Valhalla Saga

Chapter 143

There were ten realms.

Erin, that was one of them, got destroyed and they became nine.

Asgard, Olympus and the Temple.

Three of the remaining nine realms. Muspelheim and the adjacent realms that could be said to be the headquarters of the ones that hoped for the destruction of the world.

The three realms were fighting.

A battle against the ones hoping for the destruction of the world was the same for the three realms.

Then, what about the remaining six realms?

Would they be the same as the three realms that were at the front?

Would they also be fighting?

Asgard didn’t have the leisure to turn to look at the six realms that was behind it.

They couldn’t maintain a continuous and rigid cooperation between Olympus and the Temple.

The wall that existed in between a world wasn’t something that could be surpassed easily.

Erin got destroyed among the ten realms. It got destroyed the fastest and disappeared.

And there were now nine realms remaining.

And right at this moment.

The fire of destruction was surging once again. It surged up to burn down another world.

&

The magician king Utgard Loki leaned on a broken wall and looked at the direction where Valhalla was.

The frozen time magic was protecting Valhalla. It was a sealing magic that was much stronger than the Great barrier spread in Midgard.

About twenty days ago, several disasters shook Asgard.

Heavy rains, floods, maddening infections and great earthquakes.

The one among them that inflicted the most damage was the great earthquake. The aftereffect that shook the entire Asgard made countless fortresses fall down even before fighting with their enemy.

The magician king, that had dealt damage to the core of the world tree and created a great earthquake, tried to conquer Valhalla in a hurry.

The warriors of Valhalla resisted desperately on top of the broken fortresses but it was futile.

The world wolf took the lead and countless giants followed it. Even the giant kings, that were saving their strength by hiding in Jotunheim, helped the magician king as if this was the right moment.

The magician king smiled bitterly when he thought of what happened 20 days ago. Freya certainly wasn’t easy to deal with.

She, that was known to be the most beautiful Goddess of Asgard, quickly admitted the death of Odin. She took all the preparations she could instead of wasting time and sealed up Valhalla.

Because of that, the magician king couldn’t take over Valhalla. He did crush the fortresses near it to his heart’s content but in the first place, only lowest and inferior ranked warriors and steel warriors were at those places. He couldn’t inflict a considerate damage to the real force of Valhalla.

Freya gave up on the several fortresses that were around Valhalla.

She acted that way even though she knew what would happen to them.

It was a cruel and cold decision.

But the magician king got amazed at her. He sent applauses towards her decision as a king.

The king of Gods Odin would have made the same decision as if it was nothing just to achieve victory but it was different for her. He could know as he had observed her as much as he had done so for Odin. That she had come with this decision after a blood boiling anguish.

‘It’s not the best.’

Freya chose to protect the main forces of Valhalla and prevent its fall. Looking at the big picture, you could say that she chose to buy more time.

It was indeed the best option Freya had currently but the option she chose was extremely reliant on external factors.

Now that the king of Gods had died, there were only two things Freya could hope for.

The first one was that Thor defeated the giants that were outside of Valhalla and broke the encirclement.

It was absurd. Thor was certainly strong. Even the magician king wanted to avoid facing against him head on one by one.

But war wasn’t about a duel between warriors.

Thor’s army was currently isolated.

Their path got cut off due to the great earthquake and the great army being led by the frost giant king Harmarti was surrounding his army.

The frost giant king was someone with strong patiente. He read the flow slowly and drew a big picture instead of coming to a quick decision.

He would suppress Thor and his army and evade a duel. The important thing was to isolate his army.

The ones that were anxious were Thor and his army, not Harmarti. The more time passed, the ones that got more disadvantages was Thor.

Harmarti would buy time and the magician king would take over Valhalla.

The giant king was experienced. The one that had pulled on the ropes in the front lines against Asgard in the Great war was none other than him. There was no one more experienced than him in Jotunheim on buying time.

‘Thor’s army won’t be able to rescue you.’

One of Freya’s hope wouldn’t be able to come to light.

And it won’t be different for the remaining conclusion.

‘Reinforcements from another world.’

The other hope Freya had. The last rope she could hang on earnestly.

There were people that got outside of Valhalla evading the eyes of others in the day Valhalla got sealed.

Part of them moved to transmit the notices to Thor’s army but the objective for the others was different. They moved towards Olympus and the Temple.

“We hunted down one more. The reaps aren’t that good, perhaps because we are almost done with the fortresses.”

The magician king turned his head to the direction the voice was heard at. The beast king Tiachi, that was one of the giant kings, threw a Valkyrie at the feet of the magician king. The Valkyrie that was almost naked was already half dead. There were countless wounds and scars in her body and also traces that she had been toyed with.

The magician king looked at Tiachi.

He was also a small giant like Sigil or Loki.

Transformation techniques were his specialty and his hunting skills were one of the best even among the giant kings.

He had the body similar to those of the warriors of Valhalla as he was a bit taller than 2 meters but his appearances were different from humans. His skin that covered his steel like muscles were red and his fur that had grown like a wolf’s was grey. His teeth were like a sharks and his eyes resembled those of an eagle.

He, that was wearing a fur of an evil beast that only lived in Jotunheim, stepped on the Valkyrie that was barely breathing, roughly. He laughed as if it was fun that the Valkyrie twitched and stepped on her a bit more.

“She was heading to the Temple. She’s already the thirtieth. Just how many Valkyries did that bitch Freya send to their graves? Especially when she is hiding inside of Valhalla.”

They were messengers to notify of Asgard’s urgency.

Thirty Valkyries of Hermod’s legion, that were especially fast among other Valkyries, was too big of a number.

Because not even Freya would have been able to imagine them getting caught even before they went to the Temple.

“It was indeed good having dispatched you.”

Tiachi laughed once again at the words of the magician king that were filled with admiration. If it wasn’t for him, that was the best hunter of Jotunheim, others would have ended missing some Valkyries.

Tiachi, that was laughing for a long time, kicked the Valkyrie he was stepping on with his toe to make her turn around and then stepped on her strongly. He closed his eyes and appreciated her strengthless groans as if it was sweet music for his ears. He then raised his head and said.

“Magician king, I believe you remember our promise. The day we take over Valhalla, Freya and Idun shall be mine.”

The Goddesses that were known to be the most beautiful and noble among the several Gods of Asgard.

The magician king faced Tiachi’s eyes filled with greed and answered gladly.

“I promise you once again Tiachi. They will be yours.”

A smile spread on Tiachi’s face. The teeth of shark that appeared from beneath shone.

“I liked them since before. You can believe me on this one, it’s not a lie.”

Tiachi looked at the surroundings of the wall the magician king was leaning on and then tossed the Valkyrie with his feet as if he was handling a ball and grabbed her.

The Valkyrie, that got grabbed by her head, dropped strengthless but she was still breathing.

“He, Valkyries are really nice to play because they are hard. Magician king, next time I will show you the shields I made. This bitch will also become a really nice shield. I’m already looking forward the expression the bastards of Valhalla will make when they see it.”

The shields Tiachi was talking about was literally a shield. He tied up the naked Valkyries to a big and square shield and made his underlings carry them. It was a nasty hobby but it was a really good method to drop the morale of the enemy and make them lose their consciousness because of rage.

“I thank your hard work.”

Tiachi clicked his tongue at Tiachi’s answer and shrugged his shoulders.

“Changing subjects. There is one thing I wanted to ask. Is it really fine to leave Asgard alone?”

The temple wasn’t the only realm that was adjacent to Asgard. You could say that Olympus had formed an alliance with Asgard since long ago.

But the magician king didn’t raise any defenses at Olympus’ side.

And as he had done it too boldly, Tiachi wondered if he had some sort of plan, but it wasn’t that there were giants that had moved to their side secretly either.

“It won’t be a problem.”

Tiachi’s eyebrows twitched at the short answer but it soon returned to normal. He nodded instead of prying further.

“How regretful. The number of shields would have doubled if I also caught them.”

Asgard would have deployed the same number they dispatched to the Temple to Olympus.

“I will be going now. My 31st hunt could be waiting for me.”

Tiachi laughed and turned around.

The magician king turned to look at Valhalla once again instead of tracking the traces of Tiachi that disappeared like the wind. A new voice was heard from the broken wall.

“He’s a shallow guy.”

It was the giant of night Avalt.

