TL: Tsubak
ED: Julsmul
Long ago, when the Great War was about to end–
The spinning wheel that was at the center of the residence of the three sisters started to spin.
The finely made threads of fate let them take a peek at the fate of the world.
Uld, who grabbed at the thread with her long and slender fingers, had said,
“The fates of the three children of Loki are connected to the ones that will decide the fate of Asgard.”
Verdandi nodded while making a new thread and read it down. The fate of the World Wolf was connected to the fate of the King of Gods, Odin.
The fate of the Space Snake, Jormungand, was connected with the strongest God, Thor.
Skuld frowned.
No matter how she looked at it, it wasn’t good.
Cases like these, where the fates of different people were connected to each other, happened occasionally.
It was easy to think about the connection a couple had, but there were much more different cases than that. And if it was a destiny that the thread of fate showed, then it certainly wouldn’t be normal.
A best friend, a nasty foe, someone living a similar life, a relationship that changes when they meet each other, an existence that can become a milestone for another, etcetera.
But the ties that the children of Loki had with the Gods of Asgard were the worst of the worst.
Mortal enemies, and in a one-sided way.
The World Wolf was Odin’s doom. It was a terrible existence that could turn Odin into dog food.
And the Space Snake was the doom for Thor. Thor had a strong vitality that could defeat all kinds of giants and monsters and was resistant to all kinds of poisons, but he couldn’t endure the poison of the Space Snake.
Odin and Thor were both important existences for Asgard. As they were the King of Gods and the strongest God, respectively, if either one of them disappeared, Asgard could be stumbled by the threat the giants posed.
“Loki’s last child.”
Uld said. And Verdandi read the thread of fate once again.
Hela was also connected with someone from Asgard. But it wasn’t possible to know with who.
“He still hasn’t arrived. He will come in the future.”
It was Skuld’s area, but even she couldn’t grasp who was connected by fate with Hela.
She couldn’t know what kind of fate it would be as she didn’t even know the adversary. Not even Uld, who had read the threads of fate for a long time, knew. She could barely read that it was only a different kind of fate.
But she was certain of one thing aside of that.
“The one that’s connected by fate with Hela will decide the future of Asgard.”
Just like Odin and Thor did.
Uld grabbed the thread of fate. Verdandi raised her head and looked at Skuld.
Skuld received the gazes of her sisters and changed her point of view.
She saw beyond the concept that the World Wolf and the Space Snake were enemies and the Queen of the Dead was an ally and looked at the line above that.
The children of Loki were telling them.
The ones that would decide the fate of Asgard.
The King of Gods, Odin, was the past of Asgard.
The God of Thunder was Asgard’s present.
What Hela pointed at was the future of Asgard. The existence that would bring forth the future.
The one that hadn’t arrived yet.
But the one that will one day arrive.
Skuld untied the threads of fate like she always did.
Uld spun the spinning wheel once again and slowly made a new thread of fate.
—
“We arrived.”
Tae Ho got a hold of himself when Odin called for him with a low voice. He saw a green hill in front of him when he opened his eyes.
“We are at a place not too far away from the lake of Elidi.”
Odin wore a long hat and a cape. A flock of crows were flying towards him as if welcoming him.
“The air here is good. It’s fresh,”
Nidhogg sniffed and said. The air here couldn’t be compared to the roots that was covered by a dense fog and the poisonous fog she made.
Tae Ho stroked her head and then looked at his surroundings. He had spent some time in this place when he last visited Midgard, but it was merely that so he couldn’t quite pinpoint where he was at.
‘Odin should know the path if that’s what you are thinking about.’
Odin was also the God of the Wanderers. Because of that, he could know all of the paths of Midgard as if they were lines in the palm of his hand.
In addition, a flock of crows was approaching. They would transmit the information they had to Odin.
Tae Ho wasn’t the one that should have been thinking about where they should go or where they were at just like Cuchulainn had said. Because of that, Tae Ho thought about a problem he could solve himself.
“Good, I have decided.”
“What?”
Nidhogg tilted her head and asked. Tae Ho smiled towards her instead of answering and then took out a summoning rock.
He would summon Adenmaha.
It was impossible to do that when he was at the roots because of the severance.
He hadn’t summoned her since he got out of the roots because he’d thought that she would be in Valhalla, but that wasn’t something he could be sure of. He would be able to summon Adenmaha if she remained in Midgard just like the warriors that couldn’t leave it.
‘What if she’s taking a shower?’
Cuchulainn laughed creepily, and Tae Ho shook his head. But still, his worry about the summoning not working was solved to an extent. Cuchulainn would have also probably said it to ease his nervousness.
‘I’m looking forward to it. Do it quickly. She would have finished clothing herself at this pace.’
Cuchulainn breathed out from his nose and said. It was sincerity itself.
‘H-He should be joking. He should have joked to make me feel more relaxed.’
