"Finally, they're gone..." Noah sighed, his voice echoing only within the consciousness that inhabited the bright, pulsating core of the dungeon.
"Now, we need to have a serious talk, system. What the hell were those monsters?!" he grumbled, outraged.
[Processing response...Error 404 – Information not found.]
"...Error, huh?" Noah murmured suspiciously, as if he could shoot the system interface with a glare — if only he had eyes.
Before he could curse some more, a familiar sound echoed in the static air of his consciousness:
Ding!
[Congratulations, host, for surviving an adventurers' attack!Your defenses were successful, and your core remains intact.]
"Success? Imagine if it hadn't been..." Noah thought, recalling the screams and explosions.
[Reward: 50 Soul Essences acquired.][New function unlocked: Custom Creation.][You can now create your own monsters for the dungeon!Costs in Soul Essences will vary depending on physical abilities, mental attributes, appearance, and personality.]
If Noah had a heart, it would be racing. If he had hands, he would already be rubbing them together. If he had a face... he would be wearing a wicked grin.
"Wait a minute... I can create custom monsters now?! Like... a dragon with an octopus head and spider legs?!"The possibilities were endless, and Noah's mind overflowed with crazy ideas.
"But what's the use... all my monsters died against those adventurers," he thought, downcast. Even with the newly gained reward, he would have to spend everything to restore the dungeon's defenses.
[Important information: every time a new day completes — as long as the core remains intact — your dungeon resets.This means all dead monsters regenerate.]
Noah barely had time to process this news when, before his "imaginary eyes," the same zombies, spiders, and skeletons that had been slaughtered began magically reassembling. Their bodies rose from the dungeon's dark floor as if death had been just a nap.
[Mutant Spider – Level: 2][Zombies – Level: 2][Skeletons – Level: 2]
Noah's imaginary eyes (if they had eyebrows) would have raised to the moon.
"What?! They came back?! And even leveled up?!"
[Yes.]
"You should have told me that earlier, system! I was about to panic here!" Noah muttered, releasing a sigh of relief that lightly echoed in his crystalline consciousness.
"But... what exactly changes with the monsters' level increase?"
[Level directly affects the physical capabilities, resistance, and intelligence of your monsters.Additionally, they can learn and adapt based on battles they face.]
"So... you mean my zombies can learn to use tactics against adventurers?!"
[With time and repetition... yes.]
Noah's mind boiled again, but now with evolutionary possibilities.
After seeing the monsters come back to life, Noah was excited. For the first time since becoming this so-called "dungeon core," he felt he had some chance.
But he wanted more.
"Custom creation... this is my chance to cause true terror!"
He opened the interface tab and began to type mentally.
[Creature Name]: Demonic Rat[Height]: 1.3 meters[Weight]: 22kg[Teeth]: Extremely sharp[Behavior]: Aggressive[Additional description]: "I want it to be fast, sneaky, attack from behind, silent as a shadow, and agile like a ninja."
Noah paused to analyze.
"Yes. This will make any adventurer regret entering here."
[Confirm creation?]
Yes.
The magic circle started glowing. Noah watched with his eyes shining with excitement.Smoke appeared... something small appeared in the middle of the glow...
Pop.
"...huh?"
It was small. Too small.
"Where's the giant rat?"
The glow disappeared, revealing a... squirrel.Small, furry, with lively eyes and a black band on its forehead.
The squirrel raised one tiny paw and made a ninja gesture.Then... it put its paw to its mouth and made a "shhh" sign.
[Ding!][Creature created successfully: Shadow Squirrel – Class: Ninja Mimic][Description: Sneaky creature, operates in shadows, avoids direct combat, communicates with silent signs, and imitates behaviors of any creature or person it observes.]
"...What?! System, I asked for a flesh-eating rat!"
[Conflict detected between parameters: 'Demonic rat with sneaky, ninja-like behavior.' System prioritized behavioral description and adapted base species to a more compatible one.]
"What? I should have put sadistic assassin that rips throats, not sneaky ninja! Aaaah..."
The squirrel, not understanding Noah's frustration, started doing somersaults and imitating the core's dramatic gestures.
"Ah, great. It copies me. Wonderful."
Then the squirrel stopped, looked at Noah — or at the floating crystal that he was — and made a confused gesture, like asking: So, boss? What's the plan?
Noah sighed.
"...Welcome to the team, I dunno... Ninja Number One."
The squirrel nodded proudly, beat its chest, and... disappeared behind a rock.