He was the only one that was more of an aide among the Five Fingers rather than a warrior. Because of that, he also wasn’t picky on using dirty methods to attain victory but he also had his limit.

If the giant of strength Harad or the giant of earth Balgad were alive, they would have frowned at his nasty actions.

But the magician king rather smiled.

“Right, that’s why it’s that much easy to handle him. Compared to Hrumbak or the others.”

There were no notices from Hrumbak, that had gone to invade Niflheim, for a few days already. He had expected him to act as he wished as he had a sense of rivalry against the magician king but the level was slowly passing the limit.

‘I will have to send a messenger in a while.’

It seemed like he was accomplishing his task well as there have been no reinforcements from Niflheim so he would only have to be give him a warning.

“How long until the seal breaks down?”

“It will be over at least in ten days.”

The reason they couldn’t destroy the Great barrier even after some days passed was because Valhalla didn’t stay still either.

But now, the situation was different. There was no one that obstructed with the destruction of the seal.

At most in ten days.

The magician king had already waited a hundred years. Anyone could wait that much.

“I’m waiting for then. Isn’t that right Loki?”

The magician king turned his head and asked, but Loki that was hanging on the chains binded to the walls didn’t answer. He just looked at Valhalla with his eyes that had lost light.

&

Valkyrie Kaldea, of Hermod’s legion forced a smile.

‘So i’m going to die like this.’

She had been planning to die more happily while dozens of handsome men watched her.

Rather than dozen of men, there was no one in this place. The only thing that was in the outskirts of Asgard, that was close to the temple, was the corpses of the warriors, fragments of the steel warriors, broken walls and evil spirits.

“Kugh.”

Kaldea closed her eyes and let out a groan. Footsteps were approaching from far away. They were the steps of the evil spirits. Normally, she would be able to sweep them up easily but it was impossible to do so right now. Her injuries were too serious. She couldn’t even raise her sword with her trembling hand.

‘Is there any survivor?’

Could someone head towards the Temple safely?

Several of her sisters got hunted down by the beast king Tiachi, that was really like a beast. Perhaps, Kaldea would be the last Valkyrie remaining.

The footsteps were now near her. Kaldea opened her eyes and looked at the evil spirits that had gathered. She saw that the evil spirits that approached her while letting out hot steam numbered a dozen.

‘Dog like bastards.’

It was even hard to curse out loud. Kaldea forcefully endured the pain to stand up and then raised her head while sweating cold sweat. She couldn’t pull out her sword but managed to say her final words.

“Come at me.”

As she would fight until the end.

If she wasn’t able to swing her sword, she would bite them with her teeth. The evil spirits attacked Kaldea and she didn’t put her eyes off them. That’s why she was able to see it.

An arrow came flying.

It was a fast and strong arrow that was like a stream of light.

About ten more arrows got fired and the exact number of evil spirits collapsed as the number of arrows.

And a strong wind blew. What Kaldea could see after the wind calmed down was the evil spirits that had collapsed like rotten straw.

Kaldea blinked and then put a bright smile instead of forcing one.

“Idun’s warrior.”

.”Kaldea!”

Tae Ho hurriedly ran towards Kaldea, that was about to collapse as soon as she finished speaking. It was the same for Siri, that fired arrows from far away, and Bracky that was next to her.

Tae Ho lied down Kaldea and hurriedly poured potions in the wound of her stomach. He didn’t forget to put a piece of golden apple in her mouth either.

“Kaldea, are you fine?”

Kaldea forcefully chewed the piece of golden apple instead of answering Tae Ho. The effects were immediate but drowsiness attacked her because of her overwhelming exhaustion.

Kaldea forcefully opened her eyes that were closing and looked at the ones that gathered next to her. They were all familiar to her.

Tae Ho, Siri and Bracky.

“There aren’t dozen of you but i’m still glad that there are handsome men.”

Kaldea spoke playfully and closed her eyes. Tae Ho and the others flinched at that and then let a sigh of relief as they heard her snore.

“Handsome. Kaldea certainly has eyes.”

Siri frowned as Bracky smiled like a fool and scratched his nose.

“Do you have any conscience? You should look at the mirror at times.”

“Ey, why the envy? You also like it.”

Bracky acted as if he was embarrassed and hit Siri’s shoulder slightly. Cuchulainn spoke the moment her face turned more terrible.

‘Why aren’t you saying anything? Huh? You should say that the handsome one isn’t Bracky but you.’

‘There’s no need to argue with something obvious.’

‘Shameless bastard. I can’t even tease you now.’

Tae Ho checked Kaldea’s state with ‘the eyes of the dragon’ and let out a sigh of relief. It seemed like her life wasn’t in danger.

Three days after they left the highest branch.

Tae Ho took his eyes off from Kaldea and looked at another place. Rasgrid and the warriors, that had regrouped in Midgard, were approaching them.

‘Everything has its order.’

Those were Odin’s words. He was currently in Niflheim. The crows that had separated with him were spreading the notices not only in Midgard and Asgard but also in Nidavellir and Svartalfheim and was gathering up forces.

Nidhogg and Hraesvelg hid themselves in Midgard.

They were the trump card Tae Ho and Odin had, just like the magician king used the world wolf.

They would first set a base in Asgard.

Tae Ho looked towards a broken fortress. He could see through his ‘eyes of the dragon’ that the small fortress was filled with red letters.

Bracky carried Kaldea in his back and Siri was grabbing the magical bow of Tristan, Palenote, with her right silver arm of Nuadha.

“Commander, the order.”

Valkyrie Rasgrid said in a low voice. Twenty warriors that were the cream of the crop even among the ones that remained in Midgard waited for Tae Ho’s order.

Their objective was taking back the fortress. Setting up a base.

“Let’s go.”

Tae Ho said briefly. Bracky laughed and followed his order.

Asgard, that got taken by the giants.

It was the start of a great counter attack.

< Episode 42 – Great counter attack (1) > End

====

The night before Tae Ho headed to Asgard, Odin gathered Tae Ho, the warriors and the Valkyries and started to speak to them.

“Asgard is currently taken over by the giants.”

It was a fact that everyone knew but the one that was speaking was the king of Gods Odin. They could feel once again how despairful this situation was.

Odin explain the situation through the hologram he was showing to Tae Ho.

There were many big red circles on top of the mold of Valhalla. They were the giants.

“As you can see, the forces the giant have are two. One is the army of Jotunheim that’s being led by the magician king and the other is the Harmarti’s elite army that’s been confronting Asgard in the front lines.”

Odin had gathered information through the crows in these days. They lacked detail as they didn’t have much time but it was possible to draw the general outline.

“The main force of the giants is in front of Valhalla and Thor’s army.”

The two sides were isolated due to the giants and the evil spirits. In addition, there was quite a distance between them. Valhalla was at the center of Asgard and Thor’s army was at the outskirts of Asgard, that was closer to Jotunheim.

“There are currently two things we can do with our current forces.”

The warriors gathered from Midgard, the reinforcements from Niflheim, the black dragon Nidhogg and the king of birds Hraesvelg.

They were few in number but were a strong force that no one would be able to overlook.

“First, support Thor.”

They would lend their strength to Thor and defeat Harmarti and his army. They would defeat the magician king after that and take back Valhalla.

It seemed like it would be a good method at first glance but that wasn’t the case if you looked at all the conditions.

The first problem was that it took too long.

“There’s also the possibility that Valhalla won’t be able to endure it.”

Harmarti’s army wasn’t weak at all. It was certain they wouldn’t be able to defeat his army easily even after joining with Thor’s army.

Valhalla became the most important place of Asgard after the Great war. Most of the Gods of Asgard were currently gathered in Valhalla.

“The other one is to assist Valhalla.”

They would attack the magician king and his army that is surrounding Valhalla or at least lend them strength to strike back.

This wasn’t easy either. They couldn’t be certain how much of a force the magician king was holding in standby. It may be impossible to defeat him with their current forces.

“Whatever we choose, it’s possible to inflict a significant damage. But we can’t decide rashly on it.”

They needed more information.

ANd also more time.

“Asgard is wide and the giants and the evil spirits weren’t able to take over all of it. There is an opening.”

What Odin thought of was a guerrilla attack.

They would first attack the giants of the outer areas while hiding Nidhogg and Hraesvelg.

Just like said previously, even if Asgard was smaller than Midgard it was still plentily big.

