I pulled up Tenebris' stats first and my grin only grew wider. He was at level 13 which put him only a couple of levels below me. I assumed Sanaa was at a similar level which would make them more dangerous. The important part though was the amount of ability points he had to spend. I could boost the soul bond up to level 5! I wasn't sure that would do something special but I had a strong feeling. Without thinking about it further I placed the five points into Tenebris' Soul Bond.

You have Chosen to increase your familiar's ability

Soul Bond from level 4 to level 5

You and your familiar can now communicate across a distance of up to 2.5 miles.

Your familiar can now communicate without Restrictions

Your familiar can cast any spell you know.

Your Umbra Resistance increases to 50%

Tenebris has gained the ability: Spell Channeling. Whenever you cast a spell you may choose to cast it using your familiar as the origin. At its current level of 1, any spells cast in this way have its MP cost increased by 300%. Your familiar must be within 250 feet of you to use this ability. Any and all other requirements of the spell remain unchanged.

There it is! That ability absolutely made spending all those points worth it. Now not only could I take advantage of Tenebris' ability to fly and his considerable speed but he could just cast any spell I knew! His large MP pool could now come into play. The communication range increase was also amazing. It should make surveilling my territory much easier. I turned my attention to his other abilities and had a new choice to make. I was pretty confident that boosting Soul Bond again wasn't in either of our best interests. We needed to be able to fight which meant Tenebris needed damage. He could cast my spells which would help in that area but a boost to his breath weapon could be a game changer. I spent the points and read the next prompt.

You have chosen to increase your familiar’s ability: Umbra Breath to level 2. The damage caused by the cone of darkness is 5-10 Umbra damage. The breath weapon can be launched as either a 30ft cone or a 30ft line. Cool down 4.5 minutes

Altogether Tenebris had taken a massive leap forward. I pulled up his new status screen and reviewed it.

Name: Tenebris Level: 13,63% Species: Umbra Dragonling Characteristics Health: 80 Magic: 330

Regen/min: 5 Stamina: 180

Regen/min: 3 Attributes Agility:31 Charisma:20 Endurance: 19 Intelligence:39 Luck:3 Perception: 10 Strength:7 Vitality:8 Wisdom:10 Resistances Umbra: 100% Abilities

(Free Points:0) Sphere of Darkness – Lv 2, Points to next level: 2

Soul Bond - Lv 5, Points to next level: 5

Umbra Breath – Lv 2, Points to next level: 2

I closed down the screen and felt Tenebris go slack on my shoulder. I decided to let him rest and turned my attention to Sanaa. She had progressed to the same extent as Tenebris which meant the first purchase was her Soul Bond. I received a nearly identical prompt to Tenebris with the only difference being it was Radiant damage and not umbra. She also did get a new ability. I waited several seconds but nothing came which made me a bit concerned but it also made the next step much easier. I placed her remaining point into Brilliant Frills.

You have chosen to increase your familiar’s ability: Brilliant Frills to level 2. The blinding light created by Brilliant Frills will blind enemies level 10 or lower. The blinded condition will last for 5-7 seconds. The light will affect any target within the visual range. Cool down 4.5 minutes

She could blind all of her opponents and then fuck them up. Since she couldn't use my spells her small magic point pool wasn't that big a deal. It was starting to look like Sanaa was more of a striker type. She wasn't going to take a lot of damage but she could mess someone up if she got close enough. She was also fast as shit. I reviewed her improved stats.

Name: Sanaa Level: 13, 63% Species: Radiant Dragonette Characteristics Health: 80 Magic: 80

Regen/min: 11

Stamina: 220

Regen/min: 4

Attributes Agility:42 Charisma:30 Endurance: 22 Intelligence:8 Luck:3 Perception: 12 Strength:10 Vitality:8 Wisdom:22 Resistances Radiant: 100% Abilities

(Free Points:0) Brilliant Frills – Lv 2, Points to next level: 2

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Soul Bond - Lv 5, Points to next level: 5

Shining Breath – Lv 2, Points to next level: 2

I felt her go slack on my shoulders a moment later. All in all, we had just leaped forward in our power. There couldn’t be many people in the town that could handle a standup fight with the three of us. I leaned back against the stone and closed my eyes. We were going to have to take care of a lot of things soon, but for now, I needed a break.

