The soft and sporadic patter of waterdrops echoed lightly throughout the cave.
Three humans were slowly plodding through the corridor, magically enchanted sword and such emitting light as they continued their exploration. At the forefront was Blake, with Castella bringing up the rear.
"Do you really think that's all of them? I feel like we're missing something," Blake sighed.
It was hard not to be wary. Blake had never heard of a Dungeon without any monsters in it. Neither had Castella, for that matter.
"Keep light on yer feet, boy. There's magic at work here, but I know not what. The only thing I can think of is that Kobold Shaman had them hunting everything in here right before we arrived. If that's the case, good luck trying to figure out what's going on in a lizard's head."
Castella grumbled to herself, keeping a wary eye on the surrounding walls and stalagmites. At most, she'd seen a few bugs. She would feel a lot better if they'd encountered undead or cave trolls or plague rats or, well, anything really. At the same time if there really was nothing in these caves then the report would be much simpler than expected. The Dungeon must have been more fresh than anticipated. They'd reacted in good time.
In a way, that was the best case scenario. They could return and make a report, Cornelius would write his contacts back at the Capital, they would report directly to the King and decide on a course of action before sending personnel to oversee the Dungeon's initial development.
This was a much better outcome than a Dungeon spawning in the middle of nowhere and bolstering its forces and depths to the point it was spewing out man-eating monsters. That would be an exorbitant cost of both money and human life.
Still, Castella wasn't about to assume everything was going well until she saw the Core herself.
The three made their way down a relatively short hallway before it split off into a side room.
Aryana spoke, "Were these kobolds mining for something? Some of the rock looks a bit unnatural."
Blake kneeled down, running his hand against the stone wall before standing, "We should continue moving. If there are more kobolds, it's best not to give them too long to prepare an ambush."
The two women nodded in agreement before heading right into the open and dimly lit cave. Just like the hallway previous, it too was empty. They circled the room counterclockwise without incident. Other than a few spiders in nooks and crannies, the place was devoid of life. This caused Castella to sigh.
"This Dungeon must be a slow developer. If the worst things here are some Cave Skitters, it's no wonder the kobolds were able to set up camp so easily. Well, at least we've cleared those damn lizards out. Hope it starts filling back up within a few days."
"Think it'll be able to recover soon, then?" asked Blake.
The older woman's face scrunched up as she looked toward one of the lit candles, "Hell if I know, I ain't some Dungeon expert. Should be able to recover, I guess? Long as the Core's fine. It'd be bad in some ways if it didn't, but I don't give a damn either way. Dungeons are just sophisticated tools for people to murder themselves with. World'd be fine without 'em."
With a snort of her nose, she tottered back out into the hallway, Aryana and Blake quickly following. As they rounded a bend and the floor gradually began to descend, Castella quickly noticed a change in the air.
"Stay close to me, girl. There's something afoot. Eyes open, boy."
They'd arrived at a set of downward stairs. The Mana in the air had gone from barely discernable to wispy strands. Anyone with talent in sensing or seeing the flow of magic would catch on to such a change.
The air became silent as the three descended those steps. Despite the enchantments on their weapons, darkness seemed to be threatening to engulf the trio into its cold embrace. Thoughts were running through everyone present's minds, but they dared not voice them and miss a vital auditory clue. A well-placed kobold arrow to the throat would cripple a lesser skilled mage.
"Aryana, Minor Ward, front," Castella whispered.
"A-Ah."
A light shimmer formed in front of the budding mage, its light distortion properties barely visible in the dim cave. This was enough to protect from such an ambush. Castella's years of experience had shown.
By the time they'd reached the bottom of the winding stairs, a short hallway met them, before a much larger room opened up. Numerous rocky outcrops were present on both the ceiling and floor. It was difficult to see across the room's entirety due to the lack of light, but it appeared to be roughly 50 feet in diameter.
Yet rather than any monsters or ambushes, the trio quickly realized they'd reached the end of the road, so to speak. In the very center of the room, bound between a stalagmite and stalactite was none other than a ruby red Dungeon Core the size of a large man's fist.
