[Sometime later.]

"Hm…. By the looks of things, they must have seen us coming." – said the soldier inspecting the tent.

"They ran as soon as possible, leaving most of their stuff behind."

".... When exactly?" - asked the man in fancy armor.

"Just now. The tracks are definitely fresh. They must have run away right as we were reaching the outpost." - replied the soldier.

"…"

"You." – said the man in fancy armor as he pointed at the nervous soldier nearby.

"Come here. Come here for a second. Common. Don't be shy."

"…"

"Sir…." – said the soldier who walked towards the smiling man.

"…"

"YOU BITCH!" – shouted the man in fancy armor as he punched the soldier right in the face, instantly knocking the man to the ground before then starting to brutally kick the fallen soldier over and over again, splatting his blood all over the nobleman's boot.

"YOU HAD ONE JOB!"

"ONE FUCKING JOB!"

"FIND ANYTHING LIKE SCOUTS OR VILLAGERS WE HAD MISSED AND KILL THEM!"

"YET! YOU! FUCKING! FAILED!"

"…"

"Tch."

"Useless bastard." – said the man in fancy armor as he turned away from the bloody and beaten-down soldier who was lying on the ground.

"Just take that trash away from my sight."

"Y-yes, sir." – replied a nervous soldier, before moments later, the beaten-up soldier was dragged away.

"…"

"So, what now, dad?" – asked the young nobleman who was also wearing a fancy knight-like armor while approaching his own father.

"Well, considering how that moron just fucked up big time, we now need to change up the strategy." – said the first man in the fancy armor.

"We managed pretty much to take over the dungeon without any problem….. But as long as the city is still under the Royal faction control, we won't be able to fully take over this territory, according to the information we were given."

"…"

"Okay, we are moving. All of you, move."

"We are leaving the dungeon behind and heading at full speed to the city. Chop, chop."

"?"

"Eh? But aren't we supposed to secure the dungeon? Duke Ash told- "

"And who is in charge here?" - asked the nobleman.

"I'm."

"I'm the one Duke Ash has chosen, so think I know what I'm doing."

"Or are you saying that you are one in charge, hm?"

"N-no! Heavens no!" - replied the nervous soldier.

"..."

(Honestly, I don't really want to make enemies with Duke Ash, since if we win this war, he will end up being the new king.)

(But if I want to stand out, I need to rack up my own achievements.)

(The main goal was to take over the dungeon at all costs and secure its safety.... But I was also told that if I want to take over the territory, then the easiest and only way to do so is to take over the city located nearby.)

(Honestly.... Defending this place is straight up impossible.)

(I mean, for crying out loud! Why is this entire place burned up!? They didn't finish repairing this fucking thing halfway through!)

"If we take over the city and secure control over it, the territory is as good as ours."

"And that also means that the dungeon would also be in our control."

"If we leave this dungeon alone for a moment, nothing will happen, at least a few monsters would just go out, and we can just hunt them down."

"I mean, we are stronger than the Royal faction, and they had no problem with this place."

"So, what could go wrong with letting a few monsters escape this place?"

"We only cared about two things."

"The city that is needed to control this territory."

"And the outpost that will act as the main base right next to the dungeon that we can control."

"But here is a problem."

"All mess!"

"There is no way we can properly protect this place in this kind of shitty state."

"Tell me, how long will it take to restore this place?"

"..."

"A few days at least. If we want it to be in a perfect state." - replied the soldier.

"Exactly!" - said the nobleman.

"The best option would be to just go to the city and have some workers repair this place."

"It would make things way easier."

"…"

"So what the fuck are you waiting for? MOVE IT!"

"!"

"Yes, sir!" – replied the soldier, before moments later, the entire Noble faction army started preparing to move out once again.

"…"

(Weird.) – thought Thauma, who was observing the soldiers outside as they were leaving the area around the dungeon.

(First, the soldiers from the Royal faction had suddenly run away, leaving my field of vision, and a few moments later, a new group of soldiers appeared, AND they did not have the same armor as the ones from before…)

(And now they are leaving the area in a hurry?)

(Honestly, I've thought things were going back to normal, before the whole attack made by the Noble faction….. But by the looks of things, the situation instantly changed once again?)

