Chapter 35: Jerka’s Escape

[You regained consciousness. Opening your eyes, you noticed a coconut shell and a system message saying you had completed another secret quest, in front of you. You didn’t think about them as there was something more important! Loud noises echoed outside, emanating from the crowd that had gathered due to Elder Jerka being flung out.]

[Your eyes glowed in a faint blue as you could sense each and every person outside. You knew precisely how many of them there were and how strong they were. Moreover, you could also sense all the ogres in the camp, particularly the Ogre General and the King, emitting an enormous amount of aura, though not as intimidating and impressive as you had felt previously.]

[Unconscious for a minute, it was sufficient to draw significant attention from other ogres. Footsteps approached, prompting you to do a quick pushup and stand, flexing your muscles before heading towards the exit.]

["What happened? Why did he come flying?" inquired the few individuals accompanying the guards, all displaying confusion. "We saw Warrior Chilly entering, after that-" Tyrn managed to say only this much before you made your grand entrance.]

[Towering above the few ogres, you stood like a giant. Your muscles had become bulkier, your body more refined, and your facial structures changed. Giant tusks adorned your mouth, complementing a sharp jawline. Wide, big eyes and longer hair falling to your shoulders completed the transformation. Most notably, dark green skin now bore white lines forming a strange pattern all over your arms, legs, and body, reminiscent of the white paint barbarians would apply.]

[Upon witnessing your terrifying yet composed transformation, the two guards and five other gathered ogres instinctively flinched and took a step back. With quivering lips and trembling lower jaws, they beheld your monstrous, beautiful, and terrifying image. Whether it was respect or not, fear certainly settled in their hearts!]

["W-warrior Chilly Sir... is that you?" Tyrn asked, gulping enough saliva chunks to sustain him for about a year. Smirking in response to his question, you looked towards him, not explicitly replying but conveying the message: "You dare question me?" Instantly, he nodded along with others, saying, "That was a foolish question. Forgive me," and proceeded to bow his head.]

[Unperturbed, you shifted your gaze towards the gathered crowd. Jerka, who had fallen to the ground and injured his waist, was refusing to be carried.]

[Taking advantage of this opportunity, you took giant steps and approached the crowd. The enormous aura you emanated had become a hot topic, with many referring to you as a monster. It had started within the hut, but as you walked out, and they laid eyes on you, they were at a loss for words.]

[The crowd moved and made way as you walked, creating a path that led to Jerka at the center, struggling to stand. Amid his efforts, he sensed the enormous aura growing larger. Turning his gaze towards you, he whispered, "Warrior Chilly?" His eyes widened in awe as he took in your amazing appearance – not fear, but surprise and a minuscule amount of joy settled within.]

["Let me help you," you flinched momentarily, surprised by your own deep, abyssal voice, masculine enough to charm even the previously terrified female ogres.]

[Ignoring the reactions, you assisted Elder Jerka, lifting him up and bringing him back to the hut, reassuring that no further help would be needed. The call for the Healer ogres was deemed unnecessary.]

[Inside the hut, you placed Elder Jerka on a pile of leaves used as a bed. Jerka never shifted his gaze from you, staring as you carried him like a princess.]

["Warrior Chilly, did you perhaps...?" He wanted to know if this transformation was real or just an illusion.]

[Jerka could have pinched himself, but he wanted to hear from you. "This is the truth, Elder Jerka. Thanks to you, I have awakened new powers. I'm now stronger," you said with boosted confidence.]

[While your body still ached a bit, your immense strength made up for it. Jerka smirked upon hearing your reply. He wanted to say something else, but you intervened with a series of questions.]

["But Elder, how were you able to acquire the Dark Stones? No, more than that, how were you able to get a Dark Wyvern's blood that is much rarer than the stones?" you were setting a trap to capture the Elder off guard.]

[You didn't want the answer but wanted to hear it from Jerka. You wanted to make sure he told it loudly because you had already sensed the Ogre King's presence. The Ogre King, despite being at the pinnacle of strength amidst the ogres, controlled his aura precisely. If not for his gigantic and tall body of a monster, one wouldn't know that he was the king even if he stood beside someone.]

[Having gained unfathomable power, you had yet to learn to control your aura. It was so concentrated that all the ogres in the camp could feel the coldness. The Ogre King used this skill and sent one of his puppets to assess the situation, and now, the said Puppet was in your shadows.]

[Other than that, you also had caught up to something big. Not one nor two, there were about six puppets preexisting in the hut. You realized this after regaining consciousness. This meant only one thing: The Ogre King was already aware of Jerka's plans...]

['Then why exactly did he let Jerka use zombification? And why was he challenging the Goblin King instead of Jerka? Why didn't he take any action?' you had yet to find an answer to this, which raised your curiosity. You wanted to show Jerka's true nature right now so that the Ogre King could approach you, and you could seek answers.]

[However... because of all these series of thoughts, you messed up big time. You had promised yourself that you wouldn't make mistakes and would make everything right, but you messed up real bad.]

[Jerka had never told you about the dark stones, nor did he inform you about the blood of the dark wyvern. So the very moment you mentioned that, Jerka became suspicious.]

['How did he get to know what these are? Wait... hmm, is it a result of some new ability? Let's see...' Jerka raised his gaze and slyly asked, "Warrior Chilly, I believe you've grown insanely strong. Are you going to use your new abilities against the zombies?"]

