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Layla's Office, The Guild, Medea Island

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"Thanks for giving me your report in person, auntie," Layla said with a smile. Her aunt Isid nodded and returned her smile.

"No trouble at all, my niece. I wanted to check in on you anyway. You've been bundled up in this dreary office for days!" Isid chided, crossing her arms. Layla sighed and made to speak, but her aunt preempted her. "And don't say your work was important and needed to be done. All the work you do as Guildmistress is important, as is the quality of that work. You need time to rest and decompress." Layla stared evenly at her aunt, then let her shoulders relax. She sat back in her plush chair and raised her hand to her temples to nurse the headache that'd been building all week.

"I know. I'll take the rest of the day off. Want to head to the market together? It's been some time since I last went down there myself." Layla offered. Isid nodded, and after tidying her office, Layla found herself leaving the Guild Hall and down the cobbled path to the town.

The sun was warm on her face, and the southerly wind pleasantly chilled her skin. Layla's attention was always drawn to the mana column leading to the Dungeon when she left the guild building. Its tributaries stretched far and wide but weren't yet out of sight. Her aunt stopped to join her, while others using the road gave the two a wide berth.

"I sometimes wonder what it's doing with all that mana..." Isid mused, "The number of monsters it could support... it beggars the imagination." They stood in silence for a minute before Layla answered.

"Whatever it's doing, I hope it's content to remain underground." She said quietly. Isid nodded.

They moved on.

Built as it was just outside the Dungeon, it was only a short walk to reach the town from the Guild Hall. Layla's gaze swept across the groups of laborers crawling over and around a half-built stone wall. She saw that it stretched almost halfway around town and was composed of the sparkling black stone from the island's quarry. Layla approved of the forethought the lord was showing. Medea Island was a valuable port, and if the tensions between the Bahrain Empire and the Phenoc Kingdom boiled over... The island would be one of the first places invaded and likely used as a foothold for any potential Bahrain invasion.

Now that she thought about it, Medean had posted a job offer in the guild; he was hiring guilders to train the local militia. They would never reach the same level of strength, but Guilders were the strongest and most experienced fighters in the world for a reason.

They passed the wall and soon were amongst the stalls and crowds of the market.

Layla and her aunt weaved their way through the mass of humanity, spending a minute or two at each stall. Many items sold here weren't new to her. Mostly the produce from the farms and the fish that were hanging on display. The size of the fish, however, was beginning to get alarming.

"Are you sure these aren't monsters? You haven't found any cores when butchering them?" She asked the weathered man behind the stall. She had to ask because the nearly eight-foot-long tuna hanging from a hook beside the booth was double the average size of the species. Isid had gone right up next to the thing, and the size comparison was startling.

"No. At least, not yet, Lady Losat." The merchant answered, shaking his head. "Though, there have been some... oddities around the island lately."

"Please elaborate," Layla asked firmly. The merchant looked around, then motioned her closer. Layla and Isid both leaned in.

"There's been a change in the currents," the man whispered, his voice not carrying beyond the three. "The waters nearby are practically bursting with fish. You name one; there's at least a school hanging around. We've spotted the largest fish in the sea; whales, sharks, and the like. Every fish we catch is larger than average, half-again at minimum. And they're still getting bigger." The man gestured at the hanging fish and the gutted fish lying on his stall.

Layla squinted, her gaze flicked up, and swept across the half-dozen fish stalls, all selling different species. All were much larger than those sold a month ago, and the ambient mana in their flesh was substantial. It wasn't to the level of even the lowest monster, but they were obviously mana-mutants. For better or worse, it was a lot harder to manage fish populations than other animals, which meant that when a significant mana source began saturating the local seas...

The good news was that mana-mutated fish in the ocean rarely manifested abilities like those found in dungeons. Their drives and needs were different. There was always a bigger fish out there, so most normal fish seemed to focus on size when given enough mana to do something with. It was larger predators that were the problem.

"We need to keep track of this." Layla decreed. Her gaze turned to the fisherman. "Keep it quiet for now. Do you own one of the fishing vessels?" He nodded.

"Aye, a sloop, with a crew of three."

"Do you know the captains of any other ships?"

"Aye, I do. Know most of them, in fact. We meet at the tavern by the docks every week to play cards and brag about our hauls." The fisherman gave a wry grin.

"Could you pass on an invitation to meet me at the guild the day after your next game?" Layla asked. The man nodded.

"Gladly, Guildmistress."

Layla nodded to the fisherman, whose name she hadn't gotten, and moved on.

"Always working, Layla. You can't just take a break, can you?" Isid teased. Layla rolled her eyes.

"You know, I feel like there's a reason grandfather put my name in for Guildmistress and not yours." She retorted. Isid chuckled.

