Slave (3)

Just to be clear: pinpointing an opponent's weakness doesn't mean you automatically control the fight.

Even if this albino gorilla was weaker than the Chief Gorilla, he was still a creature that had survived the deadly perils of the Forest of the Four Seasons. And he had managed that survival while saddled with two glaring handicaps: conspicuous white fur and severely impaired eyesight. In the wild, either one of those traits was practically a death sentence. Yet here he stood, alive and kicking—which meant he possessed something formidable enough to compensate for both.

Thud!

The albino gorilla stamped his foot into the earth, sending a dull tremor through the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠dirt. In the very next breath, a massive palm came hurtling straight toward my face.

I snapped my head aside, barely dodging the blow. But the follow-through was insane.

Ruuuumble!

The sheer shockwave displaced by his strike tore through the clearing, snapping towering trees like toothpicks and sending them crashing down. It wasn't quite the cataclysmic blast Chief Gorilla had unleashed, but it was still terrifyingly powerful. If that had caught me flush, my skull would have popped like a ripe melon.

What is this, the Tathagata's Divine Palm? I thought, bewildered. What kind of martial arts—no, what kind of internal cultivation had these primates practiced to leave destruction like this in their wake? Thanks to my run-in with Chief Gorilla, I had anticipated a heavy blow, but the resulting shockwave exceeded my worst expectations.

Clicking my tongue inwardly, I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠kept my eyes glued to the albino gorilla.

Boom!

The moment his palm missed, he stomped the ground again to pivot, launching a piston-like fist. Realizing his blurry vision put him at a disadvantage in ranged reads, he had shifted his strategy to rely entirely on his specialty: plant, strike, reset, strike. It was a rhythmic, incredibly loud, and relentlessly oppressive assault. While technically a combo, the distinct pause between each strike made it feel awkward and disjointed.

He can't keep this up forever, though.

It was the classic "just hit once" gamble. If even a single graze connected, I was done for. Yet despite how furiously the beast drove his massive frame forward, an undeniable gap lingered between every action. Try as he might to overcome his poor eyesight with a barrage of continuous swings, physical limitations remained. If I could time that narrow gap just right, I could slip inside his guard and counter.

Even if my arm snaps, I have to keep this shield raised.

Against monsters of this caliber, my shield was my final lifeline. I fully intended to dodge whatever I could, but there was always the danger of a hidden trump card. Besides, I was still far more comfortable swinging a blade with one hand than two.

I tracked the albino gorilla's attack pattern with razor focus, waiting for the split-second opening.

Boom!

He planted his back foot, coiling to unleash another heavy swing. The instant his weight shifted, I ducked low and lunged inside his reach. Blind to my movement, the gorilla swung with all his might—punching nothing but empty air.

Just as I thought!

His fatal flaw held true: if his target moved abruptly right before he committed to a strike, he swung blind. He had probably spent his entire life leaning on overwhelming forward momentum to keep opponents pinned down so they could never exploit that blind spot. But against anyone capable of rubbing two brain cells together, the counter was child's play. It felt like a miracle he had survived this long in the forest.

Thwack!

As the beast's fist cleaved the empty air above me, I drove my sword downward with both hands, pinning his planted foot straight into the dirt. The blade sank through his instep and anchored deep into the soil beneath. And I didn't stop there.

Crack-crack-crackle!

I channeled frost energy through the steel. Pale rime erupted from the wound, rapidly enveloping his foot. It didn't creep along at an ordinary freezing pace; in a fraction of a heartbeat, a thick crust of ice surged up past his ankle, locking his knee in solid permafrost.

"Ooo-erk?!"

The albino gorilla grimaced from the sharp pain of the puncture, only to freeze in sheer, unadulterated panic. Judging by his wide crimson eyes, he had never faced an ability like this in his life.

Now's the time! Before he could react, I ripped the blade free and struck again.

Crunch!

I drove the frost-coated blade through his other foot, freezing it instantly to the ground. Now both of his lower limbs were entombed in ice. Given the terrifying brute strength he had displayed earlier, one might have ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠expected him to shatter the ice and tear free with ease—but it wasn't happening.

His lower body really is his weak point.

It was an inherent anatomical limitation. Gorillas were knuckle-walkers by nature, relying on their forelimbs to support their weight. No matter how much they mimicked humans, true bipedal posture was unnatural for them. Chief Gorilla had understood this perfectly, which was why he had barely used kicks during our fight. The albino gorilla thrashed furiously, but generating enough leverage with just his lower body to shatter the magical frost proved impossible.

To free himself, he had to use his arms. He raised a massive, corded forelimb high overhead, preparing to smash the ice encasing his legs.

Thunk!

"GROOOAAARGH!!"

I was a step faster. I drove my sword straight through his descending forearm. Just like his legs, pale frost burst along the wound, racing up his thick fur until it sealed his limb in ice all the way to the shoulder. The frost was dense and unnaturally rigid; even with his monstrous musculature, he couldn't crack it.

With three limbs immobilized, only one arm remained. In his frantic, disoriented state, subduing him was almost too easy.

"OOOAAARGH—"

"Shut your trap. You're giving me a headache."

WHAM!

As he thrashed in a blind frenzy, I smashed the rim of my shield across his jaw. His head snapped back, but somehow his eyes stayed focused. I swung again with everything I had.

CRACK!

