Chapter 50. Dungeon Opening

-Uung...

A sacred realm, untouchable by ordinary humans.

Lush vitality blooms, and a giant tree supports them.

The World Tree.

The Elves, a tribe that worships the greatest guardian tree on earth.

In Druvalan, the realm of the giant tree. The Elf Elder bowed deeply to his idol.

"Look upon your descendants, the tribe of our glorious forest."

Dense Divine Power settled on the Elf Elder's shoulders.

"Ooh...!"

A power that defies the Providence of all things blessed the chosen Elder.

-Exile, Survival, Dungeon.

Then, fragmented words were engraved in the Elder's mind.

"Kugh...!"

His blood boiled, and his vision blurred.

-Drip. Drip.

The Elf Elder looked down with blurry Vision, seeing red droplets falling and staining the ground.

The price for the Revelation.

If it had been any other Follower, their Head would have exploded.

"I shall obey...!"

But the Elf Elder could withstand the Constellation's presence, the command.

Because he had the appropriate status and ability.

'Exile...'

The word that clearly echoed within the descended Revelation.

It was undoubtedly referring to the tribesman they had exiled from the great forest not long ago.

He had ordered the Dark Elf Assassins to purge her, but it seemed things had gone awry.

'Was her name Lagnis?'

It was the name of the Exile the Elder knew well.

An Elf who possessed outstanding qualities but had fallen into a depraved state by abandoning the blessings of the World Tree.

Therefore, it was right to treat that malicious being as the main culprit of blasphemy.

In the Elf Elder's mind, a gigantic Dungeon of unprecedented size appeared.

Surely that abominable being, the disgrace of their race, was there—

The World Tree's Incarnation conveyed its will to the Elf Elder with clear intent.

'Punish the sinner.'

The Elf Elder vowed here and now.

To inflict great suffering on the one who dared not accept death with dignity.

#

The scale of the Dungeon will be prepared as a catastrophe of unprecedented size.

That was the plan from the beginning, and it's a natural assumption to meet the needs of other Constellations.

The Religious Order of our Father God not participating in such a massive Dungeon?

That would be the same as turning their backs on world peace.

It's a very bothersome situation, but it can't be helped since this is the Progress I've induced and guided.

'This is the peace you created! Endure it with evil and sheer willpower!'

The image of a large man wearing a red octagonal hat came to mind.

"Ack!"

I shook my Head, dispelling the feeling of mental contamination, and looked down at the sleeping Lagnis.

"How can a person look like this?"

Despite surviving such harsh conditions, the beauty characteristic of Elves still remained.

Doll-like features, skin as white as jade.

Lagnis, lost in deep sleep, with her malicious gaze gone, exuded a captivating charm.

[Black Sun's Incarnation: ...The Absolute Being seems to really like his Followers.]

"Me?"

[Black Sun's Incarnation: ...Usually, there aren't Constellations who care for their Followers so much.]

Is that so?

But we're fundamentally different from the start.

Even if I was just a guy playing Games in my room, they were born to rule something from the beginning.

Constellation authority, Follower management, and so on.

Such bothersome things, I still couldn't and didn't want to understand.

'If I do that, I can't have a Fan Meeting.'

If I keep my distance from our Followers, mindful of authority and such, when will I fulfill my personal desires?

There are so many attractive Follower customizations in this world.

Maid, bikini, bunny girl, various concept shots.

I saved so many legendary pictures even in the Game, but now that I've come to reality, new horizons are opening.

'Thinking about it makes me feel suddenly wronged.'

The original plan was to go to our utopia and enjoy a leisurely life.

How did I end up living such a busy life?

It's all because of this weak world.

'There are still so many places that need repairs.'

[Black Sun's Incarnation: But that's because of your Holy Wars that happened before...]

"Shhh, stop."

That couldn't be helped.

If the Game company says to do it, I have to do it.

What power does a mere Player like me have to choose which Holy War to participate in?

"The important thing is that I've risen to this position."

「Black Sun's Incarnation: ...」

“So that’s how we met.”

