Day 441-450/Day 446

TN: I think I was able to recreate the flow the author was going for here. However, For now and in the future I am not that great at the names of skills used unless they are actual words so if I can find it I will place it. if not I'll just properly describe it:) - Odious1
Finished up the initial editing for the day - Riverson24
"DAY 446"
Tomorrow I will challenge Milgarum. Today, I helped with the Gigatrol training from early morning until evening.
Then, preparations such as inspection and maintenance were carried out until later in the evening. At night, the Giant King had a banquet prepared. The banquet held will also serve to deepen our friendship, so I headed for it.
Apparently it was also held as a rallying party, since the entire Royal Family is gathered, as usual, to eat together.
The ceiling is covered with a mural which likely displays several historical battles from the Giants' past. A huge magic items shines like a gentle sun, a fixture shaped like a chandelier. On the walls are fascinating paintings and furniture that attracts the viewers' eyes, tastefully on display throughout the area. Giant maids and a butler greet and direct the guests to their seats.
Freshly prepared dishes were arranged on the round table placed in the center of the room. The Giant King was seated at the head where we were then guided.
On the left and right of Giant King the Queen sits with three ladies. Her ladies in waiting or his concubines is my best guess. Next to them are Prince Mitsutake, Princess Yakushimo and four other young Giant children. Besides them, the seats near us are filled with a bulky middle-aged Giant General with a fearless face, an old Giant Priest sporting a splendid beard, the Giant Court Magician, and a middle-aged woman garbed in a magician's black and purple robe.
Various executives have also been invited to serve as a meet and greet with us as well.
We had already gotten a rough grasp of the faces and characters of everyone in the cafeteria from the information collected from my clones, but it was the first time we actually matched the faces to the names.
The children see us with pure curiosity or indifference, but the adult group is different. Others are staring at us with curiosity, distrust, discomfort, confusion, irritation, and various other emotions blurred together.
I do not know why this is happening so soon, but anyway, let the promotional banquet begin.
I eat the prepared dishes and drink much. The amount is vast. Soon enough Blacksmith-san displays a swollen belly, but Mino-kun and I continue to eat and drink.
Giant King had everything specially prepared, and it was all scrumptious.
However, now is not just a time to focus solely on eating and drinking.
Minokichi-kun continues drinking and eating without a word, but as a representative I must engage with Giant King, the Queen, and others as well.
So we talked, and I finally understood why the adult group is filled with various emotions.
Apparently the Queens, Giant General, Giant Court Magician and the Giant Priest are not completely in agreement with the Giant King's declaration to challenge Milgarum.
The Queens worries over their King and his body, making them uneasy. She is also wary of us, and whether or not the Giants are just being deceived by these insects and fairies.
The Giant General questions why, if the King were to challenge such a mighty foe, would he not choose himself and his subordinates instead of these "outsiders" - like us.
The Giant Priest understands that is impossible to stop the Giant King and trying to subdue Milgarum has validity for their future prosperity but, he has doubts on whether it is even possible.
The Giant Court Magician looks on with eyes of a researcher, observing our overall essence, we whom the Giant King has acknowledged.
There might be other reasons, but they seem to be centered around these.
Well, that's fine.
No matter what they all think, we will all just proceed as promised by the King.
I was careful not to show aversion or disgust for the time being, but I also wanted to make my stance firm and clear. To them it came off as picking a fight, and I was challenged by the General.
The Giant General is in the 90 meter class, approaching the royal size of the Giant King. He is the head of a prestigious family, in a position like a Duke, and the overall abilities other than physique are high across the board because of his having royal ancestors' blood mixed in.
He is slightly younger than the Giant King, and is a stubbornly loyal to the core. He held his high loyalty as his goal since he was young.  Because he holds the idea that the giant species is supreme I could no longer stand his patronizing attitude and I can not look at him with the same respect as the Giant King.
In any case, it is not bad, as a sideshow. After all, activities will go smoother in the future as long as I show off some of my ability.
Needing a place to fight, I decided to use a wide garden that is adjacent to the dining room.
Various kinds of flowers are planted in the wide garden, and they are beautifully in bloom. It must have been designed so that you could sit and eat while watching the seasonal changes of the different flowers. There I stand to confront the general.
I am about 2 meters tall wheras the Giant General stands at about 90 meters. The difference is... big.
That size difference is overwhelming. So much so that it makes a comparison ridiculous. Someone my size can easily be killed, just as easily as a person could crush an insect crawling along the floor with a light step.
But of course, things will be different with me.