(I've never seen these soldiers before….. Are they with the Noble faction?)

(…)

(So does that mean the fight is here?)

(Or more specifically, the war between the two factions has already started?)

(And this time for real?)

"…"

(No…. I can't be sure of this yet.)

(There is also a weird thing about both of these different soldiers running away suddenly.... Is there something going on nearby?)

(What could be the reason..... Is one chasing another? Or are they running from something?)

(Dammit…. I think I should focused on making that device which would allow me to share vision with some of my golems.)

(But I really didn't have time to make it, since I was already conducting a lot of different experiments at the same time anyway.)

"Hey….."

"!"

"Food…. Can you give us?" – asked the prisoner.

(Ah, I've forgotten about them.) – thought Thauma as it ordered one of the servant helper golems to take food and give it to the prisoners.

(Maybe I should set up an automatic command, so I don't have to worry about them starving.)

(Sometimes I'm just too focused on my research that I just straight up forget about them.)

"…"

(Wait….. Should I use them?)

(They could leave the dungeon and...No.)

(It wouldn't work.)

(Even if I do plant something like a bomb on them and say that if they betrayed me, it will blow up, they could still be followed by somebody, and that could expose my dungeon secret.)

(…..So I guess I will continue biding my time.)

(There is no benefit from willingly getting in between two factions.)

"..."

(Wait..... Wait a moment.... Did both of them leave the forest completely?!) - thought Thauma before then calling forth a group of blade golems to his side, before then starting to implant new commands onto the golems.

(Order: Go outside and look around for any intruders in and very near the forest edge.)

(Attack and kill.)

(If you don't find anything, report back immediately.) - Thauma finished giving new commands to the golems before sending them away.

(.... There is no way... Or is there?)

[A few hours later.]

(Nothing!?) - thought surprised Thauma as it inspected completely undamaged golem's bodies.

(But I've sent my golems to even look near the edges and allowed them to roam a bit further as well!)

(There are not even traces of blood or anything on the blades either.... They were never used in the first place.)

(So does that mean that both armies completely left the forest vicinity?!)

(But I don't... Wait..... Maybe...)

"..."

(By any chance.... Are they focused completely on fighting each other, to the point they have no time to observe the dungeon growth.)

"..."

(True..... It would make sense.... And they are fine with me producing monsters and letting my dungeon grow, they do want me to continue developing in the first place.)

(And even if they have "out of control monster outbreak", they can just send a large extermination force or army of elite soldiers to deal with them, just the same way they did in the past.)

"..."

(But what they don't know is that the dungeon has already developed way beyond their current expectation.)

(.... Is this a chance?)

(NO!)

(If... If....No wait..... Will it work out?)

(I'm not being overconfident right now, I'm thinking it carefully...)

"..."

(Focus completely on producing as many monsters as possible by using as much DP as possible.)

(But this plan is completely stupid, no matter how you look at it.)

(It would definitely look weird if a large army of monsters suddenly started appearing in the forest. There is no way I would be able to hold all of these monsters inside the dungeon, and even if I did, the soldiers are coming from time to time inside the dungeon.... They would instantly spot the army of golems inside the dungeon.)

(But this could be my one and only opportunity as well.)

(If two factions are completely distracted by each other and are not paying even a bit of attention to me, then I will be able to grow freely....)

(Not only that, even if they do discover me, would they have time to handle me? Wouldn't they rather focus on their real enemies?)

(Risky plan..... Something that I wanted to avoid at all costs.)

(But at the same time, it will tremendously boost my dungeon growth speed.)

(....)

(Should I take it?)

(But..... No, no, no... This is stupid.)

(I've focused my strategy on biding my own time as long as possible until they try to either "tame" me or discover my lie.)

(....)

(But at the same time..... It is worth it..... True, I would end up getting exposed much sooner, but at the same time, I could possibly boost my growth tremendously.)

(...)

(I really and I mean REALLY DON'T LIKE THIS PLAN!)

(But..... The more I analyze it and speculate about the future...)

(However, there is a risk.....Should I really take it?)

(Maybe I should play it....)

"..."

"...."

(No....)

(This may be my one and only opportunity.)

(The risk is there..... But this time, the risk is worth it.)

