Chapter 72
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: The Star Shines Brighter at Night
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Did my words about sparing him sound that ridiculous? The Ogre King let out a bizarre laugh.
Grraaaah-.
As the beast grinned, blood trickled from its lower lip, pierced by its own fangs.
"Hu... man."
"Yeah. I figured you could talk."
Oh man, I'm out of breath.
"No... t... bad."
"What the hell, 'not bad'? What about it?"
"Short... words."
"Yeah, mine are short. Yours are long. Bet your dick's huge too, huh? Pants must be bursting. You get excited and hard just thinking about fighting?"
Oh god, this wasn't supposed to turn into cheap taunts.
Screw it, if it works, great. If not, whatever.
"Ti... me... wa... sting."
"Argh, frustrating. Waiting for you to finish is gonna kill me. But go on. I'm generous, so I'll wait."
I am generous, but I had another reason.
It's a perfect chance to catch my breath. No reason to rush him, right?
'Survive first, worry later.'
As I regulated my breathing, the purple haze in my vision gradually faded.
It was progressing very slowly, but that was fine.
Going from madman to normal is never easy.
The Ogre King spoke slowly, so I'd have plenty of time to breathe.
"Ma... ny... of... us... died..."
"Sorry about that."
Kuoooh-?
The Ogre King let out a monstrous sound of bewilderment.
What, has this guy never seen someone apologize before?
"I'm apologizing because it's warranted. A lot of your kind did die, didn't they? When you've done something wrong, you apologize first—that's normal. I'm a Holy Knight who knows manners. Acting all 'deal with it' is for idiots. That's not pride; it's victim mentality and a weakling's defense mechanism."
Kuoooh...
Killing intent flashed in the Ogre King's eyes.
Guess my words were too complicated.
"That doesn't mean I'm repentant or anything. No regrets. If it happened again, I'd kill your kind all over. That's—"
I couldn't finish and hurled myself backward.
The Ogre King's axe had blurred into motion.
There was nowhere else to dodge.
I couldn't see behind me, so I backflipped to secure my view.
The world inverted, but I avoided the axe aimed at my head.
"Hey, you bastard! You're the Ogre King, right? Is this how you repay me for waiting while you talked? Attacking sneakily while I'm speaking?!"
Kuwaaah-!
Damn, I was just trying to talk it out, but it didn't land at all. Hopeless case.
The Ogre King's kick came flying.
I spun my body and dodged by a hair's breadth.
Thud-.
It was a ferocious kick.
The air tore with a vicious sound.
'Even an apology pisses it off. Monsters have no principles.'
If you've done wrong, apologize immediately. If there's a misunderstanding, resolve it through talk. That's essential for any intelligent, moral being.
They committed violence themselves but won't accept an apology?
"Apology withdrawn."
Won't apologize next time.
Monsters have trash personalities. Note to self.
My lower abdomen churned like I was on the verge of explosive diarrhea.
Toolsep was boiling violently inside me.
I understood—it activated to fight a monster like the Ogre King—but this was overkill.
It was a power breathing inside me, yet too much to handle alone.
'Why won't my breathing settle?'
The breath I'd barely calmed went ragged again.
Shit.
Toolsep inside, Ogre outside.
Talk about annoyances sandwiching me.
My Holy Knight brain spun furiously, matching the rampaging elixir.
Desperation to survive piled thought upon thought.
I'd roughly grasped Toolsep's effects and side effects from the journey so far...
Random thought in this mess, but something I'd always wondered: why was Toolsep in the sanctuary?
No way the mint-loving heretic bastards foresaw my arrival and left it as a prank.
'Hmm... total mystery.'
Silver Star and I had racked our low-IQ brains whenever we could, but no conclusions.
'Maybe beating some Holy Knights will reveal the answer?'
Holy Knights, coming for you soon.
Boom-!
Oh god, almost got smashed.
Let's handle this first.
The axe, bigger than my torso, cleaved the ground as it split the air.
Wielded by a giant over six meters tall, its power was terrifying.
Clap! Clap!
When slicing empty air, it made a sharp crack like slapping a bald head with a wide palm.
Ugh, brutal.
Grrrrraaaah-!
I needed to focus on the king, but the minions were swarming too.
Silver Star would've mocked me if she were here.
Kalruk's fate is Kalruk getting wrecked! Or something.
"Fuck off-!"
Groooowl-!
Even those guys far off were causing chaos.
My eyes instinctively darted that way.
Vicious instinct, chronic condition.
Even when I couldn't focus on the enemy in front, any disturbance made me scan others—like a firefighting maniac.
Because of it, my train of thought on Toolsep's origins and beating Holy Knights for info derailed.
Ibu and Hama were venting on the armored ogre I'd frozen.
They'd somehow toppled the huge brute and were hacking it with axes, biting it.
'Crazy bastards.'
I jumped and rolled, cheering them on inwardly.
'Yeah, you need a punching bag. Kill that one at least.'
I wasn't too worried if the armored ogre died and revived.
Divine power would consume it.
"Wha—!"
I wanted to yell, but it was impossible.
