"Focus!" Toby forced himself to calm down, there was no room for panic. "There is no time for caution, I need power and I need it now."

He had no qualms about killing a-holes, but he was done with wantonly killing innocent people, never again. He immediately started producing acolytes to build something and looked at all the skill points he had spared during the time he had been leeching experience from the army nurtured dungeon. He had originally wanted to pick his skills after careful observation, but had he room for careful observations now?

Toby had to multitask. He could not refuse to kill irwen, but he did not want to execute her, meaning he could only stall for time and hope he would be able to stitch together some means to beat the mages' asses into the ground. Yes, others would come and it might be silly when considered from the long-term perspective, but it was simply his bottom line.

Irwen had been brought to him in the same way as Kiki and Percy, Toby reacted in a similar way, circling her with his skeletons, but instead of killing her, one of the skeletons started cutting her clothes slowly until she stood there naked in a circle of skeletons. Two skeletons then took her hands under their arms and led her to a group of acolytes who began constructing an altar. The altar was big and when it was finished, the acolytes began drawing a pentagram on the ground with the altar at its center. In every single one of the five pointed edges of the pentagram there was a pillar growing out of the ground, as the acolytes worked their magic. Then a thick chain grew out of each of the pillars. The skeletons laid her on the altar and bound the five chains around her wrists, ankles and neck. The chains were then tightened a bit and tied around the pillars. Toby strained his brain what to do next, as his main task had not been finished and he came with an idea of placing a large, shallow stone chalice under her neck that would feed a system of grooves on the ground when it overflowed with blood. The acolytes were diligently carving fancy geometrical patterns on the ground that would be drawn in blood when it was spilled out of the chalice.

The whole operation gave him some time to consolidate his skills. Toby kept ignoring all the commentary, especially from one of the maniacal mages who brought himself to a verbal orgasm when he saw the elaborate sacrificial contraption that was the altar, which grew more and more complicated as Toby was in need of more time.

Meanwhile Toby opened his status and quickly called up his skills

Lich Toby Rhazan

Level 29 Mystic Elven Dungeon Core of the Dead

[Experience 300/2900]

[SP 15]

Unique Bonus Abilities -

[Selfless Saviour] - You do not like killing, you care for lives of even little kittens. You won't receive any experience for killing, but you now receive experience for saving lives of all creatures. The amount depends on the level of threat prevented and the level of the saved creature.

[Impress The Elderly] - Nothing warms your heart more than impressing your grandpa with your heroic deeds when he is watching you! Your experience gain is trippled, when you manage to impress the elderly with your deed.

[SP 15]

-----[Level 1; SP 0 -> Basic Dungeon Sense]

-----[Level 3; SP 2 -> Basic Dungeon Sense:: Extended Action Radius]

-----[Level 10; SP 2 -> Advanced Dungeon Sense]

-----[Level 10; SP 3 -> Advanced Dungeon Sense::Extended Action Radius+]

[Level 20; SP 3 -> Advanced Dungeon Sense::Extended Action Radius++]

[Level 25; SP 3 -> Advanced Dungeon Sense::Unlimited Scauting Radius]

-----[Level 1; SP 1 -> Basic Construction]

-----[Level 2; SP 1 -> Basic Construction::Tomb]

[Level 2; SP 2 -> Basic Construction::Treasury]

[Level 4; SP 2 -> Basic Construction::Sacrificial Altar]

[Level 8; SP 2 -> Basic Construction::Forest of Death]

-----[Level 10; SP 2 -> Advanced Construction]

[Level 10; SP 3 -> Advanced Construction:: Great Tomb]

[Level 12; SP 4 -> Advanced Construction:: Library]

[Level 14; SP 5 -> Advanced Construction:: Laboratory]

[Level 17; SP 3 -> Advanced Construction:: Mana-Reinforced Wall]

[Level 20; SP 3 -> Advanced Construction:: Black Spire]

[Level 22; SP 3 -> Advanced Construction:: Soulforge::Soulprint]

[Level 25; SP 3 -> Advanced Construction:: Soulforge::Valhalla]

[Level 27; SP 3 -> Advanced Construction:: Mana-Reinforced Gate]

-----[Level 1; SP 1 -> Basic Undead]

[Level 2; SP 1 -> Basic Undead::Skeleton]

[Level 5; SP 2 -> Basic Undead::Skeleton Archer]

-----[Level 10; SP 2 -> Advanced Undead]

-----[Level 10; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead::Skeleton Warrior]

[Level 10; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead::Skeleton Knight]

[Level 15; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead::Skeleton Shieldbearer]

[Level 18; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead::Skeleton Pikeman]

[Level 20; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead::Skeleton Sharpshooter]

[Level 22; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead::Skeleton Mage]

[Level 23; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead::Skeleton Scout]

[Level 25; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead::Skeleton Assassin]

[Level 26; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead::Skeleton Enchanter]

[Level 28; SP 3 -> Advanced Undead:: Lich]

The moment Toby saw the list, he knew that he had too few Skill Points to get everything he wanted. From the Undead section, Lich was clearly a must, he would see if he got enough points for something else later.

