His name is Kale. Standing over six feet, he was considered a rather tall specimen for a human. Possessing common human traits such as dark hair, dark eyes and a tan skin, his only defining features were his above-average height and slender body.

As for his clothing and equipment, they signified that he was a ranger. It was fairly evident as seen by the quiver strapped on his back and the bow slung across his chest.

Not only was he a ranger, he was also an adventurer.

Alongside his party of three other members– a wizard, a priest and a swordswoman. Together, they formed a decent party. He would attack from far distances, the swordswoman would deal heavy damage in close-quarters while the wizard and priest cast spells and buffs.

Last week, they were having their routine group discussions in the local tavern of a nearby town when they heard some interesting rumors. Apparently, there was a rather unique dungeon situated on the foot of a mountain, about six days of travel by foot.

Normally, they wouldn't think any deeper on these rumors since dungeons are pretty commonplace. But what caught their attention was the rumor of there being a golem hidden in the depths of the dungeon.

Golems were these fascinating beings that scholars were extensively researching in. They are sentient entities composed of dirt, rocks and minerals which made them incredibly durable and tough. Unlike many other monsters, golems are neutral and will only attack when provoked.

Though, what makes them so sought after are the results after they are defeated or killed.

The magic core of golems are often very powerful and potent of magical energy. They are high in demand amongst scholars and artificers, especially puppeteers.

But perhaps the most unique thing golem cores present was how you could control it after slaying it in battle. Once a golem is defeated, it is possible to gain control over the golem as long as its core remains undamaged. If you manage to reach its core and assume control, you would then possess your very own juggernaut.

Which is why Kale and his party were now right outside of the entrance to the dungeon. They decided it was too good of an opportunity to pass up because if they could get a golem on their side, they would be able to take on more difficult quests and more powerful monsters.

The more difficult the quest, the more powerful the slain monster, the more rewards received.

As such, they were all excited to hurry and find the golem.

Looking to his teammates, Kale asks them in a stern voice. "Alright everyone, we're here. You all remember the plan?"

Their swordswoman, Helen, spoke with earnestness. "Go inside, fight off the low-levels, find the golem, have Marco hit it with his spells and then reach its core. Simple."

And it was indeed simple. Kale nodded in approval. Golems stay neutral until the moment you attack it. Their plan is to essentially defeat it and immobilize it with one, singular powerful spell. The less time the golem has to attack or retaliate, the better. Once the golem is incapacitated, it should be easy to find the core and take control of it.

The priest of their group spoke up, a frown directed towards Helen.

"Simple, huh? With those words alone, you might as well have jinxed us already before we even started."

Helen in turn, frowned back. "What do you mean? It's simple isn't it? As long as Marco throws his most powerful snare spell, we've already won by then."

"No, he's right." Marco, the young wizard, interrupted. "You're forgetting something."

Helen frowned indignantly.

At her expression, Marco looked away and coughed before continuing.

"Even though golems are inherently neutral, they have keen magical senses. They can sense if something dangerous is coming their way or if a monster is being hostile.

If I blatantly show that I'm casting a strong spell towards it, it will feel the danger and attack us."

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At that explanation, Helen had a surprised look on her face.

"What, did you think that golems are just a bunch of brainless brutes? I thought you were an experienced and knowledgeable adventurer." Benny, their priest, added. By his face, he was clearly unimpressed by Helen.

Hearing his words, Helen's face took a slight red hue as she shook in anger and embarrassment. She replied with a pout.

"How is it my fault then? You really have the guts to criticize me? If I'm so terrible, then why don't you go fight it yourself!"

As the two adventurers delved into an argument, Kale sighed deeply.

Even though they've been working together for months now, Helen and Benny still haven't gotten rid of their tendency to argue during quests. Although, the antics of the swordswoman and priest did make for decent entertainment whenever they were bored or stressed.

Kale could only take solace in the fact that they never say anything they might regret.

As the leader of the group, it was his duty to make sure that his party is well-equipped and well-rounded. They have to be completely prepared everytime they venture into dungeons as even a small mistake may cost them their lives.

Luckily, this dungeon was an abandoned mine and, unlike other man-made dungeons, had no traps.

Even though they were outside of the entrance, he could already see a pack of foxes, each having dark fur and yellow eyes. According to his knowledge, they were the type of fox monsters that specialize in ambushes with hit and run tactics.

