The thread is still glowing.
Just hovering there. Warm light, steady hum, a faint system whine like it's buffering responsibility in real time.
Nobody moves.
Splitjaw tilts his head. "You gonna touch it?"
"No," I say.
Embergleam raises an eyebrow. "Then why are we still here?"
The Kid looks at me, glowing eyes and soot-streaked grin. "It likes you."
I hate that phrase. The system shouldn't like anything.
[Node Core Anchor Available]
[Integration Optional – No Take-Backs]
I hate that part more.
I should leave it. I should step back and say "No thanks, not my department." Let the system reboot into someone more heroic. Or someone with a plan. Or literally anyone who didn't chew roots for three days straight and panic over firewood distribution.
But I can't.
Because the chamber hasn't stopped watching me.
And I'm tired of being watched like I'm a guest in my own home.
I step forward. Slowly. Carefully. The glow warms. The thread spins.
I touch it.
System explodes.
[Anchor Claimed – Subnode Registered]
[Thread Accepted – Partial Sovereign Alignment Confirmed]
[Domain Status: Initiated]
My vision whites out. I don't black out—that would be too easy. I stay completely, painfully aware while the system proceeds to staple a whole new interface onto my brain.
[New Trait Acquired – Sovereign Instinct (Upgraded)]
[Passive Field: Influence Radius Expanded]
[Kobold-Type Recognition Established – Loyalty Modifier Active]
[You Can Now Be Blamed For Everything]
Okay, that last one isn't real. But it feels real.
The chamber shifts.
Literally shifts. The cracked walls straighten. The ceiling seals.
Embergleam takes a step back, mutters something about pressure.
Splitjaw whistles low. "Well. That's new."
The Kid reaches out like he wants to touch the air. "It's singing."
I don't hear music.
I hear the system warming up its "you're in charge now" voice.
We sit down because standing feels like inviting more system declarations. The floor's warm now. Comfortable. Stable.
System pings again.
[Anchor Node Integration Complete]
[Local Party Recognized – Direct Sync Engaged]
[Bonus Traits Distributed]
Splitjaw jerks upright.
[New Trait – Command Burst (Passive)]
[Effect: Momentary Morale and Reflex Spike – Triggered by Proximity to Leader]
He immediately tries to flex his arms harder. It doesn't work, but he looks very proud of himself.
Embergleam flinches. Her flames adjust. Cleaner. More precise.
[New Trait – Controlled Burn (Active)]
[Effect: Focused Flame Channeling – Less Collateral. Slightly.]
She grins like a lunatic and lights her tail on fire to test it. It goes blue. I make a note to never get on her bad side.
The Kid?
The glyph on his hand glows solid.
[New Class Assigned – Glyph Binder (Unstable)]
[Trait Gained – Echo Reading: Allows interpretation of ancient system threads]
[Skill Gained – Circuit Seal: Limited-use trap glyph anchor]
He doesn't say anything. Just starts drawing again, happy as a lizard in lava.
I exhale slowly.
System pings again.
[You Have Been Upgraded – Node Sovereign Classification: Civil-Class Initiate]
[Settlement Recognition Path: Opened]
The throne behind me pulses once. The room dims in response. The system has calmed down.
Everyone is looking at me.
Splitjaw leans back on his spear.
"So… are we calling you boss now?"
"No."
"Lady Flame?"
"Absolutely not."
"Dungeon Duchess?"
"I will bury you."
He grins.
The Kid doesn't say anything.
He just looks at me like I lit something in him too.
The system gives me one final message before we leave:
[Settlement Thread Anchored – External Signal Emission: Unavoidable]
[You Have Been Seen]
I should be worried.
Instead, I feel steady.
Not powerful.
Just… connected.
I didn't ask to be this.
But I'm not running from it either.
---
The walk back is way too easy.
Like, suspiciously easy.
No collapsing tunnels. No angry echoes. No "surprise, this is actually a death trap" reveals. Just smooth halls and weirdly obedient dungeon stone.
"Okay," I mutter. "Now the floor wants to be helpful?"
[Node Affinity Established – Subnode Structures Respond to Sovereign Presence]
"Oh so now I'm worthy? Where was this energy when I got stabbed?"
Splitjaw shrugs. "You looked more stab-able back then."
I don't know what that means. I also don't want to ask.
The deeper we go, the more the system pokes me.
Little things.
[Ashring Subdomain Registered]
[Settlement Type: Developing Node – Civil Thread Active]
[Maximum Support Capacity Raised – 50 Units]
[New Structures Unlocked: Supply Cache, Perimeter Marker, Mood Stone (Decorative)]
Mood Stone?
What is that? Why does it exist? Who programmed this system?
Splitjaw whistles. Embergleam pokes one of the glowing corridor moss and grins when it pulses under her hand. The Kid's just quietly humming. Again. That's either adorable or terrifying, and I no longer know which.
When we step out of the subnode tunnel into the main hall, camp is waiting.
Or more accurately, freezing.
Kobolds stop moving.
Like actual statues. A few drop what they're holding. One falls backward into a pile of moss and doesn't get up.
I blink.
"Did we… do something?"
Splitjaw shrugs. "You're glowing."
I look down.
My claws have a faint shimmer. My eyes probably do too.
Bitterstack takes one cautious step forward. "You look like the flame got bored and picked a person."
"Wow," I say. "That's both flattering and horrifying. Thanks."
She bows.
No no nope.
"No bowing! No cults! I'm still the same kobold who stole your lunch that one time."
A pause.
"You stole my lunch?" she asks.
"I said one time!"
Stonebite appears from somewhere with soot on his snout and a hammer in each hand. He takes one look at me, frowns, and grunts.
"You alive?"
"Yes."
He grunts again, nods, and walks off muttering something about forge ratios.
Okay. That's probably the closest I'm getting to normal.
System pings again.
[Settlement Node Active – Management Functions Unlocked]
[You May Now Assign Roles, Designate Construction Projects, and Review Morale]
Morale?
Oh no.
There's a chart now. There's an actual morale tracker. With smiley faces.
One of the icons is sobbing.
I close the window.
We regroup near the center of camp. I sit on a moss patch before the system decides I need a throne made of regrets.
Splitjaw crouches next to me. Embergleam stands guard like we're expecting war. The Kid's drawing a tiny map in the dirt that looks suspiciously accurate.
System gives me a final message:
[Settlement Stability: Holding]
[Your Claim Has Been Logged and Broadcast]
[External Signal Confirmed – Observation Pending]
I pause.
"Uh… guys?"
They all look up.
"The dungeon just sent out a beacon."
Splitjaw tilts his head. "What kind of beacon?"
"The 'please notice us' kind."
Embergleam's expression does not change.
"I hate that kind," I mutter.
[You Are Now On the Map]
Well. That can't possibly go wrong.