According to the memories of the dead kobolds, the Iron Claw tribe was originally members of Flamespear clan some mountains away who have split themselves to expand. There, Ironscale kobolds were not that uncommon. In fact, Ironscale kobolds are the soldiers of the clan due to their stronger biology in general.
Needless to say, several strains of kobold variants were stronger than the typical kobolds, such as Hammerhead Kobold, Redscale Kobold, Greyscale Kobold, and several other bloodlines while the clan’s main bloodline, the so-called flamespear bloodline has a close relation to the fabled dragon race.
“Surprisingly, the kobold has its own bloodline inheritance…” Mordred released a compliment from the bottom of his heart.
The Flamespear clan possessed its own system of body cultivation through the use of bloodline. Their mutation from typical kobold was not due to chance but accumulated through a long generation of cultivation being passed down from centuries ago.
“That being the case, the kobold clan might possess a rank 1 or even rank 2 in their midst. The kobold main family of Flamespear Clan must’ve had a close relation to red dragons who possessed fire-path bloodline inheritance, but that would be too far fetched. At most, a red drake or wyvern…”
Like most, if not all minor races in Morgen World, kobold suffer from prejudice by higher races, therefore choose to live underground while sharing their borders with Duergar who live in an active volcano.
The duergars have limited living space like the kobold, making their population limited. However, unlike the kobold whose fertility is great due to their physiology, the duergars weren’t able to expand due to their racial limitation. Simply, the sun affects them as severely as weak undead does, they are vulnerable against sunlight.
With living space underground limited and the constant threat of underground beasts that consume ores attacking them frequently, the duergar population could not grow explosively as the kobold did. Through friendly relations, kobold cannon fodders have been used in exchanges of duergar-forged equipment or food which stabilized the duergar’s situation. The two races formed up a symbiotic relationship of dependency with each other.
Mordred was quite happy with the memories harvested from the dead kobolds. Not only has he received information regarding the topography of the locale, but he also knows the location of the Duergar capital, Magnur city, a distance away. The danger of reaching the Magnur city, what kind of mineral-eating beast might pop up, and other tribes of minor races in the area are all known now, he could prepare accordingly if he decided to visit it.
Immediately, he covets to integrate the duergar under his rule since their intellect and refinement-path talent were necessary for the mass production of high-complexity magitek circuits.
But before Mordred could travel into Magnur city, there are two main hurdles that he needs to overcome. First, the lizardmen Bone Tusk tribe living on a wetland, and the Azaria Emerald Forest filled with a large number of wild beasts.
“This cave is located on the middle part of a mountain named Thunderpeak mountain, and the Bone Tusk tribe is living on the foot of the mountain.” Mordred was fascinated with this mountain.
One of the kobolds whose soul had been consumed was originally a mid-rank miner of Flamespear clan before being forcefully conscripted by Grem. That kobold had information regarding Thunderpeak mountain.
“In all seasons, there’s a long period when Thunderpeak mountain is showered by all sorts of thunderstorms. The thunderous sound of lightning strikes never stops reverberating from the peak of Thunderpeak mountain when it happens. A long time ago, the duergar stepped into this resource point to mine… magnetic storm ore! Unfortunately, due to unknown reasons, the duergar abandoned this resource point and put their effort in other places…” he paused.
“Magnetic storm ore… magnetic storm ores…” Mordred muttered the name repeatedly in kobold tongue, trying to remember what it is in human language.
“I remember. Magnetic storm ore, rank 1 lightning-path material.” If he had eyes, it would be shining in excitement.
“Magnetic storm ore has the property of being super magnetic. If not for its incompatibility and inertness to other materials, it could be categorized as rank 2 lightning-path material. The duergars must’ve sacrificed a lot of manpower to research about this ore, but still couldn’t understand it properly.”
Material science is always improving due to the intense use of cultivation. Some resources had become extinct throughout the ages after it became popular, while new strange and exotic ones could emerge as a modern material. Magnetic storm ore could be considered as a new-age material that existed only a couple of decades ago.
To completely understand magnetic storm ore, lightning-path mages would have to research its properties and experiments for years before it could be used as materials for spells or magical construction. Despite being described as an ‘inert’ material, it was only for rank 3 Legendaries and below. For rank 4 paragon cultivators and above, their understanding of materials went beyond the physical properties of the said material, therefore Mordred was capable of understanding it significantly faster than the average lightning-path mages in his previous life.
“Was this the arrangement of my true body before he died, or is this just sheer dumb luck?” Mordred chuckled at the thought as his interest in magnetic storm ores elevated.
Magnetic storm ore could be used in myriad magitek artifacts, especially magitek engines that rely on electromagnetic force to work. Some magitek artifacts rely on heat energy, solar energy, bioenergy, or many other types of energies, but one of the most common energy sources used is electricity and its various forms.
This was influenced by Holy Terra’s civilization that relies heavily on electric energy.
With that being the case, his plans to refine a magitek artifact could begin after the resources are mined. There was no need for a long period of experimentation to find replacement materials for the blueprints in his memory. Magnetic storm ore is an excellent main material for a magitek reactor, after being treated with certain methods.
His thought of invading Magnur city was put on hold while he pondered heavily regarding the bone tusk tribe on the foot of the mountain. Unfortunately, intel regarding the bone tusk tribe was minimal since the iron claw tribe merely passed them from a distance when they were pursuing the blood fang goblin tribe.
Mordred will have to send agents to collect more information in the future, but that’s not a problem after he refines some core magitek artifact that allows him to remove himself from the lack of acceptable thinking process.
While he was consolidating his gains, time passed by. The morning of the next day, the heavy labor and little rest workflow continued. The original healthy kobold has their resistance suppressed after a little rebellion over rations. Kobold’s main diet consists of red meat. In normal circumstances, their supply could last them for over a few days if it is not replenished constantly.
However, the reason why the Blood Fang tribe followed Mordred’s instruction to attack the kobold was that theirs had run out. Thus, some goblins began to steal some of the kobold’s rations in hunger. A goblin was snatching a deer leg openly, so some of the kobolds fought together to snatch it back.
In the eyes of the goblin, they have a higher position compared to the kobold, they wanted to exert this superior position by bullying the small and weaker kobold. This wasn’t the first time it happened since the day kobold got subjugated. Behind Mordred’s back, the goblins have started to act lenient and lazy for their share of work, leaving the kobold to do most of the heavy lifting.
Mordred noticed this little fact, but his thought was somewhere else. Due to Mordred’s neglect, small conflict happens over and over again, until it finally escalates into a brawl.
