The Crafter's Dominion: A Dungeon Core Novel (Dungeon Crafting Book 5) by Jonathan Brooks (e ink epub reader .txt) 📕

*  On second thought, I might need most of them out here.  It appears as though the other Cores have started another assault – and this one looks to be a mite more dangerous for everyone involved. *

Everyone in the kitchen looked at each other worriedly, but King Mynag couldn’t be brought down.  “Not a worry.  You just take care of that, and we’ll take care of invading a dungeon.  Which one would you prefer we delve through?”

Sandra didn’t have an answer, because she was busy coordinating the defense, though it was already a losing prospect.  When she got a spare moment, she let them all know she would figure that out later, as well as when the best time to leave might be.  As they broke up their meeting, with the Royalty wanting to go on a tour of the dungeon, the Dungeon Core scrambled to assess these new threats.

Chapter 44

The Orc mercenaries were already on their way to help the Elves defend their village, which was quickly becoming the fallback position.  Waves of smaller Slimes streamed out of the Slime-Classification dungeon, while those blood-thirsty-looking squirrels poured out of the Beast-Classification dungeon like someone had opened some floodgates.  If that had been all, the situation wouldn’t have been that bad, but they were accompanied by even more.

Larger Beasts, including Crocatiles, the monkey-bear hybrids, razor-antler elk, Elephants, and large hunting cats joined in with the squirrels; larger Slimes, ovoid in shape, as well as one that mimicked the shape of some of the Beasts coming out of the other dungeon entrance also appeared.  Now, if that had been all, the situation probably could’ve been handled; it would’ve taken a lot of work and time, but the Rangers, mercenaries, Wyvines, and constructs the Elves had at their disposal were more than capable of containing the threat.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t all that emerged from the entrances.  A few of the larger Dragon Slimes poured out of the Slime-Classification dungeon, as well as some of the gigantic, 100-foot-tall Slimes she had seen down near the Core’s inner rooms.  From the Beasts, a trio of the Boss-like 50-foot monstrosities strode out of the larger entrance, their green, shaggy fur and bald heads reflecting the sunlight coming through the treetops.  Their triple-eyed stares looked hungrily about, ready to tear apart any constructs likely to get in their way with their deadly sharp claws or their mouths full of dozens of razor-like teeth.

Even that was something that Sandra had prepared for, as she had been stockpiling defenses out near the village that could be used to take them out.  Not only did she have 2 High Peak Rocs on alert for the Dragon Slimes, ready to take them down from the air and rip them apart, but she also had 3 Expanded Mobile Fortifications that she invested in, ready to deploy wherever they were needed.  When she added in the hundreds of constructs, dozens of additional Shadow Wyvines for the Elves, and more explosive bolts for the Rangers, they were as ready for anything as was possible.

Naturally, the one thing she couldn’t plan for was whatever might have been unlocked by the 2 dungeons as a result of their recent upgrade.  When those new Monsters were revealed, she ordered a full retreat by the Elves and Orcish mercenaries, as her people had no chance against them as they were.

For the Slime-Classification dungeon, what emerged from the main entrance didn’t look particularly troublesome.  It wasn’t a massive Slime larger than the colossal Slimes she had seen before, nor was it in any particular shape more frightening than the Dragon Slime.  Instead, it was a 6-foot-tall Monster shaped like a normal, everyday Slime, only a few times larger than the horde of smaller Slimes that had flooded out of the dungeon.  The main difference between this new Slime and all of the others was what it appeared to be made from; instead of a jelly-like substance, it appeared to be made of…metal.

Quicksilver, to be more precise, otherwise known as Mercury.  Except, when an explosive bolt from one of the Rangers was fired at it, it suddenly transformed from a blob of silvery liquid to a lump of solid Steel, or perhaps something even harder.  The bolt hit the metallic Slime, exploded with a *thump* – and did absolutely no damage to the Monster.  An Orc mercenary tried her hand at hurting it with a weighted warhammer, but it stayed in its solid state, not letting anything damage its outer shell.  At one point, a needle-like appendage shot out and narrowly missed gutting the Orc, but she was able to dodge the strike, only allowing it to slice up a part of her leather armor.

From the Beast-Classification dungeon, there came something even worse than the 3-eyed monstrosities that preceded its appearance.  Originally, it didn’t seem that dangerous at first glance; in fact, Sandra thought it looked sort of cute.  Then she saw the red, beady eyes, the 8-foot-long claws, and the thousands of teeth in its mouth when it opened its jaws wider than they really ought to have been able.  They were practically nightmarish when the Dungeon Core saw them.

Its powerful hind legs tore furrows at least 5 feet deep into the rich earth of the forest when it emerged, and it raced ahead of everything that came out with it.  It used its sleek body to navigate its way through the trees, despite it being at least 200 feet long from nose to its fluffy tail.  When it landed on a Wyvine that was unlucky enough to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, it tore that Wyvine to pieces in a matter of seconds, before the great Monster moved on.

An explosive arrow shot by a Ranger impacted the furry, grey side of the giant rabbit, but the thickness of the fur was enough