The sound of metal on stone echoed through the core chamber.
Clang. Clang. Scrape.
Grika had found a loose rock near one of the tunnel mouths and was whacking it with the flat side of a wrench like it had personally offended her.
"This is all wrong," she muttered. "Empty, no fortifications, no choke points… Might as well hang a sign outside that says 'Please invade and loot me, I'm soft.'"
Reed leaned against the nearest column, arms folded, watching her pace.
"Pretty sure we don't have a front door yet," he said. "Kind of hard to hang a sign."
"Yeah, that's the problem." She rounded on him. "You're a dungeon core. You're supposed to be all 'ooh, I'm ancient and mysterious and full of death corridors,' not—" she gestured at the smooth floor, the bare walls, the glowing crystal "—whatever this minimalist nonsense is."
He held up both hands. "In my defense, I woke up like… ten minutes ago."
Grika squinted at him. "You feel older."
"I died once. That gives you, like, twenty bonus 'old man soul' points."
She snorted, one corner of her mouth curling. "Huh. That explains the bags."
He blinked. "Wow. Brutal."
Grika turned away, satisfied, and stomped over to one of the tunnel mouths. She peered into the unformed darkness, then spat on the floor.
"Blank stone. No supports, no anchors, no planned kill zones. How have you not been smashed by some passing adventurer core already?"
"Newborn," Reed reminded her. "This is literally day one of being a murderous cave."
"Yeah, yeah." She rolled her shoulders. "All right, Boss. Show me what you've got."
He frowned. "What I've got?"
"Your tricks," she said. "Room-shaping, trap slots, mana flow. Open up your building screen and let me see how bad we're starting."
Reed hesitated. "Can… you see that?"
"You're the core," she said, as if explaining basic math. "I'm your monster. If you push, I can piggyback on your senses a bit. Not everything, but enough to do my job."
He thought at the Construction tab.
The UI unfolded in his vision again: a wireframe of Floor 1, the core chamber at the center, three stubby corridor stumps reaching out like uncommitted ideas.
> [CONSTRUCTION – F1]
Dungeon Mana (DM): 5
Available rooms:
– Small Cavern (5 DM)
– Narrow Hall (3 DM)
– Dead-End Nook (1 DM)
Available features:
– Rock Piles (0 DM)
– Rough Terrain (0 DM)
– Decorative Stalagmites (0 DM)
"Okay," he said. "I've got… five mana and three IKEA options."
Grika's pupils dilated for a second, like she was focusing on something he couldn't see. Her expression shifted.
"Ah," she said slowly. "There it is. Clumsy interface, but workable."
"Hey," Reed said. "I like my clumsy interface."
"Of course you do. You're a rock." She jabbed a finger at the map projection only she could sense. "First rule: you never let your core sit one room away from the outside. We are not a tavern. We are a murder labyrinth."
"Friendly training facility," Reed corrected automatically.
"Murder labyrinth," she repeated, as if he hadn't spoken. "So. You're going to carve at least one proper corridor and one room before anything gets inside."
He glanced at the DM counter. "I can't afford a corridor and a room."
Grika sucked air through her teeth, like he'd told her he planned to use wet bread for load-bearing beams.
"Right," she said. "Starter DM. Fine. You lot never plan ahead. Here's what we do."
She marched to the edge of the core chamber and slapped a hand against the rough rock just beyond the smoothed floor.
"Spend it," she said. "Cavern, here. We turn it into a starter room. Make it ugly, make it cramped, make it work."
He looked from her hand to the map, then back.
"Just like that?" he asked. "No blueprint? No 'are you sure you want to commit your only resource and maybe doom your entire existence' warning?"
The System helpfully popped a little window.
> [CONFIRM CONSTRUCTION]
Build: Small Cavern (5 DM)
Location: Adjacent to Core Chamber
Remaining DM: 0
Proceed? Y/N
Reed breathed out through his nose.
"Feels a little dramatic for a glorified walk-in closet," he muttered.
Grika raised an eyebrow. "You want a dungeon or not, Boss?"
He eyed the DM total—5—and the absolute blankness beyond the core chamber.
"…Proceed," he said.
The mana counter dropped to 0.
The world shuddered.
It wasn't a physical quake, not entirely. His body swayed on reflex, but what really jolted was his sense of the place. The unformed rock beyond Grika's hand suddenly became very, very present in his awareness. It was like someone had taken a blurry photo and cranked the focus knob until everything snapped sharp.
He felt the grain of the stone, the way pressure lines ran through it. He felt potential routes, pockets of weakness. All he had to do was… push.
So he did.
Stone flowed.
