Ogre-devouring Wizard

The advantage of insignificance

Right before entering the level six dungeon, Noah had overheard Red Jacket bragging to his teammates.

Apparently, Red Jacket was some big-shot wizard's or guild owner's nephew. And said big-shot wizard had pulled some favours to let his nephew and their adventuring party get early access to the dungeon they were in.

Usually they wouldn't let a bunch of level three adventurers or wizards go into a dungeon higher than level three, but apparently this dungeon was special. 

For some reason, the magic officer's survey instrument could only pick up level one, two, and three Ogres so Red Jacket's team were given special permission.

And they only wanted to come to this dungeon for one reason. 

Because there was something in the boss's room they wanted. 

Something so rare and powerful that simply getting it would instantly raise all their levels.

As for what that was, Noah didn't know.

But it certainly wasn't this Ogre.

Everyone was still stunned by the Triad's death.

No sound, no signs of an attack—nothing. Just a head flying through the air the moment they cracked the door open halfway, and rolling to a stop at Noah's feet.

Nobody moved.

Nobody could move.

Something in them—something primal—froze everyone with crippling dread.

Nobody blinked as blood continued to ooze from the Triad's body, pooling beneath him.

The Ogre, with its gaze on Noah, grinned with so much pleasure that you'd think it just had the best meal of its life…

Or was about to.

“How long has it been?…” The Ogre said.

Noah's heart pounded even faster.

Did that Ogre just speak!? 

That's impossible! 

Ogres can't speak! 

It's his fear!—it's making him mistake its growls for words.

It might look human—more human than any Ogre should ever look—but it wasn't human. 

The tusks, the horn, the patch of purple on its neck that contrasted with its near-perfect skin proved it was definitely an Ogre.

Red Jacket, ever so slightly, looked at the Nixen who was on the other side of the door—same side the Triad was—then glanced at the Ginger beside him with sweat pooling on his chin.

Then, slowly and subtly, Red Jacket mouthed a countdown from three without making a sound.

Three.

Two.

One.

“Close it!“ he yelled as all three of them immediately slammed the door shut with an urgent thud. Noah remained frozen, both hands shaking.

Red jacket immediately turned to the stairway they'd taken to get down this far. “We need to run!—”

“It's rude to cut someone off when they're speaking,” a voice echoed from beside Noah.

Noah's entire body tensed. It was unmistakably the language all people spoke, but it wasn't from any of his teammates.

Another light thud echoed through the room. Noah slowly turned in its direction, his eyes meeting the ginger's head, detached from her body.

Red Jacket and the Nixen stood in shock as her body slumped over, blood squirting from her neck just like the Triad.

Nobody moved. No one made a sound.

Noah's breath shook as multiple shivers ran through him.

“As I was saying,” the voice beside Noah continued. “How long has it been since people made it this far?“ it asked.

Like as if compelled, Noah turned slowly, praying within himself that the voice was a figment of his imagination.

Instead, his eyes landed on the same Ogre he'd seen in the boss's room, with a greedy smile on its face. It was still stark naked, with the only other inhuman side of it, outside of horns and tusks, being its completely smooth groin.

It turned to Red Jacket and the Nixen, cupping its chin and tilting its hip. “Seems wiping out all the… how do your kind classify them again?… Level four… level six was it?“ It waved its hand like it was chasing a fly. “No matter.“ It put both hands on its waist. “Seems clearing out the mildly strong Ogres in this dungeon bore some fruit in the end.“

Noah tried calming his heartbeat.

It'd be stupid for him to panic and try running for the door.

Living in the slums, where someone could try stabbing you in your sleep to steal what little food you had, gave Noah an important skill.

Having a clear head in the face of crisis.

Panic caused mistakes, and mistakes could be fatal.

Red Jacket knew this, and hadn't panicked when the Triad was killed. But the same wasn't true for his remaining teammate, the Nixen.

Panic was written all over his face. He was on edge—they all were. 

