41. The King's Legacy (2)
Shoulder-padded dwarf warriors, standing just 150 cm tall but weighing a hefty 100 kg each, dragged massive steel golems into the underground cavern.
"Oh! The warriors are here!"
"Valhalla!"
Dwarf chieftain Yulih gripped his tribal emblem, the "Hammer Axe"—a fusion of axe and hammer—and belted out a song of fury.
Yulih pointed to the massive steel golem.
"But behold! We live, yet do not truly live—these steel giants are to blame for it all!"
The dwarves' faces grew grim. The reason they dwelled in the deep mountain valleys and dank underground lairs was right before their eyes: the Gigants.
In the past, dwarves had roamed warm grasslands and ruled vast lands. But chased by the Barantia Empire's Gigants, Estel's Magic Knights, and the Union Kingdom's Titans, they had fled into the Sky Mountains, Sierra Mountains, and Redrock Mountains. There, scarce resources and brutal competition with vile orcs had dwindled their numbers year by year. One hundred and fifty years had passed since then.
"I, Yulih, wielder of the hammer! I will endure no more! We shall smite our foes with their own weapons!"
"Waaah! Valhalla!"
The dwarf warriors roared in unison.
"Great ancestors! Grant us strength! The age of dwarves shall dawn upon this land!"
"Valhalla!"
"Valhalla!"
"Warriors! Return to the surface! Hold back the Barantia Empire scum!"
Rumble rumble rumble!
The dwarf warriors vanished into dozens of mine shafts, hammers and axes in hand.
"Yulih! It's been ages—the warriors are thrilled."
Great warrior Brock, who had dug massive tunnels to steal the Gigant, spoke up.
"Of course! Look how grand and beautiful it is!"
It stood 10 meters tall! Capturing one of the largest Gigants around was the clan's greatest boast. The dwarves had no idea it was an ancient steel golem from their forebears.
"But how do we pilot it?"
"We dwarves have our share who can wield Odd. We'll figure it out with some research."
Odd referred to an undefined ether existing in nature, with various properties. Dwarves were born with the ability to control Gigants or golems, but after their ancestors strayed far from the Great Forest over countless years, they could no longer amass enough Odd to move one.
And then...
'Golems bind once contracted, steel can be remelted, but the core's useless and gets destroyed. To remake and recontract, they need magic stones from giant beasts in the Quicksand Desert or Dark Sea...'
Eleven, secretly observing in Wayne's stead, shook his head. As expected, since they'd taken a golem utterly useless to them, these dwarves hadn't inherited a shred of their ancestors' great legacy. If they'd stolen a proper Gigant, it might've been understandable.
Wayne wore a bitter expression.
'At least they haven't forgotten how to alter the earth's flow.'
Wayne figured the dwarves' gathering spot couldn't be far. He'd sent Eleven to scout discreetly, and sure enough, their temporary lair was just 2 km away. He itched to barge in and smash everything right then, but he held back.
'First, promote my people, then come back.'
Wayne recalled Eleven.
The 7th Platoon buzzed with activity from morning. With Snow's squad taking the front lines today, preparations were hectic.
"Sir! An honor to meet you, Young Lord Wayne."
A man approached, fist to chest.
"Huh? Who're you? Don't recognize you."
"7th Platoon rookie Magic Knight, Seongkon Void."
"Ah! A newbie. Yeah? How old?"
"Twenty-six."
"What?"
A newbie two years older than the squad leader? Made Snow seem all the more impressive in hindsight.
"Hey! Blockhead! Get your ass moving on deployment prep!"
Deputy squad leader Argen bellowed.
"Y-yes sir! Coming now!"
Seongkon Void bolted to his Gigant.
"A newbie, huh?"
"Ugh, don't get me started. Useless outside perimeter duty. Whoever's parachute he is, he's old, incompetent, and stuck in our squad..."
"Still better than you were as a rookie, Argen?"
Argen whipped around with a glare, but since it was Squad Leader Snow speaking, he just flared his nostrils and fumed silently.
"Go mind the newbie! Drill him on orders."
"Yessir. I'll handle it."
Argen grumbled toward his Gigant.
"Will you be staying at base camp, Young Lord Wayne?"
"Nah, I'm coming along."
"But it's dangerous. You don't even have a Gigant."
"I can promote you without one!"
"Promote? You mean it?"
"Yeah. You trust me, right?"
"Pardon?"
Wayne's serious tone gave Snow a faint ominous vibe. But after all Wayne had done for her, she nodded.
"Yes. I trust you."
"Good. From now on, do exactly as I say. I'll get you over that mountain today."
"The mountain?"
It had taken a week to cross a small one before. This one was twice as big, with a 1 km canyon path around it—impossible in a day.
"This isn't repelling enemies or breaching lines. It's no easy task."
"Didn't you say you had no way?"
"True, but..."
"I've got a method. Trust me once, even if you think it's a scam. Worst case, a pitfall trap? I don't let my people get hurt."
Wayne emphasized my people. If this worked, Snow would earn respect in the 2nd Battalion and trust him even more.
"Sigh! Understood. I'll prep the Odd communicator."
"No need. Just stick out your hand."
Wayne said something baffling again. Snow extended her hand; he grabbed it.
Wayne accelerated Karian Odd breathing stage 2, sucking in Snow's Odd.
"Gasp! My Odd?"
"Just a bit. Don't resist!"
"Y-yes...!"
Wayne absorbed a portion, storing it in his left hand.
He turned, lips moving.
'Alright! From now on, follow my orders to the letter!'
