Chapter 70: First Gate Conquest

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What was gifted to Riven was not a piece of equipment or any conventional item. The mysterious reward kept shifting rapidly in size and form, twisting and reshaping itself in the air as if it could not decide what it wanted to become. After several long seconds of constant change, it suddenly settled...

"Huh?"

An egg.

POOF!

The large egg landed heavily in his hands. Riven stood there completely speechless, staring down at the unexpected object. What exactly was he supposed to do with a giant egg?

He did not let the strange form discourage him for long. Something this unusual had to be valuable. Especially since his Authority of Greed had clearly triggered during the process, making the reward even stronger than it originally should have been. That was probably why the gift had taken so long to fully form.

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[Divine Territory Beast Egg (L+ Grade)]

An incredible divine treasure lost in time and space. An egg capable of hatching a powerful Millenary Divine Territory Beast, which will be permanently bonded to the Lord and his Territory.

The more the Divine Beast grows and evolves, the more the territory will grow, rapidly evolving into a Divine Land overflowing with resources and divine energy.

The Divine Beast will hatch once a Territory has been established by the Lord, and its form will be based on their Combined Authorities.

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"I guess... I got a pet?" he wondered, scratching the back of his head as he carefully turned the heavy egg in his hands. "No... this actually sounds amazing. A territory of my own..."

His thoughts drifted toward his Fourth Authority, the only one he had not used at all yet. That Authority had been quietly urging him to leave the relative safety of the city and move into the Wilderness beyond its walls.

The problem was that those wastelands were incredibly dangerous. Monsters of C Rank and higher roamed freely across the open land. It was not a place normal people could simply walk into and expect to survive. He would need to grow considerably stronger before he could even stand a real chance out there.

"Nice!" Daniela said with bright eyes as she leaned closer to look at the egg. "Little Noir will get a new friend!"

"Hm... Still, I feel like there’s something missing," Riven admitted, a faint note of disappointment in his voice. The reward was powerful, yet something about it still felt incomplete. "Well, the boss also dropped something interesting. Let’s go check it out."

They walked back toward the large corpse left behind by the defeated boss. The moment Riven stepped closer, a new system notification appeared in front of his eyes. At the same time a bright blue aura suddenly surged outward from his body.

"?!"

Riven instinctively took a sharp step back. The heavy egg slipped from his hands and slammed into the ground with enough force to crack and shatter the paved stone beneath it. The egg itself remained completely unharmed — it was far tougher and heavier than it looked.

What truly shocked him, however, was the sight that now waited for him above the boss’s remains.

It was not a normal system notification that appeared before him. Instead, a large book floated in the air right in front of Riven’s eyes, its pages flickering rapidly while glowing with rich gold and deep blue colors.

[The {Demonic Authority of Pride – Lucifer} has been activated.]

[The Sovereign Codex has Recognized Conquered Land.]

[Domain-Building Functions Unlocked]

[Do you wish to Conquer the D Rank Gate: "Dark Cave Labyrinth"?]

[Current Owners: Fallen King Ezekiel (Vanquished)]

[Yes] [No]

"I... can do this?"

Riven was left completely speechless. Daniela, who had just finished gathering the three items the boss dropped — a solid sword, a full set of body armor, and a simple ring — looked back at him with clear confusion.

"R-Riven? What’s wrong?"

Riven’s hands moved almost on their own. Without thinking twice he pressed [Yes].

This was it.

This was the exact path he had been searching for. This was how he could finally steal the very source of power that his family had hoarded for so long and one day return that strength to the ordinary people who truly needed it.

The entire interior of the Gate trembled for a long moment.

RUMBLE!

Bright golden and blue light spread outward through every single corridor, every floor, and every ceiling. The radiance began on the third floor, flowed steadily into the second floor, and finally covered the first floor in a wave of pure authority.

Daniela tilted her head and slowly walked closer to him.

"R-Riven? What happened? What... is this?" She noticed a crown made of pure energy forming above his head. His presence suddenly felt heavier and more real than ever before. "Huh?"

Riven, on the other hand, felt as if he had suddenly left his own body.

His senses expanded across the entire Gate in a single second. He could clearly see every corner, every nook and cranny, every hidden room and cave, and every living being that still remained inside. He could even sense the hidden resources — large open chambers that no one had discovered before, filled with unmined Mana Stones and pure Spirit Crystals.

Deep below everything, he felt something else. Some kind of true "Core" that held the entire Gate together.

He walked behind the destroyed throne of the Fallen King and found a sealed door that no ordinary person could see or access.

But he could.

Daniela followed closely behind him, growing more worried. It felt as if Riven had suddenly been possessed by something greater than himself.

The young man continued down a set of stairs that led deeper into a dark chamber. There he found a giant glowing sphere of pure World Essence floating in the center of the room.

"W-What’s that...?" Daniela asked in a quiet voice.

"The Gate’s Core... or rather, the Dungeon Core," Riven answered in a calm, almost monotonous tone, as if something else was gently guiding his words. "A Fragment of a Forgotten World... a piece of its Core. World Essence itself is one of the fundamental building blocks of Creation."

"?!"

"The power that Lords possess... is the ability to wield and tame this force, and to take over large quantities of Land that then become extensions of our own self," Riven continued. "Extensions of our own... Authority."

"!!!"

Riven’s hand slowly extended and touched the glowing core. In that instant, countless memories of a long-destroyed world flooded into his mind.

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