Titan King: Ascension of the Giant Chapter 1469 Hero's Blood

"How do I look?"

Lumi's eyes fluttered open, and right away, she spotted Orion positioned in front of her.

The worry and tenderness in his eyes thawed her icy core.

"Perfect," she murmured. "I am the Warden of Winter now."

She had transformed into the deity ruling over the frost.

"This will be our home."

Lumi pointed toward the Ice Phoenix Palace situated behind her. In the process of solidifying her Authority, she had naturally drawn on the realm's laws to rebuild it. She created an flawless copy of the palace from the frozen wastes, the one Orion had given her as a present.

"Yes. This is our home."

Orion agreed with a nod, truly delighted that he could offer a haven entirely Lumi's own.

"From now on," Lumi declared while experimenting with her fresh power, "I will call forth a massive snowfall over the Divine Kingdom during the last three months of each year."

"As the snow thaws, the frozen ground will loosen up. It will boost the development of every form of life and fertilize the earth."

This stood as the clearest advantage from Lumi's mastery of the Snow Authority for the Abyssal World.

"However," she went on, "the Divine Kingdom's regulations aren't completely in place yet. To activate additional laws, you need to keep dividing and distributing Authority."

"To render the realm whole, you must broaden its borders and set up governance."

Orion was well aware of these facts, naturally. Yet understanding the route and actually traversing it remained worlds apart.

To grow the Divine Kingdom, his actual form had to labor within the Chaos Void. The sole quick paths involved consuming other Divine Kingdoms or siphoning power from the Abyssal World. Each approach fit into his strategy, though implementing them demanded patience and effort.

"If it succeeded for me... Gustalon ought to secure the Kingdom's recognition too," Lumi proposed gently.

She proved considerate. Owing to their common origin as elemental entities, she swiftly recalled the wind elemental.

"I'll speak with Gustalon," Orion vowed.

He had already outlined intentions for the wind spirit. Should Lumi have risen, Gustalon seemed virtually guaranteed.

"Won't you walk with me?" Lumi inquired.

With matters settled, she reached out her hand. Orion grinned and clasped it.

Lumi pressed against him, gripping his arm. Resembling a pair wed for many years, they wandered slowly across the pure white blanket of snow.

Stoneheart City. The Silent Goblet.

A wave of deep satisfaction washed over Redfang the Giant as he climbed the steps to the tavern's upper level.

It represented prestige.

The upper floor was set aside for the upper class. The thrill of achievement from treading those planks surpassed even triumphing in a Colosseum battle.

"Redfang! Over here!"

While Redfang reveled in his elevated status, a known voice hailed from a secluded booth. It belonged to his companion, Zhenlo.

Redfang approached confidently, the wooden floor creaking faintly beneath his bulk.

"Ordered this for you. Hero's Blood. Last barrel of the day."

Zhenlo, the Pandaren, pushed a huge mug across the surface. He understood the Giant thoroughly; this brew was Redfang's favored one.

Redfang eyed the unfamiliar human beside Zhenlo without a word. He hoisted the mug and swallowed the scorching brew in one mighty swig.

The liquor scorched his throat akin to a volcanic surge, fierce with the intensity of a fighter's essence.

"Hero's Blood fits. That's some punch!"

Redfang exhaled contentedly, his extended tongue flicking to catch the lingering drops on his mouth. Only afterward did he turn to Zhenlo.

"This is Bastien," Zhenlo presented, indicating the human. "A buddy I met in Northguard. He reached Alpha rank battling the Insectoids. He's a resilient fighter."

Redfang inclined his head and offered what he considered a warm grin to Bastien.

Yet, could a Giant's grin ever appear welcoming?

Bastien clearly viewed it otherwise. He tensed up noticeably.

"He's my Giant companion, Redfang," Zhenlo clarified hastily, touching Bastien's arm. "Don't mind the fangs. That's his smile."

Zhenlo worked to ease the tension. After all, they were fellow warriors who had shed blood in combat; harmony was essential.

"Redfang, you wouldn't believe," Zhenlo remarked, wagging his head, his striped fur standing on end in frustration. "Northguard... it's a nightmare."

"Do you know the first sight that greeted me upon teleporting there?"

"Famine."

"A whole city, wasting away from hunger."

"The people there... nothing but skin and bones. So weak. I could've pierced them with a single pinky jab."

To illustrate, the Pandaren stuck out a plump pinky and jabbed at nothing, like bursting a fragile bubble.

"Upon spotting us, their eyes... they lit up green."

"Friend," Bastien cut in, his tone gravelly. "That was hope. Not the madness of starvation."

"Yeah, yeah. Hope," Zhenlo amended, though doubt lingered in his expression.

For the Pandaren, that "green gleam" in human eyes typically signaled they had gone wild, set to devour whatever stirred. But Bastien maintained it was thankfulness.

Stoneheart's Lord enforced tight discipline in Northguard, averting the horrors of people turning on each other, yet the dire straits were undeniable. When Horde reinforcements from Stoneheart showed up, the residents beheld not merely troops, but the assurance of sustenance.

"Alright, hope. Not the gaze of a hunter," Zhenlo smiled, revealing his tidy rows of tiny teeth.

"But Fang, hear this. The ordinary folks in Northguard? They can't even consume the pests. Insectoid flesh poisons them. It ends their lives."

"Their stored grain vanished weeks back. They're on their last legs."

While Zhenlo recounted the northern terrors, Bastien stayed quiet, gazing into his vacant glass.

He recognized the Pandaren spoke truth without embellishment.

In the desperate hours preceding aid, Northguard's inhabitants perished from lack of food hourly. Some were seized from the roads by airborne bugs.

"And beyond the walls?" Zhenlo pressed on excitedly. "The Insectoids swarm like a curse. Like an endless tide."

"I swear, every step you take crushes insects."

"Why huddle within? Why not venture out and clear the area?"

"Fang, believe me, that spot is heaven for folks like us. Prime hunting ground for rewards and honors."

Zhenlo wasn't as dense as the Giant. He observed Bastien's spirits sinking, picking up on the man's embarrassment and sense of inadequacy.

Zhenlo extended a sturdy, padded hand onto Bastien's shoulder.

"Hey. My pal. Zhenlo intends no slight. I hold no disdain for your kind."

"I'm outlining a catastrophe. A crisis that calls for our help."

"See Redfang? He's precisely the ally I'd take north to resolve this chaos."

The Pandaren's straightforward candor and kindness pierced Bastien's walls.

Bastien shook off the moment and finished his beverage.

"Apologies. I'm spoiling the meetup with my attitude."

"Hahaha! Buddy, no worries! That crisis is on the verge of fading into the past."

The reassurance came not from Zhenlo this round, but from the Giant himself, Redfang.

"Friend, Northguard has rejoined the Horde's fold. Henceforth, we stand as kin."

"Any burden, we shoulder as one."

Redfang pounded his broad chest. At that instant, he embodied pride— not conceit, but the steadfast, reliable pride inherent to his race.

"Redfang swears it. For a comrade, I'll head to Northguard. I'll slay the most foes. I'll deliver hope."

"I know plenty of former comrades here in Stoneheart. They'll eagerly join to aid in the north."