Tae Ho consoled himself and then took a deep breath and inserted magic power to his summoning rock. He then called the name he grieved with a trembling voice.
“Adenmaha.”
Someone responded to his call. Adenmaha appeared while washing herself and showing her white skin as the space folded around her.
Exactly one second after–
Adenmaha blinked.
And after another second–
“Kyaak?!”
Adenmaha screamed, and Cuchulainn cheered.
‘Ohh! It was real!’
He had just said it casually, but for her to really be showering….
Tae Ho was horrified while Cuchulainn felt joy, and Adenmaha felt even more perplexed at the fact that she had gotten summoned.
“Ma…Master?!”
Adenmaha looked at Tae Ho and opened her eyes widely. She closed her eyes and then tears started to fall down from her eyes.
“Master!”
Adenmaha threw herself towards Tae Ho. She grabbed him by his neck and burst out of laughter.
“W-Wait! Clothes! Wear some clothes first!”
“Uwaa! Master!”
But Adenmaha just cried as if she couldn’t hear him. She didn’t let go Tae Ho in fear that he may leave.
And in the end, Tae Ho’s eyes also reddened. He embraced the shoulders of Adenmaha that was crying sorrowfully.
“Right, right Adenmaha. You were safe. Safe.”
“I….I was….really worr- worried.”
Adenmaha sobbed and spoke. Her pronunciation was a mess as she was burying her face in Tae Ho’s chest, but she didn’t mind about that one bit.
Tae Ho patted her back. He hugged her tightly so that the frail and small Adenmaha could calm down.
“I was also worried, Adenmaha.”
“I-I really thought that you were dead…….uwaa!”
She had barely calmed down a little, but she then burst out in happiness once more. They weren’t tears of sorrow or surprise, but tears of joy.
“It’s fine. It’s fine.”
Tae Ho also grew relieved. Just like Adenmaha was worried about Tae Ho’s survival, Tae Ho had also worried about her.
He was thankful that she was healthy without being injured.
And after some time passed–
Adenmaha barely managed to stop crying and then activated a mystical magic while still burying her flushed face in Tae Ho’s chest. And then, the uniform of a Valkyrie that had the symbol of Idun engraved in it appeared over her instead of the sky blue dress she enjoyed wearing.
After some more seconds passed, Adenmaha managed to calm down her excitement a little bit, and only then did she put off her face from Tae Ho’s chest. But she still looked up at him while hanging on to him.
“But master….”
Her eyes were still teary, but it only lasted a moment, and her voice and eyes were rather sharp.
“Yes?”
Adenmaha’s eyes sharpened even more, and Tae Ho answered with a nervous voice unconsciously. She turned to look at Nidhogg that was still grabbing on Tae Ho’s clothes.
“Who is that? The one that’s grabbing your arm.”
It bothered her. Precisely speaking, if Adenmaha’s intuition was right, she was of a dragon race, was female, and a formidably dangerous existence.
Nidhogg flinched at Adenmaha’s gaze and then said while stuttering,
“I-I’m Nidhogg. I’m the dragon of Tae Ho master.”
“Tae Ho….mas…ter?”
Adenmaha turned to look at Tae Ho once again. He gulped dry saliva unconsciously, and Nidhogg continued speaking innocently.
“Yes, yes. Tae Ho master. Nidhogg is the dragon of Tae Ho master.”
Adenmaha let out a long sigh.
How worried was she for the past fifteen days.
She was begging that he would be alive.
“Explain this.”
A forced, polite way of speaking came out after a long while.
Her tone scared Tae Ho. It wasn’t entirely appropriate, but he could only feel that way.
“No, so the thing is–”
“Tae Ho master. She’s scary.”
Nidhogg’s mumble was like pouring oil over a fire. No, it felt like pouring cold water on fire.
Adenmaha’s gaze became cold, and Tae Ho started to explain what had happened the past fifteen days.
‘I’m sorry, Odin.’
Cuchulainn, who materialized thanks to Odin’s magic, spoke towards Odin spindly. Whatever the case, this wasn’t something they should show the King of Gods.
But Odin smirked as if he didn’t mind.
“No, let’s keep watching. We have to wait for the information from the crows anyways. It’s also rather fun.”
The crows were still gathering by bringing information even now. Actually, the group also had to ask Adenmaha what had happened the past fifteen days, but right now, Tae Ho should be thinking about the peace in his family just like he always emphasized.
“So the thing is….”
Tae Ho started speaking, and Adenmaha listened to his story while shutting her mouth.
—
“So, putting it briefly, you got sent to the roots of the World Tree because the teleportation magic exploded, and you seduced Nidhogg that was trapped in the roots her entire life to get out of the roots?”
Adenmaha summarized the story just by grabbing the most important points after listening to Tae Ho’s story.
But Tae Ho had some complaints about it.
“….I feel like you are misleading things.”
“Anyways.”
Adenmaha crossed her arms as if blocking Tae Ho’s complaints like she had no thoughts of listening to him and then turned to look at Nidhogg who was still grabbing his clothes.
