[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-goblin-king-my-innate-skill-is-op":3,"chapter-goblin-king-my-innate-skill-is-op-goblin-king-my-innate-skill-is-op-chapter-61":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Goblin King: My Innate Skill Is OP",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1335668,1780,"Chapter 61: Lover","goblin-king-my-innate-skill-is-op-chapter-61",61,"\u003Cp>\"Ehh?!\"I froze the moment I registered what Zarah had just said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wanted to join me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before I could respond, she stepped closer—silent, steady—and reached for the leather ties of her chest wrap.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My brain stalled. She wasn’t actually...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But yes, she was. With calm, unhurried movements, she began loosening the bindings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stood there like an idiot, paralyzed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What the hell was happening?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the wrap came undone, my trance finally shattered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wait...don’t!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Too late.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She peeled the garment off and let it fall to the grass with a soft thud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I spun around so fast I nearly lost my footing and fell straight into the pond, just to avoid seeing her bare chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I heard the soft rustle of fabric behind me—the unmistakable sound of her untying the sash at her waist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I muttered without turning, voice low and awkward,\"Uh... Zarah, you don’t have to...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A loud splash cut me off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She’d jumped into the water.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sudden sound startled me, and I flinched, splashing a bit of water as I tensed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stood still, muscles locked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then I felt the gentle movement of water behind me. She was swimming. Closer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The realization hit like a brick to the chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zarah was in the pond. Naked. Right behind me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I tried to breathe, but my lungs forgot how.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Chief... do you need help?\" she asked, her voice soft and genuinely concerned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t even think. I just blurted, way too loud:\"NO!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The echo bounced off the trees, loud enough to startle a bird from a nearby branch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe... maybe a little too loud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zarah spoke again, her voice softer this time.\"Do you not want me here?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I let out a slow sigh. That wasn’t it, not at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The last thing I wanted was for her to feel unwanted or rejected. But I also didn’t want her to misunderstand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was a goblin. Nudity probably wasn’t a big deal in her culture. But for me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was different. Complicated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because I wasn’t just flustered. I was attracted to her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that made everything worse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was a goblin. So was I now, technically. But mentally? Emotionally? I was still adjusting. My mind and values—how I viewed intimacy, privacy, attraction—were still very much human.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before I could figure out how to explain any of that, she said quietly,\"I’ll leave then.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I heard her shift in the water, the sound of movement against the surface as she began to swim toward the edge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She probably thought I disliked her. Or worse, that I was disgusted by her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t want her to think that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So I turned toward her, forcing the words out.\"Wait... that’s not what I meant.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She paused mid-step in the water, then slowly turned back to face me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I immediately averted my gaze.Gods...she was completely naked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The instinct to glance, just a quick look, was strong. Too strong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I clenched my jaw and kept my eyes fixed on the tree line beyond the pond. I wasn’t going to bethatguy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zarah stood there, watching me in silence. The water lapped gently around her knees.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I knew I needed to say something, anything, before the moment slipped away and turned sour.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It had taken time, effort, and more than a few risks to get this close to her, to build trust. I didn’t want to ruin that just because I didn’t know how to handle a vulnerable moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I felt my ears grow hot as I started to explain, stumbling over my words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s not that I don’t want you in here. It’s just... I’d rather you be covered. Like me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zarah tilted her head slightly.\"Why?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I blinked, caught off guard.She wasn’t being defensive—just genuinely curious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I raised my head to look at her, then immediately looked away again.Why?What kind of question was that?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had other guys seen her like this before?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I clenched my jaw, rage surging through me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’ll kill them all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then I caught myself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Easy, Eli. Breathe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They’re not human. You’re not, either—not anymore. Goblins don’t follow the same social rules. Modesty, nudity, personal space... it’s different for them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To her, this wasn’t a big deal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But to me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Does it make you uncomfortable?\" she asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hesitated, then nodded.\"Yeah... but it’s not because of you. It’s because of where I’m from.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She tilted her head again.\"Where you’re from?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I groaned and sank a little deeper into the pond, the cool water helping hide the heat creeping up my neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How was I supposed to explain this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hey, Zarah, I’m actually a human from another world. Got hit by a truck, woke up as a goblin in your forest, and now I’m trying to make sense of goblin social norms while trying not to stare at your chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yeah. No way she’d buy that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Worse, she might think I was making excuses to push her away. That I wasn’t interested. And that... that might shut her down entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So I tried a gentler route.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m... not a typical goblin,\" I said slowly. \"I’m a bit different. Because I’m from another world.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was quiet for a moment, watching me. Then she nodded slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Is that so...\" she murmured, gliding a little closer in the water.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I forced my eyes to stay level, locked onto hers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was getting harder not to glance down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And where you’re from,\" she said, voice calm and curious, \"you don’t bathe together without clothes?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She took another step through the water, closing the distance between us.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was only a couple of steps away now, so I locked my eyes on hers, focused and steady.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes... and no.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Huh...\" she said with a small, amused tilt of her head, stepping even closer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I flinched slightly, my body instinctively tensing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just focus on her eyes. Just her eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where I’m from,\" I explained, trying to keep my voice even, \"you don’t bathe together unless you’re lovers. Or... unless both people are completely okay with it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her brow creased in curiosity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Lovers? What is that?\" she asked, her gaze dropping slightly, now staring at my lips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My heart thudded in my chest like a war drum.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She moved in again. Her face was now just inches from mine—close enough that I could feel her breath on my skin. Warm, soft, and far too distracting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Lovers are...\" I started, then faltered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My brain short-circuited under the intensity of her gaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Lovers is... the word we use for two people who... love each other.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I took a half-step back, the pond rippling underfoot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But she gently placed a hand on my cheek, stopping me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her voice was quiet, but firm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don’t...\u003C\u002Fp>",1111,"2026-06-05T20:04:08.077Z",1,"novelbin.me","d8450efa64dc3dfeb000f1240395b62975d5c7ef9260ccf08ecb8168583f6c64","goblin-king-my-innate-skill-is-op-chapter-315","goblin-king-my-innate-skill-is-op-chapter-314",375,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fgoblin-king-my-innate-skill-is-op-cover.jpg"]