Symbiotic: Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Sara stood before the Dungeon Control Crystal, its surface alive with shifting light that pulsed in rhythm with her thoughts. She reached out, fingertips brushing the cool surface, and the System’s interface unfolded in her mind. Relief washed over her as she realized the Dungeon was not the same brutal gauntlet she had faced when claiming it. The Boss remained a Crystal Devourer, but only a Tier 2 variant, not the Tier 3 Raid monstrosity she had fought. And at the end of the run, the Challenger party would not find the Dungeon Crystal itself, but a reward chest stocked with loot.

Her lips curved into a smile. This was something she could shape, something she could make both fun and profitable. The Dungeon fed off the ambient energy of the Crystal Cavern Mines, and, since the Mines were linked to Haven Valley, it also drew from the Valley’s energy. Together, the territories provided a reservoir of power she could turn into monsters, harvestable crystal nodes, and rewards.

She focused on the first floor. The interface revealed its current state:, which Sara jokingly called “Oops, all Crystal Crawlers.” An entire floor of swarm attacks on the Mind would be miserable for most parties. She scrolled through the Tier 1 monster lists, considering her options. With a decisive thought, she reduced the Crystal Crawlers to twenty five percent of spawns. She added Eyebats at twenty five percent, flying creatures with claw attacks and a weak Spirit targeting glare. And for the remaining half, she chose Kobolds. The thought of clever, trap making ambush cowards made her grin. She had loved fighting kobolds in RPGs with friends, and now she could bring that same flavor into her Dungeon.

Next, she turned to resources. The first floor offered too little. Nothing, in fact. Sara recalled wading through what felt like a hundred Swarms with nothing at all to gain from it A Slog. She increased the harvest to ten Small Crystal Nodes, enough that a five person party could make back their entry fee and still walk away with 500 SC in profit if they sold the crystals to her Market Square. The realization made her laugh aloud. She was essentially paying Challengers to mine for her.

Finally, she adjusted the loot tables. Crawler carapaces would sell for 10 SC per swarm. Eyebat eyes and wings, useful for alchemy, would fetch 2 SC each. And one in five kobolds would drop a basic weapon worth 5 SC. She calculated quickly, about two hundred SC in random loot for parties that collected and sold everything they could find on the first floor. Enough to make the run feel rewarding without breaking the economy.

The Dungeon Control Crystal pulsed warmly in her hands, confirming her changes. Sara smiled, Sporesight glowing faintly as she looked at the crystal. “That looks much better. Floor one. Fun for them, profit for me. Everyone wins.”

The Dungeon pulsed once more, as if acknowledging its new shape. Sara felt the Valley’s ambient energy flowing into it, feeding monsters, nodes, and loot. Floor by floor the Crystal Cavern Dungeon was becoming more than just a test. It was now a business, with the lure of experience and treasure hopefully too high to allow Challengers to think about how the cycle was built to benefit Sara at every turn.

“Ok. Let’s see about Floor 2.”

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Sara leaned over the Dungeon Control Crystal, its surface shimmering as the interface shifted to reveal the second floor. The cavernous map unfolded in her mind’s eye, jagged tunnels and wide chambers waiting to be filled. She already saw the hulking shapes of Tier 2 Greatworms slithering through the stone. Massive brutes of muscle and scale, their burrowing strength perfect for physical challenges. But she frowned.

“Too one dimensional,” she murmured. “If it’s only worms, parties will just stack armor and brute force their way through. I need balance. Something that tests their minds and souls as well.”

She scrolled through the System’s catalog of High Tier 1 monsters, considering her options.

- Wraithlings - Shadow born spirits that lash out with chilling whispers, draining courage and gnawing at the Soul. Their attacks left challengers shaken, their resolve tested.

- Mindspinners - Arachnid creatures with crystalline eyes that projected illusions, forcing intruders to question what was real. Their webs weren’t silk, but psychic threads that tangled thoughts.

- Echo Banshees - Lesser banshee forms that screamed not to kill, but to fracture concentration. Their keening wails struck at the Mind, disrupting spellcasting and coordination.

- Dream Eaters - Small, pale beasts that fed on stray thoughts. They slipped into the edges of consciousness, forcing challengers to fight not only their bodies but their own wandering minds.

- Soul Gnats - Swarming insects that didn’t bite flesh, but instead drained fragments of Soul energy with each contact. Individually weak, but terrifying in numbers.

Sara tapped her chin, Sporesight glowing faintly as she imagined the encounters. “Greatworms for brute force. Wraithlings to sap Soul. Mindspinners to twist Minds. That combination will force parties to stay sharp, apply magic when necessary, not just swing weapons.”

Tas shimmered beside her, voice calm. “A balanced floor, Viscount. Physical, Soul, and Mind challenges woven together. It will test not only their strength, but their teamwork & discipline.”

Sara smiled, locking in the changes. “Exactly. If they want to reach the Boss Floor, they’ll have to prove they can handle more than muscle.”

The Dungeon pulsed in acknowledgment, the ambient energy shifting as new monsters began to take shape in its larder. Sara felt the Valley’s power feeding into the caverns, knitting together worms, wraiths, and mind twisting illusions.

Floor Two was now a winding tunnel of challenges for body, mind, and soul. “And rewards… Don’t forget the rewards!”

