He was an exalted king.
He was a brave navigator that had sailed to seas no one had ever dared to,
and had never been defeated once until Odin called him.
People remembered him.
And those people transmitted his name to the generation to come.
The start of the vikings.
The king of all vikings.
He carried a big and round shield in his back. And held the viking sword Ulfberht with a hand.
The blue and red pigments painting his face made him look more flashy.
Ragnar took a deep breath. The cold air reaching his lungs made his head clear.
His eyes resembling a wolf that held mysteriousness and madness flashed. A face was drawn in his face.
He the one that was an explorer, plunderer, warrior, king, navigator, farmer and a strategist.
The image people believed in, imagined and remembered became one and created the first and most powerful viking. The current Ragnar was an existence like that.
It has been a really long while. Nearly a hundred years. It was the first time after the Great War.
The giant of strength Harad shivered and then smiled. Although he had come to this battlefield as if being chased with anxiousness, he was still a warrior. Now that he was facing a Great warrior, he had also become a Great warrior.
Red and black fire surged up from Harad's body. The him that was behind his fist was difficult to imagine.
"Damned."
Ragnar cursed like a joke. It seemed like he looked at another place for a moment and then charged forward.
"Ragnar!"
Harad laughed freshly and punched. Ragnar also swung his sword.
And at that moment Tae Ho could know why this battle had reached the boundary of mythology.
Kwagagagagang~!
An earthquake shook. The ground split tens and hundreds of times with the epicenter at the center. The monsters that were near it got swept up and got shredded. This wasn't a fight between individuals anymore. They would have to rewrite the map because of this one attack.
The aftershock of the attack also affected the air. Rolo, that had lost consciousness for a moment, let out a cry but then regained consciousness. It got pushed back because of the rash wind.
Ragnar cursed while being inside the big dust cloud that arose. The clash just now wasn't simply an exchange of a fist and a sword. It was a competition of complicated and mysterious techniques that had the essences of the both of them melted in it.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A loud sound exploded in consecution. The fist of the giant of strength were able to shake the ground and sky. Just looking at strength, he was the best among the five fingers of the magician king.
Ragnar was small and he was big. However this wasn't a problem anymore. Harad's fists were precise and Ragnar dodged Harad's attacks with his senses that were as sharp as a sword. He fended off his fists with the viking sword and at the same time threw the axe he had taken out.
It was small but strong. Not even Harad could see the meteor like attack easily. The axe that had grazed Harad's waist split the ground with a white light. Smoke surged up from Harad's waist instead of blood.
Merely 10 seconds. However after the battle that was enough to kill thousands of people Ragnar let out a curse. He had already reached his limit. He didn't even have the strength to use the small stories inside the big ones.
It was really awful. He just had to stall for time but he couldn't even do that. The only way was to win with one attack.
'One sword.'
Ragnar distanced himself from Harad. It was a really short interval but it was enough with that. Ragnar prepared the best attack he could execute now.
But Harad also felt that. It was a terrifying thing. Even though he had fallen he was still the viking king. Even though the attack Ragnar was preparing wasn't executed, it still made Harad really nervous.
Because of that Harad moved faster. He remembered the fact that Ragnar wasn't a simple warrior but a king and then attacked.
What he fired was red and black fireballs. And the strong wind that was like a hail was added onto that.
It wasn't towards Ragnar.
Thor's legion.
The small existences that were overwhelmed at the mythical scene that was occurring in front of them and at Harad's appearance.
It was also a gamble for Harad.
If Ragnar ignored his attack, he wouldn't be able to dodge a fatal wound because his defenses were low for having executed the earlier attack.
Ragnar moved and Harad smiled.
The black fireballs got cut off. The hail like wind got split in two and scattered.
The warriors of Thor's legion realized instinctively that death had just passed in front of their eyes. Ragnar was standing in front of them while holding the viking sword Ulfberht.
Ragnar couldn't ignore them. Because he was the Viking king. He was someone that led warriors.
Ragnar closed his eyes and forced a laugh. His strength left his body. His mythical ranked saga was leaving his body.
'Damn it.'
He couldn't beat Harad. Although he had spent quite a lot of strength, that was all.
If he had chosen to attack instead of defending.
Ragnar threw away his regrets. He saw Harad that was rushing at him. He looked at him extending his fist while laughing and said as if lamenting.
"I told you to flee."
Ragnar's eyes moved to the sky. At that moment Harad could know.
Harad's eyes moved upwards. It was also to the sky. He saw the thing that was falling down towards him from the sky.
Harad swung his hands. The black fire became raging billows and covered the sky. However the arrow coming from the sky didn't stop.
"Hu! Ah! Hu! Ah!"
Bracky breathed out weirdly. It was a method he had come up to not get buried by the myth in front of his eyes.
The raging billow covered them. Just a normal billow was terrifying enough, but this one was made of fire. But they couldn't dodge it. They had to overcome it just like they did so for a storm.
[Saga: He's the son of a God]
[Saga: Thunder gets immersed in his hammer]
Bracky jumped down from Rolo. He charged into the raging billow and swung his hammer that had thunder in it.
The thunder opened a path. Although it merely split it for a moment, it was enough with that.
"Go!"
