Minutes had passed by since we had made our way onto the large, yet empty meadow of our future town and I was still trying to fight against the likely very obvious feeling of shame that came with Myra leading the group uncomfortably close to the spot where a very obvious hole had been dug into the ground.

Myra had made sure to make me feel safe even with the elf being this close to the core, by not only ordering the woman to empty her mana every few minutes but also by hugging me close to her body and enveloping me with her tails, much like Cilia had done. With my back pressed against her chest, I could only stare at the elf in front of me, who looked very apologetic now that she knew how her being here made me feel.

Luckily, not only Myra was here to help me soothe my mind, but also the Liri Foxes, who, once we had lured them out of their home in the workshop, were now sticking to me like glue, as if sensing the slight discomfort I was still experiencing. With one of them on my lap and my hands restlessly petting it, I could almost forget about the elf being here, that was until Marisa took it upon herself to start the conversation as some kind of mediator.

She began by retelling the story of how I came to be the dungeon’s avatar from her perspective, describing the ritual my father and his colleagues had set up in as much detail as she could remember, before recounting how I had been swallowed by holy light and turned into who I was now. From time to time, Marisa asked me to fill in what I knew, but honestly, my knowledge about my father’s research was as limited as her own. If anything, I could guess what he was interested in by remembering what most books in his library had been written about, namely history, myths, and legends, some of which even came in the shape of books aimed at a younger audience. There were books about magic and rituals as well, but those he had stored in the laboratory for easy access and thus out of my reach.

Another part Marisa asked me to tell us more about was my first meeting with Cilia, which I gladly did, as she had not only saved me but showered me with her motherly love, feelings I hadn’t even realized I desperately needed in my life. I not only once again confirmed that she had adopted me in just that moment, but also told her that the statue in the prayer room was showing the exact scene of this happening.

Shael accepted all of this with nods and smiles, more than eager to find out more about me and Cilia. But after she had heard about my past and the goddess, she turned the conversation to something more practical, namely how my dungeon worked, since it seemed rather unusual to her. She explained that while she could write off my rapid growth to my dungeon absorbing a different one that had been here in the past, she still had questions about my monsters.

“Why are you only using foxes?”
“I don’t have any other monsters,” I explained, before correcting myself. “Other than really weak ones Cilia said are only for the foxes to enjoy.”
“Only foxes…”

The elf nodded in satisfaction, likely having made the connection herself. Other than light and life, Cilia was the goddess of foxes, so it was only natural that she would love me to use these as a monster. Not only did she limit my selection, but she also made foxes four times as cheap, which meant I could fill my rooms with many more foxes than any other monster.

“Foxes are much cheaper to summon compared to other monsters,” I revealed, not seeing much reason to make a secret out of this.
“Is that why you have so many of them?”
“Yes. Also… I like them more,” I added while scratching the Liri Fox on my lap behind its ears.

A soft smile grew on Shael’s lips, but she quickly went back to business. Now that she knew why I was using foxes, she instead went to ask me about how I was planning to behave towards the men and women outside, and especially their kings who would likely soon make their move. To that, I had no good answer, as, even though I had lots of time to think about it, I had no knowledge of how the more powerful leaders would react to my dungeon popping into existence. If Abervale’s temple was anything to go by, they would soon make their moves, and I could only hope that they wouldn’t use force. While they wouldn’t dare to touch me or my core, I wasn’t quite sure how Aspen and the head priest would do about trained soldiers challenging their claim.

“What’s your plan with the town outside?” She asked me.
“I would like to have it open to anyone, foxkin, humans, elves, or whoever else finds their way here,” I answered with a shrug. “So rather than the king, I would prefer the temple building the town. They seem to be good people–most of them.”

Shael nodded slowly, accepting this answer, as it was the best choice I had by far. Temples were built everywhere, in the mountains, where dwarves, gnomes, dragonkin, and ratkin lived, in the human kingdoms or in the Great Forest, which was home to most beastkin races and the elves and even hostile landscapes like the Spira Desert, in which only lizardkin could thrive. While the various tribes and races indeed favored different deities, all of them would find their way into the very same temples regardless, which made these places rather open, accepting, and generally a good influences to all towns and cities they were build in. Having Abervale’s temple take control of the town outside of the dungeon was the best way for me to ensure it would become a good place to live for everyone involved. And even if it didn’t develop the way I wanted it to, I saw better chances of swaying the temple compared to dealing with nobility or royalty, as those couldn’t be brought back to reason by the fact that I was connected to Cilia in various ways.

