บท 37: Chapter 37 - What Manner of Beast is This?

During my time in this world, I'd seen all sorts of crazy things. From the system and my summons to magic and kor. Seeing actual characters from fiction I'd watched and read was shocking and having the ability to command them was even more so, and I could still remember the time where I'd summoned Rath for the first time and the awe I'd felt at seeing the giant wyvern.

This feeling was similar to that, except times a hundred.

"What manner of beast is this?" Asara muttered, gazing up at the shape that blocked out the sky and sun above.

I shook my head, shock and excitement, and happiness running through me. I'd been lucky indeed.

Little Oars Jr.

I was familiar with the character as I was a huge fan of one-piece and I'd he was big but knowing and seeing him in an anime and seeing him in real life are two very different things.

To call the giant in front of me big would be a large understatement. At around sixty meters tall, Oars was a colossus of green flesh. a creature large enough to crush armies and regular giants with ease. He had large forearms and hands attached to a smaller lower body and barrel-like gut. His skin was a yellow-green and orange hair trialed from his head down to his legs, which were quite small in comparison to his large belly and forearms. His mouth was full of large fangs with two at the side of his mouth sticking up similar to that of an orcs. Two horns at the side of his head pointed upward and he had triangular black marks just above his eyes.

His attire wasn't too unusual. He wore a necklace made of three large skulls, a black open jacket, Plated armor connected by chains that covered most of his belly, and a loincloth with a simple black and green camo design.

Now by itself seeing a sixty-meter green giant with horns and giant teeth was scary enough by itself, but the large sword-cleaver that he held in his hand made him even more so. I had no doubt he could clear a forest with it, or perhaps even slice a mountain in half.

Magic and kor, and other supernatural abilities were amazing and powerful, but there was something about a giant monster that set off the warning bells in a person's mind. Not my warning bells, no all I felt was happy because he was my summon and with this, I'd already won.

The battlefield was silent, everyone had gone dead quiet at the appearance of Oars and I used that opportunity to shout up to him.

"Oars! Kill them! Kill them all! Protect the fort and help our allies!"

My words were filled with glee and malice. Malice directed towards my enemies who had fucked with the wrong king, and now they were about to pay the price of their transgression.

"Of course I'll kill 'Im" He replied then let out a roar that shook the very ground and sent winds blowing over everyone.

Sounds picked up again, but it wasn't the clashing of steel or fanatical screaming of the enemy, but screams of terror and panic. The sound of people clambering over each other to escape. I gazed out at the enemy and shook my head. Their discipline was long gone in the face of Oars. They were running over each other like animals, some were frozen, their faces confused and shocked, not comprehending what had just happened.

It was too late though, a few seconds after my command Oars raised his weapon and brought it down. The sound of its passage downwards was loud as it split the air and crashed into the ground, shattering the earth itself. Blood, viscera, rocks, and who knew what else flew in all directions, and the screams intensified. Everyone on the battlements had gone silent and all the enemies soldiers were simply looking on in shock, their fights forgotten as they say their allies being destroyed.

Oars didn't stop with a single swing, He brought his blade around in horizontal swipe and the flood of red that flew into the sky was a sickening sight. It covered the remaining soldiers who hadn't died. Even covered in blood and crawling in the guts and broken parts of their allies they still tried to run or plead for mercy. Some of the soldiers on the battlements, both allies, and enemies, fell to their knees, some vomiting, others passing out.

I didn't know what was happening at the other side of the fort, but by now they'd probably been overrun by Twice clones and I imagined seeing Oars had probably broken them.

"This isn't a war anymore," Asara said, her voice filled with awe and terror. "This is a massacre."

I glanced at her to see her hands shaking and she turned her age to me. There wasn't any fear directed towards me, which was surprising, just awe, respect, and something else I couldn't quite identify. Fanaticism? Something similar?

"Boss, I can't express how happy I am he's on our side," Domino said, her guns forgotten in her hands as she too gazed out at the carnage. "I think it's safe to say we've won."

I nodded, not speaking. Instead, I just watched. Watched as blood flowed over the battlefield, and pieces of humans and other races littered the landscape. As screams of mercy and despair sounded all over. They were met with only death at Oar's hand.

"Your majesty... shouldn't we stop him?" Asara asked. "They surrendering."

"No surrender," I replied. my voice cold. "They started this war and would have gone onto the capital. How many innocents would have died? how many families and children enslaved?. This duke Biroth is foul and he is willing to start a war over the death of an idiotic princess who apparently saw him as nothing but a pet. How do think a person like that would treat his people? Call me a monster if you wish, but there will be no mercy."

I felt a hand reach over to squeeze my shoulder and turned to see Asara smiling at me. "Never a monster. You are a king! my king! I was not implying that this was wrong, simply asking."

I nodded and turned back to watch Oars finish off wiping out an army, my mind racing, filled with both happiness and sorrow. Happiness because I'd won this war. With Twice and Oars, the Duke was doomed to failure, and even if he returned home, I would chase him there and tear down the duchy of Biroth. Sorrow because it had come to this. The slaughter of tens of thousands.

I felt a hand grasp my own and I turned to see Lilah close to me. I smiled and let her warm presence comfort me. I didn't turn away from the massacre at any point. This was not the only time I would need to make a decision like this.

No enemies left alive, I thought, I'm not about to make that mistake. I'm not some fucking isekai protagonist with a heart of gold.

I remembered Migi words from our first conversation. He was right in that I'd needed to change, that I'd needed to adapt, and that I couldn't follow all of the principles and morals I'd brought with me from my world.

Adaptation is key.

As I looked out at the battlefield which had just a moment ago been full of living people, but now was painted red and covered in the broken flesh of my enemies, I realized something.

"My heart burns cold," I muttered.