Alfheim (3)

“No, wait… Are you saying the most dangerous time bomb in the world is just wandering around freely right now?”

Eremus had destroyed a major part of the empire just by moving around.

From Forys Duchy to Nidavellir to Rubia—every major city in his path had melted away.

How could I forget those nightmarish scenes? I thought we had averted disaster when Lilia died and Eremus accepted his death.

It’s good that Lilia hasn’t parted from Eremus yet, but…

-Aren’t you taking me for too much of an idiot? Of course I took precautions. Since Eremus is essentially dead once already, he’s lost most of his power.

“Most?”

-Well, his soul itself is ridiculously powerful, so he still has a little power left.

Eremus’s “little” is nothing close to what humans would consider “little.”

Why do I say that? Because I’ve experienced it firsthand.

“You said you put Eremus into something. What exactly did you put him into?”

-I put him into a doll that Eremus’s daughter… Lilia, treasured.

“And if that gets damaged?”

-Hahah!

No, don’t just laugh—say something!

Is it what I’m thinking? A smaller-scale time bomb?

-Well, a city or two should be fine, right? And the doll won’t have any problems from just being torn apart.

“No… Hah… Never mind.”

At least it’s comforting to know that Eremus isn’t an easy opponent.

No matter how weakened he might be, his essence remains unchanged. Moreover, Lilia, though not very mature, already possesses tremendous power.

With those two together, I believe there won’t be any major problems for now.

…For now, that is.

-What do you think? I turned your amateur handling into the perfect happy ending! Isn’t that amazing?

“…”

She turned a situation I had barely managed to resolve into the worst possible outcome.

Somehow, being in ghost form seems to make her even more snarky.

I wanted to smack her, but I managed to hold back.

Even if Hecate has weakened, her forces haven’t. I shouldn’t risk turning the entire ghost city against me by making a wrong move.

“So, please explain why you’ve come all the way to Alfheim.”

-I heard that you, junior, were heading to Alfheim.

“So you came to Alfheim to tormen— help me?”

-Yes, of course.

“Then you should have appeared and helped earlier… No, never mind. I had unreasonable expectations.”

-What are you saying! How helpful am I? When I go sha-sha-shak! Pa-ba-bat! those monsters are no match for me!

“Ah, yes. I’m sure that’s true.”

This is somewhat good news.

We’re already marked by Hraesvelgr, but with Necropolis’s help, we might be able to resolve this.

Of course, that’s not the whole story.

Look at that wicked ghost’s expression. She’s thinking of something different from what I’m thinking.

And the problem is that I already know what she’s thinking from her series of statements.

“In your current state, could you handle the <Wind’s Tomb>?”

Considering her pleasure-seeking nature, wouldn’t this be about the right scale?

The stage might be set for a grand festival where trial faces trial.

-Leave Nidhogg to me.

“Why specifically him? Considering the characteristics of undead and ghosts, wouldn’t Hraesvelgr be easier?”

For undead who lead dead bodies, cold would naturally be easier to deal with than heat.

-There’s a definite reason for that.

Hecate crosses her arms as if trying to fold them. However, due to the ghost’s structural form, her arms were too short to actually cross.

-He’s a dragon, right?

“Yes.”

-We have a friend in our city who used to be a dragon when alive!

“Oh…”

A shocking revelation.

The forces of Necropolis revealed here were beyond imagination.

Dragons don’t exist in the current world. They were creatures originally created to aid in the war of the gods.

With no reproductive function, how could they survive in a world without gods?

Nidhogg is also called a dragon, but that’s just its form.

It can’t be called a true dragon.

Still, it’s certain that it was created through the concept of a “dragon.”

After all, the <Wind’s Tomb> was born from spirits.

“Since there’s a dragon in Necropolis, you must have a solid strategy.”

I can’t deny such a big picture. As expected from a monster who has lived for thousands of years.

She may have seemed foolish, but she surprisingly has a seasoned side.

-Not really? I just wanted to bring dragon-boy and have him scold the younger generation like “Kids these days, tsk tsk!” and torment them!

“Let’s just pretend my assessment was correct. This is the last chance for me to consider you as my senior.”

