***
Savol had just enough warning to shove Lirian away before the giant bonetis fell on top of him, his sharp legs and forearms slicing and dicing.
The princess smoothly rolled with the push, coming to her feet just as another giant bonetis dropped in front of her.
Time seemed to stop as the monster ahead of her slashed toward her unprotected face. Her sword was at her back because of the roll, too far away to block.
Then a third figure dropped straight on the bonetis’s back, shouting, ‘Yee-haw!’ as he rode the monster down, his clawed hands biting and tearing, his mandibles shearing chunks off the larger monster’s thick armor.
The bonetis reared up at the sudden attack, forgetting the goblinette in front of it.
Lirian looked up in amazement. It was Ragnar. The obnoxious traveler who had haunted her clan for so long had come to her rescue.
“Problem, Princess?” The drone smirked at her then winced in pain as a flailing limb nearly tore his arm off.
Lirian didn’t waste time in slashing at the bonetis, carving up its torso, but not killing it. She had to hurry. Despite being a boss, Savol was lower-leveled than the enemy he faced and was badly positioned. But she needn’t have worried.
“Revival!”
The three slain hobs rose to their feet, their grievous wounds closing in a matter of seconds, and then all three charged the monsters that pinned down the general.
“Hold the Line! Second Wind!”
In a few more moments it was all over. Lirian stood in front of the bleeding drone while Savol and his three soldiers, now level 10, limped away from the bonetis corpses.
“Fugly’s gonna be pissed when he finds out it was me who saved your skin, girl,” Ragnar said. “Seein’ tha’ look on his face will almost make it worth it.” Then his eyes rolled over and he collapsed to the ground.
Lirian took an involuntary step toward him. The drone wasn’t dead, but he was losing blood fast.
She didn’t like him. Despite the sudden, unexpected assistance, it sounded like Ragnar only helped her to spite her father. She looked down at the traveler’s body. She had ambushed his spawn point in the past, killing him over and over again.
The blood kept on gushing, and with it came an unexpected revelation.
Maybe she should learn from her father and leave the past behind her.
Using one of the spells he had shown her – one she seldom used – Lirian cast Heal Followers. At once, the drone’s wounds stopped bleeding, and her other companions stood up a bit easier.
Lirian cast the spell again. Then a third time. She wasn’t as powerful as her father, but her mana seemed inexhaustible. After the twelfth spell, the drone’s wounds were fully healed, and he slowly got back to his feet.
“Well I’ll be damned. Guess we’re even now, girl.” He turned toward the tunnel ahead of them. “Let’s go. There’ll be more beasties ta kill.”
***
The four teams joined up in the small antechamber before the broodmothers’ cave.
Misa looked over all the new faces. “Greetings and welcome to broodmother orientation one oh one,” she said jubilantly. “The tunnel to my right leads to a large cavern holding no less than eight horse-sized, level 40, bonetis broodmothers guarding their nests. Who wants to go in first?”
Nero nodded at her. “Clearly, a plan is in order.”
“I’m up for suggestions,” Malkyr said.
“I work alone,” Ragnar insisted.
“That … would be suicide,” Misa said.
“He’s not working alone.” Lirian looked around the group of travelers. “We’re all part of the GreenPiece Clan. We all work together. Let us use the strength of our bond.”
“She has a point,” Riley said. “I’m pretty sure the broodmothers can’t see in the dark, which is why they’re staying in a lit cave. We can use it to our advantage.”
“Think you can shroud the entire place?” Fox asked.
Riley grimaced. “No. I can maybe cover two of the broodmothers.”
“I can do the same,” Lirian said.
“Which leaves four to the rest of us,” Hoshisu said.
Aly gave a thumbs up. “Sounds like a plan.”
“And hey,” Ragnar said, “if one o’ you bites the dust, fugly’s general ovah’ there can bring ya back.”
Savol shook his head. “Can only bring dead soldiers, only freshly killed, and only one time in one battle.” He paused to think. “A long battle.”
“Bah, whatever, let’s go punch the egg sack off those bitches.” The drone started walking toward the cave.
“Wait, that’s not enough,” someone said. All eyes turned to Jaelon, who looked back at them nervously. “You guys are amazing fighters, but four, level 40 mobs are no joke.”
“Level 18 Mob Squad is even less so,” Misa added.
Jaelon nodded. “As I said, you guys are amazing, but those bonetises are twice your level. We need to gang up on them individually.”
“And how do we do that, kid?” Kyth asked.
Jaelon took a deep breath. “Nesteph, me, and those two,” he pointed at the inexperienced players in Malkyr’s group, “you guys just carried us on your backs, but we can help. I think the four of us should stand away while you start attacking one of the broodmothers. If the others join in to help her, we’ll dash in and grab some of their eggs. That should make them turn around and chase us instead. If we do it right, we might keep them separated long enough for you to take them out one by one.”
“Not bad, kid,” Kyth said.
