"Weak adventurers, my Lord?" Miner asked.
"The Adventurer Guild issues daily contracts to exterminate the menacing Elemental Beasts and Monsters that roam the land, especially the ones with body parts that contain essential ingredients for creating potent potions. There is a spot near the Dungeon where the Clay Rank adventurers hunt Horned Rabbits for their medicinal horns. The Rabbits aren't the cute and fluffy kind. They are similar to Badgers, so an armed warrior can only take them down. Nearby is a cave with aggressive copper-scale pangolins who rub their bodies onto the walls. Clay Rank Adventurers with mining skills are recommended for mining it for those copper scales. We should be able to get the Warrior and Miner souls from these two locations since they won't be able to overcome Golems with High HP and DEF. Warrior and Builder can knock out the solo newbs and bring at least two back here for soul harvest on the first trip," I explained.
"Quick question! How old are these Clay Ranks, Boss?" Builder asked.
"A lot of them were 11 or 13-year-olds from the Slums who took up Adventuring to escape poverty," I answered.
"So...they are just poor children?" Warrior asked.
"The Adventurers with wealthy backgrounds go to schools and only resort to this life if they drop out or feel they aren't suited for a merchant or Non-Combatant life," I point out.
A minute of silence passes as my Golems think about the idea.
"Boss, I don't think we should actively seek to kill those who don't threaten us— especially kids!" Builder expressed his objection.
"I will defend you and this Dungeon, but I won't waste my strength on weaklings unless they deserve it. If there is no other way, I will let you take control of my body to carry out the task." Warrior declared.
"My Lord, it's a reasonable plan and probably the best course of action. But it feels wrong! Is there no other way to get the souls we need?" Miner asked me.
I am glad my Golems dislike this idea. They aren't just a trio of 'Yes Men' who carry out orders without considering the consequences.
Unlike me, who said yes to everything for a reward and wiped out Hundreds of thousands of Non-Combatants without hesitation, this opens up a path that will be better for us in the long run.
"I am glad you all have disagreed with this idea. But we should reserve the punishment of death for Humans who invade the Dungeon or come after me. I think you all have agreed on that front by default," I ask.
The Golem trio all voiced agreement without hesitation.
"Then let's hunt Non-Humans who can fit the bill!" I declare.
"By Non-Human, are you referring to those who look Human and speak like one but are not one?" Warrior asked for clarification.
"They are humanoid, possess human intelligence, and speak like a Human. However, they will have visible features that belong to beasts or monsters in their appearance. Some might even be half-breeds or spawn sired from unwilling humans who were abducted for reproduction. For some twisted reason, they grow stronger by eating Humans specifically. A few avoid the temptation and live out their lives in the Underworld. But for the ones who come up to feed on Humans, can we kill and take their souls without reservation?" I asked them.
"I am fine with harvesting Non-Human souls as long as they present a danger to us!" the Warrior declared.
"I am good with that arrangement!" Builder added.
"I would like to know what kind of Non-Human our Lord wishes to target first!" Miner asked.
Well, they seem eager to follow this path.
"There is a Non-Human species called Imps. Most are three-foot-tall pointy-eared Apes with leathery skin, goat horns, and long arrow-tipped tails. They infest the ruins of an ancient Empire that fell long ago. It's just 10 KM south of our Dungeon. The Ruins are a No-Go zone because the Imps living in them drag their victims through tunnels into their lair in the Underworld. Many expeditions were launched over the centuries to clear the ruins, which ended in tragedy because the Imps refused to come out of dark, narrow spaces to fight the Adventurers and Kingdom Armies. However, some survivors managed to escape back to the surface. They mentioned the Imps have a civilization below called the Impdom. Their society is divided into castes based on their class specialization. Miners and Warriors are among them. I believe we can get the souls we need by capturing Imps from those two castes," I explain.
"You learned all this from one week's worth of memories?" Builder asked.
"To fully explain how I learned it. I need to give you some background information. Brock had an older brother who was part of an illegal expedition to clear the Ruins. The goal was to find lost artifacts from previous expeditions and sell them on the Black Market. Unfortunately, his brother was ambushed and taken underground by the Imps.
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Brock followed in his brother's footsteps and explored the Ruins as a child. However, he, too, was caught by the Imps. Luckily, a human-sized Imp saved Brock from being eaten by the smaller Imps. It evolved into this form by consuming his older brother's brains, allowing it to obtain his brother's memories, skills, and personality.
In exchange for saving Brock's life, it wanted him to lure Humans into the Ruins for Mana Crystals. The Impdom Kingdom, below the Ruins, has a caste of Imps who need to eat human brains to increase their intelligence. When the ruins were off-limits, they lacked a steady supply of brains. As a result, it was willing to offer 1 Mana Crystal for every Clay Rank adventurer. More Mana Crystals would be provided for higher ranks.
