"Leon," Tilde said.
Just hearing my na like that, spoken softly in the dark, made open my eyes a little wider. By then, night had completely taken over the sky. Whatever faint light the day had left behind was long gone, replaced by a quiet, heavy stillness that wrapped around everything like a thick blanket.
We were resting on a bed so massive it almost felt unreal. Calling it "big" didn’t do it justice. This thing could probably hold twenty people—comfortably—and even then, nobody would be pressed up against anyone else unless they wanted to be. Everyone would still have space to stretch, roll around, and breathe freely. It was the kind of bed that made you question whether you were still dealing with furniture or if it was closer to a small platform.
Even with ria here—soone far larger than any normal human—I didn’t feel even the slightest bit uncomfortable. No stiffness, no awkwardness, no sense of being cramped. If anything, it felt... natural. Comfortable. Almost relaxing in a way that surprised .
Well, considering the owner of this bed, that made sense.
This was a bed made for a titan.
We were currently staying in the room of a giant woman nad Layla—the second child of the King of the Titans. She’d been kind enough to offer us a place to rest, and while I appreciated the hospitality, it was hard not to think that this was a bit much. Actually, calling it "a bit much" was generous. Overkill would’ve been closer to the truth. Still, I wasn’t about to complain. A warm bed was a warm bed, no matter the scale.
As I lay there on my back, staring up at the high ceiling that felt miles away, Tilde shifted closer and gently rested her head against my chest. Her movents were careful, almost hesitant, as if she didn’t want to disturb . On my other side, ria was already asleep. Her breathing was slow and steady, deep enough that I could tell she was completely out.
I turned my head slightly toward Tilde.
"What is it?" I asked.
She didn’t answer right away. For a few seconds, she just stayed there, listening to my heartbeat beneath her ear. Then she spoke.
"Nothing," she said quietly. After that, there was a pause—long enough that I knew there was more. "It’s just that... you really seem willing to take this on."
Her voice was calm, but there was sothing heavy underneath it, like she was carrying mories she didn’t like revisiting.
"I’ve known about this curse for a long ti," she continued. "Many of my people suffered from it too. I’ve seen it happen more tis than I’d like to admit."
She shifted slightly, her fingers curling against the fabric of my clothes.
"Up until now," she went on, "it always felt impossible to even think about curing them. We couldn’t do anything. No matter what we tried, it never worked. And in the end..." Her voice softened. "They just died like that."
I exhaled slowly.
Eternal Sleep really was a terrifying disease. It wasn’t dramatic or violent. It didn’t give you a chance to fight back. Once it took hold, that was it. Even giants—beings with overwhelming strength and vitality—weren’t spared. It didn’t matter what race you were, how strong your body was, or how powerful your magic might be. Eternal Sleep treated everyone the sa.
Strong or weak, king or commoner—it claid them all.
It was dangerous, cruel, and absolutely unforgiving. Sothing that demanded attention whether people wanted to acknowledge it or not. In theory, even I wasn’t immune to it. Though, given certain... unusual circumstances, I doubted it could really take . After all, it turned out that my sen alone was enough to wake soone from it. Not exactly sothing I ever expected to learn about myself, but here we were.
"Well," I said at last, breaking the silence, "we’ve already developed a dicine for it."
Tilde imdiately lifted her head from my chest, her eyes widening.
"Really?" she said. The shock on her face was obvious, completely unfiltered.
I couldn’t bla her. I hadn’t told her about this before. As far as she knew, Eternal Sleep was still a death sentence.
"Yeah," I replied.
It was true. We had already created a treatnt. Not a theory, not a hopeful experint—a real, working cure. We’d tested it on soone who had already fallen into Eternal Sleep, and it worked. She woke up. She recovered. She went back to her family and started living her life again like nothing had ever happened.
That said, there was a catch.
She was a normal person.
I had no idea if the sa treatnt would work the sa way on titans. Their bodies were different—bigger, stronger, more complex. I didn’t know if the dosage would scale the sa way, or if I’d need sothing completely different. And honestly, I didn’t even want to think about how much sen I’d need to produce if curing titans required more of it.
"I don’t know if it’ll work the sa way for them," I said honestly. "That part’s still uncertain."
Tilde’s expression softened, but she listened carefully.
"But," I added, "it’s not like I can just sit back and let this happen."
That part, at least, I was sure about.
The titans weren’t just victims—they were potential allies. Powerful ones. Their raw physical strength alone was terrifying, and on top of that, they were capable of using magic. If they wanted to, they could wipe out entire kingdoms without breaking a sweat. Anyone with even half a brain would recognize their value.
I reached over to the side and grabbed my phone.
Thankfully, there was a signal here. That alone felt strange, considering where we were, but I wasn’t about to question it.
There were two people I needed to contact—people who had already proven themselves capable. They’d helped make the cure possible the first ti. I trusted them. This situation was bigger, more complicated, and riskier than before, but if anyone could handle it, it was them.
I pressed the call button.
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