Chapter 478: Who Owns a Dungeon?

The discovery of a dungeon beneath Greyfen had presented Sage Alistair with an opportunity to make an extraordinary amount of gold.

Unfortunately, as he was beginning to discover, there was something considerably more troublesome than fighting a 5th Order Commander Beast, and that was dealing with the laws of the kingdom.

Inside his private office at the Adventurer Guild Headquarters, Sage sat behind his desk with an expression of profound suffering.

Several thick books lay open before him, their pages filled with complicated legal provisions, territorial decrees, and ancient agreements between the Crown and the kingdom’s noble Houses.

Another stack of documents rested beside his elbow, while a half-empty cup of tea had long since gone cold.

He had spent the better part of the morning studying the kingdom’s laws concerning dungeons, and the more he read, the more he began to suspect that whoever had written them possessed a deep and personal hatred for ordinary people.

"Unbelievable," Sage muttered, turning another page with visible disgust. "Three hundred pages explaining who has the right to own a hole in the ground. Truly, the greatest achievement of human civilization."

Seated opposite him, Marcelline Dacre maintained her usual composed expression, although the faint movement at the corner of her lips suggested she was struggling not to laugh.

As the administrator responsible for overseeing the Headquarters’ affairs, she had been the one to arrange the collection of these documents from the capital’s legal archives.

Unfortunately, Sage had quickly discovered that the kingdom possessed an astonishing number of laws concerning land ownership, territorial privileges, and the rights of noble families.

"Guildmaster Sage, technically speaking, those three hundred pages concern territorial jurisdiction, mineral rights, hereditary privileges, and the authority to regulate dangerous magical phenomena," Marcelline explained patiently, placing another document before him. "Dungeon ownership is only one portion of the matter."

Sage slowly raised his head and stared at her. "Marcelline, I appreciate your dedication to accuracy, but somehow you’ve managed to make the situation sound even worse."

Before she could respond, a knock sounded against the door. At Sage’s invitation, Lucan entered the office carrying a leather-bound volume beneath one arm.

His complexion had improved considerably since their return from Greyfen, although he still moved with a certain stiffness that betrayed his lingering injuries.

Behind him followed Irene, whose expression suggested she had already anticipated the financial complications awaiting them.

"Guildmaster, Marcelline mentioned that you were investigating territorial laws," Lucan said as he approached the desk. "I thought this might be useful. It’s a collection of royal decrees concerning dungeon rights and noble territories, including several disputes settled during the previous reign."

Sage looked at the thick volume in Lucan’s hand, then at the mountain of books already occupying his desk. "Lucan, I invited you here because I believed your knowledge of noble politics would save me from reading more of these cursed things. Why have you brought another one?"

Lucan smiled faintly as he placed the volume on the table. "Because, Guildmaster, understanding noble politics without understanding the laws they manipulate is rather difficult."

"Wonderful," Sage replied, leaning back in his chair. "Apparently, the nobles have discovered a way to make theft sound respectable simply by writing it down."

Irene pulled out a chair and seated herself beside Marcelline. "Regardless of what you think of the nobility, Guildmaster, we need to establish whether the Guild can legally control the dungeon once it manifests. I would prefer not to invest thousands of gold preparing an expedition site only to discover that some nobleman has the authority to confiscate everything."

"Which is precisely why we’re having this delightful discussion," Sage answered, gesturing toward the documents. "Now, Lucan, explain something to me. Who actually owns a dungeon in this kingdom? The Crown? The noble who owns the land? The person who discovers it? Or whoever has enough soldiers to prevent everyone else from entering?"

Lucan considered the question for a moment before answering. "Officially, the Crown possesses ultimate authority over all territory within the kingdom. However, that authority is exercised through a complicated system of hereditary land grants, noble privileges, and royal charters. In practice, ownership and control aren’t always the same thing. A noble House might possess the land surrounding a dungeon, while another organization holds the right to manage its entrance. In other cases, the Crown may reserve direct authority over particularly valuable locations."

Sage frowned thoughtfully. "So the person who owns the land doesn’t necessarily own the dungeon?"

"Not necessarily," Lucan confirmed, opening the volume to a marked page. "However, the landholder may possess the right to restrict access to the surrounding territory. That means even if another organization controls the dungeon entrance, reaching it could become impossible without the landholder’s permission."

Sage immediately understood the problem. His System possessed the ability to claim dungeons, sealing their entrances behind enormous stone pillars and rune formations that prevented unauthorized entry.

Anyone wishing to enter a Guild-controlled dungeon required a corresponding Dungeon Pass, an arrangement that had already proven effective back in Evergreen.

However, the System’s authority over a dungeon entrance was not the same as possessing legal ownership of the surrounding land.

If the dungeon manifested within a noble family’s private territory, Sage might be able to seal its entrance, but that noble could simply station soldiers around the area, block the roads, or demand payment from anyone attempting to approach.

In other words, Sage could own the door while someone else owned the road leading to it.

And that was a rather unpleasant arrangement.

"How troublesome," Sage muttered, rubbing his chin. "Imagine owning a magnificent restaurant, only to discover that your neighbor owns the street outside and charges customers ten gold just to reach your entrance. I’d have to admire the audacity before strangling him."

Marcelline shook her head helplessly. "Guildmaster, perhaps we should focus on finding a lawful solution before considering violence."

"Naturally, Marcelline. Violence is expensive, and lawyers are only slightly cheaper."

Lucan chuckled before continuing his explanation. "There’s another complication. Dungeons have traditionally been controlled by powerful noble Houses, military organizations, and influential factions. Although the law doesn’t explicitly state that only nobles can possess dungeon rights, commoners rarely have the resources necessary to defend such claims. Consequently, most dungeon discoveries eventually fall under the authority of whoever possesses the greatest political or military influence."

Irene’s expression darkened. "Meaning that even if the Guild discovers a dungeon first, a powerful noble could attempt to claim it through political pressure."

"Exactly," Lucan replied. "And Greyfen’s proximity to the Royal Capital makes the situation considerably more delicate. The noble Houses here possess far greater influence than those in the outer regions. Some maintain private armies, while others have relatives serving directly within the royal administration. Challenging their territorial privileges without sufficient preparation would be extremely dangerous."