Veronica was anxious to get started on unlocking her next floor, but time never passes by quickly when you're waiting for it. The dungeon wasn't exactly kind enough to distort the passage of time for her now either. Really, the dungeon core and Veronica were more like bickering coworkers, both unhappy with the other's presence, but unable to get rid of the other. If she wanted entertainment, then she would have to figure something out for herself.
Well, there wasn't anything more productive than turning in some overdue [Missions] to keep her entertained.
Origin:
Status:
Info:
Reward:
System
Complete
Set up first challenge
Unlock a new [Critter] option
System
Complete
Place first [Trap]
Unlock a new [Critter] option
System
Complete
Complete a boss room
Unlock a new [Critter] option
System
Complete
Complete half of the first floor
Unlock a new [Critter] option
System
Incomplete
Unlock the second floor
Unlock a new [Critter] option
System
Complete
Complete the first floor
Unlock a new [Critter] option
System
Incomplete
Unlock ten [Critters]
Unlock a new [Critter] option
System
Incomplete
Unlock [Critters] from five different phyla
Unlock a new [Critter] option
System
Complete
Make a first-floor tavern
Unlock a new [Critter] option
System
Incomplete
Earn the favor of a patron god or goddess
Unlock new schematic (Altar)
Most of the challenges were now complete with only three of them still marked as incomplete. It would seem there were several rewards ready for collection. While it was tempting to wait until she unlocked the next floor in case the [Critters] she'd be rewarded would be better related to the new floor theme, she couldn't help but feel impatient. It wasn't like she had used the ones she had unlocked before very much either. She had some angel fish in her tropical parkour challenge room, but that was it. Hopefully, that would change in the future, but she was hardly going to go out of her way to use them either.
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Would you like to receive the reward now?
Yes
No
Veronica selected the [Yes] option and accepted her first [Critter] reward.
Please select one of the following options to be randomly awarded a [Critter] from:
Mollusca
Chordata - Aves
Arthropoda
Well, she had gotten the bulletants the last time she selected the [Arthropoda] option, so it seemed like as good an option as any.
Randomizing options...
New [Critter] option unlocked!
Name:
Cost:
Info:
Butterfly Dragonfly
1 MP
Behaves the same as a normal butterfly dragonfly. Poor combat skills, excellent flying skills. Not recommended for consumption.
Well, it wasn't quite as exciting as the ants had been, but they'd certainly still add some ambiance to the dungeon when the time came to use them. Quickly moving on, she accepted the other five [Critter] rewards she had available.
Randomizing options...
New [Critter] option unlocked!
Name:
Cost:
Info:
Common Otter
8 MP
Behaves the same as a normal otter. Average combat skills, excellent swimming skills. Is safe to consume.
Box Turtle
5 MP
Behaves the same as a normal box turtle. Poor combat skills, average defense skills, and excellent swimming skills. Not safe to consume.
Minnow
2 MP
Behaves the same as a normal minnow. Poor combat skills, excellent swimming skills. Is safe to consume.
Walleye
2 MP
Behaves the same as a normal walleye. Poor combat skills, excellent swimming skills. Is safe to consume.
White Witch Moth
1 MP
Behaves the same as a normal white witch moth. Poor combat skills, excellent flying skills. Not safe to consume.
Veronica hadn't necessarily meant to obtain so many water-dwelling [Critters] and insects, but she wasn't sure it was something worth worrying about. At least, they would be versatile enough to use in most environments, come what may. The angelfish she had used as decoration in her tropical parkour course wasn't ideal for use as a food source, but the new minnow and walleye options would allow her to set up a fishing hole, if she wanted. It certainly wasn't a priority to make such useless rooms, though, as edible fish would add nothing to her dungeon's defenses.
The most dangerous, among the new [Critters] she had been awarded, had been the common otter. With a description that deemed them as having 'average' combat skills, it had to be far more dangerous than those labeled as having 'poor' combat skills. However, it was also true that all [Critters] were labeled as acting the way they would in their normal environment. So long as adventurers weren't stupid, it was unlikely they would be attacked by the otters. It wasn't like otters normally preyed upon Humans in her old world and she doubted this world would be any different.
While the other options weren't particularly dangerous, it was encouraging to see just how cheap they were. She'd have to give some more thought as to how to use them in the future. Her desire to use bullet ants on the first floor was almost purely out of a desire to annoy the adventurers into leaving her alone. She would hardly care if they stopped showing up to the dungeon side together. Having them as patrons at her inn and tavern was one thing, but she just couldn't feel comfortable knowing there were people like Bo out there who wished her harm.
Veronica decided to spend the rest of her night making plans for her next floor. She had no clue what sorts of new [Monsters] she might unlock or what sort of theme the new floor would have. For all she knew, her entire dungeon could be stuck with the tropical forest theme she had chosen in the beginning. She would have to wait and see before making decisions in regards to that. However, the chances of another half of the dungeon being dedicated to inn space seemed good enough that she was willing to start working on plans for how to use it.
There were already some obvious ups and downs to the inn space on the upper floors. The higher an adventurer had to climb, the more likely it would be that they'd have to remain in the dungeon overnight. However, that also meant that it would be increasingly more difficult for them to afford to pay for her services. While veterans who were used to the way her dungeon worked would know to pack plenty of small [Items] to use as payment, even that wouldn't be enough to ensure they didn't run out after a certain point in time.
Generally speaking, the services she could provide should be seen as more valuable thanks to the fact that adventurers wouldn't be able to leave the dungeon as easily. They wouldn't want to camp out in the dungeon every night as they'd constantly be bothered by her [Monsters] and it would make it difficult for their party to get enough rest. There also weren't a lot of resources they could harvest to sustain their party on their journey through her dungeon. That meant they'd have to pack any supplies they needed, which would slow them down, or purchase what they wanted at whatever cost she wanted to charge them. Obviously, it would take up less weight to just pack a few pebbles or wood chips than it would to pack cooking equipment and everything else they needed.
Veronica wanted to be able to show some more creativity in her menu and room themes on the higher floors. However, it wouldn't make sense to still charge 50 DP for a room that could rival that of royalty's when she had already made that the price for the more basic rooms on the first floor. The same could be said of her menu. If she made a fancy dim sum menu, she would have to put more effort into preparing everything on the menu, so she deserved to be fairly compensated. However, it would also be a waste to spend her dungeon points on researching a fancy menu if no one was willing to pay for it.
Balancing each of her choices against all the potential for things to go wrong was exhausting. However, it was most certainly a good way to pass away nights like this one. It felt like no time at all before her dungeon was once more noisy as adventurers began to awake and make their way out of their rooms. It was finally time for her to unlock her second floor.