Titan King: Ascension of the Giant

"Greetings, Your Grace!"

"Greetings, Your Grace!"

Just then, the senior leadership of the stoneheart horde approached—Rendall, Onyx, Thundar, Dace, Ursa, Fergus, Tarn, and the others. They all bowed their heads respectfully to Lilith; in Orion's absence, her authority was second to none.

"There's no need for formality," Lilith said with a graceful nod. "Let's all wait for the Dragon Crucible to open together."

The elders formed a loose circle around her, their presence adding to the weight of anticipation in the air.

"Rolan!" Pallas's sharp eyes spotted a familiar face in the crowd.

Rolan, who had been standing behind the elders, stepped forward as the group parted for him. "Lady Lilith. Your Highness," he said with a respectful bow.

Lilith beckoned him closer. No one would ever underestimate Orion's personal disciple. Though not yet an adult, Rolan's name and skill were already legendary across the southern continent. He had challenged and defeated every opponent his age, leaving him peerless among his generation. He was also one of the key role models Lilith often used in her lessons with Pallas.

"You've gotten taller," she said warmly. "Have you seen your mentor?"

"I have," Rolan replied. He seemed a bit shy, not because they had grown distant, but because he was growing up. As a child, he had spent every morning in Orion's tent, eating his meals there before training just outside. After his own mother, Lilith was the closest thing he had to a maternal figure.

"I've made a new cloak for you. Come by the castle to pick it up when we get back."

"Thank you, Lady Lilith," Rolan said, a genuinely happy smile spreading across his face—the same smile he'd had as a boy. Before Pallas was born, Lilith had made clothes for him every year, thinking of him as one of her own.

"Rolan, I challenge you!" Pallas wriggled out of his mother's arms, landing on his feet. He stared up at the older boy, his expression dead serious. "I'm going to ride my dragon and beat you!"

Rolan knelt, meeting the young prince's gaze at eye level. "I accept your challenge, Your Highness," he replied, his tone equally serious. "But only after you've defeated every other youngling your age. Then, you and I will have our battle."

He stood up and unslung the Bloodthirsty Trident from his back.

"My mentor passed this on to me," Rolan said, holding the trident out. He knew Pallas's bloodline would allow him to hold the weapon's weight. Sure enough, the boy reached out with one hand and took the massive trident, his small arm surprisingly steady.

"Can you feel the battle lust coming from it?" Rolan asked. "If you defeat me, it's yours."

With that, he took the trident back and slung it onto his back once more.

Pallas stared at the weapon, a burning desire igniting in his eyes. In the brief moment he'd held it, he'd felt the overwhelming, aggressive energy humming within the metal. Tempered by the indomitable wills of both Orion and Rolan, the Bloodthirsty Trident was no ordinary weapon.

"You better mean it!" Pallas declared solemnly.

His serious posture didn't last three seconds. Lilith scooped him up and gave him a gentle tap on the head.

"That's Rolan. You will show him respect."

And so, in a lighthearted atmosphere, they waited.

.....

Meanwhile, at the Leonidas Palace on the Kasenna Sea, Orion was lounging on a sun chair.

"The Dragon Crucible is opening. You're not going to be there to oversee it?" Kraken asked, slumping into a chair beside him. He and Makareth had just returned from the front lines.

"No need," Orion said, passing Kraken a drink. "Everything's set. Our people just need to enter in an orderly fashion. The interior is partitioned, so they won't get in each other's way. How much they improve comes down to their own will and talent. Us being there won't change a thing."

"Still, gotta hand it to you two bros," Makareth said, taking a hard swallow of his drink. His voice was laced with envy. "You're playing the long game, giving slots to a bunch of talented kids."

Orion and Kraken had instinctively allocated a portion of their slots to the next generation. As arch lords, they knew the importance of fresh blood for the long-term health of their factions. It was a luxury Makareth and Isabella couldn't afford. Given their current resources and strategic pressures, they had to give every precious slot to their top commanders, hoping for an immediate boost to their territory's overall power.

"Our situations are different, that's all," Kraken said. "Back when we were at your stage, we had it way tougher. An opportunity like the Dragon Crucible? We couldn't have even dreamed of it." He wasn't exaggerating. As one of the few of his kind, he'd spent most of his early days grinding it out alone in the deep sea with no support.

"From now on, let's all make a point to collect dragon corpses," Orion proposed, seeing an opportunity. "Once we have the materials, we can open the Crucible again. By then, you'll probably have the breathing room to invest in the talented kids in your own territory."

That was a suggestion everyone could get behind. Gathering the resources alone was a monumental task, but if they worked together, they could shorten the timeline significantly, strengthening all their factions in the process.

"Heh, speaking of which…" Makareth leaned in conspiratorially, clinking his glass against theirs. "I know a place. Second layer of the abyss. There's a whole roost of abyssal dragons. Once you two have some free time… how about we pull a job?"

Orion and Kraken's eyes lit up. A high-risk raid with no territory to hold, just pure, profitable slaughter? That was their kind of mission.

"And just what do you three think you're planning without me?"

Isabella's sharp voice cut in as she strode toward them, the heels of her boots clicking on the stone. She shot Makareth a glare, then turned it on Orion and Kraken.

"Hey now, we weren't cutting you out," Makareth said quickly. "You know how it is, Izzy. The abyss is huge, and it hates anything holy. Your colossal dragon would be a giant, glowing target down there. You'd get swarmed the second you arrived."

He wasn't joking. A creature of the light like her dragon would be hunted by every powerful being in the abyss.

"I don't care. You're not leaving me behind," she insisted, turning her gaze to Orion. With the other big bosses like Leonidas, Alexander, and Arthas away, he was the one calling the shots.

"Don't look at me," Orion said, holding up his hands. "We're just spitballing here. It's not even a plan yet."