Chapter 165: Transformation (1)

Liberta was plunged into chaos.

Three ogres were unleashing a massacre.

The city walls shattered as if they were mere wooden fences, and humans were crushed like ants. Even the army sent by the feudal lord was annihilated.

The entire country was gripped by fear.

The king of Liberta, Eliot, to respond to the situation, sent his strongest card Eto.

A knight considered, along with Jose, one of the most likely candidates to feature in the next generational shift among the Ten Greats.

Eto departed for Einharn, the last place the three ogres had been sighted, accompanied by his Order of the Brambles, of which he was captain, along with four other orders and a large army of soldiers.

And there he found his target. They were sleeping.

Eto took a deep breath upon seeing the three ogres lying down carefreely.

“…”

With his calm personality, Eto showed no sign of agitation.

“The damn ogres are asleep.”

The other knights frowned. The number of people massacred by Donchich and the other two ogres was incalculable.

An entire city had been completely wiped out, its citizens slaughtered, its army obliterated.

The streets still echoed with wails and crying. And yet, those monsters were lying there as if they were on a picnic, taking a nap.

That peaceful image only fueled the knights’ rage.

Eto stopped them.

“Wait.”

“Sir Eto, we must kill them now while they sleep.”

“They’re already awake.”

“Excuse me?”

Just as he said that, one of the ogres sat up. With sleepy eyes, he looked around.

“Uh…”

The ogre rubbed his eyes and muttered.

“Again?”

Eto slowly raised his mana sword without making any sudden movements. Perhaps it was that which the ogre sensed, because he flinched slightly.

“Fighting for no reason, troublesome.”

He seemed clumsy and absentminded. The soldiers in the rear began murmuring.

“That’s the ogre?”

“Could the rumors have been false?”

“Did that idiot really destroy a city?”

“The one sleeping must be Donchich. This one’s probably just a subordinate.”

The ogre, unconcerned by the murmurs, reached for the ground and threw a stone.

The talking soldiers were crushed instantly. Four died before they could even scream.

It happened so suddenly there wasn’t even time to initiate the battle.

Everyone froze. The ogre pointed to a group of knights paralyzed with fear.

“There. My spot.”

Upon saying that, those around him began shouting.

“Uh, uh. Move.”

“Stop staring and make space!”

“Want me to throw a rock at you?”

The ogre stood up. He was so large that his shadow stretched like a mountain.

He turned toward Eto, who was watching with a face flushed with rage, and said,

“Fighting… without reason, troublesome.”

With that, the ogre went to the spot cleared by the knights and sat down. It was a sunny place.

The ogre closed his eyes and gently swayed, enjoying the warmth.

“Perfect.”

Just as he was about to fall back asleep, Eto approached.

“A gift.”

The ogre tilted his head and reached out his hand. He received a cylindrical object that, for his size, was so small it was hard to hold.

There was a lit fuse on the tip. Looking at it closely, he saw a label.

「Explosive. Handle with care. Throw immediately once lit.」

As soon as he finished reading, the bomb exploded.

“¡Aaaagh!”

The ogre screamed while covering his eyes. The other two ogres jolted awake.

“Donchich, are you okay?”

“Eyes, hurt. Can’t see anything.”

“Donchich, poor thing.”

“Dark forehead… that’s the future.”

Eto unsheathed his sword. Fortunately, the injured ogre was Donchich himself, one of the Ten Greats.

“Now! Don’t give them a break!”

Eto rallied his troops.

An ogre’s skin was incredibly tough. Even temporarily blinding one with a bomb might not be enough to weaken him.

Eto charged directly at Donchich.

“These humans, strong.”

“Certain battle, certain massacre.”

“Sleepy fight, not worth it.”

Ignoring the nonsense from the other ogres, Eto unleashed a slashing wave. So sharp that even an ogre’s skin couldn’t withstand it.

The moment he lunged, one of Donchich’s bloodied eyes snapped open.

“Very angry!”

Donchich threw a punch. A brutal gust of wind surged toward Eto.

A chill ran down his spine. If it touched him, it meant certain death.

It felt like walking on a tightrope at the edge of a cliff.

His instincts screamed to flee, but his will pushed him forward. That inner conflict created a brutal dissonance.

But Eto was a trained knight. He suppressed the urge in his chest and advanced.

The punch grazed his head, blowing his hair aside. He took advantage of the opening and slashed Donchich’s neck.

Blood gushed out. But something was off.

He immediately felt something was wrong and retreated. Donchich grabbed his neck and screamed.

“Neck pain! Too much blood!”

His thick skin had prevented the cut from reaching major arteries.

That he could scream with a slashed neck made no sense.

“This is a monster.”

Eto retreated while spinning his sword. The ogre’s blood splattered the ground.

It reeked of iron. He glanced around.

With soldiers blocking the way, the knights fought like dwarves against giants, clinging to the ogre’s body in a desperate struggle.

They tried to restrain him with nets and chains, but the ogres dodged skillfully.

Eto understood instantly. They wouldn’t kill Donchich today.

At best, if they gave it their all, they might drive him away. But killing him was nearly impossible.

Changing strategy, he called over three trusted knights.

“Help me!”

“Yes, sir!”