He first move is to trample me. So as to not be squished, and I must look like an insect just not one crawling on the ground, I fly into the sky avoiding fists and kicks along the way. The perspective is crazy because it is just that big a difference from usual. From my point of view, I see the Giant General as somewhat clumsy, I see him as slow moving, but his attacks were actually quite fast.
It is still not enough to match my speed. He could not as much as catch me. After some dodging I punch the Giant General, who is already reddened with anger, on the right cheek.
He assumed that punches from such an insignificant insect would be light and could not match the inherent power a Giant contains. The moment I made contact with his jaw you could hear that sound of meat collapsing. Because the bone and area affected was so large it sounded as if there was an explosion. Like in slow-motion, the bulk of the Giant General rises into the air while rotating at high speeds, and then collides with the ground.
Slumped across the grounds, if you looked at his face, it is slightly distorted as the cheek bone is crushed and his giant teeth are in pieces. The whites are the only part showing from his eyes.
For the time being, I have confirmed that he is only knocked out.
I called for either the butler or a nearby maid to treat him, and the butler hurriedly ran up to carry him away, but was struggling to do so because the Giant General was just too big. His is wearing no armor, so it is just the corresponding size and weight that is so massive.
Because it was somewhat silly to watch them so desperately trying to gather him up, I used [ALL CREATION] to float him up into the air.
Looking around, the reactions held now are more of surprise, or maybe shock. Anyway, the Queen's stance towards us has now softened because of such a one-sided display.
The culture of a meritocracy is quite convenient for such times. It is easy to manage if you hold power though it was possible to be oppressed if you held none.
After that, I drank with Giant King again.
It was a bit unexpected but because we are both drinkers, with plentiful liquor and big meaty dishes, it was time for some meaningful stories to come out.
On a side note, I drank while swimming in a sea of sake. I would feel awkward if I do this too many times, but sometimes this kind of drinking is not bad.
PLACE TRANSLATIONS ABOVE THE BAR. THESE ARE THE RAWS, LEAVE THEM HERE UNTIL SOMEONE DOES A REAL TRANSLATION (NOT JUST A GT OR RUSSIAN TRANS). CLICK EXPAND TO VIEW THEM.
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　“四百四十六日目”
　明日“ミルガルオルム”に挑む今日、早朝から夕方までギガトロル習熟訓練に付き合った。
　それから夕方まで整備点検などの準備を行い、それから夜になると【巨人王】が親睦も兼ねた決起宴会を用意してくれたのでそれに向かう。
　決起宴会が行われるのは、どうやら普段から王族が集まって食事する食堂らしい。
