Before I could get started on my creature's lack of power something unexpected happened.

A pack of 6 wolves came running in after a pair of horned hares. While the wolves were startled at first from the sudden change of scenery, they quickly continued their chase.

The first casualty took place soon after when the horned hares too light to set it off made it across one of the spike pits. The 2-leading wolves were not so lucky.

Their combined wait easily cracked the slate dropping them on the mana crystal tipped spikes, that are as hard as diamond I might add. As a surprise to no one the spikes ripped thtough them like a hot knife through butter.

I mean it better each spike tip cost an hours' worth of mana.

Even if the outcome was expected it was still a bit gruesome with their intestines spilling out all over the pit. But that line of thought was quickly forgotten when there XP came rushing into my core resting back at the base of the crystal tree.

The feeling was amazing the new found strength and power flowing through my core was hard to describe. There was a small tingling when a few cave bugs died but this is a whole new level.

I wanted... No, I needed to kill those other wolves. But as I returned my attention back to them, I noticed they were quite scared and were going to leave soon if I don’t do something.

So quickly thinking up a strategy I had a dozen vipers surprise attack the horned hares. They were actually stronger than I thought managing to kill 4 of the vipers and even impaling another before dying to the poison.

I then spawned a new hare and had him jumping around on the other side of the pit trying to attract the wolfs.

They seemed tempted but it wasn’t going to be enough. So, thinking of a new stratagem I absorbed the dead wolves and created one slightly further down in the tunnels out of sight and ordered it to call for help.

That really got their attention, after a short pause they came to a decision and jumped over the pit securing their fate.

As they were following their siren call of death 2 more of them was taken out by a spring-loaded spike trap.

Finally realizing the first trap wasn’t a fluke the last 2 turned around but it was already too late.

one of them was suddenly impaled threw the heart by a horned hare. Startled so much from the common hares’ sudden aggressiveness. It was already too late to dodge the snakes.

As I was celebrating my first complete victory, I got a message.

*Congratulations core level rising... core level now 1*

I could suddenly feel my connection to the void grow and along with it a rush of mana that condensed around me increasing my size to about a small marble.

And along with my increased magical power came new skills.

*New skills unlocked: Simple Automating, Loot Distribution, Assign Boss*

I quickly checked theirdescriptions.

*Simple Automating: the dungeon can assign simple tasks such as responding creatures, resetting traps, and fixing structures to be done automatically*

*Loot Distribution: dungeon can now create ‘loot pools’ for your creatures or treasure chests that can either be assigned manually or automatically by the system based on the awarded party's performance, loot is based on the dungeons available blueprints*

*Assign Boss: assign a creature as boss of a floor slightly increasing their strength and magic and responding them back with their memories, but restricting their strength to always be a little below the next assigned floors boss.

Well, these seem immensely useful.

Once I was done automating everything I could. I decided to create 2 treasure chests one just past the vine wall too doom the greedy who recklessly try to get it quickly, and one at the end of the path near the crystal tree as a reward for beating the boss once he was made.

I decided to leave the loot up to the system, I was quite curries what it would make even if it wouldn't give me any new materials.

Now that all of that was taken care of it was finally time to see if I could upgrade my creatures. “unless something else is going to interrupt me!... well, it was worth a shot.”

calling my new wolf to me I decided to experiment. The system said that arcane magic was basically XP, and unlike other dungeons who can only use it threw their skills I can control it freely. Then doesn’t that mean I could just pump them full of it until they evolve like giving a Pokémon rare candy.

So, I started streaming arcane into the wolf and instantly saw resalts.

They become enveloped in a white light and started growing “Heh they really are Pokémon”

But something seemed off because it's still growing... and growing... and growing.

Um are they supposed to get that big? Man, sometimes I wish I had someone to talk too. But that wasn’t what was important right now.

Finally deciding I should abort the test, trying to stop the mana flow but it was already too late.

It was around the size of a school bus when... Pop!

The wolf exploded sending huge chunks of fleshy shrapnel raining down across the cavern.

Well, that was an unpleasant experience... and an expensive one too that little debacle took nearly ¾ of my mana.

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Deciding to experiment on some of my smaller creatures. I found out that while their size or how deadly they looked changed with the amount of mana, no matter how little I gave them they always popped.

Well, I guess that’s why you need to get little filtered amounts from killing instead. I guess the average body just can't withstand the mana...

But! What about the spell that creates their body! It has no fiscal mass to pop.

I quickly gave it a shot and... The spell overloaded...

But for a secant it had worked.

So, I tried again and practiced over and over taking brakes only when my mana ran out.

But still I kept trying for hours maybe even days till I got a since of just how much the spell could take till finally it worked!

But... that didn’t look like an evolved wolf perse, but it definitely wasn’t a normal one!

Hopefully identify will have some answers.

*True Wolf: a common wolf that has reached the pinacol of its species in every conceivable way*

Looking closer it did kind of seem that way.

He wasn’t only little bigger; his muscles were huge but taut, and his fur wasn’t only fine and soft but looked strong as well. He looked like a perfectly sculpted statue of the greatest wolf to ever live.

But that gleam in his eyes were the most striking feature of all.

He was intelligent but how much so would have to wait to be seen.

Over the next week I slowly replaced and repopulated my dungeon, maybe even a little too over populated my entire dungeon with the ‘True’ versions of all my creatures and even the plants.

Luckly none of them need food or water or I would have had some problems.

But the best part is that Some of them even gained very miner mana affinities giving a hint of magic to their attacks.

Like a wolf's claws coated in wind to cut deeper, a snake's body coted in lighting to lunge faster, or a lava crabs' pincers cutting as well as melting, even the minnows' water spit being comparable to a weak magic water bullet.

