"AAAAAAAAHHH!!!"

An agonizing scream reverberated.

I opened my eyes as wide as I'm able to as I cried.

Truly a rude awakening.

In front of me, is the throne in a state unfit for a king. Yet, the Red Ogre sat on the throne like a king.

I am surrounded by goblins of huge numbers, cheering at the violence and bloodshed that could happen at any moment. Some of them are badly hurt from the fiery explosion I cause but they don't seem bothered by it. Strange.

I look down at my hands, on the floor, tied together, trembling without stop. No, not just my hands. My whole body is shaking. Although I'm not tied to a post, the feeling of helplessness is just like that time.

Everywhere I look, I see appetites on the verge of being let loose in a frenzy manner.

No.... This is worse....

Wait.

Where's Lubac? Where's the human?

Last I saw him, he went crashing through a wall.

Is he even alive?

I look around frantically.

Found him.

He's right beside the Red Ogre, like me, bound and on our knees.

We're both caught and we're both both captives now.

No. This cannot be. Of all times, it has to be when master....

Without any warning, I was hit across the face.

"You're in the presence of the Great Cinders. Show your overdue respect, infidel." The tallest goblin who hit me said.

Infidel? What are they talking about?

The Red Ogre, Great Cinders grinned. "That's enough, for now. Now, will you look this way or do I have to let my servant remind you again?" Although the words are polite, his tone is filled with contempt and disdain.

I raised my head to meet the Red Ogre's gaze. They are red but not of natural color. The red comes from the blood veins that have span over his eyes. A sign of a disease.

The goblin in black robes beside the Red Ogre laughed. "Look at him, he's shivering like a shitting mongrel."

"What do you want?" I asked, trying my hardest to suppress my shaking.

And I was struck again.

"Talk only when you are answering questions. Nothing else. You don't ask the Great Cinders. You are unworthy." The tall goblin reminded me so with a twisted smile.

The goblin gallery cheered at such acts.

"Why have you intruded upon my domain?"

"I told you. We were.... we were just passing through. It's the truth. I'm not lying." I spat it all out the one and only truth.

"Really? You didn't made a deal with those loathsome humans and came here to exterminate all of us?"

What kind of far-fetched theory is that? Fucking absurd. "No! That's not true. It's nothing like that. We just wanna leave this place."

"Leave?"

The Red Ogre left his throne and approaches me.

"Leave?!" He screams at me and greets me with a hook to my face. The force from his fist carries the drips of my blood splattered to the pillars "This is my domain!" Right in my face, the Red Ogre told me. "I am the king here. I say when you leave and when you die." And he uppercuts my chin, more blood spilled out from me.

"No.... We didn't intend to...."

What's wrong with these goblins?

Not even the thick-headed clan leader of mine was this stupid and blind in logic. This goblins are not even listening to even a single word. They are simply interpreting things to their own convenience.

Something's really wrong with them.

The Red Ogre grasps my throat. He raises me up from the floor but still staring down at me.

Those are....

Now that I have a close look on him, I can see faint dark purplish veins on the left of his bare chest. They are corrupted by the one master told me about. Aedrox, the one who killed Muo Li, Clammis, Alabaster, and Daedrich.

Alabaster and Daedrich.

Master gave them those names in honor of their memories. I'm surprised with master's naming sense considering I'm named Tom. I should get a better name from master later after he wakes up.

I will made it out of here alive.

Still, how were they corrupted? I don't sense any miasma here. It's possible that they contracted the curse before they came here.

This is bad. Even if I can make it out of here, who's to say I won't contract the curse, the corruption? Master has told me that the corruption doesn't spread from victims but I might be wrong. My memory is too hazy at the moment to remember things from long ago. Although it is only a day, the harsh trip makes the day pass slower.

Though the corruption didn't seem to have fully taken control of them but despite that, their minds are more twisted than before.

"Do you perhaps feel like speaking the truth now?" gently, the Red Ogre asked.

