Chapter 58: The Dungeon Remembers

Chapter 58: Chapter 58: The Dungeon Remembers

Arin stood in the center of the underground chamber, staring at where the Dungeon Authority Remnant had vanished.

The room was silent once more, but instead of being a comforting sound, it felt even more ominous than before. He could still feel the strange authority beneath them, though his Dungeon Sense could not penetrate the source.

Arene’s awakening had changed the way he perceived the dungeon. Where he had once sensed rooms, tunnels, monsters, and mana, he could now also sense the structure tying all of it together, as if the dungeon actually had an internal flow akin to life, and the deeper layers responded when his authority touched it

Arin slowly lowered his hand.

"Arene."

Yes?

"Can you tell me what happened to the remnant?"

The remaining authority was destroyed when the container destabilized. However, some of the information stored within it was transferred before its destruction.

Arin frowned.

"How much?"

Approximately thirty-two percent.

Adnan shot him a glance.

"Thirty-two percent doesn’t sound like much."

"It isn’t," Arin replied. "But it’s better than nothing."

Ayan remained fixated on the empty platform.

"What did you recover?"

A blue window appeared before Arin.

[Recovered Information]

[Dungeon Authority research records.]

[Multiple dungeon fluctuations detected.]

[Foreign authority interference detected.]

[Original source: Unknown.]

[Final records corrupted.]

Arin stared at the last bit of text.

"Foreign authority interference."

Ayan’s expression darkened.

"That is important."

"It is."

Saira looked between the two.

"Does that mean someone was interfering with the dungeons?"

Arene answered.

That is the most likely interpretation.

Arin crossed his arms.

"And the person in the memory?"

Identity unknown.

"What about the elf?"

Identity unknown.

"What about the voice that told them to leave the dungeon alone?"

There was a pause.

The recording is too damaged to identify the speaker.

Arin sighed.

"So we’re back to having more questions than answers."

Adnan gave a small smile.

"That seems to happen every time we discover something."

Arin glanced at him.

"You’re getting used to it."

"I’ve traveled with you long enough."

Mira gave a quiet laugh.

"That might actually be the most dangerous thing you’ve said today."

Arin smiled, but the expression quickly faded.

He turned to the sealed passage.

There was still something below.

Something carrying living Dungeon Master Authority

That was the part he couldn’t ignore.

"Arene, can you sense the authority again?"

Yes.

"Can you tell whether it belongs to one of the old Dungeon Masters?"

I cannot confirm the identity.

"Can you tell if it is connected to the previous Dungeon Master?"

No direct connection has been detected.

Arin’s eyes narrowed.

"So whoever is down there isn’t necessarily him."

Correct.

Ayan stepped forward.

"We should return to the surface."

Arin looked at him.

"You think we should stop?"

"I think we have learned enough for one expedition."

Arin considered his words.

Ayan wasn’t afraid. He was being cautious, and Arin knew better than to ignore that instinct.

Before he could respond, the dungeon suddenly shook.

RUMBLE.

Dust rained from the ceiling.

The blue crystals embedded in the walls flickered.

Everyone immediately became tense.

"What was that?" Mira asked.

Arin closed his eyes.

His Dungeon Sense spread through the chamber.

Something had changed.

The dungeon’s internal mana was shifting.

Not randomly.

It was flowing towards them.

"No one move."

Everyone froze.

Arin concentrated.

The mana continued flowing through the walls from several different directions. It wasn’t attacking them. It felt more like a reaction, almost like--

The dungeon was responding to them.

Ayan noticed it too.

"The dungeon is reacting to you."

Arin looked at his hand.

The Dungeon Master’s Mark had begun to glow again.

"I know."

The floor beneath the circular platform lit up.

Ancient symbols appeared one after another, while the walls began to display images constructed purely of mana.

A scene appeared before them.

A dungeon.

It was different from the one they were standing in, with a large chamber filled with glowing crystals.

Arin stared.

"What is this?"

Arene answered immediately.

Memory reconstruction detected.

The image changed.

A man stood inside the dungeon.

His appearance was blurred, but the aura surrounding him was unmistakable.

Dungeon Master Authority.

The man approached a Dungeon Core and placed his hand against it.

The entire dungeon responded.

The scene changed again.

The same Dungeon Master now stood beside another figure.

This time, the figure was clearly a Chimera

Arin’s eyes widened.

Saira’s expression changed.

Ayan became completely still.

The Chimera wore what appeared to be the remains of an old robe, but its face was impossible to see.

Arin stared at it.

"Is that one of them?"

Arene was silent for several seconds.

Then she answered.

Dungeon Master Authority detected within the reconstructed subject.

Arin’s heart tightened.

"So it is."

Ayan stepped closer to the image and studied the Chimera.

"I don’t recognize him."

Arin looked at him.

"You don’t?"

"No."

