Malvorik let out an annoyed curse as his vision was cut off, again. The priestess had pushed the conduit into her transport bag and closed the flap.

Spell formulae appeared on the mirrored walls of his heart-room as the dungeon heart began modifying the visual link. It was difficult, especially since the conduit was being moved quickly and erratically, to shift his focus point. Eventually, vision returned as he managed to reposition his sight just outside the travel bag, at the maximum distance from the conduit where he still could affect anything.

He looked around. He couldn't also reposition his auditory perception, but the shouting and screaming were audible even through the cloth cover. His view of the priestess carrying the conduit was slightly tilted, hanging at her side, but it was enough to follow the events.

Giant turtles were attacking the group of students. He compared them mentally to his vast catalogue of known creatures. Long, extendable necks, venomous viper-like teeth… viper turtles? Those were supposed to be docile unless provoked. He tried to detect if they were under the influence of some spell, but he couldn't focus his analysis ability on them. They remained vague and indistinct to his dungeon-core's mana vision.

Interesting… Some kind of anti-divination ward? Well, obviously.

One student handed Faya a loaded crossbow. She held it with trembling hands until the signal came to shoot. She missed, then tried to reload, but it didn't seem to work. Malvorik, having never shot a crossbow in his life, decided he wasn't qualified to judge her failure.

He noticed the elevated heart rate of his conduit. Ah, yes. The poor thing couldn't see and was likely terrified, but since it didn't affect the connection, he ignored it.

Faya dashed around the battlefield, dragging wounded students out of danger, sometimes right from under snapping jaws or clawed limbs. She only healed or bandaged injuries until the bleeding stopped, then moved to the next victim.

Malvorik paused and recalled her actions from memory. At first glance, it seemed she was acting frantically and without thought or plan. But upon closer inspection, he recognized a system. She scanned the battlefield, identified the most critical skirmishes, and chose safe extraction routes. She even ignored whining students after a glance confirmed their wounds weren't serious. The girl had solid instincts. She might have slept through some theory classes, but her triage skills and first aid knowledge were impeccable.

She only faltered when Alina was knocked off her feet in a surprise attack. A viper turtle loomed over her, and the priestess tried to defend herself with her quarterstaff. Faya snapped. She sprinted toward her friend, screaming the chant for "Lieselotte's Frown".

Malvorik had eavesdropped on enough priestess discussions to know that spell. "The Frown" was a Level 1 mental stun attack, meant to halt intruders in domestic settings and give them time to reflect on their actions. Without causing harm. It only worked on monsters or humanoids intruding into clearly defined homes or camps with a hearthfire. Due to the law of balance, the spell was significantly stronger than a mere Level 1 spell had any right to be. And since the required conditions weren't met, the spell shouldn't work. Only, Faya didn't seem to know that.

Mirabelle, the book-smart priestess who had wisely remained behind the frontlines healing the wounded brought to her, as a healer was supposed to do, reminded her of this fact. Faya didn't seem to hear.

Malvorik watched, intrigued. Faya's voice gained clarity and force. Her second chanting echoed through the battlefield. The viper turtle recoiled.

The dungeon heart froze. That... shouldn't have worked.

He hadn't studied divine magic in detail, but to his knowledge, that should not have worked.

How did the spell decide when the conditions were met? Divine divination? Was the goddess involved? Or was it based on the interpretation of the caster? So, if Faya could convince herself she was rightfully using the spell, it would work? That seemed a bit of a loophole.

The rest of the battle wrapped up without anything notable in Malvorik's view. He could only observe, after all.

He watched the priestess heal and bandage the wounded. Four healers meant the group had less overall damage output as one would expect, but they were completely overpowered in the healing area. Even the poisoned students recovered quickly. Only one required an antidote since he had caught an uncommon strong dose of poison and although Mirabelle consumed a mana potion, their emergency potion stash remained largely untouched.

After the last wound was dressed and the final spell faded, the group continued for another hour in silence. They didn't need to speak. The quiet was a shared acknowledgment… it had been enough for one day.

They made camp in a small clearing, ringed by broad-rooted trees and flowering vines. A nearby stream offered clean water. The ground was soft with grass and fallen leaves. Weylan and Valen organized a watch perimeter, while Mirabelle napped with one arm over her face. Ulmenglanz, having healed her own wounds before tending to the rest, was utterly spent. Alina had wandered off to pray alone at the edge of the camp.

By sundown, the clearing was still and peaceful. Most students were eating or dozing. Faya sat cross-legged near the glade's edge, golden sunlight catching in her blonde hair as she made a series of gestures in the air.

Malvorik clicked his metaphorical tongue. Physical gestures to navigate status menus? Sloppy. That was a sign of poor mental focus.

The feat options shimmered before her. She scrolled to a specific entry. She obviously had decided already which feat to take on the next level up. Malvorik could relate. Many mages had their full feat tree planned before even completing their finals and getting their class.

