The Insight ability kept running in his mind as he slowly figured out what he should do next.
'These shackles have a weakness.'
But before Ryan could even begin to test the theory, to search for a sharp rock or angle his wrists just right, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from the tunnel.
It was Kee, the goblin from before, her yellow eyes filled with malicious satisfaction in the orange torchlight. Behind her lumbered two larger, uglier goblins armed with crude spears.
"Up, fever-man," Kee barked, kicking dust at him. "The Commander's mercy is over. It's time for you to work. The mines don't dig themselves."
'So much for a stealthy escape.'
Ryan's plan ended before it could start.
He was pulled to his feet, the chain between his cuffs clinking in chorus. The other goblins pushed him forward into a narrower, dark tunnel that sloped downward.
Slowly, the air grew heavy with moisture and the metallic tang of coal dust. The "mine" was a hellish pit at the end of the tunnel.
Dozens of human men, naked, sweat-drenched, and exhausted, swung their axes at the rock face under the gaze of the goblins. Only the sound of striking metal echoed throughout.
Ryan was given a weak axe, its handle too slippery to even hold properly.
"You dig. You fill the cart. Or you become food for the tunnel beasts," Kee sneered before turning to torment another miner, yanking his hair and laughing at his flinch.
Ryan's mind raced faster than his heart.
'Survive the night.'
The quest wasn't about breaking out; it was about enduring the work.
He needed a way to turn the System's gifts into a weapon. His eyes scanned the overseers. Most were strong, their muscles coiled with violence.
But one, stationed near a dripping alcove away from the main bustle, seemed smaller, younger.
Her posture was less aggressive, her gaze occasionally drifting with a hint of boredom.
[Insight Activated.]
[Target: Unnamed Goblin Overseer]
[Strength: 35]
[Agility: 55]
[Stamina: 20]
[Disposition: Bored/Inattentive. Yearns for distraction from monotony. Low social status among peers.]
[Hidden Weakness: Susceptible to novel stimuli. Craves validation.]
A plan began to form in his mind. It wasn't about strength anymore. He was about to exploit her.
Ryan waited for a moment when Kee's back was turned. He lifted his axe, not to strike the wall, but to let it slip from his grasp with a loud, clumsy clatter.
It landed near the smaller overseer's feet.
All eyes snapped to him. Kee snarled, starting forward.
But Ryan was already moving, dropping to his knees not in submission, but in a performative way. He reached for the axe, but his hands, still bound by the short chain, couldn't pick it up properly.
His gaze met the goblin's eyes; he gave his head a wry shake, as if sharing a joke about his own ineptitude. It was a tiny act of forbidden communication.
The goblin blinked, surprised. Humans here either wept or stared vacantly. They didn't… react like this.
"Clumsy filth," Kee spat, arriving and raising her hand to strike.
"The rock is slippery here, mistress," Ryan said quickly, his voice low but clear, directed at the smaller overseer as much as at Kee. He gestured with his chin toward the damp alcove. "My hands are still weak from the fever. A poor tool for digging, but perhaps better for… detailed work?"
The smaller goblin's ears twitched. Kee's blow halted, more from confusion than mercy.
Ryan held the smaller one's gaze, putting every ounce of his paltry Charm—still locked, but its foundational human expressiveness present—into his look.
It was a monstrous gamble.
The smaller goblin shifted, a strange curiosity overcoming her features. "Kee," she said, her voice raspy but less harsh. "This one is still sick-weak. Let him sort the ore fragments. Light work."
Kee glared, suspicion warring with the indifference of one who had countless slaves to break. "Fine. Waste of skin. You watch him, Luka. He causes trouble, you clean it up."
She stalked away, already looking for a more entertaining victim.
Luka. Ryan filed the name away. He had her attention.
For the next hour, he knelt by a pile of rubble, pretending to sort rocks by size under Luka's watch. He worked slowly, making his movements visible and letting out a few audible comments.
"This one has a strange color." Never directly to her, but loud enough for her to hear.
He was trying to make himself interesting enough for her to approach.
Luka gradually moved closer, leaning against the wall near him. "You talk too much, human," she muttered, but there was no real heat in it.
"Silence is heavy in a place like this, mistress," Ryan replied, finally looking directly at her.
He used the system's Insight subtly, watching her disposition shift from 'Bored' to 'Intrigued'. "It makes the time pass more slowly."
A faint, almost imperceptible snort escaped her. "You are weird."
He angled his body slightly, the torchlight catching the lines of his torso despite the grime. He was no warrior, but his human form was alien to her. Different.
"The world I come from is strange," he said, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial murmur. "Full of things you might find… interesting."
Luka's yellow pupils dilated. She took half a step closer, filling his space. Her clawed hand reached out, not to strike, but to trace a curious, rough line along his shoulder. "Is that so?"
The moment hung, thick with tension.
Ryan's heart hammered against his ribs. He was playing with fire in a volcano, trying to seduce a spark to burn his chains away.
But then, the very air in the mine changed.
The guttural chatter of the goblins ceased. The clanging of pickaxes faltered. A new presence entered the cavern, one that sucked the warmth from the torches and replaced it with a primal chill.
Luka snatched her hand back as if burned, scurrying to her post, her face a mask of sudden fear.
Ryan turned.
An orc filled the tunnel entrance. He was twice the size of the largest goblin, his skin like grey-green slate, muscles heaped upon muscles. A single, yellowed tusk jutted from his lower jaw. His small, dark eyes swept over the mining operation with bored contempt.
[Insight Activated - Extreme Danger!]
[Target: Karg, Orc Enforcer]
[Strength: 150+]
[Agility: 70]
[Stamina: 200+]
[Disposition: Considers all in mine as insects.]
[Hidden Weakness: None detected at current Insight Level.]
Korg's gaze drifted over the shaking workers, past the stiff goblin overseers, and landed directly on Ryan.
He grunted, a sound like grinding stones, and pointed a thick, scarred finger.
"That one," Korg's voice boomed, echoing off the walls. "Clean. Less broken."
He took a heavy step forward, the ground seeming to tremble. "The warrens need new breeders. This one will do. The Queen likes the unmarked ones."
Kee immediately leapt to action, seizing Ryan's chain and yanking him forward with a vicious grin. "He's for our commander!"
A fight over him was about to begin.