“You must be a different species,” Jean said, between mouthfuls of trail mix.


    Gio laughed.


    “I don’t know what to tell you. I think my mentor just understands me better than you.” Gio retorted.


    “Dungeon homework is crazy. It’s even crazier that you’re enjoying yourself.” Jean batted back.


    “It’s just… a perfect assignment. He gave me all of the research materials that I would need to piece together without doing any of the actual work for me. It’s kind of like a fun scavenger hunt.” Gio said.


    Chandrika looked over her shoulder while working steadily on some weaving she brought to pass the time. “Any progress on figuring out what it’s supposed to do?” She asked.


    “It summons… something. A big, simple, something.” Gio replied.


    “Big. Simple. Something.” Sapphire repeated, punctuating each word. She was currently hanging over the side of the boat, watching the fallen petals as they slowly floated along the canal.


    “Biiig. Siiiiiimple. Sooooomething.” Hatra echoed, from the front of the boat where she was taking her turn to row the boat.


    “I feel like we’ve been at this all day, and we haven’t even hit a fork in the path yet.” Sapphire moped.


    Jean checked the time on his watch. “It’s been about two hours since we entered the dungeon,” he replied.


    “You know, when I asked to come along… I didn’t picture this. I’m not complaining… It’s just…” Sapphire mumbled.


    “I promise you, it won’t stay this way for too long,” Hatra said.


    “If Gio’s grandfather is to be believed… We have quite an interesting journey ahead of us.” Chandrika agreed.


    “Hey guys… speaking of interesting, I think we’re coming up on the first fork in the path.” Hatra excitedly said.


    Everyone looked up. The air in the dungeon was mostly clear, but after several hundred feet, a faint mist obscured the path ahead. Ahead of the boat, the canal widened, and a wedge of rock sprung up in the middle, bisecting the path into two perfect corridors.


    “Rika?” Gio asked.


    “Left,” Chandrika replied.


    “Left it is,” Hatra affirmed.


    “Now that we’ve hit the first fork, we should be coming up on them more often,” Gio said.


    Gio delved back into his homework.


    Saint Baphelus is my new favorite person… is he a person? Liches are people too, right? He’s my new favorite being.


    The maze of information represented on the compact, waterproof, and smearproof parchment booklet that Gio had been provided was enrapturing. Gio wasn’t provided a scrap of information as to what the spell blueprint that he was handed was supposed to be, but he was given a number of different resources that would hint at the purpose of each segment of the spell.


    Gio examined one of the focal symbols of the spell. It was an uncomplicated symbol. It looked a bit like a three-way venn-diagram, with lines intersecting through the middle of the three circles. On each plane of symmetry, lines swept outward to touch every other part of the spell.


    Whatever this is… whatever it does, it touches nearly every element of the spell. So, why is this the one component that I have zero information about?


    Gio massaged his shoulders which were beginning to cramp after so long in the long boat. Without any sort of backrest to lean back against, he was seated rather uncomfortably with his legs crossed slightly around his bag.


    “There must be something I’m missing,” Gio mumbled.


    Sapphire, who was currently doing some simple and portable assays on a sample of lichen taken from an outcropping that they had passed, turned to Gio.


    “Why don’t you just scribe a copy of the spell and see what it does?” She asked.


    “Because that’s cheating. The instructions clearly say to figure out what the spell does first. After that, I need to figure out what I can use to scribe the spell from stuff in the dungeon.” Gio replied.


    “I mean… creative problem solving, right? You could scribe a test copy first, then reverse engineer a “real” copy with dungeon ingredients after, right?” She insisted.


    “I believe that might defeat the purpose of the exercise,” Gio answered.


    “Boo.” She mocked, drawing out the syllable.


    “What?” Gio chuckled.


    “I mean, we’re deep in a dungeon. There’s no way that he’d know if you cheated, no matter how old and powerful he is.” She mocked.


    Gio looked at the suspiciously well-bound booklet that his mentor had given him.


    “For starters, I would know. Saint Baphelus put in the effort to tailor a lesson plan to my specific needs. The least I can do is engage with it in good faith and try to learn what he wants me to learn from the experience. Secondly, I wouldn’t be so sure of that. The book was spelled to not open until we entered a dungeon. Who knows what kind of-”


    “You don’t need to finish that sentence.” Chandrika interrupted, Also looking at the booklet.


    “What? What is it that you’re not saying?” Sapphire begged.


    “Nothing that concerns me greatly. But I think that he is correct in assuming that we cannot cheat on our assignments.” Chandrika answered.


    “Our assignments? Did your mentor give you one too?” Gio said, with a surprised expression.


