Dungeon Master (Karma System)

Max woke the next morning. Which was something he was very thankful for. As he got out of bed, he realized that he only had the clothes he had died in.

After spending a few DP, he had a comfy pair of slippers, sweatpants, and a t-shirt that said #1 dungeon master.

A quick shower, then he put on his new underwear and clothes.

”Menu.”

[You have full user permission and are able to access everything.]

Max nodded happily. ”Let’s start with the big purchases. DC (Nickname for Dungeon Core) I have decided I want to purchase the dimensional plane option.”

Currently, Max’s dungeon is located at the base of the Crag Mountain. A typical dungeon would extend underground. His placement was pretty good. He could build in the mountains and underground. If he stumbled into a cave he would be able to clean it out and claim it as part of the dungeon instead of removing dirt and stone to expand.

But Max thought it would be better to have his dungeon in a sub-plane. This way he could expand endlessly, and he also wouldn’t have to worry about natural disasters effecting his dungeon. The downside would be that he would have to buy every bit of space needed instead of stumbling onto a cave or such. It also removed the chance of him finding monsters underground and enslaving them to the dungeon core.

Now he could only do that if they stumbled through the front door. But he felt the Pros outweigh the Cons.

[200 million DP deducted.]

Max didn’t notice anything different. But he was now in a dimensional plane that he controlled. He had a moment of buyer’s remorse but pushed it aside.

”Okay time for the next big purchase. I would like to buy the fully upgrade revival system.”

[50 million DP deducted.]

[Dungeon upkeep cost has increased. 5DP per level will be deducted when an adventurer dies.]

Max nodded. He was aware of the increase in upkeep. While the Dungeon Core thought it was a waste, Max didn’t think so. When an adventured died. He would earn 4DP per level. Their own deaths would pay for 80% of their resurrection.

And if an adventurer spent 4 hours in the dungeon, he would pay off the rest. He already had grand plans to make them stay. Yes, there was a risk that they would just leave but Max only needed to give them reasons to stay.

After making several plans last night, he already had a general idea on how he wanted his dungeon set up so he decided to buy a few things that he knew he wouldn’t be able to make full use of yet.

”For the next big purchase. I want 5 Instance adaptations.”

[80 million DP deducted.]

Beside Max appeared 5 talismans. Once used, they would cover the area he deemed and change it from a traditional dungeon into an instance.

In a traditional dungeon, however many people entered were however many people there were.

In an instance. A max number of adventures were set. If more came, a copy of the area would be produced, and the next group would enter. The monsters and combatants inside would be the same. It was a way to limit the amount of people and accommodate more at once. It also stopped human wave tactics from decimating the dungeon.

With those purchases out of the way Max got to work on the first floor of his dungeon.

It cost him 50,000DP to section out an area 4 kilometers long and half a kilometer wide. He then spent another 50,000DP on monsters and scenery. A long stone room was no good. He bought dirt, grass, trees and many other things.

It took all day to set up the first layer.

Thankfully he was a rich man. DC explained that most new Dungeon Masters did a lot by hand to save on cost. They usually only started with 1,000DP and had to open quickly to start earning more. As they earned more, they expanded their floor. They slowly built it up with harder enemies. As more adventures came through, they would eventually be able to afford a boss and then they would let the adventures struggle while they started building the second floor.

Max was glad he didn’t have to deal with that.

It was evening and Max strolled through the floor with a proud expression. He was sure that he would have to make changes to get the optimal performance out of his first level. There was no way he would get it right on the first try.

Other Dungeon Master would scoff at such an idea and deem it a waste of money. DC was slowly coming to realize that his Master wasn’t going to be like any of the Masters recorded in its data banks.

The next morning, Max purchased a similar outfit to the one he was wearing yesterday. It was important to be comfortable after all.

His first purchase of the day was 150,000DP for a new floor that was 5 by 5 kilometers. One of the advantages of having his dungeon in a sub-plane was that he was given discounts when he bought larger pieces of land and terrain in one go.

In the very center he began to build a village. He made the buildings out of wood and stone. He didn’t place too many. He wanted to have room to expand properly. It only took him a couple of hours to set up.

After completing what he had wanted to build. Max walked away from the village and to a raised a hill. Since he was going to spend pretty much the rest of his life in a dungeon, he might as well have a nice home.

