Lucien didn’t waste ti.
He left Skittles to continue farming and made his way straight to the Boss Room.
This ti, his goal was clear. Speedrun the fight.
In dungeons, Boss monsters respawn every day like clockwork. No one truly understood why. That’s when the leading theory that dungeons were connected to another dinsion beca popular.
Unless the dungeon core that was hidden in the deepest level was destroyed, the dungeon would persist and reset indefinitely.
Most chose to leave dungeons intact. The steady supply of mana cores was too valuable to pass up. An active dungeon could beco a long-term resource for a territory.
But not all dungeons were worth keeping. If the threat level was too high, they had to be destroyed. A single outbreak could an devastation.
Lucien shook his head, brushing the thought aside.
He focused on the goal ahead.
Inside the chamber, he reused the sa strategy from before.
But this ti, far more efficiently. He knew the Rainbow Sli Boss’s every move and exploited them perfectly.
A flurry of quick strikes.
A few dodges.
And the fight ended.
After a few final splats, the room fell silent.
Lucien crouched down with his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
The Rainbow Sli Boss had dropped... two ★★★ (3-STAR) skill cards.
He blinked in surprise. "Jackpot!"
He decided to experint with them later.
For now, he used both skill cards.
With a swift touch to his forehead, each card shimred and was absorbed into his body.
[Ting!]
[Sli rge has been registered under Sli Beast Mode]
[Split Body has been registered under Sli Beast Mode]
Lucien gave a satisfied nod.
Then, sothing caught his eye.
It was the staircase leading down to the second level.
He paused.
"...Just a peek."
Driven by curiosity, he descended.
Each step stirred a quiet thrill.
What kind of monsters waited below?
What drops could they leave behind?
He grinned as he walked. Excitent bubbled with his every step.
Sothing new awaited. He could feel it.
Finally, the next level ca into view.
The floor was wide and was bathed in a gentle, ambient light. The glowing walls shimred with soft hues.
He scanned the area.
His eyes darted left and right, eager to see what kind of monsters inhabited the second level.
After a short walk, sothing appeared in the distance.
But...
No goblins.
No orcs.
Not even wolves.
Just... more slis.
Lucien stopped in his tracks, blinking.
"What the hell? Is this dungeon nothing but slis?" he muttered under his breath.
Half annoyed.
Half amused.
Still, sothing about these ones was different.
A glowing white sli floated beside a jet-black counterpart. Their contrasting colors stood out sharply against the glowing walls.
Lucien’s curiosity piqued.
"INSPECT."
***
Solar Sli
Level: 10
Weaknesses:
• Mana Core
• Dark Magic
***
***
Shadow Sli
Level: 10
Weaknesses:
• Mana Core
• Light Magic
***
"Another species of sli!" he exclaid.
Different species ant different drops... and that ant more potential resources.
But he didn’t charge in.
Lucien knew himself. If he started his killing spree now, he wouldn’t be able to stop.
And unfortunately, he still had things to do.
With a reluctant sigh, he turned back.
He exited the dungeon alongside Skittles who bounced happily beside him. It proudly offered a bundle of drops it had collected.
Lucien gave it a nod of approval.
"At least this dive wasn’t a waste," he murmured.
Together, they left the dungeon in satisfaction.
•••
That afternoon, Stone requested an audience with Lucien.
He stepped forward and handed over three parchnts.
"These are the wall designs, my Lord."
Lucien raised an eyebrow as he unrolled the first. "Woah, you’re fast. Looks like we made the right call appointing you as the Construction Division’s representative."
Stone gave a modest bow. "It wasn’t just , my Lord. Everyone contributed. It’s the least we could do to ease your burdens."
"Umu umu," Lucien nodded in approval. "That’s good."
Stone continued, "We couldn’t agree on which design to go with so we’re leaving the decision to you."
Lucien looked down at the parchnts with genuine admiration.
To think they produced three solid designs in just a few hours... They were more talented than he had expected.
Clearly, when people were given the right resources and roles, their potential began to bloom.
He studied each design carefully and couldn’t help but be impressed.
The first design could be sumd up in a single word. Beautiful.
It was elegant, refined and clearly tailored to the taste of nobles who prized aesthetics above all else.
But not Lucien.
To him, beauty ant little if it ca at the cost of ti and practicality. The design would take longer to build, use more materials and provide less defense for the effort.
He shook his head. ’Too wasteful.’
The second design was more grounded. A standard double-layered wall.
Simple.
Solid.
Efficient.
Lucien gave a small nod. ’Good enough. Functional.’
But then his eyes landed on the third parchnt.
He paused.
"...This one. Who made it?"
