Samantha and Nancy stay in the neighboring room, while I place my tools in this one. The house of the kobolt chieftain is quite big for a monster, and I’m sure it was built using earth magic. Still, with me claiming one room as a lab and giving another to girls, there are only three rooms remaining, one of them being the common room. Another room is a kitchen, and obviously the last one is mine and Axi's bedroom. In the end, this house could be a bit bigger.
Two hours later, Axi walks in and places her weapon against a wardrobe. Nancy comes over and serves her dinner. Two girls are actually the best chefs among us, mostly due to the to the abyssal cooking skills of goblins.
"How is it?” I also sit by the table.
“Most of the prey are the two monsters we found last time. One that parasites on trees, and another that eats dead wood.” She takes a moment to take another bite. “Damn! That’s good. As good as the food in the human town!”
Nancy smiles. “My skills are only average, though. I think my cap on Cooking is around twenty something.”
I chuckle. “Maybe we should raise your skill, then. I don’t mind better food.” While that won’t raise her actual skill, a perk or two will still make her better at cooking. “Anyway, what about dangers?”
Axi gulps down. “There’s another kobolt tribe to the north. We didn’t find anything to the south yet. Asaru went west to check there.” West is in the center of the zone. We are only on the border with the 1st tier zone, making mana less concentrated here. A better environment means stronger natives. After all, everyone wants to live in a better place and will fight for it if they have strength.
“Any 4th tier monster?”
“We haven’t found any. I guess they live in places with stronger mana, if they even are here.” Axi says it dismissively, and I somehow agree. Given that the strongest monsters in the 1st tier zone are 3rd tier monsters, it makes sense that 4th tier monsters would be kings of the 2nd tier zone.
After moving here, I have a better perspective. Those 3rd tier monsters are big but sick fish in a small lake. They stay in the 1st tier zone because they fear 2nd tier zone. They are too weak to survive here. I killed many 3rd tier monsters with magic because they didn’t have magic shield. Their talent was simply too poor. They could survive in 1st tier zone, where magic is rare and weak, by relying on their elevated stats. In the 2nd-tier zone, mana cores are more plentiful. Just the kobolts’ tribe we defeated had three mages.
Unless a monster has innate defenses against magic, like kobolts’ scales, it has to be able to create a mana shield. Given that, 3rd tier monsters in this zone should be significantly more powerful than in 1st tier zone. The question is, are there 4th tier monsters here? If one of them were to attack the tribe, the outcome would probably be the same as with that gigantic snake. Three 3rd tier fighters should be able to fight to a standstill against 4th tier fighters, but both Asaru and Rike’grak are only at the very beginning of the 3rd tier. Axi isn’t even 3rd tier monster. Even if we were to win, most of the tribe would die.
“That’s good. What about 3rd tiers?”
“Not yet.”
It will be fastest to collect EXP by repeatedly killing 3rd tier monsters. This means we need to capture them. I may even imprison a few. They will keep dying so the regular goblins can evolve. I will need to create a sturdy cell first, though.
“Nancy, leave us, please.” She nods and goes back to her room.
“I suppose this leaves us Rike’grak and Zerenek. We need to deal with them.” I say it quietly.
“What do you think?” She asks, but I think she is a bit uncomfortable about it.
“We can’t kill them openly. Also, Zerenek priest powers are actually something we can’t let go of. I plan to cajole him into a competition to see who can raise a better shaman. After he teaches his disciple enough, we will no longer need him. It will be easier to bring that disciple to my side. I can just bribe him with a mana core.” I explain. “After that, we will have to assassinate him.” I frown. Murder is actually a better word, but that’s not a message I want to give.
“What about Rike’grak?”
“If he becomes obedient, we can consider letting him go. I think we should wait until you evolve into an orc, given the dangers around us, but if he tries something funny, we should kill them. I have already planted a Vitality Clot in him, using the excuse of giving him a buff. Even if that won’t kill him, it will at least paralyze him for some time, allowing me to finish him.”
“I don’t like it.”
“What?”
“All those plots. The strongest goblin is the chieftain.”
“Didn’t you defeat him? It’s his fault he doesn’t want to listen to you.”
She snorts. “We both know you cheated. Besides, Asaru is the strongest.”
“But she doesn’t want to be chieftain.”
Axi sighs. “It seems so.”
“I may be cheating a bit, but so is Zerenek. Why do you think Rike’grak wants to lead goblins in combat? He wants others to consider him the chieftain. Ultimately, the one people listen to is the leader. This is just the basic law of the world. Given that you aren’t considerably stronger than him, he is plotting to usurp the leadership.” I explain.
