The tactic was going well, and with two more volleys, I dropped the queen’s health to 80 percent, but then she caught up with my shadow. Her giant claw slashed through the clone’s body, severing it at the torso. The attack wasn’t magical, so with a surge of mana, I rejoined the clone’s split body. Then the stinger came rushing in. It exploded through the clone and shattered the hard stone ground beneath it. My shadowy body evaporated in an explosion of lava that sprayed in all directions, melting the ground and the nearby pillars.
Yep , I thought in alarm, definitely not letting that thing hit me.
By now it was getting pretty hot, even though I was wearing the fire-resistant armor. Lava bubbled in pools everywhere around me, leftovers from the blasts the queen kept launching, and the stinging attack only added to the heat. I was forced to teleport to the farthest part of the giant chamber to find a cooler place to fight in. The giant scorpion was quick to pursue.
I felt my temper rising as I kept running. I was supposed to be the big bad boss, damn it. I wasn't supposed to run away from a giant insect.
Shut up, I growled. I stood my ground and faced the coming monstrosity. It came at me, hissing and oozing lava, bursting through stone pillars. I hurled the three acid flasks at its giant head. The acid bubbled and hissed, eating at the chitin armor around its beady eyes. The scorpion came to a halt, its claws reaching toward its melting face. I didn’t let the opportunity pass and let loose two volleys of drilling arrows, lowering its health to 72 percent.
It was still hissing in pain as the acid melted its face.
Two more volleys – 64 percent.
I snarled at it. The armored burning tank was nothing more than target practice.
The queen surprised me, however, by snapping out of its pained writhing and charging on. I’d just cast two spells and couldn't teleport away or even raise a shield. I tried dodging, but the thing’s reach was just too damn wide. A claw grabbed me, then the other. I cried out in pain as I was squeezed and raised into the air, my health plummeting to a third. Then the stinger came rushing in and the next thing I knew, I was alone in the darkness.
Nihilator’s Sanction triggered.
Due to receiving a fatal amount of damage, you have transformed into a being of shadow for one minute. You are completely undetectable and invulnerable for the duration and may move freely. Once the duration is over, you will return to the material plane, fully healed. Mana regenerates at the normal rate. This ability will not be usable again for the next 24 hours.
“Shadow-crap,” I muttered, the words sounding hollow and sinister.
The scorpion had killed me – or more accurately, had dealt enough damage to reduce me to zero health.
I had one minute to decide on my next action before I was returned to the material world. Already, the nearby shadows were drawn into my body, rapidly restoring my health. With a mental effort, I stopped the process just before I reached 60 percent health. Castigation was still my best bet. I looked around, trying to formulate a new plan while the giant queen examined its claws, looking for my body.
Leaving the burning area behind, I found myself back in familiar surroundings. Nihilator’s altar. I smiled as a new plan started forming. While inside this shadow plane of existence, there was no up or down. I soared through the dark substance, reaching for the stalactite that hung just above the altar. It was too thick around the base for me to break and turn into a makeshift spear, but I had other ideas in mind.
Once the minute was up, I was back in my real body, hanging by both legs and a single hand, while holding the Demon Staff in my other hand.
The scorpion was still looking for me, so I decided to give it something to chase. I summoned my clone for what felt like the umpteenth time that day and used it to charge the monster while hurling a volley of drilling arrows. The queen’s health dipped. Sixty-two percent.
The scorpion turned and launched another Lava Blast, which I dodged with my cloned body. Then I ran back toward the altar with the giant monstrosity in hot pursuit.
I jumped my clone over the altar and turned to face the queen. It came straight for me. I just grinned at it and cast Mana Shield. The monster impacted the energy wall with the force of a freight train, breaking through it, and finishing my cloned body with a flurry of claws. But the clone, and shield, served their purpose.
My grin widened. The queen was positioned directly over the altar. Its legs held it high enough to not notice the small construction of stone and bone.
I waved my staff, channeling two volleys of drilling arrows that rained down on its wide back, blasting plate-sized holes in it and instantly reducing its health to half. Another significant advantage – I was back inside the zone of power.
The queen sagged as her strength was sapped by the unholy aura.
I let go of the stalactite and dropped the eight-meters with the point of my spear-staff leading the way. I crashed into the scorpion’s back, losing a few more dozen HP from the impact and nearly breaking my legs, but the maneuver worked. My staff had sunk almost to its end inside the creature’s back, and the three direballs contained within released, detonating inside its body.
Demon Staff hit Scorpion Queen for 164 damage [(122 base X 2 critical) - 80 armor].
Castigation [Direball X 3] hit Scorpion Queen for 1,102 damage
[((base 245 X 2 epicenter) - 25% spell resistance) X 3].
A large chunk of the creature’s back exploded, creating a giant crater underneath my feet and nearly splitting the monster’s torso in half. The scorpion reeled in pain, and I blinked in amazement as I realized it was still not dead. A sliver of health was all that kept it going.
