The Three Goblin Knights

The chain of explosions erupted with a deafening roar...!!

The Night Crows focused entirely on Goblius, detonating in a rapid series of blasts.

No matter how powerful a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠boss monster he might be, there was no way he could survive taking five of my Night Crows at once.

Yet...

When the black smoke finally cleared, Goblius stood completely unharmed.

The reason was the goblin warrior planted firmly in front of him, acting as a living shield.

Clad in heavy full-body stone armor and a stone helmet that radiated raw weight, wielding a tower shield in his left hand that was taller than his entire frame...

A goblin warrior whose very stance proclaimed absolute confidence—if you think you can take me down, then try—had blocked the Night Crows in Goblius’s place.

And not even all five had landed.

My gaze snapped toward the watchtower.

There stood a goblin with a red muffler fluttering at his neck, bow in hand. The three arrows he had loosed in a lightning ambush had struck three of the Night Crows with perfect precision.

An archer who can track and hit the Night Crows’ speed... and a warrior who took at least two direct hits without showing any damage. So these are the named monsters of that infamous Goblin Fortress.

The moment Goblius finished speaking, the sound of a sword being drawn from behind him cut through the air—an ominous noise that set the teeth on edge.

It wasn’t the clean ring of a well-forged blade. It was a harsh, scraping rasp, like something jagged and brutal being dragged free.

The weapon was longer than the goblin knight’s height and so wide and thick that, if stood upright, it would cover half his body. It looked less like a sword meant for cutting and more like one forged for crushing.

The instant the introduction ended, Goblex kicked off the ground and hurled himself forward.

He gripped the massive sword that looked almost too heavy to lift with both hands and charged. His speed was like a striking tiger, his movements more agile than a wolf’s.

“Block him!”

At my command, three warriors rushed out to intercept. Goblex didn’t hesitate. He swung his enormous greatsword in a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠savage arc, smashing into them without mercy.

BOOOOM!!

The three warriors were launched high into the air before crashing back to the ground.

My eyes widened at the sight.

These were my minion goblin warriors—tough enough to withstand the concentrated assault of five or six goblin swordsmen without flinching. Yet three of them had been sent flying in a single strike?

Just how monstrously strong is that goblin berserker?

It seemed I wasn’t the only one taken aback.

Goblius’s eyes gleamed with interest. He shifted restlessly on his throne as if his seat had grown itchy, but he did not rise.

He could only join the fight in earnest after these three named goblins were defeated. Until then, the rules of the tower prevented him from intervening, no matter how much he wished to.

At that exact moment—

“Huh?!”

“Shadow Veil!”

I yanked Ms. Sowon’s arm, pulling her close while simultaneously deploying Shadow Veil directly in front of us.

The barrier unfolded with barely a hair’s breadth to spare, intercepting Gobhood’s arrow in the nick of time.

“Whatever you do, do not step outside this veil, Ms. Sowon.”

“Yes! Don’t worry about me—focus on the battle!”

I gave her a quick nod at her encouraging reply and immediately scanned the situation.

Thanks to the Shadow Veil, the enemy couldn’t see us. On the other hand, I could observe their every movement without obstruction.

“Issuing new orders. Assassins, focus on Gobhood. You don’t have to kill him. Forcing him down from that watchtower is enough. Poison dart soldiers, protect the assassins. Swordsmen, coordinate your attacks on Goblex. Archers, provide cover for the swordsmen. Warriors, contain Gobibaba. Just surround and obstruct him. Lock him down so he can’t move an inch.”

The moment the commands left my mouth, the minion goblins sprang into action.

The goblin assassins and poison dart soldiers moved first.

While they lacked the defensive power and raw strength of the warriors and archers, their speed more than made up for it.

They darted forward in perfect sync.

The fortress wasn’t occupied solely by Goblius and his named elites—countless other goblins swarmed throughout, desperately trying to block the assassins and poison dart soldiers climbing toward the watchtower.

But they were simply outmatched.

Blades flashed. Poison needles flew.

The assassins’ twin swords carved through goblin throats while the poison dart soldiers’ needles paralyzed their targets in seconds.

Rather than climbing the stairs, the minions bounded up the walls, leaping and soaring like they were flying, reaching the top of the watchtower in the blink of an eye.

Gobhood tried to check their advance with Multi-Shot and Elemental Arrow, but the constant barrage of poison needles prevented him from taking proper aim at the assassins.

The darts themselves didn’t do much damage, but in this situation, the paralysis effect was incredibly dangerous. He couldn’t afford to ignore it.

That was exactly why I had paired the poison dart soldiers with the assassins. Without them, the assassins would have been riddled with arrows before they could even close the distance.

