Chapter 6: First Floor, Tutorial (3)

A tiny goblin slowly emerged from the darkness, its shoulders trembling seemingly in fear.

[Young Goblin]

- Small and frail.

- Too young for combat.

- Does not come out of the darkness when threatened.

Though I hadn't seen many goblins, this one was the smallest by far. Instead of reaching my chest, it only came up to my hips. It wasn't carrying any weapons apart from an unloaded crossbow.

Even the name given by the system seemed odd. Not a goblin warrior or assassin, but just “Young Goblin.” It was the first time I had seen one without a job title.

It had a shiny bald head and green skin, looking up at me with teary eyes. My heart softened as its eyes met mine. The goblin was tiny, about the height of an elementary school student, and its green skin was soft like a baby’s. This goblin was nothing like the previous ones I had encountered. It felt like I was facing a human child.

“Hey, what the hell are you?"

“

Krieee!

Human! Stupid! Goblin is a goblin!"

“...?"

Is this brat crazy? Is it too young to know better?

Calling someone who spared their life “stupid” was just plain dumb. Annoyed, my face reddened.

“I’m not stupid! I asked because you look too young. Why are you here?"

“

Krieee

, Goblin! Everyone fulfills their duty!"

Does fulfilling their duty mean stopping people like me from going up the tower?

“Is it your duty to stop me?"

“

Kriee!

Yes!"

“Well, I don't want to kill a child, but I don’t really have a choice."

I gripped my sword tighter, startling the terrified goblin.

“

Krieee!

Monster human! Goblin doesn't want to fight!"

“But you told me that’s your job."

“

Kriee!

Duty! Goblin doesn’t have to fulfill it!"

Going back and forth between different stances was such a convenient mindset. One’s life was the most precious, whether human or goblin. Hearing this, a question arose in my mind.

“So, if I beat up the other goblins, would they surrender like you?"

“

Krieee!

Human! Don't underestimate goblins!"

... What an idiot.

“You just said you don't have to fulfill your duty."

“

Krieee!

No. Stupid human! All goblins fulfill their duty!"

“

Ugh,

what nonsense is this?"

My annoyance surged to an even higher level. Seemingly sensing my escalating mood, the goblin clammed up.

What is it talking about?

Suddenly, I realized it was referring to itself as ”Goblin.” Perhaps that meant it was only talking about itself earlier and now its entire race.

“Ah, you mean you don't have to fight me, but others do?"

“

Krieee!

Yes! Goblin doesn't stab humans in the back!"

“How can I trust you?"

“

Krieeee!

Goblin doesn't lie!" the goblin shouted indignantly.

I still couldn't trust it, though. They were creatures that ambushed from the darkness. Its child-like appearance had softened my heart a bit, and I regretted not killing it when it was still hidden in the dark. However, that wouldn’t stop me from ending its life if I needed to.

[Eliminate all enemies. Time remaining: 10 hours 10 minutes.]

According to the message, I was supposed to eliminate all enemies. However, if a goblin was no longer hostile toward me, would it still be considered an enemy?

Premature sympathy could backfire, though, so it was best to err on the side of caution. Well, even if this young goblin tried to backstab me, it didn't seem too dangerous.

I decided to bind the young goblin’s hands tightly and drag it along. I would kill it if the mission wasn't completed after killing all other enemies.

“Alright, I'll spare you."

“

Krieee!

Human! Stupid but kind!"

... My sympathy was waning from its continued transgressions. I needed to fix its attitude.

“Call me stupid one more time, and I’ll make you regret it."

“

Krieeee!

Human! Stupid!"

“No!"

Should I just kill it?

The goblin quickly read my expression.

“If you call me stupid again, I will stab you in the neck. Understood?"

“

Krieeee.

Goblin understands!"

“And don’t ever disobey me. Got it?" I firmly commanded to prevent more nonsense.

The young goblin nodded slightly.

“Alright. I'm going to tie your hands now.”