At first I was confused with his sudden shift of tone but I then immediately understood the twisted reason behind it.

Fire ignited on his chest and spreads to his whole body, cladding himself in a flaming armor. My throat is burned along with his hand wrapped around it.

I do what everyone would do when one is burned, I scream at the top of my lungs but the blazing heat around my throat is making it impossible to make any voice.

"Defiant infidel! Defiant to his last breath! He dares to lie before the power of the Great Cinders." The tall goblin yelled out to the surrounding goblins and his words bring upon cheers.

"Burn the heretic." The goblin in black robes suggested.

I widened my eyes at his words.

I tried to beg for them to see reason in their decisions but the corruption ran deep. Only thoughts of inflicting pain courses through their mind. The sheerest nature of goblins.

"But before that.... " The Red Ogre drops me.

He approaches the human who has been watching the whole thing. With the flaming armor still cladding his body, he grabs the human's left arm. The human screams as he felt the burn. And he screamed even louder as the Red Ogre tore off his arm. Blood gushes out wildly and the goblins are overjoyed from being bathed in the blood of their enemies.

What joke is this? How vile can they be? Their hearts are darker than my former tribe. These goblins cannot be compare to the others. The corruption has changed them greatly but for the worse.

Leaving the human screaming and writhing in agony, the Red Ogre walks towards me with the human's arm in his hand.

Before I even know what was going on, my arms are lock by two goblins. Another one held my mouth open.

"Eat." The Red Ogre said and stuff the arm into my mouth, down my throat. "Have a test of the pathetic human you allied yourself with."

They are all laughing and looking gleeful as they does such acts.

Is this what the corruption is capable of? Meaningless actions as long as it's cruel and violent?

When I rejected by struggling my head furiously, I'm feed the Red Ogre's punch instead.

Left without any more strength, I submit.

With reluctance till my every bones, I swallow the flesh of a comrade they feed me. I don't understand why they did such atrocious acts. Maybe there's no reason. Maybe they aren't even aware of the cruelty they are committing.

Maybe....

What does it matter....?

It's hopeless....

After they are done with me, I heard this.

"Looks like we will be having orc meat again for the feast tonight." When the Red Ogre declare so, the crowd cheered like a war has been won.

"Shall we have it roasted?" The goblin in black suggested.

"Excellent idea." The Great Cinders said and proceed to set me on fire.

My agony cries echoed out through the hall but it is drowned out by the screams and cheers of all the sadistic goblins in the room.

You know....

When I was strung up like a piece of meat back at the lair, I thought things couldn't get any worse.

Today, the Red Ogre proved me wrong.

The fire has burned away the bindings. I am free but I am being reduced to ashes and the process takes a lot of time.

I flail my arms, throw my body to the floor, roll and roll and roll, hoping to douse the fire but to no avail.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

I give up.

This is too much.

I have heard that death cease all pain but I wonder which clever bastard came with that? Does the clever bastard never considered the pain one has to go through before death?

If there is a god out there, I want to ask...

Why?

Why is this happening to me?

My lack of reaction must have offended the Red Ogre as he stomped on me when I was no longer moving. I gasp with a groan when I felt my ribs shattering in me.

I screamed but the pain has taken my voice.

The goblins laughed like they have witness the funniest thing ever.

The Red Ogre shifts his attention to the human. The human can only return a horrified gaze. He has wet himself from the sheer intent he can feel from the Red Ogre.

"Filthy humans. Pathetic." The Red Ogre said while shaking his head from side to side. "Feed this blight to the hounds."

I heard such thing being said but I wasn't in a state where I could just toss and turn to bear witness to the Red Ogre's order.

In a faint distance, I heard agony cries but the fire has even robbed me of my senses.

Because of me being a Mage Orc....

My magic and Mana is sustaining me when a normal individual would have been burned to death at this point.

This hurts.... Did master went through the same thing?

Just as I wish for death to quickly come and claim me,

Death arrived.

but it wasn't here to claim my soul.