Well, I couldn’t have that. I pulled out my dagger and plunged it downward. The unholy blade easily sank between the broken armor plates, snuffing out its life.
Infernal Scorpion Queen sacrificed!
+570 Faith Points (95 X 1.5 boss X 4 using altar)
Darkness spread from both my dagger and the altar, eating away the giant corpse and reducing it to a black ooze that quickly coalesced into a shining void crystal, leaving a pile of loot behind.
I pocketed the level 2,850 void crystal and eagerly went to examine the leftovers.
I was disappointed. It mostly contained thick chitin plates meant for heavy armor and the queen’s heart, which was listed as a food ingredient. But my dismay dissipated when I withdrew the real prize: the Infernal Demon Horn, the twin of my own staff.
To my surprise, as soon as my hands closed around the horn, it started falling apart. Most of its length crumbled away, leaving behind only a short circular tube. A scroll casing.
Frowning, I opened the tube and drew out an ancient-looking parchment.
Spell Scroll: Race Change
Description: An old, crumbling parchment @#$#–––––-Error!
Type: Single-use item.
Rank: Epic-#999999.9999
Effect: Permanently change the target’s race to a monster ${mType:}#?#––Error!
I stared, dumbfounded, at a copy of the very scroll that had landed me in this situation. All the calamity that happened – turning into a goblin, raising a clan, battles, blood, misery, and even Shiva… everything had started with this spell scroll.
I could hardly believe such a rare item dropped from a simple tier 1 boss, especially since the one that was used to turn me into a goblin came from an ancient, godlike dragon.
Though I had no immediate use for the scroll, it was still an unbelievable find. A treasure that made this whole adventure worth the trouble.
Immortal Killed!
Boss Tier 3 Progression: 2/200
Level up! You have reached Character Le
vel 59. You have 1 ability point to allocate.
Faith skill level increased to 38.
Dark Mana skill level increased to 50.
Dark Mana skill level increased to 51.
Dark Mana skill has reached Expert rank!
● You may now acquire new Expert-ranked spells.
● Direball spell has regained its full power.
● Mana pool, mana regen, and spell effectiveness increased by 10%.
And just like that, my mana pool had crossed the 6,000 threshold. I could feel new power swelling in me, increasing my magic abilities, pushing them to new heights.
I’d achieved everything I’d hoped for by hunting down prey that was several levels higher than me. I was stronger than ever now, ready to lead my clan and army against more powerful enemies.
I remained in the cave for a while longer, summoning more hounds and letting them scan through the tunnels in search of any surviving scorpions. But there were none to find. It seemed I’d completely cleared the settlement of the menace. I didn’t worry about the queen respawning; it was just leftovers from my previous adventure.
Kaedric, I projected my thoughts, send the first wave of settlers to the Ogre Fort.
I might have missed one or two of the smaller scorpions, but I wasn’t too worried. The group of goblins that was going to settle this place would be accompanied by a small squad of soldiers that were more than enough to handle the lower-leveled critters.
I cracked my neck, exhilarated at the sense of power flooding my body.
Checking the internal game clock, I noticed the day was almost over.
Time for my date.
6 - Progress
The next day I woke up to find Tika’s naked body snuggled against me under our soft bed furs. I sighed with contentment and decided to stay for a little longer. I wasn’t just a chief anymore. I was a scorpion-killing badass; surely that meant I could sleep in a few more minutes.
You have acquired a new vassal settlement: Claytown [Hamlet]
Apparently not.
Tika groaned in protest as I got out of bed. “Stay with me.”
I seriously considered her request then regretfully shook my head. “I can’t. Got conquered towns to visit, invasions to plan.” I started putting on my equipment, forsaking the Pyrolith armor in favor of the mithril vest.
“You work too hard,” Tika said accusingly, then her voice dropped suggestively. “I’ve got an invasion for you to plan right here.”
I laughed. “How about tonight?”
She pouted. “Promise?”
“Promise.”
“Alright. But this time, please don’t come covered with half-molten lava and drenched in scorpion blood.”
I grinned at her. “I’ll do my best.”
I went downstairs and found my daughter waiting for me. “Lirian.”
“Father.” Something in her tone caused my danger sense to tingle.
“What’s wrong?”
She looked at me accusingly. “You went hunting without me.”
“Lirian, honey … it was dangerous and there were giant, high-level scorpions everywhere.” I stopped when I realized the absurdity of trying to rationalize not taking my one-year-old daughter along with me on a bloody and dangerous monster hunt. “You’ll still join me and the rest of the army, alright?”
“Yes, Father,” she said reluctantly.
“Good. Let me just have a quick chat with Kaedric then we’ll go grab something to eat before heading out. Can you open the door for him?”
Lirian frowned. “How do you know he’s there? He hasn’t knocked.”
“He’s always there.”
Lirian moved to open the door, and sure enough, the mandibled hob was there, just about to knock.
