When I woke up, I felt a thud that shook my world completely. The first thing I could smell was the smell. It was like someone had left rotting meat in that place for weeks.
I tried to take a deep breath, but the air was heavy and full of humidity. The metallic taste seemed to stick to my tongue.
I slowly opened my eyes, and what I saw made me want, for a moment, to close them again.
My hands... They weren't the same anymore.
They were small, green and grotesque. It was like someone had ripped them off a poorly made rubber doll and sewn them onto my body.
I ran my fingers over my face, my flat nose and rough skin. "What is this?!" My voice came out thin and hoarse, sounding like a growl.
I looked around. I was in a dark cave, full of bones scattered on the floor. Not far away, there was a small fire, with small shadows around it... creatures.
Small, deformed, with sharp teeth and glowing yellow eyes. Goblins, they were Goblins. And by all indications, I was one of them.
"This can't be…" I said to myself, but my heart already knew.
I stood still as they laughed and devoured chunks of meat I didn't even want to imagine where they came from. Each bite echoed through the cave.
Suddenly, one of them looked at me. He was the largest of them, covered in scars. The leader, it seemed. He pointed a crooked spear at me and growled.
"You! New! Here!"
I hesitated for a moment. My instincts told me to run, but where? I didn't know what to do, so I just walked towards him. My short, clumsy legs made me trip over my own feet.
The Goblin assessed me as if he were looking at a piece of meat. "Weak. But useful. Eat."
He tossed a piece of meat towards me. I grabbed it reflexively, but when I looked at it in my hand...
"No, I can't..."
"I can't eat this."
It was red, slimy, and smelled rotten. Flies buzzed around the meat.
"I... I'm not eating this." My mouth fell open and the words escaped before I could think.
The Goblin growled, bringing the spear closer to my chest. "Eat. Or I'll eat you."
I swallowed hard. I had no choice, but my stomach was about to scream for help. I took a deep breath and brought the piece of meat close to my face. The smell made me want to vomit, but at the last moment, I closed my eyes and bit down.
The Goblin growled again, satisfied, and turned back to the fire, ignoring my existence.
The taste of rot traveled down my throat and into my stomach. I turned my back to the dark part of the cave and vomited.
"I need to get out of here..." I thought as nausea still overcame me, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand.
I looked around. The group of goblins continued to laugh and devour the rotting flesh.
"How do I get out of here?"
I looked at the entrance to the cave, and there were two smaller goblins standing there, holding stone spears and whispering in a language that sounded like a mix of grunts and clicks.
My mind was overwhelmed with everything that was happening. I would rather die than spend another second in that place.
I continued looking around the cave, and nearby, there was a cage where a human woman was trapped. She was thin and visibly weak, but her gaze was still alive.
At that moment, one of the goblins approached. Instinctively I turned and saw him holding a sharp stone in his hand. He pointed to the ground where I had vomited.
"Waste. Eat." He pointed the rock at me, ordering me to do something even more disgusting than eating that rotten flesh.
I looked at him and wanted to laugh. But not a laugh of joy, but of despair. Me? Clean this? Eat this? No. There was no way. My entire body contorted just thinking about it.
The Goblin growled, stepping forward and lifting the rock. "I'll do it, I'll do it!" I raised my hands and slowly crouched down.
I glanced quickly at the woman's cage and then at the goblins at the entrance. Fighting was suicide, but standing there obeying everything those creatures told me was the same as dying slowly.
I picked up a small rock from the ground, pretending to catch the vomit with my hands. Then, I threw the rock towards the fire, and the impact caused sparks to fly and hit the nearby goblins.
Before the goblins could react, I turned and ran towards the woman's cage. My short legs almost made me fall, but I managed to keep my balance.
"Calm down, I won't hurt you," I said, trying not to scare her any further.
She looked at me, confused and suspicious. And I couldn't blame her.
"I'm going to get you out of here, but I need your help," I whispered, trying to sound at least a little convincing.
The cage was made of wood, but it was sturdy. There was no complicated lock, just a thick knot tying the door shut. I looked down at my small hands and hoped they would be useful for something.
I began to undo the knot, while the goblins behind me The people around me began to move. The confusion caused by the embers was fading, and now some of them were pointing their spears in my direction.
The largest Goblin stood up with a roar, holding his spear. At that moment, my heart raced.
"Hurry up!" I said to myself as my fingers trembled and pulled on the last knot.
With a loud snap, the knot came undone.
"Let's go!" I opened the cage door, creating space for the woman to escape.
The goblins were closing in, and I knew that if we didn't run faster, we would be dead in seconds.
Just as I was about to enter the cave entrance, a spear pierced my chest, piercing me and making my blood gush out.
"What--?!" I grunted, turning slowly. My vision was blurry, but I could still see.
The largest goblin was smiling, his hands were empty; he was the one who had thrown the spear. My chest ached, and my mind quickly went blank.
"I... I'm going to die..."
Everything around me disappeared—the rotten smell, the screams of the goblins, the weight of the spear still lodged in my chest. Everything vanished, as if it had never existed.
...
Ding!
[SYSTEM TUTORIAL COMPLETED]
[ASSESSING...]
[YOU DIED!]
DUE TO YOUR LIMITED MIND, YOU FORGOT THAT YOU ARE A GOBLIN AND THOUGHT YOU COULD ESCAPE CARELESSLY FROM A LARGER GROUP. YOUR PERFORMANCE WAS TERRIBLE.
[RESTARTING NEW LIFE...]
[DO YOU WISH TO RETURN?]
[YES/NO]
"What is this?"
"Is this system saying it can revive me?"
"I... I don't understand. Going back just to be killed again by those monsters?" Even if this was some kind of delusion, it's not like I had many options.
"What happens if I choose 'no'?"
[IF YOU CHOOSE "NO", YOUR SOUL WILL COMPLETELY DISAPPEAR, AND YOU WILL CEASE TO EXIST. IF YOU CHOOSE "YES", YOU WILL RETURN TO THE GOBLIN CAVE ONE HOUR BEFORE YOUR DEATH.]
"One hour...?"
"I understand..."
"If that's the case... I choose..."
Ding!
[YOU CHOSE "RESET"]
[YOU WILL IMMEDIATELY BE TRANSPORTED TO THE GOBLIN CAVE]
...