《Core Elran》 Chapter 1 - Waking Up He could feel a slight itching sensation, like little feet crawling over his body upon waking up, what¡­ where am I? And then he noticed the sounds of voices of two people walking in his direction. Hello! I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m a bit disoriented, I could use some help. He Turned his attention around him, noticing the stone of the walls, with a faintly glowing plant in the cracks. I can¡¯t feel my arms or legs, can you hear me? I think I¡¯m in some kind of trouble. The voices continued their calm chatter. Drawing closer to his room. Alarm raced into his¡­ body, not that he could feel it. He Tried stretching his arms, wiggling a toe, or moving an eyelid. Nothing moved. Trying to flail anything around, he felt something extend from his body and got the sensation of slapping the cave wall with his hand, scattering some rocks across the room. ¡°Did you hear that? Sounds like something¡¯s in the room up ahead¡± ¡°I did. Didn¡¯t sound human though, be ready just in case.¡± You can¡¯t hear me, can you? I¡¯m right here in the middle of the room. Watching the exit of the room, two men walked in. They were wearing dirty, homespun clothes. The one in front had a torch in his hands and a pickaxe in the other. The smaller one, just behind the first, held a shovel in both hands. ¡°Look! There''s something glowing in the center,¡± pickaxe said, running towards his perspective. His voice gravelly, grating on his ears. As they approached shovel said, ¡°It¡¯s a core, we¡¯ve found a core,¡± his face lighting up with a huge smile. He¡¯s missing several teeth. I can see you staring at me. Core? You¡¯re looking at me! ¡°So we¡¯ve got two choices now,¡± the gravelly voice of pickax said, ¡°we can be kings of our own town¡± ¡°-I¡¯d love to be a king of my own town, Grek!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t interrupt me!¡± Pickax reprimanded him, holding his pickaxe in the air. ¡°I don¡¯t know how to make it serve us though.¡± ¡°Bonding a core makes it work. But this one is so small, Grek,¡± shovel setting his shovel into the ground, holding it like a staff. He began wiggling his other hand near him. Keep those filthy hands away from me, I insist. To his relief, Grek slapped shovel¡¯s hand away. ¡°Careful now, Jib. You don¡¯t want to activate it now. I think it¡¯s sleeping.¡± ¡°Is that why there¡¯s no traps and monsters, Grek?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Grek was nodding. Probably more to convince himself. ¡°Second option is we crack it open.¡± ¡°-Then we¡¯d be special class , Grek! We¡¯d be strong and popular and rich. We¡¯d be wanted everywhere.¡± Shovel was dancing in place. ¡°I like that too. A town is good and all, but we¡¯d be stuck here. I¡¯ll make it quick,¡± Grek handed the torch over to Jib. Grek, Jib, don¡¯t be hasty now, Grek took the pickaxe in both hands, raising it over his head, please! Stop. There¡¯s no need to hurt me. Grek grunted, freezing in place, ¡°Jib, what¡­¡± Grek¡¯s eyes followed Jib¡¯s body fall to the ground, an arrow in the back of his skull. Grek soon followed his friend, screaming as blood began to pour from slashes across his arms and legs. A small form stepped forward, piercing Grek through the neck with a slender sword, ¡°I hate when they start screaming. They died as soon as they crossed me,¡± the figure stepped towards him, his voice booming. His relief was quickly forgotten, seeing the toothy smile of the shortest person yet, ¡°Little jewel, you have the privilege of being in the presence of the great Jaws. I came to help you when I heard all the screaming you did.¡± Jaws stood a little more than halfway as tall as the men. He was covered in overlapping plates of metal, some kind of scale mail. And his skin was a light gray. The face under the plumed helmet had sharp angles, with large yellow eyes and a giant smile, full of pointed teeth. You can hear me?! Thank the gods. What is wrong with me? Why can¡¯t I move? ¡®He¡¯s a scary fellow, but I¡¯ll take any help right now.¡¯ ¡°Wrong with you?¡± Jaws¡¯s face looked very confused. ¡°Even newborn jewels should be aware of their godhood.¡± Jaws sheathed his blade at his waist and lifted his hands into the air. ¡°Their grand providence over the land! Of course a newborn like yourself can be forgiven for not recognizing the greatness of a greater servant like myself.¡± Jaws pointed his thumb at himself, with a wide smile. ¡®He¡¯s a happy guy.¡¯ Greater Servant? ¡°Tut tut, just a second. My great master has left my forgetful self the answer to probably all of your questions ever.¡± Jaws reached into a bag at his hip and thrust the now glowing hand towards him. Jaws¡¯s hand froze in midair, *I¡¯m sorry about my servant. This message is in place inside a memory crystal I created to help lengthen the process of absorption to ease the burden on your mind as the crystal was probably forced on you. Jaws is strong and dependable, just not the brightest. Welcome to Terra, young core. My gift of knowledge and awareness should speed your growth along.* The speech finished and time resumed. Jaws pulled his hand back and waited. As if someone just lit up the dark room, I¡¯m a dungeon core. ¡°Yes, I have seen that, young jewel. But what is your name? I am to guard you until you can guard yourself. Another gift from my benevolent and grand master,¡± Jaws scratched at his chin, still smiling. My Name?... I don¡¯t remember my name. ¡°Jewel, you are a great power over the realms now. If you don¡¯t have a name, just honor yourself with one.¡± He thought for only a moment, I like Eldren ¡°Lord Eldren, I would advise you to absorb this mess and put some defenses up. I¡¯d prefer not to have to clean up any more fools that would dare consider harming one so far above their station.¡± ¡®I just need to absorb the bodies for points. Freshly killed humans should yield a moderate amount of points, which I can use to improve my dungeon.¡¯ Focusing inward, Eldren could feel the extent of his dungeon, the entire room he was in. The bodies of the two men were already being passively absorbed. But with focus, Elren was able to pull them into the ground rapidly with all of their possessions. As the men were absorbed, Elrend could feel the knowledge of the structure of their tools and miscellaneous items enter his mind. *Creation List updated* Who''s there? ¡°Just me, Jaws, Lord Eldren.¡± Jaws only looked confused. ¡°I have excellent detection abilities. Your life is assured with me here.¡± ¡®Clearly he didn¡¯t hear that voice. All the information I just got is hard to separate¡­ spike traps can be easily jammed so they¡¯re not much use beyond beginning floors. Too much fire can make a dungeon avoided in the lower levels. The Herald Executor of Regality, or HER, is the common reference to the voice heard only by dungeon cores. The identity or source of the voice is completely unknown by the Core Alliance. The Regality is a divinity believed to create dungeon cores, as passed down in oral tradition among cores.¡¯ Eldren reached out with Core Force, the ability that had struck the wall alerting the two men earlier, and cradled his core. I feel like I¡¯m already forgetting so much. At least it¡¯s better than the trial and error I would have been forced to go through to learn. The first two visitors almost killed me. Time to get started. Divine Request, Blessing of Dungeon Framework. *Blessing Granted* A transparent parchment appeared in Eldren¡¯s view with a list of items: What is this? I think there¡¯s something I can do... Divine Request, Sage Advice. *Blessing Granted* The pleasant voice of HER responded. ¡®I wonder if I can just ask for anything?¡¯ *Greetings, Elran. Focus on what you need and I will answer as I can. You can also just think the question to me. I¡¯m not picky, as long as I understand your intent.* a mellow male voice continued. Elran took a look at Jaws to see if he could hear it too.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°I am in awe! There are no explosions or anything. Truly a jewel worthy of my fantastic aid,¡± Jaws was nodding to himself, while watching me. What do you mean by that, Jaws, explosions? Rotating one of his hands in the air, ¡°You just made two requests.,¡± stopping to laugh, ¡°no one understands them, but even one request can be rejected and met with punishment. As great divinities of the land the divinities of the heavens will aid you Jewels. It¡¯s just not a common thing from what I know.¡± Elran focused on Divine Requests in his mind, *Divine Requests, as described by your friend, are entreaties to the heavens above for aid. The gods of the heavens that choose to listen may grant your request or punish you for bothering them. Their whims vary greatly from personality to personality.* Jaws, what do you know about the gods? ¡°I¡¯m a Greater Servant of Ric¡¯art, leader of the Core Alliance. I serve him faithfully and to the best of my amazing abilities that he created me with. As a proud warrior, that is what I know,¡± Jaws said, looking proud as puffed out his chest. ¡®So this guy doesn¡¯t know much of anything, Elran sighed inwardly. Better to worry about what I should be doing now.¡¯ Elran focused back on the transparent parchment, focusing on it, *The Dungeon Framework provides visual aids for managing a dungeon. A great choice for newborn cores to quickly begin their work. Simply focus on any option to do more.¡± Elran focused on the word Status in the parchment and the words faded. New words appeared on the parchment: Dungeon Core Elran Complexity: Simple Passive Point Income (PPI): 1 point per hour Current Points: 205 Dungeon Costs: increased Elran recognized his name on the parchment. ¡®I guess this is about me. Not much here.¡¯ Elran focused on Complexity next, and a parchment letter appeared over the original with the message, ¡®Do you wish to increase complexity for 10 points?