Magical contracts are scrolls of parchment blessed and enchanted by the priests of Sancus. They can hold a contract and if witnessed and ceremonially signed with the mana signature of a priest, the contract is binding for both parties. Breaking such a contract can incur divine punishment. This punishment, however, is not immediate like a bolt of lightning striking the offending party. It is a subtle one, like losing livestock or incurring heavy losses when gambling. It also can affect the accuracy of one's weapon strikes, or even make you trip every time you take a walk. These effects' severity and duration depend on the importance of the contract.

When a contract is fulfilled, the main signer - the person that bought or brought the parchment scroll earns a 'mark of trust' on that contract. Some merchants use scrolls with hundreds of marks on important transactions.

Excerpt from A primer of the twelve gods, vol 2.

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"Finally it is time to go!" Exclaimed an excited princess.

Pearl was back in her skimpy red armor donned over a white dress. Aidan took a good look at her, those red plates covered nothing. They weren't even enchanted when he checked with magic sight. He looked around and saw the group that was going on this expedition. Pearl, the two Japanese boys, Sora, Deb and two other maids, two male honor guards from Pearl's retinue, Aidan and Dawn. And of course, the little dragon, curled around Aidan's neck.

The Japanese heroes were using the traditional swords of their nation, those curved single-edge blades they fancy so much. Funny thing is, they didn't forge it or bring it with them. They came from the same place as those cherry flavored mana potions, a shop only they can use that buys items from nowhere.

Just thinking about how they can buy stuff from nowhere made a knot in Aidan's magical knowledge. That they can stash items in these unseen 'item boxes' is understandable, there are extremely rare dimensional storage items, but a shop?

Aidan and Dawn had their swords at their waists, in Dawn's case the blue-tipped rapier, and were using hardwood with gold inlay staves. Sora had her new composite bow and the falchion. The honor guards had spear and shields and short swords. But Pearl had no weapon.

'Maybe she was going to use magic', thought Aidan.

Cythrel was going to stay at the inn with the rest of Pearl's retinue.

They walked through the north gate leading to the mountains and Pearl asked to have a private conversation with Lumina.

"Lumina, dear, what are you doing after we come back from this expedition?" Aidan took that as 'please get the fuck away from my heroes once your utility has ended'.

"I'm going back home as soon as possible. Now that winter is almost over, it is time to return home." Pearl misunderstood it as 'I ran out of money and since you are not giving me any I'm going to run back to daddy'.

"Excellent. You are taking your ward with you, right?" As in 'I don't like the lecherous way the heroes look at that elf girl, get her out of here or I'll have her executed'.

"Yes. I'm taking Cythrel with us when I leave."

Meanwhile, Aidan was doing his best to keep walking straight but couldn't help but listen to the two heroes talking to each other without a care in the world. After all, only princesses knew Japanese.

""

""

""

""

Disgust welled up inside Aidan. 'Calm down, Lumina. A few more days and we will be away from these guys'. He promised to his other self. Skippy felt his unease and growled at the two Japanese teenagers.

Sora was walking next to Aidan, eyeing the scene of Shinji hugging himself and making kissing noises while both Kazuya and Aidan had a disgusted face. She looked forward and saw the princesses taking the lead. In these first kilometers away from town it was safe. Afterward, she would take the lead and scout ahead. She focused on hearing the conversation between the two girls ahead.

"Tell me, Pearl. Where exactly are we going?" Dawn asked.

"Our expedition's destination?" Dawn nodded. Pearl continued. "We are descending into a new dungeon that was just discovered a few months ago."

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

"An unknown dungeon..." She stated more like a question.

"Yes. We are going to be dungeon pioneers!" Pearl couldn't contain her excitement.

"Wow, how exciting!" Dawn lied. 'Or corpses' thought Aidan.

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"Pearl, do you know what is in the dungeon?" Dawn asked after a couple of hours of hiking.

"No idea. But this is what is exciting, right? Don't worry, Lumina. We have two otherworlders with us. Nothing will go wrong."

Aidan was really lucky to be in this group. The heroes and Sora were extremely nimble and strong, they could run circles around the others. The guards were wearing heavy armor but they were strong. Pearl was physically fit for a princess, different from Lumina. But the maids and all the luggage they refused to hand over to the guards to carry were slowing them down. It gave Aidan a chance to walk at a slower pace. He needed it because his dual-body coordination sucked. He was using his mage staff as a walking crutch instead of a casting crutch.

