[Level 1 Sector 3]
This was a sector themed around nature.
The sprawling green fields were refreshing just to look at.
However, contrary to its appearance, the beings on the field were anything but refreshing.
– Man-eating Tentacle Plant (★★★)
– Blood-sucking Butterfly (★★)
The plants blooming with different, vibrant flowers and the butterflies fluttering above them were monsters patiently waiting for their prey.
But they had a critical weakness.
“They seem too vulnerable to fire.”
It looked like the invaders would be finished if someone just set the place on fire.
“We need a countermeasure.”
This is a dungeon, after all.
There were no fire safety measures like those found on Earth.
The monsters likely wouldn’t have considered such things either.
Ultimately, I had to come up with a solution first.
“First, I need to create a firefighting unit.”
In other words, a fire brigade.
This was simple.
The dungeon was overflowing with goblins, which were monsters.
The easiest way was to organize a unit primarily composed of goblins.
Finally, I just had to command the Goblin Lord with my plan.
It was just a change from commanding Celia to commanding the Goblin Lord.
“This is quite easy.”
From now on, if a fire breaks out in the dungeon, the goblin firefighting unit will attempt to extinguish it first.
Accordingly, we would need to prepare equipment.
‘I’ll have to build this gradually.’
For now, all I had was a bucket.
That too would require some effort to fetch water from the lake in Sector 4.
“Hmm. Come to think of it, it feels a bit lacking?”
Even with the firefighting unit organized, something felt missing.
It wasn’t a fundamental solution, and more importantly, an immediate solution was needed.
While I was pondering this, an alarm popped up.
– “Extinguish the fire!”
Contents: 1 Sprinkler, 3-Star Intermediate Water Spirit Prize.
This was the first package item in a very long time.
The price was 110,000 won, but the contents were questionable.
“A sprinkler?”
It wasn’t just called a sprinkler; it actually looked like a sprinkler that sprayed water.
It was an item typically found on the ceiling of a building, included in the package.
“Using this in the dungeon…?”
I did want the dungeon’s infrastructure to advance further, but the item that appeared now was far too modern.
What’s more, it even came with a 3-star Water Spirit.
There was no need to even consider it.
“I have to buy it, no matter what.”
I had never lost money by purchasing package items before.
Moreover, such offers didn’t appear every day, so it was beneficial to buy it immediately when the opportunity arose.
I immediately clicked on the package product and completed the payment.
– Payment completed! 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 its vicinity.
– Rank: ★★★
– Race: Spirit
[Traits]
– Water Storage (B): Can store a large amount of water within its body.
[Basic Information]
Health: C
Attack Power: E
Defense: C+
Mana: C+
[Skills]
– Water Absorption (C): Absorbs water.
– Water Release (C): Releases stored water from its body.
“Oh.”
The Intermediate Water Spirit, in particular, was a jackpot.
It could store water within its body and release it at any time, so I could expect various uses.
“So, buying it was the right decision.”
The countermeasure against the fire that had just occurred was completely resolved by this one Water Spirit.
Upon being summoned, the Water Spirit immediately headed somewhere.
Its destination was none other than Sector 4.
The Water Spirit looked a bit like a water droplet, and its waddling gait was quite cute.
“But it’s so small?”
The spirit’s size was about palm-sized.
With a spirit of this size, how much water could it absorb?
I felt a bit doubtful but watched the spirit through the screen.
The Water Spirit, having arrived at Sector 4, immediately dove into the lake.
Then, it began to absorb the water in the lake.
“…….”
The Water Spirit, having entered the lake, showed no signs of coming out.
It continued to absorb water, and the water in the lake visibly decreased.
“This guy…”
It still hadn’t come out.
As it continued to absorb water, the water level in the lake kept dropping.
Would the lake disappear at this rate?
Just as I was worrying about that, the Nagas living in the lake took action first.
Perhaps displeased by the Water Spirit’s continuous water absorption, the Nagas grabbed the Water Spirit and dragged it out of the lake.
“Gulp-”
The plump Water Spirit, satisfied with the lake water, even burped.
Its body had grown immensely large from absorbing so much water.
The spirit, which was palm-sized, now seemed to be over 2 meters tall.
“Hah…”
The trait clearly stated that it could store a large amount of water.
The definition of “large amount” exceeded my expectations.
“I guess I’ll have to re-engineer the lake too.”
The now enormous spirit began to return to its original location.
As it returned to Sector 3, Aren and Nariel, who were there, looked surprised.
“By the way, how do I use this sprinkler?”
This time, I looked at the sprinkler that was included in the package along with the spirit.
The problem was how to install it.
“Maybe I should just take it out first?”
I touched the sprinkler.
– Sprinkler installation failed.
– Dungeon power required for sprinkler installation is insufficient.
– Upgrade the Dungeon Core to increase power.
A variable appeared.
I never expected it wouldn’t be installable.
“Hmm.”
I closed my eyes for a moment and thought.
‘It’s not called a heart for nothing.’
I already knew the importance of the Dungeon Core.
But this was the first time I learned that the Dungeon Core influenced power and limited the facilities that could be installed.
Fortunately, I now had a way to upgrade the Dungeon Core immediately.
After obtaining the trait “True Dungeon Master” last time, I had gained other abilities besides monster enhancement and the leveling system.
