The core had two spyders unaccounted for on the current floor, and two suggestions for how to use them from the voices, and so it decided to do both. First, it ordered one to leave the dungeon, scout the nearby area, find something new to carry back with it, and return. Then, turning to the remainder, the core spent the mana to transform it into a second gremlin, sending it to the workshop, where it spent a short time arguing with the one already present(once again leaving the core curious as to just how independant they were), barely settling in to begin their experimentation before the spyder returned, scuttling rapidly into the tunnel before going still and dropping a single flower on the ground.

Material Absorbed DP Gained Dandelion X1 1DP

The core waited to see if anything else would happen, before growing bored and ordering the spyder to repeat the action until given new orders. The spyder didn't seem to respond, remaining still, before, nearly an hour later, suddenly jumping up and scuttling out to gather more objects. Perhaps, the core wondered, it needed a long period to recharge? That would slow things down by a lot, but any independant DP income was more than worth it. This was definitely a good idea.

More importantly, the more time the spyder spent outside, the more the core understood about its surroundings. Over several repetitions, it understood its surroundings better, getting a better picture of its home. The entrance sat inside a small copse of trees roughly a minute from a nearby shore, a town(village? city? the core couldn't be sure from the vague senses it received from the spyder, but it was sure it couldn't be too big, or it would have had new intrudors by now) resting a few kilometers away upon an opposing shoreline, a constant stream of ships coming and going as trade continued on.

Material Absorbed DP Gained Oak Seed X4 3DP Minnow X1 1DP Clam X1 1DP Snail X2 3DP

Thinking carefully, it decided that the better source of DP would be intrudors- and only one thing truly preventing the town from knowing of its presense was the copse, and so it ordered its spyder to try to cut the trees during each trip out, only returning when it was running low on charge. If it cut down the trees it would be noticed from farther away after all.

Turning its attention back to growing its dungeon, it listened to another piece of advice, and attempted to place a pit trap at the bottom of a pit trap in the hallway connecting the two empty rooms. Unfortunately, when the time came to place the second pit, the mp broke, scattering from the core's control as if broken. Not to be detered, the core tried to place two sets of arrow traps in nearly the same location, firing across the entrance to the only to experience a similar effect. Thinking back to its first hallway, it placed a second set of arrow traps opposite the first, firing at the same location, and found that worked perfectly.

Refusing to give up, the cure tried digging directly down from the pit trap as it existed now, only to find that failing too, yet more mp spiraling into nothing. In a fit of pique over the lost mp, the core decided to try anything that might work, and added a spike pit trap to the bottom of the regular pit trap, barely expecting anything to happen. To its surprise, however, the mp seemed to hold form, slowly working upon the existing pit, a small indent slowly forming at the bottom of the pit. With a wrenching, painful feeling, something finally started to happen.

Processing.

The core shivered, feeling a small crack form in its crystal heart, the mp continuing to move as if through clinging mud, before with a start the process suddenly completed, leaving a much deeper pit with larger spikes at the bottom.

NEW TRAP COMBINATION UNLOCKED! By combining Pit Trap with Spiked Pit Trap, you have created ! WARNING CORE HEALTH CRITICAL

The entire dungeon shuddered, loose flakes of stone coming loose and a few bricks falling to the ground as the core writhed in its stone home in pain, insensate from the experience.