After the great war of Ragnarok had passed, the realm of Asgard never returned to its former vibrancy. This was likely because the number of surviving gods was extremely limited. Most of the land had become green plains known as "Iðavöllr," with few new structures being built. Even the palace of the great god Baldur was considered very small compared to the sacred palace Valaskjálf, which belonged to the All-Father Odin in the primordial age.
Today, Lylith, the new leader of the Valkyries, had just stepped out of the fortress Örvarborg, the military headquarters of the heavenly army commanded by the god Vaali.
Lylith had just received an order from Vaali to lead her Valkyrie forces to Jötunheimr, the land of the Frost Giants, to carry out a mission to slay a giant serpent named Mahahogg.
This was an exceedingly strange matter. Since ancient times, Asgard had never held dominion over Jötunheimr; the two realms were openly hostile toward one another.
Lylith, as the Valkyrie leader, could only frown in suspicion. Sending troops into an enemy's territory to 'help' them solve a problem raised a great question in her mind.
Wasn't it a joyous occasion for chaos to erupt in the land of the enemy? Since the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
Therefore, wasn't the giant serpent Mahahogg causing chaos in Jötunheimr actually providing an immense benefit to Asgard?
Although Lylith was ordered to lead the Valkyrie forces to Jötunheimr, she was currently heading to the observatory, Himinbjǫrg, alone.
The observatory Himinbjǫrg was once the residence of the god who guarded the rainbow bridge, Heimdallr. Now, there was no god with extraordinary farsight as there once was. Heimdallr had died along with Loki in the great war of Ragnarok. This tower was now merely a connection point for using the Bifröst bridge.
The divine warrior on duty at the observatory, upon seeing Lylith, quickly stood at attention. He struck his right hand against his chest plate, creating a sound to show respect, before asking, "Commander, are you here to use the rainbow bridge?"
"The high mountains at the forest's edge, at the farthest border of Jötunheimr," Lylith stated her destination.
The divine warrior on guard replied only, "Acknowledged," with a disciplined, firm voice, before turning to operate the ancient mechanism within the tower to control the formation of the Bifröst bridge, without asking a single question.
Lylith waited for the rainbow bridge to form, her mind still pondering, 'If the god Heimdallr were still performing this duty, would he allow me to travel to Jötunheimr without any questions?'
Himinbjǫrg, without its guardian... was truly no longer the observatory of the heavens. It was merely an entrance and exit for the Bifröst bridge.
Finally, the white light gathered by magical crystals slowly turned into a brilliant rainbow, forming a bridge that arched long and soared out of Asgard, heading precisely toward the frigid destination.
Lylith nodded to the divine warrior one last time. The other warrior nodded back respectfully. She then stepped onto the shimmering surface of the bridge.
Suddenly, a driving force from the rainbow bridge activated. The surface of the Bifröst began to move, slowly at first, then accelerating rapidly.
Traveling by the Bifröst bridge was the absolute advantage Asgard held over all other realms. There was no method of travel more convenient or faster than this.
Before long, Lylith could see the frozen lands of Jötunheimr before her. With the battlefield instincts of a warrior, she immediately moved her hand to the hilt of the sword at her waist.
The sword she carried was Lævateinn, the cursed blade that was once the weapon of Loki—the god of mischief—who used it to fight the god Heimdallr until the very end in the great war of Ragnarok. Meanwhile, the sword Hǫfuð, which was once Heimdallr's personal weapon, now belonged to the god Vaali, the great commander of Asgard.
At last, Lylith's feet touched the icy ground of Jötunheimr. She immediately felt a sense of discomfort and paranoia. The coldness in the air of this realm was always different from other lands. Perhaps it was because her entire life as a Valkyrie, she had been taught to hate the Frost Giants and this land.
Rumble!
A great tremor occurred. The ice beneath Lylith's feet shook so violently that she had to spread her legs to maintain balance. With her battlefield survival instincts, she quickly scanned the surrounding mountain peaks to ensure no avalanche was triggered toward her.
Luckily, the avalanche that occurred was several hundred paces away from where Lylith stood. She watched the rumbling sound of the collapsing snow echo through the valley for a long moment. When she was sure the chilling silence had returned to the valley, she began to move forward.
The Valkyrie leader's intuition told her that the tremor just now must be related to Mahahogg, in one way or another.
By nature, serpents hate the cold, but Mahahogg, being an ice serpent, should be different. Even so, being a snake, it must have a lair in a hole or cavern. And given its enormous size, that hole or cavern must have become a giant tunnel.
Lylith moved with caution and prudence. Although the main target was the ice serpent, the possibility of confronting the Frost Giants, who might come to investigate the avalanche, was not something to be taken lightly.
Luck continued to be on the Valkyrie leader's side. After scouting for only a short time, she discovered a large ice tunnel, along with the pungent stench of blood.
For some scents, one only needs to encounter them once to never forget. For Lylith, the scent of Frost Giant blood was one of those scents.
At this point, Lylith was certain she had reached Mahahogg's lair. Frost Giants, though known for being foolish and savage, were not so depraved as to kill or eat their own kind. Therefore, the thick stench of Frost Giant blood suggested it was the work of another type of creature that had newly invaded this frozen land.
Venturing deeper into the ice tunnel, she could see piles of Frost Giant skeletons stacked in several locations. On some parts of the tunnel floor, pools of blue blood, frozen solid, were visible, along with numerous signs of a great battle.
