Goblin King: My Innate Skill Is OP

Chapter 402: Fortified

I woke up with a heavy yawn and slowly pushed myself upright in bed.

It had been six days since we discovered the crystals, and during that time, the clan had undergone a remarkable transformation.

Numerous buildings now stood throughout the settlement, replacing the temporary tents that had once dominated the area. Every goblin had a proper home with a roof over their head, and for the first time since the clan’s founding, sleeping out in the open or inside makeshift shelters was no longer the norm.

But the most significant change by far was the wall.

Calling it a wall almost felt inaccurate now.

The structure surrounding the settlement looked more like a fortress, stretching across the landscape like the shell of some enormous beast protecting everything within. Watchtowers rose at regular intervals along its length, their elevated platforms providing clear views of the surrounding terrain while housing the heavy artillery Bundi and his team had spent days constructing.

Wide patrol routes had been built into the structure itself, allowing guards to move efficiently between sections without needing to descend into the settlement below.

Beneath the stone, mana-infused vines pulsed faintly like living veins woven through the fortress, strengthening the entire structure from within. Embedded at carefully measured intervals throughout the walls were the newly installed manacore crystals, their energy feeding into the barrier system overhead.

The result was a translucent dome of energy that stretched across the entire settlement, covering the clan like a massive protective umbrella.

I had also ensured that the goblins leveled up at a rapid pace through power-leveling in these past few days.

The first step had been getting our strongest fighters to the required level.

To accomplish that, I headed into the deeper regions of the forest alongside Caius, Kharos, Zarah, Gobbo, and Dribb. There, we hunted high-level monsters that ordinary goblins would have no business fighting, weakening them enough for the others to claim the finishing blows and absorb the essence.

The process was dangerous, exhausting, and at times frustrating, but it worked.

By the end of the day, all of them had crossed the level fifty threshold.

That had been the goal from the beginning.

Not simply to make them stronger, but to turn them into force multipliers.

The more high-level goblins we had, the easier it became to raise everyone else.

And even while focusing on them, we still managed to push roughly twenty additional goblins to around level thirty, or close enough that reaching it was only a matter of time.

The following day, we split into separate groups.

Zarah, Caius, and Dribb took a dozen goblins with them. Their task wasn’t simply to level the clan members under them but to train them as well. Levels alone didn’t mean much if a goblin didn’t know how to fight properly, and all three of them had more than enough experience to beat those lessons into their squads if necessary.

Meanwhile, I led Gobbo, Kharos, Zonk, Thok, Snib, Krosh, Zox, Gork, Nira, and Ziv deeper into the wilderness in search of even stronger prey.

This time, however, I deliberately changed my approach.

Instead of weakening monsters and handing out kills like before, I had them actively hunt on their own. The goal was no longer simply gaining levels. It was growth. Real growth.

I wanted them to make decisions without relying on me, track prey themselves, choose when to engage, when to retreat, and how to work together when things became dangerous.

So I stayed back and observed from a distance.

Close enough to intervene if things went badly. Far enough that they couldn’t simply look toward me every time a problem appeared.

There were a few close calls.

Several, actually.

A particularly aggressive beast nearly tore through one of the hunting groups before Gobbo stepped in and redirected its attention, while Gork’s tracking skills saved them from stumbling into a monster nest that would’ve caused far more trouble than it was worth.

But despite the difficulties, they adapted. Every battle made them sharper. Every hunt improved their coordination. And by the time the day came to an end, the results were obvious.

Eighteen goblins had reached level fifty. Eighteen. Even now, the number felt ridiculous.

Not long ago, getting a single goblin to that level would’ve been a major achievement. Now we were producing them in batches.

The following day was when we finally crossed the finish line.

The last few goblins needed for the requirement reached level fifty, officially completing the final condition for the King’s Games.

And the most encouraging part wasn’t even the requirement itself.

It was the fact that so many others had reached the forties. Some were level forty-two. Others forty-five.

A few had already climbed as high as forty-eight or forty-nine. They were only a handful of levels away from joining the others.

Which meant that even after fulfilling the requirement, the overall strength of the clan had risen.

This left one final requirement to clear: increasing the clan’s population to at least one hundred goblins.

At the time, the Emerald Midget Clan only had sixty-eight members.

Under normal circumstances, reaching one hundred would have taken time. Even with the clan growing steadily, we simply didn’t have enough days remaining before the King’s Games to wait for numbers to increase naturally.

The fastest solution was obvious.

We needed to absorb another clan.

So I assigned Gork and Veyra to scout the surrounding territories and search for nearby goblin settlements. Between Gork’s experience and Veyra’s tracking abilities, they were easily the best candidates for the job.

Fortunately, they didn’t take long to find one.

Once they reported its location, I personally led the expedition.

The clan itself wasn’t particularly impressive. Their chief was only level twenty-five and, more importantly, he wasn’t Chosen.

The fight ended almost as quickly as it began.

After defeating him, the rest of the clan surrendered without much resistance.

Honestly, I couldn’t blame them.

There was a point where courage stopped being bravery and started becoming stupidity.

The difference in strength between us was simply too large.

Afterward, I inspected the clan myself.

There were roughly twenty-five goblins in total. Most of them were females and children, while the number of actual warriors was relatively small.

If I were being honest, it wasn’t exactly what I had hoped for.

What we truly needed were fighters.

Experienced warriors capable of contributing immediately to the clan’s growing military strength.

Instead, we had acquired mouths to feed, civilians to protect, and children who would require time before becoming useful.

Still...a clan wasn’t built entirely on warriors.

Someone had to raise the next generation. Someone had to maintain homes, farms, workshops, and all the countless responsibilities that existed beyond the battlefield.

So I accepted them. And just like that, the Emerald Midget Clan grew once again.

The additional numbers brought us significantly closer to the requirement, and from that point onward, reaching one hundred became only a matter of time.

As it turned out, it didn’t even take that long.