Before Mr. Crane led Rae away from the barn house, he had Rae put on a ragged linen sleeveless shirt and pants, that went down right above his ankles.

After they left Rae got the chance to observe and find out a bit more about the area he’d been staying in for a week.

The auction house was actually keeping the goblin slaves on an extremely large compound surrounded by stone walls. The barn house he was staying at was only one of a dozen, possibly more. He saw goblins with collars walking and rushing from place to place. Some goblins were even standing guard, but they were quite large compared to normal ones, and their features were more ferocious, instead of the cunning look normal goblins had.

He appraised the goblin and was surprised.

『Status』

『Titles』: 『Slave to Eric Crane』

『General Information』

Name: Drom [Guard 3] Gender: Male Age: 3 Years Race: Hobgoblin Level: 4 Class/Level: 「Spearman LV2」「Guard LV4」

『Resistances』:「Lightning: 0%」「Fire: 0%」「Wind: 0%」「Water: 0%」「Earth: 0%」「Light/Holy: 0%」「Darkness: 0%」「Poison: 0% 」

『Status』

Health Points: 276 / 276 (+2.76/s)

Mana Points: 118 / 118 (+1.18/s)

Stamina Points: 207 / 207 (+2.07/s)

『Attributes』

Strength: 84

Endurance: 54

Intelligence: 26

Dexterity/Agility: 46

Perception: 39

Charisma: 10

Wisdom: 28

Luck: 5

『Skill List』

「Pain Resistance LV3」「Hand-to-Hand Combat LV2」「Spear Techniques LV3」

‘This goblin has two classes! I wonder how you obtain a class. But what’s surprising is his race!’ Rae wondered how it was possible that it was a hobgoblin and if he was capable of becoming one too. ‘Appraise ‘Hobgoblin’!’

『Akashic System』Hobgoblin - The evolved form of ‘goblins’ when they have gained enough experience. Hobgoblins are bigger, faster, smarter, and stronger than their predecessors.

‘So can I evolve? How come it doesn’t say how much experience?’ questioned Rae. ‘Oh well, it’s still incredibly important information as I don’t want to be stuck as a puny goblin forever,’ Rae said to himself with encouragement.

They walked past a few barracks separated into two groups. He saw humans on one side and goblins on the other. It was clear the human’s side was much cleaner and in better condition while the goblin’s side was dirty and dilapidated. Rae thought it was to be expected as they were slaves.

As he and Mr. Crane kept walking, they finally stopped in front of an open field where the humans and goblins who evolved into hobgoblins were training. There were over a dozen sparring sessions happening between goblins and humans but it was clear the humans were just abusing them.

“Weak as fuck green skin!” Rae heard a man yelled as he was kicking a hobgoblin that was already down.

“I need to release some stress, so I’m gonna have a good time breaking your bones today, green turd,” Rae could hear another.

Rae could only sigh at the happenings as he knew what it was like to be in their position and wondered, ’is it like this in the rest of the world? Or just in this area?’

As Rae was thinking to himself, a tall man in his middle ages walked up to them. He had short brown hair and he looked experienced as his armor and face were rugged.

Rae appraised and was extremely impressed.

And terrified.

Terrified that he had actually met someone so strong having just been born into this world.

『Status』

『Titles』: 『Captain of Silver Ridge Auction House』『War Veteran』『Survivor』『Human Slayer』『Rescuer』『Monster Slayer』

『General Information』

Name: Norton Clemons Gender: Male Age: 38 Years Race: Human Level: 34 Class/Level: 「Warrior LV37」「Captain LV21」

『Resistances』:「Lightning: 0%」「Fire: 0%」「Wind: 0%」「Water: 0%」「Earth: 0%」「Light/Holy: 0%」「Darkness: 0%」「Poison: 0% 」

『Status』

Health Points: 2096 / 2096 (+20.96/s)

Mana Points: 842 / 842 (+8.18/s)

Stamina Points: 1572/ 1572 (+15.07/s)

『Attributes』

Strength: 576

Endurance: 472

Intelligence: 254

Dexterity/Agility: 297

Perception: 523

Wisdom: 325

Charisma: 42

Luck: 15

『Skill List』

「Pain Resistance LV6」「Hand-to-Hand Combat LV4」「Swordsmanship LV6」「Raise Morale LV5」「Fear Resistance LV3」「Commanding LV5」「Presence Perception LV4」「Enhanced Hearing LV5」「Crisis Perception LV7」 「Bow Techniques LV3」「Axe Technique LV4」

‘This man could poke me to death if he wanted too.’ Rae thought. ‘I need to be careful in this world. Although me being reincarnated and an Origin Vampire has given me huge potential, there are much stronger people than me in this world than this man. There’s no point to potential if I’m dead,’ he warned himself.

“Eric, what are you doing here?” asked Norton in a gruff and straightforward manner. Norton actually disliked greedy noble types, so naturally, that carried over to Eric Crane as well. The only reason he didn’t act in disgust with Eric, is because the higher-ups of the Silver Ridge Auction House would not tolerate personal feelings getting in the way of professionalism.

