"A giant with snow-white skin, driving giant wolves and carrying massive griffins." Upon hearing the sword lion's description, Bernard's heart sank. He wasn't some nouveau riche with no background; his family had been nobility for three generations, so he knew about some of the more famous intelligent beings. "Isn't that a cloud giant?"
"If I recall correctly, cloud giants are usually found alongside gold dragons. Wherever there's a gold dragon, there are bound to be cloud giants." A shadow crossed Bernard's mind. His territory had recently been graced by the presence of a gold dragon of unfathomable power, and now this sudden beast tide was traced back to a group of cloud giants. How could he not make the connection? The coincidence was just too glaring to ignore. Bernard absolutely didn't believe they were unrelated.
With mixed emotions, Bernard continued to explore the direction from which the beast tide had come, riding on his red dragon. However, after hearing that a dragon had been captured alive by these giants, he became much more cautious.
He went on to capture several more golden-level beasts from the beast tide and interrogated them. To his exasperation, Bernard discovered that some of these beasts were simply following the crowd; they saw others of similar strength fleeing and ran with them without even knowing what they were fleeing from. However, some beasts had indeed seen what had driven them to abandon their homes.
Their descriptions matched that of the first sword lion—a vast, endless legion of giants, each powerful enough to dominate an entire forest. These giants were unbelievably strong.
Unconvinced, Bernard pressed on in the direction of the beast tide until he finally encountered the vanguard of the Synapse Cloud Giant Legion.
"Are those really cloud giants? Damn!" Hidden atop an ancient tree deep within a forest, Bernard watched in awe as a group of cloud giants patrolled the skies, accompanied by dragon-blooded giant wolves and dragon-blooded griffins. His expression was a mix of shock and disbelief.
"If I hadn't seen real cloud giants before, I might've believed it," Bernard muttered, feeling his legs tremble as he observed the hulking, muscular giants. "How could a normal cloud giant possibly be this tall? What kind of drugs did they take to mutate into these monsters?"
He carefully studied a cloud giant nearby, using the surrounding trees as a reference. Based on his calculations, this cloud giant stood around twenty meters tall.
But according to the books, a normal cloud giant should only be about twelve meters tall. This one was a full eight meters taller—enough to crush a regular cloud giant with a single punch.
"One or two of these would be manageable, but there's a whole group of them," Bernard thought grimly as he surveyed the area. He saw more giants of similar height patrolling the land on either side of the first one. This giant wasn't special; there were many more like him, and there seemed to be even more further back.
"Judging by their direction, they seem to be heading towards my Thorn Ridge." Bernard's mood worsened as he calculated the giants' path. He didn't think his forces stood a chance against these giants. Compared to them, his meticulously trained knights seemed like a joke. Just a handful of these giants could charge and obliterate his entire army.
Suddenly, a loud cry echoed overhead. Bernard looked up to see a massive, multicolored bird soaring above him. The vivid colors made his eyes sting, and he noticed a knight riding on the giant bird. The knight's towering figure made Bernard's teeth ache.
"A soul-level storm giant with a giant roc as a mount." At that moment, Bernard wished he knew less. Sometimes, ignorance truly was bliss, but unfortunately, he recognized what he saw. "I could win in a fight against such a storm giant, but it wouldn't be easy."
"But the roc rider isn't the only one." Bernard looked further into the sky and saw more figures among the clouds, similar to the giant knight who had just flown over him.
With a heavy heart, Bernard returned to Thorn Ridge. Once inside the castle, he considered confronting Muria to question him about the origins of those giants, but after some thought, he decided against it. He was too afraid.
There was still some time before the giants would arrive. If these giants were indeed connected to Muria, breaking the silence might lead to a confrontation, and Bernard knew he would stand no chance if Muria decided to act.
"Am I really supposed to give up the land I've cultivated for thirteen years? It's so frustrating!" Bernard sat in Thorn Castle, brooding for seven days and nights, his eyes bloodshot. He couldn't find a way to save his territory from the giants' onslaught.
He saw only two options: the first was to find whoever was commanding the cloud giant legion and surrender to them, becoming their subordinate; the second was to abandon his territory, take his elite forces, and retreat to the mainland, continuing his life as a minor noble. After all, with his status as a dragon knight, he could still make a decent living on the mainland.
"I don't want to be a noble; I want to be a king." Bernard's eyes filled with anger and frustration. No one knew how excited he had been when he first arrived at Dragon Peninsula by chance. He had already decided to conquer this peninsula over time, making it the foundation of his own kingdom. He wanted to be a dragon knight who would create an empire that would amaze people for millennia. But now, just as he was taking his first steps, his land was about to be destroyed.
