(Content Warning: Blood/Death)
In the middle of the altar, it was finely polished, so the sphere fit perfectly. That's why I approached it to take a closer look. I marveled at it until I noticed something.
"Hmm... it's almost the same size as my core," I pondered.
Suddenly, I saw an elderly lizard person, dressed in magnificent robes, enter the temple.
The polishing master then left the room with his head down, and I eagerly watched the elderly figure.
As he approached, he opened his almost closed eyes and looked around the room in surprise.
He gazed at the ceiling and opened his palms, and I heard the glass marbles on his long necklace tinkle.
Kneeling down, he said, "Sk rxvh Jrrw elvwefhwg exdwhgxw gd? Lkl wxwxuh gihyhghxgwxg!"
Then, he stood up again and shouted something to a soldier outside the temple.
I watched attentively the whole time, and suddenly, several people with blindfolds and bindings were brought into the temple.
"Oh! So there are humans in this world too!" I said with a hint of joy.
There were exactly ten of them, evenly placed around the altar.
I heard the people saying something, but due to the gags in their mouths, I couldn't understand a word.
Seeing them kneeling there, bound and gagged, an uneasy feeling welled up inside me.
"They wouldn't...," I began to think.
But it was too late; I heard the elderly lizard person mutter something and then draw an intricately decorated blade from his robe, which briefly glowed green, and he beheaded the first person.
"Damn," I muttered.
Blood sprayed onto the altar, and I lost consciousness.
---
"Happy Birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday dear Isaac,
Happy birthday to youuuuuuu!"
I smiled from ear to ear as I sat at the breakfast table with my family.
"Thank you very much!" I said and started to eat a small muffin with candles shaped like the number 12.
"I hope you understand that we won't have a whole cake twice a day," my mom said, smiling. "But we didn't want to deprive you of the muffin!"
"Exactly!" said my little sister. "Otherwise, you'll end up like Max!"
"Hahaha," I chuckled. "But Max still has baby fat."
"Alright, kids, leave your poor brother alone," my dad said. "Isaac, you need to start unwrapping your gifts, or you'll be late for school."
"But Lisa started!" I protested.
My dad just sighed loudly and said, "Either now or after school."
I decided on now and eagerly tore open the first gift. The biggest of course.
"Oh! A home planetarium! That's exactly what I wished for!"
"Let me see!" said Lisa. "Oh... that's boring."
"Come on, be quiet! It's awesome! I'd show you, but we don't have time."
"Haha... I hope you like it," said Mom.
"Of course! It's great!"
I ran to my parents and hugged them. The other gifts weren't as spectacular.
"A book and... underwear?"
"You'll probably get something from your friends later," Dad said. "But now, hurry up, get ready, and don't forget those muffins!"
"Okay!"
I jumped up and said, "I'm faster!"
"Hey!" Mia called and ran after me up the stairs.
Once in the bathroom, I slammed the door in her face and held it shut.
She made nonsense outside and knocked on the door until Dad called from downstairs, telling us to stop the nonsense.
I then let Lisa into the bathroom, and we brushed our teeth.
...
"Bye!" I called.
My mom quickly came running with a box and said, "You forgot your muffins! I hope everyone enjoys them. I hope you have a great day and a wonderful time!"
She gave me a kiss on the cheek, and I left the house. After a 5-minute walk, I arrived at school and greeted my friends.
In class, everyone sang a birthday song for me, and I handed out the muffins. Of course, everyone loved them because my dad was an excellent cook!
...
*Ding Dong Ding Dong*
The bell rang, and school was finally over! I packed up my school things and said goodbye to my friends. With joy, I walked home.
...
"Goodbye!" I said to my last guest. "See you tomorrow!"
"Hey, my big boy," Dad said. "Tired after a long day?"
I yawned and said, "A little."
"Hmm, well, get ready for bed!"
"Alright! Oh yeah, where's Mom?"
"She'll be back in a minute; she just went to see a doctor."
I nodded and went upstairs. Unfortunately, I couldn't tease my sister anymore as she was already in bed. I brushed my teeth and put on my pajamas when I heard the front door open.
