The Northern Noble is a Grinder (Chapter 10).

The Northern Noble is a Grinder (Chapter 10).

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Commissioned by Sivantic

Word count: 2500

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With all my newfound strength, I believed myself ready for the challenge of slaying ogres.

I found that I was wrong very quickly.

Each Northern Ogre was thrice my height and had limbs thickly knotted with muscle as wide as my whole body. They were covered in a tough fur, a thick hide beneath that fur, and finally a layer of blubber. Beneath all that was corded muscle as tough as iron, then even stronger bones. They had multiple eyes all over their bodies and a massive mouth on their stomach that they used to eat trees with, and from it they can launch magical flames with a roar.

They were smarter foes than the tales suggested, too. They evaded blows, observed my movements, and made use of tools. They ripped trees apart and made them into clubs, threw stones or snow at me, and even called for help when not killed quickly enough. The creatures cherished their lives enough to be willing to tear themselves apart to live, and they were also willing to flee in order to save themselves.

Failing to kill one would have stronger, older ones find me, and they were experienced hunters armed with weapons of their own making from the bones of their prey.

I thought the day would be easy, but killing one with Alice took a quarter hour.

In the same hour after we killed one, we had to kill another to stay within schedule, and it was an absolutely frenetic experience.

One that I had to rely on my gifted weapon for, as the weapon I brought had shattered as I had imbued it with too much power.

“Mistress, now!” Alice called out, and I heeded her voice. I shot off the ground from my hiding spot and got behind the ogre’s legs. It took notice of me and tried to leap forward and jump away, but it was too late. The gifted blade sliced through the back of its knees. Fur, hide, blubber, muscle, and tendons came apart as the blade passed through, then deep-red blood gushed out and fell onto the snow. The creature fell to its knees, roared, and tried to get up and grab me. “Over here, you fool!”

My sudden appearance distracted it enough to stop searching for Alice.

Allowing her to bound up a tree, bounce off it, and surge towards the head of the ogre with both knives primed.

She sank both deep through the eye sockets of the creature, then called upon her magic, and filled the ogre’s skull with flame.

Alice kicked off the creature as it tumbled forward, but I was already moving.

Before it could fall forward and make the harvest more difficult, I got underneath the falling bulk and kicked it at the sternum. It fell back instead of forward, and once it did, I was upon the creature and carving out its core. Once I was through all the layers of the beast, I reached through the square I cut out and extracted the creature’s core.

It was a deep, ruby red and awhirl with potent energies and hot to the touch as well as the size of my head.

But I did not have time to gawk.

“Alice, here! Take it quickly!” Alice grimaced but nodded at my words. She took the heart of the second ogre we killed in both of her hands while I looked up. As I expected, Lord Trelawney was already descending to pick us up. I grimaced as I flicked the sword aside and the blood of the creature came off. I burned off the blood on my hand and looked at my teacher. “How long did that take?”

“You’re on schedule now. Good job.” He meant it and aimed a raised thumb at us. I dropped off the bulk of the creature, which he proceeded to lift up. With a gesture at all the spilled blood, he gathered everything and froze it into a ball that he lodged into the crevice I created. “Pretty clean kill, too. I’ll be sending this back to your home. A few Ogre tinctures should strengthen your forces. The bones make for good lances, too.”

“You have my thanks.” At the mention of being on time, I allowed myself a moment to take a breath. He threw me a skein filled with the familiar concoction of wine, honey, salt, dried fruits, and water. I took measured sips, even as my body demanded for me to gulp it down. It took much to stop at one mouthful and hand it back. The sight of a hunk of dried meat nearly had me rush for it. I took the meat and chewed it swiftly and consumed it. The emptiness of my stomach was curbed. “Will I feel this way with every kill today?”

