Chapter 239: Valhalla (5)
H2Fv8bQDanann of Justice, Erin Danua.WcmmbZ
7GWnXNHShe was one of the few gods who still possessed their own divinity. As one who had been alive ever since the era of gods, she certainly deserved the title of being one.Meuq
A8w– KWAAAA!!IVP
pxaRune Magic.vnGDmdx
ML44NIt was widely known that rune magic, despite having the merit that each of its letters contained supernatural powers and were therefore easy to cast, had a limitation to its output.Z9E
JC8rMBBut that didn’t apply to the strongest Rune Mage alive.cKjiZ
rvuSfb1[ ᛊ ] — Sowilog4OHC3
ncht[ ᚲ ] — KenazFYe3lvs
l5OzpF[ ᚢ ] — UrIsSbS
0TrNU2Z[ ᚺ ] — HagalazGrlGUXZ
PmL[ ᛟ ] — Othalabk290
wiAzXm[ ᚹ ] — WynneE5qF
vBrOfThe letters led to the next and rapidly formed a sentence.f0YGRyV
VK7AQDue to the fall of the era where rune letters acted as the main writing script, and since its usage fell to that of sorcery and spells, it was inevitable for the original purpose of rune letters to diminish.ShLi
srSA rune was generally activated as soon as it was engraved.q7K
iuuEKUfUnless it was engraved for later use through special means, rune letters were hard to use in a real battle and in addition to that, it was also hard to write runes in the middle of a fight, because that required one of the hands to be free.kSC3
NJhm8WHWriting runes in a sentence instead of single letters meant you had to connect it to a different rune letter before it was even activated.5Nwj
U2cThe level of proficiency required to make that happen was unimaginable, and there weren’t enough primordial beings left behind to spread the word of its might.aqVU
ZLP9Xfa– KWAAAAAH!!gnFMtWD
AjJpdThe Einherjars were swept away by the magic storms of runes. Most of the thousand warriors were unable to approach any closer than what they were permitted.VMr6
2ezl“GURAAAA!”w5uXlrE
DOEBut despite being in the bodies of warped and rotten skeletons, they were still warriors of gods. Some of them were able to gather aura and break through the storm.9KZI9
VLH“Magnificent.”sAwUFs
jpEHowever, Erin wasn’t a goddess of magic – she was the all-powerful God of Heroes, who taught countless heroes about the ways of various weapons.RG0Nd
EBmfcWhether it be swords, axes or spears that the Einherjars were swinging, each flash of Erin’s spear reduced it to ashes.bHDsVX
IkdlfEven whilst writing rune sentences, she was fighting them with her spear as her eyes took in everything around the battlefield.OVZZ8b
M999KShe was in a different realm in both speed and strength.dgy
XcxJo8EHer 1,000 years of history in martial arts and the experience engraved in her body allowed her to respond to the enemy’s numbers, movements, footsteps and aura without even needing her to think.vE0qQc
VAbdNYl– Garuk?!ad8
DX2vErin crushed her opponent—DQuQu3z
fbjzay– Kak!LtoFPk1
rm6HJhAnd she sliced them down—qWQIC
eGRF– Kwak!m4n
Uc2z4i— One after another.wRIoZlS
i0RhWhy? The Einherjars wondered.Uj7R
s8v0EhxThey had the advantage in terms of both numbers and their combined might, so why were they being pushed back?R4p30F8
6UrE“Only a few in this era will be able to stand against me. The likes of former warriors of gods are not enough.”BQ2A
B0QlShe was the King of Gods.DkG
mtiPm5TThe Queen of Paradise.6FoX1l
DsdJFU****7W1y
W5L2CHThe battle in Valhalla came to an end.qgt2
UDBc“Are you okay?”15ig4
jJxPYac“Haha… Thank you for your help at the end. I wanted to deal with it all by myself though.”yEG
UwXWym“Fufu. I’m sure you would have been able to.”PZwUN
BsPEMaster saw through my bluff but played along with a benevolent smile.dVXR
7dkGBQh“You… look different today.”pKqvWKy
rBSJ0Z“I borrowed it from Brunhild,” Master replied.eio0
Da8TM“I like how you tied your hair, but you look pretty either way.”LWs9Tls
LSGfShe scratched her cheeks after hearing my compliment before whispering in a faint voice.kMwbJpd
qtEGVzS“If you really think so… then I can show you more later.”qmh4
Tlb“Ohh…”m1Jerq
1eEnPv6It was an intriguing offer, but it was for later.W13r
4nG6rG“Let’s go back with Ran… and the valkyries that are still alive,” I said while looking at half of the valkyries that were still breathing.KurXg
51LgC“Are you not going to finish them off?” Master asked in a cold tone of voice.cfjUvZ
