Alcohol and Ogre-girls - Ch. 33

[deathpigeon]

This guy's being a human bartender could really help her, since she's had no one else like her to talk with.

This could well lead to Hinata getting jealous.

 

[SrNevik]

This could well lead to Hinata getting jealous.

Both of them, honestly. He's likely just an innocent chill dude, who will have Hinata and Naori quietly a little jealous because he's so nice. I doubt it lasts though because that stuff never lasts in this manga.

 

[deathpigeon]

It might not last, but it might spur them to acknowledging the romantic nature of their relationship.

 

[Mangamoz]

Bartendorare.

 

[SleepyDemon]

Time for the weirdest NTR you've ever read: alcohol NTR.

Haven't we already had a few chapters of this with the idol?

 

[monk3yofchaos]

Why is Hinata accepting alcohol from another human?
Didn't she just say in the other chapter she wouldn't cheat like that?
(Although maybe she isn't drinking, since we haven't seen her have a drink and her horns aren't out)

Oh right... That did happen. She didn't take the alcohol from the doctor right? It's probably just a small mini drama arc to progress the story i guess

 

[SrNevik]

Oh right... That did happen. She didn't take the alcohol from the doctor right? It's probably just a small mini drama arc to progress the story i guess

She just hasn't had anything to drink yet. She's the one who called Naori over and we don't see her drinking anything from anyone. Most importantly, she also doesn't have her horns. I doubt this story is the type to have a mini-arc about something like that.

 

[himi-cat]

gosh I hate annoying clueless idiotic characters like her the most. I'm glad we got away from her, at least for a while.

Last I remember, this guy is connected to Aju and is a friend of Hinata, right?

Also, I've been curious since last chapter, but why is being a bartender for ogres makes them so popular? It seems like everyone, from monsters to human who knows about monsters, know about them.

anw, thanks for the chapter.

Edit: I just realized that not only just oni/ogres are real, other yokais are too. So why is everyone so scared of ogres? Last I checked, there's at least 10 more terrifying monsters who can kill and terrorize human better than ogres, who don't have a crippling weakness of alcohol.

New character is a kid, she's got an excuse for being clueless . . .

It doesn't seem like the idea of bartenders for ogres is particularly strange (on the supernatural side of this world, at least), it's more that it's uncommon. And I think that's entirely reasonable, if you think about it - you're giving a super cute girl/guy a drink (and they are always super cute, it seems), and suddenly they grow horns and fangs and claws and become super strong, on top of the usual effects of alcohol . . . you'd have to be a really unusual human not to freak out and run away, let alone stick around and make a lifetime commitment to it.

I mean, in this day and age it'd probably be easier to find people who'd be okay with it. We've humanised even the idea of monsters since we started moving away from mythology as the basis of our understanding of the universe, and part of that is removing that sense of monsters as being inherently evil - this story is a perfect example. There are still people who are totally steeped in that kind of thinking (like this new kid), but they're going to be a small minority. Even so, most people's reaction would likely still be strongly negative, because monsters are still monsters - scary, different, threatening, dangerous, even if they're not inherently evil. Combine that with the idea of monsters that are basically indistinguishable from humans and you're going to find that almost everyone freaks out and runs away.

So I think Naori is genuinely very unusual, even if she's not totally unique.

I also have a feeling the "lifetime commitment" bit is significant: Naori is Hinata's bartender, and that seems to be a lot more than just "yeah, she happens to be a human who's happy to make drinks for Hinata". So part of what makes Naori so interesting for other ogres is that relationship. It's also probably not hurt by their romantic relationship, which doesn't seem to be surprising or even particularly disturbing to other ogres, even though Hinata's desire to not be an ogre at all is clearly a problem for them (understandably) . . . Which actually makes me wonder about human/ogre relationships in the broader sense - they're clearly very similar to humans in many ways, are they maybe literally interrelated? Capable of interbreeding? Maybe we'll find out eventually . . .

