Twenty minutes later, we were seated in a cozy café called "The Whisker's Edge," which Adelle swore had "the most epic breakfast burritos in Ferguson."

"So," I said, after we'd ordered enough food to feed a small army, "we should probably discuss our delving strategy for today."

"Easy," Adelle said, leaning back in her chair. "We find the monsters, I punch them, they die."

"Somehow I don't think Professor Fern will make it that straightforward," I replied dryly.

"What if we build a giant wooden badger?" Adelle suggested, looking completely serious. "Roll it up to the dungeon entrance, hide inside, and when they take it in thinking it's a gift..."

"That's... from Monty Python," I pointed out.

"Who's Monty Python?" Adelle stared at me with a blank face. "Is he a snake prad delver?"

I stared at her for a moment before shaking my head. "Never mind." Adelle barked a laugh and I realized that I'd been bamboozled. "The point is, we need a real strategy."

"I have an idea," Nessy offered. "What if, instead of going straight for the treasure, we focus on thinning out the monster numbers first?"

"Exactly what I was thinking too," I nodded. "The monsters won't be working together effectively as they're students who failed the cooperation test."

"Mhmm," Candace nodded. "I very much doubt that they've learned anything since yesterday."

"Yes. We can use their own psychology against them," I nodded.

"Sneaky," Adelle grinned. "I like the sound of that."

Our food arrived, momentarily pausing the strategy session as everyone dug in. Adelle hadn't been exaggerating about the burritos. They were enormous and delicious, stuffed with eggs, cheese, various meats, and what tasted like magical enhancement herbs.

"So the plan," I continued between bites, "is to divide and conquer. We'll draw out smaller groups of monsters, take them down methodically, and gradually reduce their numbers."

"Classic dungeon delving technique," Kristi nodded appreciatively. "And if we plan our route carefully, we can avoid the main group until we're ready for them."

"Exactly," I said. "We go in, we're quiet, we're methodical, and we don't get greedy."

"What if I want to punch lots of things at once?" Adelle yawned.

"Then you'll be our loud distraction when we need one," I promised, which seemed to appease her.

"I can bind a couple of the weakest ones to our control to sabotage the group from within," Candace suggested. "They won't know whom to trust!"

"I can reinforce mistrust with my Riffweld to turn them against each other," Nessy suggested.

"Perfect," I nodded. "Kristi, your job will be reconnaissance. With your speed and stealth, you can scout ahead and report back without being spotted."

"You can also sneak-grab a couple of weaklings for me to bind," Candace added.

The raptor nodded, looking pleased to have a defined role.

We finished our breakfast with more planning and the occasional bout of teasing, mostly from the direction of Candace. By the time we arrived at Ferguson High's gymnasium, I felt confident in our strategy. We were prepared, coordinated, and would hopefully be functional as a team despite having only been together for a day.

The gym looked the same as yesterday.

Professor Fern stood at the entrance, her burning eye surveying the delver teams as they arrived. When she spotted us, she raised a clawed hand in greeting.

"Ah, Captain Foster," she said as we approached. "You're looking rested and well-prepared today. Are you ready for the dungeon simulation?"

"Yes, Professor," I replied confidently. "We're ready."

Instead of directing us toward the simulation entrance as I expected, Professor Fern placed a hand on my shoulder. "A moment of your time, Mr. Foster."

"Yes?"

"The Principal wishes to speak with you before you begin. We'll start with your team in thirty minutes, it'll give the 'monsters' more time to prepare their traps. The other teams will go a day or two after yours as none of them voiced their readiness to challenge the dungeon today."

I glanced back at my team. "I'll be right back. Just going to chat with the Principal again."

The girls nodded at me, sitting down and pulling out their phones.

Professor Fern led me away from the gym, down a corridor toward the administrative wing of the school.

"So, what's this about?" I asked.

"You've made quite an impression on the school's administration, Mr. Foster," she commented as we walked. "Not many low level humans manage to assemble a working delving team as... colorful as yours in such a short time."

"It just sort of happened," I admitted.

"Things rarely 'just happen' in the delving world," she replied cryptically. "Do keep your wits about you in the next few minutes."

Before I could ask what she meant, we arrived at Principal Kerberos's office. The door swung open to reveal the ancient mastiff seated behind his desk. Standing beside him was a pradavarian I'd never seen before.

She was a hybrid cat of some kind—exceptionally tall, absolutely stunning and immaculately groomed, with sleek silver-gray fur accented by black rosettes. She wore a tailored corporate suit and her amber eyes fixed on me with laser-like intensity the moment I entered.

