Demonic Po*nstar System Chapter 774: Back in the Dungeon

The vehicle sliced through the remnants of the swarm with astonishing speed, far exceeding the limits permitted on the novice track.

It belonged to Vespera—a sleek, black, unmarked car navigated by a silent pilot. Its windows offered a one-way view, and the cabin was designed for eight, equipped to seal against any threat Vespera deemed necessary.

Outside, parts of the range were still ablaze. The engagement had been prolonged and intense. Members of the Awakened Association and seasoned fighters from the veteran track had valiantly held the perimeter, alongside Vespera's own team and Kaiden's.

The evolved monsters had unleashed a brutal but ultimately finite assault. Once the main wave of the onslaught was repelled, the remaining creatures were systematically eliminated. However, the victory came at a steep price, measured in the lives of brave individuals.

Dozens had fallen during the conflict, and the sight of the disintegrated monster carcasses, the physical evidence of their struggle, further dampened the prevailing mood.

The Association was still clearing out lingering threats as they retreated. Eclipse had withdrawn in an orderly fashion, while Tessa had led the veterans southward to rendezvous with the surviving guilds, planning to meet everyone at the dungeon. This vehicle, however, carried only Kaiden's immediate family.

Communications were restored mere minutes after the Claimant's departure. The runes flickered to life, drawing a small amount of mana, and the network gradually pieced itself back together. Stream indicators remained dark for another hour before finally showing tentative green signals.

Yet, not a soul was streaming.

Kaiden occupied the rear of the cabin, his companions arrayed around him in their familiar positions. Aria was nestled against his right side, her silver hair tucked beneath his chin. Calypso, her usual imposing demeanor softened, rested her head against his thigh on the floor, her formidable axe set aside for once, her tail lying flat across the carpet. Luna was sprawled on the bench seat opposite, engrossed in her phone. Bastet sat to Kaiden's left, exuding her characteristic regality even while seated cross-legged on the upholstery, her ankle jewelry glinting in the cabin's light. Nyx was close by, to Luna's right.

Vespera occupied the seat across from Kaiden, near the front bulkhead. A dark stain marred her collar, but her expression remained composed.

Alice's halo shimmered above Kaiden's head. <Big brother...>

He gently placed a hand on Calypso’s horn, rubbing its base with his thumb. A low, contented sound escaped her, a stark contrast to the somber atmosphere.

Nyx broke the silence.

Whatever ambient mana, the nearby monster spawns, or whatever else constituted a dungeon's essence, the Claimant was absorbing it all.

"Look," Luna stated grimly, ticking off points on her fingers. "The monsters disintegrated after we defeated them. Kai was challenged as a Dungeon Master. For an entire month, this entity summoned monsters from twenty different dungeons to a single location. It was altering them, transforming them into winged versions, perhaps assimilating them into its own monstrous ranks."

She cast a glance at Kaiden before returning her attention to the phone.

"And now it's at one of those dungeons. Consuming it."

She tapped the screen.

"What if it's powering itself up, much like a dungeon does? Or perhaps it's like a Dungeon Master with usurper-like capabilities?"

Nyx let out a slow breath, her gaze becoming distant as her mind raced.

"That would explain the despawning," she murmured. "The wisps drifting towards it. The area ceased behaving like Earth and started acting as its territory the moment it became active."

Aria's hand had sought out Kaiden's, gripping it tightly. The cabin suddenly felt much smaller than it had moments before.

What would it look like in twelve hours?

Kaiden squeezed Aria’s hand in return, rested his other palm on Calypso’s head, and spoke into the cabin, his voice calm.

"Everything will be alright."

Five pairs of eyes immediately looked up.

"We've spent a month accumulating stats, points, and resources. It's high time we put everything to good use." His thumb brushed gently against Aria’s knuckles. "This troublesome howling rock has graciously granted us a few hours. We will use this time to fortify the dungeon and safeguard what is ours."

Aria’s fingers tightened their grip.

...

The vehicle slowed to a halt at the outer perimeter.

Kaiden spotted it before the door even opened. Through the tinted window, the clearing surrounding his dungeon’s entrance was no longer the serene patch of stone and trees he had departed a month prior. A defensive line had been established around the entrance in a wide circle, and this ring was fortified.

