《If You Give a Mouse a Dungeon》


 The five heroes

    Five heavy sets of boots shuffle through a deep chamber. The footsteps of two humans, one elf, one dwarf, and one gnome echo their tired beat against the obsidian walls. Joining the beat comes the clatter of bent and chipped arrows in the quiver of the elf and the steady drip of sweat condensing in the dents left in armor that has long since seen the end of its life.


    These are adventurers. However, they are not just any adventurers- they are the heroes of the Union of Kingdoms, chosen by the System which presides over them.


    Five sets of eyes scan a hall that, were it not for the torches in sconces lining it, would easily be at home in the roots of a volcano. A dwarf boy, still growing the first tufts of a beard from a face pockmarked by acne scars runs his blistered hands over the obsidian tube¡¯s walls.


    His eyes catch the uneven markings along the shimmering surface and holds out his hand. ¡°Hold a sec, we got more darts.¡±


    A gnome woman, with a deceptively childish face nods nervously, her delicate hands rubbing the bags under her eyes before reaching into an enormous bag strapped to her back. A long pole with an iron tip marred from constant use jumps into her hands in a practiced motion. ¡°D-do you want to d-do it-¡°


    A scowling paladin man in scuffed and dented armor snatches the pole from her hands with a scoff, striking its end on the floor.


    The human could have been handsome once, with long, golden hair and an armor that matched his glowing charisma. Now, a man with matted hair, and thoroughly rusted armor pokes a pressure plate on the floor for what felt like the hundredth time this week.


    A flurry of small, black darts flew in front of the troupe, who sigh, waiting for the trap to run its course. ¡°Please tell me we¡¯re close, Jem. Please. I need good news.¡±


    A priestess in thick, padded robes draws a grimoire from thin air, opening it to reveal a dim 3-D illusion of a massive dungeon, stretching up beyond the ceiling of the narrow hallway before condensing to show just one floor, with six glowing dots: one for each of the heroes, and one for the monster king.


    A calm, even voice barely over a whisper fills the space around the five, as the saintess named Jem gives her word ¡°we¡¯re at the bottom. He¡¯s close.¡±


    At one time, these words alone could calm the hearts of all those in the room. It had taken even fewer than these to convince the kingdoms to send their heroes into the one-hundred-layer Grand Labyrinth when she received the grimoire from the heavens.


    ¡°Grand treasure awaits¡± she prophesied to the council of nobles gathered in the castle that day. She had been the picture of a goddess incarnate, with dark, flowing hair and robes as blindingly pure as the sun.


    That had been a full year ago.


    Now here she was, her robes and fair skin stained an unhealthy shade of brown with a magic book that looked more ragged than her father¡¯s old scripture book, with all its dog-eared pages and careless tears from all the times she¡¯d had no choice but to use it in bludgeoning open the skulls of monsters that got too close for comfort.


    The hero of faith had seen better days.


    As soon as the darts stopped, a shadow tore itself from the wall behind the gnome, scaring her as it zipped to the end of the hall and around the corner with barely a sound. A second later, two long ears peaked back around the corner and an adolescent elf girl waved to the party of four ¡°Clear! What are ya¡¯ll waitin for?¡±The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    A chipper elf, despite everything this Dungeon had thrown at them, remained indomitable. The hero of shadows remained the only one of the party with a clean set of clothes; not a drop of blood marring her dark leather jacket or greaves. However, this was to be expected. She was, after all, in her element.


    It had taken three months to convince the neighboring elven empire to loan their hero to the cause while the united human, dwarf and gnome kingdoms¡¯ heroes went on ahead. It only took another two for her to catch up to them, just as they hit the fiftieth floor. Despite going through half of the floors of the Labyrinth on her own, she remained the one with the most energy of all of them.


    ¡°Come on, come on, come onnnnn already! The monsters ain¡¯t gonna kill themselves!¡± The hyperactive dark elf paced while her companions caught up, each one internally shaking their head at the scene of their companion waiting before the next room.


