《Dungeon Avenger》 Chapter 0 - Apocalypse ¡°The throne room is lost!¡± Philip came bursting through the solid oak door and into the laboratory. His father''s sword in his hand, bent and bloody, mirroring his own chainmail. ¡°There are too many of them. This door should hold for maybe five minutes! Is that enough Master Timon?¡± Philip did not wait for the old Magic Engineer to respond, the approaching mass of footsteps ringing in the hall outside prompted him to maneuver some heavy boxes to barricade the door. Screams and swords could be heard from the royal guards doing their duty and fighting to the last man. ¡°TIMON! Any gizmos of yours that might buy us some time right now?¡± Phillip was desperate. The Master was finally stirred from his concentration for a moment to respond to the desperate prince. ¡°Firren! Do what you can boy!¡±. With that, he went back to work on the monstrous metallic disk positioned in the middle of the room. A large metallic disk was inlaid into the floor. The aging master sat near the closest side with a set of mithril inscribers, adding the final few symbols to the tapestry of runes. This is their final hope, and Timon could not spare a second, he just had to push a bit more. I finished rummaging through my master''s old travel bag and produced a handful of quartz marbles of a murky red color. I thought back to when this bag contains endless devices, but now the look of the leather satchel seemed¡­ somber. ¡°This is the very last we have, make it count!¡± I whispered a few quick enchantment into my hand holding the marbles and quickly tossed them to Philip. ¡°I hope they buy us enough time, young apprentice!¡± He snatched the marbles out of the air with his characteristic ungodly speed and in one fluid motion threw them through the slit in the door and into the noisy hall. He whispered to himself, ¡°2¡­ 3¡­. ¡°, and then BOOOOOM! The whole room shook and the hall went quiet. ¡°We have 3 minutes until they can clear that rubble out there. There is nothing else we can do, Master Timon!¡± ¡®Ghmf¡¯, He was so deep in concentration he did nothing more than let out a grunt of sorts. ¡°Firren! Boy, come here.¡± ¡°Yes, my prince?¡± I said as I knelt before him.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°Screw that now, no kingdom left to be prince over. Here! You¡¯ll need this.¡± Philip pulled out a fine leather satchel from under his cloak and threw it to me. ¡°Hopefully this will get you the verification you¡¯ll need¡± I caught the bag and peeked inside. ¡°Y-Yes Ss-sir!¡± was all I was able to stutter back as observed what the bag contained. ¡°Are you sure¡­. This is¡­?¡± ¡°It is of no use to me the kingdom now, I hope you find it of use. If ever you-¡±. Philip¡¯s attention was pulled back to the hall. It seemed the shouts had returned, louder, and they were getting closer. ¡°TIMON?¡± he shouted. ¡°Its done! It''s DONE!!¡±. A massive surge of energy tore through the room. I feet it in my bones even though I am not a mage. The mana this thing is giving off was something no mortal should wield, but I pushed that thought to the back of my mind. A vortex of green and white light enveloped the magical circle, forming what looked to be an eye of a storm at the center of the circle. The voices were now at the door. The boxes piled to barricade it were not holding very well. THUD¡­ THUD¡­. CRASH¡­. In fact, they were not holding at all. ¡°GO NOW!¡± Yelled Philip before brandishing a pair of Mythril rapiers. Like lightning, he raced across the room and collided with the first intruder. A tall, hulking man who fell quickly to his first piercing blows. As did the next, and the next, but they just keptcoming. Ten men, then a hundred, surrounded the prince in a few seconds. With great effort they wadded through the growing pile of their allies on the floor to get the desperate prince. I stood in awe for a moment, but quickly I shook my head and moved back to my mission. I dashing to my master. ¡°Master Timon! I am ready! I have all the supplies here.¡± I motioned to the paired bag on my hip as well as to the other satchel that the price had just supplied. ¡°You sure boy? You know everything we went over. All the key dates and time? All the people?¡± ¡°I do sir!¡±. How could I forget? It had consumed my every waking moment for the last three weeks ever since we had come up with this insane plan. ¡°Very well.¡± I saw a solitary tear forming in the eye of my aging master. I have never seen my master cry before. With his large hands, he reached out and gave me a great big hug. ¡°I''m going to miss you boy. You would have made an even greater master than me one day!¡± Tears were rolling down his face. With that, he thrust me from his arms and towards the machine. The energy was even more intense now that I was so close to the magic circle on the floor. White and Green magical energy could be felt erupting from every rune painstakingly carved into the magic-steel ring. I turned so that my back faced very edge of the circle, surveying the room one last time. The Price was holding well, but not without injury. He bled from multiple wounds and his movements were growing slower. My master was watching me with teary, worried eyes. He burned their two faces into his memory. My master and friend. I must save them. I must save them all. I took a step back into the center of the circle. The magical energy that was already blinding began to shake the very room. I looked down at my own body to see it start to glow a green color. Then everything started to go white. When Master Timon saw his young apprentice vanish from the circle a sigh of relief graced his face. One of the men had broken free from Philip¡¯s bottleneck and reached the Master. The soldier¡¯s sword pierced the old man¡¯s back, but Timon was in no position to care. He just started to laugh to himself. In an old, tired voice, the master spoke his final words as he fell to the ground ¡°Now¡­. Now we will be prepared¡­ Sent him back to warn them... Change the past to fix this... god damn future. Ha¡­ ha ¡­ ha ¡­. h-¡± Chapter 1 - Awakening A peculiar tingling sensation graced my hand. Holding my hand up, it seemed to be translucent and glowing green from the inside. The light spread up my arm! I felt a similar sensation on my left arm, then my feet¡­ within a few moments, everything below my head was tingling and radiating a dazzling light. My head was the last to feel the tingling, as it crept up my neck my thoughts started to get slower¡­ It was becoming¡­ hard ¡­ to ¡­ focu- The next thing that I remembered was the voice of the world speaking to me. This time felt different than other times I had been graced with her voice. Rather than the characteristically cheerful words, these felt somber, regretful even.