The thing with ogres and alcohol is explicitly a curse, though, not a particular racial weakness - without the curse they'd be free to drink as much as they wanted. There hasn't been anything explicitly comparing their strength with the other monsters out there, but we've had hints - Hinata easily took down the tanuki once she had her power-up, and Mikage was only moderately challenged dealing with the hair monster, even though they were in his domain and she had to worry about Naori. So I think we can assume (at least for the purposes of the story) that if they were free to do whatever they wanted the ogres would be exactly as much of a threat to humans as they're being made out to be.

There does also seems to be a difference between freely given alcohol and alcohol that's simply stolen - obviously it's critical for ogres because of the curse, but I think the tanuki was also more affected by gifted alcohol than stolen alcohol, which seemed to be why he was so eager to do what the masked guy wanted. That may be more to do with the quality/type of the alcohol, though . . .

I really do hope all of this background stuff has been coherently thought out by the author - it always sucks to try figuring things out like this only to find out that the authors were making shit up as they went along . . .

 

[himi-cat]

if I'm remembering correctly it's down to the fact when they aren't under this curse they are way harder to kill, much stronger than most monsters, immune to all exorcism methods, and are generally smarter than most other monsters with their ability to form groups while having all the above factors (this is THE number one reason to fear any creature)

Yeah - they seem to be the most human-like of the monsters, and (in our infinite arrogance) we're generally most afraid of monsters that are almost human but without all the things we have inferiority complexes about (strength, lack of natural weapons, fear of pain, too much thinking not enough doing, etc).

Ultimately you could say the only thing humans really fear is other humans, ones who aren't part of our own tribe - that's pretty much the definition of ogres (and all the other similar monsters around the world).

 

[zokoi19]

New character is a kid, she's got an excuse for being clueless . . .

I know, I just hate her type of character. I'll be ok with her once she grows out of her naive thinking.

It doesn't seem like the idea of bartenders for ogres is particularly strange

So I think Naori is genuinely very unusual, even if she's not totally unique.

not the answer I was looking for, but thanks. What I meant was that, how exactly did they get so popular? There must be some sort of gossip network going on for information to spread so quickly and so accurately, right? So I'm curious about that, and how does that work, since I doubt most monsters would just sit down, have a drink and gossip like human.

The thing with ogres and alcohol is explicitly a curse, though, not a particular racial weakness - without the curse they'd be free to drink as much as they wanted.

I mean, that's still a weakness, as long as they aren't un-cursed.

There hasn't been anything explicitly comparing their strength with the other monsters out there, but we've had hints - Hinata easily took down the tanuki once she had her power-up, and Mikage was only moderately challenged dealing with the hair monster, even though they were in his domain and she had to worry about Naori. So I think we can assume (at least for the purposes of the story) that if they were free to do whatever they wanted the ogres would be exactly as much of a threat to humans as they're being made out to be.

I really do hope all of this background stuff has been coherently thought out by the author - it always sucks to try figuring things out like this only to find out that the authors were making shit up as they went along . . .

yeah that's the part I'm worried about. Yokai/Ayakashi/Momonoke mythology is a big mess, and I feel like the author is not preparing enough for it, instead just adding things so that we get new chapter.

Also, according to real life mythology, Oni/Ogres are physically strong, and in some stories they lighting/thunder power. However, they definitely aren't the strongest or the leader of anything. So, the author should establish some lore of their own, because if we're following real life mythology, oni aren't the biggest threat from the yokai world.

if I'm remembering correctly it's down to the fact when they aren't under this curse they are way harder to kill, much stronger than most monsters, immune to all exorcism methods, and are generally smarter than most other monsters with their ability to form groups while having all the above factors (this is THE number one reason to fear any creature)

while this is helpful, can you give me a source to this? I don't remember this from the manga, nor have I found anything like this about Oni in real life mythology.

Also, not entirely related, but Shuten-doji is most definitely just a metaphor for bandits. They kidnap people, "eat" the young maiden while letting old people/man be servants. The most supernatural thing about him was that his head was alive after being cut and tried to bite Minamoto no Yorimitsu, which nowadays we know that human head does stay alive for a few seconds after being decapitated.

