Chapter 7: Mammoth Problem
The morning after the troll incident, Titan Hollow woke up with new confidence.
Apparently, watching five giants scare away frost trolls made people sleep very well.
Derrick was currently sitting on a flat rock in the middle of the settlement, eating something that vaguely resembled porridge.
He poked the bowl suspiciously.
"…is it supposed to move?"
An old woman glared at him.
"That is millet stew."
Derrick nodded.
"Ah. Of course. Delicious moving stew."
He took a cautious bite.
Then another.
"…okay wait this is actually good."
He pointed at her.
"You're officially promoted to Head of Food Things."
The woman blinked.
"Head… of what?"
Derrick waved his spoon.
"Don't worry about it. Government positions will be invented later."
Around him, Titan Hollow was alive with activity.
Bor and Grom were building the outer wall by stacking enormous boulders together.
Each rock was the size of a cart.
To them, it was basically playing with building blocks.
To everyone else, it looked like mountains building a fortress.
BOOM.
Another boulder landed in place.
Dust exploded into the air.
Children cheered.
Adults tried not to faint.
Krag dragged entire tree trunks across the ground like oversized toothpicks.
Tor was lying beside the river like a living hill while Derrick occasionally used him as a moving chair.
Luga stood silently near the forest line.
Watching.
Guarding.
Just in case the trolls came back.
Ragor walked over, his heavy ogre footsteps crunching across the dirt.
"Human leader."
Derrick sighed.
"We really need to workshop that title."
Ragor ignored him.
"Your giants build strong walls."
Derrick looked toward Bor, who had just lifted another enormous rock.
CRASH.
"Yeah," Derrick said. "Turns out construction becomes easy when your workers can bench-press houses."
Ragor nodded seriously.
"Giants good allies."
Derrick pointed a spoon at him.
"They're more like coworkers."
Tor slowly opened one eye.
Derrick raised both hands.
"Okay. Very large coworkers."
Suddenly—
A faint blue screen appeared in front of Derrick's eyes.
DING.
He almost dropped his bowl.
"Oh come on."
The screen expanded.
[Territory System Activated]
Territory Name: Titan Hollow
Territory Rank: Fledgling Settlement
Population:
Humans – 52
Ogres – 13
Giants – 5
Total Population – 70
Derrick leaned forward.
"…that's new."
Another notification appeared.
[First Settlement Milestone Achieved]
Reward Unlocked.
Giant Rune: Stone Skin
Effect: Temporarily increases giant durability.
Derrick blinked.
"Okay that's actually cool."
Another warning appeared.
Nearby tribes have detected your settlement.
Potential Threats:
• Frost Troll Clan
• Unknown Forest Predator Species
Derrick rubbed his forehead.
"Of course there's more problems."
Right on cue—
A shout echoed from the northern edge of the settlement.
"Something's coming!"
Derrick slowly stood.
"…you have got to be kidding me."
He climbed onto Tor's shoulder.
From that height, he could see the forest clearly.
Something enormous was moving between the trees.
Branches snapped.
Birds scattered into the sky.
Then the trees parted.
A massive creature stepped into the clearing.
Thick fur.
Huge tusks.
Shoulders like a moving hill.
Derrick blinked.
"…that's a mammoth."
The creature snorted.
The ground trembled as it stomped forward.
Two more mammoths emerged behind it.
Three giant prehistoric tanks.
The villagers panicked immediately.
"MONSTERS!"
People ran toward the center of the settlement.
The ogres grabbed their weapons.
The giants slowly stood up.
Five enormous figures stepped forward.
The mammoths lowered their heads.
Then they charged.
The ground shook violently.
Derrick sighed.
"Alright boys."
He pointed dramatically.
"Please handle the wildlife."
The battle began instantly.
The lead mammoth slammed into Grom like a living battering ram.
BOOM.
The impact echoed across the valley.
For a moment, dust covered everything.
Then the dust cleared.
Grom hadn't moved.
The mammoth looked confused.
Grom slowly grabbed both of its tusks.
The giant grinned.
Then he lifted the entire mammoth.
The villagers screamed in shock.
The massive creature kicked wildly in the air.
Grom turned.
And threw it.
The mammoth crashed through two trees before hitting the ground with a thunderous impact.
Meanwhile, the second mammoth charged straight toward Bor.
Bor didn't dodge.
He stepped forward.
And punched it.
THOOM.
The sound echoed like a cannon.
The mammoth's head snapped sideways.
The creature stumbled three steps before collapsing onto its knees.
Bor calmly grabbed one of its tusks.
Then he flipped the entire beast onto its side.
CRASH.
The ground shook again.
The third mammoth tried to turn and escape.
Unfortunately, Krag was already there.
The giant grabbed the creature's back leg.
The mammoth trumpeted in panic.
Krag spun once.
Twice.
Then slammed the mammoth into the ground like a giant hammer.
BOOM.
The valley went silent.
Three mammoths lay defeated.
The giants stood in the middle of the battlefield like walking mountains.
Derrick slowly clapped.
"Well."
He looked down at the stunned villagers.
"That was educational."
One villager whispered.
"…they killed forest giants."
Ragor looked equally shocked.
"Giants… stronger than stories."
Derrick leaned back on Tor's shoulder.
"Yep."
Then he pointed toward the fallen mammoths.
"Also congratulations everyone."
The villagers looked at him.
"We now have food for like… a month."
The entire settlement erupted in cheers.
Even the ogres looked impressed.
High above them, the wind moved through the valley.
And the legend of Titan Hollow continued to grow.
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A/n-
Short chapter I know, my apologies, Setting the world lore and stuff, i didn't realise it was so much tiresome.
Regards.