"Yes! Wait—how'd you do that?"
It wasn't hearing Wayne's voice—it pierced straight to her ears and brain.
'Using your Odd to link us. Won't freak out in the Gigant.'
"Ah...!"
'One-time deal. No worries! Ends when your Odd's spent.'
"Yes!"
Snow steadied her pounding heart. Odd-linked speech? Odd communicators synced similar wavelengths between Gigants, but direct human-to-human via raw Odd? Unheard of.
Yet here Wayne was, doing it. Undeniable.
'What happened to Young Lord Wayne these past five months?'
Snow shelved her questions and mounted her Gigant.
[Squad leader, sending scouts ahead.]
[Deputy, hold.]
[Yes.]
"Young Lord Wayne, can you hear me?"
'Loud and clear, Snow.'
"Send the scouts?"
'No. Gigants follow me only; rest wait at the base.'
"Just Gigants? Got it!"
Snow trusted Wayne. She had the troops stand by nearby, Gigants advancing alone.
'Eleven, I've got work! Go!'
Wayne sent Eleven into nearby underground tunnels. Now adult-sized, Eleven's heat detection spanned 500 meters, infused with Wayne's red Odd. They read each other's emotions via Odd—no orders needed, like steel golems and dwarf kings.
Whoosh! Pop pop pop!
Eleven pulsed red Odd, probing as he moved. The web of tunnels risked getting lost or trapped, but he navigated effortlessly. Soon, he detected clusters of dwarf heat.
A canyon between peaks held a wide path fit for Gigants—the only way without boring through mountains. But it was a trap! Massive caves lurked below at chokepoints; collapse a support pillar as Gigants passed, and they'd plummet. Escaping meant quick extraction, or burial under crumbling walls.
[Squad leader, really going this way?]
Diane, trailing Snow, asked.
[Fine. Follow slow.]
Snow worried too. Wayne strode ahead with no precautions.
"Great warrior! They're coming!"
"Foolish humans! Coming back after last time? Hah!"
Great warrior Brock scoffed at human stupidity. Without Gigants, dwarves outmatched them.
"Not one meter today!"
"Warriors! Breach it!"
Dwarves hefted hammers, infusing Odd.
"Dwarves alter the earth's flow!"
"Alter the flow!"
Bam! Boom boom! Bam! Bam!
Dwarves swarmed the massive support pillar, hammers blazing with Odd. Its density plummeted, weakening instantly. Daily for tunnel-digging dwarves, but true dwarf magic. Their hammers contained traces of "Or," god-metal amplifying Odd.
"Warriors! Fall back!"
One heavy Gigant step, and the pillar would crumble, dooming them to the pit. Humans approached oblivious.
'Stop!'
At Wayne's word, Snow signaled halt.
'Here it is.'
Linked to Eleven underground via red Odd, Wayne pinpointed the pillar.
He raised Hammer Axe Yol Das high, infusing Odd into the god-metal Or hammer. A thick Odd sheath enveloped it.
'Dwarf magic lowers density—or raises it!'
Swoosh! Craaaack!
As the hammer struck, binding Odd surged, densifying the earth toward the pillar.
Crackle! Zap zap!
Rock compressed, pillar fortified!
'Snow, advance!'
Wayne led; Gigants followed.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Gigants passed safely one by one.
"What? Ground didn't collapse?"
Dwarves gaped as Gigants cleared.
Great warrior Brock yelled.
"What're you doing? Lower the density more!"
Dwarves rushed the next tunnel, hammering the next pillar.
But Wayne arrived overhead, slamming Odd-infused Yol Das—pillar hardened again.
"Great warrior! A human uses dwarf magic!"
"What?"
Brock rushed topside, spotting Wayne hammering with Odd-sheathed Yol Das.
'That? The king's hammer!'
Brock paled. It was Yol Das from ancestor murals and statues—pure Or, said to control legendary thunder golem Ahri Man. And this human, no dwarf, altered earth's flow solo in one strike.
As humans neutralized traps and pressed on, Brock was helpless.
"Fall back to the next mountain. Call the Magic Knights!"
"What? Gigants incoming?"
Estel Kingdom Magic Knight squad gasped.
"Yes! Dodging our traps, heading here."
"What? Too fast. Said we'd hold months."
"No idea. They have a dwarf-magic user."
"Bullshit?"
"No time! We'll remake traps next mountain. You block Gigants now!"
"Fucking idiots!"
The squad leader cursed freely.
"We'll hold! Useless dwarf shits—we'll settle later."
Knight gone, Brock trembled with insulted fury. He'd come personally as great warrior, yet treated worse than a grunt.
'Ah! Dwarf honor in the dirt!'
He'd foreseen this joining Estel's war after descending mountains. But Gigant capture was prime opportunity; he'd defied other clans.
'I'll repay this humiliation.'
All three Magic Knights deployed here mobilized. Complacent from dwarf aid, now breached—the leader panicked.
"Gigants there!"
Empire Gigants advanced slowly.
"Pour mana! Block the narrow pass!"
Vreeee! Thud thud thud!
Few in number, open ground favored them. Mana circuits charged, they dashed max speed.
Two passed; as the last did...
A man dashed before it, hammering the ground.
'What the—crazy bastard?'
As the Magic Knight passed...
Kabooooom!
"Gahk!"
Ground caved; Magic Knight plummeted.
'Snow, I handled the last. You got this now?'
"Of course!"
Wayne bolted toward the dwarves' cavern.
'Time to crush Bras's descendants!'