Is it wrong to have a Celestial Grimoire in the Dungeon ?

"I didn't know you fancied yourself a craftsman," Fels remarked, watching curiously as Almus worked.

"Yeah, well, this knowledge just pops into my head every now and then," Almus replied, putting the final touches on his creation. "And now? Now I know how to make war constructs."

In front of him stood a stone construct, about 1.8 meters tall, with two curved scythe-like arms. Its head was shaped like a jackal, giving it an eerie, almost regal presence.

"My magic lets me mold stone, so I make it malleable, then shape it however I want," he explained, stepping back to admire his work. "From what I remember… there were entire civilizations that would've killed for this skill."

The thousands of Nehekaran slaves used to build the Tomb Kings' grand monuments were a testament to their cruelty and greed. But now, Almus could achieve the same results alone.

"But how do you plan to animate it?" Fels asked, his curiosity evident as he examined Almus' creation. Despite his shadowed face, there was no hiding the excitement in his tone.

"I can store it in my shadow using my Lore of Ulgu and control it like a puppet with Chaos Sorcery," Almus explained, running a hand along the jackal-headed construct. "I also want to test if constructs can contribute to my Falna stats."

"They can't," Fels replied with a knowing smile. "I've tested it before. I have some golems—very powerful ones—but they don't add anything to the Falna, no matter how strong they are."

"Pity," Almus shrugged, watching the construct with a thoughtful expression. "But that's not gonna stop me from trying."

With a flick of his wrist, his hand glowed with a soft blue hue, and a chunk of stone peeled itself from the nearby wall, floating weightlessly in the air.

Fels watched closely, intrigued. "Your control over magic is… still spectacular."

Almus smirked. "Yeah, well, I've been experimenting. My Lore of Ulgu lets me bend shadows, but it's not just about making illusions or hiding. I've been testing how I can manipulate space itself. Meanwhile, Chaos Sorcery is on a whole different level—it's raw, flexible, and it doesn't follow the usual rules of magic here. and I can write some runes on my weapons or my constructs for various effects"

He shaped the floating stone, molding it effortlessly into a small, jagged dagger before letting it dissolve into dust.

"I can shape objects freely, but the durability varies. If I take my time, I can make something solid, but if I rush it, the material is fragile. That's probably why the Tomb Kings reinforced their constructs with magic instead of just relying on the stone itself."

Fels nodded, fascinated. "You're adapting quickly."

"Well, when you've got an actual Grimoire feeding you knowledge, things move fast," Almus chuckled. "I barely understand half of what's coming into my head sometimes, but when I test it out, it just… works."

"Knowledge without experience is nothing," Fels mused. "But you're bridging that gap fast. Have you tried applying these findings in combat yet?"

"Not in a real fight," Almus admitted. "I've used magic to enhance my blade work, control my constructs, and test different forms of energy projection, but I haven't fully integrated it into my combat style yet."

Fels crossed his arms, thinking. "Perhaps it's time to push your limits. The Dungeon is unpredictable. You need to be certain of your abilities before diving deeper."

Almus smirked. "Then I guess it's time for another test run."

"Be careful," Fels warned, his tone serious. "Like I told you before, in the Dungeon, danger doesn't always come from the monsters."

"You really think someone would be dumb enough to attack me?" Almus scoffed.

"Yes," Fels said without hesitation.

Almus chuckled, shaking his head.

"And speaking of dumb," Fels continued, crossing his arms, "walking into the Hostess of Fertility yesterday? Brilliant move. Freya was probably there, and if she was, she definitely scanned your soul."

Almus' grin faltered slightly.

"Let's just hope she found you repulsive rather than interesting—or worse, beautiful."

Almus shrugged and turned to leave, his shadow silently swallowing up the unfinished Ushabti construct.

It was one of the war constructs that had caught his interest—relatively easy to produce, at least in terms of shaping the body. The weapons, though? That was a different challenge.

He had enchanted the scythe-like arms with sharpness runes, ensuring they could cut through flesh and armor alike. The entire body was reinforced with runes of swiftness and durability, making it faster and tougher than any simple stone golem.

Now, all that was left was testing it in the field.

–

Well, that was an absolute massacre.

The Ushabti moved with an unnatural speed for something its size—not lightning-fast, but definitely faster than Almus, and he knew it.

