The sight of Rocky's crew clad in gleaming alloy armor sent a wave of envy through the young, radical giants of Elbaf. Their eyes burned red with desire. In Elbaf, a simple iron-tipped spear was a mark of modest wealth.
Metal armor was a rarity in the giant nation. Every massive, ten-meter-long steel sword was a treasure, forged by master Elbaf smiths. With weapons already in short supply, crafting time-consuming, resource-heavy armor was a pipe dream.
Outside Elbaf, the market for giant-sized gear was nearly nonexistent—too few customers for merchants to bother. The giants' weapons were all brought from home, carried into the vast seas.
"Let's do this, Rocky-sama! When do we strike?"
The young giants were already imagining themselves decked out in alloy armor, wielding matching weapons, their massive frames radiating power.
"No time like now!" Rocky bellowed, downing a gulp of ale. "Go toast with Dorry, Jarul, and their crew. Snag their weapons, and we start the fight!"
Brook's airship fleet was closing in fast, and Rocky knew they had to show results. The radical giants scattered, each targeting key members of the Giant Warrior Pirates, ready to spark chaos.
The Giant Warrior Pirates never saw it coming. Who'd dare start a brawl at the Winter Solstice Festival, risking the wrath of their ancestors?
The festive clamor of the Winter Solstice Festival erupted into a battlefield. Old folks, women, and children fled to their homes as Dorry and Jarul roared in fury at their rebellious kin.
Couldn't they at least wait until the festival was over? Why ruin this joyous day?
Left with no choice, they fought back. But their weapons were gone—stolen in the chaos. Bare-handed, they faced Rocky's ferocious assault.
Without their gear, Dorry and Brogy's strength was halved. Still, they held their own against two young giants decked in alloy armor, buying time in the melee.
...
Rocky himself went straight for Elder Jarul, determined to take down the old giant who'd ordered defiance against Charlotte Linlin.
"Rocky, don't let Charlotte Linlin fool you! She's a monster from Carmel—"
Jarul, at a staggering 359 years old, was a shadow of his former self. At 345 when five-year-old Linlin tore through Giant Village, he and the 344-year-old Jorul had been no match for her, both gravely wounded. Jorul hadn't survived.
"I'm gonna be the chief of Giant Village! You're just an old fossil in my way!"
Rocky didn't care about Linlin's past. He wanted control of Giant Village, a foothold for Brook to conquer Elbaf.
"You disgraceful runt! You'll drag Giant Village to ruin!"
Rocky's massive foot slammed into Jarul's chest. The frail elder, watching the festival dissolve into chaos, coughed up blood and collapsed, his heart heavy with grief.
Elsewhere, Kavo, a middle-aged giant warrior, fell to another alloy-clad radical. The young giant misjudged his strength, splitting Kavo's horned helmet and killing him outright with a single axe blow.
Just like that, one of the few giants who'd witnessed Linlin's cannibalistic rampage was gone, never able to share the secret.
Now, only the unconscious Jarul knew the truth. Brook couldn't have planned it better.
...
Dorry and Brogy, seeing their kin murdered and their elder knocked out, burned with rage. They snatched weapons from other giants and fought back, driving the alloy-clad radicals into retreat.
As captains of the Giant Warrior Pirates, they'd honed their Elbaf combat skills and battle-tested their techniques for decades in Little Garden. They weren't going down easily.
"Rocky, you traitorous scum! We'll wipe you vermin out today!"
Dorry and Brogy's fury was unstoppable. Defiling the Winter Solstice Festival and killing their kin were unforgivable sins.
"You're the useless ones! Only we can lead Giant Village to glory!"
Rocky spat back, fed up with the captains who'd squandered decades dueling in Little Garden. Their rivalry had shattered the Giant Warrior Pirates, leaving crew members to fend for themselves—some tricked into joining the Marines, others guarding Judicial Island, and the unluckiest roped into the Ice Demon Pirates, used as cannon fodder against the Rocks Pirates with heavy losses.
"You—!"
Dorry and Brogy had no rebuttal. They'd returned to restore the Giant Warrior Pirates' honor, fully aware their past feud had caused chaos.
...
As they braced for another clash, the sky rumbled. Brook's airship fleet arrived, golden light glinting off the massive Golden Island. The fighting halted.
Dorry and Brogy stared at the Golden Island. They knew the Hell Pirates—Brook himself had convinced them to leave Little Garden, even gifting them alloy weapons to mend ties between Giant Village and Linlin.
But they'd failed to sway Elder Jarul, leaving the feud unresolved. They'd planned a duel with Brook's crew to settle things, but Rocky's coup had thrown their plans into disarray.
...
Aboard the Golden Island, Brook scanned the chaos below, his Observation Haki sweeping the battlefield. His mission: secure Giant Village as a gateway to Elbaf and eliminate the threat of Linlin's dark secret.
That secret—her cannibalistic past—could never see the light of day.
His Haki zeroed in on his targets: the giant who'd seen Linlin's crime and the elder who'd ordered defiance against her.
Rocky waved up at him, and Brook's focus sharpened. At Rocky's feet lay the unconscious Jarul. Nearby, an alloy-clad giant stood over a corpse—the very giant who'd witnessed Linlin's act, now dead.
Brook grinned. Rocky's crew had played their hand well. His strategy had outmaneuvered Dorry and Brogy's.
...
Brook and his crew descended. A subtle, razor-sharp soul slash shot from his fingertip, streaking toward the unconscious Jarul.
Rocky hadn't finished the job cleanly. Brook would handle it himself, ending the revered elder for good.
Jarul's life faded in an instant. Giants with awakened Observation Haki sensed the elder's death, their furious glares locking onto Rocky—the apparent culprit.
-----------
+400 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg