CORE Vol. 3 pt. 13

((As much as it pains me to not be consistent and post every single chapter in the exact same way, I figure that I really shouldn't be posting chapters that don't have tables in them as PDFs. So, enjoy! From now on, no more PDF chapters unless I have to make them PDFs for formatting reasons, such as including tables. I think this will be welcomed change, anyways. I'll just do my best to not feel OCD about inconsistent chapter formats.))

We – or rather, Lucia, ended up experimenting with the slime and milk after that. She took a couple new buckets specifically made for her by Novla, mixed the milk and slime together with different ratios in each bucket, and then allowed them to sit for a couple of days. While we experimented with that, Deta and the other survivors moved into the new territory prepared for them.

I stood there and watched as they all came to move into their new home. They brought very little belongings with them aside from some tools and treasures. And by treasures, I mean their favorite rocks. If you remember what I originally told you about kobolds and those who grow from them, they are a species – well, mountain kobolds are, that love digging and finding shiny treasures. Rocks, gems, metals – it is almost as if they can sniff out these valuable resources and they hoard them for the sake of hoarding them. The rarer the mineral, the happier they are. That was why Corra originally loved to hold and carry me around back when I was but a small dungeon core.

Now, let us go back just a bit to when the survivors first arrived. Right before they actually started to move into their new homes.

When all of the survivors came to their new home, I was there to greet them. Deta, with the remaining kobolds, aurbolds, and mahaguins, stood before me. Both Corra and Novla were by my sides as I figured that it would be good to have them with me for this occasion. The Obsidian Guard was also on standby behind us so that they would find comfort in their presence after having been saved by them. Corra was there for the same reason, but I had her upfront with me as she was, admittedly, better at talking. Not to mention that she was once one of their kind. And that was why I had Novla with me. As a former member of their village, who better to have with us than a familiar face?

That was Lucia’s logic, anyways. She offered the suggestion that the survivors would appreciate seeing those who saved them and familiar faces. It would make them feel “more at home,” in Lucia’s words.

As for whether or not it actually worked out that way… well.

Most of the survivors stared at us in awe. To be more specific, they stared at me in awe. They pushed each other around to try and get to the front of their group to look at me while maintaining a respectful distance. They looked at me not like I was a man so much as I was an object of worship. An object, mind you. Not a living being worthy of worship. An object – an item of worship.

Corra was not able to tell the difference and could not have been happier to see their reaction, though.

“Look, my lord! An introduction is not even needed!” Corra shouted with her arms extended away from her sides. “All it took was a single look to know that you are worthy of their devotion! Ah… it reminds me of when I first met you, my lord.” She pulled in her arms so that she could wrap them around my right arm, resting her head against my bicep. “But no matter how much they may wish to devote their entire lives to you, it is important for them to understand that I was here first and that their devotion could never surpass mine.” She even rubbed her cheek against my arm like an animal trying to mark something with their scent.

“Ahti was here first,” I said.

“We-well… yes, she may have been here first, but… I was the first kobold! And the first non-golem in general! Therefore, I was still here first… under specific circumstances. So long as all of these new arrivals understand that, everything shall be fine! I will gladly instruct them on how to best serve you! Of course, there will be tasks that only I can do for you, still.”

“What do you do that nobody else does?” Do keep in mind that I was not trying to be cruel or anything of the sort. I was simply clarifying things.

“Well… I – I sleep with you!”

“Ahti sleeps with us as well.”

“Well… I… can shoot flames!”

“So can my pyre emperor.”

“Then what about… spreading your name and glory to all who can listen, whether they wish to listen or not?!”

Rather than answer myself, it was Dian who spoke up from the back. “Only because you do it before the rest of us ever have a chance to.”

“See?! My lord! That still counts! If I do it before anybody else gets a chance to, then it still counts as something only I can do!”

“Hey, look,” Sidi spoke up. “Our lord is great.”

“Y-you – are you – are you challenging me?! And how dare you praise our lord with such a trivial attempt! Our lord—”

“Corra,” I said, “be respectful. Sidi tried her best and deserves praise for doing so. Especially because it was her first time.”

Corra puffed up her cheeks and looked like she was ready to whine, but she forced herself to hold it back. “Very well. Then… then… something that only I do for you… is umm… I… well… I—…”

“You are missing the obvious, Corra.”

“What, my lord? There is nothing I can do that the others are not already—”

“Nobody else can be you. No matter how hard somebody may try, it is impossible for anybody but you to be Corra.”

Corra had started looking depressed over her apparent realization, but any negative feelings were quickly washed away as her cheeks turned red with embarrassment and… a certain other emotion. “M-my lord! I – I am grateful to receive your praise, but is – in front – in front of everybody? Are you sure that—”

“I will praise you whether we have an audience or not. Just as they must all learn my name and know to praise me, the same is true of you and all the others. I cannot be the only one who is honored.”

“My lord… you are too much! How – how am I supposed to resist wanting to demonstrate my love in front of everybody when you make me feel so blessed?” She pressed her chest up against my arm while bringing the back of my hand… against her crotch. It was similar to the last time she made use of my body for her pleasure after losing control of her restraint. “My lord – my lord!”

“Elder CORE,” Novla said from my other side, “I don’t mean to… interrupt, but… maybe now isn’t the best time to let her be like this? In front of everybody?”

“Is there a problem with it?” I asked.

“Well, I… guess not.”

“CORE. I will not tell you to stop her, but perhaps remind her of the fact that you have an audience? I know that she implied she is aware she is being watched, but I am not sure if she truly realizes it. Perhaps a gentle reminder for her own sake would be appreciated by her,” Deiti suggested.

