Chapter 61: Offer

Chapter 61: OfferThe echoing clang of the cell door closing behind them was a stark contrast to the sudden silence that enveloped Jinx and the girl. Jinx’s gaze immediately darted to the unguarded exit, a path to freedom tantalizingly within reach.

"The guards must be defending the city," Jinx muttered, a hopeful whisper. But before her feet could propel her forward, the girl’s small hand gently yet firmly grasped her own, halting her in place. Jinx turned, a perplexed expression etched on her face.

"What happened, Little Dragon?" she asked, her voice laced with confusion.

The girl didn’t answer with words, instead, she pointed a finger towards the other cells, rows upon rows stretching before them, easily more than twenty in number. Jinx’s eyes widened in disbelief, then narrowed.

"Are you kidding me?!" she exclaimed, her voice rising in exasperation. "We haven’t even escaped, and you want us to carry more?!"

"They are just like us," the girl said, her voice surprisingly calm and steady. "We don’t have to lead them out, as long as they can leave the dungeon, they won’t be our problem. We just need to open the cells."

Jinx let out a long, dramatic sigh. "Sometimes I wonder if you’re just a 12-year-old," she mumbled under her breath. Her head then swivelled towards the cell they had just vacated, her eyes landing on the lifeless forms of the guards within. A glint of metal caught her attention – keys.

She strode back into the cell, a determined glint in her eyes, and retrieved the keys from one of the fallen guards. As an afterthought, she began searching the Ogre’s body, her hands moving quickly and efficiently.

"Lucky!" she declared, her voice laced with triumph as she pulled a sleek dagger from the Ogre’s side.

"Aren’t those better?" the girl asked, pointing to the two broadswords lying on the ground.

Jinx scoffed. "I don’t like swords... They’re slow to kill." She walked back towards the girl, the dagger now securely in her grip.



"Now... Let’s get to work."

With that, she turned her attention to the numerous cell doors awaiting their liberation.

____

BOOOOM!!!

The Ogre King stood upon the war-scarred wall, his massive frame rigid with shock. Above, twenty battleships, were currently unleashing devastating barrage upon his city. Buildings crumbled into dust, and the screams of the dying echoed amidst the explosions.

"This?!" the King thundered, his voice a guttural growl.

"The Beastify nation shouldn’t have so many battleships! Even if they do, why the fuck did they also bring Warships?!" His gaze fixed on ten monstrous warships, hovering high above the sky, a hundred miles from their beleaguered city.

"My King!!"

He swung his head over his shoulder as his two Ogre commanders, their faces streaked with grime and fear, rushed towards him.

"Send word, we are retreating... Take the girl and our new prisoner..." he barked, his orders swift and decisive.

".....?!"

"Huh?"

The two commanders exchanged stunned glances, their expressions a mixture of disbelief and confusion.

Seeing their hesitation, the King’s roar intensified:

"Are you deaf?!!! Look!"

He pointed an enormous finger towards the distant sky. The two followed his gaze, their eyes widening as the ten warships began to advance, their immense forms growing larger with each passing moment.

"Only the battleships are causing this much damage!! If those Warships get even twenty miles close, this city will be flattened!!" he bellowed, desperation creeping into his voice.

WHOOSH!!

The three Ogres looked up in unison, a collective gasp escaping their lips as a battleship flew directly towards their position on the wall.

"Shit!" the King cursed, his eyes narrowed as the battleship’s formidable cannons swiveled, preparing to fire.

RA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA!!!!

"Get out of the way!!"

The King swiftly leaped down from the wall, his powerful legs absorbing the impact. His two commanders, though not as agile, scrambled down after him, narrowly escaping the devastating volley.

BOOM!

The attack shattered the wall where they had stood moments before, sending debris raining down as the three landed heavily on the ground below.

The Ogre King’s gaze swept over his wounded and dead soldiers, a grim tableau of defeat.

’The Emperor will have my head!’ he thought, a cold dread settling in his gut.



’But if I deliver the girls, he will forgive me! The little girl should be my prize, but I can’t go empty-handed. She can only be my freedom chip.’ With this new resolve, he quickly rushed back towards the castle, his two commanders falling in behind him.

