Rai Dharani - Dungeon Lord
It has been two and a half hours since Redrock left the Imp negotiation team in the forest near the ruins. After the first hour of waiting, I directed the Imps to sleep till the three-hour time limit was up. If they didn't return in thirty minutes, I would risk leading them to the Dungeon on foot. The Triplets and Timun also decided to nap, but my Golem Avatar remained alert and awake. During the past hour, I studied the details of the sleeping Imps through the Interface. It took me a few minutes to locate the Archer Hunter Imp and the Rune Smith Imp that Nazrat had mentioned among the 77 Imps.
[Name: Lock-On
Race: Imp Hunter Caste (Non-Human)
Title: None
Class: Mana Archer (Combat Class)
Rank: Clay
Elemental Affinity: Blood (Dormant)
EXP Bar: Lv 8 250/500
Skills: Lock-On (Clay), Mana Arrow Creation (Clay), Explosive Mana Arrow (Clay), Enhanced Senses (Clay), Focus Breath (Clay), Long Shot (Clay), Pin Shot (Clay), Mana Bow Creation (Clay), Triple Shot (Clay), Double Shot (Clay), Mana Crystal Absorption (Clay), Eagle Eyes (Clay), Zen Meditation (Clay)
Language Skills: Impan, Falaran, English]
I found Lock-On's class intriguing as it relies heavily on Mana, much like a Mage. However, Lock-On has a large Mana Pool of over 500. The MP cost to use his skills ranges from 5 to 100 MP, with the Explosive Mana Arrow being the most costly. If he kept to the normal Mana Arrows, he could fire a steady stream of attacks for 10 minutes before he ran out of Mana.
Now, I have three Imps with a large Mana Pool who could use the Chimeramancy Spelltome. But I will wait to use it when I have the spare Monsters to experiment with.
I also noticed that the Interface now displays the elemental affinities of creatures I study in its list. Rachel reasoned that I had acquired a minion of all the 10 Elemental Affinities, which might have been a hidden condition to unlock.
All 77 Imps have their Elemental Affinities in the Dormant status. I learned from Amon that the 20 Human Imps from the Falar Mage Academy have the same problem. Still, the solution for them is to eat Elemental Cores to awaken their Elemental Affinity and unlock their Mage Class. Only the Mage Caste Imps unlocked it when they matured. So, I assumed that the other Imp Castes need stimulation with an Elemental Core to awaken their Elemental Affinities. I need to experiment to find out.
The Hunter Caste Imps resembled overgrown Spider Monkeys. Apart from Lock-On, the others had tracking, mapping, sneaking, spearing, acrobatics, fishing and superior evasion skills. Their tails were natural whips covered in small spikes like a rose thorn stem. Redrock's whip looked eerily similar to it, so I assumed he made it out of their tails.
Further observation of the Warrior Caste Imps revealed they could briefly manifest their Mana and condense it into weapons, much like the Mana Great Sword Skill my Warrior Golem has unlocked. I dubbed those types the 'Mana Warriors' and the Imps who relied on Fangs, Claws, Punches, and Kicks as the 'Savage Warriors.' Nazrat falls into the latter category.
[Name: Maya
Race: Imp Smith Caste (Non-Human)
Title: None
Class: Rune Smith (Non-Combat Class) Metal Smith (Non-Combat Class)
Rank: Clay
Elemental Affinity: Fire (Dormant)
EXP Bar: Lv 9 155/500
Skills: Metal Knowledge (Clay), Smith (Clay), Rune Engraver (Clay), Rune Knowledge (Clay), Mana Hammer (Clay), Heat Resistance (Clay), Gemstone Cutter (Clay)
Language Skills: Impan, Falaran, English]
Maya is the only female Imp among the 77 Imps in the group. The other Smith Caste Imps don't have the Rune Engraver, Rune Knowledge and Gem Cutter skills. It is unclear whether she was born with the ability or was taught by a senior Imp. I plan on giving her some raw gemstones from the Dungeon to cut and slot one into the equipment made from the Knight Schematics to see how much it can improve them.
The Priest Caste Imps possess skills useful for blessing buffs and cursing enemies with debuffs. They share the same Priest Skills as Nazrat, but their bodies are weaker in comparison, resembling overweight gibbons. Despite this, their MP size is as large as the Dark Fae Bear, making them a crucial component in any battle. They lack offensive skills, but if they gain access to their Elemental Affinities, then that should solve that deficiency.