It was here to claim the goblins.

At the door way, the only entrance, I saw him, where the walls of flame have blocked any possible entry and exit, he calmly walks through with the fire being doused by his thrilling presence. His sheer presence is enough to garner all the attention to him.

Master looks different.

He's taller.

He's built but not too much.

He's bald now.

His eyes are green.

He no longer has sharp teeth, claws, and a tail. Even his right arm looks normal now.

On the surface, he looks weaker but that's only on the surface.

In his eyes, beyond it, I saw a tremendous amount of strength. Strength that probably would have won against the Alpha Goliath easily.

Before my eyes, his right arm turned.

The skin blackened. The nails became claws, sharp, gleaming and fine talons. Black aura leaks from his right arm like gas. In fact, his whole right arm seems to be solid and gas at the same time. The way it flickers is almost as if the arm is nothing more than an illusion but even from this distance, with my ruptured senses, it feels real enough to me.

Master inspects his new right arm. A faint smile of satisfaction creep across his face.

But when his eyes moved to me, the smile disappeared.

His hands trembled.

His face distorted with wrath and it into some ugly.

Countless spears of darkness appeared around Master. They take aim and fire, each accurately hitting its target right in the between of eyes. Furthermore, spikes of shadows shot out from the ground, impaling the goblins who have reacted too late.

The Red Ogre, the Black Goblin, the Tall Goblin, they were left from the merciless slaughter.

The Red Ogre can only look on with an astonished expression. His agape mouth wasn't able to close.

Before I knew it, the flames engulfing me has burned out.

Blood oozes out of me from every gap made from the fire.

My strength left me completely and I succumb to my heavy body weight. I fell to the floor without anything to cushion my head which received the ground directly.

It doesn't hurt because I have much heavier wounds.

And before my world fade to black, I see master looking to me, his face distorting further into ugliness, turning into something akin of a monster.

A monster that I have only saw in books. A figure of a human but skin as dark as the night itself. The eyes glowed an intense red but purple was master's choice. Veins of cracks spread all over the body from where the heart is. A tail with a sharpened end, twice the length of one's body. Its knee where the two parts of a leg meet is arched slightly, the heels is arched even more.

This current image of master reminds me of one such creature,

a monster of legends that planted fear deep in the hearts of men,

the foulest creature of darkness,

a demon.

----------------------------------------

"Ah~ That was simply the best." He said as he finished relieving himself on another unfortunate female human. We don't wear layers of clothes like humans or elves do. A loin cloth is all we make do with.

Unlike him, I have finished my part a long time ago. I have enjoyed the fleeting pleasure but I don't last long. I reached the peak far too easy. Not that I have any qualms about it.

The women is always left to tend to themselves after we're done relieving ourselves with them. They are chained to a wooden post by their neck. Of course, they are completely bare naked. Their apparels have long been tore apart by us when we forced ourselves on them. They are provided warm with only rag cloths that barely covers their upper body.

My kin always left with smiles on their face after the relief but not me.

I always look back at them, taking in their state after such endeavors. Some are left crying from the humiliation and pain, some are left having foam leaking from their mouths, and some are just left with lifeless eyes staring into oblivion. For a peculiar goblin like me, it is a gruesome sight and leave bad taste in me. Ironically, I'm responsible for this sight, partly but I still am.

I never like what we do but I always lost to my inner lust. Goblins are creatures that are easily urged and incited. We pounce on every female sapient species in of our eyes.

In front of me are four female adventurers that we have just caught not two days ago. Yet, they are already at death's door.

I feel guilt and at the same time, I feel aroused from their weakened and defenseless state in their bare form.

I can feel it getting back up again after that relieve.

I want to do them again.

I hate it but I can't hold it back. This is my nature.

And I'm....

....I'm weak.

I'm just a goblin....

Goblin?

I look down at my hands

No.... I'm not a goblin.

My hands are suppose to be rough and brawny, not skinny to the bones.

They are suppose be that of orcs.