    “Sort of. I have been given suggestions… or more like vague instructions to interpret. The first one is that I was heavily encouraged to bring an odd type of thread with me, for reasons that “Will make themselves clear in the event of your success.” The second is that I should try and focus on my magical link to my ancestors during my time in the dungeon. This is especially odd because she and I haven’t spent a great deal of time covering that aspect of my magic in our lessons. I’ve been meditating on it since we entered, and I think that I feel a nearly imperceptible increase in my ability to commune with the spirits of my family… but it’s not something that I frequently invoke, so I wouldn’t be able to tell if it was significant in any way.” Chandrika replied.


    Gio furrowed his eyebrows. “What kind of thread?” He asked.


    “It’s called [Banshee’s Shroud Silk.] It''s just that I don’t have enough to do much with. It has stealth and anti-divinatory properties, but she said to bring only enough to make about one glove… or a small hat. I cannot think of any situation in which I would need to conceal only the tops of my ears.” She giggled.


    “I got an assignment from Professor Cloudspeaker, too,” Jean said.


    “Oh? Please, do tell.” Chandrika inquired.


    “When we get into combat, try picking up an unsuspecting enemy and dropping them from high up,” Jean said.


    “Rather… straightforward,” Hatra said.


    “That’s her in a nutshell. Professor Cloudspeaker isn’t the type to be cryptic… She''d rather just tell me to hit something. Or hit me herself.” Jean said, smiling.


    “No assignment for me!” cheered Sapphire.


    “Same. I’m hoping to get some class experience from this, though.” Hatra echoed.


    Gio smiled at his friends. Although his assignment was the most involved, he wouldn’t trade it. As he sank deeper and deeper into the flow of study, he could scarcely be pried away from it.


    _____


    It was Gio’s turn to steer the boat. He was electing to use [Flow] to propel them forward, albeit at a slower rate to ensure that he could maintain the spell for a longer time.


    “The middle passage this time,” Chandrika said, not looking up from the intricate shawl she was embroidering.


    As if it were conjured, out of the delicate mist, a fork of three different passages appeared. Gio drove the boat into the middle path.


    The longboat cut through the smoothly flowing water, compelled forward by Gio’s spell. The next few hours were marked by quiet companionship among the group. Everyone in the boat was either having relaxed discussions or working on busywork as they floated along.


    “Guys… I have an issue that I didn’t plan for.” Sapphire said, prompting the attention of the group.


    “What’s wrong?” Chandrika asked.


    “I have to pee,” Sapphire answered.


    A round of giggles erupted, but then each of them realized the potential seriousness of the situation. In the middle of an endless stretch of water and steep walls, there wasn’t anywhere to set up camp, or even to stretch their legs.


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    Gio turned around from his station at the front of the boat.


    “Well… I can speed us up. There should be some dry land before we start seeing dungeon inhabitants, and by now we have to be close.” Gio answered.


    “Everyone cool with that?” Jean asked.


    After a round of nods, Gio issued a warning. “Hang onto something, and make sure to keep ahold of your belongings. I’m gonna push the spell a little.”


    Gio drew deep upon his mana reserves, pushing a lot of power into the core of his grandfather’s spell. A bright blue glow emanated from the hand he had holding onto his spellbook, flowing out and wrapping itself around Gio. The water around the boat began to creep up the sides, and droplets vibrated, rising into the air. The boat shot off, cutting down into the water, as the waters of the canal parted for them and reformed, pushing the boat onward at a breakneck speed.


    Hatra and Jean were screaming in joy, while Sapphire and Chandrika looked nearly seasick. After a short few moments, Gio spotted something.


    “There!” He yelled raggedly.


    Gio willed the spell to reduce its intensity, panting from the physical and magical exertion of using so much of his mana.


    The residual waves of the spell rocked the boat and rippled outward, splashing up on the shore of a shelf-like section of the wall that had been carved away. Gio moved the boat closer and began the process of trying to anchor the boat to a small rock.


    Sapphire bolted off into a patch of tall grass instantly.


    “Wait up! We shouldn’t be going anywhere alone!” Chandrika yelled, running after her.


    Gio, Hatra, and Jean began putting out a few niceties for their temporary rest. They had collapsable chairs, clean drinking water, and a small fire to cook on. Before they had finished setting up, Sapphire and Chandrika had returned from the bushes. Chandrika finished the decor by erecting a nearly transparent and impossibly large cloth mesh above them, apparently something to keep away bugs.


    Jean excitedly pulled out a cauldron from his seemingly endless spatial pack and started withdrawing ingredients.


    “Be careful, now. You’re dangerously close to becoming one of Marie’s apprentices with this level of enthusiasm for cooking that you’re showing.” Sapphire ribbed.


    “This is different. This is survival cooking. I don’t need it to be fancy. Just edible enough to make a little bit of comfort in a foreign environment… and my dad gave me his treasured field stew recipe. I’m excited to try it out, as it’s something of a rite of passage for Castallanes… I’m hoping that by the time I enlist into the Ring Guard, I’ll be the one everyone demands food from, just like my dad.” Jean said.


    Gio sunk back into his admittedly very cushy chair, courtesy of Chandrika.


    “I mean… this is basically glamping,” Gio said.


