Dungeon of Niflheim

“Eh?” Sam was blown away by Frost’s suggestion, his brow furrowed. The Wintermorn rose was clearly the most valuable of the three items by far. He and Lola had already stated that Frost would get the majority of the rewards from beating the ice revenant since they required his aid, so Sam didn’t feel right. He looked to his wife for aid, but she simply nodded her head, agreeing with Frost’s suggestion. Not out of greed but because she saw the sparkle in her husband’s eyes as he held the flower.

“Sam I’ve got no need for it; besides it suits you better.” Frost continued to push his suggestion as did Lola.

“Yeah out of the three of us who better to take care of a flower plus you did land the last blow on the ice revenant.”

Sam looked towards his wife and then to the wintermorn rose, “I did do that didn’t I.” A smug smile grew on his face as he remembered his own awesomeness in taking down the revenant with his [earth rending slash].

Lola gave Frost a slight nudge with her elbow hinting to land one last blow. “Yeah yeah, since you killed it you should get the most valuable item, it’s only fair.” Frost and Lola both nodded their heads in agreement.

“.....I guess what you’re saying makes sense, I’ll take good care of this wintermorn rose.” Sam then promptly removed a special container from his spatial ring and placed the rose gently within, being very careful as he did, even more so than he was with the ice revenant’s core. A giddy smile adorned the brave man’s lips, making him look like an innocent child. He gently stroked the container before placing it safely within his spatial ring. Sam had great plans for this wintermorn rose.

The wintermorn rose was one of his bucket list flowers that he wished to personally bloom during his lifetime. It’d take a lot of work, but he was sure he could make it happen. He already had a fairly substantial garden back home filled with rare and beautiful flowers, the wintermorn rose would make for an excellent addition. His personal collection even impressed the resident alchemist who frequently had to trade materials with him. A great many potions had been made and lives saved due to Sam’s hobby. Even a couple of herbs required for the treatment of his father in law came from his garden.

Lola watched her husband smile giddily like an innocent child, her heart filling with warmth. Her husband despite his appearance was a real gentle soul.

.....

Frost was smiling too, he got what he wanted. This barrier device would make a fine addition to his dungeon.

Now that the rewards for their grand battle had been fully distributed it was time head back up. The quicker they got back to Lola’s father the better it would be for his condition. Although he could still hold on for another week or so before it really became touch and go, he was still suffering. Lola’s and Sam’s wounds and exhaustion were pretty much recovered, after potions and a few strips of dried meat. Frost after taking the mid-level health potion was pretty much back to full health, a few aching joints, and tender areas but other than that he was A ok.

Frost stored the barrier magic device within his spatial ring whereas Lola was already wearing her brand new boots. The leftover runic armour had also be stored away by Frost leaving the boss room rather bare. The once smooth and clean boss room was now a minefield of large craters and gashes after their battle but already there were signs of healing, though it was slow and gradual. Frost didn’t know if it was because of the extent of the damage or because an intruder was still present within the room, another thing he noted for comparison.

“Well now that our battle’s finished and we’ve got what we came for, shall we head back up? We’ll still need to fight our way back to the surface but if we rush we might make it to the exit in 48 hours or so. After that to reach Kranor, our enclave it’ll take around 3 or 4 hours without any interruptions.” Sam after placing the wintermorn rose away spoke up, he was keen to get back home as was Lola. The husband and wife looked towards Frost, waiting on his answer.

“I know you want to get back soon but do you mind if I check out the monster lair’s core. I’ve never seen one before and am quite curious, I’ll just be a few minutes or so tops.” Frost understood his teachers’ desire to leave post haste, but he really wished to examine a monster lair’s core. It was pretty much what his own core was based upon and would likely be very enlightening.

Sam and Lola looked at one another with slight surprise before frowning. “Ok but remember don’t do anything to harm the core otherwise you’ll be labelled as serious criminal. This monster lair is a real hotspot for growing adventurers, they and the surrounding kingdoms would not take kindly to it being pre-emptily destroyed.” Lola spoke with a serious tone. Messing with monster lair cores especially lairs that had high levels of traffic was a condemned act by the majority of people. Destroying such things would damage people’s livelihood as well as source of income for merchants and kingdoms. Only those fanatics like the Church of Light seek to annihilate monster lairs as part of their doctrine.

Of course, some monster lairs are purposely destroyed due to the threat that they embody on the current residing population. In such cases it needs the approval of the federation of knowledge as well as the adventurers guild and the kingdom or equivalent that is being affected by said monster lair.

Sam and Lola understood the desire to examine and see a monster liar’s core in person as it was something that embodied creation a hall mark of the Dark God but were worried that Frost may do something foolish. Monster lair cores were living embodiment of great fountains of mana and held a great temptation for those with strong mana senses.

“Understood I won’t do anything untoward.” Frost nodded his head in understanding before quickly dashing towards the gateway to the core room. Like with the previous floors, the boss was connected to the barrier that blocked access to the next area. After beating the ice revenant, the barrier had receded. Frost had full access to the very heart of the monster lair.

The gateway to the core was roughly 3 metres tall and 2 metres wide, a fairly large entrance and was made of pykrete. As Frost walked through the threshold his body felt a pressure akin to aura, he frowned as he felt it. This was the weight of mana, different from the pressure emitted by his own core. There was a large difference in quality, yet the foundation was similar. Frost felt his heart thump away, the monster lair’s core was around similar in size to his own core but appeared far less smooth, more like a crystal like construction with jagged edges and protrusions. Through his mana sense Frost could feel and see the tendrils of mana siphoning into the large crystal before being refined within the centre. A poor attempt at divine energy was the result and what allowed the monster’s core to create monsters.

For Frost this was quite a magical scene, he stood in a trance as he watched the core work, like a large heart pumping out fresh blood around the body.

Boom!

Suddenly without warning Frost had stepped closer the core and his hear thumped so loud it caused his body to quiver.

Boom boom

His heart continued to thump, and a strong desire filled Frost, his mouth grew dry, and his eyes turned bloodshot. He subconsciously reached out his hand to caress the monster lair’s core, licking his lips as he did so. The crystal like core that was before him now looked like a perfectly cooked dragon steak, a delectable piece of food. Frost wanted nothing more than to devour the core before him, to fuse with it and absorb its powers.

The moment his hand was about to touch the core however Lola’s stern warning rang within his mind bringing Frost back to his senses. With a quick shake of his head, he regained focus and jumped backwards, keeping his distance from the core. His breathing was laboured, and his face flushed as though he went through a great ordeal.

“That’s not mana addiction but something else?” Frost spoke through deep breaths, glaring at the core with trepidation. Many people especially those that were more mana sensitive would feel a great temptation when in the presence of such a natural collection of mana, they could even enter a high or euphoric state but what Frost felt was different, it was a primal hunger. Like he was poisoned with a powerful aphrodisiac and the monster lair’s core was a beautiful woman, the allure was far more than just a mana addiction.

Frost’s heart was still pumping vigorously, and the core continued to give off a delightful scent. His current state reminded him of when Nanna and Loki first saw the earth rank cold flame, they were filled with the urge to eat. “What does this mean, can I grow more powerful by eating monster lair cores?”