Dungeon Core Academy: Books 1-7 (A LitRPG Series) by Alex Oakchest (book suggestions txt) 📕

“Dungeon monsters are bred in the academy?”

“Yes. Some of them. When cores are new, their essence simply transports monsters from the academy. When core gets stronger, monsters will be created from essence.”

Interesting. Very, very interesting.

I should have known this. Even if the overseers hadn’t taught us this particular fact, I should have come across it in one of the books I had read. I should have overheard a conversation about it, caught wind of a rumor. Something.

Then again.

The overseers had warned us that there were some things we would only learn once we began making our own dungeon. Dynamic learning, they called it. It was another part of our evaluation, and the theory was that knowledge was an advantage, and thus not every core could learn the same things.

Some things, some pieces of dungeon information, could only be learned while you were in the dungeon, by doing certain things.

My instincts had made me suspicious of Tomlin, and by ordering him to reveal himself, I had learned something new. I didn’t know how I would use this information yet, but it was great to know.

“So, Tomlin. You know much more than you were letting on, and that makes the nature of our dynamics a little different, doesn’t it? You seem to have more free will than I expected.”

“If free will exists when you can order Tomlin to do things, then yes.”

“A semi-free will, then. Half a will. And where there’s half a will, there’s half a way. I can’t, in all good conscience, just boss you around.”

“That is our role, Dark Lord. We are raised by the breedmaster overseers in preparation for this.”

“You are told to be compliant? Docile?”

“Yes, sort of. Tomlin has to serve.”

“Tell me, Tomlin, were you serious when you said you were happy to become a miner?”

Tomlin scratched his chin. “Tomlin can be honest?”

“Please.”

“Then…no. Tomlin likes books. He likes to learn. Tomlin would like to be a scholar.”

I ran my hand through my hair, feeling frustrated.

But I didn’t have hair, of course. I did this in my head. To be clear; I ran an imaginary hand through imaginary hair. In my mind, my hair was glorious and flowing, like a barbarian’s.

I also had an imaginary goatee beard.

“I created you because I desperately need to carve out more real estate, and to find materials,” I said. “I need a miner, and that is why I chose to create a kobold. Even so, a large part of being a dungeon core is learning how to manage my underlings, and a happy worker is a productive worker.”

“Tomlin will carry out orders, as Tomlin said. He was bred for this.”

“Even so. How about this, Tomlin? For every two hours you mine and dig for me, I will allow you an hour of study. For now, I don’t have any books down here. I’ll need to get a surface liaison for that. But…I’ll become your tutor and teach you what I know, okay?”

Tomlin thought about it for a second. Now that I had unmasked his pretense, I could see there was a hell of a lot going on behind his dragon eyes.

“Tomlin agrees! Tomlin thanks you, and wishes to express that he didn’t expect this of his core master.”

“Beno is pleased that…” I began. Damn, his way of talking was infectious. “I mean, I am pleased that we could agree. Now, Tomlin, if you would begin digging, I’d be most appreciative.”

Relationship status with Tomlin improved from [compliant] to [loyal]!

“By the way, there’s something you should know,” I told him. “If you want to whistle while you dig tunnels, that’s totally fine here.”

CHAPTER 8

Overseers Evaluation Report

Overseer: Overseer Rivers

Graduate Core: Jahn

Graduate Core Jahn was rather fortuitous in his placement. His dungeon is in the middle of iron-rich land, with a town nearby that is especially tolerant of the kobold and goblin races. This should stand him in good stead.

Not only that, but there is a giant iron deposit just five feet east of his core room. I could sense it as I evaluated him.

Unfortunately, Core Jahn may be a simpleton. I mean that with no insult; I actually believe that Core Jahn is simple-minded.

Jahn, when he began in his room, absorbed his inch of essence moss and then fully consumed it. This increased his total essence to six, but left him without any means of regenerating it.

He then wasted his 6 essence points digging a hole in the core room ceiling, trying to reach the surface. Which, as we know, is impossible with just six essence points.

As such, Jahn now has no essence points, and no means of regenerating them. He is completely stuck in his core room with nothing to do. I recommend he is hammered into dust and the dust be thrown into the sea. That is how useless core Jahn is.

Result: Condemnation, with recommendation that Jahn is removed. I write this with regret; in my ten years as an overseer, he is the first core I have made this recommendation about. I’m not as harsh as Bolton.

Vedetta Costitch had almost made it out of her house without waking anyone, when a voice called out.

“Who’s awake?”

A shiver crept down her spine. She paused at the doorway and held her breath. She stayed real, real quiet.

“Vedetta?” called the voice. “Vedetta?”

Damn. It was Mom. If it were one of her useless brothers, she’d have ignored them, but she’d never ignore Mom.

“Yes, Mom?”

“I need you, dear.”

Mom never asked Vedetta’s brothers for help. Even though they were nineteen and twenty years old, Mom always asked for Vedetta, because she knew that Vedetta would help without complaining or making excuses.

The problem was, Vedetta had important stuff to do today. Stuff