-0-
The Dungeon, Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
Five Days Post-Delve
-0-0-0-0-0-
I'd thought shoving mana into random fish and letting them mutate on their own would give me inspiration for a new monster. Or create a new monster wholesale, in the best case.
And I was right.~
I'd crammed over a hundred fish of various species packed into my second floor, each fully saturated with mana. There, they struggled for survival. They either used their mana to their advantage or died to feed another. Quite a few mutated some exciting features I couldn't wait to explore, but there were three I earmarked for immediate elevation to monsterhood.
Firstly, the humble Angelfish. A beautiful yet territorial and aggressive fish, Its leading edges and trailing fins had become quite sharp. The scales on its leading edge were ablative, metallic, and shaped roughly like an arrowhead. Its ability to accelerate quickly in a straight line was also considerably boosted. The Arrowfish would be a potent addition to my defense; I was sure of it.
All it needed was a breeding population, which I happily provided by modifying other fish into the same shape. It was only a little work to rid the fish of their loner nature. Instead, they would swim in schools of five to six at minimum. Larger schools could reach up to twenty members, which complemented their smaller size, around 7-8 inches in length.
Just imagine a swarm of arrowheads moving at speed straight at you. They could hamstring people, cutting tendons and disabling them for their larger allies.
Said allies were long, banded fish that had gained mass, more powerful muscles, and a mouth filled with big sharp teeth. Its original black, grey, and red coloring gained a bit of a sinister tone, the red spots seeming more like bloodstains from its messy feeding method. Ripping its prey to shreds, if it wasn't obvious. It wasn't a very social fish; I saw no need to change that. When introduced to more of their own kind, they'd prefer to spread and claim individual territories than school together.
It also grew from half a foot to two feet long, big enough to seriously threaten invaders and rip a good chunk of flesh off with every bite. In the end, it was probably for the best they weren't schooling creatures; they were vicious enough on their own. Too many would overwhelm any who even tried to pass them.
Thus, the Vicious Bloodfish was born.
With two good monsters, I decided I'd only need one more to round out the selection. I had a smaller harassing monster and a medium-sized damage dealer, so the final fish needed to be an area-denial specialist.
Five days into my experiment, I found the perfect one.
An otherwise normal blue-toned fish had gained incredibly sharp scales and could shed them all when threatened. In the dark water, what looked like a blue, sparkly cloud was instead thousands of tiny scales, each sharp enough to cut and draw blood. I mutated the fish further to have multiple layers of scales ready to emerge, like a shark's teeth. I also made sure the monsters were about a foot long, so they had enough scales to saturate a large enough area to matter. When multiple fish shed their scales together... they could fill an entire flooded corridor.
Thus, the Sharp-Scaled Bluefish was named.
Yeah, I know. Not exactly imaginative. I don't know the actual names of these animals, and I wasn't an ocean biologist before I ended up here. Sue me.
Names aside, the Bluefish, Arrowfish, and Bloodfish all gained their own flooded spawning chambers, hopefully keeping their populations high. I also made sure all the 'failed' monsters were eliminated.
Some of them turned out... poorly. For example, the one that mutated lungs. Then drowned.
Yeah, that wasn't pretty.
But either way, it was time to move on to my Boss Monster.
This time, the boss arena was submerged entirely, with no air pockets. Unlike Sebastian, this boss wouldn't be fighting on their lonesome. I ensured there were plenty of access points for fish monster reinforcements to flood in when required. The cuboid chamber was well decorated and carved with meaningless runes and symbols to give it ambiance.
While the boss monster would be supported, it still had to stand on its own merits. The only individually strong monster I had on this floor was the Bloodfish, so It was an easy choice.
I took a female Bloodfish, which were slightly larger and more territorial, and enlarged it another three feet, to a total of five. I added significant girth and weight to the beefy fish, so it was in proportion. I empowered its muscles further to keep its speed despite its new size, and I added sharp edges to its fins and tail, similar to the Arrowfish. I also increased its brain size in comparison to the body. I only stopped when it felt about equal in intelligence to Sebastian. With not a little gravitas, I pushed a thought through our connection.
You are the Bloodfish Queen, Sanguina.
In response, I felt an acquiescence and the sense of... fealty? Is that what this is?
Finally, there was the exit. The first thing to do was provide a route to my crystal for the mana stream. I added a long, thin grate of thick stone along the top edge of the room, with holes large enough to put an arm through but not much else. Not that the hand on that arm could reach the other side of the wall. The actual door was a ten-foot diameter circular hole blocked by a square of stone set into the wall. Finally, I saturated the door with mana and impressed the intent that it was to move aside when Sanguina died and linked them with a thin ribbon of mana. I added the same enchantment to Sebastian's exit, though that one would remove the stone bar that prevented the doors from opening.
Now I just needed a bit of... decoration.
Those corpses littering my entryway will do nicely. Actually, you know what? I already have the 'temple reclaimed by nature' vibe with all the carvings, so why not take it all the way?
I bored short holes in the walls that looked like dart traps but did nothing. I had exposed spike traps. I couldn't make fake spear traps without a way to create wood, which was disappointing.
Why make them fake?
To hide the real traps, of course.
I brought in various corals and other plant-like animals from the reef, including urchins and sea stars. I littered them across the floor in a random distribution. A quick mana infusion made them sharper and brittle, hopefully enough to pierce an unarmored foot. Some slow-acting poison wouldn't go amiss, either.
Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!
Then, for the final touch, I had the corpses stripped to their bones. One, I kept in a single piece and placed in the corner of the Queen's arena. The other, I'd spread around enough that any invaders would find random bones among the corals and in dead ends. As for their weapons, I piled them into a stone chest; at a dead end you needed to pass a flooded tunnel to find.
And so, my Flooded Labyrinth was complete. For now, at least. The Starlit Caverns above seemed a bit bare in comparison, so I upped the number of stone arms in the place, leaving some lying broken on the ground and others grasping from the walls. I also made stone hands in the walls of the twisting passages, just to freak people out when they brushed up against them in passing.
With some potential powerhouses coming in to potentially murder me, I needed as many defenses as I could create.
Let's up the numbers of my defenders, shall we?
-0-0-0-0-0-
The Guildship Delver, Near the Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
Felin walked across the deck of the small guild-owned ship. It was only a small ship. One just big enough to carry their evaluation team and quick enough to get to the newly discovered island within two days.
The tanned man reached over his shoulder, ensuring his longsword remained firmly in its sheath. This new armor still wasn't comfortable to him, but that'd get better with time. Satisfied, he grunted and blew a black strand of hair out of his eyes. He'd need to get that cut when they got back. A glance towards the bow revealed where his oldest friend stood, staring at the horizon. Without hesitation, he stomped over, his heavy footfalls making the wood deck creak slightly.
"We're close," Layla stated, her gaze unwavering as he approached. "Its absorption rate isn't as powerful as I've seen from other Lost dungeons. If it is a Lost Dungeon it was in hibernation, and those merchants woke it up." Felin grunted again, looking into the sky. He couldn't see the winds of mana like Layla could, but he trusted her judgment. He could see the island on the horizon, slowly growing as they approached.
"I don't like it." He said after a few minutes of silence. His deep and gravelly voice perfectly matched his rough and scarred facial features.
"I know you don't," Layla replied. "But we're the highest-ranked party they have on hand right now. They've given us this mission, and we will carry it out. The winds confirm a dungeon, at least. Nothing else could cause such a widespread change in their patterns." She turned to face him, her pale skin only highlighted by the black silk blindfold covering what he knew were sightless eyes. Black as the void, yet sparkling with starlight.
