Chapter 47: Evolving experience

And just like that, I spent nearly an hour that morning chatting with my two dear citizens while they prepared and ate breakfast.

I found myself much more talkative, probably because it had been so long since I’d been able to speak with anyone. After spending so many days in complete isolation inside my own castle, simply having a normal conversation felt almost miraculous.

As we talked, I gradually learned more about the two goblins.

As expected, they really were brother and sister. They had even been born on the exact same day. Meaning, they were fraternal twins!

They didn’t know who their father was, though....

Apparently, goblin society didn’t have the same family structure or marriage customs as humans. Within their tribe, relationships between adults were much less formal, and children were generally raised by the wider tribe rather than by a single family unit.

As for their mother though...

She had died when they were only a few months old, killed by wild beasts in the forest.

It was rather sad to hear about.

Yet, when I expressed my sympathy, the two goblins seemed genuinely puzzled by my reaction. To them, this was simply a normal part of life.

After all, goblins lived in a harsh world. Wild beasts, diseases, conflicts between tribes... death was an everyday occurrence. Simply surviving long enough to reach adulthood was already considered an achievement.

Perhaps that was also why goblins matured so quickly.

Within just two or three years, a goblin would reach adolescence and become capable of reproduction.

It was probably a natural survival adaptation. When danger lurked around every corner, a species couldn’t afford to spend a decade or more as a helpless child. They needed to grow up quickly and become capable of surviving on their own.

That meant Gopuro and Gopuran, despite being only seven years old right now, were already considered adults by goblin standards.

From a human perspective, they were still children.

But to goblins, they were already roughly equivalent to humans in their late teens or early adulthood.

Now that I think about it...

Could this rapid development be the reason ordinary goblins aren’t particularly intelligent?

Perhaps their bodies developed so quickly that their brains simply couldn’t keep up...

Yup, that has to be it.

At least, that had been my initial theory.

But the more questions I asked, the more I began to suspect there was something else going on.

Something related to both their intelligence and their evolution.

And eventually, I stumbled across something that made the whole matter far more interesting.

*****

"Wait... you saw the same thing?" Gopuran suddenly asked, her eyes widening.

"Huh? You mean..." Gopuro muttered, turning toward his sister with a piece of chicken still in his mouth.

"Yes! I saw exactly the same thing you saw during your evolution!" Gopuran replied.

Hearing this, I immediately became intrigued.

Earlier, Gopuro had told me about what he had experienced when he evolved into a Super Forest Goblin.

His description had been remarkably vivid.

At first, for a brief moment, he had found himself in a world swallowed by darkness and cold.

Half of his body was submerged in a thick, sticky black substance. It clung to him like tar, constantly dragging him downward. The air itself felt heavy and suffocating, filled with a dense black fog that made it difficult to breathe, let alone speak.

But the physical sensations weren’t the strangest part.

He had also been overwhelmed by emotions he could barely control.

An unbearable hunger.

A deep, almost uncontrollable anger.

Then came the pain and sorrow, pressing down on his mind until it felt as though he were drowning in his own emotions.

And then...

A ray of light appeared.

Within that endless darkness, something suddenly shone like a brilliant star.

Its light spread across the bleak world, illuminating everything around it. Wherever it touched, the black fog began to dissolve, while the tar-like substance covering his body slowly evaporated away.

Little by little, his thoughts became clearer.

The crushing hunger faded.

The anger subsided.

The pain and sorrow gradually disappeared.

And eventually, for the first time, his mind became calm, almost peaceful. So peaceful he just wanted to cry.

Then Gopuro moved toward the light.

The moment he reached out and touched that brilliant star, it merged into his body.

A warm sensation spread through him, washing away the last traces of the darkness.

And then...

He woke up.

When he opened his eyes, his evolution was already complete. He had become a Super Forest Goblin.

*****

At first, I had assumed it was simply some strange hallucination brought on by the evolution process, and that the experience had been unique to Gopuro.

But now Gopuran was telling me that she had seen the exact same thing.

That changed things.

Could there be something deeper and more profound happening within them during their evolution?

Could that light that saved them and brightened their world actually be the power of my System?

The thought sent a strange ripple of excitement through me. Something told me I had just stumbled upon a secret far more important than I realized.

For now, though, I had far more questions than answers.

There was no way to reach any conclusions based on the experiences of just two goblins.

I would probably need to investigate this later, once I had more citizens and had the chance to observe more evolutions.

****

A few moments later...

The two goblins had finished eating, their bellies full and their stamina completely restored. They were already brimming with energy, eager to get back to work.

"Big Boss, what we do today?" Gopuro asked, a wide grin spreading across his face as his eyes sparkled with excitement.

"You chop wood," I replied.

I had assumed that after one day of nonstop chopping, the guy would already be so bored of such a repetitive task.

But nope.

"Alright! I love chopping trees!" he exclaimed, striking a dramatic muscle pose before eagerly grabbing his old axe.

Damn! If this guy existed in the modern world, he’d be the perfect corporate slave!

I was genuinely impressed by his attitude.

This guy didn’t need motivation. He didn’t need encouragement.

Just give him a job, and he would happily throw himself into it!

With that kind of dedication, he more than deserved what I was about to give him.

"But before that, take this!" I said.

Then with a thought, something suddenly materialized in the air before Gopuro, something I had just recently purchased.

A brand-new axe!

Gone was the crude bone tool! This one was made from proper metal, with a sturdy wooden handle and a sharp iron blade!