A Deeper Game

Then, in the heart of the rival dungeon, the Shade saw it: A core, similar in size to his own, glowing faintly with a deep, ominous red light.

Surrounding it were creatures, not unlike his own, goblins, but larger and more brutish.

They were armed with crude but effective weapons, standing guard over the dungeon's heart.

But it wasn't just the creatures that caught Seth's attention.

A figure stood near the core, draped in robes bearing a familiar sigil, the same one Seth had seen on the priest who had been sent against him.

The rival dungeon master wasn't just another competitor.

He was tied to A guild?, just as the priest had been.

This came as a shock and nowhere in his mind could he remember Malia referencing this.

'But how?' Silas thought.

Because if it was that easy to get it then why hadn't he himself gotten an invitation, not that he'd accept though.

On second thoughts this seemed deeper than it looked.

Seth's connection to the Elite Shade pulsed with a strange intensity.

Even with the Elite Shade's stealthy nature, Seth knew that they were deep in enemy territory now, walking a thin line between discovery and opportunity.

Through the Shade's eyes, he observed the rival dungeon master's core once more, glowing with an ominous red hue.

That core pulsed with life, surrounded by brutish goblins, their weapons crude but functional.

The sight confirmed Seth's suspicions, this dungeon had advanced similarly to his own, but it felt more established, older, perhaps even more experienced.

The figure standing near the core, dressed in robes marked with the same sigil as the priest, was the most troubling part.

Seth shifted in his dungeon's heart chamber, his thoughts swirling as he digested this information.

If the rival dungeon master had the backing of a guild, it changed everything.

It wasn't just about resources or territory anymore. There were higher powers involved, and Seth wasn't sure if he was ready to confront them directly because that would only amplify the priesthood Guild eagerness.

"Whoever this is," Seth muttered to himself, "they've been playing this game for a while."

As the Elite Shade continued to move to another chamber, Seth kept his mind sharp.

It seemed to be able to sensitive to directions, if not, how could it find the core chamber easily or was it just sensitive to Mana, that would explain alot.

He couldn't afford distractions now.

The Poison Goblin and the lesser goblins had crossed the rival boundary without issue, but the danger wasn't gone.

The air was thick with mana, a tension that hinted at traps waiting to spring.

Seth felt the familiar coldness of the Elite Shade, blending seamlessly into the shadows, its very nature allowing it to bypass the obvious traps.

But something gnawed at him.

This dungeon seemed more advanced than his, why didn't it attack then ?

The rival dungeon master had clearly fortified their position, and there had to be more than just crude goblins and traps.

What was the real danger lurking here?

Suddenly, through the Shade's eyes, Seth caught movement in one of the deeper chambers.

A creature unlike any he had ever seen skittered across the ceiling, its limbs elongated and unnatural.

It paused for a moment, sensing something, and then disappeared into the darkness.

The Shade froze, letting the creature pass unnoticed.

Seth's pulse quickened.

"That… wasn't a goblin." He said where he was and he couldn't get the information on it since he was neither in contract with it nor had he summoned it.

He flicked his gaze back to the Poison Goblin, which had been cautiously moving forward, releasing small bursts of poison gas to test the air.

The lesser goblins were following along, seemingly unaware of the tension that hung in the air.

Seth couldn't afford to lose them now.

"Stay sharp," Seth whispered to himself, though the goblins could not hear him, it felt more comfortable as he could sense their emotions become calm.

'It seems my thoughts have an effect on them' Seth thought

As the Poison Goblin advanced deeper into the rival dungeon, Seth returned his focus to the Elite Shade.

The Shade had gone around the whole dungeon slipping through possible routes, meeting dead ends and meeting new intersections.

Luckily there were only about five different routes in this dungeon and three were dead ends eventually while only one led to the main chamber.

The other was an extension and connection to other chambers.

In a few minutes, it had managed to make a mental map of the whole dungeon interior.

"This was too easy" Seth said out where he sat.

The Elite shade stalker had gone around and reached the core chamber again, its invisible form slipping around the brutish goblins who stood guard.

One of the ways to capture the rival dungeon was to conquer the dungeon.

And that easily meant Destroying the dungeon core or Getting it's master to submit to another.

Seth felt the Shade's unease.

The red glow of the rival core flickered, as if aware of their presence. He had to tread carefully.

The figure near the core, the one bearing the priest's sigil, moved slightly, as if sensing a shift in the air. Seth held his breath, hoping that the Shade would remain undetected.

It crept closer, moving along the edges of the chamber, when suddenly the figure's head snapped around, eyes scanning the shadows.

Seth felt the surge of adrenaline, his connection to the Shade vibrating with tension.

"He knows something's here…"

But before the figure could act, the Shade slipped into the deeper shadows of the chamber, avoiding detection by a hair's breadth.

Seth exhaled slowly, forcing himself to remain calm.

The rival dungeon master wasn't a fool.

"Oh? It seems we have a sneaky one" The rival dungeon master suddenly spoke up.

His British Goblin guards posed even more ready to attack and with the Elite Shade Stalker in hiding, he wasn't sure how long he'd be safe for.

"Why don't we have a peaceful chat Dungeon master, I know you can hear me"

"Don't think because I was distracted for a moment and you got this close means anything "