A short walk through the fields of yellow and pass many labouring farmers as we make our way to the mountain.

The girls are hesitant but Gareth walks up and places a hand on the rock. It opens up revealing a dark cave entrance.

"Come girls." I call back to them as we enter the monster zone a step behind Gareth. "Subia, time to unwrap and load your crossbow. Protect yourself and your sister other than that don’t interfere unless ordered to by either myself or Gareth." I tell as she and her sister catch up.

"Master is the ritual why I can see even though the cave is dark?"

"Yes, it shouldn’t be like normal sight where you can see colour but you should be aware of the shapes of objects and use your other senses such as hearing and smell to tell where things are."

"About that, is there a way to not smell as much?"

"I’m not sure. Why?"

"Well usually it is fine, it took some time but I got used to everything being more intense. When we left the city it was horrible the stench was… I wanted to be sick. Master."

"I will look into it. What about now, what can you smell?"

"Something is ahead quite a bit away. Horrible breath and unwashed fur, Master."

"That will be our rats."

In the dark, with the benefits of my demonic vision, I can see the outline of Subia’s head nodding in understanding as she unwraps the cloth handing it to Lovia who puts it away in her backpack.

Reveals her crossbow and quiver full of bolts. The crossbow seemed to be fairly standard with metal limbs, a lever with a wooden stock. With her augmented strength, she easily loads her first bolt.

"How much practice do you have with your crossbow?" I ask.

"I took a shot to make sure it worked at the store." She replies.

"She is a good shot, August. Though like you said she should keep using it as protection let us do work our magic." Gareth inputs.

"If I find a bolt in my back, just remember to blame Gareth. He has taken responsibility for your talents." I say in an attempt at humour.

"I will make sure to hit Gareth in the back when I am testing my aim, so you don’t have to worry, Master." She replies with equally awful wit.

"Or we stick to the plan and I don’t get shot in the back." Gareth says with mock anger.

"That could work." Finishes Lovia.

The mountain zone is similar to the other ones I have been in. Dark corridors with enough room to fit about five people in width and two in height. There would be some variance to this getting smaller and bigger as we explored. I much preferred a forest zone where I can at least see the sky through the leaves rather than the horrible pressure of being underground.

"Gareth, you take the front as vanguard keep taking right turns where possible. I watch the back. Make sure to call out any approaching rats. Twins, you will stay in the middle about ten paces away from either of us. After we get a kill, Lovia bags it. We will stop and drop them off when Lovia reaches her limit. Any questions?"

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"No." three voices ring out in the dark.

"Good, Let’s do this."

We tread forward in the blackness. Outlines of the craggy walls are clearly defined as are forms of the girls and passed them Gareth. The steel of his blade glints brightly in shroud darkness. The point of Subia’s bolt shines ready to puncture through the flesh of any who should make it past Gareth.

Considering I don’t have eyes on the back of my head I should summon something which can warn me of anything approaching from our backs. I begin to form the mana the brilliant blue illuminates the dark.

The girls turn to look at what I am doing.

"Focus on the jobs you are here to learn. This is only the first layer so the risk is low so long as you follow my commands. Disobey and we are all in danger." My voice calls out cold as steel.

"We won’t do it again, Master." Subia calls back.

"Sorry." Says Lovia.

"Learn from the mistake and perform well in return. I will be too busy praising to scold."

"I won’t disappoint you, Master."

"Neither will I."

"I know." I utter with certainty.

A dog summon should be able to keep up while having senses keen enough to handle the job. Most importantly it has a loud bark.

As it is a dog summon that means most are already trained to be docile so I won’t have to worry about binding them to submit and I can summon them from outside the Gavilk plane.

I have never summoned one before but considering we are underground how about…

"Minoth bullmastiff."

Nocturnal and well suited to underground environments a summon from the Minoth plane. The blue dome fades. A dog appears in its place wrapped in darkness and standing up to my knee. Other than its height all I can make out is that it is solidly built with a short muzzle. Bending down I stroke its neck and pet its head.

"Follow me doggy." I mummer looking into its glowing green eyes.

The dog's ears perk up and it obediently walks by my side.

The girls are quite fidgety not that I blame them, the first time in a monster zone is a daunting experience. It is the natural form of the world. The opposite of the civilisation we are raised in. Even considering being born and brought up as slaves that were the setting they have always known.

Time stretches and nothing happens as we explore the empty passages. Another adventurer group must have been through in the past few days. Fortunate for us. The zone will have grown enough rats back to fill our condition but we don’t have to be concerned about being overrun or slogging through rat after rat until we make it to the boss. Perfect conditions to ease the girls into the monster zone environment.

"Two rats charging." Gareth shouts.

"There are all yours." I call back. "Girls, stop and be prepared to fight if any make it past Gareth."

A blue light flares from Gareth’s palm and a mana bolt soars forth. A sharp squeal of pain emits as the mana bolt hits its target. The second rat leaps mouth wide and teeth ready to rip apart flesh. Gareth steps and does a half-turn to the side, a slice of the sword to the flank and it crashes to the ground; a final thrust through the eye ends the second rat.

"All done! Lovia can you come and collect the tails, please?" Gareth asks as he walks ahead past his two kills keeping to his job as the vanguard.

I see the blood pouring from the corpse of the rat that Gareth had cut down. It is the size of a Minoth Bullmastiff. I walk over to Lovia pulling my knife from one of the pockets in my robe.

"Lovia here." I hold the blade of the knife allowing her to grab it by the handle. "To cut the tails, you can have my knife."

"I will give it back." She says immediately.

"Keep it, you will have more use for it than I do." I say the dark masking my slight smile. She pauses uncertain, I guess. "It is yours so you can do your job and serve. Do you have any problems with that?"

"No, I am happy. I will take good care of your knife." She says pointedly staring at the ground her cheeks crimson.

"I hope so, now hurry and get the tails." I command far more sternly than Gareth.

"Yes." She says and rushes off almost tripping in but catching her footing before face planting.

"Are you done?" I ask her.

"Yes." She replies obediently the air around her even in the blackness all sunshine and warmth. So she likes gifts and completing simple tasks such as collecting rat tails or the cooking she mentioned. I will have to keep her service-orientated nature in mind.

"Then we push on."