Chapter 36: 34- Skill Test

"Nherggg!"

Chewing the iron bars for the nth time, Oscar grunted frustratingly. The bars didn't even creek but his teeth did, threatening to break if he put any more pressure.

Backing away to take a breather, he observed the room they had put his cage into. Though the moment he woke up, it was all dark, but now it's all bright, courtesy of the small square-shaped window at the top adjacent wall; letting him know the difference between day and night. 

A mesmerizing ray of the morning sun sheds some light on the interiors; tall wooden shelves covered all sides of the room, with some stacked over crates and empty barrels littering the rest of the floor. It was a warehouse sort of. 

And what the Goblin was seeing by craning his neck, the shelves contained many of the same but small-sized obsidian orbs which he had assimilated himself with, and many weird but expensive looking armaments; skulls and spine shapes were common, while common looking swords and daggers were rare, making it easy decipher they were used by some cultists. 

"Ghaaa…"

Sitting back, the captured and now-alone Goblin then released a defeated sigh before reviewing his memories as he tried to understand where it all went wrong. 

It was all and good, he had escaped the clutches of death far better than he had initially thought, and escaped the jaws of hungry predators many times than he could count on hands; but it's all for naught. As he remember the last thought that crossed his mind before making that stupid decision, he felt like slapping himself. 

'I grew conceited' 

Oscar could recall clearly what transpired in his mind at that moment; whether by a stroke of luck or his good karma paying dividends in advance, he had indeed outrun and outwitted all his pursuers, making him subconsciously think that he was above them all only to get slapped hard for this mistake and an iron cage with an unknown fate as punishment as result. 

'Alright… lesson no.1, don't test your luck twice'

So he concluded, and though he's alive and well -for now- the Goblin was still feeling sour.

Where he could be welcomed by hundreds of goblins that may likely be ready to die at his command, Oscar was instead welcomed by an unbreakable iron cage and an empty feeling from losing his short but entertaining dungeon companions in an instant. Heck, he didn't know if any one of them were still alive or dead, thus amplifying his sourness to another level. 

But knowing self cursing won't change his situation, the Goblin then diverted his mind to another thing; the freshly remembered dream, and the impossible things that God asked for him to do. And speaking of which, 

Oscar didn't even blink once before a 2-inch gold coin came in his grasp, as if by magic. It looks Regal, with phantoms of a snake's head and its tail etched on either side of it. Though he couldn't tell if it was real gold, it certainly had a weight of it at least. 

'Now, I can't even say if it's a dream' 

Neither did he have any intention of acting ignorant anymore, though. As Oscar had already learned the hard way of paying back his debt on time, regardless of how exploiting the conditions may be.

Moreover, it wasn't like he wouldn't get anything in return. He had already received a new life in advance, and that God had promised to give more if he followed his requests. 

Besides, he had nothing to lose in this life other than his life, which was given by him in the first place. 

And the reincarnated Goblin knows when to be an ungrateful bastard, and when to wise up for the better. Hence, if it didn't cost much he would help his sponsored stuck-up God, but first, 'Let's see if I will live to see another day' 

Rolling the [Coin Of Prediction], he chooses heads as yes and tails as no. And was instantly delighted when the coin stuck in the middle…

'the fuck!... It was a simple question, how the hell did it fail to even answer that?'

Oscar felt scammed, and before he could curse Prometheus the Door opened. And he instinctively puts away the Coin, which disappeared like the way it appeared. While he felt a strange sensation of a pocket being filled back somewhere his hands couldn't reach, nor see. 

                                                           

"Guys, I think it's a bad idea" 

The goblin couldn't see the faces from below, but as the four pairs of legs came forward he found them wearing a uniform identical to medieval guards of an insignia depicting an elephant trunk. 

"And I never said it would be a good idea, Nellar" Replied the man with a scar, as the young man looks distressed but still follows him behind.

"Moreover, the chief had already said to dispose of these things. They won't notice if a few insignificant things get missing right, and why are you this scared even after doing it a dozen times?" Puzzled the man with a healthy face. 

"If you still feel guilty, just remember the expensive places you would be able to take your girlfriend with" Assured another man with a wicked smile before helping the man with a scar to search the warehouse. 

Meanwhile, the Goblin in the cage was bewildered when he heard them, as in, understand them. 

'Another gift?' He didn't think further when he remembered the modifications that Prometheus did to his title at the last moment. 

