The wind from the south carried an unnatural scent. It wasn't just the smell of wet earth and decaying leaves; it was the sickeningly sweet, coppery aroma of a thousand extinguished lives. In the distance, the forest was no longer tranquil. The echoes of screams, the clash of weapons, and the explosions of basic magic resonated like an unending death knell, unsettling the peace of the Ogre village hidden deep within the mountains.
In front of the building at the center of the village, an Ogre sat in silent contemplation. With a body towering over two meters, two black horns curving from his forehead, and sharp eyes, he was a respected and feared leader. Yet, his eyes now held no ferocity, only doubt.
Several months had passed since the war between Orcs and Lizardmen first erupted, spreading into chaos that now engulfed the entire Jura Forest. During this time, the entire Ogre clan had watched from behind the mountains. This was his decision. Unlike other Ogre leaders who relied solely on strength, he was a strategist and a thinker. He knew the chaos unfolding was not natural. The war felt strange, calculated, and bizarre—like an emotionless machine.
"Leader! We can't just stand by!" the voice of an impassioned young Ogre echoed from behind him. "These monsters are running rampant! They're killing each other for no reason! We have to do something!"
The Ogre leader didn't turn around. He simply gazed toward the dark Jura Forest. "It's not our business," he replied in a deep, calm voice. "This war feels unnatural. I have a hunch that someone is manipulating everything from the shadows."
"Someone? Who?! Nonsense! That's just an excuse you've made to avoid war! We are the Ogre race, we are warriors!" the young Ogre shouted, his anger boiling over. "If you're too scared, I'll go by myself!"
The Ogre leader said nothing more. With an unwavering gaze, he watched the arrogant youth run toward the forest. In the past, he might have stopped him. However, he let him go. He knew that arrogance was a disease. If the youth wanted to know the truth, he would have to see it for himself, no matter how horrifying it was.
The youth never returned. Two days later, his body was found. The forest where he had gone was eerily silent, as if devoid of life. His friends found his ravaged body, but there were no signs of an attack. It was as if his life force had been drained, leaving only an empty, hollowed-out shell.
The Ogre leader sat in front of a small grave made for the youth. His sharp eyes stared at the dark sky, as if reading a message only he could see. He realized his strength would be no match for the one behind all of this. He had to understand his enemy, not simply confront them recklessly.
He had to go. Not to fight, but to observe. The Ogre leader made his decision. He didn't tell anyone. He simply walked toward the forest, toward the direction where he had last sensed that strange aura—an aura that felt so peculiar, not like a pure monster's magical energy, but like a chaotic magical energy.
The journey felt incredibly long. Each step grew quieter. The air, which was initially filled with the smell of blood and destruction, slowly became silent. There were no monsters, birds, or insects around. This was a place where life didn't exist, leaving behind only a terrifying silence.
And in the middle of that silence, in a small meadow that should have been overgrown with flowers, he saw it. The creature was a Goblin, a monster that should have been weak. However, this Goblin was different. Its aura didn't feel weak. Its skin was darker, its body leaner, and its eyes... its eyes held no emotion at all. Only a cold emptiness. The Goblin didn't move, just stood still, like a statue.
The Ogre leader realized the strange aura he had sensed originated from this small creature. This Goblin didn't feel like a natural monster. Cautiously, he stepped forward. "Are you the one?" he whispered. "Are you the one orchestrating all this chaos?"
The Goblin didn't respond. Its empty eyes just stared straight ahead. The Ogre leader knew a verbal conversation wouldn't work. He tried to send a mental communication—a question. "Who are you? And what do you want?"
There was no answer, only silence. He sighed, preparing to retreat, when a voice suddenly resonated in his head. It wasn't a physical voice, but a cold, emotionless mental vibration. A voice that felt like millions of data points being processed in the blink of an eye.
"Do you want... a deal?" the voice asked. "A deal that will save your clan from destruction?".
--
Agreement was not a choice, but a necessity. And I am the one who can fulfill your needs.
Hearing the Ogre's voice, I cut the transmission and retreated from the range of his sensors. I didn't need him to know my true position. He was merely a pawn I would use in the Jura Forest. My decision to observe the Ogre race was not a mistake. The aura of leadership and intelligence that radiated from him was truly interesting.
He wasn't an ordinary Ogre. He was a strategist, a characteristic I rarely encountered in this world. The Ogre had made his decision—a choice that would save his clan from inevitable ruin, something I had already anticipated. In this cruel world, I knew every creature would seek a way to survive. The fear of destruction is the strongest motivation, and I would manipulate that fear for my gain.
I still vividly remember my greatest failure. My defeat at the hands of Caelus, an entity born from the same formula as me. It was a harsh slap in the face, a wake-up call that I was merely a small entity trying to fight the current.
