Goblin King

I checked my status window and rubbed my eyes.

Sixty stat points.

I was holding the amount of points an S-rank would need four full level-ups to earn.

"Twenty points per level…?"

I had never been talented. Even before my regression, I hadn't been ordinary, but it was only through body reconstruction that I'd managed to scrape together B-rank points.

And now twenty points had just dropped into my lap, out of nowhere.

"Does that even make sense?"

All I could do was laugh at the absurdity of it.

'What could have caused it?'

Then a single thought flashed through my mind.

'Is it because I did the body reconstruction before awakening?'

Body reconstruction is the process of rebuilding a person's body to match their potential level.

Before my regression, I had only undergone reconstruction after awakening.

In other words, it happened after my ceiling had already been "fixed" at D-rank.

But right now, before awakening, my ceiling hadn't been determined yet.

'I pushed an undetermined ability to its absolute maximum?'

That was the only hypothesis I could come up with.

And if my hypothesis was right, then my ceiling wasn't S-rank.

'There's something beyond S-rank.'

The moment that realization surfaced, a certain someone's shadow fell over my thoughts.

Pride.

If a being beyond S-rank existed, there was only one candidate.

'The level I've reached now stands in the same domain as Pride.'

Even after twenty years of training, Pride had simply sneered at me when I tried to wound him.

Now I finally understood why. Even if we'd technically shared a starting line, the gap between us had been something else entirely.

'But not this time.'

The starting line was level now.

No — I was even further ahead.

Returning to the past with a technique like Footwork in hand was a massive weapon. For the first time, I felt certain I could win.

And on top of that, I had only completed my first body reconstruction.

The second and third reconstructions were still waiting for me.

'I'm actually getting chills.'

Even I could feel goosebumps rising. I pictured myself with talent surpassing Pride's — and if that were truly possible…

I clenched my fist so hard that blood seeped out between my fingers.

'First things first — the Hidden Piece.'

If I claimed the Hidden Piece here, I'd be one step closer to Pride than I'd ever been before.

'Now, how should I allocate these stats?'

I spread my points evenly across every stat.

Footwork didn't run on agility alone.

If agility was too high by itself, it actually interfered with the footwork. Controlling my speed required strength, and burning that strength drained vitality.

I closed the status window and pressed deeper inside.

A little further in, I came upon a cavern.

'This is where the real problem starts.'

Unlike the first two tests, Kim Jinseok hadn't said a word about the third one.

No — he'd given me exactly one hint.

"A nightmare, I believe he said?"

Nightmare. That was all Kim Jinseok would repeat, offering nothing beyond it.

'Now I get why he put it that way.'

What met my eyes was a throne — and sprawled upon it, chin resting on one massive fist, sat a hulking goblin.

'A Goblin King.'

The Goblin King was a boss monster that appeared in E- or D-rank gates. It had absolutely no business existing in an F-rank gate. No matter how many standard F-rank parties threw themselves at one, a single attack would sweep them all away.

'So this really is a Hidden Piece, huh.'

If a boss like this was guarding a Hidden Piece inside an F-rank gate, then I'd have to assume every Hidden Piece I went after from here on out would carry this kind of difficulty.

'Is that greatsword the King's main weapon?'

As I was now, I might have been able to fight the King on even terms — but against a Goblin King wielding a greatsword like that, the outcome was anybody's guess.

'The best option is to kill it in one strike from ambush…'

Thinking that, I looked down at the dagger in my hand. It was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the one the goblin had been using earlier.

'No good.'

If the blade had been well maintained, an ambush kill might have worked. But the dagger in my grip was in terrible condition — the edge was a joke.

The arrows and longsword were equally wrong for the situation.

'So where should I aim, then?'

If I could land an instant kill from ambush, the targets would be the vitals — throat, heart. But when ambush was off the table, as it was now, I needed to strike where I could deal the greatest damage instead.

I held my breath.

The Goblin King was asleep right now — if I wanted a surprise attack, it was now or never.

'The target is… the Achilles tendon.'

Basic Footwork.

Am — Shadow.

I traced the footwork to reach the Goblin King's side and swung the dagger down at its tendon.

Thud! Thwack! Thwack! Thud!

Over and over, my dagger carved into the Goblin King's Achilles tendon.

At least, it should have.

"Kiek!"

At that moment, the Goblin King's eyes snapped open.

Of course it would wake up — I'd been hammering away at its leg.

The King looked down at me like I was an insect.

'Damn it!'

Cursing inwardly, I put distance between us.

The Goblin King's Achilles tendon was perfectly intact. In exchange, every tooth on my dagger had shredded off.

"So that's what makes a King a King."

