When he woke up, Heda had already arrived. She urged Tae Ho to get up and then started to prepare for the lessons after giving him two pieces of small bread and beer porridge. There were a big chalkboard and a table in the place you could call the classroom.
"Then let's start with the basic lessons. That's the most important thing."
Heda cleared her throat once and then hit the chalkboard.
"Who are we fighting against, and why?"
It was unreasonable to tell him to just go and fight. He had to at least know who they were up against.
As Tae Ho showed interest, Heda breathed in and then started to draw on the chalkboard with a chalk. There were 10 circles. She drew three circles horizontally and vertically to make 9 circles and then added one extra circle at the left side.
"This is Asgard and the nine planets. Asgard and Midgard are here. Valhalla is also in this place.
Heda drew a 'V' on the circle that was next to the extra circle and above that and said.
"The one above Asgard is the temple, and below that is Olympus. These three are on the front lines."
The temple was one thing, but the word Olympus caught his attention more. Will Gods like Zeus, Hera, and Athena be there?
'No one says that they aren't.'
Because Gods like Thor and Odin already existed.
Because of that, Tae Ho asked one more important thing.
"What about that planet?"
The circle that was next to Asgard.
If Asgard and the planets above and below were at the front line, it meant that that planet was outside of that.
At Tae Ho's question, Heda smiled bitterly and drew an X on that circle.
"It got destroyed. Actually, there aren't ten planets but nine. Because one got destroyed. So should we call it as Asgard and the eight planets?"
Actually, that planet was at the forefront. but as it got destroyed, Asgard, the temple, and Olympus became the front lines.
Heda placed her chalk next to the extra circle in the left and said.
"Beyond this place exists Muspelheim, the planet of giants. That's where the giants, demons, and devils enter from."
An arrow was drawn that went from the left to the right. Heda then pointed at the circles that were at the right of Asgard.
"You came from one of the rear planets and not of the front lines. Perhaps, it may be proof that the devastation of the war started to take effect at the rear too. Well, it's not that there weren't cases like you so it may be pure coincidence."
She said it lightly but he couldn't just take it easy. Especially about the part of the devastation of the war.
"Anyways, what's important is that we are fighting. Against the world's enemies that want to destroy our worlds."
The Valhalla from the myths was a place meant to train and give rest to the warriors, to prepare them for the fight to come. But this Valhalla was different. The warriors were already battling and a destroyed planet already existed.
"Ragnarok."
Tae Ho said unconsciously. He didn't know much about Norse mythology but it was still something he knew.
The dusk of the Gods.
The last war you could even call it the ending of the Norse mythology.
"Right. Right now we are carrying out Ragnarok, that has the fate of our worlds at stake. That's why we have to fight. To protect our world, or to be honest, to live."
Because if we lose the world would get destroyed. It wasn't only Asgard, but also the planets behind that.
Tae Ho gulped dry saliva. And then, Heda that was smiling pathetically, shrugged her shoulders and said.
"There's no need to be that afraid. We have been in this state for hundreds of years already. Let the great ones do the big battles and let us focus on the fight in front of us."
Heda winked slightly and then approached Tae Ho after putting down the chalk.
"Your rank is still low so you won't be going to the big battles. You can think that you will only be going to small battles like yesterday's."
"Small battles?"
The battle from yesterday? In addition, even Thor himself stepped out.
At Tae Ho's question, Heda blinked her eyes for a moment but then nodded as if she understood.
"Thor likes to stand at the front lines. On top of that, the battle of yesterday was one which the newcomers got sent suddenly, right? He would have been worried. Even if he looks like that, he has a really gentle side."
Tae Ho remembered the image of Thor he saw yesterday. It was hard to connect that amazing sight of blue thunder pouring that with that of gentleness but he still felt a bit better. Because it meant that the Gods also had a human side.
"Um, Heda."
"Yes?"
"Can I ask you one thing?"
"Anything."
Heda brought her chair and sat in front of Tae Ho. He breathed in and then started to ask the questions he had yesterday.
"Will I...be able to return to the place I lived someday?"
He had died once, but he was given a new life.
Heda nodded slowly.
"If this war ends someday, just like you say. And of course, that will only be if our side wins."
Because when the war ends, rest will come after that for the warriors.
Tae Ho was satisfied. You could think that it was vague, but it was enough to answer him for the moment.
"Anyways, you understand the reason we have to fight right? Then let's start with the class immediately. You have to get strong quickly so your rank becomes higher and you can get better treatment. You are doing the same thing, but now that it comes to this shouldn't you get treated better?"