Confusion spread in Castella's mind. Normally the Core's room would be behind a Guardian's residence. There would be a magical barrier that prevented one from advancing into the Core room until the Guardian had been slain. As such, the Guardian was its last line of defense and greatest obstacle toward any who wished the Core harm. Despite the threat of horrendous punishment due to government laws, there were still a remarkable number of fools who wished to end a Core's existence.
Still, this layout didn't make sense. While Castella wouldn't say the Mana down here was particularly thick, it was still enough that the abrupt arrival of the Dungeon Core threw her off guard. She was expecting either a cursory kobold ambush or a Guardian, of which neither had occurred. Unless ... that kobold shaman had done something?
Speculation was running wild in her head. They stood roughly 10 feet from the Core. Castella was the first to break the silence.
"This makes little sense. Did they break the Core?"
It was the best idea she could come up with given a lifetime's worth of experience. Perhaps a small crack had rendered the Core inert? She moved close to examine its surface for any small cracks that might've formed. Perhaps those dumb lizards had damaged it but it hadn't shattered. Cornelius would be harshly scolded were that the case, despite having reacted accordingly. Politics.
Castella's eyes narrowed as she stood a few feet away from the blasted thing, but noticed no anomalies on its surface. It appeared to be just fine, which only worried her further.
She sighed and made to turn around, "Let's go back. That fat bastard will have to send another expedition, I've no idea what's goi—"
Sneak Attack! You have been stabbed! -64HP
You have been crippled!
You are bleeding!
Sharp pain ran through Castella's shoulder before she found herself missing her right arm. The force from whatever attacked left her grounded. A panicked scream erupted forth, vibrating off the cave walls.
"aaaAAHH!!"
An angry clicking of mandible-like chelicerae was heard. Castella recovered as quickly as she could, looking up to find a 5-foot spider hanging from the ceiling. Its foremost set of limbs were like scythes, its torso and carapace quickly revealed to Castella just what had ambushed them. As a reflective sheen receded from the spider's body, the beast's name pounded forth in the old woman's mind.
—Mirrorback Huntsman!
Disbelief flashed through Castella's head, but she had little time to think. The spider reared back, aiming toward the cause of the earlier yelp. Aiming directly toward Aryana.
"Ward! NOW!"
Castella's warning had been in vain. Her apprentice had frozen up like a baby deer. A thick glob of translucent venom erupted from the spider's maw, aimed directly at the girl. Had Blake's shield been drawn, perhaps he might have been able to block it in time with little effort. It was unfortunate that he could do little more than attempt to shield the younger woman with his body instead.
The man's armor made a light sizzling noise. He'd raised an arm and protected his face, so the attack had almost no effect on him. But this strike was from above, rather than directly in front. Another shriek came forth.
A small amount of venom had struck Aryana directly in the face. Whatever the toxin was, it had caused her to fall over and clutch her head in agony. They'd failed to protect their backline and healer. The situation was a disaster.
—Flamestrike!
A column of fire erupted from the ground, causing the Mirrorback to hiss and retreat several feet. With her left hand, Castella quickly cauterized the stump that remained of her right arm. It was gone just below the shoulder. The momentary pain rendered her head white for a brief moment before she refocused on the foe before them.
The old woman's crackly voice bellowed within the chamber, as another gout of fire flew toward the beast.
"IT'S A MIRRORBACK. TAKE ARYANA AND FLEE, NOW!!"
More fire flew from her left hand, striking the spider's carapace. Its deft movements had managed to dodge the worst of the flame, which seemed to only enrage it more. Small licks of light signaled it had been lightly scorched. The fine hairs on its body were smoldering.
"I can't just leave you here!" was Blake's frustrated reply.
Idiot. Idiot idiot idiot. IDIOT IDIOT IDIOT!!
Why was she still to this day surrounded by idiots? How had this man been a guard and survived this long? Was it because he'd been sheltered all his life? Or were his foes really limited to goblins and other humanoids out on open plains? He stood no chance against a Mirrorback. Not in its natural habitat, not with only a longsword, not under these conditions, and not if they wanted Aryana to live.