 

[himi-cat]

not the answer I was looking for, but thanks. What I meant was that, how exactly did they get so popular? There must be some sort of gossip network going on for information to spread so quickly and so accurately, right? So I'm curious about that, and how does that work, since I doubt most monsters would just sit down, have a drink and gossip like human.

Well, I think it's clear the ogres do have a kind of gossip network, as well as some formal communication/networking structures. How the various random monsters out there living halfway up a mountain hear gossip I don't know, but there are some individuals explicitly spreading information - the masked guy, for one.

We may be seeing an unusual case, though, given Hinta's importance - maybe this is more a matter of celebrity gossip than anything else . . .

yeah that's the part I'm worried about. Yokai/Ayakashi/Momonoke mythology is a big mess, and I feel like the author is not preparing enough for it, instead just adding things so that we get new chapter.

Also, according to real life mythology, Oni/Ogres are physically strong, and in some stories they lighting/thunder power. However, they definitely aren't the strongest or the leader of anything. So, the author should establish some lore of their own, because if we're following real life mythology, oni aren't the biggest threat from the yokai world.

Yeah, there does need to be some more work put in to present this kind of background information coherently, otherwise things could go off the rails . . .

That said, unless the author has the whole story plotted out ahead of time they're always going to end up having to fiddle things in around the edges - since this is a serialised story they can't go back and tweak earlier parts to fix inconsistencies; working that sort of thing out cleanly is possible, but it's very difficult, and to be honest I don't think it's necessarily that big a problem. You might say it's the difference between "just good" and "great" - yeah, great is better than good, but that doesn't mean good isn't still good, and even "not so good, to be honest" can be plenty of fun to read . . . Though one's tolerance for that kind of thing is obviously entirely individual . . .

Personally, I'd say the way Mangadex ratings work in practise is a useful way to think about it - below an 8 and it probably has to have a particular hook to be worth reading; an 8-8.5 that kind of catches your interest is probably worth reading; 8.5-9 is worth considering even if it's not immediately engaging your interest; 9 and up is like "huh, I guess I should probably see what the fuss is about". I'd probably read this even if it was rated below 8, because Yuri, but so far I think it genuinely sits in the 8.5-9 range; even if the background does go off the rails I don't think it'll drop far below 8.5, unless it goes really bad . . .

All that said, so far the new characters and additional background development has all had some real justification, even if it hasn't all been plotted out ahead of time - I don't think we need to worry too much about things going way downhill.

 

[gearoi92]

NIIIICEEE WELCOME TO THE FUCKING GARBAGE ARC THAT KILLS ALL INTEREST I HAD IN THIS WORK. SERIOUSLY? SOME FUCKING DUDE MAKING HINATA COCKTAILS NOW? GREAAAAAT! NOT ONLY IMPLIED THAT THIS FUCK IS AJU'S EX BUT NOW WE GET THIS SHIT? FUCK OFF. UNIRONICALLY FUCK OFF. THIRTY CHAPTERS UNTIL THE AUTHOR GOES MASK-OFF WITH HIS FUCKING SHITTASTE.

Why the fuck do i get invested in a yuri when the author decides to disrespect their readers with this het-bait ntr garbage bullshit. If next chapter Hinata drinks his cocktail i will drop this garbage. Holy moly did this manga drop from 8.7/10 to fucking 4/10 in one chapter.

 

[deathpigeon]

Nothing about this chapter implies that the bartender guy is Hinata's ex and, even if he was, bisexual women exist. Or, heck, plenty of lesbians date men before figuring out they're lesbians. Chill.

 

[SrNevik]

Nothing about this chapter implies that the bartender guy is Hinata's ex and, even if he was, bisexual women exist. Or, heck, plenty of lesbians date men before figuring out they're lesbians. Chill.

This manga seems to attract people who jump to conclusions very quickly. They did it with Aju and that was nothing. Doing it again, now. Hinata and Naori aren't allowed to breathe next to another human being without it being a scandal.

