《Fantasia: I Am the Dungeon》


 0: Realm in crisis

    The sun is beating down and pounding the earth like sticks on a war drum.


    Two of the three walls surrounding the kingdom have already been breached. Houses and premises burn, and pillars of smoke rise from their ruins. The subjects scream and run from the blue-skinned, dark-armored, bloodthirsty smiling elves. Fiery boulders continue to fall from the sky, hurled by the mighty arms of blind cyclopes. Minotaurs and centaurs lead the enemy march, the former sending the human soldiers flying through the air with the backhand of their clubs, and the latter impaling everything that confronts them with two-meter-long spears.


    The castle in the center remains intact, but for how long? Trenches were erected at each of the entrances, and the order was given to attack anyone who tried to get past them: whether enemies or simply peasants seeking shelter.


    The human soldiers'' countenances are covered with sweat and horror. Even the third squadron captain, who from the top of the last wall watches the dark army approaching, harbors no trace of hope. They defend the kingdom not because they expect to win. They defend it because they are commanded to do so, and because death is surely desirable in the face of the slavery imparted by the dark elves. Likewise the Cyclopes, Minotaurs, and Centaurs were not driven by any ideal or value.... But the horror they felt towards their cruel masters.


    Inside the castle the tremors are felt.


    "This way, your majesty," says Arrax, a pale, lanky fellow with black hair falling down both sides of his face. His robe is silk, of a design overloaded with gold and silver ornaments, as is often the case with presumptuous magicians. Arrax leads the way to his laboratory located in the bowels of the castle dungeons.


    King Marc, a white-bearded ruler with a stern face, is accompanied by his three sons, wife, a squad of elite soldiers, and Hilda, the second squadron''s captain, a tall woman with battle-hardened features, the golden fringe of her wavy hair covering the patch she wears over her right eye. From the way she constantly aims the sword at Arrax, it is clear that she is wary of the mage.


    Hilda assumes that Arrax sold them out to the dark elves. The warrior was prepared to cut the wizard in two. It is impossible that Arrax''s promise is real. It is impossible that anything is capable of saving the kingdom. Although it is also true that she, and the rest of the captains, also assumed as impossible an attack of the dark elves under the sun. Hence the strike took them all by surprise. Hilda grits the teeth and shakes her head, rejecting any trace of hope. Especially a hope coming from Arrax, whose attitude and morality was always gray to black.


    They reach the cells. The occasional prisoner tries to reach through the bars to grab the king''s sons, but the soldiers keep them at bay with shouts and slashes in the air. They reach the laboratory, a long area with a high, vaulted ceiling. Arrax orders his hooded disciples to hurry and move the bookshelf at the back, revealing double doors.


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    "What are you hiding, Arrax?!" Hilda asks, clenching the hilt of her longsword.


    "There''s no time for our discussions now, captain! Follow me!" replies the wizard.


    Hilda already felt a weight in her stomach, dreading what was coming. But all her expectations were turned to ashes as she stepped through the gates.


    The gray crystal, six meters high, floats above a darkness pit, remaining inert, barely reflecting the light. Around the well are carved into the stone six magic circles whose lines are so twisted and complex that trying to follow them with your eyes gives you a headache.


    Except for Arrax and his disciples, all raise their faces to the crystal and are speechless. The king''s youngest sons do not know what it is, but shudder at the pressure exerted by the silent object.


    "A dungeon core?" King Marc mutters.


    Hilda is the first to react, pointing her sword at the wizard.


    "Arrax, damn you! You brought such a dangerous creature into the kingdom?! What were you planning?!"


    The wizard puts his hands up.


    "I didn''t bring it. I created it from scratch," he replies with a hint of pride in voice.


    "Liar!"


    "Why would I lie about this, dammit! Our enemies will show up at any moment and kill us all!" Arrax covers his mouth and clears his throat in an attempt to calm his voice. "Although you could say that the elves were very opportune.... Only today I finished the last remaining step before presenting this new weapon to his majesty... The ritual to forge an artificial soul"


    "There is no such thing as an artificial soul!"


    Arrax recoils, as if the captain''s accusation caught him off guard, but he quickly pulls control himself and points an accusing finger at Hilda.


    "What do you know, gorilla woman?! Magic is full of mysterious ways that someone as primitive as you wouldn''t even be able to imagine!"


    King Marc, glimpsing the beginning of an eternal fight between these two, exclaims:


    "Silence both!"


    Hilda and Arrax bow the knee and lower their heads in apology. The king''s attention remains fixed on the wizard.


    "Arrax, be honest, can this thing save my kingdom from the claws of those worms that crawled out of their underground lair?"


    "Possibly"


    "You''re not sure?"


    "No, your majesty..." Arrax swallows. "I would have preferred to run tests first, but..."


    A new shuddering of the castle, caused by the impact of a catapult blow, is enough to illustrate the reasons for Arrax''s predicament. King Marc sighs and nods, giving the wizard permission to proceed. Arrax stands up and orders his disciples to place themselves on the magic circles, he taking place in the last one available.


    The six magicians concentrate. The outline of the circles is illuminated with an aquamarine glow. The power of magic is felt like electricity in the atmosphere. The wizards'' robes are stirred by a wind that rises from the well. Invisible threads are stretched out into the ethereal, beyond the galaxy of Fantasia.


    Arrax extends his open hand in the direction of the crystal.


    "We need a soul to save us all! A soul that is ideal! Even if it is heresy to the heavens to ask for it...! Awaken and obey, Dungeon!"

 1: Game Over

    5,000,000 viewers and counting. The comment box scales with every millisecond without giving the moderators a chance to work. Not even Jimbo, who prides his reflexes in front of a screen, would be able to keep up with the number and frequency of messages, at most managing to read a couple of them.


    Of the three monitors in front, Jimbo pays the least attention to the left one, the screen that shows the tournament broadcast and the comments box. For Jimbo, attending his community is a lower priority, his attention is 100% focused on the game. Kardax 10,000 (Kard10k for short), perhaps the most complex management and conquest video game in history, and for proof the title number, which is the number of years synthesized in each match. The matches of Kard10k can last entire days, the longest lasted a week without pauses between.


    The drumming of keys being pressed at full speed is a constant sound in the LED-lit bedroom. Jimbo tilts his head towards the can of energy drink on the desk, and by pressing his chin he manages to drink without spilling a drop. It''s years and years of practice and stained shirts.


    The 3 V-Tubers hired to present the competition try to follow and narrate the movements of the three remaining competitors. Emblems placed on a 3D diagram of the solar system are used to represent the positions of each player. Jimbo''s emblem is a J framed in a blue diamond.


    Art3misamisa: Earth, Mars, Jupiter.


    DimensionD: Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.


    KingJim: Mercury, Venus, Pluto.


    To a casual viewer it might appear that Jim is losing, cornered against the sun, in possession of a dwarf planet (Pluto) known as the Newbie-Catcher because of its uselessness and false rumors that it contains exotic materials. Was it really worth it to secretly cross the entire solar system to keep that chump trophy?


    DimensionD also believes that Jim made a mistake, sensing that this is a desperate strategy. Perhaps the famous KingJim has lost his touch? DD decides to send small war expeditions to eradicate Jimbo''s lowly Plutonian settlement.


    Jim wields a half-smile as sees DD''s first horde of space marines landing, all very large and noble, waving battle banners and heavy machine guns.... Only to get blasted by turrets and explosive minefields. When the ammunition in the turrets and bombs runs out, more marines land and fire on the base, which Jim''s colonists continue to fortify from the inside, using machines to refine regolith and build protective plates.


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    It seems that Jim is building some valuable weapon on Pluto, some secret that everyone in Kardax 10,000 does not know, perhaps an Easter Egg hidden by the game developers. But the truth is...


    There''s nothing on Pluto, it''s just a useless rock, at best a regolith storehouse.


    With every minute that passes, Jimbo contemplates how his enemy despairs for not being able to open a breach. DD decides to send a small army to the dwarf planet. Careless and considerable expenditure of force and soldiers, especially when you have an open war front against Art3misamisa.


    Art3mis places her legions of robot valkyries in the front row and tries to push towards Saturn with 50% of her total forces, keeps 10% on their Jupiter moons, another 10% on Mars, and the rest on Earth forming a planetary defense belt in case Jimbo gets the magnificent idea to attack.


    "Smart girl," Jim mutters, showing a wide shark smile on his broad face. Like a good predator, he knows when to strike.


    Art3mis is the biggest threat in the game, Jim urgently needs her to spend resources and weaken in the war against DD to be able to attack. In the meantime, he can concentrate resources on developing a Dyson proto-sphere around the sun to harness its energy. This would be the first time a Dyson proto-sphere has been built in a professional competition, a difficult enough accomplishment in casual matches.


    Jim takes victory for granted. This game was over before it started


    "Hmm?" Jim notices something odd in the comments.


    There are many messages with exclamation points naming his air purifier, a black rectangle next to the bed. Jim remembers that he has to take care his sponsors.


    "Electronic Airs purifiers, the best and most reliable on the market. Seriously, guys. I don''t know how I could live this long without getting one. Plus, if you order yours with the link in the description and use the code KingJ, you''ll get 30% off. You''d be a fool to pass up this offer. Spend! spend! spend!"


    The comment box goes on and on: The purifier! The purifier!


    Jim flashes a smile of a job well done. Assumes he''ll receive a juicy check for the successful promotion. Though the smile is wiped off when his satellites warn of an enemy intrusion.


    A small white scout ship intrudes into his sectors. It''s an Art3mis ship. Jim frowns. The spacecraft sends out distress signals and constant requests for communication. With a specific keyboard command, Jim gives the order to attack, and his satellites fire laser beams that turn the small ship into stardust.


    "No way! You think because you''re a girl you can fool me, the management king? This isn''t the first time they''ve tried to sneak an anti-matter bomb on me with a harmless-looking ship. You still need more than 100 years to outdo me!"


    Jim exclaims and guffaws, confident that the audience is celebrating and applauding his wise decision. But the happiness disappears from his face when he smells a strange smell.


    Behind him, the black rectangle is still shooting sparks that turn into fire.

 2: Trouble in paradise

    A dark tunnel and a light at the end.


    The light grows and covers Jimbo''s field of vision.


    Slowly opens his eyes and lets out a yawn. He stretches and senses that lying on a hard, ridged surface. Strangely, he feels no physical or mental discomfort. Despite having his last memories blurred, Jim is as light as a feather, and he might even say that he has never felt better in life. His hand reaches to check the alarm clock, but he only manages to catch air and the smile disappears from the face.


    Something is wrong.


    He squints and looks at his hand. Where once there was flesh, now there was a strange, fluctuating, semi-transparent white energy, covered by a rainbow aura whose hues vary with Jim''s emotions. In this situation, the aura is tinged with yellows and greens of panic and surprise.


    Jim screams, stands up, and tries to move, but collides with the semi-transparent white entity in front of him, and then with the one behind him. To the left and right his path is also sealed off, by railings. The marble and gold escalator ascends through clouds of pastel shades.


    "What''s going on? Where am I?" Jim exclaims as he pats his body up and down. He wears no clothes and has no genitals, just like the hundreds of creatures glimpsed as he stretches around.


    Jim has become a figurine of energy, like white fire contained in a small, circular, humanoid container. It might almost look like a stuffed animal or a new pok¨¦mon.


    The entity behind him gave a tired, sleepy-eyed look.


    "Relax, boy" The voice is masculine and slightly deep, perhaps belonging to a teacher or a military man. "At this point none of your worries matter anymore. Just enjoy the ride. Look, we''re near the end," he adds, pointing with his chubby hand.


    "Are you an alien? Did the aliens abduct me? Don''t hurt me, I''m on your side!"


    A feminine laugh startles Jim, it comes from the entity in front of him, one of lesser height than the rest.


    "You still don''t realize it, do you?" asks the small entity with an amused smile.


    "Realize what...?" Jim continues lost.


    "How do I put it in words that avoid hurting your sensibilities...?" The little girl questions with a hand near what used to be her chin, and then exclaims, arms flailing, "You''re dead! Finished! It''s over! The end! Your infinite universe has become finite! Game Over!"


    Jim''s aura darkens. Trembling, he shakes the head in rejection of this information. In response the entities come clean with him.


    "My name is Mary. I just turned 16 when I died after slipping on a banana. In my defense, it was a cloudy day"


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    "I''m Gustavo, I''m 32... I died in an armed robbery when I was leaving a class at the university"


    "Well, I don''t remember dying! This has to be a mistake!" Jim exclaims, leaning over the railing and tempted to jump into the cloud sea. "A mistake, yes. This can''t be happening. God, no! I''m not even a believer!"


    Despite Jimbo''s endless complaints, the ladder continues to advance. The top is not connected to anything, and for a few seconds looks like Mary will fall into the void. A light beam breaks through the clouds, illuminates Mary and lifts her up to vanish into the clouds.


    The steps move once more and now Jim stands where Mary was a few seconds ago. He tries to make way between the souls, but Gustavo prevents him and pushes back to the place.


    "Calm down, boy"


    "How do you expect me to calm down?!"


    "I know it''s complicated, but I''m sure we''ll get the answers up there"


    "I don''t want answers! I want to go home! At least...! At least let me clear my Internet history!"


    "I doubt that''s possible"


    The light beam falls again. Jimbo''s soul rises. He barely tries to hold on to Gustavo''s hands, but Gustavo lets go.


    "Son of a biiiiiiiiiiiitch!"


    Jim''s voice is heard farther and farther away, until it disappears.


    The clouds disperse.


    Jim shakes the head, and as he feels solid ground stands up. In front of him is a plain-looking white wooden desk. Taking a seat behind the desk is a tall, gray-bearded man, dressed in a humble red robe, a halo floating above his head. Behind the tall man lie railings and two doors, one gold and one silver, both with pearly arches. The man gives Jim the kindest, most understanding smile Jim has ever seen. Jim shudders and stammers, remembering some cartoons from his childhood where this just happens.


    "St. P-Peter?"


    The saint nods.


    "Do you know all those times I cursed and used God''s name in vain...? Just a joke"


    The saint lets out a soft laugh. His voice is soothing, it makes Jim calm down a little. The old man opens the book on the desk and glances at the first few pages.


    "It looks like life in the orphanage was hard for you, son. But with study, effort, and one or two well-taken opportunities, you managed to emerge"


    "St. Peter, look, I''m sure this is a big mistake," he says and approaches the desk. "I''m sure I went into a coma from the thrill of my overwhelming victory, but I can''t be dead. Please, talk to God, or Christ, or even Zeus if necessary, and take me back home. To thank you for the favor I promise to go to Mass every Sunday"


    The saint''s expression becomes contemplative and he looks at the final page of the book.


    "Fire"


    "What?"


    "You died in a fire in your apartment. A sad accident"


    "I don''t remember that!"


    "Letting you forget is one of heaven''s blessings, son. I doubt it will do you any good to reminisce about those last moments"


    Jim lowers the head and looks at his hands, while St. Peter continues to read the book. Jimbo pinches himself, bangs his head, but neither feels pain, nor wakes up. He repeats under breath that is a dream or a hallucination, but as the minutes add up, he understands that the nightmare is true. His life ended in such a horrible way that he can''t even remember how it ended.


    "I''m dead... Fuck"


    With the colors of his aura darkened, Jimbo raises face to the Heaven''s Guardian to receive sentence. The tall man points to a line in the book and frowns.


    "It appears here that you masturbated, Jimbo. I guess you''ll have to spend eternity in hell"


    Jimbo''s aura pales and he almost feels as if his soul will break in two. St. Peter''s expression softens and laughs.


    "It''s a prank. We don''t so much look at the act, but at the focus. We are more flexible than you think"


    "So I''m not going to hell?" Jim is still very stiff and scared.


    "It depends... Is your name Nicol¨¢s Maduro, by any chance?"


    "No. I don''t even know who he is"


    "In that case you''ll be fine. Hell is only for wicked souls, Jimbo. Dangerous souls who have caused, directly or indirectly, much evil, corruption, or pain, with nothing to redeem them. However, I can''t allow you to enter heaven either... After evaluating your background, I feel it is best for you to return to the reincarnation cycle"

 3: What you want to be?

    When Jimbo heard that he could not enter heaven, almost collapsed to the floor. But when heard the word Reincarnation, his spirits recover and his eyes light up. Perhaps all is not lost, perhaps there is more for him than this abrupt end. Moving forward, he jumps up and perched on the desk.


    "Reincarnation... Like in light novels?" Jim questions, extending his plump energy hand.


    "Or as in the Bhagavad Gita, holy poem of the Hindus," replies St. Peter with an arched eyebrow. "Jimbo, this is not a reward... It''s a new opportunity. Our mission is that all souls transcend, not that they repeat a thousand unsatisfied lives until they end up twisted. There are wounds and traumas that reach the spirit, you know?"


    "That''s very well, but it''s all going to be like light novels, right?" Jim ignores half of the saint''s words and continues looking for the confirmation he wants.


    St. Peter lets out a long sigh and nods with a tired expression.


    "Good!"


    Jim flashes a big smile and hops down from the desk, "I guess I''ll have to leave behind my PC, my games, my money, and all my trophies... But I''ll take the sacrifice! I guess that will earn me a point or two with the Almighty. Where do I sign?


    St. Peter points to the silver threshold. The door opens by itself.


    "Follow that path, my son, and you will find your guardian angel. The angel will tell you everything you need to know"


    Jimbo thanks St. Peter and advances through the clouds, whose cumulus molds to his footsteps like snow. The silver door closes behind him.


    Pearl pantheons with double jade doors appear between the paths of cloud and light. Jimbo sees many souls being led by winged figures dressed in white robes. There are no angels that are ugly, their faces seem to have been crafted like that of the best NPCs. He sees Mary enter with a tall, handsome angel into one pantheon. Jimbo gawks admiring everyone''s beauty, until he bumps into someone and ends up sitting on the light floor.


    Lifting his face, Jim discovers a slender, short girl whose golden bangs cover her sleepy eyes. She floats hunched over, with two white wings that don''t even move. In one hand the girl holds a golden trumpet.


    "Who are you?" Jim asks from the floor.


    "I''m your guardian angel, Cherubella," the angel announces as she brings the trumpet to her lips and blows, releasing an annoying sound right in Jimbo''s face.


    Jim grumbles and runs a hand over his face before standing up.


    "You didn''t do a very good job, did you?" Jim accuses, as his reason for being there is that she didn''t protect him from death.


    "I tried to warn you," Cherubella''s voice is just as soothing as St. Peter''s, only somewhat lethargic, as if she had just awakened from a nap. "Know that constant pain in your stomach that you chose to ignore...? That was me"


    Jim avoids asking how she caused those stomach pains. Instead, decides to focus on the promise of a new life. He rubs his hands together and forces a smile.


    "So... What''s the next step?"


    "Next step of what?"


    "Of my reincarnation," Jim begins to sound annoyed.


    "Oh, right. Well, what do you want?"


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    Jimbo''s eyes widen in surprise.


    "I didn''t know I had a choice..."


    Cherubella smiles.


    "Come to my pantheon"


    The jade doors open by themselves as they pass through. Within those pearly walls illuminated by an unseen power, are a humble desk like St. Peter''s, a wooden chair, a filing cabinet, and perhaps most striking is the golden machinery placed at the bottom of the pantheon. The machine is equipped with a crystal sight attached to a seat, two levers, an open vault, and an elongated tube extending out of the pantheon, pointing beyond the clouds.


    Jimbo with a jump takes a seat in the wooden chair while Cherubella floats behind the desk, puts down the trumpet, and opens the filing cabinet to search through hundreds of folders with names on them.


    "Wait a second, am I not your only prot¨¦g¨¦?"


    "Eeeh, no," Cherubella replies with a quiet smile while still going through the files. "I have about 9000 souls assigned to me"


    "??9000?!" Jim almost fell off his seat, unable to imagine such a workload.


    "I used to have one partner, but now there are so many souls that we all had to split up. If I keep up the good work, I''ll earn my third wing and be one step closer to becoming a kerubin," Cherubella''s expression takes on a slight crimson hue as she imagines the future.


    "And when you sleep, or eat, or have fun?"


    "I don''t need to eat or sleep. And my work is quite fun"


    Jim averts his eyes. For convenience''s sake, keeps it to himself, but he thinks God is an abusive exploiter. Cherubella places a manila folder on top of the desk and opens a drawer to pull out some brochures, which she hands to the soul.


    "These remind me of vacation brochures," Jim says as he glances through the contents of the first one. "Wait a minute, this is where I''m coming from!"


    "That''s our Homecoming package," Cherubella reports. "It''s quite popular, most prefer a place they''re familiar with"


    "Can''t I tell you what I''m looking for first, and then you can show me the brochure that matches?"


    "Hmm, sure," Cherubella accepts the brochures back, careful not to crease the corners of the paper.


    Jimbo settles into the chair and begins to relate what he wants step by step, also gesturing with his hands. Cherubella listens and nods from time to time to make it clear that she is paying attention. When Jimbo finishes his chatter, the angel says:


    "So you are looking for a fantasy world"


    Jim smiles and nods several times. Cherubella hands him a piece of paper with the name Fantasia on it, a brochure that Jim accepts and reads with growing excitement as he sees that it has everything he asked for: magic, dragons, treasures, kingdoms, princesses....


    "Although it''s a relatively recent galaxy, it''s another of our most popular destinations"


    "There are elves!"


    "Yes, of various kinds. Although they are less friendly than people think"


    "Oh, my! It has just about everything I dreamed of"


    "So you like it?"


    "Like a lot!"


    "Good. I guess the only thing left is for you to tell me what you want to be"


    "Can I choose anything?"


    "There are souls who were granted to be a magic sword, a slime, and even a vending machine. Didn''t St. Peter tell you? We are very flexible"


    "A vending machine? Really?"


    "Hey, we don''t judge here... Well, yes, but you know what I mean"


    "Do you have a pencil and paper? It''s a bit long"


    Cherubella gets from the desk a piece of parchment and a golden quill that doesn''t need ink to write. Jimbo writes down all the requirements, which takes about ten minutes, and then hands the paper to the angel. Cherubella''s gaze goes up and down the text several times.


    "So you want to be a humble farmer with a golden heart, half elf, half bastard son of the king, possessor of a dragon''s egg, and a mysterious destructive power that is in turn a remnant of a fragment of the demon king that is sealed inside you"


    "There''s more in the back"


    Cherubella checks the other side.


    "Innate mastery of martial arts and fencing. And a magnet for women who don''t mind being part of a harem, including a cute childhood friend, and a 40-year-old mentor. Is that all?"


    Jimbo nods and crosses the arms behind his head. Cherubella smiles, reopens the desk, pulls out a silver scale with four scales. Then she opens Jimbo''s file and as if it were some kind of magic pocket, she pulls out three statuettes from the folder: One white, one red, and one gray, which she places on the different scales.


    "I sculpted them. Do you like?"


    Jim leans over and squints his energy eyes.


    "Is that me?" Jim recognizes the stubby, broad-faced figures. The white statuette shows a friendly smile; the red one a big shark smile; and the gray one seems indifferent to everything. "Why do the red and white ones look so small?"


    "They are made of sins and good deeds, respectively"


    "What do you mean by that...?"


    Cherubella ignores the question and rolls up the paper with Jimbo''s requests, which she then places on the last scale. The scale shakes and moves up and down, as if undecided by the weight of each element, until the paper jumps up in the air, unrolls, and floats down covering Jimbo''s head.


    "Perhaps you should be less demanding. Set the limit at ten words," says the angel without erasing the gentle smile. "Let''s find the balance together"

 4: Dungeon Core

    After 10 more failed attempts, and Cherubella expressing concern about running out of writing paper, Jimbo opts to be more concise and writes:


    I want to have many opportunities to become what I want to be.


    That way he hopes to make sure not to be born a cockroach and to be able to realize some of his fantasies, such as becoming a hero or an emperor.


    Cherubella rolls up the piece of parchment and places it on the empty scale. The scale once again shakes. Jim watches the process with his hand and face at the edge of the desk, and is startled when for an instant the scale promised to throw the paper into the air. The instrument''s movements calm down and the balance reaches stability.


    "One point of balance, good," says the angel. "We can go on"


    "It''s about time!"


    Cherubella guides Jimbo to the golden machinery and instructs him to step into the open valve, whose container is just the right size for the souls. Jim is still enraptured by the promise of reaching a fantasy world, and enters the machinery without hesitation. The angel pushes the lid and, with a grunt and a lot of effort, manages to close it.


    "Does this thing fly, or what?" Jim asks, his voice muffled by the metal that surrounds him.


    "Not exactly," Cherubella says as she settles in the seat, looks through the scope, and begins to manipulate the levers located on the sides of the chair. The lever on the left moves the horizontal axis of the tube, and the lever on the right moves the vertical axis.


    "It''s moving! Is it normal?" exclaims Jim.


    "It''s normal," Cherubella replies without taking her eye from the scope. Beyond paradise there are star clusters. Galaxies of various shapes and sizes, Fantasia being one of compact size but vibrant colors, shaped like a dragon or a winged beast.


    "Thank you for everything, Cherubella. I have a question, though..."


    "Yes?"


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    "Doesn''t it cause problems for you to send the reincarnated remembering that heaven exists and who they were in the past?"


    "They don''t remember"


    "Huh?"


    "The soul washer erases and cleans the memories. One or two memories remain, but they disappear bit by bit in the subconscious when they are babies or in the course of the first years"


    "You didn''t tell me!"


    "You didn''t ask me"


    "W-Wait! I have something else to add to my requests!"


    "Geronimoooooo!"


    Cherubella presses a pedal under the seat and the soul washer activates. As if inside a centrifuge, Jim begins to spin round and round, getting so dizzy that it is impossible to think. Cherubella blows her trumpet in a goodbye gesture.


    "Good luck. I hope they assign me to you again," says the angel and presses the pedal a second time. The cannon fires, leaving behind a frosty blue smoke.


    Like a comet going faster than the speed of light, Jim screams as all around them galaxies and nebulae pass by looking like blurry trails. He grabs his head and scrunches up his face in an attempt to preserve memories and personality, but already his memory is beginning to fade.


    Cherubella? St. Peter? Who are they?


    "You''re Jimbo, you''re Jimbo, you''re Jimbo!" repeats constantly as he rushes into Fantasia''s galaxy. Enter the cumulus, his trajectory dodges stars, asteroid belts and gaseous planets, until finally a world with a geological resemblance to the planet Earth is in front of him.


    He crosses the atmosphere and enters the clouds. The atmosphere clears, revealing a quiet, pretty little town on a green mountain surrounded by forest, where the villagers work happily and distant from the grandiose events of the world. But before Jimbo could reach the cabins, aquamarine chains appear out of nowhere and wrap around his limbs.


    "What the hell is this?!"


    Making him let out another scream that no one hears, Jimbo is dragged in the opposite direction at breakneck speed. The idyllic mountain landscape changes to a plain turned battlefield. Jim is pulled between the smoking parabolas of catapult projectiles, over the three walls, and through the stone of the castle walls.


    In a metaphysical terrain impossible for human eyes to see, the magical chains crash and fuse Jimbo''s soul with the gray crystal.


    A navy blue ripple runs through and tinges the dungeon core, which slowly begins to spin and emit an echo similar to the wind crashing against the walls of a cavern.


    The surprised faces of King Marc and his family; Hilda and her soldiers; and Arrax and his disciples; are colored by the blue glow.


    "Incredible..." Musans King Marc before his vision is covered by the back of Hilda, who stands in the front line with her sword drawn, ready to face any danger.


    "Be careful, your majesty. Dungeon cores are hostile towards any being that does not belong to their domain"


    "Did it work?" Arrax mumbles, just as astonished as the others, until he comes to his senses and coughs to clear his voice in an attempt to disguise it. "I mean... It worked just as I expected. Your majesty, don''t worry. I have everything under control"


    The castle shakes again. A reminder that the enemy continues to approach.

 5: New game, new fantasy

    ?Where am I...??


    That''s the question Jimbo asks himself when wake up. His memories are scrambled, he remembers winning the Kardax 10,000 championship and then smelling a stench of burning plastic.


    Smoke.


    Fire.


    Choking.


    Sleep.


    End.


    Is dead.


    Also, he remembers a light at the end of a tunnel, but that vision fades away when he realizes his situation. KingJ, the best player in Kard10k, is finished. But strangely doesn''t feel sad, it''s as if something inside tells and encourages him saying that it''s not all over.


    ?A second chance...??


    Jimbo looks around. He floats in an ethereal, hazy blue-colored space. Trying to reach out his hands, but he lacks limbs. In fact, he lacks everything. Yet the blue mist around him stirs and molds to his movements, or rather his intentions.


    ?This space that surrounds me... Is part of me??


    Light lines emerge from the mist, which then merge to form a circle containing strange runes and a crystal-like symbol, from which stripes extend upward like the branches of a tree.


    The image is confusing and Jimbo begins to grow impatient.


    ?I don''t understand any of this!?


    The circle adjusts itself in response to his complaints. The runes and symbol scatter to become numbers and letters.


    Jimbo the Dungeon Core LV 1


    -Ether: 0/100


    -External link: None.


    Tip 1: Make call and formalize link to connect with the outside.


    Tip 2: Create avatar to connect with the outside.


    If Jimbo had eyebrows, he would raise them upon recognizing the message''s nature. It is the universal language of video games. It''s so familiar and reassuring, that for a few moments he tries to put both hands to his head to remove the VR helmet, an action that obviously leads to nothing.


    ?I still have a lot of questions, but at least now I can understand what''s being thrown in my face. Finally some mercy for me?


    The line that says Outside Connection, flashes repeatedly, an indication that this is an urgent item or one that should be resolved soon. As Jimbo concentrates on the tips, two new circles appear below the first, more compact, and each with its own option and description.


    -Skill: Dungeon Core Call.


    Requirement: None.


    Cost: 20 Ether.


    Description: Sends out magical energy waves to attract kindred beings.


    Caution: Can also attract dangerous or non-affine beings with high magical sensitivity.


    ...


    -Skill: Build avatar #1.


    Requirement: LV 5.


    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Cost: 500 Ether.


    Description: Build an avatar from scratch.


    Caution: If the avatar dies, the Dungeon Core will lose 5 levels and will also lose this skill.


    ...


    ?It''s like a management game!?


    At first it was confusing as the options were presented from the Dungeon''s perspective rather than the adventurer''s. But like any veteran gamer, Jim quickly grasped the concept. Though he also gritted his metaphorical teeth, dissatisfied with how unfair it all is.


    ?What do you mean it also attracts non-affine beings?! And how am I being offered a choice I don''t even get to choose?! I''m LV 1, dammit! This isn''t properly balanced!?


    Maybe he''s getting ahead though. Everything is presented as options in a video game because that''s what he handles the most and it''s easiest for him. It''s a translation of arcane language into pixel language, but that doesn''t change the arcane origin of what''s happening.


    ?I must be careful and think my actions through intelligently - I cannot die again! Nothing assures me that I will get a third chance!?


    However it still bothers him to have such limited options.


    ?At least tell me how to level up?


    The blue fog distorts to show new messages.


    Tip: Spend your total Ether to level up.


    ?So how do I get Ether? I don''t think I can do much locked up in this blue space. If only I had been reincarnated into something with legs?


    Tip: Dungeon Core are made up of crystallized Ether. They generate Ether naturally that can be used by the Dungeon Core itself.


    ?Great! And how much can I generate? 100? 200? 1000 per hour??


    Tip: Dungeon Core generate a number of ether every hour equal to their level.


    ?That means I generate 1 Ether per hour! So low??


    Jimbo is dumbfounded by such unproductiveness. It means he would need 20 hours of doing nothing to start casting magic waves, and to level up would require more than four days. The lack of response from the blue mist confirms Jim''s suspicions.


    ***


    The blue crystal continues spinning and shining, but after a couple of minutes and past the initial surprise, nothing happens and King Marc faces the wizard looking for answers. Arrax, seeing that the core is stable, throws a fierce look at the disciple closest to him.


    "You!"


    "M-Me?" the hooded woman points a finger at herself, her pale face dominated by nerves.


    "Bring the specimen! Quickly!"


    The disciple nods and leaves the magic circle. The aquamarine glow of the ritual scheme loses strength with the absence of a mage, but continues to glow. The girl returns to the core room a minute later pushing a heavy cage with wheels at the corners. She undoes the latches and opens the bars. The disciple repeatedly bangs on the cage''s back, until the prisoner finally pokes her head out.


    At first glance one might mistake her for a young girl, but soon the incongruities are revealed. Her skin is reddish and between pink bangs rise a pair of broken horns. Her arms and legs are scarred by the scars of cruel experiments, and the poor raggedness of the rags she wears grows when compared to the luxurious clothes of the king''s children. The creature throws everyone a lost look. Two bulges protrude from her rags; they are two dark, membranous wings cut in half.


    "An imp, Arrax? Really? Are you plotting what I think you are?" Hilda asks with a frown.


    "Would you rather I used people for my experiments? Of course I needed to use non-humans for this!" Arrax replies in an annoyed tone.


    "Explain yourself, Arrax. Don''t exhaust my patience," says the king without understanding where the situation is flowing.


    "I know how to explain, your majesty," interrupts Hilda and begins to tell based on her knowledge as a soldier and adventurer. "Dungeon cores, despite their infamy, are very helpless beings. They need the help of creatures to spread their presence in our world and protect themselves. The adventurers'' guild gave these beings connected to the Dungeon Core a name... Bosses and sub-bosses"


    "I hate to admit it, but the captain is right," Arrax says with a bitter smile. "Although I would add that the intelligence of the dungeon cores is still in doubt, they are most likely idiots and the creatures that encounter them are merely using their power. We need this deplorable creature to formalize a link with the core so it can begin to obey and help us"


    "And won''t it be a problem to hand over that responsibility to a dirty little devil?" asks the king.


    "This imp is very well trained," Arrax assures the king, looking sideways at the little demon, who trembles and lowers her gaze. "We amputated its wings, horns and claws. If necessary, I''m sure our brave captain could eradicate it with one stroke"


    "Perhaps I should eradicate you, your madness, core, and cruelty," Hilda threatens.


    "Don''t tell me you feel empathy for these demonic things"


    "No, I just feel an intense revulsion towards you, dark wizard"


    "Ha! The feeling is mutual, gorilla woman"


    The king still doesn''t look happy. A layer of sweat trickles down Arrax''s forehead.


    "If preferred, your majesty, I can instruct one of my disciples to perform the contract"


    The disciples swallow saliva at such words. None of them are sure what will happen when they make a link with the experimental core. Some are afraid that everything will explode.


    "Why don''t you do it, Arrax?" Hilda says.


    The wizard is startled and almost falls out of the ritual circle.


    "I need to take care of running the ritual. I can''t do everything!" says and points his hand at Hilda. "Why don''t you volunteer to make the connection, Captain?"


    "I would... If His Majesty commands me to"


    "Arrax, Hilda, you are invaluable servants to me," King Marc interrupts. "I can''t risk something going wrong and losing you in these difficult times. Let the imp take care of it. But at the slightest sign of suspicion... Assassinate her"


    Arrax and Hilda nod.