Heda spoke cheerfully and then went to the chalkboard again.
"First, I will teach you how to use the runes you obtained yesterday. The Gods have made a growth system for the warriors of Valhalla. It's a simple method of investing runes to strengthen your abilities."
Heda drew a pentagon.
"The abilities are divided into five big things. Strength, stamina, agility, mana, concentration. The first three are obvious and mana is related to magic. If you get stronger your magic also gets stronger and so does your resistance to it. Should we call concentration as willpower? If you increase it your concentration or resistance towards mental attacks increase."
It was a simple system just like Heda said. Tae Ho remembered the words he heard from Bjorn yesterday and asked.
"Is mana related to the saga?"
Because however much he thought of yesterday's fight, the most important thing was certainly the saga.
Heda frowned as if it was hard to answer.
"Saga is a really special magic, so even if it gets as strong as your mana rune it doesn't also get as strong. Rather than mana, it sometimes gets influenced by concentration. Should you say that it changed depending on how it originated?"
Bjorn also said something similar.
Heda kept speaking.
"A saga is a story. A transmission. The more people know about it, and the more they believe in it the stronger your saga becomes. There are really rare cases but sometimes the strength of the saga becomes stronger than what it originally was. Just like how it's broken in the process of transmitting."
It was as saying that the story of having caught a big snake became a legend of having caught a dragon.
"But most of that can't even bring out the original power properly. And that's because they couldn't understand the saga properly."
Heda paused a moment there and approached Tae Ho.
"The sagas of the lowest ranked warriors and inferior ranked ones is simple. The majority of them make them stronger or faster. Of course, that's also an amazing strength but it lacks too much to call it the proper strength of a saga."
Bjorn's saga made his first bigger and stronger. And Tae Ho's saga also made his body faster for now.
"The saga is the materialization of a legend. A recreation of a story. Because of that, the effects of a saga are plentiful. In addition, several abilities may be generated in only one saga."
Heda lightly spread her palms while speaking. And then, yellow flames appeared in her palm and then became a flaming sword.
"You can make a weapon like this or can even transform it. You can even summon a monster or an army."
Heroes aren't the only ones that appeared in the sagas.
Tae Ho remembered the legend of Excalibur. If the saga of King Arthur existed, won't he be able to summon Excalibur?
Heda grabbed the flaming sword and approached Tae Ho a bit more. She pinched Tae Ho's chest with her finger and said.
"Remember. The saga is a story belonging only to you. It's a record of your life and a legend that will be made from now on. The one that can bring out the strength of the saga and develop it the best is none other than you."
The story of the pro gamer Lee Tae Ho.
The legend of the dragon knight Kalsted.
Tae Ho started to feel his heartbeat. He felt like the strength of his saga was becoming stronger.
Right at that moment.
A bell tower that was at the center of a small island rang its bell. It was a fast and noisy sound.
As they reflexively turned to look at it, then they exchanged gazes. Heda frowned and said.
"You kind of know what it means, right?"
"It's an order to go to battle."
Heda nodded. And then, took out some things in a big box that seemed like she had already brought it here beforehand.
"Take it. It's your equipment."
A really simple helmet and leather armor. A round shield that had the symbol of Idun engraved on it and a sword.
They weren't any legendary equipment or the sort but it was obviously better than what he got the day before.
Heda wore the leather armor to Tae Ho and quickly got out of the classroom.
"You can see the violet door over there, right? If you pass that you will be able to see the waiting station. You will be gathered there and go out to the battlefield together."
He could see the big violet circle that was below the bell tower and the current it had. It was just like the portals he saw at games.
Tae Ho thought of the battle he faced yesterday. It was a lie to say that he wasn't afraid to go back, but he had no way to not go. It was something he realized instinctively.
Tae Ho breathed in and then went towards the Violet door. Heda grabbed the arm of Tae Ho and made him turn to look at her.
"Don't die."
They were simple words. But it also meant that she wasn't joking and was earnest. Because of that Tae Ho forced a smile and said.
"You said that we didn't die well."
"Even so."
Heda smiled awkwardly and then fixed her expression. She stood in front of the violet door along with Tae Ho.
"Will you also be going?"
"I'm going to a different battlefield than yours. The order came down like this."
Heda took out the necklace she had hidden by her clothes. The violet jewel that was hanging at the tip was shining dimly.
"Heda, don't die."
"Care for yourself. Don't get hurt."
She said it sharply but her face was smiling happily.
The two of them looked at the front again. The two of them started to walk towards the violet door at the same time.