While most plants’ change was pretty mediocre with slightly faster grow speed, regen, and taster fruit.

The deadly lover actually gained the ability to shot miner magic attacks based on what kind of flowers it was growing. And could now bind to a small tight nit group of plants if the conditions were right. I even got one to consider the entire vine wall in the last room as its partner.

One of the most interesting changes tough was in the lesser elemental wisps.

Every once in a while, I can see a faint outline of different small body shapes in their little balls of light.

I spawned a bunch and had them go out and partner up with some of my creatures that affinity matched up with their element so they can hopefully help boost each other's attacks.

Now my next step before beginning my 2nd floor is to create a Boss of some sort.

While no one creature by its self is strong enough, what if I get a few of them to work together as if they were one.

I called over one of the wolfs to come over. This one seemed to have developed some sort of nature affinity, while it wasn't very strong right now barely able to control how plants move. But that alone will greatly help with what I have planned.

First, I coted the wolfs fur in a muddy lair of rich soil to give him a one with the earth feel. Thin I fused together vines, saplings, weeds, mushrooms, and a deadly lover into a kind of armor around him and then assigned a dozen of lesser wisps to stick with him at all times.

All these things greatly reduced his speed but I hoped turning him into the boss would help with that.

After assigning him as the boss he was enveloped by a familiar white light that only lasted a moment nothing long enough to create too drastic of a change.

He was slightly bigger maybe even a little smarter, but the biggest change was that everything on him seemed a little more permanent. Is the best way I could describe it.

Checking identify called him a True Wolf Druid (Floor 1 Boss) so while he may not have evolved yet he had gained a ‘Class’ of sorts.

I then ordered him to wonder the floor dueling the other monsters here to get a better feal for his new abilities.

I also called out open season for the rest of the dungeon creatures for both battle and fornication after making them all nests and burrows.

While reproducing the old-fashioned way worked it was slow. And killing each other got them XP, it was greatly reduced and had to be earned threw battle.

So, I did not force any creatures who did not wish to participate.

I decided to take a minute to just watch and appreciate all my hard work, and felt pride in what I created.

It may just be a murder hole, but it was my murder hole.

After enjoying my much-deserved brake for a while I turned my attention to digging out my 2nd floor below the tree.

I have been receiving some, Enticing? Mana fluctuations from down there for a little while now.

__________________________

POV: Kronos

“Huh what was that, where am I.”

As the pain and blurriness slowly faded from my mind, I finally remembered the circumstances leading up to my... ‘Accident’

Damn you Sole and Mercury I swear on my divine spark I will get my revenge one day!

Taking a moment and focusing on the laws of the universe I have been stuck in my ‘Forced Slumber’ for...

300 years! It... it couldn't be...

Man, I must have been hurt a lot more Siverly that I thought.

But then what woke me up then?

Focusing my attention upwards I focused on what it could have been.

There seems to have been some sort of large explosion of pure arcane mana nearby.

But that’s impossible no one has that much arcane to just fling around innless you’re a dungeon...

Hahaha yes... yes, this is perfect.

If I can take it over, not only can I gain a body with direct access to arcane mana. But I can create a great army of monster more dangerous than the world has ever seen to get revenge on those ‘Godly’ pricks Sole and Mercury.

But according to the laws of the universe no one not even a god Is allowed to directly attack a dungeon core.

Unless! It attacks first. It wouldn’t be possible in all my former glory but now in my current state it just might be.

Suppressing my dwindling godly aura even further and using my small amount of remaining mana to both make me look absolutely delicious to its instincts and to prevent it from identifying me.

Now come on you’ stupid little murder hole, come and get me. I mean what dungeon wouldn’t try absorbing some rare and mysteries mana rich materiel?...

“What... is... Taking so long!” It has been days and I'm almost out of mana... if this doesn’t work...

Luckly for my mana and my sanity not to long after I finally detected its aura moving closer.

Now the line and hook have been set, now I only need the fish to bite.

_________________________

POV: Core

As I dug down in a spiral staircase the enticing mana signal only grew stronger.

While it did seem a little sus, I just choked it up too my instincts knowing it's something important to a dungeon's growth.

As I dug down, I eventually broke into a new cavern.

While this one was only half the size of the one above it looked a lot more expansive with a lot of branching off tunnels.

And this cavern had a great beauty of its own.

The walls and ceiling were incrusted in many kinds of gems, crystals and minerals. While the cavern floor was covered in strange flora and fauna.

But I ignored all of that for now.

Drawn to the great pillar in the scenter covered in veins of magical metal identify called mithril.

But again, I bypassed it focusing on the now almost irresistible mana coming from some kind of colorless flame at its center.

Wondering what could attract me, so I used identify and all I got back was.

*?????*

Now that made me even more curries.

Not being able to hold back any more I tried to absorb it...

But I quickly realized I had made a huge mistake.

It was alive! And it was trying to absorb me!

No... it was more than that it was erasing me taking over my core!

I... I could feal myself... slipping... away... no... No... NO!

I will not just slip calmly into the void. I did not then I will not now!

Pushing my vast quantities of arcane magic to the limits of my control I retaliated smacking it away from me and surrounding it in arcane.

Preparing to flood it with arcane and watch it with satisfaction as it pops like all my creatures that came before it, suddenly...

“Wait! Please don’t I submit!”

“You... You can speak!?”

“Ye... Yes! And apparently you can too. My names Kronos by the way.”

“I... I don’t have a name yet so... you can just call me Core. But tell me, why did you attack me?”

“Well, that’s kind of a long story but if you must know around 300 years ago....”