When I return, I tell the group everything that happened, starting from the moment the monster spoke for the first time. I hide some details about the dungeon; I’ve only told them how to end it. The other information I’ve kept for Susan—I must not forget they were hired by someone else, and I don’t know if they have a contract or something similar.

  Everyone looks a bit relieved when I finish talking. Now we’re only halfway through collapsing this dungeon and completing this job.

  "Did you ask him where the other monster is located?" Murill, the bald vice leader of the group, asks me.

  I freeze on the spot. Damn it. I forgot to ask something so basic; I got carried away listening to information about the mountain and other details. My mind only thought, I just have to kill one more monster in these days. A huge oversight on my part.

  "No… I forgot. It should be close, or at least I think so." I scratch my head, a bit embarrassed by my mistake.

  For a moment I thought the whole owl group would be disappointed in me, but that feeling disappears when Joaki places his arm over my shoulders and laughs. "Don’t worry, we’ll find it. You’ve already done enough killing one of the two leaders." His wide grin makes me smile back.

  "I’ll take care of the other one too, if you all agree." It’s the most efficient way if we repeat the same method. I only ask to know their opinion—being a hired group, they should get a huge bonus for killing one of the dungeon bosses. I don’t want to cut into their earnings.

  "If it’s not too much trouble." Joaki looks at his group for a moment and then turns to look directly into my eyes. "Those monsters are powerful. I trust my group, and if we fight we’ll win, but it’s better to avoid a big risk. We want everyone to get out alive and settle our lives."

  "I don’t have any problem with that. By the way, do you have any plans for the future?" They stayed behind fighting a huge number of monsters waiting for me—they didn’t care about being at a disadvantage because they trusted me.

  People’s true face shows in these kinds of situations, when life is at stake. They’ve already proven to be comrades; I can trust them to watch my back, and they would be great reinforcements for my territory, especially Joaki.

  "Not many, honestly. We want to move to a city or town where we can settle down. We’ve been doing this for around twenty years—it’s time to take smaller risks." That sounds like a great life plan. Diving into dungeons lets you earn money quickly, but you can lose your life just as fast at any moment.

  "Can I ask you all for a favor?" I look each one of them straight in the eyes, making sure to see their reactions.

  "We already owe you our lives. Just ask." Yuly is the first to answer, and the whole group waits for my question.

  "Would you settle in my territory? It’s small but growing constantly, and a force like yours would be a huge help. Many dungeons are appearing around the territory. Having a veteran group in charge of clearing them occasionally would be a dream come true." I look at them; their faces only look thoughtful for the moment.

  "I could also talk to my parents about giving you some security positions in the towns, maybe a special unit since you’re a single group." I keep talking a bit out of nervousness, trying to find solutions in case they don’t like the idea.

  I look over all their faces back and forth. Finally, Joaki opens his mouth to respond. "We’d love to help the territory of our savior grow. Let me talk to my group about what positions they’d like, and we’ll let you know later. Count on us." His answer excites me, though something feels strange—and I’ve felt it for a while.

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  Why hasn’t Joaki advanced in rank? I didn’t feel any internal or external injury when he opened his Imra to me a few days ago. He must have met the requirements many years ago. I’ll ask him when we’re alone.

  We talk a bit more, and they decide I should rest a little before continuing the expedition. According to Gator, the chances of finding the other dungeon leader in the other zone are quite high, and he’ll go check it out himself while we rest.

  Gator returns a few hours later with great news. That place is infested with different types of monsters, but the good thing is that he was able to locate several feline-type monsters guarding some of the entrances. That’s good news for us. We’ll go at dawn to give everyone, especially Gator, some rest.

  "I’ll handle the watch. I don’t need much sleep." Without waiting for complaints, I get up and walk to one of the exits between the roots.

  Hours pass, and about an hour before dawn I feel someone looking for me. Their gaze lands on the branches of the tree where I’m sitting. Like an acrobat, they jump from branch to branch until they reach me. I only used my Dimensional Step to appear here.

  "You wake up a bit early." Joaki throws me a fruit similar to an apple before biting into his own.

  "It’s hard to sleep when this mission is possibly the last of its kind, where a single misstep could cost one of us our lives." I understand his position somewhat—if I were in an expedition with the four girls, I’d be anxious the whole time about their safety.

  "I want to thank you again, Maki. Not only for saving us from the withered tree group, but for giving us the chance to complete this dungeon with minimal risks. I’ve already lost too many friends along the way and don’t want to experience that feeling right before changing our lifestyle." He opens his Imra again to show me his words are sincere.

  I open mine a little to show trust. "Don’t worry, Joaki. I’m no saint—hell, not even close—but if I can help good people, I will." I raise my fist toward him and he bumps it, a half-embarrassed smile appearing on his face.

  "Can I ask you something?" His silence is enough of an answer. "Why have you remained at sapphire rank? You could’ve advanced long ago from what I can see." His face looks a bit uncomfortable with my question.

  "You have good control over your Imra to have noticed. I shouldn’t be surprised since you can weave it with mana so easily." I’m proud of my ability to weave mana and Imra—some attacks are intended to break defenses, but combining both makes it very resistant.

  "I haven’t advanced in rank because of my team. Some of them are injured and can’t ascend due to old wounds, others simply fear the process, and then there’s Murill, Yuly, and me, who have postponed advancing so we can continue entering dungeons as a team." His answer clears my doubts; it wouldn’t make sense to ascend if you can’t work with your team.

  "I haven’t ruled out the possibility of advancing to ruby rank. If we manage to settle our lives, I’ll consider it. Murill and Yuly feel the same—it’s very likely they’ll advance if I do." That would be great news; if they stay in my territory we might gain three powerful ruby ranks.

  "I understand. I hope you find your answer soon. Just ask me if you need support with anything. Now your group is part of my territory; I’ll be happy to offer my services." The general power of my territory will grow—enough for a promotion to Baron.

  "It would be really painful not being able to keep having adventures with my group. I’m an important emotional pillar for them and… I don’t want to sound arrogant, but I’m quite strong." I don’t refute his opinion—he’s a man with a steady mind, and he’s powerful.

  "After meeting you, I’ve sincerely wanted to advance. I want to have a proper duel with you. Right now, it would just be a one-sided beating." The increase in mana and Imra along with the banner's evolution will be huge boosts. I wouldn’t be surprised if Joaki becomes stronger than me once he ascends.

  "I’ll be your dance partner when you reach ruby rank." I lie back on the thick branch.

  "I just hope they don’t kick me out of the territory for humiliating the prodigy son." I can’t help laughing at his words; Joaki nearly falls off the tree from exaggerating his movements while laughing.

  "We need to focus on today first. How likely do you think we are to win?" With his experience, he should be able to assess these situations well.

  "With you? Very high—around eighty-five percent. I just hope no one dies along the way." Joaki looks down, sadness clearly visible in his eyes.

  "That won’t happen while I’m around." I try to lift his spirits a bit.

  "You said it yourself—while you’re around." Joaki pinches his cheeks hard, and his usual smile returns. "Don’t worry, we don’t need a babysitter. We’re a group of adults who have survived thousands of horrible situations."

  At that moment, the group is already waking up, and some have left the base looking for us. They haven’t looked toward the higher branches yet.

  "It’s time to go," I tell Joaki.

  "Let’s end this shit." He jumps down to the ground and I follow him.

  "Yeah, let’s put an end to this." I hope to find the leader monster today. If not, I’ll search without rest until I do.