Bracky fell and yelled. Rolo passed through the path of flames along with Tae Ho.
[Saga: Charge of the dragon]
Harad stopped his charge and stepped on the ground. And then he extended his fist.
It was an attack that could split the sky in two. It was impossible to face him head on.
'Just like I expected!'
Tae Ho jumped down from Rolo. Rolo drew a sharp trajectory like planned and moved to Ragnar and Tae Ho twisted his body in the air.
"Chant!"
He fluttered his wings after having transformed into a hawk. He passed over Harad's fist that was covered in flames and that made him think that he was riding on a wall.
It was hot. No, he felt like dying. He felt like Tae Ho's existence was getting crushed just by being close to him.
But he had to endure it. He activated the strength of a God. Idun's power covered Tae Ho's body. Heda's blessing that remained in his forehead protected him.
Tae Ho fluttered his wings again and flew. Rolo was being controlled by Ragnar. Bracky fell to the ground after having become a mess and then Tae Ho realized.
They couldn't escape.
Dodging Harad was impossible now. Harad had already pulled his fist back. Even if he flew up like this, he would only get crushed by his fist.
'Heda.'
He got some strength just by thinking of that name. Tae Ho cursed himself saying that he was crazy and charged forward. Whether he became porridge or rice, he could only attack now.
"Chant!"
He yelled and transformed to a human again. He could feel Harad's eyes chasing him back. Tae Ho ground his teeth and activated the strength of his saga.
[Saga: Immortal warrior]
[Saga: The charge of a warrior is like a storm]
He gripped the Sword piece. He tried to kick the air while being followed by a thunderstorm.
Right then.
When he was about to yell Heda's name for the last time.
'I will help you.'
Gae Bolg's piece, that was in his waist, moved. It entered Tae Ho's hand by its own.
It wasn't the time to understand it with his head. Tae Ho grabbed the piece of Gae Bolg tightly. At that moment, white light started to be emanated from the piece.
Shining spear.
The incomplete thing was certainly Gae Bolg.
Tae Ho could feel Cu Chulainn. Perhaps it may only be playing his memories again. However he could know. What he had to do and how he should use Gae Bolg!
He kicked the air. He threw himself to the ground and fired Gae Bolg with all his might.
He felt like his left arm might explode. Gae Bolg emanated a strong light.
Bang!
Gae Bolg hit Harad's right shoulder. The strong force of destruction that was inserted by Scathach, the queen of the land of shadows, was activated. A white light started to shine in the shoulder that it had hit and gulped down the black fire.
Ragnar opened his eyes widely. And Harad was also shocked. Tae Ho cheered in the middle of his pain.
But it only lasted for a moment.
Harad teared off his shoulder. He had cut it down with his left hand. He got rid of the force of destruction along with his right arm and then gritted his teeth and laughed.
A fierce fire surged up. Tae Ho couldn't listen the sound made when Harad's right arm fell. Ragnar's yell and Bracky's despair also didn't reach him.
Tae Ho, that got bounced back, rolled on the ground. The bones of all his body got crushed. He coughed out blood while laying on the ground. His left arm that he had used to throw Gae Bolg didn't move, and he couldn't even feel it.
Tae Ho rolled his eyes while being absent minded. It seemed like veins had exploded that his vision was red. He could see Harad approaching him.
'Heda.'
His lips didn't move. He felt like Idun's blessing was barely holding onto his life.
It was the same as Black Fortress. No, it was worse than that. He didn't even have a piece of a golden apple now.
Harad clenched his fist.
&
Heda breathed roughly. Sweat flowed down like rain. Idun's blessing had activated from a place not that far away. There was only one person in this land that could activate Idun's blessing.
'No, no.'
It was the first time since that day.
He couldn't repeat what happened on that day.
Heda turned back to a Valkyrie from a swan. Rather than cursing at her immature self, she tried to bring out a greater strength.
But right at that moment.
Heda turned back reflexively. She started to let out tears of joy unconsciously.
&
Ragnar ground his teeth. Even though it was hard to even stand, he was raising his sword.
Because he couldn't let him die in this place.
He wasn't someone to die here.
He opened his mouth to try to get its attention for even a moment. He was even planning to tell him to kill him first.
But then Ragnar saw. He laughed pleasingly with his mouth that was about to yell angrily.
&
Harad though in the middle of his strong pain. He had to kill him. It wasn't because he had inflicted a wound as big as this.
He didn't know into what he would turn. He didn't know how Gae Bolg had appeared or how he could use it but he had to finish him here. Perhaps, it may be more important to do than killing the already broken Ragnar.
The unknown warrior.
He was covered in a golden light as he was dying. He was sure that the blessing of a God was holding on to his life.
He would kill him. He would remove a root that would be a calamity in the future.
But right before he swung his fist.
Harad turned to look back.
&
Tae Ho vomited black blood. Idun's blessing took care of him. Heda's blessing was trying to extend his life however it could.
[Saga: Immortal warrior]
Tae Ho opened his eyes again. His vision was still blurry. However he could vaguely hear through his ears.
Tae Ho Understood.
Why Harad hadn't finished him off. And why Bracky was cheering like that.
In a distant place.
Where Heda was supposed to be.
The sound of thunder was approaching.
< Episode 16 - Legend (4) > End