The Runesmith

“Hm… do I even need to take this thing out? It should be fine if it stays here.”

Roland stood before the entrance to the dungeon core chamber. Inside, the core floated in a mostly empty room. At the center stood a round column resembling a pedestal, and above it hovered the object in question. From a distance, it looked like a magical artifact - something meticulously crafted by a master artisan. However, to someone like him, a true master craftsman, it was clear this wasn’t the case.

The floating orb, the dungeon core, was not an artifact but it also wasn’t perhaps truly alive. Roland tried to examine it but stepping further into the room would bode bad for his current expedition. The core's surface shimmered, shifting between an opaque sheen and translucent clarity. It pulsed with so much mana that it would probably cause regular mages to be repelled but his mind was not filled with the beauty of what he was seeing but how he could use it instead.

“What if I just left it here? I could perhaps use it…”

A thought crept into Roland’s mind. He didn’t fully understand how these dungeon cores operated, but he suspected they might function similarly to artificial tower spirits - something between a living being and a programmed machine. The cores appeared to absorb massive amounts of mana from the environment and the adventurers they defeated, using that energy to gradually expand in size. The process was slow, often taking hundreds of years before any noticeable change occurred.

This realization sparked a new question in his mind: what if he could influence that change? What if he could control the core and bend it to his will? If that were possible, would he still need to venture into other dungeons in search of monsters? Or could he simply command the core to spawn whatever creatures he needed?

‘The ground is covered in runes, similar to the ones in the other hidden chambers, with time I should be able to dismantle the defenses, perhaps if I make it think that I’m part of the monsters in the dungeon, it won’t trigger the traps?’

Roland contemplated ways to gain access to the chamber. Once inside, he could examine the floating dungeon core more closely. His goal wasn’t to destroy it but to harness its power for his own purposes. If he could decipher how to make it spawn specific monsters, that would be enough. Perhaps he could command it to produce powerful boss monsters he could farm for resources or even bypass the conventional process entirely. Rewards like Agni’s Egg might become obtainable, or he could potentially create tier 3 enemies for training.

However, he knew this wouldn’t be a task accomplished in a single day. The runes on the core were likely of tier 4 caliber, far beyond his current mastery. The intense pain he experienced while attempting to transcribe them into runic programming language confirmed as much. Even if he managed to decode the rune he observed, critical portions seemed to be missing.

“Woo?”

“Ah sorry Agni, I was just thinking, everything is fine, just don’t go inside or you’ll trigger a trap.”

Agni paced behind Roland, his ruby-like form radiating faint heat and casting ambient light that danced across the cavern walls. The glow created shifting shadows that flickered in the dim chamber. Despite his imposing appearance, the wolven companion seemed unusually alarmed and restless. He moved back and forth, his tail curled tightly, a clear sign of unease.

It was almost as if he feared the dungeon core itself - his own creator. Perhaps this reaction was an instinctual safeguard, an inborn trait injected by the dungeon to ensure its creations could never turn against it.

“Why don’t you go out Agni, keep people from coming here.”

“Woof!”

Agni was quick to follow the order, retreating from the vicinity of the dungeon core without hesitation. Once his companion was gone, Roland turned his attention back to the chamber, contemplating his next move. He had come here intending to take a quick look at what he was working with, but the core chamber’s unusual setup had caught him off guard. Now, he needed to decide whether to prioritize investigating the core or continue with the spelunking expedition he had planned.

“I suppose I’ll leave a probe here and let Sebastian analyze it later…”

After some deliberation, he made his choice. With his current technological advancements, he didn’t need to handle every task personally. His AI assistant, Sebastian, could manage this part of the investigation. The probe he had in mind was a recording device capable of monitoring the shifting mana patterns around the core and scanning the runes. Once the data was collected, it would be forwarded to Sebastian for detailed analysis.

This solution freed Roland to explore other areas of the dungeon while the core’s defensive mechanisms were left to manage themselves. Confident in his decision, he retrieved a few cubes from his spatial storage and embedded them into the nearby walls. These probes, though not identical to runic mapping sensors, shared similar functionalities. They didn’t need to be inside the core chamber itself to perform their scans. The high concentration of mana within the core chamber allowed the devices to pick up on fluctuations and analyze the runes remotely. However, the intense mana density would slow the scanning process, likely requiring several days to complete.

In the meantime, Roland planned to delve deeper into the dungeon. His gauntlets glowed faintly as square-shaped holes appeared in the walls, where he carefully inserted the probes. Once in place, he sealed them off, taking care to conceal them completely. Though he didn’t anticipate adventurers or monsters in this area, he preferred to keep the devices hidden from prying eyes. When everything was set, Roland restored the entrance, ensuring it looked undisturbed and as natural as when he arrived.