GdfSYt“They become compliant after being defeated. In that sense, it’ll be helpful because they are not the type to hold grudges.”SR8T
BhXx9TIt was an experience from my last iteration and also, it was a shame to discard all the Einherjars that were under their lead.RwlfRF
CsNJBejBeing killed, after all, meant that the hundreds of Einherjars locked behind their gates would be sealed forever.ZNDjsfd
YUMLBeThinking that, I was carrying Geirahoo and Olrun, who were still alive, when I suddenly remembered the problem.RsjJ
O52IVPD“How do we leave by the way?”lWkv4Nl
89n“I have received the right to open the gates from Brunhild. Let’s go back now.”JnK9jzG
i52aItMaster opened the dimension leading back to reality.oycA6Y
TY2vi24In the game, we had to take a rather tedious route of going to a different Valhalla through another Valkyrie and returning to the real world from there but… it seemed that this time we would be able to leave at once.rJpu
PBKKacxLike that we returned to the real world. I briefly heard about the complicated situation of the battlefield from Master but…MDpgG
LYv“…”aLQB
AJjZnOK“…”592
RhrGhalWhen we came back to the real world, we realized that the Frost Giant… was no longer there.NCI2d3f
AVYL“Again, huh…”KGw
kK68****J43k3
k9IAG6bIn the original game, the fight against the Frost Giant was one with a lot of controversy.Qee0wMR
uAAIFirst off, the battle itself was a rather complicated process.1Dt8b4A
NlEwRlcAfter defeating the middle bosses, the two Wolves of Apocalypse, the Serpent of Infinity and the valkyries, you had to start a long fight against the Frost Giant that had 5 different phases.ZWhuvTT
s1UAvDEThe player had to defeat the enormous giant, chase after the boss who morphs into the shape of a young man, and break through a strange dimension of time.dWa
j5UQojjAt last, right when the player re-encountered with the Frost Giant, it disappeared.iLzat
4PKUhXcRight – it would suddenly disappear, and marked a dumbfoundingly anti-climactic end that earned the dissatisfaction of all players worldwide.SuA
A8MX0‘It turned out differently in the last iteration though.’OQreSI
NBkp[Hmm…]rq3
lXhboIn the last iteration, the giant looked at Park Sihu with a strange look on his face and grunted before disappearing into thin air. Park Sihu’s spells like Dimensional Isolation couldn’t stop it from running away.9ag9L
Z2x“But how could it just run away without even seeing my face?”C60w
gfCOIEBoth in the game and last iteration, although strange, the Frost Giant at least had an encounter with the player. It didn’t even come see me, which… I truly couldn’t understand.SMo9Ez
sJLr2****8kwT8ad
xTkIpWith the Frost Giant gone, the battle quickly turned to our favor.6hfO
zE79MMThe titans all escaped as if following the trace of the Frost Giant, and the hordes of monsters were annihilated by the human army.aV4B
hFe6nTABiggest factor of them all was that Hua Ran’s powers and the Sun came back.tUvynB2
3L4SK“WAAAAAH…!”d5JEdk
waVf3“It’s the Sun! Sir Korin! Champion of the Sun!”8B5
ZOZyH[Battlefront Flag Bearer]WfCB
dmK– You are the symbol of the battlefield. You are the brightest flag bearer of every war, and a central figure that must not fall.vVnNMn
D5FfZl– You will be at the center of attention during a war. Your stats will change depending on your ally’s faith.egOfC
dEQs– All your allies will become psychologically anxious if you fall.ber
Md4S9※ The Attention towards you has reached 75%. All your abilities increase by 30%jIct
hbCThe return of the Sun and the absence of the key named enemies quickly shifted the tides of war. The waves of demonic beasts without a leader were nothing but large numbers of mobs.zCfpLSk
nJQWith the battle over, I was standing on the walls looking at the sun setting in the horizon.ntvo
6VRbq“In the end… even the Wolves of Apocalypse didn’t reveal themselves again.”b599V
jerpEiIt was strange. They all disappeared rapidly as if there was no need for them to be here anymore.uRHv
6a5‘Is this another Butterfly Effect? But… I don’t see any connection.’U1YV9d
A4TG6CGUntil now, I had done many things that went against the original plot of the game. I saved Marie, Hua Ran and defeated the Tower of Mages and the Old Faith…Dp5I9
