The meeting room was filled with a stifling tension as the first rays of the setting sun began to slant through the windows. Sitting at the head of the table, the US President looked out at the strained faces of his officials and spoke with heavy gravity.
"So, gentlemen. What is the status of the dungeons?"
"To put it bluntly, sir, it is not good," one official replied. "The investigation teams, primarily consisting of the Marine Corps units that first entered, have been effectively wiped out. At present, the National Guard has established a perimeter around all confirmed dungeon entrances."
"The appearance of these dungeons has sparked waves of panic. Riots have broken out in several cities, and the police are currently deployed to suppress them. These disturbances are trending toward further expansion; we need to take decisive action immediately."
"..."
The US President let out a long, weary sigh. Early that morning, the sudden manifestation of dungeons across the country had plunged the nation into total chaos.
After receiving reports from citizens about a dungeon appearing in the middle of a city, the police had moved in to investigate. They encountered unidentified hostile lifeforms dubbed "monsters" and engaged them in combat. The officers had returned fire with their service pistols, and though they exhausted every round of ammunition, they managed to secure a narrow victory. Sensing the danger, the officers attempted to pull back to the surface to wait for reinforcements, but in doing so, they found the very thing that would later ignite nationwide unrest. In the spot where the monster had been defeated and its corpse had vanished, they discovered a gold nugget the size of a baseball, gleaming with a golden luster.
While the officers reported the find secretly once the main force arrived, attempting to hide the gold from the onlookers crowding the entrance, the secret didn't stay kept for long. Somewhere, somehow, word of the gold leaked onto the internet.
The aftermath was harrowing. While the police and National Guard successfully cordoned off some dungeons, crowds of people began streaming into undiscovered or unreported entrances that the government had yet to secure. Lacking proper equipment or information, these civilians were cut down in counterattacks, leading to mass casualties. As the government realized the scale of the carnage through emergency reports from witnesses, they scrambled to dispatch more National Guard and police units. Temporary medical tents soon lined the areas near the dungeons, creating scenes that resembled frantic field hospitals.
To make matters worse, the media began broadcasting these events with very little actual information. Hearing that dungeons were death traps, the public descended into a panic, leading to widespread rioting and looting. Because the media outlets aired the riots simultaneously, it created a feedback loop of chaos that made it nearly impossible for the police and National Guard to restore order.
"The police and National Guard must focus on quelling the riots. Simultaneously, I want the military to prioritize the discovery and containment of every dungeon. We must stop this chaos from spreading any further, whatever the cost. Furthermore, I want a re-investigation scheduled as soon as the teams are reorganized. We can't build a strategy without data."
"Understood, sir."
The department heads nodded in unison.
"Then, gentlemen, let's bring this situation to an end as quickly as possible."
With that declaration from the leader of the world's most powerful nation, the emergency measures meeting concluded.
In the Council of the European Union, where representatives from various nations were gathered, a chaotic and heated debate was underway.
"How did these things even appear?! Is this your doing?!"
"How should I know? For that matter, how could anyone scatter those things across the entire globe?!"
"They appeared everywhere at once—there’s no way this is man-made!"
Faced with the unprecedented reality of the dungeons, the assembly had fallen into total dysfunction. Time slipped away with nothing being decided. The Cabinet Ministers grew increasingly frustrated with the circular arguments, and when the chairperson proposed a recess, they all jumped at the chance to escape.
Returning to his office for the break, a certain Cabinet Minister pulled a phone with a direct line to his home country from a drawer. After a few rings, he began reporting on the state of the council.
"Yes... as I thought, there is no progress within the Council of the European Union. It seems the dungeons were unexpected for every nation; it doesn't appear to be a deliberate act by any one state. That's right. No one knows why they appeared or how they work. Which means we have no idea how to close them... Yes, I will continue to gather information."
The Cabinet Minister hung up, tucked the phone away, and let out a heavy breath.
"Even in a crisis like this, they’re still obsessed with power struggles... Pathetic."
While his own country’s military and police had sealed their dungeons, many civilians had already entered, and the casualties were significant. Fortunately, no monsters had emerged from the dungeons yet, but they couldn't simply be ignored. Particularly in Europe, with its complex and interlocking borders, deploying troops near a frontier without prior agreement was unthinkable—even if it was for dungeon containment.
Yet, the meetings to establish those border protocols remained a disgrace. Every nation was terrified of making a commitment that might disadvantage them later, so they continued their fruitless debates without anyone daring to take the lead.
"It’s manageable for now, but what do they intend to do next? If we don't prepare while things are quiet, we won't be able to react when they aren't."
In EU member states alone, over fifty dungeons had been confirmed near borders, and the number was growing. The current containment efforts by local police were woefully inadequate. If monsters ever began to pour out of these dungeons, the resulting loss of life and property would be beyond calculation.
EUFOR, the multinational force under the council's command, could have secured the border dungeons quickly, but the negotiations to authorize such a move were moving at a snail's pace. Every nation was too preoccupied with the potential liability and the cost of emergency contributions.
"I suppose I'll just have to play along with this farce a little longer and pray that nothing happens..."
As the session's resumption approached, the Cabinet Minister grabbed a bottle of mineral water from his office fridge and downed it. He crushed the empty bottle, tossed it into the trash, and steeled himself before heading back out.
On the frozen plains of northern Russia, a massive force had assembled before a dome-shaped structure. Numerous tents had been pitched, armored vehicles and tanks were idling, and hundreds of fully armed soldiers stood in formation.