I have evolved into an orc.

But why,

Why am I a goblin again?

As I look up from my hands, the imprisoned women in front of me are swallowed by darkness.

A darkness?

A gluttonous darkness.

It swallowed my surroundings too but it left me by myself in the pitch black.

Tiny hands with whips as arms, they reach out to me from the darkness.

They coil themselves around my limbs. Even before they latched on to me, my movements are already incapacitated by some unknown force.

These hands are now crawling on my body. They are reaching for my mouth.

Fear demand me to keep my lips shut but the black crawlers is working to pry it open.

It doesn't hurt. In fact, I barely feel their touch except....

It just feels cold. Chills creep on my spine. My insides are freezing from the touches.

Somehow, it's worse than pain.

Slowly and little by little, I am being swallowed by the darkness, pulled into it. A numbness to your whole body is more horrifying than pain. Having no control or feeling no physical connection to your own body is thousand times more dreadful than pain.

I don't want this.... Please.... save me....

I call out to who ever is listening, to whoever even cares to listen to a pitiful goblin.

And that's when the light exploded.

The abrupt and harsh illumination dispel the darkness that binds me. I'm spat out from the darkness. The darkness is burned away by the assaulting light.

But not all. The darkness persisted. Its defiant with its death. They are desperately reaching out for me.

Without any thoughts or suspicions of either side, I ran for the light. It seems like the sensible thing to do here.

As I'm about to plunge myself into the light, a strange and familiar sensation held me back. No, it's not a sensation. It's an emotion.

Relief. Serenity. Happiness.

Not from the light, but the darkness. It's cold.... terror lurks in it.... pain that will numbs one's body dwells in it but.... my instincts are telling me to seek the darkness instead of the light.

Somehow, the feeling the darkness gave out.... it's familiar.

I look at the light.

I don't feel warmth from it. The light is bright and radiant but only grim douses me.

Odd. Too odd. Why do I feel warmth from the darkness when its touch are cold? Why do I feel chill from the supposedly warm radiance?

What is happening?

Why is this happening?

I don't understand.

I can't.

I'm just a....

I'm just a...

Goblin.

I can't do this. I don't know anything anymore.

Then,....

Someone sighed.

"Ah.... Well, I can't exactly blame you. I was pretty pathetic and stupid too but I was told that I have grown. I like to believe that but the changes are more obvious to others than oneself I suppose."

I raise my head and there he is, my master, standing among the darkness, Hyx Atlas. The one who freed me of the bleak and grim chains of a goblin's original fate.

"M...master?" I blurted out.

"Master? I wasn't aware I'm such an godly figure in your eyes. Or have you actually been seeing me that way?" He looks at me with a troubled expression.

I'm too shocked to answer. My eyes and mind are in disbelief. Why is master here? What is happening?

"You're in shock, aren't you?" Master asked.

"No shit." Another person who looks like master appeared.

What? Who....

Master is also looking at the other person who like him with dumbfounded expression. Master is rubbing his chin while some incomprehensible noises. He always does this when in deep thought. My master is truly what one would call eccentric.

"Kai Ming?" Master asked.

Master's imitator looks at his own hands. "In the flesh?" a confirmation which sounded more like a question returned as the respond.

After having a few more pondering looks, master looks like he gave up on something. He sighs. "Well, I suppose you would resemble me considering you are me."

What....? I don't understand. Who is he? He's you? Who's the real master? And....

"Ah...." Master uttered when he noticed my expression. He turn his gaze to his doppelganger. "Maybe you should just scoot off for now. It's not good for Tom's well being." Master twirl his index finger beside his ear.

The doppelganger has a troubled expression before eventually sighs. "Fine. Well, it was fun while it last. Not even a minute though." He said and disappear into thin air.

"Sorry about that. Don't mind him."

"Who is that?" I realize my tone was rude and without any sincerity but master didn't seem to mind.

Master tilt his head. "He's me but the smarter one. My subconscious. The logical part of me. The better me?"

