Year 1451, month 10, day 05

  “haaah... ssshhh…”

  The morning arrived with the soft, rhythmic sounds of peaceful breathing. I woke up slowly, the weight of the previous night still lingering in my limbs and a quiet sense of satisfaction settling in my chest. To my left, Woya was tucked against me, her head resting near my shoulder, and to my right, Wyn was curled up just as closely, her tail resting still across the blankets. Their steady, quiet respirations were the only things breaking the absolute silence of the room.

  I moved with careful deliberation, shifting my weight and sliding out of the bed an inch at a time so as not to awaken them. They are typically very precise about their timing, usually rising at the first hint of light to begin their duties, so the fact that they were still deep in sleep suggested one of two things: either it was still far earlier than I realized, or the exertions of yesterday—both the physical toll of the dungeon and the emotional intensity of the night afterward—had pushed them to their limits. I decided to let them rest; they had earned a few extra minutes of peace.

  As I stepped away from the warmth of the bed, the morning air bit sharply at my skin. The room was undeniably chilly, a stark reminder that we were now only a month away from the onset of winter. I reached for my clothes, pulling them on quickly to stave off the shiver, while thinking that I should probably set aside some gold to buy the girls warmer garments soon. While I was pulling on my top, I heard a slight rustle of fabric behind me. Wyn wiggled beneath the covers, her sharp beastkin senses likely picking up my presence even in the depths of her sleep. She blinked, her dark eyes settling on me as she processed the room.

  “... Oh, master. Sorry, did you wake up? I apologize if we are late.”

  She looked groggy at first, her hair slightly mussed, but the realization that I was already up and dressed sobered her instantly. A flicker of frustration crossed her face; she clearly prided herself on being ready before I was, and she seemed to view her extra sleep as a lapse in her duties.

  “It’s okay,” I said, my voice barely a whisper to avoid disturbing Woya, who was still motionless. “I’ll be downstairs. Wake Woya up when you’re ready and start on breakfast.”

  I headed to the bathroom to take care of my morning routine, washing the sleep from my face with the cold water from the tank. The chill of the water was bracing, fully centering my mind for the day ahead. By the time I moved into the living room, the familiar sounds of activity were already drifting from the kitchen—the rhythmic clatter of wood being moved and the sharp crackle of a newly lit fire. I didn't have anything pressing to do, so I decided to wander into the kitchen to see if I could lend a hand and perhaps ease their morning rush.

  “M-master! What are you doing?”

  The cry came from both of them simultaneously as I reached for a stack of ceramic plates to carry to the dining table.

  “Oh, it’s nothing,” I said, offering a casual shrug to downplay the gesture. “I was just trying to help carry some of this out. Did I grab the wrong ones?”

  “No, it’s not that, master,” Woya said, her voice rising in a panicked trill as she hurried toward me. “But why are you carrying plates in the first place? This is our duty. You shouldn't be doing work like this.”

  Wyn nodded beside her, her expression equally firm and resolute. “No, master! If you start doing our chores, our value in this house drops because we become less useful to you. Please, refrain from doing things like that.”

  Wyn had fully regained her composure, speaking with the elegant, professional tone of the high-tier maid she had been trained to be. I looked at the two of them, their ears pulled back slightly and their expressions genuinely desperate. It was clear that in their eyes, my assistance was a critique of their efficiency.

  “... Okay, fine,” I said, pouting slightly as I set the plates back down on the counter. “I’ll go wait in the living room. Just don't be surprised if you come in and find a corpse whose cause of death was sheer boredom.”

  I retreated to the couch, playing up the "childish" act just enough to make them smile. It was a useful tactic; it allowed me to maintain a relaxed, approachable atmosphere without making them feel as though they were failing in their roles. I sat in the quiet of the living room, listening to the efficient sounds of them working in tandem.

  After about fifteen minutes, the table was set and the breakfast was ready. We made quick work of the meal, knowing we had a busy day ahead and a schedule to keep. Once we finished, I returned to my room to strap on my full plate armor, a process that required careful adjustment of the straps and buckles. The girls handled the dishes with practiced speed and then transitioned into their own leather gear.

  We met at the front door exactly on time, each of us checking our equipment one last time. As we set off toward the northeast canyon, leaving the residential district behind, I began to outline the plan for the upcoming week.

  “For the next five days, we’re going to maintain the routine we established yesterday,” I explained as we walked through the winding canyon streets. “We’ll hit the dungeon every morning. But keep in mind, as we descend further, each floor will take longer to clear. The layouts become more complex, and the monsters more resilient. We’ll start getting home later and later. Eventually, we’ll reach a point where clearing a single floor will take an entire day.”

  They listened in a respectful, attentive silence, their focus entirely on my words. We took the most direct route possible through the city, and upon reaching the shimmering, translucent veil of the dungeon entrance, I navigated the interface and selected the Third Floor.