"Tell Teak and Herna to begin prep. We'll be there in an hour." Felin grunted and promptly turned around, approaching the staircase leading below deck.
Finding the two other party members was easy since they weren't hiding. Teak was a brown-haired, pale-skinned man from the northern parts of the Phenoc Kingdom. His dark eyes almost glinted in the candlelight. He was a rogue, clad in monster-leather armor with two intricately carved and lovingly cared-for daggers sheathed at his hips. On the table was his crossbow, which he bent over and maintained with his gloved hands. His thin fingers moved quickly and deliberately, faster than an average human could, even with decades of training and conditioning. The crossbow was pointed at him in a flash, and a bolt loosed. Felin didn't move. The bolt hit the wooden doorframe beside him with a thunk, less than a foot from his head.
He didn't change his expression at all, not a single flinch. Teak sighed, looking aggravated.
"Damn. I'll catch you by surprise one day," He promised. Felin grunted, pulled out the bolt, and casually tossed it back at the man.
"You know, Teak, one day Felin isn't going to take your little tests with such good humor." Herna joked. The robed woman was swinging back and forth in a hammock. She was also a Phenocian, though from further south. There, the wooded lands bled into dry, sandy plains. Her tanned skin was darker than his own, though nowhere near as dark as someone from Hillia could get. Her orange irises glowed in the light, flickering with the candle's flame.
"We almost there?" She prompted, eyebrow raised. Felin nodded, then turned and left. The others weren't offended by his curtness; it was just his nature.
They were all on the deck as they pulled up alongside a particular beach, flanked by a cave glowing from within with an ethereal teal light.
-0-0-0-0-0-
The Dungeon, Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
More humans were here! Apart from the sailors, who looked similar to the last ones, four stood out as different.
First, an unnaturally pale woman. Likely an albino by the pure white hair. She wore a black blindfold across the upper half of her face, though I noticed she could track the mana river pouring into my entrance. Also, I didn't think they'd send a defenseless, blind person into a dangerous cave filled with monsters. So... I'd have to take this as tentative confirmation that some humans could see mana. I decided to call her... Neo.
The two men wore leathers, though the one with the longsword on his back had more metal studding his set than the one with daggers and a crossbow.
I dubbed them Knight and Rogue, respectively.
Finally, there was the tan woman with glowing orange eyes! I couldn't be sure, but I guessed she was a pyromancer. I really wanted to see her perform magic. Potentially, I could replicate it for some traps or give it to my monsters. She probably wouldn't be thrilled that most of my dungeon was either filled with water or damp enough that fire wouldn't do much. I also wondered if my crabs were flammable. Hopefully, they weren't. But if they were... I'd need to figure out how to fix that.
Either way, they'd disembarked from the ship a short time later, taken a rowboat to the shore, and walked up to my entrance.
Since they were inside the cave, I could look at them with my own senses rather than Gull's half-decent eyesight. From what I could see, the two men had a significant amount of mana circulating around their bodies. Most of Knight's mana seemed focused on empowering his muscle and bone, with minimal but necessary attention to his nerves. Rogue had the opposite, heavily empowered nerves, with enough muscle and bone improvements to keep up with the increased reflexes and not tear himself apart with every movement.
Pyro's mana wasn't nearly as spread out, though there was some. Most of her mana was gathered in a core. It was nestled next to her heart, like my monsters. Actually, Rogue and Knight had cores too! Where Pyro's seemed specialized to store mana for later use, Rogue and Knight's worked as the heart of their mana circuits.
Neo's mana was focused in three places. About two-thirds of her mana was sitting in her core, while the other third was split between her eyes. I couldn't guess what it was doing beyond letting her see mana. Maybe it upped her perception so much that she needed to wear a blindfold so she didn't go mad? It could grant her telescopic vision or the ability to see colors that didn't exist. I just didn't know.
And it drove me a little mad trying to figure it out.
The little party of four strode confidently into the room. Neo's face was pointed right at the Manastar in the ceiling, and after a few seconds of observation, she spoke for the first time. Her voice was even and smooth. It didn't waver at all.
"That ball of mana up there is terrifying. There is so much mana in it that it should explode and evaporate us all, but it hasn't. Something is preventing that explosion, and I have no idea what." She looked down and glanced around the room. "Second rock to the right of the passage on the far side. The third rock in the stack halfway around the cavern on the left. They're monsters." Within seconds of Neo finishing, Rogue brought up his crossbow, and two bolts were shot with incredible speed. The bolts flew across the room, and both slammed directly into the Assassin Crabs hidden among the rocks.
Well, that was proof enough for me. Neo had mana-sight, which let her identify monsters by their mana. The rocks around them didn't have much mana, only enough to claim them as mine, making them stick out like sore thumbs. Both crabs died within seconds of the shots penetrating their shell. Some kind of armor-piercing bolts? They must be laced with poison too. I couldn't imagine the crabs would have died so quickly otherwise. The party moved to investigate the first crab, where Rogue used one of his daggers to hack off a claw and leg, then dug around inside the cracked shell to find its core. "Fairly large core for such a small monster," He said something, then they moved to the second corpse.
I didn't think I could sneak up on these guys. Or, at least, not while Neo was in play.
Sorry, but you're the primary target now.
0-0-
The "Lost" Dungeon, Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
Felin took point as the party entered the triangular passage, though it was a little tight for someone his size. He held a freshly-lit torch in his left hand, illuminating the tunnel before him. Light from the flickering flames revealed the roughly-hewn walls of the tunnel, the black sand beneath their feet, and the next dozen yards of the tunnel before it curved off.
He grunted and pushed forwards, the rest of the group following behind. Layla was second, Herna in third, with Teak watching behind them in fourth. After a minute of quiet walking, the walls of the passage narrowed, leaving an even smaller gap. With a frown, Felin pushed through. Just as he managed to navigate the almost too-tight tunnel, his armor got caught on an outcropping of rock he hadn't noticed. Frowning, he turned his head to get a better look at it.
It was a hand. A hand made of stone. With uncommon delicacy, Felin removed the caught strap and grunted at Layla. She looked it over with a curious hum.
"Not human, as far as I can tell. Never was human. The proportions are wrong, and as far as I can See, it's normal rock." He nodded and moved on. It took another five minutes of twists and turns until the tunnel ahead became illuminated by a familiar teal light.
As they emerged from the darkened tunnel, they first noticed the light in the cavern roof. Identical to the one in the first cavern, as far as Felin could tell. Second, this cavern wasn't as barren as the previous one. It was filled with rock formations; huge stalactites and stalagmites merged into columns and walls that divided the area.
As Layla followed him in, Felin saw the frown lines on her forehead.
"I don't know how much help I'll be here. The dungeon has saturated all the rock in this area with mana, enough that I won't be able to tell which is a monster. No dungeon would just... waste this much mana. It's done this as a direct counter to my abilities." She concluded, to frowns and agitated mutters from Felin and their two other party members. Nonetheless, they moved on.
They were led on a back-and-forth pattern, twisting past more stone arms and towering stone columns. The light given off by the enormous manalight was particularly unnerving, given the sharp and surprisingly deep shadows it cast across their path. Teak was almost overwhelmed, eyes jumping around as he attempted to watch every shadow simultaneously.
They were so busy watching the rocks and shadows that when the trap came, they didn't notice until they were in its jaws.
With an earth-shaking rumble that caused no small amount of stumbling, eight Monsters emerged from beneath the sand. A shield-and-sword variant stood in the path before them, with three boxer types on either side of the group, equidistant to cover both sides and behind them.
