Baldr, in Norse mythology, is the son of Odin and Frigg.
Of course, that is only his role in traditional Norse myths. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he doesn't exist—at least not in the universe where Josh lives.
But that doesn't stop Loki from knowing the name. After all, even though Baldr doesn't exist in Josh's universe's Asgard, he still appears in human myths, which Loki has read. More importantly, before Loki came to this world, Josh had already given him information that included Baldr.
In the world of Saint Seiya, Baldr is not Odin's son but the second-generation God Warrior. From the day he was born, he was blessed with kindness. But later, because the villagers of his home kept falling ill for many reasons, until only he remained as the last person able to work, Baldr, at only twelve years old, prayed to Odin again and again for help. Instead, he fell into the trap of the Loki of this world. Using the blessing of kindness, he exchanged it for the immortality granted by Loki, and eventually became one of the second-generation God Warriors—Loki's enforcer.
So when Loki heard this name, he became very interested. Although his goal in coming here was this world's Loki—his own counterpart—these God Warriors under that Loki's control were also part of his plans.
"So you are the cursed child!" Loki said proudly from his tall horse, looking down at Baldr.
"Cursed child? What do you mean?" Baldr, who had been waiting quietly by the roadside, froze for a moment and looked up in confusion.
"If I'm not wrong, in this village everyone is either dead or sick, and you're the only one still healthy, aren't you? Do you know why?" Loki asked with a sly smile.
Baldr's face darkened. He had a bad feeling about what Loki was about to say. He had often complained about the misfortune of his village, but he had never thought it was his fault. Yet Loki's words pierced his heart like a needle—could it be true? Was he really cursed? Were all the deaths in the village because of him?
"You've already guessed it, haven't you? A curse! Odin's curse! That's why you suffer all this misfortune!" Loki spoke out the answer Baldr feared most—the one he couldn't accept.
Of course, this was only Loki's trick. The villagers' sickness and deaths were indeed caused by a curse, but Baldr had nothing to do with it. In fact, he was spared only because Odin's blessing made him immune to it.
The real source of the curse was not Baldr, but the Loki of this universe—Odin's sworn brother—sealed in the temple behind the mountain. Even while sealed, his dark power had spread into the surroundings, especially since the seal had already begun to weaken.
Still, even though the true culprit was his own counterpart, that didn't stop Loki from twisting the truth to plant doubt in Baldr's heart, to make him question Odin, and maybe even turn against him one day.
"No… impossible! That's impossible! Lord Odin would never curse me!" Baldr cried, his faith shaken. Since childhood, as one of Asgard's people, he had been raised to believe in Odin. Loki's words struck his faith like a hammer.
"There's nothing impossible. If you don't believe me, then leave this village for a while. See if the people here get better," Loki said calmly. He didn't rush to fill Baldr's head with too many dark thoughts. Planting the seed of doubt was enough…
And if Baldr really did what he suggested, it wouldn't take long before he saw the villagers' health improve—because Loki's goal was to destroy his counterpart. Once he succeeded, the curse over this place would vanish.
Even if he failed and the other Loki escaped, Loki could still use his own power to cleanse the curse. When that time came, with just a little whispering in the village, Baldr would be forced to believe he was truly the "cursed child."
After planting doubt in Baldr's heart, Loki said nothing more. He rode past, leaving Baldr in heavy self-doubt, and headed toward the temple behind the village.
The closer he got to the temple, the faster his heart pounded. He felt something inside calling to him again and again. He knew it was the connection between himself and his counterpart.
Back in Azeroth, he never sensed this before. At that time, he was always in Kalimdor and the Broken Isles, while Loken remained far away in Northrend—too distant to feel. But here, ever since he had approached this village, the pull had been growing stronger. Now it was almost overwhelming.
He could even feel the other Loki's joy leaking through.
"Heh… I hope you're still this happy when I arrive," Loki sneered. The Tentacle Sword appeared in his hand, and he strode into the temple.
It was a temple of Odin. But the statue of Odin outside was already broken and ruined.
In Loki's eyes, the whole temple was drowned in endless dark power. Following its source, he soon reached a hidden underground chamber deep inside.
There was nothing in the chamber except a black two-handled urn on a shrine, sealed with a rune.
There was no doubt—the soul of this world's Loki was sealed inside.
"Come… break the seal, and I will grant you endless power!" A faint voice whispered in his ear.
But Loki didn't move. Instead, he raised the Tentacle Sword.
"A sealed failure… Hand over your power to me instead!" he said coldly.
With that, the blade split into massive tendrils, wrapping tightly around the urn. The rune was crushed in an instant.
As the seal broke, Loki's soul shot out with excitement, rushing to possess him.
But the moment the purple soul appeared, the tendrils coiled around it, binding it tightly.
"What—how is this possible? Who are you?!" The evil Loki was stunned. These tendrils were clearly physical, so how could they touch his soul? Worse—he felt his power being drained away.
"Heh… Who am I? Can't you feel it?" Loki's eyes glinted coldly as he watched the trapped soul writhe in the Old God's tendrils. "I am you!"
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