“So, you’re saying that Odin sent the Valkyries to steal the souls of the dead?”
“Yes, yes! I tried to stop him, but that old geezer Odin was too stubborn!”
“Though I didn’t ask for your opinion.”
At my cold remark, Freyja hastily covered her mouth.
Whatever Freyja says doesn’t matter anyway.
What’s important now is that Odin has dared to invade the domain of souls under my responsibility.
So…
“You’ve crossed the line, Odin.”
“Hiiieeek….”
Even if the gods’ downfall is approaching and he’s anxious, there are still things that should and shouldn’t be done. How dare he do such a thing.
I can’t forgive this. I absolutely cannot forgive it.
“In light of the impending doom, he must have been quite impatient, huh? That fool Odin. But good luck to him. Now neither the Divine Hall nor the human world will be places he can meddle with anymore!”
“Huh? Ah, um… Odin started doing these kinds of things quite a while ago?”
Freyja’s words made me tilt my head in confusion.
“Long before rumors of the downfall began circulating.”
“Hmm. Hmm. Hmm… So, that’s what you’re saying.”
“You piece of garbage…”
“H-Hiiieeek!!! We were wrong!!!”
Even though I wasn’t speaking to Freyja, she flinched and shrank back. Did some kind of killing intent unconsciously leak out from me? Freyja trembled and curled up.
Ahem. No, no. Rather than losing my temper blindly… it would be better to extract as much information as possible from Freyja.
To be honest, I could just smash everything with brute force… but innocent people might suffer too, right?
Although the gods who recklessly caused trouble for Baal don’t appeal to me, I still need to carefully distinguish between those who deserve punishment and those who don’t.
Sometimes I really want to forget everything and just destroy everything… but if I acted rashly, this world wouldn’t remain intact either.
Didn’t Indra also say not to abandon this world? Hmm, was that correct? It had a similar vibe, but whatever.
I slightly calmed my anger and asked Freyja.
“What did Odin do with the souls he stole?”
“T-That…”
Freyja continued to hesitate before cautiously opening her mouth.
“They’re called Einherjar. He gathers souls and uses them to create soldiers. Using Odin’s power, even if their bodies are destroyed, they can resurrect and fight again as soldiers in Aesir’s army against other gods…”
“Soldiers?”
“Yes. Although individually the Einherjar’s strength pales compared to the gods, by amassing countless numbers, they can drain the powers of other gods. Simultaneously, he absorbs faith from them to enhance himself…”
“Hmph…”
I pressed my forehead at Freyja’s explanation.
So now, instead of letting the souls proceed to the Underworld after death, he steals them, recycles them into soldiers, collects faith from them, and simultaneously plans to engage in a war of attrition against other gods?
Did he think he could get away with this without me noticing? Or does he value these stolen soldiers enough to antagonize me and the gods of the Underworld?
And how exactly did the Valkyries manage to steal souls without being noticed by the Grim Reapers?
It truly baffles me.
“How did you deceive the Grim Reapers?”
“Grim Reapers?”
“Yes. It couldn’t have been easy to steal souls without being detected by the Grim Reapers who collect souls.”
If they had ever been caught stealing souls, the news would have certainly reached the Underworld.
How did they manage to steal souls without being noticed by the Grim Reapers?
“That… In battlefields where wars occur, many people die, right?”
“Yes, many die.”
“In such war zones, so many souls are released that Grim Reapers prefer to gather all the scattered souls at once after the battle ends.”
Hmm. From the Grim Reapers’ perspective, that method would indeed be more efficient.
In battlefields where numerous lives are lost, having Grim Reapers present every time a warrior dies would require deploying far too many of them… which would be a waste of manpower.
Handling everything at once after the battle concludes is actually a neat way of managing things.
“By flying above the battlefield in the form of crows, they secretly ambush and kill those with promising souls. They manipulate blind arrows to hit targets or slightly alter the trajectory of swords and axes to inflict fatal wounds. After causing the deaths of those who shouldn’t have died, they steal their souls without the Grim Reapers noticing.”
