Chapter 20: When Will We Have a Baby?
The gentle mentor had once urged her to give up and told her the history of elves and humans.
"Since ancient times, for elves, living together with humans was like humans living together with goblins. It was a great humiliation to them. The only people in this world who ever succeeded in being with elves were a few great figures of ancient legend.
The elves who now live in our human world are almost all mixed-blood elves. Because their bloodline is so diluted, apart from their pointed ears, their appearance is very close to humans.
In the eyes of noble pure-blooded elves, such half-blood elves are the lowest and filthiest of beings, no different from goblins.
From the perspective of bloodline, if they lack the unique traits of elves other than their ears—such as flawless, radiant skin, jewel-like eyes, flowing hair like water, powerful and noble magic, and long, immortal lifespans—then in our human world, we too would regard these half-bloods as humans, not elves.
If this is truly your aspiration, then your path in the future will be long, for at the very least you must become a legendary hero. Even kingdoms will be moved by you, and the world will cheer for you. Only in that way will you have the possibility of realizing this dream that is otherwise impossible.
But you must know—there are no shortcuts in life."
Do not look for a road that is unseen, for such a road does not lie before you.
That was the last thing her mentor had said to her back then.
But now, dreaming of it seemed as if it had suddenly become reality.
The book said: when you face setbacks, simply accept them. No life ever remains the same.
Cassvia lay on the blanket that Altair had prepared for her, her flushed little face glowing with bright light. She was ready to heed the book, to lie down, and to accept it.
The next day.
There was still one day left until Lyra gave birth.
Altair rose early, stretched his body, passed by the cell next to his chamber, and entered to see how things were going.
He clicked to check Cassvia's Hope Value.
Cassvia's Current Hope Value: 44
Altair, still slightly groggy from waking, paused in place.
Altair: "? What's going on? Why is her hope value so high?"
At that moment, the female knight under the blanket had already awakened and was secretly watching him.
Altair approached Cassvia and said thoughtfully, "You seem very relaxed."
"Oh, that's just your illusion." Cassvia turned her head away.
Altair frowned in confusion and was about to leave when Cassvia suddenly shouted.
"Would you… would you let me go?"
"Impossible. You've killed so many of my people. I won't release you unless you give birth to goblins several times the number of those you've slain."
"Then why… why do you plan to have a baby with me?"
When Cassvia asked this, she buried the lower half of her face beneath the blanket, leaving only her head exposed, blushing so fiercely it was like smoke. She didn't dare meet Altair's eyes, her own shimmering with tears.
Altair was dumbfounded. Were all human female knights in this world so straightforward in accepting things? Would they stop criticizing him?
Altair answered: "It still requires some preparation."
Birthing cubs drains vitality. As a knight, Cassvia was far stronger than Lyra, and thus she could give birth directly and then replenish her vitality afterward.
But before beginning the second round of breeding, Altair needed to confirm certain things—how to properly select the right genetic talents.
During reproduction, only the basic attributes and genetic talents would affect the stats and gifts of the next generation after birth. In these two aspects, he had to be very cautious.
Today, Altair intended to confirm this.
The first question was: how would the child inherit the parents' basic values and genetic talents?
The solution was simple. Gather many male goblin offspring with various goblin females and human females, then observe each result separately.
In this cave, there was the best subject of observation: Anrus and his children.
Individual Name: Violet Goblin (Non-offspring)
Age: 72 years
Attack: 2 (+6)
Vitality: 13 (+24)
Mana: 26 (+159)
Intelligence: 16 (+64)
Impact Resistance: 1 (+0)
Magic Resistance: 8 (+41)
Attribute: Fire
Occupation: Goblin Scholar (cannot be reassigned)
Genetic Talents: intelligence, longevity, magic
After arranging Lyra and Cassvia's needs for bathing and eating, Altair went to the hall of the Goblin Cave and set out with the old scholar goblin Anrus to summon many goblins.
Before Altair, the data of the goblins appeared one after another.
Goblin genetics were almost entirely based on the father's genes. The mother's influence on goblin offspring was largely limited to clearly marked genetic talents.
Among the goblins gathered, their basic stats were all peculiar.
First of all, there were violet goblins here, and those gathered were all children of Anrus.
Excluding the three values of intelligence, longevity, and magical power—specifically tied to the genetic talents of some violet goblins—their other values were very close to Anrus.
However, irregular changes occurred in the three values of intelligence, lifespan, and magic. Some were lower, some higher, and some the same. The increases or decreases ranged between one to two points.
Altair observed this data for a long time and vaguely uncovered a hidden pattern.
The base values of these three specific genetic talents fluctuated between -5 and +5.
Was it surprising that the total amount of base stat fluctuation in their offspring remained constant, but the value fluctuations were diluted due to the spread of multiple genetic talents?
With this thought, Altair immediately sought goblin offspring that had not three but five genetic talents. Eventually, he found that the basic stat fluctuations for each attribute in such goblins were reduced to nearly just 1 point.
In other words, their offspring would undergo individual changes, with a total increase or decrease in base attributes ranging from -5 to +5.
The greater the number of genetic talents, the more attributes appeared stronger, but this actually limited the growth ceiling of the offspring.
The fewer the genetic talents one possessed, the more the 5 points of basic stat growth would concentrate on fewer traits, thereby specializing growth in specific attributes.
In other words, if one had five genetic talents, then the +5 increase would scatter randomly, with each attribute gaining only +1. But if there were only two genetic talents, then the +5 would go directly into those two stats.
The more genetic talents one had, the better. Conversely, when only one genetic talent existed, the offspring's growth would be predictable and directed.
If 120 base attributes were distributed to violet goblins, then each attribute would increase by 20 points. But if all 120 attributes were invested into magical power, what would happen? A violet goblin demon would be born with a base magic stat exceeding 100!
Treating everyone equally only leads to mediocrity. Only when power is concentrated can one truly dominate.
Although Altair could not copy the stats and abilities of two goblins at the same time, he could copy part of the stats of whichever goblin he chose.
And if in the future, from each generation of goblins, he selected the one with the highest base magic power, copied only that magic base and single genetic talent, and continued breeding—
Then, the next generation would consist of controlled individuals whose magical power kept increasing, and the goblins' magic of the future would accumulate higher and higher until it reached its peak.
Even ordinary goblins could then possess stats rivaling those of high-level goblins.
The birth of Altair, the Goblin Emperor, gave the goblin clan limitless potential for growth in their descendants.