I raised an eyebrow. “Purple sewer? A peculiar surname.”

Umlau rubbed the back of its head. “It’s because of my purple stripe, and that I was born in a sewer.”

“Interesting. I am Gild Domov. Divinely Chosen Leader of the Amber Skin Tribe. Holy Ruler of the Amber Skin people.”

The snails slid back as I mentioned my titles. I intended to intimidate them or inspire awe. But their reaction was that of weariness.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Well…” Umlau hesitated. “We weren't exactly... How you would say, made in god's vision? We’re not avid worshippers either.”

Now that was something new. “What do you mean by that?”

The snail let out a slimy burp as if sighing. “To summarise, our creators were not Gods, but men. Mages.” Umlau and the others slunk back into their shells.

"Hmm. Odd to say the least. But I do not care, as long as you breathe, live and grow, isn't that enough?" As long as they do labour, their origins were inconsequential.

Its body perked up and nodded in agreement. "That's how we see things, but the more devout people do not share similar sentiments."

“There must be some nature god you could worship?”

It shook its eyestalks. “Sure, there are a few. But we aren’t exactly natural, in their eyes.” Umlau sunk even further back into its shell.

As I reflected on the situation, I began to laugh. “To think! To think that something like this was possible in this world! Ha!”

Umlau hid in its shell, my reaction confused it

I activated my [Preach] and [Orate] skills. “My God, The Great Gemed One, Yantago, does not care for trivialities. If your heart is loyal and filled with the desire to create, then there is no problem."

"Truly?" Umlau was dumbfounded.

"Yes. I invite you to my holding, we will discuss matters of vassalage there."

I floated back to land in my stone throne, and the Gulk followed by paddling like dogs through the swampy water. The snails travelled fast, they managed to keep up with our gentle walking speed. But by the time we arrived, it was already nightfall.

The goblins gawked in awe and disgust. A goblin stood at around 4 feet tall, these snails stood around 6.5 feet tall, and that’s not counting their huge shells. They were monstrous. A group of 30 or something giant snails inspired the kind of reaction you would expect in people. Fear, disgust, and some screaming. I could see why these snails felt alienated. Snailienated.

Yet, the people had more visceral reactions to the red goblin prisoners we brought back. You could see the hate on the goblins’ faces. The mutual enmity was obvious.

There was no time to mine out rooms for prisons. So, under my alchemy tower, and the gas storage, I carved out 20 rooms. Each room was 2 by 2 metres in size and had a stone cot. I couldn’t make doors from stone, so I left a hole in the wall as a window. The snails slept in the mess hall, their shells acting as rooms for them.

The following morning, I cancelled the tribe breakfast. The mess hall was occupied for discussions. The snails, my retainers and I shared a meal together.

“What do you eat?” I asked Umlau.

Zotnik’s jaw dropped as he heard me speak the snail’s language. The others tried remaining stern, to show professionalism to the new members of our tribe. It felt as if we were interviewing some freshly graduated students for our company. A job I seldom did, but I did interview the odd manager for promotion.

“We Gulk are omnivorous. Meat, fish, plants, we digest everything. It's why we chose to migrate here. The swamp is filled with poison, which is rather good for us.”

I acted as an interpreter between the Gulk and my retainers. “The poison won’t last forever though. How will you use it?” Voglo stroked his beard.

Umlau stroked his fleshy moustache. “We can break down poison to release a lot of energy and mana. I know it won’t last, but it will be enough to start us off. Afterwards, we’ll start cultivating frogs for meat, and edible vegetation.”

“You can extract mana from food?” I asked in surprise.

The snail nodded. “To some extent. No more than the normal person when it comes to mundane food. We are more adept at consuming mana rich food. Though it’s hard to find anything like that in nature.”

I ordered a servant to bring over a plate of Blue Moss. Umlau bit into the moss, revealing a small mouth and a horrifying array of thousand of teeth.

