Aina had a bright and happy smile as she looked at her Master.
Looking to her side, Maria saw that Navin had a strange smile on his face and was barely containing his laughter as if he had remembered something funny.
“Yes, yes. Leave the most troublesome matters to me, we each do as it’s within our capabilities, right?”
Navin took a deep breath and smiled while taking another skewer and making appear a jar full of juice which he served on three glasses.
“Right! Thank you, Master.”
Aina replied in a good mood. Even Maria was starting to cheer up a bit. She could put her worries aside, thinking about such massive matters would do her no good, and if it was really something too great for them to handle, then they could ask for Navin’s help.
Maria was starting to believe that even if it was something impossible for the entirety of the people of the world, it would be possible for Navin.
“Mom, I had always heard that Goblins were really ugly, but Kar wasn’t ugly, just a bit weird-looking. Like a kid with green skin that had been playing too long in the mud.”
Aina said after drinking half of the juice in her glass. Maria privately found it funny that Aina was referring to Kar as ‘a kid’ when she was just a little girl herself. Now that Maria thought about it, given the harsh life Goblins lived, Kar was probably forced to mature faster than a Human child, like Aina, would.
But Aina’s words made Maria think. She thought back to the little goblin with short black hair, green skin, and red eyes, and compared him to the other Goblins she had personally seen.
Kar was definitely less ugly than them, he was kind of cute, in a way. His nose wasn’t bulbous but pointy, his ears were elongated and pointy like all other Goblins but not the wide and rough sheets of skin she remembered seeing on other Goblins.
His eyes were red with yellow sclera like all goblins, but his eyes weren’t bloodshot nor mad, they were limpid and intelligent, although burdened with sadness, a look Maria had seen in many people before.
“I wonder. Lord Navin, are there many kinds of Goblins? Kar looked different from the ones I had met before.”
“Yes, there are. Within every species, there are distinct populations of individuals with their own characteristics, that’s what’s properly called a ‘Race’.”
Navin began the explanation, he didn’t want to cover this subject from the approach of genetics, since neither Maria nor Aina had the background to understand technical terms of biology, but there were more practical ways to explain this matter.
Besides, even in the most advanced worlds, with great minds dedicated to this study with the help of technology and magic, there were too many mysteries still uncovered about even the simplest forms of life and the ways of evolution.
A superficial approach for this explanation would be ideal in this case, instead of technical terms, he would use layman’s terms and cover the subjects in the same manner that an encyclopedic book would.
Ample knowledge without delving deep into the technicalities that would require expertise to properly understand.
Navin made multiple projections appear in the air in front of the sofa over the flying device. The projections showed multiple creatures of different species, including Goblins, Humans, and Elves.
“Just like in the Human Species where there are multiple groups of people with different characteristics like a certain amount of muscular mass, a particular skin color, certain facial features, a specific eye color and shade, affinity to some element, capacity for magic, talent in multiple areas, or any other trait. Each of these people is Human, and any of them can have these characteristics, the lack or possession of one or more of these characteristics does not make one more nor less Human than the rest. Now, due to multiple factors, like the environment, social structure, the activities they dedicate to, and the desire for kinship, people gather.”
Navin made multiple individuals of each group of projection appear and then separated each group.
“Sometimes it’s people with similar characteristics who gather due to their similarities, so everyone in the population will share a common distinctive trait; sometimes people with different characteristics gather and due to the relationships between them, their descendants will have their characteristics and with the passage of time, the general population of that community will have common traits in them. Either way, a new group will be created that has something that identifies them as a member of the same community and sets them apart from the rest of the world.”
Maria and Aina nodded at his words. While intently watching the moving projections. Aina absentmindedly grabbed more skewers and passed one to her mother as the explanation continued.
“The common trait or characteristics among a specific population can be anything. You will find tribes where everyone has the same tone of skin, you will see families where everyone’s hair or eye color is the same, there are bloodlines where everybody possesses the same attribute in magic. Communities that have worked as hunters for generations will find that their children have bodies more suited for the task, which will help them assimilate the traditions and techniques of their predecessors faster; there’s also the people who have lived for a long time in a place, their bodies will mutate and adapt to that environment for survival’s sake.”
