An ogre’s horns are often a crucial part of their identity, depending on the tribe. After all, they are a race specialized for combat. Their huge bodies and developed canine teeth certainly make them look like ogres, but it’s the horns, which seem to embody their fighting spirit and offensive power, that are the true symbol of an ogre. No one would argue with that. Therefore, ogres take their horns very seriously. Since horns are organs that grow, they actually require maintenance. They need to be shaped, their length adjusted, and in some tribes, symbolic patterns are carved into them. This is something that is always being done. However, even among friends, this is something they don’t usually let others do for them. Doing it themselves is a matter of pride for ogres. While other races often don’t notice their efforts, there are actually trends in how horns are processed, such as cutting them to create a forked tip, carving intervals into them, or sharpening them to a point that can easily pierce through. “It’s just that I thought it looked cool when I was young,” is a common excuse from middle-aged ogres. While all of these are disadvantageous in terms of strength, young bloods find it incredibly cool that their decorative horns remain unscathed after surviving many dangerous situations. However, most of them end up regretting it when their horns break halfway through their attempts to achieve this.
Enough of that. Arnie Boyd (a 19-year-old male ogre who recently turned 19 and is a pure-hearted type) is a man who has nothing to do with such bad horn processing.
After all, as a Dual Horn (two-horned) ogre, I’m missing one horn. It was pulled out from the root for some reason and will never grow back. At this point, I already look pretty bad as an ogre. I did treasure the remaining horn, but I broke that a few months ago too. Well, I was okay with it since it meant saving a human life and getting her, but now that it’s grown back quite a bit, I’m wondering what to do about it.
“Hey Boyd, what are you staring at in the mirror for?” “Oh, Rackman-san.” While Arnie was staring at the hand mirror, his colleague, Greg Rackman, a probationary soldier (dwarf), called out to him. A probationary soldier is basically an apprentice soldier and the lowest rank. Greg is in the same year and rank as Arnie, so he doesn’t get in trouble for not using honorifics, but as a dwarf with a bear-like beard, Greg felt a bit uncomfortable addressing Arnie, a junior, by his first name. “Men staring at mirrors with a hundred expressions is a bit creepy.” “Oh, oh, ha ha… Well, it’s about my horn.” “Oh, your horn.”
Arnie’s Daydream Nightdream Crossbow Corps in the Northern Legion of Trot Celesta had an unusually high proportion of ogres, nearly 20 percent. Of course, they were all concerned about horns, and some of them had told Arnie how special—or how pitiful—he was. Greg recalled this and made a subtle expression. He wasn’t good at comforting people. Arnie, seeing Greg’s subtle expression, panicked. He wasn’t worried about the break. “N-no, I was just wondering if it’s time to file my horns into a cone shape…” “Oh, right, they were like this when they broke.” Greg made a gap of about five centimeters with his fingers. Arnie thought it had been a bit wider, but it was a minor detail. It didn’t matter if others didn’t remember it. “Yeah, that’s about right. But they’ve grown quite a bit, so I think it’s time.” “Then I’ll lend you a sharp knife.”
「W-well, I do have the maintenance tools.」 The problem was whether or not it was okay to actually do it. From an aesthetic standpoint, there was no reason not to do it. But there were other factors to consider.
Arnie Boyd’s girlfriend, Sylvia MacLean (a human woman on the verge of her twentieth birthday who was a pure-blood), had been saved from almost being run over by a runaway carriage thanks to Arnie’s desperate rescue efforts. She currently wore the horn that had broken off from Arnie’s head as a necklace. It had made her very happy when she had been given it, but since then, she had occasionally used it to tease Arnie, saying things like, “You’re still doing that? Aren’t you glad we met? Aren’t you glad for our fate? It’s nothing to worry about, Arnie-kun. A single horn is nothing compared to this beautiful skin of mine.” It was this kind of teasing that was the problem. Now, that broken horn was a symbol of their bond. He was conflicted about whether it was okay to remove the mark. 「I see. By the way, can I hit you? With all my strength.」 「I’d prefer if you didn’t…」
Greg’s height was like that of a baby compared to Arnie’s massive frame, but with the power of a dwarf, he could easily knock Arnie unconscious. Detecting a genuine murderous intent behind Arnie’s friendly smile, he took a step back. “Hmm, well, if that’s what you want, I don’t mind doing it, but…” “E-eh, yeah, well, that’s true… but it’s still not very presentable.” But Arnie had his own sense of aesthetics as an ogre, and he cared about what others thought of him. Frankly, his broken horns were not very presentable. Walking around with them exposed would be embarrassing for Sylvia too. “Hmm… what should I do…” “Anyway, I doubt anyone other than ogres would care.” “Basson, there are actually a lot of ogres around…”
Between culture and culture, between love and appearances. Consulting Sylvia might be an option, but it would be like making her look sad and then saying, “You can cut it off if you want.”
