The Evolution Of A Goblin To The Peak

Chapter 1215: Ambush

A day later.

Souta opened his eyes, sensing a presence outside the room.

Soon, a knock echoed.

”What is it?” Souta asked.

”It’s me, Emiline.”

”Come in.”

The door slowly opened, and Countess Emiline peeked inside. Her maid had told her that Souta hadn’t left the room since yesterday.

She smiled. ”We’ll go meet the Crown Prince. He will tell you everything you want to know.”

Souta nodded and slowly stood up. His body radiated a faint best feram. Though subtle, it could not hide the oppressive force it carried.

Countess Emiline’s eyes flickered. She could feel the danger emanating from him. It was as if she were standing beside a vicious predator capable of tearing her apart with ease.

It was fortunate that she hadn’t provoked him yesterday or she couldn’t imagine what might have happened.

”Where will we meet the Crown Prince?”

”In the Nature Zone City.”

Without wasting any more time, they departed immediately.

...

”How did the King get injured?” Souta asked, curiosity lacing his voice.

”His Majesty...” Emiline paused for a moment, then shook her head. ”You’ll know when you meet the Crown Prince.”

”Fine,” Souta replied.

He didn’t ask any more questions.

The two continued their journey toward the Nature Zone City.

Suddenly, energy fluctuations erupted below them.

Souta and Emiline looked down and saw a blinding light.

Boom!!

A massive explosion erupted, sending dark smoke spiraling into the sky. The force was so powerful that shockwaves uprooted every tree within a one-kilometer radius. The ground trembled and collapsed, leaving a deep pit filled with choking smoke.

Several dozen figures appeared around the explosion, one after another. Each stared at the devastation with eyes burning with killing intent.

”Did we kill them?”

”No. The Countess is an Ascension Knight so this kind of explosion won’t kill her,” one voice replied.

”Our target was the monster with her. But even that, it probably won’t die from this either.”

”The purpose of our explosive was only to injure them.”

They spoke while observing the smoke, their senses scanning the scene, trying to discern what had happened.

Just as they were about to speak again, two figures emerged from the smoke.

They were Souta and Emiline.

Souta looked at them with mild amazement. An explosive potent enough to injure a Sixth Shackle Realm expert was hard to come by. Even his Guardian Fortress lacked this level of destructive power.

He mused, ”This won’t work against us. Our perception already detected your presence, so we were on guard the entire time.”

Emiline glanced at Souta and noticed the faint smile on his face. She couldn’t help but wonder what he was thinking.

Souta turned to her and asked, ”Who do you think sent these people?”

Emiline shook her head. ”I don’t know. There are many nobles who harbor evil intentions toward the Royal Family and its supporters.”

”Let’s kill them. Leave one alive for interrogation,” Souta said coldly.

The people surrounding them truly believed they could eliminate him.

What made them so confident?

In his eyes, they were far too weak.

The explosive would have been effective if they had been caught off guard.

Souta’s eyes flashed with a strange light. His douion surged outward, enveloping the people surrounding them.

It was a small amount, but his douion had already reached [Douion III].

In an instant, all of them collapsed to the ground, losing consciousness.

Thud!!

Silence fell.

Emiline’s eyes widened in shock. She didn’t understand what had happened... only that an ominous power had gushed from Souta’s body.

”This...!” she whispered, at a loss for words.

Souta landed in front of one of the attackers. Placing his right foot on the person’s head, he flicked his finger.

Ohm!

His douion fluctuated, and one by one, the others twitched uncontrollably before drawing their last breath.

It was effortless.

They had barely resisted.

Souta didn’t even need to use a skill to wield his douion.

He killed them in their dreams.

He looked down at the person beneath his foot. Moments later, the individual awoke, visibly terrified by what they had experienced.

”W-What...?” the person stammered, feeling as though the moment had been unreal. Looking around, they realized with horror that they were lying beneath the foot of the very monster they had targeted.

”If you don’t want to experience it again, answer my questions,” Souta said.

The person nodded hastily.

”Who sent you here, and why?” Souta added, as if recalling something. ”And don’t you dare lie to me. I can see both lies and truth.”

