The Witch's Power – The Ogre's Idle Fists (5)
Just moments before Cloud felt Bodeng's massive fist slam down, he closed his eyes tight and accepted his death. At the same time, a single thought raced through his mind. *Wait... what kind of power did the witch actually give me?* The witch's words echoed in his ears. "I divided my strength and gave it to you as the second prize." A wave of frustration tightened his brows. *No, if she gave me power, she should have explained it. If explaining is too much trouble, couldn't she at least have left a pamphlet like "Witch's Power Usage Manual"? How am I supposed to use it when I don't even know how? I've been complaining about my chest hurting every day.* During the long rant, for some reason Bodeng's fist never came down. Intrigued by this oddity, Cloud opened his squeezed-shut eyes. "This is way too slow..." he muttered, tilting his head up. His body jolted instantly. "Hahahaha..." A hearty laugh burst out. Bodeng's enormous fist hovered just a finger's width above his head. No, it wasn't hovering—it was descending, but moving with agonizing slowness. Cloud casually scanned his surroundings. Beside him, Silvia gaped with her mouth wide open in a silent scream. Far in the distance, Elena leaped across the rooftops with urgent eyes locked on him. At the village entrance, the Valentiana cavalry had frozen mid-motion, stomping down or thrusting spears into the resisting heretics as if time itself had stopped for them. "What in the world is going on here?" Everything looked ridiculously slow. The witch's power suddenly clicked into place. He lifted the collar of his shirt slightly and glanced at his back. The grotesque tattoo on his right shoulder blade glowed bright white. Everything started to make sense. "So this is the witch's power..." His body felt overflowing with vitality. He clenched and released his fist repeatedly, checking his condition slowly. A moment ago he had been exhausted from staying awake for over twenty-four hours, but now he felt refreshed and clear-headed, as if he'd just woken from a solid night's sleep. "Nice." Cloud decided to let the surging power flow freely. First, he walked over to where Silvia was sitting and ruffled her hair, praising her for crying over him. Then, planning to surprise her later, he hid in a corner and waited for proper time to pass. Kwang! The moment time snapped back to normal, Bodeng's fist slammed down exactly where Cloud had been. Silvia's eyes bulged in shock. For Cloud, this was an absolutely delightful experience. Back to the present. "How the hell are you alive?" Cloud grinned wickedly. "I'll explain that later. For now, leave everything to me." Gazing at the raging Bodeng, he spoke with total confidence. Just then, Elena, who had rushed over thinking Cloud was dead, leaped from the roof and hurried toward the two men. "Elena, can you fetch a knight? Both of you, get to a safe spot." "Got it." Elena nodded simply, her eyes wide with confusion at Cloud's strangely altered demeanor. "Don't you dare die, Cloud!" Silvia began moving, supported by Elena. While the two made their escape, Cloud faced Bodeng head-on. "Huff..." Taking a deep breath, he shouted loudly. "Listen up, you monster! My name is Cloud New Qoo Sara Pon Athran! Today I'm claiming you as my spoils...!" "Uwaaah! You're yapping so loud!" Bodeng's gigantic hand swung wildly as if trying to snatch him. In the ultimate life-or-death moment, time slowed once more and Cloud darted around with a gleeful grin. He picked up the explosive cannonball the heretics had been about to use, lit the fuse with a torch, and raced up Bodeng's hand from wrist to shoulder in one breath. "Today I am a monster hunter! This giant is my spoils! I'm cutting it into parts, packing it, and selling it back in the city!" He tossed the bomb straight into Bodeng's open maw, then slid down the arm like a waterslide, diving to safety. Time returned to normal. The bomb detonated with a massive boom inside Bodeng's body. "Gwaaak!" A thick, dark smoke gushed from Bodeng's throat. The creature shook its head with dizzy eyes, backpedaling in a daze. Kwoong! "I knocked him down, but now what?" Cloud watched lazily as Bodeng collapsed. He had damaged him, but there was no way to turn the giant's tough skin into neat slices. Cloud himself had never learned knife work, and he lacked the brute strength to shatter bone. A finishing move wasn't coming to mind. Plus, the witch's power seemed to have a limit; the longer he used it, the more drained he felt. While he pondered, the sound of hooves suddenly approached from nearby. Turning around out of habit, he saw a black-haired, one-eyed woman leading a cavalry charge, kicking up dust. She spotted Cloud, reined in sharply, and stared. Sunlight glinted off her blue armor. Cloud frowned up at her. She spoke in a commanding voice. "Marcia Bellucci of the Valentiana Heavy Cavalry! I am here under Lord Carlos's orders to rescue Lady Silvia! Quickly tell me her location!" *** After Marcia appeared, everything went perfectly smoothly. The moment the church leaders who led the village