Reject Humanity, Return to Monke

"Well, this is one dark and long tunnel." I commented as our entire group moved as one through the passageway, the sounds of footsteps big and small echoing around the walls.

"Reminds of me and my sister's Dungeon-ta." Reia supplied her own two-cents as she glomped her older twin sister, if what Keia said about being the older sibling is true.

"Such a narrow and dim crevice such as this is a staple in our Dungeon-la. Numerous traps await those foolish enough to venture forth into unassuming danger-la." Keia then nodded with pride as she revealed to us one of their main traps being utilized inside their Dungeon, not that it isn't a secret since I'm pretty sure these two already revealed this feature to the other Dungeon Masters who joined before me.

Well, at least I can take that as inspiration if I want to make a trap for those pesky trespassers. Actually, I just got an idea.

One long room, maybe a kilometer in length and only a few meters in width, filled to the brim with traps, chokepoints, and the ever-fabled rolling boulder.

Yes, I can see it now. Trespassers being caught in an ambush and killed by the mobs, or them being caught in a trap and succumbing to their death due to the injuries they would suffer.

Or my personal favorite, being mashed to a pulp by rolling boulder.

'I'll have to find a way to make that boulder indestructible, or sturdy enough to withstand an incredibly powerful attack from a trespasser.' I mused in my mind some options, such using a giant boulder made of adamantium, which is a huge waste, but then again, all I had to do was place the boulder back in its main spot after use, so it would be a reusable trap with no cost.

'Yep, adamantium boulder it is. Shit, I wonder how expensive that will be.' I cut that thought off since, in the near future, I'll be rolling in the dough because I'll have a lot of monsters in my Dungeon. Too bad I can't access the Dungeon Menu, otherwise, I would be able to check how many residents I have currently residing inside.

As we walked in near darkness, the only source of light coming from the various floating balls of flame hovering all around us as a byproduct of Oshurkova's magic, we spotted a tiny speck of light coming from the front.

"We're almost there. I'm sure all of you will be ready if they announce that we still have over 300 participants." The Dungeon Masters around me, who were content to walk in silence, nodded with determination. Seeing that I was new to this, I raised my hand to ask a question I'm pretty sure all of them had asked once before.

"Yes, Jionni?" Oshurkova pointed her finger at me to acknowledge my question. I brought my hand down and nodded.

"What do you mean by be ready if they announce that there are over 300 Dungeon Masters left? Of course, I can garner a guess, but I would like to be corrected if what I'm assuming is wrong." I saw her tap her chin once with her thumb, a habit I had noticed she does when she was about to answer.

"I think what you're guessing is on the mark, Jionni. Since this event is a Battle Royale, if there are still over 300 Dungeon Masters left in the event, then another Battle Royale will be held inside the arena. There, only until 300 Dungeon Masters are left, they will force us to fight with our lives on the line." Oshurkova shrugged once she was done answering my question. "Of course, the previous rule of 'get knocked unconscious, get disqualified' still applies. There is no need for needless killing. Knock them out, and try not to get knocked out yourself. Just keep in mind that there will be some casualties since some other Dungeon Masters are not part of a group yet and might jump the gun."

I nodded, satisfied with the answer I was given. I gave her a quick thanks, and she smiled in response, before the rest of the group sunk back into silence and proceeded through the dim tunnel.

As the speck of light grew brighter and brighter, I began to hear sounds. Neither are they ordinary.

I could hear chanting, screams of excitement, and some other yells I didn't want to go too into detail.

Damn my sensitive hearing. They're both a blessing and a curse.

The light was now blinding, a few minute details of the ground being recognized in my vision as we walked. The details became even more vivid as we traversed the line separating the tunnel and the area beyond.

Once we were through, we were blinded for a few seconds, before we saw the entirety of the arena we were supposed to be fighting in.

A vast expanse of hard soil covered the ground, with reinforced brick walls at the edges of the ground arena. Above those walls were the seats where the audience would watch those inside the arena duke it out with each other, and boy, were the seats full.

It was a goddamn full house.

The roaring shouts of thousands upon thousands of monsters, humans, and demi-humans alike assaulted my ears, my eardrums threatening to burst because of the noise they were generating.

'Who the hell are these people?' I covered my ears in a vain attempt to dampen the sound, noticing the other Dungeon Masters doing so as well.

Looking at the audience stands, I spotted something incredibly familiar, as well as equally surprising.

"Gong…?" Up on the stands, I could see Gong, my right-hand gorilla, waving at me with a shy smile on his face. Beside him was Domino, who was also giving me a cute wave while making sure none of the unknown monsters, humans and demi-humans came close to her. Hell, I think she's even avoiding the humans and demi-humans who were residing inside my Dungeon, as from what I can tell with Lara pouting at not being able to approach the cute human girl.

'What the hell…? Were they brought here?' My face must be incredibly obvious as Catalina hung her arm around my shoulder as she snickered right next to my ear.

"Heh, get used to it. During events like these, the God hosting the event will sometimes invite those residing inside our Dungeons to come and spectate our struggles. At least they won't get bored waiting for us." Catalina then gave a quick peck on my cheek before she separated from my body. Looking up at the stand, I saw Domino casting a murderous gaze at the catwoman, who didn't seem to notice.

'Well, that's one thing I'll be explaining to my surrogate daughter… This is going to be a disaster.'