"Your Majesty, Prince Cain has just sent a report."
At that moment, a member of the Defense Force rushed into the grand hall and knelt before King Ord.
"Speak."
"Prince Cain reports that the operation was nearing completion and R'lyeh was almost fully reclaimed. However, Tiga suddenly appeared, defeated the Giants of Light, and personally killed General Gantu."
The soldier lowered his head as he delivered the news.
"What?!"
Ord rose abruptly, shock and fury surging together.
"General Gantu is dead?!"
"What were they doing out there? Hundreds of Giants of Light, and they couldn't defeat a single Tiga?!"
"Useless—every last one of them useless!"
He slammed his fist down, breathing heavily.
"Hmph. If that's the case, then the darkness covering the world was released by Tiga!"
The more Ord thought about it, the angrier he became.
One individual—alone on the battlefield—had routed hundreds of Giants of Light in a single stroke.
Such a result was almost inconceivable.
If it was true, then how terrifying had Tiga's power become?
"Where are Cain and the others? Where is the Defense Force now?"
Ord forced himself to suppress his rage and questioned the messenger.
"Prince Cain reports that they are about to reach the capital."
"Reach the capital? For what?!"
Ord roared.
"Tell those wastes of space to turn back and attack R'lyeh again!"
"Hundreds of Giants of Light—and they're afraid of a single Tiga?!"
At this point, Ord's composure had clearly collapsed. In all his years as king, he had never faced such a situation.
"Father."
A calm voice sounded from the side hall. Yuzare stepped forward and spoke steadily.
"There is cause, and there is consequence. If you had not insisted on eradicating the Dark Giants at all costs, this outcome would never have occurred."
"They were once our warriors. We should have sought a way to save them, not to eliminate them."
"Yuzare! Who allowed you to come out?!"
Ord snapped, his anger flaring even higher.
"Return to confinement immediately!"
And worse still—she dared lecture him like this.
"Your Majesty," a minister stepped forward at once, bowing deeply.
"At present, the only one capable of salvaging this situation is Princess Yuzare."
"Please reconsider, Your Majesty!"
One by one, the ministers followed, bending at the waist in unison.
"Your Majesty, allow Princess Yuzare to resume command of the Earth Defense Force!"
Even the generals spoke up.
Darkness had engulfed the entire planet—an outcome that terrified everyone.
If there was anyone who could rally the Giants of Light and drive back the darkness, all of them believed there was only one answer: Yuzare.
"You… all of you…!"
Ord was so enraged that his face flushed crimson, words failing him.
"…Hah."
After a long, heavy sigh, he finally fell silent.
After a moment, he looked at Yuzare again, his voice lower and steadier.
"Yuzare. General Gantu has fallen. From this moment onward, the Earth Defense Force is returned to you. I expect you to lead the Giants of Light and repel the darkness."
"Understood."
Yuzare showed no visible emotion. She simply nodded and formally resumed her position as commander of the Earth Defense Force.
Although she had once resigned the post of her own will, given the current circumstances, she had no choice but to take it up again.
"Father! Sister—we're back!"
Cain's voice suddenly echoed from outside the hall.
Everyone turned toward the entrance, where Cain led a group of Defense Force members inside.
At his feet trotted a small yellow-furred dog—Guardie.
All those present were individuals capable of transforming into Giants of Light. In truth, anyone with that ability had long since been incorporated into the Earth Defense Force.
Ord felt a surge of anger upon seeing them—but he forced it down.
Ignoring the humiliation of hundreds of Giants of Light being defeated by a single Tiga, he spoke in a measured tone.
"Cain. Your sister has reassumed command of the Defense Force. From here on, the coming battles will depend on you."
"We will not disappoint you, Father."
Cain lowered his head briefly, then looked to Yuzare and nodded.
The war between light and darkness was inevitable.
With R'lyeh as their stronghold, the Dark Giants launched their invasion across the continents, seizing city after city.
Within the darkness that now blanketed the Earth, the Dark Giants seemed to receive a substantial boost in power. Their battles became far more efficient, and the Giants of Light defending each city were defeated with alarming ease.
In terms of numbers, the Dark Giants were few.
However, with Dark Monsters supporting them, that numerical disadvantage was largely mitigated.
After all, the Dark Realm held an endless supply of monsters.
Yu Zhou and the others did not personally take the field. Instead, they remained in R'lyeh to recover.
The act of spreading darkness across the entire planet had consumed a significant amount of energy—even for Yu Zhou, Camearra, Hudra, and Darramb.
After all, these were merely incarnations. Had Yu Zhou's true body descended, such darkness could have been unleashed effortlessly, swallowing the Earth in a single motion.
Yet before long, the Dark Giants' rapid advance was halted.
Cities that had fallen to darkness were swiftly reclaimed by the Giants of Light.
Investigation soon revealed the reason: Yuzare had retaken command of the Earth Defense Force and implemented systematic strategies for reclaiming lost territory.
Outnumbered, the Dark Giants had no choice but to retreat whenever counterattacked, preserving their forces to survive.
"Tiga-sama," An Cheng knelt on one knee before Yu Zhou, who sat upon the throne.
"Unless we engage the Giants of Light in a decisive battle and annihilate them all at once, our numbers are insufficient to conquer the cities one by one."
"In that case," Yu Zhou replied casually, "we settle it in a single battle."
"Then we will assemble all forces and march directly on the Central Capital."
An Cheng nodded and withdrew to make the arrangements.
All Dark Giants and Dark Monsters were recalled—preparing for a full-scale assault on the capital.
They would force the Giants of Light to gather their strength as well, and decide everything in one final confrontation.
"Are you certain?"
Camearra asked quietly beside Yu Zhou.
"With your current level of energy."
"They are merely Giants of Light," Yu Zhou replied calmly.
"Not worth concern."
"Lady Camearra, we will fight as well," Hudra and Darramb said from either side.
The Dark Giants who emerged from the Dark Temple were not limited to Tiga alone.
That said, Tiga's combat power stood unrivalled among them—
An existence the Giants of Light could never hope to match.