24 Chapter 0024
As soon as the clock hit 12:30 pm, I ran towards my home like a moth to the flame. On the way, I bumped into the grocery store. Instead of stopping by for the part-time job that I did there, I just bought a few ingredients for food and some toilet paper as I had run out of them.
I went home straight after that. Although I seriously needed to do my shift at the grocery store, otherwise someone else would eat up my spot without me having a chance to get it back anytime soon, I decided to take the risk and not go to work today.
I had this weird feeling that something special was going to happen soon. I didn't know if the 'special' here was good or bad, but with the infinite power of positiveness at my side, all I could think was 'good good good'.
Throwing my shoes in the corridor and I walked in and immediately went for a bath. After coming out of the bath, I wiped myself clean with a towel and started cooking.
I made macaroni and cheese, without any special ingredients so as to save money. At the grocery store, my heart did bounce when I saw the raw sausages and meat, since it's been quite some time since the last time I ate meat. But I couldn't afford to be so extravagant when I was even ditching my part time jobs.
Looking at the plain mac and cheese, it seemed like it was shouting 'You cheapfuck! Add some meat!'.
"I am not cheap. I have become a vegetarian."
I retorted to the nonexistent voice of the mac and cheese. After eating, I cleaned the dishes and by the time I was about to login to [Mayhem], it was already 1:27 pm.
[Welcome, Flynn Grey]
[23rd March 2107, 13:27 GMT -6] f𝘳ℯℯ𝙬𝒆𝚋𝐧oν𝑒Ɩ.c𝑜𝙢
[Face recognition complete :)]
The familiar fanfare began and soon, the darkness around me collapsed as the wonder-worthy Abyss' view came into my eyes.
"Look, dad! Someone just appeared out of thin air."
As soon as I made my entrance, I heard a little boy's words. Turning back, I saw a kid with white hair, greyish pink skin, and a horn protruding from one side of its forehead.
"What?! When did you even come here? I told you to stay in the village, it's dangerous out here. The Abyss piranhas would eat you alive!"
The dad guy was almost 2 meters tall, with the same hair features as the kid, albeit a bit more threatening. He had a horn straight at his forehead, unlike the kid who had it on the side. He had overgrown bottom canines that sprouted out of his mouth.
I could very clearly see their names and the race they belonged to.
'Ogres!'
These were ogres, a monstrous race that had been depicted in the myths and folklores of humanity for ages. They were a hideous race that looked like humans but were said to eat humans, especially children.
"But dad! Look behind you!"
The ogre kid shouted at his dad and pointed at me who had just appeared out of nowhere.
The ogre dad finally turned around and saw me, immediately putting on his guard and bringing out the crude two-handed sword that he held on his back.
"A human! Kris, run towards the village and inform everyone! An ogre-eating human has come to the Abyss! Don't turn around and just run, these humans eat ogre children without even cooking."
"....."
Was this what the system meant by 'unwelcome' when it was giving the quest?
"Hey now! Don't slander my reputation like that, I don't eat kids!"
I retorted, trying to talk with the ogre while secretly taking out Eclipse in my hand.
"OH? So you've come here to eat adults instead? You fiend! Don't think I'll go down so easily! Hah!"
"....."
"Dad, run! I'll protect you!"
The ogre called Kris picked up a stick and glared at me with tears threatening to break from his eyes.
"Those fishes that you are collecting are mine. I killed them, so let me take them and I'll be gone." f𝑟e𝒆𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗oѵ𝐞𝗹.c૦𝑚
I said, trying to divert the topic when I noticed the buckets and the bodies of the Abyss piranhas.
"....you killed these deadly piranhas…? So many of them at that?"
"Yes! So put your weapons aside and go back, I have no time to kill you guys."
I said as I looked at their levels. The adult was level 49 and the kid was level 6.
"How can I believe you? Prove yourself!"
I didn't want to chitchat any longer and hence, I used [Camouflage], disappearing out of their sight and appearing just behind the kid, Eclipse pointed at his neck.