  This floor was the primary habitat of Horned Mosquitoes. Before we stepped onto the floor, I briefed the girls on what to expect. These monsters weren't particularly sturdy or high in health, but they were incredibly fast and possessed a piercing attack that could bypass light armor if it landed correctly. For someone with my stats, they were merely an annoyance; for Woya and Wyn, however, they were a genuine threat if they weren't careful with their positioning.

  I adjusted our formation to prioritize their safety and maximize Woya's defensive training. I placed Woya in the lead with her shield raised high and braced against her shoulder. Wyn followed closely behind her, staying in her shadow instead of trying to flank. This way, Woya could act as a literal wall, absorbing the momentum of the mosquitoes' high-speed charges. Once the monster was dazed and stopped against the shield, Wyn could dash out from behind and deliver the finishing blow.

  It was a simple, foundational strategy, and to my relief, it worked perfectly. They navigated the corridors of the third floor without sustaining a single scratch. At first, there was a bit of fumbling as they learned to coordinate their timing—Wyn sometimes moving too early or Woya not bracing quite enough—but they quickly found a rhythm. The moment a mosquito lunged at Woya’s shield with a sharp hum, Wyn would already be moving, her iron sword striking the creature before it could recover and fly away. Since the mosquitoes were fragile, a single strike usually ended them instantly.

  We moved through the floor at a brisk pace. I led them along the shortest paths I knew, wanting to conclude the raid quickly so I could return to my own magic practice later. My mind was already occupied with thoughts of mana manipulation and elemental theory.

  We eventually arrived at the boss room and waited for three other adventuring parties to finish their attempts before the doors cycled open for us. The heavy stone doors groaned shut, and the ambient mana began to swirl and condense in the center of the chamber. Both Wyn and Woya didn't wait for the boss to fully manifest; they rushed forward together, closing the distance before the monster could gain any aerial momentum. By denying it the space to fly at full speed, they effectively neutralized its greatest weapon.

  Woya parried the creature’s initial, clumsy lunge effortlessly. In the same heartbeat, Wyn landed a precise, heavy strike on one of its wings. Grounded and screaming a high-pitched buzz, the boss was unable to defend itself as Woya and Wyn systematically dismantled it—one taking the remaining wing and the other severing its legs. The entire fight was over in less than twenty seconds. I was genuinely impressed; even on my first run, I hadn't been that efficient. Having companions who acted as a single unit changed the mathematics of the dungeon entirely.

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  The girls stopped attacking while the boss was still struggling on the ground, leaving the final blow for me. I stepped forward, but instead of drawing the Bastion Sword from its sheath on my back, I extended my right hand.

  “Fireball!”

  The sphere of orange flame manifested in the air, wobbling slightly as I stabilized the mana, before I launched it into the crippled monster. The girls jumped back instinctively, their eyes wide with shock at the sudden heat and light. They watched in a stunned silence until the boss monster had completely dissolved into fine grey dust.

  “... Master. What was that?” Wyn asked, her voice hushed and filled with awe. Woya was already busy collecting the 60 copper coins the boss had dropped, but she was casting frequent, amazed glances toward my hand.

  “It’s a spell called ‘Fireball’,” I said nonchalantly, as if casting magic were as simple as breathing. “I assume you’ve never seen magic before?”

  “I’ve seen a witch use magic once,” Wyn said, her surprise beginning to fade into a look of deep, renewed respect. “But I’ve never seen a spell that manifested like that.”

  “I’ll be using magic more often from now on,” I warned them. “So try not to look so shocked every time I do it. It will be part of our standard repertoire.”

  “Yes, master,” Wyn replied without a single follow-up question, accepting the revelation of my new power as she had accepted everything else.

  Before moving to the next level, I opened the party menu to check their progress and see how the experience from the floor had been distributed.

  ***

  Name: Wyn

  —

  Equipped Jobs:

  Beast Warrior Level 10 (4 Up)

  ***

  ***

  Name: Woya

  —

  Equipped Jobs:

  Villager Level 10 (5 Up)

  —

  Acquired Jobs:

  Beast Warrior Level 1 (New)

  Swordman Level 1 (New)

  Dungeon Raider Level 1 (New)

  ***

  This is a new feature I get after I equip the hero job. It is either about its tier or specific to the hero job. I can choose to see only the changes that happened at the “Player Window” or “Party Panel” if I focus.

  Woya had finally hit level 10 in the Villager job, which triggered a cascade of new options for her. While the Beast Warrior job is undeniably powerful for our race, I decided to steer Woya in a different direction based on her current equipment and her aptitude for defense.

  I opened her menu and manually changed her job to Swordsman. My long-term goal for her is the Knight job, which offers superior defensive passives, but she needs to build her foundational swordsmanship first. I decided to wait until we were back at the house to explain the change to her in more detail.

  We descended the stairs to the Fourth Floor, where the corridors were filled with Goblins. For many new delvers, goblins are a psychological hurdle because they are humanoid, making the act of killing them feel uncomfortably close to murder. But my girls were wolfkin; to them, a hunt was a hunt, and a monster was a monster. They slaughtered the goblins with a predatory efficiency that lacked even a hint of hesitation.