Maria and Aina looked at the images of the different groups, the images of individuals were fusing together in pairs, sometimes turning into a single image of a new individual, and sometimes fusing and making groups of two or three individuals appear which would in turn then fuse with others and make new individuals appear, there were also individual images that would not fuse with others and silently disappeared.
It took them but a moment to figure out that this was showing the descendants of each pair of individuals, representing the passing from one generation to another.
“And through this long process of mutation, variation, adaptation, and passing of traits across many generations, known as evolution, there are characteristics that are inherited, some that are discarded, some that stay inactive in one generation and manifest in another generation, and also there’s the appearance of new characteristics that had never existed before. The end result is the wonderful world we see today, full of endless variations and countless groups of people with different characteristics both among themselves and in relation with other groups.”
With a wave of his hand, Navin made the projections expand and show a vast number of people of different species and races, now there were animals and plants in the grand picture that he showed them.
It was a vast world, vibrant with vitality and full of exotic forms of life.
Aina was amazed by the picture, she turned her head to look at her mother who was also admiring the beautiful projection, and they smiled at each other. They both turned then to look at their lecturer and maker of this beautiful scene.
Navin was smiling at the projected image, with a fond smile that reminded Aina of the smile her mother gave her whenever Aina made small presents for her or gathered flowers to bring back home.
A very warm, beautiful smile.
“I have always loved and admired this particular aspect of the Cosmos, the wonder of infinite forms of life, countless paths that can be walked into an endless expanse of existence. It’s truly beautiful.”
He said in a soft voice, full of warm emotions, his eyes were glittering slightly as he seemed to be looking at something beyond this picture, something far vaster and more wonderful than this projection.
A few seconds later, he waved his hand again and the vast picture changed, showing now only a group of different Goblins of different appearance.
“In Goblins’ case, since they are intrinsically magical creatures, their evolution happens at a different speed than in non-magical species. This is due to a process known as Metamorphosis through which they physically develop new characteristics and change their body structure during their lifetime. You have seen how a larva turns into a butterfly, right? Well, in magical creatures and even in some Cultivators, this process happens too, but in a bigger way and repeatedly across their lives. Sometimes it’s a necessity for their Ascension in their Cultivation Stages. But unlike with non-magical animals that undergo Metamorphosis as they mature with age, magical creatures only undergo a Metamorphosis when they meet certain criteria, regardless of age, they will only transform when the whole conditions are satisfied.”
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Some of the images of Goblins stepped forwards, they were all Goblins, but there were huge variations between them.
“The most basic and common Goblins are small, thin, and green, with red irises and yellow sclera, pointed ears and sharp tooth. After their first Metamorphosis, they become Hobgoblins, which are by a general rule stronger, smarter, taller, more muscular and more aesthetically pleasant in appearance; Hobgoblins are the first leaders that appear among Goblins, and in their society they serve as commanders in the battlefield and organizers of different endeavors within the tribes.”
The first image of a small Goblin disappeared and four different figures replaced it; these were examples of Hobgoblins.
The first was a male, red-haired, he had a lean body, wore leather armor and had a bow on the back.
The second was female, brunette, she was taller and more muscular than the archer, wielding a broadsword on her right hand, she also had leather armor.
The third was male, over two meters tall, fat with a big belly and thick arms of muscle, he wore no armor nor clothes on his upper body, his weapon was an enormous wooden club.
The fourth was female, with long gray hair and a wide tunic covering her body, she had multiple tattoos on her arms and torso, red lines of painting adorned her face as she wielded a wooden staff adorned with bones of many animals.
“Just like any other sentient race, the Goblins have multiple jobs and Classes, and they carry multiple functions within their tribes, there are soldiers, hunters, scouts, shamans, and builders too. Usually, Hobgoblins are the ones who take these positions since basic Goblins don’t have the Skills for it.”
At that time, Aina raised her hand and asked a question.
“Master, then is Kar a Hobgoblin?”
