Chapter 88
Chapter 88
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: Ogre Subjugation Gone Wrong
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Indeed, humans are far too fragile. No fur, no horns, no scales. And the leather they wrap themselves in isn't even tough.
Watching a mercenary die instantly from a single ogre punch without even a scream, Rachel furrowed her brow.
The ogre crouched low, sweeping its arms across the ground like it was trying to claw it up, sending unprepared mercenaries flying into the air.
'Even compared to my sealed stats in this state, they can't hold a candle.'
Rachel ran even faster, shouting at Luna and Leaf as they kicked away the champion ogre's fist.
"Why are you here?!"
"We gotta take this bastard down quick and join the others!"
She leaped onto a mercenary dithering in front of her, stomped hard on his shoulder, and launched herself into the air.
"Adelian headed to where the signal flare went off! He said he had no choice since it was an order!"
Luna bit her lip hard at Rachel's shout, but only for a moment. Rachel, who had leaped high into the sky, yelled as she descended.
"I'm here!"
"Grruh?"
As the ogre lifted one head at the roar exploding in midair, Rachel's fist slammed down hard on its head.
Splut!
With a sound like a watermelon bursting, white and red chunks sprayed everywhere, and one head of the twin-headed ogre was shattered.
"Grrooar!"
In its pain, the ogre unleashed an ogre fear from the other head, causing most mercenaries to clutch their heads.
The ones standing close for attacks collapsed, bleeding from noses and ears. Leaf scooped one under each arm and pulled them back, while Luna moved in front to draw the ogre's attention.
"Rachel!"
"I know, you bunny!"
Instead of dodging the reaching hand, Luna dove right into it, dropping low to the ground. She flicked out a knife from her boot's toe, infused it with aura, and slashed a half-inch gash into its wrist.
She slipped out drenched in the spraying blood like a shower, and Rachel charged in, smashing the dangling half-severed hand, severing the muscles, and laughing loudly.
"Ha! Now that's the taste of battle!"
Rachel cackled wildly as she pounded the champion ogre's knee with her palm like stamping, thud after thud. Luna shouted.
"What about the young master?! What's this about a signal flare!"
"Zero went off somewhere with him! Something about Cain?!"
A sound like a log snapping rang out, and the ogre's knee buckled sideways from Rachel's blows. As it toppled, an unlucky mercenary beneath it was crushed into a pulp.
"Everyone, snap out of it!"
"Move! Pry off the wagons!"
The regular subjugation squad members who had led the initial assault were all torn apart, leaving no one to command. The mercenaries had been in chaos, but with Luna, Leaf, and Rachel joining, they caught their breath.
They began pulling artifacts and tools prepared hastily from the wrecked wagons for a great ogre subjugation.
"Fire the net!"
They shot an iron net for giant monsters, draping it over the ogre. It thrashed to shake it off.
On the other side, they unpacked artifact harpoons, drove support stakes into the ground, and activated magic stones.
Otherwise, regular harpoons couldn't pierce it.
"Aim!"
While Rachel climbed the ogre's body and smashed the slowly regenerating head, Leaf and Luna attacked its arms and legs to support her.
"Fire!"
Someone timed it and shouted. Luna and Leaf swiftly retreated, and at the same moment, harpoons pierced its arms and legs. Several people grabbed hold and pulled in all directions.
"Grroooar!"
With harpoons embedded in arms and legs, and the iron net tightening over its body, the ogre struggled, its movements restricted. Over a dozen mercenaries gripped the chains linked to the harpoons, rolling and yelling.
"Put your backs into the legs! Hold!"
"Ugh! My arm..."
One mercenary swung his pierced arm wildly, but the enraged champion ogre slapped down at Leaf with its palm. He crossed both arms to block and shoved it away.
Even with its ankles pinned to the ground, it kept moving relentlessly, drawing cries of awe like screams from the other mercenaries.
"Cool, huh?"
After yanking the harpoon to tautly fix the flailing hand, they drove iron stakes into every link of the harpoon chain and pounded them into the ground, dulling the ogre's movements further.
"Press the attack! Kill it!"
"Violence addict!"
"Fiery Fist, go Josh!"
Amid cheers for Rachel pounding the remaining head on the ogre's shoulder, she raised her fist and shook it.
"Who's Fiery Fist?! Who?!"
Crunch!
Rachel hammered the other head too, layering aura on her fist. The ogre's head mashed like wet clay, eyeballs bulging out.
"Grroooaaar!"
Crack! Snap!
As if sensing it, the ogre thrashed wildly, and the iron stakes pinning the chains to the ground popped out with thuds.
"Hurry and finish it, you glutton!"
Luna stomped down to stop it and yelled. Rachel shouted back.
"Who's the glutton?! Just die already!"
Boom!
Rachel's fist sank into the ogre's head up to her shoulder. The massive champion ogre's body convulsed, then slowly stopped moving.
The mercenaries holding the harpoon chains collapsed to the ground as tension left their limbs, sobbing and gasping for breath.
"We lived... we lived."
"I'm retiring after this... I almost got massacred!"
[What about the young master?]
Rachel shook off the blood and brains from her body when Leaf approached, showing his chalkboard.