She whispered the description aloud: "Familiar Bond: You may perform a binding ritual. If successful, a willing creature may become your familiar."

She accepted without hesitation.

No surprise there.

She immediately asked Weylan to keep watch while she darted off to a secluded spot just outside camp to enact her ritual. The Verdant Hare blinked, confused, as she giggled and bounced in anticipation.

Malvorik passed the time critiquing her performance.

No, that should be done on flat stone, not rough dirt... That circle is barely circular; I hope that even counts as a circumference of effect… No descriptor glyphs for the chosen target? Okay, she is supplying the verdant hare directly, but that just invites some kind of accident. Reminds me of old Helgerson when a cat jumped right into his ritual, so he ended up with a familiar he was allergic to. I wouldn't be surprised if she ends up with some crazy squirrel. At least bugs and insects are too tiny and weak to be eligible to become familiars. And yes, both would have to consent, so everyone assumed the real reason for Helgerson's mistake was that he was still drunk after the graduation party. You don't bind your familiar hungover.

She placed the hare inside the circle and chanted:

I offer my strength, my home's hearth flame, To walk the path of soul and name. Companion searched and soulmate found, Let's join our paths, forever bound.

Not the chant he knew. Either the priests of Lieselotte got a variant fitting their goddess or she'd improvised. He mentally shook his head. It was probably the former, since no one improvised such an important ritual.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

He called up the schematic of the ritual on his heart-rooms mirror walls and compared them to the emerging structures he could see with his dungeon-senses even through the conduit. Slight differences, but all well within the guide-lines. Of course it wouldn't work with the hare already inside the circle. He enjoyed Faya's increasing nervousness, as the ritual failed to activate. After several minutes of frantic chanting and redrawing of circles, she finally read the ritual's instructions. The familiar had to enter the circle on his own free will.

She carried the hare just outside, sat the confused animal down and started the ritual again. The verdant hare stared at her blankly, then started chewing on a random leaf.

She waited a while, then mock surreptitiously placed a carrot within the circle. The hare sniffed, twitched an ear, and hopped inside.

Malvorik stood at the ready. Now it would depend on how the bond interacted with the conduit connecting him to the hare. He had prepared seven potential modifications he could enact while the connection formed to hijack part of it. This was his best and maybe only chance to increase his communication range he would probably ever get. At worst, he could use Faya as a conduit too, at best he could use her magic as a kind of enhancer to get back ranged telepathic speech. Being able to warn his friends of potential danger or help them with his formidable knowledge would be invaluable.

His mana sense followed every threat of magic forming. His full concentration was on this task alone. The ritual connected to the hare's aura… and touched the spell matrix of his conduit connection. He silently cursed while trying to parse spell connections faster than they formed.

No, no, no... I wrapped the entire hare! The visual modification field surrounds it on all sides. I've left no room for the ritual to reach its aura!

The ritual could not reach the hare and instead locked onto the conduit. And traced the link to Malvorik.

ERROR! RITUAL FAILURE: Target inaccessible. Switching to next viable candidate... Dungeon Core detected. Invalid familiar entity. Reversed power balance detected. Redirecting ritual... Searching alternate contract pathways... New Familiar Candidate: Faya Langrinne

Dungeon Core already bonded to [Selvara] Allow multiple bonds?

Even Malvorik's vast mind was hard pressed to follow the events. He was unsure of the notices exact meaning, but he decided he wanted to see where this was heading. <...Yes.>

Calculating… Interpreting rules set… Comparing power level of average dungeon-heart to average mage… Setting maximum number of familiars for dungeon-cores to: Two Familiar bond possible.

Warning! Free choice of both parties necessary.

Error: Emotional bond missing.

Enabling necessary communication…

* * *

Faya stood next to the ritual circle that had started to glow after the hare had entered it. She felt magic surging in waves around her… But somehow, she had the impression something was wrong. Did the verdant hare resist the bond? Had she angered it somehow? Didn't it like the cape? It seemed content while still chewing on the carrot, oblivious to the sparking magic around it.

Familiar bond offered. Accept?

"Yes, of course I accept"

Error! Emotional bond insufficient.

Understanding of identity insufficient.

Familiar bond formation paused.

Enabling necessary communication…

Suddenly she heard a voice in her head. <Hello? Can you hear me?>

She jolted and looked around. Weylan, a short distance away on guard duty, turned toward her with concern.

She answered with a quiet and somewhat hoarse voice. "Sir Cloverton?"

The voice gave a mental sigh. <No, not quite. My name is Malvorik. Pleased to meet you.>

"Wait, where are you? What are you? Are you a tree spirit? Some kind of genius loci?"

<The spirit of a place? Well, kind of. But not this place. So, not really. I am… a kind of mage. I have formed a connection to the verdant hare to keep an eye on my friends during their stay at the academy. To be exact, I had them bring a sapling to the academy which was supposed to form the connection.>

Faya looked around wide eyed. "I don't understand…"

<Long story short, the verdant hare ate my conduit. Now he is the focus of my connection.>

Her brows knit. "He... ate your conduit?"