He built a sturdy and modern manor. (Modern for him) It had three floors and had two wings that surrounded a grassy area which he planned to turn into a garden. He paid extra attention to the kitchen, his bedroom and study. Those he furnished today. He had been spending a lot recently, but he continued to spare no expense. And compared to what he had bought yesterday and this morning. This was almost nothing. The most expensive bed was ultimately still just a bed. It wasn’t expensive. (Other dungeon master’s would curse if they saw his wasteful spending)

After completing his bedroom. It was time to get some sleep. Laying in bed, he tinkered with the settings of this floor. He declared the whole level a sanctuary. Others were unable to attack on this floor. Generally, a large dungeon would offer a small sanctuary after 10 floors or so. This way adventures could rest and recover while the dungeon passively gained DP.

Having one on the second floor, well... DC thought it was a huge waste. Max was glad to have a companion besides the creatures he hired. But it was becoming clearer that DC was just a collection of data. He would listen and then respond based on past experiences. DC didn’t have the ability to imagine or guess. It could only extrapolate data and make a theory.

Max woke for his 4th day in the dungeon.

[Master, I recommend that you open the dungeon. This way you will be able to start earning money.]

”I guess I should.” Max said while getting out of bed and moving towards his dresser. ”I will see to it after a few things.”

Pulling out a new pair of sweatpants, he got dressed and put on his slippers.

Opening the double doors, he stepped out onto a balcony that overlooked his lush garden. For the fun of it, Max had even built a small hedge maze.

A moment after he sat at a small table, an automaton rolled in pushing a cart. It picked up a tray and gently placed it on the table.

Max turned over the upside-down mug on the tray.

”Coffee please.”

The metalwork golem type creature beeped and then picked up a thermos and poured the hot black liquid into his mug.

The automaton motioned towards a glass cup on the cart.

”Orange juice please.”

The machine filled the cup and placed it next to the tray before removing the lid that covered the plate.

Steam wafted. Once it cleared Max saw bacon, eggs and potatoes.

He began to nibble on his food while he sipped his coffee and gazed at the butterflies fluttering through his garden. He smiled contently. While not the life he had imagined, he had wealth and was about to open his business. Things were good.

After finishing his meal, the automaton returned to clean up.

Max bought space for the next few levels he envisioned and used a few of the Instance talismans to get things set up.

”DC open our doors for business.”

Where the Forest of Argor met the Mountains of Crag. A large set of ornate double doors appeared. They were embedded into a sheer face of the mountain.

Max had of course spent money to make them as nice as possible. The heavy steel doors were spelled into the color of solid gold. Each door stood 10 meters tall and 2 meters wide.

A gold plaque rested beside the doors.

{Crag Dungeon}

{For entry please knock}

Each door was adorned with a large doorknocker in the shape of a hammer.

Max bustled around the village. The creatures who weren’t working had made this place home and were partaking in the services.

When purchasing creatures, like usual, and contrary to DC’s suggestion, Max went all out.

He had purchased monster souls. This made them immortal inside the dungeon. It was necessary for the instances so the monsters could be in 2 places at once. His other options were to breed his own monsters or by monster generators.

The generators would keep the monsters at a specific number and every day they would generate enough to keep them at the required number.

Breeding was a whole different game. But just like he didn’t want to kill adventures, he wasn’t thrilled about raising monsters to be killed. Buying their souls was the best. And it was also better in the long run.

[Master, you still have yet to use your free random summon.]

Max was made aware of the free summons before he purchased his first monster. But at that time, he already had a clear idea for the first floor in mind. He didn’t want to get distracted by a creature that probably wouldn’t fit the theme of his first floor.

But since he was working on the village, it didn’t matter as much.

”Sure, let’s do it.”

[Beginning random summon]

A series of trigrams appeared on the dirt road in front of Max. They began to glow and swirl as a ball of light formed above them.

The ball grew and stretched while beginning to form a silhouette. It then flashed as the random creature was brought into existence.

Max had to calm himself.

A raven haired, fair skinned, beauty stood before him. He immediately noticed the shapely curves that were covered by her dress. She appeared to be in her early 20s, around the same age as him. And she had such kind eyes.

He felt in awe when she turned to him and gave him the most dazzling smile he had ever seen before. The dimples on her cheeks framed her flawless pink lips.

”Hubby!” She shouted before jumping forward and embracing him in a tight hug.