Right. I hadn’t expected much from Gobjii, but these names were just terrible. Well, as long as individuals could be distinguished, it was fine. And it wasn’t like names were something individuals usually got to decide for themselves anyway. I resigned myself to it.
Moving on, here’s a simple ranking of the average strength of each species:
Dhampir ≧ Half Spell Lord = Half Earth Lord = Half Blood Lord ≧ Ogre ≧ Elf > Foot Soldier Kobold > Kobold = Hobgoblin = Human > Goblin.
This is purely based on the average strength of the species and doesn’t account for equipment or skills. For example, ogres physically surpass half lords, but their lower intelligence leads to simpler tactics, making them somewhat inferior to the half lord species, which combine intelligence and physical strength.
I’ll provide an individual ranking another time.
Now, let’s talk about the kobolds and elves.
I decided not to eat the kobolds who recently joined us. They didn’t offer much in terms of abilities or physical enhancement, and they seemed genuinely loyal. Plus, I was curious to see how the kobold species would rank up over time.
Having more pieces on the board that I could control freely would be a significant advantage. With the impending war between the elves and humans, it was almost certain that the elven chieftain would request our assistance. And when that happened, I intended to agree to it.
A large-scale war would not only secure new abilities and strength; it would also help me understand the combat capabilities, tactics, and methods of this world better. Plus, strengthening my connection with the chieftain would make it easier to acquire more of that exquisite elven wine. It really was incredibly delicious.
If we were going to participate in that war, that would mean setting traps, building fortifications, and launching ambushes against humans. More pieces on the board meant access to a broader range of strategies.
That was why I chose to keep the kobolds as subordinates rather than kill them, but I wasn’t about to blindly trust everything they said. There were few in the group overall I trusted completely, and newly joined kobolds certainly didn’t fall into that category.
As a precaution, I decided to enhance the kobolds’ ear cuff communicators, which I had already distributed to the whole pack. These new versions were enchanted with three abilities: Sustainable Regeneration, which boosted self-healing; Basic Strength Boost to raise physical power; and Basic Speed Enhancement to improve agility. For good measure, I also added the Subjugation ability to ensure the kobolds couldn’t defy me. Even if their loyalty wavered, I would have no trouble controlling them.
The elves currently serving as breeding and sexual relief units also got their own ear cuffs. These cuffs included an extra enchantment, Concealment, to obscure their identities and avoid unnecessary conflicts with other elves. The idea was that Subjugation would make them my subordinates, and Concealment would keep them flying under the radar.
Unfortunately, it turned out that ear-piercing or wearing decorations was a major taboo in elven culture. Most of them refused to wear the ear cuffs, seeing this as their last stand against a grave dishonor. For such offenses, punishments such as permanent expulsion or exile from their clan were common. Elven slaves even had their long ears cut at the halfway point to signify their subservient status.
Forcing the cuffs on them would have been easy, but then they could have argued they wore them only under coercion. So, I decided to strip away their remaining pride, taking my time until they asked for the cuffs themselves. I won’t go into detail about what I did, but let’s just say the elves eventually pleaded for the ear cuffs. In my opinion, living honestly is always the best choice.
Afterward, I released all the elves from their cells, where we had been keeping them to prevent escape, and they joined the kobolds in our training sessions. These elite elves were too valuable to be used solely for breeding and sexual relief, and elves were generally less fertile than humans anyway. Now that the ear cuffs had eliminated any risk of rebellion, I decided to place them in combat roles for maximum efficiency.
Capturing female human enemies would suffice for breeding purposes.
Freed from their cells after a long stretch of imprisonment, many of the elves looked downright liberated. One of my goals had been to refresh their spirits, and it seemed I had succeeded.
During this initial training session, I had the kobolds and elves quickly form ranks and run for extended periods. Then I taught them the combat basics I had instilled in Ogrekichi and the others. The elite elves, with their superior physical capabilities, could have skipped the basics, but I needed to be sure everyone was starting with a solid foundation. Knowing the basics is always better than not knowing them.
