Hello everyone! I made my decision after some consideration.
From here on out, the blood color of the Kin and Ascended will be RED instead of YELLOW.
Also, the Ascended skin color will be the same as their progenitor skin color, but they will have highly adaptive Melanin, granting them the ability to get tanned or pale faster.
However, the hair color, eyes, and crystal will be the same. In other words, Primrose now has healthy human skin and is indistinguishable from a human besides her bright platinum-green hair, golden eyes, and a black crystal on her forehead. Different Ascended will also have shades of green on their hair, from almost entirely platinum to dark green hair, conforming to who they are based on(cloned from).
This is all to allow greater diversity in characters.
The rest will remain the same. Treat it as a magical handwavium.
In the future, I will edit the previous chapters accordingly.
Sorry for the confusion, and have fun reading.
I stood there, speechless at the mess I caused, and recalled the process.
First, I waited a bit for the enemy reinforcements to arrive, and just before they did, one of the cars regrettably left, the exact car I had targeted at the start.
Likely because of losing one of their men, they were recalled back, saving their lives, while everyone else died. How ironic.
Still, 11 cars, three hovercrafts, and two tanks were left.
After setting up a one-directional encirclement, with the three other cars remaining in position, they sent out the other two hovercrafts, likely to start spraying biochemicals. So, I decided to act preemptively and target one of the pilots.
Instead of shattering his mind, however, I confused it, making him target his allies. I didn't expect the guy to take out the central hovercraft with a rocket before getting executed by the co-pilot, which I then confused into attacking the ground forces, taking out more than half of them with a barrage of missiles and lasers, before getting gunned down.
It is worth noting that, from what I saw, the first hovercraft and tank that were taken down were unprepared and thus taken down smoothly, but the others were more prepared. The second tank employed some form of invisible shielding that destroyed an incoming rocket, so the hovercraft used its laser machine gun to break a device installed on it before firing another missile, eliminating it. At the same time, the hovercraft also fired a barrage of rockets, blowing up five cars before finally getting taken down by the third hovercraft.
It took the third hovercraft so long to destroy the second hovercraft because hovercrafts are also equipped with anti-rocket shielding. Well, I say long, but the whole battle lasted five seconds.
It baffled me why the cars didn't have an anti-missile shield, but perhaps they didn't think they would need it. They probably thought they would be fighting the Kin, not other humans, and especially not their men.
After the fight, I ordered the hovercraft to land at a safe location 100m from the field to avoid damaging it before targeting the other cars. First, I targeted the drivers to commit suicide, and then I sent a Minion wave while experimenting on the others.
I inflicted some with overwhelming Fear, one with Lust, and some with bloodlust. The Minions finished off the remaining soldiers while avoiding damaging the vehicles. I also had the pilots willingly exit, avoiding the Kin damaging it.
So... to recap, two hovercrafts, two tanks, and five cars were destroyed, and one hovercraft and six jeeps were captured. I felt great pain having those vehicles and crew members obliterated, but I had to make do.
On the flip side, I got some (relatively) intact corpses and equipment, around 31, because some of the men managed to escape getting vaporized by the explosions of the five jeeps(But died from the shrapnel and shockwave).
As for our losses? About 300 Minions... Which is practically nothing. Those are mass-produced canon fodder and food, not the more expensive evolved Kin. At most, some of the Minions prepared to be butchered for food today will be spared.
What did make me feel some pain was the energy consumption.
I needed to use empowered words 18 times, which is 180 points. To make matters worse, I only got 21 points from killing those men. Making the humans kill each other didn't yield anything, and only the ones killed by the Minions, who were connected to me, counted.
In other words...
Basic Energy: 10,094 -> 9,935
"Hah... Oh, well. I can endure this small loss." - I shook my head.
I then looked at my bloodstained hands, still dark red from dry Minion blood.
But metaphorically speaking, they were now also soaked in fresh human blood.
"And yet... I feel nothing. It felt as easy as breathing air, eating breakfast, or watching the news. Even if they are my enemies, I felt no joy or remorse in killing them, and not even numbness, just nothing. I developed sociopathic tendencies, didn't I? Am I losing my humanity? Is this a blessing in disguise? Or a curse?" - I wondered.
While I was pondering moral ambiguities, a low voice woke me up.
"Incredible! You killed them all!" - Lord Arnerd said in awe, not a hint of wariness in his voice.
"Yes, I did." - I replied.
"Good! I didn't think you could do it, but luckily, I was wrong! But I wonder, how did you do it? You are undoubtedly a regular Ascended one and shouldn't have this power. Also, I received a report you have transformation and teleportation abilities. How do you have so many powers?" - He asked curiously.
