Chapter 19: If You Call It Hope, Then Don’t Let It Be Lost

It had been about two more weeks since we took our rest in the abandoned village.

According to Karen-san, we were about halfway to the predicted location of the "Demon Dragon."

As we got closer to the center of the miasma, the monsters grew even more powerful.

It wasn’t just their strength. Their wariness—no, at this point it could only be called hostility—also increased. Their ferocity grew worse as well.

Monsters driven mad by the miasma would rush toward us the moment they sensed our presence.

It was as if they were trying to eliminate any outside threats to the "Demon Dragon."

I couldn’t say for sure since I wasn’t just sitting on the sidelines, but according to Raiga:

"We can manage to take them down, but fighting one after another is brutal."

And he wasn’t wrong. Having three or four battles in a single day had become the norm.

Even I couldn’t afford to stand around acting carefree just because I was afraid of blood.

The risk of being attacked while separated was too high.

So I did my best to cover my ears and avert my eyes.

I was already dead weight as it was—being protected on top of that would only make it worse.

That was the reality I was living in.

As we continued moving forward, Karen-san said:

"There should be a village around here."

Apparently, it was called Erna Village. It used to be famous for its grapes.

We nodded.

Of course, it wasn’t because we were hoping to find survivors.

If things were that bad even near the outer edge of the miasma, then unless they had evacuated, survival was a lost cause.

Aside from the first village, we had used several other abandoned ones as places to rest.

They must’ve failed to escape in time. We saw dead bodies over and over again.

Especially those of young children...

Still, we needed shelter from the elements and a place to recover our strength.

None of us said it aloud, but I think we were all thinking the same thing.

We were reaching our limits.

There was no time left to feel guilty.

And then we reached Erna Village, and what we saw left us speechless.

"There are... people in the village...?"

The words spilled from Raiga’s mouth.

He wasn’t the only one surprised—we all were.

The village was enclosed in a dome of light. The light seemed to repel the miasma, and it was clear that the air inside remained uncontaminated.

Villagers were running about with hoes and sickles in their hands.

There were also a few men in knight armor carrying spears.

But it wasn’t time to feel relieved yet.

"Grahhh!"

A scream rang out.

They weren’t outside to welcome us.

They were armed to fend off the enemies attacking the dome.

"That’s a Blood Ogre!"

Karen-san shouted.

"GAAAHHH—!"

The ogre, charging toward the dome with all its might, struck a villager without mercy.

The villager was sent flying and bounced hard once before going completely still.

Blood poured out of him like a pomegranate dashed against the ground.

The giant red-skinned demon laid eyes on a new target—us—and roared.

Karen-san quickly gave us an explanation. The Blood Ogre was a high-tier monster, it seemed.

It wasn’t intelligent and couldn’t use magic.

Just hearing that might make it sound like a weakling.

But the truth was the opposite—it was considered high-tier despite its lack of intelligence. That alone said enough about its strength.

Just swinging the club in its hands created a raging gust of wind.

Overwhelming brute force.

That was the only phrase that truly captured what we were seeing.

"Damn it, prepare to intercept!"

The crimson demon—Blood Ogre—wasn’t alone.

There were at least five of them.

Every blow from them could be fatal. Being outnumbered was a huge disadvantage.

"Yuto, stay back!"

Even in a moment like this, Raiga still looked out for me—and I was grateful.

Without hesitation, I sprinted toward the inside of the dome.

But the moment I let my guard down—

"Ugh... ngh... urgh..."

A wave of nausea surged up.

My head was spinning.

Without pause, I vomited up everything in my stomach.

Once I saw that Yuto had safely made it inside the village, I turned back to face the Blood Ogres.

In my hands was Galatine. It's only been about a week since we set out on this journey, and yet this blade has already seen countless battlefields by my side.

At this point, it’s become an extension of my own body.

Behind me stood Karen.

She was our reliable rearguard, providing magical support.

