The First Lich Lord

Chapter 112

I stood with Raven, the hungry horror, my two mobile turrets, and my two undead ant mantis creatures. We watched the big doors leading out to the forge floor. The transformation of the lair into a dungeon had been about a week ago. Several groups of players had ventured in, and from what Raven reported it appeared they were part of the guild that Livia led.

I glared as I felt the group finally enter this floor. Theyd cleared the upper parts of the dungeon at an alarming rate. It wasnt unexpected, guilds often had one team that was a hard-core dungeon clearing group. New dungeons like mine were unknown factors, so they often send these groups in to get a feel for the dungeon so they could give ratings and recommendations for their members.

I had a sense for the power of this group, all of them were up against soul compression. Either about to go through it or are already having gone through it. My own level had grown another two levels in the last week bringing me ever so close. I left the difficulty of the upper levels more or less the same, but I ramped up the difficulty of the floors below the harbor by populating them with stronger and stronger monsters. The floor directly above the forge had creatures as strong as I could make them en masse.

The monsters around me had all been enhanced by the dungeon and I could further buff them when the fight began. The hungry horror was the exception, as technically it was more powerful than I was. But my control over it made the dungeon recognize me as the boss. I also wondered if it knew I could beat the flesh horror in a fight, even if I lost full control of it.

I shook those thoughts aside as the door pushed open. I really wish Maxwell was here, I grumbled to Raven.

Me too, Raven agreed.

Remember, you cant actually die in this fight, I said to her. If they get you, you will find yourself waking up in your room in a few hours.

I know, Raven said as an edge of steel started to enter her voice. Fighting without the fear of death, thats something I could get used to.

The group of players entered cautiously and looked around the pillars. Only one of them was focused on the threat in front of them as the others scanned for danger.

Welcome to my home, I said in the deepest voice I could muster. Have you come to volunteer for one of my projects?

The forge burned behind me, and with a slight flex of my control over the dungeon and I made the eyes in the skull burn even brighter.

Ill pass, a female voice said. There was confidence, not arrogance, in her voice. She was at the front line wielding a spear with a large head and a symbol to some god etched in silver. Id rather see what you drop.

I tried not to let the nervousness show in my voice as I eyed the paladin, trying to get a feel for her threat level. I chuckled, trying to sound ominous. Awful confident arent you, little holy warrior. I flexed a little bit more of my control, causing the pillars to light up with purple eldritch light.

Ill give you props on presentation, though its missing something, another female voice spoke up, this one coming from a woman wearing black wizard robes accented with scarlet red.

Yeah, need to turn up the gloom and doom a little bit more, a man in plate mail wielding a large kite shield and ax agreed.

Are you saying the difference between a villain and a super villain is presentation? I laughed, already forming a spell. Let me try harder.

The surge of magic from me did not go unnoticed by the group. They had two casters, one was the female wizard, and another was a mage who looked to use fire magic.

They both reacted quickly, throwing up barriers around their group, but I wasnt attacking. Raven had sensed the change and was already on the move, going after the rogue wed seen slip into the shadows as soon as they entered. If she could close in with him, he would be no threathis primary weapon had been a large, heavy crossbow.

I slammed Mercy down in a dramatic display and death magic erupted from me. It flooded into my minions, the power amplifying them. The hungry horror let out a terrifying roar and surged forward, trailed by the insects.

An eldritch blast erupted from the cannon, shattering one of the barriers while the mobile turret that used the bow drew back and loosed a black arrow that was two meters long. Action erupted all around. The man with the kite shield counter charged the hungry horror and an explosion of kinetic force brought them both to a slamming halt.

One of the mantis ants went up to the paladin while the second made a beeline for the back line. I was building another spell even as I rushed forward myself. I jumped, using the back of the hungry horror like a platform, catapulting to the wizard.

Magic swirled around Mercy as I descended. I realized I had made a mistake too late. The mage had been waiting for something like this. And while with one hand he held off the mantis ant with a stream of fire, the other released a blast of fire directly at me.