 6: Plenilunium

    Lynel, the captain of the third squadron, roars and swings his steel staff, wielding two spiked spheres at each edge of the weapon, capable of tearing flesh and pulverizing bones. The man, with a broad body and a bushy gray mustache, thrusts with every ounce of physical strength, pushing back the enemies the little stretch they managed to penetrate into the castle garden, sending back to the outside of the west wall entrance.


    "[Max Power]!"


    -Technique: Max Power.


    Requirement: None.


    Cost: 20 Ki.


    Description: Doubles the user''s physical strength for 60 seconds.


    Caution: It is advisable to have a healthy physical state to withstand this technique.


    The captain canalizes his inner ki. The man''s muscles swell, bulging his armor even more. Strikes the ground with one side of the staff, causing two effects: Pushing the dark elves away with the shockwave; and raising himself five meters above the ground. As Lynel falls swings the staff like a hammer and strikes a minotaur''s head, plunging its skull into his torso and seating it on the stone cobblestones. Seconds later, the minotaur''s body falls sideways.


    Lynel lands gasping for breath, his body burning under the armor and bathed in sweat. Aware that he cannot maintain this overexertion all the time, steps back and waves the staff, striking the contours of the threshold of the entrance. The bricks and the steel gate give way, collapsing and clogging up the way.


    The effects of the technique conclude and Lynel''s muscles return to normal. The fatigue is immediate, but even though his armor feels heavier, the captain refuses to reduce his efforts.


    "Count!" Lynel orders to find out how many soldiers are left, but as he sweeps the garden with a glance, he discovers that only a handful of soldiers are left standing, some of them on their knees, too many injured to fight. Lynel''s face darkens. "You boys, return to the castle and take shelter as best you can, also carry the wounded. Remember that we are the buckle that holds together the belt that is the United Kingdoms. It is forbidden to falter!"


    Lynel doesn''t know if his words of encouragement will boost morale, but he can''t stay to find out. The captain rushes to assist at the remaining entrances. As he glances sideways at the castle his expression darkens even more, for he is certain that only a miracle could save them all.


    Meanwhile, on the outskirts of the kingdom, two hours away on horseback, lies the Great Rift. An abyss that looks like a wide mouth or a wound of the world. A broken stone bridge, older than the kingdoms, serves as a threshold to what lies below in the underground, territory known as the Underdark, a place that can be cold and wet, or so hot that your organs can burn, underworld where the gems take the place of the stars.


    Halfway to the Great Rift, on a hill, there is an open tent, and a closer look would reveal that the folds of the tent are tightly stretched human skin. Moonsong takes a seat on a bone throne, and raising a spyglass he watches the invasion of the Stoicus kingdom unfold, named after Stoicus, who was not even a king, but a barbarian leader who was dedicated to killing anything that came out of the underdark in a sort of personal crusade.


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    Moonsong is a dark elf, her hair is white as the moon and her skin is a blue almost black as the sky in the darkest nights. Her beauty is superlative even among her species where beauty is the norm, and her light armor of plenilunium has a suggestive cleavage and exposes part of the thighs and the skin of the hips, further accentuating her excellent figure. To the left of her waist hangs a bone flute, and to the right a curved sword of plenilunium, a black mineral with purple, red, and blue reflections, as lethal as it is resistant and precious. Crude human alloys simply split like butter under a plenilunium blade.


    Centuries after the death of Stoicus an outpost was created, just a barracks and a watchtower, from where a soldier at the top using a more rustic and primitive spyglass than the one Moonsong is using, warned about possible invasions coming from underground. As the decades passed the settlement evolved into a village full of people wanting to take advantage of the green esplanades or the mining of the Great Rift. Eventually the Stoicus kingdom was formalized.


    Unlike other kingdoms, the Stoicus kingdom is not ruled by bloodlines, but rather every century the United Kingdoms come together to elect a noble family to lead it. The current ruler is King Marc, and like his predecessors, the role is to serve as a point of containment for any subterranean threats.


    "Humans... Always running and escaping their mortality," Moonsong says with a cold smile devoid of humor. "In a century that I took to choose a new suit of armor or plan the integration of a new lover for my harem, they see their kings and heroes born and die. Could there be any other creature more embarrassing?"


    Actually Moonsong can think of several more disgusting creatures. Goblins, slimes, imps... But at least those are aware of how pathetic they are and just exist as savages. While humans build monuments and walls as if trying to overcome death with their works. For many elves and long-lived species, such attempts are an insult to nature.


    "I like humans," replies another feminine voice, but more brusque than melodious. Moonsong glances sidelong where Blood-And-Guts remains standing, performing the guardian role. Unlike Moonsong, Blood-And-Guts does wear full body armor, because she is a total warrior, as you can tell by her height and the muscles in her neck. Blood-And-Guts'' smile is radiant, and her silver hair long, wavy and soft. The elf looks much kinder than she really is. "You should see the humans when they defend their short lives... It''s a lot of fun. It''s even funnier when they understand that it''s all over and start begging"


    Moonsong opens her eyes wide.


    "Are they capable of asking a dark elf for mercy? Are they that crazy and misguided?"


    "I don''t like to let them down, so I more or less give them a little hope until I get tired"


    "How did you do with Stoicus?"


    "Exactly! You should have seen how his face lit up when I told him his beloved wife and daughter were alive. Of course I didn''t tell him the both true condition, that would ruin the surprise. I, personally, wouldn''t call that life"


    Blood-And-Guts'' attention is taken by a silhouette approaching on horseback. The woman raises her blue hand and places it near the forehead.


    "Look! Here comes your husband, Moonsong. With news, I guess... Hopefully good stuff"


    Moonsong sighs and leans her elbow on the arm of the throne. Her gauntlet clatters against the bone. She looks down at a ray of sunlight filtering in from the outside to touch her metal boot. Particles of plenilunium are loosened and blown away by the wind.


    "Yes... Good news..." Moonsong murmurs, masking her growing nervousness.


    Plenilunium. An extraordinary metal under the darkness, unbeatable under the full moon, and terrifying under the blood moons. But under the sun... It turns to dust, or so it usually does. That the dark elves are fighting under full sun is a reflection of the fact that they are being supported by arcane and unbelievable forces. But even such support has its limits.


    There is not much time left.

 7: Link and management

    Silver Face climbs down from the bicorn, a formidable beast with dark fur and muscular legs. Inside the tent and, as soon as he is three steps away from Moonsong, he kneels down. The joints of his plenilunium armor clink during the obeisance gesture. The very handsome elf, with long silver hair, and barely 250 years old, presents a summary of the invasion. Moonsong gives Silver Face a cold stare, and Blood-And-Guts her usual light smile.


    "Two of the three walls have fallen. The human army is decimated and cornered. I set up patrols around the kingdom to capture any human seeking to escape. Thanks to such measures I can assure you, my beloved, that the slave capture line is now fully operational. We have over 300 slaves ready to be transferred to the underdark"


    "What about the castle?" Moonsong gets straight to the point.


    Silver Face smiles confidently, though none of the elves miss the slight shaking and clinking of armor.


    "The humans proved to be more stubborn and resilient than we expected. But I am sure that in an hour we will conquer the castle," says Silver Face.


    "One hour...?"


    Silver Face nods.


    Moonsong closes her eyes and remains meditative for a full minute. As soon as she opens the eyes again, Moonsong''s hand moves like a blur, drawing the curved sword whose edge whistles through the air, slashing and spraying blood on the ground. Silver Face''s head falls and rolls, the body collapses moments later.


    "I am surrounded by incompetents..." Moonsong mumbles. She returns the sword to its sheath and rises from the throne.


    "You continue to kill your husbands, no one will want to marry you willingly" says Blood-And-Guts without wiping off her smile.


    Moonsong ignores the mocking words of her guardian and walks out of the tent, stepping over the corpse of Silver Face.


    "If you want something well done, you must do it yourself" the elf murmurs and takes the bicorn''s reins. The beast is not even fazed by the death of its previous rider. Moonsong jumps onto the mount and turns it in the direction of the kingdom. She shakes the reins and the stallion takes off.


    "Bring me the first captain''s head as a souvenir!" Blood-And-Guts shouts behind.


    Moonsong does not respond, she is too focused on accomplishing her mission. The king must die before the agreed deadline.


    ***


    The Imp approaches the pit''s edge, stands on tiptoe, and stretches her arm as far as possible, but still can''t reach the surface of the crystal. Arrax grunts in exasperation and orders the disciple from before to lift her up. The disciple nods and hurries to take the Imp by the waist to lift it, a simple task when the creature is small and malnourished.


    The Imp''s fingers touch the crystal and an electric tingle runs through her body.


    Inside Jimbo''s blue space, a new message in red letters appears.


    Connection point found. Do you wish to formalize the external link?


    Surprise and excitement freeze Jim for a couple of seconds, but soon on his ethereal face a big shark grin breaks out.


    ?Fuck yeah!?


    The circles begin to turn.


    Formalizing link...


    25%...


    50%...


    80%...


    100%.


    Link completed.


    New lines form another circle with more information, data about an unnamed Imp. But such information is overshadowed by the new sensations. The blue fog recedes and Jimbo''s consciousness flies beyond, leaving the crystal and floating in a dark but solid place, illuminated by fires on the walls and the glow of his own blue crystal.


    Jim can move to almost any direction without being sensed or detected, like stretching an invisible appendage from the core. It''s astonishing to see himself, tethered by ethereal boundaries to what looks like a gigantic floating crystal. But he is even more surprised to turn around and find people.


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    A king and what looks like his family.


    A guy with long black hair and hooded people.


    A woman in armor and soldiers like her.


    And a trembling Imp in the hands of a hooded woman.


    None of them look happy to be there. Unlike Jimbo, who if he had a human body would be shaking with excitement at meeting real medieval fantasy characters.


    ?Hello!?


    Jimbo tries to speak, but his words come out as beeps and reflections of light along the crystal surface.


    "It''s communicating!" Arrax says with a shaky smile accompanied by an expression of growing alarm. The wizard would have preferred to perform the ritual without his king present and during a calmer situation. "Imp, quick! Translate us!"


    The disciple returns Imp to the floor. The little demoness hesitates to speak, but in the face of possible punishment decides to be cooperative. Her voice is raspy.


    "This... How is it...? That thing you do... Salute?"


    "Who, saluting me? Is it acknowledging me as its master and creator?" Arrax questions with bloodshot eyes, barely holding back the urge to step out of the circle and shake the Imp by the shoulders.


    ?Who is this madman??


    The imp is smart enough to avoid translating that last one.


    "I don''t think so... It''s waving to everyone"


    Those present in the room look very attentively at the crystal. Each one has their own doubts and misgivings, but it is King Marc who advances and positions himself next to the Imp. Hilda tries to stop and protect him, but the king orders her to step back.


    "Dungeon Core, if you possess the intelligence to understand courtesy, you will have the intelligence to understand our position" says the sovereign with a commanding voice. "You were created by my royal sorcerer, Arrax, to serve us and to be useful... We need your help to expel an army of beings from the darkness that tries to plague my lands with chaos and death"


    Jimbo, who until recently was distracted floating around the room, slowly turns his attention back to the king as he realizes the severity of the situation.


    ?Defending the kingdom...? There''s usually a learning period and that happens not until the second or third volume. What a problem?


    New beeps are heard. Stares return to the Imp, who merely shakes her head and admits that she doesn''t understand what the Dungeon Core is commenting on.


    "It''s most likely pure incoherence," Arrax deduces. "It is a newborn creature, its intellectual capacity must be just enough to understand the world language. Let us be comprehensive with my creation"


    ?I''m starting to dislike you?


    Once again, the Imp avoids translating words dangerous to her health.


    Jimbo holds back the barrage of questions he wants to ask about the new world he is in, and instead tries to go beyond the walls that contain him. He crosses the door and reaches the laboratory, from there he arrives at the cells where sad and resigned looking prisoners wait huddled in the corners. The place reeks of damp and piss, causing Jim to scrunch up his ethereal face.


    ?Reminds me the orphanage...?


    Perhaps the memories amplify the negative aspects, but it is true that at that time his country was going through a bad time and the dormitories of the shelter, whose roof promised to collapse every time it rained, seemed to him a veritable prison where three children shared each mattress for the lack space and to combat the cold.


    ?Back then I couldn''t do anything... When I finally won the scholarship and left, I tried to forget everything?


    The castle shakes and dust falls from the ceiling. Jim looks up and tries to lift himself up to observe the outside, but the invisible appendage that connects him to the crystal snaps and pulls him back. A warning that only he can read pops up in front.


    -Jimbo the Dungeon Core LV 1


    -Ether: 1/100


    -Exterior link: Active.


    -Floors: 1/1.


    Tip 1: Leveling up allows you to manipulate and explore more floors.


    Apparently he is limited to that stone basement.


    When Jim returns to the core room, finds the soldiers threatening the Imp with spears and demanding she activate the crystal. The Imp retreats to the pit''s edge, intimidated by the spiky spears.


    ?Leave her alone, you idiots!?


    Jim rages, causing the sound projected by the crystal to sound deeper. The soldiers startle and look at the woman in armor waiting for instructions. Hilda keeps quiet with a grim countenance, it is clear that she dislikes having to trust a Dungeon Core.


    Jim looks at the Imp and notices that she is not human, changing the initial impression where he assumed the girl had some deformity.


    ?Are you okay, you''re really a demon??


    She doesn''t answer, too nervous about the humans'' presence.


    "Dungeon Core, will you assist us in these dark times?" Asks the king, looking increasingly stern.


    Jim sighs.


    ?Do I have another option...? Though I still don''t know exactly what I can do, and I can''t go very far either?


    The Imp assumes she won''t cause trouble translating those words and explains to the humans that the Dungeon Core''s range is limited. Stares now travel to Arrax, who clicks his tongue annoyed that they assume a flaw in his design.


    "Why the long faces? I know that my creation would have limits, and for that I left prepared measures"


    As soon as Arrax says that, magical energy bursts like an aura from his body. The same happens with the hooded disciples. The runes and circles on the ground light up. And the flowing ether rises and connects with the Dungeon Core.


    An intense warmth comes over Jimbo. So powerful is the energy that he finds it hard to think. New messages appear, so numerous and swift that it is impossible for him to keep up with them. The power of the wizards merges with Jim''s, lifting him past the stone cellar, the throne room, the royal bedchambers, and finally the tall towers of the castle.


    -Jimbo the Dungeon Core LV 1 + LV 59


    A flock of ravens crosses to his left. The clash of swords and the roars of men come to him like a clamor. His gaze is encompassed by a wide sky with a vast realm below, besieged by beasts and dark-armored forces.


    Jim''s invisible face of surprise slowly and involuntarily changes to a broad smile. Because from his high perspective, where if he moves too far away the soldiers look like ants...


    Everything feels like a management game.

 8: Protect the kingdom

    Unlike the most recalcitrant fans, Jimbo could admit without hurting his pride: Kardax 10,000 was not the videogame with the best graphics on the market. The reflexes looked like two technological generations ago, the interior of the buildings lacked animation, and the water flow system of the planets left much to be desired, especially for civilizations focused on underwater environments.


    However, Kard10k''s visual shortcomings were compensated by its ambition and complexity, hence its E-Sport level was quite intense with hundreds of varied strategies to win. One of Jimbo''s favorites was to confuse enemy radars into believing that a rival civilization is attacking them with nuclear weapons, and cause a war of extermination between them.


    Now, what Jimbo has in front seems to possess the same level of possibilities as Kard10k, maybe infinitely more, and all so realistically that if he concentrates and gets close, can see the viscera fall as the shadowy blades cut into the abdomens of the realm''s inhabitants.


    Jim jolts back to the heights, almost touching the clouds.


    ?I think... I think I''m going to puke!?


    His ethereal being trembles up and down, and is thankful he has no stomach to empty. Jim inhales and exhales, or more accurately he pretends to inhale and exhale air. After a minute he manages to more or less clear his head.


    ?Focus, Jimbo. Pretend it''s just a game... A very realistic game and detailed with the gore?


    Feeling that his inaction is causing more deaths leaves a bad taste in his mouth. Since he understands that nothing will be gained by allowing himself to be disturbed by the typical war barbarities, he begins to move around to get a general picture of the kingdom and decide what to do.


    There are three circular walls, and two of them have already been breached. The inner wall is protected by soldiers, and a broad man with a gray mustache fiercely fights to prevent people with purple and blue skin and elongated ears from stepping on the castle grounds, a fortress that looks like a shield from above. Jimbo mentally congratulates the mustachioed knight, who uses the narrow entrances of the walls to keep the invaders from taking advantage of the numerical superiority.


    ?In this fantasy world there are elves...?


    Elves are quite handsome as popular culture dictates. But their beauty diminishes when they display sadistic expressions bathed in the blood of their victims.


    Strident echoes, like ground splitting in two, draw Jimbo''s attention to the southern side of the kingdom. The outer wall wing pointing to the great rift on the horizon splits into pieces and collapses, with its giant debris crushing many of those nearby, allies and foes alike. Jim seeks to look away, but as he tries to leave the realm the invisible appendage pulls him back inside the outer wall.


    Not complaining, he can still see what is going on below, even if the view is not very encouraging. The elven army and their beasts, take advantage of the huge hole to concentrate on a single point and pass through, while the dark forces that were standing aside and attacking from a distance, advance to also enter.


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    ?Those things are not horses...?


    It''s 100 or 200 horsemen in plenilunium armor, advancing in charge and kicking up a swath of dust with the hooves of their bicorns. With their swords, whips, and scepters of war, they push aside the straggling beasts. One of the dark elves slashes a centaur in two, a creature that was simply getting in his way. They are like a wave of murderous shadows with beautiful faces that pulverize anything that stands in front.


    ?They did increase the intensity!?


    Whoever the enemy commander is, Jimbo recognizes when a player wants to finish off a situation in a hurry by using its most powerful units.


    ?It''s a risky maneuver, but it can bring quick and substantial benefits if it goes well. Wish I could see my opponent''s face... So I could laugh at his face when I beat him?


    Jim needs options, and just as he asks for it new circles with messages start popping up. Information notices one after another so numerous that Jimbo''s human mind is unable to keep up with them.


    ?Summarized, please!?


    The shower of options retracts until it merges into four: Summon, Build, Atmosphere, and Enhance.


    ?Much better?


    He quickly opens the summoning section to see if he can bring in a giant dragon or Cthulhu.


    Available tribes:


    -Human


    -Goblin


    -Imp


    -Undead


    No time to read. Jimbo steps back and quickly looks for a place to summon his units and thereby discover which one is best for this precarious situation.


    ***


    "Bring her in!" Shadowkiss exclaims with a tone that tries to be intimidating, which she doesn''t achieve due to the high pitch of her voice.


    Two soldiers obey and pull the teenager from her father''s arms while he is knocked out with a kick in the head, and a third soldier throws a torch on the roof of the house, setting it on fire. Despite complying with the demands, the male elves flash an amused half-smile, which causes Shadowkiss to puff out her cheeks, bow and clench her fists.


    Being only 130 years old, Shadowkiss is the Moonsong''s youngest sister, however she does not like to be compared to the older sister, hence she ties her hair in two pigtails and the surface of her flat breastplate has the symbol of two crossed crescent moons instead of a full moon like Moonsong''s, thus wanting to differentiate even more to build a reputation of her own.


    Although dark elven society is extremely matriarchal, Shadowkiss believes that male counterparts patronize her due to her young age, and to overcome that barrier she decides to make use of a celebrated factor within her society: Cruelty.


    It is said that the more cruel and feared you are among the dark elves, the better. Of course there are nuances, if you don''t have enough power to sustain your cruelty you will probably be the one who meets a terrible fate. Cleverness is also celebrated, and though she may not like it, Shadowkiss understands that it benefits her to be the younger sister of the commander of the current invasion.


    The most successful invasion for as long as she can remember.


    "Hurry up with that spear, we don''t have all day!" She says to the soldier who threw the torch and is now working to erect a spear at the side of Shadowkiss'' hippogriff, a beast decapitated and revived with necromancy.


    "Shall we kill her first before we do so?" asks one of the soldiers holding the young girl by the arm, who struggles futilely.


    Shadowkiss arches an eyebrow.


    "Are you idiots?" She asks with her hands on hips. "Impale her alive. If the human writhes around for a long time I''ll cause more fear and respect from our enemies"


    Someone taps on her shoulder. Shadowkiss frowns at the soldier who was adjusting the spear a moment ago.


    "What''s the matter now? Do I have to do everything myself to be able to do a simple impalement?" Shadowkiss asked grumpily.


    The elf, wide-eyed with shock, points to the street from where four mysterious silhouettes approach.

 9: Protect the kingdom – Part 2

    The sunlight frames the silhouettes of the summoned.


    The four walk forward in a line, finally revealing themselves to the bewildered expressions of the dark elves. Shadowkiss'' gaze sweeps over the four.


    "That''s the ugliest human I''ve ever seen!" declares the young elf, covering her face with both hands, as if bad looks were a sin for her.


    From left to right: A flimsy skeleton with a stone axe; A human man with one eyebrow and an outgoing forehead, dressed in rudimentary furs; A goblin with a long nose and a loincloth, this being the most normal of the group; And finally on the right a kind of hairless rat nibbling under its wing.


    ?What are those things?!?


    Jimbo is just as perplexed as the dark elves. He didn''t expect to summon the most powerful creatures in the world, but this....


    ?This is pathetic!?


    Jimbo doubts that his four summonings will ever gather twenty neurons between them. The human though it looks large and muscular, has an air of unflappable stupidity in its distant eyes.


    ?At least the skeleton looks more normal...?


    At the same time Jimbo mutters that, the undead steps forward as if pointing that he will do something useful like saving the father and the girl. But instead kneels down, opens his mouth and turns into a ash mound.


    ?What the...??


    Tip: Low-level undead are very vulnerable to sunlight.


    ?You should have told me sooner!?


    As Jimbo pulls his ethereal hair, Shadowkiss looks at her troopers and points at the caveman with one hand.


    "Eliminate that thing before I can''t forget its face!"


    The dark elves advance smiling, as if they enjoy the murderous act.


    ?Anyway, let''s make this worthwhile?


    Unlike a PC where you have to use the mouse or keyboard to dictate orders, here Jim just needs to think to execute.


    ?Full attack!?


    As thought he flicked a switch in the summons'' head, all three change from placidity to hostility, and hurl themselves at the elves.


    The imp primal is pierced in mid-air by the spearhead. The goblin is split from the waist by a slash from the second soldier. The third elf plunges the plenilunium sword into the caveman''s belly confident that it will kill the man. But the primitive version of humans proves to be much tougher than expected.


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    Even with the sword embedded, the caveman catches the elf''s head and headbutts him. Something cracks. The elf falls backwards, nose broken and bleeding. The human with gritted teeth and eyes imbued with animal fury, grabs the plenilunium sword and pulls it out of his gut, then attacks the spearman.


    The spearman blocks the downward slash with the grip of the spear. The cutting force is enough to cause sparks fly from the metal. The caveman continues to swing the sword like a club. The spearman takes a step back for each new blocked cut, his handsome face soon bathed in sweat, not knowing how act in front a human acting like a beast.


    A light body sits on the caveman''s shoulders. Shadowkiss, with a plenilunium dagger in each hand, licks her lips and whistles both blades. The blades cut through flesh and bone like butter.


    Pieces of the caveman''s head fall to the ground, followed by the body.


    Shadowkiss stands up from the corpse and steps back, contemplating the body for a few seconds before kicking it in the side.


    "I had everything under control..." Says the spearman with wounded pride.


    "No, maggot. I had everything under control" Shadowkiss assures with a mocking twinkle. She twirls the plenilunium daggers between her fingers before returning them to the holsters on her belt. The girl turns and sees one soldier helping the elf with the broken nose. In a more normal situation Shadowkiss would scoff at that show of empathy and weakness, but she continues to think about what happened.


    Where did those four come from and why were they together? The human wasn''t normal, and the Imp looked even more brutish than usual. Maybe they were circus freaks? Could be, though that didn''t explain the undead''s apparition.


    "Oh crap!" Shadowkiss'' eyes go wide as she remembers someone forgot, and when she turns to see, discovers that the father and the girl are gone.


    In a nearby alley, a second undead, protected from the sun by the shadows cast from the walls, places the unconscious man in a corner, and the girl, who came behind the skeleton, does not delay in kneeling beside her father to make sure he is okay. The young peasant girl contemplates the skeleton and swallows saliva.


    "T-Thank you for everything..." The girl stammers, barely containing the instinctive fear that the dead provoke in the living. But after everything that happened, the girl fears dark elves more than skeletons.


    The undead does not respond, simply retreats out of the alley to the street, getting under the sunlight, and turning into dust, thus fulfilling the last orders determined by the Dungeon Core.


    Note: All units were eliminated.


    As soon as the teenage elf prepared to execute the caveman, Jim understood that none of his summons would be able to deal with the enemy''s elite units. Besides, he still felt a severe revulsion at the bloody images of the battle, and turned away to avoid watching the man die.


    ?All units were eliminated...?


    Jim repeats the message in the corner of his eye.


    ?It feels different...?


    In video games losing generic units is natural, even inevitable. But now, in this fantasy world, where his summonings seem to carry nearly the same weight as those born and raised by parents, causes Jim a strange lump in his ethereal throat.


    ?Never mind?


    Jim decides not to think too much about it.


    As he moves away, summons a skeleton in an alley to test whether staying in the shadows avoids being vaporized. The experiment proves positive, so Jim orders the undead to rescue the father and the girl, then disappear.


    Jimbo once again peeks over the outer wall''s edge. The horsemen are two minutes away. 120 seconds to the end of the kingdom he was entrusted to protect.


    ?If attacking isn''t optimal, then...?


    Quickly moving to the construction session, he wields a half smile as confirms having the repair option, however when he tries to fix, the system where he floats denies the possibility.


    Note: The structure does not match the Dungeon Core Age.


    Age? What does that mean? Jimbo was about to complain loudly, but a new message pops up.


    Note: Do you wish to replace the structure with one that matches your Age?

 10: Protect the kingdom – Part 3

    One hooded disciple falls to the floor with eyes rolled in his head and drooling from the mouth. Soon, two others suffer the same and end up unconscious. Arrax grits his teeth when he feels how the Dungeon Core absorbs a gigantic quantity of ether. The wizard''s mind falters for an instant, and only by sheer force of will does he manage to stay awake and focused.


    "You, supplement them!" Arrax commands the disciple who opened the Imp''s cage. She nods and, with a certain nervousness that is reflected in the awkwardness of her steps and gestures, pulls one of her lying companions to position inside the ritual circle. As soon as she manifests her ether, the woman feels how the crystal pulls hard on her magical power, almost making her fall face first to the floor.


    King Marc and his entourage gaze up at the high vaulted ceiling of the core room, though their attention and imagination go much higher. All tense with uncertainty. Hilda for a moment is tempted to send some of her soldiers to check, but abandons the idea believing that splitting her forces would be a fatal mistake.


    Outside the castle, Lynel falls sits to the floor with a twitching face, breaking out in a cold sweat, clutching what''s left of his left arm: A bleeding stump below the elbow. Near the third captain''s legs, his staff is still attached to his arm. Under the threshold of the inner wall entrance, a dark elf with half shaved hair gives him a sadistic smile as she points a long sword.


    "I like older men. Surrender and I will keep you as my pet¡± the elf offers.


    Although the proposition is an offense to Lynel, the man maintains a temperate character and throws a spit on the side of the cobblestone road, then plants his one hand and makes an effort to get up.


    "A true warrior always looks for a chance to die standing up¡± Lynel assures him between gasps of pain and exhaustion.


    "Maybe I should cut your hamstrings... But our orders were to sweep with speed and brutality¡± says the elf and takes a step forward, ready to skewer Lynel with a thrust.


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    The captain''s legs are unresponsive, the same with his remaining arm, his body is beyond the limit. He closes the eyes to wait for the final blow. In his mind, apologizes to the kingdoms for not being strong enough, and to his granddaughter for not being able to see her grow up. He also apologizes to his comrades, who he bets continue to fight until their last breath.


    He will die fighting. That is his consolation.


    "Hm?" Lynel is surprised when seconds pass and the blow still doesn''t come. Opening one eye, he sees an arm and a leg sticking out of the stone. The limbs lose any trace of tension and go flaccid, fingers loosening the plenilunium blade.


    Lynel, dumbfounded, slowly looks up without finding an end to the wall.


    An aquamarine and then white glow takes hold on the three walls. For a while the walls seem to be made of malleable energy, changing and growing. Rustic stone, as old as the world, devours the watchtowers and the threshold arches, the same happens with the gigantic exterior reliefs that honor history with the sculpted forms of the previous kings, figures that end up replaced by wide and unadorned rock, like the faces of the ancient cliffs.


    The walls grow so high that their shadows seem to turn day into night, and the Cyclops find it impossible to overcome the height with the throws of their projectiles, barely touching the top.


    The horsemen''s faces change from fierce enjoyment to fright. What a second ago was a hole, is now black and sharp rock, solid like a mountain. Those leading the march pull on the bicorns'' reins and try to slow down, but the momentum of the beasts is impossible to change in such a short period of time.


    The bicorns hit the wall, some with such force that their heads dislocate or explode. The riders suffer a similar fate, and the dozen or so elves who manage to survive the crash thanks to their plenilunium armor are soon crushed by the riders coming up behind. The roar of the horses'' hooves turns into the crunching of metal and the tearing of flesh, also into cries of warning and desperate rectification. Finally it turns into a splash where the curses and sobs of the badly wounded reign.


    More than 50 horsemen died and about 70 were too wounded to continue. Those at the tail of the onslaught were too dismayed and confused about what happened, and chose to retreat.


    Moonsong looks at the scene through her spyglass, shock and horror dominating her beautiful face.


    From above, an unseen spectator lets out a victorious laugh that no one can hear.

 11: Match over

    The view of the walls silences the war. The swords and spears that a second ago clanked against each other, stop dead in their tracks, and those wielding the weapons raise their gawking expressions towards the colossal virgin stone walls. A man with a golden crested helmet, sitting on a pile of dark elven and minotaur corpses, also looks up. Claus, the first squad captain, gives a quiet smile.


    Moonsong curses in the darkness language and pulls the reins to turn her bicorn around. In a loud voice she orders retreat. A nearby elf asks what will happen to those trapped inside the kingdom, and immediately regretting opening his mouth, Moonsong gives him a fierce look.


    "They are no longer our problem!" Moonsong says without a hint of pity or appreciation, and speeds up her mount. The metal boot''s heel digs so violently into the beast''s side that it bleeds, opening old wounds. As she accelerates, Moonsong regrets not having been more hasty with the invasion plans. "Damn humanity and its mysterious powers!"


    Now Moonsong will have to answer to The Master. If The Master were a normal person, she would try to seduce or betray him. But this is not the case, and Moonsong for the first long time begins to shiver with fear.


    The dark army begins to retreat, taking the captured slaves with them. There is still a dangerous portion of dark elves inside the kingdom. The elves barely get over the shock caused by the walls, they resume the fight and the massacre, ignorant of the fact of being abandoned by their allies.


    ?Take that, in the face!?


    Jimbo exclaims back through the clouds, not distinguishing the horsemen at all well. But he''s 90% sure they crashed into the rock. He assumes the crash wasn''t pretty, so avoids getting closer and instead explores the next options to make.


    ?The enemy commander chickened out?


    Smiles as he watches the elves outside retreat. Wants to scoff, but if he were in the enemy''s shoes perhaps would react in a similar way. It hurts to be winning and have your opponent turn the game around, especially if it''s with an unexpected tactic whose origin you fail to understand.


    ?There are still many elves inside... What can I do??


    Curious, check out the third branch of options: Atmosphere.


    Once again too many options appear, and so as not to overload, he limits the search to the first on the list. Jim doesn''t waste time worrying about spending ether, since he increased his range feels that those costs are being paid by other people.


    Tip: Every 20 levels the Dungeon Core has the ability to add or mix a new atmosphere ability into its domain. Atmosphere can make both physical and psychological changes to the environment and its inhabitants.


    Doing quick calculations, Jimbo grasps that he can currently have up to three different atmospheres. For now, he''s content to have one to help them.


    ?Let''s see... Not this. Not this one either. Huh? Seasonal heat...? What would be the point of something like that?! Next. Hmmm... This one might work!?


    -Atmosphere: Preservation Instinct (Primitive).


    Requirement: Availability.


    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Description: Activates and intensifies individual and group preservation mechanisms. Although those affected may suffer from fear or panic, the environment drives them to have a combative attitude towards threats.


    Caution: Due to being the primitive version, it diminishes the intelligence of those affected and pushes them to fight in a physical and instinctive way, guided by passionate forces. This can cause problems among the members of a group.


    After choosing the option, the "system" asks him to determine who his allies are.


    ?Humans, I guess?


    Jim says with some hesitation. It''s not like the wizard treats him at all well. But between victims and victimizers, Jimbo chooses to side with the first.


    The system also questions him about whether he wants to affect allies as well as enemies. Although Jimbo sees potential in the option to turn opposing units into brutes, he doesn''t think it''s the best time to try it.


    He activates the ability, and a wave of red energy that only he can see spreads through the realm. The first to be affected are the soldiers.


    A young squire is cornered in an alley. Trying to defend himself with a broken sword, while a minotaur corners him, covering with its wide body the only way out. The young squire gulps and looks to the sides in desperation. Suddenly he feels a fire awakening in his brain.


    Fear turns to anger and a desire to fight to live another day.


    The minotaur stops walking and his bovine eyes look quizzical at the change in the human''s expression. He was going to amuse beating the boy to try to gain reputation among the dark elves and perhaps avoid punishment, but he changes his mind and swings the club to kill the boy with one blow. The minotaur did not expect the squire to strike first...


    The broken sword buries in the minotaur''s head. The young squire lets out a war cry as he stabs repeatedly, bringing the beast down. Get up and run towards the elves covering the exit of the alley. One of them raises a bow and fires a plenilunium-tipped arrow that bites into the boy''s chest. But that is not enough to stop him and he keeps running as if possessed by some demon...


    The elf quickly reloads her bow and fires two arrows, one sticks in the young squire''s stomach and the other in head. The boy finally falls dead.


    The next to be affected by the change in the atmosphere are the mundane inhabitants: peasants, bakers, carpenters, coachmen, cooks, vagabonds, in general ordinary people. The faces of many elves are tinged with shock when the fleeing humans, and those they already had trapped in chains, grab anything: whether stones, pieces of wood, or broken weapons, to attack them.


    An elf on a bicorn covers with a shield when some children appear to throw stones at him. Annoyed, he climbs down from the mount and advances to assassinate the brats. The children flee, but one stumbles and falls to the ground. The elf approaches and raises his sword, and without hesitation, brings his arm down to decapitate the boy.


    A blast of gray dust covers the boy''s face, making him close his eyes but causing no harm. The elf, confused, looks at the sword hilt, now blunt, slowly decaying under the sun''s rays. The same happens to the armor, the particles are slowly carried away by the wind.


    "It can''t be... We were supposed to have time until nightfall!"


    It''s obvious that someone lied to them. Immediately a culprit comes to his mouth, and gritting his teeth until they grind and ache, the elf mutters:


    "Moonsong, you damned whore. You will pay for bringing us into this trap"


    The elf plans to go into the shade to delay the inevitable and look for a way out, but is paralyzed when, turning, he discovers surrounded by a human crowd, a mixture of soldiers and civilians, some wounded or bloodstained, none of them looking happy.


