Let's attempt to view things from a positive perspective. Here's the good news, Dungeon Master 07 is back, and with his return, I more or less confirmed that the strange wielder shifting that Greed and Resurgence undergoes is a result of the authority being wielded by us, and not the outcome of some other unknown variable. This meant that the use of the authority was officially considered safe.
Now, that's the good news, and that was all of it. Dungeon Master was back, back before any of us could even begin missing him. Sure, our sense of time isn't the most reliable thing ever, but we knew deep inside us that it was too fast.
"Dungeon Master 07, what happened?"
"I died," he replied, somewhat in a daze.
"You... died."
Obviously, he died. The way the authority apparently applied when it's us using it is that it, pretty much like it did with the old man, sent the "soul" out there. However, unlike the old man, the authority doesn't follow the said soul, yet it still manages to drag or perhaps teleport or whatever the right words are to describe what it does to "Dungeon Master” to bring his soul back to us upon the vessel's body's death. To be frank, what the authority does exactly was a breeding ground for existential questions, so I really tried not to think much about it unless I have to.
"How exactly did you die?"
Most likely recalling how Dungeon Master 07 died the first time, Dungeon Master 04 voiced the wild supposition, "Is it the same goons that killed you the first time?"
"Or is it an authority wielder?" Another one came up with a less insane supposition only to double down with, "an authority wielder with an authority that allowed him to find you, enabling him to dispatch you before you could do any harm?"
"No," Dungeon Master 07 replied monotonically, seemingly still in a daze.
"Then how?"
An awkward silence settled in before Dungeon Master 07 replied, "a fever," allowing yet another awkward silence to settle in.
It took us all some time to actually process, and once we did, our most out-of-pocket guy went on to boldly ask, as if begging to confirm what he just heard, "You died because of a fever?"
***
Perhaps it was because we had been unfeeling Dungeon Cores for far too long, or perhaps it was because I found it hard to believe that in a world filled with angels, demons, and magic, one could die of something as mundane as a fever. Whatever it was, it took us all some time to adjust to this new piece of information. We hadn't finished adjusting when Dungeon Master 07 requested the authority back. I gave it back to him, and unlike what I expected, he didn't immediately use the authority. Instead, he seemed to hesitate. Before I could even ask what was wrong, he left, using the authority which immediately returned to him. Having witnessed that, I had the feeling that something happened out there. What exactly, I couldn't tell. I guessed I had to wait for his next return to ask him the question. So we waited, again.
***
I don't know what it was exactly—perhaps a hunch, or perhaps habit, or even perhaps it was, as Dungeon Master 07 usually accusatorily barked at us, because we looked down on him. While waiting for him, we mostly expected him to pop up on us like he did the two previous times. However, before he popped in on us, we were greeted with our first human invasion in a while. What has it been since the last one? 50 years? 100 years, or perhaps twice that? I couldn't tell anymore.
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Name: Miller
Level: 38
Race: VerdenKind
Class: Mage
Health: 67%
『Expand』
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Sigh, a lone invader, but not an authority-wielder. I guess that’s still better than no invader at all.
“So who’s gonna be the one to deal with him?”
“I’m busy.”
“Not me.”
“Not me either,” they all replied in unison.
Considering what we were dealing with, I couldn’t even blame them. Yet, considering the fact that for Dungeon Master 06’s spawn safety, I couldn’t take on this invader, I still blamed them, “What happened to you guys? You've changed. Where are the greedy bastards I once remember, jumping at each other for the smallest piece of invaders’ meat?”
“Come on, look at his level. It’s not even worth the effort manifesting my domain, and even less the guardian.”
“I agree with him on this one.”
“He’s so weak that even Dungeon Master 06’s guardian should be able to handle this punk.”
“Well, I can…”
“If it’s fine with you all,” Dungeon Master 06 then announced, “then I’ll deal with him.”
“You’re serious?”
“Yes,” Dungeon Master 06 nodded.
Upon understanding what he could do with his domain, Dungeon Master 06 adapted his domain and guardian in a way that only improved his cattle-raising abilities. His guardian itself was not chosen for its strength; sure, it was high-level, but the guardian was, compared to the other Dungeon Masters' guardians, a relatively harmless forest creature. It had a spawn-enhancing effect that manifested lush growth in Dungeon Master 06’s domain, which, given proper time, evolved into a forest. This forest, completely opposite to the effect of my guardian onto my domain that cloaked everything that is living into a miasma of death, was a haven for life, luring in monsters and all manners of creatures that he considered his cattle.