    ¡°Looks like she¡¯s got her switch flipped early¡± grumbled the paladin, cautiously picking his way along.


    ¡°Just let her have this¡± whispered the saintess, her nose stuck in the map, ¡°it¡¯s almost over anyways.¡±


    The party had been together for forty-nine floors, and by this point, it was all too late to voice any concerns the four other heroes had of her reckless ways. She had, after all, proven to be nearly immune to any trap thrown at her.


    ¡°Hey, if you guys don¡¯t mind, I could always just go on ahead and take care of the king myself-¡° The elf carelessly backed down into a room that could have easily passed for a ballroom if it were not for the crenellations being made of rough stone, or the entry steps that sank under the elf¡¯s feet as she stepped on them.


    CLICK


    The nervous gnome froze in place, clinging to the dwarf¡¯s arm as the walls of the room slowly creaked open. From shining edifices that resembled the interior of geodes, steel golem dancers stepped into the room.


    The gnome froze before shattering the silence between the two groups ¡°m-maybe they just want a dance?¡±


    The steel maidens¡¯ dresses bloomed out into full assortment of blades, their gentlemen partners glowing with magitech runes, each beginning to spin their dance of death.


    ¡°You just HAD to say something, didn¡¯t you?¡± Griped the paladin, as he pulled a massive great sword glowing with holy energy from his back.


    ¡°It¡¯s about time! Let¡¯s party!¡± Whooped the elf as she launched herself into the melee of steel and flames.


    * * * Rhubarb * * *


    In the deepest depths of the world¡¯s deepest dungeon, a king sits idle on his throne. At three meters tall, the monster king groans. It is he of a hundred horns, he of the red-scaled dragonkin. He who I call¡­ food-giver.


    Food-giver sighed and let me out of my mouse cage to sit in his lap.


    Into the great behemoth¡¯s lap hops a little burrowing mouse, barely 30 centimeters tall. Its little pink nose twitches and brown fur shivers as it stares up at him with soft brown eyes.


    Food-giver had been doing that a lot lately. Another loud BOOM shook the air. I don¡¯t understand why things are so loud again today.


    Is that why Food-giver is acting so scared? I can understand that. Loud things that make ears hurt can be very scary. I don¡¯t understand why Food-giver is scared though. Loud noises can¡¯t hurt something with a hundred horns, teeth that could skewer entire cats, and breath that can burn entire dogs.


    I nuzzled his big, clawed hand. He likes patting me, and I like being pat. It makes us both less scared, I think.


    Another big boom rattled the room. Having big ears is very bad sometimes. The noise hurts a lot.


    Food giver started making his mouth sounds again. He says the word ¡°Rhubarb¡± a lot. I think that¡¯s what he calls me. Either that, or it means ¡°food time.¡± I never quite figured that one out.


    He gave me a tasty purple stick. Ah, then it does mean food time. I have him trained well.


    Food-giver put me on the floor and moved his big black chair to hide me and the purple food stick. This is very smart. We must hide the food in case people come.


    The booms keep getting louder, and Food-giver began putting on his big shell. He only really does that when he goes to get food or soft things for us to sit on. He doesn¡¯t leave this time, though. People are coming to him.


    The noise is coming closer and it hurts. There are five loud things with dirty shells. They hit Food-giver with a scream and make the air turn to fire around him.


    The noise hurts so much¡­ I think I¡¯ll hide until the noise is gone.

 Chapter 2: Peekaboo

    *** Behemoth ***


    Five- no, make that four filthy adventurers and one reanimated golem corpse stormed out of my ballroom like bats out of hell, each one igniting the air with glowing mana and screams that would shattered the glass of wine I had nearly forgotten by the throne.


    Well, that just figures. At least the cushions are still out for cleaning from the last time. Now, where did my little mouse go? Well, I suppose it doesn¡¯t matter. If I can¡¯t find her right now, then they probably can¡¯t either.


