I Can See Evolution Paths

Chapter 78: The Trail of Survivors

The King’s Mark shifted as they walked.

The golden line had been pointing deeper, and now it curved. Not horizontal. Upward, toward the surface.

Arthur looked at his hand. "We’re leaving?"

Sun looked at the underground roads extending in both directions, at the carved signs, the glowing crystals, and the ancient infrastructure they had been walking through. "We discover an underground civilization," he said, "and we’re already leaving."

Arthur scratched his cheek. "Maybe the King wanted to show us something first," he said. "Before sending us somewhere else."

Sun looked at him. "You say that as though you’re having an ongoing conversation with a dead king," he said.

Arthur thought for a moment. "I kind of am," he said.

The silence that followed had a specific quality.

Mithra laughed first.

Athena quietly adjusted her glasses. "I’ve stopped trying to categorize Arthur as a phenomenon," she said.

Sun nodded. "That’s probably the healthier approach," he said.

...

The stairs brought them back through roots and ancient stone and into the forest’s mid-morning light.

Arthur stretched.

"...Fresh air."

Melo stretched beside him.

"Kyu."

Athy immediately flew into the canopy.

Kong climbed onto Arthur’s shoulder.

[New Title Acquired]

[Forgotten Explorer]

[One of the few Beast Tamers to discover a key node of an Ancient Kingdom.]

Effect: [Ancient ruins and relics are slightly more likely to acknowledge your presence.]

Arthur blinked. "...Huh."

Mithra looked over. "What happened?"

"...I got another title."

Mithra smiles. "Congratulations."

Arthur nodded happily. "Thanks. It’s pretty useful."

Sun sighed. "...Of course you did."

Arthur looked at him. "You didn’t get a title?"

Sun blinked. "...What?"

Arthur smiled.

"It’s okay, Sun. I’m sure you’ll get a cool one like me soon."

Sun’s lips twitched. "I already have a cool title."

Arthur’s eyes widened. "You do?"

Mithra immediately leaned over. "Oh? What is it?"

Athena adjusted her glasses. "I’m curious as well."

Sun suddenly realized he had created a problem. "Uh... It’s..." He looked around for inspiration. "...The... Golden Seeker."

Arthur immediately started clapping. "Oh! That’s a good one!"

Sun straightened slightly. "...Right?"

Arthur smiled. "What does it do?"

Sun’s confident expression immediately cracked. "...It..." He coughed. "...Doesn’t do anything. It’s just..."

Arthur’s smile slowly disappeared. "...So you got a useless title?"

Sun froze.

Arthur gently patted his shoulder. "I’m sorry, Sun. I’m sure your next one will have an effect."

Mithra burst into laughter.

Athena quietly covered her mouth.

Even Kong looked toward Sun with what somehow felt like sympathy.

"You!" Sun pointed at Arthur. "I don’t know who you’ve been talking to... BUT TITLES–"

"Aren’t equal, I know Sun. Don’t worry, when you get one with an amazing effect, I will be there to congratulate you."

Sun blinked before blinking again and then falling silent. Now even Athena was laughing as she covered her stomach. And Kong was covering his mouth with one hand while patting Sun’s shoulder.

Sun buried his face in both hands. "One day... I’m going to stop reacting."

Mithra immediately laughs. "No, you’re not."

Sun thinks about it. "Probably not."

Vedas, who had been quietly listening, suddenly stopped walking. His grip tightened around his spear. "...Something is wrong."

The laughter disappeared immediately.

"What’s wrong?" Mithra asked softly.

Vedas didn’t answer, but he kept looking around with a frown. It was then Arthur found the first footprints twelve meters from where Vedas had stopped.

Small.

Bare feet on the soft ground between the surface roots. He crouched.

"Recent," he said.

Athena was already beside him. "Multiple Goblins," she said. "It was both adults and children." She paused, looking at the spacing of the prints. "It looks like they were running."