I'm confused by master's explanation.

"But that's not important right now. What is important is that you are dying."

What?

"Don't you remember? That fire ogre roasted you alive. Fucking bastard. Should have take my time with him but.... you were dying...."

"Mas...." I realized my mistake just in time. "Hyx, you didn't manage to save me?"

Master sighs again. I guess human sighs a lot but is master human?

"You died." Master bluntly told me. "Well, dying."

I am not angry not sad. I am just contend. I have prepared myself for this.

"But I am working on a way to bring you back to life. It's kinda complicated."

I heard something unbelievable.

"And but.... it is up to you in the end, Tom."

"Me?"

"I can only do so much. You will have to do the rest yourself."

"But how?"

Master look around before looking back at me. "Acceptance. All of this. The darkness. Accept it."

I widened my eyes. I couldn't believe what I just heard from master. Unconsciously, I am crawling away from master.

"Um.... maybe that's not a good way to put it." Master mused. "Ah. How about this? Have you look properly at the darkness?"

To such an odd question, I obey. I strain my eyes at the darkness that surrounds master.

They're black?

No. Not completely.

There's purple. It is purplish black. How strange. It's familiar.

Just like master's magic.

Master's magic.....

Is this....?

"Seems like you figure it out. Yes, this is my magic. More precisely, [Abyss Magic]. It's the only way to save you, giving you a portion of my strength."

Master gave me his power in order to save me?

I want to ask why but I already know. This is just who master is. A good person. To a quote a human way of saying, "a good man".

"But my power wasn't enough."

"What? Why not?" Master's strength is not enough? How much is truly needed to bring a person back to life?

"Fear not. Without the other power, it should be enough." said Master. "Hopefully."

"What power?"

Master points behind me as I asked. I look back.

Crimson flames dyed the black world. No, not dye, the darkness and the flames combined. It became flames forged of shadows. Shadows are burning fiercely but gracefully like fire. Truly an odd spectacle. Master is really full of wonders.

Even without asking master, I understand where the flames come from.

I turn back and look at master straight in the eyes. I nod.

Master return a gentle smile. "Well then, I'll be going. There isn't much time now. You need to hurry. And be careful of that light. That's death, just so you know."

I look at master and fought back a tear. I couldn't be anymore happy now. Again, master grants me a new life. "Thank you."

Master nods in return. "You're welcome, Thomas Atlas."

And master gave me a new name and then he vanishes.

I see. So that's death. I remember reading a human literature of death's depiction. When they die, they always go towards the light. Is this it?

Well, whatever it is, I can ask master later.

And.... a name.... an actual name. Have master finally acknowledged me?

With a resolved will, I step into the darkness and fierce blaze. I let the two vigorous masterpiece of magic swallow me.

And then, those words appeared in my mind. Like a voice? No. Like a echoing memory.

[Conditions Cleared]

Conditions? What conditions?

[Abyss Magic / Crimson Lord (Legacy)- Amalgamated]

[Blaze of the Depths (Unique): Lv. 4 - Acquired]

[Title: - Acquired]

[Title: - Acquired]

[Title: - Acquired]

After those words that intruded my mind, another voice appeared.

[Well. Now this is interesting. Really just fascinating.]

A voice that resembles master but the tone is completely different from master's. This is not master's voice.

[Hello there, Thomas Atlas. I am Kai Ming, the Mana Overseer of the one you called, Master.]

I see. This is master's subconscious, as master has described it.

And another thing has changed and only know I realized.

Master spoke to me in Common and I responded back in Common, without pauses or stutters. My Common has became fluent. Is this another product of master's doing?

It definitely is.

[Brace yourself. You have another present coming for you. It's not from master but it is master who made this possible.]

[Conditions Cleared]

Another one?

[Commencing Evolution]

Right before the current world I was in faded into nothing,

right before I am awaken from this spectacular dream of mine,

the most unexpected thing happened to me right after all those previous words.

[Thomas Atlas: has evolved into ]