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Sara Set the harvestable Nodes to 10 Small and 5 Medium. “That’s 1500 SC in treasure right away. Wraithling capes are good for crafting, even for a couple Alchemy recipes. 25SC each. Mindspinner webbing as well. 20SC each. And Greatworm Plating is great for armor. 100SC if they lug it back to the market. That’s another 2500SC of loot. And lets add a chest in the final largest Greatworm nest. No egg. But a minor Magic Item of 1000 Energy value. Make it a Greatworm Hide Bracelet, and lets set it to be random stats, but built to be usable by a party member. None of those ‘But no one can use it’ whomp-whomp rewards. That looks to be enough to give up to +5 varied stats, or +10% of skill bonuses. Seems like a win. I mean, I want one!”

“Wait. I do want one. Can I run my own Dungeon, Tas?”

Tas appeared and nodded. “Yes, Viscount, you can run your dungeon. However, be warned that the threat level of the Dungeon is set to the Challenger party entering it, so it will be no easy breezy walkthrough. Especially because of your next warning, you will have no access to your Dungeon Controls if you are running the dungeon. No get out of jail free cards!”

Sara grinned. “Ok. Let’s see if we need to do anything about the Boss Level. Floor 3. Then I am going to jump in and have some fun!”

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Sara grinned, her fingers brushing the surface of the Dungeon Control Crystal as the map of the deepest chambers unfolded in her mind. Floor Three shimmered into view, its tunnels and crystalline caverns alive with potential. She leaned closer and studied the current configuration.

Immediately she say the issue. It was, simply, too simple. Endless Crystal Crawler swarms filled the approach, leading only to the looming form of the Crystal Devourer. The Boss was still formidable, even as a Tier 2 variant, but the path to it felt monotonous and unrewarding. Sara frowned, remembering her migraines. “That’s not an epic Dungeon Finale. That’s just a grind.”

Tas hovered nearby, her glow steady. “The Boss is tied to the Dungeon and must remain, but the floor may be shaped. You may add variety, hazards, or rewards.”

Sara tapped her chin, imagining the Challenger parties who would one day storm these halls. “Alright. Crystal Crawlers are fine, but not all crawlers. The boss pumps out plenty. Let’s cut them down to less than half. 30%, maybe. Enough to keep the flavor, but not so many that it feels like punishment.”

"What else can we add, but keep the creepy crawly bug vibe alive?"

Several Tier 2 insect‑based options caught her attention:

- Phantom Cicadas - ghostly insects that thrummed with a droning song. Their resonance didn’t harm the body, but it frayed the Soul, draining courage and leaving challengers hollow.

- Shade Beetles - heavy‑shelled creatures that exuded a miasma of despair. Their mandibles were secondary; their true danger was the aura that leeched vitality from the Soul.

- Mindpiercer Wasps - sleek, needle‑bodied insects that struck not with venom, but with psychic stingers. Each jab sent a shock into the spirit, rattling concentration and resolve.

- Gem Mantises - crystalline predators with bladed forelimbs and startling bursts of speed. Their scythe‑like strikes shred armor, while the refracted shimmer of their bodies unsettles challengers, making them hard to pin down and hit.

- Dreamlocusts - swarming locusts that clouded the air with shimmering dust. Those caught in the haze saw visions of failure, their Soul energy drained as they fought illusions.

- Hollow Ants - crystalline ants that burrowed into the ground, emerging in clusters. Their bite carried no pain, but each contact siphoned fragments of Soul energy, leaving challengers weakened.

She scrolled through the options, eyes lighting up. “And let’s add 30% Gem Mantises and 30% Shade Beetles too. And for a little surprise... 10% Hollow Ants. Gem Mantises were fearsome deadly foes with startling bursts of speed and blade strikes that could easily cut through armor if not deflected or dodged. And Shade Beetles were difficult to spot, but large and slow once found. And their strikes were, quite frankly. Underpowered. Causing many to underestimate them until it was too late and they were drained of their Soul energy by the Soul Siphon Aura they possessed. And a few Hollow Ants appearing out from underneath an unsuspecting party... 'Well... It seemed like a good idea at the time!'

The interface pulsed, showing her the possibilities. Sara smiled. “Yes. That’s better. A gauntlet of variety, not monotony, with our proud big boi boss bug at the end.”

She added unstable crystal growths throughout the floor, nodes that would explode if struck carelessly. Positioning would matter now, not just raw strength. Chuckling, she seeded five medium crystal nodes among the unstable ones, tempting rewards for daring parties willing to harvest under pressure.

Finally, she turned to loot. The Crystal Devourer deserved something memorable. She set its drop to include a guaranteed Crystal Core Fragment, rare and valuable, worth 1000 SC or usable in crafting higher tier gear. The Gem Mantises would drop two 100 SC gem blades, useful for weaponcrafting. The Shade Beetles carapaces worth 200 SC were valued for resistance armor as well as many other crafting options. All told, it could be quite a haul for those that won through it all. (And quite the bonus for Haven Village to snap it up at half cost for use or resale.)

The Dungeon pulsed warmly in her hands, confirming the changes. Sara exhaled, satisfied. “Now that’s a Boss floor. Crawlers to keep the theme, Mantises to raise the stakes, Shade Beetles to keep them guessing, hazards to force caution, Hollow Ants to change the game at the right moment, all with the Dungeon Boss looming in the cavern. And 7500+ SC worth of rewards worth the risk.”

Sara grinned wider, her hand tightening on the crystal. “Good. That’s exactly what I want. A Dungeon that entertains, challenges, and Rewards. With this, both the Challengers, and Haven Valley will thrive.”

The Crystal Cavern Dungeon shimmered in her vision, reshaped by her will. Her little 3 floor Dungeon was now a worthy tower of trials with which Challengers could test themselves and grow stronger.

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