad watched as one of the riders flew forward but pulled back on the reins suddenly. The griffon lifted its chest and flapped its wings to cancel out its momentum, and for a second, the monster seemed to float with no effort at all.

  Then the griffon turned its beak toward the ground, tucking its wings in, and dove.

  Charlie yelped, and the griffon disappeared behind the city wall a moment later. “Did he… Oh, thank gods,” he said, putting a hand on his chest.

  The griffon that dove had not crashed. The power of its fall now propelled an easy glide, the beast smoothly gaining altitude without flapping a wing as it soared through the dungeon.

  “You know,” Charlie began with a little laugh, “Gruwalda would have hated the griffons.”

  Galad bellowed a laugh. “Yeah, she would have.”

  “Why’s that?” Hans asked.

  “Mom didn’t have much patience for animals,” Galad explained. “And oh my, did she hate horses. If one got close, you would have thought the most disgusting creature in the world had slithered up to her.”

  “How’d she feel about wagons?”

  “Hated ‘em too. She caught Galinda taking horse riding lessons one time, and I wasn’t certain our house would survive the shit storm. They both got to shouting, and then Galinda slammed a door so hard it broke the doorframe. That pissed mom off, so she slammed one too. When dad finished up in the fields that day, he came home to two ruined doors and then spent most of the night trying to mediate.”

  A soft focus washed over Galad’s face, the contentment of someone looking at a happy memory instead of the world around them. “He got them to stop fighting. Mom and Galinda both turned on him when he suggested they might be overreacting.”

  “What was that like for you?” Hans asked Charlie.

  “Ah, I wasn’t there, sadly. Hadn’t found Gomi for myself yet.”

  “I don’t think I’ve ever heard that story.”

  “That’s ‘cause I don’t tell it,” Charlie said. “Going down that road once was enough.”

  “Ah.”

  Galad offered Hans a subtle nod that communicated leaving the topic alone would be best.

  Before Hans could redirect the conversation, he heard footsteps running across cobblestone, coming his direction. Pogo, the Apprentice Rogue from the Minotaurs, approached. When Hans saw Pogo’s face, tension lanced through his heart. The young tusk was gravely worried, and he was afraid.

  “Mr. Hans! Master Vaglell is in the guild hall. He wants to speak with you.”

  “Vaglell? The Bard?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “How’d he get all the way to the guild hall with no one telling me?” Hans asked.

  “Don’t know anything about that. What do you want us to do?”

  “I’ll go there now,” Hans said. “If you could do me a huge favor, please go get Mazo and send someone to fetch Devon on your way out the front gate.”

  Pogo hesitated.

  “What?”

  “Miss Mazo’s hut?”

  “Yes.”

  “Is that… safe?”

  Hans caught himself groaning. “You’ll be fine.”

  Pogo was unconvinced.

  “Tell you what, I’ll give you my personal password,” Hans said. “If you yell at the first set of totems, and then when you’re standing in the doorway, you’ll be perfectly safe.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Absolutely. I use it all the time. So listen carefully. The password is Haynu B. Dumas. Now hurry.”

  When Pogo took off at a run again, Galad asked, “You alright?”

  “That asshole is sitting in my desk chair. I just know it.”

  New Quest: Face Vaglell.

  Open Quests (Ordered from Old to New):

  Monitor for independently grown sections of dungeon.

  Complete the next volume (Bronze to Silver) for “The Next Generation: A Teaching Methodology for Training Adventurers.”

  Manage the ongoing establishment of a Hoseki-grade library in Gomi.

  Learn to help your advanced students as much as you help beginners.

  Decide how to manage breeding requests for monsters like mimics and shadow scorpions.

  Relocate the titan bones to the dungeon entrance.

  Offer Diamond quests to Ewan and his party.

  Face Vaglell.