episode_0074

In contrast to the fact that Mathias was slowly measuring the distance while gathering his resolve, Ayla seemed completely unwilling to do so. Ayla spoke, her hands trembling as she held her sword.

“Ma, Mathias… This is not right. We have to run away.”

“No, it’s too late, Ayla. We can’t escape from that speedster. The reason he’s not doing anything right now is because even if we run away, he’ll be able to catch us easily.”

Of course, the ogre did not have the intelligence to understand human speech. However, as an obvious predator on the ground with no natural enemies, the ogre instinctively realized that it could not escape itself even if the two humans in front of it ran away, and it had already read the signs of fear from the sweat emanating from the female.

So, instead of rushing, take your time. And with that attitude, Mathias, who was observing the ogre from various angles, said with shining eyes.

“Aila. Look at that guy’s side.”

“Side..?”

Ayla looked at the ogre’s side, wondering what on earth he was talking about. The side had been slightly rubbed by the branches as it made its way through the forest. It looked a little red. Wait, the ogre’s skin was red? Ayla came to her senses.

“Professor Bearclaw said it. Not all monsters and demons are free from aging. Would an ordinary ogre’s skin be marked by a scratch from a tree or something?”

“That’s… an old ogre?”

The ogre before his eyes did not bend his back like an old man, nor did it shake its hands and feet, nor did it groan as if it were about to suffocate. Its muscles were as hard as rocks and twitched all over its body. Ayla could not possibly believe that the ogre before her eyes was in a weak state.

“There’s no way an ogre would come over to such a small mountain in the first place. Didn’t it come over after losing a territorial battle in the nearby mountain range? Since the ogre came from far away, the monsters and demons that just passed by must have gotten tired from running endlessly after the ogre’s movements.”

Ayla swallowed hard. Yes. That makes sense. The old, decrepit ogre lost the fight with the young ogre and moved on to find another place. Despite his old age, his body itself was still strong, but one of the ogre’s most distinctive features, his skin that didn’t even allow a sword to properly penetrate, was slowly losing its strength?

Ayla’s head, which had been consumed by fear and unable to think, began to open up little by little. Her vision, which had been dark as if she had closed her eyes just a moment ago, suddenly brightened. Ayla’s eyes began to scan the ogre’s entire body. Something caught Ayla’s eye, and she suddenly remembered that the ogre’s footsteps sounded strange.

“Mathias… That guy, it looks like he hurt his leg?”

The ogre seemed to be standing in a relaxed posture, but it seemed as if it wasn’t putting its weight on its left leg. Also, the rhythm of the ogre’s footsteps that I had heard earlier seemed a little off. If the guy was currently injured… maybe?

Ayla let out a long sigh. She felt ashamed of herself for shivering so pitifully. Did Mathias notice this? No, Mathias had already entered a battle stance before she even noticed. She was the only one who was gripped by fear, bound by the illusion of the ogre she had seen before.

Yes. Whether the ogre in front of them was actually old or not… The ogre they had seen. The ogre that had been treating the heavily armored knight like a toy was none other than the ogre that had been imbued with the magic of the cult of the dead. It was completely different from the one in front of them. There was no reason why they couldn’t defeat it.

Ayla detached the scabbard from her body and threw it away. She was thinking of at least reducing the weight, since her fragile human body would not be able to withstand even a graze from the ogre’s attack. The ogre, who was slowly watching the two, twitched and wiggled his eyebrows.

The ogre’s nose, which was even more refined than that of a human, immediately noticed that Ayla’s scent had changed. It was the will to fight. Two small humans were attacking him? The ogre’s murderous intent swelled.

“Keuheu …

The ogre roared with its mouth wide open, its dirty fangs clearly visible. It was just a simple scream, without any tricks, but Ayla and Mathias felt as if their whole bodies were frozen. The fundamental gap between the species was too extreme! However, even after feeling this power gap, the two did not lower their swords. On the contrary, it seemed as if naturalization was blooming in their eyes.

If I run away, the person I love will die.

Their concentration was heightened by a common thought. Regardless of such, the first to move was the ogre. He lightly pulled out the tree he had broken with his body and threw it without much effort. However, the power contained in that insignificant movement was beyond imagination.

Ayla and Mathias quickly split to either side. They didn’t discuss it much, but it was the most efficient arrangement. Ayla felt her ears ring and she felt slightly dizzy, even though she didn’t even brush against the flying tree. The hot wind that the tree created just brushed her head, but that was about it. What if she had been hit by a fist or a kick swinging with that much force?

‘It would be a miracle to even maintain human form, let alone survive…’

Ayla swallowed hard. But at the same time, she felt like it was worth it. The ogres in Ayla’s head had incredible strength and tough skin, but the speed at which they moved their huge bodies was also amazing. However, the thing in front of her was moving quite slowly for some reason.