The goblin, with a stronger body and combat discipline taught by Mordred, could never be defeated in one on one by kobold who has weaker constitutions and smaller size. However, this wasn’t a duel, their numbers compensate for their lack of strength. The brawl started to disturb the other highly stressed workers and Mordred’s plans for doing an inventory of the resources he snatched from the kobolds must be delayed.
Out of the blue, while the sun shone on its zenith, Mordred appeared on the mouth of the cave, overseeing the kobold campsite and the chaotic brawl. Kor was still healing due to the severe damage he received from the battle, so he had to handle this by himself.
He was happy over this. Bullying and suppressing the kobold could generate more negativity, which became fuel for his cultivation, but the goblin needs to understand that they are also his property, his slave, who will dance according to his fingertips. Actions like this fight which disturb his plans have severe consequences.
“KNEEL!” he suddenly released a soul pulse attack, making the whole area of kobold and goblin frozen in fright from shock.
“The pastures and camps are yet to be finished, yet you dare to disturb the work of others? You all need to be reminded of your positions as my slaves.” Mordred opened his palm, purple soul art rune formation manifest on it.
“Rank 0 sound-path soul art, [Sound of Agony]!”
The purple soul art formation breaks, producing a wave of scream filled with pain and agony. It engulfs all kobolds and goblins which suddenly forces them to grasp their head in extreme pain. The [Sound of Agony] merely stimulated the brain’s pain signal to a high degree, forcing the brain to secrete enzymes as if their head was being stabbed physically by a burning needle.
No long-lasting damage fell upon them, but the pain was excruciatingly painful for all who were affected. It lasted for a few minutes, while some weaker ones were affected a few moments longer. When they are freed of the pain, they kneel towards Mordred, whose empty eye socket gives them a chill in their spine.
“Ymir! Grem! Where are you!”
Two figures hurriedly move towards the skeletal mage’s presence. Kneeling, they said, “We’re here, my lord.” With each of their respective languages. The two understood his summons because he called them both using each tongue overlapped with the use of minor sound-path methods.
“I don’t care about small conflicts like a brawl, but if they escalate into a chaotic fight like this that disturbs my plans, how do you plan to compensate for this?” he spoke both in goblin and kobold tongue again.
“Do you think that I am that incompetent to not think about your provisions? If the work I’ve allocated to you isn’t finished by the end of the next day, do you think I can magically produce food out of thin air?” pure wrath could be heard from his tone, exerting mental pressure which forced them to prostrate themselves.
In this high-stress environment, their dim minds wouldn’t be able to form any rebuke. There was no need to as Mordred didn’t let them. “Remember, you’re all slaves to my will. Do this once again, and I will have to use a more painful method to correct you.” His gaze scanned the whole campsite, ready to devour the soul of any who resists.
Nobody made a sound, they were all shivering in fear.
Despite the fatigue, the Iron claw tribe is doing really good work, unlike the goblins who have started to cheat their work, making the progress slow. This wouldn’t do in the long run. In Mordred’s eyes, these two races are minor races whose sole function is to serve a higher being such as himself.
The kobolds are a race Mordred decided to keep simply due to their industrious nature. The goblins, however, need to be reeducated heavily so as not to be a burden in the future. The cog of society in his vision foresees the goblin more of being a burden than benefits. Mordred either needs to replace goblins altogether or simply use them as other less-work intensive roles.
Such as being cattle, or bottom feeders.
At the moment, those two roles are the last thing he needs, and even if he needs them, there are better options. He has to subjugate groups of variant human races such as lizardmen or other types of beastmen who have higher wisdom than goblins because they are problematic.
Variant humans such as the beastmen and lizardmen still possessed lower intellect compared to humans since they are considered as ‘lower’ race, but they still possessed basic wisdom for a civilization, unlike the ‘minor’ races whose intellect are mostly following their instinct than reason or having crude tribal society.
Distracted by the thoughts of the bone tusk tribe in the wetlands, he ordered the two races, “Continue your work. If you don’t finish the pastures by the end of the next day, you will have to hunt beasts without my help.”
Hunting beasts is risky, mortals would often choose not to hunt one, even if it was the weakest rank 0 wild beasts. Having animalistic wisdom, most if not all wild beasts have a significantly stronger physical body depending on their type and species, which defines their hazard towards a mortal. It would be best if rank 0 mortals like kobold and goblin to hunt for wild animals instead.
“The other option is to consume your family members to survive. I will leave you two to decide for your tribes.” He turned back facing the depths of the cave. “Ymir, if this happens again, I will have to reduce the number of goblins by half. Don’t disappoint me.” He proceeds to leave the absentminded tribe leaders.
Mordred returned to the depth of darkness, disguising his wounded soul due to sunlight exposure.
“Tsk, It’s really painful.” He complains while on the way back to his chamber. It felt like his soul was being poured by scorching hot molten metal.
“Bone Tusk tribe… You’re a thousand times better than the goblins…” Mordred was not that naïve to think the goblin wouldn’t fuck up his arrangement in the future. Their discipline in his presence was acceptable, but it would be quickly forgotten if Mordred left them to their devices.
“Without the presence of hobgoblin or other higher-ranked greenskins race to pressure them, they would devolve into a lazy and slacking burden...”
That being the case, it would be unrealistic for Mordred to suddenly go into the wetland at the foot of the mountain without preparation. All lizardmen could overpower him in physical strength alone. Due to their endurance, weak methods like [Heart Shocking Pulse] would only stun them for a brief moment while [Sound of Agony] can only affect them for at most a single second.
With a jolt of his mind, Mordred activated a minor information-path method derived from [System Interface].
Rank 0 sound-path soul art, [Heart Shocking Pulse]
Cost: 0.15 unit of soulforce, 1.5 unit of soul essence
Potential Damage: 3 Degree of Damage
Effect: Create a deafening soundwave centered around a point, damaging in a small area of effect. Has medium-chance to disrupt most spell-activation sequences.
Rank 0 sound-path soul art, [Sound of Agony]
Cost: 0.1 unit of soulforce, 1 unit of soul essence
Damage: 1 Degree of Damage
Effect: Trigger phantom pain in a large area of effect. Distract thought processing by flooding the brain with pain signals. Have a lower effect on targets with strong mental defense.
The information of two main sound-path methods that he used recently was shown in a virtual screen only Mordred can see. “Fighting against a horde of lizardmen in direct combat with these two methods is not wise…”
Although Mordred was the former Archmage with countless magical spells and a soul magus with transcendental soul-path methods in his arsenal, the actual number of methods he could activate right now was limited due to lack of resources, be it energy or material. Although his soul foundation had increased significantly which elevates his situation a bit, it’s still risky for him to attack the lizardman at the current situation, especially regarding thought expenditure.