    “Glamping?” Chandrika asked.


    “Glamorous camping. Glam-Ping.” Gio replied.


    “Ah. I think I’ll be taking that term back to my fiancee. He’s promised that when we are wed, he’ll be whisking me off to the jungles of Hazra so that we may finally be alone together. I plan on bringing enough supplies to embellish every single tree, should I so wish.” Chandrika smiled.


    “How romantic! His name is Jai, right?” Sapphire asked.


    “Yes! Jai Matra. He’s currently training under my father to become the next sultan of his home territory, Hazra.” Chandrika beamed.


    “He sounds like a sweet guy. My ex was not the romantic type… I’m jealous.” Hatra said.


    “Ugh, same. I got tired of always being the one to set up dates. I just hate feeling like the only one who cares about my relationship, you know?” Sapphire said.


    “I so do,” Hatra said, scooting closer to Sapphire.


    “How about you two?” Chandrika asked, pointing in the direction of Jean and Gio.


    “Wha-?” Gio said, looking up from his coursework.


    “You two never talk about dating anybody, like… ever.” Sapphire agreed.


    Hatra giggled.


    “W-well… I’ve been on a few dates, but never had a real relationship. It’s not that I’m not interested, it’s more that I have absolutely no time for dating at this point in my life.” Gio answered, blushing slightly.


    “You should have seen Gio when the captain of the Youth Slagball team tried hitting on him. You could practically see the gears turning in his head.” Hatra whispered conspiratorially.


    “Hatra! Come on, that guy was like… way too old for me! I was intimidated!” Gio said.


    “He was totally not. He was maybe a year and a half older than me, so probably like two years older than you.” She replied, waving him off.


    “Still. Plus he just mostly wanted me on the team, and I don’t do sports.” Gio said.


    Gio nervously looked around.


    “Anyways, how about you, Jean?” Gio said, deflecting the attention.


    “Nothing too serious. My mom made me take a few girls to events growing up, but it was only ever for polite company. She’d have murdered me if she caught me dating anyone that she didn’t approve of, so I mostly just didn’t even think about it. I… uh… did have a bit of a thing with one guy for a while… behind her back. We stopped seeing each other because we were afraid to get caught by… either of our families.” Jean said, blushing.


    “WHO?!” Sapphire screamed.


    “Sorry, I’ve got to uhh… the stew! I’ve got to work on the stew. Let me focus.” Jean said.


    “Dude, you can’t do that. You started saying it, you gotta finish.” Hatra said mischievously.


    Jean looked into the cauldron as if it had a dramatic escape plan for him. He sighed. “Fine, but you CANNOT speak of this. This is top secret.” Jean said, swearing the group to secrecy.


    Even Gio, who was usually uninterested in this sort of thing was listening with bated breath.


    “Well… I spent a lot of time with my best friend’s family growing up.” He said.


    “Jean… don’t tell me…” Chandrika said, with equal parts scandal and glee.


    “Donovan doesn’t know. He cannot know.” Jean uttered.


    “What am I missing?” Gio asked. Hatra looked at him, equally confused.


    “The only other prince around our age is Arthur,” Chandrika said, aghast.


    “This was before the whole thing with Arnault and Nathan. As far as either of us knew, he was third in line.” Jean quietly confessed.


    “What are you guys talking about? Prince? Who?” Hatra begged.


    Gio finally pieced together what they were saying.


    “You were involved with the crown prince?!” Gio shouted.


    Jean shushed him as if the dungeon would tattle.


    “What?!” Hatra exclaimed. “I need a detailed explanation! What do you mean you dated the crown prince?!” She yelled.


    “Dated is a strong word. We couldn’t even go on any real dates without fear of getting caught. We mostly had secret picnics in the Palace hunting grounds… it was nice. Donovan was away from home, and this was before Nathan died, so he and Arnault were still in school at CRA. The only other royals who were even at the palace were their sisters, but Merlia hates me and the twins Dasha and Mara were really young.” Jean said, still stirring the stew.


    “What is he like?” Sapphire asked.


    “Arty is… kind. He never took to magic or fighting like the rest of us. Even Merlia was better at mana shaping than him, and she never tried at anything. But… he had a way of listening to people that I always admired. Arty makes you feel like he understands you. He was planning on going to school for music… before everything. I haven’t seen him for a long time.” Jean explained wistfully.


    “I never spent much time with him, personally. I preferred him to Donovan, at the very least.” Chandrika said.


    “Don can be a lot. He’s hotheaded, stubborn, and a bit of a sword-for-brains… but I can promise you that he would never purposefully insult you. That man is like a brother to me.” Jean said, defending his best friend.


    “Like a brother to you, huh? But then his brother…” Sapphire interjected.


    “SAPPHIRE!” Jean shouted.


    Hatra nearly fell off her chair, and the conversation quickly unraveled into fits of laughter and jokes, mostly at Jean’s expense.