Mathias felt the same. His eyes were fixed on the ogre’s left knee. The guy was definitely minding his leg. Of course, if he were to ignore the pain and force himself to move, he would move at incredible speed, but for now, there was no reason to do so, so he moved slowly.

The ogre grimaced as he looked back and forth between the two men who were splitting up in front of him. Not only were the small humans dodging his attacks, they were now spread out so that he couldn’t catch them all at once. The ogre’s hand dug into the ground, grabbed a handful, and threw it at Mathias.

It was made of dirt, rocks, and pebbles, and it flew at a tremendous speed and attacked Mathias’ entire body. Mathias, who had sensed the attack, tried to dodge, but it was impossible because the attack range was too wide to begin with. All Mathias could do was somehow cover his face and throw himself in a place with as few rocks as possible. Even so, he felt a strong impact as if someone was hitting his entire body with a hammer.

When the ogre turned his back, Ayla did not just watch. She ran straight from her seat and jumped into the air, slashing her twin swords at the defenseless ogre’s back with all her might. Aah, a sound that was hard to believe rang out as she struck a body made of flesh and blood with her sword.

Ayla kicked the ogre’s body with her foot, sending her body flying backwards. The terrifying recoil, as if striking a rock with a sword, completely tore Ayla’s grip. Ayla gritted her teeth and looked at the ogre’s back. She could see the marks that Ayla’s sword had made. Blood was also flowing. It was only a very small scratch.

Is that all that a sword swung with all its might can do? Ayla felt a moment of despair, but on the other hand, she felt that Mathias’s thoughts were right. It had somehow left a scar on the ogre’s skin. If it was a normal ogre, this would have been impossible. But how could she kill him with this much?

The ogre turned around, feeling the sassy female attacking his back. This time, the ogre looked like it was going to attack Ayla.

“Aila, don’t confront me head on!”

I know even without you saying it! But Ayla didn’t have time to answer like that. Something like a thick log was falling from the sky towards Ayla. No, it was an ogre’s hand!

Ayla dodged it by jumping straight to the right. She tried to cut off the finger while dodging it for a moment, but she hesitated for too long and eventually stopped swinging her sword. Ayla could already feel her entire body becoming damp with cold sweat.

The pressure of having the ogre’s hand aimed at her was beyond imagination. Not only the power contained within, but also the fact that it was difficult for the sword, swung with all its might, to tear through the creature’s skin, placed an enormous burden on Ayla.

‘Are you saying that the princess was able to withstand such an attack, no, an attack from a much stronger man, without any problems?’

Ayla laughed in vain as she recalled Leah calmly taking the ogre’s punch without moving an inch from where she was standing. What on earth could have caused such a result? Ayla’s two hands gripped the sword more tightly.

Magic, what on earth is magic power? I already know enough from what I’ve heard here and there and in class. I don’t exactly remember the exact definition of magic power that was explained in long, difficult terms, but I remember that it can make physical abilities and swords extremely strong.

I even heard that I was already using it unconsciously. Of course, I didn’t have any such experience or consciousness, so it must have been unconscious. But now, I hated that kind of self so much.

It’s already been more than half a year since I was exposed to Leah’s magic in the middle of winter and swung my sword, saying I felt its magic!

Although I couldn’t do that kind of class every day, I heard from Leah that I could feel the magic if I focused hard at any time in my daily life, so I meditated whenever I had the chance, but I still haven’t gotten a proper feel for it.

What on earth is magic?

How on earth does that strengthen your body and your sword?

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The men guarding the village were sweating profusely as they dealt with the monsters and demons that suddenly rushed in. However, it was not particularly dangerous, as it was difficult, because strangely, the guys were not attacking the guards or the fences, but rather running towards them in a languid manner.

As I was watching them, thinking that they were from Ayla’s hometown and that they might help out if something dangerous happened, I felt something strange in the sight. I handed Lenny, who I was holding, over to Agnes.

“Cosette, go home with Agnes. I guess I should go see Ayla and Mathias.”

“Are you two okay? What’s going on all of a sudden..”

“If you look at those guys running like crazy, they probably didn’t attack those two… at least these guys.”

I looked around at the fallen guys. Starting with the boar-shaped demon I had caught earlier, I saw countless animals, demons, and monsters that could be found in the mountains. These guys all ran frantically down the mountain, foaming at the mouth.

I didn’t say anything because it might be shocking to the party and the townspeople, but I could only think of one thing that would have such a big impact. It would probably be an ogre.

“..Yugram, let’s go.”

There was no way two people who couldn’t use their magic properly could deal with an ogre. They had to move quickly.