“For the first five? Yeah. Ogres are big sources of power. If we had the support system and the time, I’d have you eating a full meal between each kill. We don’t, though.” I had killed and consumed the core of the first kill of the day. That singular ogre’s power and strength filled my body with the same amount of strength as all the previous days combined. It was no wonder a knight who killed an ogre became so strong. It was equal to killing hundreds of lesser monsters. “The last ten will feel like two increases at most. If you’re lucky, you’ll find a mature one. Not one of these cubs.”

The thought of facing a skilled adult of this species did not appeal to me in the slightest.

“Augh, it feels like I haven’t eaten in days.” Alice finished consuming the orb, and her brow was furrowed. Her head was slick with sweat, and her hair was matted to her face. She engaged and lured the creature into the trap. As long as she was the one who consumed the core, it did not matter which of us did more. She grimaced as she looked at the corpse floating up to the sky. “Is there a better way to finish them, Lord Trelawney? Putting two knives into their eyes, filling their brains with flame, and staying there while burning them is far too dangerous.”

“Hm. At your current level… no. Just keep at it.” Alice’s shoulders slumped, while Lord Trelawney looked my way. “You can try going straight for their head, but they’ve got protective magic around it. They just naturally know to wrap their necks up in magic, and they can fight for a while with anything else pierced or cut through. Even their hearts.”

“What if we try the club method again?” I had killed the first one by blowing up my weapon, but in doing so, it had eviscerated everything above the sternum into gore and fragments. The ogre had cornered Alice, so I unleashed all my strength at a singular moment to save her. It resulted in the core nearly being destroyed, a loss of a weapon, and most of ten percent of the carcass lost. “Lord Trelawney, may I trouble you for some assistance?”

“It won’t be pretty, but sure.” He reached with his hand, then the earth at our feet rumbled. A hunk of stone came forth and then was broken apart, and an edge chipped from one side. He took a length of cloth from his backpack and wrapped it around the carved handle of the stone. “Here you go. A stone club with a chipped-out edge. Enjoy.”

It was easily my height, but when I took hold of the handle, I was able to lift it with utmost ease. It was like I plucked a branch from a bush and pretended it was a sword. It was terrifying to know that I could call upon such strength with ease. If I lost control, if I did not restrain myself, then my entire ancestral home would be at risk. The improvised weapon felt like a toy in my hand, but I knew that with a single swing I could obliterate a normal creature with utmost ease.

How was I to live normally after all of this?

Especially when my first, true thought after touching the hunk of stone was that it would not last a single battle?

…

We slew the rest of the Northern Ogres at a decent pace, but upon our return there was an unforeseen complication that delayed our promised moment of rest.

A new ship had docked and left Coastal Fortress Trelawney with a new shipment of goods.

Most were from my family.

Ancestral weapons of immensely fine quality for both myself and Alice, along with more resources and supplies for the fortress.

But it was the passenger of the vessel that drew the most attention.

Chloe Rothwell had met my gaze with wide, terrified eyes before getting onto her knees and bowing her head in apology.

I had forgotten that I called for her.

In fact, I had forgotten that I held disdain for her as she all but begged for her life at my feet.

My thoughts were consumed with the sole desire to bathe, sleep, and eat before tonight’s lesson prior to tomorrow’s battles.

“Get up, Chloe.” I addressed her through her blubbering apologies and picked her up by the scruff of her clothes. She went stiff as she realized that I picked her up with newfound strength, and her eyes were wide with fear as I made her gaze match my own. Alice grunted behind me, reminding me that every moment spent here at the dock was a moment not spent resting. “You are here to earn your place as my retainer once again. If you fail, the Rothwell family will be ousted from my family’s good graces. I am sure your father already told you the truth, so I shall not reiterate it. Grow strong, become ready, and I will forgive your transgressions. Do not fail.”

With my piece said, I dropped her, and she barely managed to clamber up and stand, brushing her dress down and shivering in the cold.

A cold that I could barely notice whilst paying attention.