And the party was trapped in the middle.
Felin wasted no time. Almost the second after the crabs emerged, he was on them. His longsword sliced down onto the unfortunate crab in his way. With reflexes almost as fast, the monster raised its two bulging claws and intercepted the sword, catching it on spurs of hardened shell. The man disengaged just in time to dodge a swing from a second crab. Swinging the blade back around, he sliced through the unprotected joint of the overextended pincer, severing it completely.
Behind him, he heard the 'twang' of Teak's crossbow, followed by a wave of heat and the slightly unhinged laughter of their party's pyromaniac.
The one-pincered crab retreated behind its fellows. The remaining two boxer-types spread out, boxing him in and separating him from the rest of the party. The final crab, the sword-and-shield variant, stepped forwards to face him, front and center. There was a moment of stillness between them. Felim almost got the sense that this was a duel. In the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of orange. He deflected the boxer's wild jab with a heavy swing, then twisted to deflect the second boxer's opportunistic attack.
Right. They're only monsters, he thought. They've no honor at all. The next minute was a blur of steel and shell, pincer and sword clashing and pushing. Completely focused on the dangerous dance, he didn't notice when Layla came under attack.
-0-0-0-0-0-
The Dungeon, Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
Okay, let's see. Knight's occupied by those three to the left, Pyro and Rogue occupied by the group of Crabs in the back right... This was my opportunity.
I watched as no less than five Assassin Crabs crept slowly up and over the stone barriers keeping the party hemmed in. Neo hadn't noticed them, likely thinking the crabs that had already ambushed them were the entirety of the trap. She'd been keeping a blind eye on both fights, looking ready to step in if the others faltered. She'd seemed worried for a second when another squad came forward to reinforce the beleaguered crabs, attacking the Rogue and Pyro, but ultimately left them to it.
Pyro was a strange one, that's to be sure. The first sign that she was casting magic was her mana suddenly bursting from the pores of her palms in directed streams, somehow being converted into heat and light an inch from her vulnerable skin. I watched closely, imagining that I was squinting down at her. I noticed the many rings she was wearing. Six were dim, the mana within laying dormant. One on each hand, however, burned bright. She also seemed to be directing the streams of fire with the finger the rings were worn on.
Hypothesis: Humans need tools to convert their normal mana into elemental mana.
Then the woman breathed fire directly from her mouth when a Brawler got too close. I discarded my first theory.
New Hypothesis: Humans can turn mana directly into elemental mana but need tools to direct it beyond basic attacks.
Rogue was certainly holding his own as well. The man could reload his crossbow with supernatural quickness, keeping the crabs at bay with sharp stabs of his dagger when needed. Thankfully the thickened shell I gave the Brawlers and Knights was enough to prevent the crossbow bolts from fully penetrating, unlike the Assassins. Though, it did mean some looked like large pin cushions.
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
With Knight, Pyro, and Rogue distracted, I ordered my semiaquatic assassins to strike.
With strengthened muscles, two of the crabs leaped into the air. The sudden movement alerted Neo to the danger, and she twisted in place. She brought her arms up, and mana surged from her core down them and out the back of her forearms. Once extruded, the mana formed into blades, running down the length of her arms and two feet beyond her hands. Unable to dodge in mid-air, the crabs fell to their doom. The final three Assassins jumped bare seconds after the first two.
As the manablades cut the first wave in twain with barely any resistance, the second wave was upon her. With a cry of exertion, two more Assassins joined their four dead brethren in Crabhalla. The final crab got through, landing its attack. Neo let out a pained shout.
The crab brought its pincer, shaped for piercing strikes, and slammed it directly into the chest of the surprised woman. Though the swipe of a humming manablade soon ended its life, the dead monster's pincer remained lodged in the... right side of the woman's chest.
Damn it. I had hoped for a killing blow. If the humans had more potions, which was almost guaranteed, they could heal a pierced lung quickly. Then again, it depended on how fast they could get her one.
Hearing their... leader? Party member? Hearing Neo cry out in pain, the rest of the party redoubled their attacks. With speed and precision, Rogue shot the half-dozen crabs remaining through their eyeholes and into their soft insides. That weakness needed to be addressed, though I didn't see how...
Pyro immediately disengaged, rushing to Neo's side with a potion and leaving her monsters to Rogue. She passed the injured woman a red potion, one shot through with silvery streaks, with a whispered comment. "Alright, ready? One. Two. Three!" She pulled out the pincer with a yank, synchronized to Neo tensing and downing the potion.
Knight went beserk and dispatched his opponents in seconds. With no more opponents presenting themselves, he stood guard over his wounded party member with searching eyes. Ah. Now I understand. They'd been toying with the crabs, attempting to gain a better estimate of their abilities. Their strengths and weaknesses. Just as I had been doing the same to them.
I probably couldn't expect them to downplay their abilities from then on.
I pulled a few dozen more crabs out of my reserves, deciding they were due for a horde-mode attack. Hmm. I could also increase Sebastian's size. Suddenly, the size of a mere pony didn't seem big enough. Two horses side-by-side seemed more appropriate for their skill level.
-0-0-0-0-0-
The "Lost" Dungeon, Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
"That was close," Herna commented, pulling back from her inspection of Layla's wound. "If it had hit the same spot but on the other side of your ribs, that pincer would have gone straight through your heart." Felin shifted, his hands clenched tighter around the hilt of his sword.
He felt like shit. He was too busy playing with his food to keep an eye out for his oldest friend. Layla waved the mage off, sitting up. With speed visible to the naked eye, the skin around the wound shifted and moved, closing with a quickness expected from the quality of potion they'd used. She shivered, and Felin grimaced. Higher-tier potions might heal you faster, but it felt damn weird when you could feel the mana shifting and knitting your flesh back together.
Layla took a deep breath, one free and easy, then turned to her team. "Alright. Assessments?"
"Early Elder," Teak began, "The monsters cover each other's weaknesses well, are intelligent, and capable of advanced tactics. However, I don't know how much the dungeon controlled them compared to their capabilities." Herna frowned.
"I'd say, Late Mature. I didn't observe any magical effects in the monsters. Still, the minimalized weaknesses and the way the different types took different roles in the fight pointed to an experienced Core." She rattled off, then frowned. "They were very wary of my fire. Either they knew its effects and kept back, or they didn't know what to do about it."
"The Bigger ones have a thicker shell," Teak added when Herna stopped. "My bolts became lodged in their shells easily but never fully penetrated. The eyes are obvious weak spots, as with most monsters."
"Their joints are unarmored, but they defend them well," Felin said, his voice rough and weary. "Inexperienced against Guilders, despite mimicking their weaponry. Middle Mature." The quiet man fell back into silence; his piece said. Layla nodded at them all.
"Late Mature, then," Layla said. "Though I expect we won't face the same situation again, we should watch for layered strategies. Traps within traps, or divide and conquer tactics as well. They may be inexperienced, but these monsters can still injure and kill the unwary." She finished sardonically.
Reminded that they were delving into a Lost dungeon, not a Baby, the party continued with renewed caution.
They ran into several more groups of crabs (always three with bulging pincers and one swordsman) but mowed through them without trouble. Only as they reached the fourth cavern did they run into the dungeon's real resistance. A mix of the previous caverns, it had more space to maneuver, but much of the cavern remained obstructed or draped in shadows cast by stone columns.
