~ First Person POV ~
After opening the [Dungeon Community] tab and doing everything I can just to add more defense to my dungeon, I finally found a method to further fortify my dungeon. And currently, I am facing towards the entity that will fortify my dungeon against the incoming raid.
"Nice to meet you, [Dungeon Master] Gren, my name is Sylf, an A-rank monster mercenary."
Yes, she was a mercenary. In all of the options in the [Dungeon Community] tab, a mercenary was the cheapest. If you're wondering why they're cheap, it is because they are the cheapest option I can afford, even though they are crazy expensive.
Sylf here is one such mercenary. She seems to be a Shadow Folk, and looks completely like a human, save for her completely black eyes and skin. For those who don't know what a Shadow Folk is in this world, they are a race like the humans that specialized in assassinations and guerilla warfare, but were categorized as a monster due to their hostile nature towards other races.
As for why they are hostile to other races, this stems from the history dating back to the Black Hand' and it has been that way ever since. It happened when the freed Shadow Folk Queen that was once under the 'Black Hand' was killed by the hands of the other races under the pretense of 'purging the remaining Black Hand members.' But the truth of the matter was that she was about to be enslaved by the other races, and during her intense struggle, she was killed.
And that's how the Shadow Folks came to regard other races to be enemies, but for some reason, they aren't hostile to [Dungeon Masters]. The reason being the Shadow Folk Queen entered a contract with the God of Dungeons, Abruptum before her death, stating her and the entire race's subordination towards Abruptum in exchange for the safety of their entire race.
And now, back to the present.
"Nice to meet you too Sylf, anyway, shall we get to business?"
"As you wish [Dungeon Master] Gren..."
Sylf made her lips arch slightly upward while bowing her head slightly.
'Although I know why she moves like this…'
Since they are subordinates of Abruptum, they are also subordinates of the [Dungeon Masters], although they come at a price. But if you don't have the funds, their personalities quickly make a 180 degree spin.
"As you saw in my profile, my services cost 5,000 MP per raid defense. Add in 1,000 more MP for a three-man party to defend your dungeon."
"Well then, the three-man party it is."
And using my reservoir of MP, 6000 MP was quickly deducted, leaving me with…
MP: 9615 3415
Yes, that's my remaining MP left. Also, once my monsters all dwindle down, I'll create more Giga Void Iron Golems that are unmanned. And as for how the transaction goes, it's like a debit card type of thing. Instead, it goes through the [Dungeon Core].
"I have received the payment in advance. We shall do as you order, [Dungeon Master] Gren."
And suddenly, just after she accepted my request, a portal appeared behind her and two more Shadow Folk arrived.
"My name is Karen."
"I'm Palim, nice to meet you, [Dungeon Master] Gren."
"Likewise."
And with that, I have found the solution to my worries, although it cost a hefty sum… Oh, and just for the record, all of them were women.
Right after our conversation on what to do during the raid, the three of them immediately went exploring the dungeon just to be sure about its structure.
During their scan of my dungeon, they asked me to remodel the floors to become like labyrinths. It was to better use their strengths inside my dungeon. They also made me add some traps. They left it up to me to decide which traps to put since they'll adjust themselves on how to use the traps against the raid group.
They marked some places where they can make strategic attacks and retreats depending on the situation. Since the dungeon floors are made into labyrinths by making rooms adjacent to each other, there are many points where surprise attacks can be made.
And also, on a specific floor, I made an incredibly long corridor ranging about 10 Kilometers with a width of only about 3-grown men since that is the minimum size a pathway can be made.
Along the corridor, there were numerous traps such as pitfall traps, arrow traps, and at the end, a dreadful teleportation trap that if the group of enemies were unable to notice the trap, they would be sent back to the beginning of the floor.
I wanted to make it send them back to the beginning of the dungeon, but doing that costs a lot of MP depending on how many floors it is from the 1st floor.
And because of these adjustments, my MP took a huge beating.
MP: 3415 1255
I was left with less than half of my remaining MP, but I treated it as a necessary sacrifice. But then, I had a thought.
I had the three Shadow Folk gather to the boss room. Since I won't pull my punches in defending the dungeon this time, I'll try to strike a deal with the Shadow Folk to stay with me for a long time.
"Well then Sylf, what do you think of this?"
I showed them one of my secrets, and that was my Giga Void Iron Golem pilot mechanism. And just to be safe, I had them make an oath to never disclose this information to anybody, otherwise their lives are forfeit.
Well, they agreed since monster mercenaries have a code that states that information about a [Dungeon Master] must not be disclosed otherwise their value as a mercenary drops to the lowest grade, and those are the loudmouth mercenaries.
When they saw it firsthand, their jaws dropped to the floor. In all their time living as a monster mercenary, they have never seen a [Dungeon Master] control a Golem from within, much more since it was a Giga Iron Golem.
And the next thing that I showed them was my skin-tight Golem suit. And guess what, they were totally flabbergasted.
And now to bring them in…
"If you work under me, you can get equipment like these free of charge. You will also be given a salary, and if you work hard, your salary may increase."
Then the next thing that happens, they accepted my proposal… It seems that my equipment were so unique that it has never been seen in history. Well, there were some attempts, but most of it failed because of lack of information, lack of materials, or even lack of innovation.
And I did it with just golems and pure luck…
'As expected, in a way, I'm kind of a cheater, huh…?'
While having those thoughts, I had the three of them sign a contract stating the conditions below…
1. The Shadow Folk will have free reign over themselves inside the dungeon, but may not do any actions that may cause harm to the dungeon, dungeon monsters, and [Dungeon Master].
2. The Shadow Folk will be given a place to stay, food, water, and other necessities by the [Dungeon Master].
3. The Shadow Folk will be given a salary based on their performance.
4. The Shadow Folk will be given a skin-tight suit golem each.
5. The Shadow Folk will be given a Void Giga Iron Golem if they were deemed worthy by the [Dungeon Master].
6. In case of clause 4 being fulfilled, the related Shadow Folk will be bound by the dungeon, making them a permanent resident.
7. The [Dungeon Master] can give out orders to the Shadow Folk and it must be followed.
8. Failure to comply with the clauses will result in a curse, making the 'Status' of the violator fall to G-rank for 1 year.
When they saw the contract, they were uneasy about clauses 7 and 5. I thought they would be uneasy about clause 6, but it seems that in their line of profession, either they fulfill the request, or they die trying.
After giving it some thought, the three Shadow Folks signed the contract. Apparently, they didn't care whether they were bound or not, they just wanted to live and survive, so I guess equipment like the ones I will be giving them are a godsend to them.
'I wonder how strong they'll be when they wear it…?'
"Well then, please wait for a moment while I go make your own Golem Suits."
The three of them nodded and I made them the suits using some Void Iron Golems that were already summoned.
"I'm all prepared. I just hope this amount of preparation is enough to stop the raid group…"
I head back to the house along with the three new residents of my dungeon, Sylf, Karen, and Palim as I worry about the future.