This proclamation was met by silence, as even Elanev couldn't believe that his younger brother had just done something so foolish.
A challenge… Against a damn Hero level giant who might not even hesitate from killing him because it was too simpleminded?
Such a thing would only be done by those who sought death, and even the three individuals who had been leading them till now were shocked by the King's actions even though they had been pretty angered by his attitude before.
The two men on the two sides of the man in the bearskin looked at him, silently asking whether they should stop this, as they had been commanded not to let any harm befall these two guests to their sect.
In response, the man in the middle held his chin and thought for a moment, before shaking his head and making a hand signal.
"Wait and watch."
This made broad smiles pop up on the faces of the two men, and even the one in the middle smiled at the corner of his mouth, already imagining the scene where he would have to step forward and save the life of the King when he was about to be crushed by the might of the strongest Fighter in their sect, and in many ways, in even the whole continent.
As for Bam, he was actually the one who took the most time to get back to his senses, as he couldn't believe that someone had actually said something like this to him. He was typically feared and respected for the fact that he could put even a Champion in the sickbay for months if he wished using a single finger, so this situation was so new that he needed some time to adjust.
As for the man beside him whom he had been talking to before, he looked at Daneel inquisitively but did not give any other reaction and just stepped back, as if to silently witness everything.
Meanwhile, Elanev started to panic a little, as he really didn't want to see his younger brother defeated and humiliated right after arriving at the sect.
Whispering from the corner of his mouth, he said, "Psst… Daneel! What are you doing?"
With a confident smile on his face, Daneel openly said, "What do you think I'm doing? Getting revenge for what happened in Lanthanor, of course. If I leave this guy alone, he'll keep saying stuff like this throughout the time when we are here, and I have no intention of letting that happen. I would rather take the risk to be humiliated once, instead of having to settle for being subjected to it multiple times without even trying to change the situation. So what if he's a Hero level giant? After I settle this, we can have a peaceful time over here."
This made Elanev adopt an even more puzzled expression, as he knew that his younger brother was not someone who would say something like this.
Indeed, they had been pretty humiliated back in Lanthanor, with the giant having its way and doing so much damage before leaving.
Even the message had shown its arrogance, and although it had been clear that it only thought of them as ants, Elanev had not said anything as that was the truth - they were simply Warriors who could be swatted to death with a single movement if this giant wished.
He had assumed that Daneel also felt the same, judging from the reaction that he had seen when he had given him the message.
However, here… Something had caused the tables to turn.
"Just wait and see. This kid is definitely not someone who acts foolishly. If he says that he can beat a Hero in a contest of strength while being just a Warrior, then he'll definitely do so somehow. This should be interesting…"
Hearing this statement from the old man in his head, Elanev relaxed a little bit.
He was just about to take a step back, too, and be a witness, but he decided to do the opposite thing as even he was quite pissed that he was being ignored completely by everyone so far in the sect, when he had actually been expecting some kind of a hero's welcome due to all the hype that had been built by the old man.
So, he stepped forward and shouted, "A giant who's scared? I never thought I'd see the day!"
This finally managed to anger Bam, who had been seriously considering whether he should go forward, as he, too, had been instructed very strictly by his master not to cause harm to their guests.
However… This was a little too much, and he could no longer just sit and allow it to happen.
Standing up, he beat his chest with his fist, resulting in a sonic boom that bent the trees around him due to the shock wave.
'Now this… Is how a Hero should be.'
Musing to himself in this way, Daneel looked at Elanev and wondered whether he should tell him that what he was doing might end up being harmful, as Daneel's plan had a chance of backfiring.
However, after a second, he just shrugged and decided to give it his all and see what would happen.
After this display of strength, Bam simply leaped into the air and disappeared from their sight, which made it look almost as if he had teleported.
However, activating the Basilisk's Breath, Daneel could see that this giant had actually used some sort of technique to conjure a solid block of metal behind him that he had pushed off of to reach a speed that was enough to let him disappear from their eyes.
Boom!
Barely a second after that, it appeared in front of them with menacing eyes that caused its whole atmosphere to change from that of a simpleminded yet strong oaf, to a terrifying beast that was ready to tear apart everything in its way.
Of course… Daneel was not perturbed, but Elanev took a step back unconsciously and gulped.
"Bam is ready. And Bam will be careful not to kill you, as master will be angry with Bam if that happens. What is this arm wrestling?"
