Chapter 185
Chapter 185
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 185
Chapter Title: Heimdall's Betrayal
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Neigh-!
Flutter-.
Dozens of heavenly horses took to the air. The peaceful home they had known transformed into a battlefield in an instant.
Rumble-!
Crackle-!
Lightning bolts rained down from the sky, while thunderbolts surged up from beneath the clouds. Dozens of strikes hammered relentlessly at Loki's body without mercy.
Groooar-!
Sizzle-.
But the lightning never touched Loki's form.
The problem was the transparent barrier enveloping him. It was so sturdy that not even a single crack appeared despite the barrage of bolts.
'If that barrier isn't a one-time spell, we're in trouble.'
The first wave of attacks had ended, and now it was his turn. Sure enough, a turquoise magic circle etched itself beneath Loki's feet.
"Tear him apart."
Grrrr-!
Two massive wolves summoned from the magic circle leaped toward Soo-hyuk. Ordinary wolves would have been no threat, but these were monsters called forth by Loki himself.
Sharp fangs sank into Soo-hyuk's shoulder. The instant the other wolf aimed for his head, Soo-hyuk's sword flashed free.
Flash-!
Slash-!
A single strike infused with lightning cleaved through both wolves. He had intended to follow through and bisect Loki as well, but that proved impossible.
Soo-hyuk voiced his unfiltered thoughts amid the clash.
"You're impressive."
His opponent was Loki.
No matter how much he wielded the Master of Lightning, taking on a renowned god was still beyond him.
Unlike himself, who was pushing his body to the limit in a full sprint, Loki was merely testing the waters.
He was strong.
Soo-hyuk never imagined he'd face an opponent who could push him this hard on just the 7th floor.
"The tower must be glitching. What's with this difficulty?"
He knew why the difficulty had spiked.
Showing off thunder in Asgard was like inviting the flies himself.
Thunder was Thor's symbol, a mighty force that threatened the gods. Of course the difficulty would ramp up.
But still.
'Come on, this is too much...'
Sizzle-.
He blocked the energy blast from the tip of Loki's magic staff with his sword. Numbness tingled through his fingers, and cold sweat began beading on his forehead.
'This is over the top.'
Clang-!
Ultimately outmatched in strength, his body was hurled far backward.
It might have been a casual spell from Loki's perspective, but blocking it was a struggle for Soo-hyuk.
Sizzle-.
He grabbed the clouds on the floor to halt his momentum. Before he knew it, Loki was right in front of his face.
"Honestly, I'm impressed."
Loki's gaze flicked toward the bisected corpses of his summons.
"I wondered how well a human could handle thunder. To think it's to this extent."
He remained utterly composed throughout, as if savoring the spectacle of thunder wielded by a mortal.
"Better than you, right?"
"Don't get cocky. You're still a long way from matching your big brother."
That piqued his curiosity. Just how powerful had Thor been in his right mind?
"Of course, you're nowhere near my level either."
Crackle-!
Lightning surged from the staff in Loki's hand, packing power that rivaled Soo-hyuk's own bolts.
He hurriedly fired a bolt to cancel it out. As he gradually fell behind in raw power, Viola swooped in riding a heavenly horse.
"What the hell are you doing right now?!"
"A Valkyrie?"
Whistle-.
A whistle escaped Loki's lips. Bubbles formed a watery membrane that enveloped both Viola and her heavenly horse.
Viola instinctively drew and swung her sword, but it was futile.
Loki's magic held firm. Trapped within the bubble, Viola thrashed desperately.
"Stay put in there. Though I have no intention of letting you out..."
Flash-!
Loki's vision exploded in white at that moment.
Rumble! A deafening roar accompanied the scorch mark on his cheek.
It was a strike powerful enough to be dangerous if he hadn't reflexively deployed a spell.
In the split second his attention had shifted to Viola, Soo-hyuk had unleashed the lightning.
"...That was decent."
"And you blocked it."
Soo-hyuk grimaced beneath his mask.
'I can't win this.'
The brief opening Viola had created was his last chance.
With it gone, there was no way to bridge the spec gap with Loki.
The power difference between them was insurmountable, no matter how many scenarios he ran through his mind.
'He wasn't meant to be beaten outright. So what then? Was showing thunder from the start a mistake?'
Even as he reviewed the trial in his head, Loki's spells kept coming.
A massive ice spear erupted from the clouds toward his heart, flames engulfed his body, and a gigantic hand—like that of a giant—crushed down from above.
'Only one thing left to hope for.'
Every moment was a crisis, but Soo-hyuk's eyes never wavered.
And at that unyielding gaze, Loki sneered.
"You think Tyr will come to your aid?"
For the first time, Soo-hyuk's eyes flickered.
Sensing he'd struck a nerve, Loki continued.
"He won't come."
"...How can you be so sure?"
"Because Heimdall is watching him."
