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5. A new era

The giant was dead. Acid was alive. For a moment he stood there, staring down at the corpse. Seconds ago it had been massive and intimidating, a giant that could crush him with ease. Now it was just... Dead. He'd killed it with a mix of acid, poison, and quick thinking.

And now he was the new boss of the dungeon's first, and only, floor.

The promotion was different than what he thought it would be like. It had come on him suddenly like a strong wind. With it came a new awareness, a strange sense of the dungeon's current state. Which wasn't good. The constant in-fighting between the factions was worse than he thought. Far worse.

Using his newfound power as boss of the dungeon, Acid issued a command. It was a simple command, one that every monster in the dungeon both heard and felt at the same time.

He ordered all factions be disbanded. If the dungeon was to survive going forward it would need strength. Strength that the factions couldn't provide. Unfortunately, disbanding the factions wasn't as smooth a transition as Acid liked.

There was chaos and lots of it. The previous faction leaders, without the comfort of leading a faction, went near insane. They attacked previous allies and went to war on anything in sight.

All for power.

They killed for the strength it provided. For a chance to rule. Almost none of them survived the night. They were hunted down by monsters that grouped together. After the faction-less leaders were dealt with, these groups split up.

Soon the dungeon was devoid of factions and, more or less, peaceful. The only previous faction leader that survived was a spider that called herself the spider queen. Acid paid her, and the spider's that chose to obey her, no mind. He had work to do.

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Namely strengthening the dungeon, a task his predecessor utterly failed at.

First Acid order that the monsters of the dungeon be spit into three groups. First were the defenders. They would be the front line of defense against intruders. Second were the marked. Their job was to cultivate the natural life that grew in the dungeon, to weaponize and train it. Acid wasn't entirely sure how they would accomplish such a goal. But his new instincts insured him that it would be done.

Last of the three groups was the spawners. Their job was simple, create more monsters.

With these three groups established the dungeon began life anew. All under the careful watch of Acid. Who himself began to change. He grew larger and stronger as the dungeon went from a barely functioning mess, to a proper dungeon. Or proper as far as he knew.

He enjoyed these changes, as they made the other monsters less likely to challenge him. At least for a little while. Eventually came a day that one monster, a giant spider to be specific, decided to challenge him.

As boss of the dungeon he wasn't allowed to refuse, so he reluctantly accepted. Not long after his challenger revealed himself: A spider the size of the wolf that was Grey in color.

Both of them eyed each other up before the fight truly began. The challenger was slightly smaller than Acid, which wasn't exactly a disadvantage. The same could be said of his slightly larger size. The outcome of the fight would depend on a number of factors. None of which were decided yet.

The two ran at each other as soon as they had finished inspecting the other. Acid lifted one of his legs and slammed it down where the Grey spider would be. The attack missed, however, as the Grey spider dashed out of the way.

Acid watched as his opponent went around him to attack from the back. A tactic he countered with a quick spin. He ended up face to face with the challenger. They maintained eye contact for a moment.

Then Acid shot acid at his opponent. It was sudden and caught the smaller spider completely off guard. Within moments the fight was over. The challenger lay on the ground, dead, and Acid had achieved his first victory as boss of the dungeon.

It wouldn't be his last.