To go into further detail, [Heart Shocking Pulse] needs a 1 second activation time. During that period, he would be defenseless as his concentration is consumed to construct the soul art formation. The current Mordred does not possess a perpetual force field that protects him from harm during that momentary weakness. Of course, the 1 second activation time is already extremely fast. If a normal spell caster casts rank 0 spells with Mordred’s situation right now, it would take at least 4-10 second.
Near-instant activation for rank 0 methods are unique to rank 1 magic casters.
Why [Heart Shocking Pulse] and [Sound of Agony] seems to be effective towards the kobold and goblin were a testament of their weakness as a race, and don’t forget that they did not cultivate martial or spiritual cultivation, only Grem cultivated his bloodline and it was still weak. The Lizardmen were considered as a variant human with sufficient wisdom and possessing a strong body with a reptilian bloodline. Most variant humans possessed their cultivation inheritance, they should not be underestimated.
“Must I use elemental spells?” he pondered greatly.
For Mordred, sound-path methods could be considered as natural as breathing to use due to his attainment on it was terrifyingly high, especially if it was sound-path soul art. If not limited by his soul foundation and lack of physical body, most of his current problems would be solved by a few sound-path soul arts.
That being the case, elemental spells (all elemental methods, really) have strict requirements of using elemental particles from the environment. Any full-fledged magic caster would be able to draw or convert their mana into elemental particles, and Mordred was no exception.
The problem lies in the catalyst. Elemental spells commonly require a catalyst or some materials so that the spell could be constructed.
Catalysts are consumables, they need to be replenished constantly to cast spells. This was one of the difficulties of being a magic caster, in exchange for their mind-numbing powers. Needless to say, martial artists also have their difficulties, but it was more apparent to magic casters.
One of the most obvious examples is Mordred’s zombie-rising method. Although it’s not an elemental method, it could represent the majority of orthodox methods. The necro-path method requires soulforce and soul essence from the magic caster and a bunch of other things such as death qi and negative emotion as the main catalyst while using the body and soul of the dead as the main ingredient.
All these combined in a profound topic of spellcasting, and it is a deep subject one needs to master before becoming a full-fledged magic caster.
Yet, it wasn’t the only method to cast spells. Most spells could be constructed without a catalyst if the magic caster possessed an artifact that replaces the effect of consumables such as a magic wand, or store spells in magic tomes.
However, the allure of elemental methods could not be disregarded completely. Conjuring a pool of water from thin air by converting water elemental particles in the environment could not easily be replicated by sound-path methods.
“Artifact… If I had a fitting one, it would alleviate my situation greatly...”
His train of thought went around in circles regarding this specific problem. A poor magic caster is a magic-less magic caster, merely a person with a robust spiritual quality. Considering his attainment in various elemental paths, he would be able to deduce reduced versions of his super-powerful spells, but that would require him to expend an extremely large amount of thought.
Of course, he could also use low-leveled elemental methods that he had, but without a proper method supporting the intense thought expenditures and catalysts, it would be difficult to even replicate the weakest one.
Mordred’s resources are simply not enough.
“I can’t make a feasible plan for subjugating the lizardmen with my resources now… I’ll have to accumulate slowly.”
With that said, he didn’t idle around waiting for miracles to happen. He is still vulnerable from external attack.
The next morning, Ymir interrupted Mordred’s soul and spiritual cultivation to report about the iron claw tribe’s treasury. He stopped what he was doing and went into the room where all of them were stored.
“My lord, this is all that we’ve gathered from the kobold.”
Mordred examined the pile of bones, rocks, beast skins, and weapons in the room. Clack! The sound of bones snapping against each other reverberated repeatedly. “My lord, what are you doing?”
“Can’t you see? I’m blind. I have to inspect them through other means.” Mordred answered nonchalantly as he continued to snap his bony fingers repeatedly.
If eyes see the reflection of light, then the permanent sound-path soul formation engraved on his skull captures the echo of sounds, granting him super hearing and synesthesia. Due to this, there was no real need to inspect them one by one through their appearance. As long as it was in the same room, then he could capture the shape of all objects as long as it reflects sound.
In his mind, he could hear the reflections of echoes coming from the pile of loots.
“In total, there are around 400 iron-tipped spears for kobolds, 100 rusty iron swords, 300 wooden bucklers, and around fifty short bows, more than half in bad condition due to the last battle… Hmm. I want you to get Grem, the kobold chief.” Mordred’s attention was on the pile of beast skin, bones, and stones when he made the order.
Ymir did not delay. He brought his guards to fetch the mutant kobold as soon as possible.
Mordred gets closer to the pile of stones, then grabs a seemingly random black rock tinged with a silver hue. “An unexpected harvest! I was worried about my close combat capabilities without Kor, I’d never thought it would be resolved this quickly!”
The ore looks precious from the silver hue it had, but the kobold and perhaps the duergars didn’t know how to handle this material. It wasn’t an uncommon case though, since, in almost every treasury of villages or cities, there’s bound to be some unknown material that couldn’t be easily understood and left for future use.
At this moment, Ymir returned with Grem in tow.
“My lord, you have summoned me?” Grem looked at Mordred in fear. He thought he was doing something wrong for the goblins to suddenly drag him out of his post, but after seeing the presence of Mordred, he knew he had been summoned.
“Do you know what this is?”
Mordred passed the black rock to Grem. He then proceeds to examine it closely “Yes, my lord. This is a large piece of Seism iron ore.”
Mordred’s interest rose, “Where did you get this?”
“Seism iron ores is a reward that could be traded in my previous clan. My lord need to understand that, the flamespear clan lived in Magnur city with the due- “
“I know. Stop rambling.” Mordred cut him off. “So there’s a steady supply of seism iron ore in Magnur city? What do you use seism iron for?”
The memory of the miner kobold that he consumed was blurry. There were bits of information here and there. Despite knowing the existence of seism iron in Magnur city, it wasn’t clear whether that came from a trade or a mine.
“Yes, that’s correct.” He made a pondering gesture, thinking Mordred had known the existence of Magnur city despite not knowing the whole situation over there. “If I recall correctly, the duergar granted ownership of seism iron resource point last year to the Flamespear clan. Elite Ironscale kobold soldiers of flamespear clan could refine seism iron ore with this size over the course of a month for cultivation.” He explained.
“The iron scales refined by seism iron will be highly resistant to blunt trauma, making it a hot commodity amongst Ironscale kobolds that took vanguard roles.” He added.