I didn’t understand what the problem was, but I did understand that if both Novla and Deiti were concerned, then perhaps I should actually say something about it.

If only Deiti was concerned about it, though, then I probably would have let it continue.

“Corra,” I said.

“Ye-yes! My lord?” Corra replied, her cheeks flushed and her breathing heavy as her hands held onto me as tightly as they could.

“Look at everybody watching us.”

“You – you want me to… while looking at them? My lord! That is so – so—”

“Look at them.”

Corra gulped and turned her head to look out at the crowd packed into the tunnel. She slowly pushed my hand away from her crotch after that. Now that she was reminded of just how many monsters there were actually watching us, she let go of my arm, straightened out her dress, and cleared her throat. “As – as I was… saying. Yes, as I was saying. I was saying… that… it… is time for you to all witness just how truly wonderful and great my lord is!” With that, she stepped aside and to the back a little while clapping her hands.

Fortunately for Corra, Deiti was on her side. “I may be stuck with you instead of her, but I can still feel how embarrassed she is. Please, for her sake and mine, but mostly for hers since I know you are not likely to do this if it is mostly for mine… go and give a grandiose introduction to assert your dominion over your new followers so that they may be distracted and forget what they just saw. After all, they no longer belong to Deta. All who you see before you now serve you, CORE. It is only right that you properly introduce yourself! You do not want their first memories of staying within your territory to be of Corra’s embarrassment, do you?”

I could not argue with that even if I wanted to. I did not want Corra’s embarrassment to be their first memory, and I did want them to hear a proper introduction from me.

So that was what it was time for.

I took a step forward, held my head high, and extended my arms out past my sides.

Hmm. Is that a good way of describing it? I was tempted to put, “I held my arms out to them,” but that would imply holding my arms in front of me, I feel. Whereas “out past my sides” implies a more… forming a “t” shape with my body. A “t-pose,” if you will. Perhaps that is what I should call it from now on! Yes, I t-posed before them!

…

No. I do not like the sound of that after all. It sounds… silly. I will have to stick with saying that I held my arms away from my sides, or something like that. You get the point regardless.

With my arms… in position, I looked over the gathered crowd and shouted out to them! “Welcome! From this day on, you are no longer servants of Deta. Each and every last one of your lives shall belong to me! But fear not, for I am a ruler who wishes for the best for my subjects. Who you are and what you have done prior to this day matters not. All that matters is what you accomplish and how you live while underneath my rule.”

“All of those speech lessons in your dreams have paid off,” Deiti said as I gave a moment for the crowd to react. That was something else she taught me. I shall teach you this now as well! When giving a speech, you must take breaks to allow the audience to respond! To cheer and clap! To shout praises in your name!

Admittedly, my audience at the time was not exactly the most responsive as they had never heard a speech before and thus were not aware that they were supposed to be cheering for me, but I could see it in their eyes.

Passion. Determination. Admiration. Obsession because they saw me as a rare mineral instead of a man. All of these could be seen within their eyes!

“For those of you not yet aware, hear my name now and never forget it! I am CORE! Spelled with all capitals! I am the emperor of this volcano! I will defeat all who wish to harm us! I will conquer all who wish to see us destroyed! Whether they be humans or the ancients from the depths of this very world, I will not allow any to interfere with our way of life!”

Slowly, they changed from looking at me like an object to looking at me like a man – like their ruler. They even looked around and talked among themselves which, at first, I was not sure how to feel about. It could have easily been taken with offense as an insult showing that they were not paying attention to me, but closer inspection revealed that they were excited. They were not excited, they were inspired.

“Hear me now! For as long as you serve me, you will be required to treat one another with kindness, respect – you will live for one another as much as you live for yourselves. Your life is not more important than anybody else’s. We are all family here, and I expect you to treat one another as such! Together, as a single family, we will not allow anybody to break us. And should they try, as I am sure they will, we will form a single shield against them! We will push them back and ensure that they never again try!”

If there was one thing I was good at after practicing giving speeches with Deiti on an almost nightly basis, it was – well, giving speeches. I had hardly any experience with giving them but plenty of practice.

However, if there was one thing that I was not good at…

“That is all.”

… it was ending them.

We never quite focused on the ending part of speeches.

And now I shall end this chapter with just as much grace.

…

I am joking, of course.

Now then, while my new subjects may not have had a grand reaction to my speech, they expressed their excitement via their tails slapping against the ground as they talked with loud voices to one another.

They looked hopeful.

After having so many of their friends and family members killed, after having their village destroyed by enemies that they had no hope of defending against…

They looked hopeful. If my speech was able to inspire hope within their souls once more, after everything they went through, then that was enough for me. It showed me that they were not cowards who had given up on life – that they still had a fighting spirit within them. There were some who did not share the same hope, but they simply needed time. They needed a safe place where they could recover surrounded by those who wished to help. With enough time, surrounded by friends and family who wished them the best, they, too, would recover.

Deta was the only member of the audience who did not seem that excited over my speech, but he did keep his head low and remained quiet.

That aside, there was one more thing I had to say to them. “This is your home now, so welcome home, my subjects!”

And after that, they were guided into the dark, cramped tunnels I prepared for them.

Yes, I purposely made that sound bad because I think it is amusing. I welcomed them home only to then direct them into living conditions that most would consider cruel and unethical. That was exactly what they liked, though, and they could not have been any happier to see their new home.

What matters is that they were happy regardless of how small their new living space might have been.

And now I had over two hundred new lives to serve me. That also meant more than two hundred new lives to take care of, to feed, and to protect, but the expansion of my territory and dungeon were about to ramp up because of the work they would soon be providing.