It wasn't out of inquisitiveness or malice but out of curiosity. He showed unconditional trust in me, something I doubt the Ascended would show.
"Ah... That question is here." - I thought.
I predicted he would ask that, so I came up with an answer that even an Ascended expert would find difficult to refute.
"It has something to do with my birth circumstances. I believe I was born a variant, giving certain special psychic powers. However, it also caused problems in my inherent memories, and I only recently managed to sort them and started recollecting things." - I bullshitted.
This lie covered both my powers and my temporary lack of knowledge. This might bring future problems, but I don't have any better lie to give. Not like I can say that I am a pseudo-god. That would only make them view me as either insane or take it seriously and try to dissect me.
"Hm. I see. Perhaps you should have the Ascended ones in the primary field have a look at you." - Lord Arnerd nodded and dropped the subject.
"Well, then. Now that the battle is over, I have a request." - Lord Arnerd suddenly said eagerly.
"Request? Go ahead." - I replied, a bit curious.
"After the battle, 30% of the loot belongs to my base, while 70% belongs to you, including the carcasses." - Lord Arnerd said.1The Kin consider humans as animals, hence carcasses.
"So you want to buy off the corpses to eat?" - I asked knowingly.
"As expected of an Ascended one, you catch on quickly." - Lord Arnerd said with a satisfied tone.
"Sure, I can sell them to you. What is the standard merit value of a human corpse?" - I nodded and asked.
The corpses of those guys were practically trash for me, so I was willing to sell them. Of course, seeing how eager it was, those corpses were likely valuable, so I wanted to know how much I could get from them.
"The merit value for an intact and fresh adult human carcass is this much." - Lord Arnerd replied and raised five fingers.
"Five hundred? That's..." - I said with scrunched eyebrows, feeling incredulous.
Five hundred was far more than I expected. At most, I thought it would be 100.
"No, Ascended one. I meant five thousand." - Lord Arnerd clarified.
"..."
"Defuck?! That's 5,000 Minion crystals!" - I retorted in my mind.
That translated to 500 Evolution points and 500 Enhancement points. If I sell 20 corpses, that's 100,000 crystals, which is 10,000 points for both types.
Currently, there are 31 corpses. With 70% of them being mine, that's 21.7 corpses, meaning I could get 108,500 Minion crystals for nothing!
Holding my excitement back, I asked, "Why are they worth 5,000 merit points?"
"Ascended one, human carcasses have qualities that stimulate our evolution. One is enough for an evolved Kin to rapidly break his genetic shackles and grow into a Kin Leader, and a hundred carcasses are enough to create a Kin Lord like me. And, with around 10,000 carcasses, a Kin Lord can smoothly become a Kin Ruler. A human carcass is an incredible tonic, but with a low shelf life, can't be used outside of eating, and needs to be consumed fresh. The price of 5,000 merit points is reasonable." - Lord Arnerd explained with a hint of anxiety.
"... Okay, I can sell them to you at this price." - I replied with a straight face.
But in my mind, I was already laughing hard.
"HAHAHAHAH!!! Holy crap! 100,000 crystals for free! Best deal ever! One man's garbage is another man's treasure!" - I thought gleefully.
"Good! I will have my direct subordinates strip their equipment and bring them over. If the reports are correct, 31 carcasses have been recovered. We will check their condition then and decide on a suitable price." - Lord Arnerd said.
"All right. Then, what about the vehicles? How will we bring them to the primary field? Especially the destroyed tanks. They weigh at least 50 tons." - I asked.
"The primary field is about 70 miles away, so we cannot bring destroyed vehicles, only some salvaged parts. However, I can have the Soldiers drag the cars. It will take some time, likely around two weeks, but it would be worth it. Usually, salvaged military cars are exchanged for tens of thousands of merit, so the six captured ones should be worth a lot. As for the flying vehicle, it should be worth even more. I wouldn't be surprised if we could exchange it for over a million merit points." - Lord Arnerd said eagerly.
"...Gulp*"
"A million! That's over 100,000 Enhancement points! How many powers can I enhance?!" - I thought greedily.
Although the hovercraft is excellent, it is only practical to transport me and Primrose to the primary field faster... and that's it. I can't put it inside my Storage because it is too large and heavy(I must lift it to put it inside), and I have nothing to use for now. That, and it would be stuck in this reality.
It would be much better to trade it for the much-needed personal power.
However, I quickly woke up from my greedy thoughts, as there was one final article to discuss.
"What about their equipment? Like guns, grenades, and whatever other gear on their person?" - I asked.
"Those are relatively low-value. As you should know by now, lasers and chemical ignition suffer heavily in the Kin field, so aside from cannibalizing their parts for some valuable materials, they are mostly useless. We would be lucky to trade it all for a few thousand merit points." - Lord Arnerd said dejectedly.