Vespera’s trusted veterans, now members of Eclipse, manned the inner line. Beyond them, Association officers in formal field gear meticulously worked the outer perimeter, their expressions grim.

Kaiden observed them through the window, allowing the stark reality to sink in.

He had been a neglectful Dungeon Master, prioritizing the competition over his responsibilities.

...

The Safe Zone materialized around them as they crossed the threshold, a hundred-meter radius of abyssal stone where nothing could be placed and no monsters could spawn. Beyond this line lay the Abyssal Corridor. The narrow tunnels of hardened rock, the strategic choke points Kaiden had meticulously designed, the lengthy ambush chambers awaiting beyond.

The Nightclaws appeared before he even summoned them.

They descended from the shadowed crevices of the ceiling in a flurry of dark wings and jagged talons. In an instant, half a dozen landed on Kaiden’s shoulders, his arms, and the crown of his head. One nudged his cheek with a soft chirp. Another carefully curled its claws around his wrist, instinctively restraining its venom.

Patriarch had returned home.

Then, their eyes fell upon Calypso.

The pack surged forward in a second wave, more of them emerging from corners Kaiden hadn't realized were occupied, swarming the demoness with increasingly high-pitched chirps. Their former Matriarch. She let out a laugh, patting them affectionately.

"Hello, my little darlings. Did you miss me?"

The response was a cacophony of overwhelming screeches.

The lead Nightclaw tilted its head, chirping a question at Kaiden.

"Yes, we require assistance," Kaiden nodded.

The pack formed pairs and angled towards the girls, offering assistance.

As the girls were being helped, Vespera returned outside, briefing her personnel on the current situation.

They navigated through the first chokehold, the initial ambush chamber, and then the second.

Kaiden observed everything from his perch on the Nightclaw escort and understood.

The tunnel construction was masterful. He had been immensely proud of it. He had flown through this very passage just over a month ago, admiring his own devious traps and strategically placed monsters.

But now, viewing it through eyes that had witnessed the Claimant’s crown brush against an unnaturally hued sky, the corridor seemed merely like a passageway.

He filed the newfound perspective away.

...

The Verdant Expanse opened before them, and the temperature noticeably shifted.

Sunlight emanated from a sun the team had never needed to identify.

Aria exhaled, her fingers relaxing their grip on the Nightclaw's talon.

The palace loomed ahead. Calypso’s former sanctuary. The circular walls of dark stone with lava slowly flowing down their surfaces, the ceiling lost in a swirling mist, and the raised platform at its center crowned by a bone throne. Kaiden had spent 300 DMP to preserve the chamber exactly as she had constructed it.

Calypso’s gaze first swept over the lava cascades. Then to the ceiling. Finally, her eyes lingered on the carvings adorning the lower walls, the last things she would have seen as her own. Her grip on Kaiden’s hand had tightened sometime in the past minute, a subtle shift he hadn't registered.

He squeezed her hand once in return and guided her towards the dais.

The bone throne. It was a seat he knew intimately from the very moment he first claimed it and assumed dominion over all its holdings.

As he settled onto it, the interface materialized before his eyes.

[Dungeon ID: #A23-6679] [Tier: Low] [Theme: Abyssal] [Total Area: 5 km²] [Dungeon Master: Kaiden Grey] [Core Status: Linked to Master] [Available DMP: 30,000]

Kaiden's gaze fell upon the displayed figure.

A full month had passed, spent diligently cultivating the fruits of his rivals' demise. For weeks, monsters had fallen before his mighty greatsword and the skilled hands of his companions, each life extinguished meticulously tallied by the system as tribute to the Master of the very lands where these battles had raged.

Thirty thousand.

This was, by far, the largest sum he had ever accumulated.

His companions, drawn by the potent aura he radiated, had gathered around him, their expressions filled with hopeful anticipation.

Kaiden accessed the Landscape menu, positioning it alongside the Creatures and Defenses menus. The interfaces formed three glowing columns within his field of vision.

The moment had arrived to expend this resource as if his very existence hinged upon it... which, in truth, it did.

[Time Until Defense: 10:43:17]