The land of Arcania, home to a towering tree that people of all races reverently called the Arcanian Yggdrasil. A tree so enormous, that legends about it kept coming up – the apex of the tree being capable of reaching the heavens, and that in the labyrinth within it, one could find everything one's heart would desire. Incredible riches, the power to slay even the strongest monster, some even claimed that the answers to all the questions about the universe laid somewhere within this place. Though not the only place on the planet to have such a tree, something kept people flocking over to Iorys, the capital of Arcania. Long has the endeavor to scale Yggdrasil and uncover its mysteries been blocked by the council of Iorys, hoping to prevent past tragedies of the deadly labyrinth to repeat themselves, only for them to reopen the labyrinth once more in recent years. In light of a legendary guild named Victory conquering another of the planet's Yggdrasil labyrinths, the golden age of exploration started off once anew in the city of Iorys – and among all the people rushing towards this new challenge, one particular man embarked on a journey of his own, hoping to accomplish just what Victory's leader did elsewhere...
It was the beginning of April when it all started. On the outskirts of Iorys, two guards kept gazing into the distant skies. The evening was approaching, the horizon already dyed in an orange that would tell anyone that the sun was about to go down sooner or later. Nothing of consequence happened at this particular outpost, not even the occasional monster attack or even a crime within the city walls. Everybody living close to it knew each other, and while the occasional explorer from the outside would cross through the city gates in this place, most of them wouldn't be here for long – if they would even pick this gate to enter the city in the first place.
"You ready to call it a day? Want to close the gate for today and switch shifts with somebody else?"
The guard who spoke up, somebody on the small side for somebody his age, clapped his hand for a moment, trying to squash a fly that bothered him for the last few minutes. Just like every other day, nothing at all happened in this place, aside from a bug infestation that seemed to always come without fail whenever this time of the year was approaching.
"Well, I see no reason why not. The sooner I get out of this armor, the better. Egar's not going to like it when we head off early, but it's not like he needs to know. You taking the left side, me the right one?" With a short nod the other man, a slightly pudgy individual, signalized that he would take the offer – without even waiting for the reply, he was already heading up the stairs towards the right half of the city walls, where the switch to close the city gates was located. Minutes passed as he watched the gates slowly close themselves from above – if any of those would ever need to close quickly because of a monster attack from the outside, the city might as well be done for already. But there has never been an instance of that, so in his own opinion, closing the gates was a more or less pointless action that only served as a ritual of sorts.
"Hey, Ed, wait a second! Looks like somebody's coming from that direction!"
The pudgy guard immediately snapped out of his thoughts when his partner called him back to reality. Something about somebody coming over? Before he knew it, his partner shouted once more.
"Come on, stop that gate for a bit, or it's going to be a pain to open again in a few minutes!"
That one sunk in a little better. Flipping the switch once more to stop the closing process for a bit, Ed inspected the plains just outside the city for a moment, searching for any kind of life sign that might be out there (after all it wouldn't have been the first time his partner played a prank on him). And indeed, almost immediately he spotted a man in armor, carrying a huge backpack and frantically waving towards the guards as he rushed onwards.
Scratching his chin, Ed just thought: "Well color me surprised, some people go through the sticks after all when they come to Iorys..."
"So, you're here to explore Yggdrasil, mister...?"
The man, still out of breath from all the running he did those last few minutes, could only pant as he listened to the guards greeting him. His right hand on his knee to support his upper body, the young man held out his left hand in order to signalize them that they should slow down for a moment in order for him to catch his breath. Minutes passed, with things even looking like the man was ready to puke for a moment, before he eventually recomposed himself after all. The sun already went down by that point, covering Iorys in the embrace of the early night.
"I... Y-yeah, I'm here to explore Yggdrasil. G-give me a minute or two, then I'll explain."
Again, he supported his upper body, this time by leaning against a wall, before finally getting up once more to remove his armor.
"I'd like to sign up as an explorer here in Iorys. Coming from... well, the place ain't that important, but let's say it's pretty far away. You guys familiar with where Tharsis and Lagaard are? Somewhere between those two places, that's all that's important for now. Had the feeling Lagaard is going to be conquered by a guild soon, so even if it's a bit far away, I figured I'd try my luck here in Iorys. Wait a sec, I'm going to hand you the necessary papers right now..."
