Chapter 194

193. Midgard’s Summit (2)

“By the way, Fernandez. How exactly do you plan to get there?”

Abel pointed her chin toward Yggdrasil as she spoke. She was right. Whatever Sadarkelisa’s schemes and plans were, to confront her, they would have to head to her domain.

But they were quite far away, even on a floating island in the sky. Even if they found a way to safely land on the ground, the idea of cutting straight through the swarming demons below was almost delusional.

“Lindworm. Is the dragon afraid of the open sky now?”

“Don’t even think about luring her out, Loft.”

When Loft spoke mockingly, Fernandez frowned. If it were a dragon’s flight, they could cover that distance in a couple of hours… but if the cost was her life, that would have to be the last resort.

But at Loft’s words, Abel bit her lip. For a moment, she looked at Kirhas, whose hair was still matted with dried blood.

“Right, even this young one doesn’t spare her own life. How could I do any less? Fine.”

“Your resolve is admirable, but finding another way should come first.”

“Is there another way? It seems impossible to even get to the ground right now.”

“No, there must be a way.”

Fernandez looked at Loft with cold eyes. Loft was grinning, listening to Abel and Fernandez’s conversation.

“Oh, so the method lies with me, huh?”

“I originally intended to cross the gateway alone, Loft.”

“Right, right. So?”

“You opened the gateway, and your goal is Sadarkelisa’s death, isn’t it?”

“Death? Oh, no. Eternal rest… eternal fall… ah, right. Don’t get mad, friend. Just kidding. You’re right. So?”

As Loft tried to deflect, Fernandez gripped the sword hilt. Startled by the intensity, Loft exaggeratedly waved his hands.

“You made it so I could challenge Sadarkelisa’s domain alone, or at least reach a place where I could safely approach her domain.”

“Isn’t that just speculation? What if I saw the dragon’s approach and hastily revised my plan?”

“At a time when even one person’s strength is scarce, you planned to waste the dragon’s power on mere flight… That’s a convincing excuse.”

“Haha, hahaha! Alright, alright. Friend, this is why I like smart friends…”

Loft laughed heartily and clapped his hands. He then whistled sharply toward the sky. The clear, sharp sound echoed through his exposed front teeth. Kirhas, with her sensitive hearing, winced slightly and covered her ears.

-Whirrr.

Faintly, the sound of a flag fluttering could be heard. Fernandez was the first to notice it. He turned his gaze toward the direction Loft was whistling and looking.

-Whirrr!

Soon, a small hawk let out a sharp cry and perched on Loft’s forearm. Loft stroked the hawk’s head with his finger.

“Friend, long time no see. Did you miss me last time?”

-Screech.

“Don’t be too harsh, Bedr. I’ll be here for a while this time. Now, let me introduce my new friends.”

The hawk tilted its head and scanned Fernandez and the group. It then pecked at Loft’s finger, which was pressing its head. Loft burst into laughter. Watching this, Kirhas spoke coldly.

“What a fine mount.”

“Oh, you have an eye for birds?”

“…That was sarcasm.”

“Same here!”

Loft cheerfully shouted and shook his arm to send the hawk flying. A gust of wind tousled his messy hair. He spread his arms dramatically like he was performing. The wind grew fiercer, and the sound of fluttering flags filled the sky.

-Whirrr!

“Now, follow me, friends!”

He spread his arms as if diving and leaped off the edge of the cliff. Kirhas let out a startled cry. As she rushed to the edge to check on Loft, Fernandez quickly grabbed her arm.

“Ah?”

“Wait.”

-Whirrr!!!

The sound of fluttering flags, no, the sound of flapping wings grew louder and louder. Fernandez shielded Kirhas from the rough wind with his cloak.

He squinted his eyes against the wind. Soon, a long shadow stretched across the sky, darkening it.

“A dramatic entrance, huh?”

“Aren’t I the god of drama, friend?”

-Whirrr!

Fernandez laughed as he looked at the shadow rising from below the cliff. Loft sat atop the shadow. In the backlight, yellow eyes gleamed from within the shadow.

A massive hawk, as big as a house, looked down at them, tilting its head. Loft sat on the hawk’s head, vigorously scratching its neck and laughing.

“Your stiff expressions are a sight to behold! Hurry up and get on! Don’t we need a ride to Yggdrasil?”

“W-won’t it attack us?”

“This one here is more eager than anyone to prevent Ragnarok. Don’t worry about that. Let me introduce you, the King of the Wind, the Sovereign of Blizzards, the God of the Sky, my friend… Hresvelgr!”

-Whirrr!

The giant hawk, following Loft’s words, proudly raised its head and spread its wings. Watching this, Faijashi smirked.

-Now I see why they’re friends.