Initially, all was quiet. The party was on guard, watching carefully. Ahead, Felin spied a doorway carved into the rock. The frame was square, decoratively carved with symbols, and blocked by slabs of stone with handles that could barely be called doors. That was obviously the way forward. One problem, though. There was a big clearing of open space between them and the doors.
And that space was filled entirely with Crabs.
The monsters didn't give them time to organize or plan. The moment they paused in surprise, the crabs charged. Like an orange tide, they advanced. When the first line fell to sword, bolts, and magic, the second rolled over their fallen allies without hesitation.
The next twenty minutes were filled with frantic combat where they saved each other from more death blows than they could count. Strikes that would have severed limbs become shallow cuts. Disabling blows turned to deep bruises.
In the end, they survived. The piles of dead monsters towered above them while the humans panted in exertion. Blood soaked their armor and robes, hair matted with sweat and viscera.
"Haa... Rest up... while you can..." Layla panted, mana reserves likely dangerously low. "Haa... That was probably... all the monsters... left on this floor... probably...." Teak collapsed to the blood-soaked sand, followed shortly by Herna and Layla. Felin plunged his sword into the sand and leaned on it, remaining on guard. Now would be the best time to ambush them; while they're tired and resting.
Potions were consumed, and wounds healed. Teak took the time to restock his significantly depleted quiver by pulling used bolts from the corpses around them.
They weren't sure how long it took, but they all gathered before the elaborately carved doors. Herna ran her hand down the stylized carving of a crab equipped with sword and shield pincers. "The Floor Guardian is probably one of these," she said, stepping back. Felin and Teak moved in to push open the doors. They grunted with exertion, but slowly the slabs moved.
With a grinding noise, the stone was pushed aside, revealing a circular arena. The ground was the same black sand as the rest of this floor. The walls, however, were carved just as intricately as the doors they'd just opened. Around the area's edges were dozen rocks of various sizes, all shaped like camouflaged crabs. They began crossing the room, heading to the door opposite, when the largest of the stones stood, revealing a crab of immense size. It stood ten feet tall and, with its legs spread, was thirty feet wide. The body alone was ten feet wide, with its pincers shaped into a shield five feet across and a sword six feet long.
Their party stood four strong, with no major wounds. Mana levels were replenished, though potions could never bring a mage's reserves to full. Teak had a few dozen arrows, a far cry from the hundreds he boasted fit in his enchanted quiver. They only had a few healing potions between them, not having expected resistance this stiff.
"Fuck. This is gonna hurt." Felin cursed, rolling his shoulders. Raising his sword, he charged in, roaring the wordless war cry of the men knowing they might die on the battlefield.
And the battle began.
The Dungeon, Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
I was watching this battle a little anxiously. I literally threw almost a hundred monsters at this party, then with just a few potions they're recharged and ready for the boss fight. Is this the average skill level of adventurers in this world? Or, did they send a tougher group to test me? Again, my severe lack of information is really hurting, here. They do look far more cautious than before, but that could be anything.
With his war cry, Knight rushed in to strike Sebastian. The boss monster blocked the overhead strike with his shield, then bashed the man away. He stumbled back, but didn't fall. With great speed the sword-pincer fell down upon the swordsman, who blocked but was driven to one knee by the force of the strike.
Believing him distracted, several bolts flew from the crossbow carefully aimed at the monster's eyes. With a quick motion the bolts skittered off the shield suddenly in the way. The monster raised his pincer from where it had been pressing down on the swordsman, at the same time bringing his other, shield-like pincer forwards.
Unprepared for the sudden lack of resistance, Knight lurched forwards and found himself on his hands and knees when the shield collided with his side. Though he was surprised, he turned his brief flight into a roll when he landed. Standing up next to Neo he grunted, glaring at the crab who had raised his sword-pincer and clanked it, taunting the man.
"Shell's too tough for normal weapons." He said with a rasp, "Your turn, Layla." She nodded and made a quick hand signal at the other two.
This time, both Knight and Neo advanced, with Neo igniting her Mana-blades. Rogue and Pyro covered their charge, with Rogue shooting out arrows at Sebastian's face, making him keep his shield over his eyes. Pyro however, did something she hadn't yet. With a surge of mana that she formed into a sphere, them somehow ignited, a roiling ball of flame burst into existence over her outstretched palm. A simple overhand throw, gave it direction, if not speed. Yes, the fireball started slowly but it gained momentum almost exponentially.
The fire landed smack in the middle of my monster's shield where it burst and the flames spread across the pincer, sticking like napalm. The boss monster panicked, waving the shield around in an attempt to extinguish the flames. Though, my crabs didn't have nerves that extended through their shells, it was probably surprise more than pain.
When he noticed the two charging humans, I gave him a nudge. Whispering in his mind, I gave the idea to bring mana to the surface of his shield. Imagine a thick layer of shell, an impenetrable extra shell, covering your own. I sent, pushing an image of just that. Obeying with blind loyalty, the crab immediately followed my instructions.
It was here, something completely unexpected happened.
I'd had a thought after seeing Neo's manablades slice through the crabsassins without pause. If mana in the form of a blade can bypass mundane shell, then the only thing which should be able to block it would be more mana. I'd imagined something like a shining barrier appearing over Sebastian's shield. While something did happen, it certainly wasn't what I'd imagined happening.
The mana Sebastian was forming was brought to the surface, where it interacted with the lingering flames from Pyro's spell. In essence, the flames latched onto the mana and started eating it. It wasn't uncontrolled, it didn't start devouring all of my monster's mana, just the stuff he fed it. On the fly, I fed him a new idea.
Flame Cloak.
The flames, now using Sebastian's mana, bowed to his will. The orange flames turned Teal, and spread to cover the shield completely. This all happened in the course of seconds, and Neo had no time to abort her strike. Her manablades skittered off the flaming shield, causing nothing more than surface-level scarring. Neo and Knight both retreated a few yards, watching the shield with wide eyes.
I practically bathed in the sensation of Sebastian's mana converting to fire on his shield. Another thought, another order, and Sebastian pushed mana down his other pincer. A twist and soon the length of his pincer-blade was also burning merrily.
Ha. Haha. Hahah!
Behold! I can now make FIRE!
It was, perhaps, a little draining. I couldn't fill Sebastian's mana reserves with the humans in the room, and if he kept both his sword and shield on fire it'd only last a few minutes before he was out, then he'd be much easier to take down.
Alright. I don't actually want to kill these guys, even if it would help me understand my situation a little more. Let's see if we can scare them off. If one dies, then great. More knowledge for me. But... I don't want to get a reputation for being that dungeon that wants to absolutely murder everyone that tries to enter. If they get too close to my core, well that's a different story.
Main Goal: Scare them off. Subgoals: Kill one of them, show leniency if they try to leave.
-0-0-0-0-0-
The "Lost" Dungeon, Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
Felin was feeling a little out of his depth. The battle hadn't exactly gone well for him. The crab out-massed him by a significant amount and having two weapons it could rely on definitely gave it the advantage. The first part of their counterattack would be using Layla's manablades to remove one of their enemies pincers, preferably the shield. Then, Teak could get a clear shot at it's eyes and end the fight before one of them got seriously injured.
It was when the remnants Herna's fireball spell turned that ethereal teal color that things went wrong. The flames caused Layla's manablades to skim off. He couldn't even see any damage beyond that ghostly fire. Before they could even come up with a new plan the crab's other pincer burst into flames, running down the sharp edge.
