Chapter 38: Territory Defense System
Three months later.
Livia stood at the highest point of the volcano, spreading half her wings against the hot wind, quietly overlooking this territory that had completely changed its appearance.
Three months ago, there was only a solitary volcano, a Red Dragon, and three little dragon cubs who played and fought all day. It was so desolate it couldn't even be considered a decent stronghold.
But now—
Underground Mining Network:
Relying on their innate burrowing skills, the Kobolds had forcibly carved out seven main tunnels connecting the interiors of the three volcanoes. The longest one stretched straight for twenty kilometers, reaching the Fire Dwarves' original underground nest. Luminous moss lined the sides of the tunnels, making them as bright as day. Teams of Kobolds shuttled back and forth carrying ore day and night. The excavated copper and iron ore piled up like small mountains at the cave entrance, reflecting heavy metallic light under the sun.
Forging Workshop:
The Fire Dwarves chose a huge natural cave on the mountainside and transformed it into an all-weather high-temperature forge. Seven lava furnaces burned day and night, their orange-yellow light shining through the cave entrance. The clanging of hammers rang from morning till night with a brisk rhythm, like an entire orchestra performing.
The first batch of equipment they produced had officially come off the line: pointed short spears for the Kobolds, lightweight iron talons for the Fire Hawks, and three small, exquisite practice swords for the three dragon cubs to train with—sharp yet safe.
Aerial Reconnaissance Team:
The Fire Hawk flock implemented a twenty-four-hour shift system. Twelve Fire Hawks circled the airspace every day in groups of three, rotating through three shifts. At the slightest sign of trouble, they would immediately sound the alarm using a special code—
According to the Chieftain's mystical translation:
One 'Gah' = Something's happening;
Two 'Gah-Gahs' = Enemies present;
Three 'Gah-Gah-Gahs' = Run for your lives, we're doomed.
Elemental Labor Group:
Three Fire Elementals awakened from the Lava Lake were responsible for heavy lifting. Usually, they soaked in the magma, but they were on call at all times. Their only drawback was that their IQ was basically zero, and they often did ridiculous things:
Carrying large rocks into the kitchen,
Piling ore in the bedrooms,
Bringing freshly roasted meat into the mine shafts.
Just then, a pale blue system notification popped up before her eyes:
[Territory Defense Value: 47/10,000]
[Servant Loyalty:
Kobolds: 89
Fire Hawks: 92
Fire Dwarves: 85
Fire Elementals... Unable to detect]
Livia stared at that 47 for a long time in silence.
Out of a full score of ten thousand, she only got forty-seven.
Rounding it off, it was basically zero defense.
She closed the panel expressionlessly and continued scanning below.
At the foot of the volcano, the Kobold tribe had moved entirely to a flat area closer to the mine. They used excavated stones to build a row of neat small huts. Animal skins, dried meat, and several strings of colorful small pebbles—supposedly toys for the young—were hanging outside the doors. A few young Kobolds chased and played in the clearing, their yaps sharp and thin, no different from puppies.
Higher up, in front of the Fire Dwarves' forging workshop, a group of bearded little fellows were clamoring around a huge machine.
That thing was none other than the Dragon Breath Fueled Catapult from the blueprints.
Even though Livia clearly hadn't approved it, this group of stubborn Fire Dwarves had secretly built a miniature version, grandly calling it the 'Experimental Type.'
At this moment, several Fire Dwarves were squatting on the ground arguing about the angle.
The leading Fire Dwarf tossed his beard and waved his hand: 'Fire!'
The mechanism clicked, and a clay pot was launched into the sky, tracing a standard parabola and flying 'whoosh' toward a giant rock at the mountain's base—
'Bang!'
Flames exploded, and stone fragments splattered.
The Fire Dwarves immediately hugged each other and cheered, jumping and shouting.
Livia silently withdrew her gaze, pretending she hadn't seen anything.
