Although Sora felt a certain threat from the sound wave, he didn't feel the need to flee or avoid the danger.
He didn't even need to activate his [White Dwarf] form. Instead, he called upon his [Elemental Nexus], which effortlessly swept away the wave coming his way, nullifying Enkidu's attack with ease.
"Hahahaha." Enkidu's laughter finally reached his ears, a few seconds later due to the distance of several kilometers between them.
Clearly satisfied with his attempt to probe Sora, the giant resumed his previous method of communication by manipulating the mana in the air.
"We've been waiting for you for days, human. What took you so long?" Enkidu spoke again.
Sora was somewhat annoyed by the welcome and considered retreating.
'What's that musclehead's problem? Why is he attacking me when I haven't even entered his territory?'
Still, he replied in an angry tone, "Is that how you welcome someone you've been waiting for? By trying to kill them?"
The smile on Enkidu's face vanished, replaced by a look full of arrogance. "If you couldn't even survive that, then you don't deserve to stand before us."
Sora sighed. "You were waiting for me? Why? And can I ask where my Alter Ego is?"
Enkidu remained silent, preferring to drink from the flask in his hand.
Gilgamesh responded, gesturing toward the walls around him and his surroundings, "Our cage is rather small, you see? And we'd very much like to leave it."
Sora was surprised by the king's request and couldn't help but show his confusion.
"You mean the area assigned to you? You want me to help you leave it?" he asked, candidly.
Enkidu chuckled, and this time Gilgamesh restrained the sonic wave he emitted by clenching his fist.
He continued, "You humans of this planet are probably ignorant of the stakes of this war, the forces controlling this world, and the rules that govern it."
"Let me enlighten you, then. There are two kinds of people in this world. There are those like you, who are called players. And there are the others—entities like us who are here, willingly or not, to make the game more entertaining."
Sora understood the words, but he had a bad feeling about what might follow.
"Tell me, young human... Who do you think are the ones who gave you missions, guided you a few years ago, and taught you the basics of survival in this world? Where do the creatures you slaughter to grow stronger come from?"
Sora thought for a few seconds before replying, "The ones we call NPCs… maybe they're people from other worlds, disguised as humans? Employees of whoever created this world? Or slaves, if they're doing it against their will? Prisoners maybe? But the monsters we fight? I have no idea..."
Gilgamesh smiled. "The answers are sometimes quite simple... Since I can't go into details without being punished, I'll leave you free to draw your own conclusions."
After taking a sip from a glass that had been on the table until now, he studied Sora carefully.
"Creatures of the second category are bound by different rules than players, but the 'Creators' left several options for us to change our condition. Like your friends up there." The giant then pointed to the space above Sora.
Sora immediately understood that Gilgamesh was referring to Hiyoko and Netsu. He summoned the familiar duo, who appeared in their reduced forms.
"OH! MY! GOD! FRESH AIR!!" Hiyoko shouted, loudly expressing her joy at being back in the outside world.
While Netsu quietly stretched his wings, Hiyoko turned to Sora to complain, "This can't go on forever! Sure, people would figure out you're Ralph Eden if they saw us by your side, but you're already the strongest human anyway! And the bad guys already know! What difference does it make at this point?"
Netsu, usually quiet, added, "Master, ever since we left the dungeon, we've been stuck inside the familiar space... With our current strength, it feels really cramped. If you want us to disguise ourselves, we could always take the form of other creatures, but we can't stay hidden forever..."
Hiyoko flared up, "No! I won't disguise myself as anything else! I'm tired of hiding!"
"You collect birds, human? What adorable little creatures... What a strange power this little hen has."
Netsu and Hiyoko, who had their backs turned to the giants, froze when they heard those words, and slowly turned to face Gilgamesh.
Sora quickly stepped in, worried that Hiyoko might say something inappropriate. "Netsu is a phoenix, and Hiyoko is a piou. Not a hen... They're my companions."