    The plenilunium''s protection vanishes like a mirage. The victimizers become victims and flee from the human hordes that surround them and tear them apart with bare hands. There are no prisoners, a primitive and brutal impulse drives the violence, a desire to survive that turns into rancor and animal vengeance.


    In the castle basement, Arrax and his disciples can no longer maintain the ritual and collapse. The magic circles are extinguished, and Jimbo is dragged by an invisible force back to the core room, becoming very dizzy from the sudden change of scenery.


    King Marc, his face and body tense, questions the crystal as to what is happening upstairs. As soon as Jim recomposes from the dizziness, he responds, and the Imp is dumbfounded, her amputated wings quivering with admiration. Imp translates to the rest:


    "The core says match is over... This is victory"

 12: After the fight

    Throughout the kingdom the clanging of hammers and iron picks can be heard, as well as the scraping of the saws and the fire of the forges, with the shouts of the foremen causing the most noise in the repairs. If the night was lived in nerves and worries about a possible second elven invasion, that new dawn was felt with renewed spirits. Although many mourned for the fallen, the joy of being alive was greater, hence when King Marc made a call to the people to join in the reconstruction, the citizens decided to collaborate willingly.


    While the children helped to pull the corpses of enemies onto the wheelbarrows to throw them into the great rift, the young and healthy men were in charge of reopening the entrances and exits between walls, ways that disappeared when the bricks were transformed into millenary stone whose hardness left the workers sweating and out of breath.


    "I''d like to complain, but I can''t..." says a worker, lowering his iron pickaxe and running a hand across forehead. "This damn hard stone was the one that saved us"


    "Less talking, more picking. You heard the boss, if we finish today we''ll get extra pay" replies another worker.


    Although the rumors about the walls were many, no one outside the castle knew the origin of what happened. Hence, the central square of the temple district, located behind the castle - a subtle message that behind great men there are spiritual threads at work - was crowded with the faithful looking for resurrection or answers.


    Dozens of people who lost loved ones dragged the corpses of their families into the district, either the whole body or a foot they could barely get, and planted themselves in front of the temple doors, where the paladins doubled their efforts to impose authority and prevent the concentrations of people ending in riots, especially when a priest tried to explain to a faithful that a thumb is not enough to bring a corpse back to life. Every tenth body presented, only one managed to be raised by the power of the god in question. Such services are supposed to be priceless, but the priests always insist on receiving large donations first, all to ensure the maintenance of the temples and the offerings to their respective divinities.


    Because of what happened with the dark elves and to avoid appearing petty, the priests opted not ask for donations this time. Some of the clerics watched their altars with concern, looking for some sign of anger or displeasure, perhaps a statue looking sterner than usual, or maybe some offering fruit being rotten. None wish to demand too much of heaven and have it send them an earthquake or a plague.


    "Praise and thank Mithras, the warrior god!" In front of a red clay temple, a priest in a scarlet robe tight to his muscles, raises a ceremonial blunt sword with which tries impressing the men and women moving through the square. "Mithras, with his sacred shield he granted us a divine defense to protect ourselves from the darkness! And his celestial sword gave us the fury and strength to respond the threat!"


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    "Silence, fool!" Responds what appears to be a child in the temple on the right, the building looks like a small mountain of gray rock with torches flanking the square frame entrance and gems buried without pattern on the surface. The boy has his robe and face covered in soot, a stranger would mistake him for a small wanderer, but to all the people present recognize him as a cleric of the dwarf god. "Is ancient stone, stone of Tor! If I am wrong may the earth open up and swallow me! Tor created the mountains and created the walls!"


    "You should be more humble and accept the alternative, brothers," says a person from another nearby temple, a rustic wooden building with water fountains on the front panels that accumulate to quench the thirst of the poor. The woman''s robe is a simple deerskin cloak, she tries raise her voice without shouting as she points with a gnarled staff. "Everything points to Lacrimossa, the weeping goddess, took mercy on us and offered us a second chance"


    The same debate was repeated in all the temples. Dozens odd versions caused the faithful to be confused. With no clear answer and for simple mental peace, each person stuck with the divinity with which he or she felt most in tune.


    The mysteries about the salvation of the kingdom were as great and numerous as the mysteries about how the elves managed to attack in the sun. It was assumed that the underdark residents received the blessing of some evil god.


    Back in the castle, the queen Gineber in her chambers, takes a seat by the dressing table and writes a letter, the hand movements and pen as elegant as her demeanor. She is a blue-eyed, slender-bodied, silver-haired beauty. When a new maid arrives at the castle and sees Gineber paired with King Marc, the girl in question always wonders how someone like her could end up related to such a rustic monarch.


    Waiting for the ink on the paper to dry, Gineber gets up from the cushioned stool and opens a window. Looking to the kingdom, the rough, high walls of squat shadows. Standing alone, Gineber allows herself to frown and show repulsion. These new defenses seem distasteful, and she would have enjoyed unburdening writing about the anguish that clouds her heart ...


    But Gineber knows restraint and recognizes the moment. The content is not about her and the pain caused by being so far away from her native kingdom, but specifies everything she could understand about the new monster hiding in the castle''s bowels.


    A monster that produces monsters. A Dungeon Core.


    Gineber puts the letter in an envelope and so there is no doubt about the message''s source, she removes a hair, which she then places next to the paper. She approaches a golden cage near the door and opens it, reaches in and caresses the phoenix''s head. The majestic creature''s plumage is a powerful orange, showing that it is a very young specimen. In addition to being trained to carry messages and packages, they are also taught to immolate if the contents they are carrying become compromised.


    The queen, using a silk ribbon, ties the letter to the phoenix''s paw. In one arm she carries the creature to the window, and with one motion throws the phoenix and causes it to fly away.

 13: United Kingdoms

    The phoenix flies over the walls heading towards distant horizons, and soon is joined by dozens of carrier pigeons, forming a flock where the creatures are shielded by the protection granted by the plurality.


    Those people too impatient to settle for sending missives with birds, hired the services of wizards, specifically the Telepathy and Clairvoyance Center. During the invasion, the dark elves obstructed these methods of communication with noxious magic, but once the conflict was over, the ether channels were once again open although somewhat congested, leading the telepaths to further reduce their already meager range of content. Instead of ten words, they transmitted five, each of less than four syllables.


    The oracles of King Marc, the intelligence agency of the Stoicus kingdom, had to make an extra effort to decipher and study each telepathic emission, all in order to detect possible traitors or messages harmful to humanity. After the dark elves overcame, at least temporarily, the natural and absolute barrier of sunlight, caution and suspicion were at an all-time high.


    For King Marc, the crown felt especially heavy that morning, hence he decided to take off that melting piece of 12 precious metals, and put it on the circular table that takes place in the center of the war room. The table has the map of the United Kingdoms carved on it, a territory that forms a great circle in the upper half of Aria, the main of the three great continents, its siblings being Celtia and Eularia.


    The humanity belt, as it is colloquially known, has 13 key points, 13 kingdoms, twelve forming the outline of the circle, and one in the center: The Magic Kingdom. It was the wizard king who ended humanity''s wars and unified them into a single faction, at least on Aria''s continent. Though rather than perfect harmony, the united kingdoms exist because the fear that all the rulers feel towards the wizard king. If for some strange reason the sorcerer supreme disappears, humanity would most likely fall back into the spiral of violence and ambitions.


    "Of course that''s impossible..." Marc mutters with a bitter smile. "The wizard king can''t die"


    "Does anyone who disobeys death consider oneself a part of humanity?" A sweet voice interrupts from a corner whose shadows are more saturated than usual.


    Marc frowns in a stern expression, annoyed at being surprised when he considered in privacy. Doesn''t need to turn around, he recognizes who it is.


    "Laikara... I imagine you bring more than vague gossip about love affairs between stable boys and maids"


    Out of the shadows appears a woman with slanted green eyes, a shaven head, and dressed in a tight black robe, with a golden eye embroidered near the heart. The woman''s smile is so subtle that she doesn''t seem to have one.


    "Not at all, your majesty, I bring you much dirtier and duller gossip, political whispers. I warn you that the queen has already sent her bird to sing"


    Marc lets out a grunt, barely a few words, his eyes fixed on the map. Laikara continues speaking.


    "If the queen''s father finds out, the other kings will know too, and they will want to meet the new power factor in our world. And even if the queen''s phoenix suffers a tragic accident, it becomes impossible to hide such an amazing phenomenon for long"


    "You''re talking about the crystal," Marc puts a hand to his beard and scratches it. The softness and scent of perfume bothers him. "Most probably the wizard king will order to destroy the Dungeon Core and thus maintain the balance"


    "And you will obey, of course" Laikara says in a mocking voice.


    Marc turns back to look her and raises the back, the almost two meters tall ruler makes the witch look much more slender and fragile. Still, Laikara does not hesitate to hold his gaze.


    Stolen novel; please report.


    "I am not a real king and I don''t have a king''s ambitions. I am here on assignment and responsibility"


    "But what about those who were born to rule? Wouldn''t they want to keep a power capable of changing the outcome of a war?"


    "You say the kings will want Arrax''s research?"


    "It wouldn''t be the first time powerful people have tried to keep secrets out of the wizard king''s eyes"


    "That would be suicide, destruction"


    Laikara shrugs her shoulders.


    "Actually, how do we know if the wizard king still cares about us? Most likely he is one step away from transcendence and the true caretakers of our flimsy system is a masquerade of the old wizards"


    "You speak as a traitor, Laikara"


    "I speak the truth, Marc," Laikara says and stops smiling. "Like you, I am here for responsibility. We are children of the old sibling wars, no one wants to go back to that... At least not you, and not me"


    "What do you advise?"


    "Destroy the crystal, destroy Arrax''s research, and destroy Arrax and his disciples"


    Marc slams a fist on the table and makes it shudder.


    "Paying with blood for the efforts of my subordinates? That''s your plan?" Marc questions, baring and gritting his teeth.


    "Is just a suggestion, your majesty"


    Laikara says and steps back into the shadows, the only thing that stands out in the deep darkness are the woman''s green eyes.


    "At the end of the day, you carry the crown"


    The oracle closes her eyes and disappears.


    Marc is finally silent in solitude, crestfallen and pensive for several minutes, until someone knocks on the wooden door.


    "Who calls at the door?"


    "We are the captains, your majesty" Hilda says.


    "Come in" Marc tries to soften his tone but can''t, still irritated by the conversation with Laikara.


    The door opens and the woman walks through, equipped with her armor, the same with Lynel and Claus. The three captains line up and kneel. Marc, seeing his knights carrying the weight of their duties, decides to reposition his crown and then gives the captains permission to raise their heads and stand. The king''s gaze sweeps the group from left to right.


    "Claus, I hear you fought with the same courage as always"


    "Facing evil is always a pleasure for me, your majesty" replies the strongest man in the kingdom with a calm smile as he arranges his brown bangs, his messy hair usually sticking out of the golden helmet.


    "Lynel, how does your new arm feel?"


    "Better than the old one, your majesty!" Lynel exclaims, flexing the arm that was cut off during the invasion, now healthy and strong thanks to the clerics'' healing magic.


    "Hilda, how are the kingdom''s repairs going?"


    "Everyone is doing their best. In the poorer districts, a group of looters emerged, but the soldiers quickly imprisoned them. Regarding the invaders'' corpses... I personally supervised that they were thrown back into the great rift to avoid undead plagues or diseases"


    Hilda also clarifies that the great rift is clear, but she placed patrols to watch the border in case the elves think to attack again. Marc nods and congratulates all the captains, although his countenance looks a bit distant.


    "Is something wrong, your majesty?" Hilda asks.


    "You tell Claus and Lynel about what really happened?"


    Hilda frowns and shakes her head.


    "You forbade us to talk about it..."


    "And well I did," says the king, letting out a sigh. "This whole situation could be more complicated than I imagined in the first place"


    Claus and Lynel exchange glances. The mustached man raises a hand.


    "Your Majesty, may I ask what you are talking about?"


    "Sir Lynel, I suspect they are talking about the walls" Claus interrupts with his eyes closed.


    Lynel shudders and nods repeatedly, getting excited again as he remembers what happened.


    "A true miracle! The red priests who attended to my arm swore it was the Mithras'' work. I believe them. Mithras is the divinity most akin to honorable warriors like us"


    Hilda''s lips curl into a grimace as she hears Lynel speak with such respect and illusion. King Marc frowns.


    "Did I say something bad?" Lynel asks as he catches Hilda''s displeased expression.


    "The walls were not the work of any god, but of sorcery" says King Marc.


    Lynel''s eyes widen. Claus places a hand under his chin and begins to look more interested.


    "Is there a wizard in the kingdom with enough power to do what we saw yesterday? I would like to meet a person of such level"


    "Arrax" Hilda answers sharply, averting her gaze.


    "Hilda, are you sure of what you are talking?" Lynel asks in disbelief. "I won''t say that I belittle Sir Arrax''s abilities, but what we saw yesterday is totally beyond his magic"


    "Better see for yourselves" assures King Marc.


    The ruler thinks that, perhaps with Lynel''s opinion, and above all Claus'', he can decide wisely what to do with the Dungeon Core before the rest of the kingdoms find out about the crystal and want to steal it, or worse, try to make their own.

 14: Imperfect beads

    Beneath a broad-crowned apple tree set upon a golden grassy hill and clouds, sits cross-legged a figure whose eternally furrowed brow is not enough to blur his beautiful face. The angel''s stern eyes possess an electric blue glow, and his hair is like dull silver. God created him from the same matter with which shaped hurricanes and storms. The suit and tie he wears are light blue, impeccably, in sync with the strictness of the wearer''s appearance.


    The object Ramiel studies so intently is an old wooden abacus that he holds firmly in his hands, beads swollen with light and color whose vision would turn the mortal''s eyes to dust. But Ramiel acts as if he is incapable of recognizing the beauty of the beads, and continues to move them with speed and noise, trying unsuccessfully to figure out what is wrong, to such an extent that becomes frustrated and runs a hand over his head, messing up his hair.


    "Still with that?" asks a soft voice.


    Ramiel looks back to find a slender woman, purple lipstick, black evening dress with bare shoulders, and high stiletto heels. The girl''s short hair is blacker than the dark universal void, and while her smile may be the most pious in existence, it is the kind of mercy that many would run from without thinking.


    "Azrael, this is not your problem¡± Ramiel says in a firm tone and returns to his task.


    Azrael takes off her heels, ends up on knees behind the accountant''s back and slips her arms around him, looking at the abacus as well.


    "Have you thought about just letting it go? Why do you have to be so stubborn? -She asks as if they haven''t had that conversation a million times already"


    "We''ve had this conversation 10,464,698 times already and we haven''t come to any consensus. You''re wasting my time"


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    "The 10 464 699th time will be the lucky one"


    Ramiel snorts and shakes his head. Azrael also begins to scan the various beads, more from curiosity than any real desire to help. Contributing would be pointless when they both hold different philosophies regarding God''s creation.


    Ramiel is a determinist, for him creation is a chain, a sequence of cause and reaction, from point A, to point B, to point Z, and with a suitable and powerful tool like that abacus in his hands, is able to know the origin and the end of all things. And wielding a mathematical judgment, to decree whether a soul must transcend, reincarnate, or purify itself between infernal punishments... In such perpetuity of results Ramiel finds divine perfection.


    Azrael, on the other hand, is a stochastic, for her God''s perfection is not in a grid system where all the pieces fit and the dominoes always end in one place. She recognizes randomness and the obtaining of unforeseen results, and also the beauty of the spontaneous. Azrael is faithful to free will.


    "Maybe you were wrong and there is no mistake, think about it¡± Azrael says in her companion''s ear.


    "I know what I''m doing. Someone messed up the math, and even if it takes me a thousand centuries I will find out who it was and rectify this heresy,¡± Ramiel''s firm tone makes it clear that he is not joking. "Hmm...?"


    The accountant''s attention is drawn to a specific bead. Sharpening his gaze, he leans in for a closer look. Glimpses Fantasia, as he delves deeper into the stardust, Ramiel sees a world of kingdoms and magics. Before he can sharpen his assessment, Azrael taps him on the shoulder to get his attention and points to a different bead.


    "That looks problematic¡± Azrael says.


    Ramiel brings his attention to the bead Azrael points to and forgets about Fantasia. From the other galaxy located in the abacus corner, colossal spaceships are seen emerging, with energy drills and antimatter engines destined to tear through reality itself to explore new horizons. A galaxy of a single faction that has reached its maximum potential, and now prepares to surpass the limits set by creation, carrying with it armies capable of turning planets into pebbles.


    Ramiel grunts inwardly and carefully unclips a stick from the abacus, then pulls out the troublesome bead and, holding in his right palm, brings it close to his disgruntled face. Ramiel squeezes the hand until a cracking sound is heard. Dust falls between his fingers.


    The accountant adjusts the abacus and continues with the math. Azrael gets bored and leaves.

 15: Milestones and Faiths

    Jimbo wasn''t quite sure what to expect from those people. Maybe a chest full of treasure? A statue in the central square? Maybe a holiday in his name? Jim smiles as imagine celebrating KingJ''s Day instead of Christmas.


    In video games rewards are usually predefined, but now being in a new fantasy reality, the reward could be anything.


    ?The best player in Kard10k and the savior of a kingdom... I''d like to stand in front of everyone who assured me I''d achieve nothing in life, and laugh until I burst!?


    But instead of glory and praise, the king rushes off with his family to find out what happened, and Hilda orders to collect the unconscious mages and seal the core room until further notice. The soldiers force the Imp into the cage and return her to the lab. The doors are locked from outside and two guards are positioned on the flanks to prevent people from entering or leaving.


    The conventional physical barriers can''t stop Jim, he is still able to break through walls and extend his presence to the confines of the castle basement, but for now decides to give a vote of confidence and remain in the core room.


    ?When they calm down they''ll come back. I can''t believe they are so ungrateful?


    Wanting to distract himself he checks his stats.


    -Jimbo the Dungeon Core LV 1


    -Ether: 0/100


    -External Link: Active.


    -Age: Stone.


    Without the support of the mages Jim''s level returns to normal. Seeing his connection active brings him back to imp.


    ?I know she''s ugly, but they should treat her better?


    Now there is a new information line concerning Jim''s ¡°age¡±.


    ?Stone... That explains so much?


    His invocations are primitive and crude versions. While Jim still a lot to learn about this new world, he thinks it would be more useful to have summons able to talk and count with their fingers.


    ?I can at least increase the age, right??


    Almost the instant he asks, a system prompt pops up.


    Note: A Dungeon Core can evolve by triggering milestones inside its domains.


    ?As helpful and swift as ever, system. I don''t know what I''d do without you?


    Note: I am you.


    ?Huh...??


    Note: I am your knowledge base.


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    ?What do you say? I don''t know anything about being a dungeon?


    Note: All Dungeon Core relies on this knowledge. How the information is presented is a matter of assimilation and processing.


    ?Sounds weird... But okay?


    Despite the oddness of it, Jimbo accepts the system''s statement and abandons the idea of trying to treat it as some sort of know-it-all roommate. If the system is simply an extension of his subconscious facilitating the assimilation of knowledge, there is no reason to behave as if it is a separate entity.


    ?It would be like making friends with my left leg, insane?


    Jimbo asks for more information about ¡°milestones¡±.


    Note: A milestone is a significant event for the world.


    ?More specification, please?


    Note: Building one of the available monuments is considered a milestone. Causing the death of a legend would also be considered as such.


    Jimbo lingers for a while scratching his metaphorical scalp.


    ?Legend...??


    Note: Hero or villain capable of greatly influencing the world''s event flow.


    ?I get it?


    As far as Jimbo understands a Dungeon Core has one key goal: Grow to be strong, and be strong to protect yourself. He assumes that legends are simply very high level enemies.


    ?Hey, wouldn''t winning a war also be a milestone??


    Note: Third party interference cannot be ignored.


    ?So if I did it by my own strength, would count and help me evolve??


    Note: Probably.


    ?Probably? That''s the first time you doubt, system?


    Note: Dungeon Core don''t usually influence wars.


    Jimbo sketches a half-smile. Dungeon Core tend to dedicate to burying themselves several floors underground and multiplying their monsters and traps. But he is not a Dungeon Core, he is a new type of entity. He will have to experiment and see what happens.


    The door is heard to open.


    Jimbo emerges from his trance and faces the entrance expecting to see a march in his honor, but instead finds one of the soldiers who accompanied Hilda. The soldier has a much fresher expression than a while ago, with less pronounced dark circles under his eyes, and cleaner armor.


    ?Wait a minute, how long has it been??


    -Jimbo the Dungeon Core LV 1


    -Ether: 33/100


    -External Link: Active.


    -Age: Stone.


    Jim is dumbfounded. He was so distracted studying the system and lost more than ten hours. Doing the math, he begins to doubt because he feels that it was less than 33 hours.


    Note: Mundane creatures inside the dungeon usually produce 1 Ether every 12 hours in neutral conditions.


    Jim does a check. Two guards are outside, plus the Imp, and about 10 prisoners in all. The math starts to work better for him.


    ?Maybe leveling up won''t be as slow as I assumed?


    He turns attention to the soldier, who approaches with a nervous face and holding something in his hands. Is a young man with black hair, hardened hands and expression, with a scar in the form of an X on his cheek. The soldier bends down and leaves some blue petaled flowers near the pit''s edge. Jimbo gasps at the idea that a love declaration is being made.


    The soldier speaks.


    "Thanks for saving us... And for helping my sister and my father. I''m not entirely sure if it was you, but something tells me it was¡± says the young man without daring to look up.


    Jimbo is unable to react to this solemn approach. The soldier puts a hand to his neck and takes out a handkerchief with a blue diamond embroidered on it. He places the outstretched handkerchief near the pit''s edge.


    "I will be sent to patrol the great rift. I beg you to bless this handkerchief to carry your protection with me"


    ?What...??


    Jim''s bewilderment translates into incomprehensible high-pitched whistles, but are enough for the soldier to sigh in relief and with a subtle smile, take the handkerchief back inside the neck of his breastplate.


    "Even though my comrades and I were forbidden to talk about you, I let know that what you did for our people did not go unnoticed"


    The soldier gets up and leaves. Jimbo is left alone again and sighs.


    ?It''s not a statue with my face on it... But it''s something?

 16: A name for a tortured soul

    Jimbo leaves the core room and arrives at the laboratory. Two soldiers continue guarding the door, unnoticing the ethereal presence. Jim floats among the bookshelves, long wooden tables, and measuring bottles. The few scrolls that are uncovered contain symbols that Jim is unable to decipher. In a corner far in the background lies a cage, when Jim peeks in discovers the imp huddled inside.


    ?Hey!?


    The imp opens her eyes and startles, nearly hitting her head on the top of her small prison. The imp''s gaze goes straight to where Jim stands, discerning only air, but the connection allows her to feel the dungeon master''s energy.


    Now that they are close Jim observes the imp in more detail. Reddish skin, short pink hair, flattened bat-like nose, broken horns, scarred arms and legs, skinny girlish body, and two amputated wings. It''s a pitiful image that encourages mercy, Jim regrets not having cared for her sooner, but he tends to err distracted by himself. He''s not the best person in the world, but comforts himself with the knowledge that he''s not the worst either.


    "Y-Yes...?" Imp stutters, "Did I do something wrong...?"


    ?I''m just taking a walk, that''s all. Tell me, is this place usually so empty??


    Imp looks to the side, beyond the bars.


    "Here the wizards do their thing. But the wizards still don''t come back... Too tired, I think¡± she says and leans her face under armpit to nibble at the stump of one wing. The marks of punishments and experiments do not go unnoticed by Jim.


    ?Those wizards are real sons of bitches with you, aren''t they??


    Imp turns her face back to Jim and shrugs.


    "They give me house and food"


    ?I hope you don''t mean this cage by home...?


    "Any problem with my home?" The imp squints, for a moment looking offended. But then, as if remembering that she is talking to an superior entity, her expression softens and her clipped wings curl downward. "I''m sorry... I was taught manners. I''m not supposed to talk like that"


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    ?Don''t worry, do you want me to talk to the wizards? Maybe I can get them to release you, or at least treat you better. I saved their asses, that king owes me at least listen to me?


    The imp looks sideways not knowing what to say, as if the way Jimbo treats her is new and disconcerting.


    ?Good job, by the way. Without you I wouldn''t have been able to communicate with those morons?


    The imp startles again, this time the top of her head does indeed hit the cage roof. With one hand she strokes her head, her eyes wide open. Jim has mixed feelings, he finds it amusing but also sad that the imp is so unaccustomed to receiving compliments.


    ?What''s your name??


    "Imp. worm. Nuisance. Test subject No. 254. Waste. Infernal trash. Poopface-"


    ?Stop?


    He interrupts. The imp retreats as far back into the cage as she can, intimidated by Dungeon Core''s loud voice. Jimbo didn''t mean to sound angry, it just leaked his annoyance borne out of mistreating a helpless creature. It''s like seeing his younger self in a distorted mirror, decayed under the abuse of the older boys at the orphanage and the bullies at school.


    Jimbo takes deep breaths to calm down. Assures the imp that he''s not upset with her.


    ?What did your parents call you??


    "I don''t know. I never knew them"


    Jimbo shudders. He rolls his eyes and looks up.


    ?Tell me, God, this is set up, right? Is this one of your inscrutable pranks? Your mysterious ways of doing things??


    Obviously no one answers him. Turn his attention back to the she-devil.


    ?Is there anything you want in reward? In a just world, when a person does a good job, they are compensated for it?


    The imp''s gaze lights up and her pupils grow larger, achieving a look that for once Jimbo thinks is cute. The imp clasps her hands together near her head.


    "I want a baby"


    ?...?


    Jimbo, in total silence, turns around and backs away to return to the core. On the way he reconsiders and returns to the imp, wanting to give her the benefit of the doubt.


    ?A baby...??


    Imp nods repeatedly without diminishing her anticipation.


    ?What do you want a damn baby for...??


    "Eat. New and very fresh meat, better than the old and tough meat they give me, which leaves my teeth aching¡± To prove her point the imp opens wide her mouth and shows her sharp teeth. Jimbo looks inside and discovers many cracks and cavities, also a very bad smell.


    To Jim the request continues to seem crazy.


    ?Look, I can''t summon babies. And even if I could, I wouldn''t feed you one!?


    "Oh..." The imp lowers her head, looking like the avatar of utter disappointment.


    Jimbo seeing her like this, sighs.


    ?I''m supposed to be influential now. A VIP, I should say. That''s the least I expect after the victory I got. I''ll move my contacts and see if I can get you some real, top quality meat. Not that crap I''m sure they''ve been giving you so far. With me here, a lot of things will change in this place, believe me?


    The imp smiles, less excited than when she thought she was getting a baby, but quite happy.


    ?And since you don''t have a name, I''d better give you one. Let''s see, let me think one that fits you...?

 17: Helpers

    Jimbo thinks a name for the girl.


    ?Dimp, Pimp, Glimp, Wimp, so many choices?


    The imp continues looking at him with eyes big and bright with anticipation. Jim coughs to clear his intangible throat, and after understanding that for the girl this is important, decides to try a little more.


    ?How about Rose? It''s pink in French, and well, your hair is that color?


    Jim doubts the imp knows what a Frenchman is, but that doesn''t stop the little girl from nodding repeatedly.


    ?Do you like it??


    "Yes"


    ?But it''s a little superficial, don''t you think??


    "Superficial...?"


    Jimbo closes the eyes and meditates again. If imp is supposed to be important from now on his life, he wants something more specific to set her apart than hair color. Opening his eyes Jim comes up with a new option.


    ?How about Dowmy? It''s something like helper in Korean, and since you''ll be something like my assistant, the name suits you great?


    The imp''s wings and face decay a bit.


    "I liked Rose better..." Dowmy says in a weak voice.


    Jimbo doesn''t hear the little complaint, he''s too busy reading a new system prompt.


    Dowmy the Imp LV 3


    -Health: Full.


    -Ether: 10/10


    -Strength: Minimal.


    -Agility: Medium.


    -Endurance: Minimal.


    -Condition: Hungry. Malnutrition symptoms. Stinky. Scarred. Endurance to pain.


    Jimbo''s eyes open wide as he realizes what the Imp''s stats are. The girl''s best attribute is mediocre.


    ?She has ether, it means the potential to use magic is there. But it''s still pathetic?


    Maybe if Dowmy had full wings it would increase her agility, but before Jim can investigate further on how to help her, hear footsteps coming from the hallway leading to the cells.


    The woman from before appears, with the patch and long blonde hair, dressed in armor. She is followed by an old man who nevertheless looks much healthier than Jim in his previous body. King Marc arrives, and closing the march comes a knight with a golden helmet.


    The two soldiers guarding the core room are startled and with hurried steps approach to kneel down. King Marc gives them permission to get up and asks for Arrax and his disciples. The soldiers tell him that the magicians are still in their bedrooms, suffering and recovering from the aftermath of yesterday''s ritual.


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    "In that case we will proceed without Arrax¡± says King Marc. "Open the doors and bring in the imp"


    Jimbo returns to the crystal.


    The monarch and the knights enter the core room. The soldiers pull the imp by the arm until she is lying on the pit''s edge. The girl is left sitting with legs spread, stroking with a hand the arm area where she was dragged from. The older man''s mouth hangs open, his face illuminated by the blue glare of the crystal. The guy in the golden helmet whistles in awe.


    ?With those reactions you''ll make me blush?


    "This is the first time I''ve ever seen one of these outside a dungeon," Lynel says. "I still can''t believe Arrax is able to create them"


    "The limits of magic are always flexible and capricious¡± says Claus with a subtle smile.


    "I find it abhorrent¡± Hilda says with a grim look on her face.


    ?I don''t like you either, woman?


    No one in the room besides Dowmy understands the sounds blooming from the crystal surface. The king keeps his eyes fixed on the core. The atmosphere is tense, Jimbo has already lost faith that they were going to congratulate him, and instead begins to look sideways worried about how medieval-minded people might react.


    ?Maybe I should have used this time to run away or something?


    The king speaks:


    "Dungeon Core, you proved to be smart enough to understand our words. Now I let you know that we find ourselves in a predicament. I don''t know if you are capable of lying, but I will ask you a question and I want you to answer it. What do you think of humanity?"


    Jimbo wields an ethereal bitter smile, feeling odd and amused in equal parts that he''s being labeled as someone alien to humanity, when until recently he was an ordinary human, considered even more civilized than the people in front of him.


    ?Let''s just say that I get a certain amount of curiosity and sympathy from them?


    Dowmy translates as best she can:


    "C-Curiosity... Sympathy"


    Lynel takes a step back and opens his mouth again in surprise. Hilda frowns. Claus waits with his peaceful smile. King Marc nods looking serious and calm.


    "I thought all Dungeon Core hated humanity, it''s unbelievable!" Lynel exclaims with admiration.


    "They hate us," Hilda says. "Is lying, your majesty. He wants to play with our minds to strengthen himself and destroy us from within"


    "If he wanted to destroy us, it would have been as simple as letting the dark elves enter¡± says Claus.


    Jimbo nods, pleased to have an intelligent person in the room. Perhaps if Arrax had been the master of such an argument, Hilda would have exploded and rejected the words, but as she has great respect for the first captain, she concedes the opportunity to debate.


    "Captain Claus, maybe the core had no choice... Arrax did not explain us the details of its creation, but surely it possesses some way to force it to obey" Hilda answers.


    "Maybe... But Arrax isn''t here, right? The Dungeon Core has been free for a while,¡± says Claus. "If he wanted to hurt us, it would have been as simple as killing the soldiers at the entrances and setting a trap or two"


    "With all due respect, Captain, I can''t believe you feel sympathy for a monster maker¡± Hilda says.


    "I feel sympathy for the kingdom savior, nothing more"


    ?That''s it, that''s it, tell her? Jimbo nods as he floats behind Claus'' back, supporting him.


    King Marc listens to their discussion in silence, assessing the weight and strength of each opinion, and when he decides he''s heard enough, returns to speak to the Dungeo Core:


    "I''m still not sure what to make with you. You are a powerful instrument, that much is clear... But power as such does not always bring benefit or is healthy, sometimes it implies a greater responsibility... It is like this crown I wear, the power it confers on me is above my values and desires, and even goes beyond the lives of the inhabitants of this kingdom"


    The monarch sighs, for a moment looking very tired.


    "Until Arrax recovers, and we decide what to do with you, I''ll let you be... That''s my way of thanking for your contribution, Dungeon Core. Just keep your influences to a minimum and we''ll be in peace until further notice"


    Until further notice.


    Does that mean peace is not assured? Hilda''s withering look is proof that Jimbo''s stay inside the castle is not 100% appreciated.


    ?And that I saved you bastards!?


    King Marc turns around to retreat. Jim feels a rush of urgency, swallows his wounded pride and hurries to speak.


    ?Wait!?


    Jim''s urgency is transmitted to Dowmy who translates with the same impetus.


    King Marc turns and looks at the crystal curiously.


    Jimbo takes a deep breath.


    Rather than stand by and let random chance manipulate his fate while he crosses the fingers that Hilda''s arguments don''t gain publicity, he prefers to make an effort to keep scoring points with the likes of Claus and Lynel, who seem to be more receptive to his goodwill. In the end is the king who has the final say, but so far he seems to be a leader open to the opinions of his subordinates.


    ?I was created to help - that''s what I want to do!?

 18: Days counted

    The king remains silent. His stern eyes express the doubt generated by the Dungeon Core''s words: Besides battles, what help could a monster-creating crystal give to humans?


    Jimbo hurries to speak wanting to curry favor with the ruler, while Dowmy translates.


    ?I can repair the castle! The place must have been badly damaged by the attack. I''ll have it restored in a wink and you''ll know how useful and trustworthy I am!?


    Instead of rejoicing, King Marc shakes his head.


    "What you did with the wall certainly helped us. But you also erased with your feat the old monarchs'' reliefs, and the watchtowers, several of them built even before I was born... It would be foolish to allow you to act like that inside the castle. Even if I prefer unshaped stone and wood, my responsibility prevents me from bequeathing such a thing to the king who will receive my crown"


    ?Please reconsider my offer. I will not let you down?


    "I made my decision. Remain calm, Dungeon Core, until your creator returns and we have your fate resolved"


    Jimbo clicks his ethereal tongue understanding that continuing to press the issue will not bring him any good with the monarch, indeed, it will probably end up annoying him.


    ?In that case, can I ask one last thing??


    Hilda frowns and steps forward to reproach Jimbo for demanding favors from a king, but Marc restrains the woman with an outstretched arm gesture, granting Jimbo permission to communicate.


    ?Release the Imp. I promise you she will not leave this basement or bother you. Seeing her caged makes me uncomfortable?


    Dowmy opens and closes her mouth, not daring to translate that. Especially when the last few times she asked for freedom, all she got was to anger Arrax and suffer fierce magical shocks. The king noticing the hesitant imp, orders her to translate the core words.


    "The core wants... w-wants me to be free" she says, lowering her gaze.


    King Marc squints and looks at his knights to ask what they think. Hilda replies that keeping an imp in the castle is dangerous and that Arrax should never have gotten her. Claus says that he sees no problem with that, and that if something bad happens he will solve it. Lynel is the most hesitant as he has Arrax in mind.


