Titan King: Ascension of the Giant-Chapter 445: Swear your loyalty to me

After Torin left, many unfamiliar faces indeed arrived in Soaring Bird City—mercenaries, beast-hunting crews, and even covert agents sent by various major nobles.

"Please, Your Highness Princess, protect us. Torin is willing to offer all of Soaring Bird City's future profits."

"Your Highness Princess, Torin only wants to survive!"

Inside the temporary tent, a sudden hush fell over everyone. Torin waited anxiously for an answer, while Princess Ava contemplated in silence.

Princess Ava was no fool. If she were, she wouldn't have survived Orion's wrath. She knew full well that Prince Theodore, with his abilities, must have sensed Torin's recent moves. Since Prince Theodore neither took Torin under his wing nor advised Ava against taking him in, he clearly intended for Ava to gain control over Torin. Realizing this, Princess Ava already had an answer in mind.

Even so, what truly sealed her decision was the memory of that towering giant from Stoneheart City. The moment she thought of Orion—of the humiliation she had endured—she suddenly understood that she was no longer a naive girl; she had to grow stronger.

Beyond her own power, she had the Rose Knight Regiment and other external forces at her disposal. That included Soaring Bird City and its lord, Torin, who held a crucial "port" for trade.

"Swear your loyalty to me, protect me, and defend the kingdom!"

Princess Ava's voice was stern and unyielding. Hearing her words, Torin was overjoyed. He kneeled down and kissed the hem of her dress.

"I vow upon my soul—henceforth, I pledge eternal loyalty to Your Highness, defending you shall be my lifelong mission…"

Torin departed soon after, wearing a delighted smile. When he was gone, Princess Ava exhaled a long sigh. Although she harbored misgivings about accepting him and recognized his ambition, she simply had no better choice. She yearned to increase her own power, and at present, this seemed like the only right path.

Elsewhere, inside the main tent, Prince Theodore withdrew his awareness. He was quite pleased with Torin's approach, which, in truth, he himself had largely orchestrated.

"Better to let my aunt benefit than allow those greedy, entrenched, inflexible nobles from the kingdom to profit here. Torin, that small fry, is smart. I'll have to keep an eye on him going forward."

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Shortly after Prince Theodore stilled his senses, Princess Ava was suddenly overcome by nausea, retching for no apparent reason.

…

Blackstone City, Horde Hall.

Thunderhawk Rayden carried Orion, Lysinthia, and Rendall as it shrieked and soared southward toward Thunderwood Forest. After half a month, Orion reached Half-Moon Lake, where he dropped Lysinthia off.

"I'll go on ahead with Elder Rendall. You bring twilight viper and swamp crocodiles along afterward."

"All right."

Lysinthia nodded. Orion gently ruffled her hair before turning back to mount the thunderhawk. Shifting course from south to west, he headed straight toward Mist Bay.

Watching Rayden's figure recede, Lysinthia looked on with a hint of reluctance in her eyes.

A soft rustling sounded behind her as Twilight Viper slithered into view, lowering its head to nuzzle against her arm. Behind Twilight Viper, two hundred gorgons arrived and respectfully lined up at Lysinthia's back.

"Gather your essentials. You'll all come with me to guard Mist Bay in the west!"

Lysinthia withdrew her gaze, her expression turning cold. A faint queenly air radiated from her. In front of Orion, she was forever sweet and gentle; before others, she was the ice-cold Gorgon.

A few days later, Orion and Rendall finally arrived at Mist Bay.

"So this is the lair of those crows?"

Standing at a vantage point and surveying the bay cloaked in mist, along with the plague crows darting among the red mangroves on both sides, Rendall let out a sigh.

"Let's go down."

Orion directed the thunderhawk to descend and drop him and Rendall. Simultaneously, an overwhelming aura rippled out from Orion. The nearby plague crows, feeling its force, promptly plummeted from the sky in terror.

Ever the vengeful one, Thunderhawk Rayden remembered well how these crows had once humiliated it. So, after putting Orion safely on the ground, Rayden let loose an ear-splitting shriek and hurtled toward the plague crows, now trembling too violently to take flight.

Moments later, plaintive squawks echoed across Mist Bay.

"What's gotten into Thunderhawk Rayden?" Rendall asked, both startled and intrigued.

"Elder, have you forgotten the time those plague crows dropped their filth all over Blackstone City, spreading their disease? It was revolting. Twice they attacked us, and Rayden was disgusted both times. Now it's just taking revenge."

"Ah, right… I seem to have forgotten that." Rendall burst out in laughter. "So that's why!"

Orion smiled faintly. If he had not advanced to the Legendary level, it would still be a real headache coping with these plague crows. But now that he had grown considerably mightier, every plague crow lay flat wherever he passed, too terrified to take wing, cowering on the ground in surrender.

Paying them no further attention, Orion took Rendall with him toward the shoreline. As they ventured through the red mangroves, the solid ground gradually gave way to a patchwork of boggy waterholes. They had to leap onto the branches overhead, using the towering trunks as stepping stones.

Before long, they reached the edge of the red mangroves. Glancing down at the nearly submerged forest, Orion made a quick estimate of the water's depth—about 1000 feet.

"This place is covered by red mangroves at the surface, and underneath it connects to the sea floor. It's a natural base for a waterborne force," he mused. "Just not sure if something else is living here in the bay."

He spoke in a hushed tone. Hearing him, Rendall frowned in surprise and couldn't help asking, "Lord, do you think there could be creatures from the Sea Tribe here?"

Orion shook his head. "I'm not certain. I hope not. But even if they are here, we'll drive them out. Soon, once Lysinthia and Twilight Viper arrive, they can lead swamp crocodiles to sweep the area."

Rendall, catching the drift, asked in astonishment, "Lord, are we planning to occupy this place? Build a fortress here?"

Nodding, Orion explained thoughtfully, "Sea Tribe warriors show up along the southern coastline, harassing our hunting. We need to be prepared in advance. The northern seas are colder, so the Sea Tribe likely has fewer numbers there. Eventually, we want Mist Bay to be Stoneheart Horde's naval training base. Besides taking this bay, we'll build a fortified city here as well."

With a small smile, Orion turned to him. "Arch Elder, I'm counting on you to oversee the city's construction!"