“...The fog’s cleared. Everyone, let’s go.”
The undead king who ruled these bizarre beings.
Neia gathered up her resolve.
The Sorcerer King is undead, yet he permits humans to live… What sort of person is he, really? Well, I won’t be able to see that side of him, being a squire and all.
Part 3
In the distance, she could see the outermost of E-Rantel’s — the capital of the Sorcerous Kingdom — three walls, and the imposing gate set into it.
However, neither of them could draw Neia’s attention away from the two gigantic statues which flanked the gate.
They depicted an undead creature which held a bizarre staff that resembled snakes coiling around each other. Those statues were probably made in the image of the Sorcerer King, Ainz Ooal Gown.
Despite being a good distance away from them, Neia could make out the intricate detailing of the statues. In all likelihood, she would not be able to find a flaw in them even at the statues’ feet.
Then, she saw several human-shaped creatures working near the statues.
Eh? Ah… aren’t they too big? Aren’t they as high are those walls? While I know the statues are large… who are those people working down there, anyway?
The others seemed to have the same questions as Neia, and the paladins began discussing the identities of those human-like creatures.
“...Those aren’t humans, are they?”
“Yeah. Are they Giants? Although, they don’t seem to be the same as Hill Giants…”
Neia, a mere squire, had never seen a Giant in the flesh before, but she had heard about these beings during her monster knowledge class.
Giants were essentially enlarged humans, but in addition to their powerful bodies, they also possessed racial abilities. Thanks to these abilities, they could endure environments which humans would be hard-pressed to survive, so they typically made their homes in such places. They were a demihuman species which had little to do with humans, who could only live on the plains.
Some races which were skilled in magic were more advanced than humanity.
Race alone did not determine the goodness or wickedness of a being. One of the Thirteen Heroes was a Giant. In the Holy Kingdom, the Giants known as Sea Giants sometimes showed up to trade.
That said, Giants were generally a violent and dangerous race.
On the subject of dangerous Giants in the human world, one would have to mention Hill Giants, who lived in the hills. Giant-kin such as trolls and the like were also quite (in)famous.
In that case, what were these Giants doing in a city of the undead?
“...Were there Giants here in the past? Did he conquer them?”
“Does that Sorcerer King command Giants? I’ve never heard of something like that before.”
That surprised exclamation from one of the paladins was only to be expected.
They had gathered a great deal of intelligence in preparation for their journey to the Sorcerous Kingdom. Of course, a lot of that information was incomprehensible, so they could not be said to have succeeded in their objective, but that still counted as doing their due diligence. Both the Ghost Ship and Giants were matters of mystery.
Was the Sorcerer King an undead Giant? Neia thought. But such a distinguishing characteristic ought to have showed up in their intelligence reports.
Just then, Gustavo addressed her from behind.
“Squire Baraja, it’s about time we changed formation. Move to the rear.”
“Understood!”
During their journey, Neia had been at the head of the formation, but now that they were near the city, Neia would occupy the rearmost position. In turn, Remedios and Gustavo would take Neia’s place at the front.
“Captain Custodio, shall we send an envoy out to announce us?”
Surely anyone would be wary of a group of people showing up near a city in full plate armor and bearing arms. Therefore, when they entered a city or village of the Kingdom, they would typically send out a paladin to inform them that they were coming, and then the group would approach, bearing the flag of the Holy Kingdom. This was etiquette.
After receiving Remedios’s permission, they sent a paladin out before them.
After reaching the gates to the Sorcerous Kingdom, he turned and came back.
“Captain, I’ve informed the watchmen of the Sorcerous Kingdom. They extend a welcome to us.”
“Is that so, got it. Then let’s go! Raise the flags! Hold your chests high! Do not disgrace the name of paladins of the Holy Kingdom!”
With that, the group slowly guided their horses towards the Sorcerous Kingdom.
Finally, they reached the stately-looking gates, as well as the Giants working there.
The Giants seemed to be cleaning the statues, as though to make the beautiful statues even more beautiful.
They glanced at the Giants’ appearance, and their skin was bluish white, while their hair and moustaches were white. They seemed to be dressed in primitive clothing made from the hide of some kind of beast, as well as exquisitely made chain mail armor.
“What kind of Giants are those?”
Neia’s keen senses picked up the conversation from the front row.
“This is just a guess, but I think they should be Frost Giants, right?”
“H-mm~” Remedios replied vaguely. “Are they strong? What powers do they have?”
“...Honestly, give me a break… Frost Giants are Giants who live in cold climates, and they are immune to cold. In contrast, they are weak to fire.”
“I see. So if we have to fight one, we should use fire, is that right?”
“Well, pretty much. Mithril ranked adventurers should be able to beat them with ease. However, they can train and learn like us, and sometimes you might encounter a Giant with warrior skills. Therefore, you must be careful.”
Those were Giants.
One could train to be a warrior, a magic caster, or a thief. It was not just humans who could train themselves in such techniques. While creatures with racial advantages generally were not inclined towards such training, some of them would put in the effort to pick up such skills, and that made them very difficult opponents.
Neia’s father had repeatedly told her, “Beasts intimidate you with their appearance. But a powerful foe who does not appear to be one is very frightening.”
“H-mm~ Well, I’ve never fought a Giant before. Still, Ogres are a different matter.”
“Take care you don’t upset them by mentioning Ogres in the same breath as them. To the Sea Giants, at least, it would be like comparing a monkey to a human. Of course, that’s a rumor from a bard, so there’s no telling how much of that is true.”
“H-mm~ The Holy Kingdom can’t hire Sea Giants, but the Sorcerous Kingdom can employ Frost Giants. Which of them is stronger?”
“I’m afraid I don’t know the answer to that…”
While the Captain obviously wanted Sea Giants to be stronger, the important thing now was the sort of treatment these Frost Giants faced in the Sorcerous Kingdom.
Were they treated as friends, enslaved with force, or were they paid for their services in a mutually beneficial relationship?
There was no way to tell from the forms of the silently laboring Giants.
Still, it would seem these Giants are excellent laborers. The Holy Kingdom has worked with demihumans in the past, but if they expanded the scope of that, it could do many more things. Of course, the Holy Kingdom would never do that.