Your body was regrettably destroyed in the transportation process, looking for a viable target for the soul
Acceptable host found, initiating merger
Even though I heard the words enter my ears, the concepts were lost on me. My mind was still spinning from what I had just gone through. Again I could feel some sensation covering me, touching my arms and feet. The tingling made its way up past my neck and I los- I do not know how long I was like that, but when I eventually was able to regain my senses, I found them¡­ odd. My sight was non-existent as was my smell. But, my feeling of touch seemed to have evolved. It erupted around me in a circle a few meters wide. It was as if I was touching¡­ everything, all at once. Every blade of grass around me and every clump of dirt. The rocks and the ants that climbed them. Even that moldy apple over there, all were within my perception. Hold on a second! I tried to shake myself from the haze of new emotions and post-transportation grogginess, but found along with my sight I had lost my human body as well! Was the transfer a success? I was to be sent back to my younger self by Master Timon. He knew not how far I would be sent, but he predicted I would wake up in my own body wherever it happened to be at the time. However, I did not seem to be in my old body, or in a human body at all. Quickly, I checked my status. The world gave every intelligent creature access to some basic commands, one of which was status.
Status
Name: - - - Race: Ancient Dungeon
True Name: Firren Twire Level: 0
Gender: - - - Age: E????r????r???o?????r??
I stared at the screen for a second before understanding that message from before. Didn¡¯t the world say my body was destroyed and it looked for a viable target for my soul? That should have been my younger self¡­. unless¡­.Phillip! You idiot! I''m such an idiot for letting you do this! Philip had given me a dungeon core right before I left! Not just any core either, the Ancient Dragon Dungeon core. The crown jewel of the kingdom. It was his proof of lineage and the stone that rested at the head of the throne. It was the lasting symbol of this kingdom and was even depicted in the flag. Because I brought it with me, rather than being put into my own body I must''ve been put into this dam dungeon core. Mother fu- After fully accepting the information presented to me, I needed to know more. As an artifactor, I had learned of an advanced version of status that could be accessed by applying more concentration to the use of the skill. After a moment of intense effort, I was able to bring up the advanced window of the world.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
State Observe
Health: 1 / 1 Mana: 11301 / 1 Health Regen: 0/s Mana Regen: 357 / s
Floors: 0 Rooms: 0 Inhabitants: 0 Fauna: 0
Dungeon Type: Dragon Dungeon Influence: 3 Meters
How¡­.. The information flowing into my mind was unlike anything that I had previously seen when accessing this menu. 1 Hp? That means any single tap could kill me, right? But what was that mana regen? And what was this about floors? I was trying to process this information but, probably because of the transportation, I was still unable to think clearly in this thicklump of crystal that was my new home. It was then that I heard something, a soft noise coming from outside of my perception. It seemed I was unable to ¡®feel¡¯ anything outside of a few feet around me, but I could hear them. What it sounded like was a wishing of wind, like a small whistle, or maybe¡­. Snoring! The memories flooded back to me. Throughout my stay at the royal magic academy, I was often forced to take naps between classes, and my favorite spot? Under a particular apple tree near the outskirts of the school grounds. The grass and dirt, feeling them now, it was exactly as I remembered. Does that mean that sound is¡­. Me? The spell was meant to send my soul back in time to where my body was, then allow me to take it over. It must''ve got the location right but since I had already been forced into this dungeon core I was just plopped down next to my sleeping self. What do I do now? Think! Quick! Even as a young student at the academy I would not miss the giant murky-cyan gem that was the pride of the country just sitting next to him. I did not know what he would do if he saw me or even when the other me would awaken, but I did now know where I was. And my location was not a very hidden one. What can dungeons do? Other than sending out monsters to invade villages and terrorize townsfolk dungeons have some control over their interiors, able to manipulate them. Master Timon had once even theorized that- I mentally slapped myself. Not the time for reminiscing about my late Master Firren, not the time. Putting some of my concentration into the bubble of perception I controlled I was able to squish and warp it a bit. Rather than being a perfect sphere of sense around me, I could make it an oval, allowing me to ¡®view¡¯ a bit further in some directions. Feeling around a bit with my ¡®perception¡¯ I was able to sense a heavy-duty leather bag tossed a little ways away from my crystalline body. That must be the supply bag I came through with! Again thinking back of my dungeon knowledge I tried a theory that my master had believed about dungeons, that they could use magic! One of the few spells I actually knew as an artifact apprentice was a basic form of telekinesis. Trivial to a mage, but something of great importance for those who spent their days tinkering. Since inhabiting this body I had sensed that I had access to an ungodly amount of mana. More than I had sensed from some archmages at the academy. With no time to lose and a rushed incantation, I was able to concentrate and cast the telekinesis spell on the satchel.
