They might have managed to get one night to sneak away, but they certainly didn’t get to sleep in.

First thing in the morning, Meisje was at their door with a message from Rae.

"Mister Karl? There is a group at the Guild House to speak with you. I believe that they are from the mining dungeon. Yizimon?"

Karl sighed and nibbled at Dana’s fluffy fox ear before getting out of bed.

"Please inform them that we will be ten minutes, just finishing our morning routine."

They were both going to be requested for the team, Karl was certain. So, even Dana had to get up early and shower this time, while Karl transformed back to what passed for his human form to go greet the guests and discuss the dungeon run for the day.

She needed a bit longer than he did to get ready, especially when he left fox form to shower.

Without the fluffy ears and tail, there was a lot less maintenance to be done. Having nine fluffy tails did have advantages, though. He was definitely looking forward to being able to find time for that form in the future.

"Greetings, Elders. Were you wishing to head to the dungeon this morning?" Karl greeted the older Immortals when he reached the main room of the Guild House.

"Right on the first guess. We were hoping to do it early today so that it could be finished and mined out at a reasonable hour. With the assistance of yourself and your Dana Mage, I believe that we should be able to get it all finished and empty by dinner.

However, we would like to switch strategies this time, and have your team take the right side, while we go left.

The resources are different on each side, as you noticed last run, and being able to alternate weekly will provide us with a much-needed balance for our customers."

"Indeed. If we can swap every week, I don’t see any reason that my craftsmen would be upset. There is enough for us to work with for two weeks, so we will be building our own supply until we have a need to rush production."

Working with Karl was much easier than they had anticipated.

Given how greedy and proud most powerful Immortals were, they had expected him to demand the sections with the best loot, even if he didn’t try to renegotiate his agreement with them.

But that wasn’t Karl’s style.

Even if they alternated, he would still get most of the good stuff because his teams were so much faster than theirs were. The only question was who all he should bring with him.

Skadi was still sleeping, and getting used to her space, so it would be best to let her rest for the day. Rae definitely wanted to go if she sent her own shopkeeper to get him this morning. But there were very few situations where Rae would not want to go to a dungeon.

"How many people do you have today?" Karl asked, so he knew how much space he had.

This wasn’t a good dungeon for training in, as it was only boss kills. So, he would have to find a better spot to get the whole team together again. But he might need to bring some Elders.

"If you and Dana are both there, could you do the dungeon together with your beasts?" The Elder asked hopefully.

"I could. There are a few other members of my Guild who would be helpful, though. Some people to back up Dana’s side and protect your miners from being ambushed."

The Elder smiled. "We have managed to gather our combat Elders this time, so we won’t need as much protection, as long as some of your team comes to help with the boss if it finds us."

"In that case, it’s perfect.

We will split into three groups once we enter the dungeon, one for each boss. Your team mines as fast as they can, just send a couple of people to assist Dana.

And then we will mine the place out at the end.

If you need guidance on the hidden resource locations, we can help you with that as well. No need to waste time getting to the good stuff."

The Elder laughed, "We have sent teams down since the last run we did together, and they have confirmed the route you described. We have a full plan for where we need to mine first this time, starting near the left tunnel.

Never walk past work, that’s what our Grand Elder says."

"Words of wisdom. If you do, you’ve got to double back, and there is a chance it will be destroyed before you get back. My team isn’t known for being the most gentle, though we do try not to destroy the dungeon itself."

In her space, Rae laughed. She was preparing all the good stuff for this dungeon, hoping that Karl would give her a full team of spiders again.

If he did, she needed to be ready for group combat, and that meant items that granted bonuses to those near her.

Like better venom.

The spiders were great additions, but their species was a bit limited, and without the bond to Karl, or extra skills, they weren’t living up to their potential. If she used an item that gave them all poison damage, and a bonus bleed effect, they would double in output instantly.

While Rae prepared, Tian was making notes for his little sister. She had never seen a dungeon before, as far as he knew. So, it would be so much better if they had a chance to brief her in advance.

Of course, she was sleeping off a food coma, and the influx of mana that came from being in a Beast Space. But she would definitely want a full description of the situation once she was awake.

[ I will go with you as well. To protect our Dana Mage. ] Thor insisted.

[We’re getting the whole gang back together. Ooh, ooh, we should take the others out soon. I’ve got an item that will help them stabilize their Immortal Spirit faster. It will be a weak one, but a complete and stable one. ] Remi added.

Tian giggled at her enthusiasm. [You’re coming too? That’s surprising.]

[You make me sound lazy. I contribute. And not just in the Alchemy lab.]