“But, you said before that this problem… was meaningless? Is it because you had read this book by then?”
“That’s right. In ‘Dungeon (Tentative) Construction Plan,’ the first few pages that could be understood already explained it. The end of the dungeon is ‘empty.’ It’s set up as a goal, a deception, with no meaning in itself, and no meaning to be found. Of course, exploring to find out what it truly is is also meaningless.”
Iaar explained very calmly, even placing the original text in front of Will.
Will lowered his head. Just as the language used in the book’s title suggested, the entire book wasn’t filled with the obscure ancient script like ‘Ancient Magic.’ Instead, it was surprisingly easy to understand.
The first chapter indeed explained—
The construction of a dungeon requires establishing a sufficiently deep ‘foundation.’
This ‘foundation’ is tentatively defined as a perpetual power source.
When constructing a dungeon, a ‘grand objective’ is needed to serve as humanity’s ultimate goal after material needs are met, otherwise, humanity’s perpetual exploration of the dungeon cannot be sustained.
This objective cannot be real; it cannot have a concrete meaning.
It must be the ‘objective’ itself, allowing it to transform from a ‘material’ that can eventually be found and satisfied into a ‘spiritual’ need.
Only then can it become true ‘perpetual power.’
Here, Reviers also wrote a note:
[Perpetual power, not a perpetual motion machine. Clarify this concept to remind myself that things will truly disappear in this process, but the spirit of exploration will not.]
“Truly… a reasonable value.”
Will was different from others.
As someone from the outside, he actually believed this thing was meaningless at first.
After all, this was a commercial work whose author never intended to finish it, preferring it to continue forever. For something that ends upon its conception, it’s best not to set any parameters.
It was just that some people in this world were so persistent about it that it made him want to understand.
But…
Will felt something strange. In his memory, Li Wei’qi claimed to be an ‘awakened person,’ and she also knew about… ‘fate.’
Why did she seem… unaware that the deepest part of the dungeon was ‘meaningless’?
“Yes. The first step in the dungeon’s construction is the existence of this bottomless and unattainable spiritual objective.”
On the blackboard, Iaar drew a simple diagram.
On one side of the diagram, she drew the current dungeon—in her depiction, a small castle descending downwards from a flat surface.
Her drawing skills were surprisingly good, far better than Liya and Lis. Will wondered if this was perhaps a part of the Witch’s evolution.
“With this, Reviers established ‘God-Attuned’ to lead humanity’s continuation, to instill personality into the unconscious Emperor of the dungeon and accelerate its operation.”
Iaar then drew humans on the other side.
Above the humans, Iaar drew a small, glowing figure, seemingly observing the humans below.
On some of the small figures among the humans, she drew watching eyes, and then, with her arrows, they were thrown to the dungeon side.
“Hmm. This step is clarified. To keep something that appeared out of nowhere running, personality and consciousness are needed. This part is supplemented by the God-Attuned from humanity—coincidentally, the God-Attuned were chosen by Reviers herself.”
Flipping through these pages, Will marveled at the ‘goddess’s’ ingenuity.
Although he still didn’t know why she did this, nor by what divine power she accomplished it, but…
She used a ‘gamified’ method to construct a social system that filled people from scratch and cycled them, making it even faster and running quite well.
“Next, Will, do you have any questions?”
“Questions… Hmm, there are too many. I don’t even know why she did it.”
“That’s why it should be treated as a ‘manual.’ A ‘manual’ usually doesn’t explain the value of something at length. Although, some things can be inferred. You can ask other questions… for example, have you considered? Where did Reviers, who wrote this book, go?”
“Where did she go? If she were truly a living goddess, she wouldn’t have shown no divine signs and left nothing behind, so she should be dead…”
“Think again?”
Will raised his head.
“Wait, the God-Attuned were chosen by her, so—so she must be alive! Otherwise, this part of the book couldn’t be executed…”
“You guessed correctly. Next, look at the next page.”
“Chapter Two…”
In the second chapter, Will found a reasonable explanation that could answer many of his current questions.
In Chapter Two, after Reviers had an initial concept for making this empty city function as a society with people, she began to identify problems and propose solutions.
Uh…
From this aspect, the book was written very ‘engineering-like.’ Will felt his impression of this goddess had to change.
Now she was a remarkable engineering goddess, not just a charlatan who cheated people.
For example, regarding how to make the dungeon function, her first point was very ‘realistic.’
“First, the initial ‘personality,’ the initial ‘Emperor,’ needs to be deployed. Otherwise, the first dungeon cannot be created. Here, I choose myself.”
!!!
“She… she is inside the dungeon… inside?”
“Mhm.”
Iaar seemed very satisfied with the answer she had deciphered and nodded.
“That would mean… if we wanted to, we could even drag this goddess out…”
Will stopped himself mid-sentence, realizing a problem.
Actually, dragging out this goddess seemed pointless. She merely constructed this dungeon. Their current problem was how to deal with Carver.
And the Death Hall that had allied with Carver.
Could there be some connection here…
“She discovered that the personalities in the dungeon cannot infinitely loop. Only during the first deployment, when retaining the most complete form, will they be eroded by repeated deaths and forced amnesia, and the birth of new personalities with the insertion of different BOSSes…”
Iaar continued to read from the book.
“That’s right. If the ultimate goal is for the God-Attuned system to continue, the solution she provided is…”
Having already deciphered this, Iaar slowly explained from the side.
“It must continue…”
Will murmured the words.
“Wait, this sentence she wrote here… could it be…”
Will’s eyes widened.
He understood why even the exceptionally knowledgeable Iaar, and people like Liya and Lis who knew so much about dungeons and history, were still astonished after reading the translated book.
“Note: To maintain a majority of one’s awakenable personality and forever walk as the Emperor of the dungeon, there is a backdoor, a potential flaw that can be considered.”
“That is…”
“Every time one is deployed into the dungeon, it is the ‘first time.’”
“Allowing the dungeon’s self, as the God-Attuned, to be… killed by the dungeon’s monsters, time and time again.”
Will thought of someone in his mind… who had a memory of killing someone during their ‘birth.’