—Can we do this?

Even as I stood there, facing them, I could already tell—these monsters were different from anything we’d faced before.

If I had to describe the ogres, I’d say they were pure wild instinct, with no trace of intelligence.

It’s said that creatures evolved by the miasma eventually become consumed by madness.

And for a race that wasn’t very intelligent to begin with, their degeneration had turned them into nothing but vessels of raw aggression.

And that’s exactly what made them so troublesome.

They had no fear of injury, no sense of self-preservation—only a mindless urge to destroy.

With the power of the “Hero” enhancing my senses, I found myself instinctively assessing their combat strength.

If it were two-on-four—no, even two-on-five—we might have stood a chance.

But the reality was worse. Two against five. And there could be more coming.

The knights we saw in the village couldn’t be counted on.

There’s no way they’re stronger than the soldiers back in the royal capital. And judging by that standard, the moment they faced off against the ogres, they’d be reduced to nothing but mangled flesh and shattered bones.

If those Blood Ogres decided to head for the village—

My mind spun with one worst-case scenario after another.

For the first time since arriving in this world, I truly felt what it meant to be in danger.

“We’ve got no choice but to fight!”

If we don’t, we die.

That’s all there is to it.

I shouted to steel myself and drove the creeping fear out of my head.

“Here I go!”

Charging Galatine with mana, I raised it high and dove straight into close combat.

“Right!”

Karen replied quickly.

“O wind, call forth lightning and form a spear—pierce through my enemies! Lightning Lance!"

Her voice rang clear as she cast the spell.

Galatine is a magic blade that sharpens its edge with mana.

With ease like slicing through butter, it tore through the ogre’s club and swung down into its flesh.

—Too shallow.

It was a wound, but far from fatal.

But then, in the very next instant, Lightning Lance pierced through it.

The ogre convulsed, black smoke sizzling from its body as it collapsed.

—One down!

I locked eyes on the second one and charged forward.

This time, I aimed straight for the heart and thrust.

It must’ve underestimated me, assuming I was just some kid.

But getting skewered through a vital spot didn’t leave it much of a chance. It went down easily.

—Two down!

I wasn’t finished.

I accelerated, swinging the holy sword at the third ogre’s face—

That’s when it smirked.

“What—?!”

A chill shot down my spine, but I didn’t have time to pull back.

I kept my momentum, bringing Galatine down with all my strength.

As if mocking my instincts, the blade slammed into something and got stuck just around the ogre’s chest.

It didn’t cleave through. It stopped.

Right at death’s door, it had flexed its muscles, trapping the blade in its flesh. It was a desperate move—not even self-sacrifice, but suicide as a tactic.

The damn thing was dead, but Galatine wouldn’t come free.

“Tch!”

Then I saw the fourth and fifth ogres closing in all at once.

Cursing, I let go of Galatine.

With both of their clubs coming down to crush me, I leapt backward, narrowly evading the blow.

—All of this… just for this one moment? No way in hell.

Did they really sacrifice three of their own just to create an opening and take my weapon?

That level of coordination... it's no longer individual instinct. It’s pack thinking.

A chill ran down my spine as I ran, dodging desperately.

Without Galatine, I couldn’t afford to take even a single blow from them.

Karen—

I glanced over at her. She was casting spells over and over to support me, but the battlefield was shifting too rapidly for her to keep up.

Magic requires chanting. That always leaves a few moments of vulnerability before it activates.

It’s not an issue when there’s distance, but in our current situation, that delay was fatal. One wrong shot, and she could accidentally hit me instead.

And I was no different. If I tried to cast a spell now, the brief opening would be all it took for an ogre’s strike to land.

—What do I do? What do I do—?

I panicked, heart pounding.

The Blood Ogres bore down on me without mercy.

And then, ringing across the battlefield—

"Sooorry to keep you waiting!"

A girl's voice, bubbly and bursting with cheer, echoed through the chaos.