Titan King: Ascension of the Giant

Blackstone City, South Gate Wall.

After so many days, Elder of Stewardship Delilah was finally smiling for the first time. Her smile bloomed like a crimson rose: fragrant, striking, and undeniably captivating.

"Got news?"

Seeing the glow on Delilah's face, Rendall broke into a grin as well.

"Mm-hmm. There's word from the chieftain. Orion isn't returning via the original route; instead, he cut across the Half-Moon Lake region, skirted the Poison Dragon Swamp, and then crossed the Barren Mountains. By now, he should already be in our Black Forest territory."

As she spoke, Delilah handed Rendall a sealed note that the broadskull ravens had delivered. Rendall took it, scanning the contents carefully. A moment later, his face twisted in shock and disbelief. The message slipped from his grip, drifting outside the city walls.

Delilah reacted with lightning speed, extending her right hand. The air seemed to ripple strangely, and the note was shredded into fine ash, scattering in the breeze.

"Tell me I'm not seeing things, Elder of Stewardship."

Rendall's voice was unfamiliar even to himself. He locked his gaze on Delilah.

"I didn't believe it at first either. But I'm certain I wasn't mistaken; I saw the same words you did."

Rendall, still unsettled, gradually calmed himself. In the end, he knelt down and assumed a peculiar stance of prayer.

"Praise be to the Titan God. At long last, our race has its king—a magnificent King of Giants!"

When Delilah heard that title, "King of Giants," her mind reeled. Only a moment later did her expression turn… a little odd.

"He is indeed the King of Giants—and he's our king… my king."

Delilah's gaze in that instant was both brazenly lustful and unmistakably proud.

…

Meanwhile, the so-called Giant King Orion was perched on the back of an Abyssal dragon, his head resting comfortably in Lilith's arms, eyes half-shut as if dozing. In reality, he was fully focused on the Survivor's Platform, haggling with another survivor over a bottle of healing medicine.

"You just admitted it yourself—it only works for external wounds, no help for internal damage. Twenty B-grade crystal cores is the highest I'll go."

"Hey, I told you it's top-notch for treating open wounds, and the vial's got enough for multiple uses. Thirty B-grade crystal cores is rock bottom."

"Okay, fine, I'll bump it up a bit… twenty-one. That's final."

After they went back and forth, Orion finally purchased the so-called "Miracle Ointment" for external injuries at the price of twenty-four B-grade crystal cores from a total stranger. Orion usually wasn't into haggling—just this once, he was bored and decided to banter with the seller, knocking off six measly cores after a fair amount of arguing.

...

"Awake?"

Lilith immediately noticed Orion opening his eyes.

"Yeah. I just remembered something: I found a bottle of healing meds in Lord Ariel's storage ring. I want to try it on Thunderhawk Rayden."

Speaking, Orion sprang off the Abyssal dragon's back. At the rear of their traveling column was a makeshift wooden corral, pulled along by a dozen or so swamp crocodiles. Inside it was a bird that looked like a featherless turkey, lying there nearly lifeless.

Orion nodded at the folk tending the swamp crocodiles, then flipped over the corral's edge in one swift move.

"Rayden, how're you holding up?"

He reached out and gave the slumped bird a pat. At the same time, he pulled out three bottles of Pet Pills.

"Master, I thought you'd ditched me!"

Thunderhawk Rayden lifted its utterly bald head from the folds of its fleshy body, speaking in a feeble voice.

Noticing Rayden's woeful glare, Orion felt a bit sheepish. Truth was, he hadn't come by often since the big fight—mostly because Lord Gareth's threat loomed, and because Orion hadn't figured out how to heal Rayden's wounds.

"Don't worry," Orion explained. "If I wanted to dump you, I'd have done it back at Stormrage City."

He uncorked a bottle, tossing a few Pet Pills into Thunderhawk Rayden's mouth. After it swallowed them, the big bird brightened up a bit and started talking more.

"Master, I honestly thought you were just gonna drag me back, kill me, and eat the meat… maybe even yank out my crystal core to feed your other beasts."

Rayden truly was freaking out, spilling all the stuff it'd been stewing over. Of course, all anyone else heard were "caws" and "squawks," but Orion got the message clearly. He felt both amused and a little guilty.

"All right, settle down. I haven't forgotten about you. I'm here to treat your wounds."

Orion took out the pricey Miracle Ointment he'd just bought on the Survivor's Platform. Using half of its contents, he poured it into Rayden's beak.

"Drink up—and trust me, in three days, you'll be back on your feet at full power."

"Master, really?"

"You'll find out in three days," Orion said, flipping back over the corral. He didn't want to stare too long at that goofy bird, or he'd feel even more remorseful.

The miracle ointment indeed lived up to its name. It wasn't even three days later—by dawn of the very next day, Thunderhawk Rayden was standing on its own. In doing so, it also managed to blow Orion's mind. Completely bald, the bird looked no different than a giant walking chicken. Worse, now and then it'd flap its stubby wings, letting out squawks as if trying to show off its Alpha-level dominance.

"When do you think Rayden will fully recover?" Lilith asked. Leaning against Orion's chest, she watched Rayden herd the swamp crocodiles from behind and couldn't help but pity the poor bird.

In the past, Thunderhawk Rayden positively lorded it over everyone, out of reach to most. No way would you ever ride on its back if Orion didn't pull some strings. And now, that proud eagle—burned clean of all its feathers—was stuck bossing around a flock of swamp crocodiles to prove it still had some mojo left.

"I'm not sure," Orion admitted. "The miracle ointment I'm giving it only heal its external wounds. But the internal damage from Lord Ariel's lightning strikes… that's up to the bird itself. No telling when it'll recover, regrow its feathers, and take flight again."

Orion spoke in a hushed tone. Thunderhawk Rayden's injuries reached to the core, courtesy of a Legendary-level transcendent power. If Rayden hadn't already been so in tune with lightning energy, it wouldn't have survived that final blast in Stormrage City.