Dungeon Maker

Ophelia unfolded a map on top of a small glass table placed between them. There wasn't a need to ask what kind of map it was. It was obviously a map of the empty southern region.

Yong-Ho examined the map and tried to pinpoint the location of the House of Mammon. It was easy to find its location because it was at the most southern point of the demon world and behind it, existed the giant mountain, Encantro Pagnium.

Since the map belonged to a group that handled information, dozens of other dungeons, as well as Mammon's dungeon, were marked down.

The House of Foras's dungeon was the one that was the closest to the House of Mammon's dungeon.

Two other dungeons, together with the House of Foras, created a triangle. With the free city, Nuremburg, located in the center.

Yong-Ho widened his view a bit. The triangle that he saw only covered a small area and didn't even take up one tenth of the entire empty region.

Ophelia softly smiled when Yong-Ho studied the map on his own. She lifted her finger and pointed to the areas located in the northwestern region. The area was far from the free city.

"Embrio, the Demon King of the Wolves, is active in this area. They have already destroyed over seven dungeons. And we haven't confirmed it yet, but they most likely won a recent battle against a joint army."

"Joint army? Are you talking about an allied force?"

Yong-Ho asked because of the unfamiliar phrase. Ophelia promptly answered.

"Yes. In order to defeat Embrio, four owners around the area have joined forces. Within the empty southern region, they're considered to be quite powerful."

Ophelia pointed to four separate dungeons. Embrio must be continually increasing his power, since with each conquest he was venturing further from his dungeon.

"Embrio defeated the joint army in open warfare rather than inside a dungeon. Of course, they did so by ambushing an unprepared enemy… in a way, it can be considered more as a tactical victory, but that doesn't mean we should underestimate Embrio's raw power. I believe we should highly rate their boldness, drive and raw fighting power that enabled them to defeat the joint army."

Ophelia's voice was filled with life. Perhaps it was due to the atmosphere, but it looked like her eyes were shining too.

It could be because she actually enjoyed obtaining information and analyzing it. The fact that she was the owner of the bar probably wasn't the only reason.

Due to her excitement, Ophelia kept on talking and when she lifted her head, she looked at Yong-Ho and Catalina as if she was asking for their consent.

And she became flustered when she realized her mistake.

"Oh, well...there's really no need to praise them so much…"

Based on her comment just now, one would think she was Embrio's follower. It wasn't something she should've talked excitedly about in front of her master.

Yong-Ho waved his hand.

"It's fine. It's better than giving them a low rating and suffering from it later."

And if what Ophelia said was true, then they were definitely strong.

Even though it was only once, Yong-Ho experienced the dungeon combat. The advantage that the defending side had was amazing.

But Embrio was able to destroy those four powers even without the advantages.

It was a military strategy that couldn't be looked down upon and it was a power they shouldn't look down upon.

Ophelia felt relieved and happy at the same time when Yong-Ho reacted.

Her new master wasn't an immature and emotional being.

Well, he was the King of Greed after all. She was sure that the king's position fit him very well.

Ophelia became motivated, so she resumed her explanation by pointing to the map again.

"It isn't an exaggeration to say that with Embrio in the center, the empty southern region has been hit by a typhoon. Embrio's area and the owners that are located far away are filled with anxiety, which is causing them to either group up or attack a dungeon. There are some in various parts of the region that are known as "Little Embrio" and are causing a stir."

Ophelia pointed at various parts of the map. Some of the owners that were provoked by Embrio began dungeon battles.

Foras attacking the House of Mammon was a part of this movement.

"The empty southern region wasn't always peaceful. During the past 1,000 years, this kind of issue occurred several times. But no one has been able to unify this region."

Ophelia raised her head and looked at Yong-Ho.

Yong-Ho knew Ophelia was trying to imply something through the information she provided.

The thing she wanted to say.

Yong-Ho asked again.

"What are your thoughts?"

Embrio's potential.

They were probably different from all the other owners.

Ophelia closed her eyes. Even though it was only for a moment, she organized her thoughts and spoke.