So naturally, we were all surprised to hear him make that suggestion. Not that his guardian was so weak that he wouldn't be able to deal with our level 37 invader; in fact, we were confident he would. It's just that he and I are the last ones one usually thinks of when dealing with human invaders. I, because of my domain, and him because he usually focuses on taking care of his domain and nothing else.
____________________________
- Spawn Dungeon Guardian
Yes
No
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Dungeon Master 06, to whom I handed the control, shifted the domain control over to Dungeon Master 04 only to retake control, allowing him to spawn the lone invader straight into his guardian chambers. Without wasting a single second, he immediately spawned his Dungeon Guardian, ready to get straight into offense. However, before it could do so, he, along with the others, noticed something about the lone invader.
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
“This guy… Is he waving at us?”
Yes, that was the only way to describe what the lone invader was up to. Jumping on the spot, he was flailing his arms above his head, forming an “X” then unforming it for a long while. But then, some time later, he stopped. This time around, he slowly raised both arms, pointing them straight at Dungeon Master 06’s forest’s creature guardian.
“This guy… he's flipping us off.”
Staring at the obvious disrespect, Dungeon Master 06, who had his guardian ready, grunted, “He is aware that I could turn him into a smush, isn’t he?”
“He most likely is, but he’s confident that you won’t.”
Where was that confidence stemming from? There was only one answer: the lone invader was none other than Dungeon Master 07, whom we’d been expecting the return of, but not the invasion of.
“Dungeon Master 06, give the control back to me,” I said, “I’ll handle him with his own domain.”
Something that happened as Dungeon Master 07 used the Greed and Resurgence authority for the first time, allowing me to almost instantly sense Dungeon Master 07’s departure, was that upon the said departure, I felt the control over the domain that was once his passed onto me.
It made a lot of sense, after all. The interface and, thus, the control of the domain didn’t follow his soul into his vessel, so it was natural for it to go somewhere else. It turned out that that somewhere else was with me. So, yes, thus far, I’ve been in control of two domains—mine and Dungeon Master 07’s. Well, I’m saying that, making a big deal of it, but, in truth, it was no different from how we all were able to interfere with one another’s domain.
____________________________
- Spawn Dungeon Guardian
Yes
No
____________________________
“It took you guys long enough,” Dungeon Master 07 said, finally lowering his middle fingers down.
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[Real-time Feedback]
Guardian, Level 13, used abilities: Telepathic Discourse
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Echo-13: Let’s just say we weren’t expecting you to come to us as an invader.
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One reason we refrained from immediately assuming that the invader was Dungeon Master 07 stemmed from the Dungeon Master's own words.
The Voïdborne Catacomb, our Dungeon, is situated on the easternmost corner of the Land of Men, bordering the next continent—the underworld, a demon-infested land nestled behind a vast chain of mountains to the east of our Dungeon. In stark contrast to its western counterpart, acknowledged as the safer half of the continent, the eastern region is notorious for its mostly inhospitable nature. Merely 3% of this expansive land is deemed suitable for habitation, as it is infested with an array of formidable monsters. The farther east one ventures, the more perilous the environment becomes, with high-level monsters of all races, a multitude of millennial-old dungeons which were well-known for being monster spawning hubs.
Hence, it was only natural for the underleveled HighBreed, that was Dungeon Master 07 in his initial vessel, to refrain from attempting the journey until reaching the more secure levels of 60 to 90, which were the level the old man typically was at when launching his many invasions. Therefore, it was reasonable to assume that achieving this benchmark would render the journey to our Voïdborne Catacomb relatively safe from pretty much anywhere on the continent.
One couldn’t really blame for dismissing the possibility that our invader could be Dungeon Master 07, especially given his prior statement about the journey being nearly impossible for such low level humans. Yet, it appeared Dungeon Master 07’s assumption was proven, by none other than himself, incorrect.
“Is that so?”
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Echo-13: It is. Anyway, I guess it is a welcome back, Brother.
_____________________________
***
Following our warm welcome to Dungeon Master 07 upon his safe return, he promptly delved into recounting his story as Miller, his new identity in this incarnation.
The Verdenkind Miller hailed from the eastern reaches of the Land of Men. In contrast, Roland, in his previous incarnation, originated from the other side of the continent, beyond the sea that divided the Land of Men in two. Hearing that, the irony wasn't lost on us—Dungeon Master 07, this time, spawned much closer to our dungeon than he did in his first incarnation, an incarnation in which he dedicated most of his time to getting close to our Dungeon.