The attack slammed into my force barrier, which held, but the explosion sent me off-course. I whirled and threw Mercy at the wizard even as they completed their own spell. Red lightning crackled around the wizard staff as a bolt hammered out straight into me. My barrier shattered and the attack sent me tumbling back.

My cannon was about to fire again when a black bolt slammed into the base of the turret. There was a spark of purple eldritch magic before the construct erupted as the channeled eldritch power was short-circuited. I ordered my remaining mobile cannon turret and the mobile turret with a bow to try and occupy the two casters.

With my enhanced agility, I turned my tumble into a roll and sprang back to my feet. The paladin was suddenly before me, driving her spear directly for my chest. I turned just in time for the spear to miss, though it scored through my armor and left a nasty wound that glowed with silver light. I ground my teeth in pain, it wasnt as bad as it could have been. The combined resistance of being a boss and from the order meant the holy magic which should have been a lethal poison to me, was more like a regular poison.

As I spun to the side, I shaped Mercy into a blade staff and prepared to face off with the paladin. I spotted the broken body of the mantis, nearly severed in half from a single blow from the paladin, silver light burning around the edges of the wound.

Cool weapon, the paladin said as she jabbed at me with her spear. I think Ill take it.

Not sure youll like it. I turned aside a blow and counterattacked with a downward slash she blocked with the shaft of her weapon. Besides, I think this would be classified as an undroppable weapon.

Confusion flitted across her face, but it wasnt enough to distract her. Though she was very skilled with that spear, I was better, having far more practice than she possibly couldve had, and I had precognition. And without a doubt, Mercy was a superior weapon. Her holy spear was powerful, possibly even a legendary weaponMercy was beyond that.

The kinetic blast from behind me sent the second insect zombie flying past us in a crumpled heap.

Thats not good, I said, briefly watching the flying form.

Soon that will be you, the paladin taunted as she pressed her attack. Your vile filth will be purged from this world.

Please dont go role-playing on me, I grumbled. I was starting to like this group. Ive had my fill of role players fucking with me.

I didnt have time to waste, so I pressed her as hard as I could, funneling magic into Mercy and executing a rapid series of thrusts and slashes that left her stumbling.

As she tripped over her own feet, I rushed forward, reshaping Mercy into a needlelike point that I drove through her breastplate. The magic protecting her shattered before the power of that attack and I impaled her. I didnt have time to rejoice in my victory, I could feel magic building behind me. I ripped Mercy free. She was not dead, but a massive amount of death, eldritch, and necrotic magic had just been deposited near her heart and were spreading through her like a disease.

I whirled and pointed my hand toward the wizard, releasing both of my stored spells, purple eldritch magic and pure black death energy hammered across the distance. Since I was likely to be fighting more powerful targets, I was no longer carrying the lightning spell in the ring. My bolts intercepted an attack from the wizard. A massive fireball erupted in the air scorching the back of the hungry horror.

The mage was building his own magic, no doubt the follow-up of the wizards attack, when Raven was suddenly on him. Her daggers flashed as she sliced into the mage. Except she was moving strangelyan arrow had punched through her shoulder and remained lodged there. One of her arms was basically disabled. Even as she fought, she moved slightly out of time with her body, something my precognition allowed me to see.

My flesh horror was taking a beating, and I moved to intercept an attack from the warrior just before he wouldve lopped off one of the legs. His thick armor was far harder for me to penetrate than the paladins had been, even though hed taken his own fair share of beatings from the flesh horror.

I managed to sneak a glance at the wizard and saw that several arrows had broken through the barrier and she was clutching at a wound. But even as I watched she activated some item and her wounds began to heal. She pointed a staff at my final creature, a beam of fire as narrow as a pencil, with the force of a laser, sliced through it leaving behind scorched bone.

I spread out my senses and found the broken body of the sniper Raven had taken out. As I dueled with the fighter, I rapidly cast two different spells. The first found that body and raised it into a zombie. It was the most powerful quick cast raising spell I had. The zombie wouldnt be worth much, but it might be a distraction. The second spell flooded into the hungry horror, healing it.

