Gerrift stared upward in complete shock.
One moment he had been towering over Hiro.
Now—
He was lying on the ground with a burning pain spreading through his stomach.
His vision blurred as fragmented memories replayed in his mind.
He had tried to stomp Hiro into the dirt.
Hiro dodged.
Then kicked him in the stomach hard enough to collapse his massive body.
Now Hiro stood atop the giant's face like a conqueror.
"How dare you…" Gerrift growled through clenched teeth. "You insignificant worm…"
The giant struggled uselessly beneath him.
"Do you truly believe you can defeat the Yakioni?"
Hiro's expression remained cold.
"I didn't come here to defeat you."
Flames slowly ignited around his arms.
"I came to destroy you."
---
For a brief moment, Hiro remembered something Theo once told him during training.
"How will you take revenge against the clans that destroyed your village?"
"I'll kill them all."
Theo had laughed softly at the answer.
"It's easy to give in to anger and kill."
Hiro frowned at the memory.
"What do you mean?"
Theo's eyes darkened.
"If you kill someone quickly, their suffering ends."
His voice became quieter.
"Death is not always the greatest punishment."
Theo smiled faintly.
"There are things far crueler than death."
---
Hiro's eyes returned to Gerrift.
A dangerous grin spread across his face.
"You know, Mister Unbreakable…"
Hiro crouched slightly.
"I've been wanting to test something."
He crossed his fingers together as magical energy concentrated at his fingertips.
"I haven't successfully used it yet…"
Flames flickered around his hands.
"But I suppose perfection comes through failure."
Hiro vanished upward.
"Magic Sealing Art—"
In an instant, Hiro struck Gerrift's shoulders, knees, and chest with pinpoint precision.
"—Third Form: Excruciating Paralysis."
The giant screamed.
"AAAAAAAGHHHHHHH!!!"
His body convulsed violently.
"My arms—!"
"My legs—!"
"I CAN'T MOVE THEM!"
Agonizing pain spread throughout Gerrift's body.
Every nerve felt as though it had been dipped in molten metal.
"What… did you… do to me?!"
Hiro blinked in surprise.
"…Oh."
Then he grinned.
"It actually worked."
His smile slowly became more sinister.
"I was honestly hoping it would kill you."
He shrugged casually.
"But this works too."
Hiro crouched near the giant's ear.
"The paralysis is temporary."
Gerrift's eyes widened slightly in relief.
Then Hiro continued.
"The pain isn't."
The giant trembled violently.
"Apparently the agony increases over time."
Hiro smiled cheerfully.
"You should regain movement in about a month."
Then he tilted his head innocently.
"I wonder how long giants survive without food or water."
He stood up.
"Oh well."
Flames flickered around his fingertips.
"Not my problem."
Hiro's eyes darkened.
"Oh, and your magic will never return either."
Gerrift's expression completely shattered.
Moments later, the giant lost consciousness from the pain.
Hiro stared down at him briefly.
"One down."
Flames ignited around his body.
"A whole village left to go."
---
Hiro wanted attention.
As much attention as possible.
He leapt onto a massive nearby tree and ignited it instantly.
The flames roared upward violently as Hiro stood atop the burning tree with his arms crossed confidently.
Then he shouted loud enough for the entire village to hear.
"HEY!"
His voice echoed through Serabeft.
"You Takoyaki and Onigiri idiots!"
Hiro grinned viciously.
"Your gatekeeper seems to have fallen asleep on the job!"
The flames intensified around him.
"How can anyone respect the mighty Yakioni when your pathetic little gate couldn't even stop me?!"
The village exploded into chaos immediately.
Then—
THOOM.
THOOM.
Two enormous giants emerged from deeper within the village.
One carried a shield nearly the size of a house.
The other wielded an enormous spear.
"I am Enai!"
"And I am Rensai!"
The two giants slammed their weapons together.
"WE ARE THE EARTH GOD BROTHERS OF THE YAKIONI!"
Enai raised his shield.
Rensai pointed his spear directly at Hiro.
"PREPARE TO DIE!"
Rensai launched the spear instantly.
BOOM!
The burning tree exploded apart as the spear tore through it effortlessly.
Hiro barely escaped by leaping backward.
Then suddenly—
CRASH!
Enai appeared behind him and slammed Hiro into the ground with his shield.
Hiro blocked the impact, but the sheer force still damaged his arms.
Hiro grinned despite the pain.
"So you Earthworm Brothers actually know how to fight."
Flames erupted around his fists.
"Good."
He slowly raised his hands.
"I was starting to worry I'd have to keep holding back."