Rummaging through his enormous backpack, he pulled out one item after another. Rations, a pot, a sleeping bag – several items that a guy who traveled as far as him just to get to Iorys would need, considering that the location the man described was pretty much at the other end of the planet. For the first time since he arrived, the guards now had the opportunity to give him a closer inspection. From what they could tell, his arms were covered with light bruises all over, and while they could not tell due to him wearing long pants, they suspected it was much the same with his legs – whatever happened, he must have had a pretty eventful journey to even reach this place, making them wonder whether he'd even last in the labyrinth for long in the first place. Next, his hair caught their attention. Not necessarily due to its disheveled nature, considering that this was probably the doing of the winds outside, but rather its color, one that was barely seen in Iorys even with the huge influx of new adventurers. If they didn't know any better, they'd have compared it to rust of all things, one that they only saw on a famous explorer from the city of Tharsis before.
"Here, that should be everything!". Without further ado, the man held out a stack of letters, letters that they assumed would be the documents that he had to fill out when he entered the country of Arcania. Taking them, the small guard scanned over them for a few minutes in the light of the city lanterns, before giving the man a questioning look.
"That looks less like your documents and more like personal letters to me. I can't read that language, I wouldn't be able to tell whether I'm actually right with that assumption. Mind handing us the actual documents? Or else we'd have to throw you out until you come again with those, and well... I'm pretty certain neither of us wants to do that." The man's eyes went wide for a moment, before he rubbed the back of his head out of embarrassment and took the letters back.
"Ahahaha, better forget you saw those. Those are from my younger sis, it's a bit embarassing to let other people read those. Must have mixed them up, chances are the documents are where I usually keep the letters then."
Putting the stash of letters back into the bag for a moment, a photo slipped out without him noticing. As he kept digging through the bag, Ed picked up the photo, looking at it with curiousity. Depicted were a group of five, three girls and two guys, with the city of Lagaard and its Yggdrasil tree as the backdrop. Going by the hair colors of the people depicted, he assumed that the smallest woman, one even smaller than his partner from the look of things, was the sister of the mysterious man. They looked like a guild of explorers to him. "Ah, so that's what he meant by saying Lagaard's Yggdrasil will be conquered soon. Must be nice, having so much trust in family members.", he simply muttered to himself.
As the man finally handed them the real stash of letters, the guard returned the photo to him.
"Cherish your sister once the two of you return. The labyrinth might look like a shortcut to glory, but don't forget what happens when you die in there and leave those close to you behind."
The smaller guard, Ed's partner, was inspecting the documents as Ed started up a chat with the man. "I think the two of us will be fine. Exploring kind of runs in the blood, I guess. My big bro would have become an explorer himself if things went a little differently, and my older sister's an explorer too. Ah, don't worry, my bro's still alive! Just not quite in the physical condition to challenge the labyrinth, so he has to sit out. I've gotten some pointers from my big sis, so I should manage. Not exactly the coolest thing to do, relying so much on your sister, but heh, I don't mind. The labyrinth isn't exactly treating the cool ones better than the others."
Nodding in approval, Ed looked back to his partner for a moment, who just finished skimming the documents and nodded as well. "Well, alright then, mister Brian Schmidt. Everything checks out, so we see no further reason to keep you here. You might want to give the Explorers Guild a visit first. Just head straight to the south from here, until you reach the center. People call it the 'city of seven hills' sometimes, so even if you get lost, you just need to ask somebody and they can point you to it. The main building of the Explorers Guild can't be missed, you'll be able to recognize it by the crowds of adventurers close to it. I'd recommend greeting the head there first, a guy named Egar. Clad in a black armor, much like you. He's got a fairly powerful presence, so chances are you'll spot him right away. Anything else I'm missing? Let me think for a couple of seconds..."
Noticing the opportunity, Ed interrupted his partner to say something himself. "And if possible, lay in some good words about us. Egar's also in charge of the city guards, so it'd be nice to have him off our case for a- OUCH! Damn it, don't ram your elbow into my ribs like that, partner!" Brian couldn't help but to laugh – he knew that some people always had some other intentions at the back of their mind, but he never quite saw somebody who has been so forward with them. Shaking their hands for a moment, he then put on his armor once more, having replenished enough of his stamina to walk again. He'd find an inn first, maybe visit a bar for the evening, and then visit the Explorers Guild first thing in the morning.
