Fenrir

Several hours after Fenrir began cultivating again to reach Cultivation Level 3.

Out of nowhere, my soul begins to tremble – just like it did when I reached Cultivation Level 2.

Although, I do notice that it seems to be trembling a little bit more than back then.

Does that mean each level will have a bigger reaction than the last?

Before I can start contemplating this, the trembling comes to an end as a loud snap echoes throughout both my core room and the tunnel leading into it.

Dawn – who had been trying different things with Fang, such as testing if she could give him orders – begins to glow a little bit brighter as the snap resounds throughout the room. Along with the brighter glow, her flames change ever so slightly to a darker shade of blue.

I focus inwards on my core and immediately notice that my soul had grown a tiny bit again.

'Status.'

Name: Fenrir

Race: Dungeon Core

Element: Void

EXP Level: 4

EXP: 40/50

Cultivation Level: 3

Cultivation to next Level: 0%

Mana: 45/45

Secondary Tabs: Dungeon Status, Skills List, Talents List, Achievements List

"Fenrir? Did you level up?" I hear Dawn ask as I look at my status.

"Yes, I did! I just reached Cultivation Level 3! Now you should be able to see everything within my dungeon, right?" I ask Dawn with anticipation.

"Yes! I can! Thank you so much, and congratulations Fenrir!" Dawn says to me while rapidly floating around in circles out of excitement.

I watch her as she floats around for a few seconds before I ask, "By the way Dawn, why did your flame get a little bit darker?"

Dawn continues floating around in circles for a few more laps before she stops in front of my core and answers, "Well, as you level up, we become more and more interlinked. This means that my body will slowly change as you level up. If I were to guess, then I would say that my flame darkened a little bit because of your void element."

"My void element?" I ask Dawn in bewilderment.

Dawn starts to float back and forth in front of my core as she says, "Yes, wisps are all born with a blue colored flame, but as their bonded dungeon core levels up, their color will slowly change to match their bonded dungeon core's element instead. Since your element is void, my flame will most likely turn completely black in the future."

Huh, I didn't realize just how much influence my leveling has on Dawn.

I wonder if Dawn will be able to use void magic in the future? After I have gotten strong enough that is.

Dawn interrupts my line of thought as she says to me while resting on Fang's back, "Remember that you can now start making a fourth floor now that you are Cultivation Level 3."

Oh yeah, I had forgotten about that.

Leon

"Alright Leon, let's get started with this Dungeon City business, shall we?"

Without even giving me a chance to respond, Damien immediately continues talking, "Let's get straight to the point. I would like to set up a Mercenary Guild branch within the Dungeon City you will be founding."

I blankly stare at Damien's face for a few seconds before the significance of what he had just said finally registers in my mind, causing me to blurt out without thinking, "Why?"

As soon as I realize what I had just said, I shut my mouth as tightly as possible as I mentally berate myself for blatantly questioning someone of a much higher Tier.

Damien suddenly starts laughing after hearing my question. Quite hard at that.

Is that good or bad?

I nervously glance around the room again before focusing on Damien, wondering just how many Cultivators of his level would break out in laughter over such a thing.

Damien calms down enough to explain himself after several several seconds pass by with nothing but his laughter filling the room, "Don't worry Leon, I am not mad at you. I actually love being able to talk to someone who is not terrified of me and is willing to speak up and ask questions."

I guess he could tell that I was nervous about my outburst...

Then again, I doubt it would have been very difficult to do so.

"To put this as simply as possible, while I don't have any official problems with Jake Rockwell, I don't like how he runs things here, so I would like to move over to a new Mercenary Guild branch within your soon-to-be Dungeon City," Damien answers my question rather bluntly.

Maybe a little bit too bluntly if you ask me.

If I am understanding this correctly, he doesn't like it here and wants to move to a new Mercenary Guild branch and is just trying to use my Dungeon City as an excuse to do so by creating a new branch within it.

Damien smirks as he seems to be able to read my thoughts before he continues speaking, "I will, of course, make it worth your while. After all, wouldn't it be nice to have a Guildmaster as the one to set up your city's Mercenary Guild branch?"

My jaw drops open as the blood drains from my face.

I knew that he was highly ranked, but for him to be a Guildmaster?

My mind goes back to the time when I was first told how the Mercenary Guilds rankings are setup by my father.

Several years ago

I slowly walk into my father's office after seeing the last person besides him walk out before closing the door behind me.

He had suddenly ordered me to come here out of the blue, but I am not really sure why. After all, I would normally be spending almost all of my time training or studying.

My eyes are drawn to my father as soon as I enter as he sits behind his desk doing paperwork.

He looks up at me as he finishes whatever he was writing and begins speaking, "Leon, you are going to have to sign up as a Mercenary whenever you go out on your own, so I figured that now was as good a time as any to explain the Mercenary Guild's ranking system to you."

Their ranking system?

Yeah, that would be good to know about before I eventually visit a Mercenary Guild.

I sit down across from him and prepare myself for what is bound to be a long lecture.

He waits a few seconds as I prepare myself before beginning his explanation, "The Mercenary Guilds have a rather complicated ranking system after you pass the first few ranks."

After saying this, he pauses and looks me in the eye, "Each Mercenary starts off as a basic Mercenary. Quite simple, right?"

I nod my head in agreement.

