Chapter 96

"Little do men perceive what solitude is, and how far it extendeth.

For a crowd is not company, and faces are but a gallery of pictures,

and talk but a tinkling cymbal, where there is no love."

Francis Bacon

I was originally going to make chapter 96 to be 70 pages long, but I think some parts of the story won't fit with the mood and well, 70 pages is too damn long, so I decided to split the story into two chapters. And there will be some movies spoiler in this chapter.

The geography of Odin's Temple island is based on Paxi island.

The architecture of Odin's Temple itself is based on Gobekli Tepe.

I hope all of u can enjoy this particular part of the story. As usual, reviews are appreciated. Enjoy!

After everybody got enough rest and has recovered from the big fight, both the parties from Sagramore & The Military of Einbroch are gathered inside the large meeting room of Pegasus. They all look freshened up after a nice rest, all of them inside one man of course who eventually decided to sleep inside one of the unused rooms in Pegasus. Their eyes were fixed particularly on Valkyrie Randgris, who is a stranger to some of them. But quick whispering amongst the party quickly settled her identity. The valkyrie looked as if she didn't really care whether people actually know him or not, though. As for Elraven? Upon his arrival in the meeting, all eyes were focused on him. And despite the fact no one said anything to him at all, their eyes looked like they were screaming "statutory rape" at him. Of course this didn't escape Gen Ed's observation, but he chose to dismiss the trivial matter and went right to the pivotal point. "Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for coming on such short notice. I can tell some of you are still beat from last night party, but I can assure this won't take long. So please lend me your ears for this particular information I'm about to give you. As we knew it, it wasn't that long ago when Princess Fiorentin was successful of emerging victorious in a very close battle against the late Naght Sieger. And before he passed away, Lord Sieger entrusted us with a memento given to him by the late King Tristan" Carefully, Gen Ed showed everyone the silver box El received from Sieger before his passing. Opening it, Gen Ed and the entire party learned what's inside the box, "As u may observe, the box contained a key. I had a direct conversation with Sarkhan & his companion, Randgris, last night in Pegasus upon her visit. I learned that this key is called The Yggdrasil Key. It's function is to unlock a treasure hidden in The Yggdrasil tree itself, which is a near limitless amount of Valkyrie Gear Combo Sets, which may prove substantial to our upcoming battle against Valdomir. The rest will be explained by Valkyrie Randgris herself"

"Thank you, General Eduardo" As in formal meeting, Randgris formally showed her gratitude before continuing the meeting, "Resuming the information provided by General Eduardo earlier, the last prophecy of Eisenheim mentioned an information about a world scale war between Valdomir Kingdom and their opposing side….which is the alliance between Sagramore & The Military of Einbroch. This is the one war that will decide which side shall prosper in Rune Midgard"

Everyone present knew a final war is pretty much incoming, but they couldn't find a good way to hide their shock when Randgris mentioned it word by word. There was a brief pregnant silent, which Randgris decided to erase by continuing her explanation, "While I do not wish to hurt your pride or credibility, as of now I have to inform you there is no chance for the alliance between Sagramore & The Military of Einbroch to win against Valdomir Kingdom to win should the war take place at the moment. There's two good reasons for this. First is the fact Valdomir Kingdom outnumbers the alliance's soldiers by default. Second is the fact that Valdomir has yet to show their trump card: The Erebus Guild"

"I have heard of that name before" Felicia voiced up, recalling a brief experience, "If I'm not mistaken, that guild is considered to be the strongest guild in the whole world and also called as Valdomir's strongest military powers. Their members consist of Byorgue, Salamander, Kasa, Imp, Sword Master, and Bow Master. But I do not know the specific reason of such reputation"

"The specific reason is because every one of their members, aside of The Sword Master, Byorgue, and The Bow Masters, are immortals, controlled directly under the order of no other than…The Fire God of Midgard, Ifrit" Randgris mentioned a very specific name. The very name that bulged a fair number of people within the meeting room. Elraven could be seen glaring seriously at Randgris after the naming of the guild leader, "Add to the fact they have millions of members, the members aside of the three masters I mentioned gained immortality by linking their lives with Ifrit. Which means, as long as he's alive, Ifrit can produce as many Imp, Kasa, and Salamander as he wishes. Having their bodies made out of fire, no attacks other than ice based attacks would be able to physically harm them. To top it off, they can also summon unlimited amount of Meteor Strikes, which may very well be the most concussive spell human can learn. And there's another disadvantage for your side: your armies are made up of humans, Fenrir aside. As you know it, humans' status is below the godlike status and god status only several parties. Only godlike and other gods can harm someone with the status of a god. As we knew it, this particular status is possessed by only a small amount of people in the alliance. And since the Erebus Guild members' lives are linked with Ifrit, the status of Kasa, Imp, and Salamander are that of god as well. This condition would disallow you to physically harm them, which in the process would also decrease your chance to win by a wide margin. The gunslingers may cover this frivolous obstacle by equipping the grenade launchers powered by the ice rounds, but again, there is a difference in numbers which hinder this strategy as well"

"Oh…I never knew we were at such disadvantage against Valdomir" Olivia revealed her opinion, "Is there any way we can solve this matter?"

"There is, actually. There is only thing in Rune Midgard that will allow even a normal human to harm a god: Valkyrie Gear Combo Set. Similar to the clothing I'm wearing at the moment" The Valkyrie stepped forward a little, so everyone in the room can actually take a look at her full appearance. But of course, this revelation is no surprise to Fenrir and Frea. After some moment, Randgris continued, "This equipment is originally made for the purpose of enhancing the power of the Valkyries serving Lord Odin during the Ragnarok. But later on, it was equipped by the Einherjar so they could actually harm the Gods siding with Loki. It went through mass production, even after the entire Einherjar fleet received the set, there were still copious amounts of it left unused. The armors were then inventoried in a certain point in Yggdrasil tree. If we can acquire the sets, then there is an absolute chance the alliance can still win this war"

"But I assume there are certain requirements to gain the sets" Fiorentin piped up, showing her sometimes nice deduction, "I'm sure the thing with The Yggdrasil Key isn't the only one. Otherwise, Lord Sieger would not have received it from my father himself. Something has to be done at Prontera to unlock the sets. Am I right, valkyrie?"