Because of that, the giants were also scattered. There were many places the survivors could hide at.

There was a high probability they would think that the guerrilla attack was executed sporadically by the warriors that had survived.

They would cut in from the outside. They would diminish the force of the giants little by little and gather information.

But it also had its flaws.

It was a method that unavoidably took time. They were in a situation that they had to create a change before Valhalla fell so consuming time was by no means a good thing.

“They may also realize Nidhogg’s existence with what they heard from Niflheim.”

Nidhogg flinched at Odin’s remark and put a frightened expression. Adenmaha, that was next to her, embraced her telling her not to worry so she calmed down almost instantly but the ones that were looking at them could only put expressions filled with warmth and worry.

Odin also smiled bitterly. He turned to look at another place and said.

“But we still have Hraesvelg. In addition, Nidhogg’s existence itself can be a means to oppress them.”

Hraesvelg snorted while crossing his arms. Vedrfolnir nodded next to him as if it was really obvious but Nidhogg tilted her head as she didn’t understand well.

‘The giants won’t know of Nidhogg’s nature......no, true color? Whatever, they won’t know what kind of kid she is.’

The black dragon Nidhogg.

A strong existence that could bring the end to the world.

Just like Cuchulainn had said, knowing that Nidhogg had become their enemy could serve as an overwhelming oppression.

“Idun’s warrior.”

Tae Ho expressed etiquette at Odin’s call. Odin approached him and placed his hand on Tae Ho’s shoulder.

“I will leave the commanding of the warriors to you. Rescue Valhalla and Asgard as the commander of Idun.”

There were many superior ranked warriors that had more experience than Tae Ho among the ones gathered. But Tae Ho was the only commander and everyone knew what merits he had raised.

The warriors of Valhalla didn’t get childishly jealous. The great warriors knew how to honestly respect and love.

Everyone consented to Odin’s decision. Tae Ho also expressed etiquette and received his order.

“For Asgard and the nine realms.”

“For Asgard and the nine realms.”

The next morning, Tae Ho headed to Asgard with the elites he had picked.

&

Half a day after Tae Ho arrived on Asgard.

Kaldea, the Valkyrie of Hermod’s legion, slowly opened her eyes. The first thing she saw from her blurry sight was a beautiful woman that gave off a wild vibe.

“Are you awake?”

Kaldea blinked once. She woke up a bit more and remembered who was the beauty in front of her. That’s why she cracked a joke instead of answering.

“It would have been better if it was a handsome man waiting for me instead of a beauty.”

“You are fine indeed.”

Siri shook her head unavoidably and said but her face was really bright. It was because she got really happy at the fact that Kaldea had recovered to the point she could crack a joke.

Kaldea looked at Siri’s face and then rolled her eyes. She was at a cozy room that had a wall and a ceiling. It was an unfamiliar scene but she didn’t feel fear as Siri was next to her.

“The handsome man is here.”

A husky voice was heard. Kaldea moved her eyes reflexively and said with an exhausted voice after she looked at Bracky that was smirking.

“It seems that my ears didn’t heal properly.......and my eyes are blurry. Just where is a handsome man here? Ah, did I mishear?”

“Sob sob. They really liked my face in Midgard. Right Siri? Huh?”

Bracky pretended to cry at Kaldea’s counterattack and then asked while pouting his head to Siri. She answered while pulling back.

“I don’t want to answer right now.”

Kaldea’s eyes shone at the word ‘right now’. She hurriedly opened her mouth and butted in.

“It’s a joke, a joke. I’m greatly satisfied with Bracky. He’s manly, reliable, has muscles. Right, Siri? Huh? People have their own tastes.”

“Why are you being like that to me?”

Kaldea giggled as Siri looked at her with resentful eyes. She then grabbed her stomach as if her injury hurt.

“It hurts. A lot.”

“Don’t over do it as you have just woken up.”

It was another voice. They couldn’t see the owner of the voice yet because the big Bracky was covering her but the voice was enough for Kaldea.

“It’s our ice princess. Can you hug me once? I barely survived. I want to hug someone. Hug me.”

Rasgrid let out a sigh but fulfilled Kaldea’s request. It was because she would be able to do anything as Kaldea barely managed to survive, just like she had said.

The hug wasn’t a warm one as Rasgrid was wearing her armor, compared to the light clothes Kaldea. But Rasgrid didn’t miss that Kaldea trembled from her embrace. It seemed like she was hiding several emotions while pretending to be strong.

“Kaldea.”

Kaldea smirked at Rasgrid’s low call. She pushed her away as if she was really fine and then spoke while leaning back on the bed.

“A real handsome man has come.”

“Really?”

Tae Ho approached the bed when Bracky mumbled with a low voice. Kaldea asked with a still bright expression.

“Where are we?”

“It’s a...... private house that was nearby.”

They had taken back the small fortress that was taken over by the evil spirits but the group had left it as it was in poor conditions and wasn’t proper to defend or hide themselves.

The reason Tae Ho paused when he spoke was because he was doubtful if the expression ‘private house’ was correct.

It was because this house was the property of a citizen of Asgard- a God.

‘Erin was also like this. Precisely speaking, the town where the Tuatha De Danann lived was like this.’

The Tuatha De Danann was a clan composed entirely by Gods.

Cuchulainn wasn’t the only one that didn’t see where Tae Ho got bewildered at. There was a saying that said that the thread followed where needle was at, and Adenmaha that stood next to Tae Ho pinched his side with her elbow and said.

“Why are you being that awkward? It seems like you keep forgetting this but I’m also a God.”

She was a Goddess of the Tuatha De Danann and also a Valkyrie.

‘Rasgrid and Kaldea are also Gods. Goddesses. Heda too. Why are you acting like this? Did you forget where this is?’

The land of Gods Asgard. It was obvious that it was filled with Gods.

In the other hand, Kaldea that enjoyed looking at the awkward Tae Ho, took a deep breath and nodded.

“You were alive anyways. Right, I thought that you wouldn’t die that easily. I’m glad. Heda was right.”

There was a rumor that Tae Ho had died with Odin. Idun and Heda denied but all of Valhalla, including Kaldea, had accepted the rumors to be true.

Tae Ho bit his lips the moment Kaldea mentioned Heda. He wanted to ask several things but there were other things to prioritize right now.

Rasgrid turned to look at Tae Ho for a moment and then said while looking at Kaldea once again.

“Kaldea, I will tell you the situation. Hear it while you recover.”

A healing light appeared on Rasgrid’s hands. Kaldea received Rasgrid’s hands but she shook her head about the situation.

“No, it’s fine. There’s the possibility I may leak the information when I get caught.”

“Kaldea-nim?”

To say when she got caught.

Kaldea just smiled bitterly at Siri’s question and then asked to Rasgrid and Tae Ho.

“Just tell me one thing. Is Odin fine?”

“He is.”

Kaldea got satisfied at Tae Ho’s answer. She let out a sigh as she didn’t have any regrets and put a relaxed expression.

“Good. It’s enough with that. I will be able to go more relieved.’

It was a thin voice but you could feel her resolution in it. Rasgrid grabbed Kaldea’s hand and asked.

“Kaldea, where do you say you are going? Is it related to the letter you had?”

“Yes, that’s right. I have to go to the Temple and request for reinforcements. Just like we did in the Great war.”

The current situation was the same than a hundred years ago. The Valkyries of Hermod’s legion shouldered the danger and headed to Olympus and the Temple to notify of Asgard’s urgency.

“The path going to the temple is filled with giants and evil spirits.”

“I know. But I still have to go as it’s something this important, right?”

Already close to thirty of her sisters had been hunted down. Perhaps, Kaldea may be the last Valkyrie holding a letter.

The current situation is despairful even if Odin really is alive. We absolutely need the help of the Temple.

“We don’t have time. I will leave now.”

“It’s impossible alone.”

Rasgrid forcefully grabbed Kaldea trying to get up her bed. Tae Ho exchanged glances with Siri and spoke to Kaldea.

“We will go with you. We will create an opening.”

In the first place, Tae Ho’s group was planning to execute a guerrilla tactic in Asgard. Fighting to transmit a letter to the Temple was enough of a reason.

But Kaldea shook her head.

“The one guarding the path is one of the giant kings, the Beast king Tiachi. He also has a lot of his underlings. I know that you defeated the Tyrant Bress but it’s imp......”