    "Won''t Arrax be angry that we''re releasing the creature?"


    "Is my order, Arrax will have to obey" says the king.


    The order to set the imp free is given. The soldiers guarding the door take the cage away, and the imp follows its small prison with a look of confusion and longing. The monarch faces the core.


    "Don''t you dare demand anything more, Dungeon Core. Goodwill without proper limits is stupidity and vulnerability. What the imp does is your responsibility, and remember, do not let your influence go beyond the cells. Otherwise my four captains will finish you"


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    Jimbo swallows saliva and steps back an inch. He is used to being threatened with death, but always in online chats or social networks. It''s the first time this happens face-to-face, and Hilda looks quite motivated at the thought of tearing him to shreds.


    ?I don''t think a skeleton and a caveman will be enough to stop these people...?


    The king and the knights retreat. Jimbo takes advantage of his ethereal abilities to follow the king and spy the conversation.


    "Claus, do you think the core is playing tricks on us or could it get out of control?" The king asks.


    "So far I sense no malice or hostility coming from the core" replies the man with the golden helmet.


    "The first captain''s helmet is never wrong!" Lynel exclaims with a laugh.


    They pass between the cells. This time the prisoners don''t try approaching the monarch, the presence of Claus intimidates them.


    "I still don''t trust him," says Hilda. "That thing deep down must be as twisted as the man who created it, and perhaps its synthetic nature makes it easy for him to hide it"


    "Whatever happens, I doubt you''ll have to worry for too long, Hilda," King Marc says with a dull face. "News travels fast, and the Wizard King will most likely order the core destruction. I will try to use my authority to protect Arrax and his disciples... But the fruits of this amazing research, knowing how delicate our balance is, have their days counted"


    The group walks up the stairs and disappears. Jimbo doesn''t try to follow them, he remains stunned in mid-air, all too aware that he needs to do something to save his own skin.


    Perhaps in the afterlife he will have less luck and be reborn as a shoebox.


    Jimbo returns to the core room with hands thrown to his head. Moving from left to right, he thinks about what he''ll do when that hateful sorcerer heals and comes back to treat him like Dowmy. Or worse, when that Wizard King guy points out that it would be better to rip him to shreds.


    ?I''m screwed!? He exclaims through gritted teeth.


    Stops as he notices Dowmy is looking the crystal with big, tender eyes. Jimbo asks the imp what''s going on.


    "You did it... You really helped me... Thank you"


    The honest gratitude helps calm Jimbo and makes him feel a little warmth in his ethereal heart. He gives an invisible smile that sours as he senses again how badly the girl''s body is battered. Jimbo wants to help her, and when thinks about it, new options appear in his field of vision. Two skills show themselves.


    -Skill: Heal minion.


    Requirement: Contact.


    Cost: 10 Ether.


    Description: Heals a minion''s wounds.


    -Skill: Heal minion 2.


    Requirement: Contact.


    Cost: 20 Ether.


    Description: Heals the wounds and rebuilds the minion''s body.


    He has mixed feelings. One part of him is happy to have the tools to help his allies, but his stingy side thinks it''s too expensive. Only has 33 Ether he was hoping to save to level up and get more ways to defend himself. Besides, even though it seems like an understandable expense now, what will happen when he has more than one assistant? Ether will slip through his non-existent fingers like water!


    Still, Jimbo doesn''t have a stone heart...


    ?Brat, I want to try something. Touch me?


    Dowmy squints in suspicion and retreats to behind a pillar.


    ?It''s not a bad thing!?


    After a minute of prodding, Jim convinces her to cooperate. How Dowmy is unable to reach the crystal by own means, she goes out to the lab and grabs a stool. The soldiers guarding the door frown at Dowmy and ask what she is doing.


    "Huh... Me..." The imp''s mind goes blank.


    ?Tell them you need to clean me? Jimbo''s sounds come to her rescue.


    "I clean the glass... Yes"


    The soldiers let her continue, although none of them look happy. Understandable when the task they were ordered to do is a real tedium. The guards talk to each other to pass the time, while waiting for the relief soldiers.


    Dowmy places the stool at the pit''s edge and stands up on the seat. Stretching her fingers, touches the hard surface of the glass, feeling the warmth of the contained magic. Jimbo activates [Heal minion 2] and watches, covering his mouth in agony, as the hard-won ether is consumed.


    Dowmy''s body is enveloped by an aquamarine glow.

 19: Escape?

    The glow is striking, though thankfully also quiet. The gate guards are too distracted chatting about their personal lives to take a peek inside the core room.


    Dowmy''s wings grow from the stumps, the same for the horns. The scar indentations fill in and disappear. The warmth revitalizes the girl, and the constant reverberations of old pains, consequences of mistreatment, stop echoing.


    The glow dims to dullness. Dowmy, eyes wide as saucers, looks down at her hands and gasps in surprise to discover that the damaged skin and marks are gone. The membranous wings quiver on her back, an involuntary movement that catches the imp''s attention. She looks over her shoulder to contemplate the recovered appendages.


    Mouth open in a smile and eyes watering, Dowmy begins to leap for joy, soaring six feet above the floor, then dropping gently like a flying squirrel surfing the wind.


    "I can fly! I can fly!"


    ?You don''t fly, you glide, but okay?


    The correction doesn''t hurt Dowmy''s spirits, who drops to the glass and clutches her arms and legs in an embrace. Tears and snot mist the blue surface.


    "Thanks, thanks, thanks!"


    ?Okay, but get off now? Jimbo replies, uncomfortable with having Dowmy''s face so close. He may have healed her, but Dowmy still looks as pleasing to the eye as a scarlet gargoyle. A soldier raps the door with the hilt of his spear and asks without looking at the imp to make less noise.


    The imp sits cross-legged on the stool, keenly watching for the crystal''s next words. Jim decides to put his assistant in context and explains that the king will most likely order to remove him. Hearing that Dowmy gasps and covers her mouth with her hands.


    "But why?! Master be good! Master help a lot!"


    ?Don''t tell me master. If I wanted to have some sort of role play, you''d be the last option that would cross my mind. Call me Jimbo?


    "Jimbo?"


    ?Yes?


    "Jimbo"


    ?It''s my name?


    "Jimbo!" She repeats encouragingly.


    ?Okay, Cut off?


    The imp calms down.


    Jimbo is aware that Dowmy, like him, is in danger. If Arrax returns, the torture of the imp will return, and Jimbo will end up as a guinea pig for tens or hundreds experiments, until the king orders his destruction.


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    The first tactic that comes to mind is an aggressive one. Squeeze his abilities, gather ether, and barricade himself with traps, summons, and monsters, long enough to escape or negotiate. It''s unlikely he''ll be able to do much with the level he''s at, but if Jimbo is forced to act, he''ll do what it takes to live another day.


    ?I wish I could move...?


    He enters the core and stares at the blue space around. Tries to push the crystal with his hands, as if that will somehow move even a couple of centimeters the core. Nothing happens. After despairing and asking the system for advice, it replies that although the crystal is anchored in space, the sections that make up the dungeon domains can be moved and modified. This is done from the crystal.


    Jimbo arches an eyebrow, intrigued.


    ?If Muhammad doesn''t go the mountain, the mountain goes to Muhammad - something like that, right??


    Jimbo asks Dowmy to close the doors. As soon as the imp complies, Jim enters the core and tries to practice moving sections. He concentrates, and a three-dimensional map of the basement floats up. If he leans in and looks closely, can see a miniature version of the crystal and Dowmy. The guards look like toys or chess pieces, the same with the prisoners shown lying down and in muted color. Jimbo tries to get more detail of the soldiers, but a sudden headache throws him back.


    Note: To affect a visitor or enemy, or spy on their status and stats, you need to exceed their level.


    ?I noticed...?


    He used to have the combined mages power, now he''s on his own. Is natural to keep running into obstacles. However Jimbo''s spirits are not deflated, the options and possibilities that being a dungeon gives the hope that he can save himself.


    ?Now let''s try moving rooms?


    Before proceeding, steps out of the glass for a moment and asks Dowmy to whatever happens, stay calm and avoid screaming. The girl nods, holds a finger in front her lips and lets out a: Shhhh.


    Jimbo returns to where the basement map is, places an ethereal finger over the core room, located to the north of the lab, and being careful to leave the door in place, slides the core room to place it to the west.


    Jimbo goes back outside to check what changed, and sees Dowmy looking towards the entrance, or more specifically the absence of it, since now instead of doors there is only a stone brick wall.


    "Are we locked in...?" asks the imp.


    ?Nope. I just moved one thing?


    Dowmy turns to the crystal and looks at it with a mixture of concern and hope. It''s the first time anything has come between her and the wizards who raised her.


    "Will we escape, master?"


    ?I told you not to call me master... I need to think?


    Escape?


    Jimbo was tempted to touch the core room and push it as far as he could into the bowels of the earth. It seemed so easy, so promising. He could make his way through without having to deal with the king and his knights.


    ?Sounds too good to be true...?


    Jimbo looks down into the dark pit where he is suspended and at the engraved circles around. He remembers Hilda''s words, how believed that Arrax prepared some mechanism to force the Dungeo Core to obey. Jimbo has that suspicion as well, the dark belief that if he escapes and Arrax finds out, the wizard might make him pay with some spell.


    ?We need to find out?


    Trying to ask Arrax directly would be ridiculous. Instead Jimbo thinks of the wizard''s disciples.


    ?If only I had more ether?


    -Jimbo the Dungeon Core LV 1


    -Ether: 11/100


    -External link: Active.


    -Age: Stone.


    In addition to the expense of healing the imp, some extra points were consumed by moving the core room. Ether is essential for survival. Whether it is an aggressive or peaceful tactic, increasing the reserves is indispensable.

 20: City-of-thorns

    "Should be decapitated"


    "No, remove the skin starting from the fingers"


    "No. Better to bury quartz needles between the flesh and the nails. We did that last time and the proud Evil-heat peed herself and begged for mercy. Pitiful and delicious"


    The recommendations overlapped. Those beautiful women, leaders of their respective families, wasted no time in proposing ever more horrendous fates for the elf standing on the parliament''s parch. Moonsong kept her countenance serene, eyes closed, hands folded behind her back. She seemed immune to the various punishments promoted by her failed invasion.


    Does that mean that Moonsong is not afraid to receive a gruesome death? Not at all, receiving pain scares her as much as she likes to deliver it. The idea of falling into the clutches of an expert torturer is something she dares not even imagine. It is a scenario only desirable when suffered by an enemy, or a person she dislikes, or someone who offends her.


    Moonsong allows herself to be calm because before the session in the parliament began, and even before arriving in City of Horns, she sent Blood and Guts to bribe a part of the leaders. And if that was unsuccessful, then to bribe the leaders'' favorite lovers to sweeten their ears.


    The Moonsong wealth is not infinite. But a percentage of abstention would be enough so that, after the vote, their only punishment would be to receive that bad time.


    Of course, any of them could betray her, that would be a logical possibility. It could even be the case that Blood-And-Guts disobeyed the order on a whim. However, another asset that allows Moonsong not to fall into despair is the mysterious benefactor that allowed the invasion in first place.


    An attack by the dark elves in broad daylight was unthinkable for humans, and much more for the elves themselves. But thanks to the magic of a new power factor in the underdark, Moonsong made it possible. Although numerous attempts were made to find out the identity of this mysterious benefactor, including paying off the members of her harem, Moonsong managed to keep the secret and incidentally made cruel examples of several of her lovers to keep the rest on the right track.


    No family would seek to antagonize Moonsong until discovering where her affinity with this new power reaches, and knowing how much the unknown benefactor can do. Some believe Moonsong made a deal with a demon, others that she fornicated with a forgotten god.


    "Is it true that the commander failed, and it is evident her incompetence to conclude what she started... But it is also true that it is the first time we managed to penetrate so far into the human realm, don''t you think the same?"


    Moonsong contains the smile that forms on her lips when she hears the first voice in her favor. The next minute another leader comments that, although tying Moonsong''s limbs to four bicorns and having them tear her apart sounds reasonable, perhaps it would be better to give her a second chance.


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    The mood in the parliament changes. What promised to be a slur-fest is now less clear. The elder matriarch, covered by a cobweb veil that prevents her figure from being seen clearly, makes her voice resound. A voice that, unlike her congeners, sounds raspy, worn, it makes you wonder how many millennia of life she must have experienced to sound like that:


    Time to vote.


    The dark elves prepare their cobweb scarves, draped over their thighs. When asked to vote on the motion to kill Moonsong, 49 of the 100 leaders raise their scarves and wave them. Moonsong opens her eyes and seeing that her cruel death did not get a majority, she smiles freely.


    From beyond the thick web veil, the shadow of the eldest matriarch, red eyes so intense they seem to glow, declares:


    "Moonsong of the seventh-fifth thorn, you promised victory and long-lived immunity from the light during your campaign. In both promises, you failed. But you also promised blood under the sun, an impossibility in which you delivered. I still don''t know what to think of you, but the majority spoke with their silence. You can retire and live another day, and thereby, maybe, gain the redemption and respect you lost"


    Moonsong accepts the words with a slightly bowed head. She doesn''t want to seem too relatable to the Elder Matriarch either. The obeisance is a trait of a servant, and Moonsong is determined to flee that label like the plague.


    After Moonsong leaves the parliament, Blood-And-Guts, who was waiting at the entrance, joins the elf''s walk. She asks how it went, and Moonsong doesn''t answer because even Blood-And-Guts knows it''s a stupid question. If something had gone wrong, Moonsong wouldn''t be walking free under the bluish roof of the City of Thorn''s justice floor.


    The city is a single tower, giant as a vertical kingdom, 40 floors in all, some as tall as mountains. At the wide, bulbous tip of the tower, 100 sharp, spear-like thorns point in disorderly directions. In reality there are more than 100 thorns, but more than a hundred have already been cut, representing the families that fell from grace and now exist only as humiliating stories.


    In the tower shell and on different levels there are tall, unglazed windows, from which the vastness of the underdark can be seen. Although they have no sun, Moonsong doesn''t think they need it either. Luminescent mosses and fungi, as well as a thousand diamonds, sapphires, rubies, emeralds, and precious mineral ores including plenilunium, serve as an eternal starry loom.


    To Moonsong the underdark ceiling is more beautiful than the surface sky, compact, colorful, with ever-fixed points of light that make it the only thing a dark elf can trust, and all without that vulgar vastness that makes you dizzy the first time you glimpse it. Her mother, on the other hand, seemed enamored of that forbidden sky, hence naming one daughter like the moon. A decision Moonsong disagreed with, and perhaps one day, after her mother dies, she is determined to achieve an accomplishment broad and impressive enough to change her name.


    Moonsong desires a name like Blood-And-Guts, only less visceral. In reality, there are a multitude of things she desires. Having ambition is a respected and sensual trait among elves. No one likes the faint-hearted. For example, one of her current and most needed desire is a long hot bath and an even longer passionate session with her boyfriends.


    However, Moonsong has no time to waste, and as soon as she arrives at the palace house and separates from Blood-And-Guts who is off to harass young men in the taverns, she enters the bedroom and asks the servants not to be disturbed for anything in the world. She then dons a hood so dark that she turns into a shadow, and enters the secret tunnel hidden in the false bottom of the closet.

 21: The Master

    Sounds of the City-of-Thorns blur as Moonsong goes deeper. The heels of her boots produce echoes along the narrow corridor. The stairs are lighted by fires on the flanks. During all her trips to The Master''s lair, Moonsong never saw minions working to keep the torches lit, she deduces that some kind of magic is involved behind it.


    After fifteen minutes of zigzagging downhill, a white door stands in her way. Looks like ivory, but is actually bone. Moonsong opens and enters another corridor, short in length but wide enough to allow three carts to pass together. Four full armors stand at the corners, a cursory glance would lead one to believe they are decorative, but after getting closer it''s possible to glimpse the sockets of skulls protected within the iron helmets, and the red dots of light composing the usual spectral gaze of the undead. Each sentry possesses a different weapon: One a mandoble; Another a war hammer: Another a halberd: And the last a three-headed flail with spikes.


    Moonsong thinks that perhaps, making an effort and having a chance to play the flute, could defeat those four undead. The problem is that she is certain that The Master can use necromancy to summon many more soldiers. Maybe even an army. She gulps at the thought that no other elf knows the latent danger that dwells beneath the tower.


    The elf walks with her back straight and her forehead held high, towards the threshold at the bottom, space protected by heavy stone double doors. As soon as the woman stands in front the doors, the undead in the nearby corners mobilize and use their tireless forces to push open the entrance to the meeting room.


    Moonsong walks to the center of the meeting room, plants one knee on the floor and lowers her head. Ten paces ahead stands a woman with blue eyes, long amethyst-colored hair, white skin, and a gentle smile with a slight maternal tinge. She looks human, or perhaps a goddess, but the white horns protruding from her head and curling up near her ears are an obvious clue to a demonic nature, the same with her membranous wings protruding from bare back. The woman''s dress is black and red, with a generous neckline and a long skirt, with a trail of net lace running up the contours of her thighs.


    Dominus is a sucubus. In any other situation, Moonsong would treat her with contempt, considering her a filthy creature good for only one thing: the amusement of men or women degenerate enough to enjoy the taste of their fellows. But in this case Moonsong is careful and respectful even in her thinks, for behind Dominus stands a wall with a giant skull carved in stone, from whose eyes seeps an intense scarlet glow that when it touches you feels like a maggot horde.


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    Whatever it is behind the wall, the elf understands that it is an entity of awesome power.


    "Moonsong, welcome,¡± Dominus speaks in a tone of voice that unintentionally always sounds seductive and pleading. "We heard about your performance on the surface. Needless to say, I was deeply disappointed with the outcome"


    "I know, and I apologize. I beg the master to be merciful and give me a second chance" Moonsong replies without raising her head.


    A sound like wind blowing inside a cavern sounds from the skull. Dominus observes the red light and nods. A twinge of envy grows in Moonsong''s heart at the idea of such a filthy creature as a succubus being one of the chosen few to communicate with a higher being.


    "Second chances are the refuge of fools and incompetents, Moonsong. If it were up to me, I would execute you and find a more reliable piece for our purposes... But I am not the one who makes the decisions, the master is. And he insists on letting you live. In fact, he comments that what happened was very enlightening"


    "Enlightening?" Moonsong asks as she resists the urge to look up.


    Dominus nods and smiles.


    "The Master says that to win, you have to know your enemy as well as yourself. Perhaps if you had understood that, the outcome of the invasion would have been different. From your reports, it''s clear that you didn''t even suspect that humans had the power to change the walls"


    Moonsong bites her lip. Pride prompts a response and a defense, but her preservationist sense compels her to keep quiet. Dominus continues speaking as, with blushing cheeks and eyes glowing with adoration, she gazes at the skull on the wall.


    "Now with these new details, it''s obvious what we must do... Moonsong, you go convince the elves to prepare another invasion, a major one, one where the blood will turn the earth red forever. Right, master?"


    "After what happened, I will need time and resources to convince the leaders?"


    "We will give you what you need, and maybe more than before,¡± Dominus'' countenance cools as she returns to the elf. "Try hard as you can. There won''t be a third chance, you can count on it"


    "And what about the power that changed the walls?"


    "Isn''t it obvious? The human behind that power will have to be destroyed. But you focus on your own, Moonsong. Our piece in the castle will take care of this little obstacle"


    Dominus'' beautiful face shows a cruel smile.

 22: Dungeon Core out of control

    Marnie is hunched over her desk, scanning with tired eyes a wide book with yellowed pages and a heavy cover. Three days have passed since the invasion, and the disciple still suffers from dark circles under her eyes, sunken cheeks, and a pale, almost gray tinge to her skin. The symptoms are residual effects of the ritual.


    To the left Marnie keeps a copper bowl filled with a mixture of herbs and medicinal chemicals, a container that wafts a potent sulfur scent into the room. She would like to open a window, but the maids would complain about the stench. The entire wing of the mages'' dormitory is isolated, only Arrax''s bedroom, located down the corridor, is allowed to have its windows open, an exception that no disturbance causes because no sound or scent escapes Arrax''s room, powerful magic prevents it.


    "The sun calmed its anger and the world stopped burning, the cores ignited their glow, recovering the life lost after two millennia of war, ages where the gods learned to weep and mourn like the mortals" Marnie recites the last line of the intermission, following the symbols on the paper with one finger. The text''s language is stilted, and to read without caution would lead to mistranslations and misunderstandings. "The Demiurge closed its eyes and folded its wings. For the first time, the world was almost perfect and ready to achieve peace. But peace was an illusion, and the seven sages clamored to heaven for answers that did not yet exist. Sons attacked their fathers, kings attacked their peoples, magic twisted nature, and with destruction postponed, life continued and grew battered. The original meaning, lost. Zaratras: Intermission"


    Marnie sighs and strokes her temple. The book is a copy of the Mandate of the Seven Sages, an ancient manuscript compilation that Marnie assumes will help her better understand her teacher''s creation.


    Dungeon cores are considered a plague, anything cheap handbook for novice adventurers will tell you. In the Mandate of the Seven Sages there is one of the few positive mentions of cores, and even with such a mention there is debate, as some scholars comment that the Mandate of the Seven Sages was originally a work of oral transmission and only allowed for the ears of the most important erudite, and that the word "Core" actually refers to the heart of great men and fruitful causes, only that the transfer from the spoken word to written symbols, and from written symbols to an elaborate translation process centuries later, leads to confusion with the dungeon cores.


    "Wisdom is not illuminating my path, it only causes me deep mental pain, ouch" Murmurs the girl at the same time she closes the volume and hides it under the bed.


    The Mandate of the Seven Sages is a forbidden book since there are some mentions in the text, such as the Demiurge, that go against the general spirituality preached by the churches, where it is assured that there is nothing above the gods. If a devout believer in dogma were to discover the book, Marnie would be in serious trouble. An ominous reminder for magicians, was the total extermination pushed by the inquisitors towards the branch of cosmomagic, a mystical art eradicated from the world for being considered heretical and too dangerous, and that now only exists in legends. And not even in all myths there are testimonies of cosmomagic art, because those legends that speak of star clusters and other worlds in impassable horizons, were mostly erased.


    Despite the taboo, Arrax always encourages his students to seek knowledge wherever they can, even in the most obscure tomes.


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    The girl takes a long sip from the medicine bowl, shudders at the bad taste, and only the use all her willpower prevents from spitting the liquid out and dirtying the walls. A glance back at the desk, specifically at a thick hourglass, lets her know that six hours have passed and she needs to prepare the mix for her companions.


    Marnie entered the ritual halfway through the process, which means she suffered the least from the consequences of that powerful and ancient magic. It''s true she''s not vomiting blood and that''s good, but it''s also true that she''s the one who cleans the blood that her companions are releasing while they sleep and wake up in the delirium of heavy fevers. The maids assist her, but Marnie is the one who possesses the knowledge to prepare the medicine. It''s not that complicated, she can use her basic alchemy set in the room to create the potion, but since Arrax also drinks the substance, Marnie makes sure to study the instructions for the mixture up to three times so she doesn''t make a mistake.


    Marnie doesn''t want to be expelled and return to the streets to settle for a mediocre life. She aspires to become a powerful wizard, influential enough to be chosen as the royal sorceress of some kingdom.


    "The kingdom of Platia would be nice," the girl murmurs as she places a new copper bowl on the table that holds her alchemical instruments.


    Platia kingdom is where Queen Gineber comes from. The stories tell of a beautiful place, of white towers and crystal clear waters flowing through channels of lapis lazuli. The kingdom is built on the banks of the Three Gorges River, just before the divisions that give its name to the waterway. The realm is also known as the kingdom of the merchant princes, where the wealth and luxuries they possess are said to be enough to hire the wizard king as mercenary for a day.


    "Although that would be ridiculous," Marnie says, shaking her head as she imagines hiring the services of the supreme wizard. As she thinks about it, looks at the ingredient shelf and is surprised to find she has no mint bunches left.


    Between going to the kitchen or going down to the laboratory storage room, Marnie decides the latter. She hasn''t visited the lab since the incident, perhaps because deep down experiencing the ritual''s aftermath left her suffering from an instinctive repulsion toward her work area.


    "Still I have to put up with it. When the professor recovers from his delirium, he''ll want to know how things are downstairs," she says to give herself courage.


    Marnie leaves the dormitory and advances towards the beginning of the corridor, crosses the entrance that connects to a tower, and from there descends on a staircase that leads to the cells. She walks between the prisoners and they avoid her gaze. From time to time Arrax threatens to make guinea pigs out of anyone who disturbs his workers, which helps respect and coexistence.


    "Hm...?" Marnie was about to go straight to the storage room to get ingredients, but her attention is taken by the cage in the corner, open and empty. She hears that the king agreed to release the imp within the confines of the lab, but she''s surprised to not see her anywhere.


    When Marnie turns to the core room to ask where the imp has gone, she is astonished to see nobody keeping watch. A sweat drop trickles down the disciple''s forehead. The order was supposed to guard the door of the core room all the time. Maybe the soldiers got bored and entered where the crystal was?


    Marnie, assuming that hypothesis to be true, and thinking that the soldiers are too simple-minded people, sighs, advances to the double doors, and opens them to ask the guards to please not disturb her master''s creation.


    But then...


    "...!"


    Marnie pales at what she sees, loses balance and falls sitting on her ass on the floor. She crawls backwards until her back hits a table. She gets up and runs out, her eyes wide in horror and her brain assuming the worst. Marnie desperate voice rings out.


    "Dungeon Core is out of control!"

 23: Unknown intentions

    Marnie, pale and breathless, runs up the stairs and seeks help. On the way she encounters several maids, who, seeing her pass by, give confused looks and wonder aloud what is going on with the young mage.


    The disciple looks for soldiers, but finds none on patrol, which is strange and increases her uncertainty. Perhaps the Dungeon Core got rid of more guards?


    She thinks about going back to Arrax, he knows how to activate the self-destruct magic mechanism. A secret word that would suppress the levitation power of the core, causing it to disappear and turn to pieces inside the pit to the underground, a hole supposed to be so deep that reaches the lava oceans of the underdark. However, Marnie understands that Arrax is still too sick, and that trying to get the secret word could mean valuable time lost. The worst mistake you can make when dealing with a Dungeon Core is to give it time to expand and get stronger. There''s a reason why adventurer''s guilds consider crystal extermination a priority.


    Marnie walks out to the back yard of the castle and goes straight to the soldiers'' block. In front of the gray brick and wooden-roofed building, there''s a dirt plot with straw puppets set for archer and squire practice, some of the puppets still have a few arrows stuck in them. In the center of the plot is drawn a chalk circle where two opponents dressed in leather vests and cotton tights, duel using iron-tipped wooden swords.


    Hilda''s sword, moving like a whistling, blurred trail, strikes repeatedly and drives Lynel back to the circle''s edge. Although the woman seems to have the upper hand, the older man maintains a calm countenance and controls the moment, blocking as he moves to return to the center of the plot and, as soon as he glimpses an opening in his opponent''s defense, responds with an accurate thrust aimed at the captain''s chest. But before the iron can reach Hilda''s sternum, Hilda''s sword, faster than the man''s, lashes out against Lynel''s wrist, causing him drop the sword, grunt in pain, and recoil.


    Lynel''s expression doesn''t take long to relax, gathers his breath and lets out a fierce chuckle as he strokes his reddened wrist.


    "As always, an outstanding performance, Captain, I''m finding it harder and harder to keep up with you! If you youngsters continue like this, I''ll have to listen my granddaughter and retire. Although a peaceful life I think it would kill me"


    "Thanks, Captain. But don''t try to trick me... I''m sure if we were fighting for real, I wouldn''t last two rounds,¡± Hilda replies with a subtle smile, which disappears as she notices Marnie slouching at the plot''s edge, hands on her knees, trying to catch breath. The warrior''s expression hardens as she recognizes Marnie as one of Arrax''s disciples. If the black cloak and the hood were not enough to identify the girl, the stench of plants and chemicals give her away.


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    "Breathe, girl, looks like you''re going to lose a lung!"Lynel says.


    "The Dungeon... The Dungeon Core rebelled,¡± says Marnie, half raising her face, her vision is blurred and her armpits wet with sweat.


    Hilda''s countenance goes from coldness, to surprise, to tension, and finally to a determined face that hides a growing concern and impatience.


    "I knew we shouldn''t have let that thing stay in the castle,¡± Hilda says, clicking her tongue. She enters the soldiers'' block and grabs one of the many long swords located on the weapons rack.


    Lynel stands under the threshold of the block and, showing his palms, stops the warrior.


    "Hilda, wait! We need to equip our armor and look for reinforcements! We don''t know what we''re dealing with!"


    "There''s no time!"


    Hilda rushes past Lynel and without looking back runs towards the castle.


    "Won''t we tell Captain Claus...?" Marnie asks, hoping for the assistance of the strongest man in the kingdom.


    "His Majesty ordered Claus to search for Axel. I don''t know the details...¡± Lynel replies, turning his back to Marnie, looking for something that matches his style on the weapons rack, finally settling on a thick wooden club with spikes.


    Marnie bites her lip in worry at having Claus so far away, and in fear of what might happen. She imagines the castle turned into a monster''s nest.


    A thick, calloused hand rests on her shoulder, she looks up to find Lynel''s face, who gives her a confident smile.


    "You underestimate me, child. This old sack of bones still has a lot to give. If those dark elves couldn''t defeat me, much less your master''s pet... No offense"


    The old soldier lets go the girl and hurries to catch up with Hilda. Marnie tries to follow him, but her legs are weak. She needs more exercise.


    Hilda, upon arriving at the prison, slows down her pace and increases the caution. She looks at the cells, the prisoners still huddled distantly in the corners, apparently still unsuspecting of what lurks in the castle''s bowels. When reached the laboratory she is surprised to find no guards at the door, and assumes the worst.


    Hilda curses to herself. Thinking that she should have placed at least five men in the guard, although she would have preferred to exterminate the core from day one. She moves forward with the sword ready, and peers into the core room.


    Immediately understands the reason why the sorceress was so concerned. The core room was replaced by a new chamber. The crystal and the imp are gone. Hilda takes a deep breath to calm herself, once again feeling like in her adventuring days.


    She steps forward and enters the dungeon.

 24: What must be done

    The new area is the same height and width as the original core room, but instead of gray brick, pure rock walls. Hilda recognizes the material of the walls that the workmen have had so much trouble chipping away and breaking through. She enters with leaden feet, alert to discover any traps, be they threads or pressure plates. A bitter smile unconsciously creeps on her face, because now Hilda knows she was right to be wary of Arrax''s crazy invention.


    The place is more brightly lit than conventional dungeons. The torches on the walls, though helpful, inspire low confidence because each contains fire inside a human skull. Hilda approaches the torches and tries to recognize the features of her subordinates in the neat skulls. She frowns as notices malformations in the skeletons, as if they belong to people with wider foreheads and jaws than normal. Deciding to ignore the torches on the assumption that they are some kind of Dungeon Core trick, she returns to analyzing the chamber.


    Not counting the entrance, there are three tunnels that go in unknown directions; the one on the left goes to a place from where a deep smell of herbs and humidity spreads; the path located at the bottom center, goes to a mysterious darkness from where constant sounds of heavy pendulums can be heard; and the one on the right emerges a strange steam.


    The warrior was ready to take the front path, but a voice calls behind her back.


    "Hilda," Lynel enters and the female captain turns to look at him. The man approaches until stands next to the woman, and probes the surroundings with a conflicted expression. "So it''s true, the core was doing something wrong... Was Claus'' helmet really mistaken?"


    For Hilda that question doesn''t need an answer, it''s obvious that the core was waiting for them to let their guard down to act and spread.


    "Did you see soldiers on the way here?" asked the woman with the eyes fixed on the center tunnel. Lynel clarifies that he did not see any.


    "Do you think the core secretly killed them? That would be impossible! We would have found out when the troop count was taken"


    "We''ve been divided and tired these days, worried about new attacks from underground, more concerned about the future than what lies ahead. Even our fun is limited to training and preparing for combat. Tell me, Lynel, how much sleep have you had since the invasion?"


    "Maybe about seven hours... It''s hard to sleep when I know that everyone is working hard to help the kingdom. Even his majesty is keeping awake. How much sleep have you had, captain?"


    "No sleep at all"


    "Nothing?! I find that hard to believe. You always seem so composed"


    "Like you, Captain Lynel, I find it difficult to rest when I know the job is half done... Or when I feel a threat growing under my nose. Not that this trait of mine is to my credit either... Captain Claus sleeps like a baby, and he''s still the strongest of us, even if it bothers Axel deep down"


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    "If only those two would get here soon, we''d be done with this dungeon before lunchtime," Lynel squints and assesses the routes. "The center one seems to be the main path"


    Hilda nods, agreeing with the theory.


    "The secondary paths usually contain treasures and useful things, clues to solve riddles, keys, even healing objects," Lynel reports, recalling an adventure manual he read many years ago. "Some people say about dungeons being tests imposed by the gods"


    "There''s nothing sacred here, Captain. They just like to play games with us," Hilda says in a voice that gives no space for debate, "Would you agree to go right while I take the left-way?"


    "Are you sure about separating forces, Captain?"


    "A multiple and fast approach from several flanks. It will give the core less room to think and maneuver, I believe"


    "Well... If you say so... You have more experience in this than I do" agrees Lynel, who prefers to fight in tournaments or wars than in claustrophobic corridors full of traps and riddles. Before he could ask Hilda for advice on how to proceed, the woman was already walking away in the direction of the plant-scented tunnel.


    Hilda moves forward with a determined expression, aware that what she told Lynel is a hoax. When dealing with a dungeon that has never been mapped or explored, it is recommended going in a large group and with great care. But it is true that Hilda wants to destroy the core with her own hands.


    She clenches her fist and stops in the curve of the tunnel. For an instant the footsteps echoing make her feel like a novice adventurer again, and that brings back dark memories... But Hilda quickly regains her composure and resumes her determined gait.


    The tunnel is not descending, a detail that makes her understand that she''s still on the 1st floor. That gives her confidence, the first few floors of newborn dungeons are usually easy for any experienced warrior. But of course, this is not a conventional dungeon but the creation of a wizard with too high aspirations. There could be surprises.


    The fresh, heavy, slightly sweetish scent becomes more intense the further you go.


    "[Breathing style: Pure Breath]" She whispers power words that help regulate her breathing. She learned the technique after suffering terrible pain from noxious gases and airborne poisons. Expends Ki while maintaining the breathing style, but it is a cost preferable to risking inhaling any dangerous or lethal substance.


    The tunnel widens and two torches at the bottom indicate the entrance to a new area. Hilda crosses the stone threshold.


    The cavernous area is low-ceilinged and compact in size, it can be traversed in its entirety with 15 steps. Moss, vines, grasses, and all manner of weeds grow on the floor, walls, and fall from the ceiling, greenery hydrated by an incessant drip and a fresh water well in the center of the room. Oval, red to yellow-skinned elements, which Hilda sees for the first time, dangle from branches peeking from cracks in the walls.