Maybe I should start putting runes on myself too, he mused, watching as the construct effortlessly cleaved two goblins in half with a single swing.

Controlling it wasn't too difficult, though his movements with it still felt rough in some areas—sloppy, even. He wasn't at full mastery yet, but that was just a matter of time and practice.

A kobold lunged at the Ushabti, sinking its teeth into the stone. Bad move. The moment its fangs met the enchanted surface, it howled in agony, clearly realizing too late that biting solid rock wasn't the smartest idea.

Before it could recover, the construct's scythe-arm flashed, and the kobold was reduced to nothing but neatly sliced chunks of meat.

Almus quickly scanned the area, making sure no adventurers were nearby—he wasn't ready for anyone to see his new baby just yet.

Now, back to testing.

If he really wanted to see what the Ushabti could do, he needed to take it down to the tenth floor. The fifth floor and everything above it? Way too easy. Goblins and Kobolds barely put up a fight.

Maybe I should build a whole army of Ushabti…

The thought was tempting, but first, he needed to see if this one was worth the effort.

The Ushabti carved through monsters as they descended deeper, its scythe-arms slicing through anything in its path. Almus stayed alert, keeping an eye out for adventurers—he wasn't ready to explain his pet project just yet. Fortunately, they hadn't run into anyone so far.

As they reached the lower floors, the War Shadows and Killer Ants put up more resistance. The War Shadows were fast and unpredictable, slipping through attacks and striking from unexpected angles. Meanwhile, the Killer Ants were just too many—a single slash couldn't wipe them all out at once.

And just like that, the Ushabti was overrun.

Almus raised his hand, a grin forming as he unleashed a spell. Orange flames erupted around the construct, but instead of harming it, the fire clung to its form like armor. Every monster that touched the enchanted flames recoiled in agony, their bodies devoured by the relentless heat.

The Ushabti's scythe-arms swung. Monsters fell.

Strong… but not overwhelming, Almus analyzed, watching the battle unfold.

Maybe I should start incorporating spells directly into their design.

As the battle dragged on, more and more monsters swarmed, and Almus noticed something—the Ushabti's scythe-blades were starting to chip.

"Stone isn't as durable as I'd hoped," he muttered as the last Killer Ant fell.

With a nod, he extended his shadow beneath him, watching as it expanded and swallowed the Ushabti whole in an instant.

He sighed. That spell was draining. His mana reserves still weren't where he needed them to be. If he wanted to create more Ushabti—better ones—he needed to strengthen his magic and, more importantly, find better materials than simple stone.

Almus shrugged it off as he made his way back up. He needed more time to tinker, experiment, and push his magic further. Maybe even work on combining his abilities more efficiently instead of just using them separately.

As he ascended, something caught his attention—footsteps. Two sets, coming from above. He was on the fifth floor, meaning someone was making their way down.

Soon enough, he saw them.

The first thing that stood out was the massive bag—definitely a supporter. And the second?

It made him smirk for just a second.

The kid from the Hostess of Fertility.

He passed by them casually, noting the brief flicker of surprise on their faces before offering a simple nod.

"Have a safe dive," Almus said smoothly.

The kid—Bell, if he remembered correctly—blinked before nodding back. "Ah, thank you! You too, sir!"

The supporter, a small girl with light brown hair, gave him a quick once-over before dipping her head slightly. "Same to you, mister."

And with that, they continued down, and he continued up.

Small world.

–

"I told you, it wouldn't increase," Fels said, glancing at Almus, who looked a little disappointed as he checked his Falna.

"Hey, a man can dream!" Almus replied with a grin, shaking off the letdown. "Anyway, I've got things to do. Do we have any metal lying around?"

"We've got a little bit of iron in one of the storage chambers," Fels answered.

"Then I'll take it. I need to run some tests," Almus said, his grin turning sharp as he let out a low chuckle.

Fels gave him a long look. "Just don't create something monstrous," he sighed before turning to leave.

Almus didn't answer—he was already deep in thought.

The moment Fels left, he made his way to the storage chamber, grabbing as much iron as he could carry before hauling it back to his workspace. His mind buzzed with ideas as he set everything down and got to work.