The wizard chanted something, even as a concussive blast erupted from the mage and sent Raven tumbling back. I whirled and threw Mercy with all my force at the wizard. Right before it left my hand, I reshaped the blade into a thick, heavy, razor-sharp bladeit even still had quite a bit of magic in it.

Mercy slammed into the wizards chest and a shocked look spread on their face. I tried to move away from the fighter, retracting the blade and summoning it back to my hand. I didnt bring all of the way back, twirling it in the air and slamming it back into the wizard, a scream erupted from their lips as I disemboweled them.

Unfortunately, to do this I had to turn my back to the fighter, and he took advantage, landing a devastating blow that I felt break my shoulder. My precognition had warned me of the incoming attack, but my concentration had been on controlling Mercy. The hungry horror leapt on the fighter, preventing him from doing further damage. I ground my teeth as I began to cycle death energy through my body.

I was just turning Mercy toward the mage when Raven screamed. A chill went through me as I whirled to find her backed up against one of the pillars by the paladin whod recovered far quicker than I thought they would.

Silver wounds were all over Raven where she had barely managed to avoid being impaled. Her slippery time magic barely kept her ahead of the paladin. I rushed toward her and Mercy came whirling back into my hand.

Reshaping it as I leapt into the air, I dove for the paladin. And once again Id underestimated these people. The paladin turned to me, a glint in her eye as she planted her spear in the ground directly in my path. The resolute look on her face told me she was willing to accept this trade.

Mercy reformed right before impact, barbs growing out of its sides even as I funneled pure death energy into it. As her spear punched into my chest, Mercy drove down into hers. Destructive magic flowed through both of our weapons as we destroyed each other.

I died. It was surprising. I found myself looking over the fight. Raven was staring wide-eyed as my body was destroyed by silver magic while the smooth, perfect skin of the paladins face corrupted and rotted away as she died. Raven fled, and I was glad she did. I didnt want to watch her die even if she would come back.

I hadnt realized I was so protective of Raven until that moment. I mightve been able to win the fight if I had just let her die, but I didnt know if that was something I was capable of doing. With me gone, my buffs for the hungry horror dissipated and it was torn apart by the mage and fighter, the only two living players.

I looked down at where my body had been reduced to a pile of broken black bones, with golden coins mixed in. And I groaned. Dungeons didnt just generate rewards, those had come from my own personal supply. What was even worse was I saw the glint of my force barrier amulet. I sighed as I faded and lost sight of the room.

***

By the time I reappeared in my room laying on my bed, Raven was already there. Zeke! she cried out and tackled me. I was so scared! I know you said you were going to come back, but I didnt know and I was worried

Its okay. I patted her on the head and wrapped an arm around her. I was no longer pure bone, so I felt like there was some comfort I could provide. I was scared to.

We lay there for a while. Whatever magic used by the dungeon to keep me alive seemed to have lessened the psychological blow of dying. That or I just had more experience with the process from my time as a player.

We need to figure out a different solution, I said. It was weird to see Raven so flustered. Fear wasnt something she was used to.

You think theyll be back? Raven asked.

There is a chance, I agreed. But I have my doubts. They are experienced enough players to know that if they do kill me again within the next month, they risk destroying the dungeon.

That will stop them? Raven asked.

In theory, yes. I sighed. The problem is, from what I saw, I didnt drop anything of high value, nor are they gaining much from the dungeon itself other than resources. As it stands, this is not something that would be considered a valuable dungeon.

How can we change that? Raven asked.

I have some ideas. But I need you to go and find where Vito is set up. We need to continue to grow levels at a faster rate than I am. Im getting passive experience, but neither you or Maxwell are growing right now.

I was planning on trying to do some hunting of the parties in the dungeon, Raven said. I appeared to grow faster in here as well, but I might venture out into the marsh.

Be very careful about that. I got off the bed. If you go in the marsh, make sure you do your hunting a long ways away. No doubt the area around the ziggurat will have quite a few players in it, and possibly NPCs from Olattee.