Chapter 7: Gacha Summon

Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Gacha Summon

Closing the Upgrade menu, Ragnar selected another option.

Shop.

The moment he opened it, countless items appeared before him.

Rows upon rows of structures, monsters, traps, equipment, and various dungeon facilities filled the floating interface.

"...Whoa."

Even as someone who had spent years playing Dungeon Maker, Ragnar couldn’t help but be amazed.

"So many choices..."

He selected the Monsters category.

Immediately, several options appeared before him.

The first displayed a rocky cave hidden deep within a forest.

Inside the cave rested five wolves whose fur shimmered with faint blue light. Wisps of mana floated around their bodies while their eyes radiated an unnatural glow.

[Magic Wolf Den

Contains 5 Magic Wolves

Price: 20 Soul Points]

"Hm..."

Ragnar continued browsing, there were giant spiders, poisonous snakes, orcs, harpies, or iving trees.

Even creatures he had never encountered during his years of playing the game.

Each monster came with a different price depending on its strength and rarity.

Then, one particular category caught his attention.

Boss Monsters.

His curiosity immediately got the better of him.

He opened it.

The atmosphere surrounding the interface seemed to change instantly.

Instead of ordinary monsters, enormous creatures filled the screen.

Towering ogres wielding giant clubs.

Armored undead knights mounted upon skeletal horses.

Massive trolls covered in thick stone-like skin.

Winged demons engulfed in black flames.

Each one looked powerful enough to wipe out an army of beginner adventurers.

"...Damn."

Ragnar couldn’t help but whistle.

These were genuine boss monsters.

Each possessed tremendous strength far beyond ordinary dungeon creatures.

Unfortunately, the prices were just as frightening.

The cheapest boss monster available...

Was a Level 20 Ogre Chieftain.

Price...

50 Soul Points.

"...Seriously?"

Ragnar’s lips twitched.

"I don’t even have enough to upgrade my dungeon."

"And you’re already tempting me with boss monsters."

With a sigh, he closed the Boss category.

His gaze wandered across the remaining menus until it stopped on one he had always loved the most while playing the game.

Gacha Summon.

A grin slowly spread across his face.

"This..."

"This is what I’ve been looking for."

Unlike the ordinary monsters sold in the shop, summoned subordinates were completely different.

Every summon possessed its own unique identity.

Its own history.

Its own personality.

They weren’t mindless monsters created by the dungeon.

They were individuals.

You never knew who would answer your summon.

Sometimes you would obtain an ordinary monster.

Other times, you might recruit a legendary existence capable of changing the fate of an entire dungeon.

With anticipation filling his heart, Ragnar opened the summoning page.

The familiar golden summoning circle slowly rotated before him.

Below it was a single line of text.

[One Summon

Cost: 20 Soul Points]

The smile on Ragnar’s face instantly froze.

"..."

He stared at the screen for several seconds before letting out a long sigh.

"...You’ve got to be kidding me."

He leaned back against his throne and rubbed his temples.

"I was getting excited for nothing."

He looked at the number displayed beneath the summoning circle once more before shaking his head helplessly.

Complaining wasn’t going to earn him more Soul Points.

He had survived his first day.

He had obtained his first monsters.

His dungeon had finally begun to show signs of life.

That was already far better than waking up inside an abandoned dungeon with nothing but an empty throne room.

Ragnar stretched his arms before opening the Shop once again.

"If I can’t afford the expensive stuff..."

"...then let’s see what I can buy with my three Soul Points."

The system immediately responded.

Countless items once again filled the screen before him.

This time, however, Ragnar activated the price filter, causing every item beyond his budget to disappear.

In an instant, the endless list shrank dramatically.

"Huh?"

"So there are actually quite a few."

He began reading through them one by one.

Most of the available options were common monsters.

Nothing extraordinary.

The first section displayed several ordinary monsters.

A venomous snake.

Large rats.

Giant bats.

Forest wolves.

Each monster cost only one Soul Point.

Unlike the Magic Wolf Den, these weren’t monster camps capable of producing creatures continuously.

Instead, each purchase only summoned a single ordinary monster.

"They’re basically disposable units."

Ragnar nodded thoughtfully.

"They’re cheap, but buying them one by one doesn’t seem very efficient."

He continued scrolling.

Basic traps.

Wooden spike traps.

Simple alarm bells.

Primitive pitfalls.

Small torch stands.

Everything was inexpensive, but none of them felt particularly impactful with his limited resources.

Then, one option suddenly caught his attention.

His eyes immediately widened.

[Goblin Camp Expansion

Increase the population of an existing Goblin Camp.

Effect:

+2 Goblins

Cost: 1 Soul Point]

"...Wait."

Ragnar blinked twice before reading the description again.

"So for the same price as buying one normal monster..."

"I can recruit two additional goblins?"

Almost every basic monster was stronger than a beginner goblin.

However, Ragnar remembered the battle that had taken place only moments ago.

His goblins hadn’t won because they were powerful.

They had won because they fought together. Their teamwork had been nearly flawless.

"They know formations."

"They protect one another."

"They understand tactics."

He folded his arms while thinking carefully.

"If I buy three ordinary monsters..."

"I’ll have three creatures that probably won’t cooperate."

"But if I spend those same three Soul Points on my Goblin Camp..."

His eyes gradually brightened.

"I’ll gain six additional goblins."

Five goblins would become... Eleven.

More importantly, those eleven goblins would already belong to the same camp.

They would naturally coordinate with one another.

Numbers had always been the greatest strength of goblins.

Individually weak. Collectively dangerous.

Ragnar couldn’t help but smile.

"I almost overlooked this."

He had spent years playing Dungeon Maker.

Back then, players often ignored beginner goblins because stronger monsters became available immediately.

But now, this wasn’t simply a game.

Every monster had value.

Every subordinate could continue growing.

Every decision mattered.

"In that case..."

"I’ve already made my choice."

Without the slightest hesitation, Ragnar pressed the purchase button.

Ding!

[Goblin Camp Expansion Successful.

Soul Points Consumed: 1

Remaining Soul Points: 2]

The notification disappeared almost immediately.

Without waiting, Ragnar purchased it again.

Ding!

[Goblin Camp Expansion Successful.

Remaining Soul Points: 1]

"And one more."

He tapped the button for the third time.

Ding!

[Goblin Camp Expansion Successful.

Remaining Soul Points: 0]

Ragnar exhaled slowly as the final notification vanished.

Every Soul Point he had painstakingly earned was gone.