Empire Builder 1: Breed, Populate, Conquer by Dante King (free e books to read online txt) 📕

The vision faded.

Ben looked around him, giddy from the experience of having his senses usurped by this crystal. He slowly got to his feet.

Melody looked at him with concern. “Are you alright, my sweet?”

Ben put a hand on her arm and smiled at her. He breathed in deeply. “I’m more than alright.”

He turned to look at Sir Gallant the Elder. “What did this crystal show me, Sir Gallant?”

“The Dark Lord, our Forgotten Ruler, you sire, before you left,” the knight broke off, looking for words. “On the eve of your final battle, sire, you knew that you would suffer defeat. You stored the many components of your empire in these crystal relics.”

“What did I store in them? How do these relics work?” Ben spoke with impatience.

“Some relics contain your former powers, my lord. Some contain places, buildings, landmarks. Some contain persons important to your rule.”

“Persons? People? You mean I put people in the crystals?”

Sir Gallant gave a squeaky nod of his rusted helm. “That you did, Lord Ben. They await your return in slumber.”

Ben thought back to the vision he’d seen when he first picked up his scimitar from the first mountain ogre he’d killed. A master of swordcraft had told Ben to find him. Maybe he could be found in one of these relics.

His thoughts turned toward the tower from the vision. Aside from being the coolest looking dark lord’s tower Ben had ever seen, it would be much more comfortable to sleep in than the hut in the village. He didn’t yet know what to expect from a winter here in the north, but he was sure they’d have to move out of that hut before long.

They hadn’t yet established that they would be remaining here, but the knowledge Sir Gallant the Elder had imparted meant that there was no other choice. The dungeon here contained relics that Ben could use to rebuild his empire at a rapid pace, and there would be no reason to go elsewhere until he had mined the place’s depths. After that, he could venture out into the world and expand his dominion. This would all need to be communicated to Melody, of course. But that could be done later.

He cast a quick glance at the nymph women and wondered whether they would play a part in his budding empire. They would likely go home to their people at some point. It was a pity. They seemed intelligent and capable, two qualities which would serve him well in his ambitions.

And what better place to carry out said ambitions than in a tower like the one he had seen in the vision?

“How do I get the tower back?” Ben asked Sir Gallant the Elder as he stared into the crystal.

“You did not give me instructions on how to use the relics, sire,” the knight explained, his tone apologetic. “Perhaps that is something you must rediscover for yourself.”

Ben looked up at him.

The knight put his hands up defensively. “I meant no offense by that, sire. I can offer no further aid in this matter.”

Ben laughed, taken slightly aback at the knight’s excessive politeness. “No offense was taken, Sir Gallant. No doubt you are right. I was able to activate the first relic I received without any instructions. Now is obviously not the right time or place, however. I wouldn’t want the tower popping up in the middle of the dungeon here.”

“I can look after it for you,” Melody offered, opening the pouch where she stored her mana crystals.

“Please do.” Ben handed the crystal to the beautiful catgirl, who stowed the relic in her seemingly bottomless pouch.

Ben looked around him, and felt another rumble from his empty stomach. “For now, it is time that we get back to the village. Sir Gallant, you will accompany us, won’t you?”

The knight put a hand to his chest in surprise. “You want me to accompany you, lord? But that would be too great an honor.”

Ben nodded. “If you will obey my commands, I can think of ways you could prove very useful back at our village. I don’t need you running the dungeon just now. You would be more helpful guarding our settlement as a sentry.”

“It would be a pleasure, Lord Ben. And can my younger companion accompany us also?”

Ben sighed. “I suppose he can come too, if he promises to behave himself. Nipper.” He turned to address the great cat. “Put the poor knight down and let him go.”

Nipper growled playfully and spat the tiny statue out against the steps.

Sir Gallant the Younger got to his feet and stamped indignantly, attempting to scrape sticky slobber off himself, to no avail.

Sir Gallant the Elder faced his younger self. “Our Forgotten Ruler has invited us to return with him to his settlement, but only if you promise to behave yourself.”

Sir Gallant the Younger laughed when he heard this.

“I shall kick you to that cat as its plaything again if you misbehave,” Sir Gallant threatened.

“Please no, anything else,” the younger knight pleaded. “My armor shall be ruined if it gets any more of that monster’s saliva on it.”

“You shall have worse things to worry about than rusty armor if you misbehave,” the elder knight warned.

Ben smiled to himself, satisfied that these two would be too busy bickering with each other to cause him any difficulties back at the village.

He turned to Melody and the three nymphs. “Let’s get back. It’s time to start building my new empire.”

Chapter Twelve

Ben returned to the village among the ruins with his growing band of followers. While they’d made their way back through the dungeon, they encountered no more monsters, but Ben did harvest some of the glowing cores from the walls in the plant area of the dungeon. On the way back through the forest, Vinata took them on a slight detour where they found more roots for them to take as supplies.

During the return journey, Nipper pricked up his ears and alerted them to