He continued to explain that, much like his first incarnation, he led a simple and uneventful life until reaching an age where he could move independently. Dungeon Master 07 went into great detail describing the place of his reincarnation and the appearance of those close to him in this life. Initially confused about the emphasis, we soon understood that unlike his first incarnation, where he mostly lived as a lone ranger, he embraced a more social existence in this life.
As the Verdenkind known to all as Miller, Dungeon Master invested most of his attributes not only to enhance his personal strength but also to boost his charisma, significantly influencing how he was perceived socially.
Taking a page from our treacherous fellow reincarnate, he ensured he was beloved by those around him, gaining their sympathy to such an extent that he convinced a group of thirteen Verdenkinds, whom he nurtured from a young age to become strong enough to accompany him on his journey to the Voïdborne Catacombs.
That’s right, while he was indeed a lone invader, he did not come alone; he arrived accompanied by this carefully selected group.
In that moment it finally became clear how he was able to make the journey across the continent while being just a level 38. There was a lot of question I wanted to ask, but right now I knew that what ought to be done was praise our Brother for the ingeniosity of his plan and the dedication.
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Echo-13: Impressive, Dungeon Master 07. Paint me and the others impressed.
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“You better be.”
_____________________________
Echo-13: So… what happened to your… “comrades?”
_____________________________
As I made that comment, he stared blankly at me for a few seconds before saying, “Dead.”
_____________________________
Echo-13: Dead?
_____________________________
"Yes, dead. They all perished before we could reach the vicinity of this Dungeon. Kael, one of the group three warriors, fell to the venomous bite of Shadowfang Serpents; Damael, the second warrior of the group, also died of them; Elara, the other mage of the group, succumbed to the swift and deadly strikes of Nightshade Panthers; Thrain, the last warrior, met his end against Razorback Boars; Silvia and Gareth, a rogue and a ranger, were claimed by the relentless assault of Frostbite Wolves; Aric, the healer, was ambushed and overwhelmed by the elusive Phantom Stalkers in the dense foliage; Lorna, another healer, perished under the fierce skirmish with Vicious Lynxes; Roderick, the barbarian, fell victim to the toxic venom of Silent Vipers; the three knights of the party succumbed to the thunderous onslaught of Ironhide Boars."
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Echo-13: I see. What a shame.
_____________________________
“Yes. What a shame indeed. But that’s just how dangerous the world out there is. You all have no idea how much I had to run for my life. I really thought I wouldn’t make it, but somehow… I made it.”
As he spoke those words, I could tell he was very serious. He heaved out a sigh of mental exhaustion. "To tell you all the truth, the sole reason for which I resorted to the current strategy is because I had the feeling that I wouldn’t make it far as a mage. And this is not a question of me doubting myself or some stupid reasoning like that; it's just me being realistic. At the rhythm things are going, I’m afraid I won’t be able to achieve any of what’s expected of me.”
At that moment, I felt like asking, “So… Do you give up?” But knowing Dungeon Master 07’s personality, I refrained from doing so. Instead, what I did was ask,
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Echo-13: What do you suggest then?
_____________________________
He didn’t immediately answer, instead he seemed to strangely hesitate before saying, “I’ve noticed that with the party I ventured to this place with, everything was much easier than when I was simply on my own as Roland. In other words, what I mean is things are much easier as a group, what’s expected of me would be much easier to achieve if I weren’t on my own. To remedy that I guess I could do what I did, find some random to brainwash but to tell you the truth, I don’t like that, for I’m feeling that plotting against a well-renowned hero who is under the good grace of one if not multiple of the remaining angels, one of the biggest powerhouses of this world, is something that only “us” can adhere, don’t you think?”
_____________________________
Echo-13: I do. The other also does.
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—I said then added.
_____________________________
Echo-13: So is “that” what you suggest?
_____________________________
“Yes, I alone won’t—well, while I’m not saying it will be exactly impossible, nonetheless, I think it’ll be more complicated for me alone to take on that task, considering the fact that I don’t even get to keep the Greed and Resurgence authority for me to wield freely out there. So, I suggest a few Dungeon Masters also use Greed and Resurgence, allowing them to reincarnate into this world, just as I did. Together we’ll retrieve the authorities.”