"This is bad, but it's not over" Layla said, taking a deep breath. "That's a spell, yes, it's the monster taking it's own mana and burning it off at the surface. It's extremely taxing to keep up. We just have to wait it out-" Before she could continue, the monster started moving forwards, defying the convention locomotion method of it's species. Each thunk made by it's armored legs sounding like a church bell, tolling their doom.
"Scatter!" Layla shouted. "Divide and Conquer!" They surrounded the crab, each far enough away that the monster would need to turn and commit to fighting them. in turn, they were close enough to provide support and look for weak spots while one of them distracted it.
It's attention was on Layla, who was doing her best to dodge the flaming pincers. Felin scrutinized the monster, looking for any kind of weakness. It's segmented legs had shell grown up to cover the joint, while leaving enough empty space for the leg to move. it certainly did what he was assumed was it's job; making it hard to just cut off it's legs. The same went for where the legs met the body, the grey shell radiating out in a disk just after the start of the leg to cover the soft flesh within.
This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.
It's underside was a conventional weakness of bottom-dwelling crustaceans, but from the look of the shell which almost matched the stuff on the top it was already covered. Really, the only obvious weakness he could find was the eyes. Felin grunted and moved in, sword about to swing at a joint. He really hated doing this, it made him feel so weak afterwards.
With an act of will, the small amount of mana Felin kept in his core burned down his arms and into the blade in his hands. The blue gemstone lit up, followed by lines of power glowing down the blade. Finally, the edge of the blade took on the same blue glow as Layla's mana-blades.
Without resistance, his swing cut straight through one of the monster's eight legs. In the corner of his eye, he caught a blue of motion. He threw himself backwards, rolling into a crouch. Where he had stood moments before, a burning teal pincer was half-buried in the sand. The crab had murder in it's eyes. It stepped forwards to take another swing, but jerked back. Layla had taken another leg. Down two now, the monster retreated, moving to keep all four party members in it's vision.
They didn't let it.
In less than two minutes they'd turned the fight around. The monster had it's back to a wall and had already lost two legs. When the flames on it's pincers petered out and it sagged, Felin could have cheered.
But again, the crab surprised them.
Presumably sensing it's imminent demise, the crab swung it's pincers aggressively, though wary of Layla's blades. Teak narrowly dodged the blade, Felin countered a shield-bash. It's attacks became wilder, more desperate, until finally it threw itself at Herna. Tactically the most sound decision it could make, as her fire hadn't had much effect on it.
The crab literally threw itself bodily at Herna, using it's momentum and mass as a weapon as well as it's enormous pincers. Felin couldn't have gotten there in time, Herna was on the other side of the monster to him. Layla was next to him, with Teak the closest. As he watched, Teak aimed and fired a hail of bolts at the monster's for-once unguarded eyes.
One got through.
With a crash and a scream of terror, Herna was crushed under the mass of the now-dead monster.
-0-0-0-0-0-
The Dungeon, Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
Hail Sebastian the Crab Knight, first of his name! He died a warrior, taking at least one of his enemies with him. Unlike what happened with Kurt and Kale, Sebastian was already dead when Herna was crushed beneath his armored shell. So, without a monster to take half of the mana a dead human gives off, it all rose up into the stream and made it's way down to me. With the death of the Boss, the enchantment took hold and lifted the length of stone preventing the door from being opened. Well, at least that works.
Knight and Rogue pulled Sebastian off of their dead teammate, then took anything of value from her body and burned the remains. They each gave what I assumed was a eulogy as the body burned to ashes. When all that was left was blackened bones, they harvested my boss monster's corpse. His mana core had been massive, the size of a human's closed fist. Neo put it in her pack, then used her blades to cut off the monster's pincers. The shield itself was as wide as Knight was tall, so it wasn't like it would be easy to carry it out.
A quick word had Knight push forward, through the stone doors leading to the staircase. A shout brought Neo and Teak into the room, staring at the mana-water in the stone bowl.
"This... all these carvings and the enchantments... This wasn't the dungeon. Dungeons don't reward people for getting past their monsters. This was probably made by the people who used to live here. The language in these carvings doesn't look like any I recognize either." Neo talked for a bit, then brought out an empty potion bottle and filled it with the water. She watched as the enchantment kicked into gear and the bowl started filling again.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
"Felin, take a look at the next room, then come back up. We're leaving." Neo stated, which caused Knight to grunt and carefully shuffle down the stairs. He lit his torch at the bottom and glanced into the dank and 'crumbling' walls of the Flooded Labyrinth. After a few seconds of observation he went back up the stairs.
"More ruins. Looked wet, probably more crabs." He rasped out.
Then they turned, picked up the giant, grey pincers and left.
In a bit of subtle intimidation I made sure they caught glances of orange shell and shifting rocks, but kept them back from attacking. It made them a little paranoid and for the whole trip out they didn't once relax. Though when they passed the final short passage and emerged to see the setting sun, all three settled on the beach for about half an hour. After that they got back into their rowboat and rowed their way back to the ship anchored off the bay.
Meanwhile, in my boss room, the remnants of my crab army surrounded Sebastian. Much like the humans did with their party member, I set him alight with manafire and we held a wake. Once he had burnt to ashes we spread both his and Pyro's ashes around the arena and mixed it into the sand.
Okay. Time to select a new boss. Hmmm. You! Yes, you. The one who killed Kale and Kurt. I think you have the right stuff, kid.
In no time at all, my new boss monster is grey and rocky. I didn't make him as big as Sebastian was, about 2/3rds the size. Otherwise I made sure he had all the same parts and armor. I even made sure to teach him how to use manafire, though I instructed him to attempt to increase his core's size and capacity on his own. I wanted to see how fast it could grow without my intervention. I name you, Tamatoa The Crab Knight.
I selected a new batch of crablings to enhance, raised them into their new roles. I'll also change the name I've given to the smaller version of my boss. The Boss can stay the Crab Knight, but I'll make the smaller versions Squires, the brawlers can stay brawlers,
The next thing I did was enhance Gull. He was still a normal seagull, and that just wouldn't do. Bigger body, bigger wingspan and a razor sharp beak were the highlights. After that, I gave Gull a task to bring me lizards, seeds and eggs from the jungle. As many as he could. We're starting the jungle floor. I'll call it... The Green Hell.
It didn't take long, though I had to make a small, temporary tunnel to let Gull down to the third floor, since the normal path is now flooded.
The first thing he brought me were seeds.
Okay, the first thing we need to do here is give them a place to grow. Assuming they can use mana in the place or normal nutrients and sunlight, all is good. However, if they cant...
I stole a few tons of dirt from the jungle. Just in case.
So, the first hall was about three yards wide and ten yards long, with a high arched roof liberally carved and sculpted. It was leading away from my current core room at the bottom of a second spiral staircase set behind the Queen Bloodfish's arena.
I sprinkled a generous helping of dirt over some thoroughly cracked and broken stone. Along the sides of the hall I planted a couple of seeds, each different so I knew what I was working with.
When given mana infused with growth what sprouted was what I assumed was a normal tree, a vine, a fruiting bush, a kind of grass and two kinds of tropical flowers.
With some specific intent, the tree wilted away. Maybe I could use it in a larger room, but this hallway would do better with the vines.
The vine I placed three of, along each side. I guided their growth to spread and cover the walls, clinging to the cracked bricks I shaped the walls into. The grass I spread across the floor. It was a nice grass, rather than a weed. Long, thin, grew thickly and tall enough to hide someone crouching in it.
The fruiting bush I encouraged to grow as a symbiont to the vine. Rather than a bush, it now grew in a long and spindly fashion, clinging to the thicker and anchored vines. Each plant bloomed into small orange blossoms which themselves gave way to a small, citrus-like fruit. Like a mandarin, but without the separate cloves.