As Arnie stroked the horns, which looked like carrots with their tails cut off, he was in deep thought. Suddenly, the front entrance of the barracks became noisy. “Someone must have come back.” “Yeah, looks like it.” In recent days, the commotion had grown noticeably louder. With the centurion’s personal affairs, the three-month leave had come to an end, and the number of people returning was increasing day by day. Although it was a military unit, most of the soldiers were young and single, so there was a strong sense of camaraderie. Some brought back mountains of souvenirs, and each person’s return from their first leave had become a little event. But something about the commotion seemed a bit off.
「Hey, Boyd, Lackman! Come here for a second! And slap my cheeks! But don’t hit me too hard or I’ll break my neck.」 「Hey, I’m talking to you, Janjack!」 「Can I just tap you?」 「No, it’s not about hitting you hard. I just want you to do it gently… Oh, just come over here!」 The two men exchanged glances and followed Janjack into the foyer. There, they found a giant bull-like Ogre subspecies man, Kelly Isaac, the ten-man leader. Beside him, or rather, next to his lower body, stood a woman with a straight back and a stern demeanor. 「…Is that a woman? She doesn’t look like a civilian.」 「Her cloak looks like military gear. It’s made of the same material as the ones the Anzeros Corps uses.」 「Um, isn’t she too close? Isn’t she standing too close to Isaac?」
「No, isn’t that just because Isaac’s too big?」 「That guy could block the entrance all by himself.」 「No, no, no, I saw her coming from the other side, and she was riding on Isaac’s shoulder!」 「Wow.」 「That’s gotta be the most enviable ogre situation.」 「…………」 Arnie averts his gaze a bit, as per Sylvia’s request. Jeanjack and Greg notice and shoot him a nasty look. Anyway. 「It looks like she’s introducing herself. In the foyer, to everyone.」
「Hey, we’re coming to listen too!」
“Hold on a second!! Dammit, don’t leave behind the short-legged ones!”
The three ran, their footsteps pounding.
“Thank you very much.”
When the woman in the cloak took the military salute of the Celesta army, the three of them had arrived within earshot.
Seeing everyone around them return the salute with a slightly relaxed smile, the three hurriedly placed their fists over their left chests.
“Hey, what’s going on?”
When Jean-Jacques asked the other soldier nearby, she smiled thinly and repeated the words before he could open his mouth.
“Thank you for your continued support. I am Lynne Mikagami, a soldier transferred from the Third Infantry Regiment of the Celesta Western Legion. My military branch remains infantry, and I will be taking up the role of guard.”
“Oh… Well, Mikagami Lance Corporal also holds the title of Ace Knight. And she’s a wolf beastman, and my… well, you could say she’s from my hometown, an old acquaintance’s granddaughter.”
Kerry tries to explain carefully, trying not to offend anyone. Lynne calmly removes her hair ornament and shows off her ears, which she had lowered. “I joined the Crossbow Corps because I admired Captain Isaac. Please take care of me from now on.” “Hey, Lynne… Mikagami.” “Do your best, Lynne. …I explained this to you, Kerry.” “No, um… I mean…” Kerry’s completely trusting gaze and mannerisms, as well as her confused and suspicious behavior. The approximately 40 soldiers gathered in the entrance hall almost simultaneously understood. “Right, right. Nice to meet you, Mikagami Lance Corporal.” Then, Bit Williams (a 28-year-old human with a burning jealousy), also a captain, stepped forward with a sly smile.
「And Isaac. I know it’s not the best after a long journey, but we’re really in the mood to train.」 「Ah, yeah… Hey, Williams.」 「Of course, you’ll lead the way, Isaac, as a soldier of Celesta.」 「Hold on a second. Calm down. Let’s be rational about this as soldiers of Celesta.」 「Yeah, yeah. No one’s lost their cool yet.」 「…………」 The bull ogre, towering nearly twice his height, slowly backed away. 「Gh…」 「Yeah, yeah, you’re really enthusiastic about training. That’s great, future centurion.」 「Yeees! Acting Centurion-in-Training!」
“Shining bright!” While cheering, the soldiers hurried toward the armory. And soon, those who had returned already started winding the strings of their crossbows with nostalgic smiles. “Now,” Bit (a human with a reputation for fake smiles, 28 years old) declared to Kelly with a full smile. “Which is better, running away with a shield to block arrows or running away with nothing?” “What kind of choice is this!!” “Hurry up, I’ve already got a weapon since I was doing target practice earlier.” “Kuh… u… ughhh!!” Kelly ran for the armory with all his might.
