A brown haze hung heavily over the sky. Waves of dust rolled up from the earth as though they were reaching for the clouds, carrying overwhelming force.
Viktor stood at the center of the swirling dust and shockwaves, his expression as calm as ice.
Using the wind element with precision, he created an almost invisible barrier that mercilessly blocked the incoming sand and dust.
The towering dust wave swept over the tiny figure of Viktor like a tidal wave, surging outward in every direction for hundreds of meters.
Countless nearby houses, rubble, and metal structures collapsed under the force.
Even the neatly paved stone streets were completely destroyed.
From above, the center of the vast royal capital had become nothing but jagged rocks and scattered earth.
Rising from the broken ground at its center was a brown mountain. Its blazing round eyes shone brightly through the dust.
Just half of its head alone gave off a terrifying pressure as imposing as a skyscraper as it bore down on Viktor.
Viktor remained calm. Brilliant light shimmered behind him, and the bird-headed staff in his hand radiated dazzling golden light.
Now, he was fully capable of fighting the enormous enemy before him.
Because of the demon's appearance earlier, the capital's residents had already evacuated under the knights' guidance.
Although everyone had escaped safely, countless buildings throughout the royal capital had been devastated in such a short time.
Anyone who witnessed it couldn't help but feel afraid.
Terrifying.
It was simply too terrifying.
After this battle, the imperial capital would probably have to be rebuilt from the ground up.
The cost would be enormous, enough to empty every noble's wallet.
In short, fighting the Earth Calamity might cost them the entire royal capital.
It was an enormous loss.
Fortunately, Viktor didn't care.
His personal losses amounted to only a few shops. With his current wealth, that was nothing.
Besides, the mastermind behind all of this was Leopold. His scheme had caused everything.
If Leopold hadn't manipulated the Second Prince into bringing the demon to the royal capital, leading to the elf's corruption by demonic power...
And then sealed Erika inside that shining golden block of ice, triggering nature's wrath and bringing forth the raging Earth Calamity...
None of this would have happened.
So when the time came, the Cassidra Chamber of Commerce could pay for the damages.
He believed that once Zora became the chamber's president, she wouldn't hesitate to cover the massive compensation.
Standing amid the wind and sand, Viktor felt the impact of the incoming dust waves as he glanced behind him at Erika, sealed inside the golden block of ice.
Leopold knew about the Calamities.
He also knew the mysterious connection between Erika and the Calamities.
Otherwise, he would never have sealed Erika away like this.
Injuring an elf alone would indeed provoke nature's anger.
But it wouldn't be enough to summon the Earth Calamity.
The biggest issue still lay with Erika herself.
"She can sense the Calamities, and the Calamities can sense her."
The Calamities were also part of nature.
When the demon appeared and the elf was injured, nature delivered its punishment.
But in the process, nature discovered the sealed Erika.
And so, the last remaining Calamity descended.
If even one piece had been missing... the demon, the elf, or Erika herself...
The final Calamity would never have appeared in the royal capital or unleashed such overwhelming fury.
"Cunning gods.", Viktor murmured softly.
Even in such an unfavorable situation, they had still found a chance to awaken the sleeping Earth Calamity.
Leopold... no, Hermes.
It was hard to believe he hadn't planned all of this from the beginning.
'What a pity.'
For all his calculations, he never imagined Viktor even knew how many people were on his family register.
Viktor let out a quiet laugh.
Even though he had exposed Leopold's plan, the enraged Earth Calamity before him was still an enormous threat.
With that thought, Viktor slowly raised his head and looked at the massive stone head.
He had to defeat the enemy before him.
However, ever since Viktor had cast that war spell earlier, the Earth Calamity had fallen silent.
It stood completely still, like a towering mountain rooted firmly in the earth.
Even Vega found the motionless Calamity strange and raised an eyebrow.
"Why isn't this big guy moving?"
It wasn't like the other Calamities Viktor had fought before.
Those previous Calamities had rushed at Viktor the moment they saw him, as though he had murdered their fathers.
But this Earth Calamity had only poked its head out of the ground before falling into a daze.
And Viktor wasn't attacking it either.
At that moment, Vega heard Viktor explain calmly, "Because it's controlling the rest of 'itself' to destroy the other buildings in the royal capital."
As the guardian of the earth, the Earth Calamity seemed to regard any building constructed upon the land as something that shouldn't exist.
The area where Viktor stood had already become ruins.
So, for the time being, it had no need to attack him.
In its eyes, Viktor was nothing more than a tiny bug capable of scratching its skin.
The war spell's effect on it wasn't even enough to count as pain.
But that was only natural.
Viktor looked up at the brown stone head.
His coat whipped violently in the raging wind, as though flames had ignited once more.
A chaotic, multicolored aura spread across the sky as terrifying magical power poured from his body, instantly flooding the entire ruin.
Layer upon layer of magical patterns intertwined through the air, forming intricate runes embedded within the center of a vast spell formation.
The surrounding space twisted, giving off vibrations that sounded almost like cries of agony.
Terrifying magic circles stacked beneath Viktor's feet as broad rings of energy spread outward.
They stretched hundreds of meters away and continued expanding.
His fluttering coat danced even more wildly in the turbulent air.
"But I should thank it for ignoring me."