"Have a nice evening, gentlemen from the city guard!". That was the last thing the two guards heard from the strange fellow that night before he took off. Both of them had a feeling that his name sounded familiar – that his hair color and last name reminded them a lot of an explorer called Erika Schmidt, the woman who conquered the Yggdrasil of Tharsis with her guild Victory. But that name was common in the country the man said he was from, so they dismissed it as a coincidence. The evening just started, and they had to find some other guard who'd take over their shift if they wanted to get any sleep for today...
Meanwhile, Brian walked through the streets of Iorys towards the heart of the city, strolling underneath the light of the lanterns. In his right hand, there was a photo that he took from the breast pocket of his shirt before he put on the armor again. On it, two boys and two girls, neither of them any older than 18 years old. A boy being supported by a pair of crutches, presumably the oldest of them. An energetic girl, hugging the youngest girl from behind, right next to him. And at the very left of the picture, there was him – or at the least how he looked like all those years ago. Despite the cheerfulness of the scene, he knew that the older boy in the picture wasn't into it at all. As if not wanting to see it any longer, he flipped the photo, revealing the title and date of the picture.
"November 3021, Schmidt siblings. Friedrich, Erika, Brian and Erin." was all that was written down there. With a sigh, Brian put the picture back, this time into his backpack instead of the breast pocket of his shirt, and looked up to the stars.
"Looks like it's time for me to make my debut in the Yggdrasil labyrinth, huh folks? Wish me luck from where guys are right now."
Musing that to himself, he made his way into an inn with the sign "Jenetta's Inn" - if he wanted a roof over his head tonight, he might as well pick the first one that looked decent. He greeted the innkeeper, a girl with bunny ears that he suspected was of the Therian race he heard about before entering Arcania, and dropped off his belongings at the room they gave to him – apparently the only one still available and the smallest one, but he didn't mind. It's not like he intended to stay for more than one night in the first place.
He didn't even make it to the bar that night as he initially intended to – the moment he dropped down on the bed for a moment, the exhaustion just caught up to him and he drifted off to sleep for the rest of the night.
"It seems of late the people of this city have forgotten what it means to be an adventurer...
They fear danger, seek stability, and settle for mediocrity, yet still call themselves adventurers."
Brian looked at the colossus of a man towering before him. Or at the very least, he suspected that it was a colossus, as the man was covered completely in black armor, from head to toe, making it hard to tell his actual height.
Just as he decided the night before, his first step ended up being a visit to the Explorers Guild. Finding it turned out to be an easy feat, just like the guards told him last evening, and from the look of things, even a visit to this "Egar" guy seemed to be something that was easily arranged. He expected to wait for ages, what with a guy who is in charge of both the guards and connecting the city council with the guilds (and therefore most likely swamped with work). So when he entered Egar's office, he almost seemed a little disappointed that the mountains of paperwork he pictured in his mind were nowhere to be seen – only that mountain of a man, as far as Brian was concerned. The man in question seemed to just finish up a discussion with a member of the guards, and from the little snippet Brian gathered at the end, it must have had to do with some new explorers not living up to the qualities expected of an adventurer. He heard much of the same stories from his sister Erika, so in his thoughts he figured that no matter which Yggdrasil labyrinth, all of them seem to have a couple of such problem cases on their hands. Waiting for a few moments to make sure that the two men did indeed finish up their conversation, Brian then cleared his throat to get their attention. Within moments, the man turned his attention towards him, greeting him with a short nod.
"I've not seen your face before. Are you new? If you have the fortitude with which to brave Yggdrasil, you should form your own guild. To do that, you must rally comrades who share your resolution. If you're up to the challenge, then I welcome you. Ah, but forgive me for not introducing myself earlier. I'm Egar, guildmaster for the Explorers Guild. I hope your journeys bring us together again in the future." Nodding in return as well, Brian placed a set of documents on Egar's desk, making sure that he picked the right ones this time around, and spoke up to introduce himself while Egar gave them a glimpse.