A Mirrorback was generally categorized as a rank 25 threat. At best, Blake was roughly on par with monsters in the high teens. He was too young, lacked experience and training. Even Castella, who had killed monsters of higher threat levels before, was likely not going to be this beast's match. When she was younger perhaps it wouldn't be such a deadly fight. Were she younger and had the backing of a well-rounded group, then yes, this monster would be relatively easy.
But she was old. She was wounded. And she was lacking.
"WE'VE LOST! FIRST AID IN CARRIAGE! TAKE THE GIRL! TELL CORNELIUS IT'S AN ABNORMALITY!"
Castella's frantic voice bounced off the walls as she continued to slowly burn through her magic power, keeping the beast at bay best she was able in this damned cave. It continued to flit back and forth over a dozen feet away.
"MAKE HASTE! IF ARYANA DIES, I WILL HAUNT YOU FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. NOW, GO!!!"
Keeping a mindless beast's attention was not something a mage should normally have to do. Often, their vanguard would corner or ensnare the foe before their rearguard fired their spells and projectiles at more agile foes. More advanced parties might have spells better suited for things with such speed. Castella had no answer other than raw firepower.
The longer that useless man hesitated, the quicker she would have to burn through her magic. Thankfully, whether he was a coward or finally realized better, Blake swiftly grabbed the now-unconscious Aryana. The skin on her face had begun bubbling and she was likely at risk of losing an eye. It was unlikely her flawless complexion would ever return.
Blake's teeth were gritted and his belly full of objections, but he would keep his jaw clenched. He knew there was no time for arguing. And so, he fled. With all the speed he could muster and without looking back, he fled.
Castella continued her fruitless onslaught for another 10 seconds, knowing that Blake had likely gotten away by now. There should be nothing to impede their return. If he was quick, he might be able to apply first aid to Aryana within two or three minutes. Whatever that toxin was, she would hopefully survive.
Which was a much brighter picture than Castella could paint for herself.
While she'd likely done some damage to the beast, Castella knew her mana pool was beginning to empty. She'd quickly blown through over half of it in a frantic attempt to keep the monster's ire and the spider away from her group. But there was an unfortunate characteristic that Mirrorbacks possessed, and that was general magic and blunt-type damage resistance. She could attempt to overpower the monster's natural strengths, but what Castella really needed was something to pierce into the beast, rather than small licks of fire.
A skilled bladesman with a fire-enchanted sword would make short work of the foe. It was too bad Castella's forte had never been fire-based magics. Even her strongest fire-based spell, Flamestrike, hadn't done significant damage to the spider. Fire was usually a spider's bane, but she couldn't utilize it to great enough effect. Had Castella focused her learning toward Fire rather than Water and Wind, perhaps things would have gone better.
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She racked her mind for a solution. Her Wind spells would likely miss given the foe's agility. If she could direct a Wind Blade's shearing force toward one of the spider's leg joints, she could begin immobilizing it. An unfortunate thing that she had not the time nor visibility to aim against the shifting target. It kept moving from rocky outcrop to another in erratic motions. Though it had dropped its camouflage, it was still hard to see in these conditions.
—Magelight!
Castella fired two globes of light toward the floor, slowly backing up toward the exit and preparing more offensive spells. She could see it better now, and the light should irritate its vision. The situation was slowly reversing. The spider clacked! angrily at her, fangs and forearms ready to rip more limbs from her body.
If she could just keep it at a distance, then perhaps retreat would ...
That thought was short-lived. A small rock tripped the already off-balance woman up, causing her to stumble backward. The spider lept toward her, quickly driving its two scythe arms into the woman's shoulder and stomach. A wet squelch! echoed off the stone walls.
You have been stabbed! -38HP
You have been stabbed! Critical piercing damage! -88HP
You are bleeding!
Another bout of pain threatened to render the woman unconscious. A small surge of anger welled up within the woman.
Not like this. Ye think ... I'm going to die in some shitty cave? I'm going to let some mindless beast make a meal of me!? I still have ... much to do! People to teach! And you've sealed your own damn fate!
It must be said. Castella had a brash and abrasive personality. She hated the thought of any getting too close to her. In her younger years especially, she'd sought out ways to inflict pain on any foe or fool who ventured too close without permission. One of her favorite spells was suited exactly for such a purpose. After all, most mages were weak when approached too closely. It only made sense for some to seek out defensive measures.
