128. The First Step

They struck, several of the already half-collapsed buildings quickly succumbing to their violence. All the while, Ko Byeong-gap, and the eight Goblins ran like wildcats.

“They’re gathering quickly.”

Dorma glanced behind them and warned the group. Ko Byeong-gap didn’t stop his blade as he answered.

“They must’ve been surprised.”

“Lord, there aren’t that many people. Why don’t we sweep them away?”

“Not yet.”

Ko Byeong-gap turned while sprinting. When he spread his arms, his blade released a wave that smashed the nearby villa. Several enemies chasing Ko Byeong-gap and his party were buried alive in the resulting rubble.

“We have to take as much time as possible. Let’s go up.”

“Yeah!”

They used the ruins as a staircase to ascend. Their pursuers rushed after them.

Ko Byeong-gap glanced around from time to time while they ran. He felt no other presence than the pursuers directly behind them. Thanks to this, they were able to run around freely.

‘This is terrible.’

The streets of Seoul were desolate. At least until two weeks ago, it was full of beasts. Compared to then, monsters had decreased a lot those days, but that was by no means good news.

‘It means that the monsters are heading south.’

From North Korea to Seoul, from Seoul to even lower. The legion of monsters was advancing at a terrifying pace, and it was purely because of Illumination that they could move as if they were an army. The difference between a foolish force and an intelligent one was between Heaven and Earth. Therefore, they had to root out Illumination somehow.

“Lord, there’s a strong presence.”

“Yeah. I feel it too.”

A huge presence approached among their pursuers.

“Kiriyan.”

“Yeah!”

Ko Byeong-gap gave Kiriyan a look. He nodded and drew his strength. At the next moment, electric daggers soared from under their pursuer’s feet.

“Argh! Eek!”

Their foes collapsed one after another. However, some toward the back didn’t care about the trap and sped up.

‘Three humans. Are there two monsters?’

Ko Byeong-gap looked at the two monsters, both Ghost Knights in black armor. They exuded an ominous aura as they stretched black spears forward. Suddenly, a huge explosion bloomed under Ko Byeong-gap and his party.

Kwak!

The building collapsed.

“Go to the ground!”

“Yes!”

At Ko Byeong-gap’s instructions, the goblins hurried down. The eight-lane road below them was lined with half-broken vehicles. Ko Byeong-gap and his party confronted their enemies there.

‘Five S-class powers. About two hundred people who fall behind.’

Ko Byeong-gap pointed his sword forward at an Illumination hunter. They seemed to be quite suspicious of the strange combination of a human with Goblins.

“Who are you?”

One man asked. In each of his hands, he held a bladed tonfa.

“Why are you attacking us?”

“Seung-heon. He isn’t a believer.”

“Is that true?”

“I think he’s that guy. The tormentor that harms the devout in this area.”

“But how can he lead Goblins around?”

Another man’s eyes darted to Ko Byeong-gap’s hand.

“Look at his hand; he has the ring. Maybe he took it from one of our believers. He seems to know how to handle monsters.”

“Stay alert.”

This time, a woman equipped with a long phantom sword stepped forward.

“If he’s the rumored one, then he must have a space-type talent. Don’t give him time to run away. Finish them all at once.”

“Okay.”

“Woooooooo!”

The two Ghost Knights stepped forward, black smoke wisping up from the gaps in their armor. Ko Byeong-gap snorted as he listened to their conversation. Some ring hadn’t created the bond between himself and the Goblins.

‘The others will arrive soon.’

He murmured as he glanced behind.

“Everyone, assimilate with the souls. Let’s deal with them first and then clean up the scumbags that follow.”

“Yes, Lord!”

“Okay!”

The eight Goblins complied at once. Nothing changed in their appearance. However, the aura around them was markedly different.

“Wh… what?”

“Are they Goblins?”

The Illumination hunters turned blue.

“Kill them.”

“Kerreuk!”

The eight Goblins jumped forward. The Ghost Knights responded immediately while the hunters rushed to join the fray. When their blades clashed, the shrill sound of metal ringing pierced their ears. The occasional sparks lit up the quiet streets of Seoul, followed by the short, dull groans of their enemies.

‘To make us struggle, you should have brought Ballock, not a ghost knight. Or at least match the number of heads.’

The Ghost Knights charged with their spears outstretched. Turka raised his shield to block their charge, and when the Ghost Knights faltered, Changsik attacked. They immediately pulled themselves out, recovering their spears, and swung to split Changsik in half.

However, instead of dying, Changsik dispersed into smoke that gathered behind the Ghost Knights. His sharp Goblin claws met no resistance. On the other hand, Kiriyan and Doran were pushing back the hunters. Doran swung her sword as if dancing. The hunters facing Doran felt like a blade storm was raging around them.

If they showed any openings, Kiriyan would fire his lightning bolts. The hunters, with desperate looks, endured and rushed toward Kiriyan with the intent to eliminate the long-distance strikers first. Unfortunately for them, that was a mistake. In an instant, Kiriyan was surrounded by an electric current. Kiriyan, becoming lightning, hit the first man’s abdomen at an imperceptible speed.

“Gah!”

The man vomited blood as he fell. Doran, who had been waiting, cut off his head before he stood back up. And, with Varmond on stand-by as their healer, his allies remained lively as their foes accumulated wounds.

“That’s it!”

