Starting with the defeated female knight

Page 49

"Give us another chance."

Someone finally couldn't hold back any longer and spoke up.

This time, we will definitely...

【sure】

Green nodded immediately.

I also think you guys made a mistake, so let's try again.

Then, as it turned out, after taking it seriously, they did make significant progress this time, and even made some adjustments based on Green's suggestions.

But in the end, they still collapsed in the first half of the fifth floor.

The newly added eerie tentacles, the omnipresent mental pollution, and the various hidden traps and malices caused them endless suffering, ultimately leading to their annihilation once again in a desperate struggle.

This time, not a single person was able to evacuate.

"Is this the malice of the ancient gods...?"

After coming out, someone muttered to themselves with a dazed look in their eyes.

No, that's called Miyazaki's handsome smile.

Although he failed to reach the sixth floor twice, Green still acknowledged the strength of this group.

As beings who are good for nothing but fighting, these nobles have truly taken their fighting ability to the extreme. Not only are they incredibly strong and quick-witted, but their endurance and recovery ability are also far beyond the ordinary. Even their mental will can withstand two rounds of his baptism before showing signs of collapse, and they recover shortly afterward.

No wonder they could become a mystical aristocracy; their bloodline theory does have some merit...

While acknowledging the abilities of these individuals, Green did not hold their abilities, teamwork, or other aspects in high regard.

But that's normal.

After all, the empire has not fought any major wars for nearly a century. Even nobles with ambition and ideals, especially those in the capital, rarely have the opportunity to fight. The biggest enemies they have ever encountered are other families of the same kind.

In addition, the increasingly serious decadence of the empire and nobility in recent years has left them with no idea where to direct their energy.

Although they did alright in the previous battle against the Thousand-Legged God, the one they actually fought was much more formidable. Not to mention teamwork, it was a little girl who couldn't even control her own body properly, making her far more incompetent than them. This naturally made their performance seem better in comparison.

But once it comes to practical application, especially with someone like Green who can precisely manipulate and coordinate every single tentacle, it becomes a different story.

Those previously inconspicuous cracks and gaps become the perfect breeding ground for tentacles, which can easily pierce and tear through.

Have you considered one possible scenario?

"It's not that they didn't cooperate well, but rather that your expectations are too high?"

Elise questioned this.

After all, he had actually spent time with Green, especially after figuring out how he ran Dawn City.

She realized that the thing in front of her did not seem to be an ancient god.

—Because even the ancient gods weren't this outrageous and terrifying.

In any case, the nobles ended up having a real fight with the tentacle dungeon in the days that followed.

Moreover, as they continued to argue, they realized that clearing this dungeon required more than just combat strength; other aspects were equally important.

So, after fighting for a while, they started going to forces outside the nobility, seeking teammates from the church and the magicians' association, and dragging them in to fight.

From pure warriors, to warrior-warrior-priest, then to mages with an investigation skill, then to considering other classes, even searching for special professions in Dawn City...

The tactics are constantly evolving, the skills are continuously improving, and each time they go deeper and deeper, getting closer and closer to the sixth level.

Unfortunately, they weren't the only ones who grew up.

During this process, Green was also absorbing and digesting their combat skills, constantly adjusting the dungeon structure and difficulty.

While the difficulty of the shallower levels remained largely unchanged, or even decreased, the deeper levels were far more malevolent, with more and more insidious traps. Some special experimental tentacles were also introduced, and after the sixth level, two more levels were added, creating an eight-fold hell.

Of course, he didn't expect anyone to reach the eighth floor. He was just making some preparations in advance. He only did a little work on the seventh floor, and didn't even fill the eighth floor with tentacles.

I'm so tired, so alone

Even so, it's enough for this group of people to endure.

Because Green didn't spoil the story, the others had no idea there were six, seven, or eight more levels. After going through all the hardships to finally clear the fifth level, they thought it was over and were ready to cheer.

An entrance, even darker and more terrifying than before, reappeared before them.

You don't even need to go inside; just standing at the entrance, you can smell the chilling sense of despair.

but......

"Retreat first, retreat first, and save your equipment first."

Yes, after countless failures, the nobles have now learned to compromise.

Although you can't bring your original equipment into the dungeon, items you take out of the dungeon are exempt. This is not only to increase the sense of accomplishment, but also so that you can put in some experimental equipment when needed and let others help test it.

Besides the nobles and members of the investigation team, as things calmed down in Dawn City, some warriors from Dawn City also joined the dungeon exploration team at Green's recommendation, in order to increase their combat experience.

At the same time, although they are limited by their strength and cannot enter the lower levels, they can usually only operate on the first and second levels. However, there are some basic resources available on the first and second levels. After clearing the level and evacuating, they can also obtain some benefits.

You can keep it for yourself, or provide it to teams that want to go deeper but are too lazy to farm materials.

This sounds like Green is trading money and providing materials for combat experience and experimental data, as well as training troops for Dawn City.

