Stuck as a Dungeon Mob

The void seeker was crafted from very fine materials and was previously Eon's highest achievement. It was something he crafted after exploring the world and its dungeons, attaining newer understanding of space and mana as a whole.

But while this gave the impression that it was some sort of divine high quality item, it was not. In terms of effects, it was certainly top-notch. The ability to reduce cast time, reduce mana cost, increase power, improve control, etc. were all top-notch abilities.

Admittedly, the robe's abilities were not evenly distributed, but it was amazing enough that it had these effects. Being a piece of living equipment added even more value since it could cast protective spells as long as it had a power source.

Yet, this was also its greatest flaw. This was what severely impaired its grade as a piece of living equipment. That autonomy, that ego.

Compared to real divine pieces of equipment, the void seeker was very dumb. It was like a beast acting only on instinct. That in of itself would not be an issue as long as it got the job done. The combination of dumb and uncooperative was the problem.

"I created you! You piece of- Argh!" Not even Eon as its creator could subdue the culmination of his youthful adventures.

The robe at this point started to vibrate. It felt like an attempt to communicate, but more than anything it felt like the robe was suppressing its anger. Who wanted to be created?!? The creator didn't even want to feed it!

Eon reaped what he sowed. Having only one space magic crystal, he could not afford to feed the void seeker often. This resulted in it becoming very unfavorable towards him.

On that note, this was another flaw of the void seeker. The Ravenous nature.

The dumb ego was created with a single goal, and this single goal was to absorb energy.

Eon was aware of all these flaws, but he still wore this equipment. The rare materials could not be repurposed anymore, creating a new masterful robe would take both effort and luck.

"Cough… Argh…" Using magic and living equipment did not come for free. They would be too broken otherwise, and being overgeared would be the norm. Most equipments tended to consume the wearer's magic power passively, while others might simply consume it when making use of their effects.

As one might be able to guess, the void seeker was the passive kind. For Eon who needed every ounce of mana, this was a death sentence.

"Are you trying to seek me to the void?! Cough-!" Eon shouted madly. What a cursed name he chose! His skin could not turn any paler, but his body was becoming skinnier at a visible rate.

Space appeared to have cracked. The magic that maintained Eon in the air faltered, and his body plummeted towards the bloody lake.

With a large splash, Eon was submerged in the blood of the hydra and the swampy water.

"GAwawa" He couldn't breathe! He, the sage of space, was about to drown!

Eon tried to muster strength and stretch out his hands to swim, but all that did was put them in the range of his vision.

Sickly.

His skin stuck tightly to his bones and his veins struggled to continue circulating its deep red blood.

Within a split second, Eon saw the brightest light his mind could imagine, and within that light he saw many flashing faces.

'My two remaining disciples…' Eon's final thought was on the only two people he could ever consider to be his children.

His vision then turned dark. The passing faces faded to nothingness. 

'The Epoch bloodline ends with me' Eon's true final thought and perhaps the only thing he didn't regret.

…

But, his death did not come.

[Do you want a second chance?]

Eon instead heard a rather enticing question. Did he want a second chance?

'I- I want it!' Eon didn't want to sound desperate but after experiencing what he assumed was death his will to live only became stronger!

[Do you have any regrets?]

'Yes! I have many regrets!' Eon's aged voice said. If he had a body, he'd be on his knees preaching his misfortune. He'd be in tears as he told the world of his regrets, and he would see them weep.

He would see them weep because his sorrow would become infectious and… and…!

'I want to research!' Eon shouted inwardly.

'I- I want to live forever! I beseech you! Please grant me mercy!' Eon was not a dummy, he knew what he was doing and who he was likely conversing with, but he didn't care!

'Grant me eternal life!' He wanted to live forever and research magic, even if it meant being confined. The key to eternal life he sought in the dungeon counted on this entity, he was hoping he would be given some leverage to negotiate but with everything breaking down, so be it! Life was more important! 

[Forming a contract with Marcus Epoch (Eon)]

With his access to his deepest regrets and desires, a contract on his soul was bounded. His wishes… the entity would grant them!

***

The sky above the lake calmed. The lake was still tainted with a red hue, it made a contrast with the now visible blue sky.

But this was not a picturesque scene, corpses could be seen floating lifelessly on the surface of the crimson water. The debris of crashed boats and ships, as well as lost spears and equipment… the aftermath of a naval battle was not any prettier than one on land.

"We… We did it!" A lizardman shouted from one of the single cannon boats. They beat the Mensch tribe!

"Yeah!!!" "WOOHO" "MUSHROOM GOD!!! PLEASE ACCEPT THIS OFFERING!!!" The lizardmen all reacted differently according to their personalities, but A and Ed were not focused on this.

A was focused on Var Agus.

The lizardman shaman looked… horrible. He stared at the red sea with lifeless eyes.

"The hydra… is dead…" Var Agus' reason for existence, the hydra, it had died in battle. From young, he was trained in being a shaman of a tribe and how great their deity was… all of Var's childhood was the guardian of the swamp lands, the hydra Lernaean.

Var Agus would be grieving for a long while.

The caged mushroom, Ed, was not focused on Var's plight. He was surmising his test on the link skill and its limits.

'After undoing it, the skill enters a cooldown specific to the power imparted…' When switching between imparted materials, however, the active effect of the skill would enter a cooldown as a whole. Needless to say, this was a rather intricate skill.

Following the death of Kurgher, apart from fighting the Mensch tribe, all they could do was watch. Ed couldn't watch though and instead forced Var Agus to assist him in experimenting.

The results were as he had explained, but that now meant he was out of the loop.

'A, what happened?' Ed asked his split double.

A was still wearing his puppet bodysuit, it was observing and carrying Ed around the thrashed ship while watching the battle between Eon and the hydra.

'The lake is blood-red, I think the hydra has died…' A transmitted to Ed whose roots chilled. How could it die?! Where was its fancy regeneration!?

'If I only I formed a link with the hydra' Ed couldn't be blamed though. He never even got to meet the hydra, when did he have time to put a link on it?

'WAIT! Is… Is there a new floor?' Ed asked. A didn't have a way to know, this question was more posed towards himself. Ed wanted to know if there was a new floor or if… If there was no floor. Was the dungeon's core guarded by the hydra?

The prospect was of great interest to Ed, but there was something else that was calling him…

'A, jump into the lake with me! We need to collect this blood at all costs!' A blood-red lake? Was A really a split part that came directly from him? That was just called a pool of resources!

'We will sink, right?' Ed's confidence made A uncertain in its own judgement.

'Yes, but I am a mushroom and you are a blob' One might think the mushroom could drown, but that was only under that condition that Ed allowed this water into his body.

Ed's body was a temple, but it was no water temple! He would not tolerate any water!

Under the insistence of Ed, A had no choice but to suddenly sprint off the deck and into the water.

"H- Hey!!!" Var Agus who was not informed was shocked.

Ed and A started to sink rapidly, but not before Ed started to suck up the bloody water into his storage. There was a lot of bloody water and he wouldn't be able to take it all for himself, nevertheless he had to try!

Once A hit rock bottom though, there was really no turning back.

'Hm? Is that the hydra's corpse?' A thought as he noticed the behemoth was still laying at the bottom of the horribly cold lake.

'The dungeon will collect it soon-' Before A could make up his mind, Ed suddenly realized something.

'Drop item! Does it have a drop item!?!' Would the hydra drop something? If it did drop an item, acquiring it would be a nice bonus for all the trouble Ed put himself and others through.