At the cliff on the mountainside, several new simple perches had been added below the Fire Hawk nests. Twigs and hay were mixed with thin vines, making them sturdy and windproof. A few Fire Hawks were comfortably lying on them sunning their wings, their feathers fluffy and eyes half-squinted, occasionally letting out a satisfied 'Gah—'. Their lives were more leisurely than a dragon's.
A bit further away, three Fire Elementals were lined up, carrying large blocks of ore toward the forging workshop.
Reaching the entrance, the one in front suddenly turned for no apparent reason.
The two behind followed suit without hesitation.
The three Fire Elementals, holding the stones, marched in unison into the kitchen.
Three seconds later, a dull thud came from the kitchen, accompanied by the sound of pots and pans flying everywhere.
Livia didn't even lift an eyelid.
She was already used to it.
She turned and walked back to the nest.
In the main hall, the three little dragon cubs were each busy with their own tasks, not disturbing one another, presenting a scene that was both harmonious and ridiculous.
Kalendil was squatting by the lava pool on the east side, exerting all his strength to practice flame control.
He was determined to breathe out the platinum Dragon Breath with maximum lethality like his mother, and he obsessed over the temperature every day. Although he hadn't succeeded yet, the lava pool was bubbling wildly under his heat, and waves of hot air were turning the entire nest into a sauna.
Valerion was lying in the stone room on the west side, still wearing the 'iron spine' cloak woven by the Kobolds.
The wound on his back had long since fully healed. The newly grown scales were thicker, harder, and darker than before, shimmering with a solid light. At the moment, he was practicing seriously against a pile of rubble—not chewing them, but crushing them.
He held his breath, his claws gradually applying force, until finally, a small stone was crushed with a 'crack.'
The little fellow held up the two halves of the stone, looking at them repeatedly against the sunlight from the cave entrance, a silly little smile quietly appearing on his chubby face.
Aetheriel was squatting on the northern heights, with sparks in his left eye and electric arcs in his right, staring intently at the tip of his tail.
The broken tail tip had finally grown back, the color exactly the same as before without getting lighter. He was attempting a high-difficulty maneuver—simultaneously controlling fire and electricity to make the two forces interweave stably at the tip of his tail.
'Zzt—Boom!'
Fire and electricity collided, exploding into a tiny spark.
When the smoke cleared, Aetheriel looked down.
The tip of his tail was bald in a small patch again.
But he wasn't discouraged in the slightest. He flicked his tail, continued staring, and kept trying.
Livia lay down in the very center of the main hall, quietly watching the three cubs.
Just then, a system notification popped up unexpectedly again.
[Territory Defense Value: 48/10,000]
[Kobold Loyalty +1, Current: 90]
Livia was slightly startled.
How did it suddenly increase by one point?
She looked down through the cave entrance and saw the Kobold Chieftain leading a group of clansmen in some mysterious ceremony at the mine entrance.
A circle of Kobolds sat in a ring with a small bonfire lit in the middle. Everyone bowed their heads toward the fire, chanting something with expressions of utmost devotion.
And in the very center of the fire, something was firmly planted.
A wooden stick with a dog's leg bone tied to the top.
The scepter she had casually stuck at the cave entrance, which the Kobolds had later enshrined as a divine artifact.
Livia stared at that crooked scepter with its long-dried shreds of meat for a very long time.
She closed the system panel expressionlessly, lay back down, and closed her eyes.
The sounds from outside drifted in layer by layer:
The 'Gah-Gah' of the Fire Hawks echoed from afar,
The clanging of the forging workshop rang out,
The rhythmic prayers of the Kobolds were faintly audible,
And from the kitchen, a dull thud caused by a Fire Elemental would occasionally sound.
She gently opened one eye and glanced at the three cubs beside her who were focusing on their tasks.
Kalendil was still heating the pool, Valerion was still crushing stones, and Aetheriel was still struggling with his own tail.
Livia closed her eyes again.
The corner of her mouth curled up very slightly and faintly.
It was so slight it was almost invisible, as shallow as a breeze passing over lava.
This messy, noisy, little scrap of a territory with a defense value of only 48.
It seemed... actually quite nice.