Not literally—the walls didn't melt into goo—but the shape of it softened in his mind, and his will slid through like fingers into wet clay. The rock shrank back from the corridor mouth, carving a space beyond. Dust and tiny chips rattled down in the physical world, pattering over the floor as the tunnel lengthened.
Grika took a step back, eyes narrowed, watching the air. She couldn't see the mental interface, but she could see the results: cracks forming, stone peeling away, a hollow gathering beyond the threshold.
Reed's heartbeat sped up. It felt good. Dangerous, but good. Like stretching a muscle he hadn't known he had and hearing it pop in a satisfying way.
The System kept pace with crisp little pings.
> [ROOM CONSTRUCTION BEGIN]
[Excavating…]
[Stabilizing…]
[Forming primary cavern…]
He guided the shape. Not a perfect sphere, but an uneven, natural-looking chamber—about half the diameter of the core room, with a slightly lower ceiling. He carved out little alcoves, made the floor a bit uneven. Threw in a few thicker pillars for Grika's load-bearing sensibilities.
When he released his focus, the sensation of pressure eased. The last bits of rock settled. Dust hung in the air for a moment, then dispersed, carried by a breeze that shouldn't exist.
The System chimed.
> [ROOM ADDED – F1]
Small Cavern (Unassigned)
Floor 1 Layout Updated.
Reed staggered back a step and laughed, breathless.
"Okay," he said. "That was… actually kind of fun."
Grika had already marched into the new space, boots crunching on loose grit. She ran her hands over the fresh-cut walls, inspecting the joins. She even kicked one of the new pillars experimentally, ear pressed to the stone.
After a moment, she blew out a breath.
"Not terrible," she admitted.
Reed put a hand dramatically over his heart. "High praise."
"Don't get soft on me, Boss. We still need to shore up the ceiling." She tilted her head, then looked back toward the core chamber. "This is too close, though."
"Too close?"
"Yeah." She tapped her temple with a knuckle. "Rule two: layers. If someone reaches a room and can throw a rock into your core, you've already lost. This one's fine for now, but we're going to wall off the core chamber eventually. Make this the first 'real' room and put a hallway between it and the heart."
"We have zero mana," Reed pointed out.
She waved that away. "Temporary problem. Adventurers will come. You're a new dungeon—word spreads fast. We just need to not look pathetic when they arrive."
She planted fists on her hips, turning slowly in the little cavern, eyes glittering in the crystal light.
"So," she said. "Let's talk layout. This is my workshop now."
Reed blinked. "Already?"
"You summoned an engineer," Grika said. "Engineers need a workshop. I am not going to design your future death labyrinth while sitting on the floor of your bedroom, Boss."
He glanced back toward the core chamber, then out into the new cavern.
"I don't… have a bedroom," he said. "Or a bed."
She looked at him for a long moment.
"Wow," she said flatly. "You really did just get born."
"Fresh out of the cosmic oven," he agreed.
She sighed, then clapped her hands once, sharp.
"Priority list," she said. "We make this cavern into a proper workshop. Storage, workbenches, basic infrastructure. We get some kind of furniture near the core so you stop sleeping on rock like a feral spirit. Then we talk traps and hallways. For all of that…"
She glanced up, eyes unfocusing for a heartbeat as she checked the same invisible resources.
"…we need DM. And DM needs intruders."
Reed's stomach did an uncomfortable little flip.
"I don't have monsters," he said. "Except you."
"Yeah, and if you send me to solo a party of four armored idiots with spells, we're both screwed." She rubbed her chin. "We need fodder. And support. At least one more body before anyone stumbles in here."
"Mana says no," Reed reminded her, pointing at where the DM counter floated in his peripheral vision: 0.
Grika squinted up toward the crystal, then back at him.
"Don't you get any trickle?" she asked. "Ambient mana seep? Emotional flow? Any other cores would have at least a decimal point by now."
He frowned and focused on the Core directly.
> [CORE STATUS – DM GENERATION]
Base seep: 0.1 DM / hour (local mana density: low)
Intrusion activity: 0
Emotional resonance:
– Bound entities: 1 (Grika)
– Avatar: 1 (Reed)
Current DM: 0
"Apparently we get point-one mana per hour," Reed said. "If that makes you feel better."
Grika made a face. "So we can build, like, half a rock per day. Great."
A smaller, subtler window slid into place.
> [TUTORIAL – COMPASSIONATE CORE]
You showed concern for your first minion's survival.
Alignment Flag: [Non-Feral Core] established.
Minor Bonus:
– Emotional resonance from bound entities increased.
– DM gain from morale & loyalty slightly boosted.
Huh.