“Hm.”
The black dragon, Nidhogg.
Adenmaha came from Erin, but she had still heard that name. She had heard a brief explanation about her in Idun’s residence while studying to become a Valkyrie.
The ancient dragon that has existed alongside the World Tree.
It didn’t seem to be an overwhelming and evil existence like she heard in stories, but still, there was one point in common.
An existence that had been trapped in the roots for more than a thousand years.
‘How poor.’
Adenmaha felt compassion for Nidhogg, who was aware of her. Because of that, she said with a gentle face and expression, completely different to the one she had shown until now,
“I’m called Adenmaha. You said that you also wanted to become Idun’s Valkyrie, right?”
“Yes yes. I will become Idun-nim’s Valkyrie.”
She was still Odin’s Valkyrie, but she was thinking of moving to Idun’s legion as her Valkyrie after she entered Valhalla. And actually, she had already received permission from Odin.
Adenmaha nodded.
“Right, then I will be your senior. I’m master’s first dragon, so I’m a senior in both regards.”
‘But a sea serpent isn’t a dragon.’
Cuchulainn criticized from behind, but Tae Ho and even Adenmaha ignored him.
Nidhogg smiled brightly.
“Yes yes. Adenmaha is my senior. Nidhogg’s senior. Hehehe.”
It was a face that she was really happy that she had gotten a senior.
Adenmaha, who felt compassionate once again, stood on her toes to stroke the head of Nidhogg as she was bigger than her and then spoke to Tae Ho.
“Didn’t you seduce a really pure kid?”
Tae Ho just smiled bitterly as he had given up on defending himself, and Adenmaha turned to look at Nidhogg once again.
“First, let go of master’s arm. You can’t keep holding him like that.”
“Then I want to embrace you.”
“What?”
Nidhogg moved quickly even before she could react. As she covered the small Adenmaha that was about 10 centimeters shorter than her, Adenmaha had no means to dodge her.
“You are softer than Tae Ho master. Squishy. Feels good.”
“M-Master?”
Adenmaha called out to Tae Ho, but it had no meaning. Nidhogg embraced Adenmaha more tightly and said,
“Tae Ho master likes Adenmaha a lot. That’s why I will also like Adenmaha. I saw Adenmaha a lot in Tae Ho master’s memories.”
Nidhogg spoke casually, but that became the decisive blow.
“Hm, well. It’s unavoidable.”
Adenmaha flushed when she heard that Tae Ho liked her and snorted, but she smiled like a fool and hugged back Nidhogg, who was putting a vague expression.
‘I thought that Nidhogg was the most pushover being…..but I think it actually was Adenmaha.’
Cuchulainn criticized precisely like usual.
Tae Ho thought that it was more of a rock, paper, scissors relationship, but whatever the case, he stayed silent as their relationship was good.
And finally, Odin opened his mouth.
“It seems like it has become somewhat organized.”
There were already several crows gathered near him. Tae Ho, who’d gotten a hold of himself, faced Odin with an embarrassed face, and Adenmaha also turned towards Odin while still holding on Nidhogg.
“Let’s start the conversation.”
About the things that had happened in Midgard the past fifteen days.
Odin started to speak ahead of Adenmaha.
< Episode 40 – Idun’s Valkyrie (1) > End
///////
TL: Tsubak
ED: Julsmul
“Um… but who are you?”
Adenmaha asked carefully when Odin was about to speak.
She knew that it was rude, but she had still asked because she thought that she wouldn’t have the chance to ask when he started to speak for real.
And right now, Odin had the appearance of a wanderer while wearing a long hat and a cape. The Gods of Asgard would immediately recognize him as being Odin, but that wasn’t the case for Adenmaha, who was from Erin.
In addition, Odin had hidden his strong divine power that emanated out naturally.
The ones that were surprised at Adenmaha’s question were Tae Ho and Cuchulainn. Tae Ho hurriedly stood in front of Adenmaha and begged for forgiveness.
“I’m sorry, I was taken aback with the reencounter……this is Idun’s Valkyrie, Adenmaha. Adenmaha, this is Odin-nim.”
The King of Gods, Odin.
Adenmaha’s eyes dimmed and at the same time she cursed at herself. She would have been able to know who was the one in front of her just by rolling her head a bit.
It was because the only one that had disappeared along with Tae Ho inside the mouth of the World Wolf was Odin.
“Idun’s Valkyrie, Adenmaha, greets the King of Gods.”
Adenmaha expressed etiquette calmly even though she’d gotten surprised. She placed her fist on her chest like a Valkyrie and bowed, and her movements were trim and beautiful.
Nidhogg looked at that Adenmaha and imitated her movements from a corner. It was because she thought that she should also know how to do that as she was a Valkyrie as well.
While everyone was nervous excluding Nidhogg, Odin put on a warm smile and nodded.