[Hearing Jerka's question, you smiled and asked, "Zombies? Are the goblins going to bring zombies to the battlefield?" You asked this because you too realized your mistake. You realized that Jerka was trying to test you. You wouldn't know about the zombies as of now... so, you didn't answer and asked a question instead.]

[Hearing that, Jerka sighed. He stood up, and while flinching, walked towards a crystal ball while saying, "The goblins are surely going to unleash a zombie army in the dark."]

["Ah? Then what should I do, Elder? Fight against them?" you asked politely, but Hearing which, Jerka laughed out loud, "Hahahahaha, and why would you ask me that? If you want to fight, go fight, and if you don't want to, then don't..."]

[Confused by such words, you asked, "Elder? What do you mean by that? Should I not...", you noticed the Elder playing with the crystal ball. You were going to ignore that, but the next second you noticed something floating beside the crystal ball: Teleportation Crystal.]

[Your eyes widened, and you instantly thrust your right hand forward. With your increased agility, you were able to successfully touch the Elder while attempting to punch him; unfortunately, your arm simply went forward as it collided with the crystal, breaking it apart.]

["...! This?" you were startled as your hand passed right through the Elder but then noticed that smoke surrounded Elder Jerka. In fact, his body had turned into smoke.]

["Keke, good try Warrior Chilly, very good try. Trying to kill me, eh? Keke, such a pity, you were slow... way slow." Hearing the words of mockery echoing in the hut, you couldn't help but clench your fist in anger and regret.]

["Keke, destroying the eyeballs and then tying cloth to prevent me from seeing anything... did you think that would be enough?" Jerka asked. Your eyes widened when you heard that, realizing that Jerka knew about what you had done to his Puppet. But the question was, how!?]

["You knew?" you asked in a wavy voice to which Jerka further laughed before saying, "Even the wind has eyes and ears, do you think I wouldn't know?"]

["Then... why did you help me grow stronger?" you asked in confusion. If that was really the case, then why would he proceed with the ritual. But you realized it as the silence took over that Jerka wanted you to die and become his Puppet. It was quite the luck that you succeeded.]

["Such a pity. Such a pity that you couldn't become my Puppet... but fret not, I've not given up on you. Kekekeke, as my army slaughters all the ogres, I will keep building new puppets. And finally, when you die, you will finally be mine!" Jerka said in a hoarse and commanding voice, further adding, "Try whatever you can to save yourself and your race. Kekekeke, let's see how long you and this pitiful tribe survive. Soon, you-"]

[All of a sudden, a crushing sound reverberated as the three mirrors at different places on the wall of the hut were crushed into pieces. You were surprised, not by the fact that they were broken all of a sudden, but by the fact that the Ogre King's puppets destroyed them.]

[You turned towards the entrance only to find the Ogre King walking in. You had sensed him, so it wasn't a surprise. But it surely amazed you how the intimidating King now looked no different than any ordinary Ogre that you knew.]

[Standing there, he stared right at you as he said, "Warrior, you made the right decision. I'm proud of you." Such words came as a surprise. A king, personally coming and saying this... you were astonished but at the same time guessed that he came here simply to butter you into lending your strength. You bowed down as you said, "Lord, I'll do my best to eradicate the goblin clans from the face of the world."]

[Hearing that, the Ogre King smiled and without further talk, walked out.]

[The Ogre King stared at Tyrn and Bjorn before roaring loudly, "You may do whatever you want with them."]

["Ah? I can?" you asked one last confirmation as you side eyed them to which the Ogre nodded.]

[You could see Tyrn and Bjorn visibly shaking, not knowing why Chilly was advancing towards them. It appeared as if the reaper was walking, ready to serve death!]

[Tyrn and Bjorn were already immobilized due to your killing intent. They simply fell to the ground, confused as their entire body trembled. Their gaze was fixated on the floor, but soon they could see your tall shadow approaching them.]

[You had a terrifying smile on your face as you took your measured steps. With abyssal black eyes, you stared at the ogres. To them, it felt as if you were staring right at their souls!]

[As you stood in their front, you recalled how they had treated Iiaka. First, they pulled her hair. You did exactly that. You thrust your gigantic arms forward and grabbed a hold of both their short hair. You pulled them tightly, making them flinch in pain. “Argh!”, both of them screamed simultaneously.]

[Following that, you lifted their bodies while still grabbing their hair. “Kwaaarrrggh! S-stop! N-no!”, their screams intensified as the hairs started being plucked. Their loitered in the air, grabbing your forearm in the process in an attempt to be freed, but you simply increased your grip and then slammed them to the ground.]

[“Kwaargh!” - both of them spat as they fell to the ground, mud mixing along with the tears that drenched from their eyes. But this was not enough. You jumped on their back as they tried to get up, breaking their spines in the process.]

[“AAAAARRRGHHH!”, Bjorn fainted after a last mighty scream while Tyrn lost his ability to speak.]

[You simply gave a sinister smile before saying, “This is just the beginning.”, as you cracked your knuckles.]

A/N: Just a simple comment like ‘TFTC’/‘Thank you for the chapter’/’Thanks’ will also help. It keeps me motivated! Do comment!