"My name is Brian Schmidt, from the city of Eschwege in the far north, Sir Egar! I have come here in the hopes of signing up with another guild as a Dragoon, intending to scale Yggdrasil and reach the top! Though I do not intend to lead my own guild, rest assured that my passion is for exploring the unknown, and being the first to step onto undiscovered soil!" Saluting for a moment, Egar was quick to calm him down.
"There is no need for the formality, or to even adress me with a title – the citizens of Iorys just call me Egar, and a title such as 'Sir' is meaningless among fellow explorers." Turning his gaze back to the documents, he paused for a few moments, then looked up again to inspect Brian's face – or at the very least that's what Brian assumed, considering the helmet that almost completely covered Egar's face, making it hard to tell just what kind of expression he had at the moment.
"Schmidt, Schmidt. Hm. You DO look like her, at the very least. Am I correct to assume that you are a brother of the 'Gale of Tharsis', Erika Schmidt? It would be a waste to have somebody of your caliber not lead a guild, but I shall not adress the issue. I reckon that you are already standing in her shadow most of the time as is, what with all she did and still does over there for the Outland Count of Tharsis. The guildmaster over there is an old friend of mine, so expect my surprise when he recently wrote a letter to me. One stating that I might expect a visitor like you in the foreseeable future. Please, take a seat for now, there is no need for you to stand during this conversation."
Looking down at the chair in front of him, Brian decided that it was best to take Egar up on the offer. He expected him to be a lot more strict than that, what with all the dangers that the labyrinth has to offer, but was already proven otherwise.
"You are right with your assumption, Si- … I mean, Egar. Well, the part about being the brother of Erika, anyways. We are all kind of obsessed with the labyrinth among us siblings, so I figured I might finally give this a shot too. Folks back at home didn't call us labyrinth nuts for nothing. I... don't necessarily think I'm in her shadow, though. The two of us are completely different people. She has her goals, and well, I have mine, it's as simple as that for the two of us. Ah, but I don't want to ramble, so I'll just say that I'm not the type to lead. I feel more comfortable strengthening the backs of my partners so that they can go forward without trouble, if you catch my drift. Wasn't quite sure whether I should become a Dragoon and head over here, or become a Protector and head over to Aslarga, but the latter one is... a special place to us siblings, so I decided to try my luck over here instead. I guess you kind of have to thank her for your job, huh? Iorys only opened up for exploration again two years ago, after all. Heard that the council thought it over after sis established contact with the Sentinel, Vessel and the remnants of the Empire. Since Iorys kind of has that kind of co-existence thing going for it too and all. A-ah, but don't get me wrong, I'm not here to brag or anything, treat me like just any other explorer!" Embarassed about how he was going on and on with his story, Brian just frantically waved his hands in front of him, hoping that they could forget this little rant as soon as possible.
As if in response, Egar let out a hearty laugh, one that calmed down only a minute later.
"That is quite alright. I assume she's the pride of your family then, and there's nothing wrong with that. Conquering an Yggdrasil labyrinth is a feat only achieved by three guilds within seven centuries, so if one of my children would ever reach the top of one as well, I'd be no less inclined to brag." He paused for a moment, then took off his helmet to take a sip from a cup of tea, revealing a rather rugged face underneath, with an almost piercing stare that quickly lightened up somewhat as he noticed Brian's slight unease.
"But getting back on topic. I will be taking your application as an explorer then, and set you up with guilds that might be interested in taking you in. I will not mention your ties to the Gale of Tharsis, as I assume you want them to pick you based on your own merits, not through your family ties, so it might take a couple of days or even weeks until somebody shows interest. Use that time to get familiar with Iorys, perhaps introduce yourself to a few of the people here. Prince Ramus is one of the people you should meet once you have found a guild, but rest assured that he is a friendly fellow to whom status hardly matters. Once you become an official explorer, you will be able to take up tasks posted in the various bars in town, so it might not hurt to make yourself familiar with a few of them, too. And if there are any other remaining questions at any point in time, do not hesitate to approach the Explorers Guild once more. The same goes for if you somehow find a guild of your own without me needing to be the intermediary, or even if you somehow decide that you want to found your own guild after all. Take your time, and let this be my official welcome to Iorys for you. I trust that this is everything you need for today?"
