[ELI VS. THE OGRE]

"Ah. Shit."

Eli immediately regretted opening his stupid mouth.

The ogre's glowing red eyes snapped toward him—feral, starving. Its lips curled into something resembling a grin, and its clawed hand remained wrapped around the wailing girl like she was nothing more than a broken toy.

Eli's body tensed, legs coiled like springs, ready to bolt. But his mind didn't follow. It churned, wild and frantic.

'I can't run. Not with her still screaming like that. I'd never forgive myself.'

His jaw clenched. The weight of that realization hit harder than the ogre's fists ever could.

"System!" he barked, voice cracking under pressure. "Anything—anything at all! Tools? Support? Strategy?! Just—just something!"

No response. No ding.

Just silence.

The glowing interface shimmered in front of him uselessly. Mocking him. Taunting him with its emptiness.

He clicked his tongue in frustration. "Useless," he muttered, venom seeping into the word.

His eyes darted back to the girl. She was still intact—for now. The ogre hadn't crushed her. Yet. It was shifting now, slowly turning its massive frame fully toward him.

Its gaze darkened, muscles tightening. Annoyed. Curious. Eager.

Then—it hit.

A sharp jolt surged through Eli's spine. Not pain. Pressure. Like the air itself was warning him.

His instincts screamed.

'Left arm. Incoming strike. Fast.'

He moved. Instantly.

Eli stepped back just in time to avoid the crushing sweep of the ogre's free arm. The air exploded beside him, the force nearly knocking him off his feet. Asphalt cracked. Dust scattered.

'So that's it. Elione's ability… It's not just danger-sensing and locating. It's predictive.'

His heart pounded.

'I know where it's coming from. What kind of attack. How bad. I can use this.'

Another flare. A pulse in his bones.

Right leg. Weight shift.

'It's going to charge. Try to flatten me like roadkill.'

Eli narrowed his eyes.

He didn't have strength. He didn't have some flashy elemental power or monster form or even expensive S-Class armor. But what he had was information.

'I can fake it. I can make this bastard think I'm tougher than I am. If I can trick it—just long enough—I might be able to grab her and run.'

His eyes scanned the chaos around him—shattered glass, twisted metal, the remnants of a marketplace turned warzone.

Then he saw it. A bent metal pole, maybe six feet long. A broken rearview mirror, jagged but intact.

A plan sparked.

He darted sideways, narrowly dodging another crushing blow. His body screamed in protest as he grabbed the pole with one hand and the sharp mirror with the other. The weight dragged at him—metal biting into his palms—but he held firm.

"Alright, ugly," Eli growled, voice low. His eyes locked on the beast. "Let's dance."

The ogre roared, thunderous and wild, and began to charge.

Eli didn't run.

He waited. Just enough.

Then—flash.

He twisted the mirror upward, angling it toward the sun—blinding white light caught the ogre straight in the eyes.

The monster howled, flinching, stumbling. It reared back, momentarily disoriented.

A warning flared at the base of Eli's neck—

'Back left. Leg sweep. Incoming.'

There was no time to think. He moved.

He dashed forward, not directly at the ogre but past it, zig-zagging through the rubble. Every flicker in his mind, every twitch of the monster's limbs echoed as warnings through his bones. He ducked a wild backhand, rolled under a crushing stomp, then pivoted hard.

'For a B-Class, this body is so damn weak.'

His lungs burned. His legs begged him to stop. The pole was heavy. His arms screamed. Blood pounded in his ears like drums.

Still—he pushed forward.

He was close. So close—

Ding—

[SYSTEM DIAGNOSTIC]Notice: Heart rate elevated.Status: Dangerously high.Recommendation: Cease intense physical activity.

"…No shit," he wheezed, swiping the back of his trembling hand across his sweat-slick forehead.

'Thanks, useless system. Glad you're keeping score while I'm about to get flattened like a pancake.'

But he didn't stop.

He couldn't.

The weight of the bent metal pole strained his already-burning arms. His grip faltered—fingers slipping on sweat-slicked metal—yet he forced himself to hold tighter.