Of which, Castella had found and developed one ultimate countermeasure. And she would channel every last ounce of Mana she could into it.
—Ice Coffin!
Countless crystals of ice immediately formed, welling forth around the woman's battered form. The spider that was atop Castella soon found its more vulnerable underbelly skewered by dozens of sharp lances of cold. The temperature in the air had even dropped drastically within that brief second the Mirrorback had reared up in an attempt to bite the woman's head clean off.
"SHRrrRRkkKK!"
It let out a rage-filled death-cry, then quickly froze just like the air around it.
Murky blue blood started to ooze down the crystalline structure holding the beast aloft, but it too soon stopped its descent. Everything within a 5-foot radius had been affected to some degree by the magical surge. Even Castella was no exception, as she was now rather cold and pinned under both an enormous spider and the moderate weight of her magical creation. Most uncomfortable.
Were her MP not bone-dry, she might make an effort to dispel the sorcery. Unfortunately, that was not the case. A throaty rumble came forth.
"Heh. Hehehe. You, you stupid beast. You almost got me. That's ... That's what you get for underestimating a human. Hahahhah."
Relief flooded Castella's veins. There was still a small chance she might make it out of here alive. She was nearly dead and lacking in Mana, but the air was rich in the stuff. Perhaps within the hour, she might be able to hobble her way out of here. If she focused on suppressing her wounds, her natural recovery might be able to overcome the hole in her stomach. As long as the spider's limb was still firmly lodged inside, the bleeding would be trivial. All she had to do was wait out the discomfort and remain as still as possible.
She closed her eyes in relief. She would be able to come back from this. Then she could check on Aryana and scold the girl. This expedition had cost too much. One bottle of Kulve wine wasn't worth losing an arm. If she hurried, she might be able to get it reattached if she were lucky. She'd make Cornelius foot the bill instead, that cheap bastard. He had connections in town, getting one of the more talented Healers to pay her a visit would be doable.
Yes, that's a good plan. Castella whispered words of reassurance to herself.
The silence in the cave was relaxing as she attempted to meditate and direct the magic energy in her body to make some semblance of recovery. Within a few minutes, she'd hopefully begin to feel her health return. Strange though, she heard a small squelch! come from atop the Mirrorback.
As her eyes opened, she was immediately confused. There atop the mighty Mirrorback was a simple, tiny green slime. The absurdity of the situation caused her to pause. One of the most basic of all monsters was resting on a Dungeon Guardian's corpse. Before thought or panic or aggression could even form in the woman's mind, something else instead entered it.
You have taken critical piercing damage! -22HP
It was a shame Castella had never stopped to consider what would happen if a kobold shamaness had conducted a ritual in a vain attempt to gain authority over a Dungeon Core. It was a shame she did not realize there was a Mana Spring Crystal in the cave that had further disrupted the Dungeon's Mana flow and caused it agitation. And it was a shame she did not realize a certain Slime had been stalking about in the Dungeon, blissfully unaware it was starving the Dungeon Core even further.
Had she known all these things and connected a few dots, she might have realized the Core had been devoting every single ounce of power it could muster towards strengthening its Guardian as an instinctive response. She might have realized it had completely neglected things like expansion, fostering additional monsters, and other developments. She might have been more careful, but she did not know. She had realized the abnormality too late. It seemed her bad luck had followed her yet again.
And so, from a mere 2 feet away, a slimy projectile had shot out at frightening speed. Encapsulated within that green glob was a stone meticulously crafted in a shape similar to an elongated and much more narrow arrowhead. Though it had barely managed to do so, the stone had punctured her eye and lodged into her temporal lobe. Were she not hanging on by a sliver of life and without Mana to defend, things might have gone differently. But fate rarely cares for possibility. With all her strength exhausted, her eye had little more resistance than your average human.
You have died!
The last thought to pass through Castella Duval's head was disbelief. The last thing was a small piece of this very Dungeon itself.
----------------------------------------
Lucky!
Relief swept through my body.
