Day 1120

The ants have arrived in the village, they slowed down to decrease the vibrations, but the only documented thefts of dungeon cores are from the surface. And the guild in charge of the dungeon always places a powerful retired adventurer near the entrance to watch it.

The dungeon is still young and not very productive, but that does not prevent the guild from being careful. The ants alerted the dungeon upon entering his domain 50 yards from his master chamber, he immediately called his defenders. The ants are accelerated, they operate at night but the guards could be alerted by the noise of the monsters.

They broke through the main chamber and threw themselves among the goblins, there were deaths but the ants had taken the best of them and had already prepared to fight against the goblins. The keeper of the heart of the dungeon, a goblin shaman was overwhelmed and the ants rushed to the core, ripped it off and left. Before collapsing the tunnels, they dropped mana-overloaded Heat Affinity Gems that exploded to erase their tracks.

As soon as the cores were cut from his dungeon, he fell asleep, he could be replanted elsewhere but he would be reborn injured and probably mad. The dungeon on the other hand no longer has a core to direct the flow of mana, the remaining monsters have become wild again, the mana concentration will gradually escape, but until then new monsters will be created periodically. The greatest risk is a wave of monsters spreading outwards.

The ants were already two kilometers away, breaking down the tunnel and hiding their tracks. They stopped in the middle while crossing a river to confuse investigators even though they are unlikely to find them.

I have collected enough mana to start my sixteenth floor, for the trolls I plan to recreate a mountain in five floors, the first will be an open plain and the last the top of the mountain. I think I have enough mana for two floors if I don't spend too much.

So I start with a plain with a few rare trees, the ground is 4 kilometers wide by 10 kilometers long and 100 meters high. I spread wild herbs all over the ground, with scavenger monsters, evolved hyena bands, steel vaults, I also added a new animal, it's a zebra that I dyed white, I gave him the affinity light and a white crone lanyard on the head. The zebra deceives the adventurers with its purity before charging its enemies to skewer them.

The main monsters are snakes, eagles, and trolls, snakes are mainly large builders 20 meters long, which hide in tall grass. Eagles have 4 or 5 meters wingspan, a strong affinity to the wind, steel feathers, and obsidian talons and beaks. Finally the troll are 4 meters high, have a very resistant skin and an extraordinary regeneration, they are stupid and not very fast but extremely strong. I have them individually scattered throughout the plain. I have arranged niches on the walls to shelter the eagles and the snakes.

The guardian of the floor is a chimera, half eagle, half snake, the animal can fly but a multitude of small poisonous snakes replace the feathers, its talons drop powerful venom and it has two serpent heads that start from the base. Suddenly, his eyes have a function of petrification. His two hits are 10 meters each and his wingspan is 15. He also has an affinity for wind to improve his speed which allows him to cast wind spells.

For the second floor, I make the foot of the mountain, the ground is the same size, it begins with a gentle slope before being gradually replaced by a rocky slope whose top rises exponentially to 400 meters, the roof is the average ground level to maintain 100 meters high.

The inhabitants are identical but reinforced, I have small basilicas in the rocks, it is an evolution of the earth attribute serpents guardian. He can turn all weak adventurers to stone, has a very strong defense and can handle Apprentice Earth spells that are 30 meters long and 1.50 meters in diameter. Eagles are faster and can throw wind tornadoes and lightning. The trolls travel in small groups of 2 to 4, they also have soft wooden clubs which they use to crush their enemies.

Finally the guardian of the level and a chimera, this time it is a serpent 50 meters long covered with an obsidian steel alloy feather, it has an eagle's head which spits poison at a distance mixed in blades of winds. 120 eagle legs also come out of its body to support it and strike its enemies.

Day 1170

The two new floors were discovered and the C-ranks began to explore, since the war stagnated and the front became more dangerous for most of the adventurers who could have left the army. Bosses seem a little too powerful at the moment, but when adventurers get used to their attack patterns and weaknesses, they will get there more easily.

Adventurer Groups now leave for a few days when descending beyond the Fifth Floor. They take porters from the slums and an encampment with monster repellents. It's not very effective, but I ask the monsters to leave it to the adventurers who use it.

The VIP and the young girl are closer and closer, the guard does not trust him but he has no choice. The visits to the count have become less frequent because the VIP is sufficiently in love to maintain the enchantment. He has improved very slightly in combat which pleases the guard, and makes him tolerate the young girl.

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I may be starting the VIP Soul Harvest Project soon.

We're not making any real progress with the necromancer anymore but I'm starting to get some hold so I convince him to stay, I'm still waiting before I kill him.

It took ten days for the ants to return from their expedition. I can finally immerse myself in the study of the nucleus, I immediately start working on improving my heart.