I sigh. “What do you think will happen if Rike’grak defeats you in a duel? Will they even allow us to leave the tribe so we can create another? Even if they do, they would never let us take human girls. Zerenek and Rike’grak think of them as breeding stations and the tribe's possessions. Samantha, Nancy, and Anastasia will have to stay, unless we can defeat the tribe, not in a duel, but in a battle.” This pushes resolve and some cruelty into Axi’s eyes. She knows very well that we will die in that scenario. Axi can fight a few hobgoblins at once, but fighting the entire tribe is impossible. Especially if Rike’grak attacks her as well. “You should know how they will treat girls if we are no longer here.” I add.
“Fine. Fine!”
“Shhh! We don’t want others to hear us.” I whisper.
“I still don’t like it, though.”
"Neither do I, but would you like the situation when we abandon girls more? The ideal world doesn’t exist. We need to do things we don’t like.”
We stay silent for a while, until Axi asks me, “What about Asaru?”
“I don’t think she wants to rule.”
She gives me a look. “What if she wants to? What does she want? Rike’grak?”
I ponder this. We don’t have any way to kill her right now. “We can keep her in the dark. As long as she won’t use her power, it’s like she doesn’t have it. After they die, it’s not like she can resurrect them. At least, I don’t think her magic can do it. Actually, it’s best if we can recruit her to our side.”
If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“She seems to love Rike’grak.”
I scoff. “Love? No way. Think about it. She was in a hopeless situation. What could she do? Awaken the whole tribe. This was the best possible situation for her. Rike’grak would always be the last to awaken. He was a symbol of hope. It doesn't matter that it probably wouldn’t be enough. Why live if the situation is hopeless? Anyone would assume the best possible situation would be enough. That’s hope.”
“And she is out of the dungeon now.”
I nod. “She is. I don’t know what’s in her head, but as long as we keep Rike’grak suppressed, there’s a good chance she will acknowledge the truth. After all, it’s not like she had a relationship with him. We know her longer. Only her faction and children are more familiar to her.”
After that, Axi goes back to organizing the tribe, while I go back to organizing my lab. Someone else enters my house, though.
“Smag?”
“Anastasia? What’s up?”
“I… wanted to talk about something.”
“Sure. Sit down.”
She is moving her fingers nervously and looking to the side. What’s this about?
“Can you turn me into a goblin?”
I frown. “Do you want to be a goblin?”
“Do I have a choice?” She replies somehow aggressively.
I shrug. “I'm certainly not going to force you.”
“You not, but it’s not like I have a choice. I have no confidence in reaching the 3rd tier. Do you have any manual or can you teach me rare skill up to level fifty?”
“No.”
She exhales. “You and Axi are going to reach the 3rd tier sooner or later. I will be left behind. It may be fine in 2nd tier zone, but what if you decide to migrate to even more dangerous place? Can I leave? I’m not a real witch. I’m not powerful. At best, I will have to live alone in the forest, hoping nobody ever finds me. I don’t want such live. And that’s assuming new goblins won’t rape me and make me their breeder.” She ends with a bit of dread in her voice.
“I can’t”
“What?”
“I don’t know how to turn you into a goblin. Enlightened souls are different than monsters. I need to first change your soul, but I don’t know how. Maybe after I create the soul blade, but even then, I would need to experiment a lot to figure it out. After that, there's the problem of changing your race. Even if I make you a monster, I have absolutely no idea how to make you a goblin.”
“But didn’t you do the same to yourself?” She asks with disbelief.
I smile helplessly. “No. Someone else changed me.” That’s close enough to the truth.
“I see.” She lowers her head, but clenches her fingers. Now that I think about it, she really is somehow screwed. “Can you at least lend me mana cores?”
“Why?”
“I attuned to neutral mana in the 1st tier, so my talent should be enough to attune to basic elements in the 2nd tier. I meditated on environmental mana, but without success. If I could mediate on a core…"
“Okay, but cores won’t leave my house.”
“No problem!” She says it quickly, like I’m about to change my mind.
I stand up and get my cores. “Which one do you want to try first?”
“Fire.”
I frown. “This one has a runic spell around it. I want to figure it out first. Pick something else.”
“Chaos, then.”
I give her the core, and she takes it in her hands and closes her eyes. I frown. Isn’t it similar to cultivation and meditating on Dao? I try to find more similarities to Xianxia novels I have read. The system is a bit of a wildcard. Some novels have it, some don’t. In general, systems give you numbers to define your strengths, but Xianxia does it as well, making systems redundant. You can be at x stage of the Qi Condensation realm, for example, making additional explanations not worth much.
Skills? Not really. Perks? I have no idea how they work. Traits? Traits! They work a bit like body cultivation in novels. Can I use it?
In a way, this world doesn’t need to be a world of cultivation. The cultivation principles are somehow obvious: become smarter, learn the mysteries of the world, and collect more energy. Those principles are somehow universal. Earth’s armies that are more technologically advanced have an advantage. This is a form of cultivating Dao. Countries with better power plants are richer. It’s not something strange.
