Exiting Cardi was an easy task.
Just like when they entered, all they had to do was carefully observe and cross the paths of the guards.
Of course, crossing could be a problem, but they had the ancient deity’s horse mastery on their side.
The ancient deity’s horse mastery that scored 7 in strength.
Carrying two people on her shoulders and running was a simple task for Angie.
Even with some additional load, like backpacks, Angie’s burden didn’t increase much, so the traveling party easily left Cardi.
They jumped over the wall during a gap between patrols and landed before heading toward the desert.
They almost encountered several patrolling mercenaries, but because the soldiers were rushing around, they went unnoticed.
As it turned out, the rumors were true—they hastily retreated, and the intervals between patrol deployments were surprisingly sparse.
Thanks to this, Aslan led the group without any issues toward the desert.
He thought there would be no problems. It truly seemed that way.
If specters appeared, Aslan could handle them, and even if monsters showed up, there was nothing they couldn’t hunt.
In fact, it would be good for Ereta’s physical adaptation to hunt some monsters.
They had plenty of food, enough water, and sufficient tools and consumables for camping, so there was no cause for complaint or worry.
At most, the only concern was what to do if something other than a specter appeared.
Unexpectedly, the problem came from an unforeseen direction.
Under the scorching sun, the dried-up trees grew sparsely, casting long claw-like shadows that filled the dry heat while swaying.
Aslan stood with his hands slightly raised, wearing an awkward expression.
What one might call a posture of surrender. And he wasn’t the only one taking that stance.
Ereta also revealed a subtle sign of discomfort through her furrowed eyes as she raised her hands, and Angie openly displayed her irritation while placing her slightly raised hand on her head.
And such members of the group were surrounded by giants.
The giants had a unique appearance—neither entirely human nor monstrous, possessing a peculiar ambiguity.
While resembling humans in oral structure, eye placement, and facial shape, their heads were too large, their legs too short compared to their arms, which were disproportionately long.
Their excessively long arms didn’t drag on the ground because they held weapons across their shoulders.
Most of the weapons in the giants’ hands were basic stone tools, mostly axes made by breaking rocks. Occasionally, there were picks or spears.
From these primitive weapons, it could be inferred that their attire was equally rudimentary.
They draped animal skins, likely stripped from large beasts, in a style reminiscent of ancient Greece.
With protruding teeth, the giants gnashed and growled, covered in scales or fur pelts.
One of the giants made a sound like “Kwaa,” saliva drooling from its mouth, which Aslan narrowly avoided by shifting his foot.
“Human! Speak the truth!”
“Yeah, tell the truth! Where did you come from?”
“As I said, from Cardi…”
“Don’t lie, speak the truth!”
With a thud, the giant’s axe struck the ground. Judging by the amount of sand kicked up, the giant’s strength was undoubtedly extraordinary.
It was unfortunate that their intelligence was far inferior to their overflowing power, so Aslan sighed as he glanced away.
Unlike Aslan, who wore a troubled expression, Angie openly showed her annoyance and impatience. While Aslan pondered what to do, Angie looked ready to charge into battle at any moment.
Ereta, unlike Angie, remained somewhat calm and cautious, though a faint trace of hostility could be seen in her furrowed brows.
Had she still been a high-ranking priest, she would have attacked long ago.
‘Likewise for me.’
Dried under the desert sun while enduring meaningless questioning, Aslan felt a slight irritation rising within him.
If the interrogation were at least reasonable, he might understand.
“You’re human! Clearly, you’re a friend of the necromancer!”
“Yeah, humans are bad! You didn’t help us when we asked!”
“…Didn’t I already say that? I came here from Cardi to help you…”
“It’s obviously a lie! We asked the lord for help! But you’re not the lord! You’re weak! You’re clearly a friend of the evil wizard!”
Because of this childish, perhaps even less intelligent than a child’s level of reasoning in the questioning, Aslan couldn’t help but feel irritated.
Listening to the fruitless reprimand, Aslan sighed.
“There’s no rule that says I must be the wizard’s friend, right? Unless sent by the lord.”
“Hmm, no! We are giants!”