If Mordred possessed brows, he would be frowning hard. Such precious metal was used for this reason…
‘Despite not being a rare metal-path resource, seism iron is still an uncommon rank 0 material.’ Mordred mentally shakes his head. ‘On the bright side, I can just extract seism iron essence from Ironscale kobolds if I ever lack some.’ After thinking about it, he felt a little better. Of course, the process will kill the kobolds, but who cares about that?
“Alright, that’s good enough.” The seism iron that he found was the only thing that is precious enough to warrant his attention.
“Grem, I will give you an offer right now.” Mordred faced the mutant kobold with his full attention.
Unconsciously, Grem felt the pressure of the room equivalent to the depth of the underwater lake of Magnur city that he had once visited in his childhood. “Y- Yes, my lord!” he reacted nervously. The mental pressure Mordred passively emits was too heavy for the kobold to handle when he focused on something.
“I know you’re still unconvinced about being under my rule, especially after the goblin’s last debacle. Being my slave must've been hard for you to accept, right? You’re a smart kobold, and one with grand ambition. Why else would you leave the comfort of Magnur city’s comfort otherwise?”
“Let me share my deduction with you. As a young Ironscale kobold, you aspire to raise the rank of elites. However, you refuse to be sold by your clansmen to fight for the duergar, correct? So you choose to scrap all your resources together, bring up some soldiers while calling in favors and leave the clan. Most of your followers must’ve had the same idea as you.” He paused.
“With your status as a middle-stage rank 0 warrior, it wouldn’t be too long for you to enter the ranks of the elite, then apply for bloodline advancement resources. However, you foresee a big battle between duergar and the underground beasts in the near future so you left before you’re being drafted as cannon fodders, right?” Mordred recites as if he had known him closely.
Although minor races are weaker compared to typical humans in terms of wisdom and strength, there are still some good seeds amongst them. However, just because they have good seeds, doesn’t mean they can grow into a powerful figure. Grem was one such example. Despite having a strong personality, he’s still unable to break the shackle of his fate.
Grem was shaken and frightened by Mordred’s revelation. “H- how did you know?”
“It’s easy to deduct. My capabilities are beyond your understanding.” He explained roughly. “So here’s my offer to you. I want you to make a choice. Stay being my slave, or become my loyal subordinate.”
“To build a city from scratch, an astronomical amount of resources is required, that includes talent. You’ve seen the goblins, right? They are useless. I’m not saying all of them since Ymir has his uses, but most of the goblins are a burden. I’ll replace them sometime in the future. You, or more specifically, the kobolds, however, are the opposite.”
“I want to have you as my subordinate, but only if you prove your loyalty to me.” Mordred offered. “Aren’t you ashamed of being enslaved by an undead? What will your former allies and enemies say when you’ve become cannon fodder even after your effort of leaving Magnur city?”
Unlike during the battle of kobold subjugation, Mordred did not use any wisdom-path methods to influence Grem’s mind. Such methods could not instill true loyalty since Grem will stay being a puppet to his will. He desired to subjugate Magnur city, but the kobold population there won’t have a true leader that he could trust. Instead of selecting one and then using various enslavement-path or command-path methods to control them, he wanted true loyalty from Grem.
‘True loyalty and faith are close. According to my true body’s comprehension, faith can be cultivated from loyalty and trust. As I gain more trust, faith will come naturally. If my deduction is correct, I can start accumulating more faith-path comprehension through this method.’ Mordred pondered inwardly. ‘I just need him to have faith in me by raising him from when he’s still weak.’
“Therefore, I once again offer you two options. Will you and your people stay being my slave, in which you will be treated badly, or will you decide to become my subordinate?”
Grem was shocked at Mordred’s question. Even while having lower intellect than humans, Grem was clear of his weaknesses. “My lord, I am unworthy of your trust.” He wasn’t that braindead to think the undead was trustworthy. He had his misgivings being a slave of a skeletal mage, and he didn’t care about his people that much.
If there’s a chance that he might be able to break from the invisible mental shackle Mordred put on him and the other kobolds, he would’ve done so already. His life in Magnur city was cruel and filled with blood. Every early-stage rank 0 Ironscale kobold cannon fodders that managed to rise into the rank of middle-stage have developed strong intuition in battle, despite being weak compared to a human.
It was also this intuition that allowed him to vaguely sense the upcoming large-scale battle in Magnur city, allowing him to leave his home before it was engulfed in the fires of war.
Of course, battle intuition doesn’t equal strategic capabilities. His combat ability was his and his alone, Grem was not a talented leader who had the capacity to lead his men into battle formation.
He was a selfish kobold that would prioritize himself over others.
Both Grem and Mordred know this very fact. Grem thought it was a weakness that made him unfit to be Mordred’s subordinate, yet Mordred thinks otherwise.
“Before you can protect others, you have to have the ability to protect yourself. This ‘intuition’ of yours, do you know why it doesn’t work on me?” Mordred asked, but he wasn’t looking for answers, “Because I’m not only someone that can kill you easily, but also the only one who can help you achieve your ambition, and bring you even further than that.”
“So, choose. Slave, or subordinate?” This time, Mordred asked with a light tone, as if he already knew the answer.
Unlike Mordred’s thought process, Grem’s was way more simple. The only question left in his mind was, will he be able to forgo his ego for his future? It’s not like being the skeletal mage’s subordinate has a lesser status than being his slave, anyway.
As a matter of fact, he was wondering why the skeletal mage did not bother to use his kin for undead manufacturing ritual already. If the skeletal mage wanted him to be his subordinate, one with a high amount of trust, then he was quite happy.
Kobold is a race that leans towards lawful alignment, in the end. The concept of superior and subordinate is not alien. With that being the case, acknowledging Mordred as his superior and paying him with his utmost respect is merely whether Mordred deserves it or not. Some kobold variants revere strength, some revere one’s cunning, while others may vary.
As an Ironscale kobold, Grem was influenced by his peers during his time in Magnur city.
But instead of revering strength like other Ironscale kobolds, he admires one’s cunningness more than anything. The kobold generals in Magnur cities were cunning and smart, there was no doubt about that, but they were the one who sold their race for cannon fodder. Grem situation was indirectly caused by them, and despite not being wise, Grem could understand this at the very least.
That being the case, when Grem meets Mordred and discusses things for the first time, he sees him as incomprehensibly cunning with limitless wisdom. The vacant spot of his reverence was filled with Mordred, like the last piece of the puzzle has been placed.
Grem kneeled, “Lord skeleton, I pledge my and iron claw tribe’s loyalty to you. May the Flame Spear Dragon bless you with fiery strength!”
Mordred mentally smiled, “Excellent, you are now part of my Grim Song Clan. You can refer to me as Nyx Grimsong.”