“The temples are indeed better,” Shael decided. “That would also allow the elders to visit you.”

Hearing about the elven elders, I couldn’t help but grow slightly restless, as I wasn’t exactly good at speaking with people who had a certain authority, which is why I preferred dealing with the temples to begin with. While elves had kings and queens, every important decision of theirs was instead approved by a senate of elders, who were selected purely by merit, experience, and wisdom. I couldn’t exactly hold a candle to any of these men and women, as I was reminded of my lack of knowledge almost every single day now that I was bound to this dungeon. Having these capable elders coming to discuss with me could easily put me at a disadvantage. Like the temple, they wouldn’t try to exploit me or my dungeon, but they could surely find a way to make a deal with me that was heavily in their favor without me even noticing. I still had Myra and Marisa at my side, who were better suited for discussing with leader figures, but I couldn’t push this onto them either. I needed someone who was good at difficult talks and knowledgeable enough to not be tricked either. Only… where would I find such a person?

Myra easily noticed how I felt about this topic. While the elf was still waiting for an answer, she tried to solve this issue in her very own way, by hugging me close and enveloping me with her warmth once again. I couldn’t help but let myself be spoiled for a moment, long enough for Shael to become restless herself.

“You don’t have to meet,” she suddenly decided. “If you do not want to…”
I shook my head. “It will be better to talk to them.”
“Are you sure?”
“I want to be on good terms…”
Shael couldn’t help but smile upon hearing this. “Is there anything you would want from them? Something that would make you feel happy to have? Or something you really need?”
“I want to build a home for my new family,” I revealed. “I want them to have everything they need to feel at home, even if this isn’t the Great Forest.”

This got Shael to thinking. She stared at me for a few moments before switching her attention to Myra instead. A question laid on her lips, I could see that, but she hesitated to ask it.

“You… lived outside of the dungeon?” Shael asked her, before explaining what had made her think so. “You said you used to be an adventurer.”
“That was in the past,” Myra answered. “Now I am here.”
“Will- will there be more of you?”

There was an inaudible answer coming from Myra. I couldn’t see it myself, but the color on the elf’s face quickly changed. She looked like she had seen a ghost, before mumbling something to herself. It took her a moment to come back to her senses, but when she did, her whole expression had changed. She looked stern now, and determined.

“How can I help?” Was the first thing she asked.
“I need something to light my tunnels with,” I answered. “Fruits, vegetables, and crops to produce. Maybe someone who would know how to plan and build a town. And I want to learn, everything there is! Not only about the foxkin and elves but about everyone that might visit me one day. I want to be prepared!”
“So the basic necessaries and books. A whole bunch of them.”

I nodded. Aspen had made sure I already had the basics covered, but I was nowhere close to making sure people would feel really happy in my future town. As far as I knew, it would be the permanent home for most of them, so things had to be perfect. Otherwise, this whole place would be little better than a prison to them.

“I will make sure the elders will send anything you need,” she promised. “No matter the cost.”
“Thank you…”

A moment of silence spread in the room, disturbed only by the soft purrs of the Liri Fox. As if waiting for this moment, there was a sudden movement coming from the fruits that still lied on the ground in between us, waiting to be absorbed, which was apparently happening right at this moment. One by one, the items began glowing in a white light, before disappearing into nothingness. There was no green board congratulating me for unlocking new tree’s and shrubs, it would likely only appear after Shael had left, but I now felt a lot better, as I now had genuine treasures I could grow to lure delvers with, hopefully peaceful ones.

I waited for the last fruit to disappear before, on a whim, deciding to prepare a snack, as our conversation would likely last a lot longer. So, after closing my eyes and concentrating on it, I summoned an oversized wooden platter that had a nice selection of smoked and dried meat, cheese, and bread, all of them bite-sized. Not knowing whether or not Shael liked alcohol, I then summoned a small selection of the beverages I had available, two bottles each. After spending a grand total of two single mana points on summoning this picnic, I finished my work with a few earthen dishes and cups before opening my eyes again, freeing myself from Myra’s arms, and reaching out for the treats.

Shael was still staring at the goods open-mouthed when I made my way back into Myra’s arms. I had begun feeding her some of the food I had piled up on my plate when Marisa and Shael finally took their share. And it wasn’t a moment too soon, as there were already foxes waiting to snatch their share, much to the horror of Shael, who wasn’t quite comfortable with the three Obsidian Foxes that were now plundering the platter. A minute later, the foxed were already back to resting, having emptied everything but the bread. Even the Liri Foxes were now huddled together, some of them still chewing on the meat they had chosen. Happy with the outcome, I emptied my own plate with the help of Myra and waited for the things to come.