Ayan’s voice was quiet.

"But that doesn’t mean he wasn’t a Dungeon Master."

The scene changed again.

More figures appeared.

One after another, different Dungeon Masters stood inside different dungeons, each surrounded by their own forms of authority.

The memories were damaged, making their identities impossible to determine, but the Dungeon Master Authority within them was unmistakable.

Arin watched as the images changed faster.

Dungeon Masters disappearing.

Dungeons becoming unstable.

Monsters changing.

Authority being severed.

Then the final image appeared.

A large group of figures stood together.

There were too many to count.

The image distorted.

Everything went black.

The chamber became silent.

Arin slowly breathed out.

"Those weren’t random events."

Correct.

"They were connected."

Most likely.

Adnan looked at him.

"What did you see?"

"Dungeon Masters."

"How many?"

"I don’t know."

Arin looked towards the darkness.

"But there were many."

Ayan’s expression remained troubled.

"The previous Dungeon Master wasn’t alone."

Arin nodded.

"We already knew there were other Dungeon Masters."

"Knowing they existed and knowing what happened to them are two different things."

Arin couldn’t argue with that.

The memories had shown him enough to understand that the disappearance of Dungeon Masters wasn’t one isolated incident. It had happened repeatedly, across different dungeons and different periods.

Someone had been interfering with them.

And the strange authority beneath the elven dungeon may be connected to that history.

Then the dungeon trembled again.

This time, the sound came from far below.

A deep vibration traveled through the floor.

Arin immediately activated Dungeon Sense.

His awareness pushed downwards.

For a moment, the barrier blocking his perception weakened.

Something became visible.

A massive underground chamber.

Ten structures.

Ten figures.

Arin’s eyes widened.

He could feel their authority.

Ten separate signatures.

Ten Dungeon Masters.

Then the barrier slammed shut.

Arin staggered backwards.

"Arene."

I saw it.

Arin stared at her System window.

"You saw the same thing?"

Yes.

"What was down there?"

Arene answered immediately.

Ten Dungeon Master Authority signatures.

Nobody spoke.

Adnan’s expression changed.

"Ten?"

Arin nodded slowly.

Ayan looked towards the floor.

"That can’t be a coincidence."

Saira’s hands tightened.

"Are they the ones from the memories?"

Arene answered carefully.

I cannot determine their identities from the available information.

Arin stared at the floor.

He didn’t know who they were.

He didn’t know why they were there.

But he did know one thing.

Ten Dungeon Master authorities were waiting somewhere beneath them.

"We need to tell Eldran."

Ayan nodded.

"We do."

They began climbing towards the upper chamber.

For several minutes, nobody spoke.

When they finally emerged, Eldran immediately approached them.

"You were gone longer than expected. What did you find?"

Arin looked at him.

"Chief Eldran, we found a Dungeon Master Authority remnant."

Eldran’s expression immediately became serious.

"But that’s not all."

Arin paused.

"There are more below."

"How many?"

Arin looked towards the staircase.

"Ten."

Eldran’s face slowly lost its color.

"Ten?"

Before Arin could answer, the entire dungeon shook.

BOOOOOOM!

The force of the tremor was strong enough to send cracks through the stone floor.

Every crystal in the chamber suddenly illuminated.

The light wasn’t blue anymore.

It had turned a deep, ominous red.

Eldran stared upward.

"What is happening?"

Arin’s Dungeon Master’s Mark burned.

A System window appeared.

[WARNING.]

[Multiple Dungeon Master Authorities detected.]

[Authority signatures increasing.]

Arin’s heart began pounding.

The ten signatures he had sensed earlier were no longer dormant.

They were moving.

Arene’s voice suddenly became tense.

Arin.

"What?"

They have awakened.

The dungeon shook again.

This time, the tremor came with a sound.

A distant roar.

Then another.

Then eight more.

Ten voices echoed through the depths of the dungeon.

Arin stared at the staircase.

The System began displaying new information.

[Authority Remnant 01: ACTIVE.]

[Authority Remnant 02: ACTIVE.]

[Authority Remnant 03: ACTIVE.]

[Authority Remnant 04: ACTIVE.]

The messages continued.

[Authority Remnant 05: ACTIVE.]

[Authority Remnant 06: ACTIVE.]

[Authority Remnant 07: ACTIVE.]

[Authority Remnant 08: ACTIVE.]

[Authority Remnant 09: ACTIVE.]

[Authority Remnant 10: ACTIVE.]

Arin’s breathing stopped for a moment.

Then one final message appeared.

[All ten authorities have recognized the presence of a new Dungeon Master.]

Arin stared at the words.

Arene spoke quietly inside his mind.

They know you’re here.

Far below them, ten pairs of monstrous eyes opened in the darkness.

And for the first time in ten years, ten forgotten Dungeon Masters awakened to face the one who had inherited the future they had lost.