It didn't take long for the group to start finding the moles they were hunting. They were a bit different than what Hera remembered. First of all, they were larger and had a thick coat of fur that made her remember capybaras. Their nose was a round pink ball that gave them the appearance of a cartoon character. Even more odd were their eyes. Some peculiar black crystal-like formation made it seem like each of the moles was permanently wearing a pair of sunglasses.

Despite their somewhat adorable appearance, the moles were strong creatures that could pose an actual threat to most people. With claws made to dig through solid rock, their attacks were nothing to scoff at, and since they varied from the size of a large dog to the size of a horse, it became clear that Hera and her group were in for some trouble. The first group they found had about 20 moles moving around. Chika dove head first to attack one of them while the rest of the group followed up.

Thargrom and Alex jumped around, vanishing from everyone's sight and appearing behind the monsters already stabbing their backs. They were the two assassins in the Royal Explorers and both had a similar spell. While Alex could 'jump' towards a target she hit, Thargrom, or Grom as he went by, could move quickly by swapping places with a piece of rock behind his enemy. To follow that up, he used a sword to pierce the spine of the mole, incapacitating it before killing it.

The dwarven assassin was the oldest member of the group, being 140 and, if they completed this dungeon, he would reach level 40. He had emerald eyes, long hair tied up in a low braid, and a well-kept beard that went all the way down his neck. The man had big ears that were usually kept behind his hair, but with the movement, people could see them. His clothes always made you wonder where he came from or who he was. It was a mix of a deep green long coat with a black pair of pants and a pair of yellow leather boots. Now that he was fighting, there was even some odd green smoke inside his coat, increasing his strength.

Hera also took a more aggressive approach this time. She was tired of being behind everyone, just watching them fight. Along with Nimbus and her entire court, the explorer jumped in the thick of it along with Chika. She saw the claws of a mole about to reach her when the Sentinel appeared to block the blow and give the Empress an opening to attack. Hera just stabbed her glaive forward before pulling it down to open the creature's stomach. To her side, Beam and Ooze were stopping another monster from getting close when Core came crashing down on top of the mole's head. Hitting its brain and killing it on the spot.

Enraged by the loss of one of its family members, another mole jumped at the floating weapons. But before reaching them, a barrier appeared in front of it, stopping it in its tracks. Hera glanced back and saw Hayath, one of the two healers in the Royal Explorers. She had turquoise eyes and a short faux hawk that gave her a tomboyish look that didn't match with her personality completely. At the moment, she was wearing some loose yellow and orange clothing that would make one think of a martial artist.

"Why are you wasting mana like this?" Yerel, the other healer, asked.

"It's not a waste. It's called preventive healing. I don't have to heal anyone if I can stop the monsters from hitting them. Or," Hayath gestured with her hand, and a rock spear dealt the killing blow to an already wounded mole to the side, "I can just kill them first."

Yerel sighed, "That's not what we learned."

"True, but Risli told me to do this," Hayath said with a smirk. It was a lie, the old shaman never gave her any pointers, but she knew that saying this would push Yerel's buttons.

"Do whatever you want," the male healer replied in a huff and walked away. However, a few moments later he also placed a barrier to help the dwarves who were fighting.

When the first group of moles was killed, Hera asked if anyone was injured and needed healing. A couple of people got some small cuts and bruises, which were quickly healed by those who had skills for it. Nimbus had a small bruise on his arms after blocking one attack at a weird angle, and, to Hera's surprise, Daskka was the one who stepped in to heal him. The herald was trying to use the spells that Casks taught her last week, and it seemed to be going well, even if she couldn't compare to the healers.

Before continuing to move along, they had another problem. The pelts. When everyone heard about it, they imagined it would be the skins of small moles like the ones they saw in the normal mode. However, the pelts were massive. It would be a struggle to carry them around while fighting the rest of the creatures. Everyone was considering what to do in that situation when Hera turned to Chika.

'Is it ok if I carry the pelts back now but we continue hunting?'

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'Yesss. The hunt will lassst daysss,' Chika's eyes were filled with excitement. Hera couldn't help but feel like she was a dog that really wanted to go for a walk.

'It's going to take more than a day to find the mole you mentioned?'

'Yesss. Deep in the valley.'