　天井は巨人達の歴史なのだろう戦を描いた壁画で彩られ、シャンデリアと言うには余りにも巨大なマジックアイテムが優しい太陽のように光り輝く。
　壁には見る者の視線を引き寄せる魅惑的な絵画や調度品が飾られ、その一部のように巨人メイドや執事が気配を薄めて控えている。
　部屋の中央に置かれた円卓には既に出来たての料理が並び、俺達が案内された席の正面には【巨人王】が座っていた。
　【巨人王】の左右には王妃らしき三人の貴婦人が腰掛け、更にその横に【光武王子】や【闇法王女】と、二人よりも若い弟妹らしき子供巨人が四名座っている。
　それに加えて俺達に近い席には、精悍な顔に傷を持つ筋骨隆々な中年の巨人将軍や、立派な髭を生やす年老いた巨人宰相、黒紫色のローブを身に纏った中年女性の巨人魔術師長までいる。
　どうやら俺達との顔合わせなどの意味も兼ね、重役を招いたらしい。
　分体による情報収集で食堂に居た全員の顔や大まかな性格などは把握しているが、実際に顔を合わすのは初めてだった。
　子供は純粋な好奇心か、あるいは無関心で俺達を見るが、大人組は違う。俺達を好奇心、不信感、不快感、困惑、苛立ち、その他様々な感情が滲む眼で見つめている。
　何故そうなっているのかすぐには分からなかったが、ともあれ、決起宴会は始まった。
　用意された料理を食べ、大いに飲む。とにかく量が多く、鍛冶師さん達はすぐにお腹が膨らんだらしいが、ミノ吉くんや俺などはバリバリと食べて飲む。
　【巨人王】が特別に用意させたというだけあって、どれもとにかく美味かった。
　ただ、飲み食いだけに集中できる場でもない。
　ミノ吉くん達は我関せずで飲み食いを続けるが、代表として俺は【巨人王】や王妃などとも話をせねばならないからだ。
　そこで話をし、ようやく大人組が様々な感情を抱いている理由が分かった。
　どうやら【巨人王】が“ミルガルオルム”に挑むのは、王妃達も巨人将軍も巨人宰相も巨人魔術師長も完全に了承している訳ではないらしい。
　王妃達はただ【巨人王】の身を案じ、不安であり、自分達からすれば虫か妖精のような大きさの俺達に騙されていないのか警戒している。
　巨人将軍はそんな大物に挑むのならば余所者――俺達の事だ――ではなく、自分と部下を選んでくれればいいのにと憤り。
　巨人宰相は【巨人王】を止める事は出来ないと理解し、本当に討伐する事が出来れば今後色々と有効なのは認めつつ、それが可能なのか疑っている。
　巨人魔術師長は【巨人王】が認めたという俺達を観察し、その本質を探るような研究者の眼で見ている。
　他にも理由はあるだろうが、その辺りらしい。
　まあ、それはどうでも良いことだ。
　何を考えていようと、【巨人王】との約束通りに事を進めるだけである。
　とりあえず忌避感や嫌悪感だけは持たれないように気をつけたが、やはり武人らしく力で白黒ハッキリつけたいらしく、巨人将軍に勝負を挑まれた。
　巨人将軍の大きさは【巨人王】達王族に迫る九十メートル級。
　公爵家のような立場となる名門の長であり、先祖に王族の血が混ざっているそうなので、体格以外の能力も軒並み高い。
　【巨人王】よりも少し若く、若い頃から目標としてきただけに忠誠心も高いが頑固なのが玉に瑕らしい。巨人種こそ至高という思想の持ち主でもあるので、俺が敬愛する【巨人王】と共に肩を並べるのが我慢ならなかったらしい。
　それはともかく、余興としては悪くない。
　実力を示せば今後も活動がしやすくなる。
　戦う場所だが、食堂には広い庭が隣接しているのでそこを使う事になった。
　広い庭には様々な種類の花が植えられ、そこで美しく咲き誇っている。本来なら季節ごとに変わる花を見ながら食事できるようにしているのだろうそこで、俺と巨人将軍は対峙する。
　俺は身長二メートル程、対して巨人将軍は九十メートルと大きな差がある。
　比べるのも馬鹿らしくなるほどの圧倒的な差があり、大格差だけで人間が地を這う虫を踏み潰すように容易く殺せるだろう。
　しかし実際は当然違う。
　最初はやはり踏み付けばかりだったので地を這う黒い魔蟲的な気持ちで動き回って回避するものの、それでは観客から見て巨人将軍が何だか不格好だろうと思い戦いやすいように空を飛び、拳や蹴りをヒラヒラと避ける。
　大きいので遠近感が狂い、ゆっくり動いているように見えるが巨人将軍の攻撃は全て速かった。
　だが俺を捕らえるほどでは無く、ある程度経った後は怒りからか赤らむ巨人将軍の右頬を思いっきり殴る。
　その際、普段よりも手加減はしていない。
　大きさの違いから相応の耐久力がある巨人将軍相手には、普段通りの手加減だと効き目が薄いと思ったからだ。
　そして殴打した瞬間、肉が潰れ骨が砕ける音がした。それも骨が大きかったからか爆発したような大音量である。
　右頬を殴られた巨人将軍の巨体は高速回転しながら浮き上がり、少し勢いを落とした後で顔面から地面に沈む。白目を剥いた顔は頬骨が砕けたからか歪み、流血と共に巨大な歯が砕けて飛び出る。
　とりあえず確認してみると、気絶しているだけだった。
　サッサと治療した方がいいだろうと近くに控えていた執事やメイドを呼ぶと、慌てて駆け寄って来るが巨人将軍が大きすぎるので運ぶ事に苦労していた。
　鎧こそ着ていないが、大きさが大きさだけに相応の重量がある。
　必死に動かそうとしている姿が何だか不憫だったので、【森羅万象】を用いて宙に浮かして運んでいく。驚かれたが、この程度の反応は今更だろう。
　ともあれ、そういう一幕があったからか、王妃達からの反応は軟化した。
　何だかんだで実力主義の文化はこういう時に便利だ。
　力がない場合は虐げられる事もままあるが、力があれば大抵は何とかなるのは楽だった。
　その後は【巨人王】と酒を飲みかわす。
　酒豪だからか、巨獣料理を片手に今まで飲んだ酒の話で盛り上がったのは予想外だが有意義な時間だった。
　余談だが、酒の海で泳ぎながら飲んだ。
　何度もやるのは気が引けるが、たまにはこういう飲み方も悪くはないなぁ。
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Day 445 == Day 446 == Day 447
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Category:Novel
Category:Articles that needs cleaning
Category:Re:Monster ~ The Dark Continent ~ Vol. 2