The last few hours were spent slowly checking the stone chamber and its occupants. The climb adapted creatures are as ordinary as they get, behaving as they would pre-System integration, besides the climbing part, I assume they're just food for the main creatures, that is, Goblins. I'm curious but have not the courage to try eating the rabbit I had to kill for some answers. I left the corpse in a random part of the weird forest for the dungeon to claim back.
I also managed to find a big tree on the corner opposite of the Goblin village, a place less frequented by them on account of being the furthest away from home. The trees here are generally larger, and the prey more plentiful, not that that's any good for me. None are leveled when I use Inspect on them, just dungeon something; dungeon rabbit or, dungeon rat, dungeon squirrel, blah blah. No exp given on kill.
Not planning to stay here for longer than necessary, but the tree would be my retreat in case things go south. From the earlier conversation, this Dungeon Core is far from normal, thus the need for plan B. For that I would need a way to get myself up there among the massive branches to hide or get under cover.
For this I can think of several solutions. Like making a climbing rope out if mana and using my disks to tie them, only that it would take too much mana, making matter out of energy is expensive! I could also try to practice and get a climbing skill or something of a similar nature. And last but not least, use a spell.
I try to open the CredStore to browse my options, maybe buy a cheap rope, but the interface wouldn't appear even after trying several times. Pretty sure the store should still be working anywhere at least up to tomorrow, it's only the sixth day today, hmm.
So, I'm once again leaning towards the spell option, and can't afford to waste too much mana that making a rope would require. While the skill option might be viable, who knows how long I would need to practice before a skill gets good enough to be useful. Besides, I like designing and using spells!
So, a way to get up there. Flight, walking on walls or gravity manipulation and teleportation comes to mind. I would assume gravity spells to be above the Novice rank. flight too I suspect, possible but uncharted territory, maybe through wind? Though the mana cost might be beyond me.
Spells to enable walking on the wall would be closer to my current rank, maybe something like D&D's spider climb. And possibly teleport spells, whilst far ranging teleportations probably fall under much higher ranks, a short range variant like Blink is probably not too high up. Gonna be feeding my unquenchable hunger for spells and try to get both, ASAP.
Spider Climb was easy enough to obtain, using mana to coat the bottom of my shoes, as well as on my feet and the inner part of my shoe, I managed to walk up a tree. The mana between feet-shoe acts like soft but strong glue, making sure my footwear doesn't come off. Whilst the mana on outside-shoe maintains a firm grip on the soles, while extending out of it are multitudes of tiny, very durable, almost microscopic expanding tendrils that grips on to all crevices on a surface, these tendrils can also toggle between being highly adhesive and whatever is its direct opposite, maybe extra smooth lubricated tendrils. The spell is intent sensitive; step down, adhesive… about to take a step, lube. Only downside I can gleam for now is how the spell would be rendered useless on polished surfaces like a mirror. 'Updates and Inspect! Ty'
** DING **
Skill level up, Mana Sense 10 > 11
Skill level up, Sneaking 9 > 10
Skill level up, Heavy Armor Proficiency 5 > 6
Skill level up, Inspect 9 > 10
Skill level up, SYMPHONY 5 > 6
Skill level up, Sneaking 10 > 11
Spider Climb - Basic. Novice Rank. 30 mp. Unleashing your inner Aranea may be a dream come true if used in conjunction with; Conjure VenoMandibles, Weaving Webbing and Spawn Limbs. Coat your legs or footwear to allow upright movements on walls and ceiling. The spell grips and releases its hold of a surface at the speed of thoughts, this allows it to hold greater mass and support faster movement.
Blink on the other hand, was beyond me. I could not for the life of me figure out a way to move myself and everything I'm carrying instantly from occupying one space to instantly occupying another. Deigning to spend more time than the hour I have already, Spider Climb would have to suffice for now as my only means to climbing the tree.
And thus begin the hunt. I've managed to add an additional five disks to the three I had, all during the hours I spent scouting the chamber, bringing my total to eight. The hunt began with first striking at the Goblins that are ranging further out from their village. They never knew what hit them, as each one would be killed by two disks coming in from their blind side, one disk targeting their head, the other their chest.
I notice that they do not have any Cores, but instead have mana in its natural state coursing throughout their whole body. In exchange, beside the usual experience points and Creds, they would rarely drop loot, I kid you not. I was on my eighth kill when a copy of something the Goblin was carrying just formed out of nothing beside its corpse, a wooden club! 'Inspect.'
** DING **
Crude Wooden Club
Fancy~, I left it there untouched. The drops range from useless objects like the club from earlier, and even loincloths up to various herbs and mushrooms, sometimes materials made out of the local fauna may also be found. The herbs, shrooms and materials I collect into my repository to be identified later. Might have been another hour or two, with maybe fourty or so kills under my belt when the Dungeon's booming voice came back.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
"STOP KILLING EACH OTHERS MY CHILDREN"
She's not very bright, but I like my hostile Dungeons that way. The hunting continues, mostly finding pairs or the occasional team of threes instead of lone Goblins now that I am getting closer to their nest. Inspired by the Dungeon herself, I started setting them against each other, plenty of stuff to throw at them around. They're simple enough to fool most of the time, especially the lower leveled creatures. The Core also kept at it with booming out, please don't my children, every once in a while. I pause and duck behind the closest object every single time that happens, who knows what's in store for me when found. Eventually the motherly-wannabe voice stops, my hunt does not.