"... Can I have those, then?" - I asked.
"You want them? What for?" - Lord Arnerd asked, surprised.
"I travel a lot outside, so that gear is good." - I replied.
"Well, outside of this Reality." - I thought.
"Hm... with your transformation ability, that does seem to be the case. I cannot judge their intrinsic value and completeness, so how about I give it all to you as a sign of good faith? At the very least, you will have something extra to defend yourself against humans and animals... not that you need it." - Lord Arnerd said magnanimously.
"Oh! Thank you!" - I said happily.
This guy is so friendly! Although it is probably because he is in a good mood from profiting out of the blue.
"Hm. Now that the loot distribution is finished, how about you tell me about the newborn? How is she with you, and why is she so close to evolving despite being a few days old? Don't tell me she is also mutated?" - Lord Arnerd asked.
"Finally, he noticed..." - I thought, a glint reminiscent of a fisherman's in my eyes.
"Well, it is because I evolved her by accident, but unlike me, she inherited her knowledge perfectly. As for why she is so strong... well... I helped her." - I said truthfully while omitting the godfuckery.
"It is not my place to admonish you, but you should think more before you act. What you did was tantamount to luring the humans. It is foolishness." - Lord Arnerd said in a disappointed tone.
"I learned from my mistakes." - I said and shook my head.
I was acting rashly at the time, not thinking of the consequences of my actions. I should have asked more about possible dangers. I should have let go of Primrose after butchering most of the Minions, allowing her to run to this Lord-controlled field during the night while I evolve in my reality.
That would have been the smartest thing to do.
And yet I did the opposite and even did many stupid things that announced my presence, like a crying baby in a dark forest. Little wonder wolves came.
I admit my mistakes.
"As you will. That aside, what is this about helping her become stronger? I don't believe you did it through scientific means. Don't tell me this is also related to you being mutated?" - Lord Arnerd asked.
"You can say that..." - I shrugged and admitted.
No point in hiding it. Or rather, I intentionally didn't want to hide it.
All for a calculated and incredibly profitable gamble.
"How?" - Lord Arnerd asked curiously.
"I can absorb the energy from crystals and then infuse it in others, promoting body strengthening and evolution." - I said bluntly.
Lord Arnerd is unlikely to react violently to my statement, and I saw no immediate harm.
"Hm... I see. So you are saying you accidentally evolved a Minion into this newborn and strengthened her to her current state? Newborn, does he speak true?" - Lord Arnerd suddenly asked.
"Yes, Lord Arnerd. Iver is speaking the truth." - Primrose, who was silent beside me until now, replied.
"And I suppose you also somewhat benefit from this process?" - Lord Arnerd turned to me and asked.
"Yes." - I spoke truthfully.
I decided to bet and go all in and see the result. If worse comes to worst, I go back to my reality. He is unlikely to lash out at Primrose. At most, he will try to capture me alive. I can escape at any time.
"..."
Lord Arnerd remained silent, perhaps in thought.
After a tense silence, Lord Arnerd spoke, "Show me. Empirically prove it to me."
"Then I would need a live Minion, twenty Minion corpses, and 200 Minion crystals." - I gave my conditions.
"Guard!" - Lord Arnerd bellowed.
Immediately, one of the Soldier-type leaders outside came over.
"Yes, Lord." - The guard spoke.
"Arrange for 200 crystals from the treasury." - Lord Arnerd ordered.
"Yes, Lord." - The guard nodded and walked to the back dome.
A few silent minutes later, twenty-one Minions arrived, and a pile of black Minion crystals was arranged.
"Kill each other." - Lord Arnerd coldly ordered the Minions.
A moment later, the Minions suddenly started killing each other in a battle royal until only one remained standing, bloody and injured.
Luckily, I connected to these Minions and got ten free points.
Basic Energy: 9,935 -> 9,945
"Alright, everything is arranged. Now, prove it to me." - Lord Arnerd said.
"Okay." - I nodded and walked to the crystal pile.
And then I offered.
Immediately, the pile started igniting in black flames, as black balls of flame flew into my chest before disappearing.
{Gained 20 Evolution Energy A}
{Gained 20 Enhancement Energy A}
Evolution Energy A: 2,218 -> 2,238
Enhancement Energy A: 10 -> 30
"Magical..." - Lord Arnerd muttered.
However, I was not done yet.
I walked to the Minion, patted its shoulder, and gave it all the 20 Evolution points.
Evolution Energy A: 2,238 -> 2,218
And then I ordered it.
"Eat." - I said and pointed at the scattered corpses.