"Precisely, milady" Randgris replied, apparently proving the deduction, "The Yggdrasil Key is used to open a certain box in the Yggdrasil Tree, an Old Purple Box containing the Orb of Edda. The orb will have to be placed in the statue of Odin standing tall in the middle of the capital city of Prontera. By doing so, an underground passageway containing almost endless supply of the Valkyrie sets beneath the St. Capitolina Abbey located in the northwest of Prontera will unlock itself"

"…that's a lot of things to do for one orb, valkyrie. It's as if it was done on intent to make the mission difficult"

"The purpose of the difficulty is to prevent anyone with awry intents to get their hands to the sets, milady" Randgris politely passed Fio some sensible reasoning, "Besides, there is a reason why the Yggdrasil Key was first crafted by Eisenheim and passed to his descendants, the rulers of Prontera. Within it, exists a spell that will only allow the direct descendants of the throne to open the passageway. But granted, not every ruler of Prontera is those with noble intention. It was made difficult to achieve the sets so should anyone with the wrong will try to gain its power, the others with the good will can prevent them. Thankfully, you are the only person able to unlock the passageway now. King Tristan must have given the key to Naght Sieger in the first place for security purpose, should something ever happened to himself"

"Alright, I can live with your reasoning. Nonetheless, there is one last thing to consider as well. The last I heard, Prontera is now in the midst of a bout between Valdomir and Millennium" The heir to the throne reminded everyone of the challenge ahead, "Meaning, to obtain the sets we will not only have to cross swords with Valdomir again, but also Millennium, which isn't to be taken lightly. The fact that they alone were able to uphold their position in Prontera for more than six months against Valdomir, something that we were unable to do, only goes further to show us Millennium will be a very formidable foe should we go against them. Not to mention, everything about them is surrounded the fog of mystery. The only thing we know about them is they come from the western hemisphere of Rune Midgard and they are led by their three leaders, The Triumvirate. I doubt facing the two sides at once can be considered advantageous"

"Indeed, milady. But fortunately, that might not be the case. See, I'm able to sense any presence of a God in this whole world. I can guarantee Millennium doesn't have anyone with the status of a God within their fleet. This shall reduce our challenge, as that means Valdomir is the only challenge we will have to face in this mission. Granted, it's not an easy one, but it's better than facing Valdomir & Millennium at the same time, I believe" Finally, a little bit of good news from the servant of Odin, "Last night, the gate to Asgard located inside Odin Temple opened itself. This occurrence is the first time ever since Ragnarok eons ago. In order to enter Asgard, one has to be accompanied by someone with the status of a God. I don't know if this should be treated as good news or not, but since there's only a handful of Gods existing in this world right now, the gate, which is pillared by the power of Gods, is unstable. At most, a god or a goddess can only bring two companions with him. I'm not trying to taint your authority, but I believe I should be one of the three people in the team you will send to Asgard, as I am the one with most awareness of the mapping inside Asgard, as well as the exact knowledge of where the Orb of Edda is located"

"I can vouch for her credibility" Fenrir spoke up before anyone could throw a response to Randgris' statement, "She has the status of a goddess, as well as being an incredibly skillful combatant. She may very well be the strongest Valkyrie Odin had had in his fleet. I'm sure, the least of all, she can survive a battle against Valdomir's top fighters"

"Good suggestion, Fenrir. That means we only need two more people. Valdomir can only choose Beelzephir or Ifrit, and maybe one or two companions" Fio quickly deduced, "So, our option is limited, as well as theirs"

"Not to forget we still have to consider the safety of Amatsu as well" Gen Ed added to the discussion, "As of now, only a handful of us are healthy enough to actually do anything should Valdomir or Millennium attack this area"

"Alright, then I will go" Frea raised her hand so everyone would take notice, "General Eduardo is right. Considering our current health in general, the safety of everyone here in Amatsu should be prioritized as well. Thankfully, I didn't receive any major injuries during the battle in Endless Tower. Other than me, only Fenrir, Marcus, Elraven, and General Eduardo are capable to endure a long term battle seeing how everyone else is pretty much injured or not completely healthy. At least by taking me with Randgris and leaving Fenrir, Marcus, Elraven, and General Eduardo here, we can still defend our turf if an opposition launches an attack"

"That is pretty reasonable. I think our team is set?" Fiorentin threw an open question, in case anyone still wanted to say something.

But someone actually volunteered, and it's no other than Elraven himself, "Actually, I think I should go as well"

The gunslinger was successful on having everyone's attention, because the whole room goggled him in an instant. "We can make up a group of three at most, right? I'll be the third member" The vice captain of the Ropera Squad resumed, "While it's true the safety of the rest of us here in Amatsu should be highly prioritized, I also believe we should put more concern to the safety of the team we send to Asgard. I'm not trying to scare anyone, but who's to say Valdomir won't sent Ifrit, Beelzephir, and Satan Morroc at the same time? I don't mean I can defeat all of them instantly, but at least by maximizing our number we can at least do something to cover the difference of the power that might be present. And as such, I'm 100% sure the combination of General Eduardo, Marcus, and Fenrir are more than enough to protect the entire land"

The whole conference room stayed silent for awhile. Breaking the ice, Fiorentin exclaimed her decision, "Very well, since it was you who volunteered yourself, I think no one here would complain. After all, you're a pretty capable fighter all round. But are you sure you're okay with this? It's not even seven days since the last time you use the power of Lucifer, right?"

"Actually, he got me pretty good last night, princess" Fenrir vouched for someone else's credibility for the second time today, "I don't think Elraven is capable of defeating a God without tuning the Lucifer state, but at least he can hold his own and try to keep himself alive. That's good enough, I think"

"Thank you" Elraven blinked at him, "Nice to hear that from you, Fenrir"

Not wanting to admit it, Fenrir replied scornfully, "Don't thank me, jackass. I didn't do it for you. I sacked up for the whole team"

"Well, it's settled then" Fiorentin quickly said something before the tragedy from last night take place again, "We have decided our team to go to Asgard. When are you going to go to Odin Temple, valkyrie?"

"Tomorrow morning, milady. We'll transport via a teleport warp"

"Alright, then. General Eduardo? Is there anything you might want to add?"

