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The Underworld, the Roots of the World Tree
"Grrrr-woof~~"
The extremely powerful mountain masters that once ruled this realm were now crawling on the ground, whimpering in fear like weak pets.
"Hey, what's happening in the Sun World?!"
Loki looked up at the sky above him and anxiously pulled at the chains binding his massive body. No matter how much he struggled, he could not break free from his imprisonment.
The Sun World, which was normally obscured by clouds, now glowed with an ominous orange-red light, like sunset clouds at dusk.
It looked as if the entire sky was on fire!
This scene was exactly like the one described in Elbaf's ancient mythological prophecy.
Ragnarok!
"Could it be that guy?"
Cold sweat slid down Loki's forehead, followed by endless waves of anger.
"That tea-loving bastard! I'M the one who should bring the Ragnarok!"
Loki roared furiously. He had always firmly believed that he was destined to bring Ragnarok to Elbaf, but now his prophetic role had been stolen by someone else!
Absolutely unforgivable!
Elbaf Port
Hajrudin knelt on the ground with flames reflected in his pupils. The sounds of fighting and screams from Giant warriors continued to reach his ears.
He desperately wanted to fight, but he couldn't even stand up.
The attack from earlier had broken almost every bone in his body. He could only watch helplessly as Elbaf was destroyed before his eyes.
"Ragnarok!"
Elbaf's ancient prophecy had finally come true!
Once upon a time, he had always regarded Loki as the one who would bring about Ragnarok. Just as the myth had prophesied, Loki had killed his own father.
Now, Ragnarok had truly arrived.
The real culprit was none other than the disaster named Daichi that he had brought with him to their homeland. Although the invader could have reached Elbaf even without his guidance, the pain and overwhelming guilt in his heart were unbearable.
"DAICHI!!!"
Hajrudin roared in extreme anger, tears constantly falling from his eyes!
It was all his fault!
"Hajrudin!"
Gerd, Road, and Goldberg.
When the companions of the New Giant Warrior Pirates heard Hajrudin's anguished roar, they immediately rushed over to his side. The situation was beyond their ability to tolerate, and their minds went completely blank.
As warriors of the younger generation, they had been ordered by the elders to evacuate the villagers. At this moment, the Giants and children who were not skilled in combat had been transferred to the safety of the sea clouds.
All the Giants capable of fighting had rushed to the front lines, but the scope of the disaster continued to expand. The battle situation was likely worse than anyone had expected.
The enemy was simply too powerful!
"Hajrudin, what should we do?"
"I have no idea."
Hajrudin pounded the ground hard with his fists.
He didn't know what to do. He couldn't do anything at all.
"Becoming the king of all Giants is my greatest dream, but now I can only watch Elbaf being destroyed!"
"How can someone as weak as me have the nerve to become the Giant King!"
"Loki!"
At the moment when he was drowning in deep despair, Hajrudin thought of Loki, whom he had always hated. If Loki had become the Giant King, he would definitely be able to stop that man with his incredible power.
This realization made him hate himself even more!
Time passed by little by little.
On both sides of the straight tree-lined path leading from the Royal Castle to the port, there were gravely injured and dying Giants lying everywhere. Even the strongest former members of the Giant Warrior Pirates had been defeated.
The battlefield was burning everywhere. If no one came to rescue the fallen warriors, the Giants would surely die. However, it was not easy to save them. Elbaf no longer had enough manpower.
When Daichi arrived at the port, the Giants who were taking refuge on the ships fell into complete despair. The children cried loudly in terror.
Just looking at the monster made them tremble uncontrollably.
"Stop! I'll be your opponent!"
An unexpected warrior blocked Groudon's path!
"That's... Colon!"
The adults were horrified and the children were scared half to death.
Colon was their classmate, the mixed-race child of Ya-san and Teacher Ripley. He was regarded by them as a natural "violent maniac."
They all had hated Colon.
But at this moment, Colon stood up bravely to protect them, which deeply touched the children's hearts.
So cool!
"Hmm?"
Daichi's eyes moved slightly downward.
It was a small child, holding a wooden sword.
Not bad!
There was a smile in Daichi's eyes.
"Little guy, tell me your name!"
"My name is Colon!"
Colon answered loudly. Although his legs were weak with fear, he had no intention of running away. Instead, he held his sword firmly and prepared to fight.
"I will remember your name, brave Giant warrior!"
Daichi laughed heartily and then raised his massive paw.
"SMACK!"
The little guy was slapped and sent flying through the air.
Don't think he would show mercy just because someone was a child.
He enjoyed beating up naughty kids the most.
"COLON?!!!"
The Giants on the ship had their eyes bulging out of their heads, their faces full of disbelief. They never expected that the enemy would actually attack a child.
How vicious could he be?
Anger followed immediately!
"You bastard!"
Ripley jumped off the boat and rushed toward Daichi while waving her weapon. Seeing her son being knocked away completely ignited her maternal fury.
"Don't underestimate a mother's anger!"
"SMACK!"
Daichi swung his claws again and slapped the female Giant away.
A family should be together.