Sun had moved to the side of the trail where the undergrowth was thicker. "One group went this way," he said. "They doubled back and then split."

Mithra picked something up from the ground: a small woven basket, the kind made for carrying fruit. The fruit itself was scattered across the ground in a radius that indicated it had been dropped rather than set down. The effort in the weaving was visible; someone had made this and used it for some time.

"They dropped everything," Mithra said. "And they didn’t go back for any of it."

Arthur picked up one of the fallen fruits. "Someone was carrying this home."

Mithra nodded. "For the children."

"That means they couldn’t stop to eat," Sun muttered with a grave look.

Arthur gently placed it back into the basket. "Let’s make sure it wasn’t for nothing."

Then he looked at the scattered prints and the direction they led.

The King’s Mark suddenly grew warmer.

He looked down at the golden lines spreading across the back of his hand.

"It’s reacting again."

Everyone looked over.

"It’s pointing to the trail now."

Athena stepped closer. "Does it want us to chase after those goblins?"

Arthur slowly nodded. "I’m guessing it has been leading us to them. Because it does feel way warmer than before."

Athena immediately noticed. "So we’re getting close to the real goal."

Mithra softly smiled. "That means the Ancient Goblin King wanted us to find the survivors."

Arthur looked toward the forest ahead. "Or just another Goblin Tribe... What do you think, Vedas?"

Vedas quietly tightened his grip on the spear. "All the more reason to find them... I can already tell they are scared but still running."

He asked, more interested in the answer than the how. "How do you know?"

Vedas quietly answered. "Because..." He looks toward the trees. "I’d be scared too."

Arthur and the others smiled before they nodded. While the others walked ahead a bit, Arthur lingered beside the footprints.

Something about it...

Felt familiar.

He couldn’t explain why.

Maybe it just reminded him of Mara.

Before he could think about it any longer, Vedas called from farther ahead. "Where do you think we should turn?"

Arthur stood up and pointed at the direction the largest group had gone. "They turned here—"

"No," Athena said. "They split here. Look at the width of the trail narrowing." She pointed at two separate lines of prints diverging. "One group with the children went left toward the denser forest. The other continued straight."

Sun: "To draw attention away from the smaller group."

Mithra was examining a piece of cloth caught on a root at shin height. "Someone was carrying a child," she said, holding it up. "The cloth tore when they moved through here."

"Whoever was carrying couldn’t run as fast as the others," Arthur said.

Vedas had moved ahead of all of them while the conversation was happening. He was standing at a point where the two split trails would have had to reconverge based on the forest’s geography, looking at the ground and then at the direction between the trees, and whatever he saw there had nothing to do with tracks.

He pointed. "This way," he said, and everyone looked at him. "I can’t explain it," he said. "But this way."

Arthur watched him for a moment. "Lead us," he said.

Vedas blinked before nodding, and he set the pace, and the team arranged themselves around it without being told how. Sun moved to cover the right side where the forest was more open. Athena tracked the territory from above through Athy.

Mithra held the rear.

They moved.

Sun, at one point, quickly said. "Left."

"Straight," Athena said. "The wolf pack changed direction in the last ten minutes. Left would take us into their new position."

Arthur looked toward Vedas. "What do you think?"

Vedas looked down with a troubled look.

Melo jumped onto his shoulder and pointed forward with her tail. Vedas blinked, his eyes widening in realization, and then he quickly said. "...Straight."

Arthur smiled. "Straight it is."

Nobody questioned him.

...

The group slowed.

An old Goblin Hunter lay against a tree with a broken spear a couple of feet from him. Around him were several dead Thunder Wolves.

It was obvious he had fought until the end.

Vedas walked to him and gently picked up the broken spear. "He was strong and brave."

Arthur stood beside him. "He protected everyone who was running," he said.

Vedas put his hand gently against the Hunter’s shoulder. "Like a Commander," he said before placing the spear on his lap.