¡¯ With the options to pick yes or no. Elran tried focusing on the various parts of this message, but nothing happened. Might as well try it, 10 points doesn¡¯t seem like a lot, and Elran focused to choose the yes. Eldran felt a small rumble in his core. Was that it? Jaws jogged back to Elran from where he was inspecting the room, ¡°Oh! You are much shinier now. Less of an unpolished rock, closer to the glory you will one day show.¡± Thank you, Jaws. What do I look like, precisely? ¡°You were like a pebble before, with silvery traces showing. But now you have smoothened out and the veneer of rock is gone. You have a silver¡­ or opal color, Lord Elran. Your size seems to have increased a few bits in size as well.¡± *Upgrade complete. PPI increased. Point costs adjusted. Framework updated. Favor Increased. Dungeon Sense Improved.* Elran could feel a new energy inside himself. Upgrading feels good. Elran switched over to the Map section. Time to make my dungeon. Better dungeon means more points and more upgrades. The map showed all of a single room. Focusing on the room, Elran saw a silvery dot for himself and a little gray circle with a blue outline that followed Jaws¡¯s movement around the room. Focusing on Jaws¡¯s dot more details came up on the right side of the map: Allied Greater Servant, 0.1 PPI. ¡®Sage, how does PPI work?¡¯ *Your point income is increased by having living things in your territory. The 200 point bonus you have was from the deaths of those two humans. Stronger lifeforms generate more points over time, while deaths can be an exponential increase of points gained over the passive draw. Jaws over there,* the sage sounded amused saying Jaws¡¯s name, *would generate around one point a minute if he was here to invade your territory. But since he is here to protect you, the income is greatly reduced. Various factors influence your gains. Experiment to figure it all out. Elran returned to looking at his little map. Focusing on the thick border he could move the frame that was placed around his room. Elran tried draggin the lines to encompass the hallway outside of his room and stopped. A note popped up into the foreground. *Spend 3 points to expand your territory?* Elran selected yes. The little map expanded, showing the hallway he had taken over. The panded space felt good to Elran too. ¡®My room is nice, but I have this strong desire to have much more.¡¯ Elran expanded his border in a large circle all around his room. Except something stopped the expansion in the direction of the hallway. Elran stopped to see how many points it would cost him. *Spend 50 points to expand territory?* Elran selected yes. All around his room was solid material. The space where his expansion was blocked seemed to be the exit to the cave though. Elran could see sunlight streaming in through the cave entrance. Elran tried to drag his border outside of the cave again, a not popped to the forefront but quickly faded *Buy skill Lord of the Land for 100,000 points?* ¡®It¡¯s going to be a while before I can afford that. Sage, what is the skill Lord of the Land?¡¯ *Lord of the land lets you expand your territory onto the open surface* Makes sense to me. Going back to his core room, Elran focused on the room again. That dungeon sense increase from the complexity upgrade seemed to make his attention catch on certain things. Room setting¡­ a list of items popped again at the thought: Room Setting Appearance Furniture Spawns Themes Elran focused on themes and browsed through the available options. They had point costs listed next to them. All the themes are expensive. But they have complete designs. At least it¡¯s a good space for ideas. Going back to the appearance section Elran could see cheaper ways to make his room look nicer, such as buying individual pieces. Browsing his map, the dungeon has only one room. Elran added an entrance room and another small room midway through the tunnel to his room, confirming the selection and spending the points. ¡®Any more modifications would eat through my points too much. I need some creatures now.¡¯ ¡°Lord Elran, the bodies finished absorbing and they both left behind matrix shards. As you lack a servant,¡± Jaws said, smiling while picking something up off the floor, ¡°I¡¯ll bring them to you. This is truly auspicious, I am very lucky to have found you, Lord Elran, here in the Sticks. Absorb the smaller one from the skinny guy to learn their craft and use the bigger one to make your own servant.¡± Jaws shoved his clawed hand towards me once again, this time a clear stone, slightly yellow, was pinched in his fingers. Inwardly sighing, ¡®hand right in my personal space again,¡¯ Elran mentally pulled at the crystal to absorb it. The small stone almostly instantly disappeared with a small pop. *Creation Options updated* Going through the lists back to the main menu was the creation option. Switching to that list brought up a smaller one. Small Matrix shard was there for 10,000 points. ¡®They ARE prohibitively expensive. Sage, how do I create a servant?¡¯ *Cleanse that shard unless you intend to resurrect the man named Grek. Then just focus on the shard. Next keep focusing, thinking about making a Servant Matrix, which should give you a blank slate for upgrading one of your creatures into a servant.* ¡®I think I¡¯m noticing a pattern here.¡¯ *It is a kind of a science.* ¡®Dungeonology?¡¯ But the Sage didn¡¯t reply that time. Cheeky. Thank you, Jaws. Hold the other shard up now. Jaws held the slightly thicker shard up. It was slightly shaded brown. Thinking about clearing the color out, Eldran watched the brown fade and the crystal turn clear. Servant Matrix. The crystal faded from Jaws¡¯s grip and Eldran could feel a slight change. Navigating through the parchment to the first page, Elran remembered seeing the Servants. Opening that page displayed one line: 1 lesser matrix available for bestowal. A note popped onto the page, ¡®Name lesser matrix?¡¯ Yes, Cabryn. The note faded, leaving only the name Cabryn on the Servant¡¯s page. ¡°I am excited to see what kind of creatures you can make. I had to guard a new core one time that refused to make any. I¡¯m sure it was ashamed of anything it was capable of when compared to me,¡± Jaws had his chest puffed out, looking very pleased with himself. ¡°Start with a few in here so we can have a guard up. It¡¯s nice to have some backup.¡± Elran could feel his dungeon sense pulling him towards the map page. Focusing on himself in the map, Elran had a thought, ¡®The Framework provides a structured way to do things to guide how things work. It would probably be faster to just focus on myself. Some tests would help.¡¯ Continuing to focus on the version of himself in the map while thinking about creating creatures, a new page displayed to Elran. It had the title Creatures, but the rest of the page was blank. My creatures page is blank! ¡®I said that out loud.¡¯ Jaws¡¯s mouth hung open, ¡°I did not know a core could not have creatures available to make.Even one as great as I can still learn something new.¡± Jaws was laughing, very amused by the situation. But how can I get creatures then to protect me and help make points? Jaws took a second to catch his breath and calm down, ¡°I like you Lord Elran. I feel some kinship between us. Here. I offer this tribute in the name of our friendship.¡± Jaws pulled a dagger from his belt and pricked his thumb. ¡°Absorb this drop of blood and learn of some lesser cousin of mine. As great as I am, I am sure that they will be of some use. Whatever they may be.¡± ¡®This is a good friend. If I had arms, I¡¯d hug the guy.¡¯ Elran focused on the one drop Jaws had squeezed from his thumb, and watched it dissolve into an effervescent light. *Creature List Updated* Elran was quick to return to the creature page. There was a new name on the list: Gobbo. Chapter II - The Survey Team I can make Gobbos now. Sounds interesting. Jaws had no reaction. Must be something new to him too. ¡°Well¡­ we can work with those. I could clean up that little survey team myself even,¡± Jaws sighed, his tone much less enthusiastic than his normal, ¡°but we need to get you started with something.¡± ¡®Some creatures of my own are exciting,¡¯ Elran focused on himself to bring up the creature menu and quickly navigated to make 4 gobbos at 5 points each. Simultaneously, around where Elran was in the center of the room, four little spheres of smoke rapidly popped from the ground with a hiss. When the smoke cleared 4 little green creatures were standing around Elran. The gobbos had a small, barrel-like structure, standing on two feet. They reached a little over the height of Jaws¡¯s knees, were bald, and green. The gobbos dominating feature was their large, arrow tip nose and their tiny arms and legs. Checking his map, Elran noticed the gobbos generated points too, 0.01 points an hour. ¡®These guys don¡¯t have orders yet, so lets try it out.¡¯ Elran mentally commanded the gobbos to assemble before him. With a waddle, the 4 creatures stood in a line, gazing up at Elran with large, shiny black eyes. Jaws, I¡¯ve noticed I¡¯m not at ground level, but I can¡¯t sense below myself very well. What is there? Staring down at the gobbos, mumbling, ¡°he didn¡¯t do any enhancements. They¡¯ll be good entrance room fodder but¡­¡± Jaws. ¡°Sorry, Lord Elran. You are centered on a flat top of a stalagmite. You might want to arm the gobbos. Maybe the humans had a knife you absorbed? And in my wisdom, make an enhanced gobbo to bestow the honor of being your first servant.¡± Jaws smiled for the last line. ¡®He doesn¡¯t seem impressed with my little gobbo squad, but he¡¯s proud one will be my first servant, I¡¯d bet on it.¡¯ ¡®Enhance, huh? Sage, how do I enhance a creature?¡¯ *You can focus on a creature or group of creatures to do some limited customization. Before making the creature you can change its abilities or skills. This will be based on your dungeon accomplishments, minion known skills, creatures that died in your dungeon, or a number or other things. Costs will change based on your choices. This applies to spawners you place as well.