Chapter 117: The Twin-Headed Ogre's Betrayal
"......Where's the black stone?"
I cut straight to the chase.
"You after our treasure?"
"No way! Can't have it! Not giving it up!"
The twin-headed ogre shook its heads without a hint of hesitation, bellowing immediately. From that attitude, it didn't seem like it'd hand it over easily.
But listening to our conversation so far, their intelligence was pretty low. Middle school level at best? Maybe even lower.
"I'm not after it," I continued as politely as possible, careful not to ruffle their feathers. "......I'm just curious where the black stone is."
At my words, the twin-headed ogre tilted its heads. The identical heads bobbing in unison looked like a comedy sketch. I swallowed a laugh that threatened to burst out and waited for their response.
"For real? You won't take it?"
The comparatively dim-witted left head seemed swayed by my words, but the right head immediately barked at it.
"Idiot, it's obviously a lie! We ain't falling for that!"
I clicked my tongue at that.
'Guess it's not working.'
I'd tried it on a whim, but no surprise there.
'......Any other way?'
As I scanned the surroundings for something useful, my eyes landed on Elena's Charm Whip.
"Elena, come here."
"Yes!"
At my call, Elena scurried right over to my side. I positioned her in front of the twin-headed ogre and gave the order.
"Attack the twin-headed ogre."
"Huh? But it won't work?"
"Doesn't matter if it doesn't."
With my firm tone, Elena nodded and started whipping the ogre's heads with the Charm Whip.
Crack!Crack!
"Heehee, that tickles. Hit me harder!"
"Yeah! Harder!"
Even as Elena's whip repeatedly struck their heads, they just giggled like it didn't hurt at all. They even teased her to hit harder.
"Ugh....... This isn't working."
After a while, Elena flopped to the ground, whining.
"Already done?"
"Hit us more!"
Elena puffed out her cheeks, clearly getting pissed at the cackling ogre.
'Weird.'
I let out a short groan and checked the Charm Whip's effects on my smartphone.
◈ Effect 1: 15% chance to charm target on attack.
◈ Effect 2: 30% chance to ignore defense on attack.
◈ Effect 3: Creates Charm Barrier (30m range). (Usable once per hour.)
'Why isn't the charm effect triggering?'
Elena had hit the ogre over 30 times by now. Not a single charm activation? That was suspicious.
'......Some kind of restriction?'
I tilted my head briefly, then spoke up.
"Mind if I borrow the Charm Whip for a sec?"
"Huh? Oh....... The, the whip?"
Elena hesitated, probably thinking I'd take it for good. I gave her a faint smile and said, 'Just for a moment.'
"Here....... Please give it back."
"Got it."
Taking the Charm Whip, I swung it at the twin-headed ogre.
Crack!Crack!
"Heehee, told ya it tickles?"
"Ow! That one hurt! But hit me more! Heehee, feels good!"
Once it got a taste, the thing started begging me to hit it harder.
'Crazy......'
Chills ran down my spine.
'......This can't be the whip's effect, right?'
On a hunch, I paused the whipping and asked,
"Want more?"
The heads nodded frantically.
"Yeah, hit us more!"
"This spot itches—hit here more!"
So this was the charm effect.
'I thought charm meant making them all dazed and lovey-dovey......'
I'd fallen for the word "charm." But in a way, this was true charm—you could exploit them forever.
"If you want more, tell me where the black stone is," I said, cracking the whip on the ground.
"It ate it."
"You idiot! Why'd you tell?!"
The left head spilled it without hesitation, and the right head yelled in fury.
'So the right head's the smart one because of that.'
Seemed the mana stone fragment boosted brains along with stamina. But then I tilted my head.
"Ate it....... So it's in its stomach now?"
The left head cackled in response.
"Nah, it's stuck in its throat. Heehee, tried sneaking it and look at ya now!"
"Traitor! You're a traitor!"
With the left head spilling everything, the right head got genuinely pissed, screeching and spitting right in its face.
"Hey! You spat on me! Kyaak! Ptoo!"
"Argh! You spat too! Kyaak! Ptoo!"
In seconds, both heads were covered in spit.
'They spit on their own faces......'
Ingenious way to spit, really. After watching for a bit, I whipped each head once and said,
"That's enough."
Their gazes turned to me.
"Heehee, hit us again!"
"Yeah, more!"
In a way, these guys were true masochists.
'Wish they were female......'
If so, I'd have whipped them senseless without a second thought. Sadly, I wasn't into whipping fellow males.
Clicking my tongue bitterly, I handed the whip back to Elena.
"Let's find a compromise."
The left head tilted quizzically.
"What's compromise mean?"
"Means I'll only whip you."
Left asks, right interprets wildly.
"Ohhh! Got it! Human, don't just whip it—whip me too!"
And the left head bought that nonsense hook, line, and sinker. What a sight.
I let out a short laugh and thumped the ground with my Ebony Staff.
"Give me the black stone, and I'll whip you."
The right head shouted immediately.
"No way! Can't have it! You sneaky human, showing your true colors now!"
I shook my head and said,
"Pry the left head's mouth open."
Skeletons moved to force it, but...
"Mmmph!!"
The left head stubbornly clamped shut. Even blocking its nostrils didn't work—its lung capacity matched its size. Or maybe extra breathing holes.
'Oh right, two heads.'
About to order the left head's nose and mouth blocked too, the left head suddenly yelled,
"Human, let's get along! Yeah?"
"Hand over the black stone, and we'll leave peacefully."
"We gotta do it like this? The stone's precious to us too!"
"I need it too."
"Urgh, can't we work something out?"
I scratched the back of my head at the desperate plea. But considering the time and effort sunk here, backing off wasn't easy.
'Wait.'
Then a better idea hit.
'......A monster this strong as a minion could be huge for future Otherworld Quests.'
Those were monthly anyway. Better to skip this fragment and gain a powerful ally.
"Fine."
"Really?"
The left head perked up.
"Become my slave, and I won't take the black stone."
"Sweet! I'll be your slave!"
Horror spread across the right head's face.
"You moron! Why be a slave?! Ack! Don't stick fingers in my mouth!"
Too late.
Target has accepted your slave proposal.
You can now enslave the target.
Enslave? [Yes / No]
I thumbed Yes right away.
The twin-headed ogre—Rex—was now my slave.