Eric ignored Norton’s tone as he did not care. “I’ve brought someone train with you for a month,” he said.

Norton then noticed a beautiful child beside Eric and said in surprise, “You want me to train an elf girl that’s only a child, for a month?”

‘I haven’t looked in a mirror because I haven’t had access to one, but this Norton fellow seems to think I’m an elven girl. Did my looks change that much? Not only that, apparently there are elves in this world, too. That’s good to know. Anyways, I hope Mary and Helen will be able to recognize me when I return,’ Rae thought worryingly.

Truthfully, you could not blame Norton for believing Rae was an elven girl. His sharp jaw line had rounded out, and while still extremely handsome, had made him look a bit androgynous. Coupled with his silver hair, and pointed ears that he had from being a goblin, Rae could easily pass for a beautiful elven girl.

Eric burst into laughter after hearing what Norton said. “Norton, you fool! This “elf girl,” is actually a mutated goblin male who was just born a week ago!”

Norton was not convinced. ‘How could a goblin look so much like an elf? Not only that, extremely beautiful to boot! Also, what’s up with those deep crimson eyes? Is it because it’s mutated? There’d had never been records of one before so it’s possible I suppose. But what if he’s just saying that to cover for himself?’ He took a closer look at Rae, but he still could not tell the difference.

“How can you prove that this is a mutated goblin?” Norton asked questioningly.

“The Doctor and his apprentice, Tim, were the ones to birth him. Not only that, there are multiple employees who have seen it since it was a baby. Also, upper management had already come up with a solution for authenticity with a blood resonance test with its mother.” Eric said convincingly. ‘This is why you’re the muscle, you muscle head. You don’t use your brain!’ Of course, he would never say this out loud as Norton could snap him like a twig with his bare hands.

“I see. It does indeed look amazing, and should fetch a high price, but why are you telling me to train it personally?” Norton asked with raised eyebrows. Normally, when goblins needed to be trained for auctioning off or for their own personal forces, they would train with the rest of the grunts.

“This mutated goblin managed to gain「Swordsmanship LV1」while only wielding a sword for less than five minutes. If this goblin isn’t a prodigy then I don’t know what is,” said Eric with an amusing and unknown proud tone in his voice.

“What?! That’s not even just prodigious! That’s monstrous! Are you sure?” exclaimed Norton. Then he realized the irony in what he said. ‘Well, it is a monster, and a mutated one at that.’

“Exactly, the higher-ups told me that if it was extraordinary, I should take it to you for training. If it became stronger, it would increase its appeal to the auction house guests next month,” Eric said.

Norton was about to say something, but another thought came to him. “If it’s so amazing, why not keep it as an elite guard?”

Eric then sighed, “Norton, the Silver Ridge Auction House’s main priority has – and always will be, gold. With the commission we could get from selling such a rare specimen, the auction house will be very happy. Or where else, did you think the gold for you and your men came from?”

As Rae was standing there, pretending he didn’t understand what they were saying, he couldn’t help but feel conflicted at hearing their conversation. ‘I’m not sure how I feel about being discussed like a commodity…’

Norton had almost forgotten how greedy these people were but thought it was fine in the end. His main concern should only be feeding himself and his men thought have followed him into battle since he could last remember, and the greenhorns he was bringing up now.

“Alright, I see your point. But I want to see what the thing’s got before I decide how I want to train him. Follow me,” said Norton.

‘Luckily I don’t have to fight a life and death match with him. I suppose I could test my physical limits,’ Rae decided.

Eric brightened up at the good news. “Good! I may not be a warrior, but I’ve seen and been around enough to tell that this mutated goblin’s abnormal,”

He and Rae followed Norton to a large ring outlined with rocks, away from the training area.

“We’ll do it here. Does it understand our language, yet?” asked Norton.

“Not yet, as it’s still young,” said Eric.

‘I bet he wouldn’t expect that I already understand everything they’re saying right now,’ Rae said while smirking inwardly.

“We’ll give it a「Universal Language」Crystal after you finish your fight,” said Eric. Then he looked at Rae and ordered, “Spar with this man using your full strength.”

Rae nodded his head expressionlessly, and they both entered the arena.

Rae then took a deep breath, exhaled, and took his stance.

Norton was extremely surprised at Rae. ‘This goblin… It’s preparing itself. Usually, unless trained, they would just charge in, swinging.’

But Rae’s next action surprised him yet again.

‘If there’s any chance I can beat him through physical means, it’s through surprise. He has no idea of my actual stats and I can make him misjudge my strength,’ thought Rae, and he decided on a plan.

Rae dashed at him and slashed downward, but held back. Norton parried it effortlessly and didn’t counter attack.

‘That blow was definitely from「Swordsmanship LV1」and its strength was higher than average too!’ Although Norton had heard it from Eric, experiencing it was different than someone telling you.

Although he had held back, Rae was surprised at the newfound understanding in their gap after that blow as well.

He dashed at him again, and instead aimed at Norton’s right leg. Norton parried him again.