He wasn't worried about them as they scurried away from him. He just hopes that their time in the dungeon would be smooth and quick as possible.

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Maro is starting to deeply regret eating that cursed orb.

It's been a week since his new life began. His siblings avoid him completely, none would no longer play with him. His mother is the only left who would pay any attention to him.

Unlike his siblings, she wasn't bothered by his changes. It seemed that she was even happy that he changed at all. She would tend to him and groom him more than she did his siblings nowadays.

It was as if she was giving him special treatment.

Oddly enough, with his siblings cold shoulder and his mother's increased affection, he now wasn't sure if eating the orb was a curse or a blessing.

Although, they all still follow their routine albeit with new changes. Mother still goes out to bring food back home, but his siblings play among themselves while he is driven off to the corner of the room.

While mother is out hunting for food or tending to his siblings, there was nothing there for him to do. In order to stave off the boredom, gnawing on bones was his only comfort.

But even so, gnawing on bones now didn't have the same effect back then.

More than chewing bones, he wanted things to go back to what they once were. He wanted to play with his siblings again.

He wanted them to love him again.

Alas, everytime he tries to join them, he is rejected without fail.

With gnawing on bones now ruined for him, his only comfort was the warmth and care of his mother. No matter how different he had changed, she had cared for him and loved him dearly. With his mother's love for him made clear, he has no doubts that he would do everything for her.

Anyway, it has been a week since he ate the orb. Along with his siblings, they all grew up. They all became bigger, stronger and livelier.

Maro could see that mother was starting to have a difficult time caring for her children as they are growing quickly. However, even his other siblings seemed to sense that. They have a much harder time drinking from their mother.

Maro clearly sees that his siblings' front teeth has developed well. Everytime they now tried to drink milk from their mother's teats, mother would cry and shriek from the painful feeling of her children's teeth nipping her skin. Due to the pain, mother would kick his siblings, shake them off her body and hiss at them.

So when faced with such circumstances, with no other source of nutrition, his other siblings started getting hungry.

Some even started venturing out of the nest.

Normally, mother wouldn't allow this. Everytime a sibling of his tried to explore outside the nest, she would immediately snatch them up and bring them back. If they became insistent and repeatedly attempted to leave, she would either loudly squeak at them until they get scared or smack them on the head with her tail.

But now, he just sat to the side as he watched his siblings slowly leave the nest one by one. Even if mother wasn't pained by their teeth, they were all bound to be hungry either way. They were all growing quickly and eventually, mother's milk wouldn't be enough.

Even Maro can feel it himself. Though he's the youngest, he's easily the biggest of them all. And he's starting to feel that mother can't provide for him anymore.

So as much as the notion of venturing out of the nest frightened him, he had no choice lest he starved.

It was only a matter of time now. Soon, mother would conpletely stop giving milk and he would have no choice but to find his own food.

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After coming back from another trip, mother gave us a dead lizard. She had completely stopped offering her milk and was hunting small monsters for us.

There weren't many of us left, just a few including me. Many of my siblings had already left the nest as the meager food mother was bringing back wasn't enough to cut it.

I knew that the rest of my siblings had to leave and eventually, I do too. It was only a matter of time.

Suddenly, there was a faint sound. A sound that resembled pebbles bumping into other pebbles. It was a sound that could only be made by footsteps. Something was happening.

Mother snapped her head towards the entrance of the room. That one action alone triggered my instincts. Mother was suddenly alert and wary. The rest of us imitated mother and intently stared at the entrance of our nest.

Aside from my nose, my ears were very sharp. And very clearly, I could hear multiple sounds coming from outside the room. Sounds that eerily resembled breathing and sniffing.

Mother, the rest of my siblings and I were on full guard. We were all staring at the small entrance, holding our breaths.

And before our very eyes, something appeared. A head. Then a body.

Not just one. Not two. Not even three or four.

Five.

Five heads and bodies appeared. Five foxes with glowing, yellow eyes.

Me and my siblings did nothing but stare. I felt something new coursing throughout my body the moment a pair of yellow eyes met my own eyes. I felt fear.

Each of the five foxes fully entered our nest. They all surrounded us and as we stared at them, they stared back.

It was then that I knew.

We were in danger. Danger was new.