The Builder Caste Imps are Japanese Macques but double the size. They have the same abilities as my Builder Golem. But, the main difference is that they can have a skill called 'Reverse Engineering,' as the name suggests, which lets them break apart equipment they get their hands on and create their Schematics. So, if I acquire a rare piece of equipment, I can mass produce it through my Builder Imps if I have the right materials.
As I was thinking about the possibilities, I noticed an Imp sneaking into our Warehouse. The Interface automatically highlighted the Imp as one of my minions since I could see its Name, Class, HP, MP, and EXP Bars above its head.
"Yolo!" I yelled, waking Timun and the triplets, who were napping near me. The rest of the Imps are still sound asleep. Yolo approached us and started writing on the ground with his tail in Falaran. I would have had to translate it to Timun and the Triplets if it was in English. The Interface translated it for me.
[Safe Passage through both ruins has been achieved for a limited time for everyone!]
"Everyone? Does that mean we can go through it, too?" Redrock asked.
[Yes!]
"Then I will wake them all up and prepare the carriage!" Redrock said before carrying it out.
"What about the others?" I ask.
[All Good! Nazrat defeated the leader of the Rodwin Ruin in a duel and Ranked Up. He recruited 255 Clay Rank Imps who wished to go to the Dungeon and serve you. The rest retreated to the Underworld. But when we used the Obelisk to cross over, we found thousands of dead Imps piled up and the flag of the Heroes Church planted on top of them]
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Huh? Brock and his Imp brother secured a deal between the Heroes Church and the Imps in that Ruin. Why did they kill them right after that?
"Are the ones that killed the Imps still there?" I ask.
[We tracked their scent to a large camp near the ruins and must move quickly to the Dungeon before dawn]
After half an hour of traveling, we arrived at the ruins near Rodwin and discovered they were vacant of Imps. Yolo showed us where Nazrat had killed and consumed the Chief. The rest of the Imps had probably fled there to summon the High Chief, and the higher-ranked Imps were away in the Underworld, so Yolo urged us to move quickly. When I reached the base of the Obelisk at the center of the ruins, I was struck by its impressive design. The Obelisk was 30 meters tall, made of pure white marble, and covered in countless runes that changed colors every ten seconds.
I placed my Golem hand on it, and then a menu screen popped up with a 3D map of Arya with 11 Obelisks shining. The one which I am using is not shining.
[Choose destination by touching the Obelisk
Fortress City One - Central Arya
Fortress City Two - Northern Arya
Fortress City Three - Southern Arya
Fortress City Four - Eastern Arya
Fortress City Five - Western Arya
Fortress City Six - Mining Town
Fortress City Seven - Fishing Town
Fortress City Eight - Farming Town
Fortress City Nine - Smithing Town
Fortress City Ten - Hunter Town
Fortress City Eleven - Lumber Town]
The first five Obelisks are located near the five Human Kingdom Capitols, and the others are scattered between them.
"Odd names for Towns." I pointed out to the Triplets, who were also touching the Obelisk.
"The Original Fae name things according to their purpose or geography. This Obelisk was called 'Trader Town,' which means it was a trading hub long before it became Rodwin's Market." Whiterock explained.
"Chat later! I can feel vibrations from below." Timun urged as he put his head to the ground.
"What's wrong?" I ask.
"Something big, and many little ones follow it. I am guessing it's their Chief and the rest of the Imps of this Ruin." Timun said.
I quickly selected the Obleisk at the center since it is the closest to Arya's tallest mountain, which the Dungeon is under.
[Single or Mass Teleport?]
When I press the Mass Teleport option, a picture of all those who gather at the base of the Obelisk pops up on the screen. It creates a paintbrush out of Mana to select the ones I want to bring.
After I brush over everyone, we all experience the world melting away to white and repainted. It took barely ten seconds to get from one Ruin to the other. I looked around and counted everyone until I was sure we had all made it.
"I hope this obelisk doesn't reveal our destination to their High Chief," Timun said.
