Lisa poked the fire with a stick from one of the dungeon’s trees. She was frowning deeply as she thought about her actions over the last few days. Jake, for his part, lifted the stick with a chunk of monster meat on it to see if it was done yet or not. It took a while longer for their meal of monster meat and field rations to be consumed before they moved into the commander tent, which was magically expanded to the size of a forty by thirty by twelve-foot space. By far a lot larger than she had imagined it to be. To one side of the tent was a makeshift smithy where the blacksmith construct was examining all their gear, while on the other, the porter and miner were working on the spoils of their run for the day. In the back was a small bath and Jake’s wardrobe as well as a writer's desk. While appearing lavish at first, it was actually fairly spartan to most nobles, and nothing but their gear was at risk of being damaged in case of a forceful exit from the pocket dimension they were in.

  Jake quickly took off his shirt before completely stripping and lying on the mattress in the middle of the room. Feeling a little awkward, Lisa stripped to her undergarments after he was under his bedsheets and got under her own as well. Considering the mattress was large enough for two more people, they had plenty of space between them when Lisa looked at Jake trying to sleep.

  “ I want to apologize again for my... actions while under the blood moon. Now my head is a little clearer. I should not have been so... clingy to a complete stranger. Normally, I am more... distant from people. So, I also want to thank you.”

  Jake opened his eyes and turned toward her.

  “ What for? We have already gone over this.”

  Lisa recoiled a little, pained as her nervousness grew.

  “ I know, but I never thanked you for getting me out of my situation. You obviously knew. I read my entry in your book. I saw what you thought they were going to do to me. I would not be in the total right mind during my heat... It is not right that I can not argue with your logic or reasoning about my future.”

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Jake closes his eyes and returns to his position of rest.

  “ When setting up the initial contract, I spoke to the adventurer guild leader briefly, he’s seen people like you fall to the traps of the corrupt hundreds of times over the years. A rank is that barrier that they gatekeep with corruption. If you can survive this trial, then you are worthy of attempting the political hell that is the next rank. In truth, you failed the test because you're going to be linked to me from now on.”

  Lisa opened her mouth to respond to this but quickly thought better of it.

  “ Do you know about records and potential?”

  This caused Jake to open his eyes again, but he continued to stare upwards.

  “ I have heard those terms a few times, but know very little about them.”

  Lisa smiled and turned to have her face looking at the top of the tent.

  “ Potential is easier to explain. It is literally your future potential. Woulda coulda shoulda and all that yadda yadda. Everyone has an ingrained amount of potential. You can measure one’s potential by how much they grow and how fast.”

  Lisa brought one of her arms from under the sheet and looked at it and it’s scars.

  “ Potential also affects things such as luck. That chance encounter that will set you on your path, choosing the path that will lead to a better life, or even those instances where something happens that saves your life. Constantly, our potential is used as we live. I can feel it in my bones, mine is almost all used up. You can choose better than I. I can hardly imagine how or why you would pick me as a partner.”

  “ When I look at you, my instincts, even now isolated from the blood moon tell me to be with you to get some of your potential. To start a bloodline as you as a base. That and you are kinda attractive.”

  This caused Jake to choke back a laugh. Which brought her a smile as well.

  “ Seriously, you are hot as hell. At the resort, I saw lots of beastkin, and you come to the top five of everyone I have seen so far. Well, tthe op five who I would swing for.”

  Lisa blinked at that before laughing at the statement.

  “ I guess that goes into the records of my explanation. They are your path that you have trodden, the momentum you have built, and the foundation you build everything else off of. Sadly, I have lost mine when I left my tribe to be an adventurer. What little I have is of that time.”

  Lisa paused to think of a time long ago, when she was barely old enough to walk. A time when she was being carried by a white wolf woman, coming to the city for the first time. She felt she was much happier back then. She then realized she almost feals that happy now.

  “ Well, that is certainly more records than I then. After all, I have only been alive in this world for six months.”

  Lisa considered that a moment. It was probably true she had more in quantity, but she had little doubt the quality of his records trumped hers several times over.