“Ah, good day, Princess.” He nodded at her and then bowed his head at me. “My lord.”
“Kaedric,” I greeted him. “I trust everything in the clan is well?”
“Yes, my lord. Would you like to receive a detailed report of recent progress?”
“No, I stand by what I said before. I’m leaving the everyday management of Goblin’s Gorge in your capable hands. For now, I want to hear how our two new colonies are doing.”
“Yes, my lord. Both nobles have assumed control of their respective settlements. Thanks to their allotment of energy points, they were able to quickly transform the settlements into fully fledged, contributing vassals. Ogre Fort is rich in metal, while Raider’s Camp has access to both coal and bountiful hunting grounds. There is still some time, though, before the settlements grow large enough to offer substantial tributes to the capital. You may examine their progress at your leisure via the Settlement Interface.”
“Thanks, Kaedric,” I said. “I’ll do that. Anything else I should know?”
“Apparently not – unless my lord is interested to hear about the solution I’ve devised to handle the depletion of our fur stock.”
“Nope. That’s all on you now. Come on, Lirian, let’s get a bite to eat.”
We bade the seneschal goodbye, went into the spacious inn, and claimed a table. Goblin servers were quick to bring us portions of the daily stew with a side of freshly baked bread.
You have acquired a new vassal settlement: Woodhaven [Hamlet]
“Sullivan sure keeps them busy,” I muttered to myself.
“Father?” Lirian asked.
“Nothing alarming, Lir; we just conquered two small settlements. Hang on, I want to check what we got out of them.”
I opened the Settlement Interface, navigated to the Capital tab, and selected ‘Vassal Settlement.’
Capital: Vassal settlements contributions
● Koboldtopia:
○ Daily Energy: 3,186
○ Population: 2,783
○ Daily Resources: 50 glowing lichen, 6 raw gems
○ Militia: 120 kobold warriors, 12 kobold assassins
○ Morale: +8
○ Breeder’s Den: +1 level for newly summoned combatants
○ Special Bonus: +10% breeding rate
● LiceNest
○ Daily Energy: 172
○ Population: 136
○ Daily Resources: 5 stone
○ Militia: 12 goblin warriors
○ Morale: +3
● Novenguard
○ Daily Energy: 14,011
○ Population: 2,007
○ Daily Resources: 600 flour, 100 meat, 50 fish, 120 gold
○ Militia: 45/940 drafted civilians
○ Morale: +22
○ Breeder’s Den: +2 level for newly summoned combatants
● Ogre Fort
○ Daily Energy: 712
○ Population: 63
○ Daily Resources: 12 iron
○ Militia: 10 hob warriors, 1 Ogre Mage
● Raider’s Camp
○ Daily Energy: 712
○ Population: 63
○ Daily Resources: 53 coal, 20 meat
○ Militia: 10 hob warriors, 1 Ogre Mage
● Claytown
○ Daily Energy: 93
○ Population: 32
○ Daily Resources: 12 clay
○ Militia: 9 miners
● Woodhaven
○ Daily Energy: 78
○ Population: 26
○ Daily Resources: 50 lumber
○ Militia: 6 lumberjacks
It was a long list, and I planned to make it longer. I frowned when I noticed something strange. “How come Koboldtopia’s population has grown so quickly? I remember there were only several hundred when we conquered it.”
I wasn’t asking anyone in particular, but Lirian answered anyway. “The eggs, remember? There were thousands of unhatched eggs there. They must have hatched.”
“Ah, I guess you’re right.” The kobold oracle had traded the players’ research to vastly increase their population growth. And now that particular fruit was mine. Not that a simple kobold was better than a foblin, but number
s still mattered.
I continued poring over the list as I distractedly shoveled food into my mouth. The vassal settlement held another benefit. If I wanted to, I could draft their militia, increasing the strength of my army by roughly a thousand more warriors. Granted, those soldiers weren’t as hardy as my standing army, but they were a grade above foblins or kobolds. I frowned when I noticed that Novenguard’s militia was far from its full strength. They seemed to be recovering from the losses we had given them, but slowly.
“Show me.”
New Era Online [Internal messaging service]:
From : Sullivan Tucker
Subject : First objective achieved
Hi Chief,
We’ve just finished taking over the two hamlets. No casualties. Your goblin adepts are working on converting the local shrines as we speak.
You should come over as soon as you can to discuss our next objective.
Sullivan
“Looks like I’m needed with the army,” I told my daughter. “Are you coming with me?”
She shook her head. “The arena master has promised to show me a new fighting style. I want to become the best fighter I can be, Father, so you’ll be proud of me.”
I smiled at her gently. “I’m already proud of you. You don’t have to prove yourself to me.”
“I’ll become the best fighter in the clan. As the chief’s daughter, it’s only appropriate.” The young goblinette’s eyes burned with passion.
“Have fun battling that old geezer. Look out for his shield, though. It’s more dangerous than his sword.”
Life Reset: Conquest (New Era Online Book 5) Page 9