Spell Cataloged - Telekinesis I
Though I was intrigued by what the world had to say at this moment, I decided to ignore the message and finish my spell. After a great amount of effort, I was able to coax the bag to myself. The largest object I had ever moved would have to be a medium size screwdriver, a thirty-pound time-travel-survival-kit was not quite as easy. After mentally patting my back for the quick success I remembered the mission I was sent here to do. Again, using the telekinesis spell, I was able to rummage through the various objects and letter in the bag, selecting a fine-looking note addressed to one Firren Twire, apprentice artifact at the royal magic academy. My master had asked many different people to prepare letters and objects for as many contingencies as we could fathom, even the one where somehow I need a way to convince my past self to work with me. This particular letter was one of three different ones that were addressed to ¡®me¡¯. It goes into minor detail about the events that would occur over the next eight years, but not too much detail. I have faith he will not tell anyone immediately after reading it. There had been near-universal agreement that if this plan was to succeed we must influence the past in minor ways, this would hopefully be the first step. With that taken care of, I was still a sitting crystal where anyone could see me. The faster I got out of here the better. Again, applying the power of telekinesis, I reached out to the dirt beneath my body, pulling it to either side of me and the satchel. After a few minutes of digging myself into the ground, I covered myself in the dirt. Now, all that could be seen was a fresh patch of dirt, a sleeping apprentice, and a letter written to him from his own future self.
Spell Advancement: Telekinesis I ¡ú II
In a particular field outside the entrance to the royal magical academy, under a particular apple tree, a particular apprentice stirred. He woke himself from his slumber in anticipation of attending his intermediate potion making class in the afternoon but found that he was covered in dirt. It was as if some wild animal had dug a hole next to him without any regard for where their debris would land. Standing up, he did his best remove the chunks of earth from his previously clean school uniform, but again a peculiar sight graced him. A letter laid in the grass not ten feet away. This letter was addressed to him¡­ from the king! Chapter 2 Time has been a blur to me. Hours, days, I do not know. What I do know is I must move deeper, further from the surface. After I confirmed that my past self had awoken from his nap none the wiser about my existence I again started using my telekinesis. It was hard at first, but with effort and much trial and error, I was able to move the dirt in a fluid motion. It was like a whirlwind of dirt around my core, slowly going deeper into the darkness. After some time the dirt became granite, not quite the easiest material to move, but surprisingly my telekinesis was able to push through it as well, though not without considerably more effort. But even after continuing what must have been a hundred meters, I did not stop. There was an urge deep inside me, telling me I must find a home underground. Somewhere safe and dark where I can not be touched by the... humans. So, I continued on. With the feelings in my core guiding me, I moved diagonally through the stone, tunneling with purpose. With my satchel still in tow, I ran into my first surprise. The stone in front of me was not like the rest. It gave off peculiar energy and a strange warmth. In my bubble of perception it felt¡­ tasty? Giving into the feeling my core seemed to act on its own, pulling on the chunk of rock, separating it from the rest of the stone and pulling it straight at my core. But, rather than colliding with my crystalline body, it seemed to glow brightly for a moment and disappear into a wave of energy.
New Material Absorbed - Earth Mana Stone
The world graced me with an explanation to the event, and I felt my body¡¯s urges return to manageable level like somehow my instincts were satiated by that fist-sized, brown rock. It seems like as a dungeon I can absorb materials? Does this work with stone as well? Trying to replicate those actions that my core had automatically performed proved to be difficult, however, it came to me with time. By pushing my perception into a material, deep beyond its surface, I gained a greater understanding of it. Much greater. I could feel the very makeup of the rock, down its composition, construction, and base properties. Once I could process all this, I tried commanding the rock. ¡®Break!¡¯ I exerted my will with strong intent. To my surprise, it actually worked! The rock shattered into pieces along stress lines that my analysis had identified. Again speaking to the rock, I commanded it. ¡®Absorb!¡¯ The rock¡¯s pieces began moving to my core at a frightening speed, but just like the Mana Stone, the moment they touched my core they disappeared into a wave of energy!
New Material Absorbed - Black Granite
Woh! That was so much easier than using telekinesis to command the solid stone to flow around me. All this time I could have been doing this? Damn! With renewed vigor I focused on the direction the Mana Stone had been and pushed my perception out in a massive wave of energy, penetrating multiple meters into the stone wall. Once I had felt it fully become my own, I pulled it back to my core. ¡®Absorb!¡¯This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. The stone was ripped forward and washed over me in waves of magical energy with every chunk. I pulled myself and my satchel forward into the hole I just created. Again I stretched out my presence and widened the tunnel in front of me. I moved my body forward and then repeated. I fell into a rhythm expanding, moving, then expanding again. Every time it became easier and faster. The process became smoother, more refined, more elegant. I could feel this energy building inside of me with every motion. The faster I did it, the more energy was flowing, circulating through my murky cyan core. Then, with one final push, the energy seemed to explode out of me.
Dungeon Core Birth! Congratulations new dungeon core! You have attained enough mana to be classified as a rank 1 Dungeon!
The world praised me. I could feel my body changing. The color of my core shifted going from cyan to a deep red, growing in size significantly too. I was suddenly not just a rock, but a full-fledged boulder.
