“So, what?” I asked, hearing Alysia trying to calm me down. “You captured her and forced her into your experiment?”

“That wasn’t even necessary.” The man chuckled. “She volunteered just like me.”

“…”

“I might have convinced her that if she allowed us to do it, that she would be able to find a way to bring back her precious, deceased Master. It wasn’t a lie. In theory, if she became powerful enough, she’d have the ability to track down and recover even the most damaged of lore. Of course, we’d never have allowed her to do as she wanted. When the time came, we tried to activate her slave mark.” His gleeful expression turned ugly. “Then she somehow sucked in the power of the dungeon core and became a living dungeon, then killed everyone. I had to flee using my dungeon privileges. I had to play dead so that she’d leave. It seriously cost me much.”

Miki had gone through such a fate. I felt anger, but mostly I felt guilt. I could have prevented this. If I had been there, I could have…

“It’s alright… we can still fix this,” Alysia whispered soothingly.

If she hadn’t been there, I might have already lost myself.

“Thank you…” I responded, restoring my breath to a normal rhythm before glaring at this foxkin man. “So, you’re trapped down here?”

“To an extent, I still have been able to communicate with the outside world. The king is making his move now. He’s sent an army to meet her outside of the rabbitkin city. Of course, he could let her destroy them, but when he captures her, he’ll be the rabbitkin hero. At that point, how can they continue to revolt?”

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“Why have you told me all of this?” I asked.

He smiled, lifting his hands. “This is my life’s research? What scientist doesn’t want to talk about what they’ve done? Besides, I’m a dead man.”

“…”

“I’m was merely the head scientist for this laboratory, I didn’t even want to be a dungeon master, but that responsibility was thrust on me. The core is gone. Had it been destroyed, then my connection to it would have been severed. Instead, I’m stuck in a state of half-death. I can’t undo my connection to it, and the king isn’t going to sacrifice the conduit to recover my core so that I can live. What’s one scientist and one dungeon compared to living forever? The kingdom has abandoned me and left me for dead. Keeping me up to date through a communication stone is the only consideration they’ve given me. I’ve held on as long as I can, but in a few weeks, I’ll be dead.”

“Good.” I didn’t feel any pity for this man.

“Heh…” He smiled at that. “Well, that’s what would have happened. There is a way I can remain alive. That is to take another dungeon core as my own. I’m far too weak to hope to conquer any established dungeon, but when a dungeon master walks through my front door, how can I say no?”

It was my time to chuckle. “I figured you’d only be speaking so frankly because you intended to kill me.”

“If it’s any consolation, I don’t have anything against you. However, I need your core to live, and once you’re dead it will be ripe for the picking. I told you my story to lead you down here where I am at my strongest, and now I will kill you.”

I pulled out Alysia. “You think you can?”

“I may be powerless anywhere else, but within this boss room, I have the entire dungeon at my beck and all. I’ve been working with death for a long time and know more about it than anyone. I can kill any living thing in an instant. Now, die!”

He lifted his hand, and all the remaining miasma in the dungeon shot out at me. I could tell this was a death spell.

“Alysia.” I swung out my blade.

“On it!” Alysia cut the spell apart with ease.

The man staggered back, his eyes wide with shock. “H-how? What? What are you?”

“Alysia…” I lifted the blade, my eyes filled with coldness. “Don’t leave even a spec of his soul remaining.”

“Yes, Master.”