    ¡°Relax, Rhu. This won¡¯t take long.¡± The deep bass of my request barely made it past the rising whine of overheated air rushing from the rusted armor and trailing great sword of the paladin at the head of these adventurers.


    ¡°[Seraph Form]¡± A chipped and bent great sword started to gleam with the physical power-enhancing might of Light magic. Delicate mana channels in its surface formed a circuit which temporarily turned the sword whole again just as it smashed against my armored shoulder with all the exploding force of a bomb and all the effect of a particularly emaciated kitten.


    I calmly brushed the blade aside with a gauntleted hand, chuckling ¡°Well, that¡¯s just plain rude. No introductions, no heroic speech extolling the greater good? Heroes these days¡­¡±


    The knight drew back, his crude plate armor and body following his sword¡¯s example as they expanded and hardened into the shimmering form of divine wrath that I¡¯m sure he was well known for. After all, no man evolved into the paladin class without just a bit of that zealous rage.


    The paladin finally opened his mouth, a trace of excitement dyeing his gruff voice ¡°Jem, I¡¯m going to need everything you¡¯ve got. Excaliburn did jack squat.¡±


    A rather harried young woman carrying the Book of Prophesy started chanting, runes of the mana-focused Faith magic cascading off her shoulders before crawling up the massive human¡¯s armor, dying it red. ¡°Keep him busy, Dale, I¡¯ll get something more permanent set up.¡±


    Well, this is interesting. I haven¡¯t seen these two weapons in ages. Have the humans finally grown the balls to fight against me? It seems a bit odd that they would throw their two greatest artifacts down here with no plan or army. They couldn¡¯t have forgotten the last time I sent them packing.


    The plush carpet leading up to my throne sank beneath the weight of my dark armored form, the plates glowing a pale purple light as I activated the enchantments one by one. There was no use taking any chances if these two were, in fact, heroes. ¡°System, activate [Battle armo-¡°


    As if to spite my lazy pace, Dale rushed forwards once more, blade whistling before crushing the sound barrier in brutal finality, its edge finding its home across my breastplate. This time, we both flew across the room, barely avoiding the throne before smashing into the far wall, the carefully carved and painted fresco covering its surface crumbling around us.


    Alright, no more mister nice demon. I spit boiling black blood in the face of the knight as he reeled from the stun of his own attack. His screams of pain were well-deserved for destroying the hard work of my minions.


    I bit back a snarl and grabbed his slowly regenerating face ¡°Let¡¯s try this again. System, give me my damn [Battle Armor]!¡±


    Every one of my hundred horns turned as black as the Midnight Steel armor on my back, every one of them growing and curling defensively over my head, torso and legs. The twelve on my arms were a different story, as they curled forwards into massive spikes. Before they could extend far enough to pierce the paladin¡¯s skull, he vanished into a puff of smoke, reappearing next to a dwarf in shabby leather armor.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°CAN YOU MOVE ANY SLOWER, GRIMEL? I ALMOST DIED¡± the light-clad warrior screamed down at the panting boy holding an unusually small knife in palms wet with cuts and his own blood. ¡°I¡¯m moving as fast as I can, you git! Transposition curses take forever to cast.¡±


    Bound up in my arm¡¯s spikes swung the corpse of one of my court dancer golems which had replaced the paladin. So, they have a heresy magic user as well. With¡­ is that the Sacrificial Knife of Abbadon? What kind of backing do these Adventurers have?


    I ripped apart the corpse of my loyal minion (may they rest in peace) and charged the foolish trio. It didn¡¯t matter how weak they were, now. Those artifacts were not to leave this room. Especially that knife. Blood curses were not to leave the dwarven lands. I thought I had made that very clear to them on their last invasion, but apparently the dwarves were very hard of hearing.


    The saintess named Jem snapped her book closed and threw it upwards, the book freezing in midair to create a bubble of protection around the three of them as they regrouped into fighting stances. These three were really going to be a thorn in my side. I could tell that already.