That did the trick. The massive ape went limp, his tongue lolling out of his mouth as he slumped heavily onto the frozen ground. I had hit him with the express intent of knocking him out, but seeing him drop like a sack of potatoes was still strangely surreal.

Wait... will ordinary rope even hold this brute?

Looking down at the unconscious albino gorilla, I frowned. Like Chief Gorilla, this beast could wield mana. On top of that, he possessed terrifying martial arts. Ordinary bindings wouldn't keep him contained for long.

Creeeak... crackle!

Taking no chances, I bound his body tightly with enchanted climbing rope, then channeled another wave of frost to freeze him into a solid block of ice from the neck down, leaving only his head exposed. I would have preferred heavy iron chains, but the auction house didn't have any in stock.

"Hey, Ppareumbo. I need to check something on the board, so keep a close eye on him."

"……."

"If he looks like he's trying to break free, just smack him across the face."

With Fast Tree Sloth standing guard, I had nothing to fear even if the ape managed to wake up. Before opening the Gallery, I took a look around at the carnage the gorilla had left behind. The logs I had painstakingly cut and dressed were scattered everywhere, and the clearing in front of my cave was completely wrecked. Fortunately, the cave itself was untouched, but my workload had just skyrocketed.

I really want to put this guy to work as a laborer, but...

I had a rough idea in mind, though I wasn't entirely sure it would pan out. First things first: time to post on the Gallery. I had plenty of time to figure out the rest.

So it wasn't that the albino gorilla was weak; it was that Chief Gorilla was ridiculously, overwhelmingly powerful.

In a sense, the albino gorilla was in the same boat as me. Prioritizing survival above all else, he had merely scratched the surface of martial arts without ever mastering their true essence.

She hadn't posted until now, but she was clearly lurking. Even if she hadn't responded, I had planned to shoot her a direct message, but since she was already reading the thread, doing it here was much more convenient. Plus, getting general community input along the way wouldn't hurt.

A chorus of alarm bells erupted in the thread, everyone insisting I had lost my mind and would get myself killed. And honestly, they weren't wrong. A gorilla's sheer muscle mass was more than enough to tear a human apart like a head of cabbage. On top of that, this albino gorilla was a mana wielder, possessing physical conditioning leagues beyond an ordinary ape. Slapping a mana inhibitor on him wouldn't magically make him harmless.

With Fast Tree Sloth by my side, the equation changed completely. The Gallery commenters laughed it off as a joke, but to me, it was deadly serious. If I stopped offering steady tributes of food to this terrifying creature, my own life would be forfeit. If the albino gorilla ever dared to make a move against me, handing him over to Ppareumbo would settle the matter in seconds.

A moment later, I completed the parcel transfer with Princess Chaeng-gu and held the Mana Inhibitor Collar in my hands.

Overall, the collar looked almost identical to an oversized spiked dog collar, fitted with outward-facing, wickedly sharp metal studs to keep anyone from prying it off with bare hands.

Alongside the collar and its key, Princess Chaeng-gu had enclosed a matching metallic bracelet. When I inquired about its purpose, her answer left me somewhat taken aback.

I had no idea what kind of support she expected from an interdimensional forum lurker, but cheering for her team cost nothing. After snapping the bracelet onto my wrist and memorizing the operating instructions, I walked over to the albino gorilla and locked the heavy spiked collar around his throat, turning the key until it gave a satisfying metallic click.

"Nnnngh……"

As luck would have it, right as I secured the clasp, the albino gorilla began to stir.

My heart leaped into my throat for a split second, but seeing as the collar was already firmly locked in place, I held my ground and watched him wake. The massive ape blinked groggily, staring in my direction with a dazed expression. Due to his terrible eyesight, his initial reaction was pure confusion—a blank Who are you? look—but that peaceful stupor didn't last.

"Ooo! Ooo-ooo-ooogh!"

Memory rushed back, and the gorilla became so violently enraged that all human speech abandoned him. His crimson eyes blazed with murder as he glared down ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at me. Tensing his hulking muscles, he attempted to circulate internal mana to shatter the ice and rip me limb from limb—

CRACKLE-BZZZZZZT!!!

"UKKYYYAAAAAAAGH!!!"

Just as Princess Chaeng-gu had described, blinding arcs of blue electricity erupted from the collar, coursing viciously through every fiber of his massive body. No matter how physically imposing an animal was, all creatures were equal before several thousand volts of raw electricity.

I looked down at the albino gorilla, who was now trembling pathetically on the ground, his white fur standing on end and smelling faintly of ozone.

"Hey. Say it again. You were going to turn this place into your personal shelter?"

"Grrrgh……"

Even if he couldn't comprehend my exact words, he clearly sensed the sheer mockery in my tone. The albino gorilla bared his fangs and glared at me with pure venom—a completely futile gesture.

BZZZZZT!

The instant his killing intent triggered a surge of inner energy, the collar discharged a second violent shockwave. The beast convulsed violently before collapsing limp, a thin trail of smoke drifting from his nostrils.

After taking two consecutive high-voltage beatdowns, all the fight had drained out of him. A deeply satisfied grin spread across my face.

"What did you say your name was again? Wi Baek?"

"Urrrgh……"

Who was it that said a slave had no need for his former name?

I pondered what to call him for a brief moment before breaking into a wide, malicious smirk. I had no idea whether the ape would understand, but it didn't matter in the slightest. I could simply drill it into his skull until he did.

"From this day forward, your name is Ggobongi. Understood?"

Following my connection to the Gallery, I had just acquired my very first laborer.