Alert! A Dungeon is reforming in deceased dungeon core, unlocking previous powers.
Dragon species unlocked! Fire mastery unlocked!
Previous dungeon name: Fiery Death Destruction Dragon Death Dungeon. Accept old name?
My mind again grew groggy from the sudden change in crystal size and color. It seems in times like this the consciousness becomes second to the system¡¯s will. After repeating back the words of the world to myself I was able to comprehend their meaning. Dungeon Reforming? Well, this was a dead dungeon core, maybe I supplied it with enough power to revive it? But what does that mean for me? Am I safe in this core? Putting that aside, for now, naming huh? I need to name myself. Every dungeon I have visited has had a name, I always assumed the guilds or towns gave them names based on their characteristics. Does that mean that every dungeon core is sentient and names itself? Such a revelation would shake the foundation of the modern magical theory! Master Timon would immediately drag me on an expedition to the nearest dungeon core if he were to discover this fact. Has communication even been tried with dungeons before? Master Timon would- But Master Timon is dead¡­. My mind felt heavy now, like a pressure was weighing on it. I knew that in this timeline, he still lived, engrossed in research of all things magical. But I can''t forget his face as he watched me dematerialize. A face of pain and agony as he was stabbed by that damn soldier, tears on his eyes as he sacrificed everything to give the world another chance. I will not forget. I must do my best to prevent that tragic future! What would be the point of their suffering if I couldn''t? Even if the future is to be changed, it doesn''t mean it never happened! I will never forget its memory!
Name Confirmed: Dungeon Avenger
Now the messages from the world disappeared and left me alone in my stone tunnel, but, something else was now visible to me. I say visible, but I am limited to this bubble of perception spreading around my core. It seemed that final piece of rock was not like the rest, it opened me up to something new. What I mean is foreign energy seemed to flow strongly from the hole in the stone I just created. Not the energy of a magic stone, rather I seemed to instinctively understand what it was. Another dungeon was attacking me!
Dear Firren Twire, apprentice artifactor of the magic academy, I write this letter to you with great importance. His dorm room was dead quiet except for the sound of a piece of fine parchment flapping in unsteady, nervous hands. He did not have a roommate, but even so, he bolted the door so that no one could barge in on him. Professors did not take kindly to students skipping class, but the young artifactor had decided his intermediate potions class could wait, he already finished the assignment anyway. The king himself addressed a letter to him, what could be more important? Due to many circumstances, I cannot go into detail in this letter. I will be brief and cryptic. The world as you know it is at stake and if this letter finds you, then you have an important role in preventing its demise. More instructions will follow, but for now, do not tell anyone about this. You will know the future instructions with a blue feather. The apprentice was understandably confused. The world was at stake? As if, the kingdom currently is in its longest peaceful period in recorded history. Almost every country has agreed to de-armament en mass, who would believe this crap. He threw the note onto his table and hurried out of his room, hoping he could still make it to his potions class without getting another tardy. He paused at the door once more, looking at the fine piece of parchment with gold inlays sitting disheveled on his desk. The red wax of the ''royal seal'' shimmered with gold flakes in the sunlight. ¡®Huh¡­ A lot of detail to put into a dumb prank¡¯ And the door shut behind him. Chapter 3 The students of the magical academy went about their days like any other. Some moving to classes, others laughing with friends or brewed dangerous potions for assignments. Similarly, the professors followed their own routine. Some would spend hours droning on about the correct pronunciation of spell, while others would demonstrate the proper symbols for carving runes, even others liked to spend the time to enjoy a good sandwich. None were the wiser about the battle of control going on under their very academy. That was, of course, excluding Phonta. The moment the energies clashed, her attention had not wavered for even a second. Even for someone as attuned to the world as she, it is rare to see two dungeon cores do battle. The first core she had been watching for some time now. Its presence was faint. For anyone else, if they had even sensed it, they would have assumed it was some random mana stone or, for the exceptionally dim-witted, they would say its a dragon vein. But she had correctly identified it from the start as a brand new dungeon. That was two years ago, and since then it had kept growing deep underground. Every day, in her office, she would direct her perception under the school to find her little treasure. It was always there, biding its time, expanding, evolving. She could only guess at its type as it had yet to even summon a monster, but its mana capacity had doubled almost every three months like clockwork. In a decade she might be able to send an expedition for the first time. Her academy would then be able to boast of a young dungeon as training grounds for new students! That was her thought until today. Today everything changed. During a meeting with the school¡¯s landscaper, her little pet dungeon suddenly began to emit massive waves of mana. Not strong enough that others would easily since them, but strong nonetheless. Something was going wrong with her little pet. Her first thought was it was evolving or going mad, but in all her research that was nothing like this. She strained her perception, directing her entire being from to focus on the object below the academy. It was then when she felt a tiny, almost imperceptible pulse right next to the core. ¡°A magic stone?....No, not at all the right signature¡­¡± ¡°Uh¡­ Headmaster?¡±, The older man in overalls tilted his head. ¡°I d-don''t know much about those fancy magical rocks, but if you want-¡± Phonta changed her gaze to the window, staring intently at the grass outside, like somehow, the world would speak to her and tell her what is befalling her precious child. ¡°An animal maybe?¡±, she mumbled to herself. She wondered if some sort of beast invaded the dungeon from the caves? The man looked to the window, trying to follow his boss¡¯s gaze. ¡°That grey squirrel you mean? What about it?¡± After a silent moment of concentration, realization suddenly washed over Phonta. The peculiar energy she felt the other day near the forest. The powerful magic stone she watched move deep underground. The slight pulse coming from near the young core! ¡°It''s an attack!¡±, she practically yelled it as she realized what she had to do. Now, Carl was a simple man. He liked bushes and trees. Not the manliest things or the most lucrative hobbies, but no one could deny what he could do with an afternoon and a pair of trimmers. However, even with all his years of experience, no one called him exceptionally bright. Hardworking? Certainly. Honest? To a fault. But gullible as well. So when his headmaster stormed out the room, upset, and anxious, he wanted to do his best to rectify the problem. ¡°I knew it! They called me crazy, but it''s those darn squirrels! They are planning to invade the school!¡±, Carl had a new job to do!