    Wait, wasn¡¯t there another one- ah, there she is. The fourth member of their party was currently cowering under one of the potted dungeon flowers I had hanging in a corner. The mousey, brown haired girl seemed to be hiding, but with a pack that was nearly the size of me, I couldn¡¯t see how she thought this would work.


    It seemed they brought their baggage carrier into the final boss room. However, just looking behind her made it clear why. A straight line of destroyed floor tiles led from the door straight to that plant. Just how heavy is that pack?!?


    My precious floor, which had survived the toughest of fights and even held up against that paladin¡¯s assault had been cracked just from the weight of that girl¡¯s pack as she ran for cover. Right beside the girl, my little Rhu burrowed through the side of the pack, easily slipping through the dense material. It seems these adventurers have their own little mouse. Though I think I should leave those two alone. That one¡¯s physical power must be insane.


    My great makeshift claws scraped against the surface of the barrier, bending it inch by inch as Jem burst into a cold sweat. Faith magic was quite taxing, and I knew that all too well. The dwarf frantically plunged his knife into his thighs on borrowed time, blood curling up into elaborate Heresy magic circles. Those were going to be annoying, but it¡¯s nothing I couldn¡¯t handle. If that paladin was gone, this fight was as good as over.


    With an almighty crash, the barrier exploded into motes of light, sending that annoying book to the floor with smoking pages. Dale¡¯s sword rose up to block an easy swipe from my claws, resorting to a defensive stance in front of his struggling companions. However, his time was up.


    One by one, the red runes along his armor popped and sizzled out of existence. The book¡¯s enchantments were all extremely powerful, but they ran out way too quickly. If these three had another decade- no, another year of training, this might have been a decent fight. As it was, though, they were far too weak.


    [Monster king secret art: The Ex-Wife] The world slowed around me, the precious crystal in my grand chandelier and fine art along my walls burnt to fuel the martial ritual. I really hate using such a costly ability, but I wanted this to be over as soon as possible.


    Dozens of furious blows rained from my arms into the paladin¡¯s rapidly shrinking defense. Blood magic circles clashed every swipe of my spikes, sinking into their surface and dulling their impact against the rapidly deforming sword and armor.


    This is too easy. Four adventurers, four heroes, four kingdoms. It¡¯s almost poetic in a way. I suddenly froze, the gasping paladin burning the last of his mana to re-form his sword. He looked incredibly confused at the sudden pause but wasn¡¯t going to complain.


    There are only three kingdoms, four heroes, and four divine instruments here. That¡¯s not anywhere near enough to beat the last guardian at their level. In a single flash of a memory, I saw her again. The laughing demon bathing in the blood of heroes and monsters alike on a field of burned corpses.


    No¡­ they couldn¡¯t have¡­ In the last second of my slowed time, I barely caught a glimpse of a shadow peaking out from right beneath my feet with laughing red eyes.

 Chapter 3: Elven Politics

    There are few things which really scare me in this life. Fire? I laugh at it. Clowns? Hah, they are nothing to worry about. Lawyers? I- okay that¡¯s a bad example. They¡¯re terrifying in their own way. That thing though? That scares me.


    The eyes blink twice, then vanish, giggling as they realize I caught them. How long has it been there? How long has it been beside me? How many times could I have died just now? Five. There are five known heroes here once again. Just what have those damn elves made this time?


    A familiar whisper echoed a few centimeters from my ear through the thick helm, but I didn¡¯t dare move. ¡°Come on, old man. Show me something new. It¡¯s been all swish, swish, boom! Where¡¯s all the colors and the blood? You can¡¯t seriously tell me this is all you got. You could have killed these chumps a dozen times by now if you wanted.¡±


    Screw the adventurers. Screw the ancient artifacts. Screw the humans and dwarves. This comes first.