"No, I can only wish you good luck. And please use the rest of the day to take some recuperation. There are tough days ahead"

And with that, the meeting was ended.

0000

Around the same time, in a solitary lounge inside the inn…

After the meeting was dismissed, Fenrir & Frea went to a private lounge where no one really visited anymore. They found the place somewhere after Frea & El broke up, and the soul linker needed a place to sob her tears out (plus some companion from an old friend with personal admiration of course). Well, for now though, it's more like Fenrir was following Frea all the way around.

"Okay, let's drop the gig" Frea realized the other God must have followed her for a reason he might not be able to say in front of everyone else. So, she took a seat and asked, "Spit it out"

"No hiding things from you, eh? Alright, alright…" Fenrir sat in front of her, quickly focusing his eyes on hers, "Why did you volunteer in the first place?"

"What are you talking about? I wanted to take one for the team, is that so wrong? Besides, that will allow you to be here, to protect the others. Two birds in one hand, no?"

"Oh, really? Weren't you a bit reckless back there?"

"Reckless? What are you saying? Are you underestimating me or just simply concerned of my well being?" Frea shot straight, not wanting to waste time.

"Come on, Freyja. You know me better than that. Why would I ever underestimate you for anything? I'm worried about you"

"Worried about what? Didn't I tell you I just completely regained my power back there in Endless Tower? The only thing left is to wait for my eyesight to recover and I'm good as new"

"Oh, please! Weren't you the one who told me the gig's off? You know I'm talking about the possible threat here! You should have let me volunteered!" Fenrir raised his voice up a bit. The conversation just revealed the fact Frea outbid Fenrir in the earlier meeting for a reason he did not know, "This is Ifrit & Beelzephir we're talking about! You of all people should know they're not enemies you can try out with! I was about to volunteer but you beat me to it! And I realize, protesting your decision would just reopen trivial things in front of everyone and that's why I waited until now! I'm not looking down at your power or anything, but one out of two says you're going to meet at least one of them in Asgard! No way the gate's opened but they'd just slack off like nothing happened!"

"Oh, wow! You're forbidding me to go now?" The silver haired goddess knew no back down when the time calls, "Since when you have authority over me? I know what I'm capable of doing! And I'm aware of the risk of this mission! What, do you think I'm a fool? Why would I volunteer if I was unsure of myself? This isn't the first time I ever go to a battle, Fenrir! Why forbid me now, huh?"

"It's…" Fenrir wanted to answer, in the worst way possible. But he feared once he spoke out his true reason, things might change between them. And the current condition isn't really the time where anyone can attend to such personal problems.

"It's? It is what? What is it?" Frea pushed again, this time took it a little deeper.

"Tch! Forget about it…" Fenrir shook his head, slowly. In the inside, he recuperated his stature, acknowledging the fact he may directly or indirectly have offended his longtime companion, "My apologies, Freyja. I shouldn't have implied anything that might cause you to think I was trying to underestimate you"

"…I'm sorry as well…" Frea said after a brief pause, trying not to look directly to Fenrir's eyes, "I know you meant well…I shouldn't have yelled at you"

"Well, we're past that now, aren't we?" The God smiled a little, enlightening the current mood, "I was just concerned is all"

"I appreciate your thought, but really, everything is going to be alright. Randgris will come along and you know how reliable she is. I know our interests hadn't been the same in the past, but she is pretty responsible with her missions and she puts the needs of others before her own needs. And…of course there is Elraven"

As expected of Fenrir, he frowned upon hearing the name.

"Come on, give him a break. I know you dislike him, but give him a chance will ya?"

"No hard feelings, but since he is unable to transform to that Luficer form or whatever state he has within himself, he is useless" Harsh words to express harsh feelings, "I think he accepted this mission thinking he has the chance to meet Ifrit and exact his revenge on him. Well, to be honest, I think if they ever meet Ifrit will somehow fry his ass again just like every time they met"

"There you go again, hating Elraven. Are you still mad cause he tricked you last night? He's not that bad, you gotta hand it to him"

"The only thing I'm ever going to hand that moronic bloke is his own ass!"

"Fenrir…" Frea chuckled a bit, reacting to the unjustified hate, "Someday, you will realize how good Elraven truly is. I know he's insensitive and will probably be that way for the rest of his life, but he has good qualities in him"

"Deciding over girls he should date doesn't count, right?"

"Uh, yeah. That's definitely not one of his finest qualities, but you can't deny the fact he's also caring, diligent, and trustworthy. He never failed a single mission ever since his coming from Juno, right? I believe he will play a major part on accomplishing this mission as well" Spoken with a high regard by the Goddess of fertility and prosperity, now it's clear why Fenrir despises Elraven so much, "It's like magic you know, his arrival and meeting with Sagramore started basically an entire movement for the last one year. It's as if it's his fate to trigger a string of happenings around him. I personally think without him, neither Sagramore nor The Military of Einbroch would have been convinced to join forces. He's like, the one thing that pillars this alliance. It's magical, and I can't even begin to imagine anyone else than him doing that role"

"But I take it his insensitivity disallows him to even begin to realize all that, which makes him even more moronic than he already is" Still, no approval from the son of Loki, "And having that kind of role is like saying, if he were to be crushed then the entire alliance would go down along with him. I mean, until now he has never lost his spirit for whatever reason, right? If he ever lose that precious soul of his, who knows how this union would hold?"

"True…but we can only hope" Frea concluded, "So, I'm going back to my room. What about you?"

"I'll be staying here for a minute. There's something I need to think of"

"Okay, take care"

After Frea was completely out of his sight, Fenrir took a long sigh and walked back to his room. But his face clearly showed he has a thing or two to say.

0000

In Fiorentin's room…

Felicia and Olivia said they were going to return to their room for a moment, so Fiorentin is left alone in her room, tidying it ever so diligently thanks to the chaos last night. She is not used to household chores due to an entitled life, but that didn't stop her from trying to learn something fresh from daily life where she doesn't have to cross her swords with anyone else. Until now, she can barely cook anything, but if it's just furnishing her own stuff she could do so. Well, she has thrown out all Elraven's stuffs anyway so the only things left inside the room are hers. Finishing the chore, she reached to the small refrigerator placed in the corner of the room and grabbed a can or orange juice. She drank the entire fill with one sip, an ability not known to many due to her physical size and her general subtlety when others are present. But hey, we're all blessed with things, right?

Resting her back on the wall, she slowly sat down and began to think, "I had no idea a brief meeting could be so exhausting. Maybe it's because the content itself wasn't light"

If she remembered the three names volunteering for the mission tomorrow, she could think of nothing but being somewhat grateful, although a little part in her may as well consider that feeling a sin: she's grateful it's not her going tomorrow. Not because she's afraid of the possibility of meeting Beelzephir or Ifrit again (she's pretty much afraid of nothing but God), but because the last fight took a gargantuan toll on her. "Now that I think of it, the duel with Lord Sieger was perhaps the fiercest one on one battle I have ever had in my life. No one has ever taken me to my limit before and I don't think anyone will ever, not after Lord Sieger. Well, at least not one on one anyway. I am still unable to completely feel my right arm entirely, and my stomach hurts whenever I move around. It was magical I made it out alive, I was barely able to feel anything after the final blow. I could only hear Olivia whispering with others. I almost didn't see Lord Sieger passing away. But I'm also glad it gave a closure, to both himself and me…" Slowly making her way to the cabinet in the other side of her room, Fiorentin pulled out a long wide box, obviously made as an inventory box. Opening it, she revealed the prize she gained after defeating Naght Sieger: The Violet Fear. She lost her Katzbalger in the duel and nearly lost out if not for the legendary weapon Balmung, which was actually a dagger due to its size. Being someone who learned the art of swordsmanship, a dagger like Balmung isn't really her forte. So the fact she escaped half the battle against Sieger with just an average sword like the Katzbalger was another proof lady luck was on her side all along. The fact that sword brings the best out of her still remains, nonetheless. With both her hands, she circled around the hilt of the broad sword and held The Violet Fear in front of her, learning it via her vision. It's light grey color, as if matching itself to its name. Its absolute sharpness, told by a quick glance. And its legendary status. "It's odd, from what I learned from Whitesmith Howard, there are three people in The Prophecy of Eisenheim that will decide the fate of Rune Midgard. According to his opinion, the three would wield three legendary swords. He mentioned the possibility of two of them being Balmung and Tegron. But if I think of it, Balmung is a legendary dagger, not a legendary sword. And Tegron, while being a rarity, is hardly legendary at all" Her silent observation surfaced some deep memory implanted inside her head, "…that's right, father once told me about three legendary swords. He mentioned something about the three being the three strongest swords in the world. But…I can't remember the names! I should have paid more attention at that time! Dear father, why did you always say important things when I was about to doze off? Legendary swords aren't bedtime materials, you know?"

"Knock, knock"!

A sudden knock from the outside brought Fio back to reality, "Come in!".

And it was Iris, looking nervous "Iris?" The rune knight could guess why the kafra girl bothered to come, but she wouldn't push her away of course, "Don't just stand there, Iris. Come in and take a seat beside me, and tell me what you've heard about this sword."

"Yes…wait a second, isn't this The Violet Fear? It belonged to Naght Sieger, right?"

"Isabel handed it to me after the battle. She said, Lord Sieger would have wanted me to have it. I didn't say no of course. And I was in a dire need of new weapon"

"Wow…I have never thought I would see the legendary sword this up close" The kafra girl hasn't stopped spouting out her compliments, "This is one of the three strongest swords in the world!"

"Oh? You know?" Bingo! Fio thought inside her head. This is just what she needed, "Tell me about it!"

"I have only heard of their names"

"That's okay, Iris"

"Well, alright" Iris explained, "From what I have heard, Violet Fear is one of those three. The other two are Chrome Metal Two-Hand Sword, a sword made out of unknown metal, and Arc Bringer"

"Hm…I have never heard of those two names before"

"I have only heard about them once also, in the kafra guild while it still existed" Iris looked around to notice something, "Where are Olivia & Felicia? You're usually with them, right?"

"You didn't see them, Iris? Weren't you in the conference room earlier with us?"

"No, didn't go to any conference room today. I just got to the inn from my apartment, Fio"

"Oh, okay. Felicia and Olivia went back to their room awhile ago. I guess I'll be alone for the rest of the day"

0000

After his visit from the armory, Elraven was quite pleasant to find out HAVOX has been regenerated and is ready for some action. That means his primary armament for tomorrow is complete. Satisfied, he collected his bullets and equipments in the corridor before packing up, heading to an unused bedroom down the ship. With his inability to enjoy the inn any longer, Elraven settled for an old room, which was good enough for him. He quickly rested his back on the bed, taking some time to gather a sanguinary calmness before his mind started to work. "Asgard, huh? If everything goes according to plan, this will be a long ride. And to top it of…Ifrit, I have a feeling inside me warning me he will be the one to launch to Asgard, not Beelzephir. Which means this will be my third meeting with him in the battlefield. He completely sent me to the school in the last two, I wonder if I can do better this time. It's unfortunate I won't be able to use Lucifer form for a little while, but Sarkhan told me the form should affect some part of my attributes. Therefore, I should be able to physically harm him even if I have to rely to bullets alone" The insensitive man slowly drifted his eyes to the ceiling, putting both his hands behind his head to further comfort himself, "Heh, pathetic me! I shouldn't have doubted myself. Alexandria didn't rely on any special power to defeat Naght Sieger until the end, shame on me to not believe similarly. Lucifer or not, I can touch him this time. We're on equal ground. There's nothing to be afraid of…"

Suddenly, his memory began to slumber to a rather distant memory. He recalled, "Oh, right. Before the battle in Glast Heim, there was time when I thought about meeting Ifrit. Frea was there beside me that time. I remember her saying something about…reason….right, reason to fight. She said as long as I was unable to find that reason, I won't be able to truly defeat myself, let alone an otherworldly opposition. It's odd, even now I don't understand why I fought all the time. It was orders and missions for me. I never fought for any personal gain…but it was different with Ifrit. I want to end him for the sake of avenging boss and the kids. Is revenge not enough? …I guess it is not, otherwise I would have beaten Ifrit long ago. What is it? What do I need? Alexandria said something about having something to hold not too long ago. Something about our hearts having things we use to pillar it from crumbling. I guess for Alexandria, her friends and her kingdom is what she used to shield her soul from staining. For Emilio, it's his ambition to beat Gen Ed. For Ty, it's women. For Felicia…more or less the same with Alexandria. What about me, though? What holds my heart from ever agonizing?"