Hmm, what can I use to tie it, though?

It would have been nice if I had rope, but I didn't. I quickly looked around for something to use as a substitute.

That will do.

I directed my gaze to the clothes of a fallen goblin warrior. If I tore it into strips and tied them together, it would function as a rope. Striding over, I stripped the dead goblin of its clothes.

Ugh.

The nauseating smell of its blood made me gag.

Still, the smell is better than before.

Maybe because I had already seen a goblin corpse before, I wasn’t as disgusted anymore. It was strange that I adapted to the gore so quickly, though.

I stripped the clothes of the other goblin as well. After fashioning a rope from the clothes, I gestured to the Young Goblin standing foolishly off to the side.

“Come here and give me your hands."

“

Krieee!

Okay."

The young goblin extended one hand, causing my brows to furrow. Seeing the change in my expression, it flinched and avoided my gaze.

“Give me both hands."

The young goblin obediently extended both hands. While wrapping its arms with the shabby fabric, I noticed something glint around its neck.

“What's that?"

“

Krieeee!

What are you talking about!"

“That thing around your neck."

“...”

The goblin took a step backward, its eyes widening in alarm. I quickly reached out with my left hand and grabbed its neck.

“

Krieee!

No!"

“What do you mean ‘no?’ You agreed to obey me in exchange for your life, so you say ‘yes!’”

The goblin struggled in my grip, dropping its shabby crossbow and grabbing my shoulder with its right hand. I held the goblin in place and reached out with my right hand, my fingers catching on a silver string.

“

Screeeeeeech!”

The goblin’s scream was unbearably loud. Nevertheless, I untangled the string, revealing a purple gemstone dangling from a silver chain necklace

[Young Goblin's Ruby Necklace]

- A young goblin’s cherished necklace.

- The mysteriously glowing red gem seems to hide some secret.

“Hey, what's this?"

“

Krieee!

It's Goblin's!"

“Hand it over."

“

Krieeee!

No!"

This bastard. I spared its life, so it should just hand over the necklace willingly. I heard goblins were greedy, but I didn’t expect that this green monster would want to keep its life without paying for it.

“I saved your life, though."

“...

Krieeee!

Still! You can't take that!"

“Do you want to die? I’ll cut off one of your hands if you lie to me."

I tried to pull the necklace over the goblin’s head, but some invisible barrier stopped it from being taken off. I wondered if this was another of the Tower of Ordeal’s tricks.

With all the strange things happening, I wasn’t even surprised anymore.

Maybe the necklace would come off if I killed the goblin?

As if reading my mind, the goblin hastily exclaimed, “

Krieeee!

You can’t take it even if you kill Goblin!”

“... I’m not going to kill you.”

I truly didn't want to. My conscience couldn’t handle sparing the creature just to kill it for a gemstone necklace.

“Fine, I won’t take it. Now, give me your arms again.”

The goblin extended its arms once more. I tightly bound its thin wrists with the makeshift rope three times.

“

Krieee!

It hurts!”

The young goblin grimaced in pain. I thought it was hilarious that it pleaded with me to spare its life but was now complaining about its treatment.

“If you don’t want to die, deal with it.”

The young goblin clammed up, looking up at me with tearful eyes.

“What’s your name?”

“

Krieeee!

Goblin is Goblin!”

“This is not a good time to joke around, idiot. What’s your name?”

“...”

“

Ugh,

never mind.”

Come to think of it, the goblin looked like the house-goblin Doppy from the movies. Alright, from now on I’d address the young goblin as Doppy.

“You’re Doppy now.”

“

Krieeee?

Human! What do you mean?”

“Your name is Doppy.”

“

Krieeee!

Not Doppy! Goblin!”

Ignoring the indignant Doppy, I turned toward the goblin warrior’s corpse to look for anything useful.

[Goblin Warrior’s Rusty Sword]

- Old and rusty.

- It looks like it could break at any moment.

Hmm, this was a pass as it was too short.

