Back in the Obsidian Heart Fortress, the captured Hydraulic Mining Drill stood as a monumental testament to Human persistence. It was a loud, crude, steam-powered behemoth—a machine that relied on brute heat and pressure. It was an embarrassment next to the silent, efficient glow of the Aether Furnace.
This is inefficient. Obsolete. My nation will not use steam; we will use pure energy, I projected, analyzing the drill's complex schematics.
I directed Grave, the Orc Warlord, and Ranga, the Sentinel, to oversee the disassembly of the drill. Grave's brute strength and Ranga's meticulous, obsidian-like hands were perfect for the job.
"The core of the machine is sound, My Lord," Ranga reported, his voice a steady, clear monotone. "But the power mechanism is a mess of boiling water and pressure vessels. It is slow."
"We will remove the steam engine, Ranga. We will replace it with an Aether conduit. I will fuse the [Miniaturized Aether Reactor Design] blueprint into its iron housing, turning the machine itself into a perpetual Aether consumer and amplifier."
The Aether Drill
The process was intricate, requiring me to constantly guide the Warlord and the Sentinel. The Goblins had no understanding of mechanical principles, so every bolt, every gear, had to be carefully separated and then re-forged with focused Aether.
I began channeling Aether into the drill's massive chassis, using my new [Techno-Mage Crafting] skill. This was far more resource-intensive than naming a single monster, as I was imbuing inert material with magical engineering principles.
— AETHER CORE POWER DRAIN: 600 AP —
TARGET: Hydraulic Mining Drill Chassis (Iron/Technological)
INITIATING: TECHNO-MAGE RE-FORGING…
APPLYING: [Miniaturized Aether Reactor Design] + [Structural Reinforcement: Tier 1].
SUCCESS! The machine now runs on ambient Aether.
AETHER CORE STATUS UPDATE:
AETHER POWER: 2,900 / 10,000 (Stabilized.)
NEW UNIQUE ASSET CREATED: Aether Drill, Model I.
The transformed drill was beautiful. It no longer sputtered steam; it hummed with a low, potent violet glow—my Core's signature color. Its components, now reinforced with Aether, looked cleaner, sharper, and utterly seamless.
I immediately ordered a test in the deepest vein of the obsidian mine. Where the old drill would have spent hours slowly chipping away, the Aether Drill, Model I sliced through the hard volcanic rock like hot butter. The speed was multiplied by a factor of ten. The Core's resource acquisition had just experienced its first industrial revolution.
"This… this is the true strength of the Veil," Grave rumbled, stunned by the sheer, clean power. "No Human contraption can match this efficiency."
Interrogation of the Ironwall Sentries
With the resource problem solved for the moment, I turned my attention to the captured Human sentries, who were being held in a reinforced Goblin cage. I instructed Ranga to oversee the interrogation, using the Sentinel's calm, obsidian presence to induce fear without resorting to unnecessary violence.
Ranga reported back the critical findings, filtering the Human fear and bravado into usable data for the Core.
— INTELLIGENCE REPORT: IRONWALL EMPIRE —
SOURCE: Two Human Sentries (Low Rank)
COMMAND STRUCTURE:
Local Commander: Major Valerius. Obsessed with securing Aura-dampening Iron. Base of operations: Fortress Ironhold (3 days march from the Veil border).
Leadership: The Empire is ruled by the Senate of Magitech, a council of technocrats and former Mages who outlawed pure magic.
Deployment: Reliance on standardized, mass-produced Tier 1 and Tier 2 Recon/Sentry Units. Weakness: They cannot operate effectively without daily supply lines of synthesized fuel.
Synthesized fuel. They are entirely reliant on infrastructure, unlike my troops who use the ambient Aether of the Veil. The tactical advantage was clear: cut the supply lines, and the Human defenses crumble.
The Problem of the Forge
My immediate need was to weaponize the huge influx of ore the Aether Drill was producing. Grave and Ranga could crush rock, but they could not turn raw iron ore into refined metal plates or high-quality weapons.
The Goblin Legionaries are armed with scavenged junk. The Tidal Corps use stone spears. I need a forge. I need a master craftsman.
I sent Shade, the Shadow Sentry, on a new, urgent mission.
"Shade. We need a smith. We need the ability to temper and shape metal with precision—something beyond the clumsy art of the Orcs. Scan the deeper tunnels and the upper borderlands for any race that values craftsmanship and metallurgy above all else."
The Core paused, calculating the most likely source of such talent in a standard fantasy world.
"If my memory of the previous world holds true, we seek the Dwarves. They are isolated, obsessed with stone and metal, and perfectly situated to resist the surface Empire."
Shade was gone in a blur, his [Phantom Glide] silent and fast. The Core settled back, satisfied. I had resources, an army, and a strategy. Now, I needed the Engineers of the Veil.
— SCAN RESULT: POTENTIAL ALLY —
RACE: Dwarves of the Deepstone Halls (Inferred location: North-East Deep Veil)
PRIMARY SKILLS: [Rune Smithing], [Deep Earth Tunneling].
THREAT LEVEL: High. Highly territorial. Isolationist.
GOAL: Independence and the pursuit of perfect craft.
The next stage would be the most difficult yet: recruiting a stubborn, prideful race that valued quality over speed. The Core prepared its argument: the superior technology of the Aether Drill and the endless energy of the Aether Furnace. This was the language of the smith.
The Core has industrialized and now knows its next target: the Dwarves of the Deepstone Halls. This alliance is vital for creating Aether-enhanced weapons and armor.