I must say, all things considered? Fantastic. I couldn't have asked for a better scenario.
Ahhh. There was always something refreshing about a plan falling into place. Even more so when a golden goose fell into your lap and presented a solution to all your problems. Had I not witnessed this fortunate turn of events myself, I would think it too good to be true. But here we are!
I'd considered attempting to kill that knight while he was encumbered with the girl, but could think of no effective way to breach his armor in one go. Nor could I think of a safe way to stall him here and pray the thing this woman had called a 'Mirrorback' would wipe them out. Perhaps if I could've gotten atop his head and sent some of my body into his helmet, blinding him. Ah well, for whatever reason I held little enmity toward those two. It seemed unlikely from their conversation he held any hope of returning here for the old woman. She'd been written off as dead, and now she was.
I wonder what this old woman thought before she died? Castella, was it? I'm almost surprised she was able to contend with that giant spider. Certainly explains that dreadful feeling I got when coming down here. Looks like my instincts were better than their group's. Are all humans this strong, I wonder? Seems a bit unlikely, but I'll have to upgrade my opinion of them.
I'd received notice that she was apparently over 'level 30' in the form of a mental notification. Stockpiling such experience was still an unknown factor and the fact it had said 'three times' my level instead of twice meant very little to my goals. I'd wondered if the spider was over level 30 as well, but since I hadn't performed the killing blow I had no way to know.
It was a funny thing though. I was certain I'd hesitate a bit more or at least have some sort of feeling toward killing this woman. Rather than negative feelings, I'm more thrilled the old witch is dead. Are these perhaps the same emotions you felt when killing that koboldess, my dear granny? It really is rather ironic, having your life ended by a pebble. I'm sure that's what you considered the kobold as, and you'd think the same of me had I been spotted, eh?
Hmhmhmm. I forgot I can be such a blatant hypocrite at times. It's been a while since I've indulged in these feelings. Well, what's done is done. It was entirely possible she'd just succumb to her wounds anyway, so I'll consider it the same as euthanizing a terminally ill animal. Alas, now comes the important part.
I was mentally salivating at the thought of crunching down on that crystalline, red ruby in the center of the room. Assuming nothing changed afterward, I'd devour the woman's corpse and that spider. I could only imagine the benefits I'd receive.
Rapidly approaching the pedestal upon which the Dungeon Core was on, I climbed my way up. There was a strong pulse of some sort of energy contained within. And I wanted it something fierce.
The moment I began to engulf the gem within my body, something strange happened. Similar to when I'd gazed into the dreaded abyss that was the Evolution Menu's hidden conditions, a dull pain began to rip at my mind. In comparison to the previous time, I found this to be little more than an unpleasant distraction. The Core was crying out to me, attempting to subdue my thoughts and shackle me.
My non-existent blood boiled. You dare try to enslave me?
With increased gusto, I crunched and devoured and slurped up every last sliver of the crystal. The entire time it seemed to be screeching in something that only vaguely resembled language and speech. In a short moment, the whining and mental pressure ceased. After a much longer period of time than I expected, the ruby-red crystal was no more.
A special object has been Devoured - Dungeon Core (Dark-attuned) (Cave subtype, Rank 2)
Skill unlocked! Skill increased!
Domain Lvl.1 Acquired!
Corruption Resistance Lvl.2 → Lvl.3
Magic Sensory Lvl.1 → Lvl.2
Attribute increase!
Luck - 30 → 33
Title Acquired! - Core Smasher
Some consider it sacrilege, while others a civic duty. Regardless, you seem to have a dislike for Dungeon Cores. Are you certain you don't have anger management issues?
Damage to Core Guardians +4% when chosen as primary Title.
It tasted ... rather disagreeable. The 'energy' was there, but the 'flavor' was lacking. Kind of reminded me of overcooked salmon with too much pepper. Odd.
Regardless, I smiled internally at my new acquisition. I still had more to do, so I would scrutinize my gains once I returned home. As such, I made my way toward the dead spider and crone. They were both enormous relative to my size, so I figured this was going to be rough.
The spider freaked me out much more than the woman, so I decided it was first to go into my goopy belly. With a slurp!, I slowly began turning the spider into mass.
