Chapter 406: Eighty-Ninth Floor, A Nation for Giants (4)

[Primary objective: avoid the giants’ gaze and meet the Giant Resistance. Time remaining: 15 hours 7 minutes.]

Thud—

The small giant, who had slammed their head against the wall, hit the ground and bashed their head once more on the way down. A thick cloud of dust billowed up over them.

Though I hadn’t intended to, I instinctively summoned my mana to shield myself from the dust. It was a reflex born of experience.

The unexpected turn of events had left behind a stillness that felt almost surreal, causing silence to hang heavy in the underground tunnel.

Amid my tempered panic, I was so dumbfounded that I unconsciously swallowed hard.

I couldn’t help but rhetorically ask, “That wasn’t my fault, was it?”

Although I was speaking to myself, my gaze naturally drifted toward Doppy.

After a brief silence, he responded, “

Uh

, I don’t know!”

He was just as bewildered by the situation. With disbelief etched across our faces, we stared down at the small giant.

A hint of regret crept in.

Should I have approached them more cautiously?

Perhaps. It was hard to say for sure.

I tried putting myself in the small giant’s shoes. In this world, strange, small entities entered the minds of giants and took control of them.

Though young, this one was clearly a member of the resistance. They seemed to be on a mission deep in enemy territory.

To be alone in an underground tunnel, finally able to relax, and then suddenly hear a voice out of nowhere with no warning at all...

Yeah, that would be terrifying.

I had approached as carefully as I could, but they probably would have been startled no matter how I had done it. That much had been within my expectations.

Unfortunately, I had only focused on what kind of conversation we would have once the initial shock wore off. I hadn’t expected them to bash their head into the wall like that.

If we were out in the open, they probably wouldn’t have passed out.

I had mused enough. The damage was done. Since there were still nearly fifteen hours left in the trial, the fainting spell wouldn’t be a major setback.

It was just... baffling.

I collected myself and shifted my attention to the brown envelope still clutched tightly in the small giant’s hand. Even as they collapsed, they hadn’t let go of it.

What is inside?

Without exaggeration, the envelope was larger than I was. It was likely the reason the small giant had infiltrated the city in the first place.

As I stepped closer, the bitter scent of herbs drifted through the damp, underground air.

Medicine. Someone in the resistance has to be sick. That is why this small giant risked the trip into the city.

Still, there was one thing I couldn’t quite wrap my head around.

Why send the small giant alone?

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

From my earlier observations, there were significantly fewer resistance members than controlled giants. Even this giant’s clothes were more worn and dirtier than most. They would definitely draw more attention.

It wasn’t as if they had been chosen for their size alone. There had to be another reason. Perhaps standard-sized giants were subjected to stricter inspections, or small giants had access to areas others couldn’t reach.

My thoughts raced at lightspeed until I eventually landed on a more likely answer.

The controllers’ houses.

They couldn’t possibly live in the giants’ heads at all times. They would need their own dedicated space.

Of course, giants would construct everything, not the parasitic entities—building anything was a hassle, after all. Compared to the larger ones, the small giants would be far more useful for that kind of work.

One movie I had watched back on Earth had used children to maintain and repair a train that sped across a snowy wasteland.

The dirt on the small giant’s clothes could very well have come from working in cramped environments. I couldn’t be certain that was the answer, but it felt like a reasonable deduction. Rare items like medicine were probably stored in areas designated for the controllers only.

It wasn’t as if creatures used as mounts—those who couldn’t even be called proper slaves—would be allowed access to medicine so freely.

What I still didn’t understand was why these small humanoids, who were clearly stronger than the giants, would choose to live inside their heads. There had to be a reason, though there could just as well be none at all. The urge to dominate wasn’t always born from logic.

I wrapped up my thoughts and turned back toward the small giant. I couldn’t just sit around waiting for them to wake up. Unfortunately, I hadn’t heard of a divine spell that could rouse someone who had fainted.

“Doppy, you can’t make someone regain consciousness, right?”

“I can't, but I can cast a stabilization spell!”

“While you’re at it, cast a healing spell, too.”

Doppy nodded and chanted quickly. The giant began to glow as the healing and stabilization spells took effect.

I had requested the healing spell just in case. Even I had to admit that they had slammed their head hard.

Sure, giants seemed incredibly sturdy, but miniature creatures could control them by entering their heads. A head injury could easily lead to something like a cerebral hemorrhage.

“

Hmm

.”

Now, we simply had to wait for them to come to their senses.

Standing around felt wasteful, though. I wasn’t worried about the time constraints, but it did seem inefficient. Neither Doppy nor I felt even remotely tired.

That much was a given for me, and Doppy was a swordmaster, too. In a situation with no combat, observation felt more like rest than strain. Moreover, we had already eaten earlier while surveying the city.

“Doppy, you’re not tired or hungry, are you?”

“Of course not!”

As expected.

“Then let’s keep going.”

“Where to?”

“Forward. We’ll see what’s at the end of the tunnel.”

“What about this one? Are we dragging them along?”

I turned toward him and met his eyes. “

Huh?

No. Why would we?”

“Then are we leaving them here?”

“What are you talking about?” Noticing that he still hadn't caught on to what I had in mind, I took a breath. “I’m sending them to Natalie’s world. I’ll bring them back as soon as they wake up.”

Doppy finally understood, his mouth forming a perfect circle. “

Ah!

”

Dragging them along would work, too, but this was simpler. Hauling a giant around wasn’t an easy task. Setting aside the risk of straining my back, there wasn’t even a good place to grip. Tying a rope around them wasn’t exactly ideal either.

I opened a portal to Natalie’s world and placed the small giant inside.