No room for dramatics in the king's attack range.
The minions' encirclement was tight too.
I rolled and leaped through their midst.
This was like a stray cat trapped among big neighborhood thugs, forced to perform tricks.
'No treats, and they keep making me dance!'
The reinforcements atop the walls buzzed too.
Holy Knights strained pulling siege crossbow strings.
"Steron, hang in there."
"Roginin, don't push yourself. Your wounds are deep."
Even they tired cranking the mechanical weapons.
Roginin apparently hadn't recovered from clashing with me.
Yuderg had drawn his sword to command archer thieves, but yelled so much his voice was hoarse.
"Fire—ar—! Ahem!"
That frail guy can't even shout properly.
What kind of knight has such a weak vocal cord?
Of over twenty arrows, only five or six flew straight.
One was from Fred. A swordsman good with bows—experience counts, especially where it means survival.
Kruk and... uh, what's that mute guy's name?
Anyway, the speechless one distributed arrows to thief archers.
'Where's Requiya?'
Couldn't sense the demon's mana, so I sharpened my sight and barely spotted him.
Requiya Lance stood on the wall, muttering nonstop. Nosebleed streamed from lips to chin—quite the sight.
Another thief supported the unsteady Requiya.
'Pushing too hard, punk.'
Demonic curses aren't free like magic.
They stake mana and charge life force as interest.
Ogres were huge and tough foes; Requiya was definitely overdoing it.
'That demon's lifespan just shrank by a decade.'
Observing, questioning, muttering.
Handling Silver Star's share too, all by myself.
I'm a loyal Holy Knight, so I do this stuff.
'I command thee—.'
Even rolling on the ground, my sword never rested.
Stabbed the giant's Achilles, slashed its ankle.
Knife thrust into the massive ogre's gap!
'—mint toothpaste—.'
My blade, which pierced easily at first, now met resistance.
Damn it. Toolsep rampaged wildly, but my body couldn't keep up.
Silver Star's absence as coordinator hit bone-deep.
'Just bolt?'
No. Might survive now, but getting trapped means starvation hell.
And that's not the end.
Once the gates open, ogres take the fortress.
Hellite has no regrets, but popping up, claiming the fort, then losing it to ogres in a day? I'd die with eyes open. Too embarrassing.
I know shame and propriety.
Groooaaaaah-!
Kuwaaah-!
'Oh, nice.'
A few minion ogres started attacking the king.
Requiya's curse finally took hold.
'Bit late, but better than nothing.'
A breather appeared.
I rolled aside from the king's swing, then leaped onto a dead ogre's back to leap again.
My left thigh had long lost sensation.
Toolsep was gnawing its nerves bit by bit.
I sent magma's power to my leg to counter with heat.
Toolsep was overflowing anyway; might as well use some.
All or nothing.
My thigh warmed, and my foggy mind cleared a bit.
Pain countered with pain.
Instant relief in emergencies.
'Silver Star, what now?'
What do you mean what? Fight! Kill!
Kill 'em all, and Kalruk lives!
'Aha! No other way, huh?'
Obviously!
I swung low, crouched flat.
The ogre with split calf muscles howled and toppled.
Dust rose, blanketing the grass.
A deep purple shadow fell over its bulk.
'Held up well so far.'
The sun was setting.
The Holy Knight fighting in a purple world met an even purpler sunset.
Amid the gorgeous dusk, one star blinked fiercely, undimmed.
I gritted my teeth, glaring at the beast.
'Not giving up, you fucker.'
I knew it well.
If it let me go here, I wouldn't feel my heaving chest's pain.
No hunger, no urge to shit.
'Wait, that sounds nice? Silver Star always freaks out when I poop, embarrassing.'
No, no.
I shook my head inwardly while dodging every which way.
'If Toolsep eats me, Silver Star and Luke are done for too.'
Screaming through it was possible, but giving up easy was cowardice.
Resolve to lose a finger, and you save your neck. Arm or leg maybe.
Ah, not saying I'd actually shed limbs like a lizard.
Just no intention of dying helplessly.
Kwaaaah-!
The king's face was poisonously furious.
Backstabbed by minions—who could blame it?
The monstrous bastard hacked minions with its axe, ripped arms off.
After felling over a dozen, the king caught its breath—and its axe targeted my neck again.
Seemed it blamed me for driving its minions mad.
Grateful misunderstanding.
'Running till exhaustion is stupid.'
I eyed the lightning axe plunge. Opened my vision to starlight.
'Born of starlight. Stars shine brighter at night...'
This time, I didn't dodge—I met it with my sword.
Front legs bent, back stretched straight—.
Kwaaaang-!
'Whoa—! Electrifying!'
One clash tore my palms.
But my sturdy legs held firm.
Whoooosh-.
Gale whipped from me outward.
Grass flattened around, pebbles flew.
Blood-smeared ogres staggered back unsteadily.
'Head's cooling a bit.'
The blood gleaming in sunset spoke.
The hot trickle down my skin warned.
Shape up, or lose more blood!
'Sounds just like Silver Star yelling.'