Chapter 57: The Gigu Tribe’s Reaction and the Barghests

To Be Eaten as Food!

The words sent an eerie silence through the air.

The second Hobgoblin, his breath shaky, nodded frantically, his fear almost tangible. Every winter, some of their kin were taken—devoured by the Ogres in an endless, nightmarish cycle of carnage. The very thought made his blood run cold.

The memories haunted him, images of towering, grotesque figures tearing into Goblins as if they were nothing more than livestock. Screams, pleas for mercy—none of it mattered. The Ogres feasted regardless.

Yet now, standing in front of him, Agu, their fellow Hobgoblin, had actually returned from meeting those monsters—alive and unharmed.

That alone sent a shudder through him.

He couldn't even begin to fathom what had transpired during that encounter. The idea of standing before an Ogre without being ripped apart was unthinkable. Surely, in their presence, one would be too terrified to even speak.

And yet Agu had come back.

A new, unsettling respect began to bloom within him.

Agu, however, remained composed.

"It's fine," he said, his voice firm yet calm. "It's still summer. The Ogres have enough food—they won't eat us."

"But… w-what do we d-do now?" the stammering Hobgoblin asked hesitantly.

From the tribe's perspective, it was simple: neither Ogres nor that powerful human were beings they could afford to provoke. Avoiding them was the safest course. Unless that human wandered too deep into their forest, the Ogres wouldn't care.

And yet—

"Our chief is the strongest warrior in the tribe. We have to save him," Agu declared.

Determination burned in his eyes.

"We'll go back to the village, gather all our valuables, and offer them in exchange for his life. If we show proper submission, maybe that human will let him go."

His fists clenched.

Their leader, Mukua, had vanished over two weeks ago while patrolling the outskirts of the jungle. Then, the deaths began.

Goblin corpses were found everywhere.

And from the survivors who had managed to flee into the depths of the jungle, the truth emerged—

A single human had done this.

A human so terrifyingly strong that even the mighty Ogres had fallen before him like insects.

Panic spread like wildfire through the Gigu Tribe.

There was no hope of fighting such an enemy.

That was why Agu had taken the desperate step of seeking help from the Ogres, hoping to manipulate them into dealing with the human.

But the result?

The Ogres didn't even care.

And so, their only option was to beg.

July 2nd - The Depths of the Jungle

GRRUUUHHH…

GRRUUUHHH…

A deep, guttural growl rolled through the dense canopy, reverberating through the trees like a warning drum.

Lyle stood in the middle of the jungle, his body motionless.

Two massive creatures prowled around him, their hulking forms moving in perfect synchronization. Each beast stood taller than a man, their thick muscles rippling beneath dark, matted fur.

They pawed at the earth, leaving deep claw marks in the soil, their yellowed fangs gleaming with saliva. Their eyes—piercing, predatory—never left him.

Lyle exhaled slowly, his fingers tightening around the hilt of his sword. In his other hand, he held Mukua, the unconscious Hobgoblin chief. The dead weight of the creature did nothing to slow him down, but it was still an annoyance.

The creatures kept circling him, one in front, one behind.

"So…" Lyle muttered, tilting his head slightly. "This is your territory, huh?"

His voice was calm. Almost casual.

"If I walk away now, would that be enough?"

The answer came in the form of a sharp snarl.

Lyle sighed. "Figures."

Mukua was barely breathing, his body limp over Lyle's shoulder. Terror radiated from him in waves, his breathing shallow and uneven.

Not that Lyle blamed him.

The creatures before them were no ordinary beasts.

At first glance, they looked like wolves—but that wasn't quite right.

For one, wolves hunted in packs.

These two, however, were a pair. And their forms were different—larger, bulkier. Their fur was thick and unkempt, their muscles tightly wound beneath their skin, ready to spring at a moment's notice.

Most striking of all were the horns protruding from their skulls—sharp, curved, like the blades of a sickle.

And then there were the chains.

Thick, black, serpentine.

They coiled around the creatures like living things, shifting and slithering with every movement, yet never restricting their mobility.

Barghests.

Dark hounds of the abyss, said to be spirits of vengeance and death.

They were apex predators in the Great Forest of Tob.

And far deadlier than the Ogres.

While Ogres relied on brute force, Barghests were agile, cunning, and relentless hunters.

They had been known to take down Ogres with coordinated precision, exploiting their speed and superior mobility to cripple their larger, slower prey.

Lyle had been forced to expand his search radius after nearly wiping out the Goblins in the area. Unfortunately, in doing so, he had wandered too deep into the forest—straight into the Barghests' domain.

Now, here they were.

His gaze flickered to the black chains winding around their bodies.

That was going to be a problem.

The general rule when fighting canines was simple: Copper head, iron back, tofu belly. Their heads and spines were sturdy, but their bellies were soft, their greatest weakness.

But these Barghests had black chains covering their midsections—protecting their weak spots while remaining fully mobile.

And worse still, the chains weren't just for defense.

Lyle could tell.

They were weapons.

The Barghest behind him suddenly tensed.

Its eyes gleamed.

Whoosh!

It lunged.

The force of its leap sent leaves scattering, its powerful limbs propelling it forward like a black arrow.

Its jaws snapped open, saliva flying through the air, aiming straight for Lyle's sword arm.

A single mistake, and his arm would be gone.

But Lyle wasn't about to let that happen.

He moved.

A sharp sidestep.

Then—

SLASH!

His sword flashed.

CLANG!

The blade met the Barghest's horn in a sharp collision. The impact sent a shockwave through the air, forcing the beast's head downward.

THUD!

Its skull slammed into the ground with a heavy crack.

For the first time, its glowing amber eyes widened in shock.

It had never encountered this before.

This human—he was small.

Yet his strength—

It was monstrous.

The Barghest had hunted Ogres before, had torn through creatures many times larger than this man.

Yet now—

It was pinned.

Metal screeched as the sword edge ground against the beast's horn. The creature struggled, snarling, clawing at the earth, but it couldn't lift its head.

Its breathing grew ragged.

The second Barghest had been preparing to strike as well, poised to pounce.

But the moment it saw its companion helplessly pinned to the ground in a single blow—

It froze.

A flicker of hesitation.

A flicker of fear.

Lyle's lips curled.

"Not attacking?" he murmured.

"Then I won't be polite."

In one swift motion, he shifted his grip—

And drove the blade downward.