He was very tempted by [Advanced Dungeon Sense::Unlimited Scauting Radius], he liked the word unlimited very much, whatever scouting radius meant. If he bought these two, he would he down to nine SP.

Most of the construction options were wildcards, he could pick a well-sounding one and hope it would be a hit, but he could receive a completely useless facility too.

"Fine, let's say I have nine points to gamble with." He thought and picked [Advanced Construction:: Soulforge::Valhalla], because it was a wildcard skill with the highest level requirement and immediately jumped to its description.

[Advanced Construction:: Soulforge::Valhalla] - Enables you to construct a soulforge. You can use your soulforge to bind any [Champion] you have created in [Laboratory] to your soul allowing you to reanimate a unique fallen [Champion] any time you wish. The reanimation takes place in your soulforge. The bond counts to the limit of [Champions] you can have.

"Well, [Laboratory] is expensive, but I have already said A and cannot waste the opportunity by not saying B." Toby's best choice was probably to support the skill he had already bought with additional pick of [Laboratory] and so he did exactly that.

[Advanced Construction:: Laboratory] - The basic version of [Laboratory]. You can create a [Variant] undead here or a unique [Champion] undead by combining your skills to summon [Undead] with bodies or creatures. You can save your creations in your [Soulforge] for later use. For every ten levels you can have one [Champion] who is bound by your orders and retains the original soul, if a creature containing a soul is used, or their mesh if multiple souls are merged. In case there is no soul of adequate quality for the [Champion], a local roaming soul will be used. The number of [Variants] has the same limit and their level is an average of the level of ingredients, up to the current level of the dungeon. [Variant] undead does not retain souls. The level of a [Champion] is identical with the historical maximum level of the dungeon.

"Oh, that is interesting. So, if some nasty dungeon farms me to level ten, I will still be able to use my level 29 champion to fuck him up? That is neat." The only glitch was that he would lose the skill if he dropped below level twenty seven, meaning he would be unable to resummon the champion on lower levels with no soulforge.

Toby continued and picked another skill that he had to have.

[Advanced Undead:: Lich] - Top advanced undead. [Lich] has weak physical defense, but excels in curses and offensive death magic. Can rise and support up to one hundred skeleton warriors.

Toby was about to go for the last skill when he heard someone complaining loudly.

"Hey, kill her already!" As captivating as was the sight of a naked blue-eyed beauty with her white hair spread on the altar and limbs bound and stretched with heavy chains, one of the mages was getting fed up with the show and he did not seem to be the only one.

"She is ideal to create a high-tier undead out of her, I will not waste her. If you want speed, bring me more sacrifices!" Toby tried to play it smart instead of opposing them directly and it looked like it worked. Well, up to the moment they would really bring that additional sacrifices.

Still, the one who voiced out his displeasure looked angry, apparently not pleased with the fact Toby had not killed Irwen right away.

Toby wanted to prepare for the worst situation and in light of his recent upgrades ordered a [Soulforge] and [Laboratory] to be build next to his fancy room with the altar. Without hesitation, he chose the last skill.

[Advanced Dungeon Sense::Unlimited Scauting Radius] - Your undead troops can go anywhere you want regardless of the action radius of your minions, which now only applies to [Construction]

Toby almost laughed aloud, this was seriously a good pick, especially for the future. With this choice, he had too few [SP] to afford anything else and his shopping spree was over. It was too bad that many good choices had been left out, but he had only so many experience from the feeding incident.

The question was what to do now. He had already started building an army of Liches down below and sounds from afar soon told him that the requsted sacrifices were on their way.

The main problem was that he had absolutly no idea how strong his liches were compared to the mages. He knew that Randolf would have wiped the floor with them, but these mages should not be on the same level.

Regardless of the outcome, he had to have at least a dozen to try, forcing him to wait almost another ten minutes. It would have seemed like a short time, if not for the next batch of sacrifices that had already arrived.

"Hurry up, use them and kill that bitch already." One of the mages ordered him, watching a group of people come closer, they were ushered in by another two mages and had the same lethargic look in their eyes as the previous sacrifices.