She stopped there. Kaldea, that was about to say that it was better if she shouldered all the danger alone rather than putting everyone in danger, stopped speaking unconsciously.

It wasn’t because Tae Ho told her about Nidhogg and Hraesvelg. The reason she got surprised was just because of Tae Ho.

“Ah, just what happened while I didn’t see you?”

About two months since the battle in Kalliv Ahim.

Kaldea felt the same bewilderment Siri and Bracky felt and nodded while smiling bitterly.

Adenmaha snorted as if she was the one that had heard the compliment and acted to be strong.

Kaldea was still looking at Tae Ho. He spoke briefly after releasing part of his strength.

“Many things have happened.”

Quite a lot actually.

Tae Ho grabbed Kaldea’s hands. He asked towards her whose blue eyes were shining with hope, surprise and perplexion at the same time.

“Tell me about the Beast king Tiachi.”

Kaldea didn’t decline anymore. She told him everything she knew about.

< Episode 42 – Great counter attack (2) > End

======

Valkyrie Hrist was at the point of dying.

She, that belonged to the legion of Hermod, was accomplishing a task given by Freya.

Notify of the urgency to Olympus and the Temple.

72 Valkyries received a letter that had the same contents. They, that got out of Valhalla when it got sealed, scattered to two directions while praying for each others safety.

The direction Hrist headed to was the path that connected to the Temple.

There were small worlds in Asgard just like Midgard and Svartalvheim.

Asgard, Midgard and Niflheim were connected directly to the manifested part of the world tree and the remaining smaller worlds were connected by an invisible path through the system of Yggdrasil.

The Temple and Olympus were realms that were comparable to Asgard.

The realms in the motto of Valhalla ‘For Asgard and the nine realms’ referred to the Temple, Olympus, Erin and such worlds.

You had to first pass through a special location to go outside of Asgard. If you thought of each world as being a continent or an island, the place in between was a sea and the special location was a port.

Hrist breathed roughly. She had no strength while being carried by the Beast king Tiachi. Her limbs fluttered strengthlessly following Tiachi’s steps.

Her sisters that headed to Olympus couldn’t know the situation but the ones that were heading to the Temple knew how terrible the situation was.

Could Kaldea have escaped?

The Valkyrie that had been with her until the end among the 31 Valkyries that were headed to the Temple.

The Valkyries got helplessly hunted down by Tiachi and his underlings. They cruelly hunted them down one by one from the fortresses that got destroyed due to the great earthquake as if hunting down foxes.

When all of her many sisters got caught and only Hrist and Kaldea were left, Hrist made a decision. She would become bait so that Kaldea could escape.

Hrist couldn’t think anymore. She felt absent minded. It was because all the things the Beast king did to her after she got caught had worn her away physically and mentally.

“We are almost there.”

Tiachi snickered and said. Hrist, that was being carried in his shoulder naked, couldn’t see her surroundings properly. But she could know where she was just by smelling the nasty smell piercing her nose and the wicked laughters.

It was the headquarters Tiachi had set up in the path leading to the Temple.

Originally, he had to come here as soon as he caught Hrist but Tiachi took a long detour. He played with Hrist for a few hours and then went to the base that was located near Valhalla to boast about his hunt to the magician king and he then roamed its surroundings to hunt the remaining warriors.

“Valkyries are always good bait.”

The warriors of Valhalla were way too simple. It was because they went crazy whenever they heard a scream from a Valkyrie.

Tiachi laughed for a long while and threw Hrist to the ground. The pain that covered her body when she hit the ground made Tiachi enjoy the scene.

“You look just like a bug when you twitch.”

Tiachi kicked Hrist. If she was a normal human, she would have already died but ironically, she couldn’t die as she was a Valkyrie. SHe just squeezed out a groan and suffered.

The underlings of Tiachi, the small giants and evil spirits, gathered next to her. There were some that gulped saliva as if looking at food and there were others that were panting because their bodies heated up.

“Play with her moderately and leave.”

Tiachi snickered and said and then, one of the underlings hurriedly raised Hrist as if he was waiting for it. He forcefully grabbed on Hrist’s jaw and made her look at one place.

Hrist became dumbfounded. She couldn’t think anything as if her head had stopped.

There were naked Valkyries hanging on a board as if they were flags. There were clear traces that they got toyed with and one of them was still being toyed by the evil spirits.

It was a cruel and terrible scene. An exclamation that was like a scream came out from her mouth.

“Ahh, ahhhh!”

It was a cry filled with despair. The voice that was mixed with grief and still had some resolution in it transmitted a new pleasant feeling to Tiachi.

Tiachi moved his chin slightly and then his underlings laughed and threw Hrist to the ground. They started to toy with Hrist to their heart contents while the Valkyries that were hanging on looked that.

A sob was heard. Even the Valkyries that had steel like resolution had a limit. Tiachi could feel his breath get rough just by hearing the weak cry.

The joy of dirtying a white snow field.

The pleasure of breaking a clean glass.

It was this fun just to toy with the Valkyries so how fun will it be with the Goddesses? What kind of pleasure will he get when he broke Freya and Idun?

Blood gathered to his lower body just by imagining that. Tiachi then looked at the Valkyries that were hanging.

“My king.”

One giant appeared at that moment and called out to Tiachi. It was Tiachi’s underling, Itaka that was about 3 meters tall.

Tiachi frowned as the sexual desire that had surged up had disappeared but he didn’t get angry. Itaka was a precious underling to him. In addition, it would be something important if he came to speak to him knowing how he would be feeling right now.

And it was as he expected.

“We have discovered traces of a Valkyrie. It seems like it’s the one we missed that time.”

The one that was together with Hrist.

Tiachi’s eyes shone with greed. Itaka started to explain a bit faster.

“It seems like there’s a connection with the evil spirits that disappeared from the small destroyed fortress. Currently, the beaters are driving her to a corner.”

Itaka explained briefly the things he guessed had happened in the small fortress. Tiachi didn’t mind that weak evil spirits died but he felt joy in Itaka’s explanation. And the reason for it was simple.

“She’s still lively. It would be worth playing with her.”

Looking that she slashed away dozens of evil spirits alone meant that she still had energy. The more energetical and outstanding a Valkyrie was, the more fun he got when he broke her down.

Itaka explained about the place and the situation that they were driving the Valkyrie at. IT seems like the Valkyrie didn’t choose to escape but chose to pierce a path to go to the Temple.

“She’s also quite faithful.”

Tiachi snickered.

The path going to the Temple wasn’t completely blocked. Tiachi had left one open on purpose.

The strand like path that was connected to the Temple.

It was really obvious that it was a trap but you had to pass through it to reach the Temple.

Teachi made a decision. There was no reason to delay. He shrugged his shoulders once and then approached the evil spirits that were playing with Hrist. He slapped her cheek as was closing her eyes while taking in all of the humiliation to make her open her eyes.

“I discovered the place the sister you have rescued is at. I will bring her now.”

He whispered with a low voice and waited. For Hrist’s expression to contort. For her to show him eyes that was filled with grief and sorrow.

And it turned out as he wanted. Tears flowed down from Hrist’s eyes.

“It will be a beautiful reencounter.”

Tiachi slapped her one more time strongly. He snickered at Hrist that had blood flowing from her mouth and stood up.

“Let’s go.”

Tiachi took the lead after he spoke freshly. He heard the footsteps of Itaka and the hunters from his back and the groans of the Valkyrie and looked at a distant place.

He went out to hunt once again.

&

Valkyrie Kaldea was fleeing right now. Her unique battle uniform of Valkyries was torn and broken, and there was a big blood stain in her stomach.

The small giants chased after Kaldea, that was fleeing desperately. The beaters could catch up to her whenever they wanted but they maintained some distance on purpose. Their role was to harass their prey, not to catch it.

Kaldea panted while sweating like rain. Anyone could clearly see that she was at her limit.

It was too pitiful to see her escape while limping.

The beaters snickered and chased her back and there was someone looking at that from afar.

‘It looks real. It was worth having closed my eyes at your atrocities.’

Cuchulainn laughed as if it was absurd.

The Kaldea that was fleeing right now was a fake made with Tae Ho’s saga. But you couldn’t differentiate her from being real or not just by looking at her looks. In addition, fleeing as if she was greatly injured didn’t seem like an act but the real deal.