    Hilda takes a stride and throws a slash, cutting one of these strange ovals in half, thinking it is the eggs of some monster. Yellow pulp and juice leaps out and stains her sword. The warrior brings the blade close to her face and looks for some corrosive capacity. She also notices the cut oval, now lying in the grass, with no small corpse escaping from its center. Hilda changes her theory, it''s not an egg, but something else, probably something bad.


    "FOR THE GODS! YOU...! I DON''T BELIEVE IT!"


    Lynel''s scream startles her. She rushes back into the central chamber, finding Marnie lying panting on the floor. Hilda ignores the disciple and invades the third tunnel, breaking through the steam to try to save the captain from the terrible fate prepared by the Dungeon Core.

 25: Revelation

    Hilda cuts through the vapor clouds as she slashes specters. Sweating, both from the ambient heat and from the effort it caused her to appear in seconds for help. The first thing she catches between the white curtain is Lynel, gawking at the scene. Hilda follows the third captain''s gaze expecting to find a massacre, perhaps a giant monster that is the vapor''s source, but instead...


    Hot springs occupy the majority of the area, born from subway sources. Immersed in the gentle waters are 12 naked men, just the total number of members of the three squads positioned to guard the castle. On a stone bench near the waters lie their armor, clothing, and weapons.


    Find them ignoring their duties is already cause for surprise and reprimand, but what provoked Hilda to suffer a twitch in the eye and gnash her teeth in fury was the company. Beside each man, whether clinging to an arm, or hugging him from behind, are women with athletic bodies, steep foreheads, and eyes that sparkle with a childlike curiosity bordering on the stupid. In comparison, the soldiers pale and stare at Hilda as if they see Death personified.


    "You don''t get out the water in the next ten seconds, I will castrate one by one!"


    The twelve guards, soaked and naked, shivering despite the heat, line up on one side of the shore, their hand straight near their foreheads. In the background, Lynel tries to communicate with the women in the waters and extends a hand to help them out.


    "L-Ladies, I''m sorry, but this castle is no place for women like, eh...¡± says the captain, stuttering, trying not to look at any compromising point. Lynel used to believe that at this late stage of life, being a seasoned man, dealing with naked women would not be something that would make him nervous as a rookie in his first tournament. But it is true that despite their primitive features such as matted hair and bushy eyebrows, the strangers are quite beautiful and voluptuous. The situation gets complicated when all of them, giggling and muttering, grab Lynel by the arm and pull him with a force that surprises the captain. "Wait, no...! My late wife would never allow...!"


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    The captain falls into the water. Hilda watches the splash from the corner of her eye, but decides that Lynel will have to deal with the fight on his own. The woman''s priority is to punish the fickle soldiers in front. Hilda''s eye goes to the ceiling, searching for an unseen presence to which she can say a few fierce words.


    "This is your way of trying to weaken us, dungeon, with such a dastardly trick! Spreading corruption and weakness of the flesh! You really are diabolical!"


    One soldier, seeing an opportunity to get away without being punished, steps forward and begins to speak quickly.


    "Exactly, captain. The filthy core tried to corrupt our minds and spirits. But thanks to you-!"


    Hilda''s fist slams into the man''s face, silencing his words.


    The guard, with a broken nose, blank eyes, and a missing tooth, falls backwards into the waters. Lynel and the cavewomen around him watch the unconscious man float, mute with shock.


    Hilda squeezes her nose and sighs. Quickly realize that she is being naive. She likes to blame the Dungeon Core for all the ills of the kingdom, but weakness in the human heart is something that has existed since before Arrax was born.


    "Now...¡± Hilda looks at the 11 remaining guards. The men startle. "Trot around the castle 100 times. One lap less, or one lap more, and I''ll make everyone repeat from the beginning"


    Given the order, the men nod and prepare to gather their clothes and armor, but Hilda stops them by raising her voice.


    "When did I give permission to dress? Get out, now!"


    The terrified soldiers run off towards the exit of the thermal area. Dowmy comes in the opposite direction, carrying a stone bowl with more orange ovals: Mangos. The imp sees the soldiers running away, and understands what terrified them so much when her gaze collides with Hilda''s.


    "You...!" The woman extends an arm and points to the girl.


    "Me?¡± Dowmy puts a hand to her chest and looks sideways.


    "Imp, you and the crystal have a lot of explaining to do"


    Dowmy gulps.


    Jimbo watches everything with an annoyed face. He hates when people interfere in his business.

 26: Ether need

    Jimbo realized two important things: First, the king and his close circle are currently inaccessible to him; Second, without a constant ether source he won''t get far with any plan.


    To summon needs ether. To move or modify rooms needs ether. To level up needs ether. Jimbo questions the system about reactive ways to get the precious energy.


    Note: Living beings generate ether automatically. To increase this production is necessary stimulation, one of the most used stimuli being danger, struggle, or tension moments.


    Means that doing what Dungeon Core is supposed to do, i.e. building places where the invaders'' lives and abilities are put to test, would be the natural process. But Jimbo finds himself not in a natural situation, but one where if the king and his people detect the slightest sign of treachery, they will tear him to shreds.


    ?Dowmy, you''ve been living here for a long time - can you think a way to gain the trust of the castle people??


    "Earn trust?" Dowmy is sitting on the floor, too distracted picking her nose. The girl removes the finger from her nostril and then places that same hand under her chin, "Giving free food?"


    Jimbo arches his eyebrow, undecided whether Dowmy''s idea is idiotic or a genius recommendation. Asked inwardly if he is capable of creating food, the system responds showing one of the Atmosphere options. The kind you can only have one every 20 levels.


    -Atmosphere: Green space.


    Requirement: Wet area, or water source.


    Cost: 5 ether per hour.


    Description: Incentivizes the creation of special fast-growing plants and fungi, capable of existing without sunlight, fed instead by core ether. The variety of plants and fungi generated, is usually linked to the knowledge of the core.


    When Jimbo asks the system about how to create wet sources, the system presents a list of options, from a dripping roof, to hot springs, some variations are more expensive or cheaper than others, but in general all consume energy that Jim at the moment can''t afford to expend without grinding his ethereal teeth in frustration.


    ?Even if I could conjure up the best pizza in the world, the king is unlikely to agree to eat it. Geez, maybe even those two idiots at the door would hesitate to try?


    And in case they do accept, perhaps the expense won''t carry a reward.


    ?Is there a way to put the soldiers on edge, without them thinking I''m declaring war on them??


    After a minute or two of meditation, an idea pops into his head. One thing became clear after his short stay in this magical world, and that is that battle is a familiar and constant face. Training is part of the soldiers'' lives.


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    Wouldn''t it be irresistible to offer unique, controlled, and varied training?


    Like exploring a dungeon, but without the annoying risk of dying.


    It would be a rounded business. Practically a born monopoly. What other Dungeon is there like it? None! Humanity would have in its hands an invaluable ally.


    In Jimbo''s mind the image becomes more defined and accentuated, as does his smile. But then he flinches at the thought, what if they don''t accept the idea just as they are unlikely to accept the food? He imagines Hilda screaming, complaining, and convincing the rest that Jim is setting a trap or studying them to discover their combat secrets.


    ?I wish that guy was here... He seems to be the only one who likes me? Think about the weirdo who behaved like he was standing in front of an altar.


    But Jimbo understands that he won''t get anywhere by lamenting, and instead asks the system if any other ways to increase ether production are available.


    Note: Producing happiness and pleasure.


    Jimbo opens his eyes wide.


    Happiness depends on the individual, but pleasure is universal, and it''s a much easier sell than experimental combat training.


    ?It''s not like I can cause much pleasure as I am now, though. I''m a crystal, I don''t have hands or genitals. The more I think, more depressed I get?


    And even if he could be a heartthrob, Hilda, currently the only recurring human woman in his life, hates him. If only he had more to choose from.


    "Are you looking me, master? I feel you looking me"


    Jimbo snorts in frustration. He wish Dowmy was one of those scandal-bodied succubus in fantasy novels, at least to feel more motivation. But instead she is... Dowmy. Jim decides to stop thinking about that, and instead goes back to browsing the options offered by the system. The hot springs get his attention. Jimbo questions whether the pleasure generated by relaxation also works.


    Note: Yes.


    ?Finally some good news!?


    Jimbo move the throne room to leave about 30 meters of solid stone between him and the lab, more than enough room to maneuver without causing accidents. He opens a new chamber, removing the dirt and rock. The new place is as dark as a wolf''s mouth. Even promising infinite treasures, only a madman would enter.


    Need light.


    Within the blue crystal space, and opening the Construction list, compact rotating models of the objects it is capable of creating appear. From fur beds to two-meter bonfires. The catalog is limited by Jimbo''s Age, being all elements linked to the most primitive periods of humanity. The skull torches do not inspire confidence, but Jimbo understands that are preferable to absolute darkness, and places four in the chamber, pushing aside and twisting the shadows.


    Looks like the entrance to an ominous cavern.


    He joins the throne room with the initial chamber. Dowmy enters the chamber looking everywhere, wary as if she fears something will jump from the darker shadows. Jimbo asks her opinion.


    "Reminds me home..."


    ?I thought your home was the cage?


    "I''m talking about where I was born," Dowmy says, still scanning the stage, jumping, flapping, and touching the cavernous ceiling with her fingertips. When she lands, turns her attention to where she catches Jimbo''s presence. "Only smaller and quieter, and also without the blood sea where our eggs rest"


    ?Blood sea??


    Dowmy nods and is distracted by looking at the skull torches.


    As Jim thinks about how unpleasant a blood sea would be, a system prompt pops up alerting him that that option is available, and that he can even decide the type of blood that makes it up.


    ?Uh, no, thanks. I''m trying to seduce these people, not give them reason to destroy me?


    But even if Jimbo went mad and wanted to drown them all under a sea of horse blood, he couldn''t. Sighs as he discovers his ether bar brushing zero. While waiting for it to recharge, Jimbo distracts by studying the system options and talking to Dowmy. Also to avoid trouble, as soon he gets some ether, hides the chamber and puts the throne room back in the original place.


    The doors are opened and a guard peeks inside. Catching nothing out of the ordinary, he nods and closes.

 27: Challenge

    "I want to... I want to show you something" Dowmy says to the soldiers guarding the doors of the core room. The imp flashes a smile, clasps her hands close to the chest, and shows the biggest and most tender eyes her facial features can allow. The imp follows the instructions given by Jimbo.


    "You look different..." Comments one of the soldiers, not deciding exactly what''s strange about the imp. So far he didn''t pay too much attention to her, low level demons like Dowmy are despised and usually go unnoticed until they commit some evil or mischief.


    "What do you want to show us, you little devil?" asks the second soldier.


    "The crystal wants to give you... A gift"


    The soldiers exchange glances. Dowmy keeps talking:


    "The crystal knows that you fought bravely against the dark elves, and that you are now working hard to protect him. The crystal is grateful. The crystal be good"


    The soldiers exchange glances again. They are not there to safeguard the core, but to warn in case they notice any dangerous signs, or to arrest the curious who want to know about the things in the basement. But for the moment the guards decide to play along with Dowmy, ask exactly what the gift is, and the imp points to the doors behind.


    The men frown and mutter words of suspicion. One of them reaches out and opens the door. Immediately heat and steam escape into the laboratory.


    The soldiers gawk at the hot springs that now take place instead of the core room. They were about to turn and run to raise the alarm, but Jimbo goes ahead and summons the beings he had prepared.


    A lot of tedium and many hours it took him to gather the necessary ether to start the plan. But it wasn''t dead time, Jimbo took the opportunity to study the summoning catalog and find out exactly what it can bring. He discovered that, as with objects, he has a number of 3D models, and what''s better: if he concentrates can change the shapes of the invocations, just as he modifies and designs battle units in Kard10k.


    Jimbo has no talent in modeling 3D figures, when he was competing in Kard10k, he would rather release instructions to the AIs to get more or less what he was looking for. But now he no longer has AIs, the good thing, is that he can modify the appearance of the summons with thoughts.


    It can''t turn the caveman into a six-meter tall giant, but it can change the gender, enlarge certain parts, and shrink others. There are features that resist him and are impossible to replace, for example the bulging muscles, the roughness of the face, or the primitiveness of the clothes. Limitations of the Age, Jim supposes.


    Jimbo feels a knot in his non-existent stomach. If the soldiers don''t fall under the charms of his creation, or one of them happens to be gay, his plan could fail, and even bring forward his predicted end.


    Cross his ethereal fingers and invoke.


    As the guards prepare to run and alert their companions, they encounter two peculiar but lovely-looking women, their generous flesh covered by scanty skins of mysterious beasts. The men hesitate, especially when the women grab their arms and pull them into the steam. They are stunned, not understanding what is happening. Dowmy goes behind and tries to bring some clarity.


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    "This water is special. It will relax your tired muscles and eliminate stress. Like I said, crystal is good, it''s generous. There''s nothing better than crystal, yes"


    ?The skin, Dowmy. Don''t forget the skin?


    "Huh, it''s great for skin too, yeah. Rejuvenate!"


    In a minute the men are already in the water, lying with arms outstretched on the shore''s edge, enjoying with closed eyes the massage of the water and the rustic but attentive hands of beautiful women.


    Jimbo maintains a big smile, not directed at the scene, but at his status screen. He nods slowly as watching the ether dots add up one after the other.


    Using Dowmy as a messenger, Jimbo asked that they keep the existence of the hot springs away from the king''s ears. The excuse he gave was that the place is unfinished, but granted the guards the possibility to invite their friends. In less than three hours, all the squadrons in the castle were aware of the existence of beautiful women and miraculous waters in the basement.


    A gift from the magical crystal.


    With the ether obtained, Jimbo created a second and third area, and connected them using cavernous tunnels to the main chamber. He was even able to inject more ether than necessary into the green area, so that the plants would grow faster. The first fruit to appear was the mango, perhaps because Jimbo deep down longed to eat one. But since he couldn''t, instead offered it to the soldiers. At first the guards hesitated, but after taking the first bite and being surprised by the sweetness, they gladly accepted all the fruit that followed.


    Tasty food is a happy source, and happiness for Jim is a ether fountain.


    Jimbo was determined to level up, and everything pointed to him doing so in a few days. But then the Arrax female disciple appeared, who, after peeking through the doors, fled as if she had seen a fright.


    ?Oh, oh. This is going to get complicated?


    Just in case Jimbo sent Dowmy to gather more mangoes and have them ready to sugar soften up whoever shows up looking for trouble.


    Dowmy hands a linen cloth to Lynel so he can dry off. The captain is sitting on the stone bench, unable to lift the head in embarrassment at being subdued by the beauty of strangers. Hilda was still serious, glaring at Dowmy with her one eye. The imp tries to communicate, between stammering, Jimbo''s words.


    "Are cavemen too"


    "That''s not the problem!" Hilda bursts out with no room for jokes. Jimbo meant what he said about the males, though.


    "The master only wants to help," says Dowmy, speaking out of her own free will.


    "And how would something like this help my troop?!"


    ?For crying out loud, those guys were tired - I''m trying to boost the spirits of these people! It can''t all be about training and patrolling!?


    Actually Jimbo was just trying to flood himself with ether. But if he can satiate his greed and help people, it''s a twofer. Dowmy conveys the words, though without the same intensity as Jim. Hearing the argument, Hilda''s face softens slightly, though her lips are still curved downward in a nonconformist grimace.


    The embarrassment in Lynel subsides enough to allow him to look up and speak.


    "Dungeon Core is right. Our soldiers are very tense about what happened, we all are. But still, he should have asked before bringing in... These ladies"


    "And especially ask before modifying the castle basement!" Hilda says, and Lynel nods in agreement with her.


    Jimbo rolls his eyes.


    ?Please, would you seriously have let me do all this if I had asked??


    Dowmy blurts out the question. Hilda and Lynel exchange glances, Lynel flashes a bitter smile.


    "Possibly... No"


    "Of course not, and with serious reasons," Hilda says. "The king must be notified. Get these women back to wherever you took them from, dungeon"


    Jimbo urges Dowmy to continue with the next step they discussed to convince the captains. The imp gets in the way and prevents Hilda from leaving the thermal area. The woman gives the girl an unfriendly look.


    "There is another place... Another place the crystal wants you to see"


    It is clear that relaxation is not a language Hilda speaks. But the challenge...


    The challenge might convince her.

 28: Attack on the alternate route

    Marcus and his three squad mates peer into the great rift, the mission is ensure that nothing dangerous comes up. Inside, between the walls of rock and earth, the wooden platforms that connected the different mines are now charred ruins still with shattered ladders hanging, swaying in the cold wind blowing from inside the underdark.


    Balto, one of the four soldiers, a brown-skinned man in a dog-like mood, leans down and spits. Harris, the least tanned of the four, a light-brown-haired young man who still has some childish grease on his face, is startled by Balto''s action.


    "It''s not safe to do that. They might think we''re challenging them"


    "Are you scared of the dark whores, brat?" Balto asks and glances at Harris out of the corner of his eye. "We don''t need scaredy-cats in the army. I know cowards, they usually drop their weapons when hear the first arrow whistle, right after they shit their pants"


    "Don''t be so hard on the boy, Balto," says Pit, whose kindly, plump face might make him seem the most harmless in the squad, were it not for his six feet tall, big, powerful hands, and formidable broad shoulders. "It''s not his fault he missed the invasion. He wasn''t prepared for something like that anyway"


    "None of us were prepared for anything like that, and yet we put up a fight!"


    Harris lowers the head and bites his lip. A part of him is ashamed that he was on leave, but another part is relieved that his grandfather wanted to see him and spend the time. True, as soon as the news got out Harris grabbed his father''s old sword and rode back to the citadel, but by the time he arrived, the Great Miracle, as the change to the walls is known, had already happened.


    Men like Baldo, who were present and came face to face with the death brought by the dark elves, could not but despise the absent soldiers.


    Pit, seeing Harris crestfallen, dedicates a smile and gives him a powerful slap on the back, almost sending the boy face-first into the rift.


    "Besides, who doesn''t shit their pants during a battle? There''s nothing stinkier than a war camp," Pit let out loud chuckles that echoed through the crack.


    Pit''s show of kindness, though brusque, helps ease Harris''s tension. Balto clicks his tongue, and not wanting to be further irritated by the rookie, he decides to turn his attention to Marcus.


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    Marcus is lost in thought, his eyes studying a handkerchief with an embroidered crystal that he holds in a hand, as if he can somehow find the secrets of heaven and earth within the cloth.


    "A gift from some damsel?" Balto twirls his spear, thrusts the point into the earth, crosses his palms over the end of the hilt, and rests his chin on both hands. "Was it Vinny, the carpenter''s daughter? Or Lira, the butcher''s? I don''t want to kill your illusion, but those two offer handkerchiefs to anyone with a cock between his legs and a sword at his waist"


    "Maybe she''s trying her luck" Pit joins the conversation. "Maybe one day, one of us humble soldiers can become a captain and a full-fledged knight. An ideal match for any woman looking to marry"


    Balto laughs.


    "In these days being a knight doesn''t mean anything. Before they gave you a fortress or land, now they don''t even give you that. It''s not even safe to be offered servants. Now they are workers and if things start to go wrong they will leave"


    "The reforms, yes. The wizard king is a single-minded and wise man," says Pit, not realizing that Balto was actually criticizing such reforms.


    "My sister wove it" Marcus takes the romantic mystique out of the conversation by revealing who made the handkerchief. "It''s blessed by... You know what"


    Balto and Pit look at Marcus with growing interest.


    "You''re talking about, that thing in the basement, right? How did you get it to bless you?"


    "Are talking about the blue entity? The one that helped bring about the Great Miracle? Have you seen it?" Harris also tries to join the conversation, eyes bright with curiosity. He immediately receives an angry look of gritted teeth from Balto.


    "Don''t talk about things you don''t understand, rookie. We could be sent to the gallows if you get your tongue out," Balto says.


    Harris takes a couple of steps back.


    From the bowels of the great rift comes a new wind gust. The gust is strong enough to tear the handkerchief from Marcus'' hands and drag it towards the nearby forest, a clump of trees that clashes with the end of the Great Rift, some growing hunched over towards the abyss.


    "Shit!" Marcus exclaims and without hesitation runs after the cloth.


    The handkerchief is tossed by the wind and dives into the trees. The chase lasts about four minutes, until the scarf is caught by one of the branches. Marcus jumps up and, clinging with arms and legs to the trunk, scales up high enough to reach out and retrieve the blessed gift.


    He was about to climb down and return to his squad, but from that height he notices a hooded presence in the bushes 15 paces to the north. At first, because of the bow holding the figure, Marcus thought it was a hunter. But when he tunes his eyes to take a more careful look, finds that the bow is made of an albino wood, with an iron tip moistened by mysterious poison, and is held by blue-wristed hands.


    From the top Marcus can also see a dirt path. Appearing on horseback, without noticing the assassin, come first Captain Claus and second Captain Axiel.

 29: Attack on the alternate route - Part 2

    Claus rides a brown horse, the first beast he found available in the stables. The strongest man in the kingdom, if you remove his gaudy golden helmet, would look like a mere squire next to the knight riding to his left, on a white mare. Axiel wears ornate scarlet armor, a style rich in lines and reliefs that matches with his preferred weapon: a white steel rapier with a hilt resembling a rose.


    An attractive armor, ideal for a handsome young man with golden hair, white skin, blue eyes, and a confident smile always adorning his expression. Although Claus is the strongest man in the kingdom, Axiel is the man most acclaimed by the people, especially by young girls in marriageable age. Fame accompanies strength, hence his well-deserved place as King Marc''s second sword. If you ask anyone in love with Axiel, they would tell how soon he will surpass Claus.


    Both men were talking, Axiel concentrating on the road, Claus looking at the blue sky with a carefree look as always. Neither seems to notice the shadow lurking in the bushes. The elf smiles and draws his bow, ready to shoot. Marcus, seeing that, reacts instinctively, jumps from the tree and falls on the assassin.


    The arrow is accidentally released by the assassin''s fingers. The projectile whooshes. Claus and Axiel bring their gaze to the noise. The arrow grazes the cheek of the first captain, causing a few blood drops to slip.


    Marcus and the elf turn and struggle through the vegetation. The human is stronger, but the assassin''s flexibility is superior. In addition, the studded leather armor under the hood is coated with oils whose main function is to minimize the noise when moving, but also to be able to escape more easily in case of a grab.


    The elf comes out from under Marcus, rises with a graceful twist, and in one leap disappears into the trees. Marcus gets to his feet much more awkwardly, sees the assassin become a distant silhouette. Panic startles the soldier, who without a second thought utters a word power.


    -[Max Power]!


    -Technique: Max Power.


    Requirement: None.


    Cost: 20 Ki.


    Description: Doubles for 60 seconds the physical strength of the user.


    Caution: A healthy physical condition is recommended to withstand this technique.


    The soldier channels the inner ki, just as Captain Lynel taught him. Veins and muscles bulge. Blood rushes to head and his vision blurs. Marcus takes a deep breath, mediating between the rush and the need to use the technique correctly. As soon as the blur is gone, the soldier delivers a heavy stomp that pushes him forward like a cannonball.


    Branches snap. Bits of wood leap from the tree trunks as they are brushed by Marcus'' blurred figure.


    The elf arrives at a small clearing in the forest. Hidden in the bank of a stream, is an aperture half a meter wide to a dark subway route leading down into the underdark. An adult human would perhaps have trouble getting through, but elves are usually more slender than humans.


    The hooded man was about to flee, when Marcus lands two meters ahead, causing the water in the stream jump. The assassin covers his face with a forearm to avoid being splashed and jumps back about five steps.


    Marcus wields the sword with both hands.


    "Drop the bow and surrender!"


    The elf''s expression turns sour at the request, though it doesn''t take two seconds before he gives Marcus a smirk. Instead obeying, the elf brings a hand to his lower back, under his hood, and draws a new plenilunium arrow from the quiver. The assassin''s movements are calm, confident.


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    "You should have attacked me from behind, rookie"


    "Who are you calling a rookie?! And a knight never attacks from behind!"


    "You''re not a knight, you''re something much worse, a soldier. And besides, for us, that nonsense that you guys are so fond of, the honor thing, it disgusts us. But at least we can take advantage of that stupidity"


    Marcus, enraged by such words, rushes forward with his sword raised, determined to end the encounter with one blow. He has to hurry, knowing that in a few seconds his strength will be drained and begin to pay the cost.


    The blade comes down and cuts the elf''s figure from the crown of the head. A victory gleam crosses Marcus'' eyes, but it is instantly extinguished when the blade comes down without resistance and the elf darkens and vanishes like a ghost.


    The sword strikes the earth. The 60 seconds of [Max Power] end, Marcus'' muscles return to their original size, leaving him bathed in sweat and fatigue. Between gasps he releases the sword from the earth and hurriedly looks for the elf figure.


    "Show yourself, coward!" demands Marcus.


    The assassin''s voice comes from all directions through the trees, like an echo.


    "The graveyard is full of brave. Now you will join that long list for interfering with my mission. Tremble, human, for you are fighting one of Zerom''s seven fingers"


    The Zerom Seven Fingers. The name doesn''t sound familiar to Marcus, but it''s about the most notorious assassin group in the dark elven society.


    Zerom was a skilled archer, and also the favorite lover of a past elder matriarch, but one day, when she caught him trying to steal her jewels, the matriarch had no choice but to punish him. Instead of torturing and killing in the usual way, the matriarch took a special liking to Zerom, and instead ordered seven fingers to be cut off his hands with a cursed knife, and then thrown into an alley. Crippled, unable to use a bow or satisfy a new mistress, the matriarch''s hope was that Zerom would slowly rot in misery. But instead, the elf began to plot a conspiracy and use the secrets he had obtained in the matriarch''s service and bedchamber to plan her downfall.


    In fact, Zerom''s goal was to completely destroy the matriarchal system that had ruled the dark elves for millennia, and to appoint himself as king. He succeeded in dethroning the matriarch and walled her up in the Parliament walls where she starved to death. But five years later, as it usually happens with every revolution, it ends up devouring its children and the Zerom kingdom had an early conclusion in the hands of the current elder matriarch and her allies.


    In spite of the failure, some theorize that remnants of Zerom''s crusade rest in the underground, nonconformity, secret projects, perhaps reforms that increase the rights of the male elves or maybe a second revolution. Although there is no credible evidence that Zerom''s seven fingers were directly linked to that first revolution, the elves prefer to ignore the connection and limit themselves to hiring the services. The Seven Fingers are top assassins, and since all members of the group are kept in hiding, they do not risk punishment for using the name of an old traitor.


    A hooded shadow emerges. Marcus prepares to attack, but hesitates and retracts the sword when dozens of copies, black as shadows, surround him from all flanks and point charged bows.


    "Illusions...?" Marcus mutters, not believing his eyes.


    "You can think that if you want. Comfort your mother won''t have when she''s given a hollowed-out lump of flesh to bury"


    Marcus pales and takes a step back. He tries to use [Max Power] again despite the risks, but his heart is too restless for that and he only succeeds in hunching over in pain.


    Before the 44 bows fire and end Marcus'' life, a shower of flower petals falls on the stream. Both Marcus and the elf and his copies raise their faces to the rose fragments. Now it is the assassin''s features that twitch with panic.


    The petals are pushed by a sudden wind, so strong that Marcus closes his eyes. The flowers, acting like a rain of whistling blades, cross the shadow copies in thousands, making them disappear one by one, until only the assassin is left being surrounded by a floral tornado. The slightest movement of the elf causes a dozen cuts on his arms and legs.


    Axiel appears walking from the trees. Marcus'' expression lights up with hope. The second captain smiles at the soldier.


    "Good job, soldier. I''ll tell Hilda to give you a well-deserved rest," Axiel says. Then brings his face to the elf, and his expression hardens.


    "Bastard, you''ll pay for this!" The assassin says and readies his bow, but instead of pointing to Axiel, like if he was aware that has no chance, he points to the sky and mutters a power word. The tense sounds and the projectile moves away, disappearing into space within a shadowy fissure.


    Axiel arches an eyebrow, confused by the action, but is unimpressed, and with a graceful wave of the hand, mobilizes the pestals.


    Thousands of small blades increase their speed and reduce their radius around the elf, awakening loud screams that cease the moment they become a tornado barely half a meter wide. With another hand motion, the petals scatter and disappear. Where the elf once stood, now only a smear of blood remains.


    Marcus stands with his mouth and eyes wide open. As soon as he gets over the powerful impression left by the second captain''s power, he turns to thank him. But his words are cut off when a third man arrives at the stream.


    Captain Claus only manages to take a couple of steps before he falls flat on his face.

 30: All is right

    Cherubella enters the resting pantheon, and just like the other visitors in the place, she lets out a longing sigh as soon crosses the threshold. She doesn''t sigh for what she finds inside, but for everything left outside, specifically in her house.


    The resting pantheon follows the same decor of fluted pillars and ivory walls, though an ambrosia fountain is added in the center, shaped like a music box, from which soothing music also emerges. Instead of furniture, fluffy white sheep roam.


    Only the lambs look happy, while the angels seem frustrated at having to be there. Everything is due to an order of Jerahmeel, administrator of sacred resources, who after evaluating the obsessive rhythm of God''s creations for work, decided to establish a mandatory one-hour rest every 25 years, a term that the angels managed to fight since at first Jerahmeel wanted to force them to rest once every decade. A madness.


    Cherubella sighs again, floats to the fountain, and uses a pitcher that a friend made her, to collect ambrosia. The taste, a union of all the delights of creation, cheers her up a bit, but after choosing a fluffy sheep to sit and pass the minutes, she begins to think about all the files she left abandoned at home. In an effort to distract herself, she pays attention to the background conversations among the other angels.


    "And what do you think about the first commandment?" says one angel.


    "Better than the second, but worse than the third," replies another.


    "Ah... I am the same"


    A long silence ensues between the two.


    Another evil imposed in the resting place: it is forbidden to talk about work. Which is a problem when work is usually the main motivation of most angels. They tend to frown upon idleness, perhaps because an idle attitude reminds their fellow angels expelled from heaven in antediluvian times.


    Fallen angels. Just thinking about them makes Cherubella''s ambrosia taste sour. She shakes the head to clear her mind, and proceeds to stroke the sheep''s head on which she takes a seat. The animal bellows in appreciation for the affection. The sheep are very docile animals, they were brought in and raised by Jerahmeel to expedite it''s work of moving between dream cycles.


    Cherubella drinks another pinch of ambrosia and looks up at the ceiling. In the background, the angels continue to converse, though they lower their voices a bit to deal with a more delicate subject.


    "Wasn''t it supposed to be Superior Ramiel''s turn to come today?"


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    "I heard he was very busy. Found a huge inconsistency in the math"


    "Where?"


    "Fantasia, I think"


    "Fantasia always causes problems. They should just delete it"


    "It doesn''t merit deletion... At least not yet. It''s also suspected that someone made a mistake, maybe threw a soul in the wrong place"


    "I doubt it. If there''s a mistake, it has to be one of the guys downstairs. Those demons are always playing a dirty game"


    The second angel agrees.


    Cherubella freezes when she hears that. Did one of them make a mistake? Unlikely, even so, ethics makes her think: Fantasia, she recently sent a soul there.... What if she was the cause of the incongruity...? Shakes her head, denying the possibility. She trusts her aim. But it''s also true that Fantasia tends to be a place with unpredictable weather for souls, and she didn''t look all the way to make sure Jimbo landed in the right place either.


    The incipient worry becomes a weight on her stomach, as if she had swallowed an ingot. Fearful of a possible error, Cherubella gets up from the sheep and slips out the door, without hurrying too much because she doesn''t want the others noticing that she left before time. But the girl does not manage to cross the threshold, a tall angel, blue-haired, strict look, and elegant suit, enters with an abacus under his arm. Cherubella almost collides with Ramiel''s chest, but manages to stop and retreat before the impact.


    Ramiel frowns. Cherubella tenses up like a board.


    "Novice Cherubella, I see you continue to have only two wings" It''s hard to tell if it''s a casual remark, or a criticism.


    "Huh? Y-Yes. Perhaps... Perhaps I haven''t pushed myself hard enough, superior Ramiel"


    "Do not despair. Blessings await those who act with patience"


    Ramiel prepares to continue on his way, but Cherubella quickly steps in again, unable to keep the question to herself. Barely controlling her stuttering, the minor angel asks about Fantasia.


    "We are in the resting pantheon, novice Cherubella. We can''t talk about work"


    "Please. I won''t be able to rest properly if I don''t get my doubts out of the way first. Look at my wings, they''re very, very tense"


    "Hmm... You resting wrong would be problematic, Jerahmeel would be upset and make a drama about it. I''ll just tell you not to worry, everything is fine"


    "Huh...?" Cherubella blinks repeatedly- "So there was no mistake in the accounts?"


    "There was... But it solved itself"


    Something very strange happens: Ramiel smiles, a small, barely imperceptible movement at the corner of his lips.


    "Destiny is set in stone, just as God''s creation is perfect. When faced with a mismatch, the universe moves to balance the scales. Sometimes, on the most satisfying occasions, I would say, it doesn''t even need to lift a finger"


    Cherubella places a hand on her chest and sighs in relief. Ramiel ignores the girl''s gesture, goes and sits on one of the available sheep. He remains there, with his back erect, in total silence, giving the world a distant look for a whole hour.


    After the break, Cherubella returns home, and although she took Ramiel''s words for granted, she still looks through the peephole of the canyon to make sure Jimbo is in the right place. She looks closer to the cabin in the mountains, and finds a mother nursing her baby. The baby has eager and curious eyes, looking quite alert. Cherubella is not surprised, Jimbo, despite his indifference and sedentary lifestyle, had a good head on his shoulders. Perhaps, in the end, if he ends up getting his wish to become a hero.


    The angel smiles and walks away from the canyon.


    All is right.

 31: Design and illusions

    Jimbo has played enough platform games to know how make quests with a good mix of challenge and fun. He had to restrain himself to avoid his cruelest streak, the kind that intoxicates the oceans of enemy worlds in Kard10k. Luckily in the moments where he went overboard with a trick that was too far-fetched, Dowmy was always there to ask: Isn''t that too much...?


    Jimbo accepted the feedback, took a second look at his creation, and then realized that it was definitely too much, and proceeded to fix it. This is training, not a real dungeon, and if it were a real dungeon, Jimbo feels uncertainty about whether he''d be able to turn his home into a slaughterhouse.


    ?I bet this is more intense than living it through keyboard and mouse?


    Dowmy leads the way. She is followed by Hilda and Lynel, both captains keeping an eye out for whatever might emerge from the cracks in the cavernous route. They arrive at a thin rock bridge suspended over a wide darkness, on the sides of the chasms there are gullies with overhanging ledges located above the height of the bridge.


    The imp advances along the natural bridge, the structure crosses, loses a few pebbles that disappear without a sound of touching the bottom. It gives the sensation that at any moment the bridge will collapse. Hilda, sensing these details, stops in her tracks and extends a hand backwards, stopping Lynel.


    "You''re trying to kill us or what?" the woman asks.


    Dowmy is not surprised by the distrust. She sighs, closes her eyes, and knowing that actions speak louder than a thousand words, she takes a small leap into the void.


    The captains watch with open mouths as the little girl disappears into the abyss'' blackness. They exchange glances without understanding what just happened.