Rachel scratched her head.
* * *
"Hoo."
After Cain emptied the water bottle I tossed him in one go, I threw him another and pulled a chair from my subspatial pocket, sitting down to ponder.
"What now."
Normally, our party would stand at the front, wear down the ogre a bit, rotate out a little longer than others, and call it done.
Proper cooperation and a show of force. That would build trust and lay groundwork for the next plan. That was the point of joining this ogre subjugation.
'But things got way too messed up.'
While I was lost in thought, Cain shook his wet hair, cooled from the heat, and approached.
"Do you have a trait that attracts monsters or something?"
"Where would I get something like that?"
I replied indifferently to Cain, but Cain and Zero's gazes were unusual.
"What's with those looks."
"Nothing."
Zero averted his sullen eyes at my words, but Cain stayed the same.
Come to think of it, from the labyrinth swamp trolls, to dragons, airship had a pursuer that wasn't a monster but still, and here a twin-headed mage ogre, with cyclops coming up soon.
"I don't have a trait like that."
But isn't this more Cain's problem than mine? The protagonist always draws trouble.
This time, I stared at Cain instead. Before I could say anything, he cut in.
"I'll head back now."
"Already, Senior?"
Zero protested like he wanted Cain to stay for a meal, but Cain shook his head.
"I'm AWOL on duty. Gotta return ASAP."
"What?"
Isn't that desertion?
I shot to my feet at "AWOL on duty."
Things were already tangled; couldn't let them tangle more.
"You can cover if you go back now?"
"Probably."
Can't trust that "probably," but no choice but to believe him now.
After sending Cain off, I comforted the disappointed Zero.
"Buy him something tasty next time."
"Yeah, but..."
Anyway, we're the problem.
Too many witnesses to brush it under the rug, and too many casualties.
'Can't claim we didn't know it was two from the start; too many suspicious bits.'
Ogres rival worms for top dumbass monsters, excluding stone-types.
Yet ambushed a day early from the predicted spawn area.
Ogres are so strong they claim wide territories solo, so two popping up means a family monster pair from the start.
'But the report said one twin-headed ogre.'
Either the extra one was out hunting when the report was made.
'Or someone falsified the report on purpose.'
"Young master Adelian. What now?"
Zero voiced similar worries softly. I smirked.
"What's done is done. No helping it."
Even that genius Zhuge Liang said it: schemes are man's, success is heaven's.
Humans plan, heaven decides.
"Ah, just push forward."
I shrugged, and Zero chuckled.
"Young master!"
―Administrator!
Two figures raced toward me, kicking up dust.
Covered head to toe in dirt and blood.
I opened my codex, cast Clean and Purification on them, handed each a water bottle, then exhaled lowly.
"Where's Rachel?"
"She wanted to come, but the other mercenaries were anxious."
―Rachel's the strongest in the subjugation squad, so that's probably it, Administrator.
After battling that monster, even goblins would wear them down in their exhausted state.
Lately, Rachel and Cain keep missing each other oddly.
Rachel pledges body and soul to me, and Cain's my business partner.
'If I want them to meet, I can anytime.'
No big deal.
"Let's head back."
Tension from battle and escape eased from my body, leaving aches here and there. I breathed out softly.
"Shall I carry you, young master?"
"Gonna carry me again?"
―Administrator, I'll carry you steadily.
I showed a bit of fatigue, and my overzealous loyalists reacted instantly.
They probably think piggybacking makes me their meat shield since I hitch rides when fleeing, but no thanks to princess carry.
"My legs work fine. We'll walk slowly."
Not like last time when it was severed; just low stamina. As if seeing through my complacency, Luna flicked her ears.
"Walking'll take an hour."
"Why?"
"Zero ran pretty far."
No way. How hard did Zero run that my 10-minute sprint earlier now means an hour walk?
I passed Luna's sparkling eyes, Leaf's confident gaze, and looked at Zero, who realized his fate.
"Piggyback time."
"Sure."
Of course I know Luna and Leaf are stronger. This isn't consideration for them; it's for my last shred of pride...
I hitched a ride on Zero, the tallest and sturdiest-looking.
* * *
"Hic, unbelievable..."
"We can't just let this slide. Who'd join subjugations like this?"
"I'm quitting when we get back. Nearly got wiped out!"
Reaching the ambush site and stepping down, I heard murmurs from afar.
One side had intact-ish corpses being collected and covered. The other had the ogre sprawled.
Normally, the butchering team would've come too, extracting cores, skinning, bleeding it out by now.
'Leader died too, huh.'
Besides the hired mercenaries, regular subjugation squad led them, but all dead apparently.
Only flesh chunks and mangled metal armor hinted at it.
"You're back?"
Rachel approached, soaked in blood. I opened my codex.
"Your robe?"
Seeing my bare face, puzzlement crossed Rachel's now-clean face from purification and clean.
"Plans change when things go this sideways."
"Hmm, how?"
She rubbed her hungry belly. I offered a carrot; she brushed it off with her hand.
Picky.
Gave her jerky, then spoke.
"If human power won't cut it."
Solve it with money and authority.
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