The Evolution Of A Goblin To The Peak

Chapter 1081: Destruction of the Ekatoe City: Endure

Aliceʼs eyes widened at the old manʼs words.

Ieshi Clan?

The legendary clan from the distant past.

The patriarch was still alive-and Souta was his grandson. ”Disaster is approaching, and the Imperium is preparing to combat it,” Kryvon said, pausing to glance at Alice. ”But I donʼt think itʼll be enough. If we leave everything to the Imperium, itʼll end just like last time.”

He studied her for a moment before continuing, ”From what youʼve said, my grandson is in danger. But unless itʼs a god, you have nothing to worry about. Instead, you should be concerned for yourself and your friends. If none of you are blessed by the Imperium, then thereʼs a high chance you wonʼt survive.” ”What...?” Aliceʼs eyes widened.

Kryvonʼs gaze remained steady. ”My grandson wonʼt die unless it directly involves a god-or something from that door. After all, he will become one of the blessed children, and I wanted to raise one myself. ”One month after fate has shattered, thereʼs a ninety percent chance the Imperium can protect them from danger. After two months, that drops to eighty percent. And after ten months... the chance is zero. At that point, it will be up to them. Theyʼll have to face their challenges with nothing but their own strength.”

Alice furrowed her brows.

Seeing her expression, Kryvon realized-she had no idea when fate had shattered. ”If ten months have passed since then, my grandsonʼs survival will depend entirely on his own ability,” Kryvon added. ”The foreign energy had already seeped into the Mother by that time, so the Imperium will no longer be able to protect them.”

There was so much to take in. It was Aliceʼs first time hearing any of this, and she could barely process the weight of it. Her heart churned with complex emotions. ”Hmm...” Kryvon mused. ”Remember the Mars Archipelago. Once the Great Barrier opens there, tell my grandson to go and find the remnants of the Ieshi Clan. Iʼm going to erase this, so youʼll have to go deeper. Itʼs up to you to bring him back.” ”Wait-!” Alice started, but before she could ask anything, Kryvon snapped his fingers again. Ohm!!

The entire world twisted around her. In the blink of an eye, she was deep in the ocean. ”What is this...?”

Alice frowned as a wave of emotions crashed over her grief, despair, fear, hatred. She could feel them all at once, raw and overwhelming.

Scenes unfolded before her eyes.

Everything Souta had been holding back poured out like a raging tide.

She saw it all-his arrival in the Imperium for the first time, and then, the countless deaths he endured when he first stepped into the Nightmare Realm. Of course, what she saw was just images but based on this she could guess what happened. The worst thing was the emotions here that was trying to pierce her mind.

It was horrible.

Ugh!!

Alice dropped to her knees, struggling to breathe as the overwhelming scenes suffocated her. So... Souta went through all of this... I...

Everything else faded away. Nothing else mattered. She just wanted to bring Souta out of here -no matter what. ”ARGH!!!”

With a desperate cry, she pushed forward, breaking through the layer- -and arrived in a vast, white space.

In the middle of the vast white space, a massive writhing mass of black tendrils twisted and churned, radiating pure grief and fear.

At its center, Souta lay curled up, his eyes closed. He looked like the human Souta she had seen before, but his face was contorted in pain. The eerie, gooey black substance clung to his body, as if trying to consume him.

These things werenʼt just darkness-they were the physical manifestations of accumulated negative emotions.

Just looking at them made Aliceʼs mind waver. Fear, grief, and hatred surged through her, clawing at her sanity, trying to drag her down into it. ”SOUTA!!!” ... ”SOUTA!!”

A faint voice called his name. It was familiar-so familiar. ”SOUTA!!”

His head throbbed, the pain unbearable, as if it were about to explode. It was too much. The agony consuming him was beyond anything he had ever felt.

With great effort, Souta forced his eyes open.

Through the swirling darkness, he saw a figure rushing toward him.

Alice. ʼKill! Kill! Kill! Kill!ʼ

Voices filled with madness echoed in his mind, clawing at his sanity. They wouldnʼt stop.

They were driving him mad. ʼKill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!ʼ ”S... Stop!!”

Souta gritted his teeth, his eyes locking into Alice. He reached out, desperate-but the black mass clung into his arm, dragging him deeper.

Alice lunged forward and grabbed his hand.

The moment their skin touched, the overwhelming emotions inside her intensified tenfold. ”Argh!!”

She clenched her teeth, struggling to keep control. The violent surge of rage, grief, and despair twisted inside her, screaming for destruction. ʼKill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill!ʼ

But she refused to let it go.