(A gamble..... This will be a straight-up gamble.)

(Honestly, I don't like it one bit..... But again, if it works out perfectly, then the amount of benefits I would get....)

(However....)

"You are an idiot, you know."

"!"

"Like a very big idiot."

"Not all wars have something like a 100% chance at success."

"Some have 70%."

"Some have 50%."

"Some even have 30%."

"And some may even have 10% or less chance at succeeding."

"With the war is like this."

"It is unknown."

"You need to play it right, adjust your movements, adjust your strategy, and adjust your strength."

"This is like playing a chess board in a way, or some other games where you play against a real opponent."

"Having strength isn't exactly the only thing that can win a war."

"Sometimes brains are what can really win the war."

"Schemes, scams, and lies can also win the war."

"And sometimes, the thing that can win the war is a gamble."

"Gamble is…. Well, a gamble."

"You may lose, you may win."

"But something as simple as a gamble can predict an outcome of the war."

"But are you brave enough to take it? Or will you cower in fear?"

"Be brave, be cowardly, be skeptical, be arrogant, be prideful, or be even mad."

"Based on how you approach the war, the results of the said gamble could change, from like 5% to all the way to 50%….. And not only the gamble itself, but the whole war somewhat works this way."

"Depending on what strategy you use, what moves you play, what your mindset is, and the predictions you make, the chances of your victory."

"Hell, you could even call wars just a giant ass gambles."

"But here is a thing."

"You can change the odds of this gamble based on your own decisions."

"For example, change odds from just 10% of winning to all the way to 100%"

"The odds may change as the war goes on, it may increase or decrease, since this is just how war works."

"And you are not the only player on the table."

"Your opponent will do whatever is in their power to secure the best odds for themselves or just take over the entire 100% for themselves."

"And for you?"

"This is a lesson you need at all costs if you wish to survive as a dungeon."

"Do you understand?"

"You need to understand what war truly is if you wish to survive."

(....)

(Heh.... Dammit it.) - thought Thauma, as it remembered one of the lectures that Ariava gave him once before the war, it had been with the beast dungeon.

(I keep making the same mistakes.... Over and over again..... And once I hit a point where I don't know what to do, I always remember her..... Why?)

(Why were all of her lessons on..... Point?)

(Did she predict?)

(Did she predict I would face the same problems in the future? Is that the reason for her countless lectures?)

(....)

(She really did raise me....)

(...)

(I'm grateful for that.)

(...)

(I will do it.)

(I will gable.)

(This time the problem wasn't with me being overconfident, but instead with my cowardliness.)

(I've focused on securing the safest path to the future as possible, so that I straight up became a useless coward.)

(And if I want to grow, to reach the new heights, I need to get rid of his cowardice.)

(But this isn't the only thing I need to change.)

(Faults.)

(There are many faults and problems with me.)

(If it wasn't just cowardice or overconfidence.)

(There will definitely be other problems I may discover later on.)

(Or I may end up facing some problems I've once dealt with before....)

(...)

(I don't know if I will deal with them, since they are more psychological problems focused.... A problem I've never looked deep into..... But honestly speaking?)

(I think I will be looking forward to this experiment.)

[A few days later – Location: City of Maw]

"DAMMIT! FIRE! THEY CAN'T ENDURE IT ANYMORE! JUST BLAST THEM ALL!" – shouted the wolf beastman captain as he commanded archers and mages to unleash their attacks at the incoming soldiers.

"FUCK! RETREAT! RETREAT!" – shouted the corrupted nobleman as he commanded the forces to retreat.

"Tch!"

"Useless bastard!" - said the young nobleman before then almost hit by the arrow.

"!?"

(Oh crap!) - thought the nobleman as he instantly turned tail and ran away on his horse before he could end up getting hit with an arrow.

"…"

"Fuck…." – said the tired wolf beastman as he collapsed on top of the wall.

"!?"

"Captain!? Are you alright?!" - asked a human soldier.

"Yeah....Just... Need to catch a breath or two..."

"..."

(Oh, who am I kidding? Things are fucked up.) - thought the wolf beastman as he covered his face with a towel, trying to wipe off the blood that was covering his entire body.

(We were able to come back to the city before them, but by the looks of things, they instantly went right after us, completely abandoning the dungeon just like we did….. The city defenses were not prepared at all for them.)