    I barely heard the soft click of a bow string striking a wrist guard before I burst into action, pouncing the length of the room towards the three weakened heroes, before two arrows burst through my thighs, slicing open Dale¡¯s sunken cheeks as each one flew by. This sadistic creep doesn¡¯t even give a damn about these three, does it? Then again, what did I expect from one of their creations¡­


    In the second it took to roll across the ground towards the three heroes, I had already regenerated the damage, but it seems each of these four adventurers knew very well what was going on, as every one of them had ducked for cover, shivering just as much as the little gnome.


    ¡°You could have taken my head off, Lala! Watch it!¡±


    Only a cackle answered the distressed man, that simple sound soon dripping into physical form. A lithe dark elf sauntered from behind my throne, before flopping down on it with a sadistic grin. ¡°Did you see that? The great monster king looked like a cat who just saw a cucumber!¡±


    The elf wreathed in a dress of shadows rolled in laughter on my throne, acting like she had just made the greatest joke in the world before immediately shifting back into her smug, cat-like demeanor. ¡°Still, I told you I could do it by myself. Did you listen? Nooooo, you wanted your fair shake. You still want it, oh great hero?¡±


    The blushing paladin looked down at his dented armor, hesitating for just a second before shaking his head and backing out of the room, dragging the barely conscious Jem and Grimel behind him. ¡°Just don¡¯t take too long. Don¡¯t forget that we need to keep him alive.¡±


    This is it. This is why those stubborn old fools would risk every artifact and hero they have. A new Hero of Shadows has been made. What in the world were they thinking? They know how hard we had to fight to beat back the last one.


    ¡°I hope the old man is still doing well.¡± The soft purple wisps of mana drifting off my armor turned into a torrent, stretching to become a mage¡¯s cloak.


    I am stronger than I was back then, and this beast is doing nothing to halt my progress through every buff I have. Still just as confident as ever.


    Her expression turned dark- well, darker. ¡°I take it you mean father-¡° she bit her tongue, nearly drawing blood. ¡°No, old Archimedes. Don¡¯t worry, he¡¯s long gone. I couldn¡¯t have him making another of me to mess up my plans.¡±


    She suddenly perked up and spun to face me, those red eyes piercing further than those arrows ever could. ¡°We have a new head developer, now. You should know him. He¡¯s such a charmer~ He even told me to send you his regards. Said it was ¡®a favor to pay back all his heroic friend had done for him.¡¯¡±


    I nearly choked ¡°You put that MADMAN in charge of development? What happened to the plan to execute him? You couldn¡¯t possibly think you can control that nutcase.¡± I finally finished setting up the final enchantment on my armor before opening a black portal beside me. From it, I pulled a chalice with a single eye permanently faceted into the inside of it. The little elder mind flayer eye spun to greet me like an old friend.


    ¡°Mmmm I do wonder. What ever could have happened? Well, I suppose you¡¯ll never find out, will you?¡± The dark elf gave a cheshire grin, then melted into liquid shadow, as if her very existence there had been a lie. The sad thing is, she really could have simply never been there.


    Those damn elves never could be happy until they¡¯d made the ultimate killer, could they? ¡°Let¡¯s do this one last time, you abomination.¡±


    A wave of purple mana flooded the chamber, the chalice slowly filling with a black ichor as the monster king¡¯s eyes bled onto the shaking floor. A hundred hands and a hundred eyes peeked out from the deadly haze, claiming the area as his own. This was the power of the monster king, master of the Grand Labyrinth.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    ¡°System, activate [Omega Protocol]. We¡¯re going all out.¡± The room shifted, turning from the personalized home of the great Monster King to a simple boss room with a stone floor and an iron throne. At the cost of his title as the monster king, Behemoth would become a dungeon creature once more.


    ¡°Behold, the power I have created with my own two hands!¡± the floor swirled with debris as lightning shot from hand to hand, eye to eye, across the new terrain. Behemoth hated the lines the system came up with for these scenarios, but the power it gave in return was undeniable. A hurricane of power whipped through the room, chasing shadows out of existence until only one remained- a lone, stubborn stain on the old iron throne.