THUD! Wave after wave of energy crashed on my ever-thinning protective shell of mana. Half of my reserves were gone and the other half was not faring well.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. THUD! The moment the dungeon had noticed me it lashed out with all its strength, and it had considerable. My core seemed much more resilient than it was when I was transported here, but this was not a fight I could win with my own strength! THUD! Frantic in both body and mind I rummaged through my satchel for anything that might prepare me for this event. I know master thought of much, but I am unsure if he gave me materials to deal with a hostile dungeon core. Not the most common situation to run into. THUD! Letters? I don''t think we prepared any that dungeon cores could read. Flash stones? Worth a shot! I ripped a few small red rocks out of their pouch and quickly cast the arming incantation, then, with as much power as I could muster, my telekinesis fired them into the hole in the stone. ¡°2¡­. 3¡­¡± I counted to myself, then BOOM! The wall of stone I had broken through to connect our two dungeons was now no more. I quickly pushed my perception into the opening slightly. Is it over? I suddenly could feel the other dungeon. For a brief moment, our perceptions had overlapped and I could understand it''s will. Then I felt the mana around me surge with emotion. With Rage, Vengeance, and Annoyance. PLAN B! WHAT IS PLAN B!?!? A massive wave of energy, enabled by the now unobstructed connection between our dungeons slammed into me. My crystal seemed to vibrate with the onslaught of power. BACK TO THE BAG! Assorted feathers? Nope? Rare ores? Probably not? Various monster cores? Bad idea. Then I found it. I had forgotten about this little gadget. Hurriedly I removed it from its casing, ripping off the attached note that listed twenty different ways this could end badly. Master Timon had lectured me for a whole day that I should only use this with no other options. The drawbacks might be¡­ extreme. Well, the drawbacks to not using it would be the end of this mission and by proxy, the world, let''s risk it. The device in question was a fist-sized clear magical gem, something that small nations might consider their crowning jewel. However, this gem has some special additions. Master Timon had spent many nights carving runes into the surface of the gem. A normally taboo practice, as it has a habit of making the spell impossible to control. And when I mean impossible, I mean that some of the most fatal accidents in recorded artifactor history have come from overzealous inventors abusing this technique to pull more power from crystals. THUD! Another wave crashed into me. I could feel each one was stronger than the last, or maybe my shell was weakening with each hit. It is now or never! I said a silent prayer to anyone listening and then activated the magic gem. A beam of white light erupted from the gem. At first, it was just a strong light, and I quickly directed it in the direction of the enemy core. The light slowly got brighter. The white light morphed into pure white mana. The beam widened, growing stronger and stronger. The onslaught of mana was abruptly pulled back. For a moment I was the one in control! The other cores mana was holding strong against my onslaught, forming a protective shell around his core like I had around my own. The gem in my hand continued to shine brighter. It had already surpassed anything that the other core had sent against me, and it kept getting stronger. Arcs of mana started dancing around the room as the beam generated by the crystal was not enough to direct the evergrowing energy. My perception was getting fuzzy. I was able to detect the mana of the air and stone quite well before, but with the concentration of energy, there was too much noise. Everything was beginning to shine white. The walls themselves seemed to ooze with the mana in the room, feeling sticky and wet. The crystal grew brighter. And brighter. And brighter.