(We are using every single thing we have in this place…. But things are not looking great.)

(We cannot even evacuate the people who didn't manage to leave in time, since those bastards outside are just waiting for any opening to get into the city…)

"…"

"I can already tell you are exhausted…. But I have more bad news coming your way, mate." – said the cat beastwoman captain as she approached the exhausted wolf beastman.

*Sigh*

"What is it?" – asked the wolf beastman with a tired voice as he took off the towel.

"The city defenses are crumbling."

"This city was never a defense-oriented city, since there were barely any strong monsters present in the area at all."

"And this place's defenses were definitely never designed to hold off armies in the first place."

"At the rate things are going…. We will all be massacred. Don't know how to say it in a much more subtle way."

"…"

"Any news from messengers?" – asked Wolf Beastman.

"Nope….. We still had not received any news about reinforcements coming our way… Or anything at all." – replied cat beastwoman.

"…There is a good chance that they intercepted our messengers and killed them."

"…"

"…"

"Do you think we can hold off the next attack?" – asked Wolf Beastman.

"Like I've said, our defenses are crumbling." – said the cat beastwoman.

"We only managed to scare off these bastards, since they are some cowardly piece of trash."

"But even if they don't realize how shitty our defense is right now, they will definitely break in their next attack."

"And once they do... Yea…. I don't think I need to explain what happened next."

"…"

"We are….. We are really fucked…. Aren't we?"

"Yeb…" – replied wolf beastman.

"…"

"We are going to evacuate the city."

"?!"

"But if we do that- "

"They will have an opening to get inside…. Yes…. But let's be honest," – said wolf beastman, interrupting cat beastwoman.

"This city was lost, and so is the dungeon."

"We are not strong enough…. And there is just no way to argue about this."

"They got us….. And we lost."

"The only thing we can do right now is to save as many people as possible.....And then?"

"I don't know...."

"Honestly, I don't know if we will be able to take back the territory once they take over Maw City."

With little to no next choice left, the members of the Royal faction order a full-on evacuation for the entire city, ordering all remaining civilians and forces who were still in the city to abandon their posts and run away with their lives.

The city was completely abandoned, resulting in it being easily conquered by the Royal faction without suffering any form of resistance.

However, they were not finished with the Royal faction nor the civilians that escaped.

The leader of the Noble faction ordered a "hunt" to commence, aimed at hunting all the soldiers who tried to escape.

And all of the civilians.

The Noble faction wanted to hunt down all who opposed them.... And also wanted to make an example out of those who dare to stand by their side, no matter if they were soldiers or civilians.

And to make matters worse, nobody could resist the Noble faction.

The Maw city was a key location in this entire territory, and with its conquest, the Noble faction had an easy time not only traversing the terrain, but also had an easy time conquering the entire territory.

It was slaughter.... And in the end?

Only 50% of the fleeing people managed to survive, escaping the Noble faction hunt.

However, this result was satisfactory for the leader of the Noble faction army, since they had obtained the main control point of the whole territory.

The city of Maw.

Those who were left to fight back were crushed, and those who tried to question their might were made an example of.....

It did not take long for the Noble faction to completely conquer the entire territory.

But it wasn't the only territory that was instantly conquered by the Noble faction.

The multiple series of attacks on the key locations of the kingdom had succeeded, with over half of the assaults resulting in the Noble faction's victory.

Even though only around 50% of the takeover operations had succeeded, it was more than enough to land an extremely solid blow on the Royal faction, not only weakening them but also dealing a critical hit to their image.

Just like Duke Ash has planned.

And thanks to this success, the Royal faction, which before dominated the war, has now found themselves in a less advantageous situation.

Now, both factions were on the same level, meaning that the Noble faction had now a proper chance at winning this war.

This obviously filled the Royal faction with worry while at the same time boosting the confidence of the Noble faction.

…

But unbeknownst to them, their war created an opening.

For whom?

For the golem dungeon.

As both factions were keeping themselves occupied with their war, a third faction that was thought to be nothing more than an annoyance has now sped up its growth.

Sooner or later, they will see the truth.

And once they do? They will realize that a real monster was being born right underneath their noses.

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