In a corner of the universe, a planet inhabited by all sorts of sentient beings was selected to go on to the next step of evolution. The core of that planet is connected to the source axis, the origin of all magic, and leylines spread from it reaching below earth and sea to cover the whole planet. However, the core magic was too rough and would destroy life on the planet instead. So, the Gods interfered and created converters to make the core power evolutional and nourishing. Thus, the dungeon cores were born.

Trillions of light-years away, on a planet that was fated to never be connected with the source axis, a woman who passed her life writing about fantasy and magic died. Her dying wish, directed to all and any Gods that might be listening, was to be reborn in a world where her dreams were true. Unexpectedly, one of Them was listening and decided to fulfill her wish.

***

“Where… am I?” Mary asked, though her voice, like her body, was no more. So, her ‘words’ seemed closer to thoughts than sound.

“Welcome, Mary of Earth. You are at nowhere, where everything began and shall end. You do not have a word for here, but it is close enough to call it afterlife.” An ethereal voice that seemed to come from everywhere answered.

“I see… I died, right?” She asked sadly.

“Your earthly body did.” The voice explained. Oddly, it sounded like some kind of consolation.

“Can I ask you something? Did I finish it? My book… did I finish writing it?” Mary asked hesitantly.

“Yes, you did.” The voice sounded without emotion.

“Good… I wouldn’t be able to ‘rest in peace’ if my readers didn’t get the end that they deserved. So, I guess… is this it? I mean, do I rest in peace now?” She asked with some uncertainty, then proceed: “Or maybe, do I get another chance? Reincarnation would be so coo… I mean, a good chance to become a better person and evolve.” The thoughts just left her ‘mind’ without much filter. It seemed that the ‘dead’ state did wonder for sincerity.

“You can rest here, but eventually you will need to re-enter the cycle of life.” The voice said.

“Oh, that’s good… What’s gonna be now? Will I be born into a big family? Is it the same time or… Wait, I’ll be born a girl, right?” Countless questions poured out of her mind as she thought of them.

“We can grant your wish if you still want it. However, there will be a penalty for transferring your soul to another world, you will not be able to reincarnate as a human, not for the next three reincarnations, at least.” The voice stated emotionless.

“Of course, of course. I want it very much.” Mary hurried to accept. “That’s normal, reincarnating in another world always comes with some twist. What am I reincarnating as? A monster, weapon, tree? Oh, an undead maybe?” She asked excitedly.

“A dungeon core.” The voice answered.

“Oh, that. It’s common too…” She said with some disappointment. “I was never much of a dungeon fan, and more like a kingdom-building girl. But I’ll make it work.” Mary explained. “Sorry, if I sounded ungrateful. I’m really happy for the chance, really.”

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“…”

The voice didn’t answer, and there was an awkward silence that seemed to, and might have, lasted an eternity. Well, she hadn’t asked anything, so technically the voice didn’t have anything to answer.

“I’m ready. Let’s do this.” She said expectantly.

“So, be it.” She heard before her perception faded.

***

When Mary’s conscience returned, her soul or spirit was flying at a fast speed over forests, seas, and cities. Unknown knowledge of dungeon core survival and evolution had mysteriously been ingrained in her mind. Strangely, her ‘sight’ could perceive the surface and the lines of power beneath it at the same time. Somehow, she knew this was a brief chance of choosing a location for her rebirth at any extremity of those lines, or else a random place would be chosen for her.

So, Mary willed her spirit to go higher, where she could get a bigger picture of the planet. At such a distance, she could only make up some greater landmarks, like oceans, continents, and climate regions. As for leylines, only the thicker ones could be seen from that height, which was also part of her strategy. By instinct, she knew that those main leylines would be too deep and only the thinner ones that branched from it towards the surface could summon a core, but keeping close to it would ensure a higher potential of growth.

The thirteen main lines that originated from the planet's core thus became her first filter, and then she excluded the locations where conditions were too harsh. Volcanic areas, oceans, deserts, and glacial regions would indeed provide specialization and a potential initial boost, but she was more inclined to balanced growth. Of course, she would also look for a beginner’s starter pack of her own.

Next, she had to go lower and zoom in on the remaining seven main leylines' surroundings. Two of them were quickly dismissed due to their non-habitability. One of the unequivocal conditions of core evolution was the dungeon being visited by adventurers, which at least required a population closer by, though summoning the core in developed and overpopulated areas seemed dangerous too.

Soon, a general picture of the social organization of the planet appeared in Mary’s ‘mind’, accompanied by countless machinations of her own. The feeling of running out of time grew heavy and pressed her to search faster. As an expert fantasist, she was betting on the hidden and missed Holy Grail. A location easily overlooked because of some obstacle that would become an opportunity in her creative hands. Surprisingly, she found something.

On the border of one the largest continents, there was a sizable valley right next to the sea and surrounded at the other sides by what she judged to be three distinct nations. It seemed to be of difficult access, and only the river that crossed it should be of enough value to warrant a war over its ownership since it would allow transportation into the sea.

South of the valley, there was a mountainous region with a few cities and settlements built into the mountains here and there, a place where Mary hoped would be populated by the famous dwarves. At the north, began the colder region of the continent covered in snow and ice. The western side of the valley bordered both a dense forest and a small part of vast plains.

Another attraction of the valley was the absence of dungeons. Mary understood why other cores would refrain from choosing the place, assuming that they would also be given a choice. If it wasn’t for her memories and will, her core instinct would have compelled the former human to look for a place with a constant stream of adventurers, while the giant valley only had eight to ten loose villages.

Mary zoomed into the area, looking for a magic line close to the surface but with a direct and short connection with the main leylines. Fortunately, she located two of those; one near a village and the crossing river, and the other more at the center of the valley. She could already feel the power of choice escaping from herself, so instead of pondering further she just dived into the closer one, at the center of the valley.

The desperate dungeon core-to-be reached for the line as her conscience faded. The leyline branch was dangerously deep; she should have chosen one closer to the surface. However, the time for choosing had already passed, and Mary could only force her way into the earth. A normal core would already have lost conscience and probably the opportunity of birth, but her strong will broke from her limitations and whatever unseen shell she should have.  And then, she was no more.