¡°At thus, this symbol can be used to link the idea from earlier to this new concept to create a third spell joining their two effects. In recent papers, it has been theoriz-¡± brrrrrr The professor went quiet. He felt magic power coming from deep underground. Strong, powerful waves and they were growing stronger. Brrrrrrr The room started to shake. No! It wasn''t just the room, the whole academy was trembling. Even the students could feel it now, waves and waves of energy ripped across the air. Powerful, waves of pure magic and they were still growing stronger. Each one sent people ducking under their desks. The teachers were calmer, but noticeably shaking. ¡°Students! Calm down! We are going to evacuate the building! Leave in an orderly manner so we-¡± BBBRRRRRRRRRRRRR The shaking grew stronger, more frequent, and a buzzing noise was added to the chaos. Mana could be felt in the air, to the mages it was actually palpable. The students ran, bursting through halls and doors. Fleeing the building fearing they would collapse, but one student seemed calmer than the rest. In fact, he was not calm, inside he was freaking out. His past two days flashed before his eyes. The letter still lay crumpled on his desk, he had not touched it since that night. He had actually gone out of his way to leave it there? But why? He asked himself that, but he did not know. Maybe deep down he had believed that the letter was not a poor prank. Maybe he was actually destined for something greater than beginner alchemy and artifacting. The supposed king''s words flowed into him The world as you know it is at stake If that were, in fact, true, what could he do? He knew not why, but he was sure he had to do something! As the professors tried to cast a defensive bubble around the scared students, he ran. Ran as fast as he could, back to his dorms. Back to the letter. Maybe he could save the world! Chapter 4 Phonta tore through the shelves of her office, littering her floor with a multitude of artifacts she had collected. Magic tomes acquired from exotic shores and hidden realms tumbled to her feet around her. Stone and metal carvings, that, to the untrained eye were paperweights, but to her, they were priceless memories of the past sacrifices she had made. Phonta knew all too well what the energy building beneath the school would do, what it was capable of. She feared the worst. The students would be fine, she sensed that a protective spell had already been erected. If it came to it, she would cast one on herself. Neither was it the campus she fought to save, it could be rebuilt within a couple of years. Nor was it even the money that she would lose. Though she was by no means a wealthy woman, she had quite a lot of connections. Three lifetimes spent on the front lines fighting rogue dungeons and hostile empires allowed you to meet a person or two. What she feared losing was even greater than any of that. She feared for the future of mages themselves. The world was changing. Gone were the days of mighty battles and giant monsters lurking beyond the next mountain. In was the age of innovation, of engineering, of peace. Mages did not have the respect they once did, as Phonta knew first hand when she constructed her academy. People looked down on her for not letting go of the past, but it was them who were doomed to repeat it. In her office, she had torn apart two shelves, but haven''t found what she sought. She was in a frenzy, waves of energy crashed onto her faster and faster. Then, under a pile of papers in a cobweb infested corner, she found it!
Firren¡¯s feet tumbled underneath him as another quake shook the ground. Pushing himself to stand up. For the third time, he restarted his frantic pace. He raced past the spellcraft laboratories, past the firing range, past the sparring arena, and bursting into the dorms. Up a flight and into his room, he observed his desk. Right where he had left it, a crumpled ball of fine, gold-lined parchment sat on his desk. Looking at it now, he felt so stupid. Who would go through an elaborate prank like this? One of the noble mages, still resenting him for their failing careers? Maybe, but unlikely. The ground shook again, sending Firren grasping for support against the desk. Now was not the time to question this. This letter was real, something big was going on. He came back for the letter, and he had it, he needed to go. Bursting from the dorm building, he ran back, back to the students. When whatever was going on finally happened, he did not want to be outside of the erected barrier. The sparing area flew by him on the right, then he passed the firing range on the left but stopped. Was that¡­. ¡°Headmaster? HEADMASTER!¡±, He yelled over the rumbling of the ground. She was not thirty feet away in the courtyard of the academy holding something in her hand. A magic stone? Without noticing the apprentice behind her, she grasped the stone firmly with both hands and slammed it into the ground with mana-amplified strength. PHWOOOM The stone was immediately embedded deep into loose dirt. Firren then saw her produce a silver cube, a few millimeters on either side. He could not make out its fine detail, but he had seen objects like this before. ¡°Is that¡­¡± ¡°A spirit control circuit¡±, interrupted an old gruff man coming up behind him. ¡°Ah- Master Timon, I ¡­. What is¡­. How-¡± ¡°No time for that now! I trust Phonta knows what she is doing, but I''m not enough of a fool to stick around and find out!¡±, His gaze traveled down as if was examining the grass at his feet. For a brief moment, he seemed to zone out, having a distant look in his eye. Then his eyes went wide. ¡°WE NEED TO GO NOW!¡± Phonta was finished with her preparations.
The waves of mana erupting from the mana stone were now unbearable. They shook my core worse than the enemy core ever had, and they kept getting stronger! Everything inside my perception felt of pure mana, of power. My perception was going blind and I was about to die in an explosion of mana, but all I could think was, This is all my fault? I was too reckless borrowing down her too quickly and without caution. What did I even hope to gain? I am going to die and nothing is going to change at all!Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Another wave ripped through me. I could feel the intensity growing by the moment. One thought echoed in my mind. Survive. Not for me, or the people above us, but for the future. For the generations lost. For my master. For Philip. Their faces echoed through my crystalline body. This would not be my end. I will not let it. The energy around me grew stronger, brighter, more energetic, but my own reserves were weakening. The shell of mana I had as a defense was struggling to even dampen the onslaught. If only I had more mana! ¡°But I do¡­.¡±, I whispered to myself. I was being blasted with some of the strongest mana waves that existed in the world at the moment. How could I run out of mana? I am a dungeon core now goddammit! Unsure of the logic behind this plan, but certain that it was the only hope, I lowered my mana shell. BOOOM! The mana crashed harder than ever before. I was underestimating how protective that shield had been. Cracks began to appear around my body. I could feel fragments begin to break off, ripped back by the mana impacting me. Then, with all my will I had left, with all the strength of my past coursing through my mind, I commanded the mana. ¡°ABSORB!¡± Instantly my body stopped resisting the mana. It was as if someone had just opened the floodgates into my very soul. Energy without bound coursed through my body. My repeated reserves filled to maximum in an instant, then kept filling. I felt a familiar feeling building inside of me¡­ almost like¡­.