"Heimdall?"
"Yes. His distant eyes are fixed on both Father and Tyr. Those two are far from Asgard right now."
Tap, tap-.
Loki punctuated his words by tapping his own eyes.
"You think I'd move without insurance? 'We' are certain."
We.
As the word implied, Loki was alone yet not alone.
The source of that initial unease.
"...Heimdall's playing tricks."
"You're quick on the uptake. Correct. Heimdall chose me. Me, not my brother. My brother couldn't overcome the thunder, but I..."
Mid-sentence, Loki narrowed his eyes.
It was because of Soo-hyuk, who was barely stifling laughter. Despite being cornered with no escape, he was the one grinning.
"What's so funny?"
"Ah, now it makes sense."
"Makes sense?"
"I was wondering why everything was so convoluted. It was Heimdall."
Tyr and Odin.
There was a reason they couldn't aid him.
If Loki had suspected Heimdall from the start, he would only act when certain Tyr and Odin couldn't intervene.
According to Loki, Heimdall possessed a special power.
Eyes capable of surveilling Odin and Tyr simultaneously, no matter the distance.
Whoosh-.
Sure enough.
"You idiots."
The scenery shifted gradually as a new cutscene began.
"Missed one, dumbass."
An empty garden.
Heimdall, the god with eyes closed, was watering the flowers.
It was a peaceful moment. But inwardly, he waged a secret war.
The one tending his garden lifted his head. His eyes, shut for over a millennium, now opened.
"...You've arrived."
Heimdall's faintly opened eyes were empty voids without light.
Though distant and lost, they held the power to see farther than any other.
Rumble-!
Suddenly, thunder cracked across the dry sky.
The garden where lightning struck blackened in an instant. Despite the ruin of his cherished flowers, Heimdall showed no displeasure.
On the contrary.
He even bowed politely to the man who appeared with the thunder.
"Welcome back."
"I'll pass on the pleasantries."
A handsome man with golden hair and piercing blue eyes.
He had fallen from the dry sky—the great son of Odin and the original master of thunder, Thor.
"You know why I'm here?"
"Did you discard your thunder to scrape together that trash?"
"Is that what you're curious about right now?"
"Is that the only thing on my mind?"
Heimdall's question was just one of many swirling in his head.
"How you regained your sanity. Where the thunder went. How you knew about me..."
He had thought watching Odin and Tyr alone would suffice.
So when he decided to act, Heimdall monitored only their movements.
It was as taxing as a battle for survival. Even for Heimdall, surveilling Odin and Tyr undetected was no easy feat.
"I thought losing my eyes granted me sight of all the world, but now I feel blind once more."
"Why crave the thunder so? You're not seriously planning to hand it to that bastard Loki, are you?"
"You probably know better than I. What that thing truly is."
The power that had blinded Heimdall's eyes. Thus, he coveted the thunder more than anyone.
"Lust for power?"
"The opposite."
Heimdall set down his watering can and extended his hand forward.
"It is something that must vanish from this world."
Sizzle-.
A long, pristine white sword materialized in Heimdall's outstretched hand. A weapon not seen in ages.
Thor wanted to talk more.
But he couldn't. The moment both gripped their weapons, the fight had already begun.
"...I'll hear the details after I beat you down."
The words barely left his mouth.
Groooar-!
Thor's hammer crashed down upon Heimdall's head.
The clash between two of Asgard's pinnacle gods had begun.
Sizzle-.
The color drained from Loki's eyes right after the cutscene ended.
"Gah... Aaaah!"
Loki clutched his eyes, wracked with agony.
The power of Heimdall embedded in them was slipping away.
Rumble-!
Soo-hyuk wouldn't miss that opening.
He clasped his hands, concentrating lightning into a single spear.
The most powerful thrust he could muster, blending lightning and thunder.
With a thunderous roar, the spear formed in his grasp rocketed toward Loki.
Clang-!
"...!!!"
Loki's eyes bulged wide. Despite his pain moments ago, in that gap where Heimdall's power severed, he took the full brunt of the strike.
Whoosh-!
Loki's body sailed far beyond sight alongside the spear.
It was a perfect hit. Against a brute like Loki, this fleeting moment might be the only chance the trial had granted Soo-hyuk.
"Uwaaaaaah-!"
Far away, Loki's scream echoed.
A howl laced with pain and fury. Soon, he rose high into the sky, a massive wound torn across his chest.
"You... pathetic worm... dare...!"
Loki glared down at Soo-hyuk in rage.
The gash on his chest was seared by lightning, half-pierced and clotted with blood. The pain—and the humiliation of being gravely wounded by a human—seemed to enrage him further.
Soo-hyuk, who had aimed to pierce his heart in one go, clicked his tongue in disappointment.
"Damn, he's still alive."
Regaining his composure, he added,
"Catching Loki starts now. Anyone wanna drop a mission?"