Elder Douglas took a deep breath before answering slowly.

"I agree that it will be good for the Clan to solidify our presence in the area. The other Clans that we eliminated during the battle were left to be claimed by whoever wanted them, as the Clan Leader didn’t intend to expand.

However, now that the Darklight Host is setting up here, we are already expanding, even if it’s not official.

It will show the region that we don’t lack strength, and as you said, an outpost to drop off resources would be an advantage for Clan members taking missions.

We will be able to send them on longer outings if they have a second location where they can rest and resupply.

It will also cut down on the chances that they are ambushed, with Clan members holding the only other village along the north coast.

Not that there are all that many Clans fighting over this territory. But we do get some rare material spawns, and when we get a random instance appearing, there are countless conflicts."

The other Elders nodded, then Socrate sighed. "We really do need to call over Elder Forsham as well. He will want a say before we start opening new locations."

He was the most powerful of the Clan’s Elders, Karl knew. He also held a position something like a Vice Guildmaster, or the Clan Leader’s assistant. When there were issues that needed an impartial judge, that was him. And he was also in charge of the defence while the Clan Leader was fighting.

"I will call him over now. The situation is already settled, but letting him get some words in will make him more amenable when it comes time to shunt members over to run shops and operate the warehouse.

I might also expand the Alchemy counter so that they can restock on potions and pills while they’re here.

Who knows, it might actually help with recruitment." He added.

"It can’t hurt. We’re in a good spot here, and closer to the major cities, if that’s something that the others are worried about. Honestly, I think that the biggest deterrent to getting members was likely the nickname.

When everyone calls you the Newbies, it doesn’t exactly encourage people to join you." Karl reminded him.

Socrate laughed as he waited for Forsham to arrive.

The Peak Immortal Elder arrived only moments later, looking somewhat concerned until he saw a whole lot of Lycan children running around the streets.

Then he was very concerned.

"Alright, someone catch me up on current events. I thought that you went to do a dungeon run? How did that turn into a Darklight Host Guild House, a Lycan Pack and a Branch location application?"

"Well, you see, what happened was..." Elder Alix began, and Forsham pinched the bridge of his nose.

"If I’m going to hear half-truths, I might as well get them from the source.

Karl, what did you do?"

"Well, you see..."

The other Elders laughed, and Dana patted the Elder on the shoulder.

"We finished the dungeon run, got bonus rewards, and went to town to celebrate. We made friends with one of the Lycan Elders, and then someone decided to start trouble. That led to the Lycans’ village being attacked, so we took them in, and decided that this place would make a great Guild House location, since it’s all complete and abandoned," she elaborated.

"Ah, that sounds quite reasonable.

I’m surprised that someone was dumb enough to start trouble with your group. With three Elders, and an Avatar of the World Dragon, the group isn’t exactly a soft target."

Cara laughed, "They tried to abduct Dana while she was in the Library, making a skill book for the Lycan Elder."

Forsham sighed. "Alright. Now I understand. They didn’t realize how dumb they were."

"And they never will, either. We sorted them out right quick. But their Clan got mad about it, and that’s how the Lycans got involved. They started attacking anyone who reported the incident to the town guards." Cara added.

"So... you’re not in trouble, being hunted by law enforcement, or going to bring someone to my office to make me account for the recent events orchestrated by my Clan members?"

Cara thought about that for longer than Forsham was comfortable with.

"No, it should be fine. Nobody is going to come to the Clan to complain about this incident."

Forsham noticed that didn’t actually rule out people coming to his office to complain about things that Karl’s group had been doing.

Only to complain about this one specific incident.

"So, how was the loot? We have a lot of members looking for higher grade items lately, and your team was taking longer to get back than expected."

"We’ve got dozens of items. Mostly Rare Grade, some Epic. If that’s not going to be enough for the week, we can go back again. Now that we’ve triggered the Ironman event inside the Dungeon, we should continue to get improved loot from it every time that we visit, even if we don’t manage to trigger it again."

Forsham sighed. "Next, you’re going to tell me that you found the legendary tameable pet."

"They gave it to a Green Dragon Cleric, and it made her into a Beast Master." Elder Alix agreed.

"Now I know why the Clan Leader is not answering my messages."

Opal giggled. "Oh no, that’s a whole different thing, involving Plum Wine and a three-metre tall Supreme Ranked Pack Leader with muscles on his muscles."

"Thanks, I didn’t need that mental image."

"You’re welcome!"

Forsham found that he was actually getting used to all the oddities of Karl’s group. He used to react to those little provocations, but now he realized that the little Fae was actually proud of herself for giving him such vivid mental imagery.

He was going to ask another question, but the gathering of Elders had caught the attention of the Pack, and there were Lycan Elders coming their way, all tagged as Darklight Host members.