Melting the metal was the first step. With a flick of his fingers, a controlled burst of Chaos Sorcery sent waves of heat coursing through the iron, causing it to glow red-hot in seconds. Carefully, he manipulated the molten metal, guiding it like liquid light as he began shaping the first set of blades.

The stone scythes had worked well enough—but they had chipped too easily. If he wanted his Ushabti army to be truly effective, they needed proper weapons.

Slowly, he forged curved, wickedly sharp blades, modeling them after the ancient weapons he had seen in his Necrotect knowledge. Twin sickles, broad khopesh blades, and long halberds, each crafted with magical reinforcement.

Once the metal hardened, he engraved runes along the edges, layering enchantments for sharpness, durability, and magic conductivity.

Almus held up one of the finished khopesh blades, the light catching on the darkened steel. He gave it a few test swings, feeling the weight, the balance—it was perfect or it was the same as in his memories on how the Necrotect did, so it must be perfect right ?

With a satisfied nod, he moved to his next step: integrating these weapons into the Ushabti and seeing just how deadly they could really be.

"I need to get a feel for these weapons first," Almus muttered, gripping one of the freshly forged blades. "If I want the Ushabti to wield them properly, I have to understand how they handle myself."

With that, he started practicing in the silence of his workshop, testing the weight, the balance, the flow of movement.

—

[Perk Obtained: Daemon Transformation]

[Allows you to assume the form and power of a Greater Daemon of your affiliated god, this perk has no drawbacks, nor the will of the God nor the will of the Daemon will affect you]

[Available Form: Lord of Change]

[Perk Taken!]

—

And so, the training continued.

The next day.

And the one after that.

—

[Perk Obtained: Balthazar Gelt's Entire Attire]

A mage's robes woven with mastery, infused with layers of magical reinforcement and alchemical genius. The golden armor is both a powerful conduit for magic and an impenetrable defense, making the wearer nearly untouchable to conventional attacks. The enchanted mask,, obscures the face while offering enhanced perception of magic and the winds of metal.

Almus barely hesitated.

I'll take it.

In an instant, the attire materialized before him. He reached out, running a hand over the golden robes and armor, feeling the sheer power humming beneath the surface.

"This," he muttered with a grin, "is a damn good upgrade."

–

"Have you finished your training?" Ouranos asked, watching as his child—now draped in gleaming golden robes and armor—stood before him. The intricate attire shimmered under the dim light, exuding an aura of strangeness to him, he felt like he was looking at a rainbow.

Beneath the golden mask, Almus smiled, though it was hidden from view.

"Yes," his voice came out slightly distorted through the mask. "I've gained a solid understanding of the weapons I crafted for my Ushabti. Now, I'm heading to the Dungeon to gather materials for my next experiments."

Ouranos studied him for a moment, a faint but noticeable frown forming on his usually impassive face.

"You've changed," the god said, his tone quiet but firm. "And very quickly at that."

Almus tilted his head slightly. "Like I told Fels, the Grimoire is affecting how I think. Right now, I have more memories from it than from my own life. So yeah… it's changing me."

Ouranos hummed thoughtfully. "If you don't want to lose yourself, be careful not to take too many of these 'perks.' I don't want to see my child turn into something unrecognizable overnight."

Almus nodded, his gaze dropping to the ground. "I'll think about it… but I have to get stronger."

"You already are strong," Ouranos said firmly. "What you need now is time to grow into that strength."

Almus stood there for a moment, lost in thought, before finally turning toward the exit.

"You're right," he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper as he walked away, leaving Ouranos alone on his throne, watching him with an unreadable expression.

From the shadows, Fels' voice echoed. "I think I prefer him like this. He's calmer… doesn't ramble as much as before."

Ouranos sighed. "Perhaps. But that in itself is concerning."

Fels kept his gaze on the spot where Almus had disappeared. "Yeah… it is."

Ouranos shifted his focus. "How are the Xenos?"

Fels' tone darkened. "Someone's hunting them."

Ouranos' expression hardened. "Explain."

"I've heard reports—some of them have vanished without a trace. No bodies, no signs of struggle. Just… gone."

The god's voice was firm. "Watch over all of Orario, Fels. I want the culprit found, another monster would have left traces, this is the works of adventurers"

Fels nodded. "Consider it done."

–

another chapter for ya all.