"I've never seen them and only gathered information that I obtained, but...I believe it's different from all the other times."

As the one that handled the information, this was what she sensed.

From yesterday, no, until this morning, Ophelia thought that Embrio was the one that would unify the empty regions after 1,000 years.

But not now. Because of that, a bright and joyful smile appeared on her face.

"However, I realized that Embrio is still in the preparation stages. I'm talking about the preparations of unifying the southern empty regions and you, the King of Greed, will achieve this."

It seemed like her eyes were sparkling. That side of her made him realize that she was the same race as Eligor.

Ophelia was excited and her voice was filled with energy.

"If the King of Greed rose up right now, then the owners in the empty southern region will kneel on their own. Embrio is an unworthy opponent compared to you. The empty southern region will be under the House of Mammon's control again after 1,000 years and it will become the House of Mammon's greatest era!"

She stopped talking as she opened her arms.

Within her sparkling eyes, it seemed like Greed and Aamon were smiling.

But the ones listening had a different reaction.

Catalina had an awkward expression and she was neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Rikum looked at Ophelia, wondering if she was fishing for compliments or if she was just crazy. Skull leaned back on the sofa and opened their mouth wide. It seemed like they weren't thinking about anything.

Yong-Ho saw Ophelia's sparkling eyes and slightly turned his head. Even though he couldn't escape her praise since she was in front of him, he was relaxed enough to release a cough.

He had an idea.

He understood why Ophelia had such a big misunderstanding.

He cleared his throat through the cough and instead of looking at Ophelia, who was looking around with a flustered expression, he looked at Rikum. He spoke in a low, but gentle voice.

"Rikum. Sorry, but do you mind spending some time downstairs?"

Yong-Ho gently ordered him to leave and Rikum wasn't shocked by it. He immediately stood up from his seat and spoke as if he was being considerate.

"Understood. Thank you for caring, sir. You don't have to worry too much."

Rikum wasn't a spirit that belonged to the House of Mammon, like Catalina and Skull. Yong-Ho and Rikum's minds never connected like how Yong-Ho and Ophelia's minds were connected. And they didn't handle the information either.

Since it hasn't been that long since he registered, he understood why Yong-Ho asked him to leave when they were talking about something really important.

When Yong-Ho nodded his head, Rikum looked at Ophelia. Instead of spacing out, she said everything she needed to say.

"When you exit, Harpy will lead you to a place where you'll be able to rest."

"Then, I will see you in a few."

Rikum left the room after bowing politely.

The fact that he sent Rikum out meant that the things they were going to talk about were important. She had a slightly nervous expression on her face. Catalina also gulped.

Even if it was only for a moment, Yong-Ho and Ophelia mentally shared each other's feelings.

He wasn't sure how much information had been shared during this time, but after seeing her expression, it didn't seem like much.

How much was he going to tell Ophelia?

Yong-Ho quickly made a decision. He was able to decide after considering how much Ophelia currently knew and the things she had to do at the House of Mammon from now on.

"Ophelia."

"Yes, King of Greed."

Ophelia answered seriously. Yong-Ho unsheathed Aamon, who was placed on his belt like a sword, and placed them on top of the glass table.

"This is Aamon."

It was slightly quiet.

Catalina gulped again and looked at Ophelia and Ophelia looked at Aamon with a blank expression. It was a shapeless skewer that was about one meter long and she was trying her best to see how extraordinary it was and then carefully opened her mouth.

"The shape...is a lot...different...from the legend."

She tried her best to smile. But Yong-Ho shook his head. He told her the truth.

"Aamon shrinked themself to match my level."

The word, shrinked, was very direct. Yong-Ho continued talking.

"I'm currently growing. And I need time to grow."

Instead of using the word, weak, he used grow.

Ophelia blinked her eyes because the things she saw inside Yong-Ho and what Yong-Ho was saying now were different.

A bitter smile appeared on Yong-Ho's face. As the one that handled information, Ophelia had to know the House of Mammon's exact situation, so he was being honest.

"First."

"First…?"

"The number of spirits in the House of Mammon is less than 20. That includes you as well."