Day 1171

The dungeon cores are laid out in front of me, I'm not sure if I can observe it and I prefer not, it might just disappear. The cores are completely opaque to my senses, I cannot feel anything inside or know how it is made. The experiments are likely to last a long time.

I dive deep into my thoughts when I sense something wrong in my field, no, at the center of my field. I tremble then in front of the terror which seizes me when I see what happens. The necromancer is trying to steal from me, it glows black and its power keeps me from doing anything. He has already entered my alchemy room and steal several components, he has done the same in the enchantment room and is now heading to the real room of rituals.

How did I not notice it instead? the necromancer manipulated me, a dungeon, as I looked at him like prey. I immediately command the ants and create dozens of trolls to protect my core. The walls are shaking and I open passages for the ants, unfortunately I cannot reach anything within a hundred yards of the necromancer.

He enters the hall of rituals and I don't have time to erase the evidence before I can no longer touch anything. He is speechless at the circles and demonic runic charts before grinning viciously. He takes out a crystal and puts it back in his robes two seconds later.

He gets serious again and rushes out of the room, the ants all die as soon as they get close, they are of no use, he heads for the storage room and I will soon lose control of that room too. I then order all my available monsters to attack, I feel my mana draining quickly as I produce more monsters.

The necromancer gets closer and closer and without thinking I absorb the whole room so that he doesn't steal anything from me, I see him sigh then start to sing. That's when I remember the dungeon cores being in the storage room. A second after I have absorbed all the material I pass out, I just have time to see the necromancer begin to disappear.

Day 1177

I just wake up, six days later, I recall my memories and howl with rage when I see my top floor, the rooms are relatively untouched but the hallways are destroyed and mountains of rotten corpses cover the whole floor. A rank A necromancer is too powerful, I should never have tried to capture him, I have to be more careful, he could have killed me.

No more strangers will enter my top floor, I have to think about my safety, there is no point in learning if it is to die. I quickly rebuild my top floor, but notice the ants have been more than wiped out, 60% of the ants are dead. I don't understand why the majority of the corpses are in the colony, far from the battle, I panic at the idea of a poison that would have infected them all but it's even trickier.

It's a soul curse, the level of the necromancer has improved a lot and I don't know if I would be able to remove it. All ants except the queen are affected, however I am relieved to learn that newborns are not affected.

I regain control of the whole dungeon, come to my senses and finish putting everything in order on the top floor. It seems no one was aware of this threat to my life outside.

I then focus on the soul curse, it is actually a fairly weak soul mark that spreads between individuals, I fail to remove the curse and I have to personally remove the mark on each ant. They are still tens of thousands !! I let part of my mind take care of it but the ants keep dying so I focus on the more powerful ones.

The colony will be almost completely renewed after this episode.

I then remember the dungeon cores, I dive into my memories and I smile without thinking about it, there is no problem in absorbing the dungeons. I have acquired all its knowledge, even if it is useless to me, but above all I now know its internal structure perfectly. I will be able to upgrade my kernel much faster.

My joy disappears immediately when I remember who was responsible for this incident, I was nowhere near the invasion from within. I need to improve my security, especially since the necromancer might come back to get revenge for what I did to him. all the ants that surrounded his cave are dead, they found nothing inside.

I'm mad at myself for my recklessness, I thought I was in control but I got screwed, the power went to my head. I must remember my journey, I could only survive as an alchemist thanks to strategies and plots.

Thinking of the VIP, I have to revisit my plan, to ensure that I am not connected to the murder, but I will not give up by this soul.

Day 1178

All the ants I couldn't save are dead, only 13% of the number of ants left before the necromancer attacked. They will take time to get up.

I started to develop a recipe and an alchemical process to condense and evolve my heart. I risk being disabled for several days so I have to choose a time when I have no current business.

The war worsened and the kingdom's troops even retreated slightly, they have not yet crossed the border but this unexpected situation has lowered the morale of the army. The alliance is pushing for a peace treaty and reparations to compensate the Eastern Kingdom.

I have improved the assassination plan, I have prepared documents that link the girl to a demonic cult that opposes the church, I have not disclosed the evidence. The earl will help the church find them during the investigation the inquisitors carry out.

The plan will be carried out in four days, in the meantime I prepare obstacles and build a secret and realistic background for the young girl. The investigation does not have to be fluid and without difficulty. There must be lies and twists and turns without being exaggerated for the story to be believable, plus it is the Inquisitors who must uncover the evidence for it to be recognized. Finally, I cannot create significant demonic cults in the city or the count would be accused of mismanaging his city. It's a delicate balance that I have to constantly adjust without leaving a mark.