Apolo approached one of the creatures, walking as if he were an elderly man. His simulation was impeccable, as if he had been practicing it hundreds of times. As he neared the cage, the young noble carefully examined the eyes of the Goro in front of him. It resembled a human adult of about 30 years, with black hair and blue eyes. Seeing that the creature's eyes didn't emit a faint glow, Apolo proceeded to place his cane beside the cage and open the leather suitcase he had been carrying. He ordered the guards at the location:
—Open the cage of this Goro and then step back a few paces until the creature refocuses on observing my movements.
Nestor had returned to his office to resume his work, so the guards were the only ones left to observe the evaluation process. As expected, the guards cooperated and followed Apolo's instructions, opening the cage of the creature.
Strangely, when the cage was opened, the creature inside didn't escape, move, or make any sound. This demonstrated that it was not a normal human; no human would react so passively to the opening of their prison.
As Apolo opened the compartments of his suitcase, he allowed the guards, who had stepped back a few paces, to see that it was filled with curious artifacts without an apparent purpose. Some objects even seemed to make no sense, like a teddy bear or an old newspaper. However, everything was so neatly packed within the suitcase's compartments that it appeared as if all these miscellaneous objects had a function.
Without wasting time and realizing that many hours of work lay ahead, Apolo put on leather gloves from his suitcase and removed a pair of rather complex glasses with different lenses. These lenses appeared to change visual capabilities, allowing them to be used for both large and tiny objects.
—Let's see, could you open your mouth?—Apolo asked with a smile, looking at the creature.
—...—However, the Goro remained silent, ignoring Apolo.
Noticing the issue, Apolo took out a silver mask from his suitcase that had been passed down to him by one of his ancestors. Without delay, he put on the mask, stared at the creature, and, with a tone of hatred, slapped it while shouting:
—Open your damn mouth!
—...—But the creature didn't react and simply wiped the blood from its cheek. This puzzled the guards, as they could clearly deduce that the person working with the Goro was the expert. However, for some reason, their minds had been deceived for a few seconds.
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—This is getting complicated, and it's only the first Goro...—Apolo muttered, taking off the mask, leaving the guards somewhat stunned. In their minds, for some reason, a mental gap had been created regarding the expert's identity for a few seconds, until they clearly identified that it had only been a strange illusion. Although the guards managed to fill in the blanks in their minds, Apolo knew that the Goro couldn't do that, making it a useful way to test how its previous owner treated it. With this information, Apolo could simulate the attitude of the previous owner to gain the creature's trust and save himself from trouble, speeding up the inspection process.
—What's your name?—Apolo asked, holding the "man" in front of him by the cheek and looking into his eyes.
—...—But the man didn't speak and remained silent, responding to Apolo's fixed gaze with an empty look, as if a part of him had died not long ago.
—Why isn't he responding?—One of the guards asked, quite interested in the inspection process.
—Because he's depressed...—Apolo responded in a low voice, searching for an artifact in his suitcase.
—And how do you get him out of this state?—The guard asked.
—You don't get him out of depression; Goro's minds and bodies are reset when they are sold—Apolo explained calmly—He will completely forget his previous owners, and that's when he'll stop being depressed. A significant improvement compared to Géros, who are born and die with their memories and bodies intact.
—Are their bodies reset too?—Several guards asked at once, apparently, that question was of interest to everyone.
—Yes, a solution is given to both the buyer and the Goro; the Goro's body bursts open, and a baby emerges from its belly, which will grow into the new body chosen by the buyer—Apolo commented without caring if the creature heard him, while taking out a jar of red sand from his suitcase.
—How impressive, they can be reborn...—One of the guards commented, looking with astonishment at how perfect these "humans" were—So, are they immortal?
—No, but more or less, yes, they are... sometimes... rarely—Apolo replied calmly, while dipping his finger into the jar of red sand, staining the tip of his glove with some red sand.
—Depends on what?—Several guards asked, shocked by the expert's response.
—It depends on how expensive they really are—Apolo answered while approaching his hand to the creature and inserting his finger into its nostril, forcing it to inhale the sand on the glove. Before the guards could ask what Apolo was doing, the young man quietly ordered the creature:
—Now, open your mouth.
—Ahhh...—Immediately, the creature's eyes emitted a faint gleam upon seeing Apolo, and it opened its mouth as it had been instructed.
—Looks like we're off to a good start...—Apolo muttered, putting his fingers inside the Goro's mouth, noting that the creature's teeth were not exactly perfect; in fact, they were quite sharp—See the teeth?
—Yes, it has several fangs, not just two...—One of the guards commented.
—That means it can still be reset; it's a good sign—Apolo explained as he changed the lens of his glasses for a more precise examination. While opening the creature's eyelids to examine them closely, he continued—But we still need to see more details to determine if we're dealing with a gem or something common.