  The goblins' attacks were light and disorganized. Woya found she didn't even need to stay behind her shield constantly; she began to push into the groups, killing several of them herself with quick, decisive thrusts of her iron sword. Her new job as a Swordsman was already beginning to show its influence on her movements.

  We reached the boss room—home to the Warrior Goblin—after a short wait behind four other groups. The boss was smarter and more resilient than its lesser kin, possessing a rudimentary understanding of parrying, which forced the girls to fall back on their established tactics. Woya held the center, absorbing the boss's heavy swings, while Wyn darted in from the flanks to deliver punishing, distracting cuts.

  The Warrior Goblin resisted for over a minute, its iron club clashing against Woya's shield, but eventually, the sheer volume of damage began to take its toll. It faltered, its guard dropping as it panted from exertion.

  “Move aside!” I shouted.

  The girls dove to the left and right instinctively, trusting my command without looking back.

  “Wind Blade!”

  I manifested the spell—a swirling green orb of compressed air that released several razor-sharp slashes. The blades tore through the boss, ending the fight instantly. As the monster disintegrated, Woya hurried to pick up the loot: a single Silver Coin. She held it up to the light, staring at it like a precious treasure; it was the first time she had seen a silver coin drop from a monster, a clear sign that we were moving into more profitable territory.

  As we prepared to leave, Woya turned to me, her head tilted in that curious way of hers. “... Is something wrong, master?”

  “No,” I said, observing the subtle changes in her posture. “How are you feeling, now that you and your sister are clearing floors so easily?”

  “Thanks to your training and the equipment, I’m not finding it difficult at all,” she said honestly. “It’s actually gotten much easier on this floor. I think I’m just getting used to the weight of the shield and how to balance my sword.”

  “You might find the real reason is a bit more magical than that,” I said with a smirk. “Open your Intelligence Card.”

  Woya looked confused but obeyed the command. “Okay... Intelligence Card, open!”

  ***

  Woya

  Race: Wolfkin

  Age: 18

  Sex: Female

  Job: Swordsman

  Citizenship: Hazaroth Union

  Status: Slave

  Master: Han

  ***

  She scanned the text, her eyes widening in disbelief when she reached the job entry. “M-master! What is this? It says my job is Swordsman, but I was a Villager this morning!”

  She looked at me in a state of pure panic, as if she thought she had been cursed or that her identity had been rewritten by some dark magic.

  “I changed it,” I said casually, enjoying the look of surprise. “You fulfilled the conditions by hitting level 10, so I updated your job to something more suitable.”

  “How is that possible?” Wyn asked, her voice cracking with shock. “How did you do that, master? Only guilds or high-level priests are supposed to be able to see or facilitate job changes.”

  I leaned in closer, my expression turning serious to emphasize the weight of the secret. “I have my ways; it is not a big deal. So don’t worry and don’t mention this anywhere, okay? Actually… it would be better if you don’t say anything about me at all, since I have many unusual abilities. I showed you all of these because I believed that you would keep them secret.”

  I was being manipulative, certainly, but it was necessary for our collective safety. By framing it as a matter of deep trust and mutual protection, I was ensuring their silence while simultaneously deepening the emotional bond they felt toward me. I wanted them to feel like they were part of a secret world that only we three shared.

  “... Oh, yes, master,” Wyn said, quickly regaining her composure and nodding with a firm look. “If that is what you wish, master,” Woya added, following her sister’s lead, her panic subsiding into a quiet awe.

  With the fourth floor cleared, I called an end to the day’s raid. We spent the rest of the afternoon much like the day before—buying snacks from the various stalls in the market district, walking home together, and enjoying the lively atmosphere of the city. We watched the merchants and the travelers, feeling like a part of the bustling life of Yargan.

  Once we reached the house, I left the girls to their chores and retreated to my private training space in the backyard to practice my magic. I pushed myself until my mana pool was nearly empty and a dull, pulsing ache began to throb behind my eyes. I practiced the manifestation speed of my Fireball and the precision of my Wind Blade, trying to minimize the distorted, convulsing form the spells took when I was tired. Only then did I return to the main house.

  I changed into my casual clothes and headed to the living room. Dinner was already on the table, the scent of herbs and roasted meat filling the space. Woya had prepared a dish of fried meat seasoned with local spices. It was simple, but the quality of the meat and the precision of the seasoning made it taste incredible. We ate in a comfortable silence, the shared labor of the day making the meal taste even better.

  After dinner, we followed our now-established routine. We wiped down our bodies with warm water, the steam rising in the small bathroom, and then shared the large bed. Each time we were intimate, I noticed they became a little less shy, their bodies finally beginning to recognize me as more than just an owner, but as someone they truly belonged with.

  As I fell asleep that night, the weight of them in my arms felt more natural than it ever had before. I watched the moonlight filter through the window, feeling the steady heartbeat of the two girls beside me, and drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

  [Edited]