Goblin King: My Innate Skill Is OP

Without wasting another second, I activated [Warp].

The world twisted around me. Space folded. Then, in an instant, I was back.

I reappeared in the middle of the clan, my eyes darting from one direction to another as I searched for the source of the emergency.

”What the hell is happening?” I shouted, my voice echoing across the settlement. ”Who attacked?”

The goblins nearest to me froze, clearly caught off guard by the urgency in my voice. Several of them instinctively turned toward me, confusion written across their faces, while others exchanged uncertain glances, unsure of what I was talking about.

Before any of them could answer...

I immediately used [Warp] again, reappearing high above the settlement to get a clear view of the entire clan.

The wind brushed against my face as I hovered high above the settlement, carefully scanning every part of the village.

My gaze swept across the training grounds, the watchtowers, the busy workshops, the newly constructed storage buildings, and finally the defensive walls encircling the clan, yet everywhere I looked, everything appeared... normal.

There were goblins moving about their duties, patrols following their assigned routes, and workers carrying supplies from one building to another. I couldn’t see any signs of battle, panicked civilians, or damaged structures.

There was no smoke, no blood, and no trace of the chaos I had expected to find. The entire settlement looked almost... peaceful, making my brows furrow as confusion quickly replaced the urgency I’d felt moments ago.

What the hell...

Rather than wasting time searching blindly, I decided it would be faster to get an answer directly.

I activated [Warp] once more.

The scenery around me distorted before snapping back into place, and I appeared inside our quarters.

Zarah was in the middle of a discussion with Ziv, Gobbo, and Caius, the four of them gathered around a table covered with rough maps and handwritten reports.

The instant I materialized, the conversation came to an abrupt halt.

Zarah’s eyes met mine, and for a brief second she simply stared. Then the surprise on her face softened into a relieved smile.

”Chief... you’re back.”

The others quickly followed.

”Chief.”

”Chief.”

”Chief.”

I didn’t return their greetings.

Instead, I reached into my pouch and pulled out the sigil.

It was still warm in my hand, thin streams of crimson smoke steadily curling from the glowing runes carved into its surface. I raised it for them to see.

”I got a signal,” I said, holding up the smoking sigil. ”Did something happen?”

The moment Zarah saw it, she frowned.

”I told Narg not to involve you,” she said, unable to hide the frustration in her voice.

That only made me more curious.

”Why?” I asked. ”What’s the matter?”

Zarah let out a quiet sigh before answering.

”We took in some refugees.”

I remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

”They claimed their settlement was attacked by Raghul and that they had nowhere else to go.”

”Raghul?”

The name alone immediately put me on guard.

Every trace of relief I had felt after seeing the clan unharmed vanished in an instant.

”Yes,” Caius replied with a nod. ”The same Raghul I told you about.”

”Narg was against it,” Zarah admitted. ”He believed we shouldn’t accept them without your permission, especially after they mentioned Raghul. He was worried it could be some kind of trap.”

She paused briefly before continuing.

”But they genuinely looked like refugees. They were exhausted, injured, and terrified. More importantly, the details of their story were consistent no matter who questioned them, and after making them swear an oath, everything they said aligned.”

”So...” She spread her hands slightly. ”I decided to let them in.”

”You brought them in?”

The words left my mouth before I could stop them.

Instantly, alarm bells began ringing in my head.

What if this was exactly what Raghul wanted?

He wasn’t stupid. If he couldn’t find us by force, then sending people to infiltrate the clan would be the next logical move.

A handful of refugees could gather information far more effectively than an army marching toward our walls.

”I personally questioned them, Chief,” Caius said, as though he had read the thoughts running through my mind. ”You don’t need to worry. They have no affiliation with Raghul.”

His confidence didn’t reassure me.

Not because I doubted Caius’ judgment, but because I had learned long ago that certainty was a dangerous thing. People could lie. They could hide things even from themselves. And if Raghul possessed abilities I didn’t know about, then assuming we had covered every possibility would be a mistake.

”Did you have them swear oaths?” I asked.

”I did,” Zarah replied with a nod. ”Which is why I chose not to involve you until you returned. I figured whatever you were doing outside the clan was important enough that it shouldn’t be interrupted unless absolutely necessary.”

It was.

If I had been summoned while I was still dealing with Mordra, there was a good chance I would’ve rushed back without thinking, and her undead could have followed me straight to the clan.

That alone could have turned a manageable situation into a disaster.

Even so...this wasn’t something that needed to be decided in my absence.

It was important, yes, but it wasn’t so urgent that it couldn’t wait until I returned.

I turned to Zarah.

”I can’t say it’s a bad thing that you’re handling matters without me,” I said, my tone calm but firm. ”In fact, that’s exactly what I want. I can’t be here every second of every day, so all of you need to be capable of making decisions on your own.”

I paused before continuing.

”But when someone as dangerous as Raghul is involved, I’d rather be here to make the final call... just in case something goes wrong.”

For a brief moment, disappointment flickered across Zarah’s face but it disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared, replaced by the composed expression she always wore whenever clan matters were discussed.

She gave a small nod.

”Noted, Chief.”

A brief silence settled over the room before Zarah looked at me again.

”Where have you been?” she asked. ”You didn’t tell anyone where you were going.”

I scratched the back of my head.

”Well...” I said. ”To sum it all up...”

”I fought with an Archmage.”

The room fell silent.

Caius, who had been...