An Opponent Whose Conventional Thinking Is Unconventional

"Medivh is dead."

The Blood Crow Captain suppressed his anger and gave an impatient reply.

Someone was likely scheming against them right now—he had no mind to care about the employer's task.

"And the corpse?"

The intermediary pressed on. This time, the employer had added a demand: see the body to confirm the kill, lest Medivh slip away again.

"I said he's dead, so he's dead!"

The Blood Crow Captain fixed the intermediary with a cold stare.

A corpse examination was out of the question. Before taking the job, he hadn't even been sure whether that Necromancer was Medivh.

If he really was, would he be so kind as to let them inspect the body?

If not, then Medivh was dead, and his word was final.

"Then he's dead."

The sudden surge of killing intent sent a chill down the intermediary's spine.

Only then did he remember this was the Odyssey Region. He quickly swallowed the words he'd been about to say and congratulated the Blood Crow Captain on completing the employer's task.

The intermediary had no idea what had gotten into the Blood Crow Captain. He hurried out, lest he become a target of his wrath.

As he left the hall, he ran into a black-clad woman with a scantily dressed, alluring figure.

The intermediary didn't dare steal a second glance, for this woman was the infamous Black Widow of the Pioneer Territory, the Blood Crow Mercenary Group's second vice-captain, Night Crow.

Countless mercenaries had lost themselves in Night Crow's beauty, only to vanish without a trace.

"Captain, I've looked into it. White Crow didn't die at those people's hands."

Night Crow sat directly on the table, crossing her legs, drinking water as she reported her findings.

She had investigated that restless mercenary group—they weren't targeting the Blood Crows, and White Crow had no dealings with them.

"Then where the hell did he die?"

The Blood Crow Captain muttered, chin resting on his hand, his gaze not drawn to the tempting sight before him.

He knew Night Crow well. He understood that tasting this enticing rose would leave him bleeding.

He'd learned that lesson before, but the price had stung. Better to find a docile, free slave.

"Captain, we found a large fortress in this area, packed with skeletons."

The Blood Crow Captain had sent out more than just Night Crow. Other scouts were combing the Wilderness.

One scout had sent word back: they'd found the skeletons' lair: Kurd City.

Whether White Crow had died in Kurd City, the Blood Crow scouts couldn't confirm.

Even if the undead were weak, a thousand skeletons clustered together wasn't something a few ordinary scouts could handle.

"Interesting. When did a bunch of undead show up here, and quietly build a fortress?"

After hearing the scout's description of Kurd City, both Blood Crow and Night Crow wore expressions of surprise.

In the Odyssey Region, a fortress this orderly? Those undead had some skill!

Compared to Kurd City, the Blood Crow Mercenary Group's long-established camp looked like a ruin.

"So, White Crow died at the hands of a bunch of skeletons?"

The Blood Crow Captain speculated in a mocking tone. Like everyone else, he saw the undead as synonymous with weakness and didn't believe White Crow could have died there.

That was a normal person's judgment. Out of a hundred people, ninety-nine point nine would agree with him.

After all, the abysmal track record of Necromancers and various undead in recent years was plain for all to see.

The most ridiculous incident involved a Necromancer apprentice being captured by a few Goblins. By the time others rescued her, she was already pregnant with a Goblin's spawn.

That event had turned Necromancers into a complete laughingstock.

"Let me have a go at that Necromancer."

Though his instincts told him not to believe it, White Crow had gone after the Necromancer, and now White Crow was missing while the undead remained. Kurd City was definitely involved.

A Necromancer who could build a large fortress and hold it during a famine was no simple foe. The Blood Crow Captain wouldn't underestimate his opponent; he would go all out.

As for failure, the Blood Crow Captain hadn't considered it. He was a second-rank low-level Knight, among the strongest fighters in the Odyssey Region.

He didn't think leading a force against a bunch of skeletons would end in defeat.

Early the next morning, the Blood Crow Captain led his mercenaries out of the Pioneer Territory in a grand procession.

Few were left behind at the Blood Crow Camp. As long as they didn't die, no one would likely make a move on it.

After all, a large Thug Gang that had lost its home and plundered without rules was a massive headache. Even the strongest power in the Pioneer Territory wouldn't want to provoke such mad dogs.

"Where's Blood Crow heading?"

Such a large-scale operation naturally drew the attention of other forces in the Pioneer Territory.

They sent scouts to tail the Blood Crow Mercenary Group and uncover their objective.

"Night Crow, clean up the tails."

The Blood Crow Captain didn't want his movements known to all.

Like White Crow, he had his eye on the self-sufficient Kurd with its complete supporting facilities.

He planned to move the Blood Crow Camp there, and didn't want other forces to come snatch his prize.

Of course, even without Kurd, the Blood Crow Captain would still have scouts cleaned up—this was standard procedure for any mercenary group.

After all, everyone was in competition. If any unexpected losses were discovered by other forces, their rivals would surely kick them while they were down and loot the burning house.

Keeping operations secret was the way to survive in the Odyssey.

The Blood Crow Mercenary Group didn't head straight for Kurd. They circled through the Wilderness for several days, only heading to their destination after confirming no tails were following.

The Blood Crow Captain's caution bought Medivh another week of development time.

In that week, Medivh resurrected eight Green Bone Minotaur Skeleton Warriors, one Minotaur Skeleton Shaman, and thirty-two Heavy Skeleton Warriors.

This time, Transcendental Skeletons decreased while Green Bone Heavy Skeleton Warriors increased, because there were no more Transcendental bones from two hundred fifty to three hundred years ago.

After the Odyssey War, not many Minotaur Tribe Transcendentals died, so there were few Transcendental bones from one hundred to two hundred fifty years ago.

This resurrection further perfected the Minotaur Ancestral Totem inheritance, but unfortunately no new Spell Totems appeared.

Those eight Skeleton Warriors advanced to first-tier low-grade Bone Spirits after completing the Ancestral Totem.

Medivh asked Big-Horned Ox for some blood in advance, raising the three resurrected Skeleton Shamans to first-tier.

Unknown enemies could attack Kurd at any time, so Medivh couldn't proceed step by step—he needed to boost immediate combat power.

By the time the Blood Crow Mercenary Group approached Kurd, Medivh commanded one hundred and five first-tier Transcendental Skeletons.

Whether the second-tier low-grade Knight was stronger, or Medivh's Transcendental Skeletons would have the last laugh, the answer was soon to come.

"What a fine stronghold!"

Gazing at Kurd from afar was far more spectacular than the scouts' descriptions.

Construction in Kurd hadn't stopped during this time. Medivh focused on building the Workshop District and West Warehouse District, raising the walls of both areas to eight meters.

Currently, in the Kurd Nine-Grid, the Central District and East Reservoir District had sixteen-meter walls, while the Livestock District and Graveyard District had ten-meter walls.

The Workshop District and West Reservoir District had eight-meter walls, and the three Farmland Districts maintained low walls of one meter.

Kurd's core areas were all within high walls.

He hadn't raised the Farmland District walls for a reason—the Livestock District was currently the main food source.