The primal fear that coursed through them all was undeniable. Noah could barely breathe. Even blinking felt fatal.

This thing had taken out their fastest and strongest members without anyone being able to tell how it happened. 

It was more dangerous than anything they'd handled, and by the way it spoke, it'd killed every level four to level six Ogre in this dungeon before they'd gotten here.

Level six Ogres were the highest tier. A single one could level half a country by itself.

If this thing could kill multiple of those… then it was beyond classification. 

Beyond what Red Jacket could ever hope to fight against.

But it looked and talked like a human… humans could be reasoned with.

And worst-case scenario, Noah still had the dagger in one hand, the wyvogre's blood on the other, and the wyvogre's corpse behind him. 

The moment the Nixen messes up and tries something, despite still being cuffed at the hands and feet, Noah would crawl into its guts and hide while the other Ogre kills them.

“And I must commend myself,” the Ogre said. “After killing all the stronger ones, I thought keeping this flying fire-breather would pose too little a challenge for the adventurers I was hoping to find. But your team seems to have potential, though not nearly enough to satisfy me.“

It took one glance at Noah and ignored him, like he was nothing more than a rock. 

Thank goodness.

It turned back to Red Jacket and the Nixen.

“Before I go any further, do tell, why did you come down here?“ it asked.

Red Jacket glanced at the Nixen; the Nixen glanced at the staircase leading to their escape. Noah glanced there too.

If only they could just get there.

Most dungeons had ancient runes that kept certain Ogres on certain floors. It was a long shot considering that this Ogre had apparently killed all the stronger ones on higher floors, but just maybe, those runes would be strong enough to slow it down so they could escape.

The Ogre's smile faded; it glanced at the stairway.

“No!“ it said, “no one leaves.“ It raised its leg and kicked the corpse of the wyvogre so hard that it sent the entire corpse flying. 

In a second, the wyvogre's corpse slammed against the stairway with a loud boom that echoed throughout the room.

Dust kicked up all over, and when it cleared, the wyvogre's corpse and the debris from its impact had completely blocked the stairway.

Noah's heartbeat pounded against his ribs even harder. The pool of the wyvogre's golden blood was still beneath him.

No escape. No wyvogre to hide inside. Just the three of them, and the Ogre.

Sweat dripped from the Nixen's chin. The panic was beyond visible now. It was clear he was about to do something.

Something stupid. 

His hand twitched.

Noah stayed in place. Red Jacket grabbed the Nixen's hand like how the Nixen had grabbed his hand earlier. “Blackstone,” said Red Jacket. “We came here for Blackstone.“

The Ogre's smile returned. “Blackstone?…“ it repeated, a hint of amusement on its face.

Blackstone was one of many ores with magical properties that Noah had heard about. 

They could apparently instantly increase the amount of spirit energy wizards had and strengthen their new magic, essentially raising them by at least two levels in strength. But they were incredibly rare.

Noah hid his anger.

So that's why these greedy bastards entered a level six dungeon! They were looking for a quick power jump.

The Ogre turned to the door of its room. In a flash, the door exploded. Debris spat in every direction.

As the smoke cleared, the Ogre was standing there like it hadn't moved, but now had two black rocks in its hands.

Noah looked at the Ogre, more and more sweat running down his face. 

Its feet were slightly in a different place than they were before. 

It moved.

It definitely moved.

But… could it really fly through the dungeon door and retrieve the Blackstone while looking like it was standing in place the entire time!?

Its grin widened as it spoke to Red Jacket. “You see, I only want to kill and eat the strongest people I can find. Fighting these classless creatures is no fun—their movements are too predictable.”

A strange mix of dread and hope washed through Noah. If it only wanted to kill and eat strong people, then it would leave him alone. 

But it could just as easily kill him by accident, the same way it'd step on a rock.