Silently adding ten points to that Prometheus, and forgetting his previous anger for him, Oscar observed as they sneakily foraged any valuable they found unworthy and most likely would go unnoticed in the eyes of the upper management of the Guild. 

'Guild?' He noticed this part, and many others as they kept talking to themselves.

The goblin couldn't describe some specific words as he too is getting used to this ability, but thanks to these treacherous guards he was able to make a rough picture. 

These guards are the lowest in hierarchy of the Guild named 'House Of Behemoth', led by the God Ganesh -which again, doesn't ring any bell to him- and to survive they have opted to steal things, which most likely would be buried or destroyed, like many other low-levelled scavengers of numerous Guilds they sell them in the black market to fill their banks as much as possible before they get fired for being stagnating at levels, or gets killed on duty. 

Their lives were harsh and the competition was harder. 

'Poor little things' 

Shaking his head, Oscar felt some sympathy for them. That quickly turned to undisguised fury as the Goblin saw them taking out a dead Python before squeezing it…

*Clink!*

"Huh?"

As the man with a scar squeezes it, many monster cores drop on the floor. 

"Pocket space?" 

Another man commented; being knowledgeable in regards to monsters was a perquisite of joining any Big Guilds. 

"I guess so"

*Clink!*

As with each squeeze more and more Monster Cores dropped, and tools made of bones clanked against the floor the Goblin couldn't contain himself and screamed at these treacherous guards. 

"Ghaaaa!" 

'Pie chan!' The goblin rattled the bars as if to stop them from defiling his pet… and stealing his treasures which he had put in its dead body. 

"Hey, what's a goblin doing here?" Noticing the disturbance, the healthy-faced man asked. 

"Don't know" 

Shrugging, the man gives another squeeze and the Python then vomits everything he had in its space.

*Clink!*

You are reading story So I’m A Goblin, So What? at novel35.com

And among the useless primitive tools, and more than four dozen Monster Cores a tiny thing shines Radiantly.

"Huh?" The young man who had been on the lookout turned around and found his partner in crime staring at a big diamond ring that strangely felt familiar… 

"Say Nellar, why does it look like the ring you got for your girlfriend a month ago?" 

"Fuck! It's the same!" 

Wide-eyed, Nellar couldn't believe it. The thing his girlfriend in-name had said to be lost or stolen by a goblin-!… huh, a goblin? 

Turning back to the creature in the cage who eyed back him menacingly as it grinds its teeth, the young man couldn't help but call it fate. And pray to his God, the guild master, for always looking out for him. This thing had cost him a fortune damn it! 

"Ghaa!"

Kicking the iron walls, Oscar fumed in a corner with his back facing them, refusing to witness this horror show any longer. While promising to make them pay for their crimes… if he was able to get out alive from here, that is.

Grinding his teeth, the goblin then forcefully diverted his attention before he could do something drastic such as…crying more loudly. 

'So, I have lost all my progress?' 

The still-sulking Goblin suddenly noticed his body had reverted to its base form. As in, all the changes done through mutations, whether external or internal, were now gone; his monstrous foot with an extra finger was nowhere to be seen, nor could he access the [Dummy Voice].

Currently, his body looked weak with less muscle mass compared to before. But having checked his strength earlier on these iron bars, Oscar concluded the change was because of quality rather than quantity. 

Whereas, his body had completely shed the greenery and adopted a ghastly pale white much like that 'Lich Adori' he had seen in his Nightmare. 

'I have heard about albino tigers and lions, but Albino Goblin?'

Shaking his head, the goblin then noticed the extra slot beside the Mutation part, 'Looks like each rank gives an extra slot, but why even give that when we may lose all on our next rank up' 

Frowning, the human-turned Goblin thinks of the reason behind this shitty move, 'I can't help but think it's all to give humans an edge against monsters, to better slay us with their swords while we could only scratch their armor with our claws… huh?'

As if stuck by something he thought this from another point, namely monsters, 'Isn't this unfair that Humans could wear better accessories and gears to boost their basic strength, but Monsters couldn't?' 

Thinking along the line, he guessed the Mutation is the accessory and gears for monsters to boost their base strength, which could be taken off with the next Rank Up. And then changed to better ones that suit their newly chosen evolution. 

'I guess it's fair enough' shrugging, the albino Goblin checks his new skills next, as he failed to see any change other than cosmetical ones.

His eyes turned pitch black, and his vision grew blurred before changing to black and white. 