* Spawners? *It would be tiresome to have to micromanage your dungeon by placing every creature, trap, and treasure. Even on a small scale when you have no need for a Manager. Traps can re-arm, creature spawns can be set, and hidden treasures can be made to appear at intervals. Just do the usual and focus on your intent.* Eldran could hear the hint of a smile on that last item. ¡®So I can focus on a group, interesting.¡¯ Focusing on the four little gobbos still admiring Elran, a parchment page appeared, titled Equipment. Grek and Jib didn¡¯t drop a lot of equipment to add to Elran¡¯s list. Linen clothing wouldn¡¯t really be a defensive upgrade from the gobbos¡¯ rags. Pickaxes and shovels would have to be small enough to be no danger for their little hands. At the bottom of the equipment list was a crude iron dagger. It would only cost 4 points to equip all four with a dagger and 1 point for belts with sheathes. Elran confirmed the selection and little puffs of smoke popped around the gobbos, clearing up to reveal their new belts with knives. The gobbos pulled out the knives and smiled with their overly large mouths and long pointed teeth. ¡®They could probably do some damage with those teeth. Not that it would probably be very effective.¡¯ ¡°Now that¡¯s looking better,¡± Jaws said, pulling his dagger from its sheath, ¡°I¡¯ll show ¡®em how to use it.¡± Jaws walked away to get some room. Elran willed the gobbos to follow Jaws¡¯s lead. ¡®Not a lot of initiative there.¡¯ While Jaws was talking and swinging his dagger around lecturing the gobbos, Elran turned back to the creature list. Focusing on his one creature, Gobbo a parchment page appeared with a list and image of the expected creature: Gobbo Cusotmization Equipment Status Skills Appearance Elran browsed the Equipment page. It was the same as when he looked at the group of Gobbos that were now happily swinging their knives around. ¡®I want this one to be better, he¡¯s going to be bestowed as my first servant.¡¯ Elran put him in linen clothes with a belt and boots. Elren added the knife as it was the best offensive option. ¡®Maybe two would be even better,¡¯ adding a second knife with a sheath. The point cost at the bottom of the page updated to 8. With a ping sound, HER voice called out in the growingly familiar deadpan way *Gobbo has learned knife skills level 1. Skill list updated* Elran switched to the Skills page. There were a few options here: Mining Skills, Intimidation, Knife Skills, Vocal talent. They all had percentages next to them. Elran added all of the skills. To Elran¡¯s surprise, Intimidation could be set at level 2. The Gobbos cost was now 12. ¡®I can see how creature costs can get a lot more expensive this way. ¡®The standard Gobbo look should be fine. He¡¯ll have the clothes for me to tell him apart.¡¯ Eldran confirmed his selection, creating the creature. With a puff of smoke, the new Gobbo appeared in front of Elran exactly as pictured in the parchment. Focusing on it to bestow the Cabryn matrix. A parchment note popped into view *Bestow Gobbo with the Cabryn persona?* I guess it¡¯s called a persona when actually putting it in.. or is it on a creature. Elran confirmed the bestowal. A soft glow surrounded the gobbo and a shine grew in the Gobbo¡¯s eyes. With a smooth baritone voice, startling for the gobbo¡¯s size, Cabryn spoke, ¡°My Lord Elran, I offer you my most heartfelt thanks and devotion. I, Cabryn, shall bring death to your enemies. I will cultivate powerful skills to strengthen your creatures. I will hunt down rare and valuable materials to power your creations.¡± With a possible attempt to bow, the gobbo¡¯s body may not have a waist to bow with, Cabryn dropped to his knees, ¡°I swear my loyalty, no matter the hardships or deaths I experience.¡± ¡°Lord Elran,¡± Jaws jogged over followed by the knife gobbos, ¡°what a fine servant you have made.¡± Jaws smiled, looking Cabryn over. ¡°My great name is Jaws. I am here as an ally from the Great Core Ric¡¯art to provide protection until Lord Elran has gotten his dungeon in good order. Good to meet you, Cabryn.¡± Cabryn stood up and faced Jaws, ¡°Good to meet you, Jaws. I look forward to learning from you.¡± Cabryn smiled wide. ¡°Looking to learn skills and techniques so quickly. You will be a good servant to Lord Elran.¡± Jaws returned his own toothy smile before turning towards Elran. ¡°Lord Elran, I think I have a good plan for some quick growth. Put Cabryn in charge of these knife gobbos, make 4 more regular ones, and if you could make a command trap in that second room I sensed you make.¡± Sure, let¡¯s see what you¡¯ve got, Jaws. Elran made four extra gobbos for another 20 points and sent them to the first room, ordered the knife gobbos to follow Cabryn¡¯s orders, and switched to his map to look at the second room. Selecting the traps option, Elran considered some of his options. ¡®I could do a little flame spout, but the fear of fire affecting my dungeon reputation is common sense here. The only other options I have are some arrows from the wall or spikes from the ground. Jaws said he has a plan and wanted a command trap. Spikes from the floor should fit well for that.¡¯ ¡®Sage, I have some memory command traps exist from that memory cube, but what are they?¡¯ *Command traps are typically the cheapest form of traps as they need a command from a core or servant to activate. They have no trigger to activate on their own. Further, traps draw on the ambient dungeon energy to activate, so it is possible to put more manual traps into a room then you can with an automatic one.* ¡®Dungeon Energy?¡¯ *Dungeons are made by dungeon cores. Their walls, floors, and ceilings are like the physical parts of the dungeon core¡¯s body. The core itself being the brain and heart. The complexity of a gem fuels that body. With more complexity comes more energy to use. This energy keeps your traps running, spawners spawning, and basically everything functional. It¡¯s also how the dungeon won¡¯t collapse the bigger it grows.* ¡®Good to know.¡¯ Elran looked back at the room on his map. ¡®This map isn¡¯t really a great way to view my rooms.¡¯ Mentally sighing, Elran chose a spike trap, customizing it to work by command. Elran dragged the trap around the room. Too close to a doorway and the blueprint on his map would turn red, not allowing him to confirm placement. Elran decided placing as close to the entrance door as possible would give it the best chance of catching someone early. The manual spike trap only cost 10 points. Not bad for a permanent feature to the room. The gobbos cost 5 and will be gone when they die. But the gobbos can earn skills. Watching the map, Elran could see the blue dots for his minions spread out between the two other rooms. Jaws¡¯s dot was in the entrance room, standing in the middle. The gobbo dots with him split up into the back corners of the room and he left the dungeon.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡®With a trap, creatures, and several rooms I¡¯d say this is an official dungeon. Although, I should try to figure out my dungeon functions without the framework. My status might be easy. The key to everything seems to be focus.¡¯ Elran tried turning his focus onto himself. Easily enough, Elran¡¯s status popped up, but as letters in his perception: Dungeon Core Elran Complexity: Simple Passive Point Income (PPI): 2 points per hour Current Points: 25 Dungeon Costs: increased Focusing on complexity a note popped into Elran¡¯s vision *Upgrade complexity for 20 points?* Elran confirmed the upgrade and waited for the little rumble. The rumble came and was slightly ticklish for a few seconds. The rumble lasted slightly longer than the last time. I¡¯m probably becoming a more impressive gem as I upgrade complexity too. I got a message the last time it finished. Kind of wish I had an idea how long it takes. *Upgrade complete. PPI increased. Point costs adjusted. Framework updated. Favor Increased. Dungeon Sense Improved.* Always good to hear HER voice. It must be the voice of good news. Elran opened his map and focused on his room. Focusing intently on himself. ¡®Laying flat on a pedestal lacks presence.¡¯ *Unlock ¡®floating in place¡¯ personal skill for 5 points?* Exactly what I had in mind. Elran confirmed the purchase and his view immediately shifted. His vantage point in the room was higher, and his vision was clear all around him now. I can see the pedestal now! Moments later, Cabryn came running in, ¡°Lord Elran, I heard you shout¡­¡± Cabryn¡¯s eyes grew round. ¡°Lord Elran, you are floating now. And you look more dazzling than ever.¡± Elran could feel the happiness inside his gem, ¡°Yes, I needed a better posture to really oversee things.¡± ¡°My master, it suits you wonderfully,¡± Cabryn inclined his head as best he could. Elran felt a presence enter his dungeon and quickly flipped to the map. Looks like it¡¯s Jaws. ¡°Jaws has returned. As you were.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Cabryn bobbed his head again and pitter-pattered back to his position. ¡®I really need to see how upgrading his form works.¡¯ *That¡¯s easy. He can evolve his current monster form, unlocking a new creature for you. If he dies you can put his persona into a new form, or just absorb his current form back and create a new one for him. He will retain all of his skills he has learned or inherited for his form. Mind you, not all skills work in all forms.* ¡®His persona, is that like his soul?¡¯ *Yes. It will be the same being, no matter the form it¡¯s in.* ¡®Thank you, Sage. So my servants are immortal as long as I am safe.