"Haah… what a mess." Gray let out a long, slow sigh.
The status tab disappeared from his view like a window being slammed shut, and reality returned with a vengeance: screams, the smell of rotting meat, and the goblin leader practically foaming at the mouth as she yelled at the unfortunate soul who was still writhing on the ground, clutching his own testicles as if they were the last anchor of his life.
"YOU THINK THAT'S BEING USEFUL?" she shouted. "YOU THINK BRINGING LEFTOVERS MAKES YOU A HUNTER?"
"I-I tried—" the goblin groaned.
"TRIED WHAT? TO DIE OF SHAME?"
Gray watched silently for a few seconds. Nilou vibrated softly, uneasy, feeling the heavy atmosphere of the village.
He then turned slightly and approached "One," who was standing beside him, arms crossed, her expression too tired for someone so small.
"Is it always like this?" he asked quietly.
One didn't even need to think. She nodded immediately. "Almost every day."
"She yells… They mess things up. She kicks… They've probably lost their reproductive capacity from so many kicks to their private parts." She commented calmly.
Gray blinked. "...Fair enough."
One sighed through her nose. "The elder will show up soon and tell everyone to shut up. He always does."
As if summoned by the comment, Two turned her face towards one of the larger huts—if you could call it a hut—built with crooked logs and stacked pieces of stone.
She narrowed her eyes.
"...Speaking of him."
Gray followed her gaze.
Between two crooked structures, a figure slowly emerged. An old goblin. Very old.
His back was too hunched even by goblin standards, his wrinkled skin looked almost like dried leather, and his sunken eyes held a perpetually angry expression, as if the whole world had wronged him first. He leaned on a crooked staff that seemed more symbolic than useful.
"Is that the elder?" Gray murmured.
"Unfortunately," replied "One."
"How old is he?"
"Two" shrugged. "Ninety? A hundred? Nobody knows. He just… doesn't die. How frustrating."
The old man advanced with slow but firm steps, tapping his staff on the ground every two steps. The dry sound echoed in the clearing, effortlessly drawing attention.
"WHAT THE HELL IS ALL THIS SHOUTING?" his voice came out hoarse, but surprisingly loud. "DO YOU THINK THIS IS A PARTY?"
The leader turned around immediately, her eyes still blazing. "THEY BROUGHT CARCASSES AGAIN."
"IT'S FOOD," the elder retorted, without even looking properly at the fallen skewer. "Food is food."
"THIS IS LEFTOVERS!"
"LEFTOVERS STILL FEED YOU," he replied dryly. "DO YOU THINK YOU HAVE LUXURY HERE?"
Gray felt his jaw clench on its own. "One" tilted her head toward him and whispered, "See? Always like this."
The goblin on the ground took advantage of the distraction to try to stand up, still limping. The leader pointed at him immediately.
"LOOK AT THIS! YOU CALL THIS SURVIVAL?"
"I CALL IT STAYING ALIVE," the elder replied, finally facing her. "SHOUTING DOESN'T FILL YOUR STOMACH."
A heavy silence fell over the village.
Gray observed the goblins around him. Nobody seemed to truly be on anyone's side. They just… accepted it. They accepted the hunger, the garbage, the fear, the wolves, the fights. They accepted it because they had no choice.
He let out another sigh, heavier this time.
"...I understand the problem," he murmured to himself.
Nilou vibrated slightly, as if agreeing.
Gray's gaze slowly rose, passing over the elder, the furious leader, the almost extinguished campfire, and the miserable huts. And, for the first time since arriving in that world, he didn't smile because he found something funny.
"Hello, can we talk for a bit?" Gray asked. "I'm hungry, and I'm not going to eat carrion, so let's get this over with." Gray said, already having a plan in mind regarding the fresh food.
The elder stood motionless for a second.
Then, completely unexpectedly, his knees buckled.
THUMP.
The old goblin fell to his knees on the hard-packed ground of the clearing and, before anyone could react, bent completely forward, burying his forehead hard in the dirty earth.