“The broodmothers did seem very attached to their egg clusters,” Raystia pondered out loud. “I think it might just work.”
Lirian smiled and drew out her sword. “For the GreenPiece Clan!”
The players looked at each other and grinned. “For the GreenPiece Clan!”
Ragnar snorted. “Y’all just try not to get in the way.”
***
The priest and the princess dashed in first. The closest broodmothers raised their heads at the approaching enemies and held up their two-meters long foreclaws threateningly.
A moment later, four broodmothers – two on each side of the cave – were shrouded in darkness as the shadows amassed to hide them from view.
Nero and Malkyr stepped in next, leading the others. “Alright, Lirian, Riley?” the large man asked.
“Yeah, the broodmothers have curled up around their eggs. Doesn’t look like they’ll be coming out of the darkness,” the priest player said, his jaw clenched in concentration. “Hurry up, will you?”
“Okay,” Malkyr said, “Fox and I will lead the charge on the closest broodmother and tank her. Misa and Kyth, use your abilities to hamper and restrict her movements. Hoshisu, Raystia, use your ranged attacks while Nero and Aly try to flank her and inflict some damage from behind. The four newbies, hold back and keep an eye out on the other broodmothers; if they move, you know what to do. Ragnar—”
“Don’t order me around, boy,” the drone said. “I’ll bring the pain, don’t ya worry.”
“Alright,” Malkyr said. “Let’s go!”
He charged at the nearest broodmother with Fox, shield aimed front, at his side. The broodmother reared up as they approached, her front scythes easily reaching twice the height of some of the charging players. Malkyr parried the first blow with his axe while Fox caught the other limbs on his enchanted shield. The serrated forearm etched a line on its hard surface.
Raystia and Hoshisu, bows in hand, started raining arrows on the broodmother, though the arrowheads didn’t penetrate deep into the giant broodmother’s extra-thick armor.
Aly and Nero nimbly darted toward each of the bonetis’s sides, their punches and slashes inflicting some damage.
But it was Ragnar who was the most effective. The drone roared as he charged in using a boulder to jump into the air and land on the monster’s back. His claws snapped and tore, breaking into the thick armor, shredding it apart in search of the
flesh underneath.
The broodmother reared and thrashed, but the two fighters at the front deflected her attacks and kept her in check. A freezing ray made one leg slip, and a flying chain tied two other legs together, causing the giant insect to topple to one side.
“The other three are coming!” Nesteph shouted. “Newbies, time to shine. Go, go, go!”
The other three players charged toward the broodmothers’ deserted nests and each one scooped up a clutch of slime-dripping eggs. The three broodmothers reared and screamed in rage as they turned back toward the thieving players and gave chase.
Meanwhile, between Malkyr’s overhead chops, Nero and Aly’s blows, Ragnar’s claws, and a steady rain of arrows, the first broodmother’s HP had run out and she collapsed, dead.
“Next one!” Malkyr yelled, and the nine players ran for the nearest broodmother who was quickly gaining on a panicked player.
Jaelon stopped running, breathing hard, as the fighters halted the broodmother’s charge. “That was close! She nearly had me.”
The others didn’t answer him, already deep in the combat.
They repeated the same tactic as before, with Malkyr and Fox holding the broodmother’s attention while the others whittled down her health.
“Shit!” Nesteph shouted.
The two chasing broodmothers had finally caught up with the players. A forescythe slash from one had decapitated a player, while the other broodmothers jumped forward, landing on the second player with her full weight. Her sharp limbs quickly reduced him to shredded meat.
“They’re coming this way!” Jaelon yelled. “We’ve got to delay them.”
“The eggs!” Nesteph shouted.
The two players dashed in again, aiming at the broodmothers’ unprotected nests. The giant bonetises stopped and turned around on the daring players.
“Those are good kids,” Kyth murmured as his spell froze a forearm which Ragnar then shattered with a heavy blow. “They’re all going to die, but they’re good kids.”
The second broodmother fell, and the nine players rushed to the third one. They came to Jaelon’s rescue again just in time and pounded on the bonetis.
“Damn,” the exhausted player gasped, breathing hard. “The other got Nesteph; she’s heading this way.”
“I got her,” Hoshisu said. She dropped her bow, drew out her knives, and rushed at the incoming bone monstrosity.
The broodmother reared up at her approach, slashing with her forearms and front legs, but the assassin was too agile. Hoshisu easily rolled in between the blows, evading them all, then changed direction and ran a little ahead before feinting sideways and executing two rapid attacks.
The third broodmother was soon killed, and the others joined Hoshisu to bring down the fourth one.
“Hell of a job dodge-tanking, sis,” Malkyr said admiringly.
Hoshisu rolled her eyes. “That was nothing. Remember those spiky Stalker demons from Ogre Fort? Now those were a challenge to dodge.”
“Good times.” Malkyr grinned.
