Chapter 24: THE NEW DOMAIN
The air in Goblin’s Hollow smelled of iron, moss, and the faint scent of sweat and fear. It had been a month since the battle, and the scars of war had become the foundation of something worse—order.
Reed stood atop the half-finished tower of the black stone fortress. Below him, the Hollow had transformed from a battlefield into a broken beehive. Smoke billowed from forges and hearths, while rows of mismatched huts stretched into the darkened treeline. Goblins, humans, and cursed hybrids toiled side by side—bound by necessity, not trust.
The system constantly updated information.
> DOMAIN STABILITY: 56%
> FACTION LOYALTY: 72% (GOBLIN), 44% (HUMAN), 29% (MIXED)
> SUB-FACTION ALERT: HUMAN CLERIC SEEN—UNREGISTERED
He dismissed the notice with a flick of his blood-stained glove.
"They’re testing the limits again," he muttered.
Shia, cloaked in dark silk and leaning on her chitin staff, joined him. Her eyes were no longer human—they were now streaked with glowing veins, a side effect of surviving the Soul Anchor. Making her stronger than ever, it was the first step toward goblins becoming more powerful than other creatures.
"They expected a liberator. They got a warlord," she said flatly.
Reed was undeterred. "I never promised mercy. Only survival."