With all her strength, Alice tightened her grip and pulled, determined to drag Souta back-no matter what. ”Souta!! You have to come back!! Donʼt let this beat you!! We still have to return to the Giza Continent! How could I face them if youʼre gone?! Souta!! Please-Argh!!”

Desperate, Alice activated her dream power.

A tidal wave of emotions crashed into her, threatening to tear her mind apart. The madness, grief, and rage were unbearable-but she had to endure it.

Gritting her teeth, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms tightly around Souta, pulling him close.

The darkness clung to him, writhing and suffocating, but she refused to let go.

She shut her eyes and focused, absorbing the overwhelming emotions. With every ounce of strength, she pulled.

Ohm!!

A brilliant light erupted, flooding the entire space.

Aliceʼs eyes snapped open.

The black tendrils still clung to Souta. But beyond them-something else.

From the distance, a massive eye opened.

And it was staring straight at her. ”S-Souta...!”

Alice whispered, her gaze locked on the eye. It felt like it was Souta, but as she thought more carefully, she realized it made sense. She was in his mind, after all. This place was a manifestation of his emotions-his subconscious, everything he had buried inside. The black tendrils slowly retreated as the eye continued to watch her, unblinking. ”Huh?”

Alice felt the atmosphere shift.

The overwhelming hatred, fear, and grief that had consumed her earlier began to fade. She couldnʼt explain why, but she sensed a shift-like the emotions now trusted her, no longer wishing to harm her. ”So you trust me this much...” Alice muttered, her eyes softening as she looked down at Souta in her arms.

Then, her gaze shifted toward the black mass-the physical manifestation of all his negative emotions, lingering inside his mind.

Alice reached out and touched the mass. The moment her fingers made contact, she felt the raw emotions swirling within it. But before she could process them fully, they faded, retreating quickly as the black tendrils pulled back.

It was clear: they were afraid of harming her. Even these negative emotions, born from

Soutaʼs pain, seemed to treat her with a kind of caution.

Deep down, it seemed Souta didnʼt want anything harmful to come to her. ”Eilishʼs death triggered it... and I...” ...

Ekatoe City.

A surge of energy rippled through the air once more before it quickly diminished.

Trander and the other warriors stepped back, wary of the sudden shift in power. ”Did it work?”

The warriors watched as Soutaʼs body cracked, the blood armor fragmenting and falling away.

His transformation unraveled, and he collapsed to the ground.

Cough! Alice coughed up a mouthful of blood, her body battered from the intense strain. Still, she forced herself to hold onto Souta, checking his condition.

After confirming that he was safe, she let out a sigh of relief. ʼYou did it...ʼ Sayaʼs words echoed in her mind, even as the vajra sword clattered to the ground. ”Alice! Souta!”

Alice turned at the sound of her name, her heart lifting slightly.

It was Isabella.

Isabella rushed over, her eyes wide with concern. ”Look at you, Alice! Do you have any idea how worried I was when I found out youʼd returned? And Souta... He wonʼt let you do something like this.”

Alice shook her head, offering a small smile. ”It doesnʼt matter. All that matters is that it worked out.”

Trander observed them for a moment, then turned away, raising his voice. ”The immediate danger has been quelled, but the damage has been done. Our mission is complete. Weʼll take Grain Leader Souta back to Championʼs Den.”

Isabella opened her mouth to respond, but Alice cut her off. She shook her head, her expression serious. ”Itʼs better this way. Who knows if those people will return? If they do, whoʼs going to protect Souta here? We canʼt. Thatʼs the truth. We canʼt fight another group of experts like them.”

Their forces had already taken significant losses, and they wouldnʼt survive another major battle. If those enemies returned, they would likely be even stronger than before. Despite their victory, there was no celebration. The people of Ekatoe City were far from joyful.

The damage done was immense, and recovery would take much longer than anyone had hoped. Countless lives had been lost on the battlefield.

This battle served as a harsh reminder-anything could happen now, especially with one of the Deadly Sins on the move. Countless lives would be affected by the chaos it would bring.

Nothing in this world could be taken for granted, particularly when the Gods themselves were involved.

The warriors who had chased after Arden returned, their faces grim. They reported that Arden had managed to escape, warning that they should remain vigilant-there was always the possibility that he would return.

The entire Dragon Council needed to prepare as well. They could easily find themselves caught in the wake of something much larger, and if they werenʼt ready by then, the consequences would be far worse.

The following day, Athenʼs Champion sent a group of warriors-mostly B-ranks and A-ranks -to assist the Astros in rebuilding Ekatoe City. Along the way, they learned about the devastation that had spread to other regions, where reinforcements had arrived too late.

It was total destruction.

Thousands of cities, like Ekatoe, had been razed to the ground.