Chapter 408: Eighty-Ninth Floor, Demigod (1)

[Primary Objective: avoid the giants’ gaze and meet the Giant Resistance. Time remaining: 12 hours 2 minutes.]

Kireing’s story didn’t seem like a lie. Nothing was questionable or out of place.

Of course, I still didn’t know why the tinies had betrayed the giants. It could have been nothing more than a desire to conquer, though several other possibilities came to mind.

Perhaps in the distant past, the giants had persecuted and imprisoned the tinies. Although it was also possible that things hadn’t played out quite as Kireing had described. Another option was that the giants had abused the miniatures after first encountering them.

Even if that were true, though, that still doesn’t excuse the current situation.

Entering another being’s mind and taking control of them was something I could not accept.

Since I was still conversing with Kireing, the trial hadn’t updated yet. I could only continue as the trial instructed. There had to be a reason for it.

The tower tended to side with the oppressed, especially those subjected to one-sided brutality. The trial told me to help the giants, so that was what I would do.

“What are you thinking about?” Kireing’s voice pulled me from my thoughts.

His eyes, sharp and intuitive, were now watching me closely. I hadn’t realized how deeply I had pondered during a lull in the conversation.

“I was thinking about how best to break through the current situation.”

That wasn’t entirely true, but I couldn’t really say I had been considering whether the giants were in the wrong.

I straightened my back.

Thanks to their hospitality, I was seated atop a massive desk. It was the only way to make up for the height difference. Otherwise, I would have had to keep looking up throughout the conversation. Even so, Kireing still towered above me.

He nodded firmly at my response. “Have you come up with a good plan?”

“No, not yet. There’s still too much I don’t understand.”

“Seems the god who sent you can’t handle everything after all.”

He wasn’t wrong.

“Right. Well, they’re not exactly omniscient or omnipotent. If they were, I wouldn’t be here in the first place.”

Kireing let out a faint, bitter smile.

Gods were far from perfect—even the Primordial God. If they had truly been all-knowing and all-powerful, this conflict between gods would never have arisen to begin with.

“Once we receive your help, are we supposed to believe in this god of yours?”

“No, nothing like that. Do whatever feels right to you.”

Honestly, I wanted to say that they should believe in me, but I had already brought up another so-called god.

Not that it mattered much. That god didn’t actually exist, so I figured I would receive their faith anyway.

“Still, I understand now that this being is something beyond us.”

“Sorry?” The sudden remark caught me off guard.

Kireing added, “Think about when you arrived. It means that your god was watching us.”

I caught the implication in his words and directly asked, “Were you preparing for battle?”

Kireing nodded, though his expression was grim. “Tomorrow. It’s not because we are well prepared or expect to win. We just decided that the resistance couldn’t continue much longer.”

“What do you mean?”

“Our numbers are shrinking. The enemy’s area of activity keeps expanding, and it’s becoming harder for us to survive. They have eyes everywhere. Even if we try to flee, we don’t know how far we would have to go. And besides, too many of us still feel a burning, vengeful fury. Most of us lost our parents.”

He let out a long breath and went on, “To be honest, it’s hard enough just maintaining our current numbers. It’s not like we can force anyone to have children. Even if we did, we wouldn’t be able to keep pace with the rate the enemy multiplies.”

𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

To some capacity, I understood what he meant.

The betrayal wasn’t ancient history. It had happened not too long ago, recent enough that Kireing had lived through it.

In that time, the tinies’ numbers had steadily increased. Those creatures likely didn’t consider a giant’s capacity for love when reproducing.

In contrast, the resistance’s circumstances were clearly difficult. Even the place they called home made that obvious.

They are like nomads.

All I saw were makeshift tents that could be set up and taken down quickly. Massive bags, larger than my own body, were scattered across the area. Everything was prepared for a sudden move.

Regardless, Kireing had decided to fight before the resistance dwindled any further.

“You’re going to fight even if you know you can’t win?”

“Hope without promise is poison. It’s not even worthy of being called torture. The resistance is growing weaker by the day.”

“Still, staying alive is—”

He sharply interrupted me, “Is that really living, if every moment is spent in fear of the enemy?”

The clarity once present in Kireing’s eyes began to waver, and his tone lacked conviction. He seemed worn out, exhausted by a life of constant flight.

I couldn’t blame him. There was a difference between not knowing the end and not knowing if there was one at all.

After a moment to calm himself, Kireing remarked, “Looking at it now, I don’t think it was the wrong decision. I believe your god sent you because we made preparations.”

I didn’t have anything to say in response.

Part of me agreed. If the giants hadn’t had the will to fight, my arrival wouldn’t have triggered a battle. Therefore, the tower wouldn’t have assigned it as a trial.

Another long silence settled between us. I took that time to think about the nature of the trial. Apart from the presence of giants and tinies, nothing in the trial was anything special.

The higher floors mostly revolved around acquiring faith, and this one seemed like it followed the same pattern.

At first glance, at least. Regardless, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something about this trial was different.

I didn’t have a definite reason for it. There was just something about this world’s atmosphere, along with my instincts.

Tiring and Kireing had both stated this was their first time hearing about gods.

That was also true for the tinies. Giants who had broken free from their control still didn’t know the term.

Even if a world didn’t have a god, surely traces of them could be found.

I have heard that gods ignore certain places, but to find an entire world that has never heard of gods? This could be a first.

I didn’t know for sure.

My arrival made sense, though, considering Kireing’s theory and the giants’ preparation for battle. I would just have to wait a day or two, and everything would become clearer.

Still, I was curious about how the resistance had first come to be. “I have a question”.

“Ask whatever you like.”

“How did you form the Giant Resistance? You said the Grand General protected you, so was that when it began?”

