Cataclysm #1

 

A month later.

The lab has been completely transformed.

The village’s orcs have been mobilized to take care of every little detail of the facility, and it is now fully functional.

“Welcome, Estelle! The warrior orc is also welcome.”

When we stopped by the lab, Mark greeted us.

This guy has been given a new position as the director of the Undead Research Institute.

Because he was as smart and responsible as Jonathan, I thought he was enough to make me do the work.

“You can look around as much as you want. I did exactly what Estelle asked me to do, and I did it 100%. No, I did it 120%, 200%! This is what happens when you give Mark a job. No matter what you ask him to do, he does it better than expected.”

Mark, who was following me closely, kept spitting and talking nonstop.

This guy is good in every way, but the problem is that he is overflowing with self-promotion.

Well, I guess you could just look at it as cuteness.

“It’s much cleaner than I expected! Everything is white and sparkling. Mark, good job.”

“Of course, warrior orc. Our lab is incredibly meticulous about cleanliness. We must always maintain a spotless hygiene. It’s not just about looking good; uncleanliness can interfere with the production process.”

The floor of the laboratory was so shiny that you could see your face reflected in it.

It wasn’t that, but subordinate skeletons were constantly sweeping and cleaning all over the lab.

Next to them, orcs in white doctoral gowns hold charts and seriously examine data. They also wear glasses, which seems out of place.

They are quite intelligent orcs.

“Undead research and experiments take place on the first basement level. We conduct tests under various conditions to produce superior undead.”

We walked down the hallway and observed the experimental site through the glass windows on either side.

Researcher Oak is tearing off a small piece of zombie flesh with tweezers and pouring a corrosive liquid over it.

Researcher Oak, who noticed us, stopped what he was doing and quickly saluted.

“Good work. Keep doing what you’re doing.”

Jonathan nodded.

“Warrior Orc, Estelle. Next, I will guide you to the second basement level, the undead production line.”

Mark led the way, and Jonathan and I followed him down the stairs.

The second basement level was much larger than the first. The high ceilings and open space were filled with constantly moving conveyor belts and various large machines.

“First of all, this is a zombie production line.”

Clink, clank—

Zombies poured out of the machine without stopping.

By assembling meat dough, bones, and internal organs, a humanoid form is created, and then by dropping a drop of the command magic reagent into it, it becomes alive and moving.

“They’re all dead? Aren’t these just corpses?”

Jonathan squinted and touched one of the zombies.

At that moment.

“Kiyak—!”

“Oh, oh! This guy!”

At Jonathan’s touch, one of the completed zombies suddenly reared up.

Jonathan hid behind me in horror.

“Hahaha, the warrior orc is surprisingly timid. It’s okay. They’re our zombies. Orcs don’t attack. Oh, and of course, Estelle too.”

“Damn it! Tell me in advance that I’ll move if you touch me. My heart almost sank.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know the warrior orc would be this surprised.”

Jonathan brushed his chest, his face flushing slightly in embarrassment.

“How many zombies have you made?”

“About two thousand so far. We exceeded our production target of one thousand five hundred. I think we can make about five hundred more. Just provide enough materials. We need a lot, a lot of animal carcasses.”

“Don’t worry about that. The brothers in the village will continue to hunt and send you.”

Zombies are the weakest undead. They move slowly and clumsily, and are unable to use weapons effectively.

At best, they approach slowly, bite, and scratch with their nails.

However, their true value lies not in their individual strength. While each individual is weak, the overwhelming force of the Meat Shields is undeniably powerful.

‘If they take the enemy’s attack, other core forces will be preserved.’

We toured the next production line.

“This is where we make skeletons.”

Mark said, tapping the machine as it spun around with a loud noise.

“I’m creating three types of skeletons. One is a warrior skeleton. It carries a sword in one hand and a wooden shield in the other. It’s weaker than our orcs, but still quite useful. It’s also used for menial tasks around the lab.”

The skeleton-making process uses only bones. The bones are cleaned of any fat or flesh attached to them, then ground and polished to enhance durability before being transformed into skeletal soldiers.

“What about the other two?”

“These are wizard-type skeletons and archer-type skeletons, warrior orcs.”

From here on, the manufacturing process becomes more difficult and the cost increases significantly.

Even though he is a wizard, he can only use the most basic magic, the magic bullet, but he should never be underestimated.

These guys are just like zombies. While each one is weak, when they gather together, they can fire a barrage of magical bullets, creating a massive barrage.

The same goes for Skeleton Archers. These undead ranged units will bombard enemies from afar.

“Okay, this is where it gets real. You can look forward to it. Up until now, it was just undead rags.”