    The bloody demon wasn¡¯t laughing now. Those red eyes rose out of hiding, trailing behind them an annoyed elf in a simple black dress made of shadows which clung to her hips and chest. She had a dangerous beauty to her. The same beauty that could be found in a melanistic wolf seconds before it ripped out your throat.


    One second she was sitting with her legs folded properly on a suddenly much smaller throne, and the next, she was drifting through the air like a leaf on the wind, floating between grasping hands, only to snap into a bolt of red lightning, popping a lone eye that got too close.


    All these years, and yet, she¡¯s still got it. No, I can¡¯t think like that. It¡¯s a different one now. The hero I knew has been dead for a long, long time. With a flick of the wrist, the chalice in my hands spilled its dark contents, but instead of falling, they rose into small black needles- two dimensional rifts in space which abruptly opened as the eyes of the deep one. Every one of them locked onto the elf dancing through the air with a look of intense concentration etched into its every pore. They swirled around her, pounding her magical defenses to attempt inflicting a timed instant death spell that particular elder mind flayer was rather well known for.


    However, instead of despairing or seeking some way out, the girl laughed. It was a musical note that drudged up old heartaches and promised long summers that would never come. In the middle of this bloody battlefield, the hero of shadow was having fun. I could definitely understand it. It was nice to really cut loose now and then, to find out what you were really made of. I almost respected her for that. Almost.


    A sudden thud echoed behind me. Despite the nearly omniocular vision I had, I failed to notice two individuals who were still in the room. The two little mice. The purple flood in the room had finally done its work in overloading the minds of those two innocents before it had even so much as touched that elf. I had to finish this quickly.


    Moving to block any incoming attacks she might throw towards those two, I rushed the demon dancing like this whole thing was nothing but a complex rhythm game. As I approached, the air got colder, frost etching its fingerprints over my mana cloak and armor. The elf had been busy as she was seemingly dancing freely. Unseen spells crashed against my unflinching form, doing little more than shifting me slightly from my course into the driving blizzard of her cold aura.


    The calculating woman took one glance at how I was approaching and gave a massive grin, revealing overly sharp teeth lining a shark-like face that looked like it smelled blood in the water. Time seemed to slow as she pointed one finger towards the two unconscious girls. For a brief second, I was back on the fields of blood as that elven demon pointed to my companions. I wasn¡¯t fast enough then. I¡¯d never been fast enough. Not until now.


    In a flash of energy, I popped in front of that jet-black beam, only for it to stick to my chest like a string of taffy. I barely blinked before the girl shot down the dark link between us, curling herself as sensually as a snake against my body. Every horn I had shot out, only to be deflected by the uncaring shadows covering the woman.


    Our gazes held for a moment, then two. Black and purple pulsed through the air. Lightning fought against a blizzard that even now made my skin hurt and joints scream. Horns and shadows fought for precious lifeblood in a new but all too familiar battle. Yet all I could see was the girl on my arm, back again, even after we promised to never meet again. She kissed my cheek, I held her close, and in that moment, we could only exchange the words I thought we left behind- ¡°thank you for the dance.¡±


    With small, warm hands, the ice witch smiled, and ripped my carefully crafted armor to pieces as easily as a drunken father crushes their child¡¯s papier mache sculpture. My claws scrabbled at her face in a panic, pushing her away as I teleported again and again, leaving a mess of tangled mana streams in my wake, but she was everywhere.


    Every step I took, she was there, smiling calmly. Step by panicked step, piece by bloody piece, I and my armor fell. It wasn¡¯t until I was down to my greaves that I noticed that not only had she taken off every piece of my armor but had them all stacked and folded as they should be next to my throne. This was just a game to her. She was a cat, and I the mouse, once again.


    A scythe of shadows slowly stretched from her hand, only to whip out faster than I could see. The eyes of the deep one were no more, and the elder lich¡¯s eye closed once again. I dropped the chalice into a dark portal and gave a small, sad smile. The game was over.


