Swarming Sovereignty

“Which, finally, brings us to the exciting loot.” Lily said.

Lia let out an internal sigh of relief. She hadn’t been expecting the report to be so…thorough. It included things like the number of stalls in the goblin base, an estimation as to the total number of planks used in the wall and the stalls (though Lily admitted that one was likely pretty inaccurate due to the varying construction methods of the stalls), and even an estimation of how much modeling wax could be extracted from the dead bodies of the goblins.

But it appeared that it was finally time for the more interesting things to be listed, something which Lia was looking forward to. Please proceed. She instructed, voice brimming with anticipation.

“I believe it prudent we start with a tally of the goblin cocoons we obtained.” Lily said, pulling her glasses out of her breast pocket and putting them on. “To be precise, we managed to get eight archers, four commanders, forty seven regular goblins, and, of course, the goblin leader. While we were looting the encampment, we finished coating the bodies in modeling wax and are in the process of transferring them back now.”

She pushed up her glasses, despite them not having fallen down in the slightest. “Along with those bodies were thirteen bows and quivers, and the staff and robes of the leader. I took the liberty of appraising the staff and robes, and they seem to give minor bonuses to magic. Nothing fantastic, but serviceable enough for how weak the goblins were.

“And there was some actual dungeon loot in that encampment. There is a set of six weak healing potions, a nonmagical but decent sword, a ring that increases Dexterity by five, and, finally, another staff nearly identical to what the goblin leader was using, if a bit worse.”

Lily took her glasses off and tucked them back into her pocket. “And that concludes the report. What would you have me do now?”

Oversee the organizing of the goods, please. Lia instructed. I want everything you mentioned after the cocoons in a separate pile for me to mess with, and the non-regular goblin cocoons in a pile close to them. Put the goblin cocoons in the general vicinity but not too close. The rest can go wherever you feel is most efficient

“Consider it done.” Lily replied. “I’ll have them placed in the center of camp for your convenience.”

Thank you.

“It is but my duty, my Queen.” Lily replied, giving a little bow before heading back towards where she had come from.

“What now?” Rose asked, an odd tone present in her voice. “Shall we continue, or should we look at our options for conversion first?”

I’ll be honest…well, obviously it’s important to know what we can do, but I get the feeling that the system that’s in place is detailed enough that I could play around with a bunch of different object configurations and get a ton of different results. Especially if I add the Dimension of Discounts to the mix. I’m…well, I’m sort of thinking it might be wise to lay out what I really want for now, and then keep that in mind while I’m looking at my options.

Rose gave her a huge smile. “Excellent decision.” She said. “I was going to suggest the same thing if you didn’t. I’d give you some sort of reward if I had one, but I’m afraid we’re kind of lacking in things I can give you that you couldn’t just…get. So, for now, we’ll have to be satisfied with praise. Good job.”

That…thank you. Lia replied. She was sure a blush would be rising to her cheeks were they not covered in fur, and she was grateful for their help in preventing her emotions from leaking too much.

“So…while they get that set up, what do you want?”

The only thing I know that I want for sure is a scout. Lia said. And, as much as I hate to put another…well, person in danger when we could do things ourselves, I feel it would be best if I enlightened them. It’d just make transferring that information a lot smoother. Then, we can send them out, and, once we get a feel for what sort of monsters are lurking in that area, we can tailor the swarm from there.

“Another sound choice.” Rose agreed. She hesitated, then reached over to Lia’s head and gave it a pat. “Good job.”

The sensation caught Lia off guard, and she flinched a little, causing Rose to draw her hand back quickly. “Was that too much? Sorry, I just thou–”

No, it’s fine. Lia said quickly. You just surprised me. You can…um, do it again, if you want. When I do good, that is.

“Ah, um…good. I’ll…I’ll do that.”

So…what do you think we could combine to make a good scout? Lia asked. I’m at a bit of a loss myself. Like…if we added a bow and maybe like…boots or something? What do you think?

“A bow is good, as are boots, but I’m thinking something like a spyglass and tools to create a map.” Rose said. “That should hopefully get the point across to the system. I don’t see why we shouldn’t just…throw all four in and see what comes out. Well, provided we can get all of that.”

I can maybe make something work with the Dimension of Discounts. Lia said. But I don’t know how expensive this is going to be and I’m kind of strapped for Blood Money right now. I spent a lot to get a search system so I wouldn’t be forced to get lucky in the future.