Of course it was. With another brief nod and a final handshake, Brian excused himself from Egar and headed out into the city once more, his task for the remainder of the day obvious – to get to know his surroundings a little better. Inspecting the various markets, inns and bars that the city had to offer, as well as looking for a place to stay that wasn't an inn. He didn't want to drain his funds too quickly, after all.
The evening of the same day, in the bar called the Twilight Tavern.
"Mirina, two more beers please!" Two women were sitting at the counter of the bar, spending their evening with some drinks to end it on a high note. The owner, a Celestrian woman known as Mirina to all customers, could only sigh for a moment.
"Now look. I know the two of you are bringing in good money for me with all the drinking you do, but you really have to stop her from passing out again, Miriam. I don't think always having to pull her back home must be all that pleasant, right?"
Miriam, the bespectacled girl of the two, simply nodded as the other woman hugged her from behind. "Let her have some fun. She finally came up with a name for the guild she wants to create, so she wanted to have one more night during which she can just let go. I don't mind that. I admit, it's pretty pleasant to be fussed over so much, even if I don't quite see why she picked me of all people..."
As if to chime in, the other woman mumbled a "So cute!" in her drunken stupor, followed up by a short giggle. She only let go of the hug when Mirina brought another two mugs of beer, so that she could drink from the next one.
"Still, I'll never get this. The two of you drink the same things, in the same quantity, but I swear that I have never seen you drunk, Miriam. What kind of liver does that take? Whoever is your doctor must be either screaming in rage about that systematic abuse, or might want to take you as a medical research topic without you knowing about it yet. Maybe even both."
"Mirina, ANOTHER BEER FOR OUR GUEST OF HONOR!" From the back of the tavern, a noisy crowd of patrons interrupted their conversation to place an order as well, making Miriam turn around to see what the fuss was all about (and in turn, making the woman next to her rest her head on Miriam's lap for a bit without actually falling asleep).
"What's up with them? Some kind of special guest today, Mirina?" After returning from the group of customers to bring them their beer, she took a seat right next to Miriam and tilted her head for a moment. "I don't really know. There's this guy from the north who came to the tavern a couple of hours ago. Looked like he wanted to become an explorer and make himself familiar with the places here, but then kind of got drunk and started sharing stories about a guild from Tharsis. Seems to know that guild in person, though I can't tell whether or not all of those stories are authentic. The guests seem to be entertained by him though, so I decided that I could let him stay as long as he doesn't start a brawl or anything. Have to admit, his stories have something to it, kind of makes you hope that they actually are true."
Miriam moved her hand as if to brush the girl's hair, though failed to notice that the girl wasn't even resting in her lap anymore, going by how engrossed she was in her conversation with Mirina.
"So did he mention any names? A famous guild or something, maybe? Not that I'd know them, but well, maybe I do."
"Oh right, you just returned to civilization a couple of months ago, so you might not know them. They're called Victory, a five person guild from Tharsis. Led by a woman that they call the Gale of Tharsis, Erika. The other members were... what were their names again? Isaac, Mark, Cynthia and Finn, if I'm not mistaken. Erika and Isaac are the most famous ones out of those five though, so you probably don't need to memorize the other three. If it weren't for them, chances are that the Yggdrasil labyrinth over here might still be closed to the people, so I guess we should be grateful for them? Though also brought quite some deaths with it too, as people keep underestimating just how dangerous it is. There was a complete guild wiped out just two weeks ago too, nice people that didn't deserve the gruesome death they got. What a big waste of lifes..."
For a moment, the mood got rather depressing, an awkward silence between the two of them and neither knowing what to say next. Until Mirina broke the ice once more.
"In any case, could you do me a favor and tell those patrons over there that the tavern will be closing in about half an hour? I may be a night owl, but at some point I want to catch some sleep as well. I'll be busy with the other patrons' orders, so I fear that I'm occupied at the counter here."
Miriam nodded, standing up from her seat and stretching a little after being in a sitting position for so long. At some point, her friend must have wandered off somewhere, as she was nowhere to be seen, but a quick look told her that she was with the crowd listening to the traveler's stories.