It's funny. This story centers Naori and Hinata's relationship constantly but what can you do when people are seeing ghosts? I'm starting to feel like some want this kind of drama and that's why they're preemptively seeing NTR and harem everywhere, even though they're nowhere in the story.

 

[himi-cat]

It's funny. This story centers Naori and Hinata's relationship constantly but what can you do when people are seeing ghosts? I'm starting to feel like some want this kind of drama and that's why they're preemptively seeing NTR and harem everywhere, even though they're nowhere in the story.

It's really weird, a totally insane overreaction, almost like they're not even reading the same story? The story I've been reading, every single time there's been any kind of misunderstanding or confusion about their relationship, it's ended up not only being confirmed, but deepened.

I mean, neither of them are exactly open about their feelings, and Naori hasn't really recognised her feelings yet (though that's probably because she's got some serious self-image issues that make her reject the idea rather than because she's just ignorant), but there's been nothing to suggest that they're not totally into each other, or that anyone else has any hope of getting in between them. It's actually one of the things I like most about this story.

 

[zokoi19]

This manga seems to attract people who jump to conclusions very quickly. They did it with Aju and that was nothing. Doing it again, now. Hinata and Naori aren't allowed to breathe next to another human being without it being a scandal.

It's funny. This story centers Naori and Hinata's relationship constantly but what can you do when people are seeing ghosts? I'm starting to feel like some want this kind of drama and that's why they're preemptively seeing NTR and harem everywhere, even though they're nowhere in the story.

not disagreeing with you, just wanting to add a small info that @gearoi92 is either a troll who goes around rage baiting a lot, especially in yuri series, or he/she is a miserable person who thinks the world revolves around them. It's best to ignore that person as their comments are never worth your time (ignore is an actual function of mangadex forum btw).

 

[SrNevik]

not disagreeing with you, just wanting to add a small info that @gearoi92 is either a troll who goes around rage baiting a lot, especially in yuri series, or he/she is a miserable person who thinks the world revolves around them. It's best to ignore that person as their comments are never worth your time (ignore is an actual function of mangadex forum btw).

Thanks. I already do ignore them actually lol. And I very rarely do that.

 

[SrNevik]

It's really weird, a totally insane overreaction, almost like they're not even reading the same story? The story I've been reading, every single time there's been any kind of misunderstanding or confusion about their relationship, it's ended up not only being confirmed, but deepened.

I mean, neither of them are exactly open about their feelings, and Naori hasn't really recognised her feelings yet (though that's probably because she's got some serious self-image issues that make her reject the idea rather than because she's just ignorant), but there's been nothing to suggest that they're not totally into each other, or that anyone else has any hope of getting in between them. It's actually one of the things I like most about this story.

Yes, exactly. I agree about that being the story's strength; so it's confuses me whenever someone suggests drama (NTR, harem, love triangle) that hasn't ever taken place once in the story.

 

[SkyVentus]

NIIIICEEE WELCOME TO THE FUCKING GARBAGE ARC THAT KILLS ALL INTEREST I HAD IN THIS WORK. SERIOUSLY? SOME FUCKING DUDE MAKING HINATA COCKTAILS NOW? GREAAAAAT! NOT ONLY IMPLIED THAT THIS FUCK IS AJU'S EX BUT NOW WE GET THIS SHIT? FUCK OFF. UNIRONICALLY FUCK OFF. THIRTY CHAPTERS UNTIL THE AUTHOR GOES MASK-OFF WITH HIS FUCKING SHITTASTE.

Why the fuck do i get invested in a yuri when the author decides to disrespect their readers with this het-bait ntr garbage bullshit. If next chapter Hinata drinks his cocktail i will drop this garbage. Holy moly did this manga drop from 8.7/10 to fucking 4/10 in one chapter.

Cant imagine being as braindead as you

 

[gearoi92]

Cant imagine being as braindead as you

Learn to imagine before calling others braindead.

Lmao