The Minion dumbly complied and walked to the corpses, and started eating. A few minutes later, the Minion's body began to wriggle as muscles expanded and shrunk.
"Hm... So, you infuse it with the energy you extracted from the crystals and then use it to promote rapid strengthening and evolution through eating? Am I correct?" - Lord Arnerd asked, his gaze fixed on the Minion.
"That is correct." - I nodded, already sitting down.
"And does it have repercussions?" - He continued asking.
"Not that I know of any." - I shook my head.
"It is a good power... but expensive. It is good for rapidly developing troops, but it is uneconomical. We only need a hundred or so crystals to evolve a Minion, which is half of the cost through your method. Although it does take three months, it is still better in the long run." - Lord Arnerd said while shaking his head, his voice tinged with disappointment.
But then, as if thinking of something, he turned to me.
"Wait, can you invest fewer crystals to only promote strengthening?" - Lord Arnerd suddenly asked.
"Yes. In this case, I only need around 100 crystals to let them reach peak growth." - I said while citing 30 more crystals than needed.
"Good! Then it is an incredible power! It can quicken the preparation for pre-evolution." - He said excitedly.
And then, seemingly thinking of another thing, he spoke again.
"You can also use it on evolved Kin, correct?" - He asked.
"Hm? Yes. I didn't try it on them before, but yes. I already tried on myself and Primrose." - I nodded and said.
"And how many crystals do you suppose it takes to strengthen and evolve an evolved Soldier into a Leader?" - He continued to ask.
"Hm... I think 5,000?" - I said, unsure myself, so I cited the price of a human corpse.
Of course, that was around the cost of strengthening and evolving a newborn Ascended into a regular Ascended Expert, which should be far more than promoting a regular Kin into a Kin Leader.
"... What? Repeat that, please." - Lord Arnerd said, somewhat shaken.
"Hm? I said 5,000. Is that too expensive?" - I asked, unsure.
"Expensive? Expensive, he says... Ha... Hahaha... Hahahaha!!!" - Lord Arnerd suddenly broke into raucous laughter.
It honestly sounded creepy, as he was like a giant laughing. Oh, wait, he IS a giant.
"Boy! Do you know how many crystals it takes to create a Kin Leader?" - Lord Arnerd suddenly asked.
"Eh... No?" - I replied honestly.
"It is 10,000 Minion crystals or 100 evolved crystals, including abundant food. And it can take three months to over three years, depending on the diet type." - Lord Arnerd replied.
"..."
I suddenly felt like I just lost money.
"So, tell me. Do you think you can evolve a Lord into a Ruler?" - Lord Arnerd suddenly asked with ambition in his voice.
"I believe so, but it would take over a million Minion crystals." - I replied.
"... Boy, that isn't even funny anymore. You fail to realize how much power you hold in your weak little hands... That is what I would like to say, but you probably have an assurance to reveal this information that can cause a war causally." - Lord Arnerd commented.
"If I wasn't sure in my power, would I dare reveal it?" - I replied.
"Noted." - Lord Arnerd nodded and started tapping his fingers.
After a few minutes of silent contemplation, Lord Arnerd spoke.
"How about we have a deal?" - Lord Arnerd said.
"What deal?" - I asked back.
"I will give you 1,500,000 Minion Crystals from my treasury, and you try to evolve me with them. If you succeed and I become a Ruler, I shall be your backer." - Lord Arnerd proposed.
"Backer? Can you please clarify?" - I asked.
"I mean, I would sponsor and cooperate with some of your wishes and offer you military aid and protection. In exchange, you will support and help me develop my troops and territory, and all necessary resources will be provided. And, of course, I will protect your secrets." - Lord Arnerd clarified.
"... You got yourself a deal!" - replied with a grin.
My somewhat risky gamble was a success.
I first showed I have the power to speak on equal ground, avoiding being oppressed by him. I then allowed him to guesswork my powers, giving him the feeling that he was clever. And then I showed him my worth, baiting him into sponsoring me or becoming a client.
If he were an Ascended, I would never dare do this, as they are less predictable and more deceitful, like humans.
They might just try to cut me open and see how they can steal my powers.
But a Kin Lord? Although he is undoubtedly intelligent, he somewhat lacks the cunning of a human, for better or worse. He is more like a bull; Powerful, unambiguous, and no-nonsense. And best of all, he won't stab me in the back but would do things openly.
A good business partner.
"Like Great Grandpa always said, if there is no risk, there is no reward."
bignt
Well, a quick development, but not a hasty one. He is simply leveraging his power while taking a calculated risk.
I wonder, what would you do in his shoes? Would you do the same? Would you run away? Lie in the face? Devalue your power?
Do tell me in the comments.