In the serene quietness enveloping him, Elraven could hear the sound of the cicadas from the forest outside Pegasus. He could almost dream of the bright sky color gradually turning pale before changing completely to dark. The clouds slowly danced, fluttering as their background was dwelling with moonlight glimmer. This may be one of those hours of lonely musing. So quiet, Elraven could hear his own heart beating. He began to feel something inside him: loneliness. He just realized how quiet his surrounding was when he heard those voices. He was alone, no one was visible around him. For the first time in a long time, he realized he didn't have anyone accompanying him. It irks him, this feeling. He opened his eyes and see this feeling for what it truly is: nobody can make it out alone. "Something is aching inside me, I cannot describe it by words, but I feel emptiness in it. No laughter ringing in my ears, no jokes to entertain my soul, and no tears for me to comfort to. No one, nothing. I have never thought of loneliness as something that I should be afraid of, but I admit it's unpleasant. Alexandria didn't want to forgive me and Emilio didn't even want to see my face. This painful feelings growing inside me….this is what they call loneliness, huh? I have heard from somewhere that loneliness is the heaviest cross to burden in our life, because you cannot share it with anyone else. I guess this is my grief to carry" Now he realized, "I guess it takes time for things to calm down. Now that I think of it, last night was my fault after all, spell or not. After tomorrow's mission is over, I'm going to properly apologize to everyone. I'll cook them something good…Ifrit Steak? Nah, that's too hot to handle…is it? Or, what about Satan Morroc steak? Incarnation of Morroc steak? No, that's too evil to be eaten..I think.. Or maybe something like Skeggiold steak? But are angels edible? Either way, I'm going to apologize for good this time. No way they will refuse me with this!"

So, Elraven rushed back to the inn, to the kitchen to be exact. He wanted to prepare something there.

0000

Inside Iris's room, Fiorentin & Iris were joyously having conversation with each other. It seems like they have just watched Date With An Angel which left quite an impression, especially to Fio.

Fio: I'm glad it ended happily! I thought Jim was really going to die or went back to his evil fiancée!

Iris: Yeah, I like the sweet ending as well! And Emmanuelle Beart was soooo cute in that role!

Fio: Ukh, she was gorgeous! I didn't have a hard time buying she was an angel.

Iris: Yes, me too! Another movie of hers will be played in half an hour, it's called La Belle Noiseuse.

Fio: What's it about?

Iris: No idea. Never watched it before. But it's 30 minutes away, so what do you say we go out and have something for dinner? We can watch it while we eat.

Fio: Good idea. Let's!

As Iris said, her apartment was small but comfortable. Two bedrooms, small space for TV and a couch, a kitchen with a dining table, and one bathroom. Fio & Iris watched the TV while sitting on the floor. A new experience for Fio, everyday experience for Iris. Actually, other than when she sneaked out of the castle to spend the night in The Hammonds when she was a little kid, maybe this is the first time Fio spent a night at a friend's in years.

They bought several breads for lunch in a nearby store, none of them has huge stomach anyway so that would suffice. Where they were near from Iris's apartment, another conversation began.

"I wonder what the next movie will be rated" Iris threw a thought which caught Fio's attention, "The last one was PG-13"

"I don't know, I don't really speak French. I don't know what La Belle Noiseuse means" Fiorentin simply replied.

"It means The Beautiful Troublemaker"

"Oh, you speak French, Iris?"

"Not really, I only know bits about it" Before Iris could further continue with her explanation, she saw a glance of someone in the street, "Fio, isn't that your comrade, Frea? What is she doing standing in front of my apartment?"

"Hey, right! That's her!" Fio called out, "Frea? What are you doing there?"

"Oh? You're there? I thought you were still in the inside" Frea finally noticed, "I was looking for you, Princess. Miss Helen told me she saw you going out with Iris, so I figured to come here. Apparently she also knew Iris's address"

"Well, okay, so I am here. Do you need something from me?"

"Yes, if you don't mind, can I join the two of you in whatever it is you are doing?"

"I don't mind…" Fio stroke a heavy glance at Iris, knowing Frea's condition, "But we're going to watch something. So…well, I mean you can at least sit with us"

"Oh, watching? I see…haven't I told you?" Wait for it, "I already regained my vision ever since the visit to Endless Tower"

"You what?" Alas, Fio didn't hold back from expressing her shock, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? Does anyone else know about this?"

"Only Fenrir does, and as to your other question, I guess I just haven't had the chance to tell everyone"

"How can you so casually say that?" There are things brains wouldn't understand in this world, "As to your request, it's Iris's room, so it is up to her to decide. What about it, Iris? Care if Frea joins?"

"Oh, no! Not at all, the more the merrier anyway!" But Iris's heart said otherwise, "Aaaaah! Nooooo! My night with Fio is ruined!"

And it's about to be ruined even more when a familiar voice arose, "Fio? What are you doing out here? And with Frea & Iris to top it off?"

"Felicia?" What did I tell you? "And Olivia as well?"

"What are you girls doing here? Having some girls nite out?" Olivia took a wild guess and won first prize.

"Yeah, you can say so?" Fio answered, and resumed with something Iris wouldn't like, "Hey, what about you two join us all?"

"We'd love to if we got the invitation" Felicia replied with an answer Iris also wouldn't love, "Who's the host?"

"It's Iris" Fio responded with a huge smile, "So, what about it, Iris? Are they invited?"

"Sure, sure they are!" But you shan't lie to your heart, "Noooooooooo! What are these people doing here? Ah, my night with Fio alone….now, I must bid you farewell!"

"So, what's the movie about?" As if forgetting Iris was standing cold outside, the rest of the party let themselves in.

Iris wasn't even able to make a proper facial feature anymore, her heart was broken. Slowly, she walked inside to her somewhat crowded apartment cause La Belle Noiseuse is about to begin. Taking one last glance to the empty street, Iris said to herself for one last time before disappearing to inside her apartment, "Oh, my night alone with Fio! What tragic fate befell us all! Now, I must bid you farewell!"

