Mysterious Disappearance

Getting revenge on Wester wasn't something he could accomplish in the short term.

Medivh didn't waste time dwelling on him. His top priority was developing Kurd City, strengthening himself, and increasing the number and quality of his Time Skeletons.

The Blood Crow Mercenary Group had been wiped out, but the crisis wasn't over.

Wester could hire the Blood Crow Mercenary Group, and he could just as easily pay a fortune to invite other forces in the Pioneer Territory to deal with Medivh.

Before confronting the Hobarton Family head-on, Medivh could only respond to each move as it came and thwart Wester's schemes.

Every move Wester made came at a cost. He had spent a great deal of money on these two bounties.

The thought of Wester spending a fortune on a bounty and getting nothing for it, left with nothing to do but rage helplessly in Loran City, put Medivh in a good mood.

Fresh corpses were of no use to Medivh. After undergoing special treatment, they were taken to the Underground Palace in the Graveyard District for storage.

After eliminating the Blood Crow Mercenary Group, Medivh continued developing Kurd City according to plan.

He selected Minotaur bones between one hundred and two hundred and ninety years old to smelt into skeleton parts. Minotaur bones younger than one hundred or older than two hundred and ninety years were sent to the Underground Palace for safekeeping.

Kurd City already had a solid foundation. Medivh began making long-term plans instead of smelting every bone he could find.

Heavy Skeleton Warriors revived from Minotaur bones were excellent soldiers.

Using younger Minotaur bones to revive Grey Bone and White Bone Skeletons was a waste. It was better to store them in the Underground Palace and let the passage of time deepen their historical value.

The skeleton army Medivh envisioned would start with Green Bone Skeletons, while Grey Bone and White Bone Skeletons served as logistical personnel, building up his territory.

Odyssey had once been a prosperous region, and the ruins of human Residential Districts were plentiful.

The Skeleton Assassins were constantly scouting beyond the city. Their hand-drawn maps were marked with many red dots, each representing the ruins of a Residential District.

Kurd City had a professional archaeological team. Every night, they went out to excavate bones, providing Medivh with a steady supply of spellcasting materials.

Ordinary human bones were only kept if they were just a few years away from entering the next historical stage. All the rest—Grey Bone, White Bone, and Green Bone—were smelted.

Medivh had great ambitions. He wanted to encroach on the Wilderness and swallow up Odyssey by continually expanding his square districts.

Production of Grey Bone and White Bone Skeletons couldn't stop. The more logistical builders, the better.

"Medivh, these are wheat seeds!"

Not long after Medivh returned to the High Tower, Audrey came running over with a sack.

While sorting through the Blood Crow Mercenary Group's spoils, she had found a batch of high-quality wheat seeds.

The Blood Crow Mercenary Group's scouts had conducted preliminary reconnaissance and knew Kurd City had several plots of farmland.

Before the Blood Crow Mercenary Group set out in full force, Blood Crow had sent his subordinates to buy a batch of wheat seeds at a high price from a settlement in the Pioneer Territory.

Once the Blood Crow Mercenary Group settled in Kurd City, Blood Crow planned to capture some refugee slaves and put them to work in the fields.

A settlement with a stable source of income was far more respectable than a band of thugs who never knew where their next meal was coming from.

Blood Crow hadn't even taken Kurd City yet, but he had packed up all his possessions and prepared to move. That showed just how much he longed for a settlement.

Who would choose to spend every day battered by wind and rain in the Wilderness when they could live in a city with shelter from the elements?

"This really is an unexpected windfall!"

Medivh happily let the golden grains run through his fingers.

He had been wondering how to solve the wheat-seed problem. He hadn't expected the Blood Crow Mercenary Group to deliver them right to his doorstep.

After acquiring a batch of wheat seeds by chance, Medivh immediately assigned a squad of Skeleton Farmers to cultivate fertile fields.

Medivh's future territory would be made up of clusters of Kurd Nine-Grids.