"Mr. Foster," Principal Kerberos greeted me. "Thank you for joining us. This is Agent Langalirri from the North Acadian Frontenachii Omnicorp."

Candace's words suddenly echoed in my head like a sonorous warning bell.

The prad woman extended a perfectly manicured paw. "A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Foster. I've heard interesting things about you."

I shook her hand, noting the firm grip and the subtle scent of expensive perfume.

"Please, have a seat, Mr. Foster." Principal Kerberos gestured to the chair in front of his desk.

As I sat down, Agent Langalirri remained standing, her tall figure imposing as she circled the room with measured steps.

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"Professor Fern," she began, "I understand you've placed Mr. Foster at the top of your class rankings after only a single day of observation. That's quite... unusual, wouldn't you say?"

"I place students where their abilities indicate they belong," Professor Fern replied evenly. "Mr. Foster demonstrated exceptional leadership, strategic thinking, and team-management capabilities yesterday."

"And you stand by this assessment?" Langalirri pressed.

"Absolutely. He will make an excellent delver."

The lynx turned her amber gaze to Principal Kerberos. "And you, Principal? What is your assessment of young Mr. Foster here?"

The mastiff clasped his paws together on the desk. "I find him to be exceptional in terms of skill application and interpersonal dynamics. He formed a devoted pack literally overnight, with pradavarians who would normally never collaborate—including the most talented Binder of her grade, Miss Rhinehart."

Langalirri nodded slowly, finally turning her full attention to me.

"Allow me to be direct," she said, leaning against the desk. "I represent my Omnicorp's Talent Acquisition Division. We specialize in identifying and recruiting individuals with… unique potential."

She reached into her jacket and produced a sleek, obsidian tablet, which she placed on the desk and slid toward me. The screen illuminated with a contract, the Frontenachii logo featured at the top—a stylized three-eyed deer skull with large antlers.

"We would like to offer you a position within our organization," she continued. "Full benefits, accelerated training program, and a starting salary of ninety-five thousand dollars per year."

I blinked, momentarily stunned by the figure. That was more money than I'd ever imagined making, especially as a teenager with no college degree.

However, if my brother had managed to teach me anything, it is that if something seemed too good to be true it was usually a firebomb trap of some sort that was going to explode on me in a horrific way.

"What's the catch?" I asked, squinting at her.

Langalirri smiled, revealing perfect white canines. "Smart boy. The 'catch,' as you put it, is a lifetime blood contract. Exclusive rights to your services, permission to monitor and test your skill to understand its functions, relocation to our new corporate headquarters, and immediate commencement upon signing."

I picked up the tablet, scanning the contract carefully. The legalese was dense, but I caught enough to raise several red flags. The location transfer clause mentioned "dimensional gates" but was deliberately vague about the final destination. The termination clause was essentially nonexistent—once a blood contract was signed, I would be theirs forever.

"Where exactly would I be working?" I asked, looking up from the tablet.

"At our new corporate office," Langalirri replied smoothly. "Near a newly discovered dungeon."

"How far is that from Ferguson?"

"Far enough that any calls or any visits home would be... infrequent," she admitted. "But the compensation more than makes up for such inconveniences."

"I'd like to know the specific location of the job," I said.

"The location is classified, I'm afraid."

"Riiiight," I handed the tablet back to her. "Thanks. I appreciate the offer, but I'm not interested."

Her smile didn't falter, but her eyes narrowed slightly. "Perhaps I wasn't clear about the opportunity here, Mr. Foster."

"Oh?"

"Very well. I am prepared to offer a six-figure salary for someone with your... unique skill set."

"Which is what?" I pretended to be interested.

"One hundred and twenty thousand," she clarified. "Plus performance bonuses, a signing bonus of sixty thousand, and a fully furnished corporate apartment. Do I hear a yes?"

"No." I said.

She growled. "One hundred and fifty thousand."

"Nah."

I felt a mental pressure radiate away from her, an alien desire taking hold of me to fall to my knees, to obey her, to sign the contract. I dove backwards into my infinite tree self, letting charisma magic wash over me like summer rain.

"One hundred and sixty thousand. My final offer today."

"Not interested." I shook my head.

"Hrm," she huffed. "Not tempted by monetary compensation are we, Mr. Foster?"

"It's not about the money. I have… family here in Ferguson. I have no interest in leaving."

"Family can be relocated… after you've settled in," she countered.