Fox delivered a final overhead chop with his axe, dropping the broodmother. “Come on, let’s get the other four.”
With the rest of the broodmothers effectively blind inside the area of darkness and unwilling to step away from their egg clutches, the nine players had no trouble dispatching them one by one, their Shadow-Touched eyes easily piercing the magical darkness.
“Tha’ was fun,” Ragnar said, wiping blood and ichor off his face. “Now wha’?”
“I know,” Misa said. “I keep feeling like I should get a ‘quest completed’ notification, and since I don’t, I now feel like the really huge final boss is about to make an appearance.”
“Misa, no!” Riley protested. “Don’t jinx it again.”
Everyone tensed up as they scanned the empty cave for the new threat.
Misa shrugged. “Guess I was wrong.”
Kyth chuckled. “Come on, let’s loot the bodies and go. And I think we should all take a bath.”
Malkyr grimaced. “Yeah, right after we get out of the sewer.”
“Yay for a shower!” Misa cheered. “And for collecting our reward!”
***
The noisy travelers had finally finished looting the corpses and cleared out, leaving the young goblin princess behind.
Lirian looked around the large, green-lit chamber. Something had made her linger.
She moved carefully, firmly grasping Fate Stealer, looking for clues to what they had missed.
She found nothing.
But something was still calling out to her.
The corpses.
Moving cautiously to the largest of the slain broodmothers, Lirian bent and gingerly put her palm against the boney armor.
Her eyes widened as a sense of power and dominance was transferred into her. She was a princess, claiming dominion over her conquered enemies. The goblinette’s lips curled up in delight.
Her father would be pleased with the new addition.
4 - Macromanagement
I found Yeshlimashu, my newly appointed trade minister, back at his booth in the marketplace.
“Shadow Lord.” The gremlin bowed deeply as I approached. “How may I be of service?”
“Well, for starters, you can stop bowing every time you see me,” I said with a light smile.
His eyes met mine for a brief second before looking back down. “It would be unbecoming for one so low as myself to not properly address a noble such as yourself.”
“Ah, that.” My recent ascension to boss tier 4 had officially made me a goblin noble. It came with a bunch of perks, one of which imparted an aura that caused others to cower before me, though I’d usually kept it in check. It was useful, at times, but not right now. “I want to discuss our global economic situation with you, Minister,” I said, stressing his title.
The gremlin looked up at me and some of the confidence returned to his eyes. “Excellent. I’ve just finished an extensive survey of the new markets open to us. With the Gremlin’s Guilds you’ve constructed at your vassal towns, we have some exciting opportunities ahead, much more lucrative than the two basic trade routes we established a week ago with Novenguard and Woodhaven. I can suggest more complex deals and help establish more intricate trade routes.”
I grinned. “That’s what I like to hear. So, where do we start?”
“Ah.” He paused to ponder the question. “Well, civilized races’ trade depends on gold, while ours is more of a bartering system.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “Humans and the other so-called ‘civilized species’ do love their gold.”
“If we plan this right, we can use that to our advantage.” Yeshy’s eyes lit up with avarice. “Bring in goods from monster towns and sell them for a huge profit, which we can then tax.”
I raised one hand. “Gold is nice, but I’m more interested in goods, specifically food and gear for the army.”
The gremlin nodded. “Easily accomplished. Your vassals each produce various types of food, based on their location, with prices changing according to the availability of local ingredients. Also, trade with them requires payment in the form of food and gold, rather than the exchange of resources.”
“Huh, that’s new.”
Yeshlimashu shrugged. “Global economics works differently. The basic measuring unit for trade at this scale is a minimum of 100 items. You need to provide the workers and crafters who produce them with raw materials, basic upkeep, and pay them based on the time it takes to complete the job. I’ve already plotted all available goods, resources, and produce for each settlement, along with their costs. Just let me know how you would like to manage it, and I’ll make it happen.”
&nb
sp; Thanks, Vic, I said and opened the Settlement Interface.
Global Economy
Tax rate: 25%
Daily income: 1,543 (current treasury: 17,590)
Active trade routes: 2
Active patrols: 1
[NEW] Global trading
I noted that our daily income had increased by half since we conquered Whitebanner and Storg. I clicked on the new option at the bottom, and a complicated screen opened before me.
“Holy hell,” I said as I scanned through the tables.
Thanks. I breathed a little easier as several rows became highlighted.
I studied the tables again, focusing on equipment for my army, and checked the availability on each of the different settlement tables.
Storg
Goods (100 units)
Gold
Resource
Basic food
Adv. food
bread (basic)
100
flour 100
sausages (advanced)
70
meat 100
weapon
700
ingot 500
100
leather armor
1,200
leather 1,000
500
metal armor
1,700
ingots 2,000
500
flour
50
meat
200
Whitebanner
Goods (100 units)
Gold
Resource
Basic food
Adv. food
$$ meat
120
Life Reset: Salvation (Life Reset - Neo Book 6) Page 7
