Manager App - Chapter 116: Trapping the Twin-Headed Ogre

"W-Wait a second... Master Yuhyun, where the hell are we?"

At that moment, Ena asked me with a thoroughly bewildered expression on her face.

"Come to think of it, this whole situation must be pretty confusing for you, Ena."

"......"

She silently nodded at my words.

I immediately opened my mouth to explain.

"Do you know why I came looking for you?"

"Because of the black stone, right?"

"Exactly. And it's the same this time. The twin-headed ogre here has the black stone I'm after. That's why I summoned you—to get it from him."

"Pardon? Summoned me?"

"Didn't you become my slave?"

"Ah, yes... But what does that have to...?"

"This is what it means to be my slave. Ena unsummon. Ena summon."

I unsummoned and resummoned her in an instant. Her body vanished for a split second before reappearing right in front of me.

"......!"

Having gone through summoning and unsummoning once more, she finally realized just how completely she belonged to me now. Her body trembled violently.

But that lasted only a moment. Soon, she gazed up at me with eyes full of awe.

Under that stare, I let out a wry chuckle and continued calmly.

"Anyway... We need to take down that twin-headed ogre who has the black stone."

All eyes turned to me at my words.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Here's the plan. The orcs will draw the twin-headed ogre's attention. While that's happening, the goblins, Elena, and Ena will attack the ogre. Matilda, you sneak into the cave and search for the black stone. Once we have it, we don't need to fight the ogre to the death."

"Yes, sir!"

Matilda nodded vigorously with a strong response.

In truth, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say her mission ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was the most crucial. If she got lucky and found the Mana Stone Fragment inside the cave, the quest would end right there.

"Be careful. Especially you two, Elena and Ena. Goblins and orcs can be resummoned after a cooldown if they die, but you two... you don't know anything about that. If you die here, it might be for real. So fight with utmost caution."

I warned Elena and Ena directly, looking them in the eyes.

"Got it."

"Yes, Master!"

The two responded without hesitation, gripping their weapons tightly.

"Let's go. Summon Jet-Black Staff."

I turned toward the twin-headed ogre and summoned my staff. It snapped perfectly into my grip.

Aiming the Jet-Black Staff at the ogre, I issued the command.

"Orcs, attack."

"Krraaah!!"

At my order, the three orcs roared in unison and charged at the twin-headed ogre.

Thwack!

The orcs' clubs smashed into the ogre's heads and body.

"Ow, that stings! A mosquito?"

"Not a mosquito! It's orcs!"

Despite the three orcs relentlessly pounding its body, the twin-headed ogre didn't seem fazed at all. It just stirred and rose up, shrugging off the hits like they were nothing.

Its body was as tough as it looked.

'Or maybe it's the influence of the Mana Stone Fragment.'

Grinding my teeth, I watched the battle between the orcs and the twin-headed ogre unfold.

"Orcs, you annoying bastards!"

"Let's eat 'em alive! Chew 'em up crunchy! I'll take all three!"

"What about me?"

"Huh? It's all the same if I eat 'em—I'll be full either way!"

"Oh yeah, true! Let's do that!"

Apparently, the right head was the smarter one. With their minds aligned, the twin-headed ogre bellowed fiercely and swung a massive fist.

The orcs scattered and swung their clubs in retaliation. But again, it seemed to do ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠no damage—only loud thuds echoed out, with no scream from the ogre.

"Annoying! So annoying!"

"Kill 'em! Kill 'em all!"

The twin-headed ogre thrashed wildly, flailing both fists. The orcs rolled away, dodging nimbly.

'One hit from that would be lights out.'

The ogre's power was insane—the ground cratered with a boom where its fist landed.

"Chit!"

The orcs seemed to think the same as me. They gave up attacking and focused solely on desperate evasion.

But they weren't just running passively.

"Chit! Can't you see us, you slowpoke?!"

"Chiii! Think you can hunt with those sluggish punches? Pfft!"

"Chit chit! My legs are like the wind! Chit chit!"

The three orcs taunted the twin-headed ogre relentlessly as they fled, drawing its ire. Enraged, it bellowed and chased them down.

"You rat bastards!"

"I'll turn you into jerky!"

Seeing that, I figured it was time.

"Everyone, attack. Matilda, head into the cave as planned and find the black stone."

With my permission given, all twenty-four goblins charged at the twin-headed ogre.

"What? Goblins?"

"Ignore 'em! Eat the orcs first!"

But the ogre acted like the goblins didn't exist, focusing solely ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on the orcs. Thanks to that, the goblins could pummel it freely with their clubs—though it still looked unscathed.

"Hah!"

"Kyahaha!"

Ena and Elena followed up with their attacks on the twin-headed ogre.

"Ouch! That hurts!"

"What? Humans?"

