Loser System and Berserker Me

“Bob the builder~ Can we fix it!”

Shu Yichao hummed a melody as he raised more sinister buildings in Kucha.

“Finally, I have maxed them out!”

He had maxed out the buffs for stacking Soul Summoning Banners and Soul Summoning Towers, allowing him to draw out the true terror of his talent, Soul Summoning.

Soul Summoning allowed a player to reanimate deceased non-allied units as skeletons.

The developers likely intended it as a feature for undead players to obtain more troops in battle, but gamers were a creative bunch.

Non-allied units? That includes neutral units too, right?

By that logic, livestock killed in a city’s butcher are deceased hostile units too, right?

All players had to do was to construct a residential area for the living, and just the NPC activities would already create an endless stream of skeletons.

Furthermore, the Soul Summoning Banners and Soul Summoning Towers amplified the effects of the Soul Summoning talent. By overlapping their buffs, Shu Yichao had raised the chances of reanimating a non-allied unit far beyond 100%.

Cluck cluck CLUCKKKK!

A chicken had its head wrangled off. Moments later, a chicken skeleton rose from its carcass.

“Spare me! Please forgive me… AHHH!”

A prisoner was dragged out and executed. Seven skeletons rose from his single corpse.

“…” Miazova stared at this illogical sight and fell into deep thought. “I don’t understand this.”

【Mm… I don’t know how my host did it, but he has already pulled off a double kill.】

System 12345 was overjoyed. Another capture target was settled within a short span of time.

I have to admit that my host’s methods were a little extreme—even the capture targets were frightened—but again, what’s important is that everything ended well. There’s no need to fuss over the process.

My host eventually maxed out their loyalty anyway, which means that the femme fatales are okay with it. The pain they suffered at the start is just a small ripple for their sweet conclusion.

Just bear with it, and it’ll soon be over!

【Let’s continue, my host. I’ll check whom we should conquer next… Hm?】

【We’re still a distance away, so why is the city lord already paying attention to you? Ah, she seems more concerned about recent affairs in the area.】

【My host, did you make a name for yourself as an adventurer?】

System 12345 chuckled.

【That’s good news! You have caught the eye of the beautiful city lord! However, we should hold off dealing with her for the time being.】

System 12345 pulled out a portrait depicting a valiant female warrior with honey-colored skin. She wore magic armor with a gleaming sword in her grasp.

【My host, this is Bikna.】

【She used to be a famous veteran adventurer, but later, she was recruited by the beautiful city lord and soon became her most trusted aide.】

System 12345 deciphered the situation.

【Conquer her, my host! As a fellow adventurer, you should be able to approach her with ease. An accomplished veteran big sister and a rising dashing youth—what a classic! Ehehehe!】

While indulging in its fantasies, System 12345 made sure not to get carried away.

【My host, you need to be doubly careful this time. It’d be best if you don’t resort to force. 】

While my host has succeeded in taking down the other capture targets with other means, this time, he is dealing with Bikna. The other party is not a slave or a powerless apothecary. Rather, she is a warrior known for her valiance.

It won’t end well if he tries to force himself on her.

On top of that, System 12345 couldn’t help but feel a tinge of worry in the bottom of its heart. Maxing out a person’s loyalty should suggest a successful conquest, but it couldn’t discount the fact that something might have gone wrong.

【Ah, that attribute… stamina?】

System 12345 was overjoyed.

【Yet another stat I can rely on to make a more accurate judgment!】

…

In Shule, a city that was located west of Kucha…

“City lord!”

A beautiful figure stepped into the room, and the Tibetan soldiers rose up and bowed to her.

Despite having dumped Kucha and its surrounding area on the Karluk, the Tibetans decided to continue holding onto Shule.

“Mm.” An armored woman nodded before asking, “Did anyone cause trouble while I was away in the Holy City?”

Shule was a messy place, comprising the indigenous population, merchants who travel to and fro the region, the Karluks who refused to submit to them, and the Tang slaves who would cause trouble occasionally…

Those Tang slaves were coerced into wearing their clothes, bearing their names, and speaking their tongue. The young and strong were used as slaves and maids to till the field and rear the livestock, whereas the old and the weak were tortured and killed…

Something would have been amiss if Shule was at peace.

Even so, she never hesitated to use the harshest and cruelest ways to make it known the cost of retaliating against her.

“Nothing has happened in the city,” an official replied, “but there has been anomalous movements in the east…”

“In the east?” the city lord asked with a frown.

What can happen in the east? The Karluks don’t dare to offend the powerful Tibetan Empire, whereas the Tangs might try to rebel, but they will be swiftly suppressed by the local troops.

Something that is of concern…

Hold on!

“Kucha?” the city lord exclaimed in astonishment.

“That’s right,” the official affirmed her guess.

“It’s been reduced to a ghost city. Unless ghosts start crawling out of their graves, what could happen there?” The city lord was confused.

The official quickly filled the city lord in on the situation.

A pitch-black fog had started spreading from an unknown source, and it devoured everything that was within reach. Wherever it drifted, despair and fear followed. Mines, villages, and towns that were swallowed swiftly fell silent.

Not a single person from those places were ever seen again.

“We tried sending people to those towns, but they either lost their way and returned in failure, or they disappeared together with their steeds,” the official explained. “Anyone who steps into the black fog will be plunged into the darkest night they have ever seen. There is no sun, no moon, and no stars. Even if we light a torch, it won’t light too far away…”

“It sounds like a huge matter,” the city lord murmured.

Going by experience, is it a mage’s doing? Or did some monster break out of its seal? Or could it be both?

“Bikna!” the city lord shouted.

“Here!” a woman with honey skin, dressed in a gleaming enchanted armor, answered.

“Bring some men over to investigate the situation,” the city lord ordered. “If a mage is behind this, bring them back if they are of value, or else you may kill them. If it’s a monster, just kill them on the spot. Resolve this matter as soon as possible.

“I don’t want to wait too long. There are other matters for you to attend to.”