Thanks to Zoha's assistance, Sera had gathered twelve humans and brought them back to the chamber of the Spirit Tree; most were dead, but a few were just unconscious, their chests rising and falling with shallow breaths. All were now bound by vines conjured by Sera, and all would be of use to the tree's growth.

Meanwhile, Aermo was still unconscious, slumped on a corner in the room. Sera could have chosen to wake him up, but she figured that the beastkin would come to his senses soon.

Sera positioned herself with her back against the Spirit Tree. She closed her eyes, and soon, she could feel the cool, probing roots of the tree burrowing into her back.

[Displaying dungeon status]

Core Rank: 1

Core Experience: 0

Dungeon Boss: Sera

Number of Floors: 3

Mana: 100/100

Monsters: 2

It was good to see that the system had updated its parameters. Though Sera did note that it had registered the dungeon as having three floors instead of two, despite the fact that she had never set foot on the upper most floor yet. It seems just my awareness of a floor existing in a dungeon was sufficient for the system to register its existence.

Sera took one last look at the twelve men bound by her vines. And then, she clenched her hand into a fist.

The sound of consecutive snaps echoed loudly through the air. In an instant, the four men who were unconscious had their necks snapped as their heads dropped low.

[Experience extraction initiated]

The room fell silent as the Spirit Tree’s thin roots slithered across the floor, reaching the lifeless bodies of the twelve men. With a slow, almost methodical precision, the roots punctured the flesh of the fallen soldiers to start extracting their blood.

The red fluid traversed through the roots, weaving its way back toward the Spirit Tree’s sapling. Given the thinness of the roots, Sera knew this process would take quite some time. Each droplet of life was precious, and the tree drank as fast as it could, which for now, was rather slow.

Until suddenly, Sera's senses picked up on a familiar presence moving. She turned slightly, a slight smile breaking her otherwise stern demeanor. "Ah, you're awake."

Aermo clutched his head with a pained expression as he staggered toward her. "Fuck me. I feel like I can't remember shit from the last hour or two."

Sera lifted a hand to warn him. "Careful, don’t step on the food."

Aermo tilted his head, confused. "What foo—" His question cut off abruptly as he saw the dead soldiers behind Sera. He gasped as he took in the sight of the dead men with roots extracting their blood.

He pointed down to the bodies with a trembling finger as he carefully stepped aside. "Anything you want to tell me, Boss?"

Sera crossed her arms and turned her attention back to the extraction process. "No, but if you feel queasy, you're welcome to leave."

Aermo paced around the corpses, his eyes tracing the path of the roots as they snaked back to the Spirit Tree. "Is this how the tree's going to grow?"

"I already told you it needs to feed on mortals."

"Didn't think it would be like this. Thought the Spirit Tree would just make the people disappear."

"The humans will disappear, but it will take time. Until then, you're welcome to either stay and watch or get out."

"Yeah… I'll just sit down."

While the Spirit Tree's roots continued their work, Aermo settled down on the cold floor, leaning his back against the rough stone wall. Observing him, Sera noted the subtle shift in his demeanor. Though he was initially uncomfortable, the beastkin now watched the proceedings with what seemed like a morbid curiosity. She could almost see him acclimating as horror turned to a fascinated acceptance.

As time passed, the bodies of the soldiers gradually became desiccated husks. Their skin puckered and shrank, clinging tightly to now brittle bones. Slowly, a subtle glow emerged from the corpses, a bluish light that grew brighter by the second.

The light soon consumed the slain soldiers' bodies completely, turning them into motes of blue mana that scattered and dissipated through the air. The Spirit Tree absorbed the last traces of their essence, its leaves rustling softly.

Finally, the process reached its conclusion, and words flashed before Sera's eyes.

[Experience extraction complete]

Core experience updated to 1200. Rank-up requirement from Rank 1 to Rank 2: 1000 experience. Initiate rank-up sequence?

The decision was obvious. Not like I can do much with a rank 1 dungeon core anyway.

Rank-up sequence initiated, please wait.