    Lynel is startled when feels a pressure on his ankle. Looking down, he discovers Dowmy grabbing his foot. The imp finishes climbing up a rock staircase camouflaged at the beginning of the bridge. At the top, the imp explains that it''s all an illusion.


    "It''s a courage test, or some such. The master claims it will help strengthen the soldiers"


    According to Jim''s calculations, there is no danger.


    True, Jimbo is limited to his Age, but he was pleasantly surprised to discover that even with that limitation, he still had a lot of modifiability for the scenery. The visual effects were especially low-cost, such as that thin but intense layer of darkness, a detail that masks the fact that the bridge is barely suspended 2.5 meters above a floor cushioned with a fluffy moss layer.


    The same is for the bridge. It is actually solid enough to support 20 grown men at the same time, but using the illusion tool on its construction rods, it gives the false impression that it is two steps away from breaking loose.


    Lynel uses the stone ladder to dive into the darkness, 30 seconds later, he sticks the head out and exclaims:


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    "The imp tells the truth! It''s actually very well lit down here, you just can''t see it from above... I look like a floating head, don''t I?"


    "Are you sure there are no human bones hidden somewhere?" Hilda asks.


    Jimbo feels the urge to complain aloud, but reluctantly restrains him and continues to study the captains'' reactions. Lynel looks down a second time before answering.


    "The torches on the wall are made with skulls, though they look odd. Seems to be ape-like"


    Hilda nods despite misgivings and extends a hand to Lynel to help him up.


    "I understand that this can be used to scare rookies, but it''s a one-time trick, I''m not surprised," says the captain.


    Jimbo clicks his tongue, but doesn''t get impatient, he still has a lot to teach. He instructs Dowmy on what to do. The imp leads the captains across the bridge. Lynel, being the widest and heaviest of the group, continues to tread cautiously despite Dowmy''s assurances that the shivering on the bridge is also a hoax.


    A blue mark is in the middle of the bridge, right at the narrowest point. The mark is ethereal, only Jimbo can see it. When Dowmy steps on it nothing happens, but when Hilda''s sole is planted on top of the mark, six goblins are summoned, three on each ledge at the abyss sides.


    The goblins shriek to alert the invaders, and when the invaders look at them, the monsters begin to pick up rocks and raise them above their heads, but without attacking. Lynel points his finger at them in admiration.


    "Oooh, I get it! Anti-ambush training. Very clever"


    "It also serves to improve blocking and dodging," says Dowmy paraphrasing Jim.


    Jimbo nods with a satisfied smile, which disappears when noting Hilda''s neutral expression.


    "Generally these types of traps are usually on floors four or five. But I guess a little excitement at the beginning isn''t bad," Hilda says.


    ?You''ll be all complaining, won''t you??


    Dowmy was about to relay the question, but Jimbo stops her and says to just go ahead with the tour. La imp nods and complies. The group finishes crossing the bridge and they enter a second cavernous tunnel. Hilda decelerates a little and leans down to speak in whispers to Lynel.


    "Are you really okay with this?" Hilda asks.


    Lynel brings a hand to his mustache and smoothes one end, thoughtfully.


    "I don''t know. But I''m intrigued..."


    "Intrigued?"


    "This proposal, everything, in fact. You know the Dungeon Core more than I do, but... Don''t you get the feeling we''re dealing with a person?"


    Hilda is slow to respond. She looks over her shoulder at the obstacle they have just overcome. These are tests too complex for a newborn Dungeon, also possessing considerations towards invaders that a Dungeon is never supposed to have. Such details left her with the feeling that she is dealing with a human being, perhaps an architect mage, but generally a flesh and blood person.


    Many Dungeons use illusions, but none safeguard those who desecrate their domains. Treasures and special weapons are often temptations in the same way that a carnivorous plant wastes rich honey to lure prey.


    "A human being... Well, we''re sure that''s not it," Hilda says and looks straight ahead. "But it''s strange, it''s the first core I''ve seen behaving like that"


    "Then maybe it''s one of the good ones"


    "Has anything made by Arrax ever been good?"


    "There''s a first time for everything. Let''s keep an open mind. Who knows? Maybe this is just what the kingdom needs, Hilda. In this life you have to accept all the help you can get and understand that it''s not weakness, but humility and wisdom"


    "I still don''t accept it, and if this thing were to declare something as far-fetched like feeling human, the more wary I''d be"


    "And why is that?"


    "It would mean it knows us too well, and increase the possibility that it is manipulating us, creating empathy. Monsters are monsters, making us aware of that is what separates us from destruction." With that statement breaking the whispering tone, Hilda picks up the pace.


    Jimbo, who was eavesdropping on the conversation, watches her walk away in silence.

 32: Strength and cunning

    The next dungeon room is the largest room built by Jimbo so far. It is a little coliseum with stone steps and a white sand floor. In the center is a row of three monoliths, the first has a cylindrical block and a tip, the middle one has two blocks, and the last one is three blocks high. A bone gate prevents passage to the next area of the dungeon.


    At first Jimbo wrote one word on each monolith: Easy, Normal, and Hard, representing the typical difficulty levels. But he was surprised to learn that Dowmy was unable to understand his language, and that this is the first time she has seen such a writing.


    Jimbo deduced that everyone was speaking a native language to him from that fantasy world, and that being a dungeon core somehow translates the language into a form he understands. But when it comes to written language, such facility doesn''t apply, and to fix that Jimbo asked Dowmy how to write the numbers 1, 2, and 3.


    The imp shrugs her shoulders and says:


    "I don''t know how write"


    Jimbo rolls his ethereal eyes and lets out an exasperated sigh. He can''t blame the imp, clearly the girl''s education was not a priority for Arrax . After thinking for a while, Jimbo decided to make use of a color code: He placed a green magic mark for the first monolith, yellow for the second, and red for the third, and made them visible to anyone. As with the stone-throwing goblins, the monoliths had their own summoning mechanism.


    Dowmy takes care to explain how this works for the captains.


    "The hand is placed and monsters appear. The green stone is for the novice soldiers, the yellow for those who already have some practice, and the red for those looking for a challenge," she says, pointing to each mark with a finger.


    Lynel whistles impressively and leans over to check the monoliths with interest. Hilda keeps a stoic face and takes a step to test. She places a hand on the yellow mark and immediately feels something suck a pinch of her energy, it''s as if an invisible force is pulling her forward. She grits the teeth and quickly withdraws her hand. Around the woman, three skeletons are summoned, each wielding a club.


    To save costs with the summonings, Jimbo placed an extra feature to the marks, it is a small ability to absorb ether and ki. It''s a trap, but Jimbo reduced its absorption capacity to prevent it from being harmful.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    "Do you need help, Hilda?" Lynel asks when he sees the undead.


    "I''ve got it all under control," Hilda says with a relaxed look on her face.


    "I know, but I only offered as a gentlemanly gesture. All yours, Captain"


    Lynel steps back to stand next to Dowmy.


    As soon as the three skeletons step forward with intent to attack, Hilda delivers a spinning slash.


    She spins a couple of times on her own axis, cutting the skeletons from the waist. The torsos are pulled apart, and though the legs walk away, the hands and skulls still crawl forward to attack. Hilda''s boot stomps on the skull of the first and pulverizes it, causing the rest of the skeleton to disintegrate. She does the same to the second enemy, and the third skeleton gets its skull kicked in, sending it flying and destroying it against a wall.


    With no enemies in sight, the monolith marker lights up and the bone gate in the background opens automatically.


    "I can already visualize future training here, it will be very profitable for our slacker troop!" Lynel exclaims, crossing his arms and nodding with a satisfied smile.


    "It''s an interesting idea, I admit," Hilda agrees, although unlike Lynel, she avoids letting any trace of optimism or excitement escape.


    Dowmy continues the tour to the next room. Jimbo observes the result with a grimace of annoyance.


    ?With this woman I don''t get the math I want?


    Hilda eliminated the skeletons without breaking a sweat, so the ether her body expelled was minimal. Jimbo hopes that with the remaining soldiers the outcome will be better for him.


    If the bridge tests courage and self-control, and the coliseum tests strength, Jimbo decided that the third challenge of his 1st floor would test gray matter.


    ?One puzzle a day doesn''t hurt?


    Since it''s his first, he decided to try an easy puzzle.


    The last room is just a corridor with a stone gate at the end. Only three of the six torches inside are lit, and they are in couples, each adorned with a different sized skull. The first pair of torches is child-sized, the second pair is adolescent-sized, and the third pair looks like adult skulls.


    Hilda goes straight to the door and tries to open it, but no matter how hard she probes, she can''t find a way to unlock it. She lets out a growl of annoyance and backs away to look around the room. Like her, Lynel also looks at the extinguished torches.


    "It''s a simple riddle, we must light all the torches for the door to open," says Hilda.


    Lynel nods in agreement and grabs one of the lit torches to turn on the others, however nothing happens, and when he lights the last one, the skull of the teenager, the three fires are extinguished again as if blown by a mysterious wind. The captains arch an eyebrow and look at Dowmy waiting for an explanation.


    "The master asks if you want a clue," says the imp.


    Lynel opens his mouth to accept the help, but Hilda interrupts him.


    "There''s no need, we''ll find out for ourselves. I imagine it will be something dirty, like a hidden lever, or a path we didn''t see"


    Hilda checks the corridor again, getting more and more frustrated. Lynel tries to convince her to accept the Dungeon Core''s help, but she insists they can solve the puzzle on their own.


    Jimbo wishes they could hear his laughter.

 33: Hooded

    A hooded man advances hunched over among the crowds, his face covered by shadows, barely showing strands of his gray beard. Like a ghost, no one hears and no one notices him, but he is attentive to the surroundings, to what is shown, to what is heard.


    A merchant shouts to a caravan leader to avoid taking the bridges to the south, because for the moment the miners are still making their way through the new wall. In a store selling a variety of objects, there is a line to buy daystones, fragments of warm, luminescent, golden rock that is said to give off the same light as the sunrise. The middle-class people of the kingdom began to hang such stones from the doors and windows of their homes and stores, for the superstition that it keeps away the dark elves and other creatures of the underdark.


    The man acting as a shadow smiles bitterly. He thinks: If the sun itself was unable to keep the dark elves away, how could a few small imitators do any better?


    More efficient promise to be the glares rising from the noble district, the walled area near the castle where the wealthiest inhabitants live. Those explosions of light that leave gawking children gawking from a distance are powerful barriers and blessings released by priests. The service is expensive, but after what happened, wealthy families decided to rent a service they had previously ignored.


    The hooded man growls in a rough voice and heads for the exit of the second wall.


    It is hard to tell where the districts inside the third wall begin. The alleys are mixed, also the houses, the stairs are erratic, and there are many dark sessions where it is recommended not to walk or end up with no exit. Still there are corpses and blood in those corners, among the rubble and smoldering ruins. Simple citizens cannot go in to clean up, it is up to the soldiers, to the men and women with weapons, because otherwise they might fall victim to the plagues that grow deep in the lower districts, places where not even the king, with all his authority and power, has been able to reach at all.


    The hooded man crosses a stone bridge and looks down into the drain flowing below. The water is ash-colored, but sometimes, when it moves away from the light, that strange dust can glow like frost. Wanderers and dusty children wade into the water to try to catch the light spots with their hands, only to emerge disappointed when the plenilunium debris is hit by the sunlight again.


    "How could they resist the sun...?" The hooded man wonders, raising his eyes slightly to the sky. He frowns and clenches his fists until they squeak. Smells it and feels it, unnatural powers stalking the realm.


    But where exactly...?


    The hooded man understands that he won''t find answers on that bridge. Decides it''s time to go home.


    Going through the most uncrowded paths, the hooded man reaches one entrance of the castle wall. The guards on the threshold recognize the man, stand up and salute.


    King Marc gives them a nod of recognition and prepares to return to the castle, but then a vision stops him and makes him raise an eyebrow. There are at least a dozen naked men running around the castle. Marc remains silent for a minute, trying to figure out what is going on. He turns and asks the guards if anything interesting has happened.


    "It''s a punishment imposed by Captain Hilda, your majesty. We don''t know exactly what they did to anger her, but it must have been something very serious"


    Marc nods and walks to the castle. Avoiding to stop the punishment, he assumes that Hilda will have valid reasons. Perhaps his wife will end up shrieking in alarm at the sight of such a spectacle, and the thought makes Marc wield a tiny smile.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    The castle entrance is a single iron gate, and to reach it you have to climb five large steps, to the point that to overcome each one you have to take a long stride. Each step is supposed to represent the five men who helped Stoicus to found the kingdom... But it is also uncomfortable, especially for the damsels, hence it was ordered to build a normal staircase on one side of the main ones, a facility that Marc is allowed to use now that he is only a hooded man and not 100% a king.


    Arrive at the foyer. An octagon-shaped skylight lets in natural light. Near one of the four square pillars supporting the ceiling, there are a handful of maids talking, several of them blushing. Noticing the king, they all startle and hasten to lower their heads. When he gives them permission to speak, the oldest and most authoritative, asks the favor of stopping the soldiers'' punishment outside.


    "I''ll see what I can do. Where is Hilda?"


    The maids tell that Hilda left in a hurry to the castle basement, followed by Captain Lynel. King Marc frowns when he hears the news, but decides not to ask any more questions and goes to check on his own. With Arrax in bed, the king doubts that this is the reason Hilda got carried away in her haste.


    Another possibility, a small but worrisome one...


    The Dungeon Core.


    Marc arrives at the cells and walks ignoring the prisoners. He reaches the lab, and finds one of Arrax''s disciples sitting on a stool, hunched over, clutching her head in both hands. Marc puts a fist to his mouth and clears his throat loudly to make his presence known.


    Marnie squeals and flails her arms to regain her balance, nearly falling off the stool at the sight of the king. Clumsily she rushes to kneel, but the king stops her by extending his hand and demanding to know where Hilda is.


    "She left with Captain Lynel, none have returned,¡± Marnie says, unable to control the trembling in her voice, she plays continuously with her hands. "The core, the imp, they talked to them... They changed everything! And claimed to have something to show, something that would help the kingdom"


    From the way Marnie trembles, the king understands that perhaps Hilda and Lynel fell into a trap. He looks at the core room doors with suspicion, in another time, he would have thrown himself into danger without a flinch, but now he has a responsibility over his head.


    "Your Majesty" A voice comes from the cell corridor.


    When Marc and Marnie look, finds the witch with slanted green eyes and shaved head: Laikara. Marnie recoils instinctively, the secret oracle is Arrax''s enemy, and therefore also hers.


    "I have bad news...¡± says Laikara.


    King Marc assumes that it is about the possible rebellion of the core, but Laikara hastens to get him out wrong.


    "Captain Claus arrived about an hour ago..."


    Marc nods pleased, with Claus could eradicate the core and save Hilda and Lynel if necessary. But Laikara''s grim countenance makes him understand that it would not be so simple.


    "A dark elf attacked him when he was accompanying Captain Axiel. Claus... Is in a coma"


    ...


    "All right... Do your thing,¡± Hilda says with her one eye closed. After 20 minutes of searching for keys, looking for illusions, extinguishing the torches, relighting them, and elbowing the last door with no sign of success, she decides to settle the matter and accept the clue.


    "My master says there is a proper and polite way to ask favors,¡± says Dowmy.


    Hilda opens her eye and faces the girl. Dowmy backs away quickly, fearful of the stare and of receiving a sword. Lynel rushes into the middle to make peace.


    "Hilda, I''ve got this,¡± Lynel says and looks up at the ceiling, where he assumes the Dungeon Core is watching them. The captain coughs to clear his voice and says, ¡°Sir Dungeon Core, would you be so kind as to give us a clue?"


    Both knights turn their gaze to Dowmy waiting for an answer, which soon comes.


    "My master wants the woman to ask for it too"


    "Don''t play with my patience!" Hilda bursts out.


    Lynel again steps in front of the captain and raises his hands in an attempt to calm her down.


    "Hilda, please, we have to finish this and get out soon. If we delay and don''t stop the punishment in time, half the troop will desert,¡± Lynel says.


    Seeing the concern in her comrade-in-arms'' eyes, Hilda sighs and takes a deep breath to relax. Clenching a fist and twisting her lips into a grimace, she glances at the ceiling and begins to speak slowly.


    "Please... A hint... Dungeon Core"


    Jimbo would rather ask more of her, but with a mischievous grin decides that will do, and dictates the clue to Dowmy. The imp nods and relays it.


    "It has to do with time... And age"

 34: Dungeon Kingdom

    Time and age. The captains look around the corridor as they think about those two words. Hilda takes a long look at the torches with the skulls, notices the differences in size again, and barely resists the urge to slap her face. Yes, it was time to turn on the torches just as they did in the first place, but....


    "A specific order," says Hilda.


    "Now that you mention it, the answer is quite obvious!" replies Lynel.


    The woman lights the three torches, starting from the smallest to the largest. A creaking sound is heard and the bottom of the door releases a puff of dust and then rises, revealing a staircase. Walking up it, the captains soon arrive in a room dominated by blue glow. Beeps sound from the giant crystal floating above the pit.


    ?Congratulations, test mice!? exclaims Jimbo, quite pleased. The mental activity of the knights brought him a not inconsiderable amount of ether.


    Dowmy runs to stand by the crystal and starts clapping.


    "Congratulations you two, really made it, and almost single-handedly"


    Lynel sticks out his chest, feeling proud. Hilda looks less pleased, although her expression had softened as she passed the tests, perhaps for a while she even forgot her misgivings about the dungeon core.


    "For my first experience in a dungeon, I must admit it was quite exhilarating! My granddaughter would have loved it!" Lynel says.


    Jimbo urges Dowmy to ask the questions he needs to know. She nods toward the core and then turns her attention to the captains.


    "So you liked the experience... Do you agree with us?"


    Lynel nods, impressed and in total agreement with the idea, although he suspects that perhaps his partner has a different opinion. Everyone looks at Hilda.


    "I guess for a 1st floor it''s not bad. Perhaps, while maintaining certain security conditions, the troop can take advantage of this," Hilda comments. Dowmy was about to jump for joy, but the woman quickly squints her one eye and adds: "However, dungeon core, even if I were all praise with you, you know we don''t make the decisions here, right?"


    ?I know. But if your king speaks the truth, and takes into account the opinions of his helpers, I lose nothing by trying. All I want is a good recommendation, if I''ve earned it?


    Dowmy relays the core''s words. Hilda and Lynel exchange glances. Both knights pledge to speak to the king.


    ...


    The double doors to the dungeon open. Hilda and Lynel emerge, both commenting on their experiences in the different tests, but they become mute when notice who awaits them in the laboratory: a crowd of soldiers in armor, Arrax''s assistant, and King Marc. Lynel and Hilda rush to kneel down. The king gives them permission to stand and demands explanations.


    "You don''t seem to be in a hurry or to be escaping from the jaws of danger," says Marc.


    "It''s a bit complicated to explain, your majesty, but if you would give us a few minutes of your time we would clarify everything," Hilda says.


    King Marc scratches his beard, looks behind the knights, at the doors leading to a new cavernous chamber and considers the situation.


    "Did the dungeon core reveal its fangs and claws?"


    "Not at all, your majesty," Lynel says.


    Marc, knowing that sometimes Lynel tends to be soft on those who show him presumed goodwill, looks at Hilda waiting for a cruder opinion.


    The woman thinks for a few seconds before responding.


    "At the moment, the dungeon core is no danger to us," Hilda says.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    Marc nods satisfied with that. He postpones the story about the Dungeon Core, in his opinion there is a more pressing matter to notify his knights. He places two guards to guard the gates and orders the rest to return to their routines.


    ...


    Claus''s room is in the same corridor as the king''s room. The first captain is usually the main defender of the monarch and his family. As the invasion of the dark elves took everyone by surprise, it was an anomaly that Claus found himself away from Marc.


    Commoners have a belief that captains live a luxurious life, but it''s not entirely true. Hilda lives for work and training, Lynel takes less breaks than his family would like, and Claus'' bedroom is a sign of his austere life: a single bed, a desk, a closet and a chest, all of mediocre quality.


    Claus is lying on the bed, with Laikara and two oracles in dark robes and faces covered by hoods with an embroidered eye, leaning over him. Lynel and Hilda are speechless at the sight of the strongest man in the kingdom in that state, eyes sealed shut, pale, barely perceptible breathing, and a cut on his cheek that shows no sign to heal. The maidens removed Claus'' armor, but by Laikara''s order it was forbidden to touch the helmet.


    A golden aura, like the crown of a candle, enveloped the captain''s body. Laikara, noticing the newcomers, approaches the entrance to report her findings to the king and his trusted people.


    "There is no doubt, it is the spider goddess'' poison," says Laikara.


    "The spider goddess...?" Lynel asks.


    Laikara explains that the spider goddess is the main divinity of the dark elves, and that the poison is supposed to come directly from her left fang, while from the right one is poured the greatest aphrodisiac.


    "We do not know the exact name of the divinity, we do not even know if the spider goddess really exists or if just a myth that they created to confuse humans. But the reality of the poison is clear, we have known of its existence for centuries, and for centuries we have been unable to find a cure"


    Laikara''s explanation causes the bitter expressions to accentuate, it doesn''t help when the witch clarifies that a single drop entering the body can cause death in a few minutes.


    "So Claus...?" Hilda bites her lip, not wanting to finish the question for fear the answer.


    "Don''t worry, he''ll live at least for a while. The helmet prevents the poison destroying him," Laikara clarifies, turning the eyes back to the bed. "The situation is atypical, maybe we can save him"


    Hilda''s attention also goes to the helmet, the gold wings rising above a laurel cleft. It''s a striking piece that doesn''t fit Claus'' style, but the sentimental weight it possesses rests on the first captain like an anvil.


    "Even after death, Anya cares for him," Lynel murmurs in a solemn tone, his fist close to the heart.


    "Arrax always wanted to study the blessing of the helmet, but Claus never allowed him to," says Hilda, and eager to escape bitter memories, she asks Laikara about the details of the attack.


    "A dark elf. I wish I could say more, but-"


    "Avoid considerations of myself, Miss Laikara. Is my fault"


    The voice comes from the corridor, the captains recognize him. Axiel enters the bedroom. The large number of people inside makes the ambient feel smaller and suffocating.


    "Axiel, welcome. Too bad the conditions were so... Grim," Lynel says.


    "What do you mean it was your fault?" Hilda asks without any cordiality.


    Axiel doesn''t even flinch at Hilda''s attitude, instead he begins to relate with a serious face the attack details, and how they were saved from the worst by a soldier who was patrolling near the shortcut.


    "A very brave man, his name is Marcus," says Axiel.


    "Good Marcus! I know him, I''ll have to give that boy a well-deserved rest leave," says Lynel"


    Axiel returns to the story.


    "The shortcut was supposed to be safe and secret, but the information somehow reached the ears of the dark elves," says the second capital.


    The gazes travel to Laikara, she frowns.


    "The information did not come out of this castle, I can assure you that," she says, and although trying to keep her tone cold, some indignation was revealed in front the suspicion of a weakness or crack inside the oracles. "And as I was saying, we would have found out more... If Sir Axiel had not destroyed the assassin''s body"


    "I admit that I was taught never to underestimate my enemies," Axiel said, still holding Laikara''s gaze.


    "Mourning for what could have been will not lead us to anything!" The king said, with his teeth clenched as he imagined having a captain in a coma and another dead if Axiel had risked more than he should have. "It is clear that the dark elf threat is still latent, and that we will need all the help we can get to protect our kingdom"


    The monarch looks at everyone''s faces with his gaze, until he ends up on Hilda''s.


    "And when I say all the help, I mean all... My priority is to protect the bastion that Stoicus built, the council policy will be done later. We use, if necessary, the invention that Arrax built"


    "Your majesty, are you talking about the Dungeon Core?" Axiel asks with his hand under the chin. "Claus told me about, I wish to meet it, and if possible, to supervise it"


    "You will meet him soon, Axiel. I also want Laikara to take a look at it. But considering that you have just arrived, perhaps Lynel or Hilda would be best suited to supervise the core"


    Hearing their names, both captains raise their backs and stand at attention awaiting any decision from the king.


    Marc does not know if the decision he is making, about using the power of the dungeon core, is correct, but with his main force lying in bed and no hope of waking up, it is up to him to use everything at hand to fulfill his responsibility.

 35: Celebration, changes and conflicts

    The soldiers gather at the inn of The Illustrious Mop, a modest and comfortable bar located within the limits of the third wall, next to the west exit. A regular establishment for weary travelers in search of a good-priced rest, and also a favorite place for the army''s bulk. A wide stone fireplace fills the tavern with light and warmth, crowned by a pair of giant sea serpent horns, easy to recognize by their emerald color and spiral design, ideal for penetrating the ships'' keel.


    "To Marcus, the unexpected hero!" exclaims Balto, raising a jug full of thick mead.


    "To Marcus!" choruses the rest of the troop, raising their mugs as well.


    Marcus drinks with them, giving discreet smiles to comrades who come to congratulate him. The story spread like wildfire, first as a rumor, then with certainty when Captain Lynel granted the squadrons a break and in passing paid for a full day''s drinks at the bar. Marcus became a small local hero, and his front door was filled with baskets of gifts and food from those who wanted to curry favor with a promising new arrival in the army.


    With the story confirmed, exaggerations soon surfaced of how Marcus managed to save two captains from a dark elf attack.... No, from 10 elves! Or perhaps 50 underdark worms!


    True or false, none bothered to find out the truth despite Marcus insisting that Axiel did most of the work. The soldiers were happy just drinking and joking with each other, especially after hard days.


    Marcus accepts the new fame with a bitter aftertaste in his mouth. Not just because he thinks Axiel deserves more credit, but because there is a force behind the scenes that he is unable to ignore. He sets the jug on the table and sneaks a hand under the neck of his shirt, grabbing the handkerchief and checking it feeling a lump in the throat, as much of fear as of admiration.


    No proof, but no doubts either. Marcus believes that the Dungeon Core somehow guided him to help the captains. First it saves his family, and now it brings him glory. Marcus swallows, he doesn''t know quite what to think or how to react, feels owes a lot to the crystal.


    "How can you be so pensive with the pretty waitresses so attentive to you?" Balto asks with a smile.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    Marcus raises his face and blinks in confusion, clearly he didn''t even hear. Balto assumes that Marcus is worried and modulates his voice to speak in whispers.


    "If it''s because the warning, don''t even worry, nobody knows it"


    "We''re a tomb," Pit says, sitting next to him as he steeps a fifth mug of beer.


    Harris nods to show his support, although of the group he speaks the least.


    With the warning, Balto refers to a new order given by the king. The troop knows that Claus was wounded, although they do not know the exact details, and many assume that the strongest man in the kingdom will return to the front line in a few days. No one is aware of the coma, and only Marcus, who was present when the first captain collapsed, recognizes the seriousness of the matter.


    If the tragedy had occurred before they met the core, Marcus would be frightened for the future of the kingdom, but now, knowing they have the power of the crystal on their side....


    Marcus returns the handkerchief to its place and widens his smile.


    "It''s nothing. Let''s drink, life is two days!"


    "When you born and when you die!" Pit exclaims in his booming bell-like voice.


    "Yeah, sure, drink too much and your sister murders you," Balto says and slaps Marcus on the back.


    Between jokes and casual chatter, the candles in the candelabra burn out. The general mood is light, although from time to time Marcus and his group comment on changes at work.


    "It looks like Captain Hilda is moving out," Balto says. Wait, the brat knows more details.


    "More than moving, she''s changing rooms. She''s going to the basement... I had to help carry the bed," Harris reports.


    "The basement, wow... It seems that she''s been left in charge of the important issue," Balto murmurs as he takes a sip of mead, filling his lips with foam, which he then sweeps away with an arm. "Interesting times are coming for the kingdom"


    Marcus'' lips curl into a bitter grimace. He knows that Hilda has a rough deal with the Dungeon Core. Still, he hopes that these interesting times ahead will prove positive for the people.


    The door to the bar is pushed open by a strong hand, nearly being ripped off its hinges. The mood in the bar quiets, and glances fly to the new figure. He is a tall, strong, dark-skinned man with a bare chest and shoulders hugged by a bearskin cape. From his neck hangs a necklace with a concave silver plate with an X engraved in the center. The man does not come alone, three companions accompany him, all women: Sorceress, priestess, and archer, each one with a costume more revealing than the previous one, the last one with a steel choker that denominates her as a slave. Clear is the guy''s harem.


    A silver adventurer.


    The mood and expressions of the soldiers darken. Despite their respect for Hilda, they cannot ignore the friction and rivalry they feel towards the adventurers. It is evident from the guy''s wide grin that he wants trouble.


    "I''m looking for the soldier capable of saving the lives of two captains! Come on, let him step forward if he''s got the guts!"

 36: New link

    ?Is this really necessary?? Jimbo wonders as he watches the soldiers move the bed and closet into the core room, all the while being supervised by Hilda''s watchful eye.


    Jimbo offered to build Hilda a bedroom in the adjoining right space. It would be no problem for him just use some ether for the new room, he already had a schematic for Dowmy''s bedroom that could be re-used. But Hilda rejected the idea, arguing that she prefers to be near the core just in case something bad happens. Such a situation makes Jimbo swallow saliva with his ethereal throat, feeling uncomfortable with Hilda present, always on the prowl, keeping an eye on anything Dowmy or he does.


    Core Supervisor.


    That was the position created and given to the captain. Just hearing the job title makes Jimbo want to laugh, but for the castle''s residents it was no joke. King Marc offered Hilda extra pay to go along with her position as captain, and she accepted, though only after refusing the pay a couple of times and reaffirming that she would do it for free if they would let her.


    Jimbo couldn''t tell if Hilda was an idiot or an ass-kisser. He had a hard time sizing up her loyalty to King Marc, more so when he learned from spying on the soldiers and chatting with Dowmy that Marc''s lineage has a time limit.


    ?100 years to run a kingdom. It''s still quite a long time, but does he deserve that degree of willingness??


    He could try to get Dowmy to talk to Hilda about it, but he hesitates to get anything but surly looks. Jimbo wants to maintain a more or less healthy relationship, though he would have preferred the older man, that Lynel fellow, to keep the supervisor''s job.


    ?He''s a nice guy. Although it was very awkward when I explained that the cavewomen were my inventions?


    Among those present there was a long silence and exchanges of glances, especially after Jimbo vanished and brought back one of the girls, earning murmurs of surprise. Only the strange hooded woman remained unmoved, the one with the shaved head and slanted eyes. King marc was pragmatic and ordered not to comment on the human summoning, another secret of an already taboo subject that was Jimbo''s existence.


    "Well, the ladies do look a bit silly," said Axiel, whom Jimbo observed with disdain, considering him the typical blond and handsome character that makes the fangirls squeal. "That they lack a soul would explain the lesser intellect"


    "Sir Axiel, that''s very disrespectful from you..." Lynel said at the time, though he didn''t entirely reject the second captain''s theory.


    ?That I can summon beings similar to them, seems to be blasphemy. Good to know, I don''t want to offend anyone powerful. Lucky the king is a reasonable person.?Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    Jimbo is thankful for his luck. If Arrax were present, or a more obtuse king was in charge, their survival would have been complicated to negotiate.


    ?Though it''s a bit odd that they''d be so cooperative all of a sudden?


    That the man with the golden helmet, Claus, was not present left Jimbo wondering. King Marc not only accepted Jimbo''s existence, but also gave the go-ahead for his plans to train the soldier troop.


    Jimbo was not going to complain about the good fortune, so he thanked the monarch, and the king left with the captains. Hilda returned shortly thereafter accompanied by soldiers in charge of carrying her stuff.


    If they were in an office environment, she would be something like his immediate boss.


    The soldiers leave the core room by an alternate path that allows them to avoid the first floor trials. Hilda, now alone with the core and the imp, walks to stand at the pit''s edge and crosses her arms, watching the crystal very carefully.


    "The master wants to know what you want, human" Dowmy says, flapping her wings to approach quickly and protectively.


    Hilda looks at the imp for a moment and then returns her attention to the crystal.


    "I want to talk to you. Directly. Without intermediaries"


    Jimbo is speechless with the surprise request. Dowmy clenches her fists and puffs out her cheeks, indignant.


    "The master only talks with his trusted assistant, with me!"


    ?Dowmy, calm down. It''s okay?


    Dowmy continues to clench her hands tightly, clearly this is a delicate matter for her.


    ?It would be more convenient for me communicating with her directly. Especially if I''m supposed to explain to her what I want to do first. I have to take advantage they''re in good faith to get my projects underway!?


    Jimbo asks Dowmy to tell Hilda the instructions, but she closes her eyes, crosses arms, and turns away from them. Hilda seeing such a childish attitude, wields a half-smile lacking humor, almost a grimace.


    "If you''re worried about me stealing your monster maker, nothing could be further from the truth, child. I''m only interested in expediting this work to better help the kingdom"


    Dowmy returns to looking at them, first doubtfully, then sighs in resignation, convinced that Hilda has no hidden agenda to take the master away from her.


    "You have to do the same thing I did... Reach out and touch... And accept the gift"


    "Accept the gift?" Hilda frowns, wary of the word usage.


    The imp nods repeatedly.


    Hilda stares at the crystal for a full minute.


    "If you try to take over my conscience, you will be making your last mistake, Dungeon Core," the captain warns. Do not say it directly, but she is shielded by a silent confidence in abilities that are not obvious to naked eyes.


    Jimbo assumes that, to become a kingdom captain, you need to be strong or have above-average skills. Even if Jimbo had mind control powers, he wouldn''t risk compromising the collaboration the king and his people are showing.


    ?Well, maybe I would. Only if I was absolutely certain it worked and nobody would notice?


    As an E-Sports pro, Jimbo knows when and how to play his cards.


    Hilda stretches out her arm and plants a palm on the crystal''s surface. An electric tingle runs through her body, shoulders jerk and she blinks a few times.


    Inside Jimbo''s blue space, a new message in red letters appears.


    Connection point found. Do you wish to formalize the external link?


    Jimbo hesitates for a couple of seconds, but finally agrees to create the link.

 37: Higher category

    Marcus gets up and in the rush, knocks over the stool on which was sitting. Baldo and Pit imitate him, also bringing a hand to the handle of their respective weapons. Harris is the last to stand up, the boy almost tripping over his own feet in the hurry. The other soldiers in the bar remain silent and expectant, their surly looks hinting that they don''t like that one of them is being threatened. However, they also do not want to intervene when a man is determined to defend his honor.


    "Marcus, are you sure you want to start this?" Balto leans in and whispers discreetly, his eyes never leaving the adventurer''s group. "They seem to know what they''re doing... Veterans... We need to watch our flanks"


    "If this starts, is not my decision, Balto. It''s his decision, he strikes first" Marcus answers, with a shiny coat of sweat on his forehead that hints at nervousness.


    A bronze adventurer is said to have the strength of 10 men, a silver adventurer would have the power of 100 people.


    Of course that calculation is more guild propaganda than exact math, but it doesn''t change that it would be a mistake to underestimate the adventurer, especially when the X on his badge marks him as a monster extermination specialist.


    Marcus approaches a couple of steps and the soldiers group accompanies him without grumbling.


    The adventurer keeps his arms extended to the sides as if welcoming them, and a wide smile. The confident aura that surrounds him is palpable, and although the harem members are more weak and wear bronze plates instead (except for the slave girl, who does not wear any plate), they are probably a well-coordinated team when it comes to covering their weaknesses.