Rose nodded. “Now that our forces are getting back, I’ll organize some raiding parties and send them out into the market. Hopefully, they’ll be able to catch some stragglers and get you some extra money. We should check and see how much we need, though, just so we know if it’s feasible to even get a spyglass or map. And I’m sure there are some boots lying around in the armor somewhere.”

Yeah, give me a moment to do that…mind carrying me over to the piles while I do?

“Gladly.”

Lia turned her attention away from Rose and opened up the Dimension of Discounts.

Thank you for your continued patronage at the Dimension of Discounts! Would you like to browse the wares normally or use Dimensional Search Engine?

Dimensional Search Engine, and in the future, I’d like to use it unless I say otherwise.

Very well, what are you looking for today?
Enter here:

Uhhh…I don’t really have a way to enter things, but spyglasses?

I’m very sorry, your Dimensional Search Engine level isn’t high enough to search for specific types of objects yet. Please try a broader category, such as “weapons”
Enter here:

Oh, right. Um…scout tools? Is that broad enough?

 Your search is too specific, but the related search “Reconnaissance” is not. Would you like to use that search instead?

Sure.

Very well then. Here are your results:

DD-Brand Invisibility Cloak (100,000 BM):
Those of you who wish not to be seen, look no further! This cloak not only makes you invisible to the naked eye, it also makes you invisible to the clothed eye! This cloak will shield you from any and all visual observation not originating from the user, including observation through scrying, thermal vision, x-ray vision, and anything that can be perceived using eyes or an analogue. This cloak does not provide any more protection than a non-anomalous cloak would, but automatically repairs any damage it sustains, even complete obliteration! This cloak automatically resizes itself to fit its wearer, becoming a full-body suit until taken off.  When not in use, this cloak appears as a nondescript grey rag.
*Does not obscure the vision of the gods.

DD-Brand Smoke Bomb (10 BM):
Get spotted? Never fear, DD-Brand Smoke Bomb is here! Throw this nifty gadget at your feet and watch as a huge plume of smoke erupts, ruining any and all visibility in a small area for the next fifteen seconds!
*Smoke conceals the user’s sight as well. Wear proper eye protection before using.

DD-Brand Spyglass (100 BM):
Like any good spyglass, the DD-Brand Spyglass magnifies distant objects. The DD-Brand Spyglass, however, is highly resistant to wear and tear, stains, and other such annoyances!
*Objects in the spyglass are closer than they appear.

DD-Brand Pocket Golem (1,000 BM):
This miniature golem fits neatly into a pocket, and with some Mana investment, can be piloted remotely! While piloting the golem, the user’s consciousness is ripped out of their body and placed within the golem, allowing them to control it as if it were themselves. This nifty little golem comes with some lockpicking functions, as well as the ability to record a short video and play it back for up to a day after!
*Ensure real body is in a safe place before use.

Traveler’s Boots (500 BM):
These boots make any travel a more pleasant experience by healing any foot injuries from travel, such as blisters or sprained ankles. Furthermore, these boots provide complete protection from stepped on environmental hazards such as caltrops, spikes, quicksand, lava, or even magical traps! Furthermore, the boots repair any damage they sustain near instantaneously!
 *Protection only extends through the boots. Boots cannot repair from complete disintegration.

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The invisibility cloak alone raised several questions. What was x-ray vision? What did “anomalous” mean? Why were over half of the results way out of budget, even with Dimensional Search Engine?

 Price filtering will be unlocked with later levels of the Skill, you’ll just have to wait until then to get it.

Fine, fair enough. Still, it was a little disheartening to see how little a difference it seemed to make. Perhaps it would be best to check page two…

 No, it’s really not. Do you want alcohol? Because there’s alcohol on page 2. That’s how bad it is.

 Why is there alcohol on page two? How does that have anything to do with reconnaissance?

If your enemies are drunk, they are less likely to notice you. Yes, that’s the actual reason, I’m checking the logic behind it right now.

How…

Trade secret. And no, this isn’t a secret you can buy off of me. You’ll just have to wait if you want to know.

Fine. Well, thanks anyway, I don’t…think I can afford any of this, aside from maybe the smoke bomb.

Are you sure about that?

I was? Give me a second. Lia pulled up her status, and, to her surprise, she had just over two hundred Blood Money. When did I get this?

