I found myself in a dream, reliving a conversation I had with Dungeon Master 00. "I may be trying to become an angel and keep a low profile, but I'll make sure to keep an eye on everyone."

"Should something unexpected happen, be it with us or the other reincarnates, I will do my best—or rather, I will act in consequence."

"Don't worry, I never doubted that."

"I see, well then. It's a farewell then."

As I opened my eyes in the present moment, the first thing that greeted me was the gentle dance of sunlight filtering through the partially withered leaves of the majestic tree overhead. I pushed myself to sit down, and through the grogginess that enveloped me, I looked at my hand, reaching out to my face to make sure I was not yet in another dream. Touching my face, inspecting my hair, and stirring my memories, I came to understand that I was not dreaming—or at least, if I was still dreaming, I was at least with my present appearance instead of a previous one, like I did in the dream.

It took me a few more seconds to fully process that I was not, in fact, in a dream. Glancing at the lounger I sat upon, I remembered laying down and realized that I had ended up napping out here. "A nap, huh? It's been a while since my last one—18 years ago. Actually, considering everything that I went through, I guess that was still very recent in comparison."

Remembering the content of the dream I just had, I couldn't help but wonder, "But why that memory instead of anything else?" The content of my dream was a word-for-word memory of a conversation I had with Dungeon Master 00, roughly 200 years ago, back when I tried to become and remain an angel but ultimately failed. Is my mind trying to guilt me for my failure, or is it some sort of premonition? I couldn't tell at all.

For a Dungeon Core, 200 years might very well be nothing. However, for a human whose lifespan rarely makes it past three digits, a lot has happened in these years. The same holds true for creatures with longer lifespans like dwarves, elves, demons, and angels, as well as for our fellow reincarnates. To them, those 200 years might feel like a significant span of time with many events shaping the world.

Since the day I first used Greed and Resurgence, 22 other Dungeon Masters have followed me into Fiendfell, making a total of 23 of us. As someone who is aware of the possible consequences of being out here, I have to keep an eye on each one of the 22 Dungeon Masters. It's quite a commotion to manage, especially considering some of the extreme personalities among us. I wish I could have handled all of this myself, sparing me the trouble of becoming a sort of babysitter. However, the fact that I resorted to requesting support from so many Dungeon Masters indicates the level of threat our enemies pose.

On top of the four authorities we already possess, we have discovered the whereabouts of about seven more authorities, each with a set of either complicated powers, a complicated wielder, or a fusion of both. This gives us a total of eleven bestowed authorities unleashed across Fiendfell. With Authority Gathering, we could more or less tell that there is a twelfth authority out there, but its presence is so vague that Authority Gathering barely picked up on it. It must be somewhere beyond our reach, so we focused on the seven authorities we have found the whereabouts of.

Back in our glorious Dungeon Core days, acquiring an authority mostly involved waiting—for the authority wielder to show up somehow and making sure that either our spawns or, at the very least, our Dungeon Guardian was stronger than our authority-wielding invader. That was the way when we were Dungeon Cores. Now, things are different.

Firstly, because out here, we do not wield any of our Dungeon Master's advantages—there are neither spawns nor guardians for us to control. The only strength we can rely on is our own, and the reincarnation effect of Greed and Resurgence means that we all start from scratch with each failure, sending us back to square one.

Secondly, we are not in our domain where everything shows up as either a white, blue, or red dot. This is a completely different playing field—a field where our enemies have long since started making allies, powerful allies that, with the strength I was incarnated with, I am nowhere near able to go against. Having been the first sent onto Fiendfell, it took me two failures to understand that I was not going to make it alone. I needed allies, I needed an advantage, and who could make for better allies than literally copies of myself with another authority?

Certainly, there was the headache of having to keep a close watch on everyone and ensuring the authority didn't get lost—something I knew Dungeon Master 00 would never forgive us for if it were to happen. Nevertheless, we made it. With three of the six authorities, we managed to acquire half of them—not without sending some of us to the nursery, but in the end, we made it. All that is left for us to do now is find a way to acquire the remaining authorities, and luckily for me, I am no longer alone; the others are there as well, each in a strategic position where they can provide assistance to one another when needed.

