"-another dimension." as Alfon told the gathered elites of what a dungeon is, Ardent find himself shocked.
'A dungeon is in another dimension?! Well, it make some sense now that I think about it.' he realized it make a certain amount of sense. After all, entering through the portal lead him to another space, even if it is the size of a cave or so.
"Another dimension?" clearly, the chief did not understand the meaning of the word, and so does many of the elders. In fact, Ardent could see the Mages being confused.
"Yes. Or, to explain it in another term, a dungeon is essentially another world, another plane of existence aside from ours." it did not help by much, but it still help the villagers understand it somewhat.
Still confused, one of the elders raised his hand. Ardent recognized him as the leader of the guards, Frank's boss.
"While we can hear Mage Alfon explained to us what a dungeon is, I prefer to know how it can help with the village's growth, and how it can be dangerous for the village."
Ardent was not surprise by chosen topic. As the leader of the guards, the elder focused on what encompassed his duty and responsibility. As such, anything that could endanger the village will be something he wished to know.
"... Simply put, the dungeons contain a high-prized resource, one that cannot be found anywhere else." Alfon said after a brief moment of silent.
Taking out the crystal, he turned towards Cross, who looked at the guards. The guards lifted the crystal brought back by Frank and Ardent, putting it in front of the elites and elders.
"What is this?" the leader of the guards asked.
"This is a Mana Crystal, one mined from the dungeon." the elders looked at one another before the chief spoke.
"This Mana crystal, it contained Mana?" Alfon nodded at the question,
"Yes, it contain Mana and is used to power the Magic Circuit in large towns and cities." the elders and elites gasped.
Ardent was not surprised by their reaction, sharing the same expression as well. After all, Magic Circuit is a technology that had spread and used by even villages like theirs.
When he become a Mage, Ardent learned of what allowed the piping system of the village to be used. It is the Magic Circuit. By engraving Magic Circuit into the pipes, the village can get water pumped directly from the river.
While the village could not get anything like a water purifier, it still allow easier transportation of water into each household, allowing better hygiene among the villagers.
The Zero Circle Mage task, aside from protecting the village when needed are to power the Magic Circuit. They pour their Mana into the Magic Circuit, which stored it and use it whenever the villagers use the piping system.
It also helped with the irrigation of the field, making it the most important technology in the village. Ardent also learned that Magic Circuit can be used for other technologies, like powering street lights, creating a heating system, and so on.
However, due to the lack of Mana to power anything aside from the piping system, the village could only use it for the more important utility. However, with the presence of the dungeon, they might be able to use it to power the Magic Circuit, allowing for more utility and having the Zero Circle Mage to focus more on patrolling and more important tasks other than being a moving power source.
"So, we can gather this, Mana Crystal and use it to power the Magic Circuit?" the chief asked with hope in his voice. Seeing Alfon nodded, he smiled, though he quickly remembered that the Mage had warned him of the danger of the dungeon.
"And, what is the downside of the dungeon?"
"The dungeon contained beings called monsters. Depending on the dungeon, there will be different monsters but the most common one are goblins, the creature that attacked the caravan, or so reported by Mage Ardent." Alfon explained before looking at him.
Ardent nodded and recount his encounter, with the guard trio chiming in when necessary. Once he finishes, the village chief looked at Alfon inquisitively.
"So, the monsters can be dealt with, right?" Alfon shook his head,
"Not permanently." he exclaimed. Seeing the bewildered expression on the chief, the elder Mage explained,
"Monsters will always be created inside the dungeon. So, no matter how many monsters were killed, there will always be more. So, even if we don't want to control the dungeon, we need to set up a group of guards with some Mages to ensure the population of the monsters did not exceed a certain threshold which would allow them to destroy the village with sheer number.
And, there is more. The dungeons can grow."
"Grow? But isn't it just a place?" the chief asked.
"Well, not technically growing, just the term used for it. The longer a dungeon is connected to our world, it will have more floors. And, the deeper the dungeon, the more powerful the monsters it can create."
Alfon had a grave look as he continued, "If the floors reach a certain depth, a powerful monster that even our best Mages could not handle will appear. Thankfully, it will take sometime for the dungeon to grow, so we will not be assailed by powerful monsters right off the bat."
The chief and the elders looked relieved. However, such feeling did not last long as Alfon reminded them of one more peril.
"However, the more dangerous threat to the village would be other villages, or the large towns and cities." Alfon told the elders.
While some of the elders were confused, the chief, and guard leader realized what the old man meant by that.
"They might try to suppress and force the village to be permanently under their banners, or be destroyed to have a hold of the dungeon." the guard leader exclaimed. At once, the elders realized the grave danger of the dungeon, and so did Ardent.