I awoke to the warmth of Nike's embrace, his breath soft against my chest. The morning sun filtered through the dungeon's crystalline walls, casting prismatic hues over the room. I lay still, savoring the moment. The weight of the previous day's revelations—dragon fruit orchards, new rooms, and the Seed of Creation's mysteries—still lingered, but now, I had a plan.
Carefully, I shifted my consciousness to my core, leaving my body still and silent so as not to disturb Nike. The familiar interface bloomed before me, its glow dimmed to avoid waking him. I navigated to the newly created panel for named mobs.
Hydra. Dream. Stewart, the Crystal Mouse King.
The system had auto-assigned Stewart his title, and I smiled at the whimsy of it. A mouse king? Absurd, but somehow fitting. I hoped his presence would intimidate delvers enough to justify the name.
Scrolling further, I paused. Hydra's evolution prompt glowed faintly—a notification I'd somehow missed. Small Crystal Hydra: Elemental Heads. My brow furrowed. Had another invasion triggered this? The insects from before must've pushed him over the threshold.
New Evolutions Unlocked:
Small Crystal Hydra – Elemental Heads
Each head wields a distinct elemental power: Fire, Ice, Acid, Void, or Poison. Each head can bite and unleash a breath attack. Only large hydras grow new heads after decapitation.
High Crystal Cobra – Elemental Sorcery
Gains heightened intelligence and the ability to cast elemental spells aligned with its power.
Residential Evolution:
Naga (Hydra Variant)
Two-headed, religious figures in Naga society. Their dual vision grants enhanced perception.
Dream's evolutions followed, equally intriguing:
Crystal Python – Spine of Shards
No need to constrict—its jagged spine rends flesh with every strike.
Crystal Cobra of Light – Mirage of Scales
Manipulates reflected light to blind foes or vanish into the environment.
My mind raced. The Naga evolution demanded caution. Would Rikka's people embrace a two-headed form? Would it align with their culture, or clash with it? And the Hydra's elemental heads—would they clash or synergize in combat? I'd need to consult Isabella and Nike.
Pulling myself back to my body, I slipped from the bed, careful not to disturb Nike's slumber. The bathhouse awaited.
Steam rose from the marble tiles as I stepped into the hot springs, the water's warmth easing my muscles. I lingered, letting the heat melt away the tension of summoning new mobs and wrestling with evolution choices. The dragon fruit orchard's potential still fascinated me—would the fruit's monsters eventually stabilize, or would they keep evolving into new forms?
Drying off, I returned to my room, hoping Nike was awake. The corridor was quiet until I turned the corner and spotted him exiting our chambers, his tail flicking absently.
"Good morning, Nike," I said, my voice warm. "I wanted to ask you something—if you have a moment."
His smile faltered, a flicker of hesitation crossing his face. "I have some time, Azzy, just not much. Orchid needs help sorting the dragon fruit. The goblins adore the yellow ones, but the Nagas won't touch them."
I chuckled. "Nothing urgent. Just… since Agu and her party came through, we haven't had any other challengers. Am I doing something wrong?" Worry crept into my voice.
Nike tilted his head, considering. "Go see Rikka and Agu. One of them might know. But if you hurry, you can still help with the orchard."
Before I could protest, he darted off, his laughter echoing down the hall.
The great hall buzzed with activity—goblins bartering, Nagas sharpening blades, and Orchid's drones hovering near the fruit trees. My panel buzzed suddenly, its alert sharp and urgent:
Warning: High-ranking delver approaching. Prepare to defend your core.
Drak's POV
After traveling all the way to this remote village and speaking to that old man, I finally found the dungeon I was sent to investigate. Why did I have to come to this backwater place instead of staying at the last dungeon? That one had dragons and lava elementals—good loot. This place? It didn't look like it had anything worthwhile. The entrance was just a small crystal opening. I seriously doubted anything in here could even scratch my axes or survive my fire.
After stepping inside, I found nothing in the first room. Moving to the second, a small swarm of sharp-toothed rodents charged at me. I wished for more of a challenge, but a single blast of fire sent them scurrying. The few that didn't escape were reduced to corpses. I stepped over two charred rodents and moved to the next chamber. This time, I faced snakes with glowing fangs. It took two firebolts and a swing of my axe to clear them. I barely spared them a glance before continuing.
The third floor finally piqued my interest. The golems were a surprising challenge. Most dungeons balanced their rooms—this one spiked in difficulty suddenly. It wasn't much of a problem for me, but for weaker adventurers, it would be a nightmare.
I charged the two large golems, dodging and weaving until I found an opening. With a clean strike of my axe, I shattered one. That's when my legs were suddenly trapped—crystals had crept up and encased them! A female-shaped golem fired a volley of crystal spikes at me. I summoned an earth wall, blocking the attack, but my defense crumbled under the assault of another golem. Just in time, I broke free, cleaving through my attackers one by one. The final golem attempted to assist, but it was pulled away to the fourth room. Now this was getting interesting.
Azazel's POV
She was cutting through everything. I had to hold back some forces from each encounter just to make the final room formidable. It was my best shot at survival. At least, that's what I thought at the time. Better to mass-swarm her than let her power through to my core room unchecked.
New rule: No more complaining about an easy-going life.
She entered the fourth room, pausing momentarily as the boss and swarm of mice surged at her. The moment's hesitation was short-lived, and she cut through them with brutal efficiency. Then came another swarm—crystal cobras. Even with her strength, she was finally beginning to slow. Little by little, her battles were wearing her down. I spotted fresh wounds across her arms, legs, waist, and even a few cuts on her face. She took a breath after the cobra fight—her first real pause.
I pulled away from watching the delver and sought out Nike and Cinder, ordering them to meet me at the tunnel leading out of my core room.
By the time they gathered, the delver emerged from the sixth room, her body covered in wounds, her breathing labored.
I stepped forward and called out, "Stop, delver! You have entered the core room. What do you want?"