As those words fell, an astonishing blue light flashed through Viktor's eyes.
Endless magical power in the surrounding air transformed into elemental energy and continuously gathered toward him, gradually enveloping his body.
"It gave me plenty of time to prepare."
———
A large open space had been cleared in the crowded central plaza.
Countless elves and nobles had finally gathered there safely.
The moment they arrived, the anxious nobles immediately began searching through the crowd for their families.
"Vince! Vince! Where are you?"
"Simina! Are you here?"
"Father! Are you alright, Father?!"
They shouted while searching.
Most noble families living in the royal capital had been evacuated to the central plaza immediately under the orderly guidance of the knights.
Because of their status, the nobles' children and families had almost all been evacuated first.
"Dad! I'm here!"
A little boy waved his tiny hands, his eyes filled with tears.
"Vince! My child!"
The noble father dropped to his knees in excitement and relief, pulling the boy into his arms and gently stroking his hair.
Tears streamed down his face as his body trembled.
"You're alright... thank goodness you're alright."
The noble let out a long breath.
The fear and worry weighing on his heart finally disappeared.
Watching the nobles reunite with their families, the First Prince stood nearby in silence.
Just then, a group of commoners gradually approached him.
The moment they saw him, smiles spread across their faces.
"Your Highness, First Prince!"
Their voices were filled with respect and joy.
The First Prince was known among the people as the "Perfect Hero," so the residents were especially excited to see him.
Looking at the enthusiastic family approaching him, the First Prince froze slightly.
It was a family of four.
Behind the man stood his wife and their two children.
Looking at the happy, harmonious family before him, the First Prince fell silent, his heart stirring.
The woman smiled, rested her hands on the two children beside her, and said, "Your Highness, the children have heard about you, so they really admire you."
Children naturally admired heroes.
The First Prince knew how popular he was among them, so he smiled at the two children.
The children immediately beamed with excitement and happiness.
Not only them.
Their father also grabbed the First Prince's hand and thanked him excitedly.
"Your Highness, thank you for warning us to evacuate so quickly."
Everyone in the capital had felt the earthquake.
If they had still been asleep when that strange quake struck...
They would probably already be buried beneath the rubble.
"You're the hero of all of us."
Hearing those words, the First Prince couldn't help smiling.
"It's alright. This is my duty."
At that moment, seeing so many people gathered in the central plaza, the father asked with some confusion, "Your Highness, what exactly happened?"
Everything that had happened in the royal capital was baffling.
A sudden earthquake had struck, forcing everyone in the central district to gather here for shelter.
The First Prince opened his mouth to answer.
But before he could speak, the man continued, "But no matter how terrible things get, Your Highness and His Majesty will definitely solve everything."
"Ah, how fortunate we are to live in the Empire."
The words the First Prince had been about to say stopped in his throat.
He couldn't say a single word.
Even the two children beside their mother nodded repeatedly as they looked at him with admiration.
"That's right! Your Highness will definitely solve everything, won't you?"
"The First Prince is a hero!"
The First Prince stared blankly at the man before lowering his eyes to the two children.
Looking into their admiring eyes, he found himself unable to speak.
His breathing gradually grew heavier, and his lips pressed tightly together with a trace of unwillingness.
At that moment, he suddenly thought of something.
Gwen and his mother, Claudia, had already gone to support the disasters in the northern and southern districts.
As a prince, he was supposed to protect the country and its people.
Yet he couldn't do anything.
Just as Leopold had told those nobles.
Even the achievement of slaying the dragon had been fabricated.
He wanted to answer those two children with confidence.
But his heart was full of doubt.
How could someone like him deserve the title of Perfect Hero?
While he struggled with those thoughts, another group of knights arrived, leading even more civilians into the central plaza.
The knights busily coordinated with one another, waving to each other as they worked.
Seeing the newly arrived crowd, the father muttered in confusion, "Sigh... even more people are coming. What's going on?"
He closed his eyes, shook his head helplessly, and let out a deep sigh.
Then...
A violent tremor suddenly shook the ground beneath his feet.
He snapped his eyes open and looked down as the pebbles on the ground bounced against one another.
A terrible feeling rose in his heart.
Suddenly, his wife placed a trembling hand on his shoulder.
Feeling her hand shaking uncontrollably, he turned to her in confusion.
Then her words left him frozen where he stood.
"Honey... l-look..."
"In front..."
At that moment, screams erupted from the crowd behind them.
"Heavens... w-what is that...?"
"My God... can something like that really exist?"
"Help... help!"
Panic spread through the crowd like a plague.
Even the nobles' faces turned pale in an instant.
Following the cries, the First Prince turned around.
The moment he saw it, his eyes widened and his mind went blank.
"So that's... the giant they mentioned before?"
As the earth shook violently, a giant covered from head to toe in brown rock rose from the ground behind the refugees.
Its enormous stone body resembled a moving mountain, its immense form carving a deep trench across the earth.
Like the dorsal fin of a giant shark cutting through the surface of the sea.
Following close behind the knights and civilians, it charged straight toward the central plaza.
Everyone present seemed stunned into emptiness.
Their bodies stiffened as cold sweat soaked through their clothes.
That day...
People remembered the fear of living under the rule of giants.