“I’m Odin, nice to meet you. Don’t mind it too much as everyone would have been busy in this situation. I also tried to continue talking too quickly.”
He was speaking to Tae Ho and also Adenmaha. It was because originally, Tae Ho should have been the one that should have introduced them.
“Thank you.”
Tae Ho and Adenmaha expressed etiquette at the same time. Odin smiled warmly once again when she saw Nidhogg imitating Adenmaha once again from the back.
“Then, let’s return to the topic.”
Odin fixed his expression and changed places for them to have a conversation. He stepped back a bit and then sat down in a place that seemed comfortable. Tae Ho sat first at Odin’s hand gesture, and Adenmaha sat beside him. Nidhogg tried to sit opposite of Adenmaha– so to say, at the right of Tae Ho, but that wasn’t possible. It was because Adenmaha made her seat next to her.
Cuchulainn opened his eyes widely and snickered at Adenmaha embracing Nidhogg and then sat down next to Tae Ho where Nidhogg was originally planning to sit at.
Odin finally started to speak.
“The Magician King has damaged the core of the World Tree and created a disturbance in Asgard. If it helps, please think of it as a huge-scaled earthquake.”
A miniaturized mold of Asgard and Midgard appeared while Odin explained. Asgard’s mold got swept by the big earthquake and the terrain itself changed.
“This catastrophe didn’t only affect Asgard but also Midgard. Natural disasters like earthquakes, tsunamis, and hailstorms are occurring everywhere.”
A change occurred in the mold of Midgard. The change was smaller than Asgard’s but it was only a rough comparison. It was really a great natural disaster.
The people gathered in this place felt complicated thoughts when thinking about how many people died by being swept up in the natural disasters.
“Originally, I was planning to drive away the giants from Midgard to some extent and then recall the strongest warriors to Valhalla through the doors that were made previously, but the plan changed.”
Odin had lost the fight against the Magician King, and due to natural disasters created by the Magician King, Valhalla had to be sealed up.
“I don’t know if Freya sealed up Valhalla first or if she completed the Great Barrier first……but the warriors are still isolated in Midgard, and that’s the same for the giants and evil spirits. It seems like Freya thought of a situation where the isolated warriors had defeated the remaining giants and evil spirits, but they wouldn’t be able to send additional reinforcements if they sealed up Valhalla. Therefore, she must have thought that this was the best method to protect the humans of Midgard.”
Odin thought that it was the right decision.
If Freya hadn’t completed the Great Barrier, then Midgard would be facing the same fate as Erin in this moment.
A world that gets destroyed because of the indiscriminate attacks of the giants and evil spirits.
Cuchulainn’s expression wasn’t particularly good after hearing Odin’s story. It was clear he was thinking of what’d happened in Erin.
Odin continued explaining.
“There were also some superior-ranked warriors among the dispatched warriors, so it seems like the warriors are gathering with them as the center. They didn’t gather at one place as they were scattered all over the world, but if you see the big picture, there are currently five groups in service.”
Five red dots appeared in the mold of Midgard.
Odin asked Adenmaha,
“Adenmaha, I remember that you were in the place of the last battle. Can you tell me what happened?”
“Idun’s Valkyrie, Adenmaha, will start speaking.”
Odin revealed a bemused expression as Adenmaha expressed etiquette in a really polite manner.
“There’s no need to be so formal. You can just think that you are speaking to your master.”
Adenmaha seemed to hesitate at Odin’s permission, but she then nodded. She grabbed Tae Ho’s hand and started speaking.
“After Odin-nim and master disappeared…..a lot of things happened at the same time.”
Adenmaha closed her eyes for a moment and thought of that time. It was already a thing of the past, but her hands still trembled and her heart beat at the thought.
“After I transformed into a sea serpent, I took Merlin and fled uncontrollably. As for Ragnar-nim and the superior-ranked warriors…..I honestly don’t know. The World Wolf ran wild, and the Magician King used several strong magics in consecution….so it felt like the entire world was shaking.”
She couldn’t remember well after Tae Ho had gotten eaten. She just remembered that she had cried and screamed.
If it wasn’t for Merlin, she would have lost her life while attacking the World Wolf.
“I turned back to look at the island after I barely managed to land on the coast, but the sky, the island, and everything else was silent as if all of that fuss had been a lie. But after that, the howl of the World Wolf rang loudly, and just like you’ve said, natural disasters started to occur.”
“How was his howl?”
“Anger…..It was filled with an extreme anger. It gave the feeling that it couldn’t control its rage.”
Adenmaha’s breathing became rough by its own accord. Tae Ho grabbed her hand tightly, and it seemed like it took effect that Adenmaha conjured a smile even though it was hard on her. Nidhogg embraced Adenmaha tighter unconsciously. It was because she felt that she had to.
While Adenmaha stroked Nidhogg’s hair unavoidably, Odin and Tae Ho thought of the same thing.
Perhaps, Ragnar and Loki were still alive.