k2cMost importantly, Master was still alive even though she should have been killed by Tates Valtazar already. Even that was because Valtazar himself didn’t show up.xkoE5
ryKsAt least that much I could understand.bc9E
c1kUnlike the last iteration and the game, Valtazar had lost many of his allies.V0C
W3pV5The ones hoping for the Advent of Paradise in the New Faith were all purged by Saintess Estelle, and the Tower of Mages had met its demise.NTiTC
d8WEZnHAlthough the fall of the Tower of Mages was predestined, the key personnel including the Tower Lord were supposed to be able to escape alive.mqFOuw
ejgdValtazar’s strongest subordinates, Dun Scaith and Fermack Daman were dead; Miruam failed to eradicate Mound; and he failed to acquire Ren and Ron, the golden wolves that could host the Wolves of Apocalypse.tbIPdo
ZOJQThe current Valtazar was weaker than both the game and the last iteration, back when Park Sihu was praised as the God of Magic.CG9K7
2i0Therefore, it wasn’t strange – at least not that strange – that Valtazar and his weakened group didn’t show up to destroy the Academy.HVP
6LmvKakHowever…zh3o
C9j‘It makes no sense that the Frost Giant left just like that.’E4oE
TrTThe battle against the Frost Giant, which was supposed to be one of the hardest battles of the game, being foundered just like this? At this point, it was even concerning.676Ij
mZZoJ“Korin. What are you doing?”Wwi8
rP0That was when Marie came up and sat down next to me.BGKH9u
IwjDndG“I was thinking a bit about what the enemies’ plans are…”gaRkE
Uhex8Vc“Is it because the Frost Giant disappeared?”cvm
Q32w“…Yeah.”FgrWd
e9kSgz“Maybe it just left because the battle wasn’t going to their favor.”FLH
s0IA“But it gave up way too easily for that to be the case.”EuHOCKb
B0QV6Gt“Hmm…”BWZ
grxpDbI was scared.534d8D8
2bJFSWLWhat if all this was a trick? What if the path we had been going till now would lead us to a pit of flames; what if it was a cliff waiting ahead of us…?GsMWNmg
7OsWpThere was this uneasiness inside me… that this might be trap to give us the greatest despair at the end.Qs2JPK
S96Me5Z“I’m sure it’ll all work out well.”4V6NkZ
x7CPqNMarie placed her warm hand over mine. With her other hand, she pulled me in towards her by the shoulder.lZM9zG
A802“I know you will do something about it, Korin. I believe you.”9B4U0c
wi5oX“Don’t believe me too much. I’ve failed already.”xBFs
xMn5“No.”EfAul
WDWUEShe shook her head in denial. There was a radiant and bright smile on her face that didn’t seem like it would ever leave.ReAeZ
r0v4l9“You are still here, Korin. Failing doesn’t matter; there are all kinds of people you have already saved. There is me, Alicia and Hua Ran.cK6UiL
sNo8tdo“Everyone nearby is the outcome of everything you have done until now.JuAY
QjHS“So don’t worry. I’m sure you are doing a great job, Korin.”r8B
zFgIIt was… a beautiful set of words that really meant a lot.WGWurr
DpwAlVT“Haha…”JZDjy
4MHrniPShe gave me this feeling of relief which I had never once experienced in the last iteration, where I was even busier than now.aHEdTX
qVJmzk7“Let me borrow your shoulder.”6Zgi
PMATH“Haht…! A, any time!”QwqGE
0mDjI leaned my head on her shoulder and showed how much I relied on her.Hzj
Mzy“You really mean a lot to me, sunbae.”nsSd
M4zn“R, really?”uJxW6H
pWEKIEx“Half of the reason I was able to come this far is you. It’s all thanks to you that I could do all I did.”sECcM
ztKcZ7“T, that’s not the case! You would have been able to do it regardless, Korin.”sia
DwiQp“Not at all.”EZWT3
eUBEven during this battle – the acceptance of the barbarians would have been impossible without the full-on support from Marie, because we wouldn’t have had enough food to sustain all of them.IY1etX
IjHWIt was hard to fathom just how much money it would have cost her.qYTNsG
VRwVUQAnd yet Marie withstood all that cost, all because I wanted to do so.Q49
uRZ“Marie-sunbae…”epE
p5DEP“K, Korin…”N91Af
N0IlHer beautiful, flickering golden eyes were even brighter than usual under the setting sun.57rzuGe
Nl4vhjI was absorbed in looking at that entrancingly beautiful set of eyes, when she suddenly closed her eyes.DIw3k
Lze‘Hmm?’orexZz
WmW9JaIs this… that? The sign that… everyone agrees on?O5yUj
UvNshUnconsciously I gulped as my heart started to race.FWYyThw
