"Should we really not intervene?"
The man stood atop the shoulder of a towering mountain giant, staring at the bloody battlefield before him. The air was thick with the metallic stench of blood, and the chaotic clashes of giants and dragons against the endless waves of voidspawn were deafening. The sight was enough to make his blood boil.
"The Legion Commander has yet to issue an order for us to join the fight. For now, we stand by and wait," the mountain giant rumbled in his deep, calm voice. Despite the brutality of the battlefield before him, his demeanor remained tranquil and steady, like the stone he embodied.
"There's... a commander giving orders in this chaos?" The man frowned in confusion. To his eyes, the battlefield looked like an uncoordinated mess—a chaotic storm of massive dragons and giants throwing themselves into the fray without rhyme or reason. He couldn't see any semblance of strategy or organization.
"Of course there's a commander. This is a war, not a mindless brawl," the mountain giant replied, glancing down at the man perched on his shoulder with a gaze that seemed to silently question his intelligence.
"But... I didn't hear anyone issuing commands before the fighting started," the man countered, still skeptical.
"There's no need for spoken orders. This is a true legion," the giant explained patiently. "The Commander's directives are conveyed directly through the resonance of our bloodlines. For beings like us, such communication is far more effective than any human shouting orders across a battlefield."
"Bloodline resonance?" The man blinked, struggling to wrap his mind around the concept. But then he realized—of course. These giants and dragons were not ordinary creatures; they were supernal beings. It made sense that they would possess abilities beyond human comprehension.
"The blood flowing in your veins is diluted. It comes from your artificial transformation. It's no surprise you cannot sense the resonance," the mountain giant added with a tone of faint pity.
The man's lips twitched. He wasn't sure whether to feel insulted or grateful for the explanation.
"So, are you mountain giants just... spectators in this war?" He changed the subject, looking around at the other mountain giants who stood like statues on the edge of the battlefield, observing the chaos from a distance. In contrast to the giants and dragons throwing themselves into the fray, these mountain giants seemed almost detached.
"We mountain giants are not mere spectators," the giant corrected. "We are builders and restorers. But if the tides of war turn, we will join the fight. Though I don't think such a scenario will happen today."
"So... you're a backup force?" The man raised an eyebrow, incredulous.
"You could say that." The mountain giant shrugged, his tone indifferent. "But don't mistake us for weaklings. When the time comes, we mountain giants can fight as fiercely as any warrior on that battlefield."
The man glanced at the giant, then at the colossal hammer it carried with ease. Somehow, he didn't doubt the claim. But the image of a group of giants, who were essentially glorified construction workers, suddenly charging into battle was almost comical.
"And I suppose I don't need anyone's permission to fight, right?" the man asked, a slight smirk tugging at his lips.
"Correct. You came here of your own free will. No one ordered you to be here," the giant confirmed. His massive, amber eyes studied the man closely. "Are you planning to step onto the battlefield?"
"That's what I'm here for," the man replied, gripping his custom-built God-Machine weapon tightly.
"No one will stop you," the giant said solemnly. "But before you go, consider this: your participation will not change the outcome of this war. The moment you step onto the battlefield, you will face death—and you may not survive."
"You're right. To you giants and dragons, I'm insignificant. My actions won't affect the course of this war. But to me, this means everything." The man's eyes burned with determination. "I want to prove that humanity hasn't been left behind in this fight. Even if I'm the last man standing, I want to show that we fought back."
The mountain giant fell silent for a moment, then nodded. "If that is your decision, then I will not try to stop you. May fortune favor you."
With those words, the man leapt from the giant's shoulder, landing lightly on the blood-soaked ground below. He gripped his God-Machine tightly and began making his way toward the battlefield.
The ground was soft and slick beneath his boots, saturated with the blood of giants, dragons, and voidspawn alike. The air reeked of iron and decay. It was a scene straight out of a nightmare—but he pressed forward, determined.
It didn't take long before he encountered his first opponent: a twisted voidspawn that resembled a grotesque fusion of a serpent and a lizard. It had two powerful legs but no arms, giving it an unnatural, almost comedic appearance.
The voidspawn's glowing, crimson eyes locked onto the man, and its gaping maw opened wide, revealing rows of jagged teeth. Its fetid breath carried the stench of rot and acid.
The man's grip tightened on his weapon, his heart pounding in his chest. This was it—his first true battle against an enemy he had spent his entire life fleeing from.
"Kill or be killed," he muttered under his breath. Then, with a roar of his own, he charged.
The voidspawn lunged forward with terrifying speed, its clawed feet digging into the ground as it propelled itself toward him. Its jaws snapped shut inches from his face, but the man twisted his body, narrowly evading the attack.
With a swift, desperate swing, he brought his God-Machine down onto the creature's side. The blade carved through its flesh, spilling acidic blood onto the ground. The voidspawn howled in rage and pain, its serpentine body writhing as it turned to face him again.
By the time the man managed to kill the voidspawn, he was drenched in sweat and trembling from head to toe. His breathing was ragged, his muscles screaming in protest.
But he had done it. He had slain a voidspawn—something he would never have dared to dream of just weeks ago.
He stumbled toward the corpse, barely able to stand. His God-Machine was heavily damaged, its once-pristine blade now cracked and stained. Yet, as he stared at the broken weapon, something strange began to happen.
The God-Machine... was changing.
The man blinked in shock as the weapon's core—a pulsating, living mass of bio-metal—began absorbing the voidspawn's acidic blood. The cracks in its blade started to mend themselves, and its appearance became... different. Almost alive.
"What's happening?" he whispered, staring at the weapon in awe.
Before he could process what was happening, a faint golden glow caught his eye. He looked down and realized the blood pooling beneath him wasn't just from the voidspawn—it was also from a fallen giant nearby.
His God-Machine was absorbing the giant's blood, too. And with it, something far more potent: a faint, ethereal radiance—the essence of a being far greater than any mortal.
Far above the battlefield, Muria watched the scene unfold. From his vantage point, nothing escaped his gaze. He had seen countless battles, witnessed innumerable transformations—but this caught even him by surprise.
"Interesting," he murmured to himself, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "It seems humanity hasn't given up yet."
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