THUD.
"OH MIGHTY BEING!" he bellowed, his voice echoing absurdly and dramatically too much for that scrawny body. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN THIS HUMBLE PLACE?!"
Absolute silence.
The leader blinked.
"One"'s eyes widened.
"Two" opened her mouth.
"Three" let out a: "Huh?"
Gray froze.
"...What?"
He looked down, then to the sides, clearly trying to understand if he had missed some important detail of reality. Then, he lowered his gaze to Nilou in his arms.
"...Her?" he asked, pointing with his thumb.
Nilou vibrated in confusion, puffing up slightly as if to say, "I didn't do anything."
"S-stop playing around, powerful one!" the elder continued, his voice trembling. "I CAN SEE IT! I CAN FEEL IT! Your mana is so dense that—that—!" He choked, trying to find words. "That a SNEEZE from you would wipe this village off the map!"
'System...' Gray thought.
[Apparently, the individual "Elder Goblin" can detect mana. Furthermore, the user is leaking a huge magical aura.]
Gray thought and sighed... 'My mana amount is really large, but even so...' He thought, 'Is it possible to store this aura?'
[Yes, it's possible. But it's necessary to obtain the "Mana Control" skill.]
'Can I obtain that?'
[Obtained!] Using the Predator as a catalyst, it was possible to learn the [Mana Flow (Rank-A)] skill…
'Wow, if it was that simple…' Gray murmured, it was incredible how easily he could gain skills… 'Damn, Predator is so overpowered!'
The goblins were still watching Gray, waiting for him to say something.
"Hm? What is it?" Gray said.
The leader pointed, "You? Powerful? How? The master of throwing rocks at wolves?" she mocked, but Gray's murderous look almost made her regret it! She turned and tried to whistle, but she didn't know how.
"I'm a goblin. Look at the size. Look at the color. Look at the—" he made a vague gesture to his own body. "—the whole package." He spoke calmly, wanting to keep a low profile… he didn't know if it was good or not to let these goblins know that he had a lot of mana.
"HE'S NOT A GOBLIN!" the elder shouted, lifting his head from the ground, his eyes wide, almost gleaming with fanaticism.
"I am," Gray replied automatically.
"HE ISN'T!"
"Yes, I am."
"HE'S A— A—" the elder stammered, clearly trying to push his brain beyond its limit. "HE… HE DOESN'T KNOW!"
Gray blinked. "...Don't know what?"
The old man pointed at him with his trembling staff. "You DON'T KNOW you're powerful!"
The entire village fell silent again.
The leader put her hand to her face. "Oh no."
"One" sighed deeply. "Here we go."
"Two" murmured, "He's completely lost his mind."
"Three" seemed impressed. "Damn… that's new."
Gray scratched his head. "Listen, old man—"
"THE ELDER!" the goblin corrected, offended, still kneeling.
"—elder… right. Listen, I just want to eat something that hasn't been chewed by another creature before," Gray said, trying to remain calm. "And maybe solve this wolf problem."
The elder's eyes widened even more.
"SEE?!" he shouted, turning to the other goblins. "HE TALKS ABOUT WOLVES LIKE THEY'RE FLIES!"
"Everyone talks like that," the leader retorted. "And they keep dying."
"BUT HE DIDN'T DIE," the elder countered, pointing at Gray again. "HE'S HERE. ALIVE. WITH THIS— THIS—" He made a sweeping, almost reverent gesture. "—AURA!"
Gray looked around. He saw the thin goblins. The children hid behind the huts. The campfire was weak. Fear had become normalized.
He let out a slow sigh.
"...Okay," he finally said. "We'll talk."
The elder practically melted with relief. "YES! YES! YOU WILL TALK!"
Gray pointed to the skewer lying on the ground. "But first... someone throw this away."
The leader smiled slightly, finally. "With pleasure."
Nilou cheered loudly, satisfied.
The elder didn't give them time for anything else.