dSg0uPsThis is… okay right?8fE
maa7I was no fool. In this kind of atmosphere and that sign…F5S
WvZhR– Gulp!wrgfC
T0NHer light pink lips appeared ever so attractive. I unknowingly reached my hands out towards her body which was as soft as a marshmallow no matter where I touched.YXENz
YMmg“Sunbae…”MYp
xJDt“Korin…”1oess
HNRKLkOur lips drew closer and closer. I also closed my eyes and —ngUX5
m9QmH5– Grit!JbJ
mc9NpHer lips were as rough as the hairs of a chimpanzee… huh?cC19FRK
PGsXQtOpening my eyes, I found that a massive hand was separating me from Marie right when our lips were about to come together.rJOfMUO
vQMy6“Doggo?”6LERy
dU0“Krrh…!”b5yfni
tYfjgLAfter popping out of Marie’s shadows before I realized it, Doggo gripped my face with its enormous hand and…nplxnt
GZO9CUa“GURAAAAAA…!”m177
sRLIHe tossed me down the wall.5GM
hlDDcZm“Korinnn?!”srq
GhYV3“You can’t— do this— to me———!!”BIam
9sF1tThat is not what I raised you to do, Doggo!!NsaC
5Br0nY****QT0D
IYjxBarren lands of the north.Kc2moH
6UqsM8The Frost Giant could still remember the days when this used to be the radiant sanctuary of gods.1PUyT5
y1HheAn enormous evergreen tree used to reach all the way to the sky with its branches creating a shelter for the world of gods. Its roots had been covering the entirety of the ground, making it flourish.uDu
XE7NBut that was nothing but a story of the past.MMfTB1
PognoozThe Well of Mimir had dried up; the branches were scorched and the tree had long fallen. One of the key symbols of the mythology was gone and the world had been deprived of its gods.U5wgjA
b9D4lThe era of mythology had come to an end.brGW
BBBMSWaiting in this place, which had turned barren after the apocalypse, was a man.OQn1vsB
qJnUf9N“You are here already. As fast as always.”OzYhv
QiFN“Nothing can be faster than myself,” replied Utgard Loki in the shape of a young man.qqt0e
MvqvTY“How was it?”6zZx
HYTZlxM“I could feel it, and there was no need to even see it with my own eyes. You were right – he had a similar karma and obligation to you.”q7o
VteMVly“Right?”FYiu
3vYhEven though the enemy becoming stronger shouldn’t be something to be happy with, there was still a smile on Valtazar’s lips.6QREU
KAk“And as such we will be removing ourselves from this fight. The result will be the same no matter which of you two win, so I see no need to stand on one side. We old ones will stay out of it.”IHuq
iPtQUtgard Loki declared that he and the Wolves of Apocalypse will be dropping out from Valtazar’s faction.2ZCnn
A43zv5fThey were a powerful ally. The Wolves of Apocalypse, for example, were a great counter to Valtazar’s own contender, Korin. If Tates Valtazar was a smart leader – in fact even a young child would know better than to allow them to leave the faction but…h3s6
8sik9sm“Sure. Do as you wish.”KDFnV
ktcynSDespite that, Valtazar easily let them go.hROiFqc
QuoVEV“Not even trying to have us stay?”Gw3DpgC
tpQ97p“Who would possibly be able to force you to stay, mysterious giant?”S8Q0Mt
Vkw0FAnThe nature of Frost Giants was different from gods, and especially so was this Utgard Loki.ajkJp
hISPv5He was the mysterious giant, who escaped alive even after making a fool of the God of Lightning and the God of Mischief.PlaEkl
dSYV3SpHe was the mountain too big, ‘Skrymir’, a ‘thought’ faster than anyone, ‘Hugi’, and an ‘old age’ that no-one would defeat, ‘Elli’ – he wasn’t a being who fought others but gave tests. He did not have divinity but was of the concept of ‘story’; a riddle that tested ‘gods’.S0u3r
Zuu“Both of you have passed my test. You are strong, so do not come to my realm ever again.”65AP
a1LdThe next moment, he vanished from sight. In the form of ‘Hugi’, he was faster than anything in existence and might even be on the other side of the world.y7GybCG
Wq5“It’s a first, that someone apart from me has passed the Frost Giant’s test.”37h4
rIpUValtazar stepped forward over the ‘branches’. After reaching the end of the branches, he stood facing down at the world from the tip of the world tree and muttered to himself.s8VAj
yEqyuD“Come, Korin Lork. I am here waiting for you.”p1trc
pGlThe final war was about to begin.jcu
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HaydenZeMan
VIP Qi RefinementDamn you Doggo