At the same time, in the kitchen of Terrace Inn…

No one was actually working in the kitchen, but a certain humming sound could be heard being produced from the inside, by no other man but Elraven himself. "I won't fail to apologize this time! I forgot to get through everyone's heart, I have to satisfy their stomach first!" Remind himself, Elraven's passion is burning hotter than ever!

So hot it actually caught the attention of someone else, "Elraven?"

"Miss Helen?" Elraven met his mother, though he didn't know this fact, "Ah, my apologies! I know I should have told you if I wanted to use the kitchen, but I was so caught up in the moment I forgot to ask your permission!"

"Oh, it's alright. You're our guest and you're not breaking anything, right?" With her motherly charisma, Helen comforted her son, although of course she didn't know about this fact, "Besides, what is it you're cooking?"

"Oh, actually I'm not cooking anything. This is just a preparation…I mean, a practice!"

"Practice? Is there any cooking competition coming up?"

"No, it's for my friends!" Since the real story is too embarrassing to be told, Elraven explained it by saying this, "There was a misunderstanding and now they're kinda mad at me. I tried to apologize but it failed. So, I thought maybe if I make them something delicious they would consider apologizing me"

Elraven is insensitive, always. But from his words just now, Helen could tell he was genuine. He sincerely wanted his peers to accept him again. Maybe it's because his eyes gave him away during his reply, the way they stared at the frying pan. That look alone was filled with honest feelings. Or maybe that's because he spoke of them with such fond tone, she couldn't help but offering her assistance, because such gentle heart and wish shouldn't go to waste after all, "If that is the case, then I shall lend you a hand, Elraven"

"Ah? Well, I don't actually mind doing it alone, but I can really use a help"

And the answer from Elraven is more than enough for Helen, "It's settled then! What are we going to present, Elraven?"

"Hm…I was thinking somewhere along the lines of Ifrit Steak or Satan Morroc Steak or Incarnation of Morroc Steak"

"Huh? Are those possible steaks edible? Can human really eat fire and demons?"

"I don't know, but if it is, I'm sure it will taste great!" That's not really a sound response, but since Helen already offered her help, she can't back down now.

Almost four hours later…

I'll make it short, the kitchen exploded. Elraven was trying to heat up an ingredient which served as the prototype of Ifrit's flame…an actual flame heart he obtained somewhere. Needless to say, you shouldn't cook fire. The time Elraven put the flame heart into the frying pan, he received a mini version of Purgatorio. Fortunately for Helen, she was outside the kitchen when the explosion occurred. She was out throwing some thrashes.

"Oh, Lord! Elraven, are you okay?" Helen yelled out of her lungs seeing the gunslinger turned into Dark Elraven.

"Um…I'll live" Elraven casually answered, obviously implying the effect of Dionysus, although he spoke his very short reply with smokes coming out from his ears, nose, and mouth, "I'm not the type to die so easily, Miss Helen"

"Uh, well. I know that. After all you survived many beatings from Princess Fiorentin" A radical (and shocking) honesty.

"What? How did you know that?"

"Well, I saw you flew to the sky several times and went I lowered my vision I spotted Princess Fiorentin in her battle mode. I did the math and that's that"

"Oh…" Elraven was ashamed to admit it, but he did so eventually, "Yeah…we had many misunderstandings which mostly led to her sending me to the outer space for several hours…"

"As I thought you would say that. Elraven is a very honest and genuine person" Helen uttered her words proudly, "You're a good man, I hope you're blessed with happiness for the rest of your life"

"Ah, thank you. I wish the same blessing also shower your days, Miss Helen" Showing they indeed share the same blood, Elraven also showed his gentleness, as it should be, "But the kitchen's a wreck, I don't think we can continue experimenting. It's a shame, but Ifrit Steak will have to wait for another time"

"Alright, then how about after you finish your quest tomorrow? You said you are going somewhere, right?"

"After tomorrow's quest? Okay, that is fine with me. I think that's a perfect time" Elraven didn't need a long time to agree to his mother, "It's a promise, then?'

"It's surely a promise" The wife of the inn owner reassured her son, "I'll help you win your friends' heart back!"

"I will wait impatiently, Miss Helen"

Knowingly, both Sinclair nodded to each other as they parted ways, because Elraven has a big party to attend to tomorrow.

Several minutes later, in Iris's apartment…

To those who don't know, La Belle Noiseuse has the screen time of approximately four hours. And being a Frenchwoman she is (I'm not being racist here, alright?), Emmanuelle Beart (at her peak as the most beautiful goddess on earth at that time) spent a good 125 minutes of that screen time without any clothes on. Yeah, you heard that right, lads. It's around 125 minutes of on screen nudity, guys. In mainstream cinematic movie, it possesses the record of having the longest onscreen nudity untouched until today, unbeaten! Not even Kate Winslet, Anne Hathaway, Naomi Watts, Eva Green, and Nicole Kidman were able to touch that many screen time nudity despite their frequent undressing! Yeah, yeah, I know Winslet & Kidman have virtually stopped taking their clothes off ever since winning the Oscar (because let's face it, nudity results in Oscar….LOL, JK!), but still, 125 minutes isn't to be taken lightly. I suggest u to watch the movie if you haven't. It's very artistic you know (both Madame Emmanuelle and the movie, LOL).

And being such a legendary movie it is, of course its content can't be viewed by anyone under the age of 18. So, for Fio & Iris especially, it was a rather luscious 4 hours.

"Wow…that was…" I hope the readers can imagine Fio's scarlet face, "Eh…artistic…and otherworldly"

"No kidding" Iris almost couldn't hide her embarrassment, "She had…lovely measurements"

"Perfect measurements" Olivia, being the secretive pervert she is, retained her coolness in her words, "Nice viewing altogether"

"With a killer body like that, never showing it off would be a crime" Words from Felicia, spoken like a true pervert. Guess that's what having a pervert as a sister and hanging out with Ty too much do to you, huh? "No wonder the script had it for 125 minutes"

"Wuih…Emmanuelle Beart must actually be a goddess surviving Ragnarok, because no way a normal human woman would be such a knockout" And this comment is obviously from Frea, who relates everything with Ragnarok.

