Chapter 85: A World of Giants (II)

SLAAAAAP!

A sharp slap echoed through the area as Gorionda dropped the iron rod, his hand immediately clutching his red-hot cheek where Grifenne had smacked him.

"You just want to kill it, you monster!"

Gorionda glared at her before shaking his head.

"Believe me, little girl, these dark eyes have witnessed some of the most heart-wrenching monster-giant betrayals one could ever imagine."

"It’ll turn on you, rip out your intestines with its feral maw, and gobble up your liver right before your eyes!"

"Don’t say I, Mighty Gorionda, didn’t warn you!"

"Hmph!"

Grifenne pouted as she reached out and grabbed Declan’s cage, dangling it close to her face with a bright smile.

"You look so much like me... but so tiny."

"So, you’ve decided to adopt a beast, huh, Grifenne?"

The giant who had originally captured Declan, Grildor, spoke as he reached over and ruffled her white hair.

"Yes! Grildor, don’t you think it’s cute?" she asked with a grin.

Grildor’s gaze dropped to Declan.

Something deep within him whispered that this tiny creature was dangerous, but with his small frame and calm eyes, it was difficult to see him as anything other than harmless.

"I think so," he finally said. "Just make sure he stays in the cage."

"Yessssiiieeee!"

Grifenne squealed excitedly as she ran off with Declan’s cage, climbed onto the carriage, and settled herself atop the massive horse.

"Little girls and their toys..."

Gorionda’s voice echoed through the area as Grildor chuckled, bending down to grab the four cages lying on the ground before Gorionda took them from him.

"All of these beasts will equal a total of 230 rubies," Gorionda said.

Grildor slapped his shoulder with a grin.

"You know me, Gorionda. My pay in a day never falls below a hundred, and neither does it surpass two hundred."

"I’ll collect the payment early tomorrow," he said.

Gorionda clasped his hands together and prayed.

"May Nura accompany your soul to rest tonight."

Grildor nodded before climbing onto his horse.

"Better watch out for the heinous claws of that beast, Grifenne!" Gorionda shouted as they rode off.

The girl giggled, glancing down at Declan on her lap.

Now that Declan was no longer trapped in the back of the carriage but sitting atop the horse, he could finally see the world around him clearly.

It was truly a settlement, massive, bustling, and brimming with giants.

The children were easily distinguishable from the adults, standing around seven meters tall, while the adults were approximately ten meters in height.

Some of the giants were young men and women in their prime, and they were even taller, reaching nearly fifteen meters.

They all seemed closely knit, often waving and calling out to Grildor as he passed.

Declan received a few curious glances, but seeing him in the hands of the smiling Grifenne caused most of them to assume he was harmless and undeniably cute.

Apart from their size, two things really caught his attention.

First was their skin.

The men were dark-skinned, their bodies chiseled like stone, while the women had pale skin, white hair, and white eyebrows.

The contrast was sharp and almost unsettling, yet it gave the women an almost ethereal beauty.

The second thing was their homes.

They didn’t live in typical houses.

Instead, their settlement had been built directly into the towering mountains, with homes hewn from the rock itself and large stone slabs serving as doors.

’It’s almost like I’ve been thrown two thousand years into the past,’ Declan mused.

The horse soon came to a stop before a particularly large mountain.

This mountain rose higher than the others, and light gleamed through one of its windows, where a shadow could be seen moving inside.

"Seems like Greta’s at home," Grildor said to the girl.

Grifenne immediately jumped down and raced toward the entrance.

"GREEETTTAAAA!" she shouted.

Before she could reach the door, a woman stepped out.

"Oh, Grifenne!" she called, spreading her arms.

Grifenne leapt into her embrace, and the woman immediately showered her with countless kisses.

Declan, still inside the cage, was flung around like a toy and found the experience anything but comfortable.

"You came back early!" Grifenne said as the woman smiled.

"I did, Grifenne. And... is there something you plan on showing me?" she asked.

Grifenne’s face brightened as she held up Declan’s cage proudly.

"Look, Greta! I adopted a new pet, and don’t worry, Gorionda said I could keep it!"

She grinned from ear to ear.

But when Greta’s eyes fell upon the tiny figure inside the cage, her smile froze.

"That’s..."

"That’s so adorable," she finally said, smiling at Grifenne, who giggled before jumping down and yawning loudly, though she still hurried into the house with Declan in her arms.