What he did to this man was simple. Souta had manipulated his dreams while he was unconscious, a technique he had used before when attempting to pass the trial to become Athena’s Hero.

The man spilled everything.

Once Souta had no more use for him, he crushed the man’s head, ending his suffering.

Emiline, standing to the side, was shocked by his method. She hadn’t expected him to be this capable. He had killed all those people as if they were mere ants without even unsheathing a weapon.

Although she could have easily killed them too, she couldn’t bring herself to do it without personally beheading each one with her sword.

Souta glanced at her and smiled. ”So, where is this Baron Edmund?”

Baron Edmund was the one who had sent these people to deal with them. Countess Emiline had already been a target, but Souta had been implicated as well, thanks to spies in the Whitehall Household who had informed Baron Edmund of his presence.

Baron Edmund and the nobles behind him didn’t want the forces of the Crown Prince to grow stronger, so they sent people to deal with them.

The problem was... the people they sent were far too weak.

At the very least, they should have sent a Sixth Shackle Realm to rival Emiline.

Well, Ascension Knights were rare in the Everlasting Empire. Among tens of millions of people, only a few hundred had reached that level of strength. Most were only at SS-rank.

It was understandable. After all, not every country could reach the level of a Large Country.

The Everlasting Kingdom was already quite strong, possessing a handful of Hero-rank experts. Many smaller countries on the mainland of God’s Continent or elsewhere didn’t even have a single Hero-rank expert. The countries in the Hall Plains were a perfect example.

”Baron Edmund ruled over a village...” Emiline slowly explained, revealing the man who had sent people to attack them.

Like Emiline, Edmund oversaw a large village outside the five cities of the Everlasting Kingdom.

”I know the way to the Nature Zone City, so you can go ahead. I’ll handle that Baron’s territory,” Souta said.

He wouldn’t let this pass. Even if he didn’t find Baron Edmund there, he would plunder and burn everything in his mansion.

...

Nature Zone City.

The city sprawled like a kingdom among the clouds, its size rivaling even the royal capital. But unlike any ordinary city, its heart was dominated by a colossal tree, a kilometer-tall Giant Divine Wood Tree. Its gnarled roots sprawled across the land, while immense branches cradled entire buildings, forming a city suspended between earth and sky. Walkways wound around the trunk, bridges connected the branches, and terraces clung to its limbs, creating a layered labyrinth of life above the ground.

Legends spoke of a time when the tree still lived. It was said to bear mythical-grade fruits, capable of granting powers beyond imagination. It had once been the lifeblood of the former kingdoms of the Land of Fire Light. Now, though the tree itself was dead, its immense presence still commanded awe and reverence.

Perched upon one of the largest branches was a mansion of grand design, its architecture blending seamlessly with the organic form of the tree. Suspended in midair above it floated a young man, his sharp gaze sweeping over the city below.

He was Angus Ross Everlasting, Crown Prince of the Everlasting Kingdom.

”Your Highness, Countess Emiline has arrived,” a voice called from below.

Angus’s eyes followed the figure of an old man standing at the base of the mansion. He gave a brief nod before turning and gliding effortlessly toward the mansion, his movements smooth and assured.

Inside, Angus and Emiline were seated across from each other. A maid moved gracefully around them, placing cups of tea on the intricately carved table.

”Lady Emiline,” Angus said, a faint smile tugging at his lips, ”where is the one you wanted to introduce to me?”

”Forgive me, Your Highness, but we encountered some... accidents on our way here,” Emiline said.

”What?!”

Angus narrowed his eyes as he studied Emiline. She bore no bruises, no wounds so what kind of accident could she be talking about?

”The monster... Sir Souta, dealt with all of them,” she explained.

”Souta? That’s his name?”

”Yes. That’s the name he gave me. About the encounter...” Emiline slowly recounted everything that had happened.

Angus listened, stunned. What she described sounded absurd, Souta killing people with nothing more than the gaze of his eyes, but Emiline’s account left no doubt that it was true.

And yet, as astonishment filled him, so did the anger directed at Baron Edmund.

Where had that man gotten the audacity to send people after Emiline and Souta? Did he truly believe they were so easy to deal with?