His legs were jelly beneath him, swaying, shaking. His vision blurred—edges of the world pulsing like a fading heartbeat.

The ogre roared again, louder this time. Blinded, yes—but no longer stunned. It thrashed wildly, swinging its monstrous arms in wide, furious arcs. 

Eli's warning sense flared—hot, sharp, blaring in his head like a siren. He dove left just as the ogre's palm came down like a meteor, smashing into the pavement with a deafening boom. Concrete cracked. A car nearby flipped from the shockwave.

The blast knocked Eli off balance. His legs nearly gave out beneath him.

'Come on, Eli. Move. Just a little more. Just a little more. She's still up there—'

He looked up.

The ogre's grip had loosened.

The little girl, still crying and terrified, was slipping through its fingers. Her small hands reached downward helplessly, dangling—so close to the ground, yet still too far.

And then—

She fell.

Danger sense exploded in Eli's mind like fireworks—

Immediate. Direct.

Target: falling.

Location: right in front of him.

There was no time to think.

He flung the metal pole aside and bolted forward.

"Shit—!"

The girl dropped like a stone.

"Fuck, not on my watch!" Eli roared, sprinting harder than he thought his legs could manage, lungs threatening to burst, his entire body screaming.

'I'm going to make it—I have to make it—'

And he did.

He caught her mid-air, arms wrapping around her just in time—but momentum knocked the wind out of him. They crashed onto the pavement together.

"MOTHER—!" Eli bit back the curse, twisting mid-fall to shield her with his body, clutching her tight as they slammed into the ground.

Pain exploded through his back. Something cracked—he wasn't sure what. The concrete tore into his clothes, scraped skin raw.

The impact knocked the air clean out of his lungs, left his ears ringing. But still, his arms never let go.

He curled around her like a shield as debris rained down around them.

His vision swam.

The world spun.

His breath rattled in his throat.

'This is definitely going to be another hospital trip.'

Through the ringing in his ears and the blur of pain, he looked down at the small, fragile body trembling in his arms.

"Are you okay?" he asked hoarsely.

The girl sniffled. Her eyes were wide and tear-filled, cheeks stained with dirt and panic. But she nodded.

"Y-Yes, sir. Where's… where's my—"

"YOUNG MAN, WATCH OUT!!" a voice shrieked—her mother.

Eli's senses shrieked with her. A tidal wave of danger slammed into his mind.

He turned, eyes wide.

The ogre had recovered.

It wasn't blinded anymore.

And now, it was staring right at them. Its foot raised—massive, unstoppable—and it was about to crush them both.

His body wouldn't move.

His legs had nothing left to give.

He couldn't run.

He couldn't protect her and escape.

He had to choose.

"Lila!!" the mother screamed, panic-stricken.

"M-Mommy!"

And then—Eli understood.

"Ma'am!" he shouted. Without hesitating, he shifted the girl in his arms. "Catch!"

She saw his intention instantly, and braced herself.

With one final heave, Eli threw the child toward her mother.

Lila soared through the air, screaming, before landing safely into her mother's outstretched arms. The momentum knocked them both to the ground, but they were safe. Alive.

"M-Mommy! Mommy!"

The woman wrapped her arms around her daughter, shielding her protectively.

Eli let out a shaky breath.

He smiled.

His body ached like hell, his vision still swam, but the warmth that bloomed in his chest—

'I did it. I actually saved someone.'

The ogre's foot descended.

The mother screamed again, covering her daughter's eyes.

And Eli—he didn't run. He didn't cry.

He simply looked up at the sky and closed his eyes.

'Well… At least this time, I died for something. I actually got to save a—'

SLICE.

The sharp, unmistakable sound of flesh being cut echoed across the street.

Everything stopped.

The tremor in the ground vanished.

Eli blinked.

He was still breathing.

"…Huh?"

A shadow loomed behind him. A tall figure. Calm. Strong.

Then—an unfamiliar voice, bored and scolding:

"Why are you cowering on the ground? Are you suicidal?"