Chapter 23: Subordinate Gaha

Chapter 23: Chapter 23: Subordinate Gaha

"That’s exactly what we should do."

He looked once more toward the forest.

Somewhere beyond those trees was the stone hall.

And somewhere inside that mysterious dungeon was the place where six hunters had lost their lives.

Kyle clenched his fist.

"We’ll report everything."

"We’ll tell the mayor exactly what we found."

----

Back inside the dungeon, Ragnar was sitting comfortably upon his throne, completely unaware of the gloomy atmosphere that had settled over the distant village.

The live display in front of him had already disappeared after Kyle escaped from the dungeon, leaving only the familiar system interface floating before his eyes.

Ragnar leaned back against his throne and casually opened his status panel. He had watched the entire battle from beginning to end, and although the result had been exactly what he wanted, something else had caught his attention.

A familiar notification was waiting for him.

[Enemies Defeated: 6]

[Reward: 8 Soul Points]

Ragnar’s eyebrows immediately rose.

"Eight?"

Ragnar blinked once.

Then twice.

"Wait a second."

He immediately opened the detailed reward information.

The system interface expanded in front of him, and several lines of text appeared beneath the original notification.

[Human Hunter: Soul Value 1]

[Human Hunter: Soul Value 1]

[Human Hunter: Soul Value 1]

[Human Hunter: Soul Value 1]

[Human Hunter: Soul Value 2]

[Human Hunter: Soul Value 2]

Ragnar stared at the list.

"So that’s how it works..."

He slowly leaned back against his throne, rubbing his chin as he thought about it.

There had been six humans who died inside his dungeon.

The first four had each provided one Soul Point.

The final two, however, had each provided two.

Ragnar’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"Is it because those last two were stronger than the others?"

He replayed the battle in his mind.

The seven hunters had entered the dungeon together, all equipped with better weapons and armor than Kyle had possessed during his first visit. At the beginning, Ragnar had assumed that the difference in equipment would make the battle somewhat troublesome for his monsters, but things had turned out very differently.

The final two had deliberately stayed behind so Kyle could escape.

Ragnar’s gaze lingered on the two entries that had awarded him two Soul Points each.

"Those two were definitely more capable."

He remembered how they had fought after the others had fallen.

Even while surrounded by monsters, they had continued fighting, holding their ground long enough for Kyle to escape.

One had fought against the spiders.

The other had directly confronted the remaining wolf.

Just as he was about to close the notification, another window suddenly appeared.

[Ding!]

[Experience requirements have been fulfilled.]

[Level Up.]

[Congratulations! You have reached Level 10.]

[All basic attributes have been increased.]

[Dungeon Master privileges have been partially unlocked.]

Ragnar froze.

"...What?"

He stared at the notification, then his eyes widened.

"I level up that much?"

He immediately opened his status panel.

[Name: Ragnar Lindgren]

[Race: Demon]

[Level: 10]

[Class: Dungeon Master]

[Soul Points: 8]

Ragnar stared at the number for several seconds.

He had completely forgotten about his level while watching the battle.

The dungeon system had apparently awarded him enough experience from the humans that had died under his command to push him from Level 5 all the way to Level 10.

Ragnar slowly clenched his fist.

"So I gained five levels from that battle..."

He could feel something changing inside his body.

It wasn’t as dramatic as when he had purchased Basic Physical Enhancement, but there was an unmistakable difference.

His muscles felt slightly denser, and his senses seemed sharper.

Even his breathing felt smoother, as though his body had become more efficient without him consciously doing anything.

Ragnar stood from his throne and stretched.

Crack.

Several joints popped.

He rolled his shoulders and looked down at his hands.

"Level 10..."

A grin slowly spread across his face.

"That’s a pretty big jump."

He had been Level 1 when everything had started.

At that time, even a single wolf had been enough to make him extremely cautious.

Now, he had reached Level 10, possessed several skills, commanded a growing group of monsters, and had a dungeon that was finally beginning to resemble an actual monster’s lair.

Ragnar couldn’t help but feel that he was finally getting somewhere.

However, before he could examine his new level further.

[Ding!]

Another system notification suddenly appeared.

Ragnar’s eyebrows lifted.

"Again?"

The notification was different this time.

A golden-colored window appeared directly in front of him.

[Special Achievement Reward]

[The Dungeon Master has reached Level 10.]

[Reward: Subordinate Gacha x1]

[This free pull does not consume Soul Points.]

Ragnar’s eyes widened.

"...A free pull?"

For a moment, he simply stared.

Then his expression changed completely.

"Oh, wow."

He immediately sat back down on his throne.

"You mean I can use the Subordinate Gacha without spending anything?"

The system responded with another line.

[Would you like to perform the free Subordinate Gacha pull?]

Ragnar didn’t even hesitate.

"Yes."

[Ding!]

[Subordinate Gacha activated.]

The entire throne room suddenly changed.

A massive magical circle appeared in front of Ragnar, hovering several meters above the ground. Intricate patterns of light began rotating inside the circle, with dozens of unfamiliar symbols moving along its outer edge.

Ragnar leaned forward.

"What the hell?"

He had seen the ordinary Gacha interface before, but this was completely different.

The Subordinate Gacha didn’t simply display a list of monsters.

It felt like something much more important. The magical circle began spinning faster.

A powerful pressure spread throughout the throne room.

Ragnar’s eyes widened.

"Don’t tell me my first pull is actually good..."

The symbols accelerated.

A bright light suddenly erupted from the center.

Boom!

The entire throne room trembled.

Ragnar instinctively raised an arm to shield his eyes.

The light grew brighter and brighter until it completely swallowed the magical circle.

Then a figure slowly emerged from within it.

At first, Ragnar could only see the outline of a woman.

She was tall and slender, with an elegant yet intimidating presence. Long, flowing crimson hair cascaded down her back and reached almost to her waist, with several loose strands framing her face. Her hair seemed to catch the surrounding light, giving it a deep red sheen that made her appearance even more striking.