"Clang!"
Fenris's heavy footsteps seemed to land directly on their hearts. No one knew who was the first to loosen their grip out of sheer terror, but the sound of their weapon striking the ground spread through the crowd like a plague.
In an instant, weapons began clattering to the ground one after another.
These Frost Giants had long since lost their courage after thousands of years of imprisonment. Bullying the weak came naturally to them, but when faced with a truly powerful enemy, how could the icy blood flowing through their veins possibly sustain the courage needed to raise their blades?
Fenris barely even moved. His enormous body cast a shadow so dense it seemed almost solid, looming over the warriors and blotting out everything above them.
"D-Don't kill me!"
"I'm innocent too! I was forced to come here! I—I haven't killed anyone!"
"Look! My blade is still clean…"
Fenris silently watched as pleas and wails erupted throughout the crowd.
"Pathetic! You're all a bunch of cowards!"
Where some begged for mercy, others naturally refused to yield.
One warrior looked up at the massive shadow overhead, then glanced sideways at the demoralized crowd around him. Tightening both hands around his weapon, he leaped high above the others. His coldly gleaming blade traced a cunning arc through the air as it slashed viciously toward Fenris's eye.
"Something that huge has to be slow! There are so many of us—he can't possibly kill us all!"
"Hah!"
It all happened in the blink of an eye. With fierce shouts, several Frost Giants sprang into the air simultaneously, becoming streaks of blue as they swung their blades at Fenris.
"Clang!"
Yet the scene they had imagined never came to pass. The colossal beast before them was nothing like the slow, clumsy creature they had expected.
Thanks to the extraordinary dynamic vision granted to him by Mothra, these so-called "giants" looked like tiny insects moving in slow motion to Fenris. Every movement they made was clearly visible.
Thor, standing nearby, heard several thunderous impacts in rapid succession. Then those terrifying claws swept through the air, stirring up a violent gale.
The Frost Giants who had been the first to leap forward screamed in unison as Fenris caught them firmly in his claws.
Their vision suddenly went dark. One moment they had been soaring through the air, and the next, their bodies had been seized and rendered completely immobile.
"You've chosen death!"
The instant their gazes met those cold, indifferent eyes, a chill rose from the soles of their feet and shot straight through their skulls.
The beast had not spoken, yet the message entered their minds with perfect clarity.
A terrible premonition flashed through them. Before they could react, overwhelming force crushed their bodies. A series of crisp cracks rang out, and their consciousness vanished in an instant.
"Bang!"
Fenris ground his closed claws together slightly and immediately felt fresh moisture spread across his palm. Accompanied by the grating sound of flesh scraping against shattered weapons, he slowly opened his hand.
Splash—
Blue liquid rained from above, carrying small chunks that scattered across the ground. Amid the pungent stench of blood, several Frost Giants were drenched from head to toe in the blue rain. The fear and terror on their faces instantly hardened into disbelief.
The entire crowd seemed to stop breathing.
A moment later, those who had still been considering resistance quietly discarded their weapons and lowered their heads along with everyone else.
"Spare me…"
As pleas for mercy continued without end, Thor stared at Fenris, clenched his teeth, and sprinted toward his feet.
He waved both hands frantically, undisguised hatred written across his face.
"Fenris, don't spare them!"
"There are no civilians in Jotunheim! Every Frost Giant has blood on their hands. If you let them live, Asgard will only suffer for it again in the future!"
Thor had watched Fenris transform into this terrifying form with his own eyes. Once his initial shock and alarm had faded, overwhelming elation had quickly filled his mind.
He had already known that Fenris was extraordinarily powerful, but he had never imagined that the other man would give him such an astonishing surprise.
According to Asgard's records, while this colossal form remained far smaller than the world-destroying fire giant Surtur or Jormungand, the serpent that encircled the world, it still vastly surpassed even a creature like the Fenris Wolf.
With Fenris here, a glimmer of hope had finally appeared amid Asgard's crisis.
But when Thor saw Fenris hesitate before the kneeling Frost Giants, his heart skipped a beat, and he hurried beneath Fenris's feet.
At his current size, Thor could not even reach the top of Fenris's foot. Even so, he continued shouting at the top of his lungs.
"Don't spare them!"
In the distance, the Frost Giants—each nearly twice Thor's height—saw that the former God of Thunder, now reduced to an ordinary man, still dared to step forward. Dozens of dimly glowing crimson eyes immediately turned toward him.
A chill ran down Thor's back.
He swallowed hard and abruptly looked up, meeting Fenris's lowered gaze.
"Stay behind me."
"Have the people of Asgard cooperate with me."
Fenris had not spoken aloud, yet Thor instantly understood the meaning conveyed by his eyes.
"Don't worry!"
Thor released a relieved breath and nodded firmly, signaling that he would follow Fenris's instructions.
"Good."
After receiving Thor's answer, Fenris abruptly turned toward the Frost Giants scattered across the ground. Hot breath billowed from his mouth, and a kindly smile appeared on his savage face.
"Something's wrong!"
The Frost Giants who had been secretly watching Fenris from the corners of their eyes were struck by the same terrible premonition. Almost in unison, they wiped the lingering rain of blood from their faces.
Panic surged through them. Just as they prepared to turn and flee, Fenris moved.
The more than forty-meter-tall monster displayed an agility that defied all common sense. Thor suddenly felt a fierce gale howl past him. The next instant, amid a low growl, Fenris became a blur as he lunged forward.
"ROAR!"
With a deafening roar, the Bifrost's central mechanism was effortlessly smashed into fragments.
The Frost Giants arriving from behind saw only a blur before everything around them seemed to be swallowed beneath an immense shadow.
A wave of hot air struck them.
Then a massive claw descended, crushing almost directly through their ranks.
The piercing sounds of splintering bones and muffled bursts rang out one after another.
The only thing missing was the sound of screaming.
Wherever Fenris passed, it was as though a swarm of ants had been trampled beneath his feet. Only silence remained in his wake.
Within mere moments, Fenris and Thor were the only living beings left nearby.
"Keep up."
The summons entered Thor's mind, jolting him from his stunned contemplation of the ground.
Fenris had annihilated several elite squads as effortlessly as crushing dry branches. Now, with his pair of massive tails swaying behind him, he was steadily disappearing into the distance.
Thor swallowed hard before hurrying after him.
(End of Chapter)
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