Reed looked at Grika. She was scowling at the empty cavern floor, already mentally placing tables and shelves in the air.
"Question," he said.
She grunted without looking at him. "What?"
"Do you… need things? Food, somewhere to sleep…? Clothes that aren't just straps and spite?"
Grika paused.
Slowly, she turned to face him, yellow eyes narrowed, expression unreadable for a moment.
"Why?" she said.
"You're a person," he said simply. "Sort of. I mean, I assume you don't want to just… stand in a corner on standby until something needs stabbing."
A strange expression flickered across her face. Like she didn't quite know whether to laugh or spit.
"Most cores don't ask that," she said finally. "They just spawn us with the default package and toss us at the first sword that walks in."
"Most cores don't have HR," Reed said. "We're starting a new trend."
Her lips twitched.
"Yeah," she said quietly. "I eat. I sleep. I can cheat on the details because I'm mana-based, but I still feel it. Recharge is better if I've got a proper nook instead of just… collapsing on bare stone."
He nodded. "Okay. Then first priority after workshop basics is… a bunk. Or something."
The System chimed again.
> [MONSTER BOND UPDATED]
Grika – Goblin Engineer
Loyalty: 15 → 20
Morale: 12 → 18
New Trait unlocked:
– [Reliable Boss (Tier 0)]: Small bonus to loyalty gains from fair treatment.
Grika blinked, then glanced up, like she'd heard a faint echo.
"You really are new," she said. "I felt that."
"Felt what?"
She tapped her chest. "Connection tug. Like the Core… approved. Weird."
Reed rubbed the back of his neck. "Guess I get points with the universe for not being a jerk."
"Keep it up," she said. "We're gonna need every edge when the Authority comes sniffing around."
He made a note to panic about that phrase later.
For now, the faint sense of pressure at the edge of his awareness ticked up. The DM counter nudged itself from 0 to 0.2.
He raised an eyebrow. "Hey. I think caring literally pays."
Grika snorted. "Didn't realize the cosmos was into management seminars."
---
They spent the next stretch of time—minutes? an hour? Time blurred underground—turning the new cavern into something resembling a functional space.
Technically, Reed wasn't expending DM. They couldn't afford new rooms or features, but basic reshaping was mostly free as long as he didn't push too far. He tightened pillars. Smoothed specific patches of floor under Grika's direction. Raised stone platforms that would become crude tables later when they had materials.
Grika narrated as they went, pacing and gesturing.
"Workshop here," she said, stabbing a finger at a section of wall. "Trap prototypes there. Storage along that side. We build racks when you stop being poor. Maybe a pit in the back corner for… future experiments."
"I'm terrified," Reed said. "Continue."
By the time she was satisfied with the shape, his mind felt pleasantly tired. Like he'd been doing mental weightlifting. The DM counter had ticked up to 0.5 just from ambient seep and whatever boost the "compassionate core" flag gave.
Still not enough for a new monster. But it was progress.
Reed leaned against the cavern wall, watching Grika pace.
"This is a decent start," she pronounced. "Once we get some proper materials, I can start rigging traps in the entrance tunnel. For now—"
She stopped abruptly, head cocked.
"What?" Reed asked.
She frowned. "You feel that?"
He closed his eyes.
Something tugged at his awareness. Not like the earlier sense of potential or stone. This was more like… a thread tugging at the Core from higher up. A faint prickle of attention from above the earth, like someone had glanced in their direction.
> [INCOMING FACTOR DETECTED]
Source: Human settlement (Proximity: Near)
Type: Adventurer Activity
Predicted Outcome:
– Dungeon discovery within 24–48 hours.
"Oh," Reed said. "We're on a timer."
"Good," Grika said. "I was starting to get bored."
He shot her a look. "We have half a point of mana and one goblin."
"One excellent goblin," she corrected. "But yeah. We need at least one more. Preferably something that can patch my face back together when someone swings a sword at it."
He opened the Summon tab again.
> Dungeon Mana (DM): 0.5
Goblin Girl: 5 DM
Slime Girl: 5 DM
Wolf: 8 DM
Bat: 3 DM
Skeleton: 10 DM
"No luck," he said. "Still too broke."
Grika clicked her tongue. "We really need—"
The UI flickered.
For a heartbeat, the entire interface went dark. Then, like a system reboot, it filled back in—with one tiny, crucial difference.
> [TUTORIAL – SUSTAINABLE START]
You have:
– Established initial room layout.
– Shown non-lethal intent toward future intruders.
– Demonstrated concern for minion welfare.
System Adjustment:
– Starter Healer unlock.