But in reality, even excluding the gains mentioned above, Green not only didn't lose money doing this job, but actually made a lot of money.

The reason is also very simple.

However, if you fail, while I will not kill or torture you, I will still impose some punishment.

This was something Green had agreed upon with the nobles from the very beginning, and it applied to everyone else as well.

So what is this punishment?

The solution is to weaken them by absorbing their power or by bleeding them out.

This will prevent people from recklessly barging into the dungeon and being carried out dozens of times a day, and will make them pay more attention to each exploration.

On the other hand, the absorbed power can not only be used to repair the damaged tentacles, but there is even a surplus, which can be used to create more, mutate, and even strengthen the tentacles.

As for the blood, it can be directly provided to Morphia for her research. Although it is not expected to produce any results in a short period of time, it is at least a gentle way to start the research on bloodline technology.

For some reason, after doing all this and Tentacle Dungeon was in stable operation, Green had a strange sense of déjà vu.

Team up, run dungeons, win and you get materials and equipment, lose and you'll be in a weakened state, and after playing for a long time you'll also enter fatigue...

Should I stand next to a female gunner with a big machine and be in charge of enhancing (or breaking) the equipment?

Shaking his head to shake off the strange sense of déjà vu, Green turned his gaze back to Dawn City.

After an unknown period of development, and with the influence of the investigation team, especially after the recent start of the Tentacle Dungeon's operation.

Dawn City's economic system is growing stronger, but it has never matured.

Until recently, after a long discussion with Elise, Green finally decided on the path he would take next.

[With ownership as the mainstay, multiple forms of ownership develop together]

After discussion, Green felt that this was the most suitable economic system for Dawn City's current situation.

Now that the economic system has been finalized, the next step is naturally to produce currency.

So, after going to the cathedral and talking with Edith and the others, Green first designed his own symbol—double helix tentacles.

The meaning seems to be many, and it seems to make sense from any angle, but Green didn't choose this one because he liked the meaning. He just thought it was beautiful and easy to draw, and he could put it up himself when needed.

As for the design of the currency, the artisans initially planned to simply print the double helix on it.

But after thinking about it, Green added a small circle to the top of the double helix, symbolizing Dawn City.

This is not a city I built alone.

Rather, it is our shared dawn.

Of course, this is only the positive side; as for the negative side, Green left it entirely to the people of Dawn City to decide.

After all, as he said, this city of dawn is the result of their joint efforts.

Then, time passed.

To this day, the first batch of Dawn City currency has been minted.

The mold closed silently, waiting for the one and only qualified being to unveil this symbol of the future.

The tentacles flowed slowly, moving forward amidst the crowd, finally stopping in front of the mold. After glancing back at the others, they gently bent.

Open the mold, roll up the golden coin, and hold it up to the sunlight; the coin's outline shimmers with an alluring luster.

The front features an emblem designed by Green, depicting a double helix supporting the dawn.

Turn it over, and the tentacles curl around the daisies, with patterns on the lower half of the edge symbolizing the river he brought, making it look peaceful and beautiful.

Green was very satisfied with the design; after all, it looked beautiful and gave a good impression.

So, he rolled up the coin, turned around to look at the crowd behind him, and nodded slightly.

Then toss the coin.

Ding--

The coin traced a beautiful arc and landed in the hand of a lucky person.

"Gurgle...ga?"

The 1.8-meter-tall birdman, clutching the gold coin he instinctively grabbed, let out a groaning sound that bordered on wailing when he realized everyone was staring at him.

His shy demeanor, coupled with his terrifying appearance, elicited a round of harmless teasing.

Even Green shook his head slightly, wondering whether it was lucky or unlucky for her to receive the gold coin.

Little did Green know that his good mood would only last until that afternoon.

After giving Elise a gold coin, hoping this nobleman from the capital would check if it met the empire's aesthetic standards, the other party didn't reply immediately; instead, her expression gradually became strange.

The tentacles paused slightly, sensing something ominous.

Is there something wrong with these gold coins?

"There's no problem, it's just..."

Elise flipped the coin over, looked at Green, and said in a subtle tone.

"This reverse side, you didn't design it, did you?"

【......yes】

Not to mention designing it, in order to let the people of Dawn City make their own decisions (to be lazy), until the coin was completed, Green didn't know or even inquire about what the reverse side of the coin looked like.

Upon hearing Green's reply, Elise fell silent.

for a long time.

Under Green's uneasy gaze, she rubbed the coin in her hand and spoke again.

"Do you know what the daisy means in the Empire?"

【......have no idea】

"It is purity, innocence, hope, loyalty, love, and my little girl..."

OK, that's enough.

The tentacles flowed slowly.

I suddenly remembered I forgot to do something, you go ahead and do your work.

"......What's up?"

[Spinning Top]

Volume 1: Chapter 55: The City of Dawn That Day, It Started Spinning