With that, I shouted:
"I accept!"
And the sight before me changed immediately.
I was now on one knee, staring at a chaotic battle between small greens and massive oranges.
A cliff loomed beneath the chaos, the land dropping away into jagged rocks.
The air was thick with dust, the sounds of clashing weapons, snarls, and roars echoing all around me.
More goblins—my kin, I guess—were fighting against massive orange monstrosities.
These monstrosities were far bigger than any goblin. They looked like hobgoblins—bodies built like tanks, with muscles rippling beneath thick, leathery hides.
Just a glance was enough to tell we were on the losing side.
I shook my head. Like I said earlier, goblins were easy kills.
Lucky for me, though, I was far enough away from the action.
I didn't know how I ended up here, but goblin bodies were scattered all around me.
The stench of blood filled the air, and I instinctively clenched my nostrils shut.
I had to get used to this.
This was my new life now… fighting ugly giants on a cliffside?
Seriously, Gandalf?
I bet he made this my starting point just because I said I preferred Optimus Prime's voice to his.
How petty.
But whatever. I'm not taking that back.
I dragged myself to my feet, my body feeling… weird.
Of course it did.
I was a goblin now.
I looked down at my hands. They were small and olive green—the kind of hands you'd expect from a goblin. Short fingers. Rough skin. Nothing like the human hands I used to have.
I touched my face. The bone structure felt completely different.
Yep. I was definitely a goblin now.
This wasn't a human face anymore.
But I didn't care.
This was expected.
What mattered right now was that I was alive.
And my goal was to keep it that way.
I looked down at what I was wearing.
It was a patchwork mess.
Could I really call it clothing?
Sure. I'd seen humans wear worse on fashion runways.
Then, for some dumb reason, curiosity got the better of me.
I grabbed the helm and peeked down to see if I still had my privates.
But i was filled with instant regret.
Why the hell did I do that?
I shouldn't have done that.
I was better off not knowing.
I checked again, hoping for some miracle.
Nope.
Still the same.
Great. This is fantastic.
As if I wasn't already underwhelming as a human.
While I stood there wallowing in disappointment, something bright blinked in front of me.
A holographic message, hovering in mid-air, faintly glowing.
[System Activated]
I blinked, confused for a second.
System?
Then the next message appeared:
[Daily Quest to Become Stronger Now Available]
My eyes widened.
Was is this...Solo Leveling?
I couldn't help the grin spreading across my face.
To think I'd get a system.
The golden finger that so many web novel protagonists had to fuel their rise to power.
Now I had one too.
Oh... now we're talking.
Suddenly, I could care less about how small my junk was.
It didn't matter anymore.
Without wasting another second, I eagerly opened the Daily Quest, ready to see what I needed to do to get stronger.
[Daily Quest:]• Sprint for 3 kilometers without stopping• Scale a steep hill or tall tree• Carry 25–40kg rocks or logs while walking for 10 minutes• Evade 20 thrown projectiles from fellow goblins or traps[Warning: Incompletion of task will lead to punishment]
I frowned.
These quests sounded like such a chore.
And the mention of punishment reminded me of high school and overdue homework—except this time, the punishment might actually hurt.
I sighed and noticed a small blinking icon in the corner of my vision.
Curious, I tapped it, and a new window popped up.
My eyes skimmed over the details.
[Stat Window]Name: EliRace: GoblinLevel: 1Title: None
[Stats]Strength: 5Stamina: 1Agility: 5Intelligence: 5Perception: 5(Available Points to Distribute: 0)HP: 55MP: 55
[Skills]Innate Skill: Phase Walker (SSS)Passive Skills: [Analyze]Active Skills: None
My eyes locked onto the Innate Skill:
Phase Walker (SSS).
Three S's?
That screamed overpowered.
It had to be a skill that could make me unstoppable.
But forget the skill for a second—my gaze dropped to my stamina.
Stamina: 1
At this point, I was convinced Gandalf was screwing with me.
It wasn't enough to turn my tree into a shrub—now you're cockblocking?
Why, Gandalf?
This was a low blow.
I groaned and shook my head.
Alright. Back to business.
Phase Walker.
An SSS-ranked innate skill.
I didn't know how skills were ranked in this world, but in every book I'd read, SSS was god-tier.
The peak.Those who had skills or ranks at that level were freaks of nature—badasses through and through.
I grinned, excited.
But then a thought hit me.
What if SSS rank wasn't as rare as I thought? What if the ranking system was reversed—like E-rank was the best and SSS was garbage?
Now that would be disappointing.
Still, I couldn't help smiling.
This skill felt like my golden finger.
My cheat code.
The thing that would tip the scales in my favor.
If life dropped me to the bottom of the food chain, then this was my ticket back up.
Wasting no time, I mentally clicked on the skill to see what it could actually do.
[Phase Walker – Rank SSS]Description: Bend space to your will, making no location safe for your enemies.Warp – Instantly teleport yourself, allies, enemies, or objects as far as your eyes can reach, or to a marked location.Swap – Switch places with another target, be it ally, enemy, object, or magical attack mid-flight.Leap – Teleport to any pre-marked location, no matter how far.
I froze the moment I read the description.
Speechless.
Befuddled.
Bamboozled.
Every word that screamed shock ran through my tiny green body.
This skill was downright broken.
With [Warp], I could instantly teleport—not just myself, but others. Allies. Enemies. Objects. As far as I could see.
Anything I could lock eyes on… I could move.
That alone was nuts.
But then came [Swap].
Switching places with another target?
A person. An object. A magic attack mid-flight?
I could literally switch places with a fireball.
Trade spots with an enemy mid-swing?
This wasn't just about movement.
This was battlefield domination.
And then came [Leap].
I could teleport to any marked location, no matter the distance.
That meant escape routes. Surprise raids. World travel. Recon. Instant saves.
If I marked a spot across the continent—I could be there in seconds.
"This is busted," I muttered, grinning like an idiot.
Excitement surged through me like a tidal wave.
The skill was amazing—ridiculously powerful and full of potential.
My geeky, fantasy-loving heart could barely contain itself.
I turned my attention to the battlefield, inching closer to the action.
From what I could see, it was pure chaos.
My green brothers—the goblins—were getting slaughtered.
They were clearly trying to shove the hobgoblins off the cliff, but it wasn't working.
It was like watching toddlers try to wrestle pro wrestlers.
The exchange was completely one-sided.
More goblins were becoming corpses, and not a single hobgoblin was down.
I shook my head.
Like I said earlier: Easy kills.
But now that I was here?
That was about to change.