The sapling’s leaves glowed as each leaf pulsated, emitting gentle waves of energy. With each pulse, the Spirit Tree inched ever so slightly taller.

Watching this, Sera felt a warm sensation beginning to simmer in her veins. It was subtle at first, but as the Spirit Tree continued to grow, the warmth spread and intensified. She could feel power coursing back into her and strengthening her connection with the tree.

[Rank-up sequence complete]

[Displaying dungeon status]

Core Rank: 2

Core Experience: 200

Dungeon Boss: Sera

Number of Floors: 3

Mana: 200/200

Monsters: 2

New feature unlocked: floor terrain alteration

Sera noted how the system only registered two monsters as being in the dungeon despite Zoha's presence. It seems that the system only recognizes monsters it has registered properly.

Yet, unlocking floor terrain alteration gave Sera a bit of pause. Though her memory was quite fragmented, she still recalled how floor terrain options scaled with the rank of the dungeon core, meaning, a low rank dungeon core would have little to no options to choose from.

[Initiating floor terrain alteration]

Please select which number floor you wish to alter. You are currently on the third floor of the dungeon.

If there was any floor that needed an upgrade, the one hosting the Spirit Tree was definitely a priority. This floor should be Sera's stronghold, a place where she could feel secure.

The third floor has been chosen as the target of terrain alteration, please review the available terrain options below:

1. Basic theme (Default option; unique passive: none)

2. Stone maze (Rank 2 option; unique passive: minor bonus to adventurer's fear)

3. Mystic forest (Unlocked due to administrator access; unique passive: significant boost to the effectiveness of nature magic; restriction: this terrain can only be applied to one floor)

Given the limited options available. There was only one that Sera wanted.

[Mystic forest selected]

[Initiating terrain alteration]

As Sera confirmed her choice, the chamber suddenly trembled. The vibrations grew quickly into a violent shaking, sending small bits of stone falling from the ceiling as dust filled the air.

Aermo instinctively covered his head with his arms and ducked low to the ground, while Sera braced herself against a nearby wall. Then, just as quickly as it had begun, the shaking ceased.

The last few stones clattered to the floor, and silence fell over the room. Aermo slowly lowered his hands, looking confused as he glanced around the now-still chamber. "What was that?"

"Terrain alteration, things will look very different outside."

Sera then glanced back at the display of words that had appeared in the air before her:

[Terrain alteration complete]

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

For a moment, Sera considered altering the terrain of the first floor, but she decided to delay that until after she'd actually seen what layout the floor had with her own eyes. With that settled, it was time to finally test out monster creation.

[Displaying Monster Unlock Options]

1. Unlock 1 random F-tier monster (Cost, 100 Core Experience)

[Unlock 1 random F-tier monster selected]

[Processing request]

Though F-tier monsters were weak, they weren't useless. Getting a slime wouldn't be ideal, a goblin or kobold could be somewhat decent if I can make them fall in line. Hopefully I won't be stuck with anything that's too pathetic.

New monster unlocked: Thornling

Level range: 15-25

Maintenance cost: 10 Mana

Respawn time: 30 minutes

Description: Thornlings are small beings made of tangled thorny vines. They have red eyes and they move by slithering along the ground. Their touch is prickly, and they can entangle foes with their vine-like limbs.

Sera was somewhat satisfied with unlocking thornlings. They seemed capable enough for how cheap they were to maintain. Now it was only a matter of how many of them she wanted to spawn. She could spawn up to twenty of them at the moment, unless she wanted to unlock another F-tier monster and spawn them at the cost of 100 core experience and some more mana.

After some consideration, she decided to just maximize the amount of thornlings instead and refrain from unlocking another monster. The distinction between various F-tier monsters is likely negligible regardless.

Where do you wish to spawn in the thornlings?

"This floor please." Sera said out loud.

How many do you wish to spawn?

"Twenty."

Initiating thornling spawn sequence. Spawning will occur at random locations within the designated floors.

