On the fifth day, Naomi gets ready to meet the grand priests and leaders of both parties. She was nervous, almost terrified. She was about to meet and speak with people she had shouted at just a few days ago. She takes a deep breath and sends a message to Lisusa.

  ‘Hello, Lisusa. I will need a free table for me, the grand priests, and the sun elves. After the talks, I want to invite them for a drink. Can you do that for me? Oh, and congratulations on becoming a priestess.’ The tavern keeper reads a message, with a smiling face added at the end.

  “Even Dungeon Mistress is making fun of me.” She murmured, smiling.

  “Ok, guys. I need this table for Dungeon Mistress.” She approached one of the tables.

  “Dungeon Mistress is coming?” Someone asked.

  “Yes. I got a message from her.”

  “She isn’t angry anymore?” Another asked.

  “For me, it looks like she isn’t.”

  “We did it!” The third one shouted.

  “Let’s wait for her and the grand priests for the final verdict, but in my opinion, I agree with you,” Lisusa answered.

  When Naomi appeared on the ground level, everyone was waiting for her. There were even a few adventurers and sun elves to witness the Dungeon Mistress giving her judgment.

  “Good morning.” She said, slightly smiling. For all gathered, it was a good sign.

  “Good morning, Dungeon Mistress.” One by one, all leaders and priests answered respectfully, bowing to her.

  “Let’s start with the most important part.” Naomi takes a deep breath, and the atmosphere turns tense. “I apologize for shouting at you back then.” She bowed. “Despite my raging emotion, I should just call you all and talk instead of shouting.”

  That surprised them a little. They know that the Dungeon Mistress is benevolent, but that exceeded everything they witnessed before. Kings do not bow, and she was their equal or superior.

  “Please raise your head, Dungeon Mistress.” Juthar stepped forward. “It’s we who should apologize to you for making you angry in the first place. We not only disregarded your hospitality but also the teachings of the gods. Both things are unforgivable, and we apologize to you and promise to work hard to prove ourselves worthy to be called the children of the gods.”

  One by one, priests, Lady Itylara, and commanders stepped and apologized to her.

  “Ok. I think there is that part where I should say something smart.” Naomi tries to lighten the mood. “So maybe something like this. Everyone makes a mistake, but until we learn from them, everything should be fine.”

  “Wise words indeed, Dungeon Mistress.” Tarron, Grand Priest of the Sun, said, smiling.

  “Right. The next important thing.” Naomi was slightly red from embarrassment. “Your work over the last days not only fulfilled my wish but exceeded it. I mean it, Commander Alasse and General Serator. I was expecting you to split my walls or your duties in half, or something like that. And maybe later, you will slowly try cooperation. But you entirely skip the first part and go for full cooperation instead.”

  “Dungeon Mistress,” Commander Alasse stepped forward. “Splitting our duties was our initial plan. However, thanks to the intervention of the priestess of the goddess of fun, we understand that we would repeat our previous mistake.”

  “None of us were chosen to be solely your defenders. This duty falls equally on all of us.” Serator added.

  “Thank you,” Naomi answered. “The same goes for adventurers and sun elves training in my halls, good work, Lady Itylara, and the Guild Master. Now people move through my dungeon smoothly. And most importantly, they can count on each other. Convey my sincerest thanks to the elves who rescued those adventurers yesterday. It was a close call.”

  “I will, Dungeon Mistress.” The lady answered.

  “Now that we have all that covered, I invite you for a drink,” Naomi announced.

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  When they entered the tavern, adventurers started murmuring to each other.

  “They are here.”

  “Dungeon Mistress is smiling. That is a good sign.”

  “We did it.”

  “Yes, you all did it.” Naomi laughed. “Keep everything that way, and all will be good.”

  “We would, Dungeon Mistress.” Adventurers answered immediately.

  When all gathered had their cups filled with ale, Naomi raised her tankard first.

  “So, again. I want to apologize for shouting, and I hope for fruitful work together from now on.” She said.

  “I apologize for forgetting how a real host should act.” The lady Itylara said. “You all are our guests, and I should find a way to accommodate you while you are here.”

  The other leaders also raised their mugs and said a few words.