‘Same here.’

* * *

Despite its massive size and exaggerated movements, the glide was smooth. Fernandez sat on the hawk’s back, holding onto its feathers, gazing at the blazing sunset and Yggdrasil still in the distance.

“Doesn’t it remind you of a year ago?”

Leaning slightly against his back, Abel whispered. Her voice was so soft, drowned out by the rough wind of the glide, that it was hard to hear unless one paid close attention.

“The time when we destroyed Guimerin’s ship in Infermur. It feels like an eternity ago.”

“A lot has happened.”

“Yes. A lot has happened. I didn’t have any particular desires at first.”

Abel whispered in a nostalgic voice.

“The sun rises, the sun sets. Stars appear, then disappear… Among all the shining things in my life, the most beautiful were the flowers, soap bubbles, and fireworks that vanished in an instant. When I woke up in the underground of the port, I thought my life was beautiful precisely because it was finite. I had no regrets.”

“How about now?”

“I want to live long.”

Abel looked at Asgard’s sky. The red sunset painted the sky brilliantly. The repulsive aura of hellish magic was swept away under the giant hawk’s wings, disappearing without a trace. They were simply enjoying the refreshing evening breeze.

“Very long. But not excessively long… Yes, as long as a human’s life. A life that shines like fire, blooms like a flower, and bursts like a soap bubble.”

Abel’s body was close. But Fernandez was more focused on the remnants of divine and magical energy in her body than her warmth or scent. A hundred years? Assuming she doesn’t transform into a dragon. She had a human lifespan.

Whether she would age over time was uncertain. After all, her human form was merely a convenience for conserving power. But her lifespan would never be like a dragon’s.

“The sunset is beautiful.”

“The sun hasn’t set.”

“…What did you say?”

“When we first crossed the gateway, it was already twilight. It’s been twilight since we started flying, and even now, over two hours later, it’s still twilight.”

Diemonica’s senses could measure time down to the second if he wished. In fact, even without Diemonica, anyone trained to constantly be aware of time could do the same.

The basics of alchemy are…





The precise measurement and calibration of the compound were accurate, and in his previous life, Fernandez had already mastered basic alchemy before turning thirty. He could measure time down to the second.

“That’s not a very romantic answer.”

“Romance is over, and I can’t even find it. The magic is stirring. Under those clouds.”

Fernandez pointed to the red clouds hanging low beneath the hawk’s wings. The heat and corruption from the ground rose like steam, spreading the clouds as vast as a plain.

And at the spot Fernandez indicated, a faint but swirling, strange cloud could be seen. Abel narrowed her eyes and glared at the cloud.

“Isn’t it natural for the scenery and weather here to feel unfamiliar?”

“If it were just a natural phenomenon, we could chalk it up to differences between dimensions. But it doesn’t seem like that. Loft!”

Loft, who was sitting cross-legged on the hawk’s head, enjoying the wind, turned his head. He saw what Fernandez was pointing at and nodded readily. They had to shout at each other to converse over the rough sound of the wind.

“I saw it! That’s our destination!”

“Weren’t we supposed to go straight to Sadarkelisa?!”

“Haha, everything has its order. Ragnarok is a very specifically prophesied apocalypse! If things were that easy, would we have suffered this much?”

Loft shouted while patting the hawk’s neck. The hawk instantly changed direction, diving straight into the swirling clouds.

“Hold on tight! We’re going to find the weapon to kill Jormungand!”

-Whirr!

His last words were almost drowned out by the sound of flapping wings. The clouds had a strange hue, a mix of red sunset and deep darkness, with lightning flashing in the vortex’s depths.

The clouds slowly parted with the wind. There was a reason Loft called this hawk the King of the Wind. Fernandez watched as the clouds tore and froze with each flap of the hawk’s wings.

Before they knew it, the sunset had disappeared behind them. Electric currents flashed through the thick clouds, brushing past them.

-Crack!

The hawk suddenly began to brake. Soon, a small island illuminated by lightning appeared at the edge of the clouds. Using the swirling lightning clouds as a light source, the island’s outline became clear. It was a desolate rocky island with pillars sticking out.

-Thud!

The hawk grabbed the edge of the island and stopped. Loft whispered something to the hawk and jumped off its neck. He stumbled toward the pillar in the center of the island, reaching out toward the blindingly flashing lightning.

“Have you been well, my brother! I was wondering how you were, but it’s good to see you’re still in one piece!”

[Lokiiii—!!]

-Rumble!

A massive roar came from behind the pillar, and a bolt of lightning struck right in front of his eyes. The rock caved in, and the magical energy forming the lightning scattered in all directions. Fernandez, who had dismounted the hawk, frowned at the sight. The power contained in the lightning was no ordinary force.

