Sieghart's weapon was a mace. Its surface was obsidian, shimmering with a dark, demonic tint that seemed to swallow the light. Reaching close to Odin in an instant, he swung the heavy head toward Odin's chin, striking upward from the ground. At the same moment, Raymond used Blink—magic that folded space to teleport the caster in the blink of an eye. He reappeared directly behind Odin, his legendary sword whistling through the air in a lethal vertical arc. The plan was simple: while Odin was forced to dodge Sieghart's brutal upward swing, Raymond would deliver the finishing blow.
But things didn't go that way.
Faster than the mace could connect, Odin's body became a blur. He caught Sieghart's wrist mid-swing, jerking him forward with terrifying strength. In one fluid motion, Odin spun, pulling Sieghart directly into the path of Raymond's incoming blade.
Fear flashed across Sieghart's face as the legendary sword loomed at point-blank range. It happened so fast that even Raymond couldn't abort the strike. The blade bit deep into Sieghart's defenses, tearing through his abdomen and drawing out a sickening spray of crimson. Sieghart's face morphed into a mask of pure agony as he collapsed inward.
"Hey man, I am your enemy, not him!" Odin said, an arrogant smirk playing on his lips.
"You bastard, you will pay for this!" Fury coursed through Raymond's eyes. Sieghart was pale, coughing up thick clots of blood. The Hero's sword was a legendary artifact. The damage it dealt was a soul-searing wound that no mortal could take lightly.
Svetlana took action, her staff glowing with an ethereal light. She chanted a rapid incantation, and a violent gale erupted between Odin and Raymond, forcing a distance between them. This caused Odin's focus to shift toward the mage.
"Why are all mages so annoying?" he asked, a question seemingly to himself.
Suddenly, Svetlana unleashed her counter. A sphere of white-hot plasma, radiating the terrifying heat of a collapsing star, blasted toward Odin at an insane speed. Odin's face turned serious for the first time. Raising a single hand, he chanted:
"Fireball."
It was a basic spell, but when fueled by a vast mana pool and extreme compression, the result was a monstrosity. Odin's version was a miniature sun, a condensed orb of solar fury that dwarfed Svetlana's attack. When the two spells collided, the world turned white.
BOOM!
A massive explosion leveled the terrain, sending a giant mushroom cloud of smoke and debris into the sky. The very landmass was reshaped in the wake of the heat. As the wind settled, a massive crater was revealed, jagged and deep, slanted heavily toward the Hero party—a clear sign of whose firepower had dominated.
Odin remained standing in the center of the devastation, not a single speck of dust marring his white robes. The Hero party, however, had been blasted back. In the distance, humongous vines had surged from the earth, weaving together to form a protective cocoon.
As the cocoon unfurled, the party was revealed. Raymond was doubled over, clutching an arm that was charred and blackened, the skin ruined by the thermal offshoot. Sieghart had only survived because Gaimut stood before him like an unmoving mountain. The warrior had taken the brunt of the shockwave, his heavy plate armor radiating heat, yet he looked unharmed as he slowly dusted his clothes.
"This guy... I don't want to say it, but he might be on par with the Demon King," Gaimut said, his voice rigid with caution.
"We are clearly not prepared for this! Can't we just say, 'Sorry man, our bad, we didn't know you were this strong'?" Svetlana said, her tone semi-joking despite her trembling hands.
"You can try," Raymond replied, a dry chuckle escaping his lips. "But we have clearly made an enemy of someone we should not have. He's likely some old monster wearing a young man's skin. Our luck today is abysmal."
"We should fall back," Sieghart rasped, his eyes dull from blood loss. "We were already drained from yesterday. Our mana hasn't recovered."
While Raymond was the spiritual leader, Sieghart was the tactical heart of the group. His advice had saved them countless times, and Raymond knew better than to ignore him now.
"Guys, I don't think he's going to let us just walk away," Gaimut grunted, bracing his shield.
Odin looked at Raymond, his gaze cold. "The Hero of current humanity... what a disappointment you turned out to be." However, when his eyes drifted to Freya and Svetlana, a strange glint crossed his pupils. Suddenly, his expression hardened, and a suffocating aura began to leak from his body.
"Let's get this over with."
"Guys—it's time," Raymond said, his voice resolute. "Do it now, or he's going to toast us."
"Alright, alright," Gaimut moved to the front. His shield activated, expanding until it was ten meters wide, encrusted with glowing gems of every hue. Raymond took his position beside him, raising his sword. A beam of pure, condensed light began to gather at the tip, causing the very ground to tremble.
"Leave it to us," Svetlana and Freya said in unison, sharing a look of absolute trust.
Odin moved. His speed was lightning-made-flesh. In a fraction of a second, he was at the shield's face, a simple wooden sword appearing in his hand. It glowed with a faint blue light as he swung to shatter their defense.
But just before the wooden sword connected, a tiny aperture opened in the center of the shield. Raymond's gathered beam shot out like a lance of God, striking Odin's arm point-blank. The shield snapped shut instantly as a massive explosion rocked the clearing.
BOOM!
Odin was actually pushed back twenty meters, his boots carving furrows in the dirt. He staggered, his hand looking slightly charred. He tried to lunge forward again, but the ground betrayed him. Large vines erupted, snagging his limbs and launching him into the air.
Odin kicked the air itself, the sheer pressure propelling him back toward them, but the vines were relentless. They grew spikes, lashing out from all sides, forcing Odin to defend himself with swift, blurring strikes of his wooden sword.
"HEYY! Are you done yet? I can't keep this up!" Freya shouted, her brow furrowed in desperation.
"I'm done—fall back!" Svetlana screamed. A swirling portal tore open behind her. One by one, the party jumped through in a frantic scramble.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Odin sliced through the final cluster of vines and walked out of the dust, but he didn't run. He stood still, quietly watching as the last of them vanished into the closing rift. Just before the portal snapped shut, Odin broke a sigil on his pendant and tossed it into the shrinking hole.
Silence returned to the Northern Dragon Maw. What was once a landmark was now a leveled field of craters and twisted greenery. Odin looked around, unconcerned. This was a path used by the Demon King's army. Such destruction would surely invite the King's wrath, but Odin didn't care for demons.
His eyes grew misty as he touched the empty spot on his neck where the pendant had been.
"Found you at last" he whispered.