  “From now on, let’s try to resolve our problems with words and have fun. That includes you, too.” Naomi pointed to the adventurers.

  “Yes, Dungeon Mistress!”

  “For the Dungeon Mistress!”

  They shouted immediately. The sun elves were surprised by her friendly interaction with an adventurer, but something more shocking happened right after.

  “So, now is the time for drinking…” Dungeon Mistress started.

  “...and having fun!” For a split second, they saw a goddess of fun also raising her mug.

  “Don’t worry. The Goddess often visits me for fun.” Naomi laughed.

  The whole party lasted until noon. After dinner, all gathered needed to return to their duties. Naomi decided to take them away.

  “Thank you, Dungeon Mistress, for your hospitality and guidance,” Juthar said when they were about to split.

  “All pleasure on my side. And this is a dungeon, a place where all learn new things every day. Only if some of the lessons weren’t so harsh, and didn’t need a screaming.” Naomi said.

  “Some lessons need to be harsh regardless of our feelings, Dungeon Mistress.” The elven Grand Priest answered.

  “I guess.” Naomi sighted. “General Serator, before you leave for your duties, I wanted to ask for a favor.” She changed the topic.

  “What kind of favor, Dungeon Mistress?”

  “I want to speak with a prisoner.”

  All stopped, and their joyful faces again became serious.

  “Dungeon Mistress, this is pointless. The cultists rarely have anything important to say.” The lady Itylara said first.

  “And the minds of those who worship twisted gods are broken.” Priestess Pinera added.

  “I know. I remember what you taught me about this world. I understand that it’s prejudice and habits from my past life talking through me, but still, I want to see this with my own eyes. It’s not that I don’t believe you, or worse, don’t believe the gods. But it doesn’t make sense. I could understand that twisted gods want the destruction of everything. But people, greedy and wanting power, shouldn’t want it. How will they rule when there will be nothing to rule over? I need to see for myself how they think, and maybe propose to them a better solution.”

  “You want to bribe the cultists to stop them from worshiping the twisted gods?” Eriser asked, surprised.

  “Sort of. But to understand that, I need to hear why they went so far as to reject the gods. And our gods don’t want anything special from us, besides being nice to each other. Besides that, you can live however you want. So why are they doing it anyway?”

  No one had an answer to that because it was one of those obvious truths no one questions.

  “I agree,” The general answered. “But not today. Maybe tomorrow. I need to make a lot of preparation before I let him anywhere near you, Dungeon Mistress.”

  “General, this is a bad idea.” The lady Itylara protested.

  “Yes. But, Dungeon Mistress wasn’t risen in our world. She never experienced anything similar to what we lived through. And most likely, she will never see how people struggle every day, fighting against the undead. But she needs to be aware of the dangers. It’s the same situation as with the bandits. It all happened too fast for us to act then, but now we can show Dungeon Mistress what we're protecting her from.”

  “Understood.” The lady Itylara realized her mistake. Because of how Dungeon Mistress openly interacts with everyone, it was easy to forget that she wasn’t from this world. “My warriors and I will assist in any possible way.”

  “I didn’t expect anything else,” Serator answered.

  Preparations took half the next day. Everything was ready late afternoon. Every available paladin and sun elf was called and strategically placed to ensure the Dungeon Mistress's safety. The western gate was surrounded by a tight cordon.

  “We are ready, Dungeon Mistress,” Serator said to Naomi. She was wearing a typical regal dress and was visibly nervous. “We can put everything on hold if you don't feel comfortable talking to him.”

  “You mean if I’m too scared?” Naomi laughed. “And I’m. But I need to try at least.”

  “Understood. There are many guards nearby who are obliged to react immediately if they notice anything suspicious. And I need to warn you, Dungeon Mistress, that they most likely will kill him.”

  “Right. I think I have a way to convince him not to attack me right away. But I don’t know how it will end.” Naomi answered. “Oh, one important thing. I plan to pretend that I want to switch sides to make him talk. It’s not true. Please believe me.”

  “Thank you for your warning, Dungeon Mistress.” The general answered.

  “And don’t promise or agree on anything. Depending on the situation, it could be something binding despite your true intent.” The minotaur grand priest warned her.

  “I will remember.” Naomi nodded.