Monsters bearing the title of King each carried a signature trait — and even among Goblin Kings, that trait varied by individual. Some wielded abnormally dense mana, some cast spells outright.

And the trait of the King standing before me now?

'Its hide is disgustingly thick!'

I sighed and stared the Goblin King down.

"Huh?"

Something about the way it was looking at me was off. It was the gaze of something falling in love — the kind of eyes that said it would chase me and nothing else, forever.

"Forget running, then."

If fleeing wasn't an option, fighting was the only answer.

I tossed away the toothless dagger and drew a fresh one.

'What's left — fifteen arrows and two longswords?'

The ten arrows I'd taken from the goblin earlier looked serviceable, but they'd never punch through the King's hide. The longsword was in roughly the same sorry state as the dagger.

I exhaled slowly.

Ten goblins had been simple. A Goblin King was a different beast entirely.

'Here comes everything I've got.'

In that instant, the Goblin King hefted its greatsword and charged.

"Kieeeek!"

Despite its bulk, the screaming King was startlingly fast.

Basic Footwork.

Sok — Swiftness.

Riding the Swiftness step, I plunged into the King's guard.

Basic Footwork.

Pa — Break.

The moment I planted Break, the ground beneath the Goblin King's feet shattered.

'Its balance is broken.'

Losing your balance in combat is a serious matter. However strong a fighter might be, once balance fails, the weak can bring down the strong. That's how much equilibrium matters in a fight.

'There's my opening — go for the vital point.'

I stared straight at the Goblin King's "spot."

Goblins had one more vulnerable point beyond the throat, the head, and the heart — that "spot" itself. For a creature as driven by breeding instinct as a goblin, it was as good as a critical organ.

'The same goes for humans, for what it's worth.'

I moved to drive the dagger straight in — but at that moment—

A jolt of pain lanced through my skull.

Basic Footwork.

Sok — Swiftness.

Crack!

The instant the headache hit, I stamped out the footwork without a second's hesitation — and the floor where I'd been standing a heartbeat ago split apart under the Goblin King's blade.

"You've got to be kidding me."

The curse slipped out of my mouth on its own. The King had braced its free hand — the one not holding the greatsword — against the ground and wrenched its whole trajectory sideways.

'This is worse than I thought.'

Making a call like that even while off balance? Its intelligence might actually be above that of an ordinary Goblin King.

"Kie— khekhe!"

The thing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠laughed as it watched ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠me retreat. It was practically saying, "That's all you've got, and you dared to challenge me?"

I let out a long breath.

If I took the bait of its provocation here, the only one in danger would be me.

Basic Footwork.

Hwan — Illusion.

I stamped the footwork and lunged at the Goblin King.

The essence of Illusion is deception. In a situation like this, it was the optimal step.

The Goblin King's face twisted in a grin.

'You're kidding—!'

The thought had barely formed when the King's greatsword came crashing down toward my head. I pivoted my foot at the last instant and changed direction.

Crash!

The greatsword grazed past me by a hair. Half a second slower, and that blade would have taken my life.

The Goblin King raised its sword again.

Basic Footwork.

Am — Shadow.

First I veiled myself in Shadow and drew back.

'A unique variant.'

The last exchange had made it certain. The creature I was facing was a unique individual — and unique individuals are born with a single special skill.

"Tch."

I clicked my tongue and widened the gap.

To break this stalemate, I needed a skill.

'The problem is, there's only one skill I can acquire in this situation.'

I didn't have a skill stone on hand, and I hadn't done any extreme training to speak of. That left a condition-acquisition skill — the kind you earn by repeating a qualifying action. Treat a wound enough times, for instance, and you gain First Aid.

There were plenty of condition-acquisition skills out there, but the one I was after was far harder than most.

'The one mercy is that the Goblin King's weapon is a greatsword.'

A greatsword, at least, would lower the difficulty a notch.

Basic Footwork.

Sok — Swiftness.

I rode the footwork to arrive directly in front of the King, and it swung its greatsword in answer.

Whoosh!

The greatsword cleaved empty air.

'One.'

The King twisted the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠blade mid-swing and brought it around at me again.

Crash!

This time I twisted my body just enough to slip the attack.

'Two.'

Then the Goblin King did something completely unexpected.

Slam!

"Ugh!"

It released the greatsword where it had buried itself in the floor and threw a punch. I wrenched my body around and barely evaded it.

'Three.'

I'd scraped through the first three, but beyond that, it was going to get ugly fast.

'But what choice do I have?'

A greatsword is enormous, which makes its swings predictable to a degree. A fist, though — a fist attacks freely, from any angle, at any moment.

'In other words, I can't read it.'

Still, I had to manage somehow.

A fist came hurtling at me as sweat poured down my face.