Chapter 606 Elementary my dear... deer

Dungeon warfare is probably the most studied and practiced craft on Pangera. The Rending was a rude introduction to the intricacies of the three dimensional conflict beneath the surface, but the sapient races of the surface proved to be quick studies, and the basic strategies were established, most likely independently, all across the world.

Fighting Monsters is always a losing prospect. They can't be exterminated, they simply respawn and nothing that is known will prevent the Dungeon from doing that. But population control is possible, and indeed, it is the primary occupation of those who are tasked with defending the surface from a repeat invasion. By culling populations, scattering concentrations of spawn points and draining mana from areas of particular density.

These tactics can be effective, but the work is relentless. Without constant monitoring, depleted respawn points will reform elsewhere, populations will swell and mana will flow, like water, to pool in another location. War with the monsters is an exhausting, never ending chore that all civilisations of Pangera must engage in ceaselessly.

But this is not the true conflict.

There are a multitude of empires, kingdoms, city-states and alliances within the Dungeon and their wars, battles and spats are endless. Several Historian colleagues of this author have spent decades attempting to map the history of inter-sapient conflicts and have floated the idea that there has been no time during the post-cataclysm era, that all of Pangera has been at peace. As stunning as it is to think about, the records appear to line up, there has never been a time when the Dungeon hasn't been home to an inter-Sapient conflict.

Which means the strategy of warfare within the Dungeon is a highly developed art-form. Even the relatively simple act of breaching walls has become an intricate process. The more rigid the doctrines become, the more predictable the outcomes. It's said that the Grand-Strategists can predict the outcomes of a decade long war before the first blow is struck.

Regardless, it's a fascinating area of study that I don't think I'll ever tire of.

· Excerpt from a letter by the historian Agronidas of the Tower.

During the hunting, I keep in regular contact with the Colony through a chain of swift running scouts and from the sounds of things, they're as busy as ever over there. What I haven't heard about, is the arrival of an invasion force, which I find a touch surprising. I've spent two days hunting down here! When are they going to get off their butts and attack us already?!

I mean, I don't want to sound ridiculous, but I'd almost prefer for the assault to come now, rather than endure this mysterious silence. It's unbearable. Every moment I expect the penny to drop and a violent struggle to survive to begin. In the meantime, all I can do is keep pushing, keep grinding, trying to get as strong as possible, as quickly as possible.

We've been relentless and everyone is suffering from flagging energy levels, even me. At this distance from the colony, I don't get a whole lot of energy from the Vestibule, at least my babysitters are useful for something as they provide me a trickle.

Still, forty-eight hours of relentless fighting hasn't been for nothing. The levels are piling in and I've managed some tasty rank-ups. I put a bit of effort into chomping down on the endless shadow creatures and pushing my Omen Chomp into the next rank. It's been close for a long time, but I've been so focused on icing, burning, crushing, or slicing my opponents magically that the ol' fashioned mandible chomp has fallen by the wayside a little bit. But if I'm going to be battling more of those armoured chumps, then a little extra shell cracking power is going to come in handy.

[Omen Chomp IV -] Doom Chomp V. This advanced bite technique allows the wielder to further harness their inner energy and use it to inflict harm through the medium of teeth, mandibles or fangs. Range and power are both increased at this rank, and the wielder gains insight into shaping the energy utilised in the strike.]

When the trickle of knowledge flowed into my brain, it was quite a surprise to find that the ethereal, energy based mandibles that manifested when I employed the Skill could, in fact, be manipulated. I can't do a whole lot with it right now, but I can make the mandibles a bit sharper, for added puncturing, or a bit more grindy, for… grinding… I suppose.

I have to say, the jump from rank four to five does provide a significant boost in power, from what I've seen so far. I'm quite curious to see what sort of qualitative leap in strength the sixth tier will bring. Bit of a shame it's going to take a hundred and sixty levels to get there!

My other Skills have been progressing well. Very well, in fact! Without anyone else to prevent me from hoovering up the experience, I've made good progress. Nothing pumps the Skill levels quite like battle does! Ice magic affinity has pushed all the way to rank five! Whoo! I'm also making solid progress (heh) on my Earth magic. It won't be long until that too reaches the fifth tier, then I can move onto the final remaining element.

[Master, I sense prey!]

[Oh ho! Anything interesting?]

[I'm detecting a powerful concentration of death mana. Could be one creature, maybe a small group.]

[Ugh. I hate those things.]

[Experience is experience, Master.]

[Yeah, I know.]

The deeper we push into the second strata, the thicker the stench of death becomes. It isn't as if the shadow mana fades away, it's simply joined by another, more malevolent force. With the rise in death mana, we naturally see a rise in a type of monster I'm not at all fond of.

The undead.

The group creeps down the tunnel in order to get a better eye on the enemy, only to find they already have their eyes on us, in a sense. Only fifty metres away, sunk to its knees in a thick soup of what I can only describe as evil sludge stands a proud looking deer monster. Or, it would have been proud looking, if its eyes weren't missing and large chunks of its flesh appear to have simply sloughed off somewhere along the line.

I don't have to focus particularly hard to sense the rising cloud of death around the monster. Curiously, it just stands there, staring at us. Hey, free xp is free xp. I'll take it! My sub-brains work together, pumping mana from my core through my stone magic construct to produce the new energy which is seized by my main mind to weave together a deadly spike of hardened, compressed stone.

The stone spear is a simple, brutal, yet effective weapon, especially when using condensed mana. I've seen these rocks puncture holes in all sorts of things. They should be fit for purpose here. Not wanting to waste the opportunity my patient target is providing, I whip together half a dozen spears before launching them all at once. The end result is… messy. Each spear is over a metre long and as thick as an adult human wrist. They pierce straight into the deer, which makes no sound, and sink deep into its flesh.

[You have slain… ]

[Nice!] I cheer.

"CONTACT!"

[What did you say?] I ask Crinis.

[That wasn't me, Master! Mana signatures lighting up everywhere! It's a trap!]

[BOOK IT, PEOPLE!]

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