Chapter 267. Shoremarch.

As my team of minions continued their journey down the paved road, I turned my attention back to the group of birds that was still hounding my kobold trading caravan. The patrol of five kobold warriors had arrived and were summarily cut down by the flock of carnivorous ostrich-looking birds. My warriors hadn’t gone down without a fight, though, and two of the birds had been killed during the fight.

The remaining creatures were busy feasting on all the remains, and the caravan survivors would probably make it the human village without any trouble. As long as the birds wandered off after eating their fill, the road should be clear for a bit. Eggs would soon start to grow in the housing complexes, producing the replacements for my lost warriors and traders.

While the traders could pretty much start right away once they were hatched, the warriors would take a bit longer since they had to go to the barracks for training and equipment. A quick check of my resources showed the silo was slowly but steadily refilling after my previous purchases. It would have to be pretty much full before I could expand my headquarters to rank four.

I had the instant upgrade token for one of my structures, but it couldn’t be used on the headquarters, unfortunately. Waiting for my resources to build up wasn’t the most exciting experience in the world, so I shifted my attention to the minions as they traveled toward the end of the road and the edge of the map. From what I could tell, they had to be getting close, especially with the speed boost the road gave them.

The haze of the desert heat over the road gave way to cool breezes as my minions reached their destination. In the distance, I could see the ocean, as well as a seaside town bustling with activity. Unlike my kobold cavern and the villages of the other faction’s, this one was protected by a stone wall and was more than double the size.

As my team drew closer, I could even see several small fishing vessels out on the water, and a pier with a larger ship was tied up and unloading cargo. Outside the village, a few pathetic-looking farms tried to grow crops in the thin and sandy soil. Along the wall around the village, there were several well-armed and armored guards.

Unlike the guards at the other villages, these guards were comprised of all sorts of humanoid races, from halflings to orcs. At least a score of the guards were on patrol around the perimeter of the village. I figured there were more inside where there was sure to be a barracks of some type. Each guard wore a full suit of chainmail, topped with a steel helm. Round wooden shields with spears were their main weapons, but each had a long dagger on their belt.

In addition to the melee weapons, about one in five of the guards had a light crossbow as a ranged weapon. These guys were more formidable than my other encounters, so I’d have to do what I could to avoid conflict. I was sure my minions could do a number on them, but I doubted we could handle that many without taking casualties.

A pair of guards left the village and walked on the road toward my team, as the two groups met, a system prompt appeared.

Congratulations! You are among the first 100 contestants to explore the entire map of the zone you have been assigned to. This accomplishment entitles you to a choice of rewards as well as bonus resources to help grow your realm. In addition, the overall layout of your zone will be simplified to help you in the final phase of the challenge. For your reward, please select one of the following.

1. Sorcerer’s hovel. Unlock the sorcerer’s hovel to add magic wielding kobolds to the ranks of your warriors. As the structure improves its rank, the sorcerers will become more powerful and unlock new spells and abilities.

2. Crude road network. Construct a simple roadway between all trading partners and confederated factions. The crude road network increases the speed of all travelers by 2% and reduces the dangers of hostile wildlife by 25%.

3. Resource node. Creates a random, valuable resource node inside your faction territory. This node will slowly regenerate after being harvested.

4. Beast tamer’s hut. Allows some of your kobold workers to take up the beast taming profession. They will explore the lands, taming beasts for both work and defense. By breeding these animals, you’ll have a steady supply of creatures to supplement your forces and to speed your construction.

That was something I hadn’t expected. A low rumbling was heard throughout the cavern, and I could feel a slight vibration under my feet as the system made changes to the zone around me. Other than myself and my minions, none of the other inhabitants seemed concerned by, or even noticed, the disruption.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

On the headquarters map, I could see the zone layout change. The mountain that my kobolds and the rock gnomes resided in shifted to the far eastern end of the zone. To the north and south, the zone narrowed significantly. Things elongated to the west, extending the distance between my mountain and the newly discovered village on the coast.