Daneel's smile broadened as he heard this, as he had been kind of hoping that this will be the case - that this sport which was popular on Earth would not be known on Angaria, which was something he could use to his advantage.
In response, Daneel decided to explain it in the simplest way - he conjured a clone of himself along with a table on which he set his elbow.
The clone mirrored him, and their hands met, following which a contest of strength occurred with Daneel beating the clone and looking at Bam before saying, "It's a simple as this. Just try to use your arm to make mine hit the table. Don't you agree that it would be enough to check who is stronger? If I can push yours, then it means that all of your strength is for naught. And no rematches, understood? If you lose, just admit it and stop calling me weak."
Although Bam did seem like a child who had been trapped in the Giants body, it looked like he wasn't that dumb. He instantly understood and set his elbow on the wooden table that Daneel had conjured.
Of course… This resulted in the table breaking, and Daneel conjured another, much larger one as Bam's elbow and hand were at least three times larger than his.
It almost looked like a child's hand going up against an adult's, but Daneel wasn't worried.
The giant seemed to have disregarded the latter part of Daneel's statement, as he probably couldn't even imagine a scenario where he would lose.
Of course, Daneel had said that part for the benefit of the spectators, instead of the giant.
Still with that self-assured smile on the corner of his mouth, Daneel stepped forward and caught Bam's hand before flexing his muscles temporarily and putting forward a bit of strength.
Of course, Bam's hand remained unmoving like a rock, which made Daneel understand just how absurd of a situation this was.
"Should I start?"
Well, if anything, at least this giant was polite.
Daneel took a deep breath and prepared himself before looking into the giant's eyes and saying, "On three. Three, two, one…"
Bang!
Suddenly, a large cloud of dust appeared at the spot where the man and the giant were having their contest. The spectators in the area had been watching closely, so when this happened, expressions of irritation appeared on their faces as they began to wait for the dust to clear.
They had been looking forward to hearing a scream of pain, but that hadn't appeared, which made them wonder if the King had been crushed, and that they might be reprimanded for not doing their duty.
Only… After a few seconds, the expression on the face of the man who had been conversing with the giant changed to one of extreme surprise and befuddlement.
Elanev was among those who were unaware of what happened, but the old man spoke up and said, "So that was his plan. Cheeky bastard. But he deserves it. Sometimes, this is the best way to handle a situation."
Elanev didn't understand, but his attention was diverted as he saw that the dust cloud had begun to disappear.
As it finally floated away… His eyes fell upon the scenario which had had the least probability of occurring.
The wooden table was gone- blasted into smithereens, which was partly the reason behind the dust cloud that had also consisted of wood particles.
There was a large indentation on the ground inside which the giant's hand could be seen, half buried in the dirt.
Even Bam had fallen in that direction, as if he had been bowled over by whatever force the King of Lanthanor had pulled out from within himself.
As for Daneel, he was casually dusting his hands, following which he didn't say anything and simply walked back to Elanev's side.
The man in bearskin, who couldn't believe his eyes, raised a finger in Daneel's direction as he sputtered, "Y-You…"
In response, Daneel paused with his back still facing the man and said, "Yes, me. Now, can we get going? I don't have all day."
The man had no idea how to respond, as he couldn't believe what had happened.
As for the other one, he was looking at the giant with a slight hint of panic on his face, and as Elanev noticed this and refocused his attention on Bam, he saw why this was the case.
The giant had gotten up silently, and was now holding the hand that had been smashed into the ground with his other one while he stared at it with disbelief on his face.
His back was shaking, and it soon became clear that this was because of rage, as the eyes of the giant suddenly turned completely red, as if a demon had infested its mind.
"Bam lost. Bam lost. BAM LOST!"
Even Daneel could tell that something was wrong. Quickly turning around, he saw something red that looked like blood appear from the pores on the two hands of the giant, before quickly hardening into some sort of armor that also had a spike on top that was at least half a meter long.
The next second, though, the giant was nowhere to be seen, as a blur approached Daneel, making warning bells ring in his head while the system launched all sorts of subroutines that he had saved for situations where he might be near death.
Daneel had no time to think. His full focus was on surviving the blow that would soon come, but his eyes widened when a calm voice was heard from beside his ear.
"Not bad. Your plan worked. But what was your plan for dealing with this situation?"