Just like I had before, I sent a divine message to Gehenna to notify me the moment they regained consciousness. I told her they were an ally and shouldn’t be touched, only protected, until I returned.

As for the other one, I added that she should knock them out again if they woke up.

Two giants now.

Natalie’s world was probably growing a bit crowded. She would figure it out, of course, but still.

“Let’s go.”

I turned and began walking forward.

***

[Primary objective: avoid the giants’ gaze and meet the Giant Resistance. Time remaining: 14 hours 52 minutes.]

Perhaps the small giant was sturdier than expected, or perhaps Doppy spells had worked more effectively than anticipated. Whatever the reason, Gehenna contacted me no more than ten minutes after we delivered the giant. She informed me that they had regained consciousness and told me to take them back.

I promptly opened a portal, and moments later, the small giant emerged hesitantly from the other side.

They paused as they saw us, eyes widening slightly in surprise. “T-tinies!”

With a puzzled frown, I echoed, “Tinies?”

Gehenna quickly relayed the situation. Apparently, the moment the small giant had awoken, they had panicked and accused the others of being tinies. In response, Natalie had given them a rough explanation, which saved me from having to explain it myself. Convincing someone who was frightened was exhausting.

To a giant, we were simply smaller beings. To what degree didn’t really matter.

I thanked both Gehenna and Natalie.

The small giant cautiously stuttered, “I-I heard a bit from the female tinies! They said the male tiny was going to save us from the other tinies.”

There was still a flicker of fear in their voice.

Instead of responding immediately, I asked Gehenna what exactly had happened. According to her, during the giant’s episode, Natalie had forcibly intervened to prevent her garden from receiving damage.

Hmm.

While that went against my earlier request to treat the giant gently, she hadn’t gone overboard. Judging from the small giant’s reaction, she probably used her presence to suppress them rather than inflicting harm.

I acknowledged the giant. “Tiny sounds a bit awkward. How about you call me mid-sized? We’re larger than the other tinies, after all.”

“Mid-sized? You mean like normal people? But we’re the normal ones. You’re smaller than us, but not super tiny. So you’re tinies.”

“Well, from where I’m standing, you’re the giants.”

Though visibly nervous, the small giant still held onto their spirit. “The animals here are all bigger than you, too! You’re just small!”

Their comment struck me as exactly what I would expect from a giant. Perhaps this courage was what had earned them a place in the resistance and led them to be chosen for this infiltration mission.

In any case, the giant wasn’t entirely wrong. Honestly, what we called each other wasn’t particularly important.

I nodded loosely. “Call us whatever you like.”

The small giant blinked at me. It seemed like they were waiting for me to continue.

“In that case, would you be willing to lead us to the resistance?”

I wasn’t sure what Natalie had told them, but the small giant nodded without hesitation. “All right.”

That was fortunate. If they still harbored suspicions about us being controllers, I would have had to go through the tiresome process of convincing them just to lead us there.

Without missing a beat, the small giant added, “But I have a condition!”

“What is it?”

“I heard what they said, but I still need to verify it myself. I don’t know if you’re truly on our side!”

“Didn’t Natalie explain everything?”

“That’s beside the point! I can’t risk putting the resistance in danger on words alone. I’m still young, and I don’t have the authority to make those kinds of decisions!”

That was a reasonable point.

The fact that Natalie had persuaded them to this extent was impressive. If I had tried to explain it, I doubt I would have known where to start. I would have had to bring in one of the other individuals from the rest area to vouch for me.

“How do you plan to verify that?”

“An ally is waiting near the exit of the tunnel! They’ll determine whether you’re trustworthy. I’ll speak with them first!”

“Sure.”

It wasn’t a difficult request. The ally they had mentioned was probably one of the resistance’s higher-ups. I could just speak with them directly.

From my standpoint—as someone attempting to offer help—such caution was frustrating, but not unfamiliar. Their wariness was understandable. Blindly trusting strangers claiming to be allies would be foolish.

With the matter settled, we began walking down the tunnel. From time to time, the small giant struck up a conversation. They seemed curious, likely because we were so unfamiliar.

“So where exactly are you from?”

I couldn’t go into detail.

Fortunately, I had a well-worn excuse ready that I had used in similar circumstances before.

I smoothly answered, “You remember how you traveled to another world through the portal earlier?”

“Yes. That’s when I realized you tinies weren’t ordinary.”

“Well, we’re similar to planetary guardians. When someone’s being oppressed, we step in to help.”

“For free?”

“No, we’re compensated by those above. Don’t you have gods in your world?”

“Gods?” The small giant tilted their head in confusion. “What’s that?”

I suddenly realized that gods didn’t play a significant role in this world. Whether this meant there were no gods or that they simply paid no attention to this place, I couldn’t be certain.

“If you don’t know, don’t worry about it.”

“Tell me anyway!” the small giant pleaded with unfiltered curiosity.

Thanks to Natalie, I had been spared the hassle of an elaborate explanation. Still, something about this rubbed me the wrong way.

Not the topic, but the tone.

I understood that the small giant wasn’t fully grown yet, but the way they spoke to me was still far too casual.

“Hold on. How old are you?”

“Thirty-four!”

Wait, what?

“What’s your average life expectancy?”

“

Umm,

why are you asking that all of a sudden? We live up to two hundred, though.”

Seriously?

Assuming humans lived to around eighty, I was about two-and-a-half times older in giant years. In human years, this giant would be about fourteen.

Granted, that was a very rough comparison.

That didn’t matter to me, however. Even if a hundred-year-old elf looked like an elf, I would still find it strange to hear them speaking informally.

I hardened my expression and flatly stated, “You’re speaking to me too casually. I’m over fifty, so I expect you to speak with respect.”

Doppy looked like he was about to say something, so I quickly grabbed his shoulder.