“After eating so much of your kind, I was afraid that my cravings may never be satiated. So I hope this battle to be my last.“ It played with the Blackstone in its hands. “If you can land even a single hit on me, I'll consider it a loss and give you a reward.“ It stopped playing with the Blackstone. “I'll even let myself be killed by you.“

Red Jacket's eyes widened. Noah's did too.

To land a single hit!? And they'd all survive!?

Noah looked at Red Jacket with hope for the first time. If it's just a single hit, maybe Red Jacket could do it. He could hold it with his telekinetic ability and scrape by with a lucky jab or something.

The Ogre tossed the Blackstone at the two of them—Red Jacket and the Nixen.

And then the Nixen drew its bow while the Blackstone was still in the air.

Noah's heart sank; Red Jacket was visibly panicked. 

What the hell was he thinking!? 

That the Ogre would be distracted by the Blackstone it tossed!?

This is what panic does—it causes you to make rash and stupid decisions.

Before the phantom arrows could even form, the Nixen's head slid off, like it'd never been attached to his body, right as Red Jacket caught one of the Blackstones.

The Ogre smirked. “Sorry,” it said. “It's hard to not fight back when I'm being attacked.“

Blood squirted from where the Nixen's head used to be. His body toppled over.

Red Jacket looked at the Nixen's body and then back at the Ogre. Noah looked at Red Jacket.

He was still calm.

Noah could tell.

The Ogre smiled at Red Jacket. “Don't go down so easily,” it said, grinning.

Red Jacket held the Blackstone in his hand and hesitated, then he set it down, took out his sword, and cut his palm open. 

Looking down at the Blackstone, he took a breath and reached for it, sweat dripping down his face.

As he touched it, black energy shot all around them in blinding streams. The Blackstone started shrinking, inch by inch, as the blinding black streams converged around Red Jacket and flowed into him. 

A moment later, the Blackstone was gone.

Red Jacket stood, with a different aura emanating from him.

Noah could feel the sheer amount of spirit energy from where he sat despite having no magic. Red Jacket felt stronger, like he'd gone up multiple levels.

The Ogre's grin widened. 

“All right, come at me.“ It smiled.

Red Jacket took his sword and stretched out his hand towards the Ogre.

His hand instantly glowed a bright red, like hot magma. Red energy instantly appeared around the Ogre's feet, clasping them together.

“Restricting my movements. Smart,” said the Ogre.

Wasting no time, Red Jacket zoomed straight at it with blinding speed and swung his sword. Then he fell over.

And his head sailed through the air and landed right in Noah's lap.

The Ogre let out a sigh. “Another disappointment,” it said, its voice laced with what sounded like sadness.

Noah froze.

What happened?

How!?…

Red Jacket absorbed the Blackstone… he should've been a level five wizard at the very least.

And yet he was killed in an instant, in a way Noah still couldn't understand.

The Ogre turned to Noah and started walking towards him. “And then there's you,” it said.

Noah's body tensed. His heart pounded against his chest harder than ever. Every possible form of escape ran through his mind, but they all ended in death.

It inched closer with each step. “I can't even smell a lick of magic from you…” It said. “What's an insignificant speck like you doing down in this dungeon?“ Its voice was laced with irritation.

Noah couldn't move.

He didn't want to.

This thing killed all four of them in a fraction of a second.

The adventurers who dispatched every Ogre they'd met so far with ease. The adventurers who only struggled against a high-tier level three wyvogre.

All killed.

It stopped right in front of him. Noah's mind went blank.

His body stopped responding to him.

He simply faced death.

The Ogre squatted till they could see eye-to-eye. It looked at him with an indescribably deep sadness. “Could you possibly satiate my hunger?“

A tear hung at Noah's eye. “I'm sorry, Hallel,” he said.

The Ogre looked at him, confused. “What?“

“In the end, I couldn't save you,” said Noah.

He'd given up. There was no hope of him killing this thing. The timer on his heart from the king's decree would kill him in less than two hours.

There's no point.

Life had won.

“My pathetic life ends here… huh?“ he muttered, a stinging pain in the back of his throat as he said those words. “Damn it!“ The tear fell.