Hera nodded and turned to the group, "Ok guys. Listen up. I'm going to take the pelts back to Spiral. I just asked Chika, and apparently, it will take a few days for us to reach our destination. Since Nimbus can move way faster than any of us, I'll be taking the pelts. I'll see if I can get a carriage or something to help out. Let Chika guide you guys, but don't let her fight alone. We need to protect her," she turned back to the giant snake and spoke out loud while using her connection to say the same words, "And you need to stay with us. For you to find what you want, you need to stay alive. Ok?"

"Should we have someone take command of the group?" Rayna asked as she put her two-handed axe on her back.

"That's a good call. We mostly don't need someone calling the shots, but just in case…." Hera's eyes went straight to Thargrom. He spent almost 100 years working as a guard, so he should have the most experience in running dungeons. However, the man shook his head, showing that he didn't want to be the one in charge. She then turned to Farica, "Since you are a mage who stays in the backline, you might be able to see the entire area. Are you ok taking the lead?"

"I'm… not sure," Farica hesitated.

Hera nodded, "Ok, is there anyone who wants the job?" looking around, no one said anything, and Hera turned to Blue with pleading eyes.

"I'll do it. It's annoying, but it's just in case, right?" Blue sighed.

"Yeah. Everyone here knows what to do. This is just in case shit hits the fan," Hera was still mounted on Nimbus during this entire time, which helped everyone to see her, "Guys, if something bad happens, Blue is taking the lead. If not, just follow Chika, protect her and if a different mole appears, make sure to pin it down so she can deal the last blow," Hera waited a moment to hear the confirmation and told Nimbus to turn around, "I'll be right back."

It took her just 10 minutes to get back to Spiral. That was the difference between moving on foot and moving with a griffon. Funny enough, Casks and Darni were in a small shop by the entrance. It seemed like the two were in the middle of a date now that Chika wasn't around. The moment they saw her getting closer, both stopped snuggling and got up as if they were teenagers who had just got caught by their parents.

"Hera? Back so soon?" Darni said, trying to pretend nothing happened.

"Sorry to interrupt," Hera smiled, "I came to bring the first delivery of the pelts. We are still not done, but we figured it was better to just bring this here when we can instead of dragging it around," she came down from Nimbus' back and took one of the skins, "This is what you need right?"

Casks looked over the delivery and nodded, "Yeah. This is perfect. We still need a lot more, but having a few to start will be great."

Hera nodded, "Oh, before I forget. Do you guys have a spare cart or something? It would be better to bring them back. I don't know why we didn't think of that."

"I can arrange something. Give me a few minutes," Darni nodded and went to talk to a few of the people who were tending the farms while Casks helped Hera take the pelts that Nimbus was carrying.

"It's really sweet to see that you are still so in love," Hera said while they were getting the pelts.

Casks looked away, embarrassed by the comment, "We don't have that much time for ourselves lately. Sorry you had to see that."

"Oh, please. Don't apologize for that. The two of you are free to do whatever you want and whenever you want. I mean, not everything, but you get what I mean."

Casks chuckled, "Thanks. And thanks for taking Chika with you. I love her to bits, but she tends to be a bit too…."

"Needy?" Hera glanced at Daskka, who was around her neck, but the snake pretended not to hear Hera's comment.

"Yeah."

"I can understand that. I know there were some situations where I didn't want Daskka around, but you guys don't have the chance to put her on a necklace or something," Hera replied.

"Oh, that would be handy. She really knows when to get in the way at the worst possible times," Casks laughed, remembering something she didn't want to share.

"What if you guys give her some responsibility? Like being a part of the guard. I mean, everyone can talk to her, can't they?"

"That's an idea. I'll talk to Darni later about it. Speaking of him," Casks gestured to the side where Darni was bringing a cart that could be pulled by a person.

"We have a few of these. Do you think it's enough?" Darni got closer to let Hera inspect the cart.

She looked it over and saw how it wasn't as big as she expected. In the end, even using that one should only be enough to carry some pelts before they start to fall from the sides. Then again, if Nimbus was to carry them, she might be able to come back and forth without too much trouble. It was just a shame that there was no way for her to bring various carts with her. Not to mention that having an actual caravan could prove more trouble than it was worth.

"That will be enough. When we fill this up, I'll bring them back. Could you help me attach this to Nimbus?"

They helped her with the cart, and soon, the Empress was on her way back to the rest of the group. There was just one problem.

"Hera… do you remember how we got here?" Daskka asked when they arrived at a crossroads.