Goblin King: My Innate Skill Is OP

Three afterimages peeled away from my body.

Unlike ordinary illusions, they solidified into living clones, each possessing roughly half of my strength.

Without needing a command, the clones immediately understood my intent. Two broke away and charged the second undead knight, forcing it to split its attention, while the third remained at my side as I continued my pursuit of the injured knight.

The second undead seemed momentarily shaken by the sudden increase in numbers.

But its movements immediately became more aggressive.

The knight swung with greater speed and force than before, its blade carving broad arcs through the air as waves of purple energy erupted outward in an attempt to eliminate every threat at once, but it was too late.

The two clones had already reached it.

One blinked into position directly in front of the undead while the other appeared behind it.

Realizing it was surrounded, the knight planted both feet and unleashed a wide, sweeping slash, the purple energy bursting outward in a full circle. But before the arc could complete the swing, the clone in front slipped inside its reach and drove a blazing uppercut beneath the knight’s jaw.

BOOM!

The force launched the undead off the ground.

However, before its body could be thrown clear, the second clone caught it by the leg, and with a yank, it ripped the knight back down and slammed it into the earth hard enough to crater the ground beneath it.

The impact left the undead stunned for the briefest moment, and it was all the opportunity the two clones needed.

Both clones stood over it. Then their fists came down. Again. And again. Each punch carried the blazing radiance of [Hand of the Raging Sun], detonating on impact with enough force to shake the surrounding terrain.

The shockwaves rolled across the battlefield as fragments of bone flew in every direction.

The undead tried to rise several times, but each attempt was met with another crushing blow that forced it back into the crater.

The assault continued without pause until the duration of [Paradox Step] finally expired.

The two clones dissolved into shimmering particles of light and vanished.

By then, however, the damage had already been done.

The undead knight no longer resembled a knight. Its body had been battered into scattered fragments, bones cracked, splintered, and broken beyond recognition, with pieces strewn across the crater where the relentless barrage had ended.

As I continued pursuing the first undead knight, a familiar notification appeared before me.

[You have killed Undead Knight Level 75]

[You have levelled up.]

[You have levelled up.]

A smile spread across my face.

The moment the divine energy prevented its regeneration, the undead had become no different from any other monster.

At the same time, my remaining clone carried out one final task.

Rather than attacking, I deliberately had it serve as an experiment.

When the second undead knight unleashed another crescent of purple energy, I ordered the clone not to defend itself with [Fractured Reality], and the undead’s purple crescent slash struck it directly.

The result was exactly what I had suspected.

The clone’s mana flow became unstable the instant the purple energy made contact. And every mana-based skill it attempted to activate immediately fizzled out, as though the energy had temporarily severed its connection to mana itself.

”I knew it...”

This strange purple energy wasn’t merely destructive.

It possessed anti-magic properties.

Rather than overpowering mana-based techniques through brute force, it actively disrupted them, eroding mana constructs and temporarily preventing their use if the attack landed directly.

Everything finally made sense.

The reason [Fractured Reality] had trembled every time their blades struck it wasn’t because the swords themselves were powerful enough to break an SSS-ranked defensive skill. Rather, it was the strange purple energy coating them that was slowly consuming the mana sustaining the barrier. It wasn’t trying to overwhelm the skill through brute force; it was eroding the magic layer by layer until there was nothing left to support it.

Fortunately for me, [Fractured Reality] was on an entirely different level.

The clone had already dissipated, leaving me alone with the remaining undead knight.

I immediately gave chase.

Unlike before, it no longer fought as aggressively.

The moment its companion was destroyed, its behavior changed completely. Rather than charging straight at me, it began circling the area in front of the tomb, carefully keeping its distance while never straying too far from the entrance.

It was still fulfilling its duty as a guardian, but it simply couldn’t ignore the instinctive fear my divine aura provoked.

A grin spread across my face.

”Why are you cowering?” I called out. ”Aren’t you supposed to be a guardian?”

The undead gave no response.

Its hollow eye sockets remained fixed on me as it continued circling, searching for an opening while refusing to step within my reach.

”Fine...If you aren’t going to come to me, I’d go to you.”

Space folded as I used [Warp].

I appeared directly in front of the undead, and the knight reacted instantly, throwing itself backward in an attempt to widen the distance once more. But this time, I was prepared.

I stretched out my hand, activating [Divine Bindings], and golden chains erupted from glowing sigils around my arm, streaking through the air with astonishing speed before wrapping themselves around the undead’s limbs and torso.

The knight came to an abrupt halt.

The instant the chains tightened, smoke began rising from its bones.

The divine energy burned wherever it made contact, leaving blackened marks across its skeletal frame. Then it screamed.

The sound wasn’t human. It wasn’t even animalistic. It was an unnatural, soul-piercing howl that echoed across the valley, sending a chill racing down my spine.

For the first time since arriving at the tomb, the undead sounded like it was in pain.

I didn’t loosen my grip. Instead, I walked toward it, my glowing fist growing brighter with every step as I prepared to end the fight once and for all.

But as I closed the remaining distance, the undead slowly lifted its head, opened its jaw, and a calm, unfamiliar voice emerged from its mouth.

”You don’t know what you’re meddling with, goblin.”

I stopped.

I could tell the words didn’t belong to the knight. Someone else...or rather something else was speaking through it.