"We will find out soon if we stay here. Where are Nazrat and the New Imps, Yolo?" I asked and wrote it on the floor
[Nazrat led them to the Dungeon because the new Imps were scared of staying near the Humans who killed all the Imps in this Ruin]
"I see, then let's head to the Dungeon," I instruct.
As we were making our way out of the Ruins, we passed by the Imp corpses, and I found Brock's Imp brother at the top of the pile with the flag staked through his chest. I willed myself to ignore it and urged everyone to keep moving. Luckily, no animal predators or Adventurers were roaming the way to the Dungeon.
The Imps were getting more excited as we approached the Dungeon entrance—especially the Sin Imps, who have memories of the first few generations of Imps born here. Once we got through the Dungeon entrance and entered the Grassland on the first level, the 255 Imps, the Sin Imps and two Golems welcomed us.
"Welcome back, Boss!" Builder exclaimed.
"My Lord! You brought back an army!" Miner exclaimed.
"It's good to be back home!" I replied, and then I admired Nazrat's new form. I noticed he wore a Unicorn helmet made of rare metals and diamonds.
"Are you proud of me, High Chief?" Nazrat asked.
"Very proud! But what is that you're wearing?" I ask, and Valgrind steps out of the crowd to reply.
"That belonged to my Grandfather! It was among the belongings that the Headmaster returned to us. I gave it to Nazrat because I owe him for saving it. But he promised to return it to me once I become a Mage Knight." said Valgrind.
"I see!" I reply and then take in the view of the 255 new Imps among the crowd. One among them steps forward to greet me.
"I am Toru, brother of the Torak who Nazrat defeated in the Duel. We had no idea that he served the Dungeon Lord. My brother was a believer, but fate has robbed him of service to you. Why didn't you send a messenger to all the ruins to inform us of your return? I am sure the believers would come running here to see if it was true." Toru pointed out.
"I am sorry for what happened to your brother. I felt my identity would confuse your tribe, so I ordered them not to reveal it." I informed him. Though Yolo suggested it, I agreed to it. Even if his brother believed in me, I doubt he could have convinced the rest of the tribe to follow Nazrat to the Dungeon without proof.
I pulled out the Dungeon Minion Contract from storage and read the rules for becoming my minion. The new Imps listened and then signed the contract one by one with Timun's Mana Pen, which he once again lent to me. I really should find a way to make Mana Paper and Mana Pens when the Mana Trees are ready for harvest.
[Rai Dharani has gained 255 Imps as minions]
[Total Imp minion count is over 300 - Impan Language has been acquired]
Oh? I can speak Impan now.
"Yolo! Can you understand me?" I ask it in Impan, moving my hands to make signs and a few grunt sounds.
"Lord Rai! Did you harvest an Imp to learn it?" Yolo asked back in Impan.
"No, I didn't. It was a reward for gathering over 300 Imps as my minions. How do you know about harvesting souls for it?" I ask.
"The last Dungeon Lord used that method to learn all the Human languages and Dwarven." Yolo pointed out.
It's a shame I can't learn the Dwarven language unless a Dwarf dies here for his soul to be captured. Wait!
"Timun! Can you give me one of the 300 Dwarf Warrior Soul Figurines?" I ask.
"Are you ready to summon a Golem already? If so, I suggest we summon Battle Master Harkin. He was the most beloved Warrior among Hindgar's Dwarves." Timun reasoned and pulled out a Dwarf Soul Figurine from his storage ring. Its Black skinned in Blood-Red armor carrying several weapons on his back. The Interface gave me a notification when he handed it to me.
[Ownership of the Soul Figurine has been transferred to you]
[The Dungeon can absorb and transfer it into your storage space in the Dungeon Core. Do you wish me to Summon it into a Golem Warrior?]
[When I learned that Timun had promised you 300 Dwarf Warrior Souls, I requested Builder to store them in the Core so that we can summon them quickly]
Immediately, the Soul figurine in my Golem hand disappeared.
"Huh? What happened to Harkin?" Timun asked.
"I gave the order to the Dungeon Core to Sumon Harkin as a Warrior Golem. He should come up in a few minutes." I inform.
[Souls captured by the Dungeon: One Warrior Soul]
[New Language Skill acquired: Dwarvern]
[Soul Figurine has been stored in your Personal Storage space]
[Soul Memories have been saved into the Core Memory Bank]
[A new Warrior Golem has been Summoned!]