Hello everyone! I made my decision after some consideration.
From here on out, the blood color of the Kin and Ascended will be RED instead of YELLOW.
Also, the Ascended skin color will be the same as their progenitor skin color, but they will have highly adaptive Melanin, granting them the ability to get tanned or pale faster.
However, the hair color, eyes, and crystal will be the same. In other words, Primrose now has healthy human skin and is indistinguishable from a human besides her bright platinum-green hair, golden eyes, and a black crystal on her forehead. Different Ascended will also have shades of green on their hair, from almost entirely platinum to dark green hair, conforming to who they are based on(cloned from).
This is all to allow greater diversity in characters.
The rest will remain the same. Treat it as a magical handwavium.
In the future, I will edit the previous chapters accordingly.
Sorry for the confusion, and have fun reading.
I stood there, speechless at the mess I caused, and recalled the process.
First, I waited a bit for the enemy reinforcements to arrive, and just before they did, one of the cars regrettably left, the exact car I had targeted at the start.
Likely because of losing one of their men, they were recalled back, saving their lives, while everyone else died. How ironic.
Still, 11 cars, three hovercrafts, and two tanks were left.
After setting up a one-directional encirclement, with the three other cars remaining in position, they sent out the other two hovercrafts, likely to start spraying biochemicals. So, I decided to act preemptively and target one of the pilots.
Instead of shattering his mind, however, I confused it, making him target his allies. I didn't expect the guy to take out the central hovercraft with a rocket before getting executed by the co-pilot, which I then confused into attacking the ground forces, taking out more than half of them with a barrage of missiles and lasers, before getting gunned down.
It is worth noting that, from what I saw, the first hovercraft and tank that were taken down were unprepared and thus taken down smoothly, but the others were more prepared. The second tank employed some form of invisible shielding that destroyed an incoming rocket, so the hovercraft used its laser machine gun to break a device installed on it before firing another missile, eliminating it. At the same time, the hovercraft also fired a barrage of rockets, blowing up five cars before finally getting taken down by the third hovercraft.
It took the third hovercraft so long to destroy the second hovercraft because hovercrafts are also equipped with anti-rocket shielding. Well, I say long, but the whole battle lasted five seconds.
It baffled me why the cars didn't have an anti-missile shield, but perhaps they didn't think they would need it. They probably thought they would be fighting the Kin, not other humans, and especially not their men.
After the fight, I ordered the hovercraft to land at a safe location 100m from the field to avoid damaging it before targeting the other cars. First, I targeted the drivers to commit suicide, and then I sent a Minion wave while experimenting on the others.
I inflicted some with overwhelming Fear, one with Lust, and some with bloodlust. The Minions finished off the remaining soldiers while avoiding damaging the vehicles. I also had the pilots willingly exit, avoiding the Kin damaging it.
So... to recap, two hovercrafts, two tanks, and five cars were destroyed, and one hovercraft and six jeeps were captured. I felt great pain having those vehicles and crew members obliterated, but I had to make do.
On the flip side, I got some (relatively) intact corpses and equipment, around 31, because some of the men managed to escape getting vaporized by the explosions of the five jeeps(But died from the shrapnel and shockwave).
As for our losses? About 300 Minions... Which is practically nothing. Those are mass-produced canon fodder and food, not the more expensive evolved Kin. At most, some of the Minions prepared to be butchered for food today will be spared.
What did make me feel some pain was the energy consumption.
I needed to use empowered words 18 times, which is 180 points. To make matters worse, I only got 21 points from killing those men. Making the humans kill each other didn't yield anything, and only the ones killed by the Minions, who were connected to me, counted.
In other words...
Basic Energy: 10,094 -> 9,935
"Hah... Oh, well. I can endure this small loss." - I shook my head.
I then looked at my bloodstained hands, still dark red from dry Minion blood.
But metaphorically speaking, they were now also soaked in fresh human blood.
"And yet... I feel nothing. It felt as easy as breathing air, eating breakfast, or watching the news. Even if they are my enemies, I felt no joy or remorse in killing them, and not even numbness, just nothing. I developed sociopathic tendencies, didn't I? Am I losing my humanity? Is this a blessing in disguise? Or a curse?" - I wondered.
While I was pondering moral ambiguities, a low voice woke me up.
"Incredible! You killed them all!" - Lord Arnerd said in awe, not a hint of wariness in his voice.
"Yes, I did." - I replied.
"Good! I didn't think you could do it, but luckily, I was wrong! But I wonder, how did you do it? You are undoubtedly a regular Ascended one and shouldn't have this power. Also, I received a report you have transformation and teleportation abilities. How do you have so many powers?" - He asked curiously.
