Chapter 350

Chapter 350: Chapter 350

The giant tribe was located farther away than Lynn had anticipated.

They departed from the valley trampled by the giants and rode Hagrid’s Triumph motorcycle westward.

Mountain peak after mountain peak flashed by beneath them. Rivers meandered through the valleys, and occasionally, they spotted small villages with smoke rising from their rooftops and neat fields and fences surrounding the houses.

Madame Maxime said that if they traveled on foot, the journey would take approximately a day.

Giants possessed enormous strides. A single step carried them as far as several steps taken by an ordinary person.

They also possessed incredible endurance and could walk continuously for several hours without resting.

Their speed was equally impressive—so fast that an ordinary person couldn’t catch up even at a full sprint.

Yet even giants would still need an entire day to reach the tribe.

That alone demonstrated just how well hidden, remote, and determined not to be found the giant tribe was.

However, wizards obviously had no reason to travel on foot.

Lynn and the others boarded Hagrid’s motorcycle and embarked upon their journey to the giant tribe.

As evening approached, the three of them finally arrived at an even more secluded valley.

It appeared to be situated directly in the heart of the mountain range.

Two massive peaks stood on either side like the pillars of a gate. Their steep, almost vertical cliffs were covered in thick snow and countless icicles.

The entrance to the valley was narrow, but the interior was extremely spacious—wide enough to accommodate hundreds of people.

Towering peaks surrounded the valley on every side, enclosing it within a naturally isolated space.

Under Hagrid’s guidance, the three of them arrived at a hillside.

They climbed upward step by step. After a considerable amount of time, they finally reached a spot that offered them an unobstructed view.

Standing there, they gazed down into the valley from afar.

Below them, enormous, manually excavated caves were scattered throughout the valley.

Stones had been piled around some of the cave entrances to form low walls, most likely to block the wind.

Other entrances had nothing in front of them and appeared completely pitch-black.

The giants they had encountered earlier had now gathered in front of those caves and were fighting fiercely.

Dozens of giants were scattered throughout the valley. Some were engaged in one-on-one duels, others were brawling in groups, and the rest stood nearby watching.

Their fists slammed into one another, producing dull, thunderous thuds.

"I wonder how many of them will still be alive by the time the new Gurg is chosen," Hagrid said, his voice filled with undisguised disappointment.

Lynn cast a suspicious glance at the giants fighting below.

Wasn’t it the case that not a single one of them had died?

He had just watched one giant knock another to the ground. Instead of killing his fallen opponent, the victorious giant had immediately gone off in search of someone else to fight.

Meanwhile, after climbing back to his feet, the defeated giant had consciously withdrawn to the side.

Aside from the slightly bloody spectacle, everything appeared remarkably harmonious.

However, seeing how disappointed Hagrid looked, Lynn decided to offer him an idea.

"Ahem."

Lynn deliberately cleared his throat.

Although the sound wasn’t loud, it immediately attracted attention.

Hagrid turned to look at him. Madame Maxime did the same.

"Hagrid, I have an idea that might reduce the number of casualties. Would you like to try it?"

The moment he finished speaking, Hagrid impatiently asked, "What is it?"

His voice rose sharply, and his entire body radiated an eagerness that practically screamed, Tell me! Tell me!

Lynn extended his hand and pointed toward Hagrid’s motorcycle behind them.

A large, square object wrapped in canvas rested upon the luggage rack at the rear of the motorcycle.

"Isn’t Karkus’s head still in there?" Lynn asked, raising his eyebrows as though his implication couldn’t have been more obvious.

Hagrid frowned and pursed his lips.

He had absolutely no idea what Lynn meant.

Lynn: "..."

He sighed.

"Choose one of the giants down there who previously opposed Karkus and give Karkus’s head to him."

Hagrid’s eyes instantly lit up.

"Lynn, you’re an absolute genius!" Hagrid exclaimed excitedly.

With that, he impatiently ran toward the motorcycle carrying Karkus’s head.

Hagrid had originally intended to bury Karkus’s head near the giant caves.

He had even selected a burial site—a sunny, level clearing on the hillside overlooking the entire valley.

He had planned to dig a hole there, bury Karkus’s head, construct a grave, erect a tombstone, and carve the words: Karkus, Gurg of the Giants, died at...

However, he hadn’t had the opportunity to do so yet.

Now, there was no need.

For the sake of preventing the giants from going extinct, Karkus’s head would simply have to suffer a little.

...

The battle among the giants was a lengthy process.

They fought from morning until night, from night until morning, from sunrise until sunset, and from sunset until sunrise.

Even with Karkus’s head supporting one of the candidates, it merely caused some giants who strictly obeyed the tribe’s customs to voluntarily withdraw from the competition.

The direct succession of the new Gurg that Hagrid had imagined never occurred.

Thus, after the weakest competitors were quickly eliminated, the remaining giants became locked in a prolonged tug-of-war.

Lynn and the others remained on the hillside for an entire week.

One week.

Seven days.

One hundred and sixty-eight hours.