Even as they disappeared inside, Declan could still feel the woman’s suspicious gaze fixed on the back of his head.

"Greta."

Grildor called out to his wife, who turned toward him with furrowed eyebrows.

"Where did you get that thing from?" she asked.

He paused when he saw her serious expression, knowing how exceedingly rare it was for her to look so concerned.

"It was just after the Darkthar Mech Grave, still within the boundary of the hunting grounds," he responded.

"Do you not think he’s different from a beast?"

"I do. He looks almost like us, just tiny, and he’s been unnervingly calm and quiet."

"But as much as he’s like that, he doesn’t look as aggressive as the other beasts. He’s harmless," Grildor defended.

However, Greta’s furrowed brows showed that she wasn’t convinced.

"Oh, do not worry about it."

"Nothing will happen to Grifenne. Not when we’re both by her side."

His hands gently wrapped around her as he softly kissed her neck.

That seemed enough to pull her out of her cautious state, and she turned fully toward him, giving him a deep kiss.

It was already evening when they returned home, and the family did little more than eat before retreating to their respective rooms.

Of course, Grifenne still took Declan with her, and even after falling asleep, she continued hugging his cage tightly against herself.

A couple of hours passed before Greta came in to check on her daughter while also keeping a watchful eye on Declan, who pretended to be asleep.

Eventually, she left with a shrug.

That was the best opportunity he was going to get.

Declan reached forward and grabbed both sides of the cage before pulling them apart.

The metal bent easily beneath his strength, allowing him to step out.

’Tsk. To think they were so reassured by the idea that something this weightless could actually keep me trapped,’

He thought, shaking his head before jumping from the bed onto the stony floor.

Even though they were inside a mountain, the place didn’t seem like one at all.

It had been properly carved and crafted, making it difficult to distinguish from an ordinary home, and because giants lived within it, everything had been built on a massive scale.

The system had given him no quests or instructions to follow, but Declan already knew what he needed to do.

Moving through the room, he soon found a drawer containing several thick, leather-bound books tucked away on a shelf.

It seemed to be some kind of small study area built into Grifenne’s room.

Declan climbed onto the shelf before pushing several books off.

The girl was snoring so loudly that he wasn’t particularly worried about the noise waking her.

He jumped back down and opened one of the books, only to find pages filled with what appeared to be meaningless scribbles and childish drawings.

’Seems like children will always be children,’ he mused, pushing the book aside before opening another.

Of the seven books he had pulled down, five contained the same sort of childish nonsense.

Only two contained anything useful, with several sections discussing the tribe.

Declan’s eyes immediately lit up.

This was exactly what he needed.

A way to learn more about these people and their race.

Silently, he stood atop one of the books and began reading, carefully going through every bit of information recorded within and flipping through the pages one after another.

But unknown to him, a shadow had appeared behind him, and soon after, a ghostly white figure silently stepped forward.

Though her heavy feet touched the ground, not even the slightest sound escaped them.

It was Greta.

She first turned toward her daughter.

Grifenne was sleeping peacefully, her arms still wrapped around the empty cage. However, there was nothing inside it making Greta’s eyes narrow.

The metallic bars had been smoothly bent apart, leaving behind an unmistakable sign that the creature had escaped.

She slowly turned her head.

There, standing atop one of the books and flipping through its pages, was the so-called "pet beast."

He had bent the cage so smoothly that it was obvious he had never truly been trapped inside it in the first place.

And secondly...He was reading.

If he were a beast, why would the first thing he think of be books?

Greta slowly crept toward him.

Yet, when she was only four meters away, Declan suddenly paused and snapped his head around.

He looked behind him, but there was nothing there.

"Why do I feel like the air feels weird... as if someone is blocking it?"

He mused quietly before shrugging and turning back toward the book.

Five seconds had yet to pass when he suddenly shot off the book. However, he didn’t make it far.

Two pale palms suddenly materialized from thin air, wrapping around him from both sides.

"Got you!"

Greta mused triumphantly, but the moment she saw Grifenne rolling over in her bed, she froze.

She had spoken too loudly and disturbed her daughter.

Fortunately, the little girl merely rolled around before coming to a stop, snuggling deeper into the empty cage.

"Huuuu..."

Greta unconsciously exhaled in relief.

With her palms tightly folded, she carefully carried Declan out of the room before leaving the house entirely.