"Oh, honey, I would never have let myself get conned into a desk job," Isid countered. "Now, come on! There are a few merchants selling fabric over that way. I'm going to find you something pretty and commission you a new dress. Honestly, dear, you wear the same clothes every day. Live a little!"

Layla squawked in faux outrage, and the two women spent the rest of the evening flitting from stall to stall.

By the end of it, Layla was the most relaxed she'd been in weeks.

Maybe I should take some time for myself more often, She thought, idly.

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The Dungeon, Medea Island, Kalenic Sea

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After Isid and her party left the Dungeon, I spent the rest of the day giving my Dungeon a once-over. I didn't end up doing much beyond adjusting the timing on certain traps. My upper five levels are almost entirely autonomous now. The Crab's population remains stable despite the legions of them killed every day, thanks to their fast growth and large clutches.

The fish have always had a stable population. In fact, I'll need to expand their breeding chambers to accommodate their increased numbers. Letting them inhabit the jungle and canyon rivers eased off the pressure, but I'm thinking of lowering their fertility. I don't want them choking the tunnels by the sheer mass of numbers.

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The Kobolds have had an uptick in numbers since I gave the 'Trial' Warriors respawn crystals. After some consideration, I lowered their growth rate further; the slower-growing Kobolds have shown an increased capability for critical thinking and creativity. Giving them more of a 'childhood' should help foster more growth in that direction.

I did the same for the Drake-kin. Their numbers were large enough for the moment, and there's no reason for their hatchlings to grow to maturity too fast.

The Ratten are the same as they've ever been. The various clans are at constant war with each other, vying as they were for the right to be the Boss of the floor. Though the strength of the entire race grew slower, more 'naturally,' I could see how far they'd come. The constant Darwinistic struggle had seen a couple of 'branches' of evolution pass by in fast-forward right before my eyes.

The Swarm Clan had gone all in on the 'swarm' angle, and different Ratten within the clan took up various roles within the swarm. It reminded me of multicellular life writ large. There are 'coordinator' Ratten that have some kind of mental link to the others and guide them. Others in the front line were tougher and larger, yet more filling the gap and using their mass to push the 'walls' of the cell forward to 'envelop' and devour their prey.

Most Clans had taken the opposite route, prizing individual strength. In these Clans, a 'caste' system came into place. There were the 'champions,' large specimens that were more capable, intelligent, stronger, or faster. But even within this 'individualistic' branch, there were differences. Mostly in methodology and the changes those methods induced in the Ratten themselves.

The Lightning Clan had incorporated lightning mana into their physiology. Every Ratten in that clan generated and could expel lightning mana. The Champions of this clan were either those capable of channeling significant amounts of lightning from other Ratten into larger attacks or those who could generate enormous quantities of mana on their own. Currently, the clan's Boss was a Channeler, supported by generations of her sons and daughters, who weren't as capable but retained some of her potential.

The Shadow Clan had likewise taken the shadows into themselves. They preferred to live in the 'shadow realm' and trained their magic to spend more time there. Their champions rarely manifested physically, choosing to live within the darkness of the tunnels. Their current Boss was a large specimen with an impressive grasp of shadow mana.

There were others, of course, dozens of different clans, all expressing different magic and tactics. Whenever I encountered a new form of mana, I created the seeds of new clans that could use that mana. The Ice and Light Clans were still weak but would grow with time.

Moving on from the fourth!

The Fire Spirit has done as the Air Spirit did and had some of the Demon Goat's fire mages summon fire sprites. Now she has the flitting fire sprites swarming around her, the sprites possessing stone golems and those possessing smaller Potentium bodies trailing behind her. She has yet to settle down in any one place and instead wanders the Scorched Plains, and occasionally they play in the Lava Lakes. She's also decided on a name.

Well, I say that, but it wasn't a decision she made alone. She asked me for a list of words I knew that related to fire and, from the list, decided she liked Igna the most. She also asked if I could provide larger golems for a couple of her entourage, who were close to transforming into Spirits. She had a different word for it, but there isn't a word in the English language, nor the Phenocian one, that accurately describes it. Ascension is close but far too grandiose. Metamorphosis was somewhat closer, but not quite.

The Potentium bodies were expensive, but thankfully she only requested two, and their recipients were ones with a connection directly to me.

I skimmed the rest of the floors, but nothing else had changed or needed attention. As I reached the bottom, I brought up my mental plans for the Tenth. I felt the urge to dig deeper, to put more distance between myself and the guilders above.

First, though, the Ninth needs a Boss.

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Scorpan Village, The Ninth Floor, The Dungeon

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Skitters-Across-The-Sand chittered affectionately at the scorplings clinging to her carapace, enjoying their endless questing chirrups and pointed claws. She had laid a clutch of five eggs soon after the Creator provided them with new bodies and a new home. The male she mated with was larger than his fellows and flattered that Skitters was interested in him. Skitters had kept the eggs in a warm nook designed for the purpose and checked on them often. Just yesterday, though, they had hatched!