I woke up sometime later to Sanaa and Tenebris flying through the mine. A blast of radiant light met a blast of dark black and purple. Thankfully, there were no people in the mine, so no one was in danger. I was about to stop them when I noticed how beautiful they looked. It was like watching the sun and moon dance through the sky. Only their attacks were devastating. I would have assumed that Sanaa would be losing since Tenebris could unload all of my spells, but it was like she was a fish in the water. She could spin, twist, and stop on a dime. She was a bit like a fast-moving snake. Tenebris was no less impressive. He was slower than his opponent, but he used the terrain expertly. Every time Sanaa would get close enough to use her claws, he would drop and unleash fire. He was more strategic than Sanaa, taking advantage of the momentary blindness created by his Spheres to avoid her.

I sat back with bated breath as they both turned and rushed each other. Sanaa flared her frills, which forced me to divert my eyes. A storm of Spira magic met with blinding light. It felt like being trapped in a room with a tornado. I pulled up their status screens and realized that they were both at less than half health. I got to my feet as soon as the light faded. Thankfully, both of them had been blown back and against the wall. Neither of them was injured, but their battle further emphasized how fragile they were. I summoned two potions from my ring and made my way over to Tenebris. I gently poured the liquid into his mouth. I watched his health tick back up to full once half of the potion was consumed. I pulled it back and had an idea. Once I was sure that Tenebris was fine, I lifted him and placed him on my shoulder, and then made my way over to Sanaa. I poured the other half of the potion into her mouth and laughed. It turned out they needed half the potion for the total effect.

I wasn’t sure if that was because of their size or if it was related to something else. Either way, it meant that I could save on potions later. It also meant that I had been giving them too much potion earlier. I glared at them before deciding to leave it alone. There was nothing I could do about the past, so it was better to just move on. I reached for our bond to find that it felt stronger than before. It was like a tunnel connecting all three of our minds. I wasn’t sure I could close it if I wanted to. “Are you two feeling better?” Before either of them offered a response, a storm of excitement slammed into me. I stumbled back into the wall as I focused on filtering our emotions.

“It was a good battle. We have grown more powerful.” Tenebris’ voice was slightly more regal than before. It was still very predatory, but this one sounded like a hunter compared to the more bestial tone of before.

“Are these improvements because of you, Master?” Sanaa’s voice stepped in as soon as Tenebris ended. Her tone had changed as well. She always had a bit of arrogance in her voice, but now it felt like she was judging everything. I couldn’t help but grin like the Cheshire cat.

“They are all because of all of us. We grow stronger together.” I added before glancing over at the entrance to the next level of the mine.

“What do you two think about doing some exploring and trying out our new abilities?” Instead of replying, both dragons let out a roar that filled the mine. I let them have their moment before standing up and making my way over to the tunnel. It was finally time to do a bit of exploring.

Tenebris and Sanaa took off my shoulders and headed down the hole. A quick casting of a Sphere of light lit up the entrance and revealed the small slope. It wasn’t enough to stop me from going down, but if the miners were going to be going down here, they would need some help to carry the ore back up. Then again, I had the dolls to do that, so it wasn’t going to be too big a problem. I climbed down and sent the spheres of light to illuminate the path. It forced me to bend and lower my head to continue forward.

“Why can’t the underground tunnels and pathways be sized for a seven-foot-tall man?” I complained to no one. I was about to call my familiars back when I caught sight of something glinting along the right side of the tunnel. It was ore. As soon as I touched it, the Mining skill kicked in and I knew exactly what it was. I had found iron ore. Its purity was over 80% which I knew was good, but I couldn’t tell how good. I scanned the walls around and behind me and picked several other veins. It wasn’t more gold, but it iron was pretty good too, we could make some proper tools with it.

I made my way after my familiars while making a note to have people come down here. I need to come up with a way to send messages back and forth. I stopped at that and pulled up my nation interface. I checked the research tab, but nothing came up. I had been assuming that this world was a medieval fantasy land, but was it? Could I build a cellphone? I didn’t exactly know that, but I knew that it could be done. Unless this world had some kind of scientific limiter on it, I should be able to develop one. I made a mental note to get research going as soon as possible. I was about to check out one of the branching paths when Tenebris sent me a message.

“We have found prey, Master!” The blood lust in his tone sent a shiver up my spine. I summoned the ‘Staff of the Lumomancer’ and moved down the main tunnel as fast as I could. I hadn’t made it more than ten steps before a flash of gold lit up the tunnel ahead of me. I gritted my teeth and focused on not slipping on loose rocks. When I reached the end of the tunnel, I stepped into another large chamber. The first thing I noticed was the heat, the second was the smell. It stunk of rotten eggs and felt like I had entered a sauna. I recast Sphere of Light and took in the battle. A magmite stepped into the world a second later. Its cackling filled the chamber and it threw itself onto a creature. I cast Lesser Revelation on the closest one.

Xorn: Level 7

Xorn are simple Geos elementals. They seek out locations strong in Geos magic where they devour as much as they can. The Xorn are considered a dangerous pest by most of Akopia.

