[First Layer, Zone 3]
This was an area themed around nature.
A green field spread out before me, so fresh-looking it was refreshing just to see.
But contrary to its appearance, the beings on that field were not refreshing in the slightest.
- Man-eating Tentacle Plant (★★★)
- Bloodsucking Butterfly (★★)
The plants, blooming with different gaudy flowers, and the butterflies fluttering above them were monsters waiting for prey.
But there was a fatal weakness here.
“They look far too vulnerable to fire.”
It seemed like an intruder could end things simply by setting the place ablaze.
“I’ll need countermeasures, won’t I?”
First of all, this was a dungeon.
There was no way it would have fire safety measures like Earth.
And the monsters didn’t seem like they would have thought that far either.
In the end, it meant I had to be the one to propose a solution first.
“I’ll have to create a fire suppression squad first.”
In other words, a fire brigade.
That was simple.
The monsters overflowing inside the dungeon were goblins anyway.
It would be an easy matter to organize a unit centered around goblins first.
Finally, all I had to do was order the Goblin Lord to carry out my plan.
The only thing that had changed was that the work I used to order Celia to do was now being given to the Goblin Lord.
“Very easy.”
From now on, if a fire broke out in the dungeon, the fire brigade made up of goblins would attempt to suppress it first.
Following that, it seemed I would need to prepare equipment as well.
‘I’ll have to make those gradually.’
For now, all they could use were buckets.
And even that would require drawing water from the lake in Zone 4, so it would be a somewhat hands-on task.
“Hmm. Thinking about it that way, it feels a bit lacking.”
Even if I organized a fire brigade, something felt lacking.
It wasn’t a fundamental solution, and more than anything, I needed a method that could resolve the issue immediately.
Just as I was pondering that, an alert appeared.
- “Suppress the Fire!” (110,000 won)
Contents: 1 sprinkler, free 3-star intermediate Water Spirit.
It was a package item, appearing for the first time in quite a while.
The price was 110,000 won, and the issue was the contents.
“A sprinkler?”
It wasn’t a sprinkler in name only. It really did look like a sprinkler that sprayed water.
An item that looked like it belonged on the ceiling of a building was included in the package.
“I’m supposed to use this in a dungeon…?”
It was true that I wanted the dungeon’s infrastructure to develop more than it had.
But the item that had appeared just now was far too modern a development.
It even came with a 3-star Water Spirit.
There was no need to hesitate over this.
“I have to buy it, no matter what.”
I had never once suffered a loss from buying a package item so far.
On top of that, products like this didn’t appear every day, so it was best to buy them immediately when the opportunity came.
I clicked on the package product right away and paid for it.
- Payment complete! The contents have been delivered to your mailbox.
After paying immediately, I received the items from the mailbox.
- Sprinkler: A device that sprays water in the surrounding area.
- Grade: ★★★
- Race: Spirit
[Traits]
- Water Storage (B): Can store a large amount of water inside the body.
[Basic Information]
Vitality: C
Attack Power: E
Defense: C+
Mana: C+
[Skills]
- Water Absorption (C): Absorbs water.
- Water Discharge (C): Discharges water stored inside the body.
“Oh.”
The intermediate Water Spirit in particular was amazing.
Since it could store water inside its body and release it whenever needed, I could expect it to have all sorts of uses.
“As expected, buying it was the right decision.”
The countermeasure for the fire I had been worrying about just moments ago had been completely solved with a single Water Spirit.
As soon as the Water Spirit was summoned, it immediately headed somewhere.
Its destination was none other than Zone 4.
The Water Spirit looked a little like a water droplet, and its waddling gait was quite cute.
“But isn’t it too small?”
The spirit was only about the size of my palm.
Even if a spirit that size absorbed water, how much could it possibly absorb?
I felt a slight doubt, but I watched the spirit through the screen.
Before long, the Water Spirit arrived in Zone 4.
It immediately threw itself into the lake.
Then it began sucking in the water from the lake.
“……”
The Water Spirit that had entered the lake showed no sign of coming out.
It must have been continuously absorbing water, because the water in the lake was visibly decreasing.
“This guy…”
It still had not come out.
As it continued absorbing water, the lake’s water level kept dropping.
At this rate, wouldn’t the lake disappear?
Just as I was worrying about that, the nagas living in the lake took action first.
Perhaps displeased by the sight of the Water Spirit endlessly absorbing water, the nagas grabbed the Water Spirit and dragged it out of the lake.
“Buuurp—”
The Water Spirit had become plump and round.
As if satisfied with the lake water, it even burped.
It had absorbed so much water that its body had grown enormously.
The spirit that had been the size of my palm now looked over two meters tall.
“Huh…”
The trait had certainly said it could store a large amount of water.
But its standard for “a large amount” exceeded my expectations.
“Looks like I’ll have to reconstruct the lake too.”
The enlarged spirit began returning to where it had originally been.
When it returned to Zone 3, Aren and Nariel, who were there, looked utterly startled.
“By the way, how do I use the sprinkler?”
This time, I looked at the sprinkler that had been included along with the spirit.
The problem was how to install it.
“Should I take it out first?”
I touched the sprinkler.
- Failed to install sprinkler.
- The dungeon lacks the power required to install the sprinkler.
- To increase its power, please upgrade the dungeon core.
A variable appeared.
I had never expected that it would be impossible to install.
“Hmm.”
I closed my eyes for a moment and thought.
‘So it wasn’t just called the heart for nothing.’
I already knew that the dungeon core was important.
But this was the first time I learned that the dungeon’s power changed depending on the core, and that there were limits on the facilities that could be installed.