At least, that's what it would've ideally been. However, it was not the case, especially for the last six batches of Dungeon Masters that newly arrived in Fiendfell. Mostly due to how special they and the powers they wielded were, it was a little complicated to assign them to public positions like most of us, in fear of needlessly drawing attention to them. In the end, they were forced to live more in the shadows compared to the others who came before them. I should have handled that better, but I was a little too focused on regaining my previous position after my latest incarnation. I think I might have failed to live up to the promise I made to Dungeon Master 00.

Right now, one of us is missing, Dungeon Master 18, the oldest of the latest batch of seven Dungeon Masters. She has been missing for nearly three years. To be fair to myself, I only learned about the disappearance recently from Dungeon Master 08, the one she is closest to. Apparently, Dungeon Master 08 believed that I was aware of Dungeon Master 18's whereabouts all this time, so they never bothered reporting her absence to me. Now, here's the result— one of us has been missing for nearly three years, and I can't even tell if she's alive or if something has happened to her. Just thinking about it makes me somewhat regret my latest incarnation, which I guess is indirectly the cause of the situation I find myself in.

"Let's hope this can be fixed without turning into a mess. If it’s not already one, that is;" I stood up and walked toward the large mansion.

The expansive mansion, nestled in seclusion, boasted grand architecture and opulent design. Its manicured lawns and ancient trees framed the imposing structure, retaining an air of bygone luxury even though it was currently empty. It was exactly the kind of house I would've killed for in my old life. As I entered, the silence reached a whole new level. Normally, I suppose the mansion would be a little livelier, but today, I was expecting a very special guest. So, I had the servants vacate the entire estate for the time I would receive my guest. It was while waiting for him that I fell asleep in the backyard.

Should I contact him again? I was about to make my way to the second floor where the device I used to contact the others was located. As I walked past the living room, I saw a silhouette in the corner of my eye. Retracing my steps, I saw a youthful silhouette, his back facing me, standing by a bookshelf. At that moment, the silhouette turned around, revealing a youthful face. From his appearance alone, I wouldn't give him more than 13, but I knew very well that his appearance was absolutely not betraying his real age.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"Good morning, Dungeon Master 07," he said with a smile as he put the book he was reading back into the bookshelf.

"Good morning, Dungeon Master 02. I thought you weren't here yet; I was just about to contact you," I said as I walked into the living room and took a seat.

"I arrived just earlier, but since you were asleep..."

"You should've just woken me up," I said. After shaking hands, he and I took our seats.

Considering his main skills, I had worked with Dungeon Master 02 on many occasions and was well aware of his personality. Without wasting time, I asked, "Mind if I skip the pleasantries?" He nodded.

"Dungeon Master 18 is missing."

"I've heard about it," he said. "From Dungeon Master 08." Then, as if realizing something, he immediately clarified, "I heard about it from her just before I got here."

You really don't want to be involved in any trouble, especially not this, don't you?

"I know. It seems none of us noticed Dungeon Master 18's absence. Except Dungeon Master 08, who apparently believed that she was in my care... I mean, I guess it is my fault after all... Do you know the circumstances of it?"

He nodded, "Yes, Dungeon Master 08 explained it to me before I got here."

"I see, but so that there's no more misunderstanding again, I'll explain it again."

He nodded and silently listened for my explanation.

"It's been some time already, but I once talked to Dungeon Master 18 and offered—well, less than offered, it was more like suggesting that she one day work alongside Dungeon Master 05 as an adventurer."

To be honest, I'm not even sure why I made that suggestion back then.

Perhaps it was because, in spite of the strange variation in each of the Dungeon Master's personalities, each craved a mission—a duty of their own. Instead of being left without a purpose, which I guess I was deep down feeling was somewhat the case with Dungeon Master 18, so I wanted to give her something to do.

"But there was a problem. When I made that suggestion, I was not aware that she was a wielder of the Kinslayer title."

Kinslayer is a title acquired when a person kills another being of the same race. In her case, it meant that she had killed another human being.

"As you know being a wielder of that title alone disqualifies her from being an adventurer—”

The offer of becoming an adventurer I gave was not becoming an adventurer in just the ordinary sense. It was becoming an adventurer in the legal and official sense of the words. In other words, joining the organization known across the continent as the adventurer guild.

“—but back then when I mentioned it..."

"Dungeon Master 18 said nothing," Dungeon Master 02 completed.

I nodded.

"She talked about it to Dungeon Master 08, and from her words, Dungeon Master 08 believed that I was somehow fine with it, which is why she never really worried about her being missing for three entire years."

