The Queen's Disguise
There are certain... circumstances behind this dungeon—the Decay Cave where Death Breeds. The bleak, heavy death energy settling over the place was enough to deter any living soul from even dreaming of stepping foot inside. From the bone throne in his boss room, Calandas rested his chin on his hand, chewing over the events that had transpired there.
'Not all Rank 7s are created equal.'
The Death Knight, Bargore. He was a completely different beast from the previous Rank 7, the Soot Beast of Bango's Dark Abyss. When Bargore, an undead, had shielded a human back then, Calandas had felt an overwhelming sense of disappointment. That disappointment had quickly morphed into murderous intent, making him want to slaughter the Death Knight on the spot.
Yet, he hadn't acted blindly without thinking. After all, his opponent was merely the lowest rank of the Mugan 7-gung. Furthermore, it was a newborn dungeon with absolutely no connections to any of the other 72 Dungeons. Even if Calandas replaced him, no one would hold him accountable for his unilateral action. Perhaps the Rank 6, Valentia Rosesha, might care, but the Lords of the higher ranks in their remote domains would undoubtedly remain indifferent. If he killed Bargore, the Rank 7 palace of the Mugan 7-gung would simply reset, replacing one newborn with another. There would be some noise for a while, of course, but nothing worth losing sleep over.
'It seems the rumor of him slaying the Hero in a single blow was true.'
Killing a Hero was easy enough. Especially one like Valmonk, the Hero of Faith. However, if it had to be done in a single blow, even Calandas could not guarantee success. As if to prove the rumors weren't mere hearsay, Bargore had obliterated Calandas's artifact—one that had been with him for a thousand years—as a warning. It was literal obliteration. Even though not a shred of magical energy had been felt, the result was absolute annihilation, leaving not a trace behind.
Was his essence truly that of a single-entity dungeon, despite being ranked 7th? While the higher-ranking Lords of the Mugan 7-gung commanded armies of tens of thousands to secure their positions, Bargore had reigned at Rank 7 from his very birth, entirely on his own.
But even that was no reason to back down. Even if he were to die, he had his Life Vessel. As long as his Dungeon Core or his Life Vessel remained intact, Calandas was immortal. In fact, dying was almost preferable. He could simply resurrect and use his factions to corner Bargore politically.
"How foolish of me. Should I have recognized it from the very beginning?"
Calandas realized only far too late that all his grand plans were reckless gambles he shouldn't have even dreamed of.
During their confrontation, Calandas had cautiously closed his eyes. To open his third eye, he had to close his other two. By losing their lives, liches attained a much higher Soul Rank. An undead of the Lich King's caliber could even reach the state of awakening a third eye—the Spirit Eye.
The Spirit Eye, which allowed one to see the soul. Calandas had benefited greatly from his Spirit Eye over the past thousand years. Whenever he opened it, he could see the Soul Rank of others, allowing him to choose his battles wisely and exert his power selectively.
No living being could train their soul. The third-rate trained the muscles of their body. The second-rate trained the mana within. The first-rate perfected both body and internal energy. Yet, absolutely no one could train their soul, which was their very essence. Furthermore, a soul could neither be hidden nor deceived. Because it was an inherent quality possessed from birth, it was called the Soul Rank.
"...It was an incredibly alien soul."
If he hadn't cautiously opened his Spirit Eye back then, his choices might have led him straight to his demise.
Normally, putting aside their rank, the souls of the undead all shared the same form. Because they were all dead souls. But if it was a single-entity Lord of the Mugan 7-gung... Calandas had opened his Spirit Eye, driven by a sliver of curiosity. The soul of Bargore he saw then was not that of an undead. No, its rank couldn't even be measured. Was it because it was so sublime? No, it was different. It was incomprehensible. A deeply alien soul. It was so utterly bizarre that it defied all understanding, as if it did not belong to this world.
Had he ever seen such a soul in his thousand-plus years of existence?
...Only once.
'The Old One.'
The Rank 1 of the Mugan 7-gung, the domain where the oldest ancient entity slumbered. Bargore's soul was reminiscent of the Old One's soul he had witnessed there. Because they were incomprehensible, their Soul Ranks couldn't be compared. But in terms of form, both were so alien that they seemed to belong to another world entirely.
When Calandas had first laid eyes on the Old One, he had trembled pitifully, completely losing his dignity. Once again, that primal, unknown terror seemed to creep up on him.
"That man is truly dangerous."
To think such a being was only Rank 7. No matter if he was a single-entity dungeon, it made him question the ranking system. Was the power of the other Mugan Palaces truly that dependent on their subordinates? Or perhaps, as a newborn Mugan Palace, his potential was simply limitless. In a few years, he might surpass Rank 6, and eventually, even Calandas's own rank.
"..."
Calandas closed his eyes as he chewed over the memory. It felt as though that alien soul was still flickering behind his closed eyelids.
They say to know your enemy and know yourself is the key to invincibility, but in our case, we didn't even know our own dungeon, let alone the enemy. Before departing for the tropical forest, Charlotte and I put our heads together over a map of the dungeon. Isabella tried to squeeze her head in beside us like an uninvited guest, but I ignored her.