Training continued as usual until they were too exhausted to stand.
After a break, I pulled aside the kobolds who, based on their personalities and physical abilities, I had deemed unsuitable for combat. I assigned them to the rear support unit, Pleasure, where they’d learn their duties under the supervision of goblins.
For the kobolds and elves designated as combat units, I organized mock battles in a format similar to real combat. Even the kobold children participated; training them from a young age would make them excellent soldiers.
Their opponents were neither Ogrekichi nor me, nor any hobgoblins or goblins. Nor were they to fight among themselves. Because this training also served as an experiment: the elves and kobolds would be battling against skeletons I had created with Lower Undead Creation.
I could generate skeletons almost indefinitely as long as my mana lasted, so it was a risk-free exercise that provided combat experience and leveling experience. Each use of the ability helped me level up, and the bones left behind could be used as materials for alchemy or blacksmithing. It was really a win-win situation in multiple ways.
Even though it was daytime, the cavern was only dimly lit, providing a suitable setting for me to activate the ability and summon an undead creature. From the ground, a black shadow emerged.
I was envisioning a white skeleton emerging from the shadow, recalling the numerous skeletons I had defeated the night I’d gained the ability. However, something unexpected happened instead: what appeared was a skeleton knight standing two meters tall. It wielded a saber and a kite shield that glowed red, and it wore a cloak over a full suit of black plate armor that looked like it was designed to look menacing. Finally, its bones were black, not white.
This is not what I anticipated.
The thickness of the skeleton’s bones and its overall appearance indicated it was a higher-tier, superior type of skeleton. It might have possessed abilities on par with or even exceeding those of the boss-level Greater Skeletons.
In the skeleton lineage, the quality of a skeleton’s “Soul Gear” changes based on the individual’s abilities—Soul Gear refers to the weapons manifested through abilities like Gear Manifestation or Superior Gear Manifestation, weapons that vanish into mist if the wielder is killed or the weapon is taken, making them unusable by others. The extent to which the body is covered by a skeleton’s Soul Gear correlates with the quality of the gear, which means the nearly fully armored skeleton I’d summoned was likely the strongest skeleton I had seen so far.
After some investigation, I discovered that Lower Undead Creation allowed me to create undead beings significantly weaker than myself, with some flexibility. I had a general understanding of abilities when I acquired them, but actual usage sometimes revealed nuances, as in this case. Practical use was always the best way to understand abilities.
I immediately named the black skeleton Black Skeleton Knight because of its appearance. Then I pitted it against the elves, who were equipped with mithril short swords and round shields. In most cases, the Black Skeleton Knight emerged victorious.
It became apparent that the Black Skeleton Knight possessed the skill level of a seasoned knight. Its barrage of saber strikes and the solid defense of its kite shield were impressive. With abilities that granted resistance to fatigue and slashing attacks, it excelled in prolonged battles, and the elves, despite their comparable skill levels, eventually lost to the Black Skeleton Knight’s superior endurance.
One elf, wielding a mithril short sword that dealt extra damage to undead, initially seemed confident but was eventually overpowered. The looks on the combatants’ faces drew laughter from the onlookers.
Interestingly, even the defeated elves seemed to be in high spirits, smiling despite their loss. Previously, their pride would have prevented them from showing such expressions, especially in front of the goblins they once looked down upon. But we had thoroughly broken their pride and reshaped their sense of ethics and common sense, so they had developed a much more agreeable disposition.
This was a positive development. Forcing them into compliance was always an option, but fostering natural camaraderie was far more advantageous. Allies who bonded naturally might exhibit unexpected strength in moments of crisis.
In any case, this exercise was quite useful. That being said, the Black Skeleton Knight couldn’t sustain the right balance in combat to yield significant earned experience. I had to find a way to address this. When I had the Black Skeleton Knight hold back, the experience earned was significantly reduced compared to defeating it normally. I wasn’t sure why, but that’s how it was.
So, that night, I continued experimenting with Lower Undead Creation. Through these tests, I learned that the ability had a variety of applications.