“Causing the deaths of those who shouldn’t have died?”
“Yes. Typically, they target outstanding warriors destined not to die in war and steal their souls. Since these aren’t natural deaths according to lifespan, even when Grim Reapers notice something strange, they often just tilt their heads in confusion and move on. Besides, in situations where corpses pile up on the battlefield, the disappearance of one soul isn’t easily detected.”
Hmm. Clever method you’ve devised there.
“Was it Odin who came up with this plan?”
“Huh? Ah, yes. It was Odin’s idea. I opposed it since it was too dangerous. I warned that antagonizing the Underworld could endanger Aesir itself, but they insisted it was necessary for Aesir.”
Odin. You crafty bastard.
Is this cunning mind only capable of thievery like this? Truly foolish!
“Then… how many among the gods of Aesir are involved in this?”
“In it? Uh… probably Odin himself, the Valkyries who followed his orders, and… as the commander of the Valkyries… me… Ah…”
“Ho. You were involved too?”
“W-Wait! It’s because I’m the commander of the Valkyries! If I give them tasks, reports inevitably come to me! I didn’t personally wish for it! You could call it the sorrow of middle management! Orders come from above, and I have no choice but to pass them down below! Eventually, I end up doing it unwillingly! Yes! That’s it!!”
“So, did you do it or not?”
At my firm words, Freyja lowered her head and spoke.
“I… I gave the orders…”
“If you did, then you bear guilt as well. Are you aware of that?”
“Yes, I know, but please let me defend myself!”
“Go ahead.”
At my cold response, Freyja darted her eyes around before sighing softly, then fell flat on the ground and pleaded.
“Please forgive me! I’ll do anything, so please spare my life!”
Somehow, she started begging for her life despite appearing ready to mount a convincing defense.
Beautiful appearance, yet disgraceful behavior.
Still, if she’s willing to do anything, there might be some use for her.
“Anything?”
“Y-Yes! Anything!”
“You just said you’d do anything, right?”
“H-Hiiiik!”
At my icy tone, Freyja flinched and whimpered.
“As long as you don’t tell me to die, I’ll do anything!”
“Alright. I won’t tell you to die since you’re in a position where you can’t refuse Odin’s commands.”
“Yes! Thank you very much!”
The overly submissive pleading from Freyja exceeds expectations. The finest beauty of Aesir has disappeared, replaced by a goddess unified with the floor.
But, whatever.
“Fine. I’ll make use of you. In return, I’ll spare your life.”
“Really?!”
Upon hearing my words, Freyja happily rose and looked at me.
“A-Ah, um… Would it be possible to also spare the Valkyrie children?”
“What?”
“Hiiieeeek!!”
Once again, Freyja collapses flat on the floor.
“Begging your pardon! But… the Valkyrie children merely followed orders! The real culprit is Odin! And they’re like my daughters! If possible, please don’t impose severe punishments on the Valkyrie children! …Thank you so much!”
Hmph. Valkyries. Stealing souls is detestable…
But originally, they’re low-ranking gods who couldn’t refuse orders.
Considering that, there is room for leniency.
“Alright. I’ll spare the Valkyries.”
“Really?! Thank you!”
“However, they must receive punishment.”
“P-PLEASE show mercy, Goddess of Life. Don’t impose excessively harsh penalties.”
Again, Freyja presses her forehead to the floor. Though a god, she’s acting far too humbly.
Still, since they’ve committed wrongdoings, punishment is necessary. Let’s see… so…
“I’ll use you when I punish Odin later. Afterwards, I’ll assign you and the Valkyries tasks. That will be your punishment.”
“I’d gladly bash that old man Odin’s head if it helps! But what kind of task…?”
Freyja hesitantly asks. I smile at her and respond.
“It won’t be too difficult a task.”
Just without any retirement.