The archers’ arrows packed more punch, but they moved too slowly to keep up with the assassins’ speed.

Besides, Gobhood wore leather armor—high mobility, but poor defense. The poison needles could penetrate it easily.

Gobibaba’s situation was no better.

No matter how much brute strength or defense he possessed, it wasn’t enough to shake off five minion goblin warriors encircling him.

Ordinary goblin warriors would have been trampled like wild boars charging an adult male elephant.

But these were no ordinary warriors. They were minion goblin warriors, absurdly empowered by skills and traits.

Both sides remained locked in a tense stalemate, neither gaining a clear advantage. Yet for me, this was the best possible outcome.

Gobhood, hounded by the assassins, couldn’t even consider providing support fire.

The standard tactic should have been for Gobibaba to use aggro skills from the front line to draw all attention, allowing Gobhood to rain arrows freely from the rear.

That strategy had been neutralized from the very beginning.

Instead, my own goblin archers were now using the same tactic against them.

With Gobhood occupied, my archers could fire steadily at Goblex without having to dodge a constant hail of arrows.

Goblex’s light armor could shrug off the poison darts, but he couldn’t ignore the archers’ arrows.

A lucky hit to a vital point could prove fatal. He was forced to deflect every shot, which made dealing with the coordinated assault from my swordsmen even more difficult.

Unable to hold back any longer, Goblius pointed directly at me and issued the order.

His named elites were tied down, but the fortress still teemed with countless goblin soldiers.

But!

I didn’t send out all my minions without a plan.

“Night Crow.”

Five Night Crows soared into the sky at once.

Yet their behavior was different this time. Instead of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠diving straight toward the enemy, they began circling above my head.

This was one of the new tactics I had discovered after using the skill repeatedly.

Unlike pure offensive magic, Night Crow possessed qualities of both an attack spell and a summoning spell.

It didn’t receive any summon bonuses, but it allowed for a wide range of strategic variations.

One of those was ‘Sentry Mode.’

Even without designating a target, the skill would activate. The crows would fly overhead and wait until enemies approached.

When the goblins tried to slip around the sides of the veil...

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

They automatically tracked and slammed into the nearest targets, exploding on impact.

Once all five had expended themselves...

“Night Crow.”

I would simply cast the skill again once the cooldown had refreshed.

By keeping them in Sentry Mode, I could maintain near-constant pressure, timing the crows’ destruction perfectly with the cooldown recovery.

And that wasn’t the only advantage.

A goblin that had slipped through the gap in the Night Crows had its head severed in one clean stroke.

The one who delivered the blow was me.

The severed head froze solid the instant it left the body, covered in pure white frost.

It was a unique blade I had obtained by luck while hunting on the ninth floor. The effect came from the Clear Sky Sword’s freezing property.

The weapon had the elegant appearance one might find in a Chinese wuxia novel. Its translucent blue blade was so beautiful it refused to release one’s gaze.

Yet once you understood its true power, the word “beautiful” no longer felt appropriate even in jest.

Below the level requirement, only the slashing bonus would apply. But since I had long since surpassed that restriction, every option was fully active.

Although I currently focused on summoning and magic due to my class and skills, my original specialty had always been close-quarters combat.

And not just any combat—I was a swordsman who fought on the front lines with a blade as my primary weapon.

I dodged the goblins’ attacks while slicing back at them in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠return.

“Night Crow!”

I used the crows to thin out the ranged attackers as much as possible. When that wasn’t enough, I used the clustered goblins as living shields.

Most importantly, I tried to avoid killing them outright.

The true strength of the freezing effect was how the cold spread from the wound throughout the entire body.

The creatures would shiver, slow down, and eventually stiffen—turning them into perfect meat shields.

But no matter how solid my foundation in swordsmanship or how well I used the Clear Sky Sword, I was still fundamentally a mage.

“Haa… haa…!”

My stamina was reaching its limit faster than I expected. The endless tide of goblins was becoming impossible to handle.

The remaining healthy goblins swarmed toward me, eyes burning with murderous intent.

“Frost Cyclone Triple Slash!”

I finally unleashed the skill I had been saving.

The moment it activated, an ice clone identical to me appeared, wielding the Clear Sky Sword. It cut down the surrounding goblins before vanishing.

I had taken out three at once, but it was only a temporary reprieve. The danger had not passed.

If this drags on any longer, I’ll have no choice but to retreat…

Just as I was weighing my options, a new wave of minion goblin swordsmen surged in front of me.

They tore through the former comrades charging at me without mercy.

Which meant—

Finally…!

I glanced behind me.

On the ground lay Gobibaba, Gobhood, and Goblex, their bodies growing cold.