Under divine punishment, the goblin's body rapidly disintegrated into dust—
and then the dust, too, scattered and vanished into nothingness.
In less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the goblin was completely erased from existence, leaving not a single trace behind.
No—perhaps a tiny trace remained.
Hel sensed faint remnants of soul energy lingering in the air. With a small wave of her hand, she gathered the fragments and stored them within the Philosopher's Stone.
This was the purest form of energy that remained after a soul had been completely destroyed.
If left alone, it would soon dissipate into the world and merge back into the flow of natural mana.
But Hel, ever the thrifty housekeeper, gathered every last wisp.
Her previous battle, combined with the act of reconstructing the Soul of the Bone Berserker Captain, had nearly drained the Philosopher's Stone of its soul energy.
Now, with this replenishment, not only had she made up for her earlier losses, but she'd even gained enough energy to let the Berserker burn his soul again.
It was a significant boost to her overall strength—because honestly, relying on a one-time-use berserker was a bit too nerve-wracking.
After that, Hel and the Ascended Brain opened the remaining stasis pods one by one.
Each time, Hel collected the dissipating soul energy with relish.
Most of the beings inside had been powerful—at least Tier 5—and one of them had even reached Tier 6.
Even though divine punishment had obliterated most of their souls, leaving barely a tenth of the energy behind, it was still enough to allow the Bone Berserker Captain to perform his soul burn ten times over.
In addition, Hel also acquired several advanced research-related traits, such as [Advanced Goblin Technology] and [Advanced Alchemy].
By combining them, she synthesized a series of top-tier academic traits:
[Top-Tier Biology (Red)]: +130 Knowledge. You command the highest biological understanding from a bygone age.
[Top-Tier Bloodline Modification (Red)]: +130 Knowledge. You wield forbidden knowledge, capable of creating new species at will.
[Top-Tier Alchemy (Red)]: +130 Knowledge. You are a true master in the field of alchemy.
[Top-Tier Enchantment (Gold)]: +100 Knowledge. You are skilled in inscribing runes and enchanting any object.
[Top-Tier Goblin Engineering (Gold)]: +100 Knowledge. You can design and craft all manner of goblin machinery.
This haul was no less valuable than the one she had gathered outside.
But even this wasn't the end of their discoveries.
After leaving the stasis chamber building, Hel was led to another area—a massive mech warehouse.
The warehouse didn't just hold mechs; it was also filled with piles upon piles of magical materials.
Some low-grade components had long decayed or fossilized,
but the materials that remained were all of the highest quality—especially the mountains of rare metals.
Among them was a staggering ten cubic meters of Orichalcum—
and that was not even counting the even more abundant Mithril.
To put that into perspective:
one cubic meter of Orichalcum could forge two hundred full suits of knightly plate armor,
or a hundred complete sets if you included horse barding and weapons.
In other words, ten cubic meters of the stuff was enough for Hel to equip a thousand-strong elite army.
Of course, building such a force was a goal for the distant future.
For now, she focused on a more practical task—getting all that treasure into her own pockets.
Without hesitation, Hel halted Sebas and the others from their external duties and summoned everyone back.
Opening her necrotic space, she began what she proudly called "the Great Haul Project."
However, moving all that material would take time.
Even with the Flame Arbiter and his subordinates helping, hauling the Orichalcum alone was a massive task.
Still, it was the kind of problem that came with too much profit—a pain Hel didn't mind enduring.
While Sebas and the others busied themselves with transport,
Hel continued her exploration alongside the Ascended Brain.
They visited several other buildings—first the Genetic Virus Research Center,
then the Biochemical Weapon Laboratory.
These sites didn't yield as much as the warehouse had,
but they still contained numerous experimental devices and machines—many too heavy or damaged to move without repair.
Among them, however, Hel found something particularly interesting.
A machine that looked somewhat like a massive 3D printer, though it far surpassed anything so simple.
It was made entirely of Orichalcum, covered in articulated arms and modular units.
The Biochemical Weapon Laboratory itself was enormous—roughly the size of the plaza where the great battle had taken place earlier.
And yet this single machine occupied an entire floor of it.
That alone spoke volumes about its size—and its power.
Naturally, a device that massive wasn't built for something trivial.
The goblins wouldn't have gone to such lengths to construct it otherwise.
[Name]: CB-3 Bio-Editing Engine
[Grade]: Legendary (Gold)
[Attributes]: Bloodline Editing (Gold), Biological Creation (Gold), Cybernetic Augmentation (Gold), Age Erosion (Black), Mechanical Decay (Black), System Malfunction (Black)
[Description]: One of the pinnacle creations of goblin engineering.
It can generate new life from nothing, alter genetic bloodlines, or install brain-machine interfaces to perform cybernetic augmentations.
However, after countless years of decay, whether it can even power on remains uncertain.
"Uh, hey…" Hel called out to the Ascended Brain, but then realized something—
she didn't actually know what to call her.
"By the way… do you even have a name?"
"A name?"
"Yes, you know—what people usually call you."
"SC-S1-15."
"…Right. That does sound like something goblins would name."
Hel sighed. "Well, how about we try giving you a real name this time?
Something that's yours, not just a string of letters and numbers.
For example, my full name is Hel Heim—'Hel' is my given name, 'Heim' is my family name.
So… do you have any idea what kind of name you'd want?"
"A name… I don't know."
The Ascended Brain's voice grew soft, uncertain.
"In the past, I served the Empire. SC-S0-15 was the designation given to me as a symbol of loyalty.
Now, I belong to my Master.
So… it is only right that my name be given by you."
Hel grimaced.
"Great. You're really putting this on me? You do realize I'm terrible at naming things…"
Her mind raced through possibilities.
Little Fly?
Ascendy?
Brainy?
None of them sounded remotely decent.
While she wrestled with her creative crisis, she tried to lecture her way out of it:
"Since you want to leave your past behind, you'll need to learn how to think for yourself instead of just following orders.
But I get it—everything has a first step.
So how about this—you try giving yourself a name this time?"
"…I see."
There was a long silence.
Just when Hel thought the responsibility was about to be dumped back on her,
a calm, serene voice whispered into her ear.
"Niv.
Niv was the name of the scholar who created me.
She was… the only attachment I had to the old world.
I want…
to live on for her—
to see this new era in her place."
"Good."
A small smile tugged at Hel's lips. She reached out her right hand toward her once more.
"Then from this day forward—your name shall be Niv Heim."