It was the ability to absorb corpses and use them as sacrifices.
– Trait “True Dungeon Master” has been activated.
And I could use those sacrifices to upgrade my dungeon.
“I should use that now.”
The corpses of the villains absorbed during the last monster wave, and the corpses of people who died by their hands.
I had thought of using them as sacrifices someday, and that day had come.
– Absorbed sacrifices exist.
– Select the rewards to receive with these sacrifices.
1) Upgrade Dungeon Core
2) Upgrade Dungeon Altar
3) Create Empty Dungeon
In addition, an alarm prompted me to select what to upgrade.
Last time, I upgraded the altar, not the core.
I touched the explanation again and looked at it.
[Upgrade Dungeon Core]: A vital organ called the heart of all dungeons. Upgrading the Dungeon Core increases its durability and expands the dungeon’s power.
It was the same explanation as last time.
However, this time I paid attention to a phrase I had previously overlooked.
“So this is what ‘expansion of power’ meant.”
It meant that to develop various facilities in the future, the Dungeon Core also needed to be well-upgraded.
This time, I didn’t hesitate.
I directly touched “Upgrade Dungeon Core.”
– Selected Dungeon Core upgrade.
– Dungeon Core upgrade complete.
– Dungeon Core level has been raised to 2.
Simultaneously, an alarm indicated that the level had increased as the upgrade proceeded.
“Now it should be installable, right?”
Fortunately, sprinkler installation became possible.
I pondered the location slightly and installed it on the dungeon ceiling.
“The problem is whether this will actually work…”
This was an empty dungeon with nothing.
Just having a sprinkler attached to the ceiling wouldn’t make it work.
As I stared intently, the Water Spirit began to move.
The now giant spirit raised its hand, detached the sprinkler attached to the ceiling, and brought it to its mouth.
“?”
What was it doing?
With the sprinkler in its mouth, the spirit began to spray water.
“Guaaaak-”
With a strange sound, the water stored inside its body began to gush out like a fountain.
“Oh, is this its purpose?”
Although its appearance was odd, its performance seemed decent.
* * *
“Death Knight.”
Celia called out to the Death Knight, who was diligently mining.
At her question, the Death Knight looked at Celia with hope.
“After Sector 2 expansion is complete, we will renovate the shacks in Sector 2. And also re-organize the lake in Sector 4.”
Celia left after entrusting the work to the Underworld Merchant Guild and asking him to put forth his best effort for the time being, then disappeared.
“…….”
This was the command of the Chief Administrator, and at the same time, the will of the great Master.
Despite his despair, the Death Knight did not stop mining.
* * *
The colors of gold and jewels mingled, shining brilliantly.
The room was filled with a quiet grandeur, and a deep red carpet covered the floor.
Looking around, only furniture adorned with gold and jewels met the eye.
Even the dimly lit candles were on crystal candelabras.
As befitting such a luxurious place, the attendees were also extraordinary.
The dresses they wore were like a vibrant garden created by various colored flowers.
There was no need to even mention the jewelry made of gems.
One of them, dressed in extravagance and luxury, spoke.
“By the way, what became of Count Derek?”
The individuals gathered here were nobles of the Sail Kingdom.
And they were members of the Aristocrats faction.
“Well, whatever happens to that scoundrel is none of our business.”
Upon hearing Derek’s name, everyone wore displeased expressions.
It was understandable.
Count Derek was originally the leader of the Aristocrats faction.
But didn’t he suddenly go on a rampage, brandishing a sword at a banquet?
Their very lives were in danger for a moment then.
In fact, the Count’s actions were orchestrated by Celia, but the nobles had no way of knowing that.
Ultimately, the Count was imprisoned for the incident.
“Come now, let’s not talk about that on such a fine day. Hasn’t the time come?”
As the conversation took a turn, one of the nobles clapped his hands to change the mood.
He then continued, “The Church’s Paladins arrived in the Kingdom a little while ago.”
“?”
His words met with everyone’s confusion.
“But it was said that it would take several more days for the Church to arrive…”
That was indeed the case.
The scale of the Church delegation visiting the Kingdom this time was large.
Naturally, it would take time.
But the Paladins arrived a little while ago?
“Even if their power has waned, the current king is not a lion, but a wild dog. If you are careless, you don’t know when you’ll be bitten.”
The noble who announced the arrival of the Paladins spoke with a sinister expression.
“Therefore, we must do our best. Those who arrived a little while ago will move discreetly and gather information. You all know what that means, right?”
Everyone nodded.
In simple terms, the Church’s Paladins would inspect the kingdom covertly, bypassing the royal family.
This was a significant diplomatic breach, but it didn’t matter to them.
They would prioritize their own interests while also securing the mountain range development rights.
‘Heh. This is why I sent the adventurers.’
The royal family would have noticed that adventurers had gone to the mountain range.
But the adventurers were merely a diversion.
The real objective was the Church’s Paladins who infiltrated secretly.
“The grand operation is not far off now.”
Morning was still a long way off, and the festival had just begun.
The nobles smiled and raised their glasses.
They were intoxicated by the atmosphere, unaware of anything.
Unaware of the hidden presence watching them, they surrendered themselves to pleasure for the night.