¡¯ *They can outlive you actually. They can form bonds with new cores if their bond with you is shattered. You can also banish or kill the persona. Though they may be born feeling loyalty towards you, they can become dissatisfied. This can result in them refusing commands, running away, or through a great amount of effort, they can break the bond. Though while a bond is active, they will never willingly harm you.* ¡®I hadn¡¯t even thought of that, but good to know. I guess the keyword there is willingly.¡¯ Jaws came striding into the room, looking very pleased, ¡°I have lured the other miners this way. This will be good work for your minions and some points to add for improvements.¡± They won¡¯t kill Cabryn, will they? ¡®Even if I could bring him back, dying probably hurts.¡¯ ¡°With his skills, equipment, backup, and the spike trap, he should be fine. There¡¯s only four more miners. I¡¯ll wait here. There will be no danger to the dungeon.¡± Jaws looked confident. ¡°By the way, the floating is very regal.¡± ¡®I shouldn¡¯t worry then.¡¯ Thank you, Jaws. Elran noticed a tickling sensation in the edge of his perception. Elran pulled up his map to double check on his creatures. Four additional dots entered from outside the map. They had a pinkish-red coloring. ¡°Lord Elran, I can sense you have intruders.¡± Yes, I just sensed them, Jaws. The pink dots, slowly entered into Elran¡¯s dungeon. When they reached the center, the four gobbos¡¯s dots rushed towards the pink ones. One dot had been closer to the corner and disappeared. *Goblin learned Savage Bite* The other two gobbo dots almost immediately disappeared as they approached the center. I wish I could see what¡¯s happening. Elran focused hard on the map. Feeling a pull on, Elran¡¯s vision zoomed towards the map. Elran¡¯s sight was projected from the top of a room now. ¡®Is this the entrance room?¡¯ Elran could feel his vision pan as he willed. Seeing his dead gobbos in the room, which annoyed him. ¡°Those bastards killed Jortz.¡± There were 3 men standing in the room. Two were in linen clothes and holding shovels. One had a large scar across his jawline. The third was bigger than the other two, had on a leather shirt and pants, and was holding a sword. ¡®I want that sword.¡¯ ¡°Acre, Jiran, look! The bodies are disappearing,¡± the other scrawny guy called out. The big man in the leather looked around and sighed. ¡°That idiot Grek dragged Jib into a dungeon. Jiran, Boscoe, checked where those little buggers died.¡± The two other men moved to check where my gobbos had been before they were re-absorbed. ¡°Acre, there¡¯s bronze coins here¡± The two men scrambled to gather all the coins on the ground. ¡®Why are they dropping coins?¡¯ *That¡¯s because they will automatically seed a reward they drop upon death. You can set ranges of items, or specific items. But with too little or no direction, creatures will drop something of appropriate value decided on what you have available.* ¡®Why is that?¡¯ *Feel free to call it a natural law of dungeon creatures.* The big man and two other guys had still been talking. Acre, the smaller men had called him, pulled out some daggers and handed them to the other two. ¡°Jortz had the prospector skill. So no more finding new deposits. But we can loot some treasure and build ourselves up a bit.¡± ¡°But, Acre, aren¡¯t dungeons dangerous?¡± One of the other men said. ¡°Don¡¯t just stand there and let them bite you. They¡¯re small and weak. Didn¡¯t you see how quickly I killed all four?¡± ¡°Ya, but, we¡¯re weak.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take the lead, you two watch my sides. You just have to stab them with the daggers. It¡¯s easy.¡± Acre harrumphed and walked towards the next room. The other two men hurried after him. ¡°Don¡¯t leave us behind, Acre!¡± As they left the room, Elran pulled to rapidly absorb the fallen man. *Creation Options updated* Elran mentally shoved that notice aside. ¡®I¡¯ll worry about that later.¡¯ Concentrating, Elran jumped to the next room. The sudden shift in perspective was slightly disorienting. ¡®It¡¯ll take me a little while to get used to this.¡¯ Cabryn was standing in the center of the next room, two knife gobbos on either side. The other two knife gobbos were in each of the corners by the door, keeping low. Acre strode confidently through the doorway, ¡°More trash, this is easy money.¡± Acre laughed, lifted his sword and rushed at Cabryn. The other two men walked in, gripping their daggers tightly. As Acre walked over the spike trap, Cabryn lifted his fist. Acre¡¯s eyes looked to both sides at once as Cabyn¡¯s arm moved. Acre immediately jumped to the side, but the edge of the trap pierced through the back of Acre¡¯s heel. Despite the wound, Acre stayed on his feet. While the trap was activating, the two gobbos in the corner launched themselves at the backs of the two other men. One went down immediately in a pile with the goobo. The man on the right was wounded and twisted to throw the gobbos off his back. Cabyn approached Acre straight to his front, letting the gobbos attempt to get to Acre¡¯s sides in order to flank him. A gentle tone rang out in the back of Elran¡¯s perception, but Elran was completely focused on the fight in his perception from the ceiling of the room. The gobbos in the back were finishing off Acre¡¯s last friend. Acre eyed the gobbos around him, holding his sword steady, blood starting to pool at his wounded foot. Reaching around his back, Acre pulled out a hand spade with his left hand. Cabryn dashed at Acre, the other two gobbos just a step behind. Acre planted his good foot and kicked Cabryn away and grunted as he shifted his weight to slash his sword at the gobbos on his right. The small creature took the slash through the face, spinning away. Acre shifted his weight quickly to his left, bringing the spade down hard into the last gobbo flanker¡¯s head. Cabryn rolled as he fell, stopping into a crouch a short distance from the fight. Cabryn grimaced as he saw the gobbos with him get taken down in one strike each. Acre had lost his spade and was breathing heavy. Behind Acre, one gobbo had survived the struggle with the other two men and was limping toward Acre from behind. ¡°What kind of fools couldn¡¯t handle these little things? I have to do everything¡­¡± Acre was slowly rotating to keep Cabryn and the last knife gobbo in his sights. Acre eyed the limping gobbo and shifted towards Cabryn a little. ¡®He shouldn¡¯t underestimate my gobbos. Or maybe I should be happy that he is,¡¯ Elran laughed to himself. The last knife gobbo was limping bad, Cabryn eyed it for a second, but turned his focus back onto Acre. Cabryn breathed in deeply and sprinted at Acre. Acre brought his sword down in an overhead swing, which Cabryn parried with both knives. With their weapons locked, Cabryn was forced onto a knee. Acre pivoted on his good leg to bring his left fist around in a wide punch into Cabryn¡¯s side. Cabryn barely managed to force Acre¡¯s sword to the side and onto the ground after the hit. While favoring a leg, Acre dropped his knee. Cabryn flipped his knives on top of the sword to trap it against the floor and slid his knives up the sword while closing the distance with Acre. Acre kept throwing left hooks into Cabryn while pulling on his sword. ¡°Not going to work, worm!¡± Acre shouted as he let go the sword, causing Cabryn to stumble with the force he had been using to pin the sword down. Acre used his left hand to shove the knives and Cabryn down, while swinging his right up hard in an uppercut. The hit sent Cabryn into the air. Acre laughed, ¡°I got you now.¡± Acre reached down to pick his sword up, smiling as he stared at Cabyn. Cabryn had been knocked towards the back of the room, dazed and without weapons. The last knife gobbo took that opportunity to set forward from behind Acre and stab Acre in the neck. Acre bellowed and thrashed around hard, sending the knife gobbo against the wall hard. Acre collapsed onto the ground, slowly being pulled into the ground by the dungeon floor. Elran willed himself back into the main room of his dungeon, It¡¯s over. And it¡¯s our win. Almost everyone died. Jaws paused for a moment, ¡°Dungeons will see many deaths. If you have a favorite, bestow it, then you¡¯ll always be able to revive it. But this means a lot of points, it is a great victory.¡± Chapter III - Growing A Catralogue ¡®There had been more than a few chimes during the battle,¡¯ Elran thought. ¡®What was causing all of that noise?¡¯ Elran searched through his guide, examining the parchment pieces. *In certain phases of a dungeon¡¯s life, some might say the most successful ones, HER voice will call out many times on your victories and treasures. Through a process, The Voices, like HER and I, can be silenced.* ¡®Sage, if I did something like that, how would I know what happened?¡¯ *Open the framework, and maybe remember to not mute us.* Elran opened the framework to the opening page, seeing the parchment unfurl in his vision. A parchment scrap opened up over the main page in his view, ¡®7 New Updates¡¯. ¡®He doesn¡¯t need to get mad at me, it¡¯s not like I did it on purpose. ¡®Speak the new updates, please,¡¯ Elran thought. In HER voice, *Cabryn has learned leadership level 1, Cabryn has learned tactics level 1, Cabryn has learned knife skills level 2. Unique Skill Omniscient Avoidance acquired. New creation options added. 5 Humans have died in your dungeon, basic Human Wildling understanding increased. Secret Quest Harvesting the Miners completed, Divine Quest granted.* ¡®I have some questions, Sage.¡¯ With what seemed like a sigh, *Starting from the top, Unique Skills are traits that people can rarely be born with or earned in special ways. You can acquire these from the dead, but to give it to a servant or creature can only be done once per acquisition. If you want a squad with unique skills, you will need to stock up on the skills, much like archers with arrows or alchemists with potions. Wildlings are the free peoples that walk the lands, they are not owned or owe any allegiance to a dungeon. Wildling cannot be used as creatures in your dungeon. Divine quests are much like they sound like, the gods or a god is showing you favor by giving you a task. The rewards are always very beneficial.