novelraw Chapter 400: The Royals of Elbaf
Chapter 400: The Royals of Elbaf
New World, Elbaf,
As the capital of the Warland Kingdom, King City buzzed with life during the Winter Solstice Festival. The celebration outshone any other giant village, drawing crowds from nearby settlements to join the revelry, honoring a tradition over a thousand years old.
(T/N: Officially, Elbaph Island contains the Warland Kingdom, but the nation is commonly referred to by the general term "Elbaph".)
Prince Loki, barely in his twenties or thirties yet still boyish by giant standards, darted through the palace with uncontainable excitement. The royal stronghold, built from massive stone and timber, sported a rugged palette of grays and browns, devoid of vibrant hues.
This was the same Loki from the original tale, the prince left weeping after Charlotte Lola jilted him. His peculiar taste—favoring the unattractive, the uglier the better—baffled even his father, King Harald. With his short-horned helmet and rotund frame, Loki resembled a bouncing meatball.
In giant years, sixty equated to a human’s seventeen, and eighty to a human’s early twenties. At his age, Loki was still a kid by Elbaf’s measure.
"This boy’s got no fight in him, too ’kind’ for his own good. Ugh," King Harald muttered, watching his son frolic alone. A prince should be fierce, brimming with valor, but Loki? Soft. Calling him kind was generous.
"My King," a burly giant warrior interjected, "this generation’s Giant Warrior Pirates are a disgrace. They disbanded early, leaving our Winter Solstice Festivals dull. Why not form a new crew?"
The warrior avoided glancing at Loki. In Elbaf, where strength ruled, weakness and cowardice earned no respect—not even from a prince. He also scorned the current Giant Warrior Pirate captains, Blue Ogre Dorry and Red Ogre Brogy, itching to banish those failures from Giant Village.
The Giant Warrior Pirates had never dissolved over something as petty as a duel between captains. It was a stain on their honor, rivaled only by the humiliation of former captain Jorul, killed by a five-year-old girl.
The Warland Kingdom’s reputation had taken a beating, tarnished by Giant Village. Jarul’s call to feud with a five- or six-year-old Charlotte Linlin? Pathetic. When word reached King City, Harald erupted in fury. The mighty giants, cowed by a child? Giant Village had dragged Elbaf’s name through the mud.
Rumors now swirled across the seas: the Warland Kingdom, toppled by a five-year-old. King City and other villages cut ties with Giant Village, some even clamoring to wipe out the settlement that shamed them.
But with Jorul dead and Dorry and Brogy absent, Harald spared them—for a time. Over a decade later, news trickled in: Dorry and Brogy had returned a year or two ago, rallying giants for a new voyage. King City, largely estranged from Giant Village, only recently learned of this.
"Dorry and Brogy are back, are they?" Harald growled, his Conqueror’s Haki flaring. "After the festival, drag them here to face justice! Bring Jarul too. Those who disgrace Elbaf won’t escape my wrath!"
A single village daring to represent all of Elbaf? Fine, if they’d brought glory—but these fools only piled on shame. They’d pay for tarnishing the Warland Kingdom’s honor.
"Understood, my revered King!"
The giant general bowed, awed by Harald’s terrifying Conqueror’s Haki. He shelved a fleeting thought: if Loki proved too weak to claim the throne, any mighty giant warrior could vie for kingship.
Elbaf’s tradition exalted strength above all. Every king had to be the mightiest. But in the last century or two, giants with Conqueror’s Haki grew scarce—a sign of their waning power.
...
Elbaf reveled in the Winter Solstice Festival. Feasts and dueling tournaments filled the air with cheer, amplifying the celebration’s grandeur.
Meanwhile, at Elbaf’s Giant Village, specks appeared on the horizon. A fleet of airships escorted a gleaming golden island, speeding toward the legendary giant homeland.
"Rocky, Captain Brook’s on the Den Den Mushi!" a young giant clad in alloy armor announced, carefully stowing the oversized snail. "They’re nearing Giant Village. Should we meet them?"
Rocky, a hulking figure, grinned. Their small crew was poised to seize control of Giant Village, then set their sights on King City. With the Hell Pirates’ backing, they’d one day rule the capital and crown a new king.
"Brook’s orders are clear," Rocky rumbled. "First, we take down Jarul and his buddy Kavo—they’ve been thick as thieves, according to our intel. Those two are our targets."
Rocky didn’t fully grasp Brook’s plan but trusted it. Dorry and Brogy wouldn’t escape either—Giant Village would fall under their control.
He and three other giants had taken Vegapunk’s SIQ-ES Potential Booster, a drug that skyrocketed their strength at the cost of unknown years of life. Clad in cutting-edge alloy gear, they were ready to overpower Dorry, Brogy, the old relic Jarul, and Kavo.
Their recent recruits, radical giants itching for change, were torn about staging a coup during the sacred Winter Solstice Festival. On any other day, they’d charge in without hesitation, but tradition weighed heavily.
"Seize this chance to shine!" Rocky barked at the wavering young giants. "The big boss is coming. Want strength like ours? Want this alloy armor and weaponry? Show your guts!"
His words dangled a tempting prize. Their gleaming alloy gear had giants drooling with envy. Elbaf lagged behind, stuck in an era of farming and hunting. Even Dorry and Brogy, captains of the Giant Warrior Pirates, wielded mere iron weapons and wooden shields, draped in beast pelts—not metal armor.
-----------
+400 Chapters on p@treon/tambeerg