I guess three years were really long from a normal perspective, but for a peculiar living organism like Dungeon Master 08 and her very unique circumstance, I reckoned these three years weren't all that long. So, I couldn't even bring myself to question her on how she could not be questioning herself for three years straight.

With the details laid bare like that, one could really wonder if one could really blame Dungeon Master 08 or me. I mean, we were both unaware, and all signs pointed to the fault being Dungeon Master 18's.

After a silence pregnant with unspoken thoughts, Dungeon Master 02 asked, "So you want me to find h—Erm, Dungeon Master 18?"

"Yes," I nodded, "if there's someone who can find her, it's you." He nodded, agreeing with the words of praise. "But considering the level of hazardousness we're swimming with this, I think it's better if you don't go search for her alone."

"I was thinking the same too."

That was one aspect I appreciated with Dungeon Master 02; he was well-aware that he wasn't good with combat but shined elsewhere, so he rarely, if ever, pushed his luck.

"Who is going to come along?" He asked curiously.

I pondered about it for a moment then replied, "Dungeon Master 20."

At that moment, upon hearing that name, I saw Dungeon Master 02 recoil in his seat. Could I say that this was an understandable reaction? If one is aware of who Dungeon Master 20 is and what he's done, then yes, this was a very normal reaction to hearing that you're going to be paired with 'him.'

"Why him?" Dungeon Master 02 asked, without even bothering to hide his disdain for the idea of him being paired with Dungeon Master 20. The reason I chose Dungeon Master 20 was that much like Dungeon Master 02, he lived a rather withdrawn existence. The last 7 Dungeon Masters had in common that they lived pretty much unknown to the public, allowing them to act freely when they had the mobility that our other half lacked. Another reason was strength; those who were strong enough belonged to the first category—were well-known, and then there were people like me who were in no way superior, not even to Dungeon Master 02. The truth is, I would've loved to do this in duo with Dungeon Master 02, but I had a persona to maintain and lacked the sufficient strength to be of any assistance—should there be a need for it. I can't tell if there's danger behind it or not, but better be cautious, which is why I chose Dungeon Master 20. The truth is, I also considered Dungeon Master 22, but she lacked the battle experience against humans which Dungeon Master 20 had plenty enough for his age.

I seriously considered changing it to Dungeon Master 22 should Dungeon Master 02 refuse to work with Dungeon Master 20, but surprisingly, he heaved a heavy sigh, as if surrendering himself to his fate, then said, “Fine, I’ll go with him. But should he lose control, can I have the permission to desert the place?”

You really ruined your image didn’t you, Dungeon Master 20?

“If he loses control, it means that he'd be driven to a corner where he would have no other choice but to respond with force, so yes, you are allowed to prioritize your safety before anything. He'll survive; just make sure to immediately report to me.”

Seemingly satisfied with my answer, he nodded, but clearly, he was still not happy about the pairing.

“Since you’re fine with him, I think we can contact him now,” I said, retrieving a crystal ball through my spatial ring, which tore a rift in the midair.

Throughout my numerous lifetimes spanning across ages, I have borne witness to the profound transformation of our world. I have witnessed this world shift from an era reminiscent of antiquity to the dawn of the early modern age. A pivotal juncture in this transformative journey occurred roughly 350 years ago, catalyzed by the emergence of individuals not native to this plane of existence but hailing from an alternate one.

This remarkable, magical-like apparatus was one such device born very recently from these rapidly changing times; much akin to a telephone, it allowed its wielder to establish contact with individuals situated at a considerable distance.

To be honest, with this device known as an Astral Beacon, I felt what most likely most of the conspiracists from my old world felt toward the internet and all electronic devices. I felt like being watched. Under normal circumstances, even if it takes much more time, I would always prioritize a face-to-face meeting, especially when it's with a fellow Dungeon Master. But today was not a “normal circumstance.”

Upon activating the device, we waited as the device tried to connect with Dungeon Master 20, taking longer than expected. But then an answer resounded from the device.

The voice was youthful, cheerful, but the content of the words, on the other hand,... “Your favorite Verdenkind on the other side, who is it that you want to see dead, my dear lord?”

What kind of person replies to a call like that?

Dungeon Master 02 and I exchanged a glance, a well-fed-up glance.

I know, I know he's truly a lunatic, but at least he’s useful when it comes to what he does for a living: killing.