The Goblin King
Goblius narrowed his eyes as he sat upon his throne.
He was recalling the final moments of the knights he had just witnessed.
The critical mistake had been their attempt to link up. The knights, who prided themselves on being the strongest, had been caught in the enemy’s tactics before they could even execute their coordinated assault.
The first to fall was Gobhood.
Unlike the undead who had no stamina to speak of, Gobhood’s endurance had its limits. From the start, he had never been overwhelmingly faster than the goblin assassin minions or the poison dart soldiers.
Once Gobhood reached his limit, he inevitably took a poison dart to the body. The assassin didn’t miss the opening created by the paralysis and sliced through his neck.
Immediately after, the assassin ignored Ahn Humin’s command to return to his master’s side and instead launched a surprise attack on Goblex.
Goblex had already been under immense pressure from the constant assault of the goblin swordsmen and archer minions. He couldn’t afford even a split second of lost focus. On top of that, while he excelled at fierce offense, he was quite vulnerable when forced onto the defensive. In the end, he took the assassin’s blade and collapsed without resistance.
With the goblin swordsmen and archers now freed from their engagements, only Gobvava remained.
Gobvava boasted a monstrous defense far beyond what his appearance suggested… but even he couldn’t withstand the combined assault of the resurrected goblin swordsmen, assassins, and archers. Eventually, he was forced to his knees.
What a truly terrifying necromancer!
Goblius, who had been watching, rose from his seat. With the three knights defeated, he was finally freed from the tower’s restrictions that had bound him.
As the King of Goblins rose from his throne and slowly descended the stairs, Ahn Humin finished cleaning up the remaining goblins and recalled his undead, reorganizing his forces.
I never doubted that you would be my final offering.
“Well. Whether someone becomes prey or a sacrifice is something you only find out after the fight.”
Ahn Humin didn’t let his guard down for even a moment.
There was only one enemy left: Goblius. Yet he was certain. The battle against Goblius would be far more difficult than any fight he had faced inside the Goblin Kingdom.
Even the three goblin knights gave off an incredible aura, but the presence I feel from that guy is on a completely different level. It’s stronger than all three of them combined!
Letting his focus slip even slightly could cost him his life. That instinctive warning ran from the tips of his toes all the way to every single strand of hair on his head.
The sight of the goblin clad in golden armor looked overwhelmingly massive.
His height was actually similar to that of a regular goblin, but the sheer pressure he exuded seemed to fill Humin’s entire field of vision.
The Goblin King drew his sword from the scabbard at his waist.
Srrrng.
The clear ring of the blade sliced through both eardrums and hearts with its cold, pristine tone.
The atmosphere grew heavy. Ahn Humin and Goblius’s gazes clashed in midair.
If you are ready, then let us begin. Try to stop me, mighty warrior.
BOOM!
Goblius kicked off the ground and charged forward. The speed was so great that Ahn Humin’s eyes widened involuntarily.
He had barely tapped the ground, yet his velocity far surpassed Gobhood sprinting at full power.
“Four defenders!”
At Ahn Humin’s command, four resurrected goblin warriors pressed together to form a defensive formation. Goblius closed the distance in an instant.
KWAAAAANG!!
In that moment, Goblius’s sword swept upward from the lower left to the upper right, slicing through space. The four warriors caught in the strike were sent flying high into the air.
At the same time, a barrage of arrows from the goblin archer minions and poison darts from the dart soldiers rained down from all directions.
But Goblius paid the incoming projectiles no mind. No arrow or dart could possibly penetrate his armor.
Strength greater than Goblex. Defense greater than Gobvava. What kind of monstrous bastard is this?!
This was precisely why ordinary raid parties rarely attempted to defeat Goblius in a single push. Even after thorough preparation and gathering sufficient numbers, they would adapt to his patterns bit by bit, retreating when necessary. The process could take anywhere from a week to an entire month.
Of course, Goblius’s patterns were well known. But knowing them in your head and experiencing them with your body were two entirely different things.
However—
“Two swordsmen. One assassin. The two defenders, move to the left and right flanks.”
At Ahn Humin’s command, the shield-bearing warriors pressed in on Goblius’s sides, narrowing his space. Instead of focusing purely on defense, their goal was to restrict his movement. From the front, two swordsmen charged in, while the assassin struck from behind.
It was a situation that would have left most monsters completely helpless.
Second Form — Yeoul (Ripple)
In that instant, blue light exploded from the tip of Goblius’s blade. It tore through the encirclement in a single stroke, sending all the minions flying.
Ahn Humin narrowed his eyes.
He had already known that Goblius used powerful swordsmanship, but today was the first time he learned that the style even had a name.
Yeoul.
It was a destructive and ferocious sword art, just like the violent rapids of a mountain stream—its trajectories and power were utterly savage.
But that wasn’t the end.
Third Form — Dolpung (Gust)
KWANG!
The moment Goblius broke free from his restraints, his figure vanished. A violent gust tore straight down the path he had taken.
His sword sliced through every minion standing in its path. The cut minions bled as they fluttered through the air.
That still wasn’t enough. Before Humin knew it, the goblin king had closed in right before his eyes. The blade drew a chilling arc aimed directly at his neck.
At that exact moment—
Swish!
The one who withdrew his sword and stepped back first was none other than Goblius.
Having seen the activation of Shadow Curtain, Goblius hadn’t missed the brief opening and immediately retreated.
