The next day, after wandering the streets all night, Oliver finally returned home, exhausted and weighed down by the events of the previous day.
His body was begging for rest, and as soon as he lay down, sleep began to pull him under. But just as his eyes were about to close, his phone began to vibrate.
Groggily, he reached for it, wondering who could be contacting him at such an hour.
It was a message from his school, notifying him that it would be closed for the week, allowing students to stay home and rest. He stared at the screen, the words barely registering at first.
'I wonder how many people died yesterday,'
He thought, his heart sinking as he recalled the horrors he had witnessed.
The message from the school only reminded him of the severity of the attack. Unable to push the thoughts away, he began searching for news on his phone.
[Outer Eastern Section of the City Attacked by Pteranodon, Causes Heavy Casualties]
[600 Pteranodon attacked the eastern district]
[In the Pteranodon Attack: Almost 10,000 Killed and 5,000 Injured]
[Why Are Flying Monster Attacks Always So Deadly?]
Oliver's breath caught in his throat as he read the headlines. The numbers were staggering, almost unbelievable.
'Why? Why is the difference between the killed and injured so high?'
he wondered, his mind struggling to grasp the enormity of the disaster. It didn't make sense. The casualty figures were horrific, but the number of those killed compared to the injured was alarmingly disproportionate.
Desperate for answers, Oliver scrolled through more news articles, hoping to find an explanation.
It didn't add up. Ten thousand lives lost in a single attack? Oliver couldn't accept that. There had to be more to the story, something being deliberately concealed from the public.
'When I get stronger, I will definitely find out everything that's being hidden,'
He vowed silently, his thoughts returning to the miniature world where he had first tasted true power.
But as the memory of that world surfaced, he quickly pushed it back down. He didn't want to think about the miniature world, not until Justin woke up.
----
Meanwhile, in the Miniature World
Prince Luis and his guards were left in the Azov Kingdom after the god had departed. The sight of the god walking away towards the direction of Godfall filled Luis's mind with a mix of awe and fear.
"Khazak, we must not provoke the god,"
Luis said, addressing his most trusted guard, though his words were meant for everyone present.
"The god can rescue our kingdom today, but tomorrow he could destroy it just as easily."
The warning sent a shiver through the gathered soldiers. They had all witnessed the god's terrifying power firsthand. They had seen entire cities destroyed in an instant, with no distinction between ordinary people and warriors, adults and children—everyone had been obliterated without mercy.
"Yes, Your Majesty," Khazak replied quickly, though his face bore a smile of satisfaction.
The kingdom that had destroyed his Azov Kingdom was now itself destroyed. With the Kano Kingdom gone, the Azov Kingdom could rise again, free from any rival threats.
At that moment, one of the guards, the one who had previously spoken about making sacrifices to the god, stepped forward. His demeanor was more that of a scholar than a soldier, and his voice was calm and measured.
"Your Highness, I have a suggestion," he began slowly, choosing his words carefully.
Luis turned to face the guard, recognizing him as Thomas, a man known for his wisdom.
"Your name is Thomas, right? Don't be afraid. Speak your mind," Luis encouraged.
With the prince's permission, Thomas continued.
"Yes, Your Highness. Since the god has fulfilled our request and returned to Godfall, I believe our kingdom should honor him by sacrificing world treasures to the god."
He paused for a moment, gauging the prince's reaction before proceeding.
"You can see that even King Tsar of the Kano Kingdom died without knowing how he died in his own capital. It proves that world treasures are useless in our human hands. No matter how powerful we become, we cannot survive the wrath of the god."
The logic was undeniable, and Luis found himself nodding slowly as Thomas spoke.
"The god seems to value these treasures greatly," Thomas added,
"so we could offer them to him in exchange for his favor and protection."
The idea made sense, and Luis agreed with it. The god had demonstrated power beyond anything they could hope to achieve. Offering world treasures might not only appease the god but also secure the kingdom's safety.
Thinking of this, Luis felt a surge of happiness at the thought of his kingdom's potential rise to power.
The idea of gaining favor with the god by offering world treasures seemed like a brilliant plan. However, just as he was starting to relish the possibilities, Khazak's words poured cold water on his excitement.
"That is a good plan," Khazak began, his tone measured,
"But where do we get the world treasures?" His eyes narrowed as he continued,
"To obtain other world treasures, we would need to destroy other kingdoms, which is not possible for us right now."
The stark reality of Khazak's words made Luis's face fall. The excitement that had been bubbling within him evaporated almost instantly, replaced by a heavy sense of disappointment.
'This man... his brains are filled with nothing but muscle,' Luis thought bitterly, frustration gnawing at him.
'Can't he read the environment? Instead of simply agreeing and letting us enjoy the moment, he has to remind us of the harsh truth.'
But as much as Luis wanted to be angry, he knew Khazak was right. The truth was, their kingdom was in no position to challenge or destroy any of the surrounding kingdoms.
They were too weak, still recovering from the devastation that had nearly wiped them out. The dream of collecting world treasures from other kingdoms was nothing more than a distant fantasy, far beyond their current capabilities.
(end of chapter)
(
some of you guys might just like the content of miniature world, but trust me i will make the expanding world very interesting too. However, there's one hurdle I need to overcome—I'm still figuring out how to write truly intense fight scenes. If you know any action-packed books with heart-pounding battles, let me know! I'm eager to learn from the best.
)