"It's me, Master," the goblin said, pointing at itself.
"You can talk?" Johan asked, shocked.
Lucy chimed in, "Black goblins are rare. They're born with higher intelligence than most low-level creatures."
Still processing, Johan asked, "Didn't you just eat ten goblins?"
"Yes," the goblin said. "But I feel like something is changing in me. I think… with more food, I can grow stronger."
Lucy's expression darkened slightly. "He's close to evolving. That sensation means his body's preparing for transformation."
Johan nodded. "Alright then. Where can I find more goblins?"
A notification popped up:
[Map access granted. Scanning for goblin heat signatures… Target located: Goblin City. Follow the arrow.]
A large glowing arrow appeared in front of him. Surprised but impressed, Johan followed it, arriving at the outskirts of a fortified goblin settlement. Patrol goblins and giant rats guarded the perimeter.
Ready to test his strength, Johan approached one of the goblins and punched it without holding back. His fist tore through the creature, leaving a gaping hole in its stomach. It collapsed, lifeless.
The others noticed.
Suddenly, branches flew from the trees like javelins, piercing through the heads of the other three goblins.
Johan blinked—then realized. The black goblin… it's fighting with me.
[Points +200 x3]
He was thrilled. Not only did he gain points from his own kills, but also from his tamed beast's.
Using this strategy, they quickly wiped out the entire patrol. Johan surveyed the goblin city. Around 100 goblins remained.
"Get me some branches," he ordered the black goblin. Together, they prepared spears coated in Hell Flame. The goblin hurled them into the center of the village.
The impact was devastating.
Screams erupted as over 50 goblins burned alive. Some tried to run, only to be caught in the firestorm. Others rolled on the ground, shrieking.
[Strength +55]
[Energy: Full]
[Points +100 x100]
[Points +200 x55]
The remaining goblins scattered in terror. Johan sat beneath a tree, catching his breath as the black goblin feasted.
A new notification flashed:
[Black Goblin evolution available. Proceed?]
[Yes / No]
"Time to see what you become," Johan muttered, selecting Yes.
The black goblin's body lifted into the air, surrounded by radiant light.
Then—another notification:
[Do you wish to level up?]
He clicked Yes, assuming it was related to the goblin.
[Do you wish to level up?]
[Do you wish to evolve?]
He kept choosing yes.
Then the words hit him like a bolt of lightning.
[Evolution: Servant-Demon to Low-Level Demon commencing…]
"Wait—what?" he muttered. "No, not again!"
But it was too late.
Pain surged through him—worse than before. His bones cracked, dissolved, and reformed. Muscles twisted, snapped, and regenerated. Skin peeled and regrew like molten lava reshaping steel.
Blood seeped from his lungs. His aura grew darker—heavier. His eyes exploded into black liquid before reforming anew. Everything about him was changing.
Stronger. Faster. But at a horrific cost.
He blacked out—only catching the shadow of a massive figure nearby.
Am I… going to die here? he thought, as darkness swallowed him.
It was the Goblin King. It had been watching from the shadows, waiting for Johan's moment of weakness.
Claire's Group
Meanwhile, Claire and the others—minus Dave—searched the forest in a panic. Johan had vanished, and despite their earlier misunderstandings, they all knew he wouldn't survive alone.
After hours of searching, they found the village—reduced to cinders. Ash covered the land. Blackened bodies littered the area. But the most disturbing sight?
Enormous footprints. The kind only a colossal beast could leave behind.
Then they saw him—Johan—lying unconscious among the ruins.
Claire's heart dropped. Her usual calm shattered. She rushed over, kneeling beside him, her eyes glassy but refusing to cry.
She checked his pulse. It was weak… but steady.
"Thank goodness…" she whispered.
Using her elemental ability, clouds formed above. A soft drizzle fell, and she directed it toward his face, trying to wake him.
Johan's eyes fluttered open.
He realized his head was resting on something soft—Claire's lap. Her face turned pink as she quickly stood.
"What happened?" she asked.
"I got attacked by a goblin," Johan lied. "I used up all my mana and passed out."
He couldn't tell them the truth. Not now. Not yet.
Johan became alarmed the moment he noticed the absence of the white orb that represented the Black Goblin in his dimensional space. Without hesitation, he accessed the internal dimension linked to his Summon—and what he saw made his heart sink.
The Black Goblin lay on the ground, severely wounded and barely conscious. Its body was covered in gashes, its breathing shallow. Notifications had been popping up in Johan's vision this whole time, but he had ignored them, choosing instead to check on his companion.
Before he could dive deeper into thought, Claire's voice broke through the silence.
"We have to leave before the Goblin King returns," she warned. "That thing is said to be a late-stage Intermediate creature. Only someone in the late or peak stage of the Aura Condensation Realm can stand a chance against it. None of us could survive that kind of fight."
Johan silently agreed. Even with the destructive power he had unleashed, he wasn't foolish enough to think he could face a Goblin King right now.
As the group made their way out of the goblin fortress, the evidence of destruction around them was undeniable. Hundreds of trees were shattered, others uprooted—remnants of a devastating battle that had clearly shaken the entire area.
At the portal, they were met by Dave, standing with crossed arms and his usual smug look.
"Guess he survived," Dave muttered mockingly, eyeing Johan.
The tension flared. Johan didn't respond, but the hatred between them thickened.
Once through the portal, the group began to relax—until Lam suddenly stopped. "Wait… guys, I think we forgot something. We didn't bring back any monster cores or parts to prove we killed them."
"Don't worry," Claire said calmly, raising her hand. "We're not going to fail."
She tapped her ring. A moment later, Asif followed her cue and commanded the ring to release several goblin parts.
"Damn… is that a void ring?!" Lann shouted. "How the hell did you afford that?! I guess rich kids really do get their way."
He snorted, but relief was visible on his face. "Well, guess that solves our problem."
Intrigued, Johan activated Descending Eyes.
[Discerning Eyes Activated]
[Item: Void Ring]
[Description: A storage artifact created by fusing advanced elements and magical technology. It allows the user to store non-living items in a separate dimension.]
[Size: 10m² spatial area.]
[Restriction: Cannot store living beings.]
That thing would be pretty useful… Johan thought to himself.
Inside his mind, Lucy commented cheerfully, "Wow, you humans surprise me more every day."
"Can you make something like that?" Johan asked.
Lucy folded her arms, clearly offended. "Excuse me? Do you know who you're talking to? I can build almost anything your little brain can imagine."
She fluttered down and perched on his shoulder with a dramatic sigh.
[Request Accepted: New Skill Acquired — Unlimited Void]
[Description: Grants the user access to infinite storage space for non-living objects.]
[Cost: 20,000 points]
Johan winced. "That'll leave me with only 4,300 points…"
But he knew it was worth it.
"Buy it," he confirmed.
The group returned to the academy and submitted the monster materials. With their mission officially recognized, they dispersed to their respective dorms. Lann and Brave collapsed straight into bed, exhausted.
Johan, however, remained awake. There was something he needed to do.
He pulled up the backlog of system notifications he had ignored earlier.
[Level-Up Achieved]
[Bonus Status Points: +30]
[Skill Points: +18]
[Evolution Complete]
[Post-Evolution Boosts:]
[Strength +5]
[Speed +5]
[Agility +5]
[Defense +5]
[Might +20]
[Energy +16]
[Skill Points +10]
Status points can be allocated to Strength, Speed, Agility, Defense, or Mind.
Skill points can enhance existing skills to higher levels.
Johan skimmed through most of the notifications… until he reached the final one: