Titan King: Ascension of the Giant-Chapter 359 Are you willing to serve me in all things?

Balor's defeat wasn't all bad news for many of the giants, because they ended up welcoming an even stronger Giant King.

On the city walls, countless Blood Elves and Gnomes who hadn't managed to escape in time were slain, dismembered, or even devoured. The siege continued for another half-day, even after most of the giants lowered their resistance.

"This city now belongs to me," Orion declared. "You're welcome to come settle in my city, but leave all your cannon-fodder troops outside."

He was addressing the other coalition lords. His tone left no room for argument.

Jorik, Gareth, Ironhoof, Bluehide, and Lokiviria exchanged a few glances, silently reading each other. In the end, nobody spoke up as they followed Orion into the city—now renamed Stoneheart.

Indeed, with Balor dead and Starveil City at an end, Orion planned to rename the place "Stoneheart City." This giant-held territory was about to become his southern stronghold, the foundation on which the Stoneheart Horde would rise.

As soon as Orion learned there was a southern giant lord, he'd already been making plans.

If the Northern Coalition won this push into the west, they'd probably split up the Blood Elves' territory among themselves. That would inevitably breed conflict and chaos. Even if the north triumphed over the south, Orion didn't plan to join them in carving up the Blood Elves' lands. Seizing this Giant territory gave him absolute priority, whether seen through the eyes of the northern lords or the southern factions.

No matter how the war might end, Stoneheart City would anchor Orion's presence in the south—for he was a giant, and this belonged to the giants.

––––––––

Half a day later, inside Balor's former palace.

"I'm taking over the entire Starveil Giant territory," Orion said, seated in the main hall with five guests: Jorik, Gareth, Ironhoof, Bluehide, and Lokiviria. "Don't think you're getting any cut of the profits here."

Jorik said nothing, just quietly downing his drink.

Gareth frowned and occasionally looked over at Orion, clearly wanting to speak but keeping her thoughts to herself.

Lokiviria's face was dark and sour—this fertile southern land was obviously something he wanted for himself, but Orion's strength made him hold his tongue.

Ironhoof was also sipping his drink in silence, brow furrowed as if lost in thought. Only Bluehide ate and drank with abandon, clearly enjoying the feast.

"My friend, this land was always the giants' domain," Bluehide said loudly after draining an entire jug of liquor. "It's only natural for you to take it over. Nobody seems to have a problem with that."

Since Bluehide was formidable, no one wanted to risk provoking him over something so trivial.

Orion drained his own cup, then set it down and waited. When no one else spoke, he said with a calm smile:

"Of course, I promise that, for the next stage of the invasion, I won't fight over any other southern territory with you.

Taking over the Starveil Giants' lands is more than enough for me. I couldn't be happier with this."

Jorik and the others shot quick glances at each other, then fixed Orion with attentive gazes.

"Giant King Orion," Jorik said, sounding both cautious and excited, "you truly mean that?"

Originally, the far south belonged to the dragons, and the White Dragon Frostsire was still alive. So even if the war ended in victory, that region would remain in Frostsire's claws.

In other words, Jorik's best outcome would be seizing the Blood Elves' territory under Frostsire's sponsorship. Orion bowing out of that scramble meant one less rival.

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"I do." Orion nodded. "And I'll follow through on my promise by bringing my spider armies to help you attack the Blood Elves' City of Blessings."

At last, Lokiviria, Jorik, Gareth, and Ironhoof broke into smiles. Orion was basically becoming a half-free mercenary force for them.

"Still," Orion went on, leaning forward a bit, "before that happens, you should fill us in on the details, Lord Jorik. You don't really think our handful of troops alone is enough to breach the Blood Elves' City of Blessings, do you?

We've all seen how powerful Elanor is. And rumors say the Blood Elves have both their Elf King and an Elven Prophet holding down the City of Blessings. Are you expecting the six of us from the north to just march in and pick a fight with the south's elite?

Or are you trying to send us to an early grave?

That's not a funny joke."

Orion's cool, mocking laughter resonated through the palace, echoing around the chamber.

A few heartbeats later, Orion, Lokiviria, Gareth, Ironhoof, and Bluehide all fixed Jorik with cold, piercing glares.

The tension in the room was suffocating; if Jorik couldn't offer a convincing plan, he probably wouldn't make it out of that palace alive.

Time seemed to crawl in a suffocating silence. At some point, outside in Stoneheart City, the voices of mourning giants rose in unison, chanting prayers for the dead and honoring the memory of Balor, their fallen king.

"Relax, you guys. The Elf King and the Elven Prophet in the City of Blessings are mine to handle. All you need to do is press the siege."

As the giants' solemn chanting started to fade, a powerful, resonant voice spoke from within Jorik. Simultaneously, an arch-lord's presence flooded the hall, overwhelming everyone there.

For a moment, Orion, Lokiviria, Gareth, Ironhoof, and Bluehide all felt an immense pressure: the will projection of the Arch-Lord White Dragon Frostsire had made itself known through Jorik's body.

"Understood. We await your commands," Orion replied with a broad grin, rising from his seat and bowing toward Jorik. Lokiviria, Gareth, Ironhoof, and Bluehide followed suit.

But that was all.

Frostsire's voice did not speak again, and the arch-lord's presence dissipated as if it had never appeared. With his oppressive aura gone, the group's mood turned instantly buoyant.

The Northern Coalition couldn't have made its southern invasion happen by relying on its own abilities alone. White Dragon Frostsire's will projection was the trump card he'd granted them, a means to pin down several top-level powerhouses from the other major races. It was only thanks to that hidden ace that Orion and the others had the guts to push south.

"Lord Jorik," Orion spoke again, "how about we catch our breath before continuing south?"

Securing Stoneheart City was only the first step, and Orion had plenty of matters to handle there. He needed time, and manpower as well.

"Suit yourself," Jorik replied flatly, then turned and left the palace. Being forced to reveal his trump card in front of everyone had ruined his mood, and he was clearly not pleased.

Next, Gareth, Ironhoof, and the others also departed in turn.

Though Starveil(Stoneheart) City had fallen, Orion was the big winner. None of the other lords had gained anything tangible.

––––––––

Once they were gone, Delilah and Onyx led the Stoneheart Horde's Alpha-level fighters into the palace, followed by the four council elders—Gronthar, Gort, Dirtclaw, and Ursa.

"My lord!"

At Orion's nod, Delilah and the others dutifully took their seats.

"How's the work going on rounding up and reorganizing the Starveil Giants?"

That was Orion's primary focus. Compared to the Blackrock and Ironbone Giants he'd annexed before, the Starveil Giants boasted a far more formidable foundation.

Delilah looked a little breathless with excitement, equal parts admiration and fervor in her eyes.

"My dearest lord, we got our hands on massive amounts of crystal cores, minerals, meat…and plenty of armor and weapons as well. The Starveil Giants' stockpiles are huge—lots of everything."

Seeing Orion raise a hand to stop her, Delilah paused. Clearly, he wasn't too interested in the basic resources; knowing roughly how much of that they had was enough.

"Tell me about the giant clans themselves."

That was the real issue at hand. Orion could already sense the presence of a handful of Alpha-level giants outside the palace—those who had survived the war.

Delilah nodded and organized her thoughts before speaking slowly:

"Lord, from our initial headcount, the Starveil Giants inside Stoneheart City number around three hundred thousand right now.

Out of those, fewer than one hundred thousand are bloodline warriors who can fight. The rest are ordinary giants with unawakened bloodlines, plus older folk, children, and the injured.

Our current stats indicate there are five Alpha-level giants: Drakthul, Marnok, Gormathar, Veldrok, and Grulbane."

Delilah paused to see if Orion had any questions. He stayed silent, still listening closely, so she went on:

"From what we learned, Stoneheart City used to have ten Alpha-level giants in total. Three died defending the city during the siege. Two others refused to surrender, choosing to follow King Balor into the Titan God's embrace.

As for hero-level bloodline warriors, there are around forty thousand of those. Everybody else is somewhere between elite and standard rank."

Orion kept his silence, eyes half-closed in deep thought.

"Lord, those five Alpha-level giants are waiting outside the palace, hoping for an audience. Would you like to see them now?"

Orion seemed to snap out of his reverie as Delilah spoke. He'd just been thinking about the two Alpha-level giants who had been Balor loyalists and declined to yield, dying under his lightning. A pity, but it was what it was.

"Show them in."

His words weren't loud, but they reached the palace guards Dace and Otho.

Dace bowed toward the inner hall, then turned to the five waiting Starveil Giants.

"Elders, the king will see you now."

The five Alpha-level Starveil Giants, led by Drakthul, nodded at Dace and stepped inside.

Orion remained half-reclined on his throne, calmly observing Drakthul, Marnok, Gormathar, Veldrok, and Grulbane. He'd already memorized their names from Delilah's report.

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"Drakthul…swears eternal loyalty to the new Giant King!"

"Marnok…swears eternal loyalty to the new Giant King!"

"Gormathar…swears eternal loyalty to the new Giant King!"

"Veldrok…swears eternal loyalty to the new Giant King!"

"Grulbane…swears eternal loyalty to the new Giant King!"

All five of them knelt in supplication.

Orion said nothing, simply watching them. Like Balor, these five had tusklike fangs and pointed ears, each taller than Orion.

"Are you willing to serve me in all things?"

After a substantial pause, Orion's voice came down from the throne.

"We are!"

"We are!"

"…"

A faint smile appeared on Orion's face. This was exactly the outcome he'd been hoping for. Having five native Alpha-level giants from Stoneheart City on his side would make it infinitely easier to reshape the city and administer the Starveil population.

"According to the rules of the Stoneheart Horde, all five of you are now promoted to Warden status, on par with our senior elders.

As for additional honors—those will come after you've proven yourselves on the battlefield."

Led by Drakthul, the five Starveil Giants bowed deeply once more. Under their tension lay a pulse of excitement.

This new Giant King, Orion, had arrived so abruptly that many Starveil Giants were still reeling from the change. Yet the fact remained: Orion had earned the title by besting Balor in their duel.

"Now," Orion continued, "tell me more about the Starveil Giants: our past situation, our present situation, and which enemies and allies we might have. You five should be the experts."

"Yes, my lord—what would you like to know most?"

Drakthul was cautious enough to call Orion "lord" instead of "king," implicitly adopting the ways of the Horde. At least that seemed to be his intention. This implies that he has recognized his identity and is willing to be fully loyal to Orion and his Horde.

"Start with Stoneheart City itself. How many people we actually have, how many bloodline warriors we can field, what defenses are in place—everything."

Drakthul, Marnok, Gormathar, Veldrok, and Grulbane exchanged looks. After a moment's silent debate, Drakthul raised his head and spoke in a heavy voice:

"My lord, up until recently, there were over four hundred thousand Starveil Giants in the city's reach. Once they learned foreign races were invading from the north, most of them returned to Stoneheart City.

There were some who refused to fight and scattered into hidden valleys or mountain caves around the territory.

Right now, Stoneheart City has around three hundred thousand giants in residence…maybe a bit fewer."

He spoke carefully, even going so far as to call the place "Stoneheart City" instead of "Starveil City." It was obvious the city's population alone hadn't been enough to safeguard this realm, not even under Balor's lead.

Though Drakthul didn't say so outright, it was clear there must have been more factors at play.