Lord Of The Lost

Meanwhile, in the strategy discussion group, William gave a brief rundown of the giant ruins.

He had slain four giants.

But twelve more deformed giants remained.

Forum Master: "Are these giants really that hard to kill?"

Wallace had four more hours of game time than them.

The Forum Master assumed Wallace had been online the entire time; meaning, logically, all those giants should have been wiped out by now.

But William didn't mince words.

"It's hard to kill them alone."

The giants weren't like the werewolves he had hunted before.

Back then, William had participated in a massive group hunt.

Werewolves couldn't touch him.

He could kill them in a single strike.

His fighting style was perfect; quick, precise, lethal.

Back then, he had fought like an assassin.

One hit.

One kill.

Gone in a flash.

Then he'd circle back, looking for the next opening.

But against giants, things were different.

To take them down efficiently, he needed someone to distract them.

Alone, the fight was slow and exhausting.

If he had backup, though…

They could wipe them out.

Giants: The Walking Fortresses

Giants were a completely different beast from the enemies they had faced before.

Their health bars were ridiculously thick, at least three to five times that of a werewolf.

They weren't just tanky, they could hit like a warhammer.

It was like comparing divine beings to ordinary transcendents.

For mid-tier extraordinary beings, a higher-tier being was nearly untouchable.

---

The Team's Weakness: No Healer

The Forum Master sighed.

"We're missing a priest."

A healer would bring stability to the team.

Right now, they had no sustainability.

Relying only on potions wasn't enough, and their endurance was too low for prolonged battles.

Metatron nodded.

"And like you said, the giants are absurdly strong. Even if the Gambler activates his talent, he might not survive a direct hit."

Except for William, none of them could go head-to-head with a deformed giant.

Even William, with over 20 points of Constitution, had been pinned to the ground during the last fight.

He had escaped, but it was a warning.

---

Understanding the Giants' Power

Most Sequence 9 giants had already maxed out their Constitution at that level.

But when they exploded with power, they fought at a level far beyond what 20 Constitution should allow.

Who knew how long these giants had been lurking in the ruins, honing their monstrous strength?

---

After a quick strategy discussion, the team locked in their battle plan.

"Do we have a priest we can bring in?"

The Forum Master nodded.

"I know a guy. His name's Yi Ke. His talent is [Life Sharing]. He can heal others by using his own energy. He's leaning toward the Priest path."

---

The Priest Path was an offshoot of the Church's divine magic.

But unlike true clerics, who drew their power directly from the gods, priests had their own source of transcendence.

Clerics had one job: stay devout, stay blessed.

Priests, on the other hand, could use magic independently.

Their abilities revolved around three core traits:

[Mana]: Enhances control over energy, speeds up spellcasting, and boosts spell power.

[Blessing]: Strengthens support and protection spells, adding defensive effects.

[Healing]: Restores health and removes negative conditions.

Having a Priest on the team would make a massive difference.

---

The more people they had, the better.

Right now, just the five of them were struggling to take on the Giant Ruins.

But if there were five hundred players instead?

The deformed giants wouldn't last two hours.

Never underestimate high-level players.

At their peak, they were already half a step into transcendence.

If they threw enough people at the ruins, the giants wouldn't even last an hour.

Of course, there would be casualties.

A lot of them.

----

The maze was unlike any other battlefield.

For the weak, it was deadly.

For the strong, it was even deadlier.

The stronger an extraordinary being, the greater the chaos they stirred upon entering.

If a high-sequence powerhouse stepped into the labyrinth, it would trigger a massive upheaval.

It wasn't just a metaphor, it was an unwritten law of the maze.

---

Imagine someone like Calcifer walking into the labyrinth.

The result wouldn't be a fight against evil spirits or deformed giants.

No; he'd awaken something much, much worse.

The maze was layered with hidden forces, buried horrors waiting for a trigger.

It was like throwing a powerful object into a gravitational field where multiple forces were pulling in different directions.

A single step could trigger a chain reaction of unpredictable consequences.

In contrast, weaker beings wouldn't shake the labyrinth as much.

But that didn't mean they were safe.

Even if a Sequence 9 transcendent entered cautiously, who could guarantee they wouldn't stumble upon a Sequence 8 creature?

And if they did?

They'd be obliterated before they could even scream.

The mortality rate in the maze was staggering.

---

Strangely enough, even large groups of weak players were a liability.

The more people there were, the harder it was to stay hidden.

The collective noise, movement, and magic usage all drew attention, often from things best left undisturbed.

But William and his team had an advantage.

With Metatron and the Forum Master, they had top-tier talents that helped them avoid the worst dangers before they even appeared.

Most players? They weren't that lucky.

---

"By the way, Wallace," the Forum Master said, "the [Knights of Despair] took down a black magician from the Black Forest today. They found a page fragment on him."

Despite the chaos of the full moon battle, fragments of Hope's Notes continued to surface.

The broken pages, linked to Hope's existence, seemed drawn toward one another; searching, gathering, pulling towards a greater whole.

Just yesterday, one had been found in the border town, enough to alarm the Forum Master's knights.

He didn't go into detail about the fight.

But with twenty Level 8 knight apprentices, taking down a deformed flesh-and-blood fragment of Sequence 9 was hardly a challenge.