「All right, everyone, follow! If he grabs a shield to block the arrows, shoot!」 「YEAH!!!」 The Crossbow Corps chased after them with great enthusiasm. 「Wait a minute… Please, what are you going to do to Kelly?」 「It’s fine, it’s fine.」 The only one left, Hank Bronson of the Anzeros Squad (the escort infantry), grabbed her shoulder firmly to stop her. 「This is part of the ritual.」 「Ritual…?」 「Yeah. …Look, the centurion and the Anzeros squad leader aren’t here either.」 「What does that have to do with anything!?」
The large target shooting training aimed at Kelly had already begun while they were having a pointless conversation. “Uooooooooo!! D-don’t you dare shoot me!!” “Sorry, Isaac Squad Leader! I know it hurts, but this is all part of the training! Die!” “We’re not doing this because we want to! Die!” “Even if I go back to Kun and hook up with a pretty girl, I’m not going to let you off the hook for showing off your skills in front of me! Sorry!” “Stop insulting me with your bad grammar!!” The shield supposedly used for deflecting arrows was actually a heavy shield that was usually stored in the armory. It was so heavy that only an ogre could easily wield it. It could deflect crossbow bolts at close range, but Kelly’s massive body couldn’t be fully covered by it. “Ow! I got grazed! I got grazed, you bastard!!” Despite this, Kelly tried his best to escape. ”…What kind of unit is this here?”
“Welcome to the Northern Legion’s top friendly unit.”
It sounds like a joke, but it’s probably true.
Night.
After the day’s commotion had settled, everyone gathered in the dining hall for dinner, starting to tease Linné and Kelly about how they got together and what they liked about each other.
“Well, that was a blessing in its own way, comrades.”
”…When I started dating Sylvia, I was glad I had a centurion and a decurion like Anzeros…”
“Hahaha, well, you’re not as tough as Isaac, so you don’t get to go that far.”
While watching Kelly and Linné from a distance, who were slightly angry and slightly happy, Arnie secretly wiped his brow with a cold sweat.
Yeah, everyone’s scary.
“But…”
Now, Kelly has a girlfriend too. Which means, he won’t be brushed off when it comes to matters of love. And Kelly is an ogre, albeit a subspecies. They share a common understanding when it comes to horns. “Alright.” Arnie finished off the chunk of meat seasoned with pepper (a super hearty dish for ogres with big appetites) and followed Kelly, who had already gotten up from his seat.
“Horns?” “Just cut them off.” Sure enough, Kelly and Linne tilted their heads in confusion at his suggestion. “No, but… I don’t want to sever our memories.” “You’re such a romantic, Boyd.”
HAHAHA, Kelly laughed heartily, and Linnie smiled and nodded. With Kelly’s rather rough but caring nature and Linnie’s quiet, dependable demeanor, the two together seemed like a pretty good couple. “I’m not saying we need romance or anything, but… Well, you know, me and Sylvia are different races… I don’t want to lose any of the bonds we’ve built.” “I see… But you two are so in love, you should have more confidence.” “Having tangible things is nice, but if you only value those, women will feel insecure. They might wonder if you only trust your memories and not their love.” “Ah, I see…” “So, I think it’s a good idea to take the next step.” “Next step?” “Yes. You could make the act of shaving off your horns another precious memory for the two of you.” ”…Something like this…”
Tap, tap, tap. Silvia carefully trimmed the horns with Arnie’s favorite (though it looked like a machete to humans) knife and file. “Ah, don’t round off the tips too much, that’s how you’d file a child’s horns.” “Yes, ma’am. …Hey, why did you let me do this?” “W-well…”
“Ogre horns are important. They’re a symbol of our pride. So we don’t let others touch them.” “To let someone else do it… well, in our colony, it’s a serious sign of affection.” “…Hey, Kelly-san. Can I… file them for you?” “Eh, …ah, yeah. …Damn, you’re really milking this, aren’t you?”
“My pride is that Sylvia-san likes me. …If horns are a symbol of pride, then the horns filed by Sylvia-san are the proudest horns I have.”
「…I guess.」 「Oh, am I being too cocky? This is what Isaac Squad Leader taught me to say when I kill someone.」 「No, it’s… nice.」
「Then I’ll take the right horn—」 「Kate!?」 「T-Then I’ll take the left…」 「You can let me and my sister take your horns instead of your dick, Kelly Brother!♪」 「…Horns… I-I can’t…」 「Wait a minute.」 「Haha, Isaac. What a coincidence.」
「W-Williams!?」 「H-Hold it! Who’s the guy making those inappropriate remarks over there?」 「No, calm down. Let’s talk. First of all, this kid doesn’t speak standard language well.」 「Oh, oh. …Let’s go to the barracks and ask him which dialect his dick is from. We can jog over there.」 「Wait! Listen to me!」 This is part of an extra chapter that’s heavily intertwined with Isaac’s story from Extra Chapter 2. I’ll be posting that one soon as well.