"And before you ask, the quality is good enough."

Toby stared at various kinds of people lined up in front of his skeletons. There were many races and he had no knowledge about most of them. Still, all of them were humanoid, some looking ordinary, some with fur and animal ears, some with scales on their hands, a few with tails. There was even one with four hands. He was supposed to kill them, but . .

And so he did.

With joy he watched his level grow and encouraged his skeletons to move faster, to take more power for himself, to grow, to feed. Blood was flowing everywhere and his minions' swords were splashing the walls with it, but it left him emotionless. He had to grow to survive, he had to feed to defeat the mages right? Right!

Everything that could be harvested would be.

Toby continued to kill without mercy as the dungeon part of him suppressed the vestiges of his humanity.

Toby was sad when all the sacrifices had been harvested, but then he remembered there was yet another one and the heads of his skeletons snapped to face the altar at once. The nearest skeleton stepped forth and swung down its blade at the white neck of the sacrifice, only to be stopped by another blade.

The clash of the two blades acted like an alarm that had been rang, shaking away his stupor and Toby felt like he had just been awakened from a terrible nightmare.

What had he done?!

Instantly he realized a number of things, but before he could orient himself more, there was something demanding his attention in his status, It was a simple line.

[Creature with a soul sacrificed, choose an undead summoning skill to create a Champion]

He remembered that he had just the [Lich] when taking into account all the higher levelled undead and that stray thought was enough to complete the process.

[You have created a Champion, Lich Irwen Rhazan]

What? WHAT?!

At this moment Toby had remembered a few facts that he had not taken notice of due to his strange mental state that could be compared to a berserker's rage.

He had moved Irwen to [Laboratory] when his dungeon self had been preparing to make a [Champion] out of her.

The man who was called Randolf by others had appeared and blocked some blades, but not all of them and now Irwen lay dead inside of his [Laboratory].

He had just gained experience points from ordinary kills, that went against his unique bonus abilities, unless the unique abilities worked only for Toby Alton who he was not anymore.

"Traitors!" Randolf growled, looking at the dead body, but his anger was surprisingly not focused on Toby and he rushed to the mages who had been ordering Toby around.

"Wait, think of the consequen .. " The head of one of the mages flew up, as Randolf was clearly not much worried about the aftermath and began slaughtering the few mages present. To make the whole scene even more chaotic a figure of an elf, who had appeared a split second after Randolf, was staring at the Irwen's dead body, searching for the one behind her misfortune.

And he found him.

"Fuck!" Toby saw Faeldin's eyes locking on the location of his dungeon core.

Toby tried to call on every helper he could muster, but the elf was progressing towards him like a moving mountain, unstoppable, with an elegant blade almost dancing in his hand.

Even the liches' curses were unable to stop him, he had to be a very high level, proceeding froward unhindered.

Until a snow-white body blocked his path and his sword arm had been frozen in place in the midst of his blow.

"Irwen! No, no! It is not . ."

"Uncle?" Irwen asked and he could not ignore her voice that was almost the same, her undead state not changing it much.

"Finally, it was a nightmare!" Irwen reached for Faeldin and hugged him tightly. He had hesitated at first, but was unable to push her away.

"Madness! What have The Guild done to you?!" Faeldin was horrified when he slowly came to an understanding what had happened to Irwen.

Her appearance was similar, but there were number of little nuances that differed compared to when she had been truly alive. She had had fair complexion even before her transformation, but now this trait of hers was even more pronounced compared to her past self and her hair seemed to be moving from time to time like in a gentle breeze, her whole appearance giving off a more ethereal, or even eerie feeling.

"Faeldin, the dungeon is dangerous and must be confined in a safe place." Randolf followed Faeldin's every little movement like an eagle watching its prey. The massacred mages had been completely forgotten. "You surely understand that Irwen is dead, this is just her . . ."

"I know the best what she is." Faeldin snapped at Randolf and faced him threateningly, pushing Irwen behind his back. "And The Guild had already shown its inability in this matter. "

"Do you understand that you are inside The Lazurite Tower? The traitors are dead now and I will handle the matter personally from now on. " Randolf said calmly

"I understand it perfectly." Faeldin continued their staring contest, Randolf's words had apparently not persuaded him.

Toby just watched the situation silently from afar and hoped the elf would not back down, because he had made too much of a mess to be treated kindly, but a part of him did not even care, as he deserved the fate that was coming for him.

The hero he had imagined himself to become was nowhere to be seen, there was just a murderer overpowered by unfamiliar instincts.