Next, I decide to test Dungeon Vision. Having a body again is fantastic. But the possibility to see my whole territory is quite useful. And could prove invaluable in the future as well.

To be on the safe side, I sit cross-legged before activating the ability. And I have to say that's the strangest feeling I've ever had. I can see everything from a bird's eye view again. But at the same time, I can see through the eyes of my Avatar. It's like I have another pair of eyes.

I take the opportunity to have a closer look at my new body. I know that I am a little smaller than Isgard and Siegward, maybe about 145 cm? My hair is about shoulder length, but not red or any other "normal" colour. My hair is pink! Am I really a dwarf and not a gnome? At least it is not bright pink, they are rather white with a slight touch of pink. Not that I can change anything about it. But still.

I look pretty young. No matter how I look, it just doesn't fit the age of 32. Could it be that dwarves grow slower than humans? So maybe I'm not an adult yet. Siegward didn't exactly have the full beard that dwarves usually have. So perhaps we're more like teenagers?

The fact that the remaining dwarves are all scattered around could be helpful for me. After all, I know nothing about their traditions or their way of life. So, it's less likely that anyone will get suspicious. I could say that I have lost my memory, but there are three of us at the moment. That would be an extraordinary coincidence.

My next move was to find out more about Create Life. But was interrupted by movement at the cave entrance. Five goblins and a big basket, apparently, they collected the weapons and other valuables of the dead adventurers.

"Looks like the missing goblins have returned. They had taken their time."

I rise and leave the core room with Isgard. I hold my restored sword in my hand, and she still has her stone axe, which I made for her in the beginning. I then tell Siegward to get the two girls. They're back in the storage room right now, collecting the last of the ears.

Next, I absorb the bodies here. There's no need to wade through the gore. The whole thing will bring me an extra 143 kg of biomass. That gives me a total of 222 kilograms. Together with Create Life, this should be extremely helpful.

Although I don't have any definite plans for the future, however, the fact that I am bound to the Dungeon Core limits me. There is no question that I must protect it. However, I don't want to have to spend the rest of my life in a dungeon either.

Apart from the biomass, the looting was pretty disappointing — a few low-quality weapons. At least I managed to salvage some wood.

Next, I'll reactivate the pendulum blade trap, which uses up a painful amount of mana. Getting the six heavy stone blades back into position is not easy. Maybe I should develop a device to make this possible without mana? In the meantime, I should save the trap for emergencies.

The goblins seem a bit restless, which is no surprise. After all, they did not expect to be alone in the cave. And when Siegward returned with the two humans, I formulated my plan.

"I never asked you, but what weapons do you usually use?"

"We are both archers, but we can fight with other weapons if necessary." - Chloe

"Well, in that case, together with Siegward, support us from behind with your spears. Isgard, you go to the main cave and lure the goblins. There are five of them there. Just make yourself known and come back immediately."

Paula doesn't really seem convinced. Although in a narrow tunnel and in formation we have every advantage we can get against a horde of goblins.

"Don't worry. I still have an ace up my sleeve. We're in no real danger."

If possible, I would like to defeat the goblins without my pitfall. On the one hand, to get a feel for fighting. But also, to save the mana for reactivation. Besides, it would be harder to collect the ears if they were down in a pit.

It will not be long before Isgard returns running. And, as anticipated, she is being pursued by the five green pests. We expect them in a triangular formation. Chloe and Paula are on the outside, Siegward in the middle. All three of them have their spears ready. I stand before them with Isgard.

I can sense Siegward is not happy with his position behind me. Is it because of my Skill Battlefield Perception? Sorry, I can understand you wanting to protect your mistress. But I'm not passing up this opportunity.

It's a relatively simple fight. And I need to test how good my one-handed sword skill really is. I know he's at level 4. But is that high? Is there a maximum level? If so, where is it? 10? 20? Or even 100?

The same applies to my attribute points. All of them are near 10. While we should be able to defeat these opponents, but how high can you raise the stats? Is it possible to become superhumanly strong? Or is it merely numbers representing your capabilities?

But before I indulge my bad habit of analysing everything, I'd better concentrate on fighting.

The goblins carry their usual weapons — Spears, clubs, nothing high-grade. I can't really understand their behaviour. They just got back from a raid, plundering weapons of iron and steel. Why do they keep using their old weapons?

One of them tries to jump me. A spear from behind me stops him. I use my sword to behead him. Next to me, Isgard slays another foe. To wield the sword feels remarkably natural. I'm a little surprised. I used a rapier in my fencing classes while this blade is both a cutting and stabbing weapon.

But something is missing, a shield perhaps? That's what has always bothered me most in fencing. I was a coward and didn't want to be hit. Not a bad attitude in a real fight, but excessive defence can be a hindrance. I should try to make a shield later. Maybe it will feel better.

The next two goblins were killed as quickly as the first two. And the last one seemed to seek his salvation in flight. Siegward, however, tossed his spear into the air to change his grip. And then hurled his spear at the runaway.

The cave would now officially be in my possession. Next, we'll collect the proof of submission. Then I absorb their bodies through the dungeon floor like the others before. With the five bodies here and the three in the storage room, I now have 502 kg biomass. But that will only be relevant later.

"Waah, what the bodies... oh, right. It's a dungeon..." - Paula

"What? Surely you don't pity the goblins. Besides, it would be a lot of work to get this place clean..."

Of course, they're still vigilant towards us. But there's nothing I can do about that now. Besides, the corpses would probably start to stink soon if I didn't get rid of them.

"Come on, let's go to the main cave. Maybe we can find something useful there. Most of our weapons aren't of excellent quality, after all. And we lack other supplies as well. Though I probably wouldn't touch food carried by a goblin."

I don't necessarily want to say them I have Dungeon View. We'll find their weapons anyway. And there's no reason to tell them I already know their weapons are there.

So, we go into the cave, and it won't be long before they find the basket filled with their stuff.

"Here, Chloe, our weapons. Damn it. They broke my bow." - Paula

This could be an opportunity to collect some plus points. Might make it easier for them to agree to give us the rest of the weapons. At least I shouldn't lose anything in the process.

"Let me see Paula. Maybe I can do something."

Paula looks at me confused but gives me the broken bow.

"What are you gonna do? It's ruined."

I'll just take the bow and say nothing. I hold the two pieces of the bow together and try to repair it. It requires more concentration than the sword. After all, the blade of the sword was still in one piece. But after a few moments, it lights up like the sword and is as good as new.

"What the? You know magic? I've heard of master smiths using magic to make weapons. But I've never seen anything like it." - Chloe

"Is magic so rare? That wasn't really difficult..."

That way, I might learn more about the magic in this world. At least they seem really impressed by my little trick, though I haven't done anything that'd make a difference in a fight yet.

"Rarely? Well, it's not commonplace. But is something I've never seen before. The magic you encounter most often is life magic from priests. And most of them can only heal minor wounds." - Chloe

It seems magicians are quite rare. At least not every other group of adventurers should be with a mage. I wonder if it's because magic is not really suited for combat. Because even if not, I'm sure there are enough other applications where magic can be beneficial.