The cage that binds him turns into a silhouette, and all the other furniture and walls around the radius of a meter turn transparent while giving him a 360 view. And even when he blinks or closes his eyes, the vision remains the same.

'This is fucking awesome!' 

Blinking again, his eyes reverted back and his vision narrowed. The goblin could tell that the vision he saw was the primate one, as the description said. 

Though Oscar really wanted to keep it open, but the problem with it was that beyond 1m the world was pitch black like an abyssal maw closing on him slowly, creepily, making him afraid of what and when something may fall upon him; if he remains it open always, it wouldn't be any different from living in a true Nightmare. 

Oscar could more or less guess the function behind this skill; eating others' souls to empower his own. But after rereading the description, he felt like it has more to it than just eating souls, 'Ah… I will leave this to test when I do kill someone after getting out of this'

Like a switch, Oscar felt that he had taken a step back. As in, his control over his body had shifted from being active to passive. And a strange feeling of being caged inside a flesh suit enveloped him like his body wasn't his but an extension of his. 

Nonetheless, he could still move his limbs as he wanted, but he felt foreign inside his own body like a puppeteer controlling a flesh doll. Even when he pinches himself, he feels no pain, nor could he breathe if he didn't focus on it. 

'Strange, but maybe helpful in a suicidal fight…' 

Oscar could guess the unlimited potential this skill holds, and the untapped strength he could pull if he removed the pain that comes with it.

'The wha-what?' 

A transparent Goblin slips back from the body. As it drops back with a thud, Oscar could only watch as he himself phased through the iron cage and into the floor, underground. Before remembering the skill was Mana-based and he puts the Mana into his feet and hands which in return helps him swim above, back into the room. 

'This is… spooky' 

The Revenant Goblin could barely make out his own transparent Soul-Body, while he watched the physical body lay limp inside the cage like it was sleeping. 

'Is it, I mean, my body is still alive?' 

Recalling the Status screen, Oscar was able to see the HP is still where he left it.

Meanwhile, all his skills were blacked out except the Mana-based and Non-Mana-based ones. And though, he could still see the skill [Caveman Aggression] Oscar had a foreboding feeling to it, 'I don't have to guess what may happen if I summoned a fiend in my Soul Form'

Getting his suicidal thoughts out of his mind, Oscar quickly moves to test the last skill, too excited for being an undead soul and the prospects that comes with it. And he could more or less guess his growth would be more in line with that Nightmare Lich he had seen before, which, for some reason he didn't mind. 

The vengeful Goblin didn't even take a second in trying to possess the shiniest Ring in the hands of the young man. And surprisingly, he was able to possess it without any resistance. 

'Strange, he said it was given to his girlfriend… Did he lie or his girlfriend didn't cherish it enough?' 

He would have pondered more on others' love life, if not for him feeling too constructive that he felt like dying, like a Titan trying to fit inside a ketchup bottle. 

Although he had heard of Genies living inside a 1inch teapot, Oscar's best guess was because they're dead from the start rather than him who's a newbie in being a partial undead. 

So undoing the possession that felt like glue wearing off from him, and letting him uncoil himself properly the Revenant then swims around the guards, busy robbing the vaults they swore to protect with their lives, and comes in front of the door. 

Phasing through it, Oscar almost got a disconnected heart-attack when he was met with a pair of eyes right behind the door, watching himself…or watching through himself.

A man with a regal look of a retired Knight stands with a frown eyeing the door as if able to watch the drama unfolding behind it, to his sides were the same duo of adventurers who had captured him at the dungeon. 

'Sigh… and here I thought I just got caught-?!'

As if his sigh was physical rather than spiritual, the man suddenly moved his hand towards him like a deathly grasp coming to his head. 

Without even thinking, the Revenant cancels the [Spectral Glide], and his Soul gets reeled back like a fishing cable, back into his seemingly sleeping body. 

"Bhaaaaa!... Haaa!... Huuu!"

Taking several breaths, more out of habit than anything else, the Goblin then turned around to watch as all four guards wearing skull necklaces and shiny jewels, looking much like cultists, stare in abject horror as they all give the so-called Chief an awkward salute. 

You can find story with these keywords: So I’m A Goblin, So What?, Read So I’m A Goblin, So What?, So I’m A Goblin, So What? novel, So I’m A Goblin, So What? book, So I’m A Goblin, So What? story, So I’m A Goblin, So What? full, So I’m A Goblin, So What? Latest Chapter