Brock spent years leading many desperate slum dwellers, lovers, and criminal associates to the Ruins for this reward. The Falar Kingdom didn't notice their disappearance, and the Church indirectly approved it because they exchanged several Gold coins for each of Brock's Mana Crystals, which funded his lavish lifestyle.
Three days ago, the Heroes Church decided to stop going through the middleman and deal directly with the source. The deal was that Brock would be granted his freedom from the Church if he could arrange an audience with the Imp Ruler Caste to officially exchange criminals sentenced to death or sinners of Church Laws in exchange for Mana Crystals every month. Brock had his Imp brother help him arrange everything until the deal was signed. Today was supposed to be his last day of work before his release from his penance. But Brock didn't trust the Church to honor the agreement since he knew too much and made plans to escape to another continent until Dale ended his retirement plan," I explain.
"Wow! Brock's life was something!" Builder.
"The Imps sound difficult to capture since they will have superior numbers and the home advantage. We are not strong enough to take them on in the Ruins." Warrior pointed out.
"We will buy a Miner and a Warrior Imp from the Black market for now. Usually, the Adventurers in the Summoner and Warlock Classes buy them there to make pacts with since they are easy to control even for the lower ranks," I announced.
"Black Market?" Warrior asked.
"The black market functions in secrecy and values anonymity. It does not require either clients or suppliers to disclose their identities. Brock knew a secret Black Market Agent who worked at the Gambler's Den. The man accepted precious metals, gemstones, or Mana crystals for any expensive or illegal item or creature you desire," I explain.
"My Lord, we only have 14 Mana Crystals! We need 10 to summon a Golem." Miner reminded.
"My plan only requires two. Without the Souls, we won't be able to make Golems!" I reason.
"How will you contact the agent without revealing your identities as Golems?" Builder inquired.
"Leave that to me!" I reply.
-----------------------
10 minutes later.
After taking control of the Warrior's body, I led the Builder towards the exit of our Dungeon on the first level. Even though the Miner was keen to join us, I instructed him to return to the quarry and continue mining.
I can not build new Golems if all three of my starter Golems are destroyed during this trip.
Builder was walking faster than Warrior due to the difference in DEX stats after three level-ups, so I had to remind him to slow down. The moment I passed through the exit, I knew that my first step towards taking over this continent had begun.
It was nighttime already, and the sky above was shrouded in darkness with no moon to light the way. Heavy clouds hung low, obscuring even the faintest glimmer of starlight. The only sound of breaking the stillness of the night was the eerie howling of wolves, their mournful cries echoing through the ancient forest that surrounded the entrance of the Dungeon. The Dungeon was located at the base of the tallest mountain on the entire continent, and its entrance was hidden deep within the dense foliage of the forest. As the night wore on, the forest grew darker and more foreboding, with the distant howls of the wolves serving as a constant reminder of the dangers lurking in the shadows. The Rune armor on our bodies released a blue glow that illuminated a few meters around us.
I had witnessed this environment through Brock's memories as he entered the Dungeon. I knew he was walking to his doom. Those memories seemed like a scripted movie, and I couldn't focus on some details that Brock didn't deem significant at the time.
My perception of the world had changed drastically now that I was in the same place but in a Golem's body with complete control. Since Warrior is much shorter than Brock, everything looks different from this point of view. Moreover, I couldn't experience anything besides what I could see and hear.
"Boss! You alright?" Builder asked.
"I am noticing things about being a Golem that I didn't care about when I took control of Warrior the first time. We can't smell, taste, or feel anything."
"It sucks! But we can't change our race. So let's move on before the Wolves in the woods attack us." Builder patted my back, but I could hear a thump instead of feeling a touch.
"I doubt the wolves are hungry enough to break their teeth on walking boulders." I joked.
However, I unsheathed my sword and readied my shield in case anything else lurked at this time of night in this land. Brock tried his best to avoid the woods at night, and I didn't want to ignore that caution.
We followed Dale and Phil's muddy trail for half an hour until we reached a cobbled path that connected to a primitive highway in this world. Thankfully, no beasts or monsters obstructed our path, even though I could see them curiously following us from behind the dead and dry foliage.
It took us two hours to reach the outskirts of the Kingdom, where several wooden shabby shacks had rows of clothes hanging out to dry nearby.
"Is it normal to leave clothes out at night?" the Builder asked as he inspected them.
"These aren't made from regular fabric. It's made from Black Wool from Black Sheep grazed on mana-infused Grass. The fabric needs a few nights to absorb the Shadow element from the environment. Tailors use this material to create Shadow Cloaks, a favorite for those who pick the Rogue Class," I explained.
Brock had two cloaks in his home but only wore them at night to avoid being detected by the Kingsmen who patrolled the streets.
"Grab five of them and wrap one around your face and the rest around your body. If any Kingsmen stop us, let me do the talking." I instruct and do the same.
"What will you say to them if they want to see our faces?" Builder asked.
"We are leprous Dwarves seeking a cure from Phil Sin at the Heroes Church!"