‘Should I order this area sealed off for good? Or would that just attract too much unwanted attention?’

The thought lingered in his mind. He briefly considered using his High Knight Commander status to secure the chamber, stationing guards to keep adventurers away. However, such an act could backfire. Drawing attention to the area might prompt others to investigate, potentially revealing the dungeon core’s existence.

While destroying dungeon cores was illegal, Roland knew that didn’t stop everyone. These living artifacts were the subject of intense research, and some archmages would pay exorbitant prices for functioning or even damaged cores. Sealing the chamber could potentially put a bullseye on it, prompting some underworld organizations to act. These cores were quite difficult to detect. Even he needed to place hundreds of runic mapping sensors throughout it all before discovering this location through Sebastian.

‘I suppose, no one will discover it unless I point it to them. I’ll just reinforce the hidden chamber with some barriers and it should be fine…’

He decided to keep it hidden from others by not mentioning it to others. As long as few people knew of it, no one would be able to spread it as a rumor. This whole dungeon was being monitored by Sebastian and he would be informed about any intrusions or disturbances. For now, discretion was the best policy. Roland reinforced the chamber’s entrance, layering it with a mixture of runic defenses and magical illusions to make it appear completely natural. Anyone stumbling upon it would find nothing more than an unremarkable stretch of cavern wall.

“Let’s go Agni, race you to the lava lake!”

“Awoo!”

Once that was taken care of, the two took off running. While Roland was of a higher level and had a better stat multiplier, he couldn’t quite keep up with his ruby wolf. Agni sped ahead, but Roland managed to keep the gap small enough to maintain sight of his companion. The chase was a welcome distraction from the heavy thoughts lingering about his current woes. Roland's boots clattered against the rocky floor as he pushed himself harder, following Agni’s ruby form darting ahead like a streak of red lightning.

The path twisted and turned, but eventually, they arrived at the lava lake, which had now begun to change.

“I see, so the bridge is coming along nicely.”

Roland approached the lava lake, now greeted by the sight of a partially assembled black marble bridge stretching across the molten expanse. The bridge, a marvel of engineering, had been constructed to provide a safer passage into the heart of the dungeon, where the secret entrance to the mines lay. Despite its sturdy design, the scaffolding and unfinished sections indicated that the project was far from complete.

At first, he had been skeptical when the dwarven union members mentioned the idea. The lava lake would fill with lava and drain like clockwork, leaving only a narrow window of time to cross. This created great challenges for transporting goods from the center to the shore. However, the dwarves had mastered the timing. Further investigation revealed that the lava lake was much shallower than originally anticipated. With this discovery, they were able to design a bridge that was both stable and relatively easy to assemble.

“I thought they were crazy for attempting it, but here we are.”

It was quite a strange sight to see the heavy metallic cables stretched everywhere. The build had started with dwarven craftsmen spreading long, thick cables to the other side of the lava lake. Some of these cables were also attached to the ceiling overhead. At first, the construction resembled a rope bridge made from a special alloy, but over time, it was transformed into its current form - a solid structure made from thick slabs of black marble, assembled right on-site.

Not far from the lake was a camp established by the union. There, a large group of stonemasons was hard at work creating massive blocks and columns intended to serve as the bridge's main supports. They collaborated with the alchemist guild to reinforce the stones they quarried from the dungeon. Although the process was slow, the resulting black marble was fully lava-resistant and capable of withstanding repeated flooding without shifting.

The technology employed was simple, relying solely on a pulley system, but progress was steady. This entire construction made Roland realize that he wasn’t as all-knowing as he sometimes believed. Even though he came from a modern world, there were still aspects of this one that he didn’t fully understand or know. What he might have considered impossible or prohibitively expensive, the dwarves approached with practicality and ingenuity. At the pace they were working, it would only take a few months to reach the middle portion of the lake. Once completed, they could transport goods across the bridge without interruption.

‘I wonder, if I got to control the dungeon core, would I be able to shift the mining area into a better location? or perhaps could I change which metals it produced?’

His thoughts drifted back to the dungeon core and the possibilities it held. This world was a peculiar blend of game mechanics and reality. If he applied that logic to the dungeon core, perhaps he could manipulate the layout - changing the locations of certain rooms or altering the spawn points of monsters. However, such alterations could potentially render the entire bridge construction effort pointless.

Still, without any concrete research to back his theories, this idea remained speculative at best. For now, completing the bridge was the most practical solution. Once finished, mining operations could happen uninterrupted, and adventurers would no longer have to sit around the lake, waiting for it to drain.