* ¡®Lets see what the quest is,¡¯ Elran focused on the section of parchment that mentioned the quest. In HER voice, *The Divine have decreed that you shall create a high resource ecosystem in the first floor of your dungeon, with no less than seven rooms, including a safe room.* A high resource ecosystem? What¡¯s that? While the Sage was quiet, some footsteps came running up to Elran, ¡°Lord Elran, what is that about a high resource ecosystem?¡± Jaws was standing before the stalagmite, Cabryn trailing behind Jaws on his shorter legs. I have a divine quest to make my first floor into a high resource ecosystem. Jaws¡¯s eyes lit up and a wide toothy smile split his face, ¡°I know about those kinds of floors. And Divine Quests! I will do my utmost from inside your dungeon to ensure its success.¡± ¡°As will I, Lord Elran,¡± Cabryn declared his support. ¡°Lord Elran, I have a few things I would be honored to show you. But we will also need Cabryn¡¯s help in retrieving some new materials from outside. Sending servants out for new materials is a common method of increasing your ability to create. With his leadership at level 1, he¡¯ll also be able to lead a group of 2 other gobbos outside of your dungeon territory. I¡¯m surprised the Sage hasn¡¯t chimed in on what I need to do. ¡°That¡¯s probably because this is a divine quest. They have special rules. They¡¯re meant to challenge and push the quest receiver. The reward will probably be amazing. That said, divine quests have been known to take decades for some to finish. But if all you have to do is make a high resource ecosystem on your first floor. I should be able to help you get the most of the way there in no time.¡± Jaws looked very confident. Opening the creature menu, Elran selected to make two more gobbos with linen clothes and a knife with belt. Jaws had mentioned them needing to gather things so added a back carried travel pack as well. The miner that died in the first room had been carrying one. While browsing skills, Elran was surprised to see the new Subordinate skill. ¡®Sage explain the subordinate skill, please.¡¯ *The subordinate skill will automatically attach creatures to a servant or creature with the leadership skill. Creatures that are subordinate will have access to a lesser form of all the leader¡¯s common skills as well as a marginal boosting of a leader¡¯s skill gains. For example, with the mining skill the subordinate creatures will coordinate with the leader to effectively mine. This will in turn make skill increases much more likely.* Elran selected the subordinate skill for the gobbo template and added a pickaxe and shovel to it. The final point cost was only ten, so Elran went ahead and made two. Little puffs of smoke popped in the air behind Cabryn, leaving two gobbos standing ready with their packs on. Jaws had been talking to Cabryn this whole time. ¡°The more of these you can get, the more options Lord Elran will have, making the quest much easier to complete,¡± Jaws reached out and patted Cabryn on the shoulder. ¡°Jaws, thank you for the information. I¡¯ll be sure to return with as much as I can by day¡¯s end. By your leave, Lord Elran,¡± Cabryn saluted, tapping his right fist to his left shoulder. I¡¯ll be waiting for news of your success, Cabryn. Cabryn bobbed his head, turned and dashed from the room, his two subordinates right behind him. ¡°Lord Elran, if I may be so bold, in my free time I enjoy collecting and breeding a very rare type of bug. They¡¯re called Smoals,¡± Jaws reached into his pouch and pulled a sizable Jar filled with little glowing dots. How did that jar fit in your pouch? ¡°It¡¯s a magic bag. A gift from my master Ric¡¯art.¡± Jaws sat on the ground, focusing on the little lights. ¡°It contains everything I have left. It¡¯s impossible for me to let you absorb it.¡± Jaws mumbled to himself, carefully eyeing the jar and pulling out a little spoon and dropper. He squeezed out a few drops into the spoon and man put the spoon into a narrow opening on the jar. Jaws put the dropper back into his bag and withdrew a long, narrow needle. The little lights gathered around the spoon. ¡°When they¡¯re feeding they are oblivious to everything around them. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s the reason they¡¯re almost extinct in the wild.¡± Jaws brought the spoon up to his eye level. ¡°If I may ask this boon of you, I have a very high insect breeder level. If you make Smoals a focus in your ecosystem, I¡¯m sure the dungeon should easily qualify as high resource.¡± Jaws carefully speared a large light of each color onto the needle, blue, red, and green. Sliding the spoon fully into the jar, he closed it up, and stuck the jar back into his pouch. ¡°Lord Elran, I present my finest Smoals,¡± Jaws carefully removed the little bugs from the needle and arranged them on the stalagmite. From there, Elran could see them in better detail. Smoals have roundish, faceted exoskeletons, a set of gossamer, almost invisible wings, and two very tiny sets of legs. Smoals also have big round eyes, ¡®they are cute.¡¯ Jaws had taken a step back and was looking down quietly at his little bugs. Elran pulled on them firmly, absorbing the little bugs quickly followed by a small chiming. Jaws cleared his throat, ¡°their favorite foods are various medicinal plants. Because of this, Smoals are well known to have a lot of medicinal properties themselves, just more concentrated, which makes them highly prized by alchemists and pharmacists.¡± Thank you, Jaws. This gift you have given me will be another great help. Your continued support has been a most welcome foundation to this dungeon. Your suggestion to make them the focus of the ecosystem sounds good, how do we do it? ¡°I have materials for their foods, and some bushes and trees they seem to prefer. I asked Cabryn to collect samples of grass, weeds, trees, and animals from around the area. Jaws pulled out some berries, plants, twigs and seeds from his pouch and arranged them on the stalagmite. That little blue berry with the pink top, I have a feeling I¡¯ll need more. ¡°Of course,¡± Jaws pulled out another two berries from his pouch, placing them with the rest. There was a chime as they were absorbed automatically from being left out. ¡°From my understanding, the plants will be sustained from the ambient energy of the dungeon. Similar to how a trap is maintained. Adding in ambient creatures like the Smoals, they will feed off of what¡¯s present. Once creatures become complex or purposeful enough to be part of a dungeon¡¯s defenses, they too are sustained off the ambient energy. SO if you were to add rabbits they would eat the plants available. If they were strengthened with skills and fought Wildlings, they would exist off the ambient energy.¡± I understand. Some of that was contained in the memory crystal. I just need to figure out how to make these a part of my dungeon. Elran opened up the framework and opened the new notification note.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. *New creation options added. Cabryn has learned Forestry level 1. Cabryn has learned Herbalism level 1.* ¡®Seems like Cabryn has been busy.¡¯ Elran opened up the creation list and looked at the options. Elran focused on Smoals, which brought up a new parchment with some details about Smoals. Sustained populations of Smoals are called colonies. A medium sized colony needs six sources of food, three Banya bushes for nesting or one Lipip Tree. ¡®I¡¯m supposed to do this without the framework, so let¡¯s just try it out.¡¯ Elran moved his view to the entrance room. When he thought about his points available, the thought came to him that he now had 612 points. ¡®Those miners must have been worth a good amount of points.¡¯ Picturing a Lipi tree from his creation list, Elran observed the room. A faint image of a Lipi tree appeared in the room where Elran was looking. The image had a rent tint to it, just like when Elran was trying to place the trap in the doorway. Elran tried thinking about the spike trap, and the image changed to a square with holes in it. ¡®This one is blue.¡¯ Elran moved the square around the room, watching it turn red when it overlapped corners or got into the exits. Interestingly, Elran was surprised to see it blue when flat on a wall. ¡®I have more options this way, I just need to figure them out.¡¯ ¡®Why wouldn¡¯t a tree fit here?¡¯ Elran looked around the room. Elran focused on the floor, feeling a strong heat rise up inside himself. ¡®Trees grow better from dirt than they do from stone.¡¯ Elran could picture the Sage talking down at him while explaining how plants grow. ¡®Guess I need to start with changing the floor base into dirt.¡¯ Elran looked at the floor. The memory crystal had memories of walking around in a variety of environments, which some of the memories happened to be a forest. ¡®I need this stone floor to be dirt.¡¯ Elran pictured a rich loamy soil replacing the ground. Elran could feel a suction on him, from the direction of the floor. The ground from one end of the room towards the other took on an effervescence, clearing in a wave, revealing the exact floor Elran had projected. Elran noticed his point total had gone down as well. Energized by the success, Elran switched back to picturing the Lipi Tree. ¡®There¡¯s a certain charm to this tree with its dark brown bark and it¡¯s roundedness. The branches and leaves all naturally round out. I wonder if it¡¯s the appearance that attracts the smoals.