According to the memories of the dead kobolds, the Iron Claw tribe was originally members of Flamespear clan some mountains away who have split themselves to expand. There, Ironscale kobolds were not that uncommon. In fact, Ironscale kobolds are the soldiers of the clan due to their stronger biology in general.
Needless to say, several strains of kobold variants were stronger than the typical kobolds, such as Hammerhead Kobold, Redscale Kobold, Greyscale Kobold, and several other bloodlines while the clan’s main bloodline, the so-called flamespear bloodline has a close relation to the fabled dragon race.
“Surprisingly, the kobold has its own bloodline inheritance…” Mordred released a compliment from the bottom of his heart.
The Flamespear clan possessed its own system of body cultivation through the use of bloodline. Their mutation from typical kobold was not due to chance but accumulated through a long generation of cultivation being passed down from centuries ago.
“That being the case, the kobold clan might possess a rank 1 or even rank 2 in their midst. The kobold main family of Flamespear Clan must’ve had a close relation to red dragons who possessed fire-path bloodline inheritance, but that would be too far fetched. At most, a red drake or wyvern…”
Like most, if not all minor races in Morgen World, kobold suffer from prejudice by higher races, therefore choose to live underground while sharing their borders with Duergar who live in an active volcano.
The duergars have limited living space like the kobold, making their population limited. However, unlike the kobold whose fertility is great due to their physiology, the duergars weren’t able to expand due to their racial limitation. Simply, the sun affects them as severely as weak undead does, they are vulnerable against sunlight.
With living space underground limited and the constant threat of underground beasts that consume ores attacking them frequently, the duergar population could not grow explosively as the kobold did. Through friendly relations, kobold cannon fodders have been used in exchanges of duergar-forged equipment or food which stabilized the duergar’s situation. The two races formed up a symbiotic relationship of dependency with each other.
Mordred was quite happy with the memories harvested from the dead kobolds. Not only has he received information regarding the topography of the locale, but he also knows the location of the Duergar capital, Magnur city, a distance away. The danger of reaching the Magnur city, what kind of mineral-eating beast might pop up, and other tribes of minor races in the area are all known now, he could prepare accordingly if he decided to visit it.
Immediately, he covets to integrate the duergar under his rule since their intellect and refinement-path talent were necessary for the mass production of high-complexity magitek circuits.
But before Mordred could travel into Magnur city, there are two main hurdles that he needs to overcome. First, the lizardmen Bone Tusk tribe living on a wetland, and the Azaria Emerald Forest filled with a large number of wild beasts.
“This cave is located on the middle part of a mountain named Thunderpeak mountain, and the Bone Tusk tribe is living on the foot of the mountain.” Mordred was fascinated with this mountain.
One of the kobolds whose soul had been consumed was originally a mid-rank miner of Flamespear clan before being forcefully conscripted by Grem. That kobold had information regarding Thunderpeak mountain.
“In all seasons, there’s a long period when Thunderpeak mountain is showered by all sorts of thunderstorms. The thunderous sound of lightning strikes never stops reverberating from the peak of Thunderpeak mountain when it happens. A long time ago, the duergar stepped into this resource point to mine… magnetic storm ore! Unfortunately, due to unknown reasons, the duergar abandoned this resource point and put their effort in other places…” he paused.
“Magnetic storm ore… magnetic storm ores…” Mordred muttered the name repeatedly in kobold tongue, trying to remember what it is in human language.
“I remember. Magnetic storm ore, rank 1 lightning-path material.” If he had eyes, it would be shining in excitement.
“Magnetic storm ore has the property of being super magnetic. If not for its incompatibility and inertness to other materials, it could be categorized as rank 2 lightning-path material. The duergars must’ve sacrificed a lot of manpower to research about this ore, but still couldn’t understand it properly.”
Material science is always improving due to the intense use of cultivation. Some resources had become extinct throughout the ages after it became popular, while new strange and exotic ones could emerge as a modern material. Magnetic storm ore could be considered as a new-age material that existed only a couple of decades ago.
To completely understand magnetic storm ore, lightning-path mages would have to research its properties and experiments for years before it could be used as materials for spells or magical construction. Despite being described as an ‘inert’ material, it was only for rank 3 Legendaries and below. For rank 4 paragon cultivators and above, their understanding of materials went beyond the physical properties of the said material, therefore Mordred was capable of understanding it significantly faster than the average lightning-path mages in his previous life.
“Was this the arrangement of my true body before he died, or is this just sheer dumb luck?” Mordred chuckled at the thought as his interest in magnetic storm ores elevated.
Magnetic storm ore could be used in myriad magitek artifacts, especially magitek engines that rely on electromagnetic force to work. Some magitek artifacts rely on heat energy, solar energy, bioenergy, or many other types of energies, but one of the most common energy sources used is electricity and its various forms.
This was influenced by Holy Terra’s civilization that relies heavily on electric energy.
With that being the case, his plans to refine a magitek artifact could begin after the resources are mined. There was no need for a long period of experimentation to find replacement materials for the blueprints in his memory. Magnetic storm ore is an excellent main material for a magitek reactor, after being treated with certain methods.
His thought of invading Magnur city was put on hold while he pondered heavily regarding the bone tusk tribe on the foot of the mountain. Unfortunately, intel regarding the bone tusk tribe was minimal since the iron claw tribe merely passed them from a distance when they were pursuing the blood fang goblin tribe.
Mordred will have to send agents to collect more information in the future, but that’s not a problem after he refines some core magitek artifact that allows him to remove himself from the lack of acceptable thinking process.
While he was consolidating his gains, time passed by. The morning of the next day, the heavy labor and little rest workflow continued. The original healthy kobold has their resistance suppressed after a little rebellion over rations. Kobold’s main diet consists of red meat. In normal circumstances, their supply could last them for over a few days if it is not replenished constantly.
However, the reason why the Blood Fang tribe followed Mordred’s instruction to attack the kobold was that theirs had run out. Thus, some goblins began to steal some of the kobold’s rations in hunger. A goblin was snatching a deer leg openly, so some of the kobolds fought together to snatch it back.
In the eyes of the goblin, they have a higher position compared to the kobold, they wanted to exert this superior position by bullying the small and weaker kobold. This wasn’t the first time it happened since the day kobold got subjugated. Behind Mordred’s back, the goblins have started to act lenient and lazy for their share of work, leaving the kobold to do most of the heavy lifting.
Mordred noticed this little fact, but his thought was somewhere else. Due to Mordred’s neglect, small conflict happens over and over again, until it finally escalates into a brawl.