"And then, they took on the Boiling Lizard in the Golden Lair! They teamed up with a big guy from the Sentinel named Kibagami, a fellow quite literally as strong as an ox! That thing was a complete terror to face, torturing Victory with a literal barrage of unimaginably hot steam and burning flames, as hot as is they were straight from a volcano! But they knew just what to do, with Finn bombarding it with his ice runes, Erika and Cynthia striking whenever the lizard focused its attention on defending itself from the icicles, Mark blocking any and all attempts the lizard made at attacking, and Isaac keeping the others healthy with skilled first aid. That monster was larger than even this tavern, but behold, they managed to best it and recover the Titan's crown at the side of their new ally, without so much as even the slightest injuries in the end! Cheers for the heroes of Tharsis, guild Victory!" Deafening cheers resounded from the patrons as Brian raised his mug, followed by clapping from people all around them. It didn't matter that they couldn't verify whether his stories were correct or not. It didn't matter that he was already drunk from all the mugs of beer that he kept downing throughout the evening. The crowd loved his stories and the detail they had to them, enough so that they were able to overlook everything else. Among that crowd, there was a woman looking at Brian with sparkles in her eyes, the same woman that was accompanying Miriam just a few minutes ago.
Miriam was just about to speak up, asking the patrons to finish up what they were doing so that the bar could close up, when the woman made her move by walking in front of Brian.
"Hey, you! The name's Karin, want to join my very own guild, Accord?"
Miriam's eyes almost seemed to pop out when Karin spoke up, but that wasn't the last surprise that the evening had in store for her.
With a hearty laugh of his own, Brian gave Karin's back a slap, before taking her hand and raising it up in the air. "I like your guts, Karin! Sure, let's team up! Iorys will know the Accord guild before too long, hahaha! MIRINA, ANOTHER ROUND OF BEER FOR EVERYONE! Cheers!"
Miriam wanted to utter an "Excuse me?!" in response, but was quickly drowned out from the loud cheers of the other patrons as well. And that's when Karin came up with the real kicker.
"Alright, ladies and gents, let's drink on guild Accord and its newest member, Brian! Me, Brian here and my lovely girlfriend Miriam will conquer the labyrinth and become legends just like that Victory guild my newest buddy has talked about! CHEERS!"
And from somewhere within the crowd, a very loud and surprised "EXCUSE ME?!" could be heard from a woman, her cheeks reddened not from all the alcohol she consumed that night, but out of sheer embarassment.
From what it seems, life in Iorys took quite the unexpected turn for these three on that evening in April 3032. An evening that'd mark the beginning of their conquest of Yggdrasil, the rise of a guild that would indeed later become known throughout Iorys.
... after they got rid of the ensuing hangover, anyways.
Author's notes: ... and there it is, my very first (published) story in the Etrian Odyssey universe, though by no means the first one I have ever written for the setting. Being fond of the series ever since its initial release in the West, I couldn't resist sharing some of my headcanon for it - in particular, this story is the fifth out of currently six guild adventures in that headcanon, chronologically speaking. As such, guilds from previous adventures will be mentioned through the story (the aforementioned guild Victory being the prime example, though there'll be a couple of other guilds mentioned in that regard), and as such, the number of names that might be dropped at times only to rarely appear again in the future might be confusing to some readers. Rest assured that the story will be perfectly understandable (or at least I hope it will be) even without ever having read the previous entries (which is quite logical, considering that they were never published). Whether or not any of the previous entries will ever reach this site? I honestly don't know, considering my schedule full of classes for uni and other less important things, though one might never know. The schedule for this story here might end up being rather erratic, however I hope that this will not affect the enjoyment for the story too negatively for the readers. In any case, thank you for even reading this far, too!
Anyways, little tidbits about the story direction. This time around, it introduces the first three members of what will end up as a seven person guild eventually - the Dragoon Brian, the Pugilist Karin and the Warlock Miriam, all of the Earthlain race. The current intention is to go as far as time and motivation allow it, which could even mean the end of stratum 6 (though expect a long time to pass until that actually becomes feasible to reach). Some creative liberties will be taken with the story in order to allow the story to fit in with the other adventures in the headcanon, though they might only become really apparent in later stratums (for spoilery reasons).