"IGNITION FISTS!"
Fire engulfed Hiro's arms instantly.
The brothers attacked together again.
Rensai slammed his spear into the ground before pressing his hands together in prayer.
The earth began trembling violently.
"Oh Great Mother Gaia…"
Magical energy surged beneath the ground.
"Pierce my enemies and nourish the earth with their blood!"
Rensai's eyes glowed.
"EARTH MAGIC: ONE THOUSAND SPEARS!"
The ground exploded apart.
Countless stone spears erupted upward toward Hiro from every direction.
Hiro flipped through the air desperately, narrowly avoiding most of them.
But then—
A massive shadow appeared overhead.
Enai.
The giant raised his shield toward the sky.
"Oh Great Mother Gaia…"
His voice thundered like an avalanche.
"Grant me the strength to crush the heavens themselves!"
Magic circles spread across the sky.
"EARTH MAGIC: FALLING RAIN!"
The clouds above suddenly transformed into enormous masses of hardened clay.
They came crashing downward toward Hiro like meteors.
The clay trapped Hiro midair and dragged him violently toward the forest of stone spears below.
Death.
For the first time since arriving in Serabeft—
Hiro genuinely felt it.
And strangely…
He smiled.
"If this was easy…"
Flames erupted around his body violently.
"…it wouldn't be fun."
Hiro spread both arms outward.
"OMNIDIRECTIONAL FLAME SHOT!"
BOOOOOOM!!!
Explosive waves of fire erupted in every direction simultaneously.
The clay hardened instantly before shattering apart.
Using the opening, Hiro launched himself directly toward the brothers.
"This is gonna hurt."
Energy concentrated at Hiro's fingertips.
"MAGIC SEALING ART—"
Before the brothers could react—
"—THIRD FORM: EXCRUCIATING PARALYSIS!"
Hiro struck both giants simultaneously across their joints and cores.
The two giants froze instantly.
Their weapons dropped from their hands.
Then—
THUD.
THUD.
Both collapsed unconscious.
Hiro landed calmly beside them.
"You left yourselves wide open."
---
The massacre continued.
Hiro rampaged throughout Serabeft like a demon unleashed from the abyss itself.
Every warrior who challenged him fell.
Every giant who resisted was crippled.
Flames consumed the village while screams echoed endlessly through the night.
Even mythical hydras would have feared the brutality Hiro displayed that day.
Eventually—
Hiro arrived before the largest structure in Serabeft.
The home of the Yakioni leader.
BOOM!
Hiro kicked the doors open violently.
Flames spiraled around his arms as he stepped inside.
A massive giant seated upon a throne slowly stood.
"I am Hayeganto."
His voice shook the room.
"Leader of the Yakioni."
His eyes narrowed.
"What is the meaning of this?"
Hiro smirked.
"Well, well…"
"…if it isn't the head dung-eater himself."
The giant's expression twisted in rage.
"How dare you speak to me in such a manner, insignificant—"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah."
Hiro waved dismissively.
"I heard the same speech from all your Yakitori warriors outside."
Hayeganto's face darkened.
"There is no possible way my warriors lost to a creature like you."
Hiro casually opened the doors wider.
The burning village became visible behind him.
Giants covered the streets motionless.
Hayeganto froze.
"…What?"
"You need stronger warriors."
Fear slowly crept into Hayeganto's eyes.
"They are the greatest fighting force among the giants!"
He staggered backward slightly.
"What trickery is this?!"
Hiro laughed softly.
"No tricks."
"I defeated them one by one…"
His smile widened.
"…and stripped away everything they held dear."
Hayeganto's voice trembled.
"Did you kill them all?"
Hiro's expression became colder.
"No."
"I did something much worse."
Then Hiro slowly stepped forward.
"But what I'm about to do to you…"
Flames ignited around his hands.
"…will make what happened to them look merciful."
Hayeganto roared and swung his enormous sword downward.
Hiro didn't move.
He simply caught the blade.
Then—
The flames around Hiro intensified.
The sword melted instantly.
Before Hayeganto could react, Hiro sprinted up the remaining blade and slashed both of the giant's arms off with the molten metal.
Blood sprayed across the throne room.
Hiro immediately cauterized the wounds with fire.
Then he formed a blade of concentrated flame and sliced off Hayeganto's legs as well.
The giant collapsed screaming.
Hiro stepped onto the giant's face slowly.
His flames singed away Hayeganto's beard as Hiro crouched closer toward his eyes.
"Why…" Hayeganto gasped painfully.
"Why are you doing this to us?"
His breathing became uneven.