The Ogre looked at him not with pity, but with severe disgust. “So you're not even willing to live, are you?“ it said.

The stinging pain in Noah's throat spread to his chest. More tears fell.

“Your type disgusts me the most,” it said. “No wonder you failed Hallel.“

The stinging pain in Noah's chest flared into something else. Something that didn't let him think. He looked at the Ogre. “What did you say?”

The Ogre looked at him with an even deeper look of disgust. “Pathetic things like you can't save anyone. If I were this 'Hallel,' I'd be ashamed to have someone like you be who I'd rely on to save me.“

Noah's eyebrows furrowed. “You're an Ogre! You don't know anything about Hallel!“

“I know he should detest you!“

*Clang!* The sound of metal hitting something echoed through the room.

The Ogre's eyes were wide open; Noah felt his heart stop pounding.

His hands shook, realising what he'd just done.

Slowly, the Ogre looked down and saw Noah's bloody hand holding the runic dagger, with its tip pressed against the weak spot in the Ogre's throat.

It was an attempted stab.

Noah's heart sank. He dropped the dagger.

That wasn't planned. He was emotional. So stupidly emotional that he'd tried stabbing maybe the most powerful Ogre ever recorded in history.

He was dead for sure now.

“I—”

The Ogre burst into hysterical laughter.

It fell over, clutching its stomach, laughing, while Noah stared at it, horrified, shocked, and confused.

“You…“ it managed to squeeze out between its laughter. “You bastard.“

Noah didn't move. He simply sat there frozen, watching the Ogre laugh harder than he'd ever seen anyone laugh in his life.

It kept on laughing like this for nearly five minutes before it eventually managed to gather itself. The whole time, Noah couldn't move, being acutely aware of its ability to kill him in a heartbeat.

After it managed to calm down, it sat just as Noah did, took a breath and looked at him. 

“You're an interesting thing, you know that?“ it said. “Who would've thought that I'd let something as insignificant as you land a hit on me?“ The Ogre scratched its chin. “Or perhaps it's the fact that you're so insignificant that allowed you to accomplish the impossible.” It pondered, then waved the thought away. “Doesn't matter now, does it?“

The Ogre got to its feet. 

“Get up.“ it said.

That wasn't a suggestion.

Noah sprang to his feet immediately, heart pounding in his chest.

“It took two thousand years, but I was finally able to be hit by something with killing intent,” it said, amusement spreading across its face. “For that, I'm grateful… no matter how insignificant that strike was.“ It smiled. “And as I said, I'll reward you.“

A wave of uncertainty washed through Noah. “Reward?“

“You can't kill me, and I'm frankly tired of living. So I'll kill two birds with one stone,” it said. “I'll give you a chance at life, and take mine at the same time.“

The Ogre snapped its fingers. Immediately, the corpses of his teammates rose like zombies. 

Before Noah could get a word out, they all sprinted at him, grabbing him from all sides in a bear hug. 

Noah grunted as the Ogre picked his runic dagger from the floor and activated it.

The blade caught fire.

“Ever since I came here, I've experienced so much… curiosity. So many new things that I couldn't imagine could ever exist.“ 

It paused, reminiscing. 

Noah struggled vehemently, heart pounding with dread. 

“I have lived, and now I am ready to die,“ said the Ogre.

Thoughts ran through Noah's mind as he tried to shake free. 

Was he going to die!? 

How was it controlling the corpses!? 

It said it came here!? From where!? 

In the midst of confusing thoughts, one question escaped Noah's terrified lips.

“Who are you!?—” Red Jacket's corpse grabbed his jaw and forced his mouth open; the Nixen grabbed his dirty brown hair and pulled it back; the Triad pinched his nose.

The Ogre slashed its palm open with a look of contentment and held it over Noah's mouth as golden blood gushed out.

It slowly levitated through the air and smiled warmly.

“The second strongest Ogre.“