[Thank you all so much for the love and support for the fanfic — there will be a double chapter release today!!]
Now that the Marine Admiral had been driven away, the next issue to handle was the CP0 agents who kidnapped the children.
"Your Majesty Harald, please leave this matter to me!"
Mother Carmel stepped forward, speaking solemnly.
"I promise I will bring them back safely."
The giants were still unclear on who exactly took the children, but when Carmel woke up and saw the letter left at the door, she finally understood:
This operation wasn't targeting the giants—nor Magnus—
It was targeting her.
"No!"
But the Giant King Harald didn't even hesitate to refuse.
"Defending against invaders is our duty.
Asking our friends for help is already shameful enough.
But now—we must wash away that shame!"
The Marine Admiral had left, and even in the end, never attacked Elbaf itself.
That meant the Marines' target wasn't Elbaf.
However, someone did kidnap two giant children while the admiral invaded.
To the warriors of Elbaf, this was nothing short of a provocation.
"If we don't kill those tiny bastards, we have no right to give thanks to the sun!"
"This is Elbaf's shame!"
"It's time we reminded the little ones what it means to be ruled by giants!"
". . ."
The giants roared with fury.
At this moment, even if Carmel tried to explain that it was CP agents from the World Government who took the children, none of the giants would listen.
They didn't know who their enemies were.
They only knew that someone had stolen their children.
"Those fools think they can escape us?
They've forgotten where they are—this is Elbaf, home of the giants!"
"Bastian!"
As Harald shouted, a silent, husky-voiced giant stepped forward.
And the moment he appeared—
Feathers began sprouting on his hands and cheeks.
Then, with one leap from the edge of the Upper World, he soared—
Reappearing moments later as a massive white hawk, wings spanning more than fifty meters, with a kind and wise appearance.
"A Zoan-type Devil Fruit user..."
Rocks murmured.
These past six months, he hadn't only been training.
He had also been cramming knowledge about the sea—
Especially things like Devil Fruits.
The giant white hawk before him was clearly a transformation from one of the three major Devil Fruit types—the Zoan-type.
Rocks had assumed that giants like Lippley couldn't use Devil Fruits.
But clearly, he had been very wrong.
"Your Majesty, I found them."
Bastian, now in hawk form, made a single flight around Elbaf and quickly located a small boat not far from the island.
On the boat, Gertz and Helding, being far too large to fit into the cabin, were lying on the deck—plainly visible.
"Alright, then let's—"
"Harald, how about you hear me out for a moment?"
Hearing Magnus' voice, Harald looked up.
While the giants were still talking, Magnus had already skywalked (using Geppou) from the Underworld back to the Upper World.
Even though he was covered in injuries, none of the giants dared underestimate him.
"Magnus, this is a matter for us giants!"
Asking Magnus to help defeat the Marine Admiral was already humiliating enough.
If they let him help recover the children too, what pride would the giants have left?
"Haha, I never said I was going to fight."
Bare-chested and sitting casually on the ground, Magnus laughed.
"But Harald, you can't deny the risk—
If you push them too hard, those 'thieves' might get desperate like cornered dogs, right?"
"...So you have an idea?"
"Of course I do."
Magnus grinned and pulled out a fruit from behind him.
When Harald saw it, his expression turned serious and he blurted out:
"A Devil Fruit!?"
"Exactly. And not just any fruit—it's a Paramecia-type: Mini Mini no Mi (Mini Mini Fruit).
It lets the user shrink down to the size of a normal human—or even smaller.
Tell me—
Isn't that just perfect for you giants?"
Magnus had received this fruit as a system reward after the battle with CP0, not from the Admiral fight.
[Sea Circle Calendar, 1460.12.7]
You've been staying in the land of giants for half a year, gradually mastering the use of Haki.
But the peace doesn't last long.
You suddenly discover members of the CP organization sneaking into Elbaf—and learn they're from CP0, the shield of the Celestial Dragons.
Each CP0 agent has the strength to easily defeat a full-grown giant.
At your current level, even with newly awakened Haki, you have no chance of victory.
Mission: Awaken the giants, assist in repelling the CP agents. (Completed)
Reward: Paramecia-type Mini Mini no Mi
Magnus hadn't expected it.
He only killed one CP0 agent.
The others escaped, and he didn't even join the latter half of the fight.
And yet the system still counted the mission as complete!?
Meanwhile, for the clearly far more dangerous battle against the Marine Admiral, the system didn't even trigger a quest.
Instead, it mocked him after he beat Rona:
[Sea Circle Calendar, 1480.12.7]
You, a scoundrel of the seas, have just beaten up a retired old lady.
She swore revenge and said she'll send someone to settle the score.
Magnus finally understood why the system didn't trigger a quest.
Apparently—
In the system's eyes, Rona wasn't even a threat.
But after living with the system for over half a year, Magnus was used to its stupidity.
If he just pretended the Mini Mini no Mi was a reward for beating the Admiral instead…
It all sounded way more reasonable.
He did feel a bit of regret though.
If only he'd managed to kill all the CP0 agents,
maybe the system would've rewarded him with a Logia-type or even Mythical Zoan-type fruit instead.
At least something rarer.
After all, Paramecia Fruits were known for being difficult to master, and many of them had low ceilings.
But Logia and Mythical Zoans were different.
Logias were all about stability—
Unless someone used Haki or Seastone, or had a very specific counter-element, there was almost no way to injure a Logia user.
And Mythical Zoans—
Just look at Magnus.
They could elevate a person's growth ceiling, and even let them touch the legendary threshold.
But that's only for normal people.
For giants, the Mini Mini no Mi was one of the most practical fruits.
Aside from the swimming weakness,
It let giants take advantage of their massive strength without suffering from their size disadvantage.
Harald stared at the fruit in silence for a while.
Then reached out.
"Thank you. We giants will remem—"
"Hold on!"
Magnus immediately yanked the fruit back before it touched Harald's hand.
"Who said this fruit was for you?"
"Then you—?"
"This fruit—
Is for my most important crewmate!"
Magnus glared at Harald, then placed the Mini Mini Fruit in Lippley's hands.
"Lippley may be my crew, but she's also one of your Elbaf kin.
So if she's the one to retrieve the two little ones—
That's not a problem, right?"
The three CP0 agents still at large weren't weak.
But they had been fleeing nonstop, had fought several giants, and were seriously injured.
They probably couldn't even use half their full power now.
If Lippley, after eating the Mini Mini Fruit, managed to sneak in with the element of surprise—
She had a real chance to rescue the kids without harming them.
And more than that—
This was a test Magnus had prepared for her.
Lippley had lived in Elbaf all her life.
Though she had received training, she lacked real combat experience.
What Magnus wanted—
Was not some flower sheltered in a greenhouse.
He wanted a comrade who could stand beside him in battle.
"Lippley—can you do it?"
Staring at the fruit in his hand—
Feeling the trust Magnus had placed in her—
Lippley nodded firmly.
"I can!"
"I will bring Gertz and Helding back safely!"
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/euridome]
[Thank You For Your Support!]