Father continues after seeing my nod, "Now, after the basic Mercenary, there are the three Advanced Mercenary ranks. These ranks are also rather simple. After a basic Mercenary completes ten jobs, they will be promoted to the One Star Mercenary rank, which is the first of the three Advanced Mercenary ranks. Meanwhile, the other two Advanced Mercenary ranks are the Two Star Mercenary rank and the Three Star Mercenary rank," Father pauses as he glances at a document on his desk before turning back to me and continuing, "For an Advanced Mercenary to rank up to the next rank, they will need to gain enough merit points to do so by completing jobs given to them by the Mercenary Guild."

I raise my hand to indicate that I have a question before father nods his head, indicating to me to go ahead, "Is the basic Mercenary rank a sort of trial period? Or is it just some sort of way to remove those who aren't strong enough to complete ten jobs?"

Father's face brightens up a little bit when he hears my question – likely happy that I am paying attention – before he answers, "It is a little bit of both. Not only is the rank a way to train new mercenaries, but it is also a way for them to get rid of those who are not strong enough to benefit the Mercenary Guild."

He pauses for a few seconds to see if I have anything else to say before continuing his explanation as I nod my head, "Now then, after the Advanced Mercenary ranks, there are the Executive ranks. This is where it begins to get a little bit confusing in their ranking system. There are three Executive Mercenary ranks, similar to the Advanced Mercenary ranks. The three ranks are the Bronze rank, the Silver rank, and the Gold rank."

My father abruptly pauses his explanation and signals for me to hide myself under his desk.

This has happened a lot throughout my life, so I am used to it by now and don't even question it as I go around his desk and hide underneath it.

A few seconds after I get comfortable under his desk, a knock sounds on the door to my father's office.

"Enter," my father tells whoever is knocking on the door – likely already having sensed who it is.

I hear the door open, followed by light footsteps entering the room.

A long silence ensues from there while my father and the unknown person talk through telepathy before I hear the visitor begin to walk back out of the room and close the door.

I still don't understand why some people walk all the way to his office just to have a talk via telepathy.

My father waits a minute before saying, "Okay Leon, you can come out of hiding now."

I do as he says and crawl back out from under the desk before returning to my seat.

After I sit back down, father continues explaining how the ranking system works for the Mercenary Guilds, "Okay, to continue where we left off, the method of promotion for a Three Star Mercenary to become Bronze rank tends to get a little bit complicated. Not only does the Mercenary need to have a recommendation from someone who is already at the Executive rank, but they must be at least a Tier 2 Cultivator."

That does sound complicated. Not to mention difficult.

Father glances at the paperwork on his desk before returning his gaze to me as he continues, "After a mercenary reaches Bronze rank, they will need to be a Tier 3 Cultivator at the very least to become a Silver rank, and a Tier 4 Cultivator to become a Gold rank Mercenary."

Father pauses his explanation for a few seconds as he asks me, "Are you getting all of this so far?"

I nod my head, "Yes father."

He nods his head back at me and says, "Good."

"Now, I would also like to point out that the Guilds tend to use Three Star Mercenaries as well as Executive rank Mercenaries as their main fighting force whenever they are fighting another group," Father briefly points out to me before moving on, "Finally, for the last publicly known rank within the Mercenary Guilds. If you ever meet someone of this rank, then I would ask you not to antagonize them."

Father says the last part while making direct eye contact with me, making me nod my head a few times just to assure him as I say, "Don't worry father, I am not stupid."

"Good," Father says before continuing, "The last publicly known rank within the Mercenary Guilds is the Guildmaster rank. In order for a Gold rank Mercenary to be promoted to the Guildmaster rank, they have to not only be at least a Tier 5 Cultivator, but they also have to be in a Guild branch that has no current Guildmaster and have a recommendation from another Guildmaster."

My eyes widen at this.

Just becoming a Lord is hard enough, but also having to get a recommendation from another Lord or above as well?

"That seems extremely difficult, father. There can't be very many Guildmasters if that is the criteria for becoming one, right?" I ask with surprise written all over my face.

A smile brightens his face as he says, "That is correct. There are generally only around four or five Guildmasters within each country."

"That's the end of today's lesson," father says before looking back at the door again and adding, "You should head back to your room now that the lesson is over. There shouldn't be anyone between here and your room right now."

"Okay father," I say as I get up from the chair and begin to head towards the door out of his office.

If Damien is a Guildmaster...

As if reading my mind, Damien says in a rather amused tone, "Yep, I am Tier 5."

I freeze in place for a few seconds after getting confirmation before I relax again.

He hasn't done anything to me as of yet, and he seems to need my help. Not to mention that he doesn't seem like a bad guy either, so there shouldn't be any need to worry.

At least, not yet.

Damien smiles as he notices the shift in my emotions, hopefully confirming my thoughts about him.

"Alright, we can talk about you setting up a Mercenary Guild branch within the Dungeon City I will be making," I tell Damien.

Damien claps his hands before rubbing them together as he says, "Alright then! Let's talk about the details tomorrow morning! For now, you should get some rest. There is an inn not too far down the road from here."

I do want to get some sleep in an actual bed. I haven't slept on one in at least a month, and a bedroll is not the most comfortable of places to sleep.

"Alright, I will see you tomorrow then, Damien," I say as I begin to walk out of his office.