    Marcus'' feet hesitate to continue, and to give himself strength he takes a deep breath and thinks about the handkerchief with the embroidered crystal. With his determination strengthened, Marcus stands facing the adventurer and holds his gaze. The adventurer narrows his eyes and slowly stops smiling, turning to a serious grimace.


    "You''re younger up close, I bet you only parted from your mother''s skirts yesterday. Are you sure the stories are true about you? Come on, I''ll let you have the first punch, kid,¡± The adventurer pats the face on one side, an obvious provocation.


    Marcus tightens the grip of his sword, but remains cautious and still. He has a good advantage, they''re very close, if he activates [Max Power] could deliver a devastating blow in a few seconds, strong enough to knock out even a cyclops.


    However, what happened in the forest is still a bitter memory. The dark elf dodged what Marcus assumed would be a sure slash, and since then he doesn''t trust it. Instead, he remains silent and defiant, waiting for the adventurer to take the first action.


    Seconds pass, and the heavy silence of the tavern increases the tension. Getting no response, the adventurer clicks his tongue and takes a step back, looking annoyed.


    "I guess neither of us wants to reveal the cards up our sleeves... All right, kid. Maybe one day we''ll meet again and I can find out if Stoicus'' soldiers are worth the trouble, or if they rely on miracles for victory"


    The man turns and barks an order to the girls. The women retreat with him. As soon as the door closes again, the soldiers at the tables erupt in jubilation and come forward to congratulate Marcus. The reason: put in place one of those pompous silver adventurers who think that just because they have a shiny plaque means they are the world''s rulers.


    Soon the Marcus table is filled with hydromel mugs invited by the rest of his comrades. When the atmosphere calms down and the congratulations stop, Pit leans his huge body over Marcus and asks a question in a low voice:You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    "Hey, Marcus, would you really have been able to defeat that guy?"


    Balto and Harris are attentive to the answer. Marcus sighs and puts a hand behind his head.


    "Not even with a 100-day head start¡± he confesses.


    "I thought so¡± Pit nods with a smile.


    Balto was another one who assumed it was all bluster, he knows his friend well enough to understand he''s not on the silver adventurer''s level. Besides, Marcus was very clear in telling them that Captain Axiel did most of the work.


    However, they weren''t going to turn down a free round of beers or the flirtatious looks of some nice ladies.


    ...


    The link between Jimbo and Hilda is formalized, although the system warns that it is incomplete, since Hilda''s power exceeds the Dungeon Core.


    The system also takes the opportunity to clarify the statistics categories: non-existent, minimal, mediocre, athletic, formidable, heroic, and finally the divine category, a limit that is practically unreachable for 99% of living beings.


    Speaking of limits, the system states that the maximum level is 100, although this cannot be used as a comparative value, since it represents the limit of each individual being. A human''s level 100, i.e. his maximum potential, is reached much sooner than a dragon could.


    ?And is it possible to break that limit - to go beyond level 100??


    Note: The potential and limits of a species, is something that changes and adapts in a process thousands of years long, according to their experiences, environments, genetics, and growth.


    ?I understand, you talk about evolution, Darwin and everything. But I''m talking about whether can reach the 101 level, or the 102 level?


    The silence of the system is maintained. Jimbo clicks his tongue as he grasps that this is information his subconscious is unaware of.


    ?Being a Dungeon Core doesn''t give you all the answers, I figured?


    Anyway the level cap is something that at the moment is a long way off for him. He decides to concentrate on what''s in front.


    Hilda the fourth captain LV 31


    -Health: Full.


    -Ki: 40/40


    -Ether: 40/40


    -Strength: Athletic.


    -Agility: Athletic.


    -Endurance: Athletic.


    -State: Wary. Nervous. Expectant about what might happen.


    Jimbo is surprised, since unlike Dowmy, Hilda has two types of energy instead just ether.


    Note: Ether is energy produced and expelled by different types of beings, and therefore remains in the environment and can be absorbed and used. Ki, on the other hand, is an exclusively internal energy of the user, its channeling needs practice and its incorrect use can lead to physical imbalances and illnesses.


    Note 2: Dungeon Core do not possess Ki as they are beings composed entirely of materialized and hardened ether.


    Hilda shakes her head and pulls the hand away. Stepping back she frowns as perceived a change. Much like Dowmy, she now feels a vague connection to the crystal, like a flimsy draft pulling her into the core.


    ?Can you hear me??


    Hilda''s shoulders shudder. She squints.


    "Is that your voice?"


    ?Yes. Any problem??


    "Nothing, just... I expected it to be different,¡± the woman clarifies and closes her one eye. "A more monstrous voice... Or majestic... Or imposing. But instead you just sound like a regular guy"


    Jimbo was about to use fierce sarcasm and apologize for not being Morgan Freeman, but decides to keep the witticisms to himself that no one in the kingdom will understand.


    "I like your voice, master¡± Dowmy hastens to say, raising a hand to be noticed.


    Jimbo smiles.


    ?At least I can count on you, Dowmy?


    Jimbo was about to talk with Hilda about their plans for the dungeon, but shuts up short and shivers when notices the figure under the threshold of the secret shortcut, that tunnel that connects to the entrance of the 1st floor.


    Arrax moves forward, one hand supported by a gnarled staff, his other arm assisted by Marnie. The sorcerer''s pale face and dark gaze snaps into the crystal like two harpoons, the same with his sharp smile. Arrax jerks his arm away from Marnie and reaches out to the core as if longing to touch it.


    "[Obedient Doctrine]!"

 38: Discipline

    A white horse with feathered wings, pureblood pegasus, flies through the clouds with a gracefulness that makes it seem light like a feather. Sun reflections run across the horse''s armor, made of steel adulterated with magic to be as light as leather and glow with a blue reminiscent of a blue sky. The animal''s cuirass matches the rider''s armor.


    Renata in one hand holds the pegasus reins, and in the other a spear with a silver edge. The beautiful woman''s skin is white, eyes are blue, body is lean but athletic from training, and her silver hair descends in a long braid down from her helmet and falls over the left shoulder. The sides of her bluish breastplate are iron coins joined closely together with small steel chains, the same goes for the greaves and helmet, the plates showing refined lines reminiscent of flowers and fishes.


    It is a noisy armor, ornate, very uncomfortable, clinking with every slightest movement. But it is the armor that duty obliges her to wear, as a representative of the council, but above all of the kingdom of the merchant princes.


    Renata flies over the walls as she looks over the current state of the Stoicus kingdom. The reconstruction of the districts continues, especially the poorest areas that were the most affected, but in general there is an atmosphere of resumption and optimism towards daily life. Although for her the difference in the view is not so great, she always found the rustic aspect of the place deplorable. The new walls, colossal and amorphous, did not help to improve Renata''s opinion, proud of the opulence of her homeland.


    The pegasus descends, earning surprised gasps from children and adults who see it appear from the clouds. Renata enters within the confines of the castle and lands in the courtyard. A couple of soldiers rush to greet her and ask what she wants. Renata raises her chin and asks bluntly:


    "I have a message from the council. Tell to your king... And my sister"


    ...


    A vivid memory revives from the depths of Jimbo''s mind, a memory he would have preferred to forget. Jimbo sees himself as a child, sitting in a large dining room with rotting walls, holding a tuna and mayonnaise sandwich. The mayonnaise was bad, but food was scarce so he finished it. For three days he suffered from worms, so intensely that sleep was almost impossible.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    The ordeal now is similar, only this time the worms attack his brain, as if wanting to burst through his ethereal skull and burst their way beyond the blue space. Jimbo tries to slap himself, to hold his head, to swear, but it''s too hard moving and thinking, and his words turn into halting whimpers. The blue crystal flickers and trembles as if it were about to explode.


    "Master!" Dowmy flutters to jump and stop Arrax, but Marnie hugs her from behind and prevents her. The imp struggles in the disciple''s arms. "Let me go!"


    "Don''t get in the way or you''ll pay the consequences!" Marnie warns, barely managing to restrain the imp.


    Arrax takes another step closer, still holding out his arm. Hilda watches with a frown.


    "Do you know what you''re doing, Arrax?"


    The wizard ignores the question and goes straight to complaining.


    "I heard about the conversations you had with my creation behind my back. How disrespectful"


    "The king''s business is above your business"


    "No one is more loyal to his majesty than me. But nobody can blame me for feeling bad about being bypassed, especially after suffering in a bed all these days..." Arrax says and flicks the wrist as if his fingers were turning an invisible wheel.


    Jimbo''s paralysis turns directly into pure pain, and his groans into a growing scream. Hilda uncrosses her arms and places a hand on the handle of the sword, now that she can hear Jim, she finds impossible not to feel uncomfortable.


    "Arrax, stop right now. The Dungeon Core received the king''s protection"


    "I know the limits of my creation better than anyone. The king will understand, or is not a father''s divine right to discipline his son, and make him understand the risks involved in acting without permission?"


    Jimbo''s screams persist, and Arrax showed no sign of lessening the punishment. Dowmy in desperation bites Marnie''s arm, causing her to let go. The imp leaps with claws poised and fangs bared, but fails to reach Arrax. A scarlet glow erupts for an instant from within the wizard''s cloak.


    Dowmy collides with a red barrier that pushes her backwards and spins down onto the ground until she is flat on back, coughing and clutching her chest, lines of smoke rising from her body. Arrax looks sideways at the imp and casts a look of indignation and contempt.


    "Who do you think you are, dirty animal? Who let you out of your cage? Who was the idiot who healed your wounds without my consent?" Each new question sounded angrier than the last.


    Arrax lowers his arm and concentrates on the imp, this causes Jimbo''s paralysis and pain to moderate considerably, although still lingering.


    Jimbo watches as Arrax points a finger at Dowmy.


    "The only master here is me, creature. It would take 1000 years for a worm like you to have a chance to serve me. Die!"


    The ether that Jimbo had been warily guarding and collecting, ignites as if it had not cost him sweat and blood to obtain. Without a second thought, he acts.

 39: A purposeless life (And a new story)

    Dowmy, still in pain from colliding with the magical barrier, half-opens one eye. Facing Arrax''s threatening finger, she trembles and the life flashes before her eyes. The experience does not last long, her life has been short and meaningless:


    Breaking the black eggshell; Watching the boiling blood sea without quite understanding what life is; By instinct escaping the rising tide and digging a hole to hide from her stronger siblings, who were beginning to fight and eat the weak or sickly demi-imp; Devour carrion until she became strong and intelligent enough to climb out of the red sea; Wander for a year and survive until she sprouted wings, becoming an imp (The second happiest day of her existence); Listening to the subterranean races speak and learning the secret tongue, the underdark language. Eating corpses of dark elves helped Dowmy a lot to learn faster. Digging up fresh graves was her trick when some word or phrase was tricky.


    Thus Dowmy spent her days, sneaking through the shadows of the cavernous routes and capering to earn grace and perhaps a piece of bread from a superior race. Not a memorable life, but it was her own, and since she didn''t understand what it was to have aspirations, Dowmy was happy with her routine. Until a kobold group, the rat people, captured her with a net while she slept.


    Dowmy never liked kobolds, they are ugly, dumb, and besides their flesh tastes like dirt, but those who caught her were smart enough to come in disguise out of the underdark and negotiate with the surface races.


    In a black market, among various monster cages, Arrax bought Dowmy along with a lot of other beasts. Arrax traveled accompanied by his disciples, they came from a long expedition to the edges of the world, and from the worn out robes, Dowmy understood that it was not a pleasant vacation. They brought something with them, a bulky object covered by a tarpaulin on a cart. Dowmy didn''t know what the large object was, but she assumed it would be valuable, because when a thief tried to look inside, Arrax turned him into a sheep with a spell, then let out a huge scolding to the disciple who was supposed to be guarding the secret.


    "Until we get to the castle, you won''t eat a bite of dinner or breakfast! Mistakes have consequences!"


    The imp listening from the cage, learned the friendly language, as it is known to the human language, although, like the secret language, it can be used to betray. The wizards paid little attention to the imp, for them it was just another specimen in the increasingly empty cages.


    When the group was about to rest, Arrax would order the disciples to set up his large, vibrant blue tent, exclusively for him, where he would take some monster that never reappeared. Sometimes from the tent one could hear shrieks of fright, and sometimes sparks, and sometimes, on the worst occasions, a sepulchral silence that left everything to the imagination.


    None of the disciples dared to look into the tent until Arrax had finished his experiments, at which time he would come out, point to someone, and order one to clean up the mess.


    Arrax was in no hurry to return to the castle, that was his way of getting time to perform all the tests he was interested in. From what Dowmy understood, Arrax owed a huge debt to an old king.


    "A human king is like a human, but more powerful," Dowmy murmurs both to practice with the friendly tongue and to familiarize with the concepts that the surface races use.


    Thirteen days after arriving to the kingdom, the disciple whom Arrax left without food collapsed in the middle of the road. His companions rushed to his aid, and Arrax, from his hired donkey, leaned over and angrily asked what all the fuss was about.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    "Master, he needs food urgently!" Marnie exclaims while the others try to lift the unconscious disciple.


    Arrax shakes the head.


    "I made it clear that the punishment would stand until we arrived at the castle. What kind of wizard and man would I be if backed down with the words? When I was your age, my master forced me to survive for a month by slurping moss and eating cave mushrooms, and I never complained. But if you care so much, Marnie, learn to fly and carry him in your arms before his life fades away"


    Dowmy watched everything with wide, watchful eyes, her hands wrapped around the cage bars. She was used to cruelty thanks to the dark elves, but the humans seemed greatly affected by the decision. For the first time in her life Dowmy felt a prick of pride and felt better....


    Those disciples wouldn''t last two days in the underdark. While she... She had tasted the dark elves'' flesh and lived to tell it, yes sir!


    The starving disciple died two nights later, and Arrax gave a strange order, he asked that the corpse be carried inside his tent. The disciples swallowed saliva, but obeyed without asking questions. That night no screams were heard, but purple glows seeped from inside the tent.


    One morning, 6 days before arriving at the kingdom, Marnie opened Dowmy''s cage and caught her between hard leather gloved hands to deliver her to Arrax. The imp kicked, and as she imagined the fate she would suffer, exclaimed, "No, please don''t! I''ll be good!"


    Marnie and the disciples were startled to hear her speak the human language. Arrax, who was busy brushing his rented donkey, arched an eyebrow and turned, intrigued.


    "Devils'' words I hear are capable of melting a coldest heart, and as reliable as a poisonous slough," commented the wizard with a hand under his chin. Dowmy looks sideways, preferring to avert her face rather than confront the wizard, "But a creature as pathetic and primitive as you, perhaps you haven''t fully developed your betrayal gland, or you may retain a modicum of true empathy that is supposed to evaporate as you grow older. Maybe we can even teach you some education"


    Perhaps it was for amusement, or mere scientific curiosity, but the fact remains that Dowmy was kept alive, first dressed in rags, and instructed in the friendly tongue only to be interrogated and questioned by Arrax. At first Dowmy snorted in relief, but her tranquility was short-lived when she realized that every time Arrax asked her to recite a poem and she got nervous and made a mistake, he did not hesitate to electrocute or beat her with the horsewhip.


    Learning and surviving, her greatest motivations, became the core of torment. She no longer wanted to learn more about the friendly tongue, because the more she knew, more complicated Arrax''s tests became and the chance of making a mistake increased.


    The imp''s knowledge stagnated.


    "The worm reached the limit of its potential! What a problem," said Arrax, shaking his head in disappointment. "Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later"


    From a cage in open air Dowmy moved to a cage inside a dark laboratory impregnated with strong smells that for the first few days left her nose hurting. Arrax instructed his disciples to test attack spells on her and also to cut off parts to study on the dissection table. Marnie, who was slightly specialized in the magical branch of healing, also had a chance to practice her spells and was the reason Dowmy lasted so long.


    "Practice makes perfect. You will learn more by opening a membranous wing, than by studying about it in the most detailed and dusty book of the world," Arrax once said, and the disciples took the words of the mage with admiration in their eyes. Arrax''s professorship was hard, but the teachings were substantial, and they wasted no time on magical ethics or the elenic oath urged by the wizard king.


    Soon, lying in the cage, flapping with her throbbing stumps, Dowmy discovered another sin: envy. Envy for the monsters who perished before her. And contradictory as it was, focusing on that hateful feeling made her feel better.


    Knowing she could feel things beyond pain, even if it was envy, proved a comfort to a meaningless life. The imp assumed she would soon join the dead in the same way.


    Then one day...


    Arrax concluded the secret project. The same day the dark elves invaded the kingdom.

 40: Magical combat

    ?Hey!?


    Imp opens the eyes and startles, narrowly missing hitting her head on the small cage''s ceiling. She looks over to where a bright, bluish energy floats, vaguely humanoid in shape. Apparently only she can see the Dungeon Core presence.


    Jimbo asks why everything is so empty. The imp clarifies that in the lab the mages usually conduct their experiments. Talking about it causes Dowmy to remember the constant punishments and her scars itch, she sticks her face under the armpit to nibble on a wing stump.


    The Dungeon Core agrees to talk to the wizards about her and perhaps release her. Dowmy has doubts, but deep down she wants to believe in him.


    Being complimented on the work by the Dungeon Core affects her greatly. It''s the first time someone congratulates her, and Jimbo doesn''t stop with that kind gesture, but is interested enough to ask about her name, something Dowmy had never thought of.


    ?Dimp, Pimp, Glimp, Wimp, so many choices?


    Another possible name was Rose.


    Imp was around roses at least a time or two in her life. They are pretty and smell nice, characteristics she feels someone like her can only aspire to in dreams. But in the end the name chosen by the Dungeon Core is Dowmy.


    Dowmy liked the name of Rose much better. But as the minutes passed in silence and reflection, the imp brought her hands a little closer over her heart as she felt something warm, strange, but not entirely unpleasant.


    The name Dowmy meant nothing to her. But since she received it the punishments stopped, she began to feel useful, wounds healed, and wings returned to her. Soaring again beyond what her skinny legs would allow, felt free and content with herself again. She was no longer a grieving bundle wishing to die, but a living being, almost as valid as roses.


    That was the best day in her life.


    She was still an ordinary imp, but under the Dungeon Core''s guidance, her chest for the first time felt full, discovered how satisfying life is when you have a purpose. Jimbo wasn''t the best at conveying his ideas, but he always seemed to be building somewhere, and she was happy to collaborate, to assist him.


    But even with her wings returned and feeling that her life holds some meaning, Dowmy has her limits and insurmountable mountains. The shadow of Arrax, the human sorcerer who brings pain and death, continues to loom over her. Dowmy understands that Arrax is an impossible opponent to defeat or bite, in fact, her numb muscles are unable to do anything more than tremble.


    "[Minor Flare]!" Arrax exclaims.


    Spell: Minor Flare.


    Requirement: None.


    Cost: 10 ether minimum.


    Description: Concentrates a small flame of compressed heat from repeated fireballs, and then fires it at a single target. The power of this spell is usually linked to the user''s level and the amount of ether imbued.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    A yellow flame emerges in front of Arrax''s index finger, fire that dances and reflects in Dowmy''s pupils. Before the invasion, the imp would have gladly accepted the fire''s embrace, but now....


    The imp''s gaze confronts the wizard''s. Arrax frowns as he perceives that the imp''s expression is not from a broken animal or a test subject on its last legs, but willingness inside in that small skull, it almost even looks like a person challenging him.


    Arrax''s lips wield an annoyed grimace, and he adds another portion of ether to the flame. The color of the Minor Flare turns from orange to blue. The fire shoots out.


    The hot spot hits the small body, covers the green flesh and turns it into a screaming, writhing torch. Dowmy watches speechless and paralyzed as the goblin turns to ash in front of her.


    Arrax grits his teeth and angrily turns to the crystal.


    "Are you trying to hinder me?!" He says, and notices the three shadows rising around, but he doesn''t move.


    The undead''s clubs are swung in tandem at Arrax, but fail to touch him. Once again, a red light illuminates the inside of Arrax''s cloak, and a barrier appears and pushes the skeletons back, smashing them to the floor and turning them into splinters.


    "Dare you go against your father, your creator?!" Arrax is still stupefied, one of his eyes suffering a deep twitch, though slowly his mouth twists into a trembling smile, "Is your potential so enormous, that you would rebel at our second meeting?!"


    A man roars and the floor creaks. The caveman in the distance, rips up a chunk of floor with his gnarled hand and throws it. Arrax takes a step back, the projectile passes inches from his face, scraping his cheek before cracking against the far wall. Jimbo doesn''t overlook such a detail.


    ?Direct attacks don''t seem to affect him. More rock throwers, that is?


    Despite the anxiety of his fast sinking ether tank, he summons another caveman who teams up with the first and together prepare to hurl more floor chunks.


    "[Fireball]!"


    The spinning sphere of fire is hurled from Arrax''s open palm and collides with the cavemen, exploding like a grenade that obliterates the summons and raises a cloud of smoke and pebbles. Hilda recoils and shields herself with one arm from the leaping debris.


    Arrax laughs.


    "My son, you are still far from matching the naive human, but still-!"


    Arrax''s words are cut off as he feels it go sideways and falls. Jimbo opened a square pit just below the wizard, with spikes five meters at the bottom.


    "[Fly]!"


    Arrax''s cloak flutters as if moved by a mysterious wind, and gravity fails to pull him into the pit.


    ?My move isn''t over yet!?


    Jimbo raises the spikes to smash Arrax against the roof, but seconds before the spikes can reach the target, Arrax directs his hand towards the core and conjures [Obedient Doctrine] again.


    The spikes freeze as does Jimbo. Arrax whistles, impressed, looking satisfied.


    "My son, your talent corroborates my talent. I am so proud. You are the greatest creation of the united kingdoms... This makes me, your creator, a magical practitioner on the level of the wizard king"


    Jimbo wants to tell Arrax to fuck off, but even if he could articulate words, Arrax wouldn''t hear him.


    Arrax''s smile fades to a smirk.


    "But even as a success, this futile attempt at rebellion is unacceptable and a sign that you are imperfect" Arrax says and flicks his wrist.


    The pain is amplified and the crystal shudders again as if threatening to explode. Jimbo screams.


    "The wise thing to do will destroy you and create a new core from the remains. I will make sure that with the second core, the loyalty to me is engraved in fire"


    Jimbo loses the ability to think and even his screams stop sounding human. Thin cracks appear on the crystal surface.


    "No, let him go!" Dowmy screams helplessly.


    Arrax ignores the imp''s complaints and keeps his eyes fixed on the core. There is a trace of sadness in his eyes at having to destroy his precious work.


    "Believe me, this hurts me more than it hurts you-"


    Arrax''s words are cut off again.


    [Doctrine Obedient] is completely extinguished and the mage''s arm goes down and lies limp at his side. Arrax, eyes wide open, looks down unable to believe that the tip of a longsword is stuck out of his chest.

 41: What doesnt kill you makes you stronger

    The [Obedient Doctrine] effect wears off, and as soon as the pain wave subsides, Jimbo regains the capacity to think and see. Waiting to find more danger, the unexpected image of Arrax with his chest crossed by Hilda''s sword leaves him mute.


    Two blood threads run down the corner of the wizard''s lips, who slowly shakes his head to face Hilda and dedicate a pair of curses. She, with an imperturbable countenance, does not allow him to speak, and swings the sword around with the wizard still wedged in the blade, jolting Arrax and throwing him against a pillar, where the wizard''s body bounces before lying face down on the floor.


    Marnie, her back pressed against a wall, moves slowly toward the secret shortcut, trying to slip past unnoticed to escape. When Hilda''s eye locks on her, the disciple startles and shrieks. Hilda points a finger at her and Marnie understands the silent command: Stand still until I say.


    The captain approaches the crystal and faces him. Jimbo remains frozen by the situation, for a second thinks he will be the next to be cut. Hilda speaks in a calm but firm tone.


    "Arrax revealed his true face. Not only showed clear intentions to seize a valuable kingdom tool... But also to destroy a servant of our majesty"


    Jim''s gaze travels constantly between Hilda and Arrax. It makes him a little nauseous to have a corpse lying so close, it''s a brutality that his modern sensibilities still need getting adjusted to.


    "You received the king''s protection, Arrax knew, he didn''t listen... Actions have consequences, especially actions committed by fools" Hilda says loud and clear, as if to make clear to the world the unimpeachable logic that mobilized her actions.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    She turns her back on Jimbo and returns with Arrax, stopping when she notices Dowmy near the corpse, kicking him until she loses the breath. Hilda elevates an eyebrow, places a hand on the imp''s small shoulder, and pushes her away without a word. She raises the longsword overhead and...


    Both Jimbo and Marnie close their eyes. Dowmy on the other hand does not look away. Metal can be heard cutting flesh and bone, and liquid splashing.


    When Jim looks again, sees Hilda carrying Arrax''s body over one shoulder, and holding the head by the shafts in a hand. As she walks, blood soaks the floor. The crystal pales from the dizziness caused by the situation.


    "Come on," Hilda says to Marnie.


    The disciple kneels down and puts her hands together to beg.


    "I don''t want to die!"


    "Show composure. You are innocent, and a witness... You will probably have to testify in front of the oracles, like me. The king will want to know what happened"


    "I''ll say anything you tell me!"


    Hilda frowns.


    "You will tell your side of the story, nothing more, nothing less"


    "Exactly! I''ll be honest! I''ll cooperate, not that I liked him either!"


    The captain snorts through her nose, but doesn''t insist any more. With a master like Arrax, she assumes that the disciple must be used to playing her role correctly. The women get ready to retreat, but then Jimbo''s voice stops the warrior.


    ?Thank you... For saving me?


    She looks over a shoulder at the glass, observing it silently for several seconds, then nods and steps back with Marnie. The secret shortcut door closes.


    Jimbo lets out a long exhausted sigh and approaches Dowmy to ask how she is.


    "I''m much better now, Master," she smiles. "But thanks for worrying about me"


    ?Damn, this was all pretty intense! My ether tank is down to zero, but at least it all ended well, and we have one less headache to think about!?


    Jimbo looks at the blood trail, the burnt stone, the spikes breaking the aesthetics of the core room. Since he has no ether, will have to ask Dowmy to clean up the blood on her own. Afterwards, he will give her a well-deserved rest. And Hilda...


    ?Maybe I misjudge her?


    Dowmy the Imp has been boosted and raised to LV 7! Magic qualities unlocked!


    Jimbo jumps for the bell ringing and the warning.


    Dowmy finishes chewing and swallows.

 42: Seven stamps

    Hilda and Marnie advance along the narrow stone corridor that forms the secret shortcut. Halfway down the path the captain stops, looks over her shoulder at the girl, and breaks the silence asking Marnie if she knows how to use the [Obedient Doctrine].


    "Huh, um, this, Arrax claimed to have a control spell stored in case the Dungeon Core got... got out of control. But he never showed it to us, saying his creation was improbable to fail" Responds the disciple with a hand close to her throat, while trying her best not to make eye contact with the decapitated head of her old teacher. "Perhaps in the archives in his room are notes about it... Do you want me to go and search?"


    Hilda considers the idea for a few seconds, until she decides and says:


    "For now, no"


    Hilda resumes walking. Marnie speeds up to keep up with the woman''s hurried pace. She blinks repeatedly when seeing a black line running down from Hilda''s patch without the woman seeming to notice.


    "You''ve got... You''ve got something there," she says very quietly, instantly regretting opening her mouth. Crosses her fingers, wishing Hilda hadn''t heard and thus avoid a probable reprimand for meddling. But the woman observes her, implying that she did hear, and runs a finger over her face, sweeping away the black substance.


    "Not important. Let''s continue" Hilda says.


    ...


    "Renata!" exclaims Queen Gineber. Unable to contain the joy that swells her heart, she hurries down the left staircase of the hall, coming in front of the messenger and melting in an hug. When the hug ends, Gineber does not separate completely, but leaves the hands clutched in the arms of her familiar. "I have been looking forward to your arrival. Please tell me you will stay with us for a while"


    "I am sorry, sister. But I must leave as soon as I deliver the message to your husband," Renata replies with a bitter smile, covering her sister''s fingers with her hands in an attempt to transmit tranquility.


    Gineber lowers her face, but the next second she looks up again and her eyes sparkle, refusing to give up with her disposition.


    "Father agreed to my demands? The dark elves breached these walls without warning and may do so again in any of these days. Me and my children are not safe inside this dusty castle"


    Renata''s expression does not reflect optimism.


    "Father thinks you''d better stay here for now"


    Gineber recoils as if her sister''s touch burns her, and turns back.


    "Where here? Where am I miserable, but moderately useful?!" The queen sinks the face between her palms. "More than his daughter, I look like one of his spies!"Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    Renata places a hand on Gineber''s shoulder. Both sisters know that when Lord Bastion, their father, comes up with an idea, much easier to build a mountain with earth buckets than to make him change his mind.


    Renata feels a look on her. The Rider''s attention quickly shifts to a hunched figure watching them from above, standing on the balcony that connects to the staircase arches. Upon making eye contact, Marc begins to move.


    "Lord Marc..." Renata murmurs.


    When Gineber hears the mention of the king, she hastens to straighten the back and to arrange her face with the fingers. With a very dignified attitude that turns her into an apparent ice statue incapable of crying, she stands next to her sister showing an attitude of complicity, almost as if they were joining ranks against the man descending the stairs.


    "Renata, long time no see," Marc says as he stands in front of her. "I hope my father-in-law is healthy"


    "Well, I have fantastic news for you, my father is healthy like a graceful deer" Renata flashes a smile of perfect white teeth. "He will surely live for many decades to come"


    Marc nods, not looking happy or sad about the longevity prophecy. He asks Renata what her business is in the Stoicus kingdom, though Marc already suspects the reasons and prefers not to ask how the council learned of the secret in the basement. Renata slips a hand between the folds of her armor''s neck, coins jingling, pulls out a parchment rolled by a scarlet ribbon which she hands to Marc.


    Marc pulls the ribbon of the scroll gently, it lights up. After the imbued magic recognizes that the touch belongs to a figure of authority, it relents and Marc unrolls the contents. The king''s eyes travel over the text, and Renata repeats it aloud so that her sister is aware of the message.


    "We will take your court mage and all his books and reports with us. It is essential that this valuable knowledge be shared and replicated, thus obeying the defense cooperation treaties and the knowledge exchange between the 13 kingdoms"


    Marc continues to scan the scroll with a neutral expression. Retana, uneasy at not receiving an answer, speaks again.


    "The timeline is one week to have the journey ready, Lord Bastion will be in charge of all the preparations and security costs. As tradition dictates, your brave and successful defense of the Stoicus kingdom against the infra-dark invaders, will be rightly rewarded with riches and magical items, Lord Marc"


    "There are only 6 stamps" Comments Marc without taking his eyes off the paper, evaluating more specifically the circular marks at the bottom of the document.


    Renata keeps silent.


    "With yours would be 7 stamps, darling," says Gineber, "More than enough to get the minimum majority and turn the proposal into a resolution"


    "The wizard king did not vote?" Marc ignores his wife and stares at the messenger.


    "The magical council assured that the wizard king was too busy with his studies," Retana''s smile disappears as she responds.


    "And the opinion of the kings who refused to approve the proposal?"


    "Make more experiments with the Dungeon Core, or directly destroy it" At this point, Renata shows a frown.


    "I see..." -Marc rolls up the paper and hands it back to Renata. "Obviously this is a delicate matter, and opinions are divided. I choose to be cautious, next time, communicate to the council that I need a clear stance from the wizard king before meeting any demands"


    "Are you sure you will act this way, Lord Marc...?"


    "Very sure"


    Renata accepts the parchment, hugs her sister in goodbye, makes a half-hearted bow to Marc, and retreats out the hall to mount her pegasus and fly away. Marc watches the pegasus fly into the clouds, and when he returns inside the castle, his wife is waiting with a disdainful look.


    "If you wish to murder me with your decisions, it would be more efficient to order your witch or your knights to stab me in sleep"


    "Murder? You should go less to the theater," Marc replies while stroking his beard. "I am only trying to do what is best for the kingdom, that''s all. I don''t care about your father''s ambitions"


    "Obviously, you''ll never understand that. Because unlike you, darling, he is a true king" says Gineber and leaves.

 43: Ominous omen

    Dowmy the Imp LV 7


    -Health: Almost full.


    -Ether: 13/13


    -Strength: Minimal.


    -Agility: Medium.


    -Resistance: Minimal.


    -State: Somewhat sore. Excited.


    "[Minor Flare]!" exclaims the squeaky-voiced creature.


    Sweat beads dampen Dowmy''s bangs from the sudden ether drain, her lips go dry, lose breath, and a small yellow flame of power concentrate appears on the fingertip with which she points the target: a undead summoned by Jim.


    The imp tastes her lips in expectation, but suffers a moment''s hesitation and looks at the crystal hoping for comfort. Jimbo asks what''s wrong.


    "I don''t want to hurt him. He''s just like me?


    ?Just a skeleton, Dowmy. He''s not like you, and I''m sure doesn''t feel anything?


    "Really?"


    ?Yes. Tell her, skeleton?


    The undead nods, though it''s hard to figure out if the being has consciousness or is just Dungeon Core pulling the puppet''s strings.


    Dowmy is filled with confidence and shoots. The hot spot hits the skeleton, and fire covers it like a biting blanket. The fire burns for a few seconds, and when gone leaves a blackened undead still standing and capable to fight.


    Despite the fact that in her hands the spell is weak, Dowmy opens her mouth in a big smile and quickly turns her face to the crystal with hope-laden eyes.


    ?For your first spell you made it work pretty well, Dowmy?


    Dowmy''s cheeks start to hurt from smiling so much, but I can''t stop herself. Jimbo disappears the skeleton.


    "Can I ask you a favor, master?" Asks the imp as she massages her face.


    ?More food? Sorry, they took the wizard?


    "It''s not food... Can I... Can I have a hug?"


    Jimbo guards silence for several seconds, an attitude that makes the imp nervous.


    ?Dowmy, I don''t know if you noticed, but I don''t have any limbs?


    Jimbo doesn''t want to sound obnoxious, he''s telling the truth and even trying to make it sound like a joke. Besides, bodily affection is a feeling he''s not used to....


    On the rare occasions when Jim was able to build bonds with other people - whether at the orphanage, or when he won the scholarship and became independent - he shied away from his bad past experiences and retreated to the comfortable fortress of his dorm room and PC. Such an attitude was not so rare either, in the world he belonged to people like him were beginning to be majority. Jimbo couldn''t say whether that was good or bad compared to past generations, it was just different. He once considered renting an artificial womb to get offspring, but if he didn''t have time to take care of a dog or a cat, he certainly didn''t have time to raise a child.


    Dowmy''s good cheer is not diminished by Dungeon Core''s cynicism, she jumps, flutters and clings to the crystal, planting her cheek against the surface. Jimbo''s edges hurt the skin, but the imp insists on staying hugged a while longer.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    Jim feels nothing outside, the crystal has no touch sense. But a strange, warm comfort wells up inside. Dowmy returns to her place, and thanks Dungeon Core for everything.


    ?Huh, sure, Dowmy. Anyway, let''s get to work - a dungeon doesn''t build itself!?


    Jimbo decides to keep his mind occupied, while also asking his non-existent heart to shut up.