---

Logging back in, William met up with the team.

It was time to clear the deformed giants.

---

Alex took on the role of bait.

With [Shadow Cloak], [Shadow Gem], and his [Miracle] talent, his escape abilities were top-tier.

The giants were fast, but their massive size worked against them.

As the deformed giants chased Alex, William struck.

He targeted the slowest giant at the back of the pack.

---

He appeared out of nowhere, a blur of motion.

With a whip-like kick, he struck the giant directly in the throat.

BOOM!

The eighteen-meter-tall colossus collapsed under the impact.

---

[Lightning Link]!

[Purifying Light]!

Two magical blasts crashed into the fallen giant.

Meanwhile, the Gambler launched his own attack.

His right hand transformed—[Werewolf Claw] activating.

This wasn't a normal weapon.

It was an actual werewolf's claw, fusing with the user's right hand and turning it into a beast-like weapon.

He slashed wildly, carving out massive chunks of flesh.

But compared to the giant's sheer size, the damage was minimal.

It was like trying to take down a mountain with a dagger.

---

The Giant's Fury

The deformed giant roared, its counterattack brutal.

Its sheer power and range made it impossible for William to get close.

The battlefield was shifting, he needed a new weapon.

---

"Wallace, try this!"

Whoosh!

The Forum Master tossed something through the air, a whirlwind axe with a chipped blade.

It spun like a flying blade, slicing through the air before William caught it mid-spin.

The weight was shocking, at least a hundred pounds.

This wasn't just any axe.

It was a dwarven relic, a double-bladed war axe once infused with mystical properties.

Its enchantments had long since faded, but its durability and sharpness remained.

William tightened his grip.

Now, he had the right tool for the job.

The hunt continued.

The Giant Slayer

William activated his secret ability, leaped high into the air, and swung the Whirlwind Axe with all his might.

The blade cleaved through the giant's neck like butter, splitting it in half.

Blood erupted like a geyser.

Even William was momentarily shocked.

The Evil Spear, his previous weapon, couldn't have done this much damage.

The giant's bones were incredibly tough, yet the Whirlwind Axe had cut through them effortlessly.

This weapon must have once surpassed the rare tier, maybe even reaching legendary status.

---

Swift and Brutal

BANG!

The battle ended almost instantly.

William descended like a warlord from legend, wielding the Whirlwind Axe with terrifying precision.

Two more slashes; clean, devastating.

A head the size of a car flew through the air, tumbling into the ruins.

---

Before William could take a breath, Alex returned, bringing more deformed giants with him.

William left one giant standing, letting the others chase Alex again.

This strategy worked repeatedly.

With each cycle, the number of giants dwindled.

Their size was both an advantage and a curse.

They lacked agility.

They lacked awareness.

In the end, they all fell, beaten to death before they even realized what had happened.

---

After the Battle

Everyone collapsed in exhaustion.

Some sat on giant corpses, others leaned against piles of rubble, gasping for breath.

William, however, remained composed.

He even had the energy to check his attribute improvements.

Then, he turned his focus to something else—

The supernatural characteristics extracted from Rashomon.

---

Suspended in the air before him, the giant's supernatural essence took the form of miniature mountains, radiating an ancient, primal energy.

William had collected many extraordinary traits so far:

Thief

Werewolf

Giant

Black Crow

These weren't just power-ups, they were rare, priceless supernatural resources.

A complete supernatural trait could turn an ordinary person into an extraordinary being.

But at a cost.

---

Taking on extraordinary characteristics wasn't just about power, it was about identity.

If one's willpower was weak, the trait would change them.

They would become the very essence of that extraordinary path.

A thief would be compelled to steal, to kill.

A werewolf would feel the call of the moon, the hunger for blood.

A giant… well, that part was still unknown.

William had no intention of recklessly creating new supernatural beings.

Turning someone into a werewolf or a thief was one thing, but a giant?

That was an entirely different risk.

This power needed to be placed in the right hands.

---

Among all players, only three had true influence:

William

The Forum Master

Metatron

Each had earned their position differently.

The Forum Master had status and raw strength.

Metatron had shared countless supernatural insights with the entire community, earning respect as a mentor.

William, every move he made was watched by countless players.

Giving away advanced weapons was one thing.

But supernatural traits?

Especially the power of giants?

That would shake the entire player base.

---

The Future of the Players

Many players were on the edge of their breakthrough.

Everyone was desperate for advanced pathways.

Choosing the right supernatural path could define their future.

William thought about it for a while.

Still, no answer.

---

In the end, the deformed giants weren't the real goal.

Their primary mission was to explore the ruins of the giants.

Skipping unnecessary areas, they headed straight for the half-collapsed Giant Hall.

Only to find—

Nothing.

The place was completely empty.

A massive structure… yet stripped bare.

The only thing left behind, a haunting silence.

The Lost Legacy of the Giants

William and the others had suspected it from the moment they stepped inside—

There was nothing valuable left here.

Not a single weapon, artifact, or treasure.

Even if the giants' weapons had remained, they would have been impossible to carry.

A single giant's sword or spear would weigh tens of thousands of pounds, far beyond what any ordinary person could wield.

But there was one thing left behind—

The murals.