“Are you sure you’re fine about it?” Dungeon Master 07 asked, seemingly unsure if I was really okay with his suggestion.
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Echo-13: Why wouldn’t I be? You’re the one who knows Fiendfell, her, and the other Dungeon Masters best, aren’t you?
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“I am, but still…” he trailed.
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Echo-13: To be frank with you, aside from perhaps instilling fear into them, I’m a little lost as to why you even had them come to me.
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While it initially seemed as though I would be the one to pass judgment in Dungeon Master 18's presence, the reality differed greatly. The only conceivable reason for him to delegate this responsibility to me would be if we were to subject her to our specialized treatment for traitorous reincarnates. However, it was evident that this wasn't the case. Knowing Dungeon Master 07's ruthlessness, if such were his intent, he would have had her spawn by my side for me to permanently deal with Dungeon Master 18, sparing no time for explanations or pleas. Thus, in this “trial”, rather than a judge, I felt akin to a juror, observing the trial's fairness while he, being better suited, assumed the role of judge. Therefore, when he proposed his idea, I saw no reason to oppose it and agreed without hesitation.
Seemingly still unconvinced, he added, “You do realize that a large portion of the blame for this situation is on me, right? I’m innocent of that idea of her of having a kid but at the root of the problem, everything happened because I failed to properly monitor her and assign her to a proper position.”
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Echo-13: I do.
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—I simply said, before adding.
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Echo-13: But what do you expect me to do? To punish you?
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Hearing my words, he looked like he was at a loss for words for a few seconds. “To tell you the truth, that would be far more reassuring than being left like this.” At that moment, with both hands, he reached out for his head as if having a tense headache. “Say Dungeon Master 00, do you still remember how I was before I was sent to Fiendfell?”
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Echo-13: Pretty much, after all, you were our youngest Dungeon Master. So the closest one to me.
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“I see… Haha, I guess I was… With the passing years and the other Dungeon Masters spawned since, it’s so easy to forget that I had once been our youngest.”
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Echo-13: I guess it does for you. To me, it didn’t feel like that long ago. I still remember it clearly.
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“You remember it clearly…” he mumbled, deep in thought before asking after a pause, “Then tell me, is the present still like the Dungeon Master 07 you remember or did I grow up to become a different person altogether?”
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Echo-13: Is this a rhetorical question or am I supposed to answer?
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“It’s a genuine question,” he replied seriously. Seeing how seriously he took the matter and how eagerly he seemed to await my response, I pondered it. It took me a little while to finally come up with an answer, one that I shared with him.
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Echo-13: Before I share my answer with you, I would like to tell you that the answer to that question is one that the Dungeon Master 07 that I remember would absolutely hate hearing. So much that he would regret asking the question.
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Echo-13: So Dungeon Master 07, would you still like to know?
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Hearing my answer, which wasn’t exactly encouraging, Dungeon Master 07 sank into a pondering silence before replying, “No.”
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Echo-13: Very well then.
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He then remained silent for a while before voicing, half in a daze, half conscious, “Do you think this could be the curse “He” talked about?”
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Echo-13: Kevin Karstark?
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“Yes,” he nodded.
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Echo-13: I do not know how you remember him, Dungeon Master 07, but from what I recall, he was pretty much a senile old man.
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“So you don’t believe in the curse he talked about?”
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Echo-13: To me, the only curse that could ever be born of the Greed and Resurgence authority or any other authority in my possession is forgetting the purpose for which we were saved from “that” place. Do you still remember it?
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"I do," he said, closing his eyes as if to reminisce about something, before adding a 'but' that made me metaphorically frown. "But to tell you the truth, Dungeon Master 00, I don't think I remember 'that' place as well as I used to when I was still nothing more than a Dungeon Master. I remember the place, the searing radiance, enduring the suffering, but I no longer recall how it felt, how it burned, how agonizing it was," he explained before adding in a self-deprecating manner, "I suppose that's the extent of how a human brain compares to whatever might be considered the equivalent of a brain for a Dungeon Core."
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Echo-13: Less than a curse, that sounds to me more like a blessing.
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“A blessing, huh? I see.”
As we exchanged these words, a silent understanding dawned upon us, prompting me to ask:
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Echo-13: If that’s everything, then I will summon them all back.
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To which Dungeon Master 07 nodded.
Having received confirmation from him, I was just about to shift domain when I suddenly halted myself to mention something before we were joined by the others.