“How delicious. Do you have more?” His eyestalks leaned forward.

Ideas rushed through my head. The moss was easy to grow, but we couldn't eat it. The snails could farm frogs, and they enjoyed the bitter plant. A potential trade.

“We do, but we're in short supply of it." I lied.

Umlau’s eyes sunk. “I see.”

“But, we do a have small stockpile. I am willing to part a portion of it with you, in exchange for frog meat.”

Its eyes stood straight. “That would be amazing.”

The Gulk, true to their word, ate everything we presented them. From blood sausage to even Thorn Yam, they enjoyed each meal.

“Now, onto labour discussion.” I cleared my throat. “Although your tribe seeks refuge, and I have expressed my willingness. We still need to know what you are capable of. I need to make sure you and your people can contribute to our comp- tribe's ethos.”

Umlau nodded. “Some of us have skills that let us make slime. I can make acid slime, others can make glue, sword oil, and so on.”

Rugum's face expressed interest as I translated. “Even regular, flammable oil?” He asked.

“None of us has that skill, but we could gain it.” Umlau swallowed a roasted dear head whole.

“You said you were created by mages. Does that mean you are capable of magic?”

Umlau extended its snail paw in front of itself. A brownish-green light enveloped its paw. It shot out a ball of acid, it splashed against the ceiling, slightly dissolving the rock.

“A fair few of us can wield magic. We’re particularly good at nature, slime and acid magic.”

“Why were you hunted then by the red goblins? You could have used your magic to fight back, no?”

It shook its head. “We’re very weak in close quarters. They were stronger and faster. It’s that simple.” It ate a boar leg whole. “They spotted us during our migration. We live a sort of nomadic life and move from place to place. We were on our way here, and they didn’t take kindly to us trespassing.”

Umlau took a plate of deer bones and ate them one by one. “By the way, you should name this place. It makes it easier for word to spread of your land, and for others to find you.”

“In what ways? We simply call this home.”

“Well…” Umlau leaned back into its shell with satisfaction from the meal. “If you don’t have a name the [System] gives a brief geographic description. Having a name tells a bit more about the faction.”

“What kind of information, and where can I see it?” Information about nearby factions was incredibly important.

"You either need cartography skills or travelling skills. We wandered a lot from town to town, sewer to sewer. A few of us have nomadic skills."

"I see."

These snails seemed honest, I could not sense any malice from them. I laughed internally as Umlau devoured all the food in front of it like a starving puppy. Yet, my opinions did not matter, I needed proof.

"I am more than willing to welcome you to my tribe. But how will I know if you'll remain loyal? Can you prove your devotion?"

The snail seemed hesitant. I used my [Orate] skill.

"Look around my home. You will only see happy faces. I even have humans in my camp and I do not mistreat them. If you join me, there will only be prosperity for you. I will give you food and protection. All I require in return is proof of loyalty and your subservience."

Umlau looked at its people, who seemed tired and weary from travel. It turned to me, and without breaking eye contact, it tore off a piece of its shell. Umlau shrieked in pain, before calming down. It handed its shell to me.

"As proof, I present you a piece of my shell. This wound will not heal and serve as a permanent reminder of trust between us." It bowed down.

I gazed at the shell, admiring Umlau's sacrifice. A snail could die if its shell was cracked. I was satisfied.

“Do you accept me as your lord? I will grant you the right to live upon this land, and I will protect you as my vassals and people.”

“I, Umlau Purplesewer, leader of the Humblefoot tribe of Gulk, accept Gild Domov as my lord, and the lord of my people.”

Interface You have entered a lord-vassal agreement with a tribe. This tribe will perform obligations like paying taxes and serve in your military. But you must perform your duties as lord, such as governance and protection. Failure to perform one’s duties may result in war.

“Good, enjoy the rest of your banquet. We will discuss more matters later. I have some red-skinned guests I need to entertain.”