¡¯ Elran moved the image around the room, settling on placing a tree with a few hands worth of spacing from a corner away from the entrance. Elran could feel the points being used up as the image of the tree solidified. ¡®Now for the Banya bushes since their berries are a good food source as well as a medicinal ingredient,¡¯ Elran pulled up the ghost image of the Banya bush and put one on each side of the room, complete with their large and round blue berries. Beneath the Banya bushes and the Lipi tree is a great place to find clumps of Lipis grass, named after the trees. The grass is a favorite food of the Smoals and is a potent curative herb when dried and ground to powder. Elran put clumps around the tree and underneath the bushes. Elran looked around the room, noticing it felt a little plain, even without the extra plants he would add later from what Cabryn brought in. Elran smoothened out the walls, leaving thin cracks and crevices for the texture. Next Elran rounded out the ceiling, leaving a dome above the room. One of the most beautiful images from the memory crystal was the night sky. Elran reached into the energy of the room, pinched, and created little lights across the ceiling. Switching his view to the ground, Elran looked up. ¡®Not quite as nice. Maybe I can experiment more later when I have access to more materials than just the ambient energy. But I think I got the idea right.¡¯ Observing the room from ground level was a little disappointing. ¡®I need to add some more bushes and maybe some vines to the sides. Tall grass would help conceal the gobbos.¡¯ An image flashed in Elran¡¯s mind, just a quick spark. But Elran got pulled up an image of Lipis grass, weak by itself, and thought of the Crag grass he had absorbed from the boots of the miners. The image of the Lipis grass shimmered as Elran thought of the Crag grass. *Merge complete. Name the new grass. New grass retains the pleasant aroma of the Lipis grass and the height, but is hardier and more fertile like Crag grass. New plant loses its medicinal properties.* Elran was surprised to hear HER again. ¡®I guess I¡¯ll call it Smoal grass.¡¯ Elran spread the Smoal grass across the ground, leaving a path through the middle of the room to the other exit. ¡®This looks pretty good. Time to add Smoals.¡¯ Elran focused on creating an image of a pair of blue Smoals. The image was red. Elran moved them around the room trying to make the image normalize. Swirling in the image around in the air out of frustration, the color flickered with a flash of red light. Elran slowed moving the Smoals¡¯ image to see where the flicker was. ¡®It had been around the tree.¡¯ Moving the image closer to the tree created a red light that connected the two. Elran moved the image of Smaols into the tree where it turned from red to gray. The line connecting to the Smoals disappeared. ¡®Well, if red means it can¡¯t be placed, a full ghost outline means it can, then gray means¡­¡¯ Elran looked around the room for ideas while he thought. The Smoal grass waved lightly in a breeze from the cave entrance. Lipis grass clumped under the tree and bushes. ¡®Maybe something is missing.¡¯ Elran added a pair of green Smoals to his grouping. And quickly added a pair of red Smoals when there was no change. The image turned clear and Elran placed the Smoals in the tree. The images filled up and the little glowing Smoals began to fly around the tree. Elran moved to the next room, smoothly changing the floor, putting in a Lipi tree, Banya bushes, Lipis grass, and Smoal grass. Elran smoothened out the walls, created a dome with the ceiling, and added in the lights. After putting the Smoals into the tree, Elran looked around the room, putting his perspective in the center. ¡®This looks pretty good.¡¯ Eran went back to the stalagmite room, Jaws, I want to show you something. Go to the entrance room. ¡°Right away,¡± Jaws got up from where he had been lounging on the floor on top of a bed roll. Elran moved to the second room to watch Jaws as he entered. Jaws jogged a few steps in, looking around, his eyes wide. Taking a deep breath in through his nose, ¡°Lipis smells so wonderful, but this isn¡¯t Lipis grass.¡± Jaws pulled off a piece of the Smoal grass. That¡¯s Smoal grass. I combined Lipis grass and Crag grass to make that. It loses the medicinal effects though. ¡°But it seems as tough as the Crag grass,¡± Jaws twirled the Smoal grass between his fingers. Look at the tree. Jaws looked around the room, seeing the Lipi tree and walked towards it. With a smile across his face Jaws watched the Smoals in the branches of the Lipi tree, his voice a quiet and happy ¡°they¡¯re building a nest already.¡± What looked like a half built, greenish and waxy diamond was hanging from a thick branch at the top of the tree. The little Smoal lights were dancing around the nest. Elrand brought up his mental map of the dungeon, the one he could see through rather than the framework version that appeared on the parchment. Elran had claimed a large radius of territory around his current stalagmite room. Elran mentally made rooms on each side of the current rooms, bringing the total of rooms to seven.. In Elran¡¯s sight, Jaws¡¯s head darted from side to side as the new rooms opened up on either side of the room. ¡°Lord Elran, It¡¯s been over a day since Cabryn has left. He isn¡¯t available for bestowal, is he?¡± Elran did a quick check, He¡¯s not showing available for bestowal in the framework. ¡°Good, he must be very busy then to not have checked back in. I had told him to come back with what he could in a day.¡± Jaws had his arms crossed, his brow drawn down. A green Smoal landed on the tip of his nose, causing a huge smile to split the large Goblin¡¯s face. ¡®Having a body looks fun, I want one.¡¯ *You¡¯ll need a better understanding of Wildings first.* ¡®So I can have one?¡¯ *Isn¡¯t there a saying that anything is possible with hard work?* ¡®I wouldn¡¯t know.¡¯ The sage didn¡¯t respond, so Elran returned to his map. ¡®A dungeon seems to have many purposes. It defends me from someone killing me to become a special rank. It¡¯s a source of my points. Making a high resource ecosystem seems to be for the purpose of supporting a population, which in turn sends people into the dungeon to farm points. I can get a lot of points when Wildlings die in my dungeon, but there aren¡¯t any around.¡¯ Focusing on the stalagmite room, Elran tried pulling on his physical location. A faint outline of his stalagmite appeared as he moved it around the room. Elran pulled the image across the map into the room he was observing, with Jaws working on the tree in the corner of the room. Confirming the move to the center of the room, Elran felt a pulling sensation from his physical being in the other room. In the room Elran was watching, the stalagmite grew from the ground. Jaws had sprung to alertness, watching the pillar grow in. Swirling lights, the same color as Elran, branched out from a point above the stalagmite. When they went out farther than the size of Elran¡¯s body, they rapidly spun into a circle. With a bright flash, Elran¡¯s body appeared floating over the stalagmite. ¡°Lord Elran, I think it would be safer to keep your body in the former room,¡± Jaws said as he approached the stalagmite. I was testing something out, although, even here, I am sure I¡¯ll be safe with you watching out for me. ¡°Your faith will be answered by my strength,¡± Jaws smiled, ¡°I can detect enemies from great distances away in an isolated place like this.¡± Jaws walked back over to the tree, pulling some Lipis grass out and working with it. ¡®So moving things around seems easy enough. Maybe four more rooms would feel right.¡¯ Elran created two more rooms on either side of the old stalagmite room with openings facing each adjacent room. ¡®I¡¯ll want to funnel any invaders from here though.¡¯ Elran created a room behind the old stalagmite room and another room behind the new one. Elran moved his view to the room behind the old stalagmite room. ¡®Let¡¯s follow the usual pattern, focus on wanting this room safe.¡¯ Elran let his view wander around the room, imagining the room to be safe. Elran could feel the points spent as a feeling of calm spread through the room. Sighing inwardly, ¡®this feels kind of nice.¡¯ Chapter IV - Building the Foundation Chapter IV Elran sensed Cabryn¡¯s return. Elran returned his sight to where his core was in the second room from the entrance. Jaws was sitting under the Lipi Tree on top of his bedroll with a handful of Smoals flying around him or resting on him. A bulky, green goblin with two backpacks on his back came confidently marching into the room with a wide, toothy smile. His clothes were tattered, revealing his muscled limbs. While not as tall as Jaws, he was wider. The goblin marched right in front of the stalagmite and kneeled, in a familiar baritone, ¡°Lord Elran, forgive me for my absence these past 3 days.¡± A gobbo came pattering into the room with a pack on its back, taking a spot behind Cabryn. Welcome back, Cabryn. Your packs are full, and you have returned stronger. It seems your trip was very successful. ¡°Indeed it was,¡± Cabryn began to take the pack off of his back. Three rooms behind us is the final room of the floor. Next to it I have made into a new room to house my core. You managed to get here right as I was finishing up what I could do with what I have. ¡°It does feel as if I am still outside. The changes are remarkable, Lord Elran.¡± Jaws had finished stretching at this point, having stood when Cabryn entered the room, ¡°Look at this strapping goblin! You must have had a rough time out there, and in a good way too.¡± Jaws gave Cabryn a friendly slap on the back, giving Cabryn a look over. ¡°Your advice was invaluable, I believe we should have what Lord Elran needs now,¡± Cabryn gave a friendly grasp onto Jaws¡¯s shoulder. Elran Switched his view into the new meeting room, collapsing the stalagmite he had been using into the earth in the room he had been in. In the new room was a simple stone pillar, the same stone as the walls of the dungeon. In front of his new pillar, Elran had raised a wide stone table from the ground since items were brought to him every now and then. While waiting for Cabryn to enter the room, Elran reviewed his notification. *Cabryn has learned Dungeon Scouting lvl 1. Cabryn has evolved into a goblin. Creation list updated. Cabryn has learned knife skills level 3. Cabryn has learned Tactics level 2.