The place the fake Kaldea was running at was a forest that was close to the Temple.

Tae Ho hid his body in the shadows and waited for the hunt to take the bait. However, beings such as the beaters weren’t the hunt Tae Ho was waiting for.

The Beast king Tiachi.

One of the giant kings that came from Jotunheim.

The situation wouldn’t end by simply removing him. There were many things to take into account.

And among them, one of the most important thing was to send Kaldea safely to the Temple. That’s why they also had to remove Tiachi’s forces that were blocking the path.

And one more thing in here. Something they must do.

They had to rescue the Valkyries. Leaving them at their current state wasn’t something a warrior of Valhalla would ignore.

The strategy was simple.

They would split Tiachi from his force and then destroy them one by one.

‘The fish is coming.’

Cuchulainn said and Tae Ho turned around to look with his ‘eyes of the dragon’.

[Giant king]

[Beast king Tiachi]

Red words.

Tae Ho looked at a more distant place. He looked at the direction Tiachi came running from.

&

Tiachi’s forces that were blocking the path to the Temple wasn’t small at all.

There were at least a hundred little giants and the evil spirits easily numbered ten thousand.

Even if the warriors Tae Ho was leading were the elites of the elites, it was impossible to defeat that number in an instant. In addition, they also had to rescue more than thirty Valkyries. They certainly needed additional reinforcements.

‘We are going to get caught anyways, so let’s go out boldly.’

Adenmaha, that hid herself on a cliff looking down at the base of Tiachi, remembered Tae Ho’s words and took a deep breath. She rolled her fingers and prepared to dispel the mystical magic she had prepared with Merlin.

They would strike the base head on to create chaos and the detached force Rasgrid lead would rescue the Valkyries.

Tae Ho used a new summoning rock Merlin created for this strategy. There were three of these summoning rocks and one registered being.

A signal came from afar. Adenmaha, that was glaring at the evil spirits that were gathered at the entrance of the base, rolled her fingers and completely removed the mystical magic. She made the existence that was hiding in the sky appear completely.

There was no loud sound or roar.

But the evil spirits all looked at the sky almost at the same time. The shadow that covered them made them do that. The huge existence that couldn’t be ignored forced them to do that.

The evil spirits looked at the sky with absent minded eyes. They got suppressed by the really huge existence and couldn’t even scream.

A black dragon that reached a hundred meters.

That dragon fluttered its wings. A huge wind blew in the ground and poison was spread widely along the wind. The evil spirits that breathed in the poison unconsciously screamed and collapsed.

And it finally descended. The black and huge dragon landed down on the ground roughly. The countless evil spirits that were below it got crushed just by it landing in the ground.

There was still no roar but complete silence covered the base. The ones that barely squeezed out their voice were the giants.

Scream, surprise, loud voices and displeasure.

All kind of voices were heard in the base and Hraesvelg, that was looking at all of that while standing on the head of the black dragon, clicked his tongue.

“How unsightly.”

They have left their real bodies in Midgard. It was to hide their existence that would become the trump card against the magician king.

Actually, not even their essences were going to come but a reason appeared that they had to stand on the battlefield.

“What do we have to do now?”

Nidhogg asked Hraesvelg in the heart room. It was really ironical that the voice of a cute woman was heard from the dragon that emanated an overwhelming pressure but Hraesvelg didn’t lose his composure.

He let out a roar towards the giants and evil spirits that were in the base before he gave the next order to Nidhogg.

He, that had the clearest eye even in the highest branch, knew what the Valkyries that were deep in the base suffering just as if they were right in front of his eyes.

“Lowly beings! I will kill you!”

A loud yell shook the sky and the ground and the thousands of evil spirits trembled at that. Hraesvelg felt proud at that and tried to say something. But Nidhogg’s bewildered voice came out a bit quicker.

“Hraesvelg! Tae Ho master said that you can’t say your name......Ah!”

Nidhogg hurriedly covered her mouth but it was too late. It was because the black dragon covering its mouth was really a strange scene and couldn’t cover Nidhogg’s words.

Hraesvelg.

Most of them didn’t know him and there were few that had heard it as Nidhogg’s voice was low. But some of them heard it clearly. Their terrified expressions was proof of that.

Hraesvelg, that checked the expressions of the giants with his clear eyes, closed his eyes. He wanted to go somewhere and lament himself but he suppressed his feelings and then spoke to Nidhogg that didn’t know what to do while she shrunk her shoulders.

“It doesn’t matter. We just have to get rid of everyone in this place.”

If they eliminated everyone that had heard it, the secret would be protected.

“Oh, that’s the case?”

“Yes, it is.”

Hraesvelg answered to Nidhogg’s shy question and then looked down at the battlefield with his exalted eyes. He glared at them, that were preparing to flee or fight, and ordered Nidhogg.

“Nidhogg! Roll!”

Because that was much better than trying to fight sloppily.

“Yes! I will!”

Nidhogg answered freshly and started to roll without hesitation.

The movements of a black dragon that reached a hundred meters and covered its body with poison.

It was enough with that.

Hell spread out on the battlefield.

< Episode 42 – Great counter attack (3) > End

=====

The giants and evil spirits couldn’t react easily.

The existence of the black dragon rolling on the battlefield was a nightmare itself.

The ground shook as if an earthquake was hitting. The huge and on top of that fast dragon rolling on the ground resembled a hail. It wasn’t possible to dodge it even though you knew it was coming.

It was the same for the poison covering the dragon. The poison that got spread left traces where the dragon passed by. The evil spirits that barely managed to dodge the attack of the rolling dragon vomited blood in the poison and collapsed.

The enraged evil spirits and giants threw several throwing weapons but it was pointless. The black dragon was a hundred meters big and the thickness of its scales was also unimaginable. In addition, a defensive effect was added because of its rolling motion so mere throwing weapons couldn’t leave even a scratch.

Choosing to get on top of it also wasn’t an option. How were you supposed to get on it when it rolled without stop?

The evil spirits fell completely in a panicked state compared to the giants, that were thinking up of ways to fight back. The ones that got swept by the dragon fear unintentionally by Nidhogg just fled and kept fleeing.

Adenmaha, that saw all of that from a distance, spread her mouth with a dumbfounded face.

“She’s really rolling.”

Adenmaha thought of when she was rolling in the Winter tree forest but then shook her head. The scale was different from that time.

‘She has already rolled before.’

It didn’t seem like she was doing it for the first time looking at how she rolled. It seemed like she had quite the experience.

Well, didn’t Tae Ho also tell Adenmaha to roll without hesitation? In one side, it was more effective than fighting with traditional methods.

Poison spread in the battlefield naturally. The evil spirits couldn’t escape properly because of the ground shaking due to the roll and no openings could be seen on the dragon.

The owner of Adenmaha indeed.

The one sided roll was the best fighting method the current Nidhogg could come up with currently.

But her distorted admiration due to being in love also lasted for a moment. She thought of a fact suddenly.

‘But why did Hraesvelg come with her if she was going to do that?’

If she was going to roll anyways, was Hraesvelg’s command really necessary?

Adenmaha’s doubt was logical but Hraesvelg would have felt depressed.

Hraesvelg, that was located on the head of the rolling dragon, was moving busily. There was no need to move his feet as he was standing on air but the movement of the dragon was faster than he had imagined so he couldn’t stay still for a moment.

In addition, Hraesvelg was already performing greatly in an invisible way. It was because he was telling the direction Nidhogg should roll to as there was a high probability she didn’t know where to roll and did something else.

Everytime Hraesvelg swung his arm, the sleeves of his arms fluttered at the wind. The white feathers that got fired at the same time pierced the forehead of the important ones among the giants.

The ones holding flags, the commanders, the ones fighting valiantly and the especially strong guys.

But of course, it was hard to defeat a giant with only one feather but Hraesvelg didn’t mind too much. He just had to hit them with several feathers and if that didn’t work either he just had to obstruct their movement.

‘The protagonist of this battle is Nidhogg.’

Hraesvelg was a hidden supporter. If Nidhogg was the main dish served in a luxurious dish, Hraesvelg was the side dishes.

‘Fight Nidhogg. My old ene......fight anyways.’

He erased the words he couldn’t finish and cheered her. Nidhogg’s voice was heard right then.

“H, Hraesvelg. I’m diz....dizzy.”