Maybe the World Wolf ended up howling in rage because it couldn’t get them.
Actually, it was more probable for that person to be Loki, but Tae Ho still thought that Ragnar had lived if Loki had as well. He wanted to think that way.
“After we fled to the closest village with Merlin, the busy days came once again, but we were able to rescue the people of the village thanks to Merlin’s magic.”
Adenmaha closed her eyes and thought of what happened that day. Emotions started to surge up by their own.
“I also thought about…..dying. It seemed like the world would be destroyed once again, and even master passed away……”
Adenmaha had already experienced the destruction of Erin. She didn’t want to see the destruction of another world once again.
On top of that, the fact that Tae Ho had died had left her stupefied, so she didn’t even think about wanting to live anymore.
“Adenmaha.”
Tae Ho pulled her hand and spoke softly, and Adenmaha smiled brightly while her eyes got teary.
“It was only for a moment. People that are alive have to keep on living.”
That wasn’t the truth as she had even injured herself. If Merlin hadn’t stopped her, something irreversible could have really occurred.
Nidhogg embraced Adenmaha once again, and Adenmaha snorted because she was heavy but hugged her back as she didn’t dislike it. She calmed down herself for a moment and continued speaking.
“The natural disasters didn’t keep on for long. It stopped after about two days, and when the Great Barrier was reformed, it got rather peaceful.”
The Magician King would have left Midgard alongside the World Wolf after destroying the core of the World Tree. It wasn’t that he didn’t know that Freya was setting up the Great Barrier and actually he didn’t have any more business left in Midgard.
“Merlin and I then decided to look for Bracky and Siri at the time, and fortunately enough, we were able to find their traces because both of them are famous.”
Adenmaha smiled merrily as if she wanted to lighten up the mood.
Certainly enough, just by looking at popularity, Bracky could beat most of the superior-ranked warriors easily. In addition, Siri had also become quite famous because of the continued expeditions in Midgard.
‘Did you regroup with them?’
Adenmaha shook her head at Cuchulainn’s question.
“Not yet. We were on our way to look for them, and based on the rumors, it seems like there are several Valkyries near them.”
“Rasgrid.”
Tae Ho said reflexively, and Adenmaha nodded.
In the first place, regrouping with Rasgrid’s group was Bracky’s and Siri’s first task.
Tae Ho started to think about the ones that would be together with Bracky and Siri. Names and faces of the ones he missed started to pop up.
Rasgrid and Reginleif.
Ingrid and Gandur.
Harabal and his comrades of Valhalla.
And among them, he wanted to especially see Bracky and Siri. It had been 2 years for him as he hadn’t been able to see them since he’d entered the Tower of Shadows.
“Now that I see, Merlin would be worried about me…..Will he think that I’m still taking a shower…….?”
Adenmaha mumbled in a low voice.
Cuchulainn put on a satisfied smile when he thought of the nude Adenmaha that had appeared at Tae Ho’s call, but then he asked her,
‘We are currently near the lake of Elidi. Where have you been?’
“Kataron.”
“Kataron?”
The one that reacted was Tae Ho. Adenmaha nodded and started to explain.
“Merlin wanted to go there, and if you are worried about King Ivar, he’s fine. Merlin also told him about Princess Helga.”
She had passed away before Tae Ho went to rescue Odin. As Valhalla was sealed and the Great Barrier was recreated after that, she would have probably reached Idun’s residence safely.
“I heard your story well. Then, I will start speaking again.”
Everyone concentrated on Odin. He opened his mouth as Nidhogg gulped dry saliva with a nervous face.
“There are still quite a lot of giants and evil spirits left in Midgard. Just like I told you before, the groups that have the superior-ranked warriors as its center are fighting against them.”
The five dots were still shining over the mold of Midgard.
“Our first objective is to gather the warriors together. And of course, we should also take care of the giants and evil spirits that assented in Midgard. But there’s one thing that is more important than that.”
The reason they had come to Midgard was to acquire a force mighty enough to take back Asgard.
The army of the dead that was prepared in Niflheim was numerous, but it was only that. Their individual battle power couldn’t be compared to the warriors of Valhalla at all.
Still, there were exceptions like Galeon.
He was a skilled warrior that ranked at the top even among the intermediate-ranked warriors.
But he was the strongest warrior of Niflheim. And although this sounded too harsh, it also meant that the strongest warrior of Niflheim only amounted to an intermediate rank.
They needed strong warriors that could face the giants on their own.
As the intermediate and superior-ranked warriors that had gotten dispatched to Midgard were all elites, they would surely become a great force to reckon if they managed to gather them.
This was Odin’s first plan.
But another thought had befallen his mind.
The trigger of it was the battle in Niflheim.
“There’s a high probability that the Magician King doesn’t know that we are alive. It’s not easy to open up a path to Niflheim now that Midgard’s been sealed, and the force the Striking King was leading was quite big. It will be easy to think of it as a huge scaled expedition team that’d gotten dispatched at a far away place.”