Now there was just one last thing that Sera wanted to check. It was time to access her own profile. Hopefully, something has improved this time.

Name: Sera

Species: Elder Dryad

Access Privilege: Administrator

Level: 300

Magic: 300 (Rating: S)

Magic Resistance: 300 (Rating: S)

Physical Defense: 100 (Rating: C)

Strength: 50 (Rating: E)

Speed: 150 (Rating: B)

Vitality: 300 (Rating: S)

Overall Challenge Rating: S

Alert: Path selection now available.

And there it was, the opportunity of a lifetime. Sera could finally regain a semblance of the power that she should have had all along. I had always felt that something was missing in me all this time, perhaps this will resolve that issue.

Warning: Once a path has been selected, the user must continue to grow in that path until all features in it have been unlocked. Additionally, once a path has been completed, the user can only select the next closest path following this order: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter.

From what Sera gathered, if she were to hypothetically select Summer, then once she's unlocked everything in that path, she'll have to progress through Autumn next. This is definitely not a choice I can make lightly.

[Displaying path descriptions]

Spring: Gain abilities related to healing and support.

Summer: Gain abilities related to destruction and fire.

Autumn: Gain abilities related to decay and infestation.

Winter: Gain abilities related to frost and preservation.

Sera assumed that Spring would enhance her capability to buff and heal any allied monsters she encounters. Not a bad choice, but Sera knew that she didn't exactly have many monsters that she'd need to support for now.

Summer was interesting. Offensive magic is always a powerful tool, though Sera feared that the abilities given by this path would be akin to giving her a sledgehammer rather than something with more finesse.

Autumn seemed like it could give her offense as well. Although she wasn't quite sure what powers infestation would actually entail.

Last but not least was Winter. This one was also a tempting option, as preservation of any kind likely meant creating barriers or preventing damage, something that Sera was keen to do for herself and the Spirit Tree. She figured that frost probably meant ice magic, which would be a decent bonus all things considered.

Sera thought one last time before she made her choice. Every single path has its merits, and I should eventually unlock every single one. The only question is what order would make the most sense given my current position.

After some careful deliberation. Sera mentally ranked each of the paths, in order from least important to most important. She only had a vague idea of what each path was capable of, but she tried her best to make the best out of the information she had.

Summer ranked as the least important overall. Offensive power is nice, but brute strength won't help me with solving problems that require more unique capabilities.

Next was Autumn, moreso because Sera wasn't sure what type of abilities decay and infestation referred to exactly. Maybe if the other paths were less appealing I would have chosen this first out of curiosity.

Spring sounded very valuable, but likely not ideal in the immediate future as Sera didn't have many allied monsters to support yet. The spring path's value will likely increase when I amass more of an army in the future.

Sera ranked Winter as the most valuable overall because not only did it sound like it could have a balance of offensive and defensive capabilities, it also allowed her to access the spring path immediately after. I'm convinced the frost will involve some kind of ice magic, perhaps preservation will involve creating shields or barriers.

[Winter path selected]

New ability unlocked: Frost touch.

Description: The user can freeze objects and creatures that they touch.

Restriction: The user can only activate Frost Touch by first making contact with a solid or liquid surface, and the freezing effect is limited to what they can touch directly with their hands. Additionally, this ability does not extend to freezing air or intangible substances.

Sera carefully detached herself from the roots that had been ingrained into her back, feeling the slight pull as each tendril released its grip. She stood still for a moment and flexed her fingers as she felt the stir of new power within.

It's time to do a small test. She reached out and placed her hand against the wall of the chamber, focusing her intent on channeling the essence of frost.

Almost instantly, ice formed and spread rapidly across the surface of the stone. The wall frosted over, glistening as a chill emanated from her touch. She pulled her hand back and turned her head to find Aermo watching, his eyes wide with astonishment. "You can freeze things now, Boss?"

Sera nodded, a slight smile crossing her face. "It would appear so, but there is one more thing to test, just in case."