Compared to when Tae Ho controlled her, she was sharing all her senses with the black dragon all by herself.

The heart room itself didn’t spin as it was floating in a deep place of the dragon’s body but there was no way to dodge the dizziness as she was sharing the spinning motion mentally.

Hraesvelg didn’t ponder at Nidhogg’s plead. He spoke with a blunt voice.

“Endure it and roll.”

As they couldn’t stop now.

“Bleeeergh.”

Nidhogg let out a suffering voice but he ignored it and this decision of Hraesvelg rather brought a good effect.

The black dragon started to vomit at the same time as Nidhogg. A dense liquid that couldn’t be compared to the poison until now covered the battlefield.

&

“Th, they are doing well.”

Rasgrid saw the black dragon shaking the battlefield from afar and said with a forced calmed voice. Reginleif, that was next to her, pretended to laugh magnanimously.

“ANyways, let’s go. We have to hurry.”

The one leading the rescuing troop was Rasgrid. Reginleif and Gandur were also included in that group and a dozen intermediate warriors followed her back.

As the warriors of Ullr’s legion and Gandur covered themselves with a cloak to disguise themselves and started to cross the battlefield with the stealth blessing, the evil spirits and giants couldn’t even notice them.

In the first place, they were entirely focused on the dragon.

Rasgrid didnt’t get excited as expected of her nickname as the ice queen. She rather became calmer the deeper she went.

She thought while running. She only knew that the Valkyries were trapped deep in the battlefield, she didn’t know in what state they were at.

The place Tiachi’s army was residing at was originally a fortress of Valhalla. Could they be using the destroyed fortress as a prison? Or did they make a sort of net and gathered all the Valkyries?

There were thirty Valkyries that got caught based on Kaldea’s words. Because of that Rasgrid determined herself.

Perhaps, half of them would be already dead. There was the possibility they got executed or got hung up.

Rasgrid imagined that. Just imagining it made her suffer but she still thought of it to not get taken aback when she faced it for real.

And when they reached the place the Valkyries were imprisoned, Rasgrid ended up freezing at the scene she never imagined.

“Rasgrid.”

Gandur, that was always energetic and playful, said in a low voice. She, that was a shieldmaiden compared to Rasgrid and Reginleif, had expected the scene she was looking at to some extent. But of course, it was crueler to what she had imagined but still, she was able to maintain her reason because of that.

“Our objective isn’t to kill them or sweep them all up. Our objective is to rescue our sisters.”

Nidhogg was performing greatly but there were still a lot of evil spirits and giants. If they wanted to safely get away with the thirty Valkyries, they had to turn their eyes away at the rage for a moment and focus on escaping.

Rasgrid turned to look at Gandur. Her blue eyes that were usually calm were shaking with rage and grief. Gandur faced her eyes fixedly and said.

“He will take revenge for us. You believe in him, right? So we should do what we have to do.”

The Beast king Tiachi, that was probably the one that had created this scene.

The one that would face him. The one that would execute the revenge of the Valkyries.

Rasgrid closed her eyes. When she took a breath and opened her eyes again, her eyes had regained its usual light.

Gandur smirked. She lightly hit Rasgrid’s chest and then hit her own chest.

“For Asgard and the nine realms.”

“For Asgard and the nine realms.”

Reginleif and the warriors also regained their composure. Gandur glared at the evil spirits and little giants that were near the Valkyries that were hung up.

“For Idun’s warrior.”

Rasgrid mumbled. She charged forward after taking a breath and Gandur and the warriors followed her back.

&

The Beast king Tiachi stopped at some point. The loud sound that was heard behind him from far away made him stop.

There was a fuss in the direction of the base. He couldn’t see clearly because of the trees in the forest but it wasn’t something normal looking at the earth that was shaking all the way where he was.

Something happened in the base.

Tiachi first turned to look at Itaka but he was also as bewildered as he was. The little giants that were by his side simply waited for his orders instead of running about in confusion.

Tiachi saw the clear bloodstains the Valkyrie left behind but she was now looking at him with eyes that were different from before while staggering.

Trap. Bait.

Tiachi smiled at the words that popped in his head. It was a smile mixed with cruelty and indignation.

“Itaka, I’m returning to the base. You go catch that bitch.”

Itaka frowned at the short order but he assented. He had to follow the orders as it came from his king. In addition, it wasn’t that the king was going to catch her himself but that he was going to return to the base so it wasn’t much of a problem.

“I will do so.”

Itaka made an eye gesture to some of the underlings that were next to him.

He and those underlings stepped up and Tiachi turned around with the remaining ones.

But right at that moment, an arrow of light pierced the heads and shoulders of the giants.

Three giants fell down. Itaka got surprised and turned around and Tiachi, that grabbed the arrow flying straight towards his head, turned to look at the direction the arrow came flying from.

“Hi.”

The stealth blessing Siri was using broke. The warriors of Valhalla that appeared suddenly form the bushes attacked Itaka and the little giants.

Itaka put a defensive stance reflexively. Bracky, that appeared the first, concentrated only in one thing instead of attacking over his guard.

Creating more distance between him and Tiachi. Make him get farther from the battlefield.

Bracky tore a special scroll of Merlin and the earth started to twitch. Walls started to surge up and then pushed the ones that were at the side of Tiachi.

Tiachi opened his eyes widely and Siri headed to the other little giants instead of aiming for him. It was the same for the five warriors of Valhalla that charged along Siri and Bracky. They all tore one scroll each and generated changes in the ground.

Tiachi knew what the warriors were aiming for and that’s why he laughed in an absurd way. He just waited for his opponent instead of charging towards the warriors of Valhalla.

“You are saying that you want to face me alone?”

Tiachi looked at the one that finally appeared and laughed.

Tiachi was the Beast king. One of the giant kings of Jotunheim.

“Arrogant bastard.”

Tiachi glared at his opponent and his opponent also did the same. He faced Tiachi’s anger head on.

Tae Ho heard Hrist’s story from Kaldea. What she saw was merely a part of what Hrist had suffered but it was enough with that.

Odin had said.

That the ones hoping for destruction didn’t wish a natural decay.

They actively wished the destruction of the world.

And they lived for that. They were existences that solely lived for that purpose.

The essence of the ones wanting to maintain and the ones wanting to destroy the world was different because of that way of thinking. Because of that, it was impossible to perfectly understand one side.

But Tae Ho could somewhat feel it the moment he faced Tiachi. He could know even without using the ‘eyes of the dragon’.

Tiachi was one that hoped for the destruction of the world.

He enjoyed the scene when hope got destroyed and it became despair. Stepping and dirtying a noble way of thinking gave him pleasure.

He was a wielder of a black desire that got obsessed on the process rather than the results.

Tae Ho thought of the Tyrant Bress. The fomoires that were heated up about conquering and dominating. They were the same but different at the same time. Tiachi’s desire was much darker and dirtier than Bress’s.

[Saga: Idun’s warrior]

The golden power of a God surged up from Tae Ho’s body and a conspicuous color showed in Tiachi’s eyes. It was a reaction he showed when he discovered a prey.

Tae Ho didn’t stop there. He gripped Caliburn and activated more sagas.

[Saga: The warrior that had a Valkyrie meet him]

[Saga: His pocket is connected to a treasure vault]

Fake Valkyries appeared..

The fake Heda and the fake Adenmaha stood next to Tae Ho and followed by them the fake Rasgrid, Reginleif, Gandur, Ingrid and even Scathach appeared.

Tiachi put a smile at the sudden appearance of the Valkyries. He even snickered because the number of preys had increased.

The Valkyries grabbed the weapons that appeared in the air and stepped up.

[Saga: The legendary pro gamer]

The fake Heda, that had the highest completion rate, became the core. The other fake Valkyries got synchronized to Heda as the core and then, the auras they were emanating started to change one by one.

Tiachi flinched at that moment but it wasn’t the end yet.

[Saga: King of Camelot]

The glory of Camelot got fired from the blades of Caliburn.

He added a new strength to the weapons of the knights of the round table the Valkyries were holding.

Tae Ho took a step and the Valkyries did the same.

The smile disappeared from Tiachi’s face. Tae Ho saw him take a battle stance and said in a low voice.

‘There’s one thing I learned for sure in the fight against Hraesvelg-nim.’

‘What is it?’

‘There’s no business with a deficient ship.’