The elf was the first to finish. She grabbed one of the bottles, wine, and filled herself a cup, before doing the same for Marisa and Myra as well. To me, she offered a cup of water instead, which I gladly took.

“Is there an easier method to get in contact with you?” She asked me after having a taste of the wine and making sure she had my attention. “I don’t want to repeat… this mess.”
“You could probably ask the foxes in the nursery to call me.”
“The nursery?”
“The room next to the prayer hall,” I offered.
“I see… that should work better,” Shael answered, looking a little relieved now that she wouldn’t be forced to fight her way through my dungeon anymore. “It will take a while to get back to the Great Forest, but I will make sure to return as soon as I can.”

I nodded. It would indeed take her weeks to both make the trip, talk to the elders, and return with help and the requested goods. She could maybe use a horse to help her out, but those would likely have trouble finding their way through the forest. But there was a better option nearby, one that would not only carry her back home quickly and safely but also help her prove her story. I only needed to make sure she could actually ride them.

Closing my eyes one last time, I concentrated again, this time summoning a hopefully good saddle into existence. It would need to fit the biggest one of the obsidian foxes, which was taller than its friends by a head and a half. It also needed to have belts to allow it to be tightened to the shiny body of the monster. Then it needed something for the elf to hold onto, so she wouldn’t drop to the ground at the very first chance. It was also good if it could take a beating, as I could imagine the ride would be a rough one.

Knowing all of these requirements, it only took me another point of mana and a minute of time to summon a new item into existence that would fit all of these requirements. The resulting item appeared out of a mist of blue mana and was entirely made out of thick and durable, very dark leather with fasteners and stirrups that were made from mithril instead. It had a large horn to hold onto, hopefully enough to ensure safe travel. Two running foxes were worked into the material, both of them pure white and, once again, entirely not my doing.

Regardless, the item was a success, at least to a novice like me. The only thing left to do was explaining Shael what it was meant for, as she looked very confused right now.

“I will rent you one of my foxes.”
“One of your foxes…”
“That way you should be able to return home much faster.”

I pointed at the chosen fox, easily the biggest and hopefully strongest of the three. It was looking confident and willing as well, having seemingly understood the task it was about to receive.

“You want me to ride a fox?”
“Yes?”
“All the way to the Great Forest?”
“It seems to be eager to do it?”

There was a bit of resistance to be found in Shael’s gaze, especially after she took a good look at the fox in question, but she soon gave up. She had probably realized that, while certainly an unheard-of method of transport, riding a fox was still much faster than walking.

“I… I guess I can try.”
“Good!”

After having decided this, we finished our picnic and talked a little more, before Shael decided it was time for her to head back. She prepared the fox for the journey, who accepted the saddle with happily waving tails, before trying to ride it for the very first time.

It… looked special. At first, Shael was indeed having trouble to stay on the monster, but she soon found the balance and, once she had done so, would even order the fox to circle around the room, first slowly, than faster and faster. Soon, they were rushing through the meadow, Shael’s long, pale blond hair waving in the wind as the fox did its best to imitate a noble steed. The pair would certainly draw some attention, but it was luckily the elf who would have to deal with that and not me. So, with a smile, I selected the fox as a gatherer, allowing it to leave the dungeon. I then walked to the wall and, once upon reaching it, dug a tunnel straight to the outside, to allow Shael to leave quickly and without having to traverse the entire dungeon once again.

Shael rode up to me, to thank me for this gesture and the kindness I had shown to her, before, after promising yet again that she would return with good news and gifts, making her way over to Marisa instead. She invited her to join her on the way out, which she readily accepted, as the shortcut was indeed very welcome to her.

It didn’t take more than a few minutes for the two to disappear into a tunnel and a few more for the slight feeling of wrongness that had remained even after defeating her to finally go away. Satisfied, I closed the tunnel again, as it had served its purpose and I wasn’t about to let people have easy access to my core room.

Having finished all of this, I made my way over to Myra, who was already on her second cup of wine, as it seemed. With a shrug, I sat down next to her and took a single sip of water myself before snuggling into the thick, soft fur of her blue tails. I could hear Myra chuckle, but she was more than happy to oblige. After what had happened today, having her nearby was everything that was needed for my exhaustion to take over. I was soon jawning, before, after having selected one of the tails to grab onto, closing my eyes for a quick nap. The gods knew I desperately needed one…

- - - - -

Catnip

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