Stone stiffened. "Ah—that... was , my Lord," he said, scratching the back of his head. "It’s sothing I designed a long ti ago. A hobby, really. Please don’t mind it. I know it’s not practical. It would take far too long to build with our current resources."
He rushed through the words, clearly expecting a scolding.
But Lucien’s reaction was the opposite.
His eyes glead.
"No. I really like this one."
The third design was like that of a fortress wall. Built with one purpose in mind.
Protection.
It was formidable, unyielding and clearly engineered for defense. Lucien could tell at a glance. This was the kind of wall ant to withstand a siege.
Stone’s face lit up for a mont... but the glow quickly faded.
"...But my Lord, we don’t have the resources. And the ti it would take—" he trailed off with a reluctant sigh.
Lucien glanced at Stone. His expression unreadable.
Then after a pause, he simply said, "Follow to the garden."
Without another word, he stood and walked off. Stone, still confused, quickly followed behind.
When they reached the garden, Lucien reached into his inventory and pulled sothing out.
Plop.
A heavy sack dropped to the ground.
Stone blinked. "Cent...?"
Lucien nodded. "But not just any cent. Sli Cent."
Stone’s brows furrowed.
Lucien continued, "I don’t know the exact ratio yet but we’ll need gravel and sand to make it work, right?"
He then retrieved bags of gravel he had collected from the nearby cliff.
"As for sand... we can have the Soilwyrms burrow in the garden for a while. That’ll turn the soil loose enough to beco sand. We won’t be lacking materials for long."
Stone listened in quiet admiration. ’The Lord really thinks differently... But even so, the materials still won’t be enough,’ he thought to himself.
Lucien caught the look in his eyes.
"Don’t overthink it," he said calmly. "Just experint with it."
He smirked.
"You’ll be surprised."
Stone’s curiosity got the better of him.
He stepped forward, tore the sack open, and scooped out a small amount of the sli cent.
Carefully, he mixed it with sand and gravel in a 1:2:4 ratio. Using household magic, he added water little by little until the mixture reached the perfect consistency.
Once satisfied, he molded it into a small cube.
That’s when Lucien spoke up.
"Now... try pouring in your mana."
Stone blinked... then nodded. He placed a hand on the cube and let his mana flow.
In the blink of an eye... the cent solidified.
Instantly.
Stone’s eyes widened. "It hardened... that fast?"
Lucien smirked. "That’s not all. Try breaking it with all your strength."
Stone frowned in confusion but obeyed.
He picked up the cube and tried to snap it in half. Nothing.
He squeezed harder. Still nothing.
He slamd it to the ground. Not even a crack.
He tried again and again.
Bare hands.
A rock.
Even stomping on it.
The cube didn’t budge.
Stone stared, stunned. "This... this thing is stronger than iron..."
Lucien chuckled, clearly enjoying Stone’s reaction.
"There’s one more thing," he said. "Try making another cube."
Stone didn’t hesitate. With practiced hands, he quickly molded a second batch and solidified it with mana. Another perfectly shaped cube ford in his palm.
"Now," Lucien instructed, "press the two together and pour your mana into them again."
Stone followed. He was still skeptical but eager.
What happened next made his eyes go wide.
The two cubes... fused.
They didn’t just stick together. They beca one seamless block as if they’d never been separate in the first place.
Stone gawked in disbelief.
"This... this changed everything."
His mind started racing.
The construction possibilities.
The ti they’d save.
The strength they’d gain.
Lucien watched him, amused. Even he hadn’t expected it to be that effective.
The item’s description hadn’t lied.
Type: Crafting Material
Rarity: Unommon
Description: Hardens overti when infused with mana. Solidified blocks can fuse with others when charged again. (Shock absorbent and resistant to magic.)
"It’s like Minecraft..." Lucien muttered.
The mont he said it, sothing clicked in his mind. Like an exclamation point flashing in a ga! A realization.
He paused.
Then as if on cue, he and Stone locked eyes. They were thinking about its practical potential.
A beat passed then they both burst into laughter.
In unison.
Loud.
Full-hearted.
Perfectly in sync.
Stone wiped his eyes, still grinning. "My Lord... with this material, we could build the fortress wall in under a week! We wouldn’t even need iron bars. The cent’s already strong enough... and the rging? That changes everything!"
Lucien nodded. "Good. Now tell your plan."
Stone straightened with renewed energy. "First, we’ll need molds... cube molds. Lots of them! Honestly, I think making the molds will take longer than building the actual wall! Gahaha! Once we have enough, we’ll just keep rging the blocks into whatever form we need."
Lucien’s smile widened. "Excellent. The Crafting Division isn’t tied up with anything urgent. Go ahead and ask them for help with the molds."
He placed a hand on Stone’s shoulder.
"I’ll leave the rest to you."
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