The portal opened with a discreet flash.
Kerow reappeared inside his dungeon. A faint pulse stirred the air — a sign. The very heart of the place recognized him.But something had changed: the dungeon's energy seemed… expectant.
He was no longer quite the same. And the dungeon knew it.
Boss Room – a few minutes earlier
The Iron Arrows were on the brink of extinction.
Their leader, Rujal, the human shield, was bleeding heavily, cornered before the boss pedestal. Two members lay motionless on the ground. The others, gasping for breath, faced a massive creature: a Bloodthirsty Alpha Rabbit, an unpredictable mutation triggered by Lin's recent adjustments.
It stood nearly two meters tall, fur bristling like blades, twin daggers fused into its arms. And above all… tactical awareness. It moved like an assassin.
They had used all their potions. Their formation was shattered.
But they had one thing Lin could sense from afar: the will to live.
As the Alpha leapt to slash the archer's throat, Rujal — already falling — twisted midair.
An impossible motion. A suicidal counterattack.He drove his blade into the monster's neck. And in return… took a dagger straight through the eye.
The creature collapsed.
And the trial ended.
Divine Notification:
Congratulations! Your dungeon has been cleared for the first time without guidance.Rewards:– +500 Mastery Points– +1 Progression Seal unlocked– +1 Function: Survivor Logbook
Lin, invisible in the shadows, watched in silence.
They had won. But the price was brutal. Rujal was dying. A single healing potion would have saved him… but they had none left.
Lin closed his eyes.
Dungeon Maker Choice: neutrality or intervention?
He sighed. Then raised his hand.
A vial materialized midair. High-grade.It dropped into the hand of the youngest adventurer, who looked up, stunned.
A miracle.
[Survivor Logbook activated.]
A new panel appeared in Lin's mind.
He could now track the evolution of those who had conquered his dungeon.Observe their paths, their choices, their deaths.
He smiled.This is only the beginning. I will have my own pieces on the board. And they will have grown in my labyrinths.
And deep within the dungeon, something stirred.
A pulse. An ancient vibration. Like an entity awakening from slumber.
Something no Dungeon Maker was ever meant to hear.
"At last. You open the door."