“That much is obvious just by looking.”
“Giants are precious and valuable! Therefore, the lord himself comes!”
Now thoroughly exasperated, Aslan frowned deeply. Fortunately, the giants either didn’t care about or failed to notice human expressions, showing little reaction.
“So, you’re the wizard’s friend! Tell us where the wizard’s house is!”
Kuung
Once again, the stone battleaxe slammed down. This time, the sand flew closer. The stone battleaxe was gradually getting nearer. Despite the chaotic and illogical reasoning, these beings possessed genuine strength.
Even Angie in her current state wouldn’t be able to handle their immense power. The threat they posed was a real danger to life.
“…Huff.”
Aslan expelled a deep sigh, filling his lungs with the foul odor emanating from the heated breath of the giants. The atmosphere was slowly heating up. They were becoming increasingly agitated because they weren’t getting the information they wanted.
Driven by this agitation, the giants took a stance ready to swing their weapons at any moment.
“You will die if you don’t talk, human!”
At the sight, Aslan blinked slowly, his half-lowered gaze fixed downward.
Until now, he hadn’t attacked because they weren’t trying to kill him.
However, now the giants were openly threatening his life.
If they attacked, Aslan would have no choice but to follow his own principles.
Anything that attacks, regardless of what it is, must be killed.
“I wanted to resolve this peacefully.”
“What?! Human, speak louder! Your voice is too low!”
Aslan lowered the hands he had raised in surrender, grabbed the axe strapped to his back with an unpleasant look, and muttered,
“If you try to kill, then this side has no choice but to kill as well.”
Gripping the handle of the axe lightly and pulling it into his hand, Aslan muttered irritably with the weapon already drawn.
The heavy killing intent in those words and the creeping sense of unease triggered the survival instincts of the giants. Their survival instincts were warning them.
Was their dull intellect enough to defy their instincts? The giants, who had stiffened momentarily, tried to shout again.
“Human, if you don’t speak…”
“Aaaaah!”
The scream that drowned out theirs was louder.
Confused by the memory of Aslan performing such an act, and startled since he had been yelling at Aslan, the giant turned his head to look in the direction the scream came from.
In that direction, the giant who had suddenly screamed dropped the stone battleaxe he was holding and fled.
Each step resounded with a “kung kung” as the desert sand was scattered, causing the other giants to turn their heads in confusion.
“Specter, specter has appeared! A specter has come!”
“Run away!”
It was due to the presence beyond them.
A semi-transparent figure, seemingly white mixed with blue, like a common specter.
But what was unusual was its size.
It matched the height of an average giant, sharing the same appearance. The giant specter held what looked like a stone battleaxe and was shouting inaudibly.
“Don’t run, cowards! Fight!”
The giant who had been yelling at Aslan shouted at the fleeing giants, but they paid no heed and continued to flee. As the rising clouds of sand dissipated, the giant growled and charged at the specter.
Kuuuung!
With both hands gripping the stone battleaxe, it swung down with a force that caused a pillar-like explosion of rising sand.
A blow that a human could never withstand. Even a priest without exceptional strength would struggle to endure such an impact. The swirling sand carried considerable physical force.
The issue was…
“Guh!”
That physical force didn’t affect specters much.
Through the sandstorm, the specter extended its arm, grabbing the giant by the neck. If the specter were the usual human-sized one, this wouldn’t have happened, but the giant and the giant specter were the same size.
Flailing its feet forward and backward, the giant floated slightly off the ground, its face turning pale as it struggled for breath.
Watching the scene, Aslan remained perplexed—not because physical forces didn’t work on specters, or because the specter had appeared suddenly—but because it was fundamentally strange.
‘There shouldn’t be any giant specters…’
The creature before his eyes should not exist. Specters are phenomena that only occur among humans blessed by the ancient deity, meaning they shouldn’t appear among the Ain, also known as the giant race.
Yet now, a giant specter existed before his eyes, attacking a giant. Aslan found the sight alien and incomprehensible, pausing briefly before considering it an opportunity.
An undeniable piece of evidence to present.