[Goblin Warrior’s Worn Leather Gloves]

- Well worn. Holey.

- Stained with goblin handprints.

I looked around at the other items, but nothing seemed suitable for me. The other swords were in similar conditions, and the gloves were too small for me.

“What a waste of time. Let’s go.”

“

Krieee!

Goblin follows!”

I walked forward, and Doppy hurriedly followed while wobbling with its bound arms. It was almost comical.

I briefly reflected on the recent battle as we walked, visualizing the goblin warriors' movements. My physical abilities were gradually improving, and I could clearly see the change in my reaction speed and strength.

Huh? That would mean I had my original capabilities when I encountered the first trap. If that was the case, how did I avoid it?

Although my five senses failed to detect it, it seemed like I got a hunch when I was in danger. An eerie feeling or chill engulfed me when I stepped on the initial trap and got ambushed in the dark.

Is this what they call a sixth sense?

Was this ability developed during my talent awakening?

It felt strange but beneficial nonetheless. I decided to look on the bright side since this sixth sense saved my life.

“

Krieee!

Trap ahead!”

I stopped my foot mid-air.

𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

A trap?

“How do you know?”

“

Krieee!

Goblin can see in the dark!”

“You can see the trap?”

I assumed that the traps in the darkness would be the same as the ones in the illuminated areas. The traps in the light appeared to be a part of the floor and weren’t visible.

“

Krieee!

Goblin sees it!”

Were the traps in the dark not as meticulously hidden? Well, not like it matters.

“From now on, tell me if there are enemies or traps in the dark.”

“

Krieee!

Goblin will tell if there are enemies!”

“If you don’t, you’ll die immediately.”

“

Krieeee!

Understood!”

Even though I had commanded Doppy to warn me of danger, I still kept my guard up. After all, there was a possibility that it wouldn’t warn me of goblins hiding in the dark. I had already let my guard down too many times.

Continuing forward, I prepared myself for the trap.

“Doppy, step back for a moment.”

Just because I knew about the trap didn’t mean I intended to avoid it. Dodging would gradually make me faster, and I had to remove them anyway.

***

[Eliminate all enemies. Time remaining: 7 hours 27 minutes.]

I had been walking for nearly two and a half hours. I was feeling hungry and thirsty, but there was nothing to eat or drink. All I could do was push forward and endure.

I dodged traps as they appeared, and encountered two more groups of goblins. Contrary to my expectations, Doppy swiftly informed me of the hidden enemies in the dark. My opinion of Doppy changed from an untrustworthy monster to a somewhat reliable one.

Moreover, I could handle the goblins more easily than before. Apart from my improved physical abilities, I was growing accustomed to combat. I felt myself growing stronger with each fight.

I saw why Ha Hee-Jeong had said I was Earth’s hope. I was glad I followed her suggestion to choose a melee weapon.

Hmm?

Lost in thought, I barely noticed the end of the path. A large wooden door stood there, flanked on either side by two flickering torches. The door was adorned with strange patterns, appearing similar to something found in a temple. What was it called again? A mandala pattern?

[Eliminate all enemies. Time remaining: 7 hours 3 minutes.]

I cautiously approached the door, Doppy following close behind while holding its breath.

[Do you wish to enter the boss room?]

The standard dry voice accompanied the message. After about eleven hours on this floor, I finally reached the boss room.

“Doppy, do you know what’s inside?”

“...

Krieeee!

Goblin doesn’t know!”

The brief pause before speaking was oddly suspicious.

“Really? If you’re lying, I’m cutting off one of your hands.”

Doppy shook its head firmly, the torchlight reflecting off its shiny bald head. “

Krieee!

Goblin doesn’t know!”

Honestly, I couldn’t tell if Doppy was lying. Even if it described what was behind the door, I wasn’t sure I could believe it. Doppy had been reliable so far, but it could lie to me at any moment.

I had made it this far, and there was no going back.

[Do you wish to enter the boss room?]

“Yes.”