‘That’s so true.’

Cuchulainn agreed. AT that moment, the fake Heda howled and charged. The other Valkyries followed her back.

7 Valkyries and Idun’s warrior.

Tae Ho raised his sword.

< Episode 42 – Great counter attack (4) > End

=====

‘Facing one people with many isn’t as easy as you think.’

Those were Ragnar’s words. And Cuchulainn and Tae Ho agreed to that.

When assuming that two people that have the same battle power attack one enemy from both sides, what will happen with the total battle power of those two people?

It was easy to think that it will become 1 + 1 but reality wasn’t like that.

If the opponent wasn’t much bigger than you, you didn’t get much chances that several people could target the opponent at once. In addition, there were also cases that they obstructed each other due to their own attacks.

The most important thing in an attack from several parties, was their coordination. Based on how well they worked together, the addition of their battle power could become 2 or could become lower than 1.

Eight targets attacking one enemy was too excessive and because of that the ones that could attack at the same time were merely four.

And that was only when the opponent was completely open. If one direction was restricted, then the number of people reduced even more.

Tiachi made a quick decision the moment the seven Valkyries charged forward. They were inside a forest but there weren’t that many trees near them. They were in a situation that they could surround him easily.

Tiachi kicked the ground with strength and surged up. Jumping to the air enabled to you dodge the immediate attacks but restricted your movements so it was easy to become an open target.

But TIachi also had his own thoughts. The moment he spread his arms, his two arms became huge wings of an eagle.

That was the reason why Tiachi got called as the Beast king.

He, that was the best hunter among the giants, was also the best transformer. He could transform to almost every beast and could also transform a part of his body like he was doing right now.

Tiachi fluttered his wings after transforming his arms. He wasn’t planning to flee even a little. What he was thinking was attacking as a hunter bird catching its prey. He was planning to break the Valkyries that were looking at the sky dumbfoundedly.

But he realized that something was wrong the moment he finished his first stroke of his wing.

The Valkyries weren’t looking at the sky with dumbfounded expressions. When he looked down at the ground, several Valkyries were already surging up to the sky.

Four Valkyries became the foothold for Tae Ho and the remaining three Valkyries. They didn’t exchange glances and divided their roles in an instant.

The fake Heda got on the hands the fake Gandur gathered and the Gandur sent Heda flying up to the sky with all her strength. It was the same for the other Valkyries.

Tiachi hurriedly twisted his body. The sword of Heda pierced the space Tiachi had been and the fake Scathach surged from the shoulders of the fake Adenmaha and changed her direction once again. She stabbed towards Tiachi with her spear so he could twist his body once again desperately.

Tiachi rolled his eyes. He transformed his two arms into the arms of a rhinoceros, that had thick and rough leather, without even having time to curse out. Tae Ho, that had been waiting for the perfect moment, slashed the arms Tiachi had gathered.

His sword cut him really deeply. His skin got ripped and blood spluttered. Tiachi gritted his teeth and crashed down. Four of the fake Valkyries were already formed in a circle in the point that was estimated Tiachi would fall.

It was an unbelievably linked play. How did they work so well together without even glancing at each other!

Tiachi transformed into a big armadillo and made his body round. He then started to spin in that state and maximized his attack.

He wouldn’t simply crash down but rather strike back.

It was a desperate measure but quite excellent. The strong magical power Tiachi had as a magician king made his speed and spinning power much stronger. The same power of a meteor strike would be generated from his attack.

Tae Ho embraced Heda from her waist and kicked the air. Scathach and Adenmaha changed their bodies in the air to control their descending point and the four Valkyries that were in the ground dodged from the estimated fallign point of Tiachi.

Bang!

Tiachi hit the ground. The shockwave swept the surroundings and the ground shook and dust surged up.

It was a plentily strong attack although he failed in damaging the Valkyries but Tiachi still couldn’t understand. The movements of the Valkyries were just too well coordinated this time too.

As soon as he unfolded his body and transformed back into a giant king, the Valkyries started to pour out sharp attacks.

‘This crazy!’

Curses came out by its own. The attack of the Valkyries was as smooth as flowing water. They didn’t just stop at stabbing from the sides but they filled the openings of each other. It seemed like they were originally one body.

But he was still the giant king. Tiachi released a great amount of magic power in an instant and made a big move. It was to crush the Valkyries with his attack and cut the flow of the attacks.

And his intention was quite right. The huge magic power he released by swinging his fist completely crushed the fake Reginleif that was coming from the front. She disappeared without even being able to scream.

But the remaining three didn’t get swept at the aftershock. The moment the fake Reginleif got hit at the magical attack, Rasgrid and Gandur executed low attacks almost by lying on the ground. Their swords aiming for Tiachi’s ankle were just like snakes.

Tiachi hurriedly kicked Gandur but he wasn’t able to do anything to Rasgrid’s attack. He concentrated magic power in his leg hurriedly but he lacked time. In addition, there was something else that was terrible.

The attacks of the Valkyries were too strong.

The weapons that got strengthened by the Glory of Camelot displayed the same power as when it was wielded by the knights of the round table. The sword of the knight of truth Agravain which Rasgrid swung tore Tiachi’s ankle along his magic power.

Tiachi’s posture broke but he was still a renowned giant king. He transformed into a big animal in that state and tried to crush Rasgrid and Gandur together.

But it only ended in an attempt this time.

Ingrid grabbed Gandur by her waist and kicked the ground. Rasgrid, that had succeeded in her attack, also kicked the ground and got out of Tiachi’s range.

And Scathach filled that empty space when she descended from the sky. The other Valkyries overwhelmed Tiachi in an instant with their spearmanship.

‘Hey! Why is her completion rate so high!’

Cuchulainn got angry. It was because the movements of the fake Scathach were too good.

Just when did he increase the completion rate by that much?

Tae Ho answered calmly at Cuchulainn’s rage. She made Heda join in the attack with Scathach and talked back quickly.

‘I just synchronized them?!’

The seven fake Valkyries were all synchronized to the fake Heda as the core. Because of that, they could greatly increase their completion rate although not as much as Heda.

The effects of the synchronization didn’t end there.

The reason the seven of them could move as if they were one was also because of that. They could share their thoughts without needing to glance so it was an obvious they could do that much.

In addition, Tae Ho’s controlling was added to this. But there was no need to control them from start to end like he did with Nidhogg.

The Valkyries moved autonomously and Tae Ho just gave a strategic order in the decisive time.

And this kind of battle was too familiar for Tae Ho.

‘I feel like doing a boss raid.’

The team play in Dark Age.

The fake Valkyries that had dodged the attack also joined Scathach and Heda in the attack. Tiachi’s limbs became more confusing and because of that more attacks started to land in him.

‘Items boosting is really the best.’

The second fact.

The individual battle power of each Valkyrie was merely at the intermediate rank, excluding Heda and Scathach. But their attack power was greatly surpassing that of normal intermediate ranked warriors.

Tiachi couldn’t overlook any attack at all. He excelled in strength and speed but he was a level lower in durability due to his small body.

Babang!

Loud explosions were heard in consecution. Those were the sounds made when Rasgrid and Gandur disappeared.

Tiachi poured out attacks while having become a bloody mess. He received Scathach’s attacks with his body and destroyed Ingrid by hitting her in her head.

A smile stained with accomplishment and pain was drawn in Tiachi’s face. He looked at Tae Ho instead of looking at Scathach and Heda.

Tae Ho, that was looking at the Valkyries attacking Tiachi from a side, answered Tiachi’s nasty smile with the same smile.

Scathach twisted her spear. Tiachi let out a groan at that and swung his arm after transforming it into snakes. He bit off her neck to make blood flow out and then transformed into several beasts to heal his wounds.

Heda didn’t charge towards Tiachi while Scathach disappeared. She rather fell back and created some distance.

It wasn’t because Tae Ho treasured the fake Heda. The reason they did that was to grab Tiachi’s attention and to make an opening so that Adenmaha was able to butt in.

The body of the fake Adenmaha was the same as the original’s. She was proficient in magic but couldn’t fight well with weapons. That was the reason she didn’t participate in the attack until now and just looked from the back.

The sword of the knight of the round table Kay was given to her but she didn’t swing it. She was empty handed as she had given it back to Tae HO beforehand.

Adenmaha embraced Tiachi the moment Heda fell back.