"First, we must reinforce the traps," Charlotte said.
It was an obvious point. Since we were short on manpower, we had to rely heavily on traps. The dungeon was structured as a labyrinth, divided into seven floors. Traps were only deployed from the first to the third floors, and below that, there weren't even any monsters stationed. It was practically an open door.
"Ah, let us hand this over to Isabella first."
Charlotte pulled out a crystal ball. It was a security alarm she had crafted herself, linked to the magical threads at the entrance. It was supposed to ring when an intruder entered, but since we had no proper way to teleport back anyway, it would be nothing but a useless paperweight if we took it with us. Handing the crystal ball to Isabella, Charlotte continued.
"In my humble opinion, an ordinary subjugation force won't even be able to breach the third floor. Even if they do, they will be stopped at the fourth. As you know, the dark cavern is an incredibly advantageous environment for vampires."
"Hmph!"
Isabella proudly thumped her chest.
"Let me emphasize: that is only for ordinary subjugation forces. If even a slightly stronger force invades, we will be utterly crushed and defeated without even leaving bones behind."
A crack of shock rippled across Isabella's face.
"Even with the vampire flock and Valmonk combined, I believe it would be difficult to fend off an A-rank subjugation force. And dungeons of the Mugan 7-gung are typically targeted by hordes of at least A-rank forces."
"Hmm."
"No matter how much we reinforce the traps, they are ultimately just passive obstacles. A dungeon needs active, powerful monsters."
"Can we not enlist the help of the Merchant Guild?"
"We are looking into procuring decent monsters, but there are none suitable at the moment. Even if there were, we couldn't bring them in immediately; we have only earmarked them for the future. For now, we cannot seek the Guild's assistance."
When I asked Why? with my expression, she answered immediately.
"We cannot afford to run up any more debt with the Guild. Between the monster hiring fees and the dungeon renovations, we still owe tens of millions. If the few remaining Kobolds leave, we will lose our only means of mining as well."
"..."
"The Guild pursues profit. No matter if we are of the Mugan 7-gung, if they see no return on investment, they will lose interest."
Forget about solidifying our foundations; we haven't even paid off our debts yet. Talk about counting our chickens before they hatch.
"There is one way, but..."
Charlotte trailed off, glancing at me to gauge my reaction. What could it be to make her hesitate like this? I gave a nonchalant nod.
"We could request support from other dungeons using the name of the Mugan 7-gung. However, doing so would utterly ruin our prestige as one of the Seven Palaces."
She was absolutely right. Even taking into account that we were a newborn dungeon, if rumors spread that a member of the Mugan 7-gung was begging lower-ranked dungeons for help, we would be completely looked down upon at the upcoming gathering of the 72 Dungeons. And that would naturally lead to suspicion. Is this bastard really a true member of the Mugan 7-gung?
"Would it not be fine if it were a fellow member of the Mugan 7-gung?"
Even if asking a higher-ranking dungeon might bruise our pride a bit, the difference in scale was massive. If I had to guess how the other bosses would see it, they'd probably think, Well, they are a newborn, and it's a higher rank, so it makes sense.
"That is an excellent insight. As expected of you, Boss."
"..."
I swear she's making fun of me.
"However, Boss, you fell out with the Rank 5 Lich King just because of me."
"It was hardly 'just because of you.' You are a highly capable deputy."
"...Thank you."
Nice, successfully built some affinity. There was nothing to lose by boosting a subordinate's morale.
"By now, the other members of the Mugan 7-gung must have heard the news. Even if they didn't know and helped us, they would feel deeply betrayed once they found out later. That would only lead to further conflict with the other Palaces."
"What if we ask someone who is already on bad terms with him?"
I knew of one Boss who was at odds with Calandas: the Rank 6, Valentia Rosesha.
As if we were on the same page, Charlotte nodded.
"As the old saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. She might actually be willing to help us. However, if we go down this path, our relationship with the Rank 5 will become permanently unsalvageable."
"It matters not. He was an unpleasant fellow anyway."
Even now, just thinking about that time sent shivers down my spine. Why on earth would I try to stay on good terms with a guy who literally tried to kill me? I'd much rather be close to a Boss who, even if slightly lower in rank, was actually reasonable.
"...To go so far for my sake."
Charlotte jumped to her own conclusions, but I didn't bother correcting her. And so, it was decided that we would seek the help of the Rank 6, Rosesha. Whether she would actually help us was still up in the air, but doing something was better than just sitting on our hands.
"Conveniently, the merchant assigned to me also handles her. We can contact her through him."
That demon merchant is acquainted with a Lord of the Mugan Palaces? Just how capable was Charlotte to have connections with a merchant of the Mugan Palaces?
Charlotte tore a black ticket, and before long, the merchant came rushing out of a newly opened portal. Charlotte immediately explained the situation, and by the time she finished, the merchant's expression was a sight to behold.
"Hah... To the Rank 6 Lord?"
"Yes."
"Are you serious?"
"It is the Boss's decision. Refrain from asking further questions."
"Then, what do you intend to offer as a fitting price?"