– One-time DM credit: +5
New DM total: 5.5
New Summon Mode:
– Slime Girl [Subsidized] – First summon only: 5 DM → 3 DM.
Reed stared at the floating numbers.
"…Did we just get a good karma discount?"
Grika's eyes unfocused briefly as the System ping relayed through the Core.
"Oh-ho," she said, a grin spreading across her face. "Look at you, getting tutorial pity buffs."
"I prefer 'ethical operations incentive,'" Reed said. He eyed the adjusted list.
> DM: 5.5
Goblin Girl: 5 DM
Slime Girl (First summon): 3 DM
Bat: 3 DM
Grika clapped him lightly on the shoulder. "Then ethically operate us a healer, Boss. I'll take a slime over bleeding out on your bare floor."
He weighed the options for a whole two seconds.
He could technically grab a bat as well, but that would drain him to almost nothing. Better to keep a little mana in reserve.
"Slime Girl it is," Reed said. "Try not to bully her on sight."
"I make no promises," Grika replied cheerfully.
They stepped back into the core chamber.
The crystal pulsed in welcome, its light flaring brighter as Reed focused on the Summon panel and selected Slime Girl [Subsidized].
> [CONFIRM SUMMON]
Monster: Slime Girl (Healer Template)
Cost: 3 DM
Remaining DM: 2.5
Proceed? Y/N
He nodded once, throat dry.
"Proceed."
Mana dropped. The floor in front of the Core lit up again, etching another summoning circle into the stone—this one traced in soft blues and greens instead of sharp yellow.
The air changed.
Where Grika's summoning had smelled like oil and hot metal and wild grass, this one tasted… clean. Cool. Like freshwater springs and soap and something faintly sweet, like fruit candy.
The glow rose gently instead of blasting upward, a column of soft light that felt less like lightning and more like water pouring into a cup.
Reed watched, heart doing that anxious-excited flutter again.
A shape formed inside the light.
Smaller than Grika, slender but with soft curves, edges blurred like she hadn't quite settled. The "skin" was a translucent aquamarine, color deepening where limbs and torso gathered. Light rippled through her as if she were made of thick liquid and jelly both.
Then the light snapped off with a soft pop.
Something glossy and very slightly wobbly landed in the circle with a wet thump.
The girl in front of him blinked.
Her eyes were big and round and the same blue-green as the rest of her, with darker pupils. She'd formed herself into a modest dress shape—simple, long-sleeved, falling to mid-thigh—but it was clearly all made of her, the same faintly shiny material from head to toe.
A little droplet of her hair slid down, reabsorbed into her shoulder, and she squeaked, patting at it with both hands.
"Ah—s-sorry!" she blurted, voice soft and slightly echoey. "I'm not dripping, I swear, I'm just—oh—"
She looked up and saw Reed.
Then she saw the Core.
Then she saw Grika.
Her face went very faintly more blue. Which Reed guessed was the slime equivalent of a blush.
"I—um." She clasped her hands in front of her chest reflexively, fingers squishing a little. "Hi."
Grika folded her arms, head tilting. "Well," she said. "At least you're not exploding."
Reed smiled despite himself.
"Welcome to existence," he said. "I'm Reed. That's Grika. And… you are?"
The slime girl swallowed—a remarkably human gesture for someone without a visible throat.
"Luma," she said. "I'm… Slime Healer Luma-Unit-01. Or just Luma. I think. If that's okay. I can heal. I'll, um. Try not to get on the floor. Too much."
The System chimed softly.
> [SECOND MINION SUMMONED]
Slime Girl – Luma
Role: Healer / Support
Loyalty: 10 (Nervous)
Morale: 14 (Grateful to exist)
New Objective:
– Prepare for first adventurer incursion.
– Keep your girls alive.
Reed met Luma's wide, uncertain gaze and felt something settle inside him—a tiny piece of the hollow he hadn't known was there filling in.
"Don't worry," he said. "We'll figure it out."
Luma's shoulders (if they could be called that) eased minutely.
Behind him, Grika snorted.
"Yeah," she said. "Welcome to the dungeon, puddle. Try not to melt when someone looks at you funny."
Luma made a tiny noise that might have been indignation.
Reed just smiled, DM ticking quietly upward in the corner of his vision.
Adventurers were coming.
He finally had more than zero people to defend this crystal with.
"Okay," he said, looking between goblin engineer and slime healer. "Dungeon Daddy meeting. Let's make sure we don't die in our first tutorial fight."
Grika grinned, feral and delighted.
Luma swallowed again and nodded, little ripples running through her form.
The Core pulsed once more, light brightening like approval.
And somewhere above, beyond stone and soil, the faint aura of curious, armed humans began to drift slowly closer.