"I don't want to bow to anyone anymore." After some thought, Bernard decided to evacuate the peninsula, abandoning his land. Although it was painful, he knew he could let it go. He had only spent thirteen years cultivating this territory. Although it hurt, it wasn't impossible to give up.
Having formed a pact with a red dragon, he knew that reaching the legendary level was only a matter of time. He still had countless thirteen-year spans left in his life. There were still unclaimed, desolate lands on the mainland, though they were rare. If all else failed, he could find an archipelago overseas to establish his kingdom.
Bernard began preparing to retreat. He planned to take all the elite forces he had cultivated in this land. But when he set sail, something happened that filled him with despair.
On the sea route from Thorn Ridge to the mainland, a colossal curtain of seawater rose, blocking all passage. Thousands of naga patrolled there, preventing any sea creatures or ships from escaping Thorn Ridge.
When Bernard tried to leave through a teleportation array, he found that all the arrays had been disabled. Space itself was sealed, and the range of the seal far exceeded Bernard's expectations. No matter where he tried to establish a teleportation array in Thorn Ridge, it wouldn't activate.
As he pondered his situation, Thorn Ridge had already become a prison with no escape. His choices had been nothing more than self-deception. From the moment Muria arrived in this territory, Bernard had only one option.
"Hah, so everything I did was for nothing!" The dragon knight Bernard laughed bitterly, realizing he could not escape his own land.
Understanding the futility of resistance, Bernard returned to Thorn Castle and found Muria sitting in the dining room, waiting for his meal as usual. Bernard was ready to confront him.
"Lord Muria, will you let me go?" There was no pretense, no probing. Bernard was certain that the cloud giants, the massive curtain of seawater, and the sealed space were all connected to this enigmatic figure before him.
"What do you think?" Muria picked up a fruit, bit through its tough skin, and savored the sweet juice that burst in his mouth. A look of pleasure crossed Muria's face.
"Ever since you came to my territory, I've done everything I could to treat you well. I gave you whatever you wanted. And this is how you repay me?"
"Indeed, during my stay at this castle, you've given me everything I desired without hesitation. But I never asked for the Forbidden Dragonheart Fruit," Muria replied, a playful smile appearing on his face. "I ate four of your Forbidden Dragonheart Fruits, and I had no reaction. I bet you were quite disappointed."
"So you knew all along." Seeing the playful smile on Muria's face, Bernard couldn't help but take a few steps back.
"Why wouldn't I know? My inherited memories include information about those fruits. You underestimated me if you thought you could use them to harm me. The world is vast; don't limit your perspective to this small corner. The Forbidden Dragonheart Fruit is indeed a fascinating fruit, evolved by the world specifically to counter dragons. But for dragons with powerful bloodlines, it has no effect. For me, it was just a tasty snack."
"I see. I made a mistake. I shouldn't have had ill intentions towards you. But even though I gave you the fruit, I never meant to harm you. I had no malice. If you won't let me go, I accept that. But could you at least let my subordinates go? They're innocent."
"Don't be so nervous!" Muria watched Bernard's performance with amusement, then smiled and took out a crystal. Inside the crystal was a drop of golden blood. Muria tossed the crystal to Bernard.
"You're a talented individual, and I admire you. If you fuse with this crystal, everything you have will be preserved. You won't lose anything."
"Dragon blood!" Bernard caught the crystal Muria had thrown and could clearly feel the power contained in the drop of blood within it. However, despite the fact that Muria wanted him to fuse with the blood, Bernard didn't feel any joy.
He wasn't some naive fool. For a commoner, fusing with dragon blood and becoming a dragonborn would indeed be a life-changing
event. But for someone of Bernard's level, while fusing with dragon blood would certainly increase his power, it would also bind him to the dragon, making him a servant for life, never able to rise above it. For him, such a fate was the most unacceptable outcome.
"Bernard, my patience is limited." Muria looked at the hesitating dragon knight and tapped the table, exerting immense psychological pressure on him.
This was intentional. For someone as ambitious and driven as Bernard, becoming an eternal servant was worse than death.
Sorry about the rushed posting these past few days. There have been more typos than usual, my apologies.
By the way, this part of the story isn't a crossover; it's more of an expression of my frustration with a certain novel that ended poorly.
_________________________
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! $5 for all!!]
[w w w . p a t r e o n .com / INNIT]
[+50 PowerStones = +1 Chapter] [+5 Reviews = +1 Chapter]