Zara, Ariel, and Rajah were bundles of energy. Their ability to now be able to talk to me brought out a new side of them to me. They were extremely happy, and when we went deeper, Kitty was still the main dodge tanker while Zara, Ariel, and Rajah were smashing them from the dark.
Kitty was struggling, though, with things getting closer and closer. I could tell that she was looking more and more towards me, as if I were being unfair. Which I clearly was; I was traveling into B-ranker territory. Kitty was getting angry, and I liked it. I could feel her as she smashed her head against the C rank barrier to the B rank. At this point, she needed that enlightenment. There are two times when you must achieve enlightenment to break through.
The system may have assisted me with that, but I was maybe put through something even more difficult. The memories of shadow rulers had wanted to take me over. They were now under my thumb with a solid mentality, but the Shadow rulers would take over my body if I gave them a chance.
Although they could not take me out while I slept, they needed me to break down mentally in order to break through and control my mind. If that ever happened, I would become the suppressed memory. At this point, though, I barely even thought about it. The Shadow leader's memories were memories I could access that felt far from reality. Like the eyes looking at the world saw the world differently than I did.
The best way I could think about it was that I was playing in two dimensions while they were in three dimensions. I was missing something fundamental that made those memories useful to me, and so I suppressed them to the point where I never really thought about them, hoping one day they would be of use.
But none of that mattered now as I watched them fight again and again. Their teamwork improved, but Kitty was taking risks and becoming increasingly accustomed to them. She would dodge better with less and less movement. She moved with grace like a cat, which was partially what she was. She was no longer crying about her position as the bait, but continued to attack when she could, even if it was not helping all that much.
After a week of doing this repeatedly, Zara, Ariel, and Rajah all grew tired of hunting the same things over and over, so I began to think about heading back. Sure, they would be more bored with going back, but I would also be able to start teaching them how to blend in more to society. They would not be able to purchase things at this point, but I heard that A-ranked beasts turn into what my old world would call furries. They would be beast-kin but entirely covered in fur. They would be able to transform from Beast-kin form back to their normal form at will. The reason for this is that they adapt to what is seen as the top predator. If it were bears, even a Tiger would turn into a bear. They chose a more human shape because they found the ability to use tools helpful.
At least that is what they taught at the Adventure Academy I attended back in the Kingdom of Arlin. But all this fighting brought me face to face with one thing. Kitty was holding us back. Hilda could have taken the front line, and Hell, I could have joined, but I wanted Kitty, Zara, Ariel, and Rajah to be an integrated team. They needed a frontliner to grab attention, and Kitty, although she used to be an assassin, was a great one. She was even taking to the role quickly. She was getting faster and using less energy to dodge their attacks.
Which brought me to this Night.
Hilda was now bound from her begging, and I was not paying attention to her. She was seriously addicted after one night of me doing things to her. The desperation after her boring ex played with her was intense. I did not mind that intensity, but she was clearly desperate, and I liked it, so I denied her.
Like a proper sadist.
She did not know how to behave, and I would teach her once we got to the surface. No, now I brought Kitty into a room where it was just the two of us, asking to rent the room for a couple of hours with a silver coin. I sat on the bed with her on all fours before me. "Nyah," Came from Kitty cutely, and I smiled. Kitty had not stepped out of line in a long time, and she didn't even notice some of the habits she was developing. She now had the mindset of a battle pet and looked up at me expectantly.
"Kitty," I said finally, scratching behind her ear, "You need to think about this. But we need you to break through to B rank. You are starting to hold us back slightly, not for any fault of your own." I said as she looked at me, surprised, "I can front line, Hilda can front line, but if you want to continue being a fighter and not just a pet, you need to reach the next rank. So I will tell you something," I said and I grinned, "Like a beast, you will be allowed more privileges if you rank up." I told her bluntly, and she looked at me wide-eyed as I did not tell her what those privileges were. Instead, I left it open-ended, and I stood. "I will give you a week before we head back up to the surface. Think about it tonight as you lie with me, now let's go eat and enjoy a meal."
Kitty looked solemn and seemed unsure of how to react.
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Hey Guys,
Sorry for the late releases. I got sick last week and had to take a week off in order to recover. I hope you all understand. Please continue to enjoy my works and if you wish to support me you can on my Patreon.
Thanks for your understanding.
Madjic