Your swarm exterminated some stray goblins, and I believe you’re getting ten Blood Money a pop from them now. Anyway, you want the spyglass and smoke bomb, or are you going to hold off?

Yeah, I’ll take them, I guess.

Pleasure doing business with you, come again soon!

A spyglass and a grey ball of sorts popped into existence at Rose’s feet, causing her to stop her walk, then look down at Lia. “You were able to get the spyglass, I see. And what’s this…ball thing?”

Something called a “smoke bomb”, apparently. You throw it at the floor and it makes a ton of smoke so you can get away or something.

“Handy. Think you can get more?”

Probably, they’re pretty cheap. We can do that later, though; I just want to see how that interacts with converting stuff.

“It’s probably a pretty easy way to get smoke magic.” Rose mused. “So it’s got that going for it, if nothing else.”

Yeah, probably. This stuff was all under the umbrella of “reconnaissance” when I searched, so it’ll…hopefully get us a decent enough scout. We should maybe even use one of the goblin commanders to get best results. Not that general or mage or…whatever it actually is, but just one of the “normal” commanders. I want to save the mage to make a magic user.

“Yeah, I think that’s for the best. We could probably get something head and shoulders above the mages we already have, which is something I’m all for.”

Oh, and we need a rat, too. Um…we should probably see if Amelia has an extra somehow…

A moment later, a bound rat appeared on the ground next to the items.

Oh. There we have it, then.

Rose crouched down and picked up the stuff on the floor. “I’m not sure how much attention you were able to pay to where we were while you were browsing, but we only have about a minute until we reach where Lily should be placing the stuff. Hopefully she’ll be there, and we can ask her about boots, but no big deal if she isn’t.”

And, like Rose said, it only took around a minute to get reach the center of camp, where a small pile of stuff and another small pile of cocoons were forming. Rose knelt down and let Lia off of her chest before placing the things she was carrying on the ground, growing a thorn out of one of her hands, and then coating the stuff in modeling wax.

It was…kind of like watching a baker use that thing they used to put icing on a cake, but the thorn looked more…rigid, and the icing was modeling wax. Still, it took hardly any time for everything to be coated, at which point, Rose went over to the second smallest pile of cocoons, grabbed one, and brought it over to the cocoons she had made before combining all three. She then grabbed a bow and put it into the mix as well, before turning back to Lia.

“Would you care to do the honors, Lia?” Rose asked. “Or would you rather wait until we can get some boots?”

Might as well see what we can get first, no sense in waiting for boots if we have something perfectly serviceable now. Lia replied, trotting over and opening up the conversion menu. There were the normal options for goblin commanders, but there were a couple of new ones as well.

Swarm Rat Kobold Vanisher:
A Swarm Rat Kobold Vanisher is a special type of kobold that has gained the ability to turn into smoke for short periods of time. This makes them adept at escaping pursuit or getting into otherwise unreachable places, but confers upon them a weakness to wind, even while they are in solid form.

Lesser Swarm Rat Kobold Scoutmaster:
A Swarm Rat Kobold Scoutmaster is a scout that excels in leading other scouts. While they are frail and fair poorly in direct combat, these fast, resourceful creatures are phenomenal at relaying information over long distances, and are able to greatly increase the efficacy of scouts working under them.

Lia didn’t really even need to think about that one. She immediately got the goblin converting into a scoutmaster, then turned to Rose and explained what she had gotten.

“Well, I think that’s…perfect.” Rose said. “Now we just need some other scouts to really get the most out of it.”

We’ll pick them up with time. Lia said. We really only need the one for now, and this one looks like it’ll be more useful in the future. The vanisher was tempting, but…well, that seemed like something that would be good as a scout as a side effect of the other stuff it does, and the scoutmaster is…you know, a scout first.

Rose nodded. “I understand, and likely would have made the same decision were I in your shoes.”

Glad to hear it. Lia said. Now…we really don’t have much to do until the scoutmaster finishes converting and then finishes her scouting mission, so…do you want to go grab something to eat?

“I…am a bit hungry.” Rose admitted. “And I’m curious to see what this food dispenser can do.”

Perfect. Let’s get to it, then!

Fighterman481 I, uh, well, making stuff up for the Dimension of Discounts is unexpectedly hard.

That's...honestly almost everything I have to say for this chapter. That and making new options for conversion are just...surprisingly difficult.

But...well, that's it for me, next time we'll be adding a fourth member to this team, so look forward to it!

And, as always, thanks for reading!