The sudden shift in topic made Kireing’s eyes widen, but he soon smiled bitterly as he shook his head. “It would’ve been impossible for me to escape at that age. Everyone here once lived under those tiny devils’ control.”

“Then how did—”

I hadn’t even finished my question before Kireing answered, “An accident.”

“An accident?”

He let out a short, dry laugh. “The devil controlling me made a mistake. While chasing prey, they lost their footing, and we fell off a cliff. The impact knocked me unconscious.”

I didn’t know how tall the cliff was, but if it was high enough for a giant to fall off of, the impact had to have been intense. Given that, losing consciousness wasn’t all that surprising.

He swept his bangs back with one hand, revealing a sunken area above his forehead where a grotesque scar remained. “When I came to, the devil was dead. I passed out from blood loss and nearly died, but managed to barely hang on.”

“Then was their corpse still in your head at the time?”

“My wife helped remove it later. It wasn’t too difficult. They have tunnels of their own to move through. It hurt quite a bit, though.”

A bright smile spread across his face. It was the first one in a while, prompted by the mention of his wife.

I waited silently.

“I may have digressed, but yes, I was the resistance’s first member. My wife was the second.”

“Did you save her yourself?”

“No. Lightning struck her.”

“Lightning?”

Kireing nodded. “She went up the mountain to gather herbs and was hit by lightning. The tiny died instantly, but she survived. I found her and brought her here. As for the others, we knocked them out and removed the miniature while they were unconscious.”

He continued speaking, but my thoughts remained fixed on one comment—a lightning strike had killed a tiny.

More facts started falling into place. I wielded lightning. I could potentially awaken the giants.

Moreover, I already had a giant in my group still under the miniature’s control. It was worth testing.

“Just a moment.”

“What is it?”

“You said lightning killed the tiny, right?”

“Yes.”

“I can control lightning.”

I conjured a current of lightning in my hand. Kireing leapt to his feet, visibly startled.

***

[Assist the Giant Resistance in creating a homeland for their people. Time remaining: 28 hours 41 minutes.]

The trial had updated as soon as my conversation with Kireing had ended. Now, an entire day had passed.

Unfortunately, lightning hadn’t proven particularly effective when removing the parasitic controllers. When exposed to the same amount of lightning, the giant would collapse, but their passenger remained conscious.

Targeting only the tiny wouldn’t be feasible at a larger scale. While my lightning could distinguish friend from foe to a degree, finely tuning a swarm of bolts to that level of precision was impossible.

In hindsight, Kireing’s wife had simply been fortunate. Surviving a direct lightning strike was rare, regardless of one’s size. Giants were no exception.

To be fair, there were ethical concerns surrounding our experiments, but they were permissible since the subjects were captured enemies.

Still, there was one notable gain. I had confirmed that I could consistently knock giants out. By experimenting with volunteers from the Giant Resistance, I determined the optimal intensity.

Once the battle begins and the giants fall, the tinies will be forced to crawl out.

It would be difficult for the giants to fight enemies as small as specks, but at least it spared them from having to strike their own. Plus, I would bear the brunt of the actual combat.

The plan was laughably simple. We would sneak into the city via the tunnels and strike the command center directly.

There was nothing more to it. The resistance had infiltrated there before, but they had gained woefully insufficient intelligence from their excursions. Beyond a certain point, the area became too heavily guarded to enter.

Were it not for my presence, it would be an awfully reckless plan. A great deal was resting on my shoulders.

Still, it may turn out easier than expected. Once the giants collapse and the controllers emerge, the one Kireing described as a demon will likely appear as well.

If I could take that thing down, we would be almost guaranteed victory.

The resistance gathered, preparing for battle. They checked their weapons and took steady breaths.

I stood a short distance away, quietly watching.

Out of nowhere, I began unconsciously humming Track 9 by Lee So-ra. I wasn’t sure why that song had come to mind.

Then again, it wasn’t unusual. It wasn’t the first time I had hummed a song from Earth while climbing the tower.

Just then, Tiring—the one who had first led me to the resistance—approached, accompanied by a few other small giants.

“That’s a nice song.”

“Right?”

Though he had commented on the lyrics, I could tell he had something else he wanted to say. I remained silent and met his gaze.

Tiring hesitated, then studied me carefully. “Su-Hyeok, I have a favor to ask.”

I nodded slightly, and he stepped forward.

“Could you ask Kireing to let us come with you?”

I shook my head.

Kireing had made that decision long before I arrived, back when the war still seemed hopeless. The younger giants would remain here, under the guidance of two older giants. If we lost the battle, they would escape to a distant place.

In a way, the giants were acting irresponsibly. If the adults perished, the children would be left to face unimaginable hardships alone. On the other hand, taking them into battle wasn’t an option.

Tiring didn’t back down. “If we lose, there’s no future for us anyway. But now that you’re here, we have a chance. We want to fight too.”

“No.”

Handling children was never easy—and certainly not something I enjoyed. Moreover, I had no intention of bringing them into the fray.

“There’s a saying I have heard. As long as you’re alive, an opportunity will come again. That’s why you’re staying behind. To wait for that chance.”

Even after hearing that, Tiring and the small giants didn’t look convinced. Their faces were filled with frustration. They communicated wordlessly, unable to imagine what kind of opportunity could come when they were left behind alone.

Honestly, they weren’t wrong.

I smiled faintly and added, “But don’t worry. As long as I’m here, failure isn’t possible.”

Just then, Kireing called my name, “Su-Hyeok!”

I turned toward the children and smiled even more broadly.

They looked uneasy. Their desire to join the battle likely stemmed from wanting to shake off that anxiety.

I looked away from them.

The parasites didn’t know it yet, but the true battle was about to begin.