And so was born Noah's first original monster: not a demonic flesh-eating rat, but a ninja mimic squirrel that talks through gestures.
Noah looked at his system and noticed that the squirrel had consumed 15 Soul Essences, a bit pricier than the zombies, skeletons, and spiders, which were ready-made monsters provided by the system.
— Wow, must be just because it's a ninja — Noah thought.
He found it funny that it was a ninja squirrel. He looked around and saw the little creature walking through the great hall, making ninja gestures and magically vanishing into the shadows. This intrigued Noah.
— It really is a ninja...
Noah stared at the system interface, still watching the ninja squirrel jumping from rock to rock and making dramatic silent attack poses.
"Ok... it was a technical error. A communication failure. An artistic slip…"
The squirrel hid in a shadow and threw an improvised shuriken made of skeleton bones.It landed with a plop.It picked it up again, shook its head as if saying "not good yet," and vanished again.
"…an adorable error, but still an error."
Taking a deep breath — or rather, imagining he was breathing, since he was a floating crystal — Noah opened the creation interface again.
"Now it's gonna work."
[Create Custom Monster][Name]: Alpha Demonic Rat[Species]: Infernal Rat[Size]: 1.5 meters[Behavior]: Aggressive, Hostile, Territorial[Intelligence]: Low[Communication]: Growls, hisses, snarls[Appearance]: Deformed body with swollen muscles, sparse dark fur, exposed teeth, eyes glowing like embers[Special Ability]: Corrosive Bite (corrodes metal and flesh)[Priority Attributes]: Raw strength and physical resistance[Note]: Avoid ambiguous commands. Forbidden to include terms like "ninja," "sneaky," or "cute."
"Now, system... be literal. Please."
[Confirm creation?]
Yes.
This time, the magic circle glowed with a reddish, more intense, pulsating tone. The energy was heavy, dense. The floor trembled lightly.
Noah watched carefully.No squirrel. No ninja poses.
What came out of the circle was... perfect.
A rat almost the size of a large dog, with deformed muscles and bulging veins. Its fur was patchy, like something straight out of a nightmare. Its long, irregular fangs drooled viscous saliva, and its red eyes shone with pure hatred.
The monster growled.
Grrrrk...
[Creature created successfully: Alpha Demonic Rat – Level 3][Description: Fierce ambush predator, extremely resilient and aggressive. Prefers dark and humid environments. Attacks in packs, but this one is an Alpha: leads weaker demonic rats. Beware when left alone: it tries to dig tunnels.]
Noah smiled — or intended to smile, if that were possible as a core."Now this is a threat."
From the depths of the dungeon, the ninja squirrel peeked at the rat and... gave a thumbs-up with its paw.
Noah ignored it.
"Mission accomplished. Now, bring on the next adventurers..."
The Demonic Rat left the great hall and went to the dungeon entrance, where it stared at all the other creatures. It showed its teeth and, without hesitation, started digging through the bricks. Its claws were strong enough to make the blocks crumble like soft soil.
— A rat more efficient than any trap... — Noah thought, imagining the ambush possibilities this creature could create.
Excited, Noah began thinking about the next creature he could develop. Several games he had played flashed through his mind — hundreds of ideas. But when he looked at his Soul Essences again, his enthusiasm died instantly.
— What?! All that just for one monster?! That's expensive! — Noah was incredulous.
Noah was deeply focused on the system and didn't notice someone had entered his dungeon. Only when his core was suddenly transported back to the great hall did he notice something strange.
— Uh?
He looked toward the dungeon entrance. The door was wide open, and the sky outside showed a starry mantle.
— Someone entering the dungeon at night? — Noah murmured, surprised.
Curious, he scoured the corridors with his consciousness. That's when he saw it: a bearded man, wearing dirty, torn clothes, carrying only a small dagger. He was crouched in a corner of the dungeon, pulling a small bag from inside his cloak, which rattled excitedly. The clinking of coins echoed through the hall.
— Hahaha! They won't catch me here. I got lucky this time, the loot was good! — he talked to himself, chuckling softly.
Noah understood immediately: a thief on the run. He had probably stolen a good amount and was now looking for a safe place to hide — unfortunately for him, he picked the worst possible one.
— Too bad for you, friend... you went in — and won't come out — Noah thought, smiling maliciously.
Stealthily, the ninja squirrel approached the entrance. With a strange gleam in its eyes and unusual strength for its size, it pushed the dungeon door, which slammed shut with a solid thud.