* Elran quickly flipped to his monster list, seeing that he now had two creatures he could make; the gobbo and the goblin. ¡°Lord Elran, the dungeon has grown and changed wonderfully, while I was gone,¡± Cabryn said as he entered the room. ¡°And this room is much more fitting than the previous for offerings.¡± His gobbo follower trailed behind him. Elran checked his mental map, seeing that Jaws had stayed behind in the central room. Elran also noticed that the glow around the rooms was weaker than before. ¡®Looks like the plant life and insects I added are using up the energy just like a trap would.¡¯ Thank you, Cabryn. I am looking forward to what you have brought me. Cabryn advanced to the wide table, laying his two packs on the end. Looking behind himself, he reached out and put the pack from the gobbo on the table. ¡°My Lord, to begin, I will start by apologizing for having lost one of the gobbos you entrusted to me.¡± Reaching into the pack, Cabryn pulled out a bundle of fur with a wolf¡¯s skull on top. ¡°He has been avenged by my hand, and I have brought the gobbo¡¯s heart back wrapped in the fur of the wolf that killed him, along with the wolf¡¯s skull.¡± Cabryn gently laid the bundle on the table. Elran absorbed the bundle, feeling his points get a slight bump. Elran was much happier to understand the wolf from the parts he had absorbed. Elran could now create a third creature to guard the dungeon. Thank you for returning the fallen home. Now, show me what you have brought from outside. ¡°Yes, my lord. Our first objective was the camp site the miners were using. There we found some items they had left behind. There I awoke to the dungeon scout skill and was able to tell between what we could use for new materials and what we already had.¡± Cabryn pulled out a bundle of canvas, ¡°I believe this thicker fabric is something we can make use of,¡± and laid it on the table. ¡°There was also this small hammer and hand ax,¡± Cabryn laid the tools next to the canvas. ¡°They had some rations of dried meats and breads, so I brought a sampling that felt like it should be enough to gain.¡± Cabryn laid out the food on the table next. Elran absorbed the items, feeling the patterns of the new items enter his list. ¡®Learning new objects and materials, this satisfaction!¡¯ Cabryn had laid out several new items on the table. Pointing at the first with his clawed hand, ¡°We found various metals and minerals in their camp as well. I grabbed everything the Dungeon Scout skill reacted to as I held them.¡± Elran absorbed the materials, enjoying the influx of knowledge as Cabryn readied the next pack. Cabryn laid out a collection of branches, leaves, roots, and sticks, ¡°We collected as large of a variety of the local plants as we could. With my ability as low as it is, this is what I found.¡± Elran quickly absorbed the new collection, Do not be worried about your performance. You have brought me many new materials to work with, along with a new creature I can use along with your impressive new evolution to goblin. I can create more goblins now. Cabryn smiled wide, it reminded Elran of Jaws¡¯s smiles. ¡°You will be pleased with the last batch of items I have for you.¡± Cabryn pulled out two small and furry creatures, one scaled creature even smaller than the other two, some kind of sludge held in broad leaves and multiple colors, and a large bone. Elran absorbed the last set. The larger of the two furry creatures was a Shaded Fox. The smaller was a Benning Hare. The goop in the leaves turned out to be several kinds of slimes. Elran could now make blue, red, and green slimes. The little scaled creature was a Turkey Lizard. The bone wasn''t enough to unlock a creature, but Elran could feel a partial understanding that the bone came from a large creature, something strong. ¡°We ended up killing a number of slimes as we searched for plants and game. We were distracted with slimes when that wolf pounced.¡± I can see that the loss of your subordinate troubles you. I can only tell you this. It is best to appreciate what you have while you have it. While it is important to grieve, do not forget what¡¯s important and still around you. Cabryn nodded his head, turned around, and hugged the gobbo tight to his chest, ¡°Thank you, Lord Elran. I will learn from my mistakes and do better.¡± *Cabryn has gained the rare skill Retinue. Cabryn has learned leadership level 2.* The gobbo in Cabryn¡¯s arms was surrounded by a sudden puff of a blue-ish gray mist, causing Cabryn to step back. The mist cleared and the gobbo had evolved to a full goblin, slightly taller than Cabryn, but much thinner. ¡°Beralt! You have evolved.¡± Cabryn grabbed the goblin back into his arms. ¡°And with this new skill, I¡¯ll be able to bring you back.¡± Cabryn took a breath to settle himself and turned back to Elran. ¡°Lord Elran, I will only be able to take Beralt outside the dungeon with me now until I level my leadership more.¡± Do not worry, Cabyn. I am pleased to see you so happy. Cabyrn bowed his head, ¡°thank you Lord Elran. Your advice lead me to this gift. My retinue will be stronger, although less numerous.¡± Beralt bowed deeply to Elran, ¡°thank you, my liege.¡± ¡°The good news is my retinue members will have a much higher access to my skills,¡± Cabryn said. Maybe you two should go for another material run. See if you can¡¯t find anything rare. ¡°That will be a great opportunity to test our team work.¡± I will look forward to your results. ¡°Thank you, Lord Elran.¡± Cabryn and Beralt both bowed and left the room. ¡°That¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve seen that happen,¡± Jaws said, filling the silence, walking closer to where Elran floated in the middle of the room. Evolution? Or was it the skill? ¡°I¡¯ve never seen a skill cause an evolution, but not only have I not seen the skill, I¡¯ve never seen any kind of servant have it¡¯s own king of servant,¡± Jaws said, scratching at his chin, staring at the direction Cabryn had left. Jealous, Jaws? Jaws¡¯s head twisted towards Elran, a little surprise showing on his face, but then he broke out into loud laughter, holding his stomach, ¡°on the contrary, Lord Elran. I am happy for him. I am sure his new strength will be impressive.¡± I am happy too, seeing Cabryn grow and succeed. Elran turned his attention back to his dungeon. The smoals were thriving in the dungeon, maybe too much. The smalls had rapidly bred and filled the rooms. People exploring the caves would have trouble seeing through a room due to their numbers. Not that Jaws cared about the problem as he ran through the rooms with a smile on his face when they had become that thick in the air. Elran gained an instinctual knowledge of the small creatures he absorbed. The Turkey Lizards would be a good predator to keep their numbers in check.The foxes can eat the lizards and hares. Dungeon explorers can catch the foxes and jackrabbits too.Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. While playing around with the creature spawns, Elran had noticed he could make the floor a random spawning area for a creature. He didn¡¯t want to have to set lizards per room. For the nine rooms with smoals in them, six lizards would help trim the numbers. The Shaded Foxes would eat them too, though the foxes prefer meat. Alran added four foxes to spawn on the floor. The Benning Hares would be a good resource for the floor for their pelts and meat, so Elran set eight to spawn on the floor. Now I just need to make some spots for metal to be mined. Maybe a spot to quarry stone would be a good idea too. Elran reviewed his list of materials.The metals available were copper, tin, iron, and silver. While Elran had granite, marble, sandstone, and limestone available. That prospector that had died in the first room had a few stone samples on him. Too bad there weren''t more types of metals. Elran focused into a corner room near the entrance and cleared out the corner pointing away from the dungeon. I¡¯ll put a spot for Wildings to quarry stone from here. Being closer to the exit should make it more convenient. Elran considered his four stone materials, wanting the four types to spawn in a cycle each day. Elran saw a large projection of rock filling up the entire section of room he had intended to use for the stone, but the image was red. Red means it can¡¯t be placed. I should be able to overwrite things in the room, so I don¡¯t think anything is blocking me. Elran tried moving the image around the room, like he had with the spike trap. The image wouldn¡¯t flicker to blue. It would be nice to have the sage¡¯s help for this. Elran switched to his mental map of the dungeon and tried dragging the stone deposit all over the map. Getting annoyed, Elran dragged it around rapidly, hoping for a flash of blue somewhere. The map looks different. Elran looked closely at the map then at the walls in the room. The glow on the walls in the map was very faint. Examining the walls, Elran could feel there wasn¡¯t much energy in them. ¡®Sage, I have a basic question about traps and how they draw on energy from the dungeon. Why is the ambient energy in the dungeon so low now?¡¯ *I suppose I can answer that, though I can see the information helping your task. But the fundamental information you are asking about is basic towards dungeon creation. Basically, you yourself have run out of energy. Like traps, animals or other features that you add to the room, such as your faux night sky with stars, use up the dungeon energy. You may have forgotten that energy is provided by your core. ¡®I had forgotten. There¡¯s just so much going on.¡¯ *Don¡¯t be worried, you are a new core. You will adjust.* ¡®Thank you, Sage.