The World Is Mine For The Taking

Chapter 962 - 147 - Battle On The Slave Market (4)

She drew mana like a smoking scent—dark, concentrated magic coiling at her fingertips until it looked like shadows wrapped in glass. Han released it in a single, jagged burst aimed straight at the ogre. The blast hit the creature’s bulk with enough force to have split a lesser thing in two. Yet the ogre barely stirred—the skin took the blow as if it were a light breeze. No mark, no smoke, nothing. I felt Han’s power recoil against something implacable.

"Grr..." The sound crawled up from the beast’s throat as it rolled, shifting its massive weight. Its eyes opened—pale and slow at first, then suddenly sharp, focusing on Han before moving to rest on me.

The air changed. It was like walking into a room that had suddenly lost half its oxygen; breathing felt slightly harder, as if her presence compressed the space around us.

"Graaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!" The creature’s roar exploded, a raw, animal sound that rattled the metal and set dust motes spinning in the shaft of light.

"Uh oh, I think she’s pissed that we woke her up," Han said, the humor gone from her voice now replaced by a new edge.

"Yeah, no kidding," I replied.

She looked at me—those monstrous, yellowish eyes glimmering with a faint feral glow—and then, without hesitation, she dashed forward.

The ground cracked beneath her feet, stone fragments scattering with every thunderous step. The air rippled from the pressure of her movement alone. I could feel it—the killing intent. It wasn’t subtle or restrained. It was pure, unfiltered instinct. She wanted to crush me. To feel my bones shatter under her fists.

And for someone her size, she was fast. Unnaturally fast.

Still, I was faster.

When she swung her massive fist toward me, the wind it carried sliced across my cheek like a blade. The punch missed me by a hair’s breadth, but even the shockwave alone sent my hair flying back and made my chest tighten. I twisted my body to use that momentum, feet skidding across the dusty floor, and with one swift motion, I pulled Ayuru across her arm, aiming to carve straight through.

Sparks burst in my face.

"What the—?"

The blade stopped. Dead.

She didn’t dodge. She didn’t block with a weapon. She simply flexed—her muscles hardening like steel—and Ayuru met resistance so dense it vibrated down to my wrist.

What the hell was she made of? Metal? No... not even metal could stop Ayuru when it was reinforced with mana. My grip trembled slightly as I pulled back. The edge hadn’t even made a mark.

I didn’t use much mana that time since I thought I was cutting flesh, but even then... flesh wasn’t supposed to feel like a goddamn wall.

Her head tilted down toward me, a growl rolling through her chest.

I stepped back right as her fist came down again. The floor exploded beneath the impact, fragments of rock flying up as if a bomb had gone off. I shielded my face with my arm, coughing through the dust.

"She’s not just strong..." I muttered. "She’s built like a fortress."

I darted left, circling her. The ogre tracked my every step, her eyes locked on me, filled with that same furious hunger. She slammed her fists down again, each strike echoing like thunder, each one missing by inches as I kept weaving between them.

Han, standing by the corner of the hall, watched with her arms crossed. "Leon, what the hell are you doing? You’re just dodging her attacks."

"Yeah, I know." I said between dodges. "I’m testing something."

The ogre roared again and charged. I barely managed to sidestep before her massive shoulder smashed into the wall, crushing the stone as if it were made of clay. Dust fell like rain, and I used that moment to jump back, keeping distance.

My lungs burned a little, but I was fine. I wasn’t fighting seriously yet—I was watching, studying, and calculating.

Her fighting style was pure aggression. There was no technique, no form, just destructive instinct. But the terrifying part was that her sheer physical power made that instinct effective. Every swing had enough force to turn a man into a puddle.

She turned, glaring at me, veins pulsing across her arms like molten iron beneath her skin. The magic inside her body was insane.

"Grrraaahhhh!"

She lunged again. This time, she grabbed a chunk of broken stone the size of a horse and threw it at me. I ducked low, the rock crashing behind me and scattering debris like shrapnel. The wind from the impact almost lifted me off the ground.

"Han," I said with a smile. "Stay back, no matter what."

"As if I need you to tell me that," she said.

The ogre’s next blow came faster than I expected. I twisted to block it with Ayuru, channeling mana this time—black blue light coursed through the blade, humming with sharp intensity.

Her fist collided with the flat of the blade, and the resulting shockwave sent both of us sliding backward. My boots scraped against the floor, leaving trails of dust behind, and my arm felt like it had been slammed by a hammer.

"She’s ridiculous..." I muttered, flexing my wrist. "Even the mana reinforcement barely softened the impact."

The ogre grinned—actually grinned—as if enjoying herself. The corners of her lips curled upward, sharp fangs glinting under the dim light. She even licked her lips. It looked like she saw me as a potential mate.

She lunged again.

I ducked, letting her fist graze past me, and then kicked off the ground to leap onto her arm. For a split second, I stood on her forearm, staring right at her wild eyes.

"Sorry, big girl," I whispered. "I’m not losing to someone like you."

I swung Ayuru straight down toward her neck—this time coated with enough mana to slice through a boulder.

The blade hit.

Another explosion of sparks.

The steel-like skin held.

"What the hell..." I smiled wryly as I jumped back before she could swat me like a fly.

The impact of her missed strike shook the floor again, the echo of it running up my legs like a tremor. Her body was trembling slightly now, her rage building with every failed attempt to hit me. The mana around her was becoming unstable, flaring up like red flames that licked her skin.

So she was enhancing herself too. That explained the steel-like defense. Her entire body was reinforced with mana, constantly circulating through her muscles, strengthening her flesh beyond its limits.

"Guess I can’t hold back much longer," I muttered.

But still... I wanted to see more.

I wanted to know her limits.

Because the way she moved—it wasn’t wild anymore. She was starting to adapt, reading my rhythm. The beast had instinct, and instinct could evolve quickly when pushed. That was dangerous. And I liked it. I want her. Not as a potential harem member. But as someone who could be useful to me.

She came again, faster, her fist slamming toward my chest. I twisted my body sideways, letting it brush past my ribs, and countered with a kick to her jaw. It barely made her flinch, but the impact gave me a moment to breathe.

"Damn, you’re durable," I said, shaking my leg. "And here I thought I’d fought enough monsters to know what tough means."