With my looted gains in hand and the area properly surveyed, I made my way back into my familiar clearing. The new quest needs me to build but I want to get the Creeper Thorn squared away. The first thing to do now that I'm back?

Collect bones.

Most people have access to tools or people for when they need to dry things out. My situation is far from that; while both Bomber and Ivy could help me, I need their combat ability for the seemingly endless ranbi assaults. And in my own case, anything that dries out the Creeper Thorn might dry out my body. However, my most recent quest reward and a few bones could give me a solution.

I wrap the Creeper Thorn around some bones and lay them near the Mana Bonfire. The heat off of it is pretty intense when you're standing near it, but the lack of flames means that it can easily dry out plants and allow safe recovery without needing to constantly worry about a fire.

Unless it reaches the futon. I really hope it doesn't burn the futon.

Aside from the futon, there isn't anything I'd potentially lose in the worst-case scenario. That alone makes the idea failproof in my opinion.

[Notification] Use of Skill Craft detected.

Distributing skill...

That is... unusual. So far I've done a lot of things that might warrant new skills. I guess creating Creeper Thorn traps registers differently in this world from making bone structures. Maybe it's because buildings aren't something you can actively use or place?

Craft Learned / Acquired Personal-type A Support Skill; the ability to craft is easy but there is a talent for applying one's own energy and skill to make it even better.

Costs 100 SP.

That skill just leaves me more confused. How was I using this skill? Stat-wise, I'm nowhere near 100 SP. It also is a good reminder that I hadn't checked my stats in a while.

Kaden River

Title: None Level: 2 MP: 35/35 HP: 30/30 SP: 12/12 Race: Creeper (Disembodied Soul) Class: Fledgling Nature Mage Role: Dungeon Master (Manifested Form) Evolution Stage: 1 / 2 STR: 7 CON: 7 DEX: 9 LUCK: 8 INT: 20 RES: 10 [Titles] | [Change Class] | [Summons] | [Main Menu]

I understand that a good bit of my stats was raised through my title acquisition before but it looks like the rest of my stat gain probably came from evolving the Creeper Thorn into a Creeper. Comparing my own evolution to Bomber's, though, it looks like my evolution was far more potent.

The exact reason for that isn't easy to place, though. For starters, I have a random destiny seed or whatever, so that alone might mean my stat gain is better. It could also mean that the Creeper is a better evolutionary option that the Ranbli Kid; rare evolutions were a thing in video games and isekai that featured it, so it's not that hard to rationalize it.

Point is, my evolution may be good but I had nowhere near enough SP. If I somehow activated that skill, then it'd have put my SP in the negative... or inflicted something else like a curse, I'd think.

Brogdar makes less sense every day I'm here.

But, now that I'm in my menu... I might as well check out the Titles section. I've unlocked a few now so it wouldn't hurt to take a quick inventory of it. It'll help me keep my mind off pulling bones out of corpses for the new towers.

Titles.

[Titles]

Grand Reach You must grow if you want to reach for greatness!

Equip Effect: N/A

[Set Title] Beginning Slaughterer Everyone has to kill in this world to survive!

Equip Effect: N/A [Set Title] [Back]

Oh. I... only have two?

Wow. That actually stings my pride a bit. I've not been here that long, sure, but don't most people who are given chances like this have wildly successful starts? I've really not gained much at all outside of a few abilities and my single spell. Now I have the Craft skill but I can't actively use it and only used it completely on accident.

This sucks. I'm just going to set my title to Grand Reach for now and try to focus on bone stacking.

...

And... I... am... finished!

[Notification]: Quest Update Resources and options are the beginning of many new adventures! But they also provide opportunity for new dungeons! To do that, you must extend not just your reach but your control over your territory!

Acquire Dungeon Edge Constructor

[Build 5 structures within your dungeon's claimed zone. 5/5]

Spend 50 Favor on improving the Dungeon.

Acquire a Dungeon Landmark.

Bonus Condition: Learn/Acquire Ability Magic Theorist.

I erected these bone towers alongside the dungeon entrance so that there's a little more decoration in the main area. Morbid decoration is still decoration... but I can always tear these down laters.

More importantly? I hear a ding inside my head. The not-crazy kind.

[Notification] Conditions met for Dungeon Edge... Constructor - Dungeon Edge #00001 Your dungeon's decorations and makeshift buildings are but a mere foundation.

Unlocked the [Dungeon Manager] option in the [Main Menu].

So that is one of the options in my Main Menu?

Main Menu

Open with the key-thought "Menu" [Dungeon] [Manager] [Dungeon Manager] [Quests] [???] [Kaden] [???] [Inventory] [???] [Codex] [???] [HInt] - 1 of 1 use(s) available.

Only four more mystery options to go. Opening it up right away might be what most people do but I'm just trying to take in my sudden rush of progress. Or I guess it's progress.

Honestly, it's better than spending all day just killing ranbi.

But while I have some night peacetime to spare, I figure I'll check it out while I wait for the Creeper Thorn to dry out. Moving up and down the stairs isn't that easy but I'm getting used to it.

Once I'm sitting on my futon in some semblance of shrub-monster comfort, I navigate my way into the menu with the cozy glow of my mana bonfire to illuminate my reading.

[Notice]

As this is your first time opening the Dungeon Manager function, you are allowed to choose to view the Tutorial. Those who view the tutorial may possibly have features locked to allow progression to follow the tutorial.