¡¯ Elran pulled up the parchment to review his complexity upgrade, with the next level costing thirty points. Elran turned to his status page for the numerical value of his points. He could feel it wasn¡¯t bad but looking at the numbers would help. ¡¯326 points? That¡¯s more than I was expecting.¡¯ Elran reviewed his map, checking Jaws¡¯s point income, which had slightly increased. The increase wasn¡¯t enough to explain having more points than expected. While idly pondering his points, Elran decided to do some more complexity increases, confirming to spend 30 points on his third increase. Seeing the fourth was 40 he rapidly confirmed that as well. The fifth jumped up to 100 points, but that was comfortably in the budget, so Elran confirmed that too with a mental shug. An electric jolt hit Elran inside of his core, the sensation spiraling from about the middle of his center, spiraling outwards. ¡®Maybe three upgrades in a row wasn¡¯t a good idea..¡¯ A strong pull on Elran shook his core, with what felt like unfolding on his surface but the opposite sensation pulling and folding inside his core. While not painful, the sensation of his insides folding while his outer layer unfolded caused Elran to inwardly squirm. The changes felt like they lasted for hours. ¡®Three upgrades was too much.¡¯ The folding sensations finally came to end and a pleasant chime filled the air. *Complexity increase completed. Core has evolved from a preciou stone to a gem. PPI increased. Point costs adjusted. Framework updated. Favor Increased. Dungeon Sense Improved. Creation options increased.* With his senses clearing up, Elran noticed shouting, which was coming from the room his core was in and shifted his view over. What¡¯s going on? ¡°Lord Elran!¡± Cabryn and Jaws shouted. Jaws spoke up first, ¡°Your core evolution into a gem form is amazing. I have heard of core¡¯s lucking into an early gem form before, but that was after a full year. Although, there was one that started in gem form. It was my master Ric¡¯art.¡± Elran looked to his core from his perspective floating in the middle of the room. The core was just about half the size of a goblin head at this point. The top was wide, with angles and surfaces catching and refracting the light, tapering down to a point on the bottom. His core slowly rotated in the hair, a soft silvery glow radiating outward. Cabryn, you have returned? Was I out for long? ¡°I sensed a surge in the dungeon. As I had no idea what it was, I came running back to you as quickly as I could. Thankfully, I found Jaws celebrating here as your core was surrounded in a bright light.¡± Jaws laughed, ¡°while I have never seen a core evolve before, my instincts wouldn¡¯t lie. I could tell something good was happening.¡± My apologies for worrying you, Cabryn. I was just doing some upgrades. Cabryn bowed to Elran and left the room. ¡°Lord Elran, Cabryn is slo loyal to you. He reminds me of myself when I had been first bestowed.¡± Cabryn puts in his best and is very earnest. I will treasure him. ¡°It¡¯s too bad there are no towns or any population centers nearby. You make him into a wildling, he¡¯d take over the town and run it for your benefit.¡± Jaws watched Cabryn leave, with his wide toothy smile. I can bestow into Wildlings? ¡°Definitely, when you have enough of an understanding of a Wildling race, you can create them and bestow your servants into them.¡± Wouldn¡¯t Wildlings be the best type of dungeon defenders? ¡°They aren¡¯t dungeon compatible. A complete floor needs creatures or spawns in it of some kind. While Wildlings produce the best points in their presence and their deaths, they interfere with dungeon functions. Creatures and traps could accidentally kill friendly Wildlings. They also disrupt a dungeon¡¯s ability to build or create,¡± Jaws explained all this with his arms crossed. Good to know for when we get Wildlings around again. ¡°Just keep building up as you have been. We¡¯re pretty far out from everything here in the Sticks. So while you may face a lot less danger, your growth will be slower.¡± I¡¯ve heard you mention the Sticks before. What is it? ¡°On Terra, we are on the Aegis continent. A large central part of the continent had been the site of a battle between celestials. The air and ground were damaged. Magic mostly doesn¡¯t function here, occasionally going wild. Neutral nations also avoid the sticks because they like the benefits of magic. Although it¡¯s habitable, you¡¯ll find towns or villages along the fringes. A side effect is dungeons are unable to expand into the sticks and dungeon creatures may get various conditions, often losing control of themselves.¡± Is Cabryn safe out there? Jaws laughed a little, looking down, ¡°He is fine. In here there is no presence of the miasma from the battle and outside of your dungeon there are few traces. I warned him what to look for the first time he went out.¡± Are you ok, Jaws? Didn¡¯t you have to go through to reach me? Jaws looked up towards Elran, ¡°when I heard you, I ran towards you quickly. Fortunately, everything has worked out and we are both safe.¡± Agreed. I am fortunate to have you here. With those increases I have now finished for my complexity, along with the extra power I can feel inside of myself from the evolution, I feel ready to finish up some designs for my first floor. ¡°You are doing great, Lord Elran. I¡¯ll be enjoying all the Smoals in the central room before the animals you added balance things out,¡± Jaws turned and walked out to the boss room. ¡®Time to build more dungeon.¡¯ Elran returned to the corner room. Elran could feel the energy in the walls now. ¡®Dungeon energy shouldn¡¯t be a problem now.¡¯ Elran brought up his image of the rotating stone spawn with a wave of relief as the image appeared blue in his sight and confirmed its placement. Elran watched the outline fill in with his power. As the image filled, a small parchment note popped into view with details about the object. Currently the node was marble and by default would refill once a day. The type of stone would cycle equally once each day. ¡®I need to find more types of stone so I can make it seven types, one for each day,¡¯ Elran thought while laughing to himself. Elran switched to the other corner by the entrance and molded a similar node of a large amount of stone to take up a large section of a room, but this one alternated between having veins of copper, tin, iron, and silver. Elran merged another pattern together that had veins of all four metal types. This node was smaller than his stone node, but Elran was able to adjust it to regrow every few hours as he connected the node to the room and the parchment appeared, allowing Elran to adjust the settings. ¡®This seems like a lot of resources to me, now I just need to put the metal nodes in the other corners of the dungeon.¡¯ Elran added a metal node to the corner rooms before the safe room. Elran pulled up the dungeon interface. Something tickled at the corner of his mind. ¡®This dungeon sense might be helpful if what I think is right.¡¯ On the main parchment page, which Elran thought of like a table of contents, there was now a line for Quest Log. Elran selected the quest log and was able to review the divine quest: Create a high resource ecosystem on the first floor of your dungeon Create at least seven rooms Create a safe room The second and third lines were gray and light in color. ¡®I made more than seven rooms. I was confident I had made the tenth room a safe zone, but seeing it gray like the seven room option must mean I did succeed. Didn¡¯t Jaws mention a dungeon floor isn¡¯t complete without monsters?¡¯ Elran switched to his list of monster patterns he knew. ¡®Gobbos, goblins, wolves, and slimes don¡¯t feel like much.¡¯ Thinking back to when he combined the grass patterns, Elran pulled up a gobbo and wolf pattern and moved them together. The outlines changed red as they met. Elran idly bounced the patterns apart and back together again, watching the outlines go from blue to red and mentally sighed. ¡®It must be possible in some way. Wait!¡¯ The pattern flashed brightly. *Merge Complete. Please name your new creature. New goblinoid retains the pack loyalty and hunting tactics of wolves with the general body shape of a wolf. Elran could see a pattern of a stocky, green haired gobin with a long snout. It¡¯s slightly shorter than a goblin but with thicker, leaner muscles. ¡®Looks like a Golflin to me. And it looks much stronger. Probably not a floor one creature. Looks like the success rate isn¡¯t one hundred percent. At least I can retry merges.¡¯ Elran tried repeating the experiment with the same two creatures. Elran bounced the wolf and goblin together long enough that he even started to notice he was taking up a lot of time, at least enough to feel bored. ¡®I can retry it, but there is a time cost. Just a few more times.¡¯ On the third bounce after that the patter flashed again. *Merge Complete: Please name your new creature. New wolf is shrunk to around half the size of a wolf, becomes green, and loses its fur. Creature is less intelligent than a wolf.* Elran could make out a small, green, hairless dog with a bit of a droopy face and wide-set eyes. ¡®This one feels a lot less threatening than a wolf. These experiments will fill the time when I¡¯m not building. I¡¯ll call it a Golf.¡¯ ¡®Let¡¯s test out the limits on this,¡¯ Elran. Elran made an image of a goblin and a Shaded Fox. As the images came together, they turned red. ¡®If it fails with a red outline, I think it may work.¡¯ Elran mashed the two images together, trying to see if he could flick them together back and forth more rapidly than before. ¡®I feel like I need something a bit more¡­ thematic for the first floor. Something that really ties it together. I want it to feel right. Especially since it has a look, scent, and is full of resources.¡¯ Elran let the patterns mash together as he let his mind wander, ¡®