This back and forth exchange kept going on for another minute. Norton had not moved from his spot, and Rae looked like he was exhausted.

Rae decided it was time, and bolted at Norton with full speed. This had actually caught Norton off guard. When Rae got closer, he attempted to do the same thing he did to Mary’s stalker: he tunnel visioned on a single point and thrust out his wooden sword with all his might, blocking out all external noises or visuals and only able to see Norton’s eye right eye.

『Akashic System』Gained 「Dash LV1」

『Akashic System』「Swordsmanship LV1」 Leveled up!

『Akashic System』「Concentration LV1」Leveled up!

Sadly, with the strength and experience gap being a wide chasm, it still could not work.

Although Norton was taken by surprise, he was not an experienced Warrior for nothing. He tilted head to the side to dodge the blow. ‘Oh, shit,’ cursed Rae in his last moments until Norton chopped Rae’s neck; knocking him out.

After the spar was over, Norton had figured out Rae’s reason for pointlessly slashing at him for a full minute. He planned to lull Norton into a sense of security and have him used to a certain speed. Then, when Norton least expected it, he would bring out his full capability and take him by surprise. It almost worked, as Norton had definitely underestimated him since he was only a week old with「Swordsmanship LV1」, but Norton himself was a veteran of many wars and faced many life and death experiences.

‘This little bastard is only a week old, and he could think of such a strategy. He knew he couldn’t beat me in a straight up fight, so he had come up with this. Even almost took out my eye in the process if I was even just slightly less attentive than I already was,’ mused Norton.

Norton then thought about the strength of each of his blows and they were definitely stronger than even some of the hobgoblins.

“Eric, have you appraised its stats yet?” Norton asked while pointing at the unconscious Rae.

“No, as Appraisal Stones are rare, I wasn’t sure if I could get permission to use it,” said Eric, while still a bit surprised at the fight. He didn’t think Rae, could fight that well despite only being a week old and having barely touched a sword.

“You should report what happened today and try to get one. This mutated goblin is stronger than hobgoblins while only being Level 1 and Classless,” Norton said with seriousness.

“I… I’ll let the higher-ups know and see what they decide,” said Eric with a shocked expression.

Norton picked up and put the still unconscious Rae over his shoulders and said, “Alright. Also, remember the「Universal Language」Crystal as it can make training and communicating with it easier. I don’t want to bond myself to its collar.”

Norton did not want to communicate with it through the collar as it was based more on ‘sense’ rather than proper communicating, and never liked doing it for training goblins.

“Alright, I’ll make sure to get one,” confirmed Eric, and they both went back to the training area.

********

After Eric Crane reported everything to an Elder of the Silver Ridge Auction House, the elder then walked into a room with a round table and four chairs.

There were three old men with grey hair and long grey beards and different colored robes, sitting in each of them. The Elder who walked in sat down on the remaining seat and initiated the conference.

“I think we should sell it. Think of how much we could make? There are many people who would want it for its fighting prowess or experimentation,” said an Elder with a black robe.

“Nonsense! What if they find out through experimentation? I think we should just kill it and let history rest,” said an Elder with red robes

An Elder with blue robes responded, “Relax, Berkley. Experiments have been done on goblins before and nothing has ever been found out. It’s just been way too long. The only reason we remember is that its history has been passed down to us directly from the founding members. Plus, the goblin in question isn’t even green. Apparently, it looks like an elf.”

The elder, who walked in last, wearing yellow robes, retorted, “Goblin? Don’t you mean N—,” before he could finish, he was interrupted by the Elder in blue robes.

“Brandis, as old as you are, you should know that some things are just taboo!” The Elder in blue robes spoke harshly. Berkley was about to retort but realized the Elder in blue was right and quieted down.

The Elder in blue robes sighed. “I think we should follow what we have always been taught and focus on profit.”

He paused and looked at the rest of the Elders before continuing. “The goblin is not green, so it’s probably just an abnormal and one of a kind, mutated goblin. Even if someone does run experiments on it, they won’t find anything out, as it has been mutated, further moving away from the truth. If we do kill it, we’ll have to deal with that merchant, Richard Dralomere. So, why not just sell it? It’s exceptional, so imagine the commission we’ll get. Also, if we announce that we’ll have an especially rare specimen at the auction, we’ll get all kinds of attention. This is the first mutated goblin and one that can fight as well. Moreover, The Humble Foxes mercenary group would be coming to our auction next month too. In addition, we can just appraise its status to make sure. And if it indeed one of 'them', we can just kill it. As for those… ancient ones among the Elves, they won’t make a fuss. So, everyone in favor of selling it, say ‘aye’."

The rest of the Elders, after hearing the elder in blue’s words, were convinced.

“Aye”

“Aye”

“Aye”

The elder in blue smiled when he heard all of three of them. “Okay, Brandis, give Eric the「Universal Language」Crystal and the Appraisal Stone he asked for and approve Norton's training of the goblin. Now, let’s adjourn this meeting for today,” said the elder in blue.

Despite all of them being Elders, the elder in blue had always been the de facto leader of them.