TL: Tsubak
ED: Julsmul
Tae Ho dreamed.
He fell so deep into sleep that he couldn't even notice it was a dream but instead felt something of which only traces remained that he couldn't remember properly.
"Tae Ho."
A call reached his ears. Tae Ho slowly extended his head out of his dream. A voice was heard once again when he opened his eyes with difficulty.
"Hello once again?"
It was a speech that was nice to hear whenever he heard it and even more so in this moment, but Tae Ho frowned.
"What? I worked hard to try to imitate her."
Cuchulainn moved his head closer to Tae Ho and said, but Tae Ho still spoke while frowning.
"You should have saved that."
"I couldn't do that as I am too gentle."
Spitting in a smiling face.
Cuchulainn patted Tae Ho's shoulder and then urged him to wake up once more. When Tae Ho gulped dry saliva and rose up, another voice was heard.
"Did you wake up?"
"I did."
It was the call of Odin. Tae Ho stood up and looked in front of him. Odin was looking up the sky while leaning on a root just like he had been before Tae Ho went to sleep.
"Night has come, and it seems like it is darker and colder here."
It really was cold and dark just like Odin had said. The sky was also pitch black without any stars. The only thing that was lighting this place up was the moss.
Odin turned to look at Tae Ho and said,
"It seems like Nidhogg fell asleep. It seems like it fell deeper in a sleep because it had been excited all day, so that's good news for us."
Odin couldn't even walk properly, but he was still the King of Gods. He could see through Nidhogg's state just like if it was in front of him.
"Come closer."
There were about 5 meters between Tae Ho and Odin. It was a distance enough to talk face to face, but Odin told him to get closer.
Odin rolled his fingers when Tae Ho got closer like he ordered him to, and then, a golden apple the size of a fist appeared from his bosom and fell into Tae Ho's hand.
"You should also have one. This is a golden apple. Eat that and recover your energies as you have starved for a few days."
The golden apple was too precious just to use it to satiate one's hunger, but Tae Ho followed Odin's order without complaining.
The effect of the golden apple filled one with vitality, so it would be of great help against the battle with Nidhogg.
'It's just like eating food that boosts your stats before going on a hunt.'
Tae Ho thought of the stamina-recovery food he used to enjoy in Dark Age and put the golden apple in his mouth. As he took a big bite, after he used to only eat it in pieces, the difference was like heaven and earth.
'C-cool.'
Fortunately, he said that inwardly.
Tae Ho looked at the golden apple dumbfoundedly. He already knew that it was delicious as he had eaten it a few times already, but for the difference to be this big upon taking a big bite.
It wasn't just delicious. One could also say that held the ideal flavor.
"Is it that delicious?"
Cuchulainn asked, but Tae Ho didn't answer him and just ate. Rather than ignoring him, he hadn't heard him as he was too focused on eating.
"I will now engrave several runes in you. Take off your clothes and lower your resistance towards magic."
It was something he always did when Heda engraved new runes in him. Because of that, Tae Ho took off his clothes with familiar movements and lowered his resistance towards magic.
Odin rolled his fingers in the air and then a completed rune surged up to rest on Tae Ho's solar plexus.
"The first rune will increase your resistance towards poison. It will mix in with other powers wel,l so if you have another method to resist against poison, use it along with it. No matter how many methods you have to block the poison of Nidhogg, it will always lack."
If you aim to get on top of Nidhogg, you have to first find a way to circumvent the poison covering its body. Because of that, you could say that this rune is the most important one for this strategy.
"The second and third ones are protective runes. The first one will protect you from physical attacks, and the other one will protect you from magical ones."
Runes were engraved into Tae Ho's shoulder once again. Odin didn't stop there and continued to make new runes.
"The fourth and fifth are strengthening runes. They will grant you more speed and strength."
This time, they formed on Tae Ho's chest.
As Tae Ho took a deep breath to take in the runes, Odin stopped for a moment and waited. He started to move again only when Tae Ho raised his head.