I wanted to go downstairs, but when I heard my mom crying, my legs froze.
"What's wrong, Elisa?" I heard Dad ask.
"I can't handle it anymore... He says I should never lose hope. That someday it will end... But it's all in vain. Slowly... I'm losing faith!"
I heard some noises and assumed my dad was hugging her.
Later, they went into the living room, and I couldn't hear them anymore.
At night, I could hardly sleep due to the uneasy feeling that my mom's crying had stirred in me. My mother always said that hope was humanity's greatest blessing, as without hope, people would be lost. She got that from her mom, and her mom from hers, and so on.
But now, Mom was doubting it. The woman who attached "I hope" to almost every sentence. I pondered for half the night about what was happening, but eventually, I got too tired and fell asleep.
The next morning, my parents acted as if nothing had happened, and after a while, I started to think that maybe I had dreamed it all.
"Elisa?" my dad asked.
"Manfred?" my mom replied.
"Don't you have to go to work?"
"Uh, I took the day off today," she replied with a mischievous smile.
My dad nodded in agreement and continued spreading butter on his bread.
...
After I finished eating, I went upstairs to get ready. When I was about to leave the house, my mom came over and said, "Have a great day!"
*Thud* Suddenly, that uncomfortable feeling returned. It was so unusual because my mom would never just say, "Have a great day," she always said, "I hope you have a great day."
Maybe the feeling wouldn't have been so bad if I hadn't heard her crying the night before. But now, I carried that uneasy feeling with me throughout the day at school.
Since I had stomachaches due to the bad feeling, I went to my dad to ask if I could go home.
Fortunately, my dad wasn't teaching at the moment, so I could ask him without any problems.
Five minutes later, I stood in front of our door, retrieving the key from my school bag.
*BANG*
I heard an ear-piercing explosion. I looked around in shock, realizing that the noise came from our house.
I quickly opened the door, fearing that something had happened to my mom. I entered the hallway and stepped into something liquid.
*BANG*
I screamed, "AHHH."
I fell down, with my stomach first into the liquid something .
I saw... RED, everything was red! I was lying in a pool of blood. Next to me was a dead man.
With wide, terrified eyes, I quickly forgot the pain in my lower abdomen and looked toward the couch.
There sat my mom, murmuring my name.
"I-I-I, Isaac? What are you doing here? No, God... I'm so sorry. No... WHY ARE YOU HERE ALREADY!?"
In that moment, she visibly went through a lot of emotions and inner conflicts. Finally, after a short pause, she looked me in the eyes and whispered almost inaudibly, "I'm sorry... I love you," and pointed the gun at her head.
I stared deep into my mom's eyes, wanting to say something, but I was distracted by the annoying cries of my little brother who had been woken up by the noise. He was in the next room.
I collected myself again, looked at Mom, and opened my mouth.
*BANG*
_______
"Oh dear, I haven't had that nightmare in a long time," I said with sadness.
I looked around and realized I had awakened in the Control Room. Since that incident, I couldn't stand the sight of blood, and I couldn't completely shake off that trauma.
I had become somewhat desensitized over time, but witnessing someone's beheading was still far beyond my tolerance.
That day marked the first turning point in my life, and I still vividly remembered it. Sometimes I wanted to forget it, but most of the time, I couldn't. It was the only memory I had of my mother, even though it wasn't during her best times.
Her appearance and the lesson never to hope too much were etched into my mind. Her crystal-clear green eyes, both her trademark and her curse, remained unforgettable.
I also remember that eventually, the police and emergency services arrived because some neighbors had called them after hearing the gunshots and screams.
They quickly secured the scene, sparing the rest of the family from witnessing the gruesome aftermath.
Fortunately, there were no legal issues with the firearm since my father had a gun license.
The gun was usually locked in a safe.
My mother had acted in self-defense, and this problem had been ongoing for a while. However, I was unaware of these details for a long time, which led to my deep self-doubt.
