Nurmela needed the rest of the day to calm down after what she saw underground. Meanwhile, the rest of the adventurers stormed to see for themself the marvels of the past. By the end of the day, there was a strange mood in the camp, a combination of melancholy and joy. The most vocal were dwarves. They laugh, sing, and tell old stories about times when the world was young. The elves were more composed, but their faces also showed happiness mixed with sadness. They also share their stories about the first cities. The short-lived races, humans, halflings, or beastkin, don’t have stories to share, despite having their towns back then, too. For them, however, time moves much faster, and only scholars know anything about times a few thousand years old. They, however, know different stories. Stories about explorers and adventurers who went in search of some mythic treasures or forgotten ruins.

  The next day, they all gathered and organized four groups, each consisting of fifteen people, to thoroughly explore this floor. Each group chooses a different house to enter the underground city. It allows them to explore and discover the secrets of this floor faster. On the fifth day, the second expedition arrived. It was time for them to return. They listened attentively to all the stories about the wonders of this floor, but to them, they looked exaggerated. When they saw the underground city for the first time, they understood they weren't exaggerating at all.

  At the same time, Naomi, in her workshop on the fifth floor, was slowly building a toy representing the twelfth floor. She chose a singing bird. It was her only option, actually. She also thought about a fish for a while, but decided to leave it until later when she had no better idea what to build. While the mechanism of the bird was easy to design, she had a problem with finding a proper whistle.

  Her work was interrupted by someone storming into her workshop. The doors even hit a wall with a loud bang. Naomi doesn’t react in any way. Dwarves like a flashy entrance.

  “Grand Forge Master. Something happened?” She asked her guest.

  “Dungeon Mistress. Please tell me they are joking.” He barely contains his emotions.

  “Who? And about what?

  “Adventures from the first expedition. They just returned, and they are saying that the twelfth floor is a lost dwarven city.”

  “Oh. They are just exaggerating things like always.” Naomi tried to downplay the whole situation. “I agree the floor turns beautiful, but was built with all people in mind, not just dwarves.”

  “So you confirmed it then.” He sat heavily on the bench. “Adventurers indeed love to add things to their stories, but this testimony came from the lady Itylara. She even added references to some legends and stories about the first cities. Did you, Dungeon Mistress, know that there are two first cities still standing to this day? Everyone knows about First Forge, but the sun elves' capital, hidden somewhere in the sands of the desert, was built by the gods, too. So if the sun elves are telling us it’s the same, they know what they're saying. Also, what all stories forget to tell is that the first cities, while built and governed by, for example, dwarves, or elves, were built for all.”

  Naomi didn’t answer. After the walk, her patron god and his wife told her countless stories about the first days and the first cities. One of the secrets she learn was that there were three still intact and populated first cities. It was the First Forge, the sun elves' capital, and the halflings' valley. Because the third place doesn’t look like your typical city, no one suspects that. In the valley was just a small market town surrounded by villages. For the halflings, only fields and orchards mattered, as well as a simple, slow life.

  “Your lack of answer, Dungeon Mistress, confirms that. I need to get prepared for the next expedition. While it’s not one of the real first cities, being able to see a glimpse of the past will be worth all the hurdles.”

  “I think so too. And I will be honored by your visit there.” Naomi sincerely smiled and answered.

  “Dungeon Mistress, before I go, I wanted to ask something.”

  Naomi stifened. She had bad feelings about that.

  “Yes?” She asked nonetheless.

  “Did you know anything about the ruins of the first cities?”

  That was exactly the question she didn’t want to hear. She not only has that knowledge, but also has a detailed map of where each of them is. She wanted to give them back their past, but she knew that this knowledge would only bring them war. Throughout time, borders have been changed countless times, and even the mentioned cities have sometimes changed hands. So who should own the artifacts found in the ruins? And there are not just any old artifacts, but treasures from the first days. Revealing the location of even one city could destroy all alliances between kingdoms. In peaceful times, it will be bad, and right now, they face an existential threat from the twisted gods. Naomi thought frantically about what to say. She can tell the truth, that she can’t answer, but that still will be confirmation of her knowledge. It shouldn’t cause any wars between kingdoms, but there was a possibility of her being involved in politics. Bribes, deals with nobles, maybe even they try to blackmail her. Paladins will protect her, she was sure of that, but it still could end badly. No, she needed a distraction. Something big, and shiny, maybe even crazy. Suddenly, she got an idea. She approached Eriser, grabbed his shoulders, looked into his eyes, and said:

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  “Let’s build it.”

  “What?” He asked, not understanding what Naomi was saying.