Then, there was the incident with the Dryad. I was too focused on using Majin as a conspicuous and powerful pawn. It was a fatal mistake. Dryads, as guardians of nature, can sense every anomaly in the Jura Forest. The immense power of the Majin was a signal she couldn't ignore. I realized I couldn't operate in the Jura Forest like I could in the ocean. I couldn't be conspicuous. I had to move from behind the scenes, using pawns that wouldn't attract anyone's attention.
And that's where Goblins entered my calculations. I observed them, the weakest and most insignificant creatures in the Jura Forest. They had a low existence, useless abilities, and a very fragile physique. They were my opposite in every way.
That's why they were the perfect pawns. No great power would bother to pay attention to an evolved Goblin. The Dryad wouldn't see them as a threat, and other monsters would only see them as food. They were the most effective camouflage, an "invisible hand" that I could use to touch the world without exposing myself.
I reactivated my sight through the Goblin I had turned into a Phantom Goblin. It felt like seeing the world through a different lens—without emotion, without thought, just a cold and obedient consciousness. I could feel every vibration, energy flow, and movement around it. All that data was immediately funneled to my spiritual core, processed by Libertas, and converted into information I could understand.
This evolution was the result of long research. I used the Genetic Formula I obtained from ancient ruins to manipulate the Goblin's evolution. Unlike the insane method used on Siroco, I used a much more controlled and efficient method. A Phantom Goblin is not a monster born from suffering. It is the product of a perfect manufacturing process, a blueprint designed to work in a certain way.
I observed the aura radiating from its body—no longer the aura of a weak creature's magic, but a cold and chaotic aura. It had a new ability that I had programmed into its spiritual core: Energy Absorber. This is a degradation of Piercer, which automatically absorbs a small portion of the energy of every creature the Phantom Goblin kills. The process is slow, but if repeated millions of times, the energy accumulated will be very significant.
The most important ability, for me, was Subtle Command. Through this skill, I could control the Phantom Goblin just by projecting my intent. I only had to think, "Move forward," and it would move. "Hunt monsters," and it would hunt. It was a bond not based on emotional loyalty, but on inescapable logic.
This was a perfect system, an "underwater corporation" that would continue to collect energy for me without intervention. My eyes, two empty white dots behind my shadowy form, focused on the Ogre. He was an interesting pawn, and his presence near the Phantom Goblin was no coincidence. I knew he wouldn't harm my pawn. He just wanted to know.
I watched him step forward, his hands raised in a sign of peace. He tried to communicate, but the Phantom Goblin didn't respond. Its eyes were empty, its body stiff and emotionless.
I could feel the Ogre trying to send a mental communication. However, the Phantom Goblin would not actively reply until I gave it the command.
"Who are you? And what do you want?" The same question I had once asked myself. But this time, I was the one in control.
I ignored the Ogre's question, letting an awkward silence envelop them. I just waited. I knew he wouldn't give up so easily. I knew he would seek answers. And when he grew tired of seeking answers from my puppet, I would give them to him.
I took full control. Through the Phantom Goblin, I sent a cold and emotionless mental vibration. It was a voice, but not a physical one. A voice that felt like millions of data points processed in an instant, flowing directly into his mind.
"Do you want... a deal?" my voice echoed. "A deal that will save your clan from destruction?"
I knew he would accept it. Because he had fear. And in this world, fear is the most valuable currency.
The Ogre leader stood his ground, his eyes staring blankly at the Goblin in front of him. He felt the mental vibration from the small creature, a vibration filled with extraordinary power. The cold voice didn't come from the Goblin itself, but from someone controlling it.
"Do you think I would fall for such an obvious trick?" the Ogre leader's thoughts radiated with clear doubt. "I can feel that the aura flowing from this body comes from the same source as the aura that has defiled the Jura Forest. Who are you really?"
The cold voice was not affected by the Ogre leader's accusation. "A name is not important," the voice replied, now radiating a much stronger and more threatening aura, as if the entire world around it had become its own. "What's important is what I can give you. This forest will soon be destroyed. This war is just the beginning of something much bigger. And your clan... they will be the first victims of that destruction."
The Ogre leader showed no emotion on his face, but in his heart, he felt unease and anger. He had thought about this. This chaos felt unnatural. A conflict that should have occurred between primitive races had turned into a Chaos that continued to devour lives. He had been searching for the answer for weeks, but had never found anything.
"If you are indeed the mastermind behind all this, why are you doing it?" the Ogre leader asked, his voice calm, but hiding a deeper question. "Why don't you take over the Jura Forest yourself? Your power should be able to destroy those monsters in an instant! Am I wrong?!"