Tiachi got bewildered. It was because there was no strength behind her attack.

Was she planning to seal his movements at least for a moment?

Tiachi didn’t think for long. Whatever the motive was, he just had to shake her off.

But it was at that moment.

The moment Tiachi put strength in his arms, Tae Ho activated his saga.

[Saga: Owner of frost]

The fake Adenmaha transformed into the frost white dragon Javier.

It wasn’t to fire her specialty, the ice breath. Also not to attack him with her sharp claws and fangs.

Just crushing him down.

Sitting on him with her overwhelming size.

But Tiachi was still a giant king. He didn’t just let it hit him. Tiachi was already moving even before Adenmaha finished her transformation. He executed an attack in the middle of her transformation and opened up a path.

Kguaaang!

A weird sound exploded. The lower body of the frost dragon that got separated from its upper body swept the surroundings. Tiachi, that barely managed to cut Adenmaha’s waist surged up.

It was like Tae Ho had expected.

“Hello once again?”

Heda butted her face in front of Tiachi.

Her smile was as beautiful as the smile the real Heda showed when she went to meet Tae Ho and was as scary as when she said ‘so that was the case’.

Heda embraced Tiachi.

Tiachi, that had just surged up, couldn’t do anything towards Heda. He got grabbed helplessly in the air.

And he understood.

The plan.

Everything was set up. The scene he saw beyond Heda’s head explained him everything.

‘Dog like bastard.’

To embrace Heda even if she was a fake.

Tae Ho surged up to the sky and glared at Tiachi with overwhelming eyes. Cuchulainn made fun of him saying that he was the one that ordered her to do that but he was also putting a cold smile.

The last attack Tae Ho prepared.

The finishing attack using the fake Valkyries.

Gae Bolg, that was concentrating strength when it landed down, released a strong aura. The spear of death started to fly towards Tiachi.

The fake Heda became smoke and disappeared. The spear of death tore the remains and passed by. It was a last attack that had no ways to dodge.

“Fuck.”

Tiachi cursed out and that became his last words.

Gae Bolg pierced Tiachi’s chest. It passed through his heart and then spread the curse of death through his entire body.

Tiachi didn’t die instantly. It was because the death of Gae Bolg didn’t let him die a clean death. An indescribable pain crushed Tiachi’s body and mind.

Gae Bolg got stuck in the ground when it passed through Tiachi. The howl left by his limbs started to transform into a cracked sculpture and then started to break down.

Tae Ho took a deep breath. He looked down at Tiachi with cold eyes instead of retrieving Gae Bolg.

He opened his mouth but couldn’t form a word. He broke down completely with his scream filled with malice.

And at that moment, an overwhelming amount of runes surged up from his remains. The amount was so big it was seen as a pillar of light.

It was different to when he defeated Hrumbak with Nidhogg. This time, he completely defeated him only with his strength and a perfectly made plan.

A great amount of runes entered his body. Although Tiachi was at a level lower than Hrumbak, he was still a giant king.

[Synchro Rate: 78%]

The 80% was right in front of his eyes and the accumulated runes made him be at the top even among the superior ranked warriors.

Tae Ho retrieved Gae Bolg. He also went to retrieve the weapons of the knights of the round table which the Valkyries dropped instead of facing the remaining little giants looking at him as they got surprised and stopped fighting.

‘It ended.’

Bracky’s hammer crushed Itaka’s head the moment Cuchulainn spoke.

&

“I worked hard. Rolled a lot. Dizzy......”

Nidhogg mumbled with a pale face. Hraesvelg clicked his tongue because he didn’t like her acting that way but he still extended his arm to support her because he did feel a bit sorry for her.

The battle had ended.

They couldn’t completely exterminate the giants and evil spirits but could defeat quite a lot of them. The ones that had survived were the ones that couldn’t hear Hraesvelg’s name.

The rescuing team had successfully rescued all of the Valkyries. They were all exhausted because of the terrible hardships they had faced. But they were still Valkyries. They didn’t forget to thank the ones that had saved them.

The warriors and the Valkyries that had regained their composure hid themselves in a secluded place.

The ones that advanced to the path going to the Temple was only a minority.

“I’m grateful to you in many ways.”

Kaldea stood in the gate leading to the Temple that had been generated naturally by the system of Yggdrasil and spoke while turning around. Her golden hair that was tied up lapped as if it was her tail.

They had defeated Tiachi but it was merely the start.

Kaldea had to go the Temple as they had originally planned.

“Be careful.”

Tae Ho, that had escorted her to the gate, spoke with courtesy but with sincerity.

“You certainly are simple and honest.”

Kaldea giggled as if something was fun about that and then spread her arms. Tae Ho hesitated for a moment as he understood her meaning but still hugged her in the end and shared their warmth.

“I’m really grateful. I knew that you would become a big shot but I didn’t know that you would become one this fast and such a big figure. Heda’s eyes are also quite something.”

She giggled once more and then slightly pushed Tae Ho. She then looked up at him and then put playful eyes. She gave him the best blessing in that state.

“It’s not much but it’s still a gift. The completion rate would increase now right? I will keep it as a secret to Heda.”

Kaldea winked while licking her lips. Cuchulainn laughed at that and Tae Ho put an awkward smile at the guilt he felt.

“I will go for real now. Let’s meet later for sure.”

“Yes, go.”

“Right.”

Kaldea bid her farewell brightly until the end and took a deep breath. She had faced almost every kind of things as a Valkyrie but it was the first time she moved to another world. She kept feeling her heartbeat.

‘It’s not because of the blessing.’

Kaldea pressed her chest tightly to calm herself and fixed her expression. She erased her playfulness and expressed etiquette to the commander of Idun as a Valkyrie of Valhalla.

“For Asgard and the nine realms.”

“For Asgard and the nine realms.”

Kaldea turned around. She then entered the gate that connected to the Temple.

&

The real world tree, the System of Yggdrasil, was connected with Asgard as the center and the other nine realms but it wasn’t they only system that completely passed through all the ten worlds.

Kaldea barely got out of the path of the System of Yggdrasil that was filled with white light and stood in front of a road that she hadn’t experienced until now.

It was similar to the System of Yggdrasil but different at the same time. A system that could be said to be siblings.

The path connected to the Temple was beautiful.

The cherry blossom trees that were at the sides of the path were big and had a nice fragrance. The cherry blossom flowers that fluttered along the wind landed down on the ground as if dancing.

“Wow........”

Kaldea let out an exclamation unconsciously and her cheeks flushed.

And the one that looked at that below a tree let out a laugh. It wasn’t a laugh that ridiculed her but it was the same kind as Kaldea’s exclamation. It was a laughter that came out unconsciously when you say something beautiful and nice.

Kaldea hurriedly turned to look at the direction the laughter was heard at. There was a man with a big build that was covering his face with a bamboo rain hat. It seemed like he was a member that belonged to the Temple that he was wearing a korean style traditional jacket and pants. He was holding a big weapon in his shoulders but it was a kind you couldn’t see in Valhalla.

The most similar thing to it was a trident but the weapon of the man was too different to the basic parts of a spear. The part of the tip of the spear wasn’t a sharp blade but a weird object that was bent and had ten forks.

If the one looking at him wasn’t a warrior but a farmer, they would have realized that the thing the man was holding was a farming tool instead of a weapon but Kaldea was a warrior. That was why she tilted her head a few times and then erased her doubts about the weapon. It was because she had to first express etiquette with the one she had met.

“I’m Valkyrie Kaldea of Hermod’s legion. Do you belong to the Temple?”

Kaldea hit her chest twice and expressed the etiquette of Asgard. The man flinched at the word Valkyrie and then stood up hurriedly and took off and threw his bamboo hat.

And then Kaldea was the one that flinched unavoidably. It was because the man didn’t have the head of a human but that of a pig.

But Kaldea hid her surprise and looked up at the man with her green eyes. The man smirked as if he liked that Kaldea didn’t shake greatly and then wrapped his right hand with his left one as the etiquette of the Temple followed.

“I’m the morning lion Cho Hakkai. The ones close to me call me Juh Pal Gye.” (TL: Or Zhu Bajie.)

The former enemy of the thousand poles.

The disciple of the Samjang (TL: Or Tripitakadhara) Juh Pal Gye extended his hand to Kaldea.

< Episode 42 – Great counter attack (5) > End