Each Nine-Grid District contained one Residential District, two Reservoir Districts, three Farmland Districts, one Livestock District, one Workshop District, and one Graveyard District.

The three Farmland Districts in Kurd City's Nine-Grid District had already been planted with potatoes.

Medivh had the skeletons open two new Farmland Districts: one in the northeastern corner and another immediately east of the Livestock District in the southeastern corner. They would be part of the second Nine-Grid District.

These two Farmland Districts were near the fully developed East Reservoir District, making irrigation convenient.

No new Farmland Districts had been opened near the West Warehouse District.

The wheat seeds the Blood Crow Mercenary Group had brought were only enough to plant two Farmland Districts, so leaving the land barren would be a complete waste of labor.

"Lord Wester, the intermediary sent word that the Blood Crow Mercenary Group claims to have killed Medivh."

While the skeletons were cultivating the wheat fields, the intermediary delivered the news to Loran City.

This was the second time Wester had heard the Blood Crow Mercenary Group claim that Medivh was dead.

"Where's the body?"

Because of the additional task, Wester had little faith in the Blood Crow Mercenary Group.

When he added the task, he had paid extra and told the intermediary to bring back Medivh's body.

"The intermediary says the Blood Crow Mercenary Group refused to let them examine the body."

Blood Crow had been in a panic at the time. He hadn't even thought of finding a disfigured corpse to pass off as Medivh.

The intermediary had fled in terror. How could they bring Wester the specific body he had requested?

"Did they really think my money was that easy to earn?"

Wester shot to his feet. Even with his usual composure, he couldn't hold back his anger after being fooled time and again.

"Tell the intermediary to keep demanding it. If they can't bring me what I asked for, they can't blame me for ignoring the rules!"

Wester spoke coldly.

The Blood Crow Mercenary Group was in Odyssey, so Wester couldn't conveniently move against them.

The intermediary was different. They were often active in the Gewalt Federation, and Wester had plenty of ways to deal with them.

"What a troublesome client!"

After receiving the reply from above, the intermediary who had been scared off had no choice but to steel himself and go look for Blood Crow.

Their organization couldn't afford to offend that group of nobles. They had certainly mishandled the job, and he could only hope Blood Crow's bad mood had passed.

"Blood Crow isn't at the camp?"

The intermediary couldn't find Blood Crow. There were hardly any mercenaries left at the Blood Crow Mercenary Group's camp.

"Where did Blood Crow go?"

The intermediary made some inquiries in the Pioneer Territory and learned that the Blood Crow Mercenary Group had set out in full force a few days earlier, heading deep into the Wilderness.

Everyone was now watching the Blood Crow Mercenary Group's movements.

If Blood Crow didn't show up soon, the eager factions would devour the Blood Crow Mercenary Group's assets.

With the Blood Crow Mercenary Group out of the picture, other forces would naturally move in to fill the gap.

The intermediary didn't care about the shifting balance of power in the Pioneer Territory.

He only wanted to know where Blood Crow had gone. The employer was still waiting for Blood Crow to answer for the job!

"Did Blood Crow die?"

After waiting a full half month, the Blood Crow Mercenary Group's stronghold had been taken over by other forces, yet neither Blood Crow nor the group's deputy leader and captains had appeared.

It had been over a month since the Blood Crow Mercenary Group had set out in full force.

In these circumstances, it was safe to conclude that the Blood Crow Mercenary Group had died in the Wilderness.

Unable to wait for Blood Crow, the intermediary had no choice but to report the unexpected situation to the organization.

"So they mean Blood Crow has mysteriously disappeared?"

Soon, an urgent message reached Wester.

The intermediary organization knew Wester was losing patience and feared he would turn against them, so they were very prompt in relaying the news.

When Wester received the organization's reply, his expression darkened.

He'd only commissioned a simple elimination job. How had it become so difficult?

First, he'd been fooled repeatedly. Now the Blood Crow Mercenary Group, which had accepted the job, had mysteriously disappeared.

Every elimination job before this had gone smoothly. Why had things gone wrong when it was his turn?