"I've had enough for one night. I guess it's time to go to bed" Iris rose and headed to her room, but not before telling everyone, "I can share my bed with Fio & Frea. Felicia & Olivia can use the unused bedroom, the bed's big enough for two"

"Thanks a lot, good night, Iris"

"Good night, Fio" Iris was so embarrassed even the fact she's going to share a bed with her crush failed to humor her.

"Well…" Felicia also rose, "I think we should hit the bed too, Olivia"

"Right behind you, sis" The younger Hammond stood up with a gigantic grin, "After such a treat, I'll sleep real tight tonight. Good night, Fio & Frea"

"Good night, girls" With only the two of them remaining, Fio shifted her eyes to Frea, "and what about you, Frea? You're gonna hit the bed right away?"

"No, I think I'll stay here for a moment" Frea simply said, and then she kept her mouth shut.

Fiorentin looked like as if she wanted to engage a conversation with Frea, but she was unsure of something. Frea realized her implied behavior, but did nothing about it.

Eventually, Fio chose to voice her words rather than staying silent until dawn, "You're going with Elraven & Randgris tomorrow, right? I wish you the best of luck"

"Thank you, princess Fiorentin. This is perhaps the most pivotal factor if we wish to increase our chance to actually stand toe to toe against Valdomir Kingdom in its entirety. I, alongside Randgris & Elraven, will ensure the success of the mission at all cost" As it should be, Frea went along with her.

"That comforts me" The rune knight smiled a bit, maintaining a somewhat serious look, "But, as much as this may not be the right time to say it, I'm concerned over the possibility of Ifrit or Beelzephir appearing"

Surprisingly, Frea didn't house similar mind, "I have thought about the two as well, that's why I have crafted a plan should any of them appear"

"What plan?"

"I'm going to utilize my old battle armor tomorrow, princess. Consisting of 4 different equipments, it will grant me the power to control Frost Nova to full extent and also increase my physical ability within a great deal" Frea opened her only trump card to Fiorentin, who didn't miss a word listening, "I kept them with me the whole time, waiting for the right moment until my vision healed to be able to utilize it to the maximum level. With that under my arsenal, I don't have the slightest doubt I can fight either Ifrit or Beelzephir on an equal ground. Theoretically, fighting any of them equally is easier said than done, but I'm more than willing to give it a chance. You're the only one to know this, not even Fenrir has been told of this"

"Such confidence" In a rare occasion, the crush complimented the ex, "I truly hope your plan works tomorrow, then. With the help of either Randgris or Elraven, or maybe even both, your chance to actually win shall increase as well. It will be a major victory if you can defeat any of them, considering their reputation. It's like winning the whole war"

The soul linker is more than happy to know the princess's mind. Frea feels for the first time since they had met, Fiorentin is actually counting on her. And this trust is the one trust she doesn't want to let go, "I will do my best, princess Fiorentin. I give you my word, by the end of the very next day, the key to Valkyrie Armors will already be in your hand"

"I'm glad to hear that. Truth be told, I was really worried over this mission after knowing the threats, especially since I'm unable to participate myself to prevent anything horrible to happen to you and everyone" Like always, Fio never acted selfishly, "But after learning of your plan and craft, I feel like I have something to hold. Now I know I can count on you. Godspeed, Frea"

"Again, thank you for your blessing" After a year of knowing each other, Frea & Fio finally became friends. All thanks to the mutual feeling about a certain someone they are sharing at the moment.

"And…" This one Fio said with another bloody red face, "Please watch over Elraven too. If Ifrit is involved, Elraven tends to lose his cool due to his personal vendetta"

"Hm? I thought you're currently leading the Elraven hating bandwagon?"

"I am, but of course I don't hate him to the extent I want to see him dead. I just want him to learn the consequences of his actions. I want him, and you, and Randgris, to return here in one piece so we can all watch Elraven redeeming himself" The leader of the alliance almost chuckled to her own words, "Did I sound a bit devilish back there, Frea?"

"Yes" Frea also hold back a laughter, "But I kinda like it, princess Fiorentin"

Not being able to hold it down anymore, they let out a decent amount of small laughing. That night, a new bond of friendship arose from the ashes of rivalry.

0000

The next day, very early in the morning…

It's still 5:00 AM, the town itself barely awake. But Frea, Elraven, and Randgris are all set and ready to go. Accompanying them are only Gen Ed, Sarkhan, and Fenrir.

"As expected" Elraven noted, "Not everyone is awake at this time of day"

"Yes, but I believe a grand send off is unnecessary for this" His general answered, "After all, you are going to be back. It's not like this is a farewell party"

"Of course we'll be back, general. Besides, I still have things to say to everyone, especially Alexandria and Emilio" Elraven's smiled at the thought of the food he is going to present to them, "I can't wait for my own newest steak! This time, my steak will make them accept my apology"

"New steak? I hope it's nothing weird. I remember this one time in Einbroch, when he said a similar thing, he ended up wanting to present a Vesper steak. Is that even edible?" Gen Ed said to himself, not wanting to offend his underling.

"I'm off, Fenrir" Meanwhile, Frea was conversing with The Black Reaper, "Don't do anything reckless or stupid while I'm gone, okay?"

"Hey, hey! What's that supposed to mean? Don't act like I'm a little kid, Freyja!" An obvious reaction from the obvious God, "You should also look out for yourself, that pervert is coming with you!"

"Elraven? Nah, I'm done with him" You wish, Frea, "Besides, why remind me of him all of a sudden? Jealous, much?"

"I'm...I'm not jealous! I'm not jealous of him at all! Why would I be jealous of Elraven?" Fenrir is gradually starting to become the male tsundere of the story, "He's just an insolent prick! If it's not for the sake of this alliance, I would have frozen his sorry ass from long ago!"

"Ahahaha! Alright, alright. I was just messing with you" But still, Frea couldn't help it, "Take care of everyone while I'm gone, okay?"

"Alright" Fenrir simply said, "Good luck up there, okay?"

"Te-he! Thanks!" Frea reacted in a very cute way. So cute Fenrir actually had to role his eyes or else he would blush (being the official male tsundere he is).