-Then I have no choice. Junior, come on, call me senior!

“Yes, senior. I’ll leave Nidhogg to you.”

-Hehehe!

My original plan was to stay in Alfheim and ask Nina about the abilities of an apostle, then work on strengthening them.

Hecate’s help wasn’t bad, but it couldn’t compare to Nina, who could directly use holy power.

That’s why I intended to learn how to utilize my abilities as an apostle from Nina, and while at it, also resolve Titan’s spirit magic issue.

The latter is on hold due to problems between Titan and Nina, but it’s something that must be addressed.

And if I could gain the Saintess of Earth as an ally by conquering the trial, that would be ideal.

But after directly encountering the <Wind’s Tomb>, which was stronger than I expected, that plan became uncertain.

My benchmark was based on the <Corruptor> and the <Future Drawer>.

Since the three together were barely counted as one trial, I naturally thought they would be weaker than Pinocchio.

But Hraesvelgr, while not as strong as Pinocchio, was certainly close.

And if you combine the remaining two trials, they’d undoubtedly be stronger than Pinocchio.

It was essentially an abandoned plan, so I was thinking of ways to deceive Hraesvelgr’s eyes and escape.

But what if Hecate’s cooperation was added to the equation?

Then a plan begins to take vague shape. The best outcome I can imagine is the liberation of Alfheim.

“Nina, is there any chance you could take on one of the other monsters?”

If Hecate handles Nidhogg and Nina takes one of the others, we could deal with the remaining one ourselves.

While the <Wind’s Tomb> isn’t an easy opponent, if we face them individually, our chances aren’t that low.

“That’s impossible. The battle between these monsters alone creates enough impact to turn Alfheim into a wasteland. Even if they fought at a distance, we couldn’t handle the damage.”

But of course, it’s not going to be that easy. Even if Hecate were at full power, it might be possible, but she’s in a weakened state as well.

Yes, even though this seems like a golden opportunity, it’s too big of one. Now I need to think of a new approach…

“However, there is one person who might be able to help.”

“Pardon?”

“As a matter of fact, here they come.”

The sound of small footsteps.

Looking in the direction Nina pointed, I saw a familiar figure of a different race approaching, completely out of place here.

Surprisingly, it was a face I knew.

“Geppetto…?”

The lord of Nidavellir and representative of the dwarves. And the creator who brought forth the trial, <Future Drawer>.

He appeared with a sleeping child on his back. Needless to say, it was Pinocchio.

“Oh my! What a coincidence to meet you here! I was feeling uneasy after leaving Nidavellir, but how fortunate to see you again like this!”

And through this situation, I finally understood Nina’s intentions.

I thought meeting Hecate here was a stroke of luck. I believed that with Nina’s help, we could completely resolve the trial.

But with Geppetto and Pinocchio here as well, it’s a different story.

Such powerful forces gathered at the same time by coincidence? Impossible.

“…So calling me here was about dealing with the trials from the start.”

“Perhaps. Or it might be about cutting away lingering regrets and stubbornness.”

Nina likely had plans to tackle the trials when she summoned me.

Or rather, she might have summoned me specifically to conquer the trials.

This person is not to be underestimated. She has quite a grand plan.

“Old man, how long have you been in Alfheim?”

“Hmm? Let’s see… About three months after you left? I departed from Nidavellir and came straight to Alfheim, so it’s been about half a year from now.”

“That’s even before I was contacted.”

Does that mean I was the last person to be recruited?

Or did they recruit Hecate after hearing that I was coming too?

Either way, the most puzzling presence is still Geppetto.

“How… No, why did you come to Alfheim?”

How he got here isn’t really important. Considering who’s sleeping on his back, breaking through to get here probably wasn’t that difficult.

I’m guessing he just plowed through without any plan or strategy.

“I came seeking help.”

“From the elves? Or from Nina?”

“If I had to choose, the former. Currently, the Saintess is making decisions, so I’m waiting as instructed.”

Geppetto came seeking help from the elves, and the current representative of the elves is the Saintess of Earth, Nina.