LEVEL UP
WOH¡­¡­ The energy inside me seemed to drain into my body increasing its size and thickness immediately. A harder, darker red crystal now surrounded me. The waves suddenly seemed weaker. It was not that the mana stone had been depleted, but my defense had increased. The mana kept flowing. My reserves were filled again and I was surging with more energy than before. The pain started to course through my crystal, something I did not know a dungeon core could even feel until now. The power was too much now I was almost at my breaking point again.
LEVEL UP
The Strain shot back down and for a moment I was under control again, but it did not stop. My core was rapidly filling with mana. I was unable to stop the process any more. The pain grew more intense each second. I was burning up from inside my core.
LEVEL UP
AHHHHHHH!!!! The mana was not stopping! The strain on my body was growing stronger! THE PAIN! THE PAIN!!!
LEVEL UP
I Can''t go on like thi-
LEVEL UP
AAHHHHHHH!
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
LEVEL UP
A small golden rabbit popped its head out of the box in Phonta''s arms, a quarter meter in length and glowing with magical power, it danced around her in a circle. "No is not the time... Frank... I need you to.....", A tear formed on her eye as she explained to her pet. The spirit animal tilted its head at first, then seemed to understand. "I-Im so s-s-sorry!", She hugged the animal with a long embrace. Tears flowed on her eyes, but there was no other way to stop this overload. The power had reached the point where she feared the student''s protective barrier would not hold. She closed her eyes for a long moment, then let go of the animal. Frank hopped to the magic stone and turned to look back at his master of ten years. Then, phased down through the ground towards the core. Phonta unleashed the spell. The mana stone she was using immediately cracked in two, forming a beam of light streaming deep into the ground. PHWOOOM! With her bettered senses she confirmed that Frank had successfully used the energy to surround the overloading device. She just hoped that it would be enough, hoping he would survive the bla- BOOOOOOOM! The ground shook in one final tremor and the overloaded mana stone gave up on containment. A Tsunami of mana erupted from every direction of the stone sending out waves capable of leveling buildings and driving mages mad, but the eruption never reached the surface. The protective shell form by the spiritimpacted the mana in a mighty clash. Pure mana and anti-mana collided with each other in spectacular fashion. Tit for tat they exchanged blows annihilating each other and absorbing the almost endless release. The world seemed to be shaking apart, but an earthquake was nothing in comparison to the damage a wave of pure mana could do. Especially at that strength. And it was over. The two mana signatures below had almost perfectly annihilated each other, leaving nothing behind. It was over. The school was safe, and Phonta wept.
Cracks started to deepen in my core from the strain. Its density had grown tenfold, but the mana was not letting up. THE PAIN WAS UNBEARABLE! I AM GOING TO - and everything went white. . . . When I came to I was still alive, somehow. The only information provided to me was from the world itself.
You have slain an enemy dungeon core named ¡®Mystic Golem Dungeon¡¯, you absorb its powers.
Firren stood up slowly on his shaky feet, unable to comprehend the spectacle of magic he just witnessed. He had taken cover behind a building with Master Timon, but it ultimately proved pointless. He was right, Phonta was able to save us all. He took a shaky step towards the collapsed headmaster in the courtyard, but a hand quickly grasped his shoulder. ¡°Don''t disturb her boy, she had gone through enough. Why don''t you instead tell me what you have in your hand?¡± Master Timon looked into my eyes and motioned to the parchment I still clutched in my fingers. ¡°uhhhh¡­..¡± Chapter 5 I won¡­. I was startled for a long second. After what felt like hours of the struggle between our cores, the fact that I had slain the other dungeon was somewhat of a shock to me. But even more than that was my now-evolved crystalline structure. My once cyan core had become a dark red with large specks of grey that seemed to dance around and move throughout the crystal. But not just my body had grown, my power top. Before I was overwhelmed by the energy I had felt around me, but now¡­ now it was unlike anything I could understand. I felt my presence reaching out in all directions further, deeper, stronger than before. I felt as though the caves and rooms of the now defeated dungeon core were mine to bend and shape to my will. Unconsciously I felt the mana coursing through the stone and sensed where mana cores could be located. I understood that with a single thought that wall would vanish or I another one could be put in its place. The very essence of the ground seemed to revere me as its king. Its god! It was a scary feeling and one I had no intention to abuse. If I was weaker willed I might have abandoned myself to those feelings. My sense of power and regality taking over, my master and friends doomed by my folly, but if I was that weak of will I would never have been sent back. So I pushed the temptations to the back of my mind and brought up my status. What do I have to work with?
Status
Name: Dungeon Avenger Race: Ancient Dungeon
True Name: Firren Twire Level: 11
Gender: - - - Age: E????r????r???o?????r??
