Chapter 445: Second Pathway
The sound of splitting stone echoed through the abyss as Kaiden raised his hand. The cavern around him groaned and reshaped itself under his will; jagged walls smoothed, stray boulders crumbled to dust, and the raw, bleeding rock was forced into order.
This would be the path his girls would walk. Their way in and out of the dungeon. It needed to be safe with breathable air, no chance of the ceiling caving in or magma rivers cutting them off mid-step. Magma rivers were cool, yes. But they weren’t exactly girlfriend-friendly.
Kaiden sighed inwardly as he worked, molding the abyssal stone into a proper passage. He wanted to give them more. The most perfect, comfortable life imaginable. If he could, he’d have given them a path lined with soft lights, flowing water, and blooming mana-lilies. Maybe even koi ponds.
But right now? That was a luxury he couldn’t afford. His Dungeon Master Points were painfully limited, and every bit needed to go toward efficiency, not decoration.
So he carved the rock with ruthless practicality, every angle chosen for tactical advantage, every curve designed to funnel intruders into a kill zone. No wasted mana. No beauty for beauty’s sake. His girls would have to endure a long, claustrophobic, and dark route for now, one that served strategy, not comfort.
It was strange, the way his emotions whiplashed. Just moments ago, he’d been cackling like an evil villain, imagining his enemies shrieking as Melty and her friends devoured them alive while their skin melted off their bones thanks to the magma rivers. He’d relished the thought of molten agony and terrified screams echoing through these depths. But now, shaping this grim tunnel, he just felt... guilty.
He was still a Dungeon Master, but beneath that, there was the man who loved his women. And that man couldn’t help but wince, knowing they’d have to walk through this oppressive darkness every time they returned home.
This only went to highlight what Nyx had once said. He was the greatest ally to have, but also the worst enemy to face. He could easily go from utmost compassion and delicate care to committing horrible cruelties on his enemies.
When Kaiden became the Great Demon of Wrath, he was not controlled by some foreign entity to commit the extremely brutal execution of Varek. That was him, in the purest form possible, acting on his deepest desires. He wanted to hear Varek scream in utter agony, so he ensured that was exactly what happened.
But at the same time, there was Naira, the poor native teen who’d stoked his defensive instincts and compassion. For Naira, he was a savior, a benevolent man. For Varek, he was nightmare incarnate.
The interface pulsed again. He opened the trap submenu of the defenses menu and started laying down the simplest, cheapest thing the system allowed.
[Spike Trap] – 50 DMP each