Chapter 108: A Monster Among Monsters (II)

It should have been the first step toward establishing her reputation, the moment when Grace White would distinguish herself from the countless other geniuses and begin carving out her place in the world.

Yet Jackson had appeared out of nowhere and threatened to steal the attention she had worked so hard to obtain.

The sight of him standing calmly amid the corpses made her chest tighten with an emotion she refused to acknowledge.

She couldn’t accept it.

Not when she had already decided that he was worthless.

Not when his existence was now forcing her to question a judgment she had once considered indisputable.

While the others struggled with their own thoughts, Jackson could feel their gazes landing on him from every direction.

Surprise, suspicion, disbelief, envy, and even a hint of fear.

He noticed them all, but he had no intention of wasting time figuring out what each person was thinking.

He had more important matters to attend to.

Taking a deep breath, Jackson stepped forward and began moving toward the goblin tower.

However, before he could take another step, a clear, forceful voice suddenly rang out behind him.

"Stop right there, you thief! How dare you attack me from behind and steal my life!"

Jackson’s footsteps paused.

A figure leaped into the air before landing several meters away from him.

It was Veronica Green Soul.

Despite the accusation pouring from her mouth, her expression wasn’t entirely furious. Her twin beryl eyes remained fixed on Jackson, carrying a lingering suspicion that she couldn’t seem to shake.

She scrutinized him from head to toe, studying his height, build, posture, and even the way he carried himself. Her gaze lingered on his face before moving down to his shoulders and back up again, as though she were trying to fit the pieces of an incomplete puzzle together. ⅇ

After several moments, she quietly muttered under her breath.

"His height is the same, too. Five foot eight. That build, that aura... everything matches."

Her voice was so faint that nobody else nearby could have heard it.

Unfortunately for her, Jackson was standing close enough to catch every word.

And with both his primary attributes having undergone a substantial increase, his senses were far sharper than before. Her quiet muttering reached his ears with perfect clarity.

The moment he understood what she was implying, his heart nearly leaped out of his chest.

Shit.

Has she figured out my identity?

For an instant, countless thoughts flashed through his mind.

Veronica Green Soul was no ordinary student. As the heiress of Green Soul Corporation, she possessed both the resources and the influence to investigate anyone who attracted her interest. If she had genuinely connected Jackson with Bitter Rain, the consequences could become troublesome.

His identity was something he absolutely couldn’t afford to expose.

Yet despite the storm of thoughts raging inside his mind, Jackson’s expression remained perfectly calm. He neither stiffened nor revealed the slightest hint of panic. To anyone observing him, he looked no different from a moment ago.

He simply raised his eyes and met Veronica’s gaze directly.

"Veronica, Green Soul Group might have given you the freedom to speak your mind, but that doesn’t mean you can say whatever you want."

His voice was steady, carrying a faint edge of displeasure.

"For a man, his reputation is everything. Your accusations just now have directly tarnished my honor. If you continue behaving like this, don’t blame me for being ruthless."

He paused briefly before continuing, his expression growing impatient.

"And now, if you’ve said enough, step aside. I have important things to do."

Veronica blinked.

A trace of doubt appeared in her eyes as she examined Jackson once more.

Something didn’t quite add up.

The Bitter Rain she knew was not nearly as talkative as this fellow. During their previous encounters, that mysterious man had barely spoken a handful of words. His demeanor had been cold and restrained, and he rarely bothered explaining himself to anyone.

Yet Jackson was standing before her, delivering a lecture about reputation as though he were some noble young master who had been gravely insulted.

The two seemed completely different.

Veronica’s brows drew together slightly.

Am I mistaken?

For the first time since she had begun suspecting Jackson, she hesitated.

And Jackson, who had been holding his composure together by sheer force of will, silently breathed a sigh of relief.

Just then, Jonathan moved closer to Jackson, his gaze shifting between his friend and the massive goblin tower in the distance. The structure stood like a fortress amid the forest, its crude wooden walls concealing who knew how many goblins and deadly traps.

A terrible suspicion suddenly crossed his mind.

"What are you doing...? Don’t tell me you’re thinking of heading toward the goblin tower."

Jonathan’s expression was filled with concern. Having witnessed the devastation Jackson had caused, he could hardly imagine what the boy intended to do next. Yet the thought of him approaching that heavily fortified structure made his heart sink.

Jackson didn’t answer.

However, his silence was enough to confirm Jonathan’s suspicions.

"Don’t even think about it! You’ll die!"

Jonathan hurried forward, his voice rising with urgency. "Do you have any idea how many traps those goblins have hidden throughout the forest? I’ve heard that some of them are powerful enough to kill even a Third Sequence powerhouse! If you walk straight into that place, you’ll be handing them your life on a silver platter!"

Before he could finish his warning, Jackson stopped.

He turned around and looked at Jonathan with a faint smile, seemingly amused by his friend’s concern.

"Who said I need to personally approach the goblin tower to destroy it? Can’t I simply destroy it from here?"

"What...?"

Jonathan froze.

For several seconds, he stared at Jackson as though he had suddenly begun speaking another language. He glanced toward the tower, then back at his friend, desperately trying to understand what he meant.

Destroy the tower from here?

The distance between them and the structure was several hundred meters. Even if Jackson possessed a long-range offensive skill, Jonathan couldn’t imagine anything capable of demolishing such a massive fortress from that far away.