Building A Human Empire By Creating A Clan [EN]: Chapter 121

Creating an Empire with Summons 123

HUMANS, ORCS, AND GOBLINS.

These three races met on the plains of Pantonia.

The humans, under the banner of the Human Empire, had an army of 60,000 soldiers and a supply unit of 30,000 prisoners. The other two races, under the banner of the Black Sun Tribe, had gathered 130,000 warriors.

【Lv. 44】

【Lv. 33】

【Lv. 38】

【Lv. 41】

【Lv. 42】

【Lv. 36】

I looked at the levels of the Orcs at the forefront.

The forces in Pantonia were on a different level from those in Nerup.

The groups driven out to Nerup were mostly low-level warriors in their 20s, but the groups in Pantonia ranged from their early 30s to mid-40s.

‘And this isn’t all of them.’

Orcs and Goblins reproduce like cockroaches.

There’s no way the total population of this race is less than 200,000.

They also did some livestock farming, kept slaves for agriculture, and obtained food through plunder.

As I recall, when Ugdash stood at the forefront of the Great Cataclysm, his group numbered 3 million. It might not be that many now, but if they had enough time, they could mobilize several times the group in front of me.

“Zinogre of the Black Sun Tribe.”

Zinogre and I met between the two opposing forces.

Calliope and 10 guards stood behind me, and Zinogre also came out leading about 70 Orcs under his command.

【Lv. 69】

【Lv. 73】

【Lv. 66】

【Lv. 77】

【Lv. 64】

Judging by their levels, they weren’t just simple escorts.

‘They must be tribal chiefs.’

Each one was as strong as, or stronger than, an Imperial Guard. No matter how high Zinogre’s prestige was, he couldn’t have such strong individuals as escorts.

It’s more likely that they are the chiefs he subjugated.

And the reason they accompanied him instead of guards was to show me their power and pressure me. But I smiled inwardly.

‘The more listeners, the better, and tribal chiefs are even better.’

“Pantonia is our land. Why have you come, human?”

“I’ve come to make a proposal.”

“A proposal?”

“Aren’t you worried right now?”

Zinogre frowned when he met my gaze.

He was wary, wondering what trick I was going to pull this time. He knew that even the representative system had been swayed by me every time, so his reaction was natural.

But wariness is futile.

Because I’m going to make him an offer he can’t refuse.

“You’re worried about where to project the power that you can no longer resolve internally. I’ve come to give you the opportunity to fulfill your long-cherished desire.”

“My long-cherished desire, you say?”

“To hunt Elves, that is.”

Elves.

The moment he heard that word, Zinogre’s eyes widened.

“If I were to pick the thing your desire-filled race wants most, it would be Elves, wouldn’t it? What is the reason you obsess over humans, whom other races consider ugly? Isn’t it because humans look like Elves at first glance?”

“······.”

“I will give you the opportunity to hunt Elves, not to settle for a substitute. I will eliminate the reason why you can’t covet Elves. Then you don’t have to worry about what you should do, do you?”

Zinogre was silent for a moment.

The 70 or so tribal chiefs who accompanied him.

The chiefs’ gazes turned to him.

“…How?”

“The barrier of Elves that you cannot overcome. I will give you a weapon to break it.”

“A weapon?”

Zinogre scoffed.

“I know you’re using strange weapons. But can that break the Elves’ barrier? You humans. Do you even know how high and strong the Elves’ barrier is?”

I know.

Because I’ve tried to capture it so many times.

Zinogre stopped sneering when he saw my expression.

He intuitively realized that I wasn’t joking.

“…What’s the name of that weapon?”

“Gunpowder.”

I answered confidently.

“A substance that can destroy everything even without magic. I will give that to you.”

In return, you will kill each other.

That is the condition for me helping you.

I didn’t voice my inner thoughts and just smiled.

Human Ranch (5)

Zinogre was silent.

His expression suggested that he wanted to refuse.

Because he is calculative and cowardly.

‘Ugudash’s son, Baguku, also rejected my offer.’

The reason Baguku rejected the offer was because of retaliation.

If they hunted Elves, there would be retaliation afterward.

He suppressed his desires and chose stability.

‘Zinogre is the same.’

If he were an ordinary Orc, he would have accepted the offer without hesitation, but Zinogre was more calculative than Baguku or Ugudash. There was no way he hadn’t thought about the aftermath.

But he made a fatal mistake.

He brought the tribal chiefs with him.

“Will you accept the offer, or will you refuse?”

Zinogre frowned as he looked at me.

He mobilized the tribal chiefs to pressure me.

But I, in turn, boasted in front of the chiefs that they could seize their long-cherished desire, the Elves.

Orcs are a race swayed by desire, so they couldn’t help but be tempted by my words. Even if I was weaker than them, Orcs were a race that could make me their leader if I fulfilled their desires.

“······.”

The chiefs looked at Zinogre with greedy eyes.

