Chapter 102: Invasion—The One Who Loves Beheading Gods!
Within the Norse pantheon, there were actually two clans.
One was the Æsir, the clan to which Odin belonged.
The other was the Vanir.
In the distant past, the two great clans had engaged in a brutal war, which ultimately ended in the Vanir's defeat.
Yet, even after countless years, some among the Vanir still refused to accept this. During a major crisis, they betrayed their kin, nearly dealing a devastating blow to the Norse pantheon.
"Lord God, Odin refused."
"Is that so? Expected."
The one addressed as Lord God was originally of the Vanir, though few now knew of his origins.
In ancient times, when the two great clans waged war and later sought peace, he was handed over to the Æsir as a hostage. Due to his conduct and his vehement hostility toward the Vanir, he was eventually fully accepted as a member of the Æsir.
He was the god of summer, the sea, storms, fishing, and wealth—also revered as the sea god of navigation: Njörðr.
"How goes the control of the Heavenly Gate?"
"Half of them are already ours."
The so-called Heavenly Gate was the passage connecting the Norse pantheon to the celestial hub space where the battle of Ragnarök was taking place.
Moreover, another gate had also secretly fallen under their control—a gate of utmost importance to the Norse pantheon.
Should the Norse pantheon face a sudden, insurmountable catastrophe, this was the emergency escape gate.
But now, this gate—
Heh. The destination it led to was no longer the prepared sanctuary.
"Dismissed."
Njörðr waved his hand, and once his subordinate had left, he headed toward that gate.
Opening the box, inside were ten rings, stirring a restless desire within him.
When he first took custody of the item, he hadn't opened it. But from his subordinates, he learned that when Odin opened it, ten rings were revealed inside.
So, what exactly were these ten rings for?
This led him to think of one person—King Solomon, who also wore ten rings, and these seemed somewhat similar.
Adding to that, the pantheon over there had suddenly encountered problems, making him suspect this item might have been obtained amidst their chaos.
If these truly were King Solomon's belongings from his lifetime, how could he not be tempted?
That King Solomon had demonstrated terrifying power surpassing even the chief gods.
Of course, it came at an immense cost—his own demise.
But perhaps, by uncovering the secrets within these ten rings, he could refine them further.
"Hah—"
In the end, Njörðr suppressed his restless desire and closed the box.
Since they had handed it over so directly, it was possible they weren't worried about any issues arising from it.
So, it was best not to entertain any unnecessary thoughts.
Stopping before a massive door, he performed a series of operations, activating the spell formations and arranging the runes on it.
Especially the arrangement of the runes—if someone who knew how to open this door saw it, they'd notice it was incorrect.
As the door glowed, it slowly swung open.
"Hmm?"
Njörðr suddenly turned to look behind him.
Was it just his imagination, or had he felt someone watching and following him?
Focusing his senses, he detected nothing unusual.
Turning back, he stepped into the shimmering light ahead.
Had Njörðr looked more carefully, he might have noticed an extremely subtle ripple in the light.
Like an utterly still water surface disturbed by something entering with the faintest of movements, creating the slightest of waves.
Upon stepping into the light, a strange sense of weightlessness overcame him, followed by a brief flash of white. When his vision cleared, what greeted him was an enormous gate.
This gate stood on a floating island—meaning he had arrived on a floating island.
On either side of the gate stood two fully armed giants.
His gaze shifted to the figure waiting for him in the center of the gate. Without a word, the person took the box from him and entered the gate.
Njörðr, too, turned and left without a word.
If possible, he'd rather not have that person as his contact. There was always a look in their eyes that infuriated him, as if they looked down on him.
But it made sense. During the great war of the past, he had killed one of their closest kin.
Now that he had defected, their disdain was only natural.
In the grand hall of the divine palace.
The figure seated upon the highest throne watched the image in the air, where the gate and a person's figure had vanished.
"Our lord doesn't seem to hold Njörðr in high regard," remarked one of the gods below the throne.
"It's only natural. That one has too many schemes," replied another god, not the one on the throne.
"Our lord favors Odin, doesn't he?" added yet another.
If Odin could fully submit, he would undoubtedly be a tremendous asset.
"However, Odin refused to study that artifact."
"So he still doesn't really want to cooperate with us?"
"Or perhaps, that artifact simply isn't worthy of Odin's attention."
Although this artifact differs somewhat from the ones here, it isn't particularly powerful.
Moreover, Odin has likely realized that this isn't the Ring of Solomon from this side.
If they had truly obtained that Ring of Solomon, they wouldn't have casually handed it over to Odin.
And Njörðr probably assumed those ten rings came from the Heavenly Realm, didn't he?
In reality, they didn't. Njörðr also doesn't know how many collaborators exist on this side—otherwise he wouldn't have assumed they came from the Heavenly Realm.
All collaborators operate independently without knowledge of each other, preventing any breach from compromising the entire network.
Suddenly, the figure upon the Throne of Supremacy unleashed a terrifying aura.
"An insect has intruded."
These words stunned everyone in the grand hall, their expressions darkening.
A projection then materialized, yet no enemy could be seen.
With a wave of the Supreme Throne's divine hand, a hazy silhouette flickered into view.
Before anyone could discern it clearly, what appeared to be a slashing strike hurtled toward the projection's perspective—then the feed cut out.
Just before the disruption, nearby guards seemed to glimpse the assailant's form.
The next moment, the projection restored itself. The silhouette had vanished as if never present, revealing only decapitated guards instead.
They appeared to have been executed without resistance.
Or more accurately, beheaded before they could react.
Thus, the hall's occupants grew even more ashen-faced.
There had always been one who delighted in such acts!
One who reveled in decapitating them!