In addition, Tae Ho had destroyed the door to jump through space. The remaining forces couldn’t even return to Jotunheim.
“The situation in Midgard will also not enter their ears as it is currently sealed.”
This meant that there was a high chance for the giants not to notice even if they gathered up their forces in Midgard blatantly.
“But this doesn’t mean that we have unlimited time. If the Striking King remains absent for too long, the Magician King will start to question whether or not something had happened in Niflheim. Even if it will be hard to dispatch another huge scaled force, he would still be able to dispatch a small number.”
The Striking King and the Magician King didn’t have a good relationship. The Magician King would probably think that Hrumbak was being lazy with his report the first few days.
“I think that we have to finish taking preparations before that happens. The time I estimated is about a week.”
It was better than having no time at all, but it was still short.
Odin started to speak a bit faster.
“I don’t think he will realize that the black dragon is Nidhogg. He also knows how big the body of Nidhogg is and also knows that it can’t pass through the roots.”
In addition, it was widely known that Nidhogg was an evil and wicked dragon.
He would think that there would be no way for it to side with Asgard.
“Because of that, Nidhogg may be able to become our trump card, albeit an imperfect one. If their spies infiltrate our forces too deeply, information may travel of a black dragon having allied with Asgard, although they probably wouldn’t realize that it’s Nidhogg. By then, the Magician King will probably take some countermeasures.”
They were in a situation where they couldn’t use Nidhogg’s real body, so they would also come up with countermeasures however they could.
The trump card had some flaws just like they had said previously.
Odin stopped talking for a moment. He closed his only eye and thought of what happened the last fifteen days.
“In the battle at the island of the World Tree…..I feel at the face of the unexpected card that is the World Wolf. We also need a variable like that. A variable that can become a strong force for us, one that the Magician King didn’t and couldn’t expect.”
Nidhogg alone wasn’t enough.
They needed one more.
They could become certain of it at the battle in Niflheim.
“The King of Birds, Hraesvelg.”
The enemy of the black dragon, Nidhogg.
The white eagle that lived in the highest branch of the World Tree.
“We need it’s strength.”
< Episode 40 – Idun’s Valkyrie (2) > End
/////
TL: Tsubak
ED: Julsmul
Nidhogg flinched at the name of Hraesvelg and then blinked with eyes filled with expectation and fear.
Cuchulainn opened his mouth carefully.
‘Odin, Hraesvelg will certainly become a great strength against the giants if we do obtain its strength; however…I know that it’s rude to ask this, but do you have any methods to convince or make it submit? Tae Ho’s saga does work on any monster he can ride, but it’s at its strongest only against dragons.’
“I know that. It’s proven that Nidhogg was a special case.”
Actually, regardless of the saga being the ‘One that Controls Dragons’, it was impossible to make an ancient dragon submit.
However, the reason Tae Ho was able to achieve that was thanks to Nidhogg.
Nidhogg didn’t resist to Tae Ho at all. She rather assisted earnestly so that Tae Ho could take control over her more easily.
It wasn’t guaranteed that Hraesvelg would act like Nidhogg. No, it was much more probable that it wouldn’t act like Nidhogg at all.
In addition, the ‘One that Controls Dragons’ was specialized on controlling dragons, just like the name implied.
In the case of Nidhogg, he would have been able to control her to some extent even without her consent, but it was different for Hraesvelg .
It was unknown how much Tae Ho’s saga would work on Hraesvelg, that wasn’t a dragon.
Because of that, it wasn’t enough with only Tae Ho’s saga. They needed a new method to suppress it.
“I do have a method to gain its cooperation.”
Odin spoke directly and then pointed at the sky.
“Compared to Nidhogg, Hraesvelg isn’t alone, and the highest branch isn’t a restricted area like the roots. It’s just hard to get there.”
The highest branch was located at the highest part of the World Tree. Just like it was hard to approach the fog zone near the roots, it was as hard to get to the highest branch.
But just like Odin had said, it was merely difficult and not impossible.
“I did meet Hraesvelg a few times before. Compared to Nidhogg that was hidden in a veil, I know quite a lot of things about it compared to her.”
Nidhogg blushed as she was embarrassed at the word ‘hidden in a veil’.
Odin let out a laughter when he saw that and said with a soft face,
“I’m planning on proposing a victory to it.”
‘Are you speaking about……a duel?’
“That’s right. It likes making bets as much as it likes eating food. In addition, it’s prideful and arrogant. I have something it desired since a long time ago, so if I put that at stake and bet its cooperation, I’m sure it will agree.”
‘Indeed. I understand what you are saying.’
Cuchulainn nodded slowly.
If it had the temperament Odin had described, there was a high probability it would agree to cooperate to keep its word.
Odin turned to look at Tae Ho.
“Idun’s warrior, you are the one that has the biggest chances among the ones that can battle against it. I will request this as the King of Gods and the owner of Valhalla — will you be able to attain victory for me?”