“No, Kar is a regular Goblin. But he has started to cultivate thanks to the Legacy of Kharsfal he found, so both his body and mind are different from how a common Goblin would be. He is soon to become a Hobgoblin, so the next time you see him he will look different.”
“Ohh…”
Aina let out a sound of mild surprise. So Kar would transform in a Hobgoblin and look different next time? Will he be taller?
“There are many paths of Metamorphosis for a Goblin, after becoming a Hobgoblin, they can transform into a Trasgu, a Lutin, an Iratxo, a Pukwudgie, and many other biological varieties of Goblinkind, which they reach depending on many factors such as their Classes as fighters, healers, crafters, etc.”
Trasgus were fighters and hunters, with natural traits specialized in living and fighting in the woods.
Lutins possessed great affinity to magic and were versed in a wide variety of tricks and spells.
Iratxoak were great farmers and knowledgeable in many fields, they were experts in botanic and ranching, many Druids and Shamans among Goblins became this.
Pukwudgies were stealth specialists, silent and elusive. Skilled in assassination, exploration, and disguise.
And there were many more types of Goblins.
“Goblins had that many variations? I had never heard of it. I knew about Hobgoblins and Shamans; I had seen them years ago in some raids against villages they had carried out. I had heard about the Chieftains, Goblin Lords and Goblin Kings, but they are titles, with Hobgoblins holding those positions, not a different kind of Goblin.”
Maria commented. All these many different names and variations, but if Goblins were such a prolific species with so many transformations available for them, why didn’t the rest of the world know?
It couldn’t be simply because they didn’t bother to learn, even if they didn’t care to learn, they would have met these many transformed Goblins during the multiple battles across history.
“Correct, those are simply titles within the Goblin society and also a Class within the Classification Systems, but not a biological variation within their species. I’m not sure what happened in this world, or why Goblins are so oppressed and barely surviving by scavenging. But I have seen Goblins in multiple worlds, and I analyzed Kar, the Goblins here don’t have limiting traits on their bodies nor much biological difference from the Goblins in other realms. They simply hadn’t manifested these Metamorphoses because they hadn’t been able to, they are killed before they can fulfill the conditions for them.”
Navin replied with his eyebrows furrowed. He was thinking about how to find out more about the history of this world; it couldn’t have been a single event that led to this situation. If he wanted to find out he would have to search ancient ruins, history books or maybe search into the genetic memory of Goblins with some ritual. But that would be tedious, and he didn’t have the luxury to waste energy on such matters.
This entire situation was picking his curiosity, he felt there was something more at play here, but couldn’t find out exactly what. This world had been tampered with by Divinities, that much was a given due to all the Dungeons in this world. Navin hadn’t scanned this world with his Divine Sense to investigate in detail, but simply with his Nirmita standing here, he could feel the marks that the touch of Divine Energies had left in this world.
He would have to let this matter wait for now and investigate when he had recovered more of his power.
“Master, those are things that happen with Goblins, are Humans like that too? What about Elves and Beastkins? I have heard of something called High Elves existing, and Mom told me that Beastkins have different animal traits but some are more human-like than others.”
Aina said just as she finished the last skewer in the tray. She turned to look at her Master, both for more food and for the answer to her question.
Navin made more skewers appear in the tray before replying.
“Yes, although Humans don’t have the inherent magical traits of such species. Humans don’t possess the ability to undergo Metamorphosis, although there are many ways to change one’s nature. Practitioners of different traditions use different methods to alter the body, mind, and soul to better fit their arts, and many people have fortuitous encounters that enable them to enhance their physiques to gain new attributes.”
Navin then pointed at Aina with a smile.
“Of course, there are also those like you, Aina. People who possess a unique and special physique, it can be a mutation, genetic variation or evolution, whatever the case, you have a body that’s different from that of other people and you possess an ability that only you can use. So you are one example of extraordinary Humans who have special traits, you are one of a kind.”
Hearing that, Aina smiled and let violet lightning dance between the fingers of one hand, then let it return inside her body.
“What about Elves and Beastkins, Dwarves, and other species?”