The forest widened, but the elf village remained in about the same place. The human village was a different story, as it was pushed further west, making the journey there even longer. I could also see the icon for the trading post that didn’t want to be disturbed shifting west a bit, but not as far as the human village had. Thinking about the trading post, I made a mental note to have one of my minions stop by there soon to see if it was up and running.

A blinking light on the map of my kobold cavern told me the resource silo was filled to the brim, and I would soon begin to lose resources if I didn’t spend them. I immediately ordered the headquarters to be upgraded to rank four, and for a little while, the resources barely decreased as the bonus for exploration continued to feed me more.

The bonus resources petered out rather quickly, but it was going to be enough to build the tier four headquarters and leave the silo over half full. Looking at my reward options, I was distracted by another system prompt that appeared as my minions and the guards met on the road.

You have discovered the free city of Shoremarch. The city wishes to open negotiations with your faction. Do you wish to negotiate with the free city of Shoremarch? Y/N.

I wasn’t sure what we were negotiating exactly, but I would rather talk to them than start hostilities right off the bat. I accepted the negotiation offer and new information began to appear. The system first explained the city, then presented the offer to my faction.

The free city of Shoremarch is independent and will refuse to join any faction. Primarily a trading hub, a trade agreement with Shoremarch will allow multiple caravans to trade with the city once they have accepted you as a full trading partner. Shoremarch will remain neutral unless attacked directly. Your reputation with the city will begin at Neutral and can improve or decline based on your actions.

The free city of Shoremarch makes the following offer.

1. Limited trade route agreement. This agreement will allow a single caravan to trade with the city. Each of the factions in your confederation will also be allowed a single trade caravan with Shoremarch.

2. Durable, non-aggression pact. This pact will prevent either side from initiating hostile actions, both direct and indirect. The system will enforce significantly enhanced penalties for any party that breaks this pact. This pact is necessary if you wish to accept the limited trade route agreement.

3. Mutual trade route defense. You agree to utilize no fewer than two squads of defenders to patrol the trade route between your cavern and Shoremarch. Your responsibility for defense begins at the point where the old trade road meets the plains.

Should the trade caravan from Shoremarch be attacked, you agree to compensate the city with resources equal in value to the losses incurred. Should one of your trade caravans be attacked in the area under Shoremarch’s responsibility, you will be compensated with resources equal in value to the losses incurred.

Do you agree to these terms? Y/N.

It sounded like trade with this place was something I couldn’t pass up and was the preferred choice over trying to conquer the fortified city. I wondered if this was a test for those going the aggressive route, giving them an opportunity for trade as long as they could hold off their murderous tendencies for a bit. That also brought up the question of whether the other contestants had a similar layout for their challenge. Were we all using the same map?

The terms laid out in Shoremarch’s offer seemed fine, though I was going to have to burn my upgrade token on the barracks if I wanted enough troops to effectively patrol the long path between our factions. Accepting the terms offered, I was given a final acknowledgement.

You have entered into a binding agreement with the free city of Shoremarch. Continue to abide by the agreement and protect the trade routes to improve your relationship with this city and open up additional options.

The guards that had met my team on the road turned and walked back toward the city. I ordered my team back and watched as a trade caravan left Shoremarch. Instead of a few traders with a cart, this was a full-blown wagon stuffed to the gills with goods. Two drivers rode on the wagon, and a squad of five town guards marched with them as escorts.

I panicked for a moment, realizing I had no free soldiers to guard the trade route. The green line of the new trade route appeared on my map. It ran along the desert road and then through the shortest distance from the plains to the human village. From there it, joined the existing route where it finally ended at the kobold cavern.

The route through my lands flashed red, and an icon showing the total units patrolling the route was one out of a minimum of two. At least it counted the guards I already had patrolling between the human village and my cavern as one of the required teams. Assigning the squad from inside the cavern to guard duty on the new route, I was left defenseless until my upgrades were complete.

Now, I just had to decide on which reward to choose.