Give and take. We had to offer something of equal value to match a large-scale deployment of troops, or at least make a promise for the future. If we offered to join her faction, she would gladly accept, but that was a last resort. Knowing absolutely nothing about the political landscape right now, I had to tread with extreme caution.
I did have something else in mind. The only problem was that even I thought it was completely absurd. In fact, it went beyond absurd—it was so rude it made me wonder if I even had a conscience.
'But I have to do it.'
According to Calandas, the Rank 6 Rosesha had taken an interest in me. And from what I knew of her, she decided all matters, big or small, based purely on her own amusement.
"Tell the Rank 6 Boss: if she helps, she can leave a good impression on me before our first meeting."
"...Pardon?" the merchant blurted out, his face completely blank.
It was a perfectly understandable reaction. Help me because it might leave a good impression on me? This was practically a command disguised as a request, the kind of thing a higher-ranking Lord would say to a subordinate. For a Rank 7 to say this to a Rank 6 was sheer madness, even to my eyes.
But I knew very well that Rosesha loved this kind of insolent—or to put it nicely, audacious—attitude. Moreover, while it wasn't a definitive promise, it was a subtle hint that I was open to joining her faction. If she knew about my friction with Calandas, she would undoubtedly send support.
"Go and deliver it at once."
"..."
It was glaringly obvious that he was terrified of getting crushed in a clash of giants. The merchant kept glancing back at me before finally stepping into the portal with a thoroughly depressed face.
"...Boss," Charlotte spoke up quietly after the merchant had left. "It seems we are about to make two enemies."
I shrugged. "We shall see about that."
"She has gladly accepted! She mentioned she had some leeway and would dispatch a portion of her standing army. Whew!"
The returned merchant was drenched in sweat, but his expression looked incredibly relieved.
See? I told you it would work.
Glancing sideways at Charlotte, I saw her lips parted slightly in surprise.
The demon merchant looked down at a parchment and read its contents aloud.
"Let's see... The support forces consist of 100 Succubi, 100 Incubi, 100 Werewolves, and 100 Vampires. She has agreed to support us with a total of 400 Servants of the Night, and did not specify any further details."
Four hundred. A bit stingy for a Mugan Palace, but beggars can't be choosers. On second thought, since they were Servants of the Night, I was actually quite satisfied. Monsters that unleashed their full potential in the night or darkness were collectively referred to as Servants of the Night. With them, we could utilize our defensive and spatial advantages to the absolute fullest.
"And the timeline?"
"She did say immediately—"
Vroooom!
Before he could even finish his sentence, a pink portal tore open. From within, monsters began to emerge in an orderly fashion, one by one. Succubi, Incubi, Werewolves, and Vampires. True to his word, a total of four hundred Servants of the Night gathered before me, lining up in neat rows. Despite the massive crowd moving all at once, there was not a hint of disorder. Rather than a well-trained army, they looked more like highly educated, elite servants.
"""We pay our respects to the new Lord of the Mugan Palace."""
As if on cue, the servants bowed in perfect unison. I scanned the crowd, maintaining my relaxed facade.
Their levels were all over the place, but this was more than enough.
There was, of course, a non-zero chance that they might betray us and seize the dungeon. Frankly, I had no contingency plan for that. If they did, I'd just have to hand over this stupid dungeon. It wasn't like I was bound to the Dungeon Core anyway; I could just flee elsewhere. But I had a strong feeling that the Valentia Rosesha I knew wouldn't pull something like that. Backstabbing was more the style of a sly snake like Calandas. Rosesha might be playful, but she was a lady in these matters. This was a covenant built entirely on mutual trust.
Just as I was about to look away in satisfaction, something caught my eye.
What on earth is that?
Right next to the level of a bowing succubus, there was an indicator showing her current emotion toward me. I had never seen anything like that, even in the game. What was it? A bug?
As if possessed, my feet carried me toward the succubus.
"..."
With me standing right in front of her, the succubus remained bowed. Even up close, the question mark next to her level remained unchanged. A storm of questions and answers swirled in my head. This couldn't be an actual bug. There had to be some hidden reason, but I couldn't put my finger on it.
...Wait, could it be?
Rosesha was the Succubus Queen. Among her numerous abilities, her racial traits were naturally the core, but she also possessed unique abilities completely unrelated to being a succubus. If it was that unique ability... it would perfectly explain the question mark.
"I never would have pegged you for having such a bizarre hobby."
Flinch.
The succubus's shoulders trembled slightly. That sealed my conviction. Playing dumb was completely unlike her. She must have really wanted to fool me.
"I had hoped our first meeting would be in your true form."
Only then did the succubus lift her head. Her face was completely expressionless, devoid of any tension. On the outside, she looked like any ordinary succubus. But there was no way I wouldn't recognize the entity dwelling within.
"Valentia Rosesha. Take off your mask."
A smirk played on Rosesha's lips.
Before I could even register it, she suddenly wrapped both arms around the back of my neck, pulling me down toward her face in an instant. Standing on her tiptoes, she brought her face so close that our skin almost touched. Caught completely off guard, I found myself staring into her eyes, our foreheads pressed together.
"Darling. How did you know?"
Rosesha licked her lips, a seductive smile spreading across her face.