Day 11
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Fire!!
Pow! Pow! Pow! Pow! Pow! Pow!
Another salvo is launched towards the enemy's territory as loyal troops march forward to conquer new land and claim its natural resources.
General Blueberry watched the battle from afar. The enemy stood no chance against his strategic brilliance.
"What's the situation captain Batson?" He asked his trusty subordinate.
"... scree!" The bat in question rolled over on its fat belly, ignoring the question and tried to sleep.
Yeah, who am I kidding. The war? To conquer the cave. The enemy? Just some rocks. The resources? The rocks again. The artillery? Mushrooms. The previous description? My imagination.
It's a little lonely being the only intelligent person in this group. At least the fat bat has started to get friendly. Kinda acts like a dog in some ways. Not the energetic and curious ones, more like one of those old porch dogs with droopy ears that sleep all day.
The colonization process is going well, about a square meter has been added to the dungeon in addition to numerous small independent islands that will soon be brought into the fold.
Those colonizer shrooms are working wonders! So little mana is needed to get them going, and once they claim some land my mana income gets a boost!
I've bought another 6 bunnyrats as they are super productive. Each time they return they come with their cheeks stuffed and holding leaves or beetles in their front paws! They more than pay for themselves.
The moths that I bought didn't do much except eat then lay eggs before dying and getting eaten by the ants. The newly hatched worms ate some leaves then spun cocoons. Not sure if they are useful or just more food for other ants.
The flies eat the rotting mushrooms before getting eaten by spiders.
The ants have finally produced another queen. She flew off to start a new nest in the newly claimed territory.
The fat bat no longer pretends to be diligent and has decided to live as a slacker. He has taken up residence near the first blueberry bush. I've also solved the mystery of why I haven't seen another Gem Berry. Yeah, it was this guy. He eats each new berry before it's finished ripening every day.
The effects of over-eating and slacking? Batson is larger and rounder than ever. Not that I mind, he is a soft pillow for me to rest on. And as the dungeon mascot, he deserves to be pampered.
By the end of the day, my invasion has hit a wall. How do I know it's the end of the day? I've got a circle of 12 glowshrooms on the ceiling that I've set to glow once every 12 hours for one hour. Yeah it's a clock. 12 o'clock one is the biggest and brightest.
What do I mean by hitting a wall? Literally, there is a wall in front of me. Old looking bricks, crumbling mortar, shoddy workmanship. If you look at my dungeon from above it would look like a "T" shape. Starting from the little crevice then splitting into two new directions after hitting the wall.
This isn't a problem though as it means resources are likely nearby. I set some shredder worms to work carving small holes for my ants to use. They cut through that wall like a hot knife through butter! Really impressed with these little dudes. Got to remember to upgrade them again later once they've absorbed more mana.
The other dig project I started on day 1? I scrapped those plans and had them dig out a small room for me instead. It's the size of a fist with an entrance just big enough for a grape to enter. Accessible through a small tunnel near the back of the crevice.
Now I've got the ordinary worms just being worms and digging through the ground to improve the soil quality. The shredder worms on the other hand are my dedicated diggers they've chewed up all the rocks we ran into until the different rock types got added to the shop too.
The shop is getting a little out of hand with all the new things being added. Several flowers, vines, ferns, beetles, all sorts of butterflies and moths, and to my great delight a new berry!
-wild strawberry: the original tiny tart versions of the domesticated favorite.
I love these so I bought a few to put near the frontline. Their little runners will contribute to the dungeon's expansion.
Returning to the dig crew working on carving holes in the wall I send some ants to help clear the rubble the worms leave behind.
I control my mana and paint the wall with it. Soaking it until it is considered my dominion. I manage to penetrate a few centimeters before it gets less effective. Well it'll do, I spread a few mushrooms over the surface to make it fit in better.
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Day 12
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So my expansion to the left has also hit a wall. This time a more natural one. Yeah, it's the cave wall. It curves around from my crevice until it meets the brick wall creating a rough semi-circle. The newly claimed land seems relatively secure. Seems like I mainly have to deal with 1 main entrance.
It makes sense, all my minions have been heading off in that direction the whole time.
I have a plan for this new bit of land. I've already planted a few Gem Berry plants in a cluster at the center, I surround that with mana-grass which I'm guessing is a common herb used in potion making. All along the edge are blueberry bushes.
It's beautiful!
My passive incomes have increased with the growth of my territory as well as with the increase in bunnyrats. Right now I'd say I am the lord of a total of 5 square meters!
That's how I can afford this expenditure. It's also why I'm investing so much DP into this corner. It's the designated feeding and living area for the bunnyrats. I plan on buying a few more to really get things moving.
Batson has already proved the benefits of a Gem Berry diet. He is around 50% larger than the other bats already. I'm tempted to put all that EP to use by adjusting him but I'm curious to see how far he can go so I'll hold off for another day or two.
I've also provided a Gem berry plant for each of the 2 anthills. A reward for their diligence.
Back to the brick wall again, I'm happy to see that my shredder worms have broken through and moved elsewhere. After a quick tidying up a series of holes are visible. I send the ants through to test the waters.
To guard against reverse invasion, I station some more ants and spiders near the breach.