Traits. If my idea is correct, then traits are practically this world's version of body cultivation. That mage told me traits can be leveled up by using mana cores. Mana. If this is true, then a better environment in the 2nd tier zone should cause some goblins to develop traits on their own. I smile. More work for me, but figuring things out is a bit fun, as long as it doesn’t require chores. Whatever, I have goblins for chores.
Two hours later, Axi returns again, bringing two crippled Wood Eaters. I will kill them and then feed them to regular goblins later.
“I think I figured out how to give you my buff without me being near. Can you stay still for some time?” She nods, and I start creating runes under her skin. My Vitality Buff skill gives some runes to make the skill less strenuous, but I still need to cast it myself.
You have learned Runic Vitality Enhancement (Epic) skill!
You have reached the maximum number of magical skills! Replace your current skills or refuse to accept the new skill!
Epic? I need to reshuffle my skills at some point. For now, I decline.
“Do you feel it?”
She nods. I left a lever of neutral mana in the runic formation. Anyone with control of neutral mana can move that lever in their body, activating the buff. The enchantment uses stored vitality mana (using runes from the Vitality Bank skill), therefore only working for a few minutes. Even less if injured. It’s strength is also only around 50–60% of the original one. I don’t need to be present, so it’s a huge success in my book. I can now sell this enchantment and the vitality mana required to power it to goblins in exchange for living monsters and, essentially, for Experience Points.
“Great.”
The next day, I advertise my new spell to the whole tribe. Zerenek also wants comfy EXP delivered to his door, so he advertises his blessings instead. Some goblins come to me, while others stay with Zerenek.
The next day, most goblins come to me. Reason? I allowed them to kill the offerings. I’m better at controlling vitality than before, so resurrecting a monster is easier. I don’t heal a monster but only attach its soul with a minimal amount of vitality. Such a monster is going to die in a few seconds on its own, but it’s enough for someone else to strike it and count as a killer.
My method of healing is also vastly superior. Zerenek uses my old Vitality Transfer ritual, though it’s not as sophisticated. It’s probably Sacrificial Healing skill I got offered for uncommon evolution. He has some clients, mostly because I don’t have unlimited mana. I will probably take Boosting Core Mana Regeneration skill. Hopefully, perks will give me hints on how to regenerate mana faster.
I’m somehow unwilling to change skills right now. Many of them are not capped. I feel dropping them right now is wasting their current levels. I want to cap them first; maybe I can at least get one more perk. After that, I will surely drop them.
I finally figured out how the Fire Bomb works. It’s actually pretty simple. The formation uses chaos mana in the air to create chaos and inject it into the core. At the same time, it uses order mana to remove order from the core. It seems this is enough to destabilize the core. Removing these two mana types would prevent explosions, though someone with access to those two could also manually supply mana or outright cause the destabilization. Given that monsters can only have one mana type, such a formation is enough for fights between monsters. I would assume the enlightened have better formations or just outright cast spells on cores.
After that, I lend the fire core to Anastasia. The next day, she attuned to fire mana and started practicing injecting it into her arrows.
A week after settling in, we finally scouted our neighborhood. Another kobolt tribe is to the north. The third-tier bear resides to the west. The bear is at the peak of the 3rd tier, though, making it strong enough to have a small domain to itself.
In the south, we found predatory plants. Unfortunately, they don’t give EXP. I went to check myself, and they don’t have souls. They are not intelligent; they are just camouflaging plants that rely on something entering their traps. Asaru can easily traverse that place, so we send her to scout it out. There are some monsters there, but nothing stronger than the 2nd tier. The plants are both poisonous and venomous as well, making the place quite inhospitable.
It’s strange that it exists. I have an urge to burn them down myself, but that can wait until our tribe entrenches itself better. After that, we can destroy those plants and hope prey comes in instead.
For now, I can grind EXP and experiment. Our current territory is enough to feed us and big enough that enlarging it will force us to create hunting camps. In a way, it’s nearly ideal territory for one tribe. Kobolts will probably try to take some of it sooner or later, but I don’t fear it. We will be prepared, and it will also only amount to skirmishes. It will be just a fight for some hunting ground, not for survival.
Thinking about it, Asaru enters my house.
“What’s brought you here?” I ask with a smile, but I’m somehow tense. Did she figure something out? It’s not like I even started my plan.
“Two things. First, a present.”
“Present?” I raise an eyebrow.
“You were right; my skill as a thief is quite good. I visited the Kobolts’ camp.” She gives me two boxes. I check them out. An earth core and an air core.
“Well, thank you.” I smile. “That would be useful. Why not give them to your children, though?”
“That’s a bit connected to my second reason for coming here. I want to talk about a few things.”
That gives me a bad feeling.