Now there was only one thing he could say.

“How can I believe that it’s not a lie, human?”

I raised my right hand and signaled.

A wagon came out of the Imperial Army’s formation. The driver stopped the wagon at a place far away from us, and he also moved far away and held a bow.

The driver shot a fire arrow at the wagon, and the fire arrow hit one of the six wooden barrels in the wagon’s cargo hold.

Fwooooom!

With a roar, flames and smoke burst out in all directions.

“······!”

The Orcs all ducked without exception.

Thud, thud, thud…

The soil and gravel swept away by the explosion rained down.

‘Weak.’

I clicked my tongue inwardly as I looked at the epicenter.

The power was low compared to the loud noise.

As Pasimea predicted, the limitations of the technology were clear.

“······.”

But it was enough to achieve my purpose.

The Orcs opened their mouths as if their jaws would fall off and their pupils shook.

To a race that had only heard about gunpowder weapons, it would be frightening to see something that wasn’t magic but had that much power.

“That’s it.”

I calmly declared, hiding my inner thoughts.

“That is gunpowder, and it is the weapon that will break the Elves’ barrier. Do you think it’s not enough?”

Zinogre straightened up and hardened his expression.

“…The sound is loud, but it’s not enough to break the barrier. The Elves’ barrier is stronger than you think. Even if you detonate it right next to the barrier, it will only be slightly scratched.”

“I suppose so.”

He raised his eyebrows when I readily nodded.

He seemed surprised that the opposition he had thrown out on a whim had worked.

“You’re right. Detonating gunpowder next to the barrier is a futile act. It would only be slightly better than hitting the barrier with a catapult.”

“Then—”

“What if we detonate it under the barrier instead?”

“What?”

“If we cause ground subsidence by causing an explosion under the barrier? Unless the wall is floating in the sky, wouldn’t it collapse?”

Zinogre lost his words and blinked.

I scanned the tribal chiefs once.

“So, what do you think? I’ve shown my hand. All you have to do is choose whether to accept my offer or not. If you accept, I will destroy that hateful barrier that is blocking you.”

The chiefs looked at Zinogre with greedy eyes.

Now there was only one thing he could say.

###

“Haaah…”

An Elf guard on the wall yawned loudly.

“Time doesn’t pass.”

The veteran, who had lived on the wall for hundreds of years, scanned the scenery with a bored and tedious expression, then leaned his spear against the wall and looked to the side.

Next to the veteran, a new recruit stood with his back straight, monitoring the other side of the wall.

“Take it easy.”

“Yes?”

“Take it easy.”

The veteran scoffed.

“This is a place where even the pig-heads [derogatory term for Orcs] don’t care at all. We haven’t been attacked once since the wall was built. You’re only hurting yourself if you work that hard.”

He put his arm around the new recruit’s shoulder and gestured with his chin.

Four armed Elf guards were talking on the wall, a hundred meters away. As if they didn’t feel the two men’s gazes, they were chatting and laughing, exchanging something fun.

The veteran smiled at them.

“There are plenty of guys who can do it for us even if we’re not here, right? So it’s okay to take a break for a while.”

“But…”

“But what?”

“No, it’s nothing!”

The veteran scratched his head at the new recruit’s disciplined attitude.

“Do as you please. I’m going down first.”

He went down the wall before the new recruit could say anything.

The new recruit looked at his back with concern.

He felt like he was left alone on a deserted island.

Hahaha—

There were guards like him in a place far away, but they weren’t comrades.

Their nationalities were different, and they had even fought fiercely just a few days ago.

Even if he put that aside, he couldn’t trust them when he saw them laughing and chatting in a place that was no different from the front line.

Creak—

The new recruit sighed deeply and looked at the sky.

A kite was gliding in the sky.

‘Am I too sensitive?’

When I’m alone, all I can think about is things.

He stood at the end of the wall, recalling what the veteran had said.

“······.”

Looking down at the ground from the wall was dizzying.

The wall had an average height of 27 meters [approximately 89 feet], and it was a continuous wall that stretched between Pantonia and the Elves’ territory.

Was it just high? It wasn’t.

The flow of magic beyond the wall was twisted, so races sensitive to magic were disrupted, ranging from dizziness and disorientation to hallucinations.

The word impregnable was not an empty one.

‘I don’t even need to monitor it in the first place.’

In addition to the defense of the wall itself, the scouts were also excellent.

Like the kite in the sky, there was a familiar [a magical creature bound to a mage] that a magician sent from the rear. The familiar flew through the skies of Pantonia and monitored the movements of Orcs and Goblins.

If they saw any strange movements, they would send a warning in advance.

“Haaam…”

When his thoughts reached that point, the tension in his body eased.

As the veteran said, the wall was safe even without him.

Like his senior, he leaned his spear against the wall and sat on the floor.

His eyes closed as his back touched the wall.

Creak—

The kite watched his figure intently.