---
Chapter Seven – Life of a Goblin (1)
POV: Su Ming
When I opened my eyes, I didn't see the sky, nor the forest, nor anything familiar.
The first thing I saw was… a green hand. Small. Deformed. Disgusting.
I looked at the rest of my body and found the same skin, the same roughness, the same short build.
No.
No.
Nooo.
"So this is it… a goblin?"
The system didn't even give me time to curse the world.
Great. A whole year in the body of a creature hated by humans, monsters, and even the earth itself.
Even death would hate me.
I stood up with difficulty, my back naturally bending… this body resembled a human's, but its senses were sharper; vision, hearing, and smell were better than an ordinary human's.
The smell of the cave around me was… worse than anything.
The smell of blood… urine… smoke… and cut-up human bodies.
I heard goblins laughing deeper inside.
Short, broken, stupid laughter… more like animals than anything else.
I immediately remembered what I knew about these creatures.
Rape… stealing… slaughter… killing children… goblins do everything without thinking, guided only by instinct.
How was I supposed to endure this?
I searched around and found the short sword I bought. I didn't know much about swords, but I guessed it was decent.
This world was unforgiving, and I knew that.
But living as a goblin?
This was a new step toward death.
I didn't wait a single moment. I walked out of the cave quickly, unsteady and cautious. I knew from the beginning that… I wasn't one of them.
No matter what my body looked like, my mind wasn't like theirs.
After just ten meters, I heard a sound behind me.
"Grrrooh…?"
I turned. A small goblin was staring at me.
Yellow eyes, hungry, sucking on a human foot with pleasure.
He said, "Where are you going…?"
I didn't know how, but I understood him.
"I'm going to… find some food."
I spoke in their language normally, as if I had lived among them for years.
"Ugggfffoor…"
He said: Fine, but don't be late… your turn to mate is coming soon.
Did that mean they were assaulting a woman inside right now?
I wasn't an angel nor a demon, but I couldn't tolerate such acts.
When he turned his back, heading inside…
I attacked with all the speed I had, and using all my strength, I cut off his head.
I looked at the blood, and felt nothing except a bit of anger… and relief.
I went back inside.
What I saw was insanity.
Nine goblins assaulting One woman.
One of them was inserting his penis into her anus.
Two were in his mouth, and three were in her vagina.
Two were suckling at his breasts with great force
and one of them was holding his hand and making him passionately stroke his penis.
It was a sight I had never seen before.
To hell with all goblins.
I rushed toward them.
My sword pierced one of them—the one forcing himself into a woman's mouth.
He screamed as he fell, but I ignored him.
I moved to the second and cut off his head with a swift strike.
The rest were shocked…
But I shouldn't give them time to prepare.
I charged the third, who had just pulled himself away, and cut off his legs before he reacted.
I went to three more and quickly decapitated one of them.
"Aah!"
One of them shot me from behind; an arrow pierced my back and I couldn't keep my balance.
I sliced open another's stomach with a strong strike, his guts splattering over one of the women.
The remaining goblins grabbed their weapons.
I ran toward the cave exit—I knew I couldn't take all of them in here.
I ran in an uneven pattern to avoid arrows, while the others chased me with knives and stones.
I ran through thorns and branches until I disappeared from their sight.
They split into three groups and started searching for me.
I ambushed them one by one and killed or injured four.
The forest breeze was a million times better than the smell inside.
I lifted my head. For the first time in a long while, I felt I was truly breathing.
After they all left the cave entrance, I returned.
I checked the women… their bodies were severely torn.
I looked at their chests… they were still breathing.
"Griiiyaaah!"
The one whose legs I cut off was asking why I did this.
"Because I'm better than you."
"Gooo…"
I understood what he meant, and with a swift movement, I sliced him in half.
The problem now: how do I get the women out?
I looked around and found a wooden door they used for firewood.
I placed the women on it and started pushing.
It was hard, but I endured.
Fortunately, the cave ground had no pits or bumps.
I kept pushing until we were outside.
Now… where should I take them?
"H… h… home… east…"
One of the women was pointing in a direction, the only one still conscious.