Do you accept?

[Accept] | [Decline]

...

No. I'm not going to do the tutorial.

If I'm being honest, most of the help guides in isekai are straight forward. And tutorials are always boring as hell.

But the other part is that there's no way to know exactly what the tutorial will entail. Boring as they are, tutorials are also most often provide poor demonstrations of a system and in various cases cause the player to build bad habits. It's a direct problem that often prevents reaching your full potential.

Knowledge isn't worth the risk of a tutorial that not only wastes my time but additionally convolutes my freedom to interact with the systems I do have.

You have selected to opt-out of the tutorial.

Reward Favor for Tutorial is now forfeit.

Of course. Obviously the tutorial had a reward. Why wouldn't the tutorial I opt-out of have a reward? Fuck me.

Urgh. No point getting upset over spilled milk or missed opportunities. It's not as if I'm lacking for Favor either; while I was working on the towers, I checked my Dungeon tab and noticed I had a little over 100 Favor. It makes sense with how much the Dried Creeper Thorn has been killing recently that I'd have an insane amount.

Anyway, getting back on topic: the Dungeon Manager.

[Dungeon Manager] Landmarks: 0 of 3 MAX Zones: 0 Total Constructions: 5 Infrastructure Total: 0 Road Level: 0 Water Access Level: 0 Food Level (Herbivore): 1 Food Level (Carnivore): 1 Production Stage: Basic (Stone) Protection Level: 0 [View] | [Construct] | [Destroy] Dungeon Town Total: 5

Decorations: 5 Housing Level: 0 Population Limit: 0 Detection Level: 0 Defense Level: 0 Trap Defense Bonus: 1 [View] | [Construct] | [Destroy] Dungeon Total: 0 Decorations: 0 Housing Level: 0 Population Limit: 0 Floors: 1 Defense Level: 0 Expansion Level: 0 [View] | [Construct] | [Destroy] | [Expand] [Back]

A big window like that makes a lot of people immediately give up and not want to exist.

Trust me, I know that because I felt that exact same way for a few minutes now.

However, now that I've calmed down and have had time to think, I have to say that it is... pretty extensive despite its generalized categories.

For starters: the category divisions. As a dungeon master, normally you expect to just manage a dungeon. In Brogdar, that means I manage the infrastructure, a dungeon town, and the dungeon all at the same time.

Infrastructure and the dungeon itself are fairly straightforward but... dungeon town? I guess it'd be comparable to how castles have towns that surround them to provide support and act as initial defensive layers during a siege. In that case, that'd probably mean everything above and around the entrance. Based on the count I have, that'd include the five towers I built just to unlock the Edge that lets me access all of this stuff.

Now, a problem I see is that no population is supported at all. I'm guessing that either doesn't cover myself and my ranbi summons or it means that there isn't any housing. The prior seems most likely given I have a hole with a futon to sleep in but my Dungeon still marks its population support as zero.

Forcing myself into all the menus seems pretty stupid right now, though. If anything, I think I'd like to focus on making my dungeon bigger. A room to myself would be nice to have so I don't have to worry about the giant bonfire. And besides, I have to spend Favor to improve the dungeon for the quest.

It's a good thing I'm not lacking Favor right now, though. I had assumed it might be related to the dungeon's Evolution Stage or something but it looks like it's just a currency system. Performing things for the dungeon such as killing those ranbi has been my primary income, so I guess it could also be a sort of experience system even now. It might be possible to earn more Favor if I ever encountered anything stronger.

Or if I sacrificed my Summons. But that's definitely not an option while I only have two summons and both need to be leveled up for my own personal safety.

Expand.

Expansion costs 25 Favor per room. Every four rooms will raise Expansion Level by 1.

Are you sure you want to expand the dungeon?

[Yes] | [No]

Yes.

Now, where to put my new room-

Expansion confirmed.

Random overwrite activated; randomly assigning layout.

Fuck that Grey bastard. If I had known random options meant everything would be random, including things like layouts, then I wouldn't have chosen him! How is an isekai hero supposed to rely on random chance when they're trying to cope with a new world!?

Whatever. I hear and see part of the wall rumbling away and making a doorway. It's off to the side so for now I'll just move the Mana Bonfire in there. It still generates heat and should keep the main room warm. I'll let the Creeper Thorn keep drying up in peace... and I can set it up so that I can even see them from my futon.

...

Done. I also made another expansion that bridged off on the northern end of the bonfire's room. So right now my base looks like an L. Hopefully I can acquire a skill to work the stone in here and manually connect rooms... or make new ones. If I can craft outside of the system, it makes sense that I should be able to enhance and modify the dungeon directly.

At least I better be able to.

But right now, I can see the sun is starting to come up from outside of the hole. Soon the sounds of ranbi being killed will begin and I'll have a chance to see Bomber's new form at work.

Only there's a problem: I don't want to leave yet.

I've spent enough Favor to qualify for the second part of the Quest but I still have to figure out claiming Landmarks. Without the tutorial, I don't truly understand how that works... but it might be connected to the Zones thing. Or both are completely unrelated and I just need to experiment again.

No matter how I look at it, I have a few things to do before I can complete the quest. It's not on a timer so I have plenty of time to fool around unless that changes.

So instead, I have a better plan.

I'm going to try and figure out what it means to be a mage in this world. I'm going to try and discover Brogdar's magic and theories on how to use it. Or whatever it takes to get that Ability.