Chloe shivered in a thick, furred coat. Her hair was cut short just above her nape, while her family’s prized broadsword was on her back. The heirloom blade that I had feared as a child could call upon blades of water that would slice through the air, as well as act as a counter to fire. She was a talented swordswoman who pledged her blade to me… and stood by wordlessly when I was denounced and shamed.

I should have felt angry at her.

I should have felt afraid of her blade.

Instead, I felt only pity for her.

Her lessons were already set to begin.

“You’re behind. We’re going out to catch up now, Rothwell.” Lord Trelawney came forward. His armor made no noise as he made it ‘step’ towards us. As I grew stronger, my senses improved, and the more vast and terrifying was the gap between him and me. He did not have power alone. He had control, skill, technique, and precision. But, perhaps more terrifyingly, he had means and methods that were alien to the rest of the world. Or, perhaps, were alien to all who did not aspire to reach divinity. “We’ll put that nice sword to use.”

Rothwell barely managed to look up before Lord Trelawney seized her and made her float.

He looked my way, and my dreadful curiosity must’ve been evident on my face.

I could see the smile hidden beyond layers and layers of armor thanks to the glee in his voice.

“She’s not coming back until she kills an ogre all by herself. Don’t worry. I’ll give her some assistance.” Just like that, my grudge against Chloe all but evaporated. I understood Lord Trelawney’s methods. A single ogre slain will immensely increase Chloe’s strength. She’ll be able to leave with us, despite being days behind, thanks to her shorter training regimen. But it will test her to the limit. “Don’t worry. As long as her heart’s beating and her brain’s intact, we can put her back together. Aigen owes me, after all.”

Chloe blinked at the words, then looked at me as I grimaced and looked at her with concern.

“Lady Argelia?” She asked with fear in her eyes.

She didn’t know.

If she did, she would’ve shown terror.

“Do not die before you earn my forgiveness. Godspeed, Chloe.” I told her with a small nod before turning on my heel. I spotted Alice looking her way with some concern before she followed me. “See you in a few hours, Lord Trelawney.”

“See ya, princess!”

With that he leapt away, and Chloe screamed as she vanished into the dark, frosty night.

I moved to rest and recuperate from my ordeals when Steward Matthew came forward.

His words shook me to my core.

“Lady Argelia, you have been invited to dine with Lady Aigen this evening at the great hall. Alone.”

I reflexively looked to Alice but found her bounding away towards the stairs.

I felt her retreat more keenly than Chloe’s.

Steward Matthew took note of the despair that I felt, then gave a small bow.

“I have set aside a bath in my master’s chambers, and a dress has been prepared in your wardrobe. And, of course, a meal.” He gestured at me with an open hand. I felt a wave of relief wash over me. Aches and pains I had been enduring faded. I realized he was an adept at the healing arts as a particularly tenacious cut on my arm healed. His brow was covered in sweat as he finished, but he had a handkerchief ready to wipe it off. “Give me a few moments, and I shall provide you with more assistance. With Lady Aigen present, I can spare my efforts on aiding you. I had to conserve my power in case of more grievous wounds.”

“You have my most sincere thanks, Steward Matthew.” I gave him a nod, and he bowed in return. Already, I felt better. The ache throughout my body was massively reduced. However, the hunger still remained, and I was more aware of the fact I was covered in bits of cloth, broken armor, and blood. Chloe must’ve thought I was some sort of barbarian fresh from the killing fields. “Please, lead me to the baths. Which dress was chosen for me? The one with the most prominent crest of my house, I hope?”

Please assure me that I won’t be meeting with that madwoman wearing Lord Trelawney’s colors.

Steward Matthew gave a sharp nod.

“I would not heal you simply to see you killed, Lady Argelia. I give you my word.”

His words lessened my burden a great deal.

I was sure Lord Trelawney conveyed the truth to his fiancé, but I had no intention of taking any undue risks with such a powerful sorceress and queen.