As we moved further into the inner area, the facilities became more sophisticated, while the production scale conversely decreased.

If the undead we just saw were literally mass-produced like factory products, then the undead in this area are masterpieces, each one meticulously crafted.

As we arrived, a new undead had just been created.

An undead warrior, armed with heavy armor from top to bottom. However, the head that should have been on its neck was missing.

Mark tapped the shoulder of the newly created undead.

“Durahan. This one guy can take on ten Skeleton Warriors. He’s a monster.”

The Dullahan is classified as a mid-level undead and is the main force of the undead army.

While skeletons and zombies can be created using only corpses and simple command magic, Dullahan uses bloodstones in addition to that.

The bloodstones that Kamula had diligently collected were shining here.

“And over there are the Wraiths. Ghostly undead. Aren’t they scary, warrior orcs?”

“Is there anything there? It’s blurry, so I can’t see it well….”

“Hehe, that’s right. It’s amazing. It flutters and flutters. It sneaks up behind the enemy and strangles them.”

The undead army joined by Dullahan and Race is too powerful for any army to handle.

From here on out, even the Empire needs skilled combat troops to deal with it.

“Mark. This isn’t the end, is it?”

As I started to talk, Mark grinned, baring his molars.

“That’s right. I still have a secret weapon left. Follow me.”

“What else is left?”

“You’ll be amazed, warrior orc. I’ll show you a masterpiece that Estelle specially commissioned.”

Mark guided us into the innermost section of the production line.

Inside, research orcs were watching the circular capsules. There were four capsules in total.

“It’s a Death Knight. We invested an incredible amount of resources. It almost uprooted the pillars. But it was worth it.”

Inside the capsule, a muscular, large man with pale blue skin was floating in the culture medium.

Next to it, a huge iron hammer and a piece of armor with a black sheen are displayed.

This is the Death Knight of the Hammer.

In addition to these, there are Death Knight with a Greatsword, Death Knight with a Large Shield, and Death Knight with a Whip.

At this point, the four Death Knights are the most powerful force in our undead army.

“I haven’t tested their combat prowess yet. Calculations suggest a single Death Knight can take on five hundred Skeleton Warriors. However, it’s likely they’ll be even stronger in reality.”

“Wonderful! Ohhh⋯.”

Jonathan let out a soft gasp of surprise.

“With this, even Camula can beat him. He looks strong! Good job, Mark!”

“Of course I did a good job, but it’s all thanks to Estelle. I just did what Estelle told me to do.”

Mark shrugged.

The plan to cultivate an undead army has finally gotten on track.

The first opponent to test that power would, of course, be Camula.

***

Around the same time.

The Kamula Army in the northern fortress was not just sitting around leisurely.

‘The Orc slave colony has rebelled against Lady Kamula.’

The skeleton butler maintained a blank expression, but anger was seething inside him.

‘Ungrateful bastards who don’t even know the kindness we’ve received so far.’

They provided shelter for them to live together, and sometimes even provided food to prevent them from starving to death.

But then, they rose up and said they would repay that kindness with enmity.

Of course, this was strictly Camula’s position. It was somewhat different from the position of the orcs who were exploited and dying every day in the mines.

‘And then they took over Richie’s lab and even used that monster as their power…’

It’s a series of bad news.

The necromancer who incited the orcs to revolt was clearly no ordinary man.

“However, our Kamula Army will not remain stuck in its old ways forever. We can win now.”

The opponent must have challenged Camula, believing in the power of Alice, the monster of the laboratory.

Of course, that number has already been read.

So, Camula launched a preemptive strike like lightning before the opponent could even respond.

Quick and easy is always a valid strategy.

Alice’s current location has already been confirmed. Camula personally led the army to suppress them.

“With Kamula’s might, and the elite strength of our army behind us, we can’t possibly lose.”

We’ve mobilized 90% of our current available power. Even for the monsters of the lab, this fight won’t be easy.

However, since most of the power was led by Kamula, it was inevitable that the castle’s defenses would be weakened.

“It’s okay. There’s no problem. The enemy’s entire force is Alice anyway. They won’t have the energy to target her true nature.”

The butler looked at the distant sky from the watchtower of the empty castle.

The master trampled the repulsive orcs, and even the monster Alice knelt at his feet, waiting for him to return with the news of victory.

But why does a corner of my heart feel strangely uneasy?

The undead butler doesn’t have hot blood flowing through him. He doesn’t even have a beating heart. Yet, the source of the unease he feels is…

“Don’t waste your time thinking! The Master will always win.”

The butler shook his head vigorously.