  “Let’s build a city that will look like something out of the legends. I want a city, you want a city, everyone wants that kind of city, so let’s build it. The last two floors were my attempt to help you decide how it should look. You choose the second option. Now we start building it.”

  “We can’t…” The Grand Forge Master tries to protest. There was no one, not even an envoy of the gods, who could match the god's skills.

  “I know.” Naomi sighted. “I’m stuck in the dungeon, and you have your duties,” She pretended not to understand. “But you know people who could build it for us. We already have people who specialize in general labor work. We need an architect and a few people to organize everything. My twelfth floor will be a blueprint. I will add my money and talk with the Grand Merchant. Maybe he will find a few investors. Yes, it sounds good to me.”

  “I mean, we can’t build a city that will look like the first city.”

  “Ha, ha, ha. Grand Forge master, of course, we can’t. There are no paintings or maps of those cities, just stories. And can you vouch for their accuracy? Of course not. Those stories were retold countless times, and there is no chance that anything was added or omitted during the process. But we can create something that will look nice and friendly to everyone. And who knows, maybe just like on my twelfth floor, we create something that will feel like something from the myths?”

  “Yes, but…”

  “No but. You need to prepare for the expedition. After you see the floor, you try to think who from your acquaintance will be the best for the job. I will, in the meantime, try to start organizing things from my side. No time to waste.” Naomi pushed the flabbergasted dwarven priest from the workshop and closed the doors. She slumped, leaning against the door, and sighed.

  “I’m so screw.”

  The next day, Naomi tries to arrange a meeting with the oasis leaders. It turns out that everyone, except Lady Itylary, is preparing to leave for the twelfth floor. Not only them, but anyone in the oasis wanted to see the legendary city. For Naomi, that was fine. She had a few days to prepare notes for the questions she would be bombarded with once everyone gathered.

  One week later, they returned, and on the next day, Naomi reserved her workshop for the meeting. It was a place where they could talk privately, and from the tavern, they could get something to eat and drink.

  “At the beginning, I want to apologize to Grand Forge Master.” Naomi started. “While I don’t plan to back out of my promise, once again, I did something without thinking. I forgot about the rest of you and your opinion. Especially Lady Itylara because those lands belong to the sun elves.”

  “No surprise here.” Eriser raised the mug with a smile.

  “The sun elves aren’t against permanent settlement around the oasis. We understood that the town is important for dungeon growth. Also, it will be beneficial to my people.” The lady said. “The question is, can we build it? Your city down there is so similar to the first cities from the legends.”

  “Yes, I believe so.” Naomi immediately answered. “I use easily available materials and known building techniques. I just combined them in a new way. And the look is just paint, plants, and decorations. Everyone forgets that and thinks that big and impressive buildings do the trick. I agree that they may look nice from a distance, but up close, they are overwhelming. Some buildings need to be imposing, like castles or city walls. But every day buildings should be only as big as necessary, and impressive by artistic details.”

  “I like that. It creates opportunity for every craftsman to contribute.” The Grand Forge Master spoke.

  “And I like that part of building only as big as necessary, and decorating everything and making it pleasing for the eye.” Lady Iltara agreed.

  “I see that you, Dungeon Mistress, prepared for us some scrolls and drawings of how to build such a city, if I correctly guessed the contents of the gathered documents on the side table?” The minotaur grand priest asked.

  “Yes. For the last days, I have been making notes and some sketches. However, it will be necessary to develop detailed working methods. I know the general principles. Not how to achieve the desired result step by step. There is also an important difference between the world I came from and here, and that is magic. Magic could make some things easier, and others harder to do. Beyond that, there will be many challenges that none of us can predict, so we will have to improvise. I, from my part, promise to provide technical solutions for those problems. Anyway, let me begin. Please ask questions or tell me if you want a break.”

  The presentation lasted three hours. Half of that time was spent on questions, but ultimately, everyone agreed with Naomi. Nothing she presented wasn’t new or unheard of. Used in a new and unexpected way, but not new. In the end, all gathered decided to build it. Lady Itylara and Grand Priestess Pinera liked it because, from the very beginning, the city will be built to be pleasant for the eyes. Iron elements resembling leaves or vines, a lot of light, and even metal structures that will create walls and ceilings made of crisscrossing, riveted beams do not look purely utilitarian. Grand Forge Master naturally wanted to start building right away. He even theatrically lamented why he isn’t a king. But mostly he liked the idea of the underground city, and all the new knowledge he and other artisans would gain while building it. The other leaders took a more neutral stance, but no one opposed it.