"The sixth and eight runes are meant to fight against Nidhogg. I will engrave them on both of your hands. The rune in the left has a strong restraining magic, and the one in the right has a capturing magic that has the power to take away the strength of the captured one. If you use it after you take off some of Nidhogg's strength, it will show great effects."
Each one of them were strong runes. It was a bit sorry to say this to Heda, but it seemed like it would be hard for all of the runes she had engraved together to be able to match even one of Odin's.
'It's really a full buff.'
But this wasn't all. Odin still had one more rune magic he had prepared.
"Idun's warrior, I heard you have many weapons. Did you decide on which one you will use against Nidhogg?"
"I have a weapon in mind,"
Tae Ho said naturally, and this was an obvious thing.
Because one's tool and hunting method changed depending on their objective.
A water-attributed weapon against a foe that was weak towards water, and an armor that had resistance towards fire against a foe that could attack with fire.
The objective for this tactic was Nidhogg. Now that the objective was clear, the preparations for it could also become more clearer.
[Saga: Warrior's Equipment]
Tae Ho used the 'Warrior's Equipment' on top of the hilt of Caliburn to recreate a weapon he used in Dark Age.
Dragon Vein.
The dragon-exterminating sword that was also known as the End of Dragons.
Just looking at the effectiveness of the weapon objectively, it was certainly inferior to Gallatin or Arondight, but one could say that it was the best weapon Tae Ho currently had if they considered that his opponent was a dragon.
Actually, the dragon knight, Kalsted, had slain 7 dragons with this sword.
Odin opened his only eye sharply when Tae Ho extended Dragon Vein and then said with an admiring voice,
"Indeed, I can feel a strong power of a dragon exterminator from the weapon itself. Although it doesn't even reach the ankles of Sigurd, I think that this will be enough."
You could say that Balmung was the strongest weapon to kill dragons in Asgard as it had drank the blood of several dragons, starting with Fafnir.
Odin nodded a few times and then rolled his fingers once again to create new runes, but this time, he engraved a rune on Dragon Vein instead of Tae Ho's body.
"It's the eighth and last rune I can give you. Can you see the runes engraved in the blade?"
"I can."
There were three completely identical runes engraved in a line upon the long, wide blade of Dragon Vein that held the shape of a claymore.
Odin explained,
"If you call out the activation code, the aura of a dragon killer comparable to Balmung will be unleashed. Although it's a single use, you will be able to use it three times as there are three runes."
The activation code was Dragonote. It meant the end of a dragon.
When Tae Ho put away Dragon Vein, Cuchulainn said next to him,
"Indeed, we will be able to do it with this much."
Using the terms of Dark Age, he had bathed himself with legendary-ranked buffs.
But it wasn't the end. Odin still had a way to strengthen Tae Ho besides the runes.
"Idun's warrior, come closer. I will give you a blessing."
Tae Ho flinched at those words but then followed his will. He stood right in front of Tae Ho and then lowered his posture.
Odin then ordered Tae Ho to get a bit closer. As Tae Ho got closer while hiding his awkwardness, Odin only moved his neck to give a blessing in Tae Ho's forehead.
"My blessing shall accompany you."
It was the blessing of the top God. It was something that other warriors of Valhalla would envy him if they saw this, but Tae Ho thought of another thing unconsciously.
'I'm glad it wasn't the best blessing.....'
Tae Ho let out a sigh of relief inwardly and stood up and then Odin's last arrangement activated.
"Follow the butterfly. It will show you the path to Nidhogg."
When Odin let out a long sigh, a butterfly that emanated white light appeared and started to flutter its wings, and shining powder scattered behind it as if leaving a trace.
Now, all the necessary preparations have finished.
Tae Ho took a breath and then turned to look at Odin.
"I will be going then."
"Right, I will pray for your victory."
But it was at that moment that Odin, who was about to leave his last words of blessing, turned to look at Cuchulainn and said,
"Prince of Light, do you have something you want to say?"
"That...mm, actually yes."
Cuchulainn nodded with a face mixed with worry and then took a step forward and asked with a really serious voice,
"So is Nidhogg a male or a female?"
