ch 30
Chapter 30: Whispers Beneath the Roots
The mist lifted—just a little.
But the change didn't bring peace. It brought silence.
Not the peaceful kind, either. The kind that pressed on your ears and made even laughter feel too loud. The kind of silence that meant something had happened… and nothing would ever be quite the same again.
Elric sat alone beneath the old root tree.
He had returned before sunrise, when the ground still held the cool breath of night. His fingers rested on the soil, where the black mist had bled away hours before.
Nothing remained of the creature—not a bone, not a claw.
But the tree had changed.
It hummed.
Not with sound. With feeling.
Its roots pulsed faintly, like veins. When Elric pressed his hand against the bark, it responded—softly, curiously.
And then it opened.
Only a little.
Just enough for a narrow slit in the trunk to peel back like parting lips, revealing a cavity inside. Within, nestled in moss and bone fragments, lay something old.
A shard. Dark green, glowing faintly. Glassy. Alive.
Elric reached out.
The moment his fingers brushed the shard, it spoke.
Memory Imprint Detected…
Link Established: [Fragmented Dungeon Core]
Category: Wild | Unbound | Contaminated
Function: Dormant Nest | Sealed Hatchery
Status: Waiting for Master Authority…
Elric's pupils dilated slightly. His breath caught.
This… was something deep. Something connected not just to this world, but others.
The system pulsed.
Main Menu
[Dungeon Core: 1 Fragment Acquired]
[Beast Slots: 10 Base | 2 Core-bound]
[Authority Sync: 9%]
[New Trait Pending: "Core Shepherd" — Unlocks Upon Sync Completion]
Elric closed his hand around the shard. It didn't burn. It felt like an extension of him. Like his thoughts echoed through it and returned, amplified.
"...Grandpa's not gonna like this."
Back in the village, things weren't quiet.
Not anymore.
Word had spread about a "shadow" near the east fields. One of the oxen had vanished. No blood. No tracks. Just an empty yoke and a dent in the soil where it had been tethered.
Two children swore they saw glowing eyes beyond the fence at dusk.
And Old Mira, the herb lady, whispered that something was wrong with the roots of her garden. Her sage plants had wilted. Her mushrooms were growing faces.
The elder once again dismissed it all.
But no one believed him anymore.
Especially not Riven.
That evening, Elric found his grandfather sitting near the fire, polishing an old metal clasp. Not a weapon. Not quite. But Elric had seen him wear it before—back in the early days, when the storms used to howl louder.
"You felt it, didn't you?" Riven asked, without looking up.
Elric didn't lie. "Yeah."
"Something's opening."
"Yeah."
"You took it, didn't you?"
"…Yeah."
Riven finally looked up. His eyes were tired—but there was no anger. Just… knowing.
"Then you'll need to be ready. If you link with a dungeon core… it links back."
Elric frowned. "That supposed to scare me?"
"No," Riven said, standing. "But I hope it scares them."
Later that night, Elric opened the shard again.
He didn't know how—his thoughts just reached into it like dipping into still water.
A faint glow formed behind his eyes.
And for the first time, he saw.
A vision—brief but sharp.
A vast underground cavern filled with roots, bones, and eggs the size of carriages. Black mist dripped from the ceiling like ink. At the center stood a beast—
—no, a mother.
A creature half-spider, half-hound, with dozens of closed eyes and a crown of writhing tongues.
And she felt him.
The vision shattered.
Elric gasped and fell backward, the shard falling from his grip. Pebble Jr. immediately hovered beside him, chirping in alarm.
"You okay?"
Elric coughed, then smiled. "We've got a dungeon core. And something's sleeping inside."
Boneclaw emerged from the shadows with Gravebark, both of them unusually tense.
The village may not have known it yet… but the first line had been drawn.
Whatever beast had tested them before was just a scout.
Now?
Now the others would come.
But this time… Elric wouldn't be caught off-guard.