Chapter 5: The Staircase Despair

“Yes.” The blonde woman answered immediately.

The expression on her face matched everyone else’s on the road—furrowed brows, a look of utter misery, weakened by hunger.

Upon hearing her reply, the goblin’s brow furrowed noticeably.

I caught the detail from the corner of my eye. I figured this goblin had a problem with how we spoke, or maybe he didn’t like hearing us talk.

Or perhaps he just disliked listless answers?

But I had answered the same way earlier, and the goblin nodded along.

Was my voice that sweet?

‘Well, this body’s voice now… it’s far too high-pitched, like a loli’s.’

In the end, I didn’t answer. I just nodded.

“Mm.” The tall goblin merely nodded, seemingly satisfied that I hadn’t spoken.

Anyway, I couldn’t figure out what this green-skinned alien was thinking.

Then, from who knows where, the tall goblin produced a bucket, a rag, and a broom, and handed them to us.

“You are to clean. Don’t break anything! Don’t be clumsy!” With that, the goblin headed up the stairs.

I glanced furtively at the blonde girl.

She was probably the best-looking among our batch.

I picked up my tools and walked to the right staircase.

The bucket was too heavy; the broom was too heavy. I had to make two trips just to get them to the stairway.

Then another despairing sight hit me.

‘This hall has two staircases!’

‘And each one has about thirty steps, three stories high!’

I set my tools on a step, standing in despair by the stairs.

‘So hungry, so tired…’ I was truly losing hope.

But then I remembered what happened in the dungeon: a man, burned to death just like that!

A chill ran down my spine. I was terrified of making a mistake and being incinerated…

So I got moving immediately. For now, survival came first!

I started cleaning floor by floor. (Because of my shoes and the bucket, I decided to clean one floor at a time.) The blonde girl followed close behind and began cleaning too.

Since I was genuinely afraid of dying, I didn’t pay her much attention.

I focused solely on finishing the stairs as fast as possible.

Even if it meant the goblin butler would pile on more work.

At least it wouldn’t give him an excuse to accuse me of being too slow.

I cleaned the steps and wiped the railing as I went.

Every time I stood up or bent down, air rushed through my clothes.

I felt a cool sensation between my legs…

‘Goddammit, what kind of shame play is this…’

But this body was far too sensitive. Though I hadn’t even developed, my d*ck couldn’t help getting hard…

‘Ahhh! So annoying!’

I couldn’t help clamping my thighs together.

Shame, hunger, and the fear of death—all drove me to work faster.

But these wide stairs and my short arms and legs… my heart was willing, but my strength gave out.

‘These castle stairs are way too high! Each step must be at least twenty centimeters!’

‘It’s killing me!’

I wasn’t a social guy, but I hadn’t done anything unforgivable! Why did I end up in this mess!

‘WTF! I remember cleaning my home seriously, and I never slacked off at school!’

‘Why am I suffering this? And why all these crappy buffs like being bottomless, starving, and hunted by death!’

‘And this body—how the hell is it supposed to clean both staircases!’

Amidst my incessant muttering, I’d actually finished!

‘Ah, finally done…’

Hah—I let out a soft sigh.

Sweat had soaked through my clothes, making the roughness of the linen even more pronounced.

The prickling sensation made me shrug my shoulders involuntarily.

At least it wasn’t too cold.

I lugged the bucket up the other staircase, one step at a time, using both hands.

‘God, my legs are so short!’

Again, two trips: one for the bucket, one for the broom.

Climbing the stairs twice left me completely exhausted.

I sat on the steps to rest for ten seconds, panting lightly.

Hah—oh—hah—’Ah! The sound of my breathing is turning me on!’

Hearing my own gasps, I blushed.

‘Eek, what am I thinking!’

I shook my head vigorously, pulled myself together, and began ‘Staircase Cleaning Task Number Two’!

It was basically like cleaning at school. Not spotless, but at least no gum stuck to the floor.

Clearly, the place was cleaned often. My bucket water was barely dirty.

‘Maybe this bucket cleans itself…’

‘Wouldn’t surprise me, since this broom seems to automatically suck up dust.’

I kept working, replaying in my mind what I’d seen during the ‘tour.’

Reviewing what I’d learned was a habit from school.

After all, my high school teacher lectured so fast that if I didn’t ponder after class, I’d be near the bottom of the class…

In the time it took to clean one step, I’d replayed every scene from the tour.

Suddenly, my spirits sank.

‘What kind of castle is this!’

I screamed internally.

From my recollections, I realized: escape was impossible.

‘This castle is deep in the mountains. I must have circled it—everywhere I looked, there were forests and fog.’

‘And worst of all, through one window I saw an even larger castle!’

‘And next to it, a high passage guarded by ten soldiers, probably leading to that outer castle.’

‘If I’m right, this place is just a branch of a bigger fortress.’

So my only exits were windows or doors.

‘But even if I could escape, without any means of self-defense, I’d be eaten by some otherworldly monster in the mountains.’

‘Or something even nastier…’

I didn’t want to think further. As a healthy guy, I knew what vile things existed in other worlds.

I wiped the fourth step in despair…

Just then, the blonde girl came out from the other staircase. She must have finished about half.

She looked haggard, her cheeks hollowed, but even so, she fit the image of a beautiful blonde.

She seemed tired, leaning against the wall to rest.

That look was so pitiful.

I watched from the corner of my eye, but I didn’t stop working.

Because I was afraid of dying…

‘Wow, I’m truly ashamed of how scared I am to die.’

But I wanted to live!!

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