Chapter One: The Lost Intruder

Reality is not the same as a game.

After crossing over into this world, Zane once again realized this truth with painful clarity.

In the game, he never needed to worry about anything else—just carve out enough space for those goblins to dig tunnels, and then, with the right amount of gold, construct any kind of room he wished. But reality offered no such privileges. Here, digging meant not only considering space, but also weight-bearing, ventilation, dust control, and many other troublesome details.

Although Zane had spent much time reading in the demonfolk’s grand library, unfortunately, work of this sort—fit only for the lowest races—was not something the demonfolk would bother to record. Thus, Zane had no way to become a true master builder.

At first, Zane had indeed considered digging out an entirely new domain for himself, but after three near disasters that almost buried him alive, he had wisely abandoned such ambitions. Instead, he built his dungeon upon a natural cavern.

As for other places, he chose to let the goblins manage as they pleased.

Regrettably, it seemed that letting them do as they wished would yield nothing good.

“Ding—”

At that moment, a soft chime sounded in Zane’s ear. Immediately, a line of system text unfurled before his eyes.

[You have finally realized that without a qualified architect, you are destined to be buried alive in a collapsed cavern one day. To ensure you won’t die without even knowing why, you need a powerful assistant—Mission: Recruit an Architect is now available. (Reward: 100 experience points, the ability to manufacture a Summoning Crystal.)]

Is this system here to ruin me?

Though he had long been aware of its twisted sense of humor, Zane still frowned, staring intently at the quest before him.

He had received such missions before. In fact, nearly every day, the system assigned him a random task, and these tasks came in all manner of bizarre forms.

For example: [You gaze into the dark abyss, feeling a call from within. An impulse drives you to break free of your bonds and taste the freedom of flight—jump off a cliff and enjoy the thrill of defying death.] And so forth.

Strictly speaking, the system would never assign Zane a task he could not accomplish. Jumping off a cliff sounded dangerous, but below was the Abyss of the Demon Realm. Aside from falling into subspace and joining countless demonfolk in an eternal game of picking up soap, there was little actual danger.

Expressing his love was simple, too, though the only problem was that the object of his affection was his own sister—and a half-dragon at that... Well, if he ignored the consequences, it was still possible.

If he ignored the consequences.

“Master, do you have any thoughts?”

A gentle, melodious voice drew Zane back to reality. He turned his head and gazed at his lieutenant, then, without a word, adjusted his glasses.

“It seems we do, in fact, need someone skilled in architecture,” Zane said, pausing for a moment. “If there’s no other way, I’ll make a trip to Brandon Stonehold.”

His lieutenant’s face remained unchanged at Zane’s words; she simply nodded her head.

“Gray dwarves are indeed the finest architects of the underworld. I have heard they are often hired by dark elves and other underground races to build cities. But…” As she spoke, her crimson eyes watched Zane with a quiet, unwavering focus. “Gray dwarves are also famed for their cunning and deceit. Although, as a demonfolk, they likely won’t dare move against you, one must always be cautious.”

“I understand.”

As Zane responded, he allowed his gaze to settle on the girl. In a blink, a character interface appeared beside her.

[Enoya Alkunes (Silver Rank)]
[Race: Undead]
[Combat Ability: ★☆ (Undead know neither fatigue nor pain. She will fight for you, forever.)]
[Management: ★★☆ (She possesses outstanding knowledge and administrative talent, and will be your most trustworthy right hand.)]
[Influence: ★★ (Few dare to openly oppose her counsel, though whether due to her beauty or her race is unclear.)]
[Loyalty: ★★★★★ (Your souls are entwined; nothing in this world can separate you.)]
[Traits]
[Necromancy—Fragile souls are nothing before her. (Skill Power +3)]
[Intelligence Gathering—No whisper escapes her notice. (Intelligence Gathering Speed +5)]
[Special Abilities]
[Soul Reading: The power to manipulate and read others’ souls for information.]
[Lightning Manipulation: Proficiency with lightning spells (Level 1+1).]

Zane withdrew his gaze. He reached out, gently stroking the girl’s hair. Beneath its silky softness was an icy chill—the aura of death. She was neither alive nor truly sentient. Yet, to Zane, this girl was his only subordinate, his family, and his comrade in arms.

