System Nemesis - Chapter 84 Up to Speed

Derrick arrived at the goblin’s research center shortly after, but he didn’t directly enter, scared he would interrupt an important experiment.

With that in mind, he simply sent the goblin a mental missive, and just like he had feared, it took an hour before Ylx came to greet outside.

The slave did like the others and bowed in front of Derrick, to which the latter responded with a nod to put him at ease.

“I see you were experimenting. How’s everything going?”

The goblin didn’t shy away and proceeded to explain how everything was going and how much progress he had made.

The talk was complex and Derrick honestly lost half of it, but the general idea was that it was really close to finishing the prototype that would allow him to teleport somewhere on a short distance. He was still amazed by the device he had used in Terra, and he couldn’t wait to own multiple ones and utilize them in warfare.

It would definitely be a trump card that the enemy wouldn’t expect as he was sure that they were either super expensive to the point that one could only own one or two or secretive enough for only the high echelons of society to possess. Either way, it was an amazing advancement.

“Do you need any materials to further your research?”

“I would need magical stones, Master. Their quality doesn’t matter as long as they work and that they are in good shape. It would allow me to create the prototype faster”

“Noted. I’ll leave you to it!”

Derrick left the goblin, which immediately dove back into his research. Now that he had a general idea on what was happening, he went to find Eloise, who should have already gathered the soldiers and should be ready to send them conquering the villages that had declared war against them. Hopefully, he would be able to rescue the diplomats that he had sent, but the hope was slim.

He arrived at the Military Quarters, where he was saluted over and over again, to the point where he almost considered wearing his cloak. He had to say there were some things he missed about his previous loner lifestyle, and not having to salute everyone that recognized him was definitely one of them.

After crossing the entirety of the site, he finally arrived at the main building where Eloise was stationed. He hadn’t bothered sending a mental missive like he had done with Ylx, because he wanted to see how she was faring. This was, after all, a test for her to gain experience.

Not even a second after his arrival did he hear her yelling at what he assumed were her subordinates.

“HOW CAN YOUR SQUAD NOT BE READY?! I’VE ORDERED IT YESTERDAY! YOU EITHER GET THEM IN LINE OR YOU’RE ALL GETTING DEMOTED AND PUNISHED, UNDERSTOOD?”

“YES GENERAL”

He hadn’t entered the building yet, and he saw soldiers hurriedly leaving, visibly looking terrified. It seemed like the newbie had grown some fangs…

“WHO DARES COMING BACK?! IT BETTER BE FUCKING IMPORTANT!”

Eloise had heard the footsteps, and she was clearly in a foul mood, not wanting anyone to disturb her. Derrick had no clue why, but the situation made him giggle. It had been a long time since anyone had chewed him out like this.

When she heard the giggle, Eloise went berserk, and started shouting at the unknown visitor. However, she never turned her around, still focusing on a map that identified all the targets she had to take down.

“WHO THE FUCK COMES IN AND LAUGHS WHEN I ASK A QUESTION?! IDENTIFY YOURSELF OR I’LL KICK YOUR ASS INTO OBLIVION!!!”

Derrick couldn’t take it anymore and exploded in laughter, unable to control himself. Eloise was too mad to recognize his voice, and she roared in a furious rage, now turning and seemingly ready to fight.

“YOU DID IT NOW! I’LL KICK YOUR ASS AND BEAT YOU TO A PULP!”

When she finally faced her opponent, her face flushed, and she instantly froze.

“Didn’t you say you were going to kick my ass?”

Derrick couldn’t help but tease her. She had just made a fool of herself, and her current dumb expression was just too much to handle.

“Mas… Master… I… didn’t know…”

She stuttered, and it almost sounded like a plea for mercy, which made Derrick laugh even more. The fiery General really was terrified of this man, and he couldn’t really blame her as he had her life in his hands.

“Don’t worry. I see you’ve had a tough day. How are the preparations going?”

The immediate shift in his tone brought back Eloise from her daze, and she went back to the map, still shook by what had just transpired.

“They are going well, but some Squads are having trouble organizing. It’s glaring that it’s their first campaign… However, I have to say that doing this will definitely be beneficial, as they’ll be more experienced when we march against Terra”

“Growing pains were always going to happen. How about the logistics plan you were working on? Is it ready?”

“Yes, Master. I have calculated that an army of 20 000 soldiers is the bare minimum to take down Terra, but that’s only based on what we know. That number could be much, much higher. Of those 20 000, 2000 need to be cavalry unit and another 1000 should be solely in charge of the logistics. One horse per cavalier and two for each man in the logistics division was what the conclusion I came to if we were to solely rely on manpower, and not magic”

The report was sound, but it also created multiple issues for Derrick.

First, where the hell was he supposed to find 4000 horses?! Buying some in Terra and breeding them afterwards had been his plan, but now… It seemed like he would have to accelerate the ‘magification’ of his army. Still, even with magical stones, he needed to find at least 3000 horses…

“Eloise, this campaign cannot fail. I know I said you could use this to gain experience, but we’re becoming pressed by time. We need more people as our new projects become bigger and bigger, simply unable to keep up with the demand. As for the horses, don’t worry. I’ll find a way to get them”

Derrick hurriedly left the room, and one could hear Eloise gulp behind. She had already been stressed out by the entire thing, and being told that her previous leeway was now considerable shortened had added an extra layer of paranoia to this whole ordeal.

Meanwhile, Derrick continued his tour, and the next step was to go see his Minister, Jack. The horse issue had reminded Derrick that he had asked the old man to build cattle farms. He saw that the stalls had been erected, so he figured that that project was certainly underway as well.

He arrived at the outskirts of Akata, and just like he expected, saw massive construction fields. He quickly found Jack, who seemed anxious to see his Lord.

“Your Highness, what brings you here?”

The tone in his voice made Derrick wonder if something had gone wrong.

“You seem awry. Is something wrong?”

After a few seconds, Jack finally spilled the beans, with his face showing a bit of remorse.

“Your Highness, do you remember the costs we discussed?”