Chapter 2: The Mine.
As I made my way to the designated place, flanked by a series of grim-faced prison guards,
I took the opportunity to acquaint myself with the mysterious system that had manifested before me moments earlier.
It was eerily reminiscent of RPG games, displaying statistics and skills.
This strange phenomenon seemed to be the work of the "self-awareness eye" skill.
However, after attempting to use it on the guards, I realized that its power was limited to myself alone.
Activating the skill was surprisingly simple—merely thinking about it caused the "character window" to materialize before my eyes.
The next ten minutes of our march felt like an eternity, each step stretching time to unbearable lengths.
As we progressed, the faces of exhausted monsters passed by, their terrified expressions intensifying my nausea with every glance.
The stench of sweat from these barely living beings, broken by hard labor and stripped of any will to live, was suffocating.
I won't lie — I was so terrified that I nearly wet myself. Normally, I would have broken down in tears long before, but now I found myself incapable of such a release.
The realization that I could not cry in this dire situation was deeply unsettling—perhaps emotions like crying were foreign to a goblin, I mused.
Before us stretched a colossal underground mine, resembling a grim colony.
Humans were coercing other races into labor, driving those with the strength to work with the crack of whips,
and likely executing those no longer capable—at least, that was the theory I formed after reading the task I had been assigned.
"We're here" one of the guards growled, casting a disdainful glance in my direction before adding,
"You runt, take this pickaxe and get to work."
"But this stupid bastard won't understand a word you're saying" sneered another guard.
Without a moment's hesitation, I seized the pickaxe, hoping for a brief respite—yet before I could turn around—Bam!—a sudden warmth spread across my head.
You have taken damage [-6 HP]
Within seconds, blood began to trickle down my body, and I was utterly paralyzed with fear.
Adrenaline surged through my veins, numbing the pain.
One of the guards had casually picked up a rock and struck me - not for any failure to obey, but for the sheer, sadistic pleasure of it.
"Hahaha, look at his stupid smashed face!"
"Come on, you disgusting goblin, get to work."
In that moment, a flood of emotions overwhelmed me - rage, fear, helplessness, irritation.
Despite the dire circumstances, I knew that one wrong look could seal my fate.
Even with excruciating pain, I trudged forward, pushing my emotions aside.
# 4 Hours Later
My arms were failing me, my muscles screaming in agony, and sweat poured from every pore.
The relentless sound of pickaxes striking rock echoed through the mine, but it wasn’t just me—right beside me, a panda toiled.
Yes, a humanoid panda, who appeared to be in even worse condition than I was. I considered speaking to it, but it likely wouldn’t understand the goblin language anyway.
Fatigue [ -2 HP ]
I opened my status to check my current health:
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Character Information:
Name: ????
Age: 1 year
Race: Goblin
Class: None
Titles: -
Level: 1 [0/15]
Stats:
HP: 8/20
MP: ?/?
Strength: 2
Stamina: 4
Agility: 6
Intelligence: 3
Intuition: 5
Skills:
Passive:
[S+] Hero's Guide
[A] Self-awareness Eye
[A-] Polýglōssos
Active: -
Affiliation: Slave of Freypass Kingdom
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When will this day end? If this keeps up, I'll die of exhaustion.
#4 Hours Later
I wasn’t sure if I was still alive or not.
Every minute dragged on for hours, and the only thing reminding me of my existence was the sound of the pickaxe.
It felt like this sound had accompanied me my entire life, as if I had known it since childhood, as if this pickaxe had been made specifically for me to use.
But most likely, my mind was playing tricks on me from exhaustion.
Fatigue [ -2 HP ]
Through your hard work, your strength increases.
Strength [ +1 ]
Suddenly, I heard a loud crash. The panda working beside me had collapsed from exhaustion.
I turned away—I couldn’t bear to look. I realized what fate awaited it. But then I heard:
"Hey, you — yes, you who just turned away, will you help me up?" The panda’s voice was very soothing.
"Are you talking to me?" I asked, but I was sure it wouldn’t understand me.
"Do you see anyone else here?" the panda replied.
Wait, what? This panda understands me? I thought I must have misheard, but just in case, I responded:
"So you can understand me?"
"Yes, I understand, you jerk—so, will you help me up, or will you just stand there?" He said it with incredible calmness.
I grabbed the stranger's hand and with a firm motion helped him to his feet, although it wasn't as easy as it might have seemed.
"Are you alright?" I asked.
"As much as I can be," he replied, breathing heavily.
Then he added, "What's your name?"
I froze. I don't remember my name. But why?
5 minutes passed.
"What, did that guard hit you so hard with the rock that you forgot your name? From now on, I'll call you Rock - Haaha!!!"
Suddenly, a window popped up before my eyes:
Your name has been assigned; from today onwards, you are called Rock.
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Character Information:
Name: Rock
Age: 1 year
Race: Goblin
Class: None
Titles: -
Level: 1 [0/15]
Stats:
HP: 6/20
MP: ?/?
Strength: 3
Stamina: 4
Agility: 6
Intelligence: 3
Intuition: 5
Skills:
Passive:
[S+] Hero's Guide
[A] Self-awareness Eye
[A-] Polýglōssos
Active: -
Affiliation: Slave of Freypass Kingdom
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