Chapter 443
Chapter 443
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 443
>Chapter Title: Triem's Grand Banquet
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Thud!
Boom!
Boom!
The faster Bone Rattler ran, the worse it was for Kang Seol and his group inside the lunchbox basket.
"Just a bit slower... urp...."
Sindio in particular couldn't keep it together, seasick from the speed.
"Uwaaak! That way!"
"You're so mean... urp...."
Gian callously shook off Sindio's hand clinging to his shoulder as he fled.
In the meantime, Bone Rattler's speed gradually slowed.
"Haa... haa... Are we there yet?"
"Seems like it."
"A grand feast for the Triem Ogres... What a rare experience."
"I hope we weren't invited as food."
"Ogres might... actually do that."
"Scary...."
"I'll stay by your side!"
"You ran away earlier!"
"That was because it looked like you'd puke everywhere... Just spare me that."
"Ugh...."
Thud...
Bone Rattler set down the lunchbox basket.
"Get out."
"Thanks to you, we arrived comfortably."
Kang Seol's group realized they'd been let off not at a throne, but in a massive plaza.
Roooaaar-!
Kwaaaah-!
Everyone's hairs stood on end at the sight of the ogres roaring in cheers.
"...We really are food, right?"
"The odds just went up."
"Um, if it's not rude, can I faint right now?"
"Ogres eat the fainted ones first."
"Liar! You just made that up!"
"I did, just now."
While Gian and Sindio bickered among themselves, Kang Seol surveyed the surroundings.
'All the Triem Ogres gathered here?'
Killing intent walled off every direction. Countless ogres.
'...With this many, they could even take on the Federation.'
If they steeled themselves for death and clashed with the Federation, blood would flow like rivers—that was the hunch.
Gian clicked his tongue.
"They've grown even stronger. Strangely... heterogeneous feeling though...."
"I agree."
Heterogeneous feeling.
"Can you explain it?"
"If I had to put it...."
Kang Seol tilted his head as he replied.
"Order?"
"...Yeah. That's exactly what I felt."
Order—something ogres shouldn't have.
It fit with ruthlessness and chaos, but not with anything orderly.
More precisely, it was hard to accept.
"More than that, look at that."
"Am, amazing!"
Sindio gasped in admiration at where Gian's finger pointed.
Trees of absurd size were haphazardly carved up and piled in the plaza's center.
"Are they planning to burn a mountain?"
"Looks like they felled an entire forest...."
As Gian and Kang Seol smiled wryly, the one who'd invited them here revealed himself.
Boom...
Boooom...
The king of Triem, Fatty.
Kang Seol felt the heterogeneous aura from the ogres even stronger from him.
'...Can't gauge his strength.'
It had been quite a while since he couldn't read an opponent's power.
"You're here! The crunchy ones!"
"...Thank you for the invitation."
As Kang Seol bowed his head, the rest of the group followed suit.
"What did he say...."
"Shh...."
Gian blocked Sindio from asking Kang Seol.
"You're the first crunchies to attend the grand feast! How about it?"
Since Kang Seol couldn't pinpoint the other's intentions, he responded as politely as possible.
"It's an honor like no other."
"Hon... honor? Krhahahahaha! Honor! Yes, honor! Right!"
For some reason, it seemed like a likable statement, as Fatty welcomed Kang Seol's group.
"I'll show you something amazing! The splendor of the grand feast! Bring it!"
Thud...
Thud...
Thud...
Ogres wheeled in something impaled on massive logs atop a cart.
"My god...."
"......"
There were too many shocking reasons; it was a scene where you had to pick just one to be stunned by.
'A cart?'
It was too big and crude to call it a human cart. And that crudeness created the same heterogeneous feeling as before.
'They're... imitating humans?'
Ogres were a stretch to call a different race. With no交流 or communication, they were classified as monsters.
Yet the Triem Ogres were now absorbing human civilization.
"D-do you see that? It's a spirit... definitely a spirit!"
"Unbelievable... How did they catch something that huge?"
A massive wild boar.
'Motutu... the boar spirit.'
The sacred mountain Horus teemed with monstrous beings. Called spirits, they were revered as demigods by the Deci tribe living there.
In other words, they'd brought a demigod's carcass to the grand feast. Now the mountain of firewood made sense.
One might feel barbarism and rage at ogres hunting a sacred being, but Sindio reacted differently.
