Ritual?" Ashima whispered, as she had no idea what the second man said—though it'd be better to just call him the man, since the first one had already been killed.
"Aren't you after us for the lotus fruits?" the man asked.
"Originally we weren't, but since you've already mentioned this ritual thing, tell me more."
She was just here to retrieve her panty, but now she was hearing about a ritual? Even though she wasn't in the police nor was she the mayor, she still had to protect the people of Taralaya from any potential danger—as an adventurer, it was her duty.
After finishing the first man, Shyam too was now interested in this ritual thingy. He might even get the chance to tame a new shadow creature if the ritual summoned any powerful beasts.
"My dream… the dream to dis—" the man spoke, but a lightning sound interrupted him midway. Not a strong one, but definitely close by. Suddenly, the cave started to tremble and its walls began to crack.
"What's happening?" Shyam murmured as they ran outside, only to see an ogre-type beast—bigger than normal, and seemingly far more powerful than it should have been.
But for Shyam, it wasn't anything more than a normal ogre. Not because he was just so powerful—but because he had never seen an ogre before, so he had no reference to compare its size to a regular one.
"I-is thi-this th-the be-beast you su-su-summoned w-with y-your r-ri-ritual??" Ashima stuttered with every word, her eyes widened not with shock, but with concern.
Not for Taralaya anymore… but for herself. She had fought many monsters on her adventures, but never anything of this power. She was stunned, shocked, traumatized—and more.
But Shyam?
He was just happy to find a T1 L15 boss—an earthly boss at that.
"I will now rule Taralaya!" the man yelled as he raised both hands like the monster was his own personal creation, not a threat.
But his happiness didn't last long.
The ogre slashed him into a tree and crushed him to the ground. He was no longer a human being—he was now tomato juice made by an ogre.
Ashima's legs shook, unable to move, unable even to scream for help. She collapsed to the ground as tears slowly fell down her cheeks.
She had accepted her death.
She had accepted the fact that she could no longer wear the pink panty she bought just a few days ago.
The panty she had investigated so much for.
But Shyam hadn't given up yet. He was fairly shocked at how powerful that beast was. Brown fur, dark red eyes that shone like they craved blood, and long claws ready to tear apart anything in their path.
It indeed was a beast.
"You want a fight? I too!" Shyam yelled and dashed forward with his steel sword in hand—ready to pierce through anything Shyam ordered it to.
The scene looked nothing like a peaceful isekai novel anymore.
It looked more like: Do or Die.
Shyam lunged, his steel sword slicing through the air as he aimed straight for the beast's midsection.
CLANG!
The blade struck its thick skin—but it didn't cut. Not even a scratch.
Shyam's eyes widened.
"...The hell is this hide made of?!"
Before he could step back, the ogre's claw came swinging down like a mountain crashing from the sky.
Shyam jumped back just in time—but the sheer force of the swipe created a shockwave, sending debris flying and knocking him back a few feet.
He skidded across the dirt, boots dragging furrows in the ground.
[HP -5] — the system warned.
"Guess dodging isn't enough," he growled, wiping the dust from his face.
The beast let out a thunderous roar that shook the entire forest. Birds flew off in panic, and Ashima covered her ears, still collapsed on the ground.
Shyam steadied his breathing.
"Alright, sword… just hold yourself together, and I'll take care of the rest."
The ogre charged—its steps heavy, its body radiating pure killing intent.
But Shyam wasn't going to just wait.
He activated [Dash], his body blurring as he ducked under the ogre's arm and spun behind it, slashing at its thigh.
This time—it worked.
A shallow cut opened, spilling black blood.
"Finally!" Shyam said, eyes lighting up—but the joy was short-lived.
The ogre turned with shocking speed and slammed its elbow into Shyam's side, sending him crashing into a boulder.
CRACK!
"Ghkk…!"
[HP -24]
His ribs screamed in pain, but he didn't stop. He used the boulder to flip back on his feet and sprinted forward again.
He wasn't here to lose.
He slashed.
Dodged.
Slashed again.
But the beast kept adapting.
It stomped. Shyam jumped.
It punched. He ducked.
He slashed at its arms and legs—building small cuts, but nothing fatal.
Then it grabbed a tree—ripped it straight out of the ground—and swung it like a club.
"OH SH—"
WHACK!
The tree smashed into Shyam's chest mid-dodge and sent him flying like a ragdoll.
He hit the cave wall, bounced off, and crashed to the ground hard.
[HP -37] [Mana Remaining: 3%]
"Damn… this thing's different," he muttered, coughing out blood.
Ashima looked on—still paralyzed.
Not just by fear, but awe.
He got back up.
Of course he did.
No overpowered system boost.
No ultimate spell.
Just raw determination.
Sword in hand, body aching, mana near zero—Shyam stood.
He took a deep breath, focused—then dashed one more time.
But this time, he wasn't aiming for a clean slash.
He dropped to the ground mid-dash, slid underneath the ogre, and slashed upward—straight across its exposed belly.
A deep gash tore open.
The ogre roared in agony, twisting in pain.
It tried to stomp—but Shyam had already leapt onto its back, using the wounds he'd created to climb.
Step by step. Wound by wound. He climbed.
"Sorry, buddy," he whispered, holding the sword tight with both hands.
He raised the blade—eyes burning with resolve.
And then—
He drove it down.
Straight into the ogre's neck.
A burst of blood shot out as the ogre wailed.
It stumbled.
Staggered.
Then crashed to the ground like a falling tower.
Shyam rolled off just in time, landing hard—but safe.
The beast twitched once… then went still.
> [Boss Defeated: Earthly Tier 1 – Level 15]
[ES Acquired – Ogre Soul Fragment]
[Shadow Creature Taming Eligible]
Shyam's vision blurred. His hands trembled. His body screamed at him to rest.
But he grinned.
Because the ogre didn't move anymore.
"…Told you. I'm no side character."
Shyam whispered, then collapsed to the ground.
The last thing he saw was Ashima running toward him, calling out his name…
And then—blank.
Everything went blank.
---
> [Level Up – 21]
A system window flickered beside him as he lay on a soft bed.
Slowly, he opened his eyes—unable to recognize the ceiling above.
Shyam looked around but saw nothing that could give him the slightest clue about his current location.
Suddenly, the door opened and a woman in a maid outfit walked in with a glass bottle on a plate.
"Oh, Sir Shyam! You are awake! Wait—I'll call Miss Ashima now!" she said, and left the room immediately after placing the plate down.
It had medicine on it.
Shyam could see exactly which herbs were used, thanks to his [HerSeer] ability.
Just moments after the maid left, a woman dressed in tight white clothes walked in.
Her steps spoke, "I am royalty."
"So, you're finally awake… D-rank adventurer Shyam," she said in a teasing tone.
Shyam was confused for a moment.
"D-rank? I'm an E-rank, miss," he whispered—the pain too much to speak loudly.
"Well, with the mayor's approval, you're now a D-rank adventurer. You just have to receive your card later after you recover properly."
"Is that so?" Shyam whispered again.
"Where am I, anyway?"
He couldn't recognize this place at all—it was way too fancy to be an inn.
"You're in the room of the mayor's daughter right now.
Which means—my room!" she said, spinning around and landing on Shyam's lap.
Surprised and shocked, Shyam tried to escape—but couldn't.
The injuries from the fight still hurt. Not as bad, but definitely enough to keep him from walking for another week or so.
"What are you doing?!" he tried to yell.
---
Ch-20