Luke, strengthened by his mana, helped Iron as they quickly set up the makeshift Canon with boulders and stones. Luke had been carefully watching the Giant as it would soon arrive at Noa. He knew they only had so much time left before The Giant would be at the spot, and of course, this was all assuming that Noa could keep the Giant distracted long enough for Iron and him to finish the canon and return to help Noa out, and that considering Noa's strength is basically impossible.
Luke knew Noa's gift thoroughly. It seemed unstoppable, but no gift had no flaw, even his own that he wished not to show. Giants were beings only Elite adventurers or mercenaries could handle, and even then, they would have to form a party to take on. However, Luke knew how talented his friends were, and it seemed that this giant was far weaker than most, most likely due to how much gold it had lost over the years of mining. So, they still had a viable chance, and for once, Luke was willing to sacrifice his secrecy to make sure everyone was safe.
For a long time now, everyone had thought Luke's gift was accursed, and while it was true, it wasn't a hindrance. His gift had come from sinful means, and his family were worshippers of demons; however, they did not know the great power that accursed gift users possessed. The only true difference between the accursed and regular or divine were that the accursed were more akin to monsters than actual mortals, thus making them more self-reliant in their power, rather than borrowing from a god they worship.
In any case, time was of the essence, and they needed to hurry. As Luke finished up, he could see the Giant in a clash, fierce and violent, shaking the ground with each attack and movement. Noa seemed to be able to encounter the Giant right where Luke wanted him to; however, keeping the Giant there was the bigger issue. Luke sighed as he looked to Iron, "Come on, we need to hurry there, if we are too late…. actually, I'd rather not talk about if we are too late."
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As Andre was quickly being stuffed into the bag by Sari, Ariana had been explaining where Andre should go to safely deliver the fatal blow to the Giant. "Remember, you have to make sure you are in one of the eyes after you hit its core. If' it's really skeleton-like, you should be safe in the sockets since you are surrounded by its bone." And re chuckled as he looked to Ariana, "safe, please miss, there is nothing safe about this shit, just tell me where to shoot once I'm in, luck will decide if I'm dead or not." Ariana looked at him a bit uneasily. She knew his words weren't exactly wrong, but the pessimistic view was jarring to her. She looked at him curiously "I mean, I know this is already a very dangerous task, but wouldn't it be better if you maximized your chances of surviving? I would feel like your survival is more worth than completing the mission." Andre looked at her, and then sighed, furnishing his rifle "I guess but honestly, If I die here or later, I'd end up in the same position." Ariana looked at Andre curiously "and that is?" Andre smirked as he looked at her, a sense of thrill and intensity instantly foreboding over Ariana, "ain't it obvious, I'd just be six feet under." He looks to the Giant, grinning madly, "People talk about how they want a better life, or how much they follow their beliefs or someone, thinking it's going to guarantee them a greater life, but not me. We all are going to end up in a grave someday, somehow, so I don't get trying to make your life comfortable or easy, or moving up classes. Nah, I need that rush, I want a death so glorious they talk about it in the history books. Shit, I might tell myself often, 'why the fuck am I so miserable' but it's honestly lies. I know im never going to live a better life than this, so why chase that when I can end with bang. That's the only reason why I'm with the gang to be honest." He looked back at Ariana "you saw how crazy our boss is, trying to fucking kill a Giant, and that's why I'm with him. I don't care about the guy allat much, it's just his way of shit is exciting, and I like it."
Ariana looked at him, stunned. For the first time in her life, she had never seen such a person so eager to rush into death, a level of suicidal intent she had never expected. However, she could see the reasoning behind the madness. It wasn't that he was entirely suicidal; it was just the wish to be remembered rather than to truly die early, and in a hopeless environment of the slums, she could understand why some would wish for this. It was unexpected and a little somber, but it was exactly what she had hoped to expect. It seemed she would find what she was looking for in following this gang.
She smiled as she looked to him, chuckling slightly ,"Well, you may think that, but if that's the case, don't die here. Sure, it would be epic to kill a giant, but dying in a skeleton isn't fame-worthy." Andre looked at her a bit confused, "Huh, what do you mean, people hail others who killed giants?" She shook her head, as she was about to go assist Sari "Sure, but people remember legacies more than one-time stories, and besides, if you're fortunate enough, maybe you'll come across a dragon to kill. All I'm saying is, keep your eyes open toward opportunities, you don't want to rush a memory."
