2. Blind Ju Cheong-ah, Ogre

The ogre. Excluding cursed mutants of the dragonkin, it was one of the apex predators in the ecosystem of walking monsters. It was my first time seeing one, but I'd heard plenty about them. Adventurers naturally stay vigilant against threats to their lives. Even if all I'd ever faced were goblins...

Just in case. They said ogres had immense strength matching their bulky frames, and despite their lumbering appearance, they were surprisingly agile. Their favorite food was meat like goblins and orcs, with humans as a delicacy. With thirty fresh goblin corpses scattered around from Ju Cheong-ah's recent slaughter...

The starving beast was distracted by the steaming goblin bodies. I forced down the terror choking my breath and crept toward Cheong-ah.

"...Ian?"

Her puzzled voice calling my name. I grabbed her arm, pulled her low, and whispered as we ducked into the underbrush.

"Oh...!"

"Shh. Quiet, Cheong-ah."

"Huh? Why all of a sudden?"

Blind as she was, she had no idea of the situation and asked in a calm tone.

...Damn it. No wonder she's fearless without sight.

"I just said it's an ogre."

"Eh... What's that? Luckily, the ogre's eyes were fixed on the goblin corpses right now, ignoring us. But if we so much as twitch into its view, it'd drop its meal and turn on us in a heartbeat. Cheong-ah's swordsmanship had been incredible, but could she handle an ogre at that level? Doubtful.

"You don't know what an ogre is?"

"Mm... Sorry, Ian. I don't know the local monster names yet. Karen actually told me what a goblin was. So, this ogre? What does it look like?"

"Well..."

I described it roughly: a hulking, ugly, muscle-bound, grayish-brown bipedal monster. She listened intently and nodded as if she got it.

"Aha, must be a daesik-gwi."

"...Daesik-gwi?"

"Yeah, daesik-gwi. Not sure about the origin of the name, but that's what we call them in Yuldo. You grew up there—ever hear as a kid, 'Be good or the daesik-gwi will come eat you'?"

What the hell kind of weird name was that? Sounded like some cranky old villager smacking a kid on the back of the head and declaring, 'From now on, you're Daesik-gwi,' before enslaving them.

"...Uh, yeah. No clue."

"Really? Well, maybe. The Sword Saintess wiped them all out personally back in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the day, so they're extinct in Yuldo now."

She shrugged at my vague reply.

"Anyway, Ian, a daesik-gwi—ogre—should fetch more than goblins, right?"

"Huh? Well..."

Expensive? Hell yeah. Goblins were useless beyond clearing an ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠area. Their bones and hides made decent glue, but with so many around, requests for goblin materials were snapped up ages ago. Magic stones—red gem-like cores from powerful monsters—were rare, but the odds from a goblin were lottery-level times a thousand. And even if one dropped, it'd be a puny thing from a goblin.

Ogres were different. One alone threatened a whole town. Subduing it meant serious rewards. And the materials? Bones and hides alone drew buyers lining up at insane prices.

"Super expensive. The bounty alone could let you live easy in the city for a year without working. Sell the hide and bones well, and you could buy a nice house."

"A house... I remember houses in the city cost tens of gold coins at least. Pricey."

"It's pie in the sky. How do you even hunt an ogre? Even gold-badge adventurers need a full party. Let's head back and report it. This is big."

Cheong-ah pondered silently for a moment, then called my name softly.

"Ian."

"Yeah?"

"Should we take it down?"

She pointed toward the ogre. I nearly blurted, Are you insane? What had she even heard?

"No, Cheong-ah. Ogres are a whole different league from goblins. I know you're amazing, but this is—"

"Dunno. I don't think I'd lose."

Utter confidence in her voice. Clank. She drew her sword slightly from its sheath and stood.

"Looks worth a shot."

Worth a shot? Against that ogre? As mentioned, ogres were deceptively nimble for their size, with huge strides. On open plains, even on horseback, escaping was near impossible.

And yet? I said firmly,

"No way, Cheong-ah. We run now while it hasn't spotted us. Once it does, no escaping."

"Mm, but Ian..."

"No buts—run now—"

A shadow engulfed my head. Crushing pressure sealed my words. No way. Please no. Praying inwardly, I slowly looked up.

-Grrrrowl.

Two eyes brimming with murderous intent stared down. Meeting them, my legs buckled, trembling.

"H-Hic...!"

A pathetic whimper. Terror drowned everything. I collapsed.

Cheong-ah sighed softly.

"It's been watching us since it showed up, you know?"

"...Fuck."

The curse slipped out. No time to waste—the ogre raised its massive tree-club hand to strike.

Whoosh! The club whistled through the air—not at me, but at Cheong-ah standing dumbfounded.

"Cheong-ah, danger!"

Thwack! The club slammed her side before I finished shouting. A dull thud echoed.

"Wha? Kyaaah!"

She screamed in agony, hurtling away. My mind went blank.

"Ch-Cheong-ah..."

How did it come to this? Moments ago, I'd been riding high on happy thoughts.

Cheong-ah, who cleaved thirty goblins in one stroke. She'd asked to party with a talentless hack like me. I didn't know why, but I figured it'd be my big break—maybe scraps of her skill, like learning the sword. At least...

Now, empty hopes. "Fuck."

Just when life was looking up. What a bullshit way to die.

I'd struggled since isekai-ing here. Unclear identity meant no real jobs. Begging was all I could manage, and even that sucked with outsider prejudice. After six months scraping by, I bought into the adventurer life to prove myself.

Still, talentless trash stayed a porter. Now, just me left. The ogre loomed.

-Grrr...

Drool spilling, it growled low and raised its club.

"World's fucked, really."

My "special ability" from transfer? Bullshit. Useless even facing death.

Crunch. In my hand, just a goblin head from the ground.

"What the—"

The club descended on my mutter.

"Fuc— Mom...!"

Then—a flash from my hand. A deep blue system window like a spring sky popped before my eyes.

Split-second shift. Text warped.

"What—?!"

One eye exploded in electric agony, blacking out. Like my eyeball fried by lightning.

"Gaaah?!"

Whole-body torment followed—like beaten by a giant. The ogre stared at my sudden scream.

Gulp.

Annoyed, it swung down. The club would've ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠crushed me—but

Crack.

It crumbled to dust mid-swing. The ogre's hand, wrist, arm—

Splurt! Blood sprayed as its arm severed in three.

"Grraaah?!"

It clutched the stump, staggering back roaring. Its final words.

Tsssk.Tssk. Thin lines etched across its body. It split diagonally, slow then fast.

"Ha, haha..."

The ogre's dumb dying face mirrored the goblins' clueless ends.

All in a blink. By none other than...

"Whew... That ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠surprise hit got me."

Ju Cheong-ah, flung by the club earlier. Her eye bandages undone, black eyes softly open.

"A mountain of meat pulls a sneaky ambush."

Bathed in ogre blood behind its chunks, she smirked, curling her lips.

"You okay, Ian?"

Her one eye gleamed vividly against the blood-smeared face. And she looked utterly beautiful to me.