‘Out of the nine golems that were left, Jaba took care of two by himself, though his fists weren’t in the best of shape because of that. Nothing too bad though and he seemed fine enough.
‘From the remaining seven, the squads led by the three Tier One Goblins took care of four, while I reduced the remaining three into lifeless rocks. The biggest thing to take away from this is the fact we managed to not only survive but win convincingly with our only real injuries being Jaba’s fists. Oh, and the fact that even though their statuses said they had mana, they didn’t do anything remotely close to using it.
‘Weird.
‘Anyway, I really need to get that smithy up and running so at the minimum both Jaba and I can get actual weapons. While taking a moment to digest the result of the battle, I spotted Jaba approaching me with the other Goblins.’
“You made it back just in time, Rick. I’m guessing your training or whatever it is you were doing went extremely well.”
“Yeah. I think you guys had it covered though, but I wasn’t gonna let some moving rocks ruin my spectacular return to the Tribe.”
“Still weird, I see. Either way, it’s dark out and you’ve just returned. I think we should just rest for the night, and we’ll talk in the morning.”
“How do you even know what it means to be weird? But that sounds good. It’s just that I don’t think I can fit in the tents with the other Goblins.”
“You have your own.”
‘That’s the last thing Jaba said before walking away.
‘What does he mean I have my own? Do we all have our own now? I didn’t pay attention to anything at all when I entered the cave.
‘While watching the Goblins walk back towards the center of the cave, where our tents are located, I spot a couple of them stealing glances at me.
‘Are they interested in me? Well, how could I blame them? I’m the Royal Goblin genius Rick, after all. I’ll leave them alone for now though. We’ll have plenty of time to talk tomorrow.
[Very self-conscious.]
‘It’s just confidence, Velora! If I don’t have confidence in myself who will?’
[Well, if you say so.]
‘…Are you sure you’re actually just a skill?’
[Of course.]
‘Yeah, if you say so. Jaba didn’t lie when he said I have my own tent, but it doesn’t seem like everyone else has their own either. Am I some privileged Goblin in the Tribe now?
‘But how did Jaba know I’ll come back this much stronger? Did he just trust me? That feels good. What a weird feeling… Not really used to anyone trusting me without a concrete reason to. Anyway, I’ll ask Jaba about it tomorrow.
‘Spread out in front of me, I see six tents, three more than what we had when I left three weeks ago. I don't know how I missed them coming in, but here they are.
‘All the unevolved Goblins split themselves between the three tents we already had, then the three evolved Goblins made their way into one tent together. I spotted Jaba going into one of the remaining two, which were both larger than the rest. So, I guess this empty one is for me.
‘After settling into my new home that even had a small piece of hide to lay on, I decided to take a look at my status to see just how much Essence those Golems provided. Status please, Velora.’
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[Understood.]
{Name - Rick}
{Age - 20}
{Race - Royal Goblin}
{Tier – Two}
{Strength – 55}
{Agility – 40}
{Dexterity – 40}
{Intelligence – 18}
{Endurance – 50}
{Essence - 4}
{Evo Points - 92/180}
{Skills}
{Velora}
‘It’s a good thing I absorbed all my remaining Essence before coming back otherwise the four Golems I killed would’ve put me in double digits and that would've been way too painful to absorb at once.
‘Hey Velora, shouldn't it be possible to absorb some Essence instead of all at once?’
[Perhaps, but you can only know by trying.]
‘Figured you say that. Now that I think about it, since you can grow right alongside me, shouldn't you be able to absorb some of my Essence as well?’
Ding!
‘The hell was that?!’
[It seems you saying that triggered a new option in the status. I will display it now.]
{Name - Rick}
{Age - 20}
{Race - Royal Goblin}
{Tier – Two}
{Strength – 55}
{Agility – 40}
{Dexterity – 40}
{Intelligence – 18}
{Endurance – 50}
{Essence - 4}
{Evo Points - 92/180}
{Skills}
{Velora} Absorb?
‘That is interesting. I wonder if there are any other hidden features I wasn’t aware of lurking behind some sort of input I have to say. I suppose we will find out as we go…
‘Anyway, I think you should absorb it!’
[Are you sure? I don’t believe this is reversible. Your own strength should take priority.]
‘Of course I’m sure! You're my partner and we're in this together! Remember you're also a part of gang green!’
[I see. Alright, I’ll absorb it.]
…
….
‘Velora?’
It wasn’t until a few worrisome minutes passed for Rick that Velora finally came back online.
[The absorption is complete.]
‘How was it? Are you okay?’
[Yes, no need to be alarmed. Though in the future, I suggest for you to only request that I absorb Essence when you do not need me.
[It appears I will be offline for the duration of the absorption process.]
‘No need to be… whatever. Just glad you're okay. any changes?’
[There are some changes. I think I will have a little more information when using my scanning feature now, and it seems I have unlocked some sort of clock feature. But regarding the scanning feature changes, you likely won’t notice anything different as it appears to be just an accuracy adjustment to ensure all numbers are accurate.
[Though note, it is my understanding that these changes would’ve been unlocked regardless of how much Essence I initially absorbed. In the future, it will take an incredible amount of Essence to unlock any further capabilities.]
‘Dang. Is there any type of counter in the status to keep track of how much Essence you have and need?’
[Unfortunately not.]
‘Well, that sucks…anyway, you mentioned a clock feature. I’m assuming you mean a literal clock right, as in a way to tell what period of the day it is?’
[Yes, I do. Would you like to know the current time?]
‘Yes, of course! Do you even know what day and month it is? What about the year?’
[The time is currently 23:47, and I don’t have any information regarding months and years. Though with yours or maybe even my next evolution, that may change. Or perhaps if you get your hands on a calendar and more knowledge regarding this world.]
‘Well, I guess I can’t get everything at once. It’s not like knowing the month and year will change anything for me at the moment so I’ll be thankful for just knowing the time.
‘The next challenge will be to teach the whole time concept to the rest of the Tribe. I think that it can truly benefit the Tribe both now and in the future.
‘What do you think, Velora?’
[A smarter community is a stronger community.]
‘Well said Velora! Guess I’ll just have to put my famed genius mind to good use then.
‘One more thing though Velora, Is it possible for you to wake me up at a specific time in the day? Like an alarm.’
[Yes, that is possible since I don’t require rest.]
‘Oh shit, yeah! I got my own little alarm clock! Wake me up at 0730, please!’
[Understood. Do note that you left your belongings at the cave entrance.]
‘Thanks for telling me, but I can’t be bothered to go grab my stuff. I’ll get it in the morning.’
[Understood.]
‘Goodnight Velora.’
[Understood.]
‘Say goodnight back, dammit!’
[...Goodnight.]
