Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
The sound of water echoed faintly in the darkness.
My eyes snapped open. At first, all I saw was black stone and faint moss glowing on the walls. The air was damp, cold, and heavy, carrying a metallic stench that clung to the back of my throat.
I tried to stand—only to stumble. My body felt wrong. Too short. Too light. My hands… no, claws… scraped against the ground, and when I looked down, my heart nearly stopped.
Green.
The skin on my hands was green. My nails curved like claws. My arms were scrawny, my body smaller than it should have been.
I staggered toward a puddle, staring into the rippling surface. The reflection was hideous—sharp ears, a flat nose, jagged teeth, and yellow eyes glowing faintly in the dark.
"A… goblin?" The word left my mouth in a guttural rasp.
Memories rushed back—my old life, the endless hunger for money, the thrill of hoarding wealth, and the crushing weight of greed that had defined me. And now… I had been reborn as one of the weakest monsters in existence.
My heart pounded in my chest. This had to be some kind of cruel joke. Goblins were nothing. Fodder for adventurers. Meat for wolves. Trash at the bottom of the dungeon's food chain.
And yet—
Something gleamed beside me.
A small leather bag lay on the stone floor, its straps old and worn, but its mouth tied shut by a single knot. My claws twitched as I picked it up, almost reverently, and loosened the knot.
Inside was a single gold coin.
My throat went dry. My pupils dilated. Every instinct in my body screamed. Shiny. Precious. Mine.
The goblin instincts within me howled with hunger, but they weren't fighting my human side. No—this was perfect. I had always loved money, and now, even as a monster, that obsession hadn't changed.
"This… this is beautiful." I grinned, my jagged teeth catching the glow of the coin.
Then—
[Ding!]
A faint glow flickered in my vision.
The coin in my claws shimmered, words appearing across its surface:
[Gold Coin – Value: 100]
I blinked. Then I laughed, a harsh goblin cackle.
"Beautiful… priceless!"
My heart pounded with joy. Numbers, values, worth—I could see it all. But the truth was, I didn't care about the numbers. All I cared about was the shine, the gleam, the way it caught the faint dungeon light.
Shiny things were the only truth worth believing in.
I clenched my claws, shutting away the glowing notification. Whatever it was, it was mine alone.
The sound of footsteps echoed from deeper in the tunnel.
"Over here! The map says there's a goblin nest."
"Good. We'll clear them out and grab the loot."
Voices. Human voices.
My blood ran cold. Instinctively, I pressed myself against the wall, clutching the bag tight. My yellow eyes darted toward the tunnel entrance as flickering torchlight drew closer.
I was weak. Fragile. Just a goblin. If they saw me, they'd cut me down without a thought.
But I had one advantage. One coin. One bag. And one hidden skill.
The dungeon door creaked open.
Light spilled in. Shadows stretched across the stone floor as armored boots entered the chamber.
And I knew—this was my first test.
Would I survive as a goblin… or die before my new life even began?