"It's Motutu... the sacred boar. I heard recently it turned Horus upside down."
"Horus?"
"Yes. Rumors say Motutu fell to corruption...."
Kang Seol thought that plausible.
No matter how strong ogres were, they wouldn't expedition to spirit-filled Horus just to hunt Motutu.
"But still, they're going to... roast and eat Motutu now?"
Fatty said to Kang Seol.
"Impressive, right?"
"Isn't that Motutu?"
"Pig rampaged in kingdom! Smashed skulls! Many ogres died."
"...Impressive."
Pure admiration.
Not lip service.
"Many died but... fine! More meat to share!"
Whoosh...
A massive fire roared to life.
From the roof of a collapsed kingdom building, Kang Seol's group watched Motutu roast over the flames.
[Triem's Grand Banquet begins!]
[Participating in Triem's Grand Banquet permanently increases all stats by 10.]
"...The spirit's going into the fire."
"Hot...."
Gian said to Sindio.
"Think positive. Where else can you taste spirit meat?"
"Yeah, I guess?"
As Kang Seol's group stared into the flames, Fatty spoke up.
"Crunchy."
"Me?"
"Yeah, Fatty hungry. Can't wait for pig. Want to eat you."
"......"
As killing intent leaked from Fatty, he soon shook his head side to side.
"Nooo... nooo... Smartie said no eat."
"...Smartie?"
"Fatty no understand crunchy. Smartie understands crunchy. Call Smartie."
Fatty shouted.
"Smartie!"
Kwaaaaa...
Deafening cheers.
Everyone's eyes went wide from the eardrum-shattering shock, but the appearance of Smartie that followed was even more shocking.
Step...
Step...
An ogre appearing while glancing warily around. But something was off.
"Huh? He's small?"
"Too small. Fatty's kid?"
Far bigger than humans, but compared to ogres, child-sized.
Smartie approached Kang Seol's group and said.
"Hello, I'm Smartie."
"......"
"......?"
"He... he talks...."
Unlike Fatty, Smartie spoke human language. Politely, even.
"You can speak human language?"
"It's embarrassing, but yes."
Sindio's jaw dropped.
"Never thought I'd live to hear an ogre speak...."
Fatty looked at Kang Seol and said.
"Smartie came from same belly as me! Fully grown!"
Meaning he was fully grown yet still small.
"Small but smart! Talk to Smartie!"
"......"
Kang Seol said to Smartie.
"I know it's rude, but you look different from typical ogres."
"Isn't he? Size... and speech too."
Kang Seol closed his eyes.
Irregular.
Smartie was an irregular.
A blatant outlier.
Like the giant Jamad born in a remote troll tribe, a bizarre one had emerged amid Triem's stinking ogres.
"I negotiated with those council folks. Sorry for lying that they used magic."
"...I see."
"And I sent you to follow them."
Sindio clicked her tongue.
"No wonder it was suspicious they weren't eating us. They are... ogres, after all."
Kang Seol hadn't yet defined Smartie's existence.
Fatty subtly wary of harming Smartie. It indirectly showed Smartie's status wasn't low.
"Smartie, genius!"
Smartie shook his head at Fatty's words.
"I'm just average. Not a genius or anything."
Kang Seol caught every word.
Not a genius—that self-deprecating assessment was somehow scarier.
If ogres had even average human intelligence and self-control, the continent's map would be completely redrawn.
Guys who crushed spirits with raw fury alone.
"If I may ask your age?"
"We don't count years. No such system to begin with."
"...I see."
"But you're curious about Triem, right?"
"......"
"If not, sorry. That's the only reason I could think of for asking age."
Smartie grasped Kang Seol's intent from one sentence.
"...Yes."
"I'll answer. What do you want to know?"
"What happened in Triem."
"Hm...."
"Did ogres really bring down the human kingdom?"
Smartie smiled.
"I planned Triem's fall."
"...I see."
With Triem's power intact, how it fell in an instant wasn't clear—ogres destroyed it, but why?
"They ignored our warnings. Ruthlessly logged our mountain home."
"That why you destroyed them?"
"When home and food vanish, ogres die. Humans too, right? We warned repeatedly. They ignored us."
Survival.
That was the reason.
Kang Seol had no desire to defend Triem, so he asked.
"How'd you invade? Not a terrain to fall overnight."
"To humans, no. But... to ogres, yes."
Smartie explained in detail.
