21: Exchange for Mountain Giant

Additionally, Arthur also tested that items purchased from the Portable Shop do not necessarily have to appear right in front of him; he didn't know if the range could increase later, but for now, they could appear up to one thousand meters away from him.

The footsteps were terrifyingly heavy; Arthur could even feel the ground beneath his feet shaking.

"What's going on? How could there be such massive footsteps!"

Chris and the others first exclaimed in surprise, then, following their intuition, looked to the left, even though the object making the dull thudding footsteps was a full kilometer away from them.

Yet, Chris could still clearly see what that thing was.

It wasn't just because Chris, as a Gold Knight, had eyesight far surpassing that of an ordinary person, but also because the thing was simply too massive, standing a full twenty meters tall.

"It's actually a giant, and a Mountain Giant that lives with the elves in the forest at that. Those are terrifying magical beasts that only a Sky Knight can defeat."

"How could such a thing appear here? Don't they prefer to dwell among mountain forests and boulders? This is the plains!"

"And why didn't we notice them before!"

At this moment, Chris and his group were filled with confusion, but they quickly realized that why the Mountain Giant appeared here was not important.

What was important was that they couldn't possibly defeat a Mountain Giant; if they actually encountered one, it would mean certain death.

Running was not an option; after all, one thousand meters was not a long distance for a Mountain Giant that stood twenty meters tall.

If they didn't run, the giant might not even notice them, but if they started running, the commotion would likely draw its attention.

After his mind raced, Chris suddenly spotted a rare steep slope not far from them.

He hurriedly urged in a low voice:

"My Lord, let's hurry and hide on that steep slope, or we'll be doomed if the Mountain Giant spots us!"

Mountain Giants could be considered slow to a certain extent, but that was only relative to the strong; for Arthur's group, whose highest rank was only a Gold Knight, their speed was more than enough!

Arthur had to pretend to be unaware, so he also hurriedly followed Chris to hide by the steep slope.

Even the previously ferocious Golden Sharp Lion, after sensing the massive gap in strength compared to the Mountain Giant, was now trembling and crouching on the ground, not daring to make a sound.

Afterward, Chris and the others began to pray silently, praying that the Mountain Giant would not discover them.

But things clearly did not develop as Chris had anticipated.

The heavy footsteps were actually getting closer and closer to them, becoming somewhat deafening, and even the clods of earth on the ground began to bounce from the vibrations.

"Damn it, the Mountain Giant is actually walking towards us!"

Chris first cursed in anger, then his eyes became resolute, and he said to Arthur with a solemn expression:

"My Lord, it seems the Mountain Giant has discovered us. Stay here and don't move; we will go and lure it away!"

Upon hearing this, Arthur looked at Chris and the others with a serious expression, and after discovering that everyone's face was filled with determination, he felt a warmth in his heart.

"I didn't expect to unexpectedly test the loyalty of Chris and the others!" Arthur thought to himself.

Arthur was somewhat moved by the performance of Chris and the others, so he no longer let them worry in vain and said:

"The situation is not as bad as you imagine. I have a premonition that those two Mountain Giants have no ill intent towards us!"

Hearing this, Chris's eyes widened slightly; clearly, he did not believe in Arthur's so-called premonition.

But Arthur did not wait for Chris to recover from his shock; he stood up directly and jumped onto the steep slope.

"My Lord! ..."

Chris and the others shouted anxiously, but seeing that the situation was irreversible, they could only follow him up, prepared to die together.

At this moment, the two Mountain Giants were only one hundred meters away from Arthur and his group; such a close distance meant the pressure brought upon Arthur's group by the Mountain Giants' twenty-meter height was unimaginable.

Even though Arthur knew that these two Mountain Giants were ones he had purchased and would not harm him.

Yet, as the earth-shaking footsteps of the Mountain Giants drew closer, Arthur's heart also trembled with each step.

If even Arthur was like this, let alone Chris and the others; they were covered in cold sweat, indicating they were under unimaginable pressure.

Finally, the two Mountain Giants stopped at a distance of twenty meters from them.

Just when Chris and the others thought they would be subjected to a storm of attacks.

The two Mountain Giants did not attack but instead spoke:

"Humans, what place is this!"

Actually, when the Mountain Giants first saw Arthur, they would have called him "My Lord".

But just now, while Arthur's group was hiding on the steep slope, the Sky Knight Victor, who was hidden in the shadows, had already explained Arthur's plan to the two Mountain Giants, so they were cooperating in acting out the scene.

This caused the Mountain Giants to pause in place for a while earlier, and Chris and the others, fearing exposure, didn't dare to check at all.

Faced with the Mountain Giants' question, the highly nervous Chris and his group couldn't react at all, so naturally, only Arthur, who knew everything, answered.

"Hello, two Mountain Giants. This is the Barren Plains. I don't know why you have appeared here!"

"Barren Plains? Never heard of it. We two brothers accidentally triggered a teleportation array earlier, and we suddenly appeared here."

"Have you heard of the Elf Forest? We used to live there!"

"Sorry, I haven't heard of that place either, so I think you won't be able to go back for the time being!"

...

While Arthur continued to converse with the Mountain Giants, the way Chris and the others looked at Arthur gradually became filled with admiration.

Because they hadn't expected that Arthur could communicate so calmly with the Mountain Giants; what a strong heart he must have.

Moreover, Arthur had been able to sense that these two Mountain Giants held no ill intent and had voluntarily stepped forward.

This mysterious performance left them puzzled while also feeling heartfelt admiration.

After Arthur and the two Mountain Giants pretended to converse for a while, they finally got to the main point:

"Since you two cannot find your way home for the time being, running around aimlessly is not the answer. Why not come to my territory first? I will use my power to help you continue searching."

"Furthermore, I will also provide you with your favorite earth-attribute magic cores!"

As he spoke, two yellow magic cores appeared in Arthur's hand, emanating a heavy Aura; they were exactly the earth-attribute magic cores that Mountain Giants loved.

The Mountain Giants also cooperated by making expressions of liking them, and after taking the magic cores from Arthur's hand, they said:

"Since that's the case, we will first go to your territory to stay for a while."

Afterward, as if feeling that this was not quite right, the Mountain Giant added:

"We won't just eat and live for free; if there are any enemies, we can help you deal with them!"

"Then it's a deal!"