“Well Agni, it should be clearing up in a minute, let’s go.”

Some people looked his way and some perhaps even identified who he was. While Agni’s Sun Wolf form was more known to the inquisitors, the old adventurers still remembered the old ruby form. However, he was not planning to take this entrance today as it was quite swapped with other adventurers and also miners.

The middle of the lava lake had changed as well. Now, it resembled a bunker constructed from the same black marble material as the bridge. This structure served as the entrance to the higher-tier dungeon, designed for easier accessibility. A massive hatch on the top allowed people to enter or exit, and for those unwilling to wait for the lake to part, a temporary bridge made of metallic cords offered an alternative route.

Access to the higher-tier dungeon was a large source of income, so the adventurers’ guild and other stakeholders had committed fully to supporting the dwarves’ efforts. Roland, however, had started to favor using the back entrance for his excursions. With his current skillset, it allowed him to avoid the crowded, narrow corridors of the main path. He made his way to the spot where he had once fallen with his brother Robert and his now-wife, Lucille. Upon arriving, he activated a flotation spell, gliding down gently toward the secondary entrance, which, for the time being, remained unused.

Roland descended slowly, his magical flotation spell ensuring a gentle and controlled landing. The secondary entrance remained sealed off and was considered too troublesome for general use. The worms responsible for his earlier fall still posed a threat, and other monsters occasionally wandered into the area. Additionally, the uneven terrain of the chasm made constructing an elevator system a significant challenge. The union seemed to favor the main entrance, leaving this one as an alternative for individuals like Roland.

A door with a small safety ledge marked the entrance, unguarded by magical locks. Once inside, Roland and Agni were stopped at a secondary safety gate. This checkpoint was manned by dwarves and his own soldiers. While they allowed entry from the other side, they needed to verify the identity of anyone attempting to access the mining area. Monsters still occasionally spawned in the connecting tunnels, and after the Lich incident, the entire site had been fortified with additional defenses. This was necessary to ensure the safety of workers and adventurers alike.

“Who goes the… Oh… Sir, please go through!”

The gate featured a small latch, allowing one of the soldiers to peer through. To avoid unnecessary delays, Roland pulled his hooded robe aside, revealing his face. While not everyone would recognize him immediately, he had already made the necessary arrangements. The soldiers stationed here had been informed of his passage and instructed to let him through without any fuss.

The heavy gate creaked open, and Roland stepped inside, greeted by the rhythmic clanging of pickaxes and the faint hum of magical lights echoing from deeper within the mining area. Dwarves and other workers toiled tirelessly, chiseling large stones from the walls and processing them on the spot. Any debris deemed unworthy was left behind, to be reabsorbed by the dungeon itself, recycling spent mana and preserving its ecosystem.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“Wooo!”

“Getting sentimental, Agni? We had our time here, but it’s time to move on. I wonder if we’ll find another place like this further inside.”

“Woof!”

Agni wagged his tail excitedly at the mention of exploration. The two had spent a great deal of time in this area, which was now bustling with activity. Besides the dwarven miners and guards, there were also adventurers. The entrance to the higher-tier dungeon had been opened and reinforced with dwarven steel - a measure Roland had suggested without revealing the secret that this section was not part of the same dungeon.

“Your cards, please.”

“Is this really necessary?”

On his way to the entrance, Roland spotted a group of Tier 3 adventurers halted by two guards. Since the incident with Rastix, he had ordered his men to monitor closely who entered and exited the dungeon. With sensors embedded in the walls, it was possible to identify some of the adventurers and even track their actions within. This allowed them to detect if anyone turned against their compatriots inside. However, some of these Tier 3 class holders were notoriously prideful. They didn’t always grasp who truly held authority here, often acting as though their strength exempted them from the rules.

“Just step aside. We don’t have time for this!”

“Sir please, we can’t let you through without your card.”

“Do you even know who I am? I’ve fought monsters that would turn you into paste with a glance. Now, move!”

Roland paused, observing the scene unfold from the shadows of the cavern wall. The Tier 3 adventurers, a pair clad in sleek armor adorned with glowing enchantments, stood before his guards, their voices raised in defiance. It seemed they might attempt to force their way inside.

Before they could escalate further, a strange contraption next to the guards whirred to life. From within a rectangular container, a mechanical arm extended smoothly. At its tip was a gleaming orb, now glowing and swiveling to focus on the troublemakers. The flashing light cast sharp reflections off their enchanted gear.

“Identifying… Mercun, Platinum rank adventurer… “