***

"I've been robbed."

After Yong-Ho left the room, Ophelia spoke after lying down on the sofa.

Harpy couldn't suppress her curiosity any longer, so they cautiously called Ophelia.

"Mas...ter?"

"I've been robbed."

Ophelia spoke again.

The House of Mammon's current situation was really bad.

They had less than 20 spirits and the money they saved up was almost gone. No, they were actually indebted to the dungeon shop.

When comparing just the dungeon's power, it was a lot worse than Foras's dungeon, who lost their dungeon and main power.

And Yong-Ho, who was the King of Greed, was weak. There was a high chance that they would get defeated by the powerful owners first before Embrio gets to them.

At this point, she wondered if the pub's power was a lot stronger than the House of Mammon's.

In a situation like that, she told him that the empty southern region would be unified if he revealed that he was the King of Greed.

Harpy was surprised by the sensitive words and looked at their master's expression. They became flustered.

Ophelia was smiling. And it was a genuine smile too.

"The King of the South has returned."

It was definitely shabby and weak.

But the Greed and Aamon that she saw were real.

After 1,000 years, he was the demon king that inherited Greed's power.

And even the Red Lotus Demon Lance Aamon shrunk on their own to assist them.

Yong-Ho himself said that he was growing.

That's right. There wasn't any other expression that was fitting.

And his power.

The power that he had.

The Power of Evolution was perfect for a king that was growing!

Ophelia's thoughts were wrong.

But her hunch was on point.

The revolution that Embrio spoke of will create a new king in the southern region.

The chaos that they created will provide enough time for growth.

And the thing that Ophelia had to do for that king.

First, Greed and Aamon had to be hidden. She had to make the competitors, the kings of the Seven Deadly Sins, think that the House of Mammon was a joke so that they wouldn't put their guard up.

It wasn't hard. A small rumor will make that happen.

"The Demon King of Fire."

Ophelia spoke. With a warm smile, she explained to Harpy, who was still flustered.

"It's the nickname of the House of Mammon's new owner. They're a demon king that can control fire."

Many from the free city saw him take down the Land Worm with fire. Even though Harpy had a confused look on her face, she just acknowledged like the loyal secretary she was and recorded the information in her notebook that she always carried with her.

Ophelia stretched her shoulders. And then snickered like a fool.

'The House of Mammon will rise again. No matter what.'

Her father became lively every time they talked about Kaiwan.

Ophelia shook her head. She always disagreed with that statement after her father passed away but for the first time, she agreed.

***

"Is it okay to return so soon?"

Catalina was sitting inside the carriage that was heading back to the dungeon and asked worriedly as she looked back at the free city.

Yong-Ho was sitting next to her and as he leaned further back into the chair, he answered.

"We took care of everything we needed to. Ophelia will be visiting the dungeon soon. Why? Do you want to rest more?"

"No. I'm okay."

Catalina quickly declined. From the way her ears flapped, she was probably flustered because she thought she was getting criticized.

Yong-Ho patted her head and spoke.

"We have a lot to do. I need to register the Princess Ant as a spirit and evolve salamander and the Treant. I also need to strengthen the dungeon as well."

The salamander and Treant's development rate was almost at 100. Once he returns, he might be able to evolve them.

Ophelia gave Yong-Ho a two-horse carriage that had a marble attached to it. She also provided him with necessary supplies, a bit of money and information he needed before leaving.

Bringing the power that the pub had to the dungeon would only make him stand out.

As of right now, increasing his power discreetly was the best choice.

Skull was a talented spirit and they were driving the carriage. Rikum followed the carriage by riding on his own horse and Catalina looked at the free city one more time.

Yong-Ho raised his hand and looked at Kaiwan's ring and the bracelet he didn't know the name of.

Kaiwan's inheritance.

And out of their inheritance, the arena was probably the most valuable.

It was what he told Ophelia.

Yong-Ho was currently growing.

"Skullllll!"

Skull was having fun driving the carriage. Despite the carriage shaking a lot, Yong-Ho closed his eyes.

The House of Mammon's dungeon was close.