Standing before his troops on a raised platform, a man wearing the rank of Major began his address.
"As of this moment, we commence the Dungeon Suppression Operation! Upon entry, each squad will fan out and suppress the interior! Once secured, scientific teams will move in for research! All units, move out!"
At the Major's command, the heavily armed soldiers stormed into the dungeon. Once inside, they split into squads at every junction as instructed, expanding their search perimeter.
A few minutes into the operation, they finally made contact. A quadrupedal, beast-like monster lunged out of the darkness of a corridor, charging the exploration unit with ferocity. Having been granted prior authorization to engage, the soldiers fired without hesitation. The monster endured the hail of bullets for a split second, but it was simply overwhelmed. Struck by dozens of rounds from multiple angles, it collapsed. The fallen creature dissolved into particles of light and vanished, leaving behind a glass bottle filled with a blue-green liquid. Wary of traps, the soldiers carefully retrieved the bottle, stowed it in a bag as war spoils, and pushed deeper into the dungeon.
They suppressed the first floor with relative ease and discovered a staircase leading further down. After receiving the report from the entry unit, the Radio Operator looked to his commander for orders.
"How shall we proceed, Major?"
"We continue, of course. Our mission is to suppress the dungeon."
"Understood, sir."
By the Major's decision, the units pressed on.
The disaster struck when they reached the fifth floor. Transmissions that sounded like screams began to flood the command post. They were cries of agony—units begging for permission to retreat, calls for rescue, and then the chilling silence of channels that no longer responded. The Major frantically ordered the units to report their status, but the replies were incoherent and fragmented.
They claimed their bullets were bouncing off the monsters. They claimed their squad leaders had been killed and they were being surrounded. They claimed monsters were respawning on floors they had already cleared.
The Major hammered out an immediate withdrawal order to all units, but he was far too late. Only two squads acknowledged the command. Ten minutes later, even those units went silent halfway through the third floor. From the radio of the last surviving squad, which had its talk switch stuck open, the sound of something wetly chewing echoed through the speakers of the command post.
Annihilation. The word burned into the Major's mind. He had the Radio Operator attempt to re-establish contact, but there was no response—only the hollow crackle of static. Realizing the entry force had been wiped out, the Major gathered the remaining support troops and contacted battalion headquarters.
"I see. It was a failure, then."
"Yes, sir. The infantry company that entered Objective A1 has been decimated. Only the command personnel who remained outside survived; the unit is no longer combat-effective."
"...And the units that entered the other dungeons?"
"The casualty rates are nearly identical across the board."
The US President listened to the report from the Presidential Aide and massaged his temples as a headache began to throb. Dungeons had appeared worldwide. Hearing that other nations had already sent in their militaries, he had authorized his own deployments, unwilling to fall behind. But the reports coming in were a nightmare: entire units lost in exchange for a pittance of information.
"If we total the casualties from this operation, we have lost the equivalent of an entire regiment."
"An entire regiment... You're telling me thousands of soldiers are dead?"
"Yes, sir. I’m afraid so."
The US President felt a sense of vertigo. Since taking office, he had never received a report of such catastrophic losses in a single day.
"However, Mr. President, it wasn't a total loss. Look at this..."
The Presidential Aide placed a case on the desk. Inside was a transparent mineral the size of a softball.
"...What is this?"
"A rough diamond, sir. It’s approximately 3,672 carats. It easily surpasses the size of the world's largest diamond held by the British."
"?!?!"
The US President’s eyes went wide as he stared at the gemstone. Seeing his reaction, the Aide continued his persuasion.
"The loss of our personnel is a tragedy, certainly. But a single diamond of this caliber is enough to offset the economic blow."
"..."
"Furthermore, thanks to the data our teams managed to transmit, we have begun to grasp the nature of these dungeons. Future investigations will be significantly safer."
"You’re suggesting we continue?"
"I am, sir."
The US President hesitated. While the wealth from the dungeons could cover compensation for the fallen, equipment costs, and training for new recruits, continuing meant a constant drain on human life.
"Consider this, Mr. President. Even if we stop now, other nations will not. If they begin pulling resources like this from the dungeons while we stand on the sidelines, we will be the only ones left behind."
"That... would be unacceptable."
"Exactly. For the sake of our standing, we must proceed with the conquest."
"..."
The President reached his decision.
"We continue the dungeon operations. But I want a foolproof backup system in place. Minimize casualties at all costs."
"Understood."
"And what about the undiscovered dungeons?"
"The military and police are currently searching. We’re also getting tips from civilians. Unless they’re in the middle of nowhere, we should have a complete list within a few days. The details are in this report."
The Presidential Aide handed over a status report. It contained a map of the United States dotted with dungeon locations and a list of cities.
"There are so many..."
"138 have been confirmed so far. We expect the final count to exceed 200."
"I see... regardless, with this many dungeons on our soil, we can't just leave them be. We have to keep investigating and find a way to deal with them."
"Indeed, sir. At this stage, we don't even know if explosives or concrete could seal them permanently. A botched attempt might trigger an even greater disaster... Even if it costs lives, the investigation must go on."
After the brief report ended, the US President looked as though he had aged years in just ten minutes. Once the Aide left, he leaned back into his chair, utterly exhausted.
"...That's right," he whispered to the empty room, as if trying to convince himself. "Even if it costs lives."