Lanek skimmed over his subclass options, only looking for new choices. He could only find two and he could easily see the benefits provided by both of them. However, he wasn’t sure if any of them would actually have synergy with his existing subclasses.

  Hmm, I like fortifier, but there are already people here that can cover that. We have a mason from the Night Arrows and Ivan can boost the hell out of any defenses we have. Also, I don’t see how that would combine with another of my subclasses. Packmaster is great for the furballs and tabletop games back home always seemed to give rangers the option for an animal companion. Of course, I have no idea if that logic applies here since I didn’t get an extra companion when I first received ranger.

  Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Lanek selected packmaster. A familiar surge of energy ran through him as a new notification popped up in his vision. Opening the notification, Lanek sighed in relief.

  Yes.

  Lanek looked over his new class with satisfaction. Not only had he made his boys much stronger, but he had unlocked their future potential as well. He glanced at his empty subclass slot and decided to leave it empty. Might as well leave a free spot until I find something that I know will likely combine with beastmaster or shinobi. Also, maybe Eldros will have a recommendation when I speak to him next. Now, I’ve got skills to check out.

  Good lord, that’s a lot of aura type skills. Sucks to lose [Tracking] and [Threat Detection] but it’s not like Sanguineus and Kazuma aren’t already far better at those tasks than I am.

  This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

  Very nice, I can always use another damage over time ability. Between this and bleed, I’ll have a better chance of bringing down something much stronger than I am. But, damn. Beastmaster is spirit intensive…

  Lanek pulled himself up and prepared to go to bed for the night, wondering just what would be in store for tomorrow. The next target for a node was the city prison. While it wasn’t a huge prison like those that could be found back in his homeworld, it was still a decent sized three-story structure. From what Caelis had told him back when he first inquired about the nodes, its max population would have been right around 100 inmates. For the most part, criminals in Caelis were given the option to work off their crimes in various ways.

  If it was a serious crime, they were sent off to the penal legions in Laethon if they were proven guilty. From what he gathered, joining the penal legions was often a death sentence for those sent off for violent crimes as they would often attempt to attack their trainers or a soldier from one of the regular legions and be put down on the spot. Caelis mentioned that the penal legions were often sent in as fodder to preserve the trained troops, so it kinda sounded like an execution with extra steps to Lanek.

  Either way, I wonder what lives in that place now? There is no way the damn place is empty. He thought grumpily before going to sleep.

  The next morning found Lanek and his companions heading out to the prison. However, this time it appeared that the mother bear would be joining them. It seemed that she was going to start teaching her cub more about how to fight and survive. It might have been too soon normally, but Lanek had been rendered speechless by the sheer amount of growth Yuri had shown when they had returned from the merchant’s guild.

  Besides, who’s going to complain about having a massive fuck-off bear joining them on a dangerous mission?

  As they headed out, Lanek couldn’t help but turn his thoughts inward, to the bond he shared with the demigryph. He was glad that the little guy exuded happiness, but Lanek was also getting a little worried about Idril’s reaction as he also felt the demigryph’s confusion every time Lanek gained experience. Lanek could only assume that he was growing fast and that it would only accelerate considering his beastmaster abilities. He was not looking forward to facing down an angry guardian beast that could crush him like an insect.

  The prison was located to the southeast of the monastery, which put them uncomfortably close to the matriarch’s territory. He had not been happy to hear that the prison was also pushed up against the walls of the city itself, which meant that it was also near where they had heard the strange skittering and felt themselves being watched when the party had left for Laethon. When he had described the sounds to Caelis, she hadn’t been able to come up with any explanation for what they might face. She could only tell them to be careful.

  Along the way, they took note of any shops and possible guild locations to pass along to Khurzag. He had been instructed to avoid this area for fear of losing warriors before the matriarch’s assault, but it did look like there were some damn fine looting opportunities available if they survived the attack. They spotted a blacksmith’s guild and a few shops along the way, one of which appeared to be an armorer, which made Lanek a bit excited as he desperately needed some leg armor. Most of his body below the waist was quite exposed to attack and he really didn’t like that feeling.

  The air seemed to suddenly become cold as they came into sight of the prison. It wasn’t a feeling of dread or some kind of pressure, but the weather actually dropping multiple degrees just by turning onto the road to the prison.

  “What could be causing that?” Lanek asked, glad that he had worn his cloak over his armor.

  “I don’t know. Undead, maybe?” Liv said with a shrug.

  “Is that something only strong undead can do or is it only certain types of undead?” Lanek asked. “The ghasts and ghouls didn’t really affect the temperature.”

  “I think only certain types do it and sometimes it is only their homes that make the air colder rather than the creatures themselves. Maybe it’s whatever lives in this place?” Ograch said.

  While they eyed the large structure before them, a faint sound reached Lanek’s ears from within the prison. It was a quiet shuffling sound and a voice, a voice he had heard before. It was hovering at the edge of his hearing, speaking unintelligible words. Every time those words reached him it felt like something wicked was clawing at his mind, hungering for his sanity.