Chapter 40: DOMAIN EVOLUTION
The crimson fragment pulsed against Reed’s skin as he materialized within Goblin’s Hollow, his consciousness shifting from the frozen wastes back to his domain. The transition left him disoriented, the world spinning in nauseating swirls before solidifying around him. He hadn’t expected to be able to return so quickly—not with Valerian gone and the fragments scattered—but the void energy still coursing through his veins had responded to his desperate need for sanctuary.
Reed steadied himself against the trunk of a twisted oak, his breath forming clouds in the cool morning air. Goblin’s Hollow sprawled before him, unrecognizable from the primitive settlement he had left behind. In his absence, the domain had continued to evolve, guided by the directives he had established before departing for Crimson Peak.
Where crude huts had once stood, stone structures now rose, their foundations carved with runes that pulsed with the same eerie blue light as the fragment. The central plaza had been transformed into a circular gathering space, paved with hexagonal tiles that seemed to absorb and redirect ambient mana. And everywhere, goblins and humans worked side by side, their movements purposeful and coordinated.
"Lord Reed." A voice drew his attention. Grimscar, his first goblin vassal, approached with a formal bow. The goblin had changed dramatically—standing nearly five feet tall now, his once-mottled green skin had darkened to emerald, etched with what appeared to be natural runic patterns. His eyes held an intelligence that would have been unthinkable in an ordinary goblin.
"Grimscar," Reed acknowledged, straightening despite the exhaustion that weighed on him. "The domain has... transformed."
"As have we all," Grimscar replied, his voice deeper and more articulate than Reed remembered. "Your instructions were followed to the letter. The knowledge you brought from the tournament has been implemented, though not without cost."
Reed followed Grimscar’s gaze toward the eastern edge of the settlement, where a field of small mounds marked with crude totems stood in neat rows. A goblin burial ground, far larger than it should have been.
"How many?" Reed asked, his jaw tightening.
"Thirty-seven failed the evolution process," Grimscar answered dispassionately. "Their bodies rejected the mana infusion protocols. But sixty-two succeeded and have become the core of our new hierarchy."
Reed closed his eyes briefly, absorbing the weight of those deaths. Even goblins—creatures most of the kingdom considered vermin—deserved better than to be sacrificed on the altar of progress. Yet he couldn’t deny the results. The domain pulse beneath his feet was stronger, more harmonized than before. The void energy within him resonated with it in a way that felt almost symphonic.
"Show me everything," Reed commanded.