There were some superior-ranked warriors among the ones that’d gotten dispatched to Midgard, but just by looking at how strong they were, Tae Ho was the best. As he now had the runes he’d obtained from defeating Hrumbak, Tae Ho was a powerful person whose strength exceeded the average of most superior-ranked warriors.
Adenmaha and Nidhogg put uneasy expressions when they heard that Tae Ho had to win against Hraesvelg, but Tae Ho nodded calmly. It was because he knew that he had the best chances just like Odin had said.
“I will work hard to achieve victory.”
Odin put on a smile of both guilt and satisfaction.
“Thank you. I keep saying this, but if we do recapture Valhalla, I will grant you a big reward befitting your merits.”
“I will be looking forward to it.”
Odin felt leisure as Tae Ho’s answer was really easy going. He turned to look at everyone and said,
“The reason we passed by Midgard is to check the situation of the warriors and to see if there’s someone that can gather me in my stead. And it should be enough with Reginleif and Rasgrid. I think that we will be able to go to the highest branch after we see their faces.”
Odin paused for a moment and rolled his fingers. Then, one of the spots that was drawn in the map started to emanate a particularly strong light.
“Rasgrid isn’t that far away from Kataron right now. I will also send a crow to her and tell her to come here, so at most, we will be able to regroup with her tomorrow…..or in two days.”
The main point of the plan was to go to Niflheim after regrouping with Rasgrid to do some maintenance on their forces and then go to the highest branch by having Ratatoskr lead the way.
As the conversation conclude to an extent and they got ready to depart to Kataron, Adenmaha grew aware of her surroundings and pulled on Tae Ho’s arm and said in a low voice,
“Um, master. I have something to tell you before we depart.”
“What is it?”
“Try summoning Rolo.”
“Rolo?”
Adenmaha spoke with a serious expression as Tae Ho tilted his head and asked back.
“There’s something I decided with Heda when you were training in the Tower of Shadows. That if something happens to the residence or to Valhalla and the connection with Idun-nim gets cut off, you should summon Rolo outside and make him send the last message.”
It was a kind of an emergency call.
Tae Ho stayed silent instead of answering Adenmaha. There was a high chance Idun thought that Tae Ho was dead as he had ‘Idun’s Warrior’ activated during the fight against the World Wolf, but he’d felt nothing.
“I will try.”
Tae Ho took out a summoning rock and inserted magic power into it.
“Rolo.”
The moment he spoke in a low voice, space opened up. Rolo showed up while biting the meat of a monster with its beak.
“Rolo!”
Tae Ho yelled in joy, but Rolo wasn’t as glad as he was with Adenmaha. He looked at Tae Ho with eyes as if asking how he’d possibly been able to call him and then gulped down the meat he was grasping.
And it was then–
“Rolo!”
Rolo hurriedly turned his head when Adenmaha yelled. He opened his eyes widely and ran towards her.
“Kyak! It tickles!”
Adenmaha started to giggle when she got pushed down by Rolo. Rolo moved his tongue and licked Adenmaha’s cheek on top of her. His actions really resembled a dog greeting its owner.
‘Hey, why does it seem that he’s more affectionate towards Adenmaha?’
Cuchulainn pointed out the fact that didn’t need to be said out loud and laughed.
Tae Ho looked at Rolo and Adenmaha with an absurd face, and Adenmaha said while pushing back Rolo’s face,
“It’s because he got called when he was eating. He’s wondering why you only ever call him when he’s eating.”
“Tell him that the time he eats is weird.”
This wasn’t particularly the time to eat anyways.
But of course, it was doubtful if wild monsters had a determined meal time like humans had, but whatever the case, he still wanted to say something towards him.
Adenmaha giggled as if Tae Ho was cute and then started to inspect the place near Rolo’s neck. Rolo lowered his head to help Adenmaha and then growled something in a low tone.
“Master, Rolo says that he has a letter from Heda.”
Not long after, they could discover a letter that was sealed with wax that was hanging in the necklace in Rolo’s neck.
Tae Ho put on a complicated expression when he saw the symbol of a golden apple engraved in the letter, but it only lasted a moment. He soon fixed his expression and opened the letter.
On the other hand, Adenmaha, who stood beside Tae Ho, looked over him. A presence seemed to have changed. It was that Nidhogg was looking at Tae Ho with a stiff expression.
“What’s wrong?”
It had only been an hour since she’d met Nidhogg, but she could know that the expression she was putting right now didn’t suit to her usual self.
Nidhogg frowned as if it was hard to explain and then stuttered,
“Tae Ho master likes Heda a lot. I also like her because master likes her but…. I feel stifled because master likes her too much. I can’t……beat her. Yes, I don’t know if the expression is correct, but I don’t think I will be able to beat her. That’s why I feel like this.”
