Chapter 33: Fufufu
“Tch… It’s crowded.”
We had reached the city, but we hadn’t been able to make much progress for a while.
“Elvis, turn left there. Let’s take a back road.”
Ayaka pointed toward the intersection ahead while looking at her phone.
“Got it. Guide me.”
Elvis turned left and drove along a quieter road.
“Turn right there.”
“Yeah.”
Following Ayaka’s directions, we eventually saw a sign for the expressway entrance.
“What about tolls?”
Expressways usually cost money, right?
“There’s no such thing.”
That made sense.
As the car went up the slope, we reached a toll station.
However, there were no gates.
Actually, looking closer, they were broken.
We simply drove through, and after passing the toll station, we continued along an entirely empty highway.
“Hey, have the ogres always used the expressway as their base? What kind of life do they have?”
“They just live there. They still go shopping normally. They’re in towns too, and they’ve even visited inns before. Though, their reputation isn’t exactly great.”
So, kind of like delinquents or yakuza?
“Even if it’s an expressway, it’s huge. Where are they? So far, it’s just a normal road…”
“The tunnel.”
Ah, that made sense.
“The tunnel, huh…”
Ayaka started checking the map app.
“Elvis, tell me about the ogres. They’re strong, right?”
There had been ogres in the other world too, and they were considered powerful enemies.
However, they were rare monsters, and I’d never actually encountered one.
“They’re strong. They’re on a completely different level from ordinary monsters. Even orcs can’t stand against them.”
“That comparison did not tell me much…”
Orcs were huge and strong.
But that was only compared to ordinary people.
For adventurers, they were manageable opponents, and to the top-tier ones, they were just weaklings.
Naturally, the same applied to us, since we had the benefits of Jobs and Skills.
“Well, that’s about the level we’re talking about. They’re definitely strong, but you guys are far beyond them. I think you’ll be fine. That’s why I chose this route. But don’t let your guard down. They’re a group.”
He was right.
We couldn’t afford to be careless.
I understood that very well.
“You’re okay, Ayaka?”
“Yeah. I’m fine. I can do this.”
Ayaka nodded firmly.
“How far to the tunnel?”
“Ten kilometers from here.”
“Only a few minutes. Hold on.”
Since we were on the expressway, the car quickly covered the distance.
Soon, we saw a tunnel illuminated by lights ahead.
However, there were trucks and what looked like prefabricated buildings in front of it.
“That’s the place.”
“I’m stopping.”
Elvis stopped the car about fifty meters before the tunnel.
Then, from the small buildings, the trucks, and even from inside the tunnel, massive ogres began emerging one after another.
“Those are ogres. They definitely look strong.”
They certainly did.
But from this distance, I couldn’t feel that much mana from them.
“Elvis, ogres can talk too, right?”
“Of course. Though, we’ll try talking first. Let’s go.”
Elvis got out of the car, so we followed.
As we walked toward the tunnel, three ogres came out to meet us.
All three carried weapons—iron pipes, baseball bats, and even a stop sign, though I had no idea where they got it.
“What the hell are you guys?”
“Do you know what time it is?”
“You messing with us?”
The ogres tried to intimidate us.
It was a little scary.
“Sorry about this. You know the humans from Kumamoto attacked, right?”
Elvis stepped forward and answered them.
“I heard something about that. It’s probably the usual harassment. They’ll just become food for the werewolves.”
Werewolves were exactly what they sounded like: wolf-men.
They were fast and pretty strong.
“Maybe. Anyway, we don’t want any trouble, and we’re trying to get to Kokura. Let us through.”
“Huh? Don’t screw with us!”
“We’ll kill you!”
“Don’t get cocky just because you’re a goblin.”
Hmm…
They had a pretty nasty attitude.
They were the kind of people who made you want to avoid eye contact.
“I know it’s a bother. We’ll pay mana as a toll fee.”
“Hahaha! Don’t make me laugh! We could just take everything from you. If you’re going to negotiate, do it better.”
Hmm…
So that wasn’t going to work.
“Just let us through. We’re in a hurry.”
Ayaka said it without the slightest hesitation.
“What the hell is this? A human? Why is a human hanging around with a goblin?”
“That’s not human mana. She’s probably a succubus or something.”
“Then is this guy an incubus? That’s hilarious!”
Not an incubus…
More like an inkyabus… a gloomy loner.
“Are you letting us through or not?”
Ayaka asked, sounding slightly irritated.
“Tch! Should we just take care of them?”
“Too much trouble. Let’s do it.”
“I’m tired. Hurry up and die!”
One of the ogres swung a wooden bat at us.
Elvis and I avoided it with a backstep, but Ayaka didn’t move.
“Huh? What?”
The ogre froze with a dumbfounded expression.
The reason was simple.
Ayaka had caught the bat mid-swing.
“Annoying.”
Ayaka crushed the wooden bat in her grip.
It was incredible strength, but this was the result of her job, skills, and the mana she had accumulated up until now.
“What the hell is she!?”
“Tch! Die!”
“Damn it!”
The remaining two ogres attacked Ayaka with an iron pipe and a road sign, but she easily dodged them.
Not only that, she counterattacked with a flying knee straight into an ogre’s face.
“Ugh…! Damn it!”
The ogre staggered back several steps but quickly regained his footing.
As expected, their durability was impressive.
“You guys should stop now. These people are monsters.”
Elvis warned them.
“Tch! What the hell are they!?”
“Get them, guys!”
The ogre called out to the group gathered behind him, and one by one, they began moving toward us.
“Ayaka.”
“Yeah.”
Ayaka nodded and stepped back.
“Huh? The guy is going to fight?”
“What an arrogant bastard.”
At first, I thought they were a little frightening.
But not anymore.
“You should step back.”
“Huh? …What?”
“Whoa, whoa…”
“W-What the hell is that?”
The three ogres were stunned, and the ogres behind them stopped in their tracks.
Because above my head, a massive fireball dozens of meters wide had appeared.