'My entire life has been full of failure, but now... I cannot fail.' He gritted his teeth, staring at the giant. 'I have not one, but two promises to fulfill.'
With every step Poul took on the icy crystal, he saw a look of surprise and confusion on the giant's face.
The giant's eyes slowly lifted, finally fixating on Poul. Its pupils widened, and simultaneously, fire began to rise from its body, making it grind its teeth.
Opening its mouth, a heavy, lion-like breath of flame roared out, as if it were about to lose its territory and was attacking with its last ounce of strength.
The crystal melted slowly. The fire breathed. Poul walked on normally.
Drops and more drops of warm water slid off the large icy crystal. The melting fire was concentrated at the giant's torso and was slowly spreading.
'It's getting harder to walk on this crystal.' Taking another step, he felt his foot sinking into the ice and water simultaneously.
Poul decided to quicken his pace. Getting closer, he took a final large step and lunged at the giant.
With the giant's roar, an orange light began to appear.
An arrogant smile appeared on Poul's face as a sword and a dagger materialized in his two hands.
A blast of fire shot out of the giant's mouth, hitting the human. The giant closed its eyes, and when the blast ended, without looking, it threw a punch that struck a smoky body.
Suddenly, the giant's eyes snapped open, startled.
The giant felt something pierce its hand. On its own palm, it saw Poul, turning his face toward it, his skin covered in melting ice.
"Did you really think I'd die from just that?"
With a heavy voice, the giant replied: "No." Its lips began to twist, baring its teeth. "I am actually excited for the continuation of our fight... false... human."
Poul began to laugh at that moment.
Opening his arms, the human let the wind pull at his shirt while ice spikes formed on his back again.
Swinging his arm up and down, the giant made Poul jump, leaving him defenseless. The punch cut through the wind. The Ice Hero created icy wings, fragile like glass.
Beating them, he flew past the height of the spikes, which fell toward the defenseless flame.
"Hahaha, how could I let you launch me like that? That pathetic throw? How?!" The Ice Hero said with a provoking tone.
Falling to the ground with blood streaming all over his body, the giant saw a blue being, only blue, and heard laughter.
His pupil dilated. 'I... I don't want to die!' the elemental giant thought.
Fear consumed not only his mind but his spirit.
Breathing heavily, he inhaled deeply, then exhaled, repeating the action. All his former confidence was gone.
His element, the last fragment of his old pride, began to consume him like a fungus on a tree, spreading rapidly as he screamed.
But his scream was not of hatred; it was of fear, frustration, and self-disappointment.
With his entire body riddled with holes, like a wall after being shot many times, fire filled those holes while he heard the ice laughing.
"He's laughing at you!" said a strange, rough voice. "This 'insect' you speak of... he is... he is humiliating you, don't you see?"
This voice spoke as the fire consumed his eye.
"I will... kill... no, destroying him would be more pleasurable," the giant said with a voice heavy as lead.
His body instantly took on the color of his element, entirely orange. At the same time, everything became calm. Hyou Poul's laughter had stopped.
Descending, his icy wing disappeared with a calm, faint breeze rustling his half-frozen clothing.
He only saw a large orange body.
Raising an eyebrow, doubt crept into his mind.
'Did I win? Is this hell disguised as a fight truly... over?!'
Did he turn his back after that? Of course not. He simply sat down on the ground, which was dirty with dry blood mixed with fresh, warm blood.
Sitting, he breathed deeply, wincing in pain. He looked at the body in front of him and realized he could no longer feel the other half of his own body.
He was neither frightened nor surprised, as these were the consequences of his fight.
Getting up to help his soldiers, he moved toward them, freezing all the surrounding giants as he went.
He walked calmly. When he arrived, he noticed that some soldiers were missing, and those 'some' amounted to half his platoon.
"Jack, what is the situation?"
"C-Captain?" he asked, surprised.
"Yes, it's me."
Jack looked at Poul with great admiration and hope.
"Go, you all need to rest. Go up there. I'll take care of the rest."
Everyone sighed in relief.
Poul created stairs up to the top of the wall. Everyone started climbing, but before Jack went up, Poul called out.
"Jack, once everyone rests, leave this place! Leave me here, I'll hold them."
"But... but weren't you coming back with us?!"
"Yes, I was, but half of you died on the battlefield. The chances of you joining the embrace of our goddess are high, so... go."
Jack merely nodded.
The moment Poul turned, an enormous burst of flames came toward him, along with a gigantic murderous intent.
"Holy shit," Poul muttered, sweating coldly all the way down his spine.
The giants, in that exact moment, began to run in every direction. Some of them fell to their knees.
Around him, only flames surrounded him, rising from the ground, which had turned into a lake of fire.
Rising up with his arms wide open, the fire coiled around his arms like a serpent until it reached his neck and bit him.
Opening his orange eyes, the fire increasingly took the shape of a royal knight's armor.
An elegant sword appeared in his hand, while on his back, a bluish cloak billowed.
The color slowly shifted to a mix of blue and cyan as he stared in the direction of the "insect."
Poul watched, cold sweat running down his face and spine, his legs starting to tremble.
"'I won?'" Putting his hand on his face, an uncontrolled laugh erupted. "What a joke I just told."
He couldn't stop laughing. He ran out of breath from laughing so hard at the joke.
While he tried to stop laughing, the sound of the approaching fire reached his ears, but still, he didn't stop.
Had Hyou Poul gone mad? After so much suffering, it was understandable that madness would come to him as a form of... escapism.
Jumping and simultaneously turning his back, a freezing sword appearing in his hand... he saw nothing, just the sun illuminating the trees and the fallen bodies.
At that moment, his eyes widened, and the laughter stopped, because something hot was warming the ice behind him.
"Insect," a voice heavy as lead, reeking of smoke, came from the giant's mouth. "...How could you be so careless!"
Immediately, the giant delivered a punch to the Ice Hero's back.
Saliva flew from the Ice Hero's mouth as he was launched toward the sky.
Even though it was difficult to see, he saw the color of the blue flames as he felt several things piercing his body, and then something threw him back to earth.
Cutting through the air with blue sparks flying off his body, along with droplets of blood streaming from his mouth and wounds.
The moment one drop hit the ground and thickened, an explosion occurred, a loud sound of the ground splitting. Rising dust was all that could be seen.
Meanwhile, a lapis lazuli aura and light stood out from the rising brown smoke. A sound of armor was heard descending.
Poul coughed up blood, feeling his body sting and burn simultaneously. Even so, he found the strength to get up.
Hunched over, the ice extinguishing the fire and growing in its place, something stood out in the vast dust cloud.
A cold smoke came from his mouth. His vision was blurry, and the image of a woman, smiling, appeared.
"Ma...ria."
As a spear-like flash came toward him, he ground his teeth and pushed his legs, throwing himself to the side.
Fallen on the ground, his chest oscillated, moving up and down.
At that exact moment, the memory of his son invaded his mind, like a thief breaking into his house.
Clenching his teeth with hatred, he made the ice raise him as if he were a fallen emperor. Ignoring the future consequences, he created two swords, the spears still surrounding him.
And the ice loved it, as it began to devour the other half of him rapidly. It was as if Poul realized he wouldn't see his son again without accepting the ice, even if... even if he wouldn't be the same anymore.
The ice descended until the last vestige of his human color was gone, turning him into something else.
"So... you accept me, Hyou Poul?" the ice itself asked.
"Yes... I accept you! Glaciei."
"Then become my Emperor."
"If that lets me see him, I will become it," Poul said coldly, with the eyes of someone who had accepted even the worst fate.
In response, the ice laughed.