Chapter 554 – Preparing For The Culling.

‘Good, the mana concentration is going down.’

Roland stood watching the blue world before him. With his special eye skill, he could perceive everything as nothing but mana. In the past, looking into these newly discovered underground tunnels had been a struggle. His vision had been obstructed by countless brightly glowing orbs of blue light that practically blinded him. Now, after a week of testing and siphoning, the mana molecules in the air were finally beginning to thin out.

‘…But it is still not enough. The walls are still expanding.’

Despite his efforts, the tunnels continued to stretch in multiple directions. It seemed that he could only slow their formation by placing roadblocks and scattering anti-magic powder in key areas. However, the mana would eventually push through the barriers or find a way around them. The path of expansion was unmistakable. It was moving steadily toward the main settlement and rising upward.

Roland clenched his fists as he stared down the endless tunnels before him. The faint echoes of his own breathing reverberated through the stone corridors, mixing with the sound of the mana-siphoning machines. Even as the devices worked tirelessly to drain the excess energy, it was clear that they were merely delaying the inevitable. The mana was too abundant, and the tunnels were too persistent. Something was fueling their growth, and the moment he removed the devices, the mana would overflow once again.

Theories on how to stop this expansion and why it was happening swirled in his mind like a raging storm. One question persisted above all others—was this a natural phenomenon, or was there something more to it? At this point, he was convinced that it had to be connected to the super dungeon, but he was still unsure how this had transpired.

He had taken the time to examine the history of previous culling events that had occurred on this island ruled by the Valerian household. These events usually happened at similar intervals, and only a limited number of monsters spilled into the surrounding settlements. However, after further research, he had noticed something strange. The monsters seemed to spread out farther with each dungeon break, almost as if they were scouting the landscape.

‘The Duke does not seem to be underestimating the break, though. From my estimates, he has mobilized more forces than usual, as if he is also expecting something…’

While it weighed on his conscience that he was keeping this underground phenomenon a secret, he knew the repercussions of revealing it could be dire. He had no way of predicting what would happen to Albrook if he came clean, nor could he tell if Arthur’s brothers might use this as an excuse to seize control of the city. Mary had already begun spreading rumors about the culling being more intense than before, but whether people would heed their warning remained to be seen.

‘In the end, what truly matters to me…’

Roland knew it was impossible to save everyone. It was better to be a bit selfish if he wanted to keep the people close to him safe. There was no way he could rely on others, and he still was not sure how bad this event would truly be.

Despite the danger, the amount of mana they were converting into mana fluid was staggering. If this continued, assembling the small army of golems he was working on would not be an issue. At first, he had been worried about his inability to create enough runic batteries, which required repeated charging. Now, however, they had a secondary fuel source. Once crystallized, it would fit perfectly into the restructured obsidian and rock golems they were salvaging from within the dungeon.

‘I should probably check on how she’s doing.’

Roland looked at his map, which, after some improvements to his suit, was finally working to some extent. His golems were spreading out in all directions, slowly setting up cables as they advanced.

What he saw on the map was a vast web of underground tunnels, each carefully marked with pathways his golems had scouted. The thick mana presence made it pointless to rely on sensors in the area. Instead, he had to settle for visual aids like his runic cameras to monitor for any instabilities. When everything started to unravel, he needed to be the first to know.

‘I should probably place charges here for when the time comes…’

There were several countermeasures he had considered, but he was not sure if any of them would be fully effective. The rocks in this area were saturated with mana, making it impossible to bring the tunnels down with magical explosions. However, once everything began, those explosions might at least be enough to reduce the number of enemies. Once he had completed his investigation, it would be time to return home and check on the progress of his other countermeasures.

On his way out, he noted the additional golems being retrieved as he tackled the boss chamber once again. Even though the monster was around level two hundred, his own progress had stagnated. Since initially clearing this place, he had only gained a few more levels. He needed to reach level two hundred seventy-five to fully utilize his Runesmith Overlord class and this was something that felt increasingly unrealistic.

He had seen many other Tier 3 class holders in the world, many of them ten, twenty, or even thirty years older than him, yet they were not much further ahead in levels. Finding and hunting high-level monsters was difficult, and while he could still gain experience from crafting, even assembling the recent elemental armors barely moved his experience bar. To make real progress, he would need to work with even rarer materials and craft more advanced runes than ever before.

Even though his growth was already far faster than that of an ordinary person, at this rate, it could take five or more years to reach his next class and this was assuming he did nothing but grind. To solve this problem, he needed a way to cheat the system like he had done before. Once this whole predicament was over, that was exactly what he planned to do.

‘Now then, how is she doing?’

Roland made his way toward the training grounds, the ones usually occupied by trainee soldiers. On his way there, he was saluted at least ten times. He had long since stopped nodding in acknowledgment, except to Arthur and a few of the knights. One of the few people who still held his attention was there as well, clad in a new suit of armor, wielding a heavy-looking longsword and a heater shield.

Robert now looked more like someone worthy of the name Durendal. Though he had not forged the armor himself, it was crafted from heavy dwarven steel with the union’s assistance. However, he had personally handled all the runesmithing, ensuring Robert had the highest quality runic magic to support his new Arch-Knight class. There were even plans to expand his equipment toward power suits, the same kind Robert had used to win his trial. The only obstacles were time and money.

‘He is doing well, if he levels up those skills, having a power suit that lasts longer than ten minutes could be a real possibility.’

Roland did not need a power suit, but for Robert, whose magical capabilities were limited, it could become a powerful weapon. Since a power suit was still considered armor, it would allow Robert’s passive skills to take effect. The suit he would wear would consume less mana for its operations, and with an additional battery pack to support him, its operational time could extend to several hours without the need to replenish the batteries.

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‘There she is…’

Not far from Durendal stood the person he was looking for: Lucille, or Lady Curtana as she was now known. Some of the dungeon golems had been repurposed and were ready to be commanded. He knew it was best to have a person oversee these rocky automatons, as their thought processes were quite simple on their own. This was where Lucille, the Rune Mage, came in. Like him, she could communicate with the runic operation system and issue orders to the magical constructs.

Lucille stood gripping a large metal rod, her brows furrowed in concentration. Before her, a squad of repurposed dungeon golems stood at attention. Their cores had been repaired and modified with more sophisticated runic circuitry. While their basic programming remained the same, it had been altered with Sebastian’s help to allow for more complex commands.

This, of course, introduced new challenges. The golems now required stricter and more precise orders to function properly.

“Alright, you can do it… You’ve trained for days…”

Roland heard her whisper to herself before raising the control rod toward the dozen golems. The runes along its length flickered to life, and the nearest golem shuddered before stepping forward. It moved stiffly, a sign that the control sequences still required fine-tuning.

“Alright, steady now…”

She muttered again as she commanded the small group.

“Advance in formation. Maintain five-meter spacing.”

The command rod pulsed again, and the golems reacted, albeit clumsily. Some hesitated before moving, while others advanced a step too far before adjusting themselves. Lucille frowned, clearly displeased with the lack of fluidity. Roland eventually stepped closer, arms crossed as he evaluated her progress.

“You are quickly adjusting to the command sequence but you’re being too forceful with the mana conduit, try to relax or you’ll lose focus.”