The goblin, with a stronger body and combat discipline taught by Mordred, could never be defeated in one on one by kobold who has weaker constitutions and smaller size. However, this wasn’t a duel, their numbers compensate for their lack of strength. The brawl started to disturb the other highly stressed workers and Mordred’s plans for doing an inventory of the resources he snatched from the kobolds must be delayed.
Out of the blue, while the sun shone on its zenith, Mordred appeared on the mouth of the cave, overseeing the kobold campsite and the chaotic brawl. Kor was still healing due to the severe damage he received from the battle, so he had to handle this by himself.
He was happy over this. Bullying and suppressing the kobold could generate more negativity, which became fuel for his cultivation, but the goblin needs to understand that they are also his property, his slave, who will dance according to his fingertips. Actions like this fight which disturb his plans have severe consequences.
“KNEEL!” he suddenly released a soul pulse attack, making the whole area of kobold and goblin frozen in fright from shock.
“The pastures and camps are yet to be finished, yet you dare to disturb the work of others? You all need to be reminded of your positions as my slaves.” Mordred opened his palm, purple soul art rune formation manifest on it.
“Rank 0 sound-path soul art, [Sound of Agony]!”
The purple soul art formation breaks, producing a wave of scream filled with pain and agony. It engulfs all kobolds and goblins which suddenly forces them to grasp their head in extreme pain. The [Sound of Agony] merely stimulated the brain’s pain signal to a high degree, forcing the brain to secrete enzymes as if their head was being stabbed physically by a burning needle.
No long-lasting damage fell upon them, but the pain was excruciatingly painful for all who were affected. It lasted for a few minutes, while some weaker ones were affected a few moments longer. When they are freed of the pain, they kneel towards Mordred, whose empty eye socket gives them a chill in their spine.
“Ymir! Grem! Where are you!”
Two figures hurriedly move towards the skeletal mage’s presence. Kneeling, they said, “We’re here, my lord.” With each of their respective languages. The two understood his summons because he called them both using each tongue overlapped with the use of minor sound-path methods.
“I don’t care about small conflicts like a brawl, but if they escalate into a chaotic fight like this that disturbs my plans, how do you plan to compensate for this?” he spoke both in goblin and kobold tongue again.
“Do you think that I am that incompetent to not think about your provisions? If the work I’ve allocated to you isn’t finished by the end of the next day, do you think I can magically produce food out of thin air?” pure wrath could be heard from his tone, exerting mental pressure which forced them to prostrate themselves.
In this high-stress environment, their dim minds wouldn’t be able to form any rebuke. There was no need to as Mordred didn’t let them. “Remember, you’re all slaves to my will. Do this once again, and I will have to use a more painful method to correct you.” His gaze scanned the whole campsite, ready to devour the soul of any who resists.
Nobody made a sound, they were all shivering in fear.
Despite the fatigue, the Iron claw tribe is doing really good work, unlike the goblins who have started to cheat their work, making the progress slow. This wouldn’t do in the long run. In Mordred’s eyes, these two races are minor races whose sole function is to serve a higher being such as himself.
The kobolds are a race Mordred decided to keep simply due to their industrious nature. The goblins, however, need to be reeducated heavily so as not to be a burden in the future. The cog of society in his vision foresees the goblin more of being a burden than benefits. Mordred either needs to replace goblins altogether or simply use them as other less-work intensive roles.
Such as being cattle, or bottom feeders.
At the moment, those two roles are the last thing he needs, and even if he needs them, there are better options. He has to subjugate groups of variant human races such as lizardmen or other types of beastmen who have higher wisdom than goblins because they are problematic.
Variant humans such as the beastmen and lizardmen still possessed lower intellect compared to humans since they are considered as ‘lower’ race, but they still possessed basic wisdom for a civilization, unlike the ‘minor’ races whose intellect are mostly following their instinct than reason or having crude tribal society.
Distracted by the thoughts of the bone tusk tribe in the wetlands, he ordered the two races, “Continue your work. If you don’t finish the pastures by the end of the next day, you will have to hunt beasts without my help.”
Hunting beasts is risky, mortals would often choose not to hunt one, even if it was the weakest rank 0 wild beasts. Having animalistic wisdom, most if not all wild beasts have a significantly stronger physical body depending on their type and species, which defines their hazard towards a mortal. It would be best if rank 0 mortals like kobold and goblin to hunt for wild animals instead.
“The other option is to consume your family members to survive. I will leave you two to decide for your tribes.” He turned back facing the depths of the cave. “Ymir, if this happens again, I will have to reduce the number of goblins by half. Don’t disappoint me.” He proceeds to leave the absentminded tribe leaders.
Mordred returned to the depth of darkness, disguising his wounded soul due to sunlight exposure.
“Tsk, It’s really painful.” He complains while on the way back to his chamber. It felt like his soul was being poured by scorching hot molten metal.
“Bone Tusk tribe… You’re a thousand times better than the goblins…” Mordred was not that naïve to think the goblin wouldn’t fuck up his arrangement in the future. Their discipline in his presence was acceptable, but it would be quickly forgotten if Mordred left them to their devices.
“Without the presence of hobgoblin or other higher-ranked greenskins race to pressure them, they would devolve into a lazy and slacking burden...”
That being the case, it would be unrealistic for Mordred to suddenly go into the wetland at the foot of the mountain without preparation. All lizardmen could overpower him in physical strength alone. Due to their endurance, weak methods like [Heart Shocking Pulse] would only stun them for a brief moment while [Sound of Agony] can only affect them for at most a single second.
With a jolt of his mind, Mordred activated a minor information-path method derived from [System Interface].
Rank 0 sound-path soul art, [Heart Shocking Pulse]
Cost: 0.15 unit of soulforce, 1.5 unit of soul essence
Potential Damage: 3 Degree of Damage
Effect: Create a deafening soundwave centered around a point, damaging in a small area of effect. Has medium-chance to disrupt most spell-activation sequences.
Rank 0 sound-path soul art, [Sound of Agony]
Cost: 0.1 unit of soulforce, 1 unit of soul essence
Damage: 1 Degree of Damage
Effect: Trigger phantom pain in a large area of effect. Distract thought processing by flooding the brain with pain signals. Have a lower effect on targets with strong mental defense.
The information of two main sound-path methods that he used recently was shown in a virtual screen only Mordred can see. “Fighting against a horde of lizardmen in direct combat with these two methods is not wise…”
Although Mordred was the former Archmage with countless magical spells and a soul magus with transcendental soul-path methods in his arsenal, the actual number of methods he could activate right now was limited due to lack of resources, be it energy or material. Although his soul foundation had increased significantly which elevates his situation a bit, it’s still risky for him to attack the lizardman at the current situation, especially regarding thought expenditure.
