Chapter 62: Gribnox Is...!
Byung watched in horror as all his plans went right out the door. Gribnox was beaten to a bloody pulp, with Trogzit standing over him.
He was victorious, and Gribnox’s face was a mess. Trogzit was out of breath because Gribnox had put up a decent fight.
The goblins froze, unsure of what to do with the carnage they had just witnessed, but the majority liked the violence.
Trogzit looked over at Drekk, hoping he would change his mind, but Drekk did no such thing.
He ran his thumb across his neck—a gesture that Byung caught.
This was clearly the signal to kill Gribnox, this was unfair and made no sense.
"W-What are you doing?" Byung questioned, but Drekk didn’t even acknowledge him.
Drekk wanted to see what the goblins would do while watching one of their own slaughtered before their very eyes.
Byung knew he had to interfere, even though he’d be breaking the rule. He jumped from the position he was seated in, landing right on the ground beneath him.
Everyone gasped. This was taboo—it was common knowledge that no one could interfere with a bloodfest. But rules were made to be broken.
"Fuck, my back!" Byung thought to himself, realizing he could have just run down here just as fast—but who could resist a superhero landing?
And the effect it had was way cooler than simply running down here, so it wasn’t in vain.
Trogzit looked over his shoulder. Gribnox was unconscious at this point, and Byung wouldn’t be surprised if he had permanent brain damage.
There was no way the number of blows he’d received from that range wouldn’t have lasting effects.
"THAT IS ENOUGH!" Byung screamed, and every goblin gasped in shock.
He just spoke. This should be impossible, considering his age—and even if he had the education, it shouldn’t be possible altogether.
But Byung understood every language, the same way he instantly grasped the tongue spoken by the orc—with no prior practice.
Whispers and murmurs began. Byung looked over at Gribnox and knew he had to get him help as soon as possible.
Even if he did, there was a slim chance he’d remain the same. He gritted his teeth in anger because Gribnox had done nothing to deserve this.
He looked up at Drekk. The sadistic twinkle in his eyes was evident—this had been the plan from the beginning.
Trogzit got to his feet gradually before turning his attention to Byung.
There was only one punishment for breaking this divine rule, and that was death.
Byung was a goblin with no combat experience, so on paper, he shouldn’t be able to fight Trogzit.
Byung began walking toward Gribnox, but Trogzit stepped in his way.
"Move, I don’t want to hurt you," Byung warned—but the sheer arrogance to think he could.
Trogzit couldn’t take him seriously, but the look in Byung’s eyes had changed.
There was nothing playful about him anymore. This goblin had done something unspeakable.
He didn’t care if it was the bloodfest or if they were savages by nature—this savagery shouldn’t be used against one another.
But the winner of this fight would claim the right over this location.
That meant the winner would ultimately decide the new Baron—and Byung had intervened without knowing any of this.
"So be it," Byung said, charging toward Trogzit—but he was faster than anyone expected.
Physical strength wasn’t just for speed. There was a reason he took no damage from that jump—it was due to his superior biology.
The strength in his legs allowed him to propel himself farther, giving him longer strides—but Trogzit was prepared to intercept.
Byung was within range, and Trogzit attacked him mid-stride—a smart decision on Trogzit’s part, but this was bait.
Byung had studied him during the fight with Gribnox. He was a good fighter who exploited openings, so Byung intentionally left himself open.
Byung’s knee buckled suddenly, sending him to the floor and out of harm’s way as he rolled.
He quickly picked himself up and went to check on Gribnox. This was his priority—Gribnox couldn’t die.
He still had a few things to learn from him—but also because he was a good goblin.
Byung checked on him. He was still alive, but there was no way he’d survive this.
He could even see a part of his brain exposed through his skull. The fact he was holding on was a testament to how badly he wished to live.
"You bastard... what have you done?" Byung turned to Trogzit, who was taken aback by the bloodlust this goblin showed.
Byung charged toward him—this time, planning to inflict the same damage Trogzit had dealt to his friend.
Trogzit managed to land a punch right on Byung’s cheek, but Byung didn’t flinch.
"What?" Trogzit was confused—his punch had dealt so little damage.
"My turn..." Byung muttered under his breath before clenching his fist and sending a blow crashing into Trogzit’s jaw.
The force was powerful enough to dislocate it, and Trogzit stumbled to the floor, clutching his cheek in pain.
He was barely holding his jaw in place, and Byung felt no pity for him.
He didn’t care if Trogzit was acting under orders or not—he had crossed a line.
Poggle was astonished by his strength. How the fuck was he so strong to begin with?
Drekk watched on as if confirming a growing suspicion.
Byung wasn’t done. Trogzit began to back away from him in fear. The feeling of dread struck deep into his heart.
"I still owe you one more..." Byung’s cold voice echoed, but before he could strike again, the supervisors intervened.
Byung was confused about what they were doing—but they were simply upholding the rules of the bloodfest.
This was why they couldn’t intervene when Trogzit was beating Gribnox, even though the sight sickened them.
It created a divide, because not everyone felt this way. Some thought Gribnox wasn’t fit to lead them without Murkfang at the helm.
"What do you think you are doing?" Byung questioned, but the supervisors stood in his way—though they were looking past him.
Drekk had joined them. Byung hadn’t even perceived him—something that shouldn’t have been possible.
"That is enough," Drekk said. Byung realized the supervisors had jumped in to stop him after seeing Drekk make a move.
They wouldn’t want to incur his wrath—but Byung no longer cared. He had to protect these people from Drekk.
He might be a Mogul, but that didn’t make him invincible. And if Byung could even land a single blow on Drekk, everything would change.
Byung turned to face him—and the moment their eyes met, his resolve faltered.
The look on Drekk’s face, the air around him—it felt so dense, his bloodlust almost took physical form.
Byung could swear he saw horns briefly forming around this goblin—but of course, that was impossible.
"You have forfeited your life," Drekk told him plainly. But Byung still clung to the delusion that he was untouchable.
They needed him just as much as he needed them—or so he thought.
Not everyone liked change, after all. That explained why the goblins were so archaic.
Byung knew he might have broken a rule—but to lose his life for defending his Baron?
He wasn’t going to accept that lying down. He was going to fight for himself.
There was a shift among the goblins—fascination and fear mixed in their eyes.
They were witnessing one of their own break a rule to protect another.
This was alien to them. No one dared break a rule that carried a death penalty.
Yet they saw one of their own ready to throw away his life for another.
All they had ever known was self-preservation—but this reminded them of when Byung stopped Borg.
It became clear that this goblin didn’t just see them as pointless cogs in a machine—he was something else entirely.
The goblin’s name was Drekk. And the others believed Byung stood absolutely no chance against him—Drekk had once held his own against an orc.
"Forfeit my life for protecting my friend? If this is the punishment for that, I will oppose it," Byung said. Drekk could no longer hide his excitement.
This was new. This was unpredictable. This was tantalizing. Byung had brought flavor to his otherwise dull life.
Then something was thrown into the arena in front of Byung—but no one from the crowd knew who had done it.
It was a weapon. A poorly crafted pickaxe.
"I will break down everything and build it anew!" Byung declared, picking up the tool.
The goblin who had thrown it was Sneegle—and just like that, Byung had ninety-five percent of the goblins secretly rooting for him.
Drekk was a tyrant, and they all knew he didn’t care about them.
But Byung had shown he was willing to give his life for them—even though they wouldn’t have done the same for him.
"That is it... I love this!" Drekk said, salivating.
"T-This is bad..." Trogzit muttered through his broken jaw—but one thing was certain: Byung stood no chance.