“Send the monster first!”

Nearly two hundred troops appeared across the boulevard. Hordes of eccentric-looking monsters rushed in for the kill. It wasn’t good for the battlefield to grow even more chaotic.

“Orca! Dorma! Don’t let them approach!”

“Yes! Whoooooo!”

Orca let out a huge roar as she sprinted forward. At the same time, his body enlarged. Orca, quickly transforming into an 8-meter giant, swung his arms and legs at random to sweep away their foes like leaves.

On the other hand, Dorma quietly recited his chants. Suddenly, the land where the enemies stood became a dark swamp that pulled them down. Those that were weak were eaten near immediately, and those strong enough to escape were crushed to death by Orca’s fists.

Seized by confusion and fear, they turned and marched away, but the Goblins caught and killed those fleeing without any mercy.

“I… I can’t do this. No way. How could these Goblins…”

A woman sprawled out on the ground, moaning as she clutched at her fallen sword. Ko Byeong-gap stepped firmly on her chest and pointed his sword at her neck.

“Ouch!”

“It’s to be expected.”

“What?”

“They are heroes. They are different from all of you who put on human masks.”

“What on earth…?”

“It means that it’s a thousand years too early for you to match us.”

His blade flashed, ending her life.

‘Isn’t it over yet?’

Ko Byeong-gap glanced up, and at that moment…

Pop!

A pillar of fire rose into the sky. A few seconds later, oiling heat washed over them. Turka quickly created a barrier to surround his allies.

“Lord, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Are you okay?”

“Yes. Varmond cured everything.”

A few of them suffered minor wounds during the battle, but Varmond’s healing took care of even that. Ko Byeong-gap nodded.

“Everyone did a good job. But it isn’t over yet…”

Crack!

Before he finished speaking, his walkie-talkie crackled. Ko Byeong-gap quickly grabbed it. A moment later, Seo Si-hee’s voice came through.

-This is the infiltration team. Destroyed the target successfully. After we’ve evaded our pursuers, we’ll return to Ashvilam.

‘The timing is amazing.’

Ko Byeong-gap set the walkie-talkie back on his waist and opened the door leading to Ashvilam.

“Everyone, mission accomplished. Let’s return.”

***

The operation was successful without any casualties on their side. Of course, the Goblins who assimilated with the souls had to lie down for half a day due to the recoil. And, even if the operation was successful, there was no banquet or anything. They only took one step in their thousand-mile march.

Time flew by until it reached the last month of the year. Ko Byeong-gap and the hunters robbed several more Illumination bases in the same way, but they weren’t all that stupid. Once again, Illumination and the monsters gathered in Seoul. They almost suffered great damage from an ambush, so Ko Byeong-gap and the hunters decided to hold back for the time being and watch their progress.

So, Ko Byeong-gap forgot about the chaos on Earth for a moment and concentrated on cultivating Ashvilam. It was now about ten days into December.

Some changes had occurred with the Goblins. Their curved backs were straightened, and their ugly features sharpened. Overall, they transformed to more resemble the image of the Sarahons. Now it could be said that they were 0.7% Sarahon. This phenomenon only appeared in the Goblins who had stayed in Ashvilam for a long time. The new Goblin members were the same as they were when they first arrived.

Ko Byeong-gap headed to Somnium. Sure enough, as he neared the entrance, Gobung ran out to welcome him.

“Lord! It’s been a while since you came!”

“Oh. It’s been a while, Gobung… as expected, you’ve changed a little.”

Gobung scratched his cheek shyly.

“Yes. The Goblins of Somnium have all changed.”

“Hmm.”

Ko Byeong-gap headed to where the seed of enlightenment was planted. It seemed like only yesterday that its sprout rose from the soil, but now it was a decent seedling.

‘As expected, as this grows, the Goblins seem to be growing closer to their old appearance.’

“Oh! Hello Lord.”

A Goblin passing by suddenly greeted him. Ko Byeong-gap was a little perplexed. The little ones no longer acted like little ones. Their physique had grown as big as the Hob Goblins, and their tone and behavior had matured. This was a good sign, but he couldn’t help the feeling of disappointment in his heart.

Currently, the silly and foolish charm of the Goblins is disappearing into history.

‘But to survive, it’s better to be smart than stupid.’

Ko Byeong-gap turned his bitter feelings into cigarette smoke.

“Hey, Gobung.”

“Yes, Lord. Please speak.”

“If that sprout becomes a complete tree, will you change like Landriol and the other Sarahon?”

“…”

Gobung blinked his big eyes as he looked at Ko Byeong-gap.

“Lord, my kind and I have changed a lot so far, but there is one thing that won’t change.”

“What is it?”

“Lord is our Lord!”

“…”

This time, Ko Byeong-gap blinked a few times.

“Have you not led us well and held us so far? As long as the Lord is by our side, we won’t stray on our path. Didn’t we get our lessons from Lord? Even if the Lord leaves in the distant future, we will follow you. So don’t worry too much.”

“Hehe!”

Ko Byeong-gap smiled, stroking Gobung’s head roughly.

“Kid, you’re talking so nicely.”

“Hehehe.”

“When I leave, I’ll trust you.”

“Heehee, great!”

“I mean, you have a secret greed for power. Haha!”

Ko Byeong-gap decided not to worry anymore. That was how another day in Ashvilam passed.