Recalling a skill he hadn’t used since gaining his new ability, Aslan drew the single-edged sword tied to his waist.
The method of use was the same as with other skills; merely repeating the name in his mind was enough.
“Purity.”
Following the word in his mind, the sword glowed with a white light. The radiant white glow was distinct even under the blazing sunlight.
Aslan gripped the sword with both hands, planting his feet wide apart.
All that was needed were three steps.
First step.
Reinforce the legs with mana, tightening the muscles and bones to brace.
Second step.
Hold the sword ablaze with pure determination, aiming at the specter.
Third step.
Summon the thunder from the heavens, imbuing it into the legs. Finally, he whispered the name in his mind.
‘Summon Thunder.’
Kwarrrr!
Aslan’s body surged forward, forcefully pushing the sand aside. His silhouette blurred amidst the rising dust.
Chaaaak!
The blurred figure sliced through the specter’s neck. The giant specter’s severed head spun through the air before falling to the ground. There was no sound as it rolled.
Without a material form, the specter’s head rolled like a human’s, and upon losing its head, it collapsed as if it had lost life, fading away.
Naturally, the giant whose neck had been grabbed coughed and rolled on the ground.
Giiiiiiii!
The fading scream of the specter. Aslan landed on the ground, hearing the sound and turned his body.
“Eh, ugh?”
His eyes met with the confused giant, who was bewildered by the situation, while another fleeing giant witnessed the scene.
The disappearing specter, the human wielding the sword, and the newly freed compatriot coughing—it was a vivid sight.
But the conclusion wasn’t clear.
“The lord! The lord has killed the specter!”
Shouting this bizarre conclusion, the fleeing giants turned around with cries of “eh?” and exchanged glances after seeing the vanished specter.
“…What?”
Why the lord would show up here puzzled Aslan, but the giants ran towards him, shouting.
“The lord has come to save us!”
“Lord…?”
Even the previously belligerent giant seemed to comprehend, rubbing his throat, allowing Aslan to finally guess the situation.
The leader of the giants must be the strongest individual. Thus, the strongest giant leaders receive the title of ‘village chief’ from Lord Werbeard.
For the giants, sheer strength equates to power. They assumed, with their dull intellect, that humans followed the same rule—that the highest authority must also be the strongest.
Thus, they assumed Aslan was the lord based on his display of power. Understanding this, Aslan watched the giants who gathered closely around him, cheering joyfully, and thought:
Impersonating nobility is quite a serious crime.
Though Aslan couldn’t grasp why it was considered a crime, most countries treated impersonation of nobility as a severe offense. Aslan, neither a noble nor a lord, couldn’t claim to be one despite the giants’ celebration. There was no guarantee that the newly appointed Lord Werbeard wouldn’t visit to solve the giants’ problems, leading to potential slip-ups.
Aslan had no plans to get caught for impersonating nobility.
“Wait, I am not the lord.”
So Aslan stopped the approaching giants with an open palm. They looked puzzled.
“I am Aslan, the Veteran of Battles. Haven’t you heard of me?”
Though unlikely they had, Aslan was indeed a veteran, so it wasn’t technically impersonation. Being called a veteran sounded better anyway.
Sure enough, unfamiliar with the term, the giants scratched their heads, stroked their chins, and scratched their bellies, exchanging curious looks.
After a while, the giant who had yelled at Aslan and prepared to fight the specter shouted.
“A veteran! A veteran has come to help us!”
“Veteran! Veteran! He’s here to save us!”
“He’s the veteran who came to slay specters!”
Not fully understanding what a veteran was, Aslan decided it was enough and sighed. Ereta and Angie approached, perplexed by the situation, while the giants spoke to them.
“The veteran will guide us to the village chief! Listen to the chief and help us!”
Suddenly more friendly, the giants smiled brightly. Watching these fools, who were the same in both games and reality, Aslan grimly thought it fortunate—at least they wouldn’t get stabbed in the back.
Smiling wryly, Aslan replied.
“Alright, guide me to the chief.”
Without hesitation, they hoisted the group onto their shoulders or heads and sprinted across the desert.