「Black Sun's Incarnation: I, Is that so?」

「Child of the Lost Star: Intriguing. A Constellation drawn to another Constellation? Perhaps, even among those beyond Providence, new interactions are-」

「Black Sun's Incarnation: Don't listen to that bastard. Sometimes his Head goes haywire.」

“That's true though.”

The Star Child sometimes gets lost in his own inspiration and rambles on with strange pronouncements.

Thanks to that, the Black Sun, who has to stay in the chat window, is the only one who suffers.

“That’s why I told you to make a Summoned body.”

You could enjoy the present world, it's so much better.

He needs to understand how thrilling it is to achieve your goals with your own body.

「Black Sun's Incarnation: I, I… still…」

Leaving the Black Sun trailing off strangely-

I turned my attention back to Lagnis.

The beautiful Elf, unconscious, unable to even notice us rambling.

My Eyes, admiring her Beauty, moved towards Lagnis's right ear.

A scar, neatly cut, alongside another scar.

Seeing the symbol of the Elves defaced like that, my Heart ached.

Whoever did this, I have to pay them back the same way when I catch them.

「Black Sun's Incarnation: It was probably done by her own kind. They said they cut the ears of Exiles to humiliate them.」

“Then we should burn the forest.”

Now that she's my Follower, I plan to settle the score precisely.

“This is already fun.”

I’m not excited about bothering the World Tree’s Constellation.

I'm just pleased with the thought of fulfilling my Follower’s wishes.

「Black Sun's Incarnation: If you need, I’ll release our guys first.」

The Black Sun supported me with an enthusiastic attitude.

After vehemently rejecting my request for special treatment, his mood seems to have changed.

But normally, wouldn't it change for the worse?

I don't know why he's become more proactive.

‘Well, it’s not bad for me.’

The more hands, the better.

“Still, don't do anything I haven't ordered.”

I plan to Approach Lagnis and the World Tree side a bit more slowly.

For now, I need to deal with the Dungeon first.

[Dungeon creation complete.]

Just in time, the notification window popped up, and I checked the Grade below it.

[Extremely Dangerous!]

A bright red, Special S-Grade danger level greeted me.

“But isn’t this cheating?”

Even though it's one of the few Special Danger Dungeons in this world, I don't have to worry about losing my life.

Because of the Infinite Regression setting I manipulated under the Black Name.

Souls eliminated within my Dungeon are perfectly restored to their state before entering the Dungeon, preserved in their complete form.

They might lose some memories, but at least they get to live.

“I wonder if I shouldn't have done it.”

I desperately wanted to maintain the Game's authenticity, so I whipped myself and the two Constellations next to me and diligently implemented it.

Originally, defying death and becoming Undead isn’t a light authority.

But three Constellations together can make the impossible possible.

‘Infinite Challenge.’

In other words, although it has an S-Grade danger level, it's immortal, and it allows for an infinite number of challenges to seize the fruits at the end.

“This is why Constellations go crazy.”

「Black Sun's Incarnation: The opening… is it right now?」

“No. Lagnis isn't ready yet.”

The expedition team for the Dungeon raid.

Our Lagnis will be the most active in that vanguard.

‘Experience Burning Event!’

While others rush out to gain benefits, she’ll be soaring above them.

That's the ideal scenario I'm hoping for.

‘Get better soon, get better soon.’

As long as her body is preserved, limitless growth potential awaits her.

Raising my Follower, enticing other Constellations.

This is completely killing two birds with one stone.

“But at this timing, everyone should have had enough time to prepare, right?”

It should be okay to send out a notification that the Dungeon opening is scheduled.

Even if it opens right now, people won’t be able to just barge in from all over the world.

There’s a process to everything.

A Special S-Grade Dungeon created in a remote wilderness.

Groups with their own objectives will gather around it, and naturally, a community similar in size to a city will be formed.

The various Dungeon cities that actually exist in this world support my hypothesis.

[Open ‘Dungeon’?]

So.

Eagerly hoping that as many Constellations as possible will gather at our bait-

[YES]

-Kuuuung!

I watched the huge Mana wave emitted from the Dungeon Core with a joyful Heart.