“Haha, brother. Your greetings are still as rough as ever!”

[How dare! How dare you, you filthy Jotun! How dare you call me brother!]

“That’s a racist remark. Be careful, brother!”

[You traitor. Get lost before I kill you!]

“You should’ve killed me just now. Huh? You need me, and I need you. Let’s not waste time on emotional fights.”

[You missed!]

-Rumble!

The man behind the pillar gritted his teeth, and soon lightning surged, slashing past Loft.

“Let’s talk this out! Brother, let me introduce my friends!”

[Friends……? You must have needed puppets!]

-Boom!

The pillar shattered, and a fist nearly the size of a human head appeared. The fist that shattered the pillar quickly retreated and disappeared. As the debris cleared, the silhouette of a giant, easily twice the size of an ordinary person, became visible.

-Crackle!

Lightning wrapped around the silhouette and flared up. The figure of a man in a tattered robe became clear. Beneath the robe’s hood, glowing blue eyes could be seen.

“Hey, brother. I know you’re angry……. But shouldn’t we strive for a more solid goal? Like killing Jormungand and stopping Ragnarok.”

[Jormungand! That filthy frost giant! How dare you speak that name in front of me!]

The man pushed aside the rock pillars and looked at the group standing behind Loft. He glanced at them briefly before looking down at Fernandez with a peculiar gaze.

[You didn’t bring completely worthless beings.]

“Right? I have a good eye for people, don’t I?”

[You mortals. I’ll show you a way back to your world. Leave. You don’t need to listen to this half-breed giant.]

The man completely ignored Loft and spoke to Fernandez. Fernandez took a step forward and looked up into the man’s glowing eyes.

“Where to? After this world is destroyed, can other worlds be safe? Are you telling us to just wait for the inevitable end and dig our graves?”

[You, little human. You speak like an Einherjar. I like you.]

The man chuckled from beneath the hood’s shadow.

[So I’ll give you some advice. That giant is not to be trusted.]

“I never trusted him.”

“That hurts, friend?”

[What did that traitor say to lure you here? Power? A cause? Justice? Whatever it was, that half-breed has no right to speak of it. This mess is ultimately his doing.]

“……What?”

The man studied Fernandez’s reaction before slowly speaking.

[Ragnarok, my father’s corruption. The fall of the Einherjar, the collapse of Asgard. Even the birth of Jormungand……. It was all caused by that damn traitor. Little human, if you want to save Midgard, save it from Midgard. The Temple of the Aesir fell because of that Jotun. Find another god to pray to.]

What is all this? Fernandez looked at Loft with that expression. Loft shrugged playfully.

“Well…… Ragnarok was bound to happen anyway, brother.”

[Shut up.]

“If it’s going to happen anyway, wouldn’t it be easier to control the variables rather than trying to stop it?”

[I said shut up.]

Loft smirked at that and turned to Fernandez.

“Well, friend. Ragnarok is a very specifically prophesied……. A predetermined apocalypse.”

“So?”

“With such a clearly prophesied apocalypse looming, shouldn’t we try to stop it? Like how the Einherjar sacrificed the north. We should focus on surviving by any means necessary.”

“……So?”

“So. Rather than an apocalypse that could happen anytime, wouldn’t a definite, specific, and imminent apocalypse be easier to stop…… That’s what I thought.”

At his words, Abel, who was standing behind him, gasped. She looked at Loft with wide eyes, shocked.

“Don’t tell me, Sadarkelisa…… She……. Suddenly became obsessed with hellish magic…….”

“Yep. That’s right. I corrupted her. Two thousand years ago. I needed Jormungand, and she needed power. It was a mutual agreement, so don’t look at me like that. It’s just that she turned out to be way stronger than I expected……!!”

-Crash!

Loft was suddenly sent flying by a punch. The man who swung at Loft shook his fist and groaned, clutching his forehead.

“So he lured us here to clean up his own mess. What about you?”

[That’s right. That damn bastard always thinks like that. He disappeared for almost a thousand years after leaving for Midgard, saying he’d return before the end. And just before he reappeared, the apocalypse really began. Do you think that’s a coincidence?]

The man reached into his hood, ruffling his hair and groaning before suddenly extending his hand. Fernandez instinctively grabbed it.

[Do you really not plan to leave, little human? The apocalypse is no small matter, and the chances of survival…… are nonexistent. I’m just hiding here, that’s all.]

“There are things more important than just living to survive.”

[Good. This must be what you wanted. Jotun?]

Loft, sitting on the broken pillar, nodded with a grin.

“This looks great. Aesir, human, Jotun, dragon, beastman, and a hawk……. Not a bad lineup to hunt Jormungand, right? Friends?”

Loft chuckled, completely unharmed.