"Yeah." Arthur smiled. "But he is already one in my eyes."

Vedas trembled before nodding. "I agree."

Mithra quietly closed the Goblin’s eyes. "We’ll protect the rest."

Sun picked up the supplies that had been set beside the root: a wrapped bundle, provisions, things the Hunter had been carrying for the group and had left rather than having them buried with him.

"He made sure they got clear first," Sun said. "He had time to leave this for them."

Athena looked at the fallen wolves around the position. "Three packs," she said. "He held this position long enough for everyone behind him to reach the settlement."

Sun looked at the supplies in his hands. "He even remembered the food."

Mithra nodded. "...He wanted everyone else to eat."

Arthur quietly looked toward the settlement. "Then let’s make sure they get it."

Sun picked up the bundle. "Yeah."

Arthur quietly picked up the broken spear. He drove it into the ground beside the Hunter like a marker.

"...We won’t let your people fall." Vedas stood and his eyes shined with determination. "We go," he said.

"Lead," Arthur said.

Vedas ran.

There were broken branches.

Fresh blood.

Wolf tracks.

The birds that had been in the lower forest were no longer in the lower canopy.

Athy screamed from above.

Everyone stops.

"She found them," Athena said softly.

Vedas doesn’t wait, and he immediately sprints.

Arthur smiles. "There he goes."

Mithra grins. "Guess we’re keeping up."

Everyone runs.

...

The trees thinned and then ended, and below the ridge the settlement was visible. Smoke could be seen coming from it, with wooden walls barely standing.

Something caught Arthur’s eye; it was the goblin children that were hiding. Then it was the older Goblins holding crude spears towards the dozens of Thunder Wolves who were slowly surrounding them.

Nobody speaks.

Vedas steps forward as his grip tightens.

Arthur looks toward him. "Vedas."

Vedas doesn’t look away. "They’re my kind."

Arthur smiles. "Yeah. They are."

Vedas takes one more step. "We have to help them."

Arthur nods immediately. "Then let’s help them."

Sun twirls Long. "I was hoping you’d say that."

Mithra slowly draws Kusa, and then golden runes glow. "Let’s quickly help them."

Athena lifts Aegis. "What’s the plan?"

Arthur looks toward Vedas. "No plan."

Everyone blinks.

Arthur smiles. "Vedas, you will be the one leading this."

Vedas blinked. "Me?"

Arthur looked confused. "Who else?"

Vedas opened his mouth and then closed it.

Arthur smiled. "You’re a Goblin Commander, and they’re Goblins."

Sun laughed. "When you put it like that... It does sound obvious."

Mithra grinned. "I was wondering how long it would take you to realize."

Athena adjusted her glasses. "From a tactical standpoint... Vedas is the one they’re most likely to trust."

Arthur nodded. "Exactly." He looked back at Vedas. "You wanted to help Goblins. Then go help them, we have your back. So go show them, partner."

That was enough.

Vedas slowly looked toward the village, the wolves, and the frightened Goblin children.

Then he raised his spear. "...Charge."

Arthur immediately grins. "There it is."

...

Vedas went over the ridge first.

Arthur was one step behind and one step to the side, not in front, not behind. Beside. Mithra followed. Sun. Athena. Melo running low. Kong dropping from the ridge’s edge. Athy diving from above.

Eight.

Below, pressed against the settlement wall, a small Goblin child looked up. Her trembling eyes followed the figures rushing down from the ridge. She froze, and her mouth slowly opened. "Commander..."

The tiny voice wasn’t loud.

But every Goblin heard it.

Another child peeked through the wooden wall. "A Commander..."

Hope slowly spread across the settlement.

One after another...

The adult Goblins turned.

One of the adult Goblins whispered.

Another whispered, "They shouldn’t exist anymore..."

The Thunder Wolves looked up.

The entire battlefield paused.

Dozens of eyes landed on Vedas.

Arthur smiled. "Looks like they recognized you."