    One by one, she chopped away the horns I had taken so much pride in. In those last few moments, I cried. I clawed and bit and thrashed, but all for nothing. Snip, snip, snip went the blade, and one by one, the eyes and hands folded back into the rapidly decreasing mana. She didn¡¯t even look like she enjoyed it. All I saw were the eyes of a woman taking away her child¡¯s toys.


    When there was nothing left, when I thought I could have nothing more shaved away, the grinning demon sighed, lashed my limbs down and slowly drew the scythe into my torso. Every time I so much as twitched, she would stop and wait until I stopped before continuing again, reaching the long way in to snap my spine and cut my resistance once and for all.


    Through it all, a lone mouse watched in horrified confusion from the protection of a bag warded against mana fields as its owner and sole companion fell to despair.

 Chapter 4: A New Hero

    *** Jem ***


    The fight did not take as long as the five heroes expected. There was no monologue. There was no final doomsday magic. There wasn¡¯t even a proper fight. In the end, it was just one old monster, sitting on a throne that had ceased to be a seat of power a long time ago, in an ornate throne room with trophies of victories long past.


    The great monster king known as Behemoth lay before them, a three-meter-tall demon in the shape of a man with scaled skin covered in blood as black as midnight.


    What had once been the terror of the four kingdoms was now a broken old man covered in burns, ice, and a steaming gash in his stomach where the scythe had been pulled through.


    ¡°A year of my life¡± whispered the paladin, his sword shining under his influence as the hero of light.


    The whisper turned to an anguished roar ¡°A year of my life wasted on this? I thought the old man couldn¡¯t even fight anymore. Am I just a joke to you?¡± He kicked the old monster before turning back to the throne. Ever since the monster king lost consciousness, a yawning black portal opened in front of it leading to this dungeon¡¯s vault.


    The dwarf and gnome slowly got up, digging out some healing potions and chasing away a mouse that had gotten into the bag. Grimel knelt to begin chaining the old monster up, sealing his once fearsome power behind runes the human kingdom of Valence had prepared long ago for this purpose.


    The elf smirked, zipping around the room, exploring its many facets and alcoves with the faint tatters of her shadow dress trailing in her wake. ¡°You¡¯re overthinking this one, Dale. I told ya they just wanted you to escort his treasure up. You weren¡¯t expected to fight him. Nobles be like that.¡±


    The paladin paled before grumbling out ¡°I know, it¡¯s just- this isn¡¯t the adventure I thought it would be. I was told there was a monster king and a dungeon and I thought there would be¡­ more I could do, you know?¡±


    Grimel shook his head with a sigh before sticking his equipment back in the massive sack. ¡°Well, at least we got here, eh? Now, so long as nobody kills this old coot, the dungeon vault is open. So, you up for it, Liz?¡±


    The gnome slowly got to her feet and started trudging towards the gate with her pack, the classic dungeon floor holding up much better than the king¡¯s chamber tiles had before. As the hero of heart, she was little more than the baggage carrier for the group during the past year. While there were always benefits to the strength provided by the title, the lack of offensive abilities really weighed on her.


    ¡°i- I guess I¡¯ll go see what he has in there.¡± With a few shaky steps, she popped inside the portal, the size barely enough to accommodate her massive travel bag.


    The elf finished her circuit next to the throne and started picking over a small, ornate golden cage beside it. ¡°Hey Jem, check this out. The monster king¡¯s got a little cage over here. It¡¯s even got a little name tag. Huh? Why¡¯s he imprisoning Rhubarb? Isn¡¯t that a vegetable?¡±


    *** Rhubarb ***


    It¡¯s quiet¡­ the five loud ones are poking Food-giver. I don¡¯t understand. Why was food giver crying? Why did he stop moving? Why is he whispering Rhu again? Maybe it means safe?If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    I scurried over to his hand. I hope he needs pets. That should make things better. It always made things better before.


    He picked me up slowly and deliberately. Good, it looks like it¡¯s petting time then. Maybe it¡¯s food time again soon? I don¡¯t think I could eat more after the last food stick.