<Yes. Delightful little accident. And since then, he's been my only way to observe what's happening around him.>

"And you're… inside him?"

<No, no. I'm not inside him. I'm connected. A distant observer. Think of it as a very fancy scrying focus.>

Faya stared down at the hare, who licked its paw contentedly. "So... why didn't the ritual work?"

<Because I'm in the way. You can't bind him while I'm still bound to him. The connection is exclusive. Your spell reached for him, found me, and… well, it got confused.>

She sat down hard on the grass, looking overwhelmed. "And what now?"

<Well, the ritual reversed. Since you are of lower level and magical power than me, it offered you as a familiar. I suppose we could go through with it… temporarily. You'd become my familiar. We can support each other until you leave the academy. When you do, I'll no longer need the conduit and I will dispel the connection and the familiar bond. Then you'd be free to bond your little friend properly. Or any other animal. Maybe something a bit… smarter?>

She stood up. "Sir Cloverton is a wise and majestic creature!"

<He seems a bit simple.>

"Also… What friends?"

<I beg your pardon?>

"You said you're here to watch over your friends. Who are they?"

<Weylan, Selvara, and princess Ulmenglanz.>

"Ulmenglanz is a princess?" Faya said it squealing and loud enough for Weylan to hear. He looked over confused, since he could only hear her part of the dialogue. And not much of that.

<Technically she is the queen of the Border Forest Kingdom, in exile. I probably should not have mentioned that. She doesn't like to be reminded of her mother's death.>

The priestess's eyes filled with tears, her mood bouncing up and down like crazy. "Her mother died? That's horrible!"

<It was…>

Faya turned to Weylan and sprinted the few feet to him to stare in his surprised eyes. "You knew some mage is in my hare?"

"What? How…" Even his usually quick wit could not follow that turn of events.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Malvorik quickly intervened. <He is under a magical Non-Disclosure-Agreement. He can't tell anyone my secrets.>

"Non-Disclosure… Like a pinky swear of not-telling?"

<I would prefer to call it an oath of secrecy, enforced by the voice of the world, but yes. Something like that.>

"Why do you need something like that?"

Weylan looked around, unable to follow the conversation.

<Should my existence and location become common knowledge, I would be in grave danger.>

She pointed an accusing finger at the hare. "Ha! So, you're an evil wizard everyone would hunt?"

<No! I'm not evil. Well… not more than most people. I…> The far away crystal lit up as he found a way to spin the story without lying, but also concealing the truth. <I am the noble defender of a sanctuary. The home of the last duskgnomes. A people that has been hunted to near extinction by cruel necromancers and greedy revenants. They have found a refuge in my home. Were it to be found, they would be in danger again. Even the children.>

"Children? Who would harm children?"

<Revenants from the Brotherhood that follow Nistrul, the god of necromancers, for example.>

Weylan held up a hand to attract her attention. "Who are you talking to?"

She whirled around to face him. "Who do you think I'm talking to?"

"A certain… mage?"

"Yes! Malvorik. He is asking me to become his familiar."

Weylan's eyes widened. "He's what?"

The priestess ignored him again. "Okay, so… What happens if I accept? I barely know what happens if I get a familiar. Much less if I become a familiar myself."

<I have no idea. Usually, you should get some of my knowledge. Since you're out of range for most bond effects, that may not work. But we can talk. At least as long as you touch the conduit… I mean Sir Cloverton. I hoped I would be able to extend the range, but I don't see how. The spell matrices are still linked to the conduit, even the familiar ritual connection.>

The bond was offered again and when she accepted this time, it worked. The communication went silent, until she knelt down next to the hare and patted it.

<Test… test… As expected. Touch range communication only. Very disappointing.>

"What now? What ancient knowledge can you offer?"

<I could teach you algebra…>

Faya winced and Malvorik quickly added. <… or you explain your priestly casting method to me and I try to teach you how to cast Frost Breath. That's an area of effect cold damage spell. You'll love it.>

"Do you know some spell to talk to animals?"

<That's druidic magic. But I do know a spell to turn you into an animal. Comes with language proficiency.>

"Yes! Tell me everything!"

Weylan finally regained some semblance of speech. "So you're... Malvorik's familiar now?"

She nodded, beaming. "Yes!"

He rubbed his forehead. "That'll take some getting used to."

Malvorik's voice returned, calm and cautious.

<One last thing. I would appreciate it if you told everyone you successfully bound Sir Cloverton as your familiar. Let's keep my involvement… private.>

She nodded slowly. "Okay. But only because you help children."

<Thank you.>

And so, they sat. Faya cradling the hare in her lap, Malvorik's quiet presence at the edge of her thoughts, and Weylan muttering something about "Just one normal week, please."

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