"Even Teacher Ripley was knocked down!"
"We're hopeless!"
"Ahhh! Let's fight the monster!"
The remaining Giants jumped off the boat in grief and anger, rushing toward Daichi. Seeing that they could not escape, they could only make a final, desperate struggle.
Even the children shouted "Charge!"
"But this is so scary! Why should we come down!"
"I don't know! I want to go home!"
"The adults are fighting, so we have to fight too!"
"But I hate violence!"
The children ran while crying, totally unaware of what they were doing. When they saw the adults jumping off the boat, they jumped too.
So terrifying!
"SMACK!"
"Pow! Pow! Pow!"
Daichi attacked with both hands, slapping a Giant away with each strike. He didn't even spare the children. The Giants also cooperated by lining up to be sent flying.
Soon, the world became quiet.
Gerd and his companions finally arrived at the port, supporting the seriously injured Hajrudin. However, the scene before them filled them with extreme anger.
Women, elderly people, children.
They all lay on the ground unconscious, blood trickling from their mouths.
Completely annihilated!
Even Gerd couldn't hold back, and his eyes turned into triangles of rage.
"Daichi, you're going too far!"
"Too far?"
Daichi turned around, and his body gradually shrank back into human form.
"They challenged me as warriors, and I respected their choice according to the traditions of Elbaf. I treated them as opponents and responded accordingly. This is the most basic etiquette!"
"What's too far about that?"
Gerd was left speechless.
In the old days of Elbaf, even young children were considered warriors. The most important etiquette of that era was to take every battle seriously, even if the opponent was a child.
This was an Elbaf tradition!
"Phew~~"
Daichi let out a long sigh, looking tired.
The Giants were extremely powerful. He had defeated countless Giants and endured countless attacks along the way.
It was like hitting a coconut with a branch. Even if the coconut shell couldn't be broken, the accumulated damage would eventually lead to significant impact on the inside of the coconut.
The battle had lasted from morning to evening, which really made him very tired. After all, he was fighting on the tree without solid earth to sustain him. If this had been more than one hundred years ago, when Elbaf had a large number of ancient Giants and was still the world's most powerful country, he might have lost.
Daichi looked up at Hajrudin and the others.
"If you want to fight, attack me now!"
Hajrudin pushed his companions away, gnashing his teeth as he picked up his giant axe.
It would be impossible for just a few of them to save so many fellow Giants from the sea of fire, which meant that Elbaf was truly destroyed.
Hajrudin raised his giant axe with trembling hands and asked angrily: "Why are you doing this? What benefit does this bring you?"
"Benefits?"
Daichi looked up at the sky.
"Hajrudin, your dream is to become the Giant King, right?"
Hajrudin remained silent.
Now he was no longer qualified to be king.
"You know, Hajrudin, after I came to Elbaf, I felt nothing but disappointment and anger!"
Daichi pointed to the sea of fire behind him.
"Open your eyes and see clearly. Elbaf is known as the world's most powerful country, but it has fallen to such a weak and incompetent state that even I alone can destroy it!"
"Peace? That's ridiculous!"
"You are Giants! Giants with the blood of warriors! A nation of war that once made the entire world fear you!"
"Now you have given up violence and are praying for false peace. Today it's me, tomorrow it's Loki, and the day after tomorrow it's the Yonko, the World Government, and the Marines!"
"The power of the Giants is spread all over the world. Without military strength, what can you Giants use to protect your peace?"
"Elbaf is so weak now. Even if you could become the Giant King, what good would it do? Can it add even a little bit of warrior glory to your name?!"
It was torture from the very soul.
Hajrudin's face turned pale and the huge axe in his hands fell to the ground.
He couldn't deny that the Giants were now weak. Even the children in the village hated fighting and violence, which was completely different from when he was young.
He had thought about changing the status quo, but peace was the final wish of his father, King Harald, and the will that had been entrusted to him.
Hajrudin knelt on the ground, supporting himself with his weak hands. "It's too late to say anything now. Elbaf has been destroyed."
"Hey, Hajrudin."
Daichi looked up at the sky. Above him was the third heaven of Elbaf, with a huge tree's shadow directly overhead.
As he cancelled his transformation, the effect of the intense sunlight also dissipated. Under the heat of the burning fires, a large amount of water vapor was condensing into rain clouds above.
"Have you ever studied physics?"
"Physics?"
Hajrudin was stunned and couldn't understand.
"It's going to rain."
Daichi shook his head and walked to the shore.
"Hajrudin, I'll give you a piece of advice. If Elbaf doesn't make changes, the true Ragnarok will surely come."
"Loki, the Yonko, and the World Government!"
"The disaster that Elbaf is about to face has only just begun!"
"Goodbye for now."
After giving this final warning, Daichi jumped off the shore.
"DAICHI!!!"
Hajrudin and the other three rushed to the shore and looked down in horror. They were thousands of meters above the ground!
He would definitely fall to his death!
"CRASH!"
Heavy rain began pouring down!
Hajrudin was stunned for a moment and looked toward the village in surprise.
Elbaf was saved!