It wasn't out of inquisitiveness or malice but out of curiosity. He showed unconditional trust in me, something I doubt the Ascended would show.
"Ah... That question is here." - I thought.
I predicted he would ask that, so I came up with an answer that even an Ascended expert would find difficult to refute.
"It has something to do with my birth circumstances. I believe I was born a variant, giving certain special psychic powers. However, it also caused problems in my inherent memories, and I only recently managed to sort them and started recollecting things." - I bullshitted.
This lie covered both my powers and my temporary lack of knowledge. This might bring future problems, but I don't have any better lie to give. Not like I can say that I am a pseudo-god. That would only make them view me as either insane or take it seriously and try to dissect me.
"Hm. I see. Perhaps you should have the Ascended ones in the primary field have a look at you." - Lord Arnerd nodded and dropped the subject.
"Well, then. Now that the battle is over, I have a request." - Lord Arnerd suddenly said eagerly.
"Request? Go ahead." - I replied, a bit curious.
"After the battle, 30% of the loot belongs to my base, while 70% belongs to you, including the carcasses." - Lord Arnerd said.1The Kin consider humans as animals, hence carcasses.
"So you want to buy off the corpses to eat?" - I asked knowingly.
"As expected of an Ascended one, you catch on quickly." - Lord Arnerd said with a satisfied tone.
"Sure, I can sell them to you. What is the standard merit value of a human corpse?" - I nodded and asked.
The corpses of those guys were practically trash for me, so I was willing to sell them. Of course, seeing how eager it was, those corpses were likely valuable, so I wanted to know how much I could get from them.
"The merit value for an intact and fresh adult human carcass is this much." - Lord Arnerd replied and raised five fingers.
"Five hundred? That's..." - I said with scrunched eyebrows, feeling incredulous.
Five hundred was far more than I expected. At most, I thought it would be 100.
"No, Ascended one. I meant five thousand." - Lord Arnerd clarified.
"..."
"Defuck?! That's 5,000 Minion crystals!" - I retorted in my mind.
That translated to 500 Evolution points and 500 Enhancement points. If I sell 20 corpses, that's 100,000 crystals, which is 10,000 points for both types.
Currently, there are 31 corpses. With 70% of them being mine, that's 21.7 corpses, meaning I could get 108,500 Minion crystals for nothing!
Holding my excitement back, I asked, "Why are they worth 5,000 merit points?"
"Ascended one, human carcasses have qualities that stimulate our evolution. One is enough for an evolved Kin to rapidly break his genetic shackles and grow into a Kin Leader, and a hundred carcasses are enough to create a Kin Lord like me. And, with around 10,000 carcasses, a Kin Lord can smoothly become a Kin Ruler. A human carcass is an incredible tonic, but with a low shelf life, can't be used outside of eating, and needs to be consumed fresh. The price of 5,000 merit points is reasonable." - Lord Arnerd explained with a hint of anxiety.
"... Okay, I can sell them to you at this price." - I replied with a straight face.
But in my mind, I was already laughing hard.
"HAHAHAHAH!!! Holy crap! 100,000 crystals for free! Best deal ever! One man's garbage is another man's treasure!" - I thought gleefully.
"Good! I will have my direct subordinates strip their equipment and bring them over. If the reports are correct, 31 carcasses have been recovered. We will check their condition then and decide on a suitable price." - Lord Arnerd said.
"All right. Then, what about the vehicles? How will we bring them to the primary field? Especially the destroyed tanks. They weigh at least 50 tons." - I asked.
"The primary field is about 70 miles away, so we cannot bring destroyed vehicles, only some salvaged parts. However, I can have the Soldiers drag the cars. It will take some time, likely around two weeks, but it would be worth it. Usually, salvaged military cars are exchanged for tens of thousands of merit, so the six captured ones should be worth a lot. As for the flying vehicle, it should be worth even more. I wouldn't be surprised if we could exchange it for over a million merit points." - Lord Arnerd said eagerly.
"...Gulp*"
"A million! That's over 100,000 Enhancement points! How many powers can I enhance?!" - I thought greedily.
Although the hovercraft is excellent, it is only practical to transport me and Primrose to the primary field faster... and that's it. I can't put it inside my Storage because it is too large and heavy(I must lift it to put it inside), and I have nothing to use for now. That, and it would be stuck in this reality.
It would be much better to trade it for the much-needed personal power.
However, I quickly woke up from my greedy thoughts, as there was one final article to discuss.
"What about their equipment? Like guns, grenades, and whatever other gear on their person?" - I asked.
"Those are relatively low-value. As you should know by now, lasers and chemical ignition suffer heavily in the Kin field, so aside from cannibalizing their parts for some valuable materials, they are mostly useless. We would be lucky to trade it all for a few thousand merit points." - Lord Arnerd said dejectedly.