"Is everyone ready?" Randgris, standing beside Sarkhan, began to ran out of patience and pointed to the warp portal Sarkhan prepared for them, "The portal's ready"

While El & Frea were walking towards it, Sarkhan gave them one last instruction, "Remember, the inventory to the Orb of Edda is located at the top of Yggdrasil. Elraven should just follow Randgris & Frea because they know their way around there. Any of you should do, all you have to do is to unlock the box and place your hand in it, the orb will transfer itself to me here, where I will be waiting alongside General Eduardo. And you can't use Butterfly wings in Asgard, you will have to take yourself outside the place, exactly in the gate portal, if you wish to transfer back here"

"Loud and clear, Sarkhan" The dark haired gunslinger confirmed everything. With the team ready, all three of them entered the warp portal starting from Frea, Randgris, and then Elraven.

"Godspeed, everyone" Gen Ed said before El completely vanished from his sight, noticing a tiny smile from Elraven reckoning the blessing. After the three vanished, Emilio could be seen appearing from behind the trees, apparently been hiding there all the time.

The general of the military deciphered in one glance that the captain of the Ropera Squad was concerned over having his most trusted underling going on such a dangerous mission. But for whatever reason, he kept this concern to himself.

"You should have said something to him, son" Gen Ed told the younger Barragan, "He seemed really sorry for what he did. I'm sure you heard him planning to make a new steak to apologize to you and Princess Fiorentin once this mission is over"

"Well, not that I didn't want to say anything to him, but I don't want to spoil him after what he did" Emilio answered, "Besides, everyone dead and alive knew he would return here alive. Otherwise I wouldn't have handpicked him to be my second in command in the first place"

"Suit yourself, Emilio. But something inside me is telling me, the reason why you chose him to watch your back wasn't solely based on his ability, but him as a whole" You cannot hide anything from Gen Ed, guys. Anything, "You enjoyed his companion. You trusted him. And above all others, you two shared those feelings"

"Feelings? Oh, come on now! We're not talking about bromance here, father!"

"Bromance? That's what you want me to call it? Bromance?" Gen Ed entered teasing mode, "You mean, you have a man crush with Elraven?"

"No, I'm not! I'm his friend and that's that!"

"Oh, come now. Don't be shy, Emilio. I have a very open mind, and I'm aware love has various forms"

"I'm not in love with Elraven! What are you talking about?"

"There's no need to deny your feelings, Emilio" Anyone feels Gen Ed in teasing mode is very creepy, "Just let it all out. We don't need another male tsundere here. Fenrir is more than enough"

"Hey, general! What's with calling me a male tsundere?" Fenrir joined the war, "The only feeling I have for that insensitive bloke is anger! And I never concealed it!"

"Yes, but you concealed your feelings for Frea" True, "Tsundere-kun"

"Why you?"

Sarkhan only let out a heavy sigh seeing the scene. And he said to himself, "Gee, pals. Ifrit or Beelzephir is going to pay a visit but these three can only say gay things and tsundere things? Man, I shouldn't have signed up for this bullshit…"

Just so you know, the Triple Threat didn't awake anyone still. And Iris was so happy that morning (when she wakes up later) to find Fiorentin sleeping beside her. But since her mind is improper, I wouldn't tell you what's inside it. Just imagine it for yourself, okay?

A moment later, in Odin's Temple…

Less than 15 seconds after their departure, Elraven & co. have set their foot in Odin's temple. The island is approximately eighty miles in length and tipped up towards the west. The west coast is dominated by steep white, chalky cliffs that are greatly eroded at sea level, and harbour many 'blue caves'. Much of the attractive landscape is still covered in olive groves. These stretch from the northto Gaios the capital, which houses the large temple of Odin. The massive sequence of stratification layers suggests several millennia of activity, reaching back to the time of Ragnarok. The oldest occupation layer contains monolithic pillars linked by coarsely built walls to form circular or oval structures. And there is an indication of the existence of 16 additional structures.

The monoliths are decorated with carved reliefs of animals and of abstract pictograms. The pictograms may represent commonly understood sacred symbols, as known from Neolithic cave paintings elsewhere. The carefully carved figurative reliefs depict lions, bulls, boars, foxes, gazelles, asses, snakes and other reptiles, insects, arachnids, and birds, particularly vultures and water fowl. At the time the shrine was constructed the surrounding terrain was much lusher and capable of sustaining this variety of wildlife, before millennia of settlement and cultivation resulted in the near–Dust Bowl conditions prevailing today.

"Wow, I can see the temple from down here" Elraven took his time adoring the landscape, "I calculate…it's around thirty five miles to the temple, Should we just fly to it?"

"That's a good idea, let's just do that" Randgris quickly agreed, "Freyja? You want me to carry you?"

"No, I can fly by own" Without anyone noticing, Frea has put her new outfit when Elraven was admiring the temple: a crown, a pair of boots, an overcoat, and a manteau. Freya's crown is a beautiful piece of jewelry with transparent crystal in the middle shines in various colors as if it is living up to its otherworldly status. Frea now had on an elaborate, dark yellow cape with white wings like ornament & blue furry edges. Underneath the cape is a beautifully crafted overcoat dominated by the color blue minus its long sleeves which retained a purple color and a sash like belt with brown color. She also had a polished pair of boots. The right one is dark blue in color while the left one is light purple, "Are you guys ready to fly?"

"Freyja…isn't that your old battle armor?" Randgris quickly recognized Frea's somewhat fresh feature.

"Still nice, aren't they? Now, I'm more confident in my ability. More so than ever!" A great start with such confidence, "Shall we go now?"

"You bet" Already having his light wings on, Elraven followed to the sky after Randgris, and before Frea.

The mission in Odin's Temple is finally starting.

0000

Well, I have finally decided to stop chapter 99 here cause I feel like the mood of chapter 100 won't fit with somewhat light mood of this chapter.

As I said before, Valkyrie Armor arc will only have two or three chapters at best, so expect the current storyline to peak in chapter 100. And I'll say it now, I think I want a good 40-50 pages of chapter 100 (which total 70-80 pages combined with this chapter), which is why I will be taking my time doing it and hopefully release it before the middle of the next month.

I'm hoping to add some drama in the next chapter, in addition to the already foreshadowed battle, so I am going to do it to my very own extent, cause I don't wanna take a look back and say 'if only' later on. I'm hoping for your understanding and support.

Thank you for reading. And as always, reviews are appreciated.

C u next chappy!