"I am Hero. Well, if you really want to know everything, then… I was weak during the attack of the Black Rats. I lost my best friend in that battle. Then I fought a troll, and everything changed. That fight gave me motivation."Hero stopped and watched every step Mike made. Since Mike did nothing, Hero continued."I fought my way up to level one hundred in the Apology Dungeon and kept getting stronger. The jungle was not a problem for me because I met two people at the entrance. I think his name was Ryolos. Whatever."

Hero looked at their faces."Is something wrong?" he asked.Neither of them answered. They were too focused on hearing more.

"Well, the jungle truly was not a problem for me, and I got out quickly. After that I met tiny titans. They all acted confident but lost every time. Funny, right?"Mike nodded. "Yeah, kind of."

Hero picked up both swords and tossed Mike his. Mike caught it neatly and thanked him. Hero added,"Well, now I want to get to the next level, so I have to cross this land of titans quickly."

Mike spoke calmly and with trust."Yes, we do as well."

Ice joined the conversation and stepped closer to Mike."What was actually going on with you?" she asked quietly, though curious."I do not know anymore," Mike said. He tried to remember what had happened, but he only recalled his vision becoming blurry… and something else. Something he forgot.

"Let us keep going. Ice and I might know how to move forward."Hero looked at Mike. "And how?"

Mike said only one sentence."The king of the titans."

Suddenly a system window opened for Mike, showing a question:(Do you want to summon the King of the Titans?)

Mike stopped walking."Um, guys, I just received a question."Ice and Hero stopped and said the same thing at the same time."A question?""Yes, a question. Do you want to summon the King of the Titans?" Mike repeated out loud.

Hero answered after only a few seconds, while Ice said nothing."Well then, shall we or not?"

Mike wondered whether Hero was insane. Still… Mike had to admit, he liked Hero's attitude."I am not sure. What does Ice think?"Mike looked at Ice. She shrugged."Are we ready? I mean, the three of us together have a pretty good chance, right?"

Mike and Hero both nodded.Mike pressed "yes," and a new system window appeared.It was grey, not white like usual.(3 out of 3 elite titan souls obtained)

Suddenly Mike's inventory opened. Three white points shot upward. Mike had no idea where they came from. The points floated next to each other, then shot three white beams into the sky. Above them a timer appeared for everyone to see.

(Titan King event in 5 minutes. Recommended players: 30)

"Thirty?" Mike said immediately."Thirty?" Hero repeated at the same moment.

They both looked at Ice, then at each other."Well, maybe a few more people will show up," Mike said quickly.

With those words, they sat down on the ground to wait. One minute passed. Then three. Then four. Nobody came. Out of the five million players, probably not even ten were in the land of the titans. And even if they were, they could go in any direction. The chance of them coming here was tiny.

They could only watch the timer reach zero.The three white beams switched color, the sky turned white and was no longer grey and lifeless. White was not a very colorful improvement, but at least it was better than grey.

A white flash shot down. A small silhouette slammed into the ground. It was the king. But he was only a little taller than Mike and Hero together, not nearly as large as the normal titans.

"You are supposed to be the king?" Hero asked.The king did not answer.

It was clear he was a titan. His body looked like stone, but something made him different. He had glowing green eyes and a crown of green metal. Maybe emerald, maybe not…He wore a golden cloak but carried no weapons. Only bare hands. Was he planning to fight with raw strength?

The king stood motionless.Hero, Ice, and Mike drew their swords and took a defensive stance since they could not predict his next move.

Then the ground cracked open. Lava burst upward. A fissure formed around them, creating a circle of molten rock. A tall wall of lava rose, trapping them inside. They could not escape, but they had no intention of running anyway.

Hero shouted,"We got this! He and I are talented, and together we have the strength of about thirty five people, so we should be fine."He added quietly,"Well, with a few injuries."He did not mind that Ice and Mike did not hear him properly. He had said it, and that was enough.

Mike added,"Ice has healing abilities. But she gets tired very quickly and can heal us only about twice."

Hero nodded, thankful for the information. He looked at Mike and nodded again. That was the attack signal.

But from the ground, small stone creatures crawled out. They looked like birds made of stone with short beaks. Bigger than normal birds, but featherless and made entirely of rock.

Mike looked at Ice."I think you can handle those. We will take care of the king, all right?"

Ice nodded excitedly and struck down the first stone birds. They seemed to be the perfect opponents for her, so Mike trusted she could handle it.

Mike turned from Ice to Hero and nodded. Then he ran. Hero too.The king locked his glowing eyes on them. They leaped forward with their swords, but the king jumped into the air with incredible speed. They had no chance, not even close.

In the air, the king clenched a fist and hurled himself downward at full force.Hero grinned."That is it. Time to show my ability!"

Hero stabbed his sword into the ground with great force and raised his hands.A golden field expanded around Mike, Ice, and Hero. A golden aura wrapped around all of them. Mike felt instantly stronger, faster, better. A real upgrade.

Above them, a shield formed and stretched upward, stopping at the lava wall.The king slammed into the golden shield. Cracks spread across it.Mike and Hero saw the king's true strength. If they had been hit by that blow, it would have been over.

"Do not get hit," Mike said."That was actually my plan," Hero answered with a small grin.

Then Hero pushed his hands downward and the shield shattered above them. Golden particles rained over the arena, though the aura around their bodies remained.

The king crashed down and landed on one foot, the other bent.Hero charged forward.The king responded instantly with a punch.At the last second Hero went low, predicting the attack. Now Hero could strike back.

Hero swung and hit the king squarely.The king's golden mantle tore off, but nothing more.No cracks. No lasting damage.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.