Ideas and themes were rushing through my mind when Gull brought in a small and struggling lizard. It was about the size of a human thumb. If I had a face to grin with, and people could see it, I think they'd call the police.
Oh, yes. Green Hell is the only correct name for the floor.
Then the mana from Pyro finally made it's way into my crystal, having been drifting along the currents through the entire second floor and been sitting in my accretion disk for a good hour. Oh, right. Gimme dat sweet, sweet, knowledge.
Port Laviet, The Phenoc Kingdom, Theona
Two Days After the Delve
-0-0-0-0-0-
Felin followed Layla and Teak into the Guildmaster's office. They'd fled that island with the wind behind them, returning as fast as possible to make their report. The Guildmaster was an older man, though that didn't mean he was weak. Betram Losat was the highest ranked adventurer on the east cost of the continent. It was a tragic story, really. The leadership of the Guild were intimidated by his rise through the ranks and made sure that he ended up out here, hundreds of miles from anything resembling a dungeon, to make sure he couldn't gather more power.
The man had a receding hairline, his hair a dark grey specked with pure white. His robe-like clothing was designed to hide and downplay the armored undersuit beneath. Mounted on the wall behind him was his famous weapon, The Moonsilver Staff, the thicker end of which was topped by a perfectly spherical crystal. Allegedly, the Guildmaster had soloed a young, wild dungeon in the East and took its core. Once properly fashioned and prepped, Cores made excellent magical conduits to empower spells and lower their mana cost.
The only reason Felin even knew that was because Layla had gushed about her grandfather and his staff many times over the years.
Once they were all seated, Betram looked up from his paperwork and quickly assessed them.
"Underestimated the monster, the dungeon, or too overconfident?" He asked. Layla replied quietly.
"The first two." Layla replied quietly. "We cornered it and had almost won when it threw itself at her. Teak managed to kill it, but Herna was crushed."
"I'll get on the paperwork, then." The Guildmaster sighed. "What's your assessment?"
"It's Lost. No doubt about it." Layla said confidently. "Remnants of the dungeon's old masters in its tactics, monster quality and some architecture. Age-wise; tentative Elder, but could easily be Ancient." The old man lent forwards.
"Monsters? How many floors?"
"We only explored the direct path to the first floor's Guardian room." Layla admitted. "The monsters were crabs of unusual size, different breeds for different roles." She explained the different types, their physiology and tactics. "The guardian was a combination of all three, Large with thick armor, pincers mimicking a sword and shield, grey coloration and ability to hide as a boulder." She hesitated before continuing.
"During the battle, Herna threw a fireball at the monster. The fire hit, and stuck to the shield. Then the fire changed color to teal, the same color as the lights. the monster was feeding its own mana into the fire, to gain control of it. The dungeon, or the monster, must have figured something out because not three seconds later its sword-pincer burst into flames as well." Betram stroked his goatee.
"I see now why you think it Elder." He said into the silence. "That is a remarkably quick learning speed. Though, given it's also Lost, and the habit of dungeons to go dormant when not challenged for many years, it's more likely re-learning things it once knew as it awakens fully." Felin shivered slightly. If this was the dungeon at even half-capacity, he couldn't begin to imagine how deadly it would be at full power.
"Beyond the Guardian's arena, there was a basin filled with mana saturated water." Lalya continued, bringing out the potion flask they had filled. "There were enchantments on a stalactite above to condense water and fill it with mana. More evidence of the dungeon's old masters."
The Guildmaster took the flask filled with water that sparkled and twinkled, squinted at it, then put it down on his desk. "I'll have someone test it for poisons or other harmful effects, but I agree with your assessment. Did you venture to the second floor?" Layla shook her head.
"No, I didn't. Felin did, though." Layla said, turning to him. Felin gulped as the Guildmaster gave him his full attention.
"It was wet and dank." He rasped, his tone respectful. "Square corridors covered in carvings and writing. I could hear water further in. I didn't see any monsters, though I expect it would be more crabs." The old man nodded.
"A reasonable expectation. But remember that older dungeons, especially those Conquered or Lost, have a greater understanding of humans and our thoughts. When in a dungeon, expect to be surprised and stay on the alert for anything that looks off, or odd." Betram advised in a lecturing tone. The three nodded quietly. With a wave the Guildmaster dismissed them.
"Off you go. I need to finish the paperwork and inform the local lord of the find. He'll probably want to settle the island and exploit the dungeon." He sighed. "I'm not looking forwards to this..." Suddenly, his face brightened. "Layla, my darling granddaughter! Could you do your dear old grandpapa a favor?" Felin didn't like the look in the man's eye.
He had a bad feeling about this.
-0-0-0-0-0-
The Dungeon, Unnamed Island, Kalenic Sea
Seven Days After the Delve
-0-0-0-0-0-
It's been a productive week.
For my new third floor I decided to create a single, cavernous room. Several football stadiums in length and width, supported by dozens of incredibly thick columns. For several yards below the floor, I destroyed and powdered the rock. Above this layer of shattered stone I placed fertile jungle dirt, stolen from the island above.
Carefully, I carved a channel through the level that would create a mostly fast-flowing river. The riverbed wound from west to east. On the western side I carved a dozen grates enchanted to purify the river and remove the salt content. This start point began half-way up the cavern wall, creating a small waterfall.
In the middle of the room I let the water pool into a medium-sized lake with plenty of eddies and access to stagnant pools. At the far end after a series of rough rapids, the river passes out through the wall of the cavern. A vertical tunnel and some enchantments to provide lower gravity and lift brings the water all the way to the surface, where a new fresh-water spring bursts into existence. It actually ended up creating a rather spectacular waterfall, so I'm quite happy with it.
I added a single mana-star on the roof, to provide my room with a single light source. This one, I create several enchantments to regulate. I created an anchoring enchantment, keeping its position relative to a bit of stone above it. This stone I enchanted to follow a carved path across the roof of the cavern, east to west. Once it reached the western wall, a layer of stone would extend around the light to block it off, in concert with nightfall.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
The encased star would return to the other side of the room along the same path, then the cover would retreat upon reaching the eastern wall. I had (mostly) accurately replicated the day-night cycle. I also managed to change its colour with an enchantment to alter the waveform of the photons leaving the mana star. Yellow-white light was more appropriate than the teal it was naturally. With a light source, soil and water, I planted trees.
Gull provided dozens of seeds, and I found a little over a dozen species. Tall, towering trees, thin and spindly trees and everything in between. Once I had a thick jungle, the third stage began to show its work. Along the riverbed I had layered enchantments to gently heat the passing water. Soon the air was moist; condensation forming on the thick leaves and bark of the trees. A similar enchantment impregnated the river water with just a little bit of mana, which should create a fog-like effect in any person with mana-sight.
Thankfully, the transfer of soil brought most of the bugs that lived in it, with it. I had worms and ants and beetles and a hundred other bugs soon buzzing around the place, thanks to a little mana-prompted breeding. I enhanced seven of these species, leaving the rest with enhanced breeding cycles to support the larger bugs.
Ants half an inch long, with sharper mandibles, a stronger grip and a pain-inducing contact toxin. Given their new habit of hunting larger prey to take advantage of their new size, I named them Hunter Ants.
A species of wasp also gained the general package; an inch-long size increase, venom potency upgrade and stronger flight in general. I also added a red stripe along their abdomen. Widow Wasps were born.