    ...


    The oracle section of the castle is located below ground level, opposite Arrax''s laboratory. They also have cells, or rather interrogation rooms, not made for prisoners to stay long, under the flimsy light of two torches on the wall, the only furniture is a thick dark wooden table and two stools of the same material. The wood surface has splinters and the occasional time-darkened stain, the same goes for the stone on the walls and floor. According to Laikara, these somber details help put visitors in context without needing to say a single word. Sometimes it''s enough to bring a suspect into that dark corner for them to start singing like a canary.


    Arrax''s body is laid out on the table with his head positioned near the neck, the cut that divides them was clean and expert, and Laikara is tempted to ask the stoic Hilda if she was ever an executioner. Both know the answer is no, but it''s those pesky questions that sometimes reveal a person''s true colors. Next to the witch is King Marc and two hooded oracles who attend the meeting, while next to Hilda is a Marnie who keeps playing with her fingers.


    Laikara asks to repeat the testimonies a fifth time. Hilda maintains her version and calmness, sometimes restructuring the sentences, but insists on the same thing: Arrax went crazy, tried to destroy the Dungeon Core even knowing the king''s decision, and also basked in ambitions that even led to compare himself with the wizard king.


    Marnie was the weaker, but even with her constant stuttering and nervousness, her version of events held firm: Arrax was upset to learn that the Dungeon Core was acting without his supervision, he tried to discipline the crystal, but the imp tried to attack him, aggravating the situation.


    "The Dungeon Core seems to have a fondness for that creature," Hilda interjects. "And knowing the zero regard Arrax felt for his test subjects, a situation like this would have been inevitable. By chance or by blessing of the gods, I was present when it happened and acted in response"


    "You murdered a king''s man" Laikara says with her slitted eyes fixed on Hilda, assessing every slightest facial gesture.


    "I defended our majesty''s interests"


    "Or maybe you just seized the moment to get rid of an individual you hated"


    "Hatred leads to madness, error, and so many other monstrosities that I disavow. I insist on my position"


    "You claim you are immune to hate, Hilda?"


    "I never said that. Perhaps even hatred is my greatest flaw. But I know a red line when I see and I stop. Arrax jumped over red lines as if it were his true calling"


    During the sharp discussion, the king''s eyes never leave Arrax''s decapitated head. The wizard almost looks asleep... If it were not for the fact that the neck is separated from the torso and dried blood soils it. Marc closes his eyes, inhales deeply and lets out a long snort. Looking up again, he faces Laikara and questions whether Arrax can be revived.


    "My apologies, your majesty, but decapitation remains an insurmountable breaking point for resurrection magic," she says and glances sidelong at Hilda. "A detail that our captain here is well aware of"


    Hilda keep silent. Marc slowly shakes his head.


    "Hundreds of years of study and learning, and magic still has the same limits that my grandparents and great-grandparents knew," the king murmurs, talking more to himself than to the people in the room. "And to think that once it was believed that all the world''s problems would be solved with a ether pinch"


    Laikara offers to use necromancy to bring Arrax''s soul, but Marc dismisses the idea with a wave of his hand.


    "Arrax has suffered enough," says the king.


    The monarch''s words give way to a heavy silence that Hilda decides to break. She advances until is a step away from Marc. The oracles exchange uneasy glances and Laikara whispers and leaves ready a power word.


    "Your majesty, if you doubt my judgment, there is no reason why I should remain here," says the captain without a hint of doubt, maintaining a tight eye contact that the king reciprocates. "I swore loyalty and agreed to work for you because I recognize you as an honorable man who places responsibility above all else. Here, on the edge of the underdark, I would make the most of my skills and help me grow as a knight. Self-control, my ability to differentiate between right and wrong, to act when the situation calls for it... If all that is untrustworthy, I beg you to please dispense with my services here and now"


    The captain plants her knee and lowers the head. Marc looks at Arrax''s corpse again and sighs.


    "First Claus, now Arrax... I don''t want to lose anyone else. Get up, Hilda," he says with a dark look on his face. Hilda is back on her feet, and Marc places a hand on her shoulder. "You acted with foresight and certainty, just as a knight of the order should"


    The captain nods and turns back, however, Laikara has one last question to blurt out:


    "What happened to Arrax''s fingers?"


    Hilda looks over her shoulder and sees the witch, then looks at the corpse and notices the rough stumps on the left hand where the index finger and thumb should be. The captain asks Marnie about it, but Marnie shrugs, too scared to notice two fingers.


    "In the battle heat, injuries happen," Hilda says.


    The captain and the disciple leave the interrogation room. The rusty iron door creaks shut.

 44: Ominous omen - Part 2

    King Marc made the decision to trust Hilda, and although Laikara tried to convince him to investigate deeper, the ruler was adamant. Marc''s last order before leaving the interrogation room was to settle Arrax''s funeral arrangements and deposit the remains in the mausoleum of the court mages.


    "It is well known that magicians can go mad during the study and practice of sorcery. The people will understand, Arrax does not need to leave this world as a traitor to the kingdom" says the king with a gray countenance.


    As soon as Marc leaves, Laikara goes to the end of the corridor and crosses an iron door in the form of a decapitated pyramid. She enters a copper dome, with dots and lines on the ceiling representing constellations and stars. Inside the dome is a metal platform suspended over a surface of clear water, and on the platform is a bulky iron spider holding the moving outline of a planetary system, with a wide lamp in the center whose flame represents the sun, and spheres of different metals representing the 7 planets, the fourth orb being the world they inhabit.


    Arcanum, the guiding world, built of solidified and dead ether, like a gray crystal sphere; Corporia, gold; Pandemonium, bronze oxidized to show a greenish color: Fantasia, silver and marked with vague lines representing the continents; Promethea, platinum; Rome and Hela, twin planets, made of rhodium and palladium respectively; and lastly Solitarie, small and marginal, forged of a very dirty iron, almost forgotten among the shadows of his fellows.


    Arcanum was the first, he removed his heart and from the beating organ created Corporia, married with her to give birth to Roma and Hela, brother and sister whose infinite affection for each other made them become lovers. Incest is a sin, so Fantasia, born of error, was condemned by Arcanum to suffer in her flesh the experiences of imperfect beings, who would open her entrails in search of glory and bathe her with blood and pain in pursuit of ephemeral ambitions. Hela asked her mother to give order and clarity to the imperfect ones to alleviate Fantasia''s pain, and Rome, full of anger, also asked for relief for Fantasia, but his solution was to exterminate the imperfect beings. Corporia accepted and that same night got Arcanum drunk and had sex with him, but as Corporia was invaded by doubt about what request of her children to fulfill, the new progeny represented duality: Promethea and Pandemonium were born, worlds of the luminous gods and the dark gods respectively. The imperfect beings received light and order, and darkness and extermination in equal measure.


    And the worlds'' dance was perpetuated as an unfulfilled cycle.


    Laikara doesn''t believe in that fable which sounds more like a pseudo-allegory, and varies a lot from one who tells it. Moreover, recent astronomical studies - texts forbidden by almost all churches - indicate that the planetary system''s creation is more logical than mystical. No order of priests knows any psalms or rituals using only the name of Arcanum, Rome or Hela, because these primordial gods seem to be deaf and therefore probably do not exist.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    The witch also has no desire to eat her brains about the uncertain past of the worlds. What she cannot deny is that the planetarium is an invaluable tool for her divination rituals. From the lamp representing the star, positioned on a powerful steel furnace, a drop of burnt fat falls from time to time, which does not take long to hit a wet clay tablet, positioned a couple meters below. The main face of the clay tablet is positioned in direction to a series of constellations, in this case the birth star of King Marc.


    Laikara''s divination method doesn''t always hit the target, and that''s normal, if a fortuneteller would claim to know a 100% sure method to unravel the destiny, probably be a fraud or a lunatic. She usually uses the remains of the pork, sheep, chicken, or cow meat, tasted by the king in his lunches or dinners, to feed the furnace and make the lamp burn. Pieces of mundane life that help the planetarium to focus a little better.


    Still, some methods exist, some very obscure, to make the eye that sees the future offer a more legible reading for those trapped in the hopeless present.


    "Bring the embrion" Orders Laikara.


    One oracle brings a sealed flask with a fetus floating in an opaque green substance. The fetus is incomplete, hinting that Laikara already used parts of it to burn in the sun lamp. It was an indirect gift from Gineber, who hating the idea of bringing a fourth child into a life she hates and deteriorating a little more her body, discreetly asked Laikara for help to dispose the baby before it could show any symptoms of its existence. Laikara cooperated in order to have good material with to help the monarch, though she did not fill Gineber on what she would do with the fetus.


    For Laikara everything is crystal clear: Marc has more than enough descendants for his lineage to fulfill the 100 years destined to lead the Stoicus kingdom. More than a fourth son, what Marc needs is to be protected from the hidden knives of destiny.


    "Add another piece to the planetarium oven. In an hour or two we will have the lecture ready, and we must avoid any possibility of error"


    The oracle nods and dutifully complies.


    The planets rotate. The tablet is fitted with a variety of mechanisms that move it so that the fiery droplets build lines on the clay surface. In the days of Laikara''s master, before the dwarven engineers decided to share bits of their technology with some members of humanity, the oracles had to hold the tablet and catch the droplets in flight, a protocol that was erratic and made them look like buffoons. Laikara still has pale spots on her hands from burns.


    As soon as the tablet is complete, the leak in the lamp closes and they wait a few minutes for the clay to dry so that the prediction becomes solid. Laikara steps under the planetarium and takes out the tablet to read. Her slitted eyes darken as she reads the prediction.


    TRAITION.


    HEART.


    OF THE KINGDOM.


    INVASION.


    DARKNESS.


    KING DEATH.


    ENVY. LOVE. BETRAYAL.


    It''s the same lecture as last time. Although there was one more line.


    DUNGEONS.

 45: Red

    20 days since the dark elf invasion, life inside the Stoicus kingdom continues its course.


    A legion of 200 workers and sculptors gather at the east entrance of the outer wall. In front the crowd is a wooden platform, and on side are disassembled scaffolding, as well as picks, hammers, and steel nails, waiting to be used. The man in charge to lead that workers'' army is an ex-leader of the craftsmen''s guild, a muscular man in his old age, whose strong vocal cords are enough to set the works in action.


    "Our ancestors took over a century to sculpt Stoicus! We will repeat the feat, in a stone twice as hard, and in a fraction of the time!" He lifts a finger and exclaims, "Before winter comes, Stoicus again will gaze into the great rift with fury and pride!"


    The workers chanted together in support - how could they not be happy? The pay is substantial and they are supported by priests with psalms to reduce fatigue, in addition to cure any wounds or amputations, and a female healer to make sure they all receive high calorie food they can burn while working, one hundred laborers in the day and one hundred laborers at night.


    To prevent the nearby residents from suffering sleeplessness due to the droning noise, King Marc''s government hired a magician team to cast a magic sound-blocking field, keeping the commotion inside a violet-colored energy dome.


    Moving on to other matters: Axiel, the second captain, was in charge to lead a few expeditions into the underdark. He was accompanied by a handpicked group of trusted men and women, discreet soldiers. The expeditions lasted a few days, and the main order was simple to understand: kill everything they saw. They ravaged a fledgling kobold town, set fire to the rudimentary houses, and spared neither women, elders, nor children. Axiel only spared the life of a young adult kobold, healthy enough to survive alone and spread the massacre story. Axiel''s squad also identified a dark elf outpost, which they assaulted when the lookouts fell asleep and reduced the dark elves to ashes.


    The underdark creatures understood it wasn''t safe to go near the surface, and these actions were intended to refresh them of that fact. This was important to the humans, especially now that the mines in the great rift reopened.


    A lot of new labor was needed, many miners died the invasion day, or were enslaved, and knowing how cruel the dark elves are, the lucky ones were those who met the gods that fateful day. The mine owners doubled their salaries, but no one wanted to risk their lives in the stone bowels, they preferred to try luck getting a safer job carving the walls.


    To resume the mineral extraction, the mine owners made a deal with the king.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    In the United Kingdoms it was illegal to buy and sell slaves, but to avoid conflicts with human societies outside the union, societies that practiced slavery without any problem, owning slaves was not forbidden as long as they were obtained outside the kingdoms'' jurisdiction. The mine owners were always interested in getting slaves to work in their domains, and although they defended their case by citing laws and wielding lawyers, never received Marc''s permission.


    But since there is no recovery without money, this time the owners succeeded in twisting the king''s arm and commissioned several lots of slaves who would soon arrive to live and work in the great rift. The only condition was to increase taxes on profits, raising the tribute from 20% to 30%. The owners reluctantly agreed.


    Not only were changes happening on the surface, beneath the castle, the Dungeon Core continues to progress slowly but surely.


    ---Jimbo the Dungeon Core LV 1


    -Ether: 90/100


    --Active connections:


    --Dowmy the imp LV 7


    --Hilda the fourth captain LV 31


    On the 1st floor no longer one path is available, but three. The original route was now indicated by a green sign as the easy, novice path. So harmless that Dowmy usually goes to play there, and the biggest danger is usually that the imp will push you when the goblins are throwing rocks. Dowmy was all smiles scaring the rookie soldiers who stood frozen and trembling on the stone strait.


    A young boy, who recently joined the army to make the dark elves pay for the invasion, has not moved from the center of the rocky strait for two minutes, trembling like a deer, unable to look away from the illusory abyss flanking him. Dowmy approaches squatting from behind with hands raised.


    "BOO!"


    Push. The young soldier lets out a cry and falls toward the moss mattress hidden in the gloom. The imp flees the scene while laughing, though it is not as if the soldiers can punish the creature for her pranks. Captain Hilda was clear in explaining the harsh reprimands that anyone who lays a finger on the imp would receive.


    Dowmy was always very suspicious with Hilda, but today the imp was giving her biggest smiles. All because a pink dress Dowmy now wears, with straps and bows fluttering as she waggles her little wings.


    ?Cute. Was it your little sister''s, or your daughter''s?? Jimbo asks Hilda. They stand in the opening chamber, both following the happy little girl with their gazes.


    "I don''t have children... And the dress was mine, from my childhood" Hilda replies without a hint of emotion on her face or voice.


    ?Huh, really??


    Hilda faces Jim''s presence and nods slowly.


    ?Just find it hard to imagine you wearing a dress?


    "What about the new route, Dungeon Core?" Hilda changes the topic.


    ?Ah! Yes. The third route?


    They turn to the background wall.


    On the left is the entrance to the green route, the beginner trials. In the center of the wall is the entrance to the yellow route, intermediate difficulty. But what Hilda wants to talk about is the route on the right, the one with the red mark, a path that has not yet been opened, and the reason is simple:


    In the hard trials, the risk to die is real.

 46: Careful balance

    The first test of the intermediate route is similar to the first of the green one, except that instead of a narrow bridge, you find suspended platforms where the recruits have to jump carrying the weight of their weapons and armor, a challenge to which is added the stone throwing by goblins that Jim ordered to attack with rage.


    Past the platforms is the coliseum. There are now three arenas more compact in size than the original to increase the fight''s intensity and to avoid clashing with the limits imposed by Jim''s Dungeon Core level. The enemies summoned in the second test of the intermediate route are primitive humans in a quantity equal to the number of soldiers doing the challenge.


    As the final challenge of the route there is another puzzle with the skulls, although this time a paint drawing is on the door to help the invaders understand what is required. Dowmy did the drawings, they were rough and crude, but understandable enough to meet the objective, so Jimbo left them as is. The drawing of the easy route puzzle is an hourglass and the sun in its three main phases: sunrise, noon, and sunset.


    Hilda gave her idea for the intermediate route puzzle.


    "Instead of one fire for all, let it only be correct to light each torch with the appropriate counterpart"


    ?I remember you tried just that and it didn''t work for you?


    "Can you do it yes or no?"


    ?Sure I can work out something?


    Jimbo is alert with the ether. It''s a constant drain to keep the dungeon up and running, and any excess could throw the delicate scheme he built up with the training sessions to the ground. Practices that soon became popular among the soldiers for involving more than just doing push-ups or hitting fellow soldiers with a stick. The simulation inside the dungeon was the closest they came to facing real danger in a controlled environment.


    Still, Jimbo worried that the soldiers would lose interest.


    ?Novelty is the most fleeting quality of all?


    To address that risk, Jimbo came up with the idea of implementing a reward system.


    ?Nobody likes a video game where after giving your sweat and blood, the biggest prize is a turd or a sign with the word CONGRATULATION misspelled?


    Nor could he go overboard with the rewards and let the win-loss balance get out of hand. To keep costs to a minimum, he decided to recycle resources already created. First blocked the entrance to the garden and hot springs with a fence, limiting entry.


    Two stone chests are created. For the love of classic dungeons, Jim would have preferred to use wooden chests, but he continued to have the limitations of the Age. Using magical mechanisms, invisible to the guests, but unavoidable to the master pulling the strings or writing the code, Jimbo designed the chests to appear just after the puzzle was solved, behind the painted door.


    The prize for easy difficulty: 1 mango for each member of the group.


    The prize for the intermediate difficulty: A stone token for each member of the group, token that offers one free hour in the hot springs. If you collect five tokens, you get a massage from attractive cavewomen!If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    Mangoes are already very popular in the castle. Jimbo asked Dowmy to spread the word among the soldiers that the fruit has aphrodisiac qualities and is also great for preventing wrinkles and beautifying the skin. Consequently, mangoes became a much sought-after gift within the castle''s confines - a gentleman who simply could not offer a mango to his bride was scum! And since it was a fruit never before seen in the kingdom, no one would be able to criticize Jimbo for lying.


    Dowmy also heard that the soldiers started using the tokens as bargaining chips for favors. Are you lazy to take the next night watch? Well, I''ll keep watch for you, in exchange for a token or two! Jimbo, happy to encourage free trade, tried to convince Hilda to agree that, with 10 stone tokens, any soldier could get out of mandatory training for three days.


    The captain''s answer: Negative.


    Jimbo takes comfort in the knowledge that he tried.


    Another recent cost he made was to create a warehouse to keep the mangoes fresh right next to the garden. Jimbo summoned some female goblin beads to gather and store the fruit, green creatures much like their male counterparts, but with more hair and cloth to maintain modesty (although goblins don''t seem to mind going naked if they had the chance).


    Would two summoned goblins biologically having children? It''s an idea Jimbo tossed around, and the system concurs that it would, presenting a long list about genetics and special traits that Jim must have muted because the intense headache he got from that information dump.


    ?If I build a breeding system, I''d also have to create living quarters and daycare facilities, and.... No. One step at a time, Jimbo?


    Jimbo tasked Dowmy with supervising the goblins, but after a steady disappearance of fruit and finding the imp with a more swollen belly than usual, Jim quickly decided to dispense with the imp''s services and let the girl continue with her games.


    ?Now for the important stuff?


    The red route.


    For the hard road, Jimbo was honest with Hilda. The danger is real.


    If he were a normal Dungeon Core in normal situations, the red path is what would have been constructed using his limited resources, to repel and harvest the energy of potential adventurers. He tried to make the challenge tolerable, still the first level and every dungeon by instinct avoids presenting its intricacies as impossible both to avoid running out prey and to tempt them to continue a little further inland.


    As an act of goodwill, Jimbo created a windowed shortcut to show Hilda each of the trials and traps. After going over the matter for half an hour, the captain nodded conceding that the tests could be overcome by a novice adventurer with good instincts.


    Already in the initial chamber, the captain was very accurate:


    "Unless something happens or we are in wartime, a soldier rarely faces danger head-on. The adventurers, due to their profession, are used to looking for trouble. Hence, some adventurers feel superior to the troops"


    ?But they''re right, no? From what you say, soldiers are more weak?


    "Not necessarily... One thing the adventurer''s guild avoids divulging, is the number of youths who die trying to make a name for themselves. The names that persist and resound are those adventurers who are stronger than average. The same is true in the military.... Warriors like Captain Lynel are above average. And I repeat, unless a war happens, losses in the army are not usually numerous"


    ?You are also strong. Although you used to be an adventurer, right? Tell me, why did you quit??


    "My interests changed¡± Hilda says with a blunt tone that gives no room to continue the conversation. The woman''s eye travels to the door, where she expects to see the group chosen to try this new route enter.


    ?Are you sure you don''t want to use death sentenced people for this??


    "We''re not above the law, Dungeon Core"


    ?I''m just saying I''d feel more comfortable if the people who risk death in my domain deserved it?


    Hilda glances at Jim''s presence out the corner of her eye. In her mind there are doubts as to whether a monster creator can really have moral preferences like that, or whether it''s just an act. Hilda thinks that maybe the dungeon core does possess a human side since the creator was also human. Although she would find it ironic and even funny that the supposed monster has more decency than the wizard who made it.


    But there was no time to ponder too much about Jim''s humanity, the door opens and a group of four people enter.


    Marcus walks ahead of his companions.

 47: First trial, hard mode

    From the soldier teams that participated in the dungeon raids, several stood out. But undoubtedly the one that most caught Jim''s attention was the team led by that guy with a determined expression and short black hair: Marcus. The same young man with the scarf.


    Marcus headed a team of four with stupendous coordination. Whenever one faltered, the other was there to block the blows of the goblins and cavemen.


    Balto, the sharp-faced, aquiline-nosed spearman, the partner with whom Marcus always consulted when in doubt.


    Pit, with a shield and a mace. A giant with a gentle smile, who always kept a cool head even in the middle of battle.


    And Harris, the youngest of the four, a green-eyed boy with straight golden hair cropped at the neck, who was clearly struggling to keep up with his comrades. Jimbo guessed he must be 14 to 15, and when asked Hilda if it was normal for people that age to enter the army, Hilda arched an eyebrow and clarified that there was nothing peculiar about it.


    "If they are old enough to marry, they are old to fight for the kingdom" said the captain.


    Jimbo reminded himself that it''s a mistake to evaluate the kingdom with judgments from his original world.


    The reason for choosing Marcus and his group was not just that they showed talent. Other men and women also performed fluently in all the trials. But Marcus was the first to raise his hand and volunteer when Hilda communicated the idea of training where the real possibility of death exists.


    Interestingly, one of the most enthusiastic about the idea was Captain Lynel. When Jimbo asked Hilda why the old soldier was excited, the captain explained that Lynel has ancestry from the city-states.


    "The city-states are a non-aligned kingdom. In fact, they do not possess kings only commanders. If you ask a noble, they would say the city-states are savages who should have been purged by the wizard king during pacification... If you ask me, they are warriors not to be underestimated. I hear they train from childhood and several die in the process"


    ?And does such severity work for them??


    "Sure. They remain independent for a reason"


    ?Do you agree with their way to do things??


    "Obviously not" The captain''s eye squints. "Discipline is necessary, but unlike the children born and raised in the city-states, the soldiers choose this life by choice, nothing was imposed on them"


    Marcus and his team arrive at the starting chamber. They look relaxed, already accustomed to the basic dungeon compasses. But when a creak is heard, and the bone gate shifts to make way for the route marked by a red hand mark, the men''s shoulders tense for the promise of unknown threats. Still, when Hilda asks if they are ready to enter, the four line up with raised brows.


    "The time to retreat, it''s now" says the captain, sweeping the group with her eye.


    Jimbo sees Harris''s lips half-open, but noticing that his companions are silent and determined, the boy swallows his doubts.


    Hilda gives them permission to proceed, and the soldiers enter the stone corridor that leads them toward the first test.


    ?Captain Lynel is not coming??


    "He''s busy, it''s his granddaughter''s birthday," Hilda says without taking her eye off the men as they walk away into the corridor. When Marcus and his group are no longer visible, the captain faces Jim''s presence. "I''m following you to the secret shortcut. I want to evaluate the performance of my men"


    ?Do you have no faith in them or what??


    "I have full conviction. You''re the one making me doubt"Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    ?Ouch. That hurt?


    Jimbo allowed himself to joke. He couldn''t complain, his conservations with Hilda were much more bearable since Hilda stopped trying to rip him to shreds.


    ...


    Before reaching the first test, Marcus'' group hears the sound of heavy swaying, causing them to slow down. The soldiers exchange glances.


    "The captain was very clear about this... We have to take the challenge as if we were invading the domain of a wild dungeon," says Marcus, confident that his group is in full concentration.


    "If those smug idiots in the adventurer''s guilds can handle this, why can''t we?"says Balto. "We''re veterans, we''ve been in the war.... Well, almost all of us. Here''s one who remains a virgin"


    He jabs Harris with his elbow. The boy remains silent and crestfallen.


    They reach the first room, and the sound source comes to light. As with the route of intermediate difficulty, instead of a narrow bridge there are stone platforms, barely large enough to support a grown man, but there is more to it than that in between.


    Constantly shaken by vines, heavy boulders work as pendulums between the platform. Harris pales and swallows saliva. Pit peers into the void.


    "I can see the bottom," Pit says, prompting the rest to look as well.


    Instead of an insoluble darkness, the drop''s bottom is visible, but instead of being a source of tranquility, it unsettles hearts because of the sharp stalagmites below.


    "Don''t worry, guys," Marcus is quick to speak and flashes a smile that seeks to convey confidence. "Look different, but we''ve done this a handful of times already. The key is not to fall down"


    It''s a truism, and telling it perhaps makes a silly thing to say, but both Balto and Pit cling to that simple logic for a question of mind peace.


    "Who will go first?" asks Harris with a noticeable tremor in the voice.


    Marcus decides to speak with actions, stands at the edge and looks ahead, at the platforms and rocks he must avoid. Breathing to relax, Marcus remembers that he still has the handkerchief with the embroidered crystal, a detail that gives him strength. Marcus feels that he owes a lot to the Dungeon Core, that motivated him to volunteer for these new challenges.


    The Dungeon Core not only saved his sister and father, Marcus is sure that it was the crystal''s influence that led him to interfere in the assassination attempt of the captains, an event that later turned him into a small local celebrity. Before that, he was just another soldier.


    That''s why Marcus finds it hard to waver, he feels safe because for the moment the Dungeon Core, whatever it is, has delivered him many blessings. Even more than those distant gods he was taught to pray to as a child.


    Marcus studies the pattern of the first pendulum, and as soon as the rock passes in front of him with a sharp sound and a gust of wind, the young soldier jumps with all his strength and lands on the first platform. Due to the inertia he almost falls face first into the void, but he shakes both arms and regains balance.


    Alive.


    He lets out a relieved sigh and turns to his group, smiling. The soldiers'' spirits improve, they now feel more capable of conquering the challenge.


    The stone pendulums are intimidating, but beyond the initial impression, they give a considerable time to jump, you just have to wait for the right moment and not think that there''s a gruesome death below.


    One by one they overcome the different platforms. The soldiers discovered that Marcus was right, although the platforms are more compact, the distance between them is almost the same as the intermediate route. Jumps are what they are used to.


    "Alert everyone!" Balto exclaims as soon as they reach the middle of the route.


    Goblins are summoned on the sides and they start throwing rocks. Marcus, with the flat side of the sword, swings a couple of projectiles back. One of the goblins is hit in the chest and disappears into dust.


    Balto swings his spear, blocking the rocks. Pit and Harris do the same with their shields. A minute passes and the throwing stops. The soldiers relax as they realize that the goblins are empty of stones, and the only thing left for the little beasts to do is to grunt in helplessness.


    Marcus turns back to congratulate his group, when he notices their surprised expressions of shock. No sooner does Marcus turn around than he sees a green figure clinging to the nearest pendulum.


    The little monster, indifferent to its own safety, jumps off the vine and lunges at the soldier, knocking him off balance.


    Both fall off the platform onto the spikes.


    Jimbo looks away. Hilda in the secret shortcut, watching through hidden cracks in the wall, clenches her jaw.


    Baldo curses and jumps. The pendulum almost takes him by the front. He lands on his belly on the platform and extends his spear with one hand. Balto''s arm tenses as a heavy weight pulls down, but he manages to endure.


    Marcus is left hanging with one hand grabbing the end of the spear''s hilt, his arm lying on the blade, a position that opens his flesh and causes bleeding. Meters below, the goblin is impaled on a stalagmite, where he remains for a couple of seconds before disappearing.


    Pit and Harris watch impatiently. Balto manages to retract the spear and save Marcus. Jimbo, seeing this, sighs in awe. Hilda relaxes.


    The remaining goblins stand aside, Jim just recorded the instruction to jump on only one of them. But as the soldiers are unaware of that, the rest of the route is done with the utmost caution, always watching their flanks.


    The soldiers reach the other side of the room, passing the first trial. Marcus, using a ki technique, stops the bleeding in his arm. The others allow themselves to gasp in relief.

 48: Second trial, hard mode

    The high-ceilinged coliseum with stone stands appears again. Marcus is the first to step inside, and although visually everything looks the same, the crunching under his feet is the first sign to be alert.


    Marcus looks down, frowns, and kicks the splintered femur toward the center of the arena. Balto, Pit and Harris advance with him to the middle of the stage, and although they all look for the monolith to plant the hand and summon the enemies, the arena lacks it.


    Marcus decides to give the order to continue towards the final chamber, but keeps silent when hear a hissing sound inside the sand. The four soldiers stand back to back.


    ?It''s time?


    Jimbo rubs his imaginary hands together and leans forward, watching every detail. Hilda continues in the secret shortcut, peeking through holes and cracks disguised in the dim light.


    A skull peeks out from the sand and rises, revealing the upper body of a skeleton. Unlike other undead that have appeared in the dungeon, this one does not wear rags or carry rudimentary weapons. The monster remains still about 15 paces from Marcus'' group, with sand flows down between his bones.


    The soldiers exchange glances. They all seem to agree that it is only a minor undead.


    "I''ll take care of it," says Pit, smashing his shield against the iron mace. Being a blunt weapon, it''s ideal for dealing with that kind of monster.


    "Wait a minute, Pit. [Lynx Eyes!]" says Balto and activates a technique.


    -Technique: Lynx Eyes.


    Requirement: None.


    Cost: 10 Ki.


    Description: For 60 seconds the user''s eyes are sharpened, allowing him to see in the dark and detect hidden elements and traps.


    Balto''s irises are enlarged and tinged with gold, while the pupils are sharpened. Balto sweeps the scene and after forming his conclusions, reports there are no traps in the area.


    Pit nods and advances towards the skeleton, accelerating in step with the sledgehammer ready. He swings the iron at the bone, but the undead, moving with an agility unbecoming of its kind, backs up and slides away.


    The sand hisses again. The skeleton gains height and the soldiers look up to follow it. The creature reveals that his torso is not attached to legs, but to a succession of ribcages. What hisses and constantly moves the sand around are dozens of ribs like centipede legs following the undead''s movements.


    "Pit, get back!" Marcus shouts.


    The skeleton lunges forward like a whip, wraps around Pit blocking his retreat, and tightens, pinning the big man between the ribs.


    "[Body Temple]!" Pit exclaims in a thunderous voice.


    Bone like a dozen spears, thrusts against the man, splintering against the steel plates, and working its way through the joints and less covered areas. But instead of penetrating flesh, the bone spikes explode as if they hit a wall.


    -Technique: Body Temple.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Requirement: None.


    Expenditure: 10 Ki.


    Description: For 60 seconds the user''s body obtains a hardness that can range from stone to the best steel. The hardness degree varies and depends on the user''s mental strength.


    The skeleton does not cease its attacks and moves forward, spinning Pit between the ribs. Marcus leaps to the left, dodging a swipe from the undead. Pit dodges to the right. Harris blocks the onslaught with shield, but his legs can''t withstand the blow and give way. The skeleton embraces him and lifts up.


    The soldier and the undead ascend. Harris tries to utter a power word, but his mouth falls silent as they crash headlong onto the ceiling. The stone crunches and pebbles fly off. Harris, blood slipping between his lips, uses the knob of the sword to repeatedly strike the skeleton''s skull without much success.


    "[Max Power]!" Pit exclaims, pumping up muscles and planting his feet firmly on the ground. Too dizzy to see, he gropes with both arms for the skeleton centipede''s ribcages, the ones that wrap around him, and pulls with all force.


    The undead and Harris separate. Balto gets under and grabs the boy''s badly wounded body. Pit spins the undead''s length about three times, gaining more speed with each spin. The effects of [Body Temple] no longer apply, the bone begins to penetrate the man''s skin.


    "Now, Marcus!" Pit roars.


    Marcus leaps towards the undead''s main body, sword thrust above his head. The blade glows with a golden glow.


    "[Sacred Slash]!" Marcus says.


    -Technique: Sacred Slash.


    Requirement: Level 10.


    Cost: 30 Ki.


    Description: Imbues a slashing weapon with life energy to increase damage. Sacred style attacks are usually very effective against undeads.


    The sword strikes the undead, causing it to explode in a cloud of ash and luminous particles. The light spreads to the remainder of the skeleton, coating the bones in a golden glow and turning them to dust.


    Marcus lands gasping, planting a knee. Pit falls onto his palms in the sand, also bathed in sweat. Balto leaves Harris sitting up and rushes to assist his friends.


    ?...?


    Hilda flashes a proud half-smile at her troop and shoots a glance at the Dungeon Core''s presence. The captain questions Jim for his silence.


    ?So many hours of work thrown away? Jimbo says, letting out an exaggerated sigh.


    Actually it''s not so bad, he already has the basic skeleton centipede schematic saved. Hilda was very impressed when she saw the undead, and commented that it''s the first one she''s seen of that type, which is logical since it''s Jimbo''s original creation.


    As his summoning catalog is limited, Jimbo doesn''t have the option of creating level bosses. The closest he has is Dowmy or Hilda, but the first one could just be an exotic enemy, and Hilda is beyond his authority. So Jimbo came up with the idea of grabbing multiple low-level undead and putting them together to see what would come out.


    He was proud with the result.


    ?Still, the competitive part of me has a hard time accepting that they beat my creation in the first try?


    The soldiers exceeded his expectations. Although Jim doubts that the men can continue with the tests in that state, beyond the injuries they look very tired. Such a motive was what prompted Balto to put up a hand and ask for something impossible to demand in a conventional dungoen.


    "Hey, Dungeon Core, we can''t go on, we''re done for now!"


    "Balto, wait!" Marcus looks up to complain, but Balto leaves him no choice.


    "Shut up, Marcus. We know our limit. Instead of banging our heads against the wall, better to survive to fight another day"


    Marcus bites his lip.


    Jimbo opens a path to the stands and from there an entrance to the secret shortcut where the soldiers meet Hilda. Pit and Balto show an uncomfortable smile, expecting a scolding. Harris keeps his eyes on the floor.


    "Marcus, Balto, Pit... Good work, especially in adaptability to danger," Hilda says with a stoic expression, which is enough to leave the soldiers speechless. "Now, the rest of the day can be taken off"


    As soon as the soldiers get over the shock of Hilda being nice to them, they perform a military salute and head for the exit. Marcus accompanies his friends, but stops for a moment to look back at the coliseum.


    "Someday I will earn the honor to see you again" Marcus murmurs and leaves.


    The promise was to Jimbo, but he was too distracted looking at his stats. A big, ethereal smile forms across his face as he discovers a blinking message. There is nothing better than real battle experience to polish a warrior. In turn, there is nothing better than tense situations to produce valuable ether.


    -Jimbo the Dungeon Core LV 1


    -Ether: 100/100


    Ready to level up!