Andre looked at her, a bit surprised. He hadn't really thought of it much, but in a sense…. her words did make sense. "Oh…fair then I guess…"
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Cam had been awkwardly quiet throughout her time with Kirin; she didn't know how to confront him with their past. It wasn't like their work was bothered or disturbed by the awkward silence; they still worked efficiently, their synchronization being almost flawless. A lot really had to do with muscle memory, and they had known each other even before Luke had descended upon them. Overall, it was almost nostalgic, almost like before when they hunted rabbits; this time, however, the target was much bigger and much fiercer.
Cam was essentially Kirin's supplier for his gift. Kirin's gift expended huge amounts of his mana, and while he had insane reserves for even a regular elf, there would be no way he would be able to accommodate large enemies such as the giant. So, Cam had always been the one who supplied for Kirin whenever he had to push his mana reserves. Her gift wasn't just used for physical objects, but she can store mana as well; however, the moment she releases it, it's all of its is instantly transferred or used. Thankfully, she had a device to supply him more efficiently. With this pair, they had done a lot of great work together, although it was a last resort thing, so to use it here really illustrated the dire situation.
Cam had finally gotten everything ready, as she saw Sari returning to them in the distance, Kirin looked back, still with the same blue lollipop he always had. "So, working with the duke's daughter, how'd you manage to get such a cushy job?" She looked down, sighing, "I mean, after I left, I managed to get whisked away by the duke, saying eh would take care of me. He's not a bad person, just a man who does his job, nothing more, nothing less." Kirin sighs as he looks in the distance, the visage of the giant fighting some kind of force. "I mean, I guess, it's nice to know you found a better life, though, a little ironic to think that you who screwed up are in a better position than us." Cam tightened her grip just a bit. "I….I didn't want to ….I didn't mean to do it, I know it was wrong, but I-I.." Kirin sighed, "Geeze, come on, it's been 5 years and you're still shaken, if you don't grow the fuck up, then you and the duke's daughter are gonna be sent down 6 feet under in a matter of minutes." Cam looked at Kirin, a bit spooked; she didn't expect such a stark and sudden reaction. Usually, he was more of the consoling type, but his eyes were a lot sterner, and it brought attention to a question she had as she came here. She thought the gang would be a lot more lively, or rather a lot more connected, and while they still were, there seemed to be a hint of darkness, or maturity that was apparent.
She looked to Kirin curiously, "Wait, so y'all really are fine…even if…" Kirin sighed as he chomped down, crushing the rest of the lollipop and tossing it aside "Yeah, I mean, sure we didn't understand before, but nobody still resents you for that day. It was a rash decision, something you had to do." He sighed as Sari came, calling them to take the ride, "and besides, things have honestly gotten much worse here than before. Cam looked at him, surprised. She thought they were doing relatively fine, honestly, they seemed to have a lot of what they were hoping for, even if it was a run-of-the-muck place like Uru. "I mean, can it really be worse, though? Back then, we were feeding from the bottom. Looking at y'all right now, you seem to have it pretty good." Kirin looked at her coldly, then down at the cold rubble, a hint of shame smearing his face. "Not everything can be seen, I'm sure that's obvious….but, we have lost too much, and we have done too much in the last 5 years to get what we want. "
Cam looked surprised, shocked even. She would never think that her friends would ever commit such acts of sin, but she could not have known what happened in those five years. She could not have known the blood they had to wipe away to get this far. She looked down a bit, being remorseful. To be honest, today was a lot for her to question things further; she wanted to know why things had changed so much, why there were different people, and where some were. If she had a moment to breathe, she would let her curiosity run; however, none could be no better time for now. She sighed as she placed her hand on Kirin's shoulder. "We don't have to get into the details for now, right now we have a job to do, and a lot of people to protect." Kirin sighed as he shook his head, "Well, it's great to see you're still somehow the somewhat rational one of the group." Both Sari and Cam looked at him with utter confusion, as he chuckled quickly flipping onto the back of Sari, "Come on, if we don't go and help Luke and them, our guys are gonna get squashed, and I don't want our boss to die so young. He still owes me a whole lot for saving his ass." Sari looked at him, scoffing, "You and me both," while Cam smiled. "Oh, come on, you're acting like all of us didn't save his ass at least once; he owes all of us," she said as she climbed onto Sari's back. Normalcy wasn't something Cam really expected; things just never were the way they were before. However, maybe normalcy didn't mean the past, to her, maybe normalcy was a path to a better future.