"See? I could have killed you and your kid any moment I wanted."
I said as I held the kid at the edge of my blade. I was talking to them because I saw the colour of their names that was shown by the system.
'White.'
Yes, their name was written in white colour, instead of yellow or red. This means that the system treats them as NPCs and not monsters.
After seeing the father drop his sword immediately, I let go of the kid.
"You should have done that from the beginning."
"I am sorry, I am sorry, really sorry. Please don't hurt Kris. His mother is already dead, I can't afford to lose him too."
The bulky ogre fell to his knees as he begged while crying.
"....."
Again, this world was too realistic. Even people like this ogre had a past that someone can sympathize with.
"Don't worry about it. I have come here to save a village named Rewan. Do you happen to know where it is?"
Something clicked in my mind as I realised that maybe this ogre would know whatever this Rewan village was. I needed to start the quest as soon as possible.
Kris ran towards his dad as soon as I lifted my blade from his neck. The ogre looked dumbstruck for a while before his eyes started shining.
"Are you really here to save the Rewan village?"
The ogre asked with hope in his eyes. He couldn't believe that a human had somehow come to the Abyss and was even saying that he would save his village.
I reconfirmed my words.
"Yes, precisely, I am here to save the village chief's daughter from a monster named Grivantula."
This time, the ogre seemed to have believed me as soon as he heard about the Grivantula and the village chief's daughter.
"Yes, yes. My name is Kylos, this is my son Kris. Please follow me. Sorry for my rudeness earlier. Please make haste and follow me."
Kylos said as he started running in the opposite direction of the stream. Before leaving, he gave one last glance at the dead bodies of the Abyss piranhas, but shook his head and ran away.
I put all the piranhas in my inventory just after he started running, and I followed him soon after.
After running for a while, we passed through many giant mushrooms, leaves, trees and vines. But there were no apparent monsters on the way.
Soon after, I could spot a village with large huts made out of wood and large dried leaves. Some ogres could be spotted walking around.
"Hey, Kylos! Did you bring me some food?"
One of the kid ogres spotted Kylos and came running to him. Kylos scratched his horns as he smiled awkwardly and replied to the little girl.
"Haha, not yet. But I promise I will bring something the next time for sure."
The little girl looked a bit disappointed but soon cheered up.
"Hehe, it's fine, it's fine. Wait... who's that behind you?"
She finally seemed to have noticed me as I waved my hand awkwardly with a smile.
Kylos, who suddenly remembered about me, immediately started shouting.
"Everyone gather around! Call the village chief, someone wants to meet him."
Listening to Kylos' shout, everyone around started gathering and whispering to each other. Soon exclamations rang out as the adult ogres saw me.
"An ogre-eater!"
"A human!"
"What is a human doing in the Abyss!"
"He'll eat us all!"
"Someone should go and report to the generals immediately!"
The ogres started getting agitated as every one of them grabbed whatever they could to use as weapons.
"Calm down everyone! He's not here to harm us! He's here to save the village chief's daughter and put an end to the reign of this Grivantula that eats up all our villagers!"
Kylos tried to calm everyone down, while telling them that I meant no harm. Totally ignoring the fact that I held a blade at his son's neck a few minutes ago.
"Is this true?"
"A human saving us? What a joke?"
"The fuck are you snickering for? Go and kill the Grivantula yourself if you're so brave, Chorgul."
Kylos retorted to an ogre's snide remark. Soon after, a burly ogre, bigger than everyone present with scars all over his body came running. This ogre had a goat-like white beard too.
"Are you telling the truth? This… I… Please save my daughter."
The village chief, named Kai, held both of my hands with his huge hands as he asked emotionally. It seemed to me like he loved his daughter a lot. But first, I needed to know what this whole Grivantula ordeal was about.
"Yes, I will try my best. But before that, tell me what is going on first."
I asked, and the village chief immediately nodded his head.
"Come to my house, I will explain everything I can."
...
//DreamNote//
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