After observing the familiar duo for a few seconds, he addressed Gilgamesh and Enkidu again, "Do you want to become my familiars too? To gain more freedom?"
The speed at which Gilgamesh's smile vanished, replaced by a cold expression, left no doubt as to his answer. Feeling cold sweat run down his back, Sora was just about to apologize when Enkidu's thunderous laughter erupted.
"That was a good one!! Hahaha!!" Turning to Gilgamesh beside him, he slapped his shoulder repeatedly. "Did you hear what he said?!! He wants two legends as familiars! GILGA! WE WOULD BECOME FRIENDS WITH THE CHICKEN OVER THERE!! Why so serious? Didn't you like the joke?!"
Gilgamesh relaxed after a few seconds. "Sometimes I envy your outlook, Enkidu..."
He took a sip from the glass in his hand before continuing, "Human. As you said just now, what we want is freedom. But there's no way we'll trade our honor for it."
Sora let out a sigh as he saw Gilgamesh calm down.
"What do you want me to do for you?" he asked.
Gilgamesh smiled again. "Our status as World Bosses comes with many restrictions, but also certain perks. And the one we're most interested in is the ability to become mercenaries. This new status would allow us to move around freely."
Sora was shocked by the revelation, thinking, 'These giants and their army could just stroll through our kingdom? Seriously?'
As if reading his thoughts, Gilgamesh clarified, "It would come with restrictions, of course. We'd sign a contract with you specifying what can and cannot be done on your territory."
Sora, still struggling to believe what he was hearing, looked up and met Gilgamesh's eyes. "What's this mercenary thing about? You'd actually fight for humanity?"
Enkidu smiled. "If we want to roam freely across this planet, we have to join one of the ten existing forces and fight alongside it. And your species is the one we prefer over the others."
Sora considered accepting the offer, but thought, 'At this stage, their help would be incredible for our species—but how can I trust them?'
Before making any decision, he decided to ask more questions.
"Let's say I'm interested. What will you do once you become mercenaries? You don't expect me to believe fighting our invaders is your calling. Would you really feel free under those conditions? I'd also like to know why you prefer our species over the others."
Enkidu winked at Gilgamesh. "This kid's clever. I told you he was the right pick. That short guy with the pointy ears gave me bad vibes. I'm going to tell him the truth."
Seeing Gilgamesh nod, he continued, this time addressing Sora, "I'll be honest with you. We don't care about your species. What we care about... is you. If we have to pick a side in this war, it'll be yours. Knowing your power and the kind of person you are, the choice is obvious. Think of it as a bet."
Sora didn't understand. "Me? But you don't even know me. All you know about me is my power."
Gilgamesh laughed again. "We don't know you, but we know the kid who was here a few days ago. What was his name again? Toussaint?"
"Thousand," Gilgamesh corrected.
"Thousand! That's it. We love that guy. And since he's your clone, we figure you must be the same kind of person."
"To answer your other question, becoming mercenaries means we'll fight for you one week out of every four. The rest of the time, we'll need it for ourselves."
"For yourselves? To rest?" Sora asked.
Gilgamesh answered in Enkidu's place. "We are weakened, restricted—and that feeling is unbearable. Every creature in this world has a path they can follow to grow stronger. It's more difficult for us... but still possible."
Sora weighed what he had to gain—and what he stood to lose—before speaking. "I see. If you can prove that Thousand is safe, I'll accept your offer. And while we're at it, can I see the contract you'd sign to join our ranks?"
Enkidu stood up for the first time since the conversation began and started scratching behind his ear.
"Don't worry about your clone, he'll be back soon. As for us joining you… it's not that simple, kid. If you want us as mercenaries, you're going to have to beat us first."
Sora tilted his head slightly, confused.
Enkidu pointed at all the troops around him, then at himself, and finally at Gilgamesh.
"A World Boss can only become a mercenary if they're defeated. That's a rule of this world. You'll have to take down everyone here…"
Sora felt a flicker of anger rising within him. "Are you f***ing with me?"