Maria asked as she grabbed some skewers, the conversation had lifted her mood, and it had been very informative and interesting.
“Each species has its own variations and evolutionary path, and although there are species that only exist in certain worlds, there are some widespread species that are common in many realms of the Cosmos. Elves and Fairies are closely related species, just like Dwarves and Gnomes. In fact, they are all related to Goblins too, although they don’t like to talk about it; in some cases, they even kill anyone who mentions the ancestral relationship between the species. Many like to pretend they were born just as they are now from Nature itself or by creation by the hand of the Gods.”
Navin laughed. The ancient dark history of the Five Fair Families of the Cosmos, which were the Elves, Faeries, Goblins, Nymphs and Dwarves, was something very few people knew, even among the old and powerful Cultivators, since not everyone was interested in finding out such things, especially if they could offend powerful beings from those species by digging too deep on their matters.
However, Navin knew it, and knew it very well. Like, having taken the full information of ancient records regarding their origins directly out of the mind of the King of the Fairies after winning a bet, that well.
But that was a story for another time. Maybe he could tell the story when Ethan and Aina finally met? That would be a good occasion for it.
“Anyways, each species has its own methods, everyone is trying to survive, adapt to their environment and even change the environment to suit their needs or tastes, training to become stronger and studying to develop new arts that allow them to improve their lives.”
“Even you, Master?”
“Oh, absolutely. I never stop improving and learning. Cultivation is like swimming against the current of a river, if you stagnate then you fall behind. So one must always try to make every effort to advance in order to succeed.”
“Will I be as strong as you one day, Master?”
Aina asked with little sparks of purple dancing inside her pupils. Navin raised an eyebrow, surprised by the sudden turn of the conversation; the corner of his mouth rose as his irises shone brightly like miniature blue stars as they locked gazes.
“That’s up to you, Aina. I really want you to try, and I will support you in everything you need to succeed in that.”
Then he smiled mischievously.
“Of course, by the time you want to reach my current level of power, I’ll be even stronger, who knows at what kind of level I’ll be by then.”
Aina laughed at that, she wasn’t discouraged in the slightest.
“That doesn’t matter, as long as we can all be advancing together, I’ll be happy. I promise that I’ll do my best.”
“What about you, Maria?”
Navin turned his head to look at Maria, who had a serious expression as she thought about something. She turned to look at his eyes, nodded resolutely and smiled.
“Naturally, I must also strive to succeed, I can’t let my daughter do all the work alone.”
Mother and daughter shared a look and both nodded.
“Excellent, that’s a good disposition to have. You must always do everything you can to improve, never give up.”
Navin smiled and laid back on the sofa. He started to make the flying artifact descend to a place where they could rest for the night.
Aina suddenly jumped and turned completely on her mother’s lap.
“Ah, I just remembered! Mom, Fairies are real, Master said it. So you owe me a sweet pie.”
That was an old bet of them, already over a year ago. One to which Maria had accepted just to play along with her daughter’s games. Both of them had forgotten it by now, but with a cultivation-enhanced mind, memories flowed more clearly for Aina, so she called out the debt now.
“Ok, sweetie. I’ll bake the pie tomorrow.”
Maria easily complied.
“Yay!”
“Ah, Lord Navin, do Fairies also build little castles with mud and little flowers next to Human houses?”
Maria asked and Aina stopped her celebration. She wasn’t the only one who remembered their bets now that they had better memories.
“Hmm, no. They don’t do that, at least not in little scale and definitely nowhere near Human’s homes.”
Navin replied, curious about these bets between mother and daughter.
“Seems like you owe me a pie too, little missy.”
Maria laughed softly and hugged her daughter playfully.
The group landed in a hill near another city within Likia Kingdom territory, even bigger than Buri City.
They settled for the night inside their home, the Traveler’s Cabin, just as different events were unfolding on the night.
As Aina and Maria slept warm and secure, Navin stepped outside, spreading his Divine Sense and feeling the threads of Karma and Fate moving in the area.
His eyes had a cold light as he scanned the area and read the energies around.
The people outside would have a very restless night.