I pushed, and luckily the cave was on a slight slope, reducing the effort needed.
This continued for over an hour.
The conscious girl regained some strength and helped guide me.
The others stared at me with fear and brokenness… I didn't feel sad—they had gone through too much.
I heard the sound of a cart.
The women couldn't hear it.
I signaled for them to yell.
I stood far away, watching.
"Help! Help us! Please!"
After a minute, a man and a woman arrived with some children.
Good… they weren't criminals, or I would've had to kill them all.
What should I do now?
---
After the First Month
After leaving the cave, I walked deeper into the forest.
What did I eat?
Tree bark, bitter fruit, insects.
I hated my life… but I survived.
I watched humans from afar.
Studied their habits.
Observed the paths they used.
Learned how they hunted monsters and handled weapons.
Not out of curiosity…
But out of caution.
Because any mistake meant death.
During this month, I realized something painful:
My body was changing.
My steps became faster.
My hearing sharper.
My instincts stronger, especially at night.
A desire to run.
A desire to hunt.
And sometimes… a desire to kill.
I resisted.
But something inside me was slowly awakening…
I could feel it.
---
Second Month
I returned near the cave… and saw something strange:
Adventurers.
I hid in a tree, watching.
A group of three entered:
A man with a long spear.
A girl with black hair and two knives.
A young mage, no older than seventeen.
It didn't take five minutes…
They came out cursing, apparently disappointed by the loot.
After they left, I entered the cave.
They killed the goblins mercilessly.
Every strike was deadly.
The smell inside was worse than before… but now mixed with blood.
I searched inside.
I found:
15 arrows
3 short bows
4 bone daggers
A small bag with food scraps and cloth
And in the deepest part… a group of goblin infants.
They looked at me as if they knew me.
As if they saw "one of their own."
But I… wasn't one of them.
And never would be.
I remembered the screams of the women…
The smell of blood…
The goblins laughing while they assaulted them.
I raised the dagger.
And then…
I did what had to be done.
No mercy.
No words.
No hesitation.
I looked at my hand…
It didn't tremble.
The worst part?
I didn't feel guilty.
---
Third and Fourth Months
I lived in the forest.
Practiced archery.
Learned to set traps.
Sharpened my hearing.
I lived like a goblin…
But thought like a human.
This contradiction almost broke me.
But something inside me kept growing.
I didn't understand what it was.
Night became easier.
Hunting became routine.
Blood… didn't bother me much anymore.
I watched myself…
I knew this transformation wasn't a joke.
---
Fifth Month
One day was colder than usual. Was winter approaching?
I was checking my traps in the morning—although I was a goblin and more active at night, and didn't need full hours of sleep…
I liked and needed to behave like a human to keep my sanity.
Suddenly…
Three adventurers attacked me.
They thought I was an ordinary goblin.
I was near the river, trying to learn how to catch fish.
I would've died if I hadn't jumped into the river then into thick bushes.
I escaped narrowly.
But they hit my shoulder with an arrow.
I bled a lot.
I walked half a day cursing, stumbling, and breathing heavily.
I pulled the arrow out and sat under a tree to rest.
I started to hate humans…
What was I thinking? I was human too.
I took a nap, and when I woke up, I found the sword I bought from the system beside me.
This made me suspicious… would it always return even if I lost it?
I tried throwing it into the river… burying it… tying it to a tree…
And it always returned.
This made me happy… at least I wasn't unarmed.
I wasn't even carrying weapons before.
I couldn't return to that place; it was too close to the village.
I didn't go back to any area near humans.
I went deeper into the forest—
To places even animals feared to enter.
---
Sixth Month
These last months were… hell itself.
Wolves attacked me.
I fell into old traps.
I got poisoned by plants.
I fought creatures far stronger than me.
And humans chased me relentlessly…
They seemed to hate anything that looked like a goblin.
I came close to death every single day.
But the strange thing?
The closer I got to death…
The stronger something inside me became.
I kept returning to the old cave from time to time, simply because I had nowhere else to go.
And every time I sat alone…
I heard my heartbeat differently.
Deeper.
Slower.
Calmer.
Would I live…?
Or was all this effort meaningless?
---