"Triem's terrain hugs mountains on the outskirts. Cut supply lines, it's isolated. And peaks cross over the capital—naturally formed... stone bridges?"
Stone bridges over the kingdom.
That checked out.
But what relation to the fall?
"Drop from those bridges, you land right here."
"...Pardon?"
"No damage straight into the capital."
"No way... those bridges look plenty high."
Distance-wise, a human would shatter every bone on impact.
"Not as high as it looks. And with bouncy fruits strapped all over for cushioning, no fatal injuries."
Smartie answered casually.
"What... muscle aches, bruises at worst...."
Ogre bones, muscles, tendons—all mysteries.
Barring mindless beasts and dragons, they had the pinnacle of physiques.
"...Ogres dropped into Triem."
Kang Seol defined Smartie.
'Dangerous guy.'
Whether intelligent ogres benefited or harmed humans was unknown, but Smartie was definitely dangerous.
"You're looking at me strangely."
"...Honestly, yes. You feel dangerous."
"We do what we must to survive. Like you humans."
He didn't seem particularly malicious. Kang Seol hoped that power went to good use.
"Can't we have a good relationship?"
"Good relationship?"
"Like... friends."
"What would friends with wanderers get you...."
"No, you're not wanderers."
Smartie stared at Kang Seol.
"Especially you."
"Making us chase the council—was that a test too?"
"Oops, caught me."
The clash with the council was Smartie's test. Probably talked to whichever side survived.
"...No reason to refuse. Refuse and we'd be threatened here."
"No such intent. But won't stop you thinking that. So... friends now?"
"Haa... Guess so."
Smartie stepped back briefly, then returned lugging a massive box.
Boom...
"Triem kingdom treasures inside. All human-made. Take what you need."
Kang Seol eyed him suspiciously.
"What's the meaning?"
"Treaty commemorative gift."
"Treaty? Isn't that too grand?"
"You're no ordinary folk, right? Exchange with extraordinaries warrants treaty. No need to open here."
The box slipped into Kang Seol's inventory.
"We're useful to you. You're useful to us."
"Won't make excessive demands under treaty pretext?"
Smartie smiled.
"Friends need only goodwill. Refuse if you want."
"Friends, huh...."
Kang Seol extended a hand to Smartie.
"Kang Seol."
"Smartie, friend."
Smartie said to Fatty.
"Success, King! We'll have relations now too."
"Good job! Smartie! Diplomacy's yours!"
Kang Seol wondered if this qualified as diplomacy but let it go.
"Now Kang Seol's our friend."
"What? Friend? What's friend?"
"Allies who aid each other."
"Oh!"
Fatty extended a hand.
"Fatty your friend too, Kang... Seol?"
"...Yes."
Kang Seol's fist touched Fatty's finger.
Then, message windows rang.
[Charm activates. Gain additional affinity.]
[Acquire gray ally 'Advisor Smartie.']
['Advisor Smartie's' rank is unknown.]
[Gray allies' actions cannot be predicted.]
[Gray allies sow seeds of ruin yet also carry salvation's tidings.]
[Adventures with gray allies may alter in content.]
'Another gray ally....'
Inscrutables were gathering around.
"Fatty obeys only Smartie! Ignore Smartie, Kang Seol gets eaten!"
"...Yes."
"Bring meat! Friend hungry!"
Fatty, stomach growling himself, used Kang Seol as excuse.
Thud...
Thud...
Riiip-!
He rose and tore off Motutu the boar spirit's thigh.
Sluuuurp-!
He chomped a huge bite, then piled the remaining meat high in Kang Seol's bowl.
Despite it not being a small bowl.
"Friends share."
Kang Seol bit into the shared meat, sensing refusal would be rude.
That instant.
Ecstatic aroma slammed his nose!
[Consume boar spirit Motutu's meat.]
[Magnificent! A magnificent taste!]
[Tremendous inspiration floods your mind.]
[Cooking proficiency surges!]
[Lost appetite returns!]
[Permanently, all stats +5% in sated state.]
[Permanently, strength +50.]
Explosive message barrage.
But none topped what followed.
[Charm activates. Gain additional affinity.]
[Acquire ally 'Ruler of Triem Fatty.']
['Ruler of Triem Fatty's' rank is transcendent.]
Kang Seol looked up at the ogre ruling this fallen kingdom.
"Crunchy friend! Tasty?"
Triem's fall probably had more than one reason.