Against enemies like Donchich, it was better to fight with a few elite men than many useless soldiers.

“We won’t kill him today.”

“Sir?”

“He’s one of the Ten Greats.”

“Understood.”

“So we change the objective. The four of us will handle him, and the rest kill the other two ogres.”

“Yes, sir!”

The three, well aware of Eto’s resolve, followed his order without hesitation.

Eto shouted to the rear.

“Kill those two! Donchich is ours!”

All the other soldiers launched into a fierce battle against the other two ogres.

Suddenly, one of the soldiers went flying, leaving a trail of blood.

Eto forced himself to look away. Now he had to focus solely on the fight.

“We must stop Donchich.”

Donchich, as previously mentioned, was a smart ogre. He instantly perceived Eto and the three knights’ plan, and roared.

“Cowardly humans! I despise the weak!”

“And are you ogres any different?”

Eto murmured as he stood before Donchich and raised his sword. The three knights positioned themselves to cover all four angles.

Donchich spun around, looking at each of the four in turn. He seemed to be playing.

“Humans, cowards. Humans, cowards.”

While muttering those words, he suddenly made a move that disrupted the knights’ concentration.

“What the hell is wrong with that idiot…?”

One of the knights, caught off guard, was struck by Donchich’s sudden attack and rolled across the ground. Though he managed to cushion the blow, blood gushed from his mouth.

“Don’t let your guard down! He’s a cunning bastard!”

Eto shouted.

With a mocking grin, Donchich plunged his hand into the ground and hurled a handful of dirt all around.

His massive hands kicked up a cloud of soil, instantly obscuring their vision.

“Block it! It’s an attack!”

Eto shouted.

But Donchich’s goal wasn’t to fight. He slipped past Eto without striking.

“Wrong answer. What a pity.”

Donchich had broken through the four knights’ encirclement to rescue the other two ogres.

Donchich wasn’t just intelligent, he was also an ogre lord who deeply valued his kin. Though corrupted by dark magic, his fraternal love remained intact.

“My friends! I’ll protect you!”

“Very touched!”

“Loyalty! Loyalty!”

The three ogres regrouped. Eto wasn’t discouraged. Together with his three knights, he charged again to try to stop Donchich.

As difficult and grueling as it was, he wouldn’t falter. He would simply continue fulfilling his duty with calm resolve.

“Sir Eto, can we stop him?”

From the moment he saw Donchich, Eto had sensed it would be nearly impossible to completely stop him.

If they fought him head-on, there might be a chance. But Donchich, with his great intelligence, would simply avoid disadvantageous fights and continue destroying Liberta through a mix of attacks and retreats.

“No, we can’t.”

“Then…”

“His Majesty will request aid. We must hold out until then.”

“Aid…?”

Eto looked up. Apart from the Empire, there was only one kingdom currently home to a member of the Ten Greats and possessing knights of comparable level.

“Briol will come.”

***

Liberta requested help.

But a problem arose.

The Empire declared that, since Donchich was a vassal of the Emperor, it would consider Liberta an enemy for attacking him.

And it also threatened to treat any nation that aided Liberta as an enemy.

It was an open threat. The Empire was already preparing for war.

But Briol found a solution.

“I’ve been in Briol long enough. It’s time to depart.”

The solution was Moyongchan.

Although he resided in the royal palace, he wasn’t directly tied to the kingdom. If Moyongchan moved, the Empire would have no justification to attack Briol.

Moyongchan accepted Fiore’s request.

After all, his journey westward had been for the purpose of fighting evil.

“I must leave immediately. People are dying.”

Moyongchan packed up at once.

Yuri felt frustrated. Deep down, he wanted to go with him, but since he didn’t know what might happen, he had to stay in Briol.

So instead, he assigned people who could support him.

“Simon, Guinness. I’m counting on you.”

“Leave it to us.”

“We’ll take good care of Master Moyongchan.”

Both seemed more than willing to accompany him. Since they had been training with Moyongchan, their skills had improved significantly.

“I’ll be back soon.”

“Return safely.”

“Understood.”

Moyongchan departed for Liberta alongside Simon and Guinness.

According to reports, the situation in Liberta was dire. Though they had captured the two ogres accompanying him, Donchich—the most dangerous—continued ravaging the country, alternating between fighting and fleeing.

All they could do was hope they held out until Moyongchan’s arrival.

Meanwhile, the Imperial army began to move.

By the time Moyongchan arrived in Liberta, the Imperial army had already begun its advance.

All the kingdoms went on high alert.

The alliance between Briol, the Holy Kingdom, and Brusen began to mobilize officially.

Everything pointed toward an all-out war between the Empire and the rest of the continent.

Yuri was also preparing mentally for it.

But then, an unexpected twist occurred.

Upon receiving the news, Yuri cursed.

“Damn it…”

Since returning to the past, Yuri hadn’t suffered any major failures.

He almost always achieved his goals, and preparations to face the Empire were going well.

But this time was different. Something he never could’ve imagined.

“Why? How? For what reason?”

The entire continent was in shock.

The throne of the Holy Kingdom had been inherited by a new monarch.

And that new ruler immediately attacked Brusen. And the king was not Larsson.

It was Sybilla.

She had become queen of the Holy Kingdom.