Nidhogg put on a teary face and Adenmaha let out a long sigh as she knew how she was feeling really well. Again, it only lasted for a moment. She pinched Nidhogg’s cheek with strength and said,
“So you can beat me? Can you? Huh? Am I that easy to deal with?”
Because she didn’t show the same expression when she first saw her.
“Hurts! It hurts! You are not. Adenmaha is not easy to deal with. I will just say that you aren’t.”
“What? You really..”
Nidhogg had said hurriedly with a teary face, but her choice of words had been wrong.
But of course, Adenmaha also wasn’t being serious. But it was true that the remark Nidhogg had made had put more strength in her hands.
Tae Ho read the first sentence of the letter while Cuchulainn looked at the war between the two dragons occurring in a corner of Midgard. A greeting that made him smile by its own was written there.
‘Hello once again?’
Tae Ho continued to read down the letter. The contents elaborated that Valhalla had been sealed urgently due to the attack of the Magician King but were written briefly.
‘Idun-nim and I believe in you. I will be waiting for the day we meet again. Certainly.’
‘PD: Check the envelope. There’s something Idun-nim entrusted you.’
After that were traces that something was written and erased several times over. Tae Ho read up to ‘I lo’ and then put back the letter while smiling bitterly.
There was a small medal the size of a finger inside the envelope, just like Heda had said. It was covered with gold, and he could feel the strong divine power of Idun.
“It’s a medal delegating absolute authority over a legion.”
Odin, who had been silent until now, spoke.
“A commander that has this certificate can exert the same authority as the God of the legion. You will be able to take care of all the matters such as appointing new Valkyries. Not only that, you will receive the same treatment as a God of your legion and not as a commander, when joining forces with other legions.”
Actually, it was a certificate that served like changing owners.
Tae Ho could understand why Idun had entrusted something like this to him.
He could know just by reading Heda’s letter.
Idun didn’t have proof that Tae Ho was alive, but she believed that he was alive until the end.
If Tae Ho was alive.
What did she have to do to be of help to him? What could be the best thing she could do now that Valhalla was sealed?
This was the answer she had come with after thinking for a long time. The gold medal that hoped for Tae Ho’s survival was filled with Idun’s earnest feelings.
Tae Ho gripped the medal strongly and thought of Idun’s face.
He called for her name, that was gentle and affectionate, and prayed.
And after some more time passed–
When they were about to depart to Kataron, Cuchulainn turned to look at Odin with a really serious face. He paused for a moment and then asked with a low voice,
‘Odin, I have one last important question.’
A really important question that may determine defeat or victory in this strategy.
‘So is Hraesvelg a male or a female?’
Odin smiled bitterly at Cuchulainn’s question, and Adenmaha listened attentively.
—
Strong wind always blew in the highest branch of the World Tree.
But the core of the branches was rather calm, just like the eye of a storm. It wasn’t excessive to say that it was a place with no wind.
A black bird crossed the vast sky. The bird that fluttered its wings slowly and landed down wasn’t small at all. It was the size of a human.
Vedrfolnir.
It, that was one of the several beasts living in the World Tree, possessed strong magic power. It transformed into a human the same time it landed and then covered its naked, white body with its feathers that had transformed into hair.
Vedrfolnir’s human shape was a beautiful and intellectual woman that had sharp eyes like those of an eagle.
She expressed etiquette as soon as she landed down and bowed.
“My king, I have returned.”
It was a bright and elegant voice that seemed like a marble rolling on a plate.
But the one Vedrfolnir expressed etiquette to didn’t even turn to look at her. He looked down while sitting under the highest branch and said,
“Ratatoskr still hasn’t come.”
“There has been no notices from it for a few days already. The change that occurred in the World Tree too…I think it’s time to pay attention to the things happening in the underworld.”
Vedrfolnir spoke carefully, but it was to no avail. Her owner and the ruler of the highest branch, Hraesvelg snorted and said,
“Nonsense. I won’t leave the highest branch. We will just repel the ones entering our territory, be it a giant or a God.”
Hraesvelg was wearing a white, Korean attire. It was something he had received from the warriors of the Temple that had gone on to assist Asgard in the Great War.
A big and strong old man.
Hraesvelg had the same appearance as the warriors of the Temple. He was 2 meters tall and his broad shoulders were like the walls of a fortress.
His two sharp eyes started to glitter.
And the thing those eyes of his were looking at were the several worlds below the branch.
“Nidhogg.”
Hraesvelg’s old enemy, that lived in the lowest and deepest parts of the World Tree. The ancient dragon that was connected by fate with the King of Birds.
How much of an evil existence was it?
And how strong would it be?
The reason Hraesvelg moved was because Nidhogg had also started to move. Before that, he didn’t even have the thought to leave the highest branch.
“It’s not the time to leave yet.”
Hraesvelg spoke in a low voice and then looked away from the underworld.
He drew the battle he would face with his long enemy and put on a satisfied smile.
< Episode 40 – Idun’s Valkyrie (3) > End
