These were the guardians of the little diamond race, yet even they were at a loss facing the dire situation their people were in.
One of the diamond guards glanced toward a corner; seeing that the silver giant wasn't nearby, he moved closer to another guard.
"You realize we can't keep going like this, right? We have to resist," he said quietly.
The guard he spoke to looked shocked and slowly turned to face him, a complicated expression in his eyes.
"Then what?"
"What do you mean, what then?"
"I mean, how do we resist? And what will happen if we do?"
The older guard stared at the younger one, unsure how to respond.
The youth's question was naive, almost too hopeful.
After a pause, the young guard finally said, "As long as... as long as we resist, we'll eventually succeed."
The older guard shook his head, and the light in his diamond flickered softly.
"Kid, I understand how you feel. Every time one of our people gets hurt, you come to me."
He looked toward the other side, where another diamond guard stood, this one somewhere between their ages.
Their kind was few in number, only three diamond guards in total: old, middle, and young.
When the old guard's gaze landed on the middle-aged one, the latter quickly looked away and returned to his duties.
The older guard knew exactly why. Ever since their tribe had been captured by the stone giant clan, the younger generation had been urging them to fight back.
Of course, there was nothing wrong with resisting. As guardians, their job was to protect their own people.
But without a king to lead them, their tribe's strength was crippled. It was impossible to stand against the stone giants alone.
Even the ordinary little diamonds weren't as strong as the diamond guards, who themselves were roughly equal in strength to the silver giant.
But that was just mid-level power compared to the stone giant.
They all knew that inside the stone giant, there were several gold giants whose strength was far more terrifying.
After all this time, they still couldn't see any chance of escape.
Though they often daydreamed about it, they couldn't help but imagine how wonderful it would be if they had won back then.
The old diamond guard lowered his eyes, lost in his thoughts once again.
Seeing this, the younger guard sighed and stormed off to another corner.
They hadn't always been like this.
Years ago, they lived alongside those creatures with hands and feet.
Despite language barriers, they coexisted peacefully.
Those creatures were smarter, skilled at using rocks, ores, and other resources.
The little diamond family had the unique ability to purify ores and create rarer minerals, so they worked together to survive in a dangerous world.
Unfortunately, disaster struck.
The creatures they lived with were killed, and only the diamond family survived because they were still useful.
But living under constant oppression was hardly better than dying.
If only one day they could break free from this sea of suffering and no longer be crushed by the stone giant, that would be amazing.
This hope was shared by countless little diamonds.
Meanwhile, in a nearby cave, Ging swallowed the diamond whole, then straightened up, squinting toward the cave entrance.
"Looks like it wasn't just my imagination," he muttered. "To have come this far, their strength is impressive. I didn't even notice until now."
As Ging spoke quietly, Steelix carried Larry and the others into the cave.
At first glance, they all noticed Ging's striking golden glow, matching Steelix's exactly.
Miru's tense expression slowly softened.
"A Golden Giant? That's pretty standard," he said. "The hierarchy goes from ordinary rock at the bottom, then silver, and finally gold. You can tell their rank just by their color."
After a brief pause, Miru added, "So far, we've only seen one, but we can't rule out the possibility that there are more."
Once everyone stepped inside, their attention scattered in different directions.
Except for Ging, who stood out the most, everyone was focused on their own observations.
Ging narrowed his eyes and glanced up at the plants growing above his head.
They looked somewhat like lantern grass.
After a moment of thought, he slid his daytime glasses down slightly.
Peering through them, he noticed the plants emitted a gentle, soft glow that lit up the cave.
Even without the glasses, the space was well illuminated. But Ging put them back on, seemingly just to be cautious.
He figured that since it wasn't clear whether these plants or their light were harmful, it was safer to keep the glasses on.
Being careful was the best way to avoid trouble.
Meanwhile, Beyond's eyes were drawn to a striking throne.
The craftsmanship wasn't particularly intricate, but it was embedded with large, dazzling gems that instantly elevated its value from ordinary to extraordinary.
The throne's artistic worth seemed to be several levels above average.
Even someone as experienced as Beyond couldn't help but look again and again, genuinely amazed by the gems' appearance.
As a close partner of the Kakin Empire's leader and someone who had worked with the Ferry Office and many others, Beyond had seen countless treasures and luxurious sights.
He was no stranger to the finest things in the world, but he had never seen gems like these.
Their colors and brilliance far surpassed anything found on the six continents.
His expression stiffened as he glanced at the pile of diamonds sitting next to Ging.
If the gems on the throne already outshined those from the six continents, then the casually piled diamonds nearby, in such massive quantities, completely overshadowed them.
This was a truly rare treasure.
Beyond didn't hesitate to say outright that even the famous "Seven Beauties" of the world, if lined up together, couldn't match the beauty of those diamonds.
Beyond had no way to even estimate the value of those diamonds.
After all, the Seven Beauties of the world were priceless, legendary treasures known across all six continents.
Kululi, a professor at Baver University, adjusted his glasses as he examined a book resting on the stone table.
'Wait, there were books here?'
As someone who specialized in ancient languages, Kululi was both curious and deeply surprised.
When he glanced toward the other side of the room, he saw piles of various items, more books and even some objects that seemed almost alive.
None of these things, no matter their size or purpose, looked like something a stone giant would use.
Instead, they seemed more like human belongings.
Everyone was focused on what caught their interest. But Larry was different; he seemed genuinely intrigued.
Standing atop the massive steel serpent, Larry looked down at Ging, who met his gaze.
Those cold eyes made anyone uneasy, piercing and unwelcoming.
Yet, Ging's mind was still clouded with confusion.
'They should have been dead long ago, right?'
He clearly remembered that they had all been wiped out, so logically, there shouldn't be any survivors.
Frowning, Ging struggled to make sense of the scene before him.