Night had fallen on Elbaf, the sun that lingered longer and longer these days as winter was giving way to spring finally had gone to bed. The moon shine its pale blue light down on the large buildings that housed the giants, casting enormous shadows seeming like monsters of myths due to the carved figureheads that adorned the wooden buildings. A tired yawn broke the silence, followed by sluggish footsteps threading through the streets. Almost as tall as some of the buildings, a giant clad in traditional armor and carrying an axe in his right hand, while a buckler was strapped to his left, both hanging lazily down to his sides. Who could blame the guard for being bored? Why would anyone in their right mind attack the legendary Elbaf?
So much for the Pride of Elbaf. More like the Bane of Elbaf... From his hiding spot in the shadows of one of the nearby buildings, stood a giant, smaller than most others, but a giant nonetheless. It was easy for him to slip by unnoticed by the lazy guards, especially with how much darkness he could hide in. He waited until the guard had passed a few hundred feet down the street before rushing across where Oluf, the guard, had just passed through. As he entered the moonlight, a few locks of hair that stuck out from under his black hood that he had wrapped himself in reflected in silver for a moment, before Larsi hastily tucked them away. Stepping into the cover of darkness once more, he relaxed a bit more, and his mind started to wander as his legs carried him further down the quiet street.
Larsi sidestepped the larger boy's strike, slamming his oversized mace into his hand, causing him to cry out as his own mace fell to the ground. With a proud grin, the smaller giant turned towards their mentor, expecting praise for finally succeeding in the training duel. Due to how much smaller he was than the other giants, even younger than him, he had realized he would need to rely on speed to dodge the obviously stronger attacks. However what met him was not praise, but the backside of a hand almost as large as his own torso, smacking across his face and upper body. The force was so great it lifted the not-so-giant boy off his feet, sending him flying through the air before crashing into a stack of shields resting against a nearby wall. Confused, and not just because his head was ringing from the force of the strike, Larsi rose to his unsteady feet. Something warm ran down his cheek. Touching his face, he realized it was his own blood. What the? His eyes quickly found the source of the violence though. Oluf, their mentor only took a few strides to reach him, looming far above the younger and stumped Larsi, his whole demeanor showing great displeasure, even if the boy's gaze didn't currently reach his face. The older giant's voice boomed for all to hear. WHAT SORT OF COWARDICE IS THIS, YOU LITTLE RUNT? THE PRIDE OF ELBAF IS TO MEET YOUR FOE'S ATTACK HEAD ON, TO RECOGNIZE THEIR STRENGTH, THEN OVERCOME IT! SUCH CHEAP TACTICS AS THAT WILL NOT BE ALLOWED!
His mind settling, Larsi realized he had let his mind wander back to his younger days. I need to stay focused tonight, or else I'm likely to get caught before I steal it, let alone escape... But it was easier thought than done, as he would quickly come to realize. After all, he had spent sixty years on this damn island. Coming to another large, open street, he scanned it both up and down for guards. With no one in sight, he hastened his steps, starting the rush across the open, lit path. As he did, his eyes caught sight of a familiar door.
Unable to reach the door handle, Larsi could do nothing but knock on the door. The feeble sound it made on the massive wooden frame barely registered, but still he waited. He heard sounds of joy from the inside as the party seemingly had started. Looking down into his arms, he eyed the birthday present he was holding. Collecting his courage and strength once more, he pounded the door with all his might. The ruckus from inside seemed to settle slightly, and he heard heavy footsteps approach the door. Stepping back to allow the door to open fully, Larsi was soon faced with a boy his age, but more than twice his own height. Tor scanned the area, before finally realizing Larsi was right there before him. Eyes narrowing, he spoke with a voice brimming with distaste. What do you want here, midget? Not knowing what to say, Larsi simply lifted his present up to the much taller boy. Eyeing the present, Tor grabbed it quickly out of his hands. Thanks, now get out of here!
But... Larsi protested, but Tor simply held up the bandaged hand in front of him. I still can't use this hand, thanks to you! Looking at the hand, Larsi's own face turned incredulous. The amount of abuse that the other boy had inflicted upon him far dwarfed whatever small pain this had caused. This was just too unfair, he though, biting back his tears. You have done so much more t- His voice was cut short as the bigger boy thrust his foot into his stomach, lifting Larsi off the ground in a fashion he was all too familiar with by now. Blood sprouted from his mouth upon impact, and his head slammed against the wall across the street, his mind fading as he heard Tor speak once more, before closing the door behind him. That's all you're good for, you punching bag! And look, now you got blood on my nice clothes!