If there was one fortunate thing, it was that I currently had a way to upgrade the dungeon core immediately.
After gaining the trait “True Master of the Dungeon” last time, I had acquired not only the monster enhancement and level systems, but another ability as well.
It was the ability to absorb corpses and use them as offerings.
- Trait “True Master of the Dungeon” has activated.
And by using those offerings, I could upgrade my dungeon.
“I can use that now.”
The corpses of the villains I had absorbed during the last monster wave, and the corpses of the people who had been killed by their hands.
I had thought I would use them as offerings someday, and that day had turned out to be today.
- Absorbed offerings exist.
- Please select the reward to receive using the relevant offerings.
1) Upgrade Dungeon Core
2) Upgrade Dungeon Altar
3) Create Empty Dungeon
An additional alert appeared, asking me to select what to upgrade.
Last time, I had upgraded the altar instead of the core.
I tapped the explanation once more and looked at it.
[Upgrade Dungeon Core]: An important organ called the heart of all dungeons. Upgrading the dungeon core increases its durability and expands the power possessed by the dungeon.
It was the same explanation I had seen last time.
However, this time, I checked again the phrase I had simply passed over before.
“So that’s what expanding its power meant.”
In the future, if I wanted to develop various facilities, it meant I would ultimately have to upgrade the dungeon core properly as well.
This time, I did not hesitate.
I immediately tapped Upgrade Dungeon Core.
- You have selected Upgrade Dungeon Core.
- Dungeon Core upgrade complete.
- Dungeon Core level has risen to 2.
At the same time as the upgrade completed, an alert appeared saying the level had risen.
“It should install now, right?”
Fortunately, installing the sprinkler became possible.
After thinking over the location for a moment, I installed it on the dungeon ceiling.
“The problem is whether this thing will actually work…”
This was a dungeon with nothing in it.
Just because a sprinkler was attached to the ceiling didn’t make it look like it would operate.
As I stared intently at it for a moment, the Water Spirit began to move.
The spirit, its body now enormous, raised its hand and removed the sprinkler attached to the ceiling.
Then it brought it to its mouth.
“?”
What was it doing?
With the sprinkler in its mouth, the creature soon began spouting water.
“Guweeeeeeek—”
Along with a strange sound, the water stored inside its body began gushing out like a fountain.
“Oh, so this is how it’s used?”
It looked somewhat strange, but its performance seemed decent.
* * *
“Mr. Death Knight.”
Celia called out to the Death Knight, who was diligently swinging a pickaxe.
At her question, the Death Knight looked at Celia with hope in his eyes.
“Once the expansion of Zone 2 is finished, we will remodel the huts in Zone 2. And let’s also reorganize the lake in Zone 4.”
Celia said she would also submit a request to the Demon Realm Trading Company, then left behind a request for him to keep working hard for the time being and disappeared.
“……”
This was both the command of the general manager and the will of the great master.
The Death Knight despaired, yet he did not stop swinging his pickaxe.
* * *
The gleam of gold and jewels mingled together, shining brilliantly.
The room was filled with a quiet grandeur, and a deep red carpet covered the floor.
Looking around, only furniture decorated with gold and jewels came into view.
Even the candles, glowing softly, rested atop candlesticks made of crystal.
As befitting such a splendid place, the people gathered here were no ordinary individuals either.
The dresses they wore were like a magnificent garden created by flowers of many colors.
There was no need to even mention the jewelry ornaments.
Among those thoroughly steeped in elegance and luxury, one opened his mouth.
“By the way, what became of Count Derek?”
Those gathered here now were nobles of the Seil Kingdom.
And members of the noble faction, at that.
“Well, whatever happened to a fellow like that is none of our concern.”
At the mention of the name Derek, everyone wore displeased expressions.
It was only natural.
Count Derek had originally been the leader who headed the noble faction.
But hadn’t he suddenly gone on a rampage at the banquet, swinging a blade?
With one wrong move, even their own lives could have been in danger.
In truth, the count’s actions had been caused by Celia controlling him, but there was no way the nobles could know that much.
In the end, the count was detained because of that incident.
“Now, now, let’s stop talking about that on such a fine day. Has the time not come?”
As the conversation began to flow strangely, one noble clapped his hands and refreshed the atmosphere.
Then he continued.
“A short while ago, the paladins of the Order arrived in the kingdom.”
“?”
Everyone expressed doubt at his words.
“Er, wasn’t it supposed to take a few more days for the Order to arrive…”
That was true.
The Order’s party visiting the kingdom this time was large.
Naturally, it could not help but take time.
And yet, he said the paladins had arrived a short while ago?
“No matter how weakened he may be, the current king is a lion—no. The current king is a wild dog. If we let our guard down, we never know when we might be bitten.”
The noble who had said the paladins had arrived wore a sinister expression.
“That is why we must do our utmost. Those who arrived a short while ago will all move covertly and gather information. You all understand, yes?”
Everyone nodded.
In short, it meant that the Order’s paladins would inspect the inside of the kingdom behind the royal family’s back.
Diplomatically, this was a grave breach of courtesy, but that did not matter to them.
All they had to do was secure their own interests first, while also obtaining the development rights to the mountain range.
‘Heh heh. I knew this would happen, so I sent the adventurers ahead.’
The royal family must have grasped the fact that adventurers had gone to the mountain range as well.
But the adventurers were bait to draw their attention away.
The true objective was the Order’s paladins who had secretly entered.
“The great undertaking is not far off now.”
Dawn was still a long way away, and the festival had only just begun.
The nobles smiled and raised their glasses.
They became intoxicated with the atmosphere, knowing nothing.
Unaware of the hidden being watching them, they entrusted the night to pleasure.