Chapter 10

  Ethan hadn’t noticed the intruders right away. His focus had been on the voice module, his latest frustrating project, when Chip’s voice cut in.

  “Ethan, you’ve got company. Twelve hostiles approaching.”

  His metaphorical heart—if he still had one—would have skipped a beat. He switched his attention to the dungeon’s senses, his awareness expanding to the outer corridors. There they were—human figures moving through the dimly lit passageways, cautious but determined.

  “Already?” Ethan muttered, watching them move. “That didn’t take long.”

  “They seem to be under the impression that you’re an elemental construct dungeon,” Chip added, amusement lacing his voice.

  Ethan blinked. “Where the hell did they get that idea?”

  “Probably from the system’s usual dungeon classifications. Most dungeons don’t evolve like yours.”

  Ethan didn’t have time to dwell on that. The lead intruder, a man with sharp eyes and a confident stride, stopped just before one of the dungeon’s first real defenses.

  It was a simple thing. A pressure plate, designed to release a series of rapid, spring-loaded spikes from the walls, nothing lethal but enough to wound and startle. Ethan watched as the man hesitated, then nodded to one of the others. A scout moved forward, barely touching the floor before—

  Click.

  With a sharp hiss, the spikes shot out. The scout yelped, twisting away, barely avoiding a punctured leg.

  “What the—” one of them swore. “That’s not a normal dungeon trap!”

  Ethan grinned. No, it wasn’t. Unlike most dungeon traps, which relied on raw magical formations, his were mechanical, precise. They didn’t burn through mana. They didn’t need resetting through magic. They simply worked.

  The group hesitated, murmuring among themselves, their confidence shaken but not broken. Then, Ethan heard it.

  “The traps are weird, but it’s just another dungeon. We keep moving.”

  He sighed. “Figures.”

  And then the Omni Striders made their move.

  A pair of them dropped from hidden alcoves in the ceiling, landing with sharp metallic clicks. Their reinforced limbs absorbed the impact with ease, eyes glowing dimly as they scanned the intruders.

  “What the hell—”

  One of the intruders barely had time to react before an Omni Strider lunged, claws raking across his hastily raised sword. Sparks flew as steel met reinforced alloy, the force knocking the man back. He grunted, scrambling away.

  “They’re mechanical?!” someone shouted in shock.

  Ethan watched their confusion with satisfaction. Their weapons had been enchanted to fight magical constructs, not metal machines. The difference was subtle but critical—his creations didn’t rely on the same weaknesses most dungeon monsters had.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  The Combat Striders joined the fray next, moving with the predatory grace Ethan had designed them for. A second later, the battle was in full swing.

  Ethan watched, analyzing, adjusting. This was his first real invasion, his first proper test. And so far?

  It was going better than he’d expected.

  __________

  Ryn staggered back, clutching his side where jagged metal claws had torn through his armor. Blood seeped between his fingers, warm and slick, but he barely felt the pain over the sheer chaos unfolding around him. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

  They had prepared for an elemental dungeon—fire, ice, maybe even some lesser spirit constructs—but this? This was something entirely different. The air was thick with the scent of oil and scorched metal, and the eerie, rhythmic clicking of the mechanical constructs echoed through the chamber.

  Garreck, one of their Tier 2 warriors, roared as he swung his greatsword, cleaving through a scavenger golem. Sparks flew as the blade bit into metal, severing one of its limbs, but before he could finish it off, a Combat Strider lunged from the shadows, claws flashing. A wet gurgle cut through the noise, and Joran crumpled, his throat torn open in an instant.

  Panic rippled through the group. Another scavenger was already dragging Joran’s corpse away.

  “Fall back!” Ryn’s voice was raw from shouting, but his words were drowned out by the deafening crash of a triggered trap—two heavy slabs of metal slamming shut like a monstrous set of jaws. A hunter screamed, the sound cut short as his body was crushed instantly.

  “We can’t win this!” someone shouted.

  No. That wasn’t true. They just needed to regroup. They still had their strongest fighters. The other Tier 2, a spear-wielding mage named Lira, was still standing, panting heavily as she fended off a pair of striders. Ryn forced himself to move, ignoring the pain lancing through his ribs.

  They had to make a push for the core.

  “Lira, with me!”

  She didn’t hesitate, darting forward, her spear dancing through the air. The two of them pushed toward the deeper chambers, weaving between traps and lunging constructs. Ryn’s sword struck true, slicing through the thin joints of a scavenger golem, sending it toppling in a heap of broken gears. They could still make it.

  Then the floor shifted beneath them.

  Ryn barely had time to register the pit opening under their feet. He twisted midair, trying to grab onto something—anything—but his hands found only empty space.

  The fall wasn’t far, but the impact stole the breath from his lungs. Vella landed beside him with a sharp cry, her leg bent at an unnatural angle.

  Above them, the sound of the battle continued. The survivors were still fighting—but for how long? The pit was smooth, featureless. No footholds. No way out.

  And then, from the shadows, the constructs began to stir.

  The Omni Strider stepped forward first, its sleek frame gleaming in the dim light. Unlike the others, it didn’t lunge immediately. Its scanner whirred, as if analyzing them. Evaluating.

  A second later, more constructs emerged. Combat Striders, their claws gleaming, and scavenger golems, their grasping limbs already reaching.

  Ryn tightened his grip on his sword.

  This was it.

  They were never getting out of here.

  _____________

  System Notification: Intruder Eliminated. Mana Absorbed.

  System Notification: Intruder Eliminated. Mana Absorbed.

  System Notification: Intruder Eliminated. Mana Absorbed.

  …

  System Notification: Multiple Hostile Eliminations Detected.

  Intruders Repelled. Calculating Gains…

  System Notification: Dungeon Tier Increased (Tier 2 Achieved).

  - Maximum Mana Capacity Increased.

  - Domain Expansion Achieved.

  Ethan exhaled, his core pulsing as the changes took effect. His mana pool had deepened, making it easier to maintain constructs, and his domain had expanded, giving him more space to work with. The sheer amount of mana that had flooded into him from the fallen intruders was proof—dungeons weren’t just meant to fight, they were meant to grow from conflict.

  He shook the thought away and focused on the aftermath.

  The Omni Striders and Scavengers had already begun their work, dragging weapons, armor, and whatever else was useful into the depths of the dungeon. The bodies, stripped of anything valuable, would be disposed of soon.

  Ethan moved over to inspect the loot. A longsword with a faint sharpness enchantment, a reinforced chest plate, and a bow with an accuracy enhancement—standard adventurer gear. Then there were the two Tier 2s, who had