They ate on the mountain, slept on the mountain, defecated on the mountain, and urinated on the mountain.

Lynn, who had watched the fighting with great interest at first, had now grown thoroughly bored.

The giants employed the same tactics over and over again—you punch me, I kick you, you throw me to the ground, I throw you to the ground, you sit on me and hit me, and then I sit on you and hit you.

There were no changes, no innovations, and no surprises.

The visceral thrill of watching fists collide with flesh had certainly been interesting at first, but after seven consecutive days...

It was better not to talk about it.

Lynn eventually found a flat rock and sat down. He took a piece of goblin metal from his trunk and began reverse-engineering it.

Just as Lynn was holding the goblin metal and conducting his research, deafening shouts suddenly erupted from the valley below.

"Gurg!"

"Gurg!"

"Gurg!"

Lynn abruptly stood, hurried to the edge of the hillside, and looked down into the valley.

At that moment, the entire valley had turned dark red.

The snow was stained red with blood.

The ice was stained red with blood.

The stones were stained red with blood.

Even the air seemed to have been stained red with blood.

Despite the distance between them and the valley, Lynn could still smell the stench of blood permeating the air.

It was so thick—so overwhelmingly thick—that it felt as though someone had poured an entire bucket of blood directly in front of him.

A group of giants stood outside one of the caves, shouting loudly toward its interior.

Before long, a giant who looked exceptionally capable of fighting emerged from the cave.

He was one size larger than an ordinary giant. His shoulders were as broad as a door, his arms were as thick as tree trunks, and his fists resembled enormous iron hammers.

Scars covered his entire body. Some were old, while others were fresh. Some were deep, while others were shallow.

In one hand, he carried another giant.

"It seems he is the new Gurg," Madame Maxime said from beside Lynn.

She stood next to him with her arms crossed, gazing down into the valley.

Lynn nodded. He shifted his gaze away from the new Gurg and toward the group of giants still standing behind him.

"This Gurg probably won’t side with the Death Eaters.

"If he still intends to support them, then there’s only one option..."

Lynn didn’t finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.

It was nothing more complicated than killing the new Gurg and replacing him with another.

Madame Maxime glanced at Lynn before walking over to Hagrid, who was fast asleep.

Hagrid lay sprawled across a blanket with his mouth open, snoring loudly.

"Hagrid. Hagrid."

Madame Maxime crouched and patted his face.

She used neither too much nor too little force—just enough to wake him from his dream.

"Wake up and go negotiate. The new Gurg has been chosen."

Hagrid groggily opened his eyes.

His gaze was unfocused, his pupils were dilated, and his expression clearly conveyed: Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?

He blinked.

Then he blinked again.

Finally, he saw the giants in the valley below and spotted the new Gurg standing outside the cave.

He abruptly sat up.

"Wait here until I come back."

After leaving those words behind, Hagrid raced down the hillside as though he were flying.

...

The wait was a long one.

The moon rose high into the sky, round and bright. Silvery moonlight spilled across the snow, illuminating the entire mountain.

Lynn and Madame Maxime sat beside the campfire, holding cups of hot tea as they waited for Hagrid to return.

The sound of footsteps rose from farther down the hillside. Before long, Hagrid’s figure emerged from the darkness.

He hurried toward the campfire, dropped heavily onto the ground, and panted for breath.

"Very good..." Hagrid said with a smile.

"The new Gurg told me that he strongly opposed the decision Karkus made back then.

"Therefore, the giants will not join the Death Eaters in this war."

He paused and took a bite of roasted meat.

"Likewise... they won’t join us either."

Lynn and Madame Maxime nodded.

This answer wasn’t unexpected.

One only needed to look at the giants below to understand why. Not a single giant capable of fighting had escaped uninjured.

In fact, the more powerful giants had suffered even more severe injuries.

The new Gurg had lost an eye and now bore a long scar across his face.

The other competitors had broken arms, crippled legs, or had been beaten so badly that they could barely remain standing.

Every member of the tribe capable of fighting had been injured.

As for those who weren’t injured—well, they hadn’t been capable of fighting in the first place.

Under these circumstances, the giants naturally needed time to recuperate rather than continue participating in another war.

Unless, of course, they had a death wish.

Lynn looked up at the sky and yawned.

"The matter has been settled. We should head back tomorrow."

The moment he finished speaking, the atmosphere fell silent.

Lynn looked at the other two in confusion, unable to understand why they had suddenly stopped talking.

After a long silence, Hagrid spoke somewhat awkwardly.

"Um... I don’t think Olympe and I should return just yet.

"Dumbledore asked us to keep an eye on the giants, so we’ll need to remain here a little longer."

Lynn: "..."

Everything had gone smoothly on the journey here, but now he couldn’t return with them...

Of course, that wasn’t actually a problem.

He still had Levi and could return whenever he wished.

"All right, then. I’ll head back by myself tomorrow after resting for the night.

"I won’t disturb you two lovebirds."

With that, Lynn didn’t wait for either of them to refute him. He opened his trunk and jumped inside.

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