"... Can I have those, then?" - I asked.
"You want them? What for?" - Lord Arnerd asked, surprised.
"I travel a lot outside, so that gear is good." - I replied.
"Well, outside of this Reality." - I thought.
"Hm... with your transformation ability, that does seem to be the case. I cannot judge their intrinsic value and completeness, so how about I give it all to you as a sign of good faith? At the very least, you will have something extra to defend yourself against humans and animals... not that you need it." - Lord Arnerd said magnanimously.
"Oh! Thank you!" - I said happily.
This guy is so friendly! Although it is probably because he is in a good mood from profiting out of the blue.
"Hm. Now that the loot distribution is finished, how about you tell me about the newborn? How is she with you, and why is she so close to evolving despite being a few days old? Don't tell me she is also mutated?" - Lord Arnerd asked.
"Finally, he noticed..." - I thought, a glint reminiscent of a fisherman's in my eyes.
"Well, it is because I evolved her by accident, but unlike me, she inherited her knowledge perfectly. As for why she is so strong... well... I helped her." - I said truthfully while omitting the godfuckery.
"It is not my place to admonish you, but you should think more before you act. What you did was tantamount to luring the humans. It is foolishness." - Lord Arnerd said in a disappointed tone.
"I learned from my mistakes." - I said and shook my head.
I was acting rashly at the time, not thinking of the consequences of my actions. I should have asked more about possible dangers. I should have let go of Primrose after butchering most of the Minions, allowing her to run to this Lord-controlled field during the night while I evolve in my reality.
That would have been the smartest thing to do.
And yet I did the opposite and even did many stupid things that announced my presence, like a crying baby in a dark forest. Little wonder wolves came.
I admit my mistakes.
"As you will. That aside, what is this about helping her become stronger? I don't believe you did it through scientific means. Don't tell me this is also related to you being mutated?" - Lord Arnerd asked.
"You can say that..." - I shrugged and admitted.
No point in hiding it. Or rather, I intentionally didn't want to hide it.
All for a calculated and incredibly profitable gamble.
"How?" - Lord Arnerd asked curiously.
"I can absorb the energy from crystals and then infuse it in others, promoting body strengthening and evolution." - I said bluntly.
Lord Arnerd is unlikely to react violently to my statement, and I saw no immediate harm.
"Hm... I see. So you are saying you accidentally evolved a Minion into this newborn and strengthened her to her current state? Newborn, does he speak true?" - Lord Arnerd suddenly asked.
"Yes, Lord Arnerd. Iver is speaking the truth." - Primrose, who was silent beside me until now, replied.
"And I suppose you also somewhat benefit from this process?" - Lord Arnerd turned to me and asked.
"Yes." - I spoke truthfully.
I decided to bet and go all in and see the result. If worse comes to worst, I go back to my reality. He is unlikely to lash out at Primrose. At most, he will try to capture me alive. I can escape at any time.
"..."
Lord Arnerd remained silent, perhaps in thought.
After a tense silence, Lord Arnerd spoke, "Show me. Empirically prove it to me."
"Then I would need a live Minion, twenty Minion corpses, and 200 Minion crystals." - I gave my conditions.
"Guard!" - Lord Arnerd bellowed.
Immediately, one of the Soldier-type leaders outside came over.
"Yes, Lord." - The guard spoke.
"Arrange for 200 crystals from the treasury." - Lord Arnerd ordered.
"Yes, Lord." - The guard nodded and walked to the back dome.
A few silent minutes later, twenty-one Minions arrived, and a pile of black Minion crystals was arranged.
"Kill each other." - Lord Arnerd coldly ordered the Minions.
A moment later, the Minions suddenly started killing each other in a battle royal until only one remained standing, bloody and injured.
Luckily, I connected to these Minions and got ten free points.
Basic Energy: 9,935 -> 9,945
"Alright, everything is arranged. Now, prove it to me." - Lord Arnerd said.
"Okay." - I nodded and walked to the crystal pile.
And then I offered.
Immediately, the pile started igniting in black flames, as black balls of flame flew into my chest before disappearing.
{Gained 20 Evolution Energy A}
{Gained 20 Enhancement Energy A}
Evolution Energy A: 2,218 -> 2,238
Enhancement Energy A: 10 -> 30
"Magical..." - Lord Arnerd muttered.
However, I was not done yet.
I walked to the Minion, patted its shoulder, and gave it all the 20 Evolution points.
Evolution Energy A: 2,238 -> 2,218
And then I ordered it.
"Eat." - I said and pointed at the scattered corpses.
