Standing Next To You - Chapter 26: I Hate You

Oliver Patrick, the Greatest General in Stormfront's history has a secret - a secret not many know. They think that his Iron WIll was built overnight. They know not the path of suffering he walked, as the slave Beam, to reach his destiny as King, and then Emperor.This is that story. A true story, of progress, struggle, hardship and strength. A story of greatness achieved without a system. A story of how one unknown boy's struggle transformed a continent forever.//ExtractThe arm dropped to the floor, as did the head. Spear points raced past the falling corpse as the goblins sought to take advantage of his momentary lapse in attention. But the tide had already shifted. The equilibrium that had kept the battle going for so long was shattered. With no bruiser to take care of their front lines and distract his attention, the goblins in front of him were no match for his speed.He employed his misdirection as he normally might, feigning the same backwards step that he had practised over and over, before leaping forward, catching the goblin off guard, twisting his body to avoid its spear and forcing his blade into its throat.It let out a high-pitched squeal as it dropped its spear and attempted to stem the tide of blood that was spurting from the wound. The goblin next to it squealed too, in fear this time, as its eyes widened, seeing two of its comrades dealt with so easily in quick succession. Beam saw it take a backwards step, as it attempted to turn and run away. But he was on it before it had a chance. He wrapped his arm around its neck and drove a sword through its back.Rather than let the corpse fall to the floor as he normally might, he held onto this one, enduring its death throes. Once life had finally left its body, he shifted it into place as a meat shield. Two arrows thudded against it, almost piercing it straight through. But the time they reached Beam the momentum was entirely gone – though they touched him, they did not even pierce his clothes.Slowly, with his meat shield in place, Beam advanced on the remaining goblins. They both shared a glance with each other as they dared to fire another volley, before turning on their heels and attempting to sprint away.“Stay,” a brief moment of eye contact, and one of the goblins was rooted in place. Beam tossed his shield aside and picked up a spear instead. With a twist of his hips and shoulder, the spear went soaring, impaling the running goblin straight through its stomach. Its bow fell to the ground, as strength left its hands. It then fell to its knees, before falling face down to the floor, pushing the spear back through itself.

“First were the Gates, and now you’re saying the world has been invaded by Aliens and we’re soon going to be turned into livestock…? Great…”—----------------*Ding!*[You have awakened with the Idle Evolution System!]“The wha—”Suddenly thrown into a magical parallel world of the Earth he once knew, Cassius was greeted with powerful beings known as Hunters and the terrifying Gates that plagued the world. Moreover, he received a message…[To Idle, one must stay proactive!][Firstly, you require Character Development!]“Character Development…?”[You seem a bit (A lot) overweight, and you resemble that of a goblin! What say we start there!?]{[Daily Quest 1:]}_________________[Daily Quest - To Idle, one must stay proactive.]GOAL[INCOMPLETE] PUSH-UPS — [0/100][INCOMPLETE] SIT-UPS — [0/100][INCOMPLETE] CURL-UPS — [0/100][INCOMPLETE] SQUATS — [0/100][INCOMPLETE] RUNNING — [0/10km]REWARD - [1 Point in Charisma, 1 Point in Agility, 1 Point in Strength, and 1 Point in Endurance]_________________“Is this torture!?” shouted the ugly, obese transmigrator Cassius.*Ding!*[No, it’s Character Development! ^-^]—----------------100 years ago, Earth was suddenly overwhelmed with the appearance of Gates and the horrifying monsters within those mystical portals. That was the First Major Calamity.Now, one hundred years later, the next major calamity has arrived—the subtle invasion of an Ancient Alien species from deep into the Milky Way Galaxy. Its undercurrents spread far and wide, with the threat an apocalyptic one. Yet, that is but the 2nd of Three Major Calamities as per prophesied by the famed prophet, Baba Yaga.The Third Calamity, and the most dangerous of the Calamities, is one that will bring about the true END of the world, but only if the Second Calamity can be overcome by humanity…What does this Third Calamity detail, one might ask…? To know the answer to that, one would have to brave past the first Two Calamities and stare into the abyss, praying to all Gods known to man that the Abyss does not stare back also into you…

“First, a hidden marriage.”“Second, the marriage period is one year.”“Third, you are not allowed to have any feelings for me!”These were his three stipulations to her at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau.She readily agreed and adhered to them one by one.But a year later, is the man holding onto her tightly and refusing to let go still the same cold person from a year ago?“Could you let go, please? Our one-year term is up.”“Wife, the contract you signed is indefinite!”

After his village was destroyed by an E-Ranked demon horde, Augustus was titled the failed lord and mocked by other noble lords.Until, he died.Augustus regressed with the knowledge of the future and his SSS-Ranked skill “Talent Evolution,” fighting to change the D-Ranked village of Iona into an S-Ranked Empire.Need resources? His villager's 10x Resource Multiplier Talent was evolved into 100x! Enemies coming? His champion's Two-Hit Critical Attack was evolved into a One-Hit Critical Attack! Gods? He reared a couple in his courtyard.While other lords slept on their villagers’ talents, Augustus’s villagers transcended gods. While they mocked him for picking a dead village, he would transform it into an oasis.