Morning sunlight slowly spread across the valley.
The cliffs surrounding glowed with a warm golden color as the sun climbed higher into the sky. Mist from the nearby river drifted gently across the fields where people were already working.
Just two days ago, this valley had been empty wilderness.
Now it had people.
Fifty-two villagers who Derrick had saved were already busy moving around the clearing. Some were gathering wood.
Some were digging shallow trenches for crops near the river. Others were trying to build small wooden huts using the timber that had been collected.
But what truly dominated the valley were the giants.
Five massive figures moved slowly across the land like walking hills.
Grom.
Bor.
Krag.
Tor.
Luga.
Each one stood eight meters tall, and every step they took made the ground tremble slightly. To the villagers, seeing giants walking casually around their new home still felt surreal.
A group of children had gathered at a distance, staring at Bor with wide eyes.
Bor was currently lifting a massive tree trunk and placing it down near the cliff wall where the giants had begun constructing large wooden platforms for resting.
One of the kids whispered nervously.
"Is… is he going to throw it?"
The adults nearby quickly pulled them back.
"Don't get close!"
Meanwhile, Derrick was standing on Tor's shoulder, watching the scene like a general inspecting his kingdom.
He stretched his arms and yawned.
"Man… this view is amazing."
Tor's shoulder was basically the best observation tower in Titan Hollow.
Derrick looked down at the busy villagers and nodded in satisfaction.
The place finally looked alive.
People working.
Smoke rising from cooking fires.
Giants carrying building materials.
It was still messy and unorganized, but it was definitely the beginning of something real.
Derrick pointed toward the cliff.
"Alright guys, new task."
The giants looked at him.
"We need more platforms. The humans are building huts for themselves, but you guys need proper resting spots."
Bor nodded and picked up two large logs.
Derrick whistled.
"See? Teamwork."
As the giants continued building, Derrick looked toward the forest surrounding the valley.
His expression slowly became thoughtful.
Something about the forest felt… off.
Too quiet.
Even the villagers seemed to notice it.
A hunter from the village approached Derrick nervously.
"Lord Derrick…"
Derrick looked down.
"Yes?"
The man pointed toward the tree line.
"We think something is watching us."
Derrick frowned.
Of course something was watching them.
This was a valley in the middle of monster territory.
If nothing was watching them, that would actually be more suspicious.
Before Derrick could reply, the forest suddenly rustled.
Branches moved.
Leaves shook.
Several large figures stepped out from the trees.
Green skin.
Thick muscles.
Tusks.
Massive crude weapons.
The villagers immediately froze.
"OGRES!"
Panic spread through the human workers as about a dozen ogres walked slowly into the clearing.
At their front stood an even larger one.
Nearly four meters tall.
Covered in scars.
Clearly their leader.
The villagers began retreating toward the center of the settlement.
Some grabbed farming tools like weapons.
Others hid behind unfinished huts.
But the ogres weren't looking at the villagers.
Their eyes were fixed on the giants.
The ogre leader stared up at the towering figures with a mixture of shock and disbelief.
Five giants stood calmly in the valley.
Working.
Building.
Like this was their territory.
Then his gaze shifted to Derrick sitting casually on Tor's shoulder.
The ogre leader frowned.
"You."
His voice was deep and rough.
"Human."
Derrick waved cheerfully.
"Hello there."
The ogres exchanged confused looks.
The leader spoke again.
"You command… giants?"
Derrick glanced behind him.
Grom was currently lifting a huge boulder from the ground.
Bor was stacking entire tree trunks.
Krag was dragging a stone slab the size of a wagon.
Derrick shrugged.
"…Yeah."
The ogres looked stunned.
The leader narrowed his eyes.
"This valley belongs to the Stone Tusk Tribe."
Derrick rubbed his chin.
"Really?"
He looked around the valley again.
Then he pointed toward the giants.
"Well… we already started building."
The ogres tightened their grips on their weapons.
The leader growled.
"This is our hunting ground."
Derrick nodded slowly.
"Fair."
Then he leaned back casually on Tor's shoulder.
"Show them."
Tor didn't hesitate.
The giant stepped forward.
The ground trembled.
The ogres instinctively stepped back.
Tor bent down and picked up a massive boulder.
The rock was easily three meters wide.
The ogres watched carefully.
Then Tor squeezed.
CRACK.
The boulder shattered in his hands like brittle clay.
The broken pieces fell to the ground.
Before the ogres could react, Bor casually lifted an entire fallen tree and snapped it across his knee.
Krag grabbed a stone slab and tossed it several dozen meters across the valley where it landed with a thunderous boom.
The ogres stood frozen.
Their expressions slowly changed.
Shock.
Fear.
Realization.
They weren't looking at giants.
They were looking at walking disasters.
The ogre leader slowly lowered his weapon.
He stared up at Derrick again.
"You control them."
Derrick shrugged.
"More like we're working together."
The leader looked around the valley again.
Five giants.
Dozens of humans.
Structures already being built.
His tribe only had twelve warriors.
Fighting here would be suicide.
Finally, the ogre leader sighed.
"Stone Tusk Tribe… will not fight giants."
The villagers relaxed slightly.
Derrick smiled.
"Smart decision."
The ogre leader crossed his arms.
"What do you want, human?"
Derrick leaned forward slightly.
"Simple."
He pointed toward the valley.
"We're building something here."
He pointed at the ogres.
"You join us."
The ogres murmured among themselves.
Derrick continued.
"You get protection."
He gestured toward the giants again.
"You get a place to live."
Then he added casually,
"And nobody gets accidentally stepped on by a giant."
That argument seemed to convince several ogres immediately.
The leader looked around one more time.
His tribe was small.
Food was getting scarce in the forest.
This valley was safe.
And clearly controlled by something far stronger than them.
Slowly, the ogre leader knelt.
"I am Ragor. Chief of Stone Tusk Tribe."
Behind him, the other ogres also knelt.
"We accept."
The villagers gasped quietly.
Derrick blinked in surprise.
"…Well that worked faster than expected."
He jumped down from Tor's shoulder and walked toward Ragor.
Derrick extended his hand.
"Welcome to Titan Hollow."
Yes, this was the name he gave.
He couldn't think of anything better. For him, this was the best.
Also that his naming sense is kind of stupid.
Ragor looked at the hand for a moment before standing.
He looked around the growing settlement.
Humans.
Giants.
And now ogres.
"You build strange tribe, human."
Derrick grinned.
"Oh, this is just the beginning."
He looked around the valley proudly.
Titan Hollow now had:
Five giants.
Fifty-two villagers.
And the Stone Tusk Ogre Tribe.
Derrick rubbed his hands together.
"Alright everyone."
The villagers, ogres, and giants all looked toward him.
Derrick raised one finger dramatically.
"First rule of living in Titan Hollow."
Everyone waited.
"Don't panic when the giants start working."
The villagers laughed nervously.
Even Ragor allowed a small smile.
High above them, the wind moved gently through the valley.
And for the first time in centuries, the land of giants had begun gathering people again.