Conqueror Of The Dark Soul

Chapter 3 - Gate

In the western part of the city, Alden entered the dense forest area. The trees were taller than normal, and the foliage covered the ground surface, making it difficult for Alden to see the terrain clearly from above.

He landed gently on the trunk of a giant tree with a candle in his left hand.

Contrary to what he thought, the terrain turned out to be larger than he had estimated. The distance between the giant trees was quite far, giving him more freedom of movement.

The branches of the trees played a crucial role in hiding the ground surface from above.

Alden stepped forward and placed the lit candle in the middle of the area.

While waiting, Alden took out a root, his favorite food.

Biting into the greenish root, Alden observed the changes happening to the red candle.

Time continued to pass.

...

Under the sky tinted with deep red, a 6-year-old child was running with sometimes unsteady steps.

The child had black hair with the back part tied. His green eyes reflected fear, and his steps were irregular, sometimes wider, sometimes shorter.

Nevertheless, he kept running through the forest.

Soon, he arrived at a village.

The orange light reflected in the boy's eyes. Panic and cries for help echoed in his head.

In front of him, a village was on fire, consumed by flames in an instant.

In the sky, giant winged creatures flew around the village. Fire spewed from their mouths, intensifying the burning of the village.

The boy glanced left and right, sorting through the people running. He was looking for something, someone.

At that moment, relief filled his eyes. A middle-aged woman ran towards him in panic. However, strangely, the green-eyed middle-aged woman did not look at the boy.

"Mom," the little boy said as he felt relief.

However, the woman passed by him. She ran past him and continued running. The boy froze. Just now, his mother had ignored him in the midst of this disaster.

Fortunately, a young man came and carried him. "What is a little kid doing here?" complained the young man.

The young man had a muscular physique, his eyes slightly sharp with a bluish gleam.

"Uncle Luth," the boy seemed to return from his wandering thoughts after being ignored by his parents.

"Do you know me?" Luth said in surprise, now walking faster.

Although it could be said that the boy was at the very back of the villagers trying to escape, Luth asked with a somewhat puzzled tone, "Where are your parents? Why are you alone?"

"Mama... Mama left me..." The boy shed tears as he pressed his face against Luth's shoulder.

"Is your mother a resident of this village? I've never seen you here," Luth, a fighter, had enough stamina to run and talk at the same time.

"Eh?" The boy lifted his head and looked at Luth in surprise.

How could he not recognize his own uncle? He should have been able to identify him in an instant, but Luth's question now revealed otherwise.

The boy's eyes became empty as a voice echoed directly into his mind.

"Wake up!"

The voice was somewhat hoarse, sounding weak as if coming from a distance, yet also close.

"This is your last warning, Wake up!"

...

Alden opened his eyes only to realize an arrow was about to hit him. With reflexes, he tilted his head, and the arrow stuck into the trunk of the giant tree where he leaned.

"I fell asleep!?" Alden immediately raised his body, adjusting his position to look forward.

A swirl of dark blue smoke formed in the middle of the place where the candle had been placed before. From within it, several short and green-skinned creatures emerged.

They had chubby bodies with bald heads. Their yellow eyes had a black line in the middle, resembling frog eyes.

Their height was at least half of Alden's. They carried various weapons.

The first one had come out earlier and shot an arrow towards him.

Several others carried spiked wooden clubs, stone axes, and stone-tipped spears.

They were Goblins!

Goblins were inhabitants of the first floor of the Dark Dimension. They tended to live in groups inside the Dark Dimension, but they were not very strong. Beginner fighters could defeat one of them.

At the moment, eight Goblins emerged from the Gate.

Alden sighed as a voice sounded in his right ear.

"What were you thinking, sleeping at a time like this!" said Black Orb. His words were conveyed through movements.

"Many things," Alden said casually.

Setting aside this conversation, Alden now uttered a word, "Water Ball." Instantly, a water sphere appeared in the air, about the size of a handgrip.

One goblin, agilely leaping towards him, swung a spear in his direction.

With a slight adjustment, Alden managed to dodge and directed the water lump towards the goblin archer. While doing this, he lifted his leg and kicked the stomach of the goblin attacking him hard.

The goblin growled as it flew towards the Gate, leaving the spear thrown in the air.

Alden saw that the previous water lump had exploded on the archer goblin. Immediately, he chanted another spell, "Froze."

The spell's effect was to freeze the water that had soaked the archer goblin.

Instantly, the green creature stopped moving with a "Kikkk" sound heard afterward. It was completely frozen.

With the spear in his hand, Alden now had to deal with the remaining seven goblins.

Alden sighed again as the seven goblins, including the one he had kicked before, attacked simultaneously.

...

Fighting goblins was not difficult, even very easy. Moreover, Alden was a spellcaster; the probability of him losing was close to zero.

Standing over the last goblin's corpse, Alden waited a moment before the goblins' bodies turned into ashes, leaving nothing behind.

"Do you want to go in?" Black Orb asked.

Alden snorted softly. A moment later, he walked towards the Gate that no longer produced goblins.

"Goblin's Nest?" Alden said with a tone as if he were asking, although he actually wasn't.

"Who knows, there might be valuable items inside," Black Orb responded.

It was a reasonable opinion. Therefore, Alden decided to enter the Gate.

A square room with stone walls and ceilings. There were six torches scattered in the room, providing a reddish-yellow light.

In the middle of the room, there was a bonfire and some dirty cloths.

But on the other side, there was a green crystal hanging from the ceiling. It emitted a greenish light, reflecting Alden in that glow.

"Nothing special," Alden said disappointedly, turning his gaze away from the crystal.

"Hmm. Besides, you've already obtained a Core from the Goblin's nest," Black Orb commented.

"Who suggested me to go in?" Alden then turned and went back through the Gate.

"At least, take that Core just in case," Black Orb suggested.

"I already have one like that."

Outside, Alden stood in front of the Gate with a disappointed look. Immediately, he reached out his hand and then uttered a sentence, "Fletus Spina Obscure."

Soon, a flame appeared in the middle of the gate, emanating from a red candle. Alden grasped the flame instead of the candlestick.

It didn't take long for the flame to extinguish, and the candle turned into ashes.

The Gate, the dark blue whirlpool, now shrunk to a size that couldn't be seen anymore, or perhaps disappeared completely.

Silent, Alden held his forehead with a grim expression. The dream he had just experienced still lingered in his mind. In fact, it was not just a dream but a piece of his memory from the past.

"If you remain silent, the Guardians will come soon," Black Orb commented.

"I want a drink," Alden said after taking a long sigh.

...

Meanwhile, the Guardians successfully dealt with the Gate that opened in the underground tunnel.

Derrick was one of the Guardians. He had a gentle yet serious demeanor. His brown eyes gleamed with seriousness.

His black hair was short. He wore all-white attire with some gold ornaments, and a sword sheathed on his back.

He sighed at the moment, "Only three? That's fewer than usual."

As he said this, he pulled out a shining sword from the goblin's body. The sword had a golden hilt symbolizing purity. Immediately, he sheathed the sword on his back.

Soon, he entered the Gate and came out a few minutes later. Holding a green crystal emitting a dim light.