A species of tarantula-like spiders became a foot in size. Acromantula. Bees given the same size as the wasps. Titan Bees.
Flies and Mosquitos were a given, of course. Both increased in size, but they fly was mostly an annoyance with increased volume. Hummingflies. Bigger mosquitos were already a nuisance, but a potent numbing effect makes them worse. Vampire Mosquitos.
There were a couple of hives of Wasps, Ants and Bees spread across the map, The others were all over the place.
Now with a basic ecosystem, some environmental challenges, I needed some kind of monsters beyond little insects. If a determined party came through wanting to kidnap or enslave me, I needed a way to capitalize on all the distracting elements of the area. This is where the lizards came in.
I took these tiny lizards and grew them, shaped them. In the end, I had what I will call a Kobold Villager. Three-foot tall bipedal lizard people with reddish-brown scales. Males slightly bulkier, females more flexible. At my prompting they took to the trees, quickly constructing a 'village' in the tree-tops that was completely invisible to anyone on the jungle floor. Unprompted, they created basic spears and clothing for themselves. I guess i made them more intelligent than I'd though.
My intentions for these monsters was a harasser role. They would keep the parties paranoid, stealing bags and weapons when they sat down for a rest, throwing spears when they dropped their guards.
Thankfully, monsters bred with other monsters of the same species propagate normally. Either way, I now had a three-dozen strong village of Kobolds, which would probably split into two villages in the next few days. I'm happy with this. I also think they're worshiping me.
Eh. That'll turn out okay.
Next task is to create the exit. And I have a plan. Along the walls at random points I created five fake exits. All had intricately carved doors, which seemed to lead into a boss arena. I even created a mini-boss creature from the Kobolds. Essentially a six-foot Kobold with crab-shell armor and pincer-weapons (Mace, Sword and shield, Two-handed sword). These are Kobold Hunters.
Though, the fifth mini-boss I gave an much larger monster core and the ability to use Fire-magic. He's the Kobold Shaman.
Actually, I have an idea.
I enchanted each boss room to act as a 'key'. Once all five mini-bosses were killed, a secret door would open.
This door wasn't so much a door as it was a rock encased by the roots of a tree. A circular hole in the rock would open, revealing a tunnel large enough for a Kobold Villager to walk through standing. Human will have to crawl. The tunnel goes down, winding past massive roots and through tight squeezes. Eventually It leads to a slippery, muddy slope which drops the slipee into a muddy, stagnant pool.
This is the boss room. They would be dropped straight into the fight. The Boss, I spent a bit more time on.
An Eight foot tall Kobold, I gifted him great strength and washboard abs. Continuing the 'Evolutionary line' of the Kobolds, I created the Drake-kin. For this boss, I grew a very special crab. That crab's shell was created to be as hard as it could be, and shaped into perfect armor plates. I also formed a Halberd for his weapon. I also gave him fire breath. You are Mushu, The Drake-kin. I informed him.
He kneeled, his off hand thumping above his heart in a fist, and growled out something along the lines of "I understand, god."
Okay! A lot more religious than I intended. Then again, I did actually create their species. I kind of am their god. I created a little side room for him to rest with appropriate furniture.
This room's exit was enchanted similarly to the two floors above. It would only open upon the death of Mushu.
In order to keep an open path for the mana-stream, I hollowed out a tree and had the stream snake across the room before flowing down through it and into my crystal room. Past a dozen grates and plenty of spikes, of course. Making a shortcut is not my intention.
Alrighty. The floor is essentially done. I'll probably tweak it as I learn more.
Good thing too, I see a whole fucking fleet of ships incoming. Guess my tutorial is over.
-0-0-0-0-0-
Phenoc Galleon Iron Fist, Kalenic Sea
Off the Coast of the Unnamed Island.
-0-0-0-0-0-
"So, that's the dungeon?" Asked Davad Medean, the future governor of this little Island.
"Yes, Lord Medean." Layla Losat answered. Her grandfather had assigned her to the island as the guild's local authority. A desk job isn't exactly what she wanted to be doing, but she knew he was just trying his best to keep her safe. If she did well enough in this post, he had practically guaranteed a promotion to full Guildmaster within a month or two. She took a deep breath, then observed the island.
"Felin," She called, summoning her oldest friend. "That waterfall wasn't there a week ago, was it?" He grunted a negative. The waterfall was spilling out over the cliff above the dungeon.
"Odd, but fortunate." Davad mused. "It must be a freshwater spring." He stated, then smiled. He pulled a pendant of Jaita from under his shirt and kissed it. "The gods have provided a boon to speed the settlement's construction." Layla wasn't so sure. more likely it was something the dungeon had done. Why it would create a spring was beyond her. although...
"It may be that the dungeon has further awakened, and activated old enchantments." She said slowly, "The water likely originates from the dungeon itself. We will need to test its drinkability." The noble nodded.
"Sound advice." He replied with a smile. He then turned from their position on the bow and addressed the other people on the ship.
"My people! This is to be our new home! Though the next few weeks will be trying there is ample food in the jungle, plenty of wood to build our homes. Even better, there is a dungeon to provide us wealth! I name this place Medea Island in honor of my father, who granted us this land. Board the longboats! We make for the shore!."
-0-0-0-0-0-
The Dungeon, Medea Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
I watched as the humans disembarked then began setting up tents, constructing a pier and, weirdly, a booth and fence outside my entrance. It kinda makes sense, though. It's probably to keep out unauthorized delvers, or charge them entrance. I don't know. Ah, well. I guess I have some new neighbours.
...
I hope they don't want to enslave me.
Temporary Camp, Medea Island, Kalenic Sea
1 Week, 2 Months Post-Corification
-0-0-0-0-0-
Layla emerged from her tent dressed and ready for the day. A slight adjustment to her blindfold and nod to Felin later, they were on their way to the large command tent set up off the beach. Layla watched as the common men and women who joined them on the island went about their morning routine, stepping aside and giving respectful nods as she passed them.
A glance showed the wooden pier they were building had been mostly completed. One of the ships full of construction materials had pulled up at the end of it, preparing to unload it's cargo. That they'd built even that much in the day since they'd landed was to be commended.
The command tent was triple the size of even the next biggest tent, guarded by men at the flap and seemed to be enchanted. The guards nodded at their approach and folded back the flaps for them. On passing the threshold, the sounds outside muted from a dull roar to a quiet whisper. That would be the enchantment, or at least one of them. Lord Medean looked up when they stopped at the table in the center of the room.
Said table was surrounded by other men and women; Lord Medean's retainers and advisors. There looked to be a big piece of paper covering most of the table, which she assumed was a map.
"Ah, Miss Losat, good of you to join us," Medean greeted. "I've had the water from that spring tested, and it's come back clean. No poisons, toxins or hostile mana." Layla nodded.
"That's wonderful news," Layla said. "We've set up a gate next to the dungeon. In the next week we should expect a few Guilder parties to visit. New dungeons are rare. Ones that aren't immediately conquered or destroyed even more so." The man nodded.
"Yes, about that. I want it known this dungeon is off limits. No one is to attempt to take it's core, if we even manage to find the thing." Layla raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? I assumed you wanted to conquer it." She questioned. He shook his head.
"Oh no, Miss Losat. This is an opportunity." He said, rubbing his hands together. "All of my research shows Lost dungeons are far more innovative and creative than any conquered dungeon. This dungeon is likely to hold many secrets and resources we can use to our advantage. If it's as old as we expect I doubt we'd find the core quickly anyway." The blind woman paused.