He stood up with surprising speed for someone of his age and practically grabbed Gray by the arm—with exaggerated respect, but still pulling—towards the largest tent in the village.
"THIS WAY, POWERFUL BEING! A WORTHY PLACE!"
"Hey— hey— calm down," Gray complained, being dragged along. "I just said I was going to talk!"
The four goblins followed.
The elder's tent was… marginally better than the rest of the village. Thicker logs, more intact hides, fewer holes for the wind to get in. Still, it smelled of mold, old smoke, and dried herbs.
In the center was a slightly elevated space, covered with worn hides—clearly the "leader's place."
Gray stopped at the entrance.
"...No."
The elder completely ignored him.
"SIT DOWN, MIGHTY BEING."
"I'll stand anyway."
The old man pressed both hands against Gray's back.
Gray sighed… and sat down.
"I said that— ah, never mind."
As soon as Gray settled in, the elder dropped to his knees again, this time inside the tent, bending so deep that his nose almost touched the earthen floor.
"SAVE US."
The four goblins froze.
The leader closed her eyes instantly.
"One" put her hand to her forehead.
"Two" sighed heavily.
"Three" murmured, "Here it comes…"
Gray looked at the kneeling old man. Then he looked at Nilou. Then at the tent ceiling.
"...Haah."
He ran a hand over his face. "I just wanted to eat."
The elder immediately raised his head. "THAT'S GOOD!"
"...What?"
"WE WANT TO EAT TOO," the old man said, with the utmost nonchalance. "THEN HELP US."
Gray stared at him for a good three seconds.
"...Did you just ask me for divine salvation with that brazen face?"
"YES."
"Without even negotiating?"
"YES."
Gray slowly turned his face to the leader. "Is he your father?"
She turned her face away immediately, crossing her arms. "Unfortunately."
Gray nodded. "Yeah... they're alike."
"HEY," she growled, but didn't deny it.
Gray turned his attention back to the group. "Okay. Let's start from the beginning. What do you eat?"
"Meat," answered "One."
"Only meat," completed "Two."
"Whatever we can get," "Three" added.
Gray blinked. "Is that all?"
The leader frowned. "What's the problem?"
"The problem," Gray replied slowly, "is that you live in the middle of a forest."
"...And?" she retorted.
Gray took a deep breath.
"...Are you stupid?"
Silence.
"Three" opened her mouth. "Hey—"
"FRUITS," Gray interrupted, raising his voice slightly. "Have you ever eaten fruit?"
The four goblins exchanged glances.
One.
Two.
Three.
"What is fruit?" "Two" asked, genuinely curious.
The elder tilted his head. "Is it like meat?"
Gray stood still.
His brain simply… stopped for half a second.
Then he took a deep breath.
Very deep.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, WHAT IS FRUIT, YOU IDIOTS?!"
The shout echoed inside the tent.
Outside, some goblins were startled. One dropped a spear. Another tripped.
Inside the tent, the leader's eyes widened.
"One" put her hand to her mouth to stop herself from laughing.
"Three" widened her eyes, impressed.
"Two" murmured: "...I think we screwed up."
Gray ran his hand over his face again, exhausted.
"...You're surrounded by trees," he continued, pointing outside. "TREES. That bear fruit. Food that doesn't run, doesn't bite, and doesn't need to fight back."
The elder blinked. "This... this grows on its own?"
"YES."
"WITHOUT FIGHTING?"
"WITHOUT FIGHTING."
The old man put his hand to his chest. "This is... magic?"
Gray fell back, leaning against the makeshift seat back.
Nilou cheered loudly, as if laughing.
"How have you survived until now?..." Gray murmured. "Seriously, you have incredibly lucky attributes... not having gone extinct is simply insane."
[Goblins are Rank-F monsters. They are naturally stupid.]
'Don't give me that, these four here managed to give me an incredible detail about the current food chain, they aren't completely stupid, they just don't have the will to evolve.' Gray retorted, and in a way, he was right! Very right, in fact!