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Echo-13: After listening to Dungeon Master 18 express the desire for a purpose and reflecting on our earlier conversation, I've reached a decision. While it may seem impetuous, I am committed to moving in this direction: As a Dungeon Core, I've surpassed the sole G.P harvesting purposes. Up until now, my focus has been solely on collecting G.P without consideration for its ultimate use. Therefore, moving forward, I intend to allocate a portion of my efforts toward exploring "alternatives."
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Upon hearing my words, Dungeon Master 07 widened his eyes in surprise before swiftly reigning in his emotions. I expected him to voice complaints or at the very least reservations regarding that decision, but he instead declared, “Understood.”
Since he didn't inquire further about my plans, I took it as the end of our discussion. Without delay, I summoned the Dungeon Masters back into the Guardian chamber.
***
As the Dungeon Masters were reassembled in the Guardian chamber, the atmosphere resumed its tense demeanor, laden with unspoken thoughts and the weight of recent events. I could sense their curiosity and apprehension, especially Dungeon Master 18’s, their eyes darting between Dungeon Master 07 and my guardian, silently seeking answers to the questions most likely swirling in their minds.
Dungeon Master 07, composed yet tinged with solemnity, addressed the group. "We have come to a decision regarding the situation at hand," he began, his voice carrying a gravitas that commanded attention. "Dungeon Master 20.”
“Yes,” Dungeon Master 18, in the body of the little boy, tensely replied.
“Considering the situation you put us in, I believe that, under normal circumstances, I would have had you go through the same punishment Dungeon Master 20 went through 15 years ago. But that’s under normal circumstances; your circumstances are currently everything but normal,” he said, staring at her childish appearance. “I doubt this current vessel of yours will survive that punishment. Of course, we also considered the possibility of extracting you from this vessel, which I guess can be easily done by destroying the said vessel.”
At the mention of the possibility of the vessel being destroyed just to extract her from it, I clearly saw Dungeon Master 18 bite her lips. She looked tense, and I expected her to voice a complaint, but surprisingly she did not. So Dungeon Master 07 continued, “However, we believe that it would be a shame to destroy this vessel, with which you share control with ‘Baby,’ as you called him. Just like you have no explanation for what happened, we too don’t, but we would like to know what happened. This—your circumstances—is something never seen before. It doesn’t seem to be the doing of a skill or any known abilities; it looks more like the result of an authority, yet it is obviously not the case. We have thus decided that you and him are to be left untouched, observed, so that what happened can be understood.”
Hearing Dungeon Master 07's words, Dungeon Master 07 eased up. However, a few breaths later, upon hearing his next words, she tensed back up, turning pale even. "Now, as for what will be done with you in the immediate, you will return to Dungeon Master 08's side. If there's someone who can figure out what happened to you, it is her." From her unconcealed expression, it was clear that suggestion did not sit well with Dungeon Master 18, so much that she went to demand, no, even beg, "Can I ask that you reconsider?"
"Do you have a problem with Dungeon Master 18?" Dungeon Master 07 asked, with a frown.
"No, I have nothing against Thet—Dungeon Master 08," Dungeon Master 18 replied nervously, "but..."
"But what?"
"...I doubt this vessel of mine will survive her curiosity," Dungeon Master 18 eventually replied after some hesitation.
Upon hearing that, Dungeon Master 07's expression shifted, one of enlightenment, immediately followed by a complicated one. I could tell that he did not like the fact that she complained about not wanting to return to Dungeon Master 08's side, but at the same time, he could find no counter to her words. He then looked in my guardian's direction.
Don't look at me.
We both know what’s going on with her. I mean, just look at her reaction. She’s shown more reaction to the suggestion of being sent to Dungeon Master 08 than to the idea of them being killed.
I've seen a lot since I became a Dungeon core, I've seen death, I've seen life, I've seen madness, and among that madness, I've seen her: Dungeon Master 08 or Theta as she named herself in this eighth incarnation of hers. She was madness given humanoid form.
She was the first to make me wonder how much the outside world can change a Dungeon Master, because she’s changed. Undoubtedly, she was once like me, but right now she’s become something altogether new: a new kind of evil.
“I guess you’re right,” Dungeon Master 07 conceded, as he began pondering what other alternatives he had.
It was at that moment that Dungeon Master 14, who’d been thus far silent, stepped forward, declaring, “Since Theta’s side is out of the way, I have another suggestion.”