learned the high priest was dead, the heretics panicked and fled in terror. A few still clung to hope in the form of Ophelia the Hero and tried to resist, but Carlos's overwhelming force crushed them. They dropped their weapons and fell to their knees. While Carlos crushed the heretics, Bodeng rampaged inside the village. Marcia and her subordinates confronted him. Carlos rushed to support her at the same time. Two magicians from the unit bound the giant with magic chains, and Carlos, wielding his ancestral heirloom Durandal and his own Trident, easily brought down the raging giant. The battle ended as the sun dipped into the red sky. Valentiana soldiers scoured the village, dragging bound prisoners, burning loose items from homes and warehouses, and carefully collecting only important documents. Amid the bustle, Silvia met Carlos, the man she had known since childhood, exchanging warm thanks and greetings for their reunion. Meanwhile, Cloud stood a short distance away, talking with Elena. "I knew from the start you were the guardian angel. The horse you gave me in Valua, the fruit you left behind on the road, all of it was you?" "Yeah." "How did you know we would come here and help?" "Sophia." "You met her?" "Yeah." "Because of Cecil?" "Yeah. We share the responsibility." "What responsibility?" "The responsibility of making her suffer." "Well, if you hadn't taken her to the forest... anyway, that's water under the bridge." Cloud hesitated, then asked. "...Did you do it out of love?" "Yeah." Elena added. "I want to go around the world with you." "What?" Cloud's ears rang. She repeated herself. "I want to go around the world too." Cloud swallowed hard. The words he had just blurted out—*Don't die, let's go around the world*—had been impulsive, born of the moment and not meant seriously. If she took him at his word, he suddenly felt awkward about how he should respond. "L-Let's think about that later. I'm busy right now." Elena nodded obediently, then continued. "There's one more reason I was born besides going around the world." "What?" "I am Cloud's spoils." She delivered the line with a completely straight face. "Cloud said I'm the spoils left behind by the witch." Cloud blinked repeatedly. "T-That still counts?" "It lasts forever." He was shocked. When he had treated her yesterday, he had said it in a fit of rage, but she had accepted it seriously. Elves really were this difficult about even joking. "You know what 'spoils' means?" Elena recalled from her human language dictionary. "Items taken from enemies in battle." "You know it, but you're offering yourself as spoils?" "I lost to the witch, so now I'm Cloud's." She sounded completely ridiculous. But an elf volunteering to become a slave was the best part. "Fine. From now on, you're my personal toilet slave." Hahaha. Elena tilted her head. "What is a toilet slave?" "The meaning? Nothing special. It refers to a woman who serves her master with all her heart." Cloud placed both hands on his hips, chest puffed out. "Let's test just how loyal you are first." Her ears perked up. "A test?" "Exactly!" *Time to give you a perverted order,* Cloud thought. He said aloud, "Take off your top underwear right now and give it to me." "Top underwear? The one wrapped around your chest?" "You know the one. The soft, comfy thing that sits on your breasts. Bra, whatever." "Alright." Cloud had no idea why she had agreed so readily. *Is she really serious about becoming a slave?* He himself felt confused. Suddenly, she vanished without a trace. In the blink of an eye, she was gone. She must have slipped into the nearby forest to undress. About thirty seconds later, she returned. In her hand was the compression bandage she had been wearing around her chest. It still radiated warmth when he touched it. "Is this good?" "Wonderful!" Cloud secretly marveled, eyes fixed on Elena's chest. "You weren't wearing anything under it at all." Mmm... just imagining it was enough to make him throb. Elena noticed his lecherous gaze and asked. "You want me to do it again?" "Do what again?" "What I did yesterday." "Shh! Shh!" Cloud startled and pressed his finger to her lips. "Don't say things like that casually. Especially not in front of that woman. Got it?" He pointed toward Silvia, who was still chatting in the distance. "This is a secret! A secret!" "Who is that woman?" "Your superior physique slave, even better than Elena~" "You little brat..." Although her human language was clumsy and she looked young, Elena had lived for a full 130 years. Over that long time she had accumulated plenty of experience and knowledge, so Cloud's playful teasing felt like an adorable grandchild's antics. "You want to date me?" "Not dating. It just happened." "Then why were you trying to have sex?" "H-Have sex...?" The word felt strange, and he paused. "You saw that too?" "Yeah." "When those heretics surrounded you, why didn't you help? You got captured for nothing." "I hate it when Cloud cheats. I was angry because he had sex with another woman." It was pure jealousy. "Honestly, I wish that woman were dead." A woman's jealousy was truly cruel.