Building the Strongest Undead Empire from Scratch

Chapter 35: Just trust me

With the Alpha dead, the remaining wolves were quickly overwhelmed. The battle was over. Alex had won.

487 wolves slain. Arthur had reached Level 14. John was 13. Baxter and the Titan were 10. The Liches were 11, and had unlocked Skeleton Summoning.

[Skeleton Summoning]: Summons a skeleton from a corpse. Maximum level: 10 levels above the Lich's level.

Not as powerful as Alex's Necromantic Summoning, but still useful.

Alex's Skeleton First Squad, now over 1,000 strong, was renamed the First Skeleton Army, with Mike the Level 43 Elite as its general.

Alex herself had reached Level 10, unlocking the ability to send pictures in chat. *Meh,* she thought. *Not a game-changer.*

She had bigger problems. The cooked meat market was about to crash.

At Alex's mine in the Sunset Mountains, the Goblin Skeletons were busy mining. Hidden in the nearby forest were eight Goblins, wearing only loincloths.

"Big bro, what are those things?"

"I've never seen anything like them," the leader replied.

"Never?! They must be valuable! Humans will pay a fortune for them! Let's capture them and sell them in Rondo City!"

The other Goblins' eyes lit up with greed.

"You're right! Humans love weird stuff!"

"Let's do it!"

The leader looked at his seven companions, then at the hundreds of skeletons. "Alright!" Goblins were nothing if not brave… or foolish.

*Thwip!* An arrow flew, striking Arthas, the Level 18 Elite, harmlessly on the head.

Arthas looked up and saw eight Goblins charging towards them, yelling, "We're gonna be rich!"

Arthas sighed. *Eight versus hundreds? Seriously?*

"Attack!"

The Goblin Skeletons rose. Arthas leaped forward and swatted the lead Goblin to the ground.

"…Run!" the other seven Goblins yelled, fleeing instantly.

The swatted Goblin, unharmed, got up and ran after them. Classic Goblin strategy. Arthas, a former Goblin himself, understood.

He shook his head and returned to mining. "Master's orders are paramount."

The eight Goblins, panting in the forest, regrouped.

"Big bro, there were too many! We need reinforcements!"

"Yeah! Let's get the Kobolds!"

"And the Dwarves!"

"No, not the Dwarves! They're too greedy! They'll take all the gold! Just the Kobolds!"

"Right!"

"Big bro, how much do you think those… things… are worth?"

"Hmm… never seen anything like them. 200 gold coins each, at least!"

"200?! Really?!"

"We're gonna be rich! Thousands of gold coins!"

The Goblins got excited… and charged back towards the mine, yelling, "We're gonna be rich!"

Arthas swatted one, and the other seven scattered.

"Big bro, we need *more* reinforcements!"

"Yeah, let's go get them!"

"We're gonna be rich!"

"Gold! Gold! Gold!"

..

It was mid-afternoon on Day Three. Alex was busy processing the 487 wolf corpses, reaping a bountiful harvest of resources, Magic Crystals, Red Crystals, and three treasure chests: one bronze, two iron.

[Process Level 43 Elite Grey Wolf corpse. Obtained: Elite Grey Wolf Meat x36, Elite Grey Wolf Pelt x1, Magic Crystal x27, Red Crystal x3, Bronze Treasure Chest x1.]

She now had 52 Red Crystals, enough to upgrade her Necromantic Altar.

"Hopefully, these chests have more," she thought. "Enough for two upgrades!"

Time for the chest-opening ritual: bath, incense, and…

[Ding!]

[You have a new message.]

*Sophie, seriously?* Alex thought, sighing. Interrupted rituals were bad luck. She had to start over.

[Sophie]: "Alex! Cooked meat prices are plummeting! Down to 15!"

The cooked meat bubble had burst. Predictable. But the resellers had been the first to lower their prices. Smart move. Minimize losses.

Alex wasn't worried. She had other revenue streams now: equipment, potions, and crops. Plus, she'd made a killing in the cooked meat market. Almost ten million basic resources, with Sophie earning a cool three million in commission.

[Alex]: "Don't worry, Sophie. We'll find something else. I'll hook you up."

[Sophie]: "I'm not worried! Just letting you know! And… I've already found a new way to make money!"

[Alex]: "Oh? You're getting good at this!"

[Sophie]: "My Golden Lion killed a Level 13 Elite and got an iron chest! Guess what I found?"

[Alex]: "A crafting blueprint?"

[Sophie]: "How did you know?!"

[Alex]: "You said you found a new way to make money…"

[Sophie]: "You're so smart, Alex! It's a blueprint for an Apothecary! And a potion recipe! For Healing Potions! Using those Healing Herbs you were selling!"

[Alex]: "…Wow, Sophie. Lucky you!"

[Sophie]: "I know, right? I'm on fire! Don't sell those Healing Herbs anymore, Alex! Give them to me! I'll make potions! We'll split the profits, 80/20, your favor!"

[Alex]: "Deal! But… does your Golden Lion know how to make potions?"

[Sophie]: "Uh… no. That's why I recruited some Goblins!"

[Alex]: "…Goblins?"

[Sophie]: "There's a Goblin tribe near my castle. About a hundred of them. Level 10 Elite was the strongest. So, my Golden Lion and I paid them a visit. He's *so* awesome! One Wind Blast took out two of their huts!

They surrendered immediately! It was amazing! He just… *roared*, and they were all like, 'We surrender!'"

[Alex]: *…Sure. "Roared."* She decided not to question Sophie's… interpretation of events.

[Sophie]: "I built the Apothecary! The Goblins are working! Just send me the Healing Herbs!"

[Alex]: "Not today. My Dirt Farmers are still building their new homes. Tomorrow. I'll have them start growing Healing Herbs tomorrow."

[Sophie]: "Okay!"

[Alex]: "…Sophie?"

[Sophie]: "Yeah?"

[Alex]: "Promise me you won't use those Goblins in battle."

[Sophie]: "Why not?"

[Alex]: "Just… trust me."

After her chat with Sophie, Alex checked the Free Market. Cooked meat was down to 14 resources per unit. At that price, no one would be hiring her processing services anymore. Her fees were too high, and everyone knew the price would keep falling.

With no more meat to process, Alex's 1,000+ skeleton army was idle. Unacceptable. Skeletons didn't need breaks.

"Everyone, go help the Dirt Farmers dig their new home! Make it spacious!"

Mike led the First Skeleton Army to the excavation site, and the sound of a thousand skeletons digging filled the air.

Alex, finally undisturbed, resumed her chest-opening ritual. Bath. Incense. And…

[Congratulations! You have opened an Iron Treasure Chest. Obtained: Fish Scale Armor crafting blueprint (Rank 1), Magic Crystal x253, Red Crystal x12.]

[Congratulations! You have opened an Iron Treasure Chest. Obtained: Flour Mill blueprint, Magic Crystal x178, Red Crystal x17.]

[Congratulations! You have opened a Bronze Treasure Chest. Obtained: Silver Dragon Spear crafting blueprint (Rank 2), Pastry Shop blueprint, Wall blueprint, Magic Crystal x523, Red Crystal x61.]