Health: 342 Mana: 20532 Health Regen: 10/s Mana Regen: 1820 / s
Floors: 2 Rooms: 38 Inhabitants: 0 Fauna: 0
Dungeon Type: Dragon & Golem Dungeon Influence:If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. 207 Meters
I am now a Dragon and Golem dungeon¡­. Huh. That''s an interesting combination. Dragonic Golems could be interesting? That means that when I absorbed the other dungeons powers I took its type as well. Thinking about the list of dungeons he had memorized as part of his preparations he only noted two that were dual types. Maybe dual types are only possible through conquest like this. Does that make me a rarity now? Well, I was a rarity before. But my just looking at my stats my powers were nothing like earlier. The mana itself had risen sharply, as well as my influence. I must give off quite the power now huh¡­. wait¡­. The surface! The school! With my power as it was, I was sure to be sensed by them. Hell, the clash I just had must¡¯ve sent ripples all the way to the capital. I am found out for sure. But was that bad? I have a hope of communication now. No doubt they will be sending someone to investigate me, see what those waves of mana were about. If they caused any major damage they may even come for extermination first! There will be a fight. But again I ask myself, is that bad? Maybe this is exactly what I need. My plan had been destroyed the second I appeared like this. But maybe, just maybe this could work¡­. But first I need to figure out what EXACTLY I can do!
¡°Sir! I can explain! I swear I meant no harm¡­ I was just¡­¡±, Firren was having little luck with Mater Timon ¡°Doing what? I see that letter you have stuffed in your pocket! Who sent you! What do they want with our school now!¡±, Timon was not happy with the young apprentice. They had only met once, during the entrance exam. He saw promise in him then, but now¡­. Now he only saw disgust. ¡°Who? I don''t know! I wasn''t sent anywhere ¡­ The-the letter was ¡­.¡±, Firren had no idea what was going on. It was just a letter, a royal one, but still. ¡°They are up to their old tricks again! Trying to scare Phonta off again, but this time they resort to terrorism! You will be expelled if we find you were set up to do this!.... That¡¯ll send them a message alright!¡±, Timon was yelling now at the apprentice, but his eyes were unfocused as if he was remembering a dream. ¡°I think you are mistaken, sir! This letter was just a prank sent by some gruffy student to mess with me, I just happened to hav-¡±, The envelope was snatched from his hand in an instant. ¡°Oh! So it was a prank huh!¡±, Timon did not buy it one second. ¡°They always choose the dumb ones, easier to recruit, but so easy to catch too¡±, Timon seemed to sigh to himself. Timon ripped the wax seal off the envelope and placed it face down on the table. Firren could almost make out a rune on the back of it. ¡®Why was that--¡¯ The master made a fist with his hand, revealing a red magical stone embedded into a golden ring on his finger. Closing his eyes and muttering to himself for a long moment, channeling his mana into the runes embedded on the ring and into the gem. The stone glowed a brilliant yellow light, causing both Timon and the boy to cover their eyes quickly. When the light vanished, the young apprentice looked first at the master, then followed his eyes to the wax seal. There, on the back of the wax, was a faint icon. A golden crown with a blue gem embedded proudly at the front. The symbol of the king himself. There was no doubt about it now. This letter and its contents were handwritten by the king for Firren to read. Both Timon and Firren let out a gasp, but for very different reasons.
After a few hours of trial and error, I had made quite a bit of progress on understanding and expanding my powers. First, thanks to the expanded powers and some honest practice I was able to move and bend the stone in the dungeon to my will. Though considerably harder, the metal ores and magic stones were also absorbed, formed, and moved by a simple thought. Holding this much control was something unreal to me. Thinking back to a peaceful time, many years before I was sent back, I remembered the feeling of using the telekinesis spell for the first time. For a solid week, I had made small pebbles orbit his hand wherever I went. Allowing them to dance about in the air, making elaborate and fluid moves like they were birds on the wind. I felt the same way now. I don''t know if it was my dungeon instincts flaring up from the level up, or the fact that I finally had a plan of what I wanted to do, or even the fact that it was incredibly fun. But regardless, I was excited to begin to shape the dungeon to my will. I moved my core to the pedestal the old core sat and stretched out my perception to its maximum. I could feel the grass some kilometer above me rustle in the wind and the caves stretch on for miles, winding their way to the surface. If they did come for me, they would come through the caves. That was for sure. The previous dungeon¡¯s work was not something to take lightly. He had a solid two floors and more than three dozen rooms set up, but they were too small, too basic. They formed a spiral from his core room and had no strategy or purpose. I could tell the other dungeon ran more on instinct than careful consideration. I intended to be different. For the first real time since coming back as a dungeon, I send out a sweeping order to my dungeon. "CLOSE!!" And the earth shook. In an instant, the stone moved itself to fill in every corridor, room, and the cave that was outside my core room. Immediately my mana pool almost bottomed out, but I had sealed any entrance to me for the time being. They could still come, there were records of dungeons sealing their entrances when they felt threatened, but no thickness of stone can withstand the will of a kingdom and its profit. Pickaxes would be brought out and night and day they would work to chip ever closer to the core. I did not intend to end up like that, watching as an armed party of adventurers dug their way to my demise. I have a plan now after all.
Headmaster Phonta sat down in her office, her head swimming with emotions. It had a day since the incident, but she still could not help herself from tearing up a bit at the thought of its result. Her dungeon, her pet, they were both lost to her. Her school, her school, her very name, they all could have been taken from her had she acted slower. No! It was not that she acted slow, it was that she let the dungeon grow beneath the school for so long without restraint. She would not make the same mistake again. She sensed another core had taken over what her pet dungeon had left behind. She carefully folded the letter she had laid out in front of her. Placed it into the envelope, sealed it, and handing to her secretary outside. ¡°Ma¡¯am?¡± ¡°Send this to the adventurers guild. It is urgent.¡±