So what? By making there be a way for him to be defeated he was gifted stronger monsters?
<Not gifted. By making such concessions the price of all things he can create is reduced by a margin proportional to the concession. There is also the possibility of specific trade-offs. I heard one guy gained complete invulnerability for 23 hours a day in exchange for being killed by literally anything even slightly threatening in the remaining hour.>
Isn't that overpowered?
<He died because he tripped during that period. The fall was nothing really and he hit a thick carpet that would have left any ordinary person unhurt but for him... instant death.>
So it's the drawback that is extreme.
<Not extreme, proportional.>
So, what is the correct way to clear this dungeon? Can you tell me?
<Sure, just don't tell anyone. Though I doubt adventurers would listen to you. This dungeon is called castle little moon. The dungeon master is set as the owner of the castle, count little moon. In the training grounds of the castle, you'll find a notice board with a notice from said count. It states that anyone who can defeat the four and most talented knights of the younger generation will be granted an audience with the count.>
So all you do is kill those four probably relatively weak knights and you get to fight the dungeon master immediately?
<Yes but also no. While they are weak in comparison to the guardian knights at the count's door the difficulty isn't low. First, you must find the four knights and second of all you have to kill them. And they will run away if they feel like they are about to be killed so...>
Are there any clues to finding those four knights?
<Well, if you find the notice board you will also read that the weakest of them is training on the training ground you are currently in. Next to it, there is a challenge notice that states that if you wish to fight that very knight you will have to fight every other knight on the training ground in order of their strength. If you just attack they will gang up on you.>
So an exhaustion strategy. The others?
<If you defeat the first one he will give you a clue with his dying breath. Alternatively, three messengers are wandering inside the castle and if you kill one of them you will obtain a similar notice to the one on the board except that each contains the location and identity of a different knight.>
This is getting real complicated.
<That's the whole point of a story dungeon. Tire out the adventurers in both body and mind until they decide to just use brute force and trigger the increased difficulty.>
And what is my role in this?
<To go after the poor fools who try to use the right way to clear the dungeon. They are specially marked on your dungeon map with blue numbers representing the knights they already killed. They also have a similar tattoo on their wrists if you want to make sure. That is to say, you can naturally kill others too but we'd like you to focus on those that are a threat to the dungeon.>
I open the dungeon map and the 3D image of the castle and its contents are shown before me. There's plenty of monsters, especially on the training grounds. Four of those monsters are marked with a blue number from 1 to 4 too so I assume those are the targeted knights.
The adventurers are comparatively few in numbers but from what I can see the dungeon also isn't so big. It only encompasses the castle and the direct surrounding land of maybe a hundred meters. And while the castle is huge it can only compare to at most four floors of a regular dungeon's size.
<It's true that most story-type dungeons are smaller in size since they don't have floors but instead feature comprehensive areas. They are also a newer type of dungeon that relies on a dungeon master to create them.>
Let the hunt begin then!
On the dungeon map, I see that a group of adventurers is currently engaging the knights on the training grounds. They don't seem to know that they can challenge the knights one by one. Now, they are being besieged by an angry mob of skeleton knights.
They all have a blue two engraved on them. Seems they must have defeated the second target knight. I wonder what happens after one of them is defeated? Do they just respawn?
<No, in accordance with the count's notice the next most talented knight will take his place. The process may take some time but within an hour a new knight should be endowed with a number. The location on the corresponding messenger's notice will then change too.>
So they aren't always in the same place?
<Except for the weakest one who is always in the training grounds, the others will be located in different places every time an old one is defeated.>
That's going to be a pain to keep track of. At least the adventurers will suffer more.
Thinking that I keep moving towards the training grounds. During my evolution, my body grew a lot. I now have the same diameter as a wine barrel and my full length should be longer than five meters. Sadly I can't see my full form since I've yet to come past a mirror.
<Let me help you out with that. You look like a big crocodile without legs.>
Don't compare me to a damn reptile!
<But it's true. You look like that!>
Enough!
I move faster and arrive at an open archway leading out of the castle and into the training grounds. I can already hear the clashing of weapons and armor furiously echoing from over there.
I slither across the hardened dirt that appears slightly red. Is it blood?
I try to smile at the wonderous discovery I've made but it probably looks quite horrifying in my current form.