Once he had created distance, the corners of his mouth curled into a smirk.
Mighty warrior. So you deliberately lured me in? Were you planning to steal my beloved sword with that suspicious curtain?
“If you knew, you could’ve at least played along. Night Crows!”
Flap flap!
As five Night Crows soared high into the sky, Goblius’s gaze naturally followed them.
Of course, simply sending the crows to attack him wouldn’t accomplish much. With his skill, cutting down five crows at once would be child’s play. Moreover, they were inside a circular wooden palisade with no overhead cover, so there were no blind spots and the visibility was excellent.
No matter how skillfully he maneuvered the crows, the conditions for a successful ambush simply didn’t exist.
In the end, the only thing he could do was have them fly around chaotically overhead until their duration ran out, drawing Goblius’s attention.
However, it seemed even he couldn’t completely ignore the power of the crows he had witnessed for the first time.
Since he had learned through Gobvava that being hit by them inflicted the ‘Darkness’ status effect and robbed the victim of their sight, he would be even more cautious.
That works perfectly for me.
“Switching to Plan B!”
The moment Ahn Humin shouted the prearranged code, the previously idle goblin archer and poison dart minions sprang into frantic action.
No matter what schemes you devise, it is futile. The archers you resurrected have certainly grown stronger, but they are still not enough to harm me!
Even while dealing with the swordsmen and warriors, Goblius had been keeping a close eye on Ahn Humin. When he shouted, Humin shot back.
“If you’re so curious, keep both eyes wide open and watch carefully. I’ll show you exactly how I hunt you.”
Swish! Swish!
The goblin archer minions released the strings they had drawn taut. The arrows flew—not toward Goblius, but straight into the wooden palisade.
Thud!
An arrow sank deep into the wood. A sturdy rope was firmly tied to its end. When they fired another arrow to the opposite side, a line formed between the circular sections of the palisade.
The goblin archer minions moved frantically, creating more and more of these lines without pause. What had started as a single thread quickly multiplied into a complex spiderweb pattern. Meanwhile, the poison dart minions gathered old cloths and pieces of leather and began hanging them over the ropes.
What in the world is this… Don’t tell me—!
By the time Goblius realized the purpose behind Ahn Humin’s bizarre maneuvers, it was already too late.
“Night Crows.”
A low activation word flowed from Ahn Humin’s lips.
The five Night Crows that rose from his fingertips, flapping their wings, flew freely through the interior of the fortress.
The problem was the tangled spiderweb of ropes and the cloth and leather scraps hanging from them.
Those fabric scraps acted as screens, completely hiding the flight paths of the Night Crows.
Where are you?!
The crows were no longer clearly visible. To Goblius, they had become pure terror.
His awareness and wariness toward the crows had skyrocketed several levels. As a result, his reactions to the goblin swordsmen, warriors, and assassins he was fighting grew dull.
Even so, the fact that he was still evenly matched showed just how monstrous of a boss this goblin king truly was. It was enough to leave one speechless.
At that moment—
Swish!
An arrow tore through one of the fabric screens and pierced Goblius’s left shoulder.
Goblius’s eyes widened. He couldn’t hide his shock.
An arrow from a goblin archer minion was something he could easily see and dodge. Even if it hit, its power was only enough to be blocked by his armor.
But this arrow? If he hadn’t miraculously twisted his body in time, it would have pierced his heart.
Even deflecting it had been too fast. Barely managing to turn and offer his shoulder had been the best Goblius could do.
How was this possible? The arrows from those resurrected archers shouldn’t have had this kind of power…
I see. So that was your plan.
A wind blew. The leather scraps hanging from the ropes fluttered, revealing a familiar figure standing atop the watchtower.
It was Gobhood.
The goblin king’s own arrow—the greatest sniper in the entire Goblin Kingdom—drew his bowstring and took aim. But instead of his usual eyes, blue flames blazed within empty eye sockets…
So from the very beginning, this was your goal!
The frantic weaving of ropes, the use of leather to block vision—Goblius had thought it was all a tactic to preserve the Night Crows. But he had been wrong.
Even the Night Crows had merely been a diversion.
The true objective was to resurrect his own three knights and turn them into minions!
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!
With earth-shaking heavy footsteps, Gobvava charged forward, shield raised, launching a direct assault on the former master he had once protected with his life.
The king he had been willing to die for.
But now, his loyalty belonged to a new master. And it burned far greater, far more fanatically than before.
RUMBLE—!!
Ugh…!
A faint groan escaped Goblius’s lips.
The three knights were formidable opponents even for him in single combat. And now those powerful beings had been resurrected by the hands of a necromancer who could elevate even ordinary goblin soldiers to their level.
Gobvava, who had never once been pushed back by brute force, was helplessly driven backward no matter how much strength he poured out.
The difference in power was like that between a child and an adult.
In that state, one of Gobhood’s arrows sank deep into Goblius’s right thigh.
GROOOAAAR!!
At that moment, just the slightest bit of strength left his right leg. That alone was enough for Gobvava’s charge to send him tumbling helplessly to the ground.
In that instant, Goblius saw it—Goblex descending from above, his massive greatsword raised high…
Excellent! Mighty warrior. It was truly an honor to fight you.
Slice!
As his head was severed, Goblius’s face was filled with a satisfied smile, as if there was nothing in the world that could have pleased him more.