Tae Ho let out a sigh at Cuchulainn's question and thought that he really was a stubborn guy.
But Cuchulainn was being serious.
Because of that, Odin just laughed instead of rebuking and said,
"You will know when you see it yourself."
But in the end, he didn't give an answer.
Cuchulainn put a face as if he was being too much, but he was talking with Odin here. He couldn't complain more than that and stepped back.
Tae Ho faced Odin instead of Cuchulainn. He lightly hit his chest twice and expressed etiquette.
"For Asgard and the Nine Realms."
"For Asgard and the Nine Realms."
The shining butterfly started to lead the way.
-
It wasn't excessive to say that the root of the World Tree, Yggdrasil, was so excessively big it looked like a string of mountain ranges.
Tae Ho couldn't distinguish if he was stepping on the land that was at the end of the world or on the root of Yggdrasil.
After a time passed since they started following the shining butterfly, Cuchulainn spoke to Tae Ho.
'Are you nervous?'
He said it casually, but it was important. In Cuchulainn's eyes, the current Tae Ho wasn't the usual one.
It didn't mean that he was scared. It was that his worry about other people made Tae Ho's movements awkward.
Tae Ho didn't ignore Cuchulainn's words. He lowered his speed a bit and said with a low voice.
"I had a dream....."
'A dream?'
Originally, Cuchulainn would have asked if it was an erotic one, but he controlled himself this time. Tae Ho just thought of what he remembered instead of trying to think something he didn't remember well.
"What should I say, Adenmaha worries me the most."
Whatever the case, Idun and Heda were in Asgard right now, and Ragnar and Merlin would be able to take care of themselves in any dangerous situation.
But it wasn't the case for Adenmaha. She'd gotten left behind between the World Wolf and the Magician King and had a precarious side on her that made one feel uneasy.
'So in the end, you are saying that she's not reliable?'
"I think it's a bit different with that."
Adenmaha wasn't powerless. Her own abilities were outstanding, and nowadays, she'd even learned several mystical magic from Scathach.
The reason Tae Ho always called her regardless of the terrain was because she was of help in any kind of region.
But it was different this time. It wasn't a problem to be talking about being powerless or not.
As Tae Ho smacked his lips as if it was hard to explain, Cuchulainn spoke first.
'Don't worry. Adenmaha is a Goddess that's especially strong against bad luck.'
"Strong against bad luck?"
'Huh? Didn't Adenmaha tell you how she became a slave of Bress?'
"I couldn't hear it yet, and it was weird to ask her."
It was impossible that Adenmaha became his slave by her own will, so the probabilities of it being a good memory was low.
'Hm....so shall I tell you?'
"No, I will hear it from her directly."
Adenmaha would tell him some day. Tae Ho didn't ask her until now as he believed that. He didn't want to know of a past Adenmaha hadn't revealed herself through Cuchulainn.
'Right, I also think that is better.'
Cuchulainn smiled and said.
And how more time had passed?
Tae Ho regained his usual calmness, perhaps because he conversed with Cuchulainn, but soon gulped dry saliva at the scene that appeared in front of him. It was because a huge existence was curling down in between the huge roots that were like mountain ranges.
"The black, venomous dragon, Nidhogg..."
It was so huge that, even though they were looking from far away, it was hard to look all of it.
The fact that an existence that big was alive and could actually move shocked Tae Ho.
'Indeed, that is an ancient dragon,'
Cuchulainn smirked rather than being afraid and said to Tae Ho.
'Don't be afraid. You are able to do it. What we have to take over is the essence of Nidhogg, that will be in the heart room. It's not that huge body.'
Tae Ho nodded. He took some more breaths and then walked.
Cuchulainn looked at Nidhogg's body next to Tae Ho and mumbled alone so that Tae Ho wasn't able to hear him.
'I can't know no matter how long I see it.'
He had told him that he would be able to know when he did so.
Tae Ho activated the first rune while Cuchulainn blamed Odin. He then entered the poison that was a dense green.
< Episode 37 - The one that conquers (3) > End
TL note: Thanks for reading~