She lifted her hand to her antlers and used the sharp end to make a small cut on her palm. As the black sap leaked from the wound, she focused her energy and aimed her palm at an empty spot on the wall.

Black tendrils burst out from her palm, writhing as they reached out and touched the wall. Sera tried to channel her frost through the tendrils, willing the chill to flow from her body into the dark extensions. But despite her efforts, nothing happened. A bit unfortunate that my tendrils don't count towards frost touch, but at least now I know for certain.

With a sigh, Sera retracted the tendrils, letting them draw back into her palm. As she did, her wounds began to heal, the black sap ceasing to flow. She clenched her hand into a fist, feeling the skin knit back together seamlessly.

"I'm good now, we're leaving." With a renewed sense of purpose, she walked toward the exit of the room. Aermo, not wanting to be left behind, quickly moved to follow her.

As they approached the entwined roots that sealed the entrance, Sera raised her hand. She felt an unexpected lightness, a clarity that made her magic flow more freely than before. With a thought, the roots responded and parted smoothly to clear the path.

Stepping out into the open, Sera was first struck by how heightened the magic she felt was, pulsing from the ground to the highest leaves. Tall trees with trunks that twisted into the sky filled the area. Their leaves were suffused with a noticeable glow, flickering gently under the bright blue sky.

The ground beneath her feet was covered by a lush tapestry of vibrant green moss, so rich it seemed imbued with life, springing back with every step she took. All while parts of the area were covered in light fog that weaved a path between trees and underbrush.

While Sera stepped further into the forest, the trees and bushes parted to clear a path as if bending in silent homage. She paused and glanced back at Aermo, who stood transfixed. "Don't just stand there, walk."

The beastkin shook his head, as if waking from a trance, "R-right, my bad."

Sera sighed softly and resumed her walk. "Look out for the thornlings if you see them; they're the only other monsters here so you can't mistake them."

They continued their trek for a time and things were mostly quiet barring the natural ambiance. Until suddenly, Sera heard the sound of rustling leaves followed by a pained "Fuck!"

Turning around, Sera couldn't help but chuckle. A thornling had latched onto Aermo's arm. The creature was small but fierce, with spiky tendrils covered in sharp barbs that gleamed under the glow of the forest's enchanted leaves. Its body was a mix of light and dark green for the most part, save for the vivid red tips of its thorns that now dug stubbornly into Aermo's arm.

The beastkin frantically tried to shake the thornling off, but the creature clung on with a stubborn tenacity. "Let go of me you little piece of—"

Meanwhile, Sera pointed towards a rustling in the underbrush where nineteen other thornlings were advancing towards them. "You might want to reconsider your attitude."

Seeing the group of thornlings approaching, Aermo's expression shifted from anger to concern, and he quickly walked to Sera with a pleading look. "Boss, please, you have to get this thing off of me."

Sera turned her gaze to the thornling clinging to Aermo's arm. Almost as if responding to an unspoken command, the small creature released its hold and dropped to the ground with a soft thud. Its glowing red eyes shifted from Aermo and looked up at Sera expectantly.

In fact, as if following the lead of their companion, the rest of the thornlings halted their advance and rearranged themselves into a rough rectangular formation in front of Sera. Each creature stood still, their bright eyes fixed on her.

Sera knelt down and extended her hand towards one of the thornlings, touching it gently at the base of one of its sharp thorns. The little creature responded positively to her touch and emitted a soft sound akin to a cat's purr.

"Alright, I think those things just hate me."

"No, they didn't register you as friendly yet. But that's an easy fix."

Sera stood up and turned to face the thornlings directly, then pointed a hand towards Aermo. "Listen carefully, little ones, this beastkin is friendly, understood?"

In response, all of the thornlings nodded simultaneously. Their glowing red eyes briefly flickering as if to signal their comprehension.

Satisfied with their response, Sera then gestured towards the deeper parts of the forest. "Now go and patrol the area."

The thornlings quickly paired up and scuttled away towards various directions. Seeing this, Aermo scratched the back of his head. "Guess you were right after all."

"Of course, I always am."