"What now?"

"Ignore 'em! Kill the orcs first! We're faster anyway!"

This time, the hits actually stung—the ogre faltered for a moment. But it quickly decided catching the taunting orcs was priority and ignored Ena, Elena, and the goblins to pursue them.

Meanwhile, Matilda slipped quietly into the cave, avoiding the ogre's gaze.

'Hope she finds the Mana Stone Fragment...'

Of course, I couldn't just rely on her blindly. There was no guarantee the fragment was even in the cave.

Shaking off any false hope, I focused on the fight.

"I'm really pissed now!"

"Me too!"

Suddenly, the twin-headed ogre roared and hurled its massive body at an orc. The orc tried to dive away, but the suicidal body-slam was too sudden—it had never expected the ogre to launch itself like that. The orc bounced off its bulk and went limp.

"Heehee, got one!"

"Eat it quick!"

The ogre cackled and lumbered toward the stunned orc.

The remaining two orcs shouted to draw its attention.

"Chit! Can't see us, you idiot?!"

"Chit chit! Don't you wanna taste this fist? Chit chit!"

Raising their clubs high, the two orcs battered the ogre. Even the goblins climbed onto its body, attacking recklessly.

But the ogre ignored them completely and kept advancing on the downed orc.

"Hah!"

That's when Ena leaped onto the ogre's back with a mighty shout, slashing her sword at the left head.

Clang!

A sharp metallic ring echoed. Her sword shattered on impact and clattered to the ground.

Evidently, the ogre's skull was tougher than her blade.

"Stop buzzing around!"

"Yeah, I'll eat you soon—just stay still!"

The ogre swatted at them like flies. Ena and several goblins scattered like leaves in the wind.

And still, it pressed toward the unconscious orc.

At this rate, that orc was ogre chow for sure.

"Dark Arrow!"

Grinding my teeth, I fired a Dark Arrow. It streaked forward and slammed into the ogre's chest, exploding violently.

"Aaaagh! It hurts! Hurts!"

"Who is it?! Who's there?! It's that guy!"

"Yeah, grab him! Grab that guy!"

"Eat him!"

Spotting me, the twin-headed ogre charged blindly.

'High-Speed Movement!'

I dodged out of its range in a flash.

"Fast! Where'd it go?"

"There! It's there!"

But it didn't stop. The ogre whipped its heads around, relocated me, and came barreling back.

I thrust my staff toward it and yelled.

"Attack!"

Everyone piled on the ogre. But it ignored them, fixated only on me.

Just as its fist swung down, I shouted.

"...Summon Ring of Protection! Shield! Ugh!"

Boom!

The moment the shield enveloped me, a dull thud like a hammer on a wall reverberated. My body launched into the air, arcing through the sky before crashing down.

Crack!

"Ugh!"

I groaned involuntarily on impact. I'd landed in a pile of bones.

This seemed to be the ogre's trash heap—human skulls, animal bones, and massive skulls like the ogre staring at me now were heaped everywhere.

'What the...'

I scrambled up and faced the twin-headed ogre head-on.

"The human's alive!"

"Hit it again!"

It thundered toward me with heavy steps.

For a split second, I seriously considered abandoning the quest.

'Wait...'

Then my eyes fell on the bone pile underfoot.

'...Let's try this.'

I pulled out my smartphone to prep for quest forfeit while stepping back.

"Human, you can't escape!"

"I can catch it!"

The ogre lunged, arms outstretched.

In that gap, I slammed my staff into the ground and shouted.

"Skeleton Summon!"

With my cry, the bone pile erupted. More precisely, twenty-four skeletons rose simultaneously, merging into what looked like one massive entity.

"What the hell?!"

"I dunno!"

The twin-headed ogre panicked at the sight.

The skeletons surged forward.

"These guys are dead?!"

"They got up again!"

The pile included ogre bones, so the skeletons varied wildly in size. The ogre-bone ones were especially overwhelming.

They swarmed and pinned the twin-headed ogre in seconds, immobilizing it completely.

"What do we do?!"

"I dunno! Get these off me!"

The ogre thrashed to shake them off, but the more it struggled, the tighter they gripped.

"Haa."

I finally exhaled in relief.

But no time to relax. I aimed the Jet-Black Staff at its heads.

"Dark Arrow."

The black arrow shot out and nailed the right head.

"Gaaah! Hurts!"

"Hurts? Not me! Heehee!"

The right head writhed in agony while the left mocked it.

'Not even a scratch.'

I frowned—then Matilda emerged from the cave.

"Nothing there."

She reported glumly.

"You checked everywhere?"

"Yes..."

She looked genuinely sorry.

"Good work. Fall back for now."

I stroked her head appreciatively and turned to the ogre.

It tensed under my gaze, still writhing against the skeletons.