To go into further detail, [Heart Shocking Pulse] needs a 1 second activation time. During that period, he would be defenseless as his concentration is consumed to construct the soul art formation. The current Mordred does not possess a perpetual force field that protects him from harm during that momentary weakness. Of course, the 1 second activation time is already extremely fast. If a normal spell caster casts rank 0 spells with Mordred’s situation right now, it would take at least 4-10 second.
Near-instant activation for rank 0 methods are unique to rank 1 magic casters.
Why [Heart Shocking Pulse] and [Sound of Agony] seems to be effective towards the kobold and goblin were a testament of their weakness as a race, and don’t forget that they did not cultivate martial or spiritual cultivation, only Grem cultivated his bloodline and it was still weak. The Lizardmen were considered as a variant human with sufficient wisdom and possessing a strong body with a reptilian bloodline. Most variant humans possessed their cultivation inheritance, they should not be underestimated.
“Must I use elemental spells?” he pondered greatly.
For Mordred, sound-path methods could be considered as natural as breathing to use due to his attainment on it was terrifyingly high, especially if it was sound-path soul art. If not limited by his soul foundation and lack of physical body, most of his current problems would be solved by a few sound-path soul arts.
That being the case, elemental spells (all elemental methods, really) have strict requirements of using elemental particles from the environment. Any full-fledged magic caster would be able to draw or convert their mana into elemental particles, and Mordred was no exception.
The problem lies in the catalyst. Elemental spells commonly require a catalyst or some materials so that the spell could be constructed.
Catalysts are consumables, they need to be replenished constantly to cast spells. This was one of the difficulties of being a magic caster, in exchange for their mind-numbing powers. Needless to say, martial artists also have their difficulties, but it was more apparent to magic casters.
One of the most obvious examples is Mordred’s zombie-rising method. Although it’s not an elemental method, it could represent the majority of orthodox methods. The necro-path method requires soulforce and soul essence from the magic caster and a bunch of other things such as death qi and negative emotion as the main catalyst while using the body and soul of the dead as the main ingredient.
All these combined in a profound topic of spellcasting, and it is a deep subject one needs to master before becoming a full-fledged magic caster.
Yet, it wasn’t the only method to cast spells. Most spells could be constructed without a catalyst if the magic caster possessed an artifact that replaces the effect of consumables such as a magic wand, or store spells in magic tomes.
However, the allure of elemental methods could not be disregarded completely. Conjuring a pool of water from thin air by converting water elemental particles in the environment could not easily be replicated by sound-path methods.
“Artifact… If I had a fitting one, it would alleviate my situation greatly...”
His train of thought went around in circles regarding this specific problem. A poor magic caster is a magic-less magic caster, merely a person with a robust spiritual quality. Considering his attainment in various elemental paths, he would be able to deduce reduced versions of his super-powerful spells, but that would require him to expend an extremely large amount of thought.
Of course, he could also use low-leveled elemental methods that he had, but without a proper method supporting the intense thought expenditures and catalysts, it would be difficult to even replicate the weakest one.
Mordred’s resources are simply not enough.
“I can’t make a feasible plan for subjugating the lizardmen with my resources now… I’ll have to accumulate slowly.”
With that said, he didn’t idle around waiting for miracles to happen. He is still vulnerable from external attack.
The next morning, Ymir interrupted Mordred’s soul and spiritual cultivation to report about the iron claw tribe’s treasury. He stopped what he was doing and went into the room where all of them were stored.
“My lord, this is all that we’ve gathered from the kobold.”
Mordred examined the pile of bones, rocks, beast skins, and weapons in the room. Clack! The sound of bones snapping against each other reverberated repeatedly. “My lord, what are you doing?”
“Can’t you see? I’m blind. I have to inspect them through other means.” Mordred answered nonchalantly as he continued to snap his bony fingers repeatedly.
If eyes see the reflection of light, then the permanent sound-path soul formation engraved on his skull captures the echo of sounds, granting him super hearing and synesthesia. Due to this, there was no real need to inspect them one by one through their appearance. As long as it was in the same room, then he could capture the shape of all objects as long as it reflects sound.
In his mind, he could hear the reflections of echoes coming from the pile of loots.
“In total, there are around 400 iron-tipped spears for kobolds, 100 rusty iron swords, 300 wooden bucklers, and around fifty short bows, more than half in bad condition due to the last battle… Hmm. I want you to get Grem, the kobold chief.” Mordred’s attention was on the pile of beast skin, bones, and stones when he made the order.
Ymir did not delay. He brought his guards to fetch the mutant kobold as soon as possible.
Mordred gets closer to the pile of stones, then grabs a seemingly random black rock tinged with a silver hue. “An unexpected harvest! I was worried about my close combat capabilities without Kor, I’d never thought it would be resolved this quickly!”
The ore looks precious from the silver hue it had, but the kobold and perhaps the duergars didn’t know how to handle this material. It wasn’t an uncommon case though, since, in almost every treasury of villages or cities, there’s bound to be some unknown material that couldn’t be easily understood and left for future use.
At this moment, Ymir returned with Grem in tow.
“My lord, you have summoned me?” Grem looked at Mordred in fear. He thought he was doing something wrong for the goblins to suddenly drag him out of his post, but after seeing the presence of Mordred, he knew he had been summoned.
“Do you know what this is?”
Mordred passed the black rock to Grem. He then proceeds to examine it closely “Yes, my lord. This is a large piece of Seism iron ore.”
Mordred’s interest rose, “Where did you get this?”
“Seism iron ores is a reward that could be traded in my previous clan. My lord need to understand that, the flamespear clan lived in Magnur city with the due- “
“I know. Stop rambling.” Mordred cut him off. “So there’s a steady supply of seism iron ore in Magnur city? What do you use seism iron for?”
The memory of the miner kobold that he consumed was blurry. There were bits of information here and there. Despite knowing the existence of seism iron in Magnur city, it wasn’t clear whether that came from a trade or a mine.
“Yes, that’s correct.” He made a pondering gesture, thinking Mordred had known the existence of Magnur city despite not knowing the whole situation over there. “If I recall correctly, the duergar granted ownership of seism iron resource point last year to the Flamespear clan. Elite Ironscale kobold soldiers of flamespear clan could refine seism iron ore with this size over the course of a month for cultivation.” He explained.
“The iron scales refined by seism iron will be highly resistant to blunt trauma, making it a hot commodity amongst Ironscale kobolds that took vanguard roles.” He added.
