'Now, what do we have here?' Alex wondered with slight confusion.
He still couldn't see the figure that had attacked him earlier, but thanks to the smoke covering the entire hallway, he could sense their presence — their form, their outline, even the faint ripples in the air they caused — and it was precisely that last part that confused him. The shape he perceived was definitely not that of a human. It was smaller, barely reaching a meter in height, if not less. Through the smoke that passed through its body, Alex could discern long, pointed ears, which only confirmed that the creature before him wasn't human.
Alex had read about many races in the books Lilia had given him, and only a handful matched the description of the being standing before him. One of them was the goblin race.
'What would a goblin be doing here, though? And more importantly, how come I can't see him?' Alex wondered as he stared in the direction of his opponent. He couldn't see them, but that didn't mean he didn't know exactly where they were.
Sensing his gaze, the creature froze for a moment before suddenly turning away, ready to flee.
However, before it could take even a single step, its body stiffened, locked in place as if something had seized its very soul.
"If your plan was to run away, you should have done so before entering in contact with my smoke," Alex said calmly as he appeared before the figure, his tone cold and indifferent.
'Even now, I can't see it,' he thought, slightly impressed. 'Though, it doesn't matter anymore that I can't see it.'
He couldn't see it, but he could feel everything — its heartbeat pounding like a trapped animal, its trembling limbs, the faint twitch in its muscles — all through the smoke that surrounded them. That was all he needed.
Still as calm as ever, Alex reached forward, his fingers curling around the invisible neck of his opponent before tightening with a vice-like grip. The creature let out a faint choking sound as Alex's expression remained indifferent.
Raising his arm, he lifted the struggling body until their faces were level. The smoke swirled around them like a dark mist, outlining the faint silhouette of the creature's head. 'What do I do with it now?' Alex wondered silently, holding its neck firmly while the rest of its small body dangled helplessly in the air.
Just as he had this thought, the invisibility of his attacker vanished, revealing a small creature with green skin, bulging eyes, and crooked yellow teeth that gleamed under the faint light.
A goblin... just as he thought.
With a harsh and furious expression, the goblin's tiny, clawed fingers scratched and clawed at Alex's arm, desperately trying to break free. Unfortunately for it, its efforts did nothing to Alex, who barely even felt the struggle.
'Hm?' Alex raised a brow, realizing that the goblin wasn't merely fighting to escape — it looked like it was actually trying to say something.
After a brief moment of hesitation, Alex loosened his grip just enough for the creature to breathe and speak. A second later, he almost regretted not having killed it on the spot.
"CURSE YOU! YOU FILTHY, ROTTEN, TWO-LEGGED PIECES OF SHIT!" the goblin roared, his voice raw with hatred. "YOU HUMANS ARE WORSE THAN THE WORMS THAT FEED ON CORPSES! I SHOULD HAVE NEVER COME TO THIS DAMNED AUCTION RUN BY THAT BLOATED, ARROGANT DRAZEN FAMILY! NOW EVERYONE'S DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU STINKING, BLOODSUCKING BASTARDS!"
Spit flew everywhere as the goblin unleashed a relentless torrent of profanity — a string of curses so vile they would have made a sailor blush. Its screeching voice echoed violently through the hallway, almost hurting Alex's ears.
It took a deep breath, clearly ready to start again, but before a single word could escape its mouth, Alex's hand tightened around its throat, cutting off both air and sound in an instant.
"Damn it, how can such a tiny thing make so much noise?" he muttered, digging a finger in his ear to scratch.
After a moment, he glanced coldly at the creature and said, "I'm going to loosen my grip so that you can speak again, but you'll only talk when I tell you to. Otherwise, I'll snap your neck without hesitation. Understood?"
The goblin weakly tapped his arm, signaling that he understood, so Alex slowly relaxed his hold on its neck.
"Who are you?" Alex asked immediately. "You don't seem to be with those masked men, so tell me — who are you, and what are you doing here?"