Lylith noticed some of the ice walls had cracks and scorch marks. She was suddenly surprised. Could the ice serpent also use fire magic? If that were true, she might have been too reckless in coming here alone, without bringing her Valkyrie forces.
And then, Lylith had to freeze, utterly astonished. Right in front of her lay the stiff, lifeless body of the giant serpent, Mahahogg.
"You're too late, Lylith. I'm going to use this giant snake to brew a love potion."
The voice of a woman echoed throughout the ice tunnel. Lylith, however, was not confused. She quickly turned her head to the left, her eyes meeting those of a woman with long, jet-black hair in a Veronica-colored dress.
"I never expected to meet you here, Angria." Lylith's eyes seemed to widen as she spoke the name of the woman before her.
Angria was the name of a very famous witch. She was one of the nine witches who founded the kingdom of Einhymingur in the realm of Svartalfheim. It was believed that Angria was the youngest of the nine, yet she was the most feared for her cruelty and ruthlessness.
Angria gave a small smile in greeting as she shifted to cross her arms, leaning her back against the ice wall before speaking, "I should be just as surprised to see you here, shouldn't I?"
Lylith's expression tensed before she asked another question. "Are you the one who dealt with Mahahogg?"
Angria gestured toward the frozen serpent carcass with an openly boastful air and said, "It seems this ice serpent couldn't withstand the explosion magic, Untora."
"Explosion magic, Untora!?" Lylith's expression grew even more severe upon hearing the name of that magic.
The explosion magic Untora was the highest-level magic taught and preserved among the Valkyries of the primordial age. Lylith herself, though a famous Valkyrie, was a combat specialist rather than a magic specialist. Her magical ability was only at the 7th level, while this explosion spell was at the 9th level, alongside the legendary sacred cleansing magic, Holy.
"Don't tell me you don't believe I can actually use the Untora explosion magic?" Angria's voice rose as she lifted her right hand, moving her index finger as if to draw a magic circle in the air.
Lylith did not hesitate! She immediately drew Lævateinn with her right hand. Instantly, the sword appeared, shrouded in a dark purple smoke that pulsed with intense, cursed energy.
This time, it was Angria's turn to be surprised. Her cunning expression turned to shock as she saw the blade in her opponent's hand reveal such concentrated evil energy. Angria froze the hand that was about to cast the spell.
It only took a moment for the witch to regain her composure. She gave a mocking sneer and said, "What is this! The Commander of Asgard is using the arts of a demon!"
Lylith mentally cursed herself. I shouldn't have drawn this magical sword, one of my most important secrets, so easily. She controlled herself and sheathed Lævateinn immediately, letting out a sigh before speaking in a voice she tried hard to control, "A witch like you shouldn't know Valkyrie magic, either."
Angria made a mocking face at her before replying, "Don't forget, among us nine, there is a Valkyrie as well."
Although Lylith knew that an ex-Valkyrie had joined their ranks—and that one of them was her own sister, Vina, the Witch of Stone—the act of passing on the highest-level magic of the Valkyries was something that should never have happened. Her suppressed anger erupted, and she snapped, "Vina taught you the Untora explosion magic!?"
"Haha! That little sister of yours?" Angria said these words with a laugh, her body bending over in extreme amusement as if it were the funniest joke in the world, before continuing, "I'm afraid her magic power doesn't even surpass the 7th level."
Lylith felt humiliated. She herself should have known that her sister, Vina, was not someone capable of using 9th-level magic. Therefore, it was impossible for her to be the one who passed the spell to Angria. But she still pressed on, "Then who was it that taught you the Untora explosion magic?"
"The grandmaster of us nine. The Witch of Prophecy, 'Sydra,' of course."
Lylith quickly shook her head, her face full of disbelief, before continuing, "Impossible. There has never been a Valkyrie with the name Sydra."
Angria pointed a finger at Lylith and smiled before replying, "And what if her original name was Sigyn? Are there any Valkyries by that name?"
Lylith's head shook violently, her eyes widening in panic. Because among the Valkyries, it was well known that when the All-Father Odin first created the Valkyries, the very first black-winged angel was named "Sigyn," which meant "Faithful Friend." She was the Valkyrie who specialized in magical power and was also the creator of the Untora explosion magic.
Lylith managed to gather her wits again, though stunned, and tried to deny the harsh reality. "Impossible. Lady Sigyn could not have survived the great war of Ragnarok."
Angria laughed disgustingly before locking eyes with her conversational partner and continuing, "I only recently learned that she has been using a false name all this time. But because I often heard your sister address her respectfully as 'Lady Sigyn,' I am confident that this is her name."
Lylith's expression was now at its most severe. She could no longer deny the truth that connected Sigyn and Vina. All this time, she had never understood why her sister would join the coven of witches. But now that she knew the true identity of the head of the nine witches was Lady Sigyn, the mystery that had plagued her mind for so long vanished.
"Then why must you tell me all of this?" Lylith asked, completely overwhelmed by all that had happened.
Angria showed a serious expression for the first time and replied, "Because I want you to cooperate with me. With the hope that, one day, witches will stay with witches, and Valkyries will stay with Valkyries. We won't have to be involved with each other ever again."
"..." Lylith seemed unable to process what Angria was proposing. Her mind was reeling with only one thought: How could so many Valkyries have survived Ragnarok? The path to becoming the strongest Valkyrie, it seemed, had just gained another obstacle.