Somehow he had crossed the street safely without being spotted. Leaning up against the wall that he years ago had been thrown against, he could still see the impact that it had made. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes, before opening them again and looking at that damn door. I'll show you what I'm good for, you piece of shit... He couldn't help but mutter under his breath. Gathering himself once more, he once again resumed his trek towards the center of the village. Minutes later he finally reached the Hall of Kings, where Loki resided, and his loot would be found. Outside stood a sole guard. This pride will truly be the end of Elbaf one day... He recognized the guard easily. Harulf stood even taller than Oluf, looming almost to the top of the humongous door he guarded. Upon seeing him, Larsi's mind wandered to a time long after his failed attempt to make amends with Tor.
Tor swung his enormous mace, almost to big for himself towards Larsi, who knew he could not take the attack head on. His eyes quickly passed to Harulf who stood and watched over the two aspiring warriors closely. I have to be careful. He could not allow his mentor to see through his deceit, or it would all be for naught. But it was alright, he had trained in secret for years now, so that they would not be able to.
As the humongous weapon came swinging sideways, it easily engulfed Larsi's body. Leaning towards the attack, letting go of his mace with his left hand. Extending the arm towards the attack, he held his palm open towards it. At the last split second he pulled back, before thrusting it forward, planting his flat hand on the incoming mace, repeating the process multiple times in the span of a split second. With a last thrust, the large weapon came to a halt. With a grin, Larsi turned his head towards Tor once more. The bigger giant looked back with a confused look on his face, though this quickly turned to fear as Larsi leaped forwards, both hands holding his own mace ready to swing.
Stepping out of the cover of the darkness, Larsi pulled the hood from his head, revealing his face to Harulf. He knew he could not sneak past him, as this was the only entrance to the keep, so he had to rely on other tactics. Pretending to stumble his way forwards, Larsi had almost reached him before the tired guard reacted. Oi midget, what are you doing here this time of night? His voice was impatient, but somewhat slurred, as if he was near falling asleep. Well, let's help him with that... The guard gripped his spear, swinging it forward to hover next to Larsi's neck. I said, what are you- That's all he had time to say before Larsi grabbed his spear, pulling the bigger giant forward off his balance, while leaping up to meet him with a fist right at his throat, silencing any plight he had. Landing on his shoulder, he used his momentum to push the giant back against the wall. Making him stand up straight after collapsing would have been hard. Fishing out a rope from within his cloak, he threw it up, attaching it to the figurehead up above, before wrapping the rest around the giant's neck, holding him up, stopping him from slumping any further. Pulling out his knife he made a slit under each of the giant's arms, so that he would not be able to raise them to untie the rope. So much for your pride... Larsi whispered in his ears. Harulf tried to respond, but all that came was gurgling sounds, followed by blood.
Dropping to the ground, he looked at the body that stood before him. To the tired patrols it would just look as if he was leaning on his spear, they probably wouldn't notice until the morning, but by then it would be far too late. Paying him no more heed, Larsi gently opened the large doors, stepping inside, then closed them again. As he stepped inside he was quickly reminded of how much he did not fit in. The ceiling was so far up it seemed unreal, the hallways like huge streets. Seats taller than him. Shaking the thoughts he continued down the hallway towards his goal.
A few minutes later he pushed open a door, with treasures lining the walls, but he didn't care for the gold or jewels. In the middle of the room stood a pedestal on which a single item rested. A fruit. The greatest treasure of Elbaf, promised to the greatest warrior. He couldn't help but chuckle at the thought of their reactions the day after. Unlike any other furniture the pedestal was perfect height for him, as a last ironic twist. His hand grabbed the strange fruit, lifting it up before his face. Putting it in his pocket, Larsi turned around and walked out the door. A few minutes later he exited the large doors again. Next to him Harulf still "stood", though there was no movement anymore, and the ground below him was soaked in a dark, sticky liquid.
Stepping into the cover of the darkness, Larsi disappeared from Elbaf, as would a single small ship, along with the Gura Gura no Mi, discovered after the morning shift found the mutilated corpse of Harulf. Yet as the warriors of Elbaf set out in search of the traitor, they were unable to find any trace of him.