"A very clever question," the voice replied, showing a hint of "admiration" for the first time. "However, the answer is very simple. I don't need domination. I don't seek fame or power. I also hate unnecessary trouble, maybe a certain Demon Lord is currently watching all this chaos. But it doesn't matter... all of it is data to me. Every lost life, every drop of blood spilled... all of it is converted into data that I can use."
The Ogre leader narrowed his eyes. He felt the truth in every word spoken. This wasn't a lie. It was a cold and terrifying truth. He knew that this entity saw the world not as a place to live, but as a laboratory.
"I will give you a choice," the voice continued, now calm and calculating again. "Join me. Let me use the Ogres as an extension of myself. I won't force you or control you directly. All I need is your information—information about your enemies, hidden powers, and anything else as long as it's useful to me. And in return, I will give you the same information. I will use my other pawns to observe your enemies' movements. I will tell you when they will attack, how strong they are, and where their weaknesses lie. I will give you the power to survive and protect your clan. Power you cannot get anywhere else."
The Ogre leader considered the offer. He knew he couldn't fight. This entity was far stronger than him. He had observed his own clan's arrogant youth, who ran to the battlefield and never returned. He knew that the young Ogre had met a brutal end. Resistance was the path to destruction, and the Ogre leader was not one to sacrifice his clan for empty pride. He would do anything for his clan, even if it meant selling his soul to a devil.
"What will you do if I refuse?" the Ogre leader asked, his voice filled with a cold despair.
"I won't do anything," the voice replied indifferently. "I am not interested in the destruction of your clan. I am only interested in useful data. If you refuse, I will leave. And when this war reaches your doorstep, you and your clan will be wiped out, just like what happened to that foolish youth."
The Ogre leader felt a chilling sensation. He understood. This entity in front of him wasn't an enemy seeking confrontation. He was a pragmatist seeking gain. He didn't care who won or lost. He only cared about what was profitable for him.
The Ogre leader closed his eyes, thinking about the future of his clan. They were a strong race, but they would not be able to fight a large-scale war triggered by this Entity. If he wanted his clan to survive, he had to adapt. He had to become a part of this game.
"What guarantee do you offer that you won't betray us?" he asked, his voice now sounding calmer.
"Betray you? Me?" It paused, then burst into a cold laughter. "Hahaha... your words are very interesting... Listen! Betraying you would not give me any advantage. On the contrary, if I use you, I will gain a constant and accurate flow of information and data according to my needs, which can help me achieve my goals. This is a mutually beneficial transaction. A symbiotic relationship."
The Ogre leader let out a long sigh. He had made his decision. He would accept this offer. It was not a choice, but a necessity.
"Alright," he said. "I accept your offer. I have no name. I am the leader of the Ogre clan. And I will be your pawn in this game."
"Good," the voice replied, and for the first time, the Ogre leader sensed a hint of "satisfaction" in its mental vibration. "A pleasant deal. From now on, you are my eyes. Report everything you see. And I will give you everything you need."
---
After the Ogre accepted my offer, I instantly ended the mental transmission. I didn't need lofty agreements, just a deal based on necessity and common sense. To me, emotions are just variables that can be used to predict actions, not a force. In the Ogre's case, the fear of his clan's destruction was the perfect variable.
Now, I have two very different pawns. The first is the Phantom Goblin, which is weak and inconspicuous. It is a data and energy collection unit, a "drone" that can move without arousing suspicion. And the second is the Ogre leader. He is intelligent, strong, and most importantly, he has a network and knowledge of the Jura Forest that I cannot access through a Goblin. He will be my field "manager," who will provide qualitative reports and data that I cannot get from just the Phantom Goblin and Umbra.
This strategy is much slower, but much safer.
"Stay alert!" I projected the intent to Umbra, who was still hiding in the Jura Forest. "Hold your position, and monitor the Phantom Goblin and the Ogre. Make sure they do their jobs." I didn't need to say it with words. A mere intent was enough. Through the spiritual bond we share, Umbra would understand my instructions and execute them without question. It is the most perfect subordinate.
Everyone thinks they are the main players in this game. The pinnacles of this world's combat power, they all think they are the protagonists. They don't know that a much bigger chess game is underway. And I, who know every one of their moves, who know every event that will happen, will be the main player in this game.
Rimuru will come. He will unite the Jura Forest. He will challenge the Demon Lords. And he will become one of the strongest. I know all of this. I will not stop him. Instead, I will use him. Perhaps he will be my most valuable pawn.
I closed my eyes, enjoying the perfect silence. I no longer seek sensations. I only seek power. And I will get it. Slowly, but surely.