    Wait. He¡¯s not putting me on his chest this time. Food-giver looks at the loud ones, waiting for when they aren¡¯t looking at him. He then quickly brings me to his face.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, little one. It looks like I won¡¯t be able to raise you like I wanted after all. Just¡­ do one last thing for me, would you? Make it quick.¡±


    I don¡¯t understand these words. Is that his mouth? IS HE EATING ME?


    NO! BAD FOOD-GIVER! I NEED OUT! THIS MOUTH IS NOT A PLACE FOR A MOUSE TO BE. I NEED TO DIG. I NEED TO GO. THIS IS NOT RIGHT.


    ***Behemoth***


    The great monster king, lord of the Great Labyrinth, sat on the cold stone floor. Of course, It didn¡¯t feel cold from the waist down. It really didn¡¯t feel like anything. The damage from the hero of shadow¡¯s scythe refused to heal, so here he sat.


    The man who once frightened the world into peace squirmed as his pet mouse thrashed in his mouth before scurrying down his throat. He wondered if anyone had ever thought of a more elaborate method of suicide. It¡¯s not like he had a choice, though. There were some things in this dungeon that just couldn¡¯t be let out. He shuddered to think of what could happen if this hero of shadows got her hands on even half of the equipment he had stolen from her predecessor.


    In his final, breathless moments, as the world started to go dark one last time, he sent one last request. System, could you show me... My friends, one last time?


    One last window opened for the old monster, showing five crystalline graves, preserving the bodies of five individuals from four different races and four different kingdoms. While four of the bodies had a single hole through the chest, the last one looked mangled, despite clear efforts to restore her to her former beauty.


    A single inscription remained etched in its surface.


    In Memory of L


    ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting over here for that last dance you promised¡±


    * * * Jem * * *


    The saintess relaxed on the floor next to the obsidian throne, playing with the miniature golden cage. ¡°I don¡¯t understand adventurers¡¯ fascination with raiding vaults. You¡¯re going to get a prize anyways once the boss of a dungeon is dead. Why take the risk of it closing behind you for a few extra pieces of gold?¡±


    Dale rolled their eyes and rested for the first time in weeks on a cushion that popped into existence onto the throne after the carnage of the fight. ¡°We¡¯ve been down here on this one quest for a full year, Jem. We¡¯re going home with his entire horde or nothing at all.¡±


    ¡°Imagine¡± continued Grimel, ¡°all this dungeon has managed to generate in the years since anybody has conquered the place. I¡¯m not going to be happy with just a sword or a bag of coins that the dungeon says we deserve. I deserve it all and so do you after this whole fiasco.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ suppose¡± whispered Jem, as she glanced over at the struggling monster king. She wondered why in the world he was holding his mouth like that¡­ then his side started to turn black and red.


    Her eyes turned as round as saucers and, for the first time that anyone in the room could remember, she raised her voice ¡°WHAT¡¯S HE¡¯S DOING?!? STOP HIM!¡±


    As soon as the words fled her mouth, she already knew it was too late. A series of messages flashed in front of her face too quickly to stop.


    [Hero of the Mind, Monster King Behemoth has been slain.]


    [A new Hero of The Mind has been chosen.]


    [Grand Labyrinth Vault has closed]


    With a half-formed gnomish cry of fear from its depths, the black void in front of the obsidian throne snapped shut.


    The hero of the Heart, Lizabeth Frostmoon, was gone. In the place of the portal, four bags of gold, a scepter and a crown dropped to the floor.


    Jem barely noticed as the hole in the monster king¡¯s chest grew wider and a shapeless mass pooled out. ¡°She¡­ had all of our supplies, didn¡¯t she?¡±


    Even the elf held still for a moment, in a moment of shock. All their supplies were now gone, replaced with useless gold, and now, a new monster king selection had begun in the Grand Labyrinth.


    The floor started to shiver in anticipation to welcome its new boss.


    ¡°Well, fu-¡°