"That... is quite well reasoned. Though it also means that getting those resources will most likely have a heavy human cost, at least until the dungeon understands we aren't going to try and conquer it." Layla could feel the oncoming headache.
Medean waved her off. "They're Guilders. They know what they're getting into. Oh! Also, let my architect know where you want your guildhall and it'll be one of the first structures built." With the obvious and rather rude dismissal, Layla turned and left the tent, Felin close behind.
"I don't like him." Felin rasped, once they were far enough away.
"You don't like anyone." Layla responded, smiling fondly. "But I agree with you on this one. He may not be a nice person, but he's the new Lord of this island. We have to deal with him, even if we don't like him." Felin grunted back at her.
Their next destination was the Dungeon's entrance. A basic fence had been set up on the beach, to prevent curious and/or suicidal people from walking into the deathpit. A guard rotation of the Guilders they'd brought with them kept the perimeter secure. As she approached the opening in the face, the two Guilders there saluted.
"Guildmistress! Nothing to report," The one on the left stated. Layla sighed.
"I'm not a Guildmistress yet, Hurlt. My appointment still needs to be approved by another two masters." She stated. Hurlt smirked.
"Yet, Guildmistress. Best to get in the habit now, I say." He claimed, resolute. Layla shook her head, then walked past them.
She had another delve to organize.
-0-0-0-0-0-
The Dungeon, Medea Island, Kalenic Sea
-0-0-0-0-0-
Damn these human are industrious. Three days after they arrived they'd set up a pier, cleared a bunch of land for farming and used the trees they'd cut to build a town hall (I assume) and some basic houses. I spent that time spying, listening in on conversations and plans.
Herna's mana and memories were very, very useful for me. I now, finally, knew the language. I also had a basic understanding of their society, and some knowledge on how mana worked here.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
The fourth day, a new group of adventurers took the delve into my dungeon. From what my seagulls and new rat spies (brought in on a ship, as expected) had observed, they got a decent briefing and plenty of prep time.
This party was composed of the cliché quartet. A Mage, who seemed to favor lightning given the sparks she occasionally gave off. A Knight, his muscled form sheathed by heavy plate armor. A Rogue, she wielded a shortbow and bedaggered. A Cleric, armed with a Morningstar and assumedly praying while holding an icon of his faith. I knew their names, of course, but I like giving them nicknames.
Given that people delving into my dungeon was going to be a regular thing, I decided a bit of restraint was necessary. My monsters would still attack to kill, of course, but I didn't want a reputation as a murder-hole. The fact I heard the new local lord tell Neo that people were banned from 'conquering' me made me feel a lot better about relaxing a bit, though it was disturbing to know the option existed.
In my old life, I was always writing things, building things. Sometimes for myself, but mostly because I wanted to show other people. Now I had the ability to craft wonders. But what's the point of building an intimidating castle, if no one is ever intimidated by it? I wanted to hear the gasps of awe, the whispers of wonder.
So, I would go easy on them. I would scale difficulty. With a bit of experimentation, I found I didn't really have to focus on just one place. Multitasking, no confusion or mental forks required. It did take some 'mental power' I assume is linked to the size of my crystal, and the more things I focused on, the less attention I gave each thing. Directing a certain number of monsters to one party while also raising and prepping the next batch for the next delve was well within my abilities.
The Clichés advanced slowly, encountering enough resistance to challenge them. Also, crabs are weak to electricity. I need to find a way to make my fish at least a little insulated, because otherwise they could power through most of the second floor. Mage will be useless against Sanguina, though. Casting lightning while underwater yourself seems like a bad idea.
A few injuries, healed by potions and one spell from Cleric. Some close calls with falling stalactites kept them paranoid and observant. They didn't encounter a wave of crabs, like the last party did, and it seems to have unsettled them.
Then, finally, they entered the boss room. Tamatoa, The Second Crab Knight, fought valiantly. Unfortunately, much like the other crabs, he was weak to lightning. Mental note; try to either make crab shell more insulating, or perhaps make their shells selectively conductive to guide the electricity away from vital organs.
The party harvested his mana-core, filled a few flasks with the mana-water, then left without trying to challenge the second floor. They reported to Neo, who it seems has been placed in charge of me and allowing people into me. Neo, who I now knew to be named Layla, seemed to be expecting someone to be dead when they returned, but cheered up considerably when she saw all four party members.
The next day another, completely different, party delved me. They too, only cleared the first floor then left. I've also stopped naming the Crab Knights. They'll pass on and be replaced too quickly to get attached. The first boss of a floor will still be named, maybe the second. The ones after that are inheriting the mantle and some muscle memories from their predecessor.
This new pattern changed on the seventh day since the humans arrived.
A new ship pulled into port; now a couple of piers stretching from the black sand beach. The crew traded with the residents of the island, while their passengers made a beeline to the new building outside my entrance. I assumed it was a cross between a tavern, an Inn, and the operations center for these adventurers, given Neo seems to base herself there and has some kind of office.
The new group of ten people entered the main door, where a small and hidden rat watched them talk to the bar-keeper. Two split off to go up to the second floor and meet with Layla. The other eight bought drinks and settled in to wait. The Cliché Quartet made another run that day, the same pattern as before.
The new group was apparently two parties of five, who both wanted to delve me. Layla let them know of the restriction on 'conquering' me, gave them some information on my monsters, but didn't go into detail as much as she did for the others. She also didn't seem to like them much. Maybe from a different faction? Either way, they looked cocky even with that little amount of information, and I took that personally.
The other adventurers who tried had a healthy respect for me and my monsters, while these newcomers were arrogant. I'm sure that these people will attempt my second floor if given the opportunity.
Well, I hope they enjoy their delve. Or, as I prefer to call it, their wake-up call.
-0-0-0-0-0-
Rorgas was regretting this delve already. As the fifth wave of fucking crabs approached, he and his party rushed forwards to meet them. They climbed over the corpses of the last wave. Rorgas and the other two melee-focused fighters in the party kept the crabs off their other party members, who were harvesting the monster cores as fast as they could. Cutting down the final monster, he turned to his sister, Meser.
"How're we looking?" He asked. Meser looked exhausted, having spent most of her mana on healing spells already.
"Not good. I'm out of mana, and our potions reserves are low. These crabs have tiny mana-cores, but the sheer number of them should help cover the cost of the potions we used." She took a breath. "We should turn back."
"No," Rorgas stated. "We press on. The Guardian has a bigger core, and that mana-water is worth all these little cores combined!" He claimed loudly. "Who's with me!?" The swordsmen, flush from victory over the crabs, cheered. Their other mage, a water mage, gulped down a mana-restoring potion then nodded.
"Alright! The next cavern should be the final one before the Guardian. Play it safe." Rorgas ordered, then led the way into the next dark and twisting passage.
After fighting off another two waves of crabs, they'd finally made it to the doors, carved with the image of a crab with a sword and shield. Rorgas pushed open the doors. The last thing he saw was a grey pincer-claw rushing towards his neck. His last thought was; Huh, I thought the guardian would wait for us to be in the room.
-0-0-0-0-0-
After their leader got killed, the rest of the party managed to kill the Crab Knight, collect their 'reward' and stumble back out the way they came. I made sure they noticed groups of crabs watching from the water, and in the corners of their eyes. I really wanted it to sink in. I could have killed them all, overwhelmed them with numbers, but I didn't. Rorgas had been arrogant. He should have take the advice of their healer and turned back.
Though, when I discovered she was his sister I felt a little bad. Hopefully she gots over this and moved on with her life.
She didn't.