Byung was released and, due to his excitement, he failed to tell them everything he had seen.
However, Byung knew he had to revisit the cave to confirm, and if all of this was a test, then it would be okay if he did this much.
It could very well be a hallucination caused by dehydration, but what if it wasn't his mind playing tricks on him?
He wasn't tortured by any of the goblins, but what were those words that flashed before him?
It felt like the same mechanics of a video game, a system to be precise.
But Byung was beginning to think it was exhaustion, as this was a possibility with how hard he had been working.
"H-Hi…" A timid goblin called out. Byung recalled this goblin as it was always being scolded by their supervisor.
"Hello…?" Byung looked puzzled because he had no idea why he was being spoken to, realising this was the first time a worker was attempting to talk to him, so it was a bit awkward.
The goblin just stared at him, and this made Byung self-conscious as he had no idea what he wanted or why he was doing what he was doing.
"Do want something?" Byung questioned with a raised brow.
"N-No!" The goblin responded, but it kept staring at him without looking away, which made Byung even more uncomfortable.
"Weirdo…" Byung thought to himself, but he noticed these goblins were a lot smaller than the average goblins, but that wasn't the only thing that caught his eye.
"Those scars…" Byung didn't know goblins were harmed physically; however, there was a chance these wounds were gotten from the mines.
These scars were certainly not self-inflicted either; they were too deep, but Byung had no interest in diving deeper into this.
Byung wanted to ask him about it, but something told him this was none of his business and diving into it might do more harm than good.
He was going to leave this place soon; the last thing he needed was to create attachments.
Byung decided to walk away and leave this person to whatever fate awaited him.
But from the corner of his eyes, he noticed a few goblins approaching this timid one.
Byung could tell right away, by the way he tensed up, that these goblins were responsible for the scars on his body.
They all lived in a lounge; it wasn't like they slept and worked in these mines 24/7, but they had something of a life, albeit restricted, outside of work.
Byung never bothered interacting with anyone, as his people skills were lacking, and he had no plans to take his body for granted.
He noticed that they waited for him to leave the immediate vicinity, and this was what prompted them to hang just out of their line of sight.
Byung knew all too well what it felt like to be defenceless, and everything in his mind was telling him to leave this place.
"Fucking hell… I can't leave, can I?" Byung hated it, but there was no way his conscience wouldn't judge him if he let these goblins harm the other.
They tried to take him away to a secluded place; it was against the rules to fight, but in what world did the strong not prey upon the weak?
This was no different, and Byung stopped these goblins from having their way as he re-entered their line of sight, pretending to have forgotten something.
The same way he remembered this timid goblin for being scolded was the same way these goblins remembered Byung for being praised.
He was among the top workers and had benefits they could only dream of; this included food and water, so there was a hierarchy in place to motivate the workers to work even harder.
A smart system for a bunch of monsters that only think about sex and violence.
Byung hadn't noticed the respect he commanded because they stopped in their tracks, not daring to continue what they had initially planned to.
"You…" Byung called out to the timid goblin. He knew deep down that these goblins would whoop his ass if this escalated into a fight.
The timid goblin looked up at Byung; the hope that lingered within his confused gaze told Byung all he needed to know.
"M-Me?" The timid goblin was confused, but once again, the goblins were violent by nature, so these goblins assumed this was Byung taking him as a punching bag.
They looked at each other before backing off. Byung instructed the timid goblin to follow, but was surprised by how easy this was.
Byung was so focused on himself that he had failed to see that there was more to working, and not everyone would pass the test like he had.
But if that was the case, he would have seen older goblins here, but they were all young.
He had already made a grave miscalculation and had no plans to make one again.
Byung took the goblin around the corner. He sighed and turned back, but the goblin was on his knees.
"Huh?" Byung muttered because the shameful look in his eyes suggested one thing.
"I get it now," Byung thought to himself, realising why a timid goblin was being picked on.
It wasn't because he was weak. No, it was due to his feminine features and the fact that there were no women.
Well, they would have to find substitutes for that lapse, and what better substitute than this boy?
"W-Want to do it here?" The goblin asked, and the look of disgust on Byung's face gave him the answer he was looking for.
"I should fucking karate chop this ugly shit," Byung thought to himself because he didn't swing that way and found this insulting that this creature thought he did.
"I no idea what you do to survive, but I no like this," Byung informed him, but speaking this way was beginning to take a toll on his intellect; he could feel his IQ drop every time he did so.