The five scorplings were white-shelled upon breaking out of their shells and had made the most adorable chirps Skitters had ever heard in her life. She had spent the rest of the day familiarizing herself with them and letting them come to know her. There were three females and two males. They were all about the same size, though the males were slightly larger. Skitters hoped they would inherit the size of their father.

She had yet to name them, as was tradition in their tribe. The tradition had started when they were merely crabs. Skitters would observe the scorplings over the next week. She would identify habits, likes, dislikes, and behaviors, and then name them appropriately. Skitters was named as she had been due to her restless nature, never wishing to be still and with a thirst to explore.

Today, she decided, they would leave their home, and she would show off her children to the rest of the village. Skitters was sure she had laid the first clutch and that her scorplings were the first to hatch.

She was right, and there was much cooing over her clutch.

The other females, who had all laid their clutches, were enthralled with the scorplings. Two females in particular, mostly. "They're so cute!" "I can't wait for mine to hatch!" Skitter's two closest friends exclaimed. Preens-In-The-Light was a lighter shade of orange than Skitters, and her iridescent portions were all incredibly clean and practically sparkled under the light of the mana-sun. Lays-In-Puddles was a slightly darker shade, closer to brown. She was shorter than the other two, with a wider main body.

"Any name-worth habits?" Preens asked, letting one of the scorplings inspect her humanoid hand and arm.

"Not yet," Skitters said, "But it's only been a day. I'm sure they'll do something interesting soon enough."

Puddles looked longingly at the five energetic scorplings. "I wish I'd laid more than two eggs now..." Skitters reached across and laid a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Don't worry, Puddles. These five are quite the clawful, and I'm sure that with only two, you'll have more time to focus on them." Skitters quickly glanced around the cavern. "Has anyone seen Plays-With-Fires? I want to show him our scorplings." Preens and Puddles chittered teasingly, and Preens pointed out to the entrance of the cavern.

"He's on guard duty at the village wall. Oh! You should ask him about the Drake-kin village! He was sent up there with Hoards-Coins to trade for metal tools and weapons and only got back this morning. I'm sure he'll have some great stories!" Skitters bid her friends farewell and made her way out of the village cavern.

While not unbearable, by any stretch of the word, it was much hotter outside the cool of their village cavern. The Mana-sun was only now peeking over the canyon's edge, illuminating the inside of the wooden wall they had constructed around the entrance to their home. It was rough, made of whole trees stripped of their branches and buried in the ground. There was reinforcement inside, a raised section of stone they could climb to look over the wall. The only areas free of this were the two gates.

Skitters passed the brick-maker, who was carefully placing bricks of mud out on the ground for the sun to bake. While the Creator had provided plenty of housing inside the cavern, any buildings they wanted out here, they would have to build themselves. The Creator, in His mercy, had offered to help, but they declined. They wouldn't ask Him to do something as trivial as erect a building, not even one they needed to live! These bricks would go towards a temple, the first temple dedicated to the Creator, built in the holy land He had crafted for them.

Skitters quickly found her Mate, Fires, standing just inside the gate. He was wearing metal armor over his upper half and draped in a cloak of strange off-white fabric. In his hands was a long spear with a peculiar head. A Halberd, some part of her said. "Plays-With-Fires! Welcome back to the village." She called out as she approached.

"Skitters-Across-The-Sand! I am glad to have returned. The Drake-kin village is much more crowded than ours, and I longed to return here for peace and quiet. How is our clutch doing? Have any of them hatc-" He fell silent as Skitters felt her scorplings peek around her back. Fire's head twitched as his gaze jumped between the five scorplings.

"I'd say they're doing fine." Skitters said cheekily. She approached and let Fires get a closer look. He seemed awed at the little scorplings, letting them poke and prod his carapace as he inspected each one.

"More than fine. They look strong! These two seem quite large, and I'm sure they'll grow as big as I am". Fires boasted. In response, the scorplings chittered excitedly. Skitters smiled at the sight.

The rest of the day, Skitters stayed with Fires, letting him spend time with his spawn. She wasn't sure why, but she believed it was important for the scorplings to know their father. He regaled them with stories of the Drake-kin and the sights he'd seen on the Journey through the Dungeon.

Yes, Skitters was delighted. Their home was perfect for them, and with their scorplings growing, the future of the Scorpans was looking bright.

As the sun set after the long day, the scorplings tired out and sleeping in a pile on her back, Skitters shared a smile with Fires.

"Praise the Creator for this blessing upon our lives." She softly prayed.

"Yes, Praise be to him." Fires replied.

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