The Xorn was a thick black and brown-skinned creature. They all had four arms and legs with a single mouth in the center of its body. Each hand ended in sharp talons that shone in the light. Based on how they were moving and the lack of anything that looked like eyes, I assumed they were blind or could see through tremors. The fact that they couldn’t hit my familiars made that even more obvious. I considered just letting the two of them deal with the five enemies, but they weren’t dealing much damage. Sanaa couldn’t get too close without risking getting stabbed and her breath weapon was on cool down. Based on how Tenebris flew about Pyro, magic wasn’t that useful and neither was Spira. Before I could come up with a game plan, one of the Xorn turned and marched toward me. I spun my staff around and slammed the butt onto the ground.

I regretted the action as soon as I finished. All four of the other creatures turned and started to come toward me. I began casting and just before the first Xorn could reach me, a sphere of fire sprang into existence. The flames formed a barrier buying me time to come up with another plan. I couldn’t use Lumos magic while stuck here, which meant I had to get rid of it soon. I grinned with anticipation as I realized I just had no choice but to summon my newest creature. If I was going to summon a creature, I might as well summon it at its strongest, right? Casting with the staff felt strange. The energy channeled through the staff instead of my fingers, causing it to shine with bright golden energy. All five Xorn were beating on the flame barrier now. A glance told me it wouldn’t last much longer.

For a brief moment, the magic resisted me. It felt like trying to squeeze water through a water hose with a block in it or trying to force out that bit of toothpaste. I wasn’t sure if I should try to force the magic or just let it come. When the barrier began to crack, I made my choice. I pressed my will against the spell with everything I had. There was a brief pushback before the spell gave in! A golden tear appeared next to me and a roar that shook me to my bones filled the mine. The sound was deafening. I watched as a creature that looked like a lion made of sunlight leaped into the cave. Its glow illuminated everything in the cave. I had just enough time to order it to attack before the barrier fell.

Shards of flame rained down on me as I turned my focus to the battle. The Aurelion made itself known almost immediately. It leaped onto the first Xorn it came across, taking it to the ground where its teeth ripped through the creature’s skin like a knife through butter. The Xorn let out a cry of pain that sounded like nails on a chalkboard. The other turned to attack the lion, which left them open for me. I spun my staff, this time taking care not to hit the ground. I unleashed five rays of light, all aimed at the closest Xorn. Each ray of light sheared into the creature’s flesh, earning me more of its brown. The smell of rotten eggs intensified.

Tenebris swooped in from above and unleashed a blast of darkness that engulfed two Xorn. While Sanaa came down and unleashed a breath of golden light that was no less impressive. The Xorn cried out in pain. There was no hesitation in my familiars or my summons. Even the magmite rejoined the battle, though most of its body had fallen apart. The rest of the battle was one-sided. The Aurelion was the MVP it had ripped its way through two xorns before I downed my first one. After that, the battle was a slaughter. I checked my notifications expecting to see some experience points, but there was nothing. Which meant all of them had been below level 10.

On the bright side, I had made some slight progress with my Lumos magic skill. I quickly surveyed the chamber but there weren’t any other threats. I could make out a few more veins. Most of them were gold, but a few were iron, which would be useful. I was going to need to get trade going soon or else we might die covered in literal gold. With the battle over, I sent the Aurelion back to wherever it came from and summoned several light drones. I sat them to work removing the Xorn. I then turned to leave, calling both my familiars to join me. When we reached the exit to the mine, I found Amara waiting for me.

“Hello My Lord. I hope you had a pleasant rest?” She asked.

I nodded and gestured for her to walk with me. “Indeed, we also headed down into the next level of the mine. I am not sure what’s down, but there should be more gold and at least a bit of iron. There were some xorn but we should have killed them all. Oh, can you have some people watch the mine? I don’t think we have any ‘guards’ but if the Xorn come back, it would be a good experience for people.”

“Of course, My Lord. Are you still planning to unlock your next arcane vein?” I nodded, and she continued. “I have an adventurer who has offered his assistance. He has been looking for work since he arrived.”

I hesitated for a second. I wasn’t sure if bringing a stranger with me was a gamble or not. On one hand, the more the merrier when it came to fighting monsters, on the other hand, locking myself underground with them could get me killed. “Ask Zakia if she would like to join us. Let this other person know to meet me under the tree in an hour. I want to take a bit to get washed off before I go dungeon diving again.”

“Of course, right away. Is there anything else?” When I shook my head, she called over a young-looking elf. She relayed the message and offered him a coin. Once he had run off, she turned back to me.

“If you have a moment, there are some things we should go over.”