If Mordred possessed brows, he would be frowning hard. Such precious metal was used for this reason…
‘Despite not being a rare metal-path resource, seism iron is still an uncommon rank 0 material.’ Mordred mentally shakes his head. ‘On the bright side, I can just extract seism iron essence from Ironscale kobolds if I ever lack some.’ After thinking about it, he felt a little better. Of course, the process will kill the kobolds, but who cares about that?
“Alright, that’s good enough.” The seism iron that he found was the only thing that is precious enough to warrant his attention.
“Grem, I will give you an offer right now.” Mordred faced the mutant kobold with his full attention.
Unconsciously, Grem felt the pressure of the room equivalent to the depth of the underwater lake of Magnur city that he had once visited in his childhood. “Y- Yes, my lord!” he reacted nervously. The mental pressure Mordred passively emits was too heavy for the kobold to handle when he focused on something.
“I know you’re still unconvinced about being under my rule, especially after the goblin’s last debacle. Being my slave must've been hard for you to accept, right? You’re a smart kobold, and one with grand ambition. Why else would you leave the comfort of Magnur city’s comfort otherwise?”
“Let me share my deduction with you. As a young Ironscale kobold, you aspire to raise the rank of elites. However, you refuse to be sold by your clansmen to fight for the duergar, correct? So you choose to scrap all your resources together, bring up some soldiers while calling in favors and leave the clan. Most of your followers must’ve had the same idea as you.” He paused.
“With your status as a middle-stage rank 0 warrior, it wouldn’t be too long for you to enter the ranks of the elite, then apply for bloodline advancement resources. However, you foresee a big battle between duergar and the underground beasts in the near future so you left before you’re being drafted as cannon fodders, right?” Mordred recites as if he had known him closely.
Although minor races are weaker compared to typical humans in terms of wisdom and strength, there are still some good seeds amongst them. However, just because they have good seeds, doesn’t mean they can grow into a powerful figure. Grem was one such example. Despite having a strong personality, he’s still unable to break the shackle of his fate.
Grem was shaken and frightened by Mordred’s revelation. “H- how did you know?”
“It’s easy to deduct. My capabilities are beyond your understanding.” He explained roughly. “So here’s my offer to you. I want you to make a choice. Stay being my slave, or become my loyal subordinate.”
“To build a city from scratch, an astronomical amount of resources is required, that includes talent. You’ve seen the goblins, right? They are useless. I’m not saying all of them since Ymir has his uses, but most of the goblins are a burden. I’ll replace them sometime in the future. You, or more specifically, the kobolds, however, are the opposite.”
“I want to have you as my subordinate, but only if you prove your loyalty to me.” Mordred offered. “Aren’t you ashamed of being enslaved by an undead? What will your former allies and enemies say when you’ve become cannon fodder even after your effort of leaving Magnur city?”
Unlike during the battle of kobold subjugation, Mordred did not use any wisdom-path methods to influence Grem’s mind. Such methods could not instill true loyalty since Grem will stay being a puppet to his will. He desired to subjugate Magnur city, but the kobold population there won’t have a true leader that he could trust. Instead of selecting one and then using various enslavement-path or command-path methods to control them, he wanted true loyalty from Grem.
‘True loyalty and faith are close. According to my true body’s comprehension, faith can be cultivated from loyalty and trust. As I gain more trust, faith will come naturally. If my deduction is correct, I can start accumulating more faith-path comprehension through this method.’ Mordred pondered inwardly. ‘I just need him to have faith in me by raising him from when he’s still weak.’
“Therefore, I once again offer you two options. Will you and your people stay being my slave, in which you will be treated badly, or will you decide to become my subordinate?”
Grem was shocked at Mordred’s question. Even while having lower intellect than humans, Grem was clear of his weaknesses. “My lord, I am unworthy of your trust.” He wasn’t that braindead to think the undead was trustworthy. He had his misgivings being a slave of a skeletal mage, and he didn’t care about his people that much.
If there’s a chance that he might be able to break from the invisible mental shackle Mordred put on him and the other kobolds, he would’ve done so already. His life in Magnur city was cruel and filled with blood. Every early-stage rank 0 Ironscale kobold cannon fodders that managed to rise into the rank of middle-stage have developed strong intuition in battle, despite being weak compared to a human.
It was also this intuition that allowed him to vaguely sense the upcoming large-scale battle in Magnur city, allowing him to leave his home before it was engulfed in the fires of war.
Of course, battle intuition doesn’t equal strategic capabilities. His combat ability was his and his alone, Grem was not a talented leader who had the capacity to lead his men into battle formation.
He was a selfish kobold that would prioritize himself over others.
Both Grem and Mordred know this very fact. Grem thought it was a weakness that made him unfit to be Mordred’s subordinate, yet Mordred thinks otherwise.
“Before you can protect others, you have to have the ability to protect yourself. This ‘intuition’ of yours, do you know why it doesn’t work on me?” Mordred asked, but he wasn’t looking for answers, “Because I’m not only someone that can kill you easily, but also the only one who can help you achieve your ambition, and bring you even further than that.”
“So, choose. Slave, or subordinate?” This time, Mordred asked with a light tone, as if he already knew the answer.
Unlike Mordred’s thought process, Grem’s was way more simple. The only question left in his mind was, will he be able to forgo his ego for his future? It’s not like being the skeletal mage’s subordinate has a lesser status than being his slave, anyway.
As a matter of fact, he was wondering why the skeletal mage did not bother to use his kin for undead manufacturing ritual already. If the skeletal mage wanted him to be his subordinate, one with a high amount of trust, then he was quite happy.
Kobold is a race that leans towards lawful alignment, in the end. The concept of superior and subordinate is not alien. With that being the case, acknowledging Mordred as his superior and paying him with his utmost respect is merely whether Mordred deserves it or not. Some kobold variants revere strength, some revere one’s cunning, while others may vary.
As an Ironscale kobold, Grem was influenced by his peers during his time in Magnur city.
But instead of revering strength like other Ironscale kobolds, he admires one’s cunningness more than anything. The kobold generals in Magnur cities were cunning and smart, there was no doubt about that, but they were the one who sold their race for cannon fodder. Grem situation was indirectly caused by them, and despite not being wise, Grem could understand this at the very least.
That being the case, when Grem meets Mordred and discusses things for the first time, he sees him as incomprehensibly cunning with limitless wisdom. The vacant spot of his reverence was filled with Mordred, like the last piece of the puzzle has been placed.
Grem kneeled, “Lord skeleton, I pledge my and iron claw tribe’s loyalty to you. May the Flame Spear Dragon bless you with fiery strength!”
Mordred mentally smiled, “Excellent, you are now part of my Grim Song Clan. You can refer to me as Nyx Grimsong.”