“As you can see, it’s because of Pinocchio. It seems that small fragment isn’t enough for Pinocchio to live fully.”

“Small fragment… Ah, you mean that wooden piece.”

When we defeated Pinocchio.

We had to remove the wooden heart that was essentially Pinocchio’s core.

The wooden heart, more than half corrupted by Belial’s power. We had separated only the unaffected part.

“You’ve probably figured it out by now, but it seems that wooden piece was part of the World Tree.”

Geppetto had said he wasn’t entirely sure what materials he used when creating Pinocchio. He was desperately trying to recreate his dead son using whatever he could find.

By chance, a branch from the World Tree must have been among those materials.

While it’s a precious material, it’s hard to distinguish with the naked eye, so it was probably a fragment that had fallen into the world by chance.

That makes sense, considering it’s a tree so massive it blocks the sky.

Now, with the <Wind’s Tomb> roaming outside and Nina’s barrier in place, there’s no way to obtain more.

That’s why he came directly to Alfheim to request a branch.

And Nina, as the caretaker of Yggdrasil, the sacred tree, would have demanded a corresponding price.

“Recently, I’ve been helping with odd jobs.”

“So you’ve been subjected to labor exploitation.”

If he had tried to take it by force, no one could have stopped him.

Even if Nina is a Saintess, she couldn’t possibly face Pinocchio while maintaining the barrier.

“Well, I solved things as I stayed. Initially, I hadn’t even heard what she wanted in return. I came today because she finally said she’d tell me… but looking at everyone gathered here, it doesn’t seem like an easy task.”

“Perhaps being exploited for labor might have been easier.”

Geppetto checked the group and laughed heartily. It’s understandable—this peaceful garden now hosts two trials and two apostles of gods.

In terms of power, we could probably devour several kingdoms without breaking a sweat.

Of course, I’m not sure if Geppetto knows that I’m an apostle, but from the Pinocchio incident, he’s aware of the kind of reckless tasks I undertake.

“Since I’m here, I’ll tune up your weapons too. Come visit where my companions and I are staying later.”

“Is it free?”

“I was planning on it… but the way you ask suggests you’re having financial difficulties lately?”

“I recently went into debt for 1,000 gold.”

“Oh my… I know that feeling well. If worst comes to worst, I recommend selling a kidney first.”

“Advice from experience, thank you. I’ll engrave it in my bones.”

Geppetto looks at me with a complicated expression. Yes, as a former debtor himself, he must empathize.

Fortunately, my debt is more of a life mortgage, so I won’t lose any organs.

Saying it like this, I’m not sure which is worse.

“Anyway, is Pinocchio sleeping like that because of the problem you mentioned earlier? Considering all the commotion, I’d expect him to wake up, but he shows no signs of it.”

“Sharp eye. That’s right. Recently, Pinocchio can only stay awake for about 6 hours a day.”

“That’s…”

“Ah, no need to worry too much. He can actually live just fine as is, but I’m just being greedy.”

“Still, a child in his prime should be running around energetically. I’ll do my best to help with this matter.”

Pinocchio and Hecate. Even weakened, they’re both trials of a higher caliber than the <Wind’s Tomb>.

The two of them should have no problem each facing one of the entities.

So if there’s an issue, it’s on our side.

“Well then, Nina. Is it alright to discuss what I want to talk about?”

My original purpose: strengthening my abilities.

No matter how I look at it, I couldn’t match the Saintess’s power.

If I were to clash with those monsters now, my chances wouldn’t even be half.

I came here for advice in the first place.

While Hecate’s guidance was helpful, Nina, who can directly use holy power, would be more beneficial.

It’s a necessary step to face Belial.

I’ve neutralized most of his schemes and prevented the war from happening, but it’s something that will inevitably break out someday.

I also wanted to ask about various questions that arose on my way here.

…But right now, I believe there’s something even more important.

“It’s about my friend.”

I don’t intend to leave Titan as he is. Of course, he’s strong, so he’ll definitely be alright.

“I understand you dislike Titan, but could you please have a serious conversation with him?”

But it wouldn’t hurt to lend a hand in the process.

After all, I am his friend.