The Minion dumbly complied and walked to the corpses, and started eating. A few minutes later, the Minion's body began to wriggle as muscles expanded and shrunk.
"Hm... So, you infuse it with the energy you extracted from the crystals and then use it to promote rapid strengthening and evolution through eating? Am I correct?" - Lord Arnerd asked, his gaze fixed on the Minion.
"That is correct." - I nodded, already sitting down.
"And does it have repercussions?" - He continued asking.
"Not that I know of any." - I shook my head.
"It is a good power... but expensive. It is good for rapidly developing troops, but it is uneconomical. We only need a hundred or so crystals to evolve a Minion, which is half of the cost through your method. Although it does take three months, it is still better in the long run." - Lord Arnerd said while shaking his head, his voice tinged with disappointment.
But then, as if thinking of something, he turned to me.
"Wait, can you invest fewer crystals to only promote strengthening?" - Lord Arnerd suddenly asked.
"Yes. In this case, I only need around 100 crystals to let them reach peak growth." - I said while citing 30 more crystals than needed.
"Good! Then it is an incredible power! It can quicken the preparation for pre-evolution." - He said excitedly.
And then, seemingly thinking of another thing, he spoke again.
"You can also use it on evolved Kin, correct?" - He asked.
"Hm? Yes. I didn't try it on them before, but yes. I already tried on myself and Primrose." - I nodded and said.
"And how many crystals do you suppose it takes to strengthen and evolve an evolved Soldier into a Leader?" - He continued to ask.
"Hm... I think 5,000?" - I said, unsure myself, so I cited the price of a human corpse.
Of course, that was around the cost of strengthening and evolving a newborn Ascended into a regular Ascended Expert, which should be far more than promoting a regular Kin into a Kin Leader.
"... What? Repeat that, please." - Lord Arnerd said, somewhat shaken.
"Hm? I said 5,000. Is that too expensive?" - I asked, unsure.
"Expensive? Expensive, he says... Ha... Hahaha... Hahahaha!!!" - Lord Arnerd suddenly broke into raucous laughter.
It honestly sounded creepy, as he was like a giant laughing. Oh, wait, he IS a giant.
"Boy! Do you know how many crystals it takes to create a Kin Leader?" - Lord Arnerd suddenly asked.
"Eh... No?" - I replied honestly.
"It is 10,000 Minion crystals or 100 evolved crystals, including abundant food. And it can take three months to over three years, depending on the diet type." - Lord Arnerd replied.
"..."
I suddenly felt like I just lost money.
"So, tell me. Do you think you can evolve a Lord into a Ruler?" - Lord Arnerd suddenly asked with ambition in his voice.
"I believe so, but it would take over a million Minion crystals." - I replied.
"... Boy, that isn't even funny anymore. You fail to realize how much power you hold in your weak little hands... That is what I would like to say, but you probably have an assurance to reveal this information that can cause a war causally." - Lord Arnerd commented.
"If I wasn't sure in my power, would I dare reveal it?" - I replied.
"Noted." - Lord Arnerd nodded and started tapping his fingers.
After a few minutes of silent contemplation, Lord Arnerd spoke.
"How about we have a deal?" - Lord Arnerd said.
"What deal?" - I asked back.
"I will give you 1,500,000 Minion Crystals from my treasury, and you try to evolve me with them. If you succeed and I become a Ruler, I shall be your backer." - Lord Arnerd proposed.
"Backer? Can you please clarify?" - I asked.
"I mean, I would sponsor and cooperate with some of your wishes and offer you military aid and protection. In exchange, you will support and help me develop my troops and territory, and all necessary resources will be provided. And, of course, I will protect your secrets." - Lord Arnerd clarified.
"... You got yourself a deal!" - replied with a grin.
My somewhat risky gamble was a success.
I first showed I have the power to speak on equal ground, avoiding being oppressed by him. I then allowed him to guesswork my powers, giving him the feeling that he was clever. And then I showed him my worth, baiting him into sponsoring me or becoming a client.
If he were an Ascended, I would never dare do this, as they are less predictable and more deceitful, like humans.
They might just try to cut me open and see how they can steal my powers.
But a Kin Lord? Although he is undoubtedly intelligent, he somewhat lacks the cunning of a human, for better or worse. He is more like a bull; Powerful, unambiguous, and no-nonsense. And best of all, he won't stab me in the back but would do things openly.
A good business partner.
"Like Great Grandpa always said, if there is no risk, there is no reward."
bignt
Well, a quick development, but not a hasty one. He is simply leveraging his power while taking a calculated risk.
I wonder, what would you do in his shoes? Would you do the same? Would you run away? Lie in the face? Devalue your power?
Do tell me in the comments.