I didn't lose my genitals, thankfully, but I did lose a testicle. I didn't know how I had been so lucky amidst the tragedy, but it helped me avoid being genderless.
However, I became infertile as a result.
From that day on, I became more withdrawn and focused on my career as an astronaut. I had found the universe and biology fascinating before, but after that day, I also saw it as a sanctuary. It allowed me to redirect my thoughts away from the past.
My dream and goal were to travel to space. Before,
My sister, unfortunately, struggled with it the most... but I don't want to bring that up now.
"Enough of that!" I scolded myself. "That was more than 100 years ago!"
"But speaking of dreams and goals, what do I have in this world?"
"Maybe I should start by finding out the name of this world," I joked. "Or perhaps actually live to be 133 years old this time!"
For now, I didn't dwell on it. I was more interested in how long I had been absent. So, I checked my status and noticed that it had been 9 hours.
"I seem to be sleeping a bit longer in this world," I mumbled. "Or is it because I'm a Dungeon Core now?"
------
[Status]
Name: -
Age: 0 years, 0 months, 4 weeks, 0 days, 21 hours
Species: Dungeon Core
Level: 3/4
Exp: 36013 / 40000
EC: 284/450
----------
Nearly a whole day had passed since the lizard people entered the first floor, and for them, almost 20 days had gone by. Even during the time I was lost in thought, another week had passed.
Because I was quite interested in the progress of the lizard people, I quickly teleported to the first floor.
I didn't hold a grudge against the lizard people for their ritualistic killings. Traveling in my old world had taught me that there were many different cultures and customs, and many people killed others.
You couldn't change them, so I preferred to learn about their cultures to understand their purposes. And I believed that this was especially important in a new world.
After a brief detour into my thoughts, I focused on the first floor, or rather, the lizard city.
What immediately caught my eye was the increase in the number of buildings. There were now many more houses, probably around 60, and some stone roads were being constructed.
The wall on the hills surrounding the emerging city now stood at about 4 meters above the ground and was a good 2 meters thick. I also noticed the construction of watchtowers and the expansion of the wall.
Probably several thousand lizard people were working on fortifying the wall, and even more were involved in building the city. Everything was progressing rapidly.
Furthermore, they had started digging a tunnel through the hill, likely for a simple entrance gate. Currently, they had to climb the hills to exit the bay.
I also saw that they were conserving wood, and as a result, many structures were made of stone, with only a few houses using wood. This was understandable because there wasn't much wood available within a 1000 km radius.
I also noticed the beginning of fields, situated outside the bay. Several thousand farmers were diligently working on them, while several thousand soldiers stood guard to ensure their safety.
I was a bit surprised because I had expected intruders to try to destroy me, but these lizard people seemed more interested in settling down.
"That's probably for the best!" I said with some relief.
Out of curiosity, I flew to the city's center, which was still composed of tents.
It seemed that a city plan was already in place, as everything was neatly arranged. In the middle, close to the sea, were the houses, with a really wide road being built. This road led to the still-under-construction tunnel.
About halfway, there was a large marketplace, which was already paved with cobblestones.
Larger tents were set up there, housing multiple kitchens where the lizard people cooked. They brought in food on large wagons from the outside world, just like the humans.
Everything was running smoothly, and it was relatively peaceful.
What I found really cool was their use of the [Salty Aqueous Space]. They filled jugs with water, effectively doubling their volume.
Like that they can store double the amount. Of course, they only used waterproof items like stones to transport in the water.
These items were transported because the stone quarry for the [Space Hardened Stone] was located outside the bay.
I checked on the commanders again, but they were clearly strategizing, and since I couldn't understand them anyway, the visit was rather uneventful.
"Nothing much happening right now," I said to myself.
I didn't plan to visit the temple again at the moment, and currently, the lizard people hardly left the bay, if at all.
After an hour of observation and searching for the people I had imprisoned, I lost interest.
I was about to leave the first floor to see if I could finally make some adjustments to my Control Room when I saw the commander assembling an army of 10,000 soldiers.
"Oh, that looks interesting!" I exclaimed and flew over to them.