Not all too long after her silence that the amount of goblins roaming around the forest slowly peters out.
"I KNOW YOU'RE IN HERE INTRUDER, I WONDER WHAT YOU'LL DO NOW? RAID A VILLAGE WITH 422 OCCUPANTS BY YOUR LONESOME?"
"I…" my wisdom kicked off the moment I wanted to answer her out of habit, that would definitely tell her that I can understand what she's saying. "Wonder where they are?" Hastily changing my behavior to that of a confused person, I scratched my head and turned it to one side then the other. Can she hear me? See me?
"I CAN HEAR YOU LITTLE BOY~, JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE INVISIBLE TO MY DUNGEON SENSE DOESN'T MEAN YOU'RE SAFE~. YOU'LL NEVER MAKE IT OUT OF HERE ALIVE!!"
Does she have to monologue like that... Though her doing that is giving me clues, so maybe please carry on. clues like 422 goblins left in total, and that there is a dungeon sense. Anyways, that's a lot of enemies… Though I kinda expect them to go crazy and chase after me, therefore forcing me to hide on the giant tree, not the other way around.
Y'know, a mass of coreless enemies to slay, with loots I care less about, and while running on a time limit. What perfect test subjects for one specific spell! Though some things will need to be added or changed.
---
I can see the whole village from my vantage on the tallest, thickest tree I can find, on this side of the chamber. Seems pretty crowded there, the village was definitely not built to hold all its citizens at once, all the better for me. Fights break out over food and the more comfortable spots, though most fights happens outside the biggest shack there is, the winner would go in for a few minutes, before coming back out with all tension gone... I dread finding out.
There are too many of them in too small a space to discover any apparent flaw with their watch, I'm no master strategist and things have gone so far south that I could only come up with the simplest plan. So, I walk down the tree and leisurely approach the village, the Trilattic Swarm and I under magical camouflage. Not Trying to be cool, just allowing the camo more time to adjust, therefore causing less ripples.
None of the Gobs on the outskirts are keen enough to spot a slow moving ripple in space, allowing me to infiltrate one of the outer shacks, any deeper in would risk me bumping into at least one of the pests. The shack contains ten sleeping Goblins, it's a pretty small space. Though this is as good as any, so I recheck the changes I plan to make on Will-o'-Woe just go be doubly sure while standing a little to the side of the entrance.
Most important of all would be to change the creatures so as to be formed out of pure mana instead of flames, just like their weal counterpart. The flames instead, would be produced when within the target they are affecting until the creature dies or have their mana exhausted. The excess mana would then be reconverted into duplicate woe-lifes. Second, the addition of an aquatic form, the flying fish, a more flying version of said fish which has better maneuver and move-ability in the air. Imagine a swarm of these little fishes flying from one living target to another, leaving behind enemy corpses, majestic! The spell would also need to be under better control, so a pebble sized control core would form on the casters hand, one that maintains their connection to every single woe-life, old and new.
Through it, they may telepathically order the creatures to; standby, continue or dissolve. Upon dissolving, the user may choose one of three other choices; diffuse into ambient mana, or regenerate caster's mana then one of the other two, or to compress and materialize, which means gathering all the mana and compressing it into the control core and becoming substance, hopefully this would reform some of the monster cores they consumed. Last but not least, let's use 50 mana instead of the initial 75.
Targets are the goblins. Will-o'-Woe!
A cone silently burst out of my open palm, aimed at the general direction of the sleeping gobs. They coalesced into many tiny creatures in various shades of dark gray, I count fifteen before they seep into their unwary targets. I can also feel the core forming on the palm they were cast out of, a growing weight that I grab by reflex. Wisdom made me book it out of there before the screaming started, climb-walking one of the walls into a medium sized protrusion that houses a colony of mushrooms with suspicious color. I'm keeping my distance, thank you!
'Updates please, while I wait.'
** DING **
Skill level up, Thrown Weapon Proficiency 1 > 2
Skill level up, Unarmed Combat Proficiency 4 > 5
Skill level up, Taunt 3 > 4
Skill level up, Thrown Weapon Proficiency 2 > 3
Skill level up, Taunt 4 > 5
Skill level up, Thrown Weapon Proficiency 3 > 4
Skill level up, Sneaking 11 > 12
Skill level up, Visualization 11 > 12
Skill level up, Mana Manipulation 16 > 17
Skill level up, SYMPHONY 6 > 7
Combat summary
Enemies slain:
Goblins lv 5 x 61
Goblins lv 6 x 55
Goblins lv 7 x 13
Goblins lv 8 x 9
798 syscred and 4718 exp awarded
You are now level 5
Will-o'-Woe - Early, mastery expanded
Spell mastery rank up, Will-o'-Woe Early - Basic
Would you like to make Will-o'-Woe available on the CredStore?
'No thanks.' The creatures becoming pure mana with slight attunements and the lower mana cost is probably the Early mastery expansion, while the fish forms and control core something for the next mastery.
Spell logged
Soon the screaming started, black dots began spreading out of the shack and into any prey nearby. What'chu gonna do now miss Dungeon Core?