"The Yakioni have never harmed your kind before…"
Hiro suddenly burst into hysterical laughter.
The sound echoed through the burning throne room like madness itself.
"This…"
Hiro held his face while laughing.
"This is even better than I imagined."
Then his expression instantly became cold again.
"You don't understand why your village burns."
"You don't understand why your people are suffering."
"You don't understand why your warriors are broken and screaming in agony."
Hiro's eyes glowed.
"Good."
He leaned closer.
"That is exactly how my village felt."
Hayeganto froze.
"…What?"
"Your war with another clan destroyed my home."
Hiro's flames intensified.
"You giants were too arrogant to care who got caught in your battles."
His voice trembled with hatred.
"You never imagined anyone could make you suffer the same way."
Hiro spread his arms toward the ruined village.
"But now look at your mighty clan."
"Ruined."
Hayeganto stared at him in disbelief.
"There is no way…"
His eyes widened.
"We could never accidentally destroy a village containing someone as strong as you…"
Hiro smiled.
"Oh…"
"…but you did."
Hayeganto's expression twisted.
"What are you?"
"I'm not a dragon."
"Not a dwarf."
"Not a halfling."
Hiro's flames exploded upward.
"I'm human."
Silence.
Then fear.
Pure fear.
"Impossible…"
Hayeganto trembled violently.
"There has never been a human capable of wielding fire…"
"Nor one as strong as you…"
Hiro's grin widened.
"You're right."
He stepped closer.
"This world spent far too long trampling humanity because we lacked magic."
Flames spiraled around him like a storm.
"But I'm going to overturn this entire hierarchy."
Hiro looked down at the giant beneath him.
"For once…"
"…a giant is looking up at a human."
Hiro created a small flame within his palm.
"Tell me the name of the clan you fought in the Forest of Everlasting Moss."
His eyes narrowed dangerously.
"And I'll spare your life."
Hayeganto immediately answered.
"The High Blood Elves!"
"They used some kind of devastating light magic that wiped out many of my warriors!"
Fear consumed his voice.
"That attack must have destroyed your village!"
He lowered his head desperately.
"Please…"
"Leave this place and spare me."
Hiro's expression darkened.
"So they're next."
Then he smiled coldly.
"I'll honor my promise."
Hayeganto's eyes filled with relief.
Then Hiro continued.
"I'll spare your life."
The flames in Hiro's hand intensified.
"But not your sight."
AAAAAAAGHHHHHHH!!!
Hiro burned away the giant's eyes instantly.
Then he placed his fingertips against Hayeganto's chest.
"Magic Sealing Art…"
His smile resembled a devil's.
"Third Form: Excruciating Paralysis."
Hayeganto screamed as agony consumed him.
Hiro stepped away calmly toward the doorway.
"This…"
Flames engulfed the throne room behind him.
"…is my revenge against the Yakioni."
He looked back one final time.
"Never forget the name of the one who destroyed you."
Hiro's eyes glowed crimson through the flames.
"My name is Hiro Kurokumo."
The village burned behind him as he walked away.
"Let darkness become your new sight."
---
And thus—
The mighty Yakioni Clan fell.
Stories of Hiro's brutality spread across the world rapidly.
To many, it sounded less like reality…
…and more like a nightmare.
Eventually, those rumors reached the throne room of the High Blood Elves.
A nervous messenger knelt before the throne.
"Sire…"
"What should we do?"
Prince Sasuna Egalhearth—the future king of the High Blood Elves—sat silently upon his throne.
His expression slowly darkened.
"Contact the Vencartus Clan."
His voice remained calm.
"I want answers."
He folded his hands together thoughtfully.
"As detestable as the Yakioni were…"
"…they were still formidable warriors."
Sasuna narrowed his eyes.
"I would not wish to fight them again, even at my strongest."
He leaned back slowly.
"And now I'm expected to believe some unknown half-breed annihilated their entire clan?"
His fingers tightened slightly.
"One or two giants would be believable."
"But an entire village?"
The prince stared toward the night sky outside.
"…Impossible."
Then his expression sharpened.
"If these rumors are true…"
"…and he learned of our involvement…"
The throne room fell silent.
"He may come here next."
Then suddenly—
Sasuna smiled.
A proud, arrogant smile.
"No matter."
Magic radiated softly around him.
"We are the High Blood Elves."
"The greatest among all demihumans."
His eyes gleamed with absolute confidence.
"We are blessed by the goddess Athena herself."
The prince rose from his throne.
"No human…"
"…no matter what kind of monster they become…"
"…will ever defeat us."