Feeling his touch, Enoya narrowed her eyes contentedly like a cat. But soon her ears twitched, and her languid demeanor vanished, replaced by her usual calm.

“Master, I believe we have visitors.”

Just as on the surface, the deep and shadowed underworld was home to many races: bear goblins, gray dwarves, mind flayers, and dark elves, among others. But compared to the surface, these depths were even deadlier. Danger lurked at every crossroads, and even demonfolk had to tread with care—for nothing was more humiliating than being undone by a hidden threat.

Although Zane’s dungeon was, by demonfolk standards, situated in a remote and desolate region, peril was ever-present. Surrounding his domain were fire lizard nests, bear goblin burrows, and terrorclaw colonies—monsters of fearsome might. Not to mention the gray dwarf and bear goblin cities nearby. Should his dungeon be discovered, it could bring about utter destruction.

Fortunately, the area was distant from the dark elf cities. In the Demon Realm, dark elves were considered the most reliable slaves and subordinates of the demonfolk, but for a demonfolk of Zane’s modest power, they were also the most dangerous of hunters.

The underworld was perilous indeed.

Now, Bix understood the meaning of those words more than ever.

She wore a look of utter despair as she trudged along, surrounded by heavily armed mercenaries. As a gnome, she was well aware of the dangers below ground. But her accursed curiosity had led her into trouble once again. If not for the lure of a so-called “legendary crystal,” she would never have left the city alone and ventured into Crystal Ravine—only to be caught by this band of mercenaries.

Underground mercenaries were never to be trusted. Mostly half-orcs and bear goblins, they were crude, greedy, and powerful. A gnome had no means of resistance before them. Bix already knew her fate: she would be sold as a slave. She had no idea whose hands she would fall into, but she was certain life would not be kind.

Stone above… I’d almost rather die here.

As the mercenaries cheerfully discussed how much they might fetch for a gnome, disaster struck.

A thunderous explosion shook the ground. Everyone turned in alarm to see that the way behind them had been sealed with heavy stones, cutting off any retreat.

“What’s going on? What happened?” The abrupt accident left everyone in shock. They spun around in panic. At that very moment, with a whoosh, the pitch-black tunnel was suddenly bathed in brilliant light. Flaming torches illuminated the once-gloomy passage, revealing its true form.

Sinister patterns and carvings emerged from the stone walls. The smooth corridor stretched in all directions, and from every corner, vicious stone effigies glared at the intruders, as if at any moment they might spring to life and tear the trespassers to pieces.

“Dungeon—!!”

A blood-curdling scream burst from the leading half-orc mercenary, plunging the group into chaos.

No creature of the underworld was ignorant of dungeons. They were the lairs of evil overlords, cities of demon kings, filled with lethal traps, terrifying monsters, and powerful demonfolk. Any sane denizen of the deep would avoid them at all costs.

“Run!”

With their escape cut off, the half-orcs and bear goblins panicked. Several half-orcs, waving their arms wildly, fled for the nearest corridor.

A loud crack. As they ran in, dozens of razor-sharp steel spikes shot up from the floor, impaling the hulking half-orcs in the blink of an eye, leaving their corpses torn and bloody.

The remaining mercenaries went mad with fear, avoiding that corridor as if it were the plague. A few, thinking themselves clever, turned back, trying desperately to clear the stone-blocked exit.

But they had chosen poorly.

With a sickening hiss, a cloud of dark green poison erupted from nowhere, enveloping the bear goblins in a deadly, choking fog. They clasped at their throats, gasping and stumbling, and soon collapsed, lifeless, to the ground.

Of the original dozen mercenaries, fewer than five now remained. The sudden carnage left the lead half-orc warrior terrified. With two waves of cannon fodder already lost, he dared not make another rash move. Instead, he gripped his battle-axe and, with his remaining companions, stood back to back, eyes alert for any threat.

As for Bix, they’d already forgotten about her entirely.

Step. Step.

Footsteps echoed.

Hearing them, the half-orc mercenaries gripped their weapons tightly, eyes wide, staring toward the sound. Soon, under their watchful gaze, a slender figure dressed in a jet-black robe slowly emerged from the shadows.