"Not this family," I said firmly.

Langalirri's expression hardened slightly. "Mr. Foster, opportunities like this don't come along every day. Many would kill to be sitting where you are right now."

"Then offer it to them," I suggested. "I'm staying in Ferguson. I've a job to do here."

"A job that pays more than one hundred and sixty grand a year in local currency?" She arched an eyebrow.

"A job where everyone in town depends on me," I said sternly. "Also, do fuck off with Charmchain please, don't think I can't feel what you're doing."

A tense silence followed as the Corpo Agent studied me, her amber eyes calculating. Finally, she sighed and retrieved the tablet.

"Very well," she said, her tone cooler now. "Should you reconsider, the offer will remain open for forty-eight hours." She turned to Principal Kerberos. "Thank you for your time, Principal. Professor… Fern."

With a nod of acknowledgment to each, she strode out of the office, her long tail swishing with barely contained irritation. Yet again, there was something wrong with her shadow, an unnervingly uncanny valley sense that it didn't match her body correctly.

Once the door closed behind her, Professor Fern turned to me. "Well done, Mr. Foster. Not many would turn down that kind of money. It would be a shame to lose a prospective delver like yourself."

"It wasn't a good deal," I said simply. "The contract was deliberately vague about where I'd end up, and I don't think they were planning to let me come back here once I signed."

"You care for Ferguson that much?" she wondered.

"I care for my pack," I said. "And I care for the people of this town, yes."

"What sort of a job are you involved in that ties you to Ferguson?" Principal Kerberos wondered.

"None of your business," I told him sternly.

"You dare to speak with me with such a disrespectful tone?" the Principal asked, his shadow wobbling and his figure stretching unnaturally.

"I do. Because, it seems to me that you did fuck all to stop a corporate Agent from using Charisma magic on a student," I told him, staring straight at his face.

"Mr. Foster, you do realize that I could give you detention or even suspension for your disrespectful tone?"

"Go ahead," I said, spreading my arms. "I don't care. I'm not going to obey your punishment. Expel me and lose five of your top delving students because my pack will follow me wherever I go. You think that I have nowhere else to be or something? The only reason I'm here is because I wanted to…" I considered why I ordered Adler and Candace to go back to school. "give a couple of my new friends an environment with… more structure."

Principal Kerberos frowned.

"Don't invite me to any further corpo recruitment pitches. I don't care if the company offers two hundred grand or two million. I'm not going to respect a figure of authority who does not respect his students. Next time, if I'm targeted with Charmchain in your office, I promise I will retaliate in kind. I will not come alone and my packmates will not be as polite as I'm trying to be. The collateral damage from four very angry prad girls could be extensive. It'd be a shame to mess up such a nice office."

Principal Kerberos's eyes narrowed, his massive form seeming to expand as shadows gathered around him. The air in the office grew heavy, pressing down on my chest like a physical weight.

"You dare threaten me, boy?" he laughed. "In my own school?"

I held my ground, meeting his gaze unflinchingly. "It's not a threat. It's a statement of fact. You allowed a corporate representative to use Charmchain magic on a student without any warning or protection. That's not just unethical; it's illegal."

"I allowed nothing," he countered, rising from his chair. He towered over me now, his aging mastiff appearance seeming to flicker at the edges. "I merely facilitated a meeting between a talented student and a potential employer."

"An employer who tried to mentally compel me to sign a blood contract," I shot back. "Some facilitation! How many male prad and human students have your people abducted from here using Charisma magic?"

Professor Fern shifted uncomfortably beside me, her burning eye flicking between us as the confrontation escalated.

"My people?"

"She is obviously the same sort of a thing you are." I fired back.

"A thing? You know nothing of how this world works, Mr. Foster," Principal Kerberos said. "Nothing of the forces at play or the powers that be. You are a child playing at being a delver. This was an opportunity to…"

"You're starting to sound like a corpo agent playing at being a principal," I retorted, reaching into my pocket. My fingers closed around the high-frequency emitter I'd used against the bikers. "And I'm done with this conversation."

I pressed the button, unleashing a high-pitched frequency that should have been agonizing to any pradavarian in the room.

The effect on Professor Fern was instant. The raptor woman flinched visibly, her feathers puffing up wildly, her reinforced talons clicking against the floor in irritation.

But Principal Kerberos? He remained perfectly still, watching me with unnervingly deep eyes that seemed much older than they should have been.

"I see," I said, releasing the button. "You're not a prad at all. Candace was right then. The government IS made from cryptids!"

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