The goblin took a deep breath to steady his racing heart before speaking, his tone far more restrained than before. "I… I'm but a humble shopkeeper of the goblin race," he said, his voice trembling slightly. "I was invited to attend this auction… by the Drazen family matriarch."
Hearing this, Alex raised a brow in surprise. He certainly had never heard that from Freya.
"Then why did you try to kill me?" he asked, his voice calm.
"I thought you were with the masked men that attacked us and killed my fellow tribesmen," the goblin answered, lowering his head.
Although he wanted to, Alex couldn't really blame the goblin for that. It was true that he was dressed differently from the masked men, but in the end, he also wore dark smoke-like clothes that completely hid his features. Anyone in the goblin's place would have made the same mistake.
"How come I couldn't see you?" he asked next.
"I was using a treasure that I bought here during the last auction. It allows me to completely hide my appearance," the goblin replied.
"Where's that treasure?"
"Here," the goblin said, pointing with one trembling finger at a small bracelet hanging around his left ankle.
Alex reached out and tore the bracelet off the goblin's tiny foot. "This is confiscated until your story is confirmed."
"Wh-What? Confiscated? But you don't have the right!" the goblin shouted, trying to stomp furiously — but with its legs still dangling in the air, all it managed to do was swing helplessly, looking both ridiculous and furious.
"After you tried to kill me with this thing, I think I do have the right to keep it," Alex replied flatly, completely releasing his grasp from the goblin's neck. "You said that your fellow tribesmen were slaughtered by the masked men, right?"
The goblin rubbed its sore neck and nodded begrudgingly.
"If you're here on the second floor, that means you were one of the Drazen family's special guests. So, where's your booth?"
The goblin got to its feet and pointed toward one of the nearby doors.
"Lead the way," Alex ordered.
The poor creature nodded again before starting to walk toward its booth, Alex following closely behind, his scythe still firmly in hand.
When they entered the booth, Alex was greeted by a grisly sight — several goblins, around twenty of them, lay sprawled across the floor, their green blood staining the carpet. The air was thick with the coppery scent of death.
'It seems that Night doesn't have much use for goblins,' Alex thought, his expression unreadable.
Although they had been guests of the Drazen family, they were still goblins in the end. He didn't feel much at the sight of their bodies — no disgust, no pity, just a faint acknowledgment of what had happened.
The only thing he truly felt was that the goblin's story was likely true. At most, there was a trace of sympathy buried deep within him for the survivor — but nothing more.
The same couldn't be said about the sole survivor of the attack against the goblins, though, as he could be seen standing over his fallen comrades, his small shoulders trembling with rage.
If Alex had known the true reason behind the goblin's fury, however, the tiny bit of sympathy he felt for him would have been extinguished as swiftly as a candle in a hurricane.
'Bastards! You made me pay an unholy price to escort me here, yet you couldn't do a damn thing to protect me and ended up slaughtered like lambs! What about my money now?! Who's going to pay me back?!' the goblin thought, his face twisting with anger and indignation.
If it weren't for Alex's presence — and the need to keep his sob story believable, not to mention his fear of Alex's reaction — he would have cursed and kicked the corpses until his rage was spent.
That was a goblin for you. The only thing that truly mattered to them was money. Even the lives of their own kin couldn't compare to the weight of a few gold coins.
While the goblin fumed in anger, Alex stepped back and left the room, feeling several presences suddenly appear in the hallway.
He had been delayed by this goblin for only a few moments, but it had been enough for those damned masked men to flood the corridor.
'I'm not complaining, though,' Alex thought, his eyes cold as he stepped out of the private booth.
"Wait! My bracelet!" the goblin suddenly cried out as he finally noticed Alex leaving. Unfortunately, Alex never replied, leaving it alone inside the booth.
'Had I just been scammed out of my treasure?' it wondered with an ashen expression.