He was improving, but not at a pace he liked. If he held Dawn's hand somehow the senses synchronized better. He could tell the direction and distance of every sound with uncanny precision. Scents were also stronger and his coordination improved. Despite his wishes, Pearl was the one hanging onto Dawn. The princess was getting increasingly friendly during all these days. And grabby.

"Why this dungeon, Pearl?" Dawn asked.

"I asked for an oracle when deciding where to go. It told me if I came to this dungeon I would get back a very important thing I lost. I really look forward to it."

"And is this oracle reliable?"

"Yes. It came from the high priestess of Delphos."

"And what is this thing you lost? How did it end up in an unexplored dungeon?"

"It is a secret."

"And once we retrieve this thing you lost are we coming back?"

"I don't know. It depends on our supplies. We have two weeks of food and Deb can make or purify water for all of us. If by the time I retrieve it we are still fresh and well-stocked I don't see why not delve deeper. Maybe we can find some legendary item."

"Or be eaten by a legendary monster." Dawn completed.

"Oh, c'mon Lumina. We have two otherworlders, the scion of the godslayer with us. What could possibly go wrong? This will be an exciting vacation."

'This is not how dungeons work, you airhead.' Aidan cursed inside.

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They stopped to eat lunch. It was past noon by a couple of hours, but the overcast sky messed with their sense of time. Maybe it will snow tonight.

During their stop some small talk was made, Pearl doing most of the talking. The girl was having the time of her life. At her side Dawn, the guest of honor and the otherworlders on the opposite side of what the Earthlings would call a picnic. Dawn was uneasy because Lumina was angry that Pearl was talking about the summoning ritual.

"And then I presented Kazuya and Shinji to my father. You wouldn't believe the face sisters Margot and Amber and brothers Beryl and Jaster made. Then he talked to the heroes using their language. Can you believe it? King Jett of house Juvela actually went through the trouble of learning their language! He said."

""

She laughed, and the heroes laughed too. King Jett's Japanese was awful. Pearl continued her drivel.

"I thought he was very angry at me, but he smiled and told me to travel with the heroes and help them grow. That I should take as long as I want, he will contact me with magic when he needs me."

'More like ditching you.' Lumina's thoughts surfaced. Dawn felt a revolt in her stomach and the bread with jam she ate attempted to escape. She held it in and pushed it back down.

Two guards that went away to probably relieve themselves returned. They seemed happy. It was very strange, it is not a nice job to escort another guy to do that, Aidan mused. Sora leaned on his shoulder as if to warm herself.

"They smell funny, Aidan," Sora whispered. "They don't have any smell. It is as if they used a scent blocking potion near them.

"It is probably to avoid offending her Highnesses' delicate senses."

"It is good to see you speaking like that again. How is the headache?"

"Manageable. I put the veiled hat on Dawn now, I can keep her eyes closed and nobody will notice. I can guide her movements from here as long as Kazuya doesn't try to lean forward and get in my way. Funny thing is, Pearl, said she hated the hat but I think it is the opposite."

"She is not very honest. I can see she glancing at the alchemically dried flowers with envy."

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"Is this the entrance of the dungeon?" Asked Dawn with disbelief. It was a hole in the ground leading to a cave.

"Yes, it is here. It matches both the report of the explorers and with the vision, I got from the oracle." Pearl assured.

"Isn't this just a cave?"

"Absolutely not. Do you want to test?"

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""

Shinji used a light spell and walked down into the cavern. After a couple of minutes, he returned.

""

"There you go. Do you believe me now?" Pearl gloated.

Snowflakes descended.

"Fine, you win. Let's get it done with. Sora, take the lead, please. Don't go too far and take Skippy with you."

"I'm on it, Princess Lumina."

Skippy jumped on Sora's head and grabbed her ears. They descended into the tunnel, followed by everyone else.

"Down we go. Adventure, camaraderie, and steel on steel. The stuff of legends, right, Lumina?"

Dawn smiled. But inside she had a gloomy feeling. Like thousands of eyes suddenly looked at every corner of her. After a few minutes, the feeling faded slowly.

"I think it is safe to continue." Sora lit a torch and walked forward. Everyone followed. The two heroes after Sora, Dawn, and Pearl behind them, two guards behind the princesses, Aidan and the maids and two other guards closing the formation.

"There is one important thing I forgot to mention," Pearl announced.

"What is it, Pearl?"

"If any monsters appear, don't do anything. Let Shinji and Kazuya do the killing. We just need to cheer on them."

Aidan let both his and Dawn's head hang at the same time. This is going to be a long dungeon crawl.