"Hmm..."

Sunny, perched casually on the battleship, opened a hatch with a click and gracefully flew out, descending towards the ravaged city.

".....?!!!"

The Ogre King and his two commanders skidded to a halt, their eyes widening in surprise as Sunny landed directly before them... He was clad only in black pants and a striking red fur coat, his chest bare.

"Who are you?" the King bellowed, his voice laced with suspicion.

"I am the God Wolf, the King you replied," Sunny stated calmly, his voice a low, steady rumble.

"Oh... Aren’t you too arrogant? You’re just a peak Sky rank, while I am a peak Heavenly rank! My two Commanders are both Heavenly ranks! What makes you think you can win against us?!" the King retorted, his voice dripping with disdain. As he spoke, elite-class equipment materialized on their bodies, gleaming with a dangerous aura.

"So boring..." Sunny mused, a faint smirk playing on his lips. "I came here for something else."

He raised a hand, and with a casual flick of his wrist, snapped his fingers.

BAM!!!!

".....?!!!"

Before the three Ogres could even react, dark chains, forged from pure shadow, erupted from the ground. They coiled around their hands, legs, and bodies with brutal efficiency, forcing them to their knees, their powerful forms rendered helpless.

"This?!" the King roared, struggling against the unbreakable bonds.

"What are you?!!" he demanded, fear finally creeping into his voice.

"You aren’t qualified to ask me questions," Sunny said, his voice devoid of emotion as he walked towards them, stopping three feet away. "Where is the Shining Light?" he asked, his gaze piercing.

"....?!"

The three Ogres were stunned into silence.

’How did he know about the girl?!’ the King frantically thought, his mind racing. ’We haven’t leaked any information; we made sure of it! Then how???’ He stared at Sunny, a dawning realization creeping into his mind:

’Is that the reason he is here???’ He opened his mouth to voice his question, but Sunny’s cold voice cut him off.

"I already told you... You aren’t qualified to ask me questions!"

VOOOM!!

The three Ogres, along with all the still-standing soldiers and people in the city, instinctively raised their heads. Above them, the massive warships, now much closer, completely blocked out the sunlight, casting a chilling shadow over the ruined city.

"Your Command!"

The booming voice of the Dwarves’ Commander resonated across the devastated city. Sunny lowered his gaze to the three kneeling Ogres.

"They’re in the dungeon!!" one of the commanders blurted out, his voice laced with desperation, betraying all secrets.

"Dungeon?" Sunny sounded genuinely surprised.

"Yes... We... We kept her there!" The commander quickly nodded his head, his face contorted in pain. "I don’t feel so good."



"I know... My chains are draining your celestial energy and life force. The more you struggle, the tighter it becomes and more energy it absorbs," Sunny revealed, his voice chillingly calm.

"So, Shining Light is a human, and even a girl... Okay then, lead the way... If I find out you are lying, I won’t hesitate to level your city."

"You are still leaving them alive?"

Sunny looked up as a beam of pure light descended from the warship, and Josephine materialized a few feet away, her form encased in gleaming, full battle armor.

"Queen Josephine?" The Ogre King immediately recognized her, his eyes widening in a mixture of awe and desperation.

"My Queen! I will do anything! Even if I will be your dog, I will accept it!! My troops will be under your command!" he pleaded, hope flaring in his chest.

’They’ll surely accept this offer, and once I am in... I will know how the Beastify nation got hold of so many battleships and warships! And report back to the Emperor... We might even steal some treasures,’ he thought, a triumphant smile beginning to form on his lips.

His gaze shifted to Sunny, who was also smiling at him, but something about Sunny’s smile was unsettling. ’Why does his smile look so weird?’ he wondered, feeling more of his energy rapidly draining.

"What should we do to them?" Sunny asked, turning his head to Josephine. The three Ogres, still bound and kneeling, also turned their gazes to the Queen, their hope flickering.

"Letting them join us will only lead to unnecessary problems in the future. I say we kill them right here and now," Josephine stated, her voice devoid of any emotion, a cold pronouncement of their fate.

"....?!!"

The three Ogres were stunned, their brief flicker of hope extinguished by the chilling finality of her words.