Skill unlocked! Skill increased!
Adaptive Coating Lvl.1 Acquired!
Magic Threads Lvl.1 Acquired!
Multi-Venom Lvl.3 → Lvl.4
Attribute increase!
Strength - 13 → 15
Vitality - 19 → 21
Dexterity - 15 → 18
By the end of things, I was beginning to regret many of my life decisions. The feeling of being satiated had advanced far beyond comfort and turned into a dull pain. I was wayyy too full. There was an unexpected upside to gorging upon the beast with reckless abandon.
Skill unlocked!
Due to overconsumption of materials, Overeating (Slime Variant) Lvl.1 Acquired!
Interesting. This was something I wanted to examine immediately.
Overeating (Slime Variant) Lvl.1 - Passive
Reduced penalty from overconsumption of materials. Increases ability to store mass in liquid form. Higher Skill levels will result in additional mass at a lesser penalty.
Still, that didn't appear to be enough to help me out.
Status Menu Name : n/a , Deathwarded Race : Tiny Slime Level : 10 (MAX) HP : 57/57 (+3.6/hour) Stamina : 42/42 MP : 29/34 (+1.7/hour) Strength : 15 Vitality : 21 Intelligence : 17 Wisdom : 11 (+5) Dexterity : 18 Luck : 33 (+5) Status : Over-satiated (Speed and Dexterity reduced by 28%)
Now I just had to pray my food was as thin as she looked. I didn't think I had much room left in me.
An unpleasant hop, skip, and munch later, she too dissolved and became part of my body. Unlike the spider and Dungeon Core, she tasted rich and full of archaic energy. It was not dissimilar to a fine wine with a pleasant aftertaste. If I didn't feel so bloated, I would have relished in such a powerful flavor. While I briefly wondered at my nonchalant attitude towards what might be considered cannibalism, the majority of my mind decided that I couldn't afford to be picky with my food.
Skill unlocked! Skill increased!
Ice Bolt Lvl.1 Acquired!
Wind Blade Lvl.1 Acquired!
Mana Control Lvl.3 → Lvl.4
Mana Regeneration Lvl.1 → Lvl.2
Attribute increase!
Vitality - 21 → 22
Intelligence - 17 → 21
Wisdom - 11 → 14
And what a feast it was. The glee I was experiencing overshadowed even the languid feeling I'd gotten from eating so much. These spells I'd acquired would no doubt be very useful once I figured out how to use them, but I was more impressed by the large increases in my Intelligence and Wisdom. More importantly than that, there was one essential thing I'd gotten from these spoils.
—I'd fulfilled all the conditions. I was finally ready.
I practically flew back to my house. So great was my joy that I nearly forgot to slurp up the woman's severed arm so there would be no evidence. I gained nothing from the snack, which brought up some questions, but leaving loose ends was dangerous. Who knew what would happen if someone investigated, saw the Dungeon Core gone, and there was no corpse? I didn't understand this world enough, so precautions were necessary. I'd just have to pray I made the right choices along the way.
When I brought up the Evolution Overview box, I noticed my goal had indeed been met.
Small Ruby Slime A Slime named after a gemstone due to their extremely resilient defense and red coloration. Very eye-catching and exudes a regal air. They possess great speed, deadly stealth, potent physical abilities, regenerative properties, and mighty arcane prowess. Only a handful of such species have been mentioned in the history of the world. Legendary. All conditions met! (10 of 10)
It was time.
I mentally expressed my will toward that lovely black box. The gnawing would finally go away and I might even be able to make it out of this damn cave relatively safely. A shame all my acquisitions weren't so easy. I still had to perform cleanup duty on all the kobold corpses I assumed those three had been gracious enough to leave behind. The fact food was no longer an issue filled me with great ease. Hopefully I'd pick up a few tidbits from those corpses as well.
As I confirmed my selection, another box had popped up in my mind. This one was ... not according to plan.
Bonus Conditions Met. Unique Mutation Available!
Would you like to view available mutations for race evolution 'Small Ruby Slime'? ( Y / N )
There were a limited few times when I didn't mind it if things didn't go according to plan. Today was one of those rare exceptions.