Leveling with the Gods

Shukat-.

The two swords clashed.

Zeng-!

Zhiyiying-.

The Arcane Power that spread with the sound of the collision turned the air in the training field upside down. As if they knew they were going to collide, the two swords fell at the same time.

Brunnhilde's sword rained down.

Literally.

YuWon's body trembled under the downpour of sword strikes.

Bam, clang-.

He wondered if it's possible to avoid raindrops without an umbrella or shield.

It was impossible, but YuWon's eyes and senses had achieved it.

A path was visible through the sword rain.

And towards that path, YuWon's body moved with precision.

['Sensory Field' activated].

Kak-.

For a moment, time seemed to stop.

It was thanks to that.

Hua-ak-!

Purr-.

He could hear the snorting of a small horse from above.

He wondered since when.

Brunnhilde, the Leader of the Valkyries, rode a pure white horse with wings.

Tak!

A sword rushed towards her head.

Luckily, the sword struck the ground of the training field instead of YuWon's head.

A crack appeared in the hard ground of the training field. If it had been anywhere else, the impact would have brought down the entire building.

Pam-.

Liu Yuan's sword extended, aiming at the horse.

At the same time, a lightning bolt shot out from YuWon's hand.

Crackle-!

A dazzling lightning emerged from the center of the training field.

Brunnhilde protected her horse and utilized her mobility at the same time.

The fight was difficult to follow with the naked eye.

The Valkyries watched from the edge of the training field, unwilling to interfere.

They were left speechless.

"That guy... is fighting on equal terms with the boss."

"If..."

"Quite impressive..."

"Quite impressive? Did you just say quite impressive?"

Kwalung-!

Fajijijik-.

A lightning bolt struck right at their feet.

Several Valkyries hurried to raise their shields to block it. A stimulating electric shock ran through the tips of their fingers.

"You think this is just quite impressive?"

He didn't think this was just quite impressive.

YuWon had never used the Uranus Heart on anyone in all his fights against the Valkyries.

No, he didn't need to.

He was able to subdue them without using any special abilities.

Pfft-.

The flow of Mana in YuWon's arm changed.

His tendons bulged.

[The strength of a Giant permeates your entire body]

Kikik-!

As if unwilling to lose, Brunnhilde's white horse turned red. At the same time, a sharp, long horn sprouted from its forehead, unleashing its latent Arcane Power.

Shh-.

Tak, tak, tak!

YuWon and Brunnhilde clashed once again. YuWon didn't dodge the horse's charge but instead grabbed its horn with his hand.

"Well, you're crazy..."

"Can you block that by sheer force?"

The horse Brunnhilde rode wasn't a real living horse.

It was a conglomerate of Mana created by her ability.

And yet, he had caught it with one hand.

Susseusut.

A dark power enveloped the horse's body through the gripped horn.

Brunnhilde's eyes gleamed at the eerie power.

['Tartarus' is open]

Hwaaak-!

A darkness as black as a wolf's mouth enveloped the horse.

Tartarus.

It was Mana extracted from the deepest part of hell.

YuWon intended to deal with the most troublesome horse first.

And at that moment...

Flash!

Brunnhilde's sword emitted light.

Buzz.

The Mana that had been flowing from Tartarus receded.

And Brunnhilde didn't miss the opportunity.

Ssh!

She swung her light.

At least, that's what it seemed like to the Valkyries who watched the fight from afar.

Kagag-.

A pure white line appeared in the training field.

Swoosh!

The light from Brunnhilde's sword extended into thousands and tens of thousands of rays.

Unlike the torrential rain, the light turned into an unavoidable sword. No matter how good one's eyesight was, there were certain attacks that could never be avoided.

Instead...

'I see.'

YuWon's eyes saw something else.

In the midst of the rays of light.

Pajijijijik-!

YuWon's sword pierced through the lightning and struck.

For a moment, the training field seemed to darken with the light. Unable to see anything in the clash of lights, the Valkyries hurriedly tried to find the two of them.

It was a matter of seconds before the blackout ended.

One by one, the Valkyries found YuWon and Brunnhilde.

And there....

"...What's going on?"

"What happened?"

There were two people standing facing each other.

Neither was defeated.

No one was injured, no one was on their knees.

This was not the outcome they had expected.

"A draw?"

"No way. They will fight a little longer."

"Neither of them is moving, right?"

"No. The boss is one step ahead. Look over there. That guy, he's slightly injured, isn't he?

"As expected of the boss!"

The Valkyries were roaring.

But then...

"I lose."

Brunnhilde sheathed her sword and lowered her head.

The Valkyries stiffened in response.

"Boss!"

"W-What?"

"You haven't lost yet!"

The Valkyries, who had been silently watching the fight without interfering, raised their voices.

Brunnhilde was the Leader of the Valkyries, their pride.

Moreover, at this moment, it didn't seem like Brunnhilde's defeat was an inevitable conclusion.

No, rather, a small scar was forming on YuWon's shoulder.

But...

"Don't judge too quickly, I've done everything I could."

Brunnhilde remembered the sensation at the tip of her fingers.

A moment ago, when their swords had clashed.

Indeed, her sword had touched his, but his hadn't.

It wasn't because she was better.

"You could have cut me, but you didn't."

YuWon didn't cut her.

Clearly, he could have slit her throat or chest.

"I'm not stupid enough to not realize that."

She admitted defeat faster than she had expected.

It made no sense to keep fighting, she admitted.

Phajik, phaji-jik-.

An electric current that lingered in the body without disappearing.

It was the mark of the hardships accumulated in a not-so-short fight.

"If it weren't for this, I probably wouldn't have believed it. Are you really just a Player?

Floor 64.

YuWon had already passed the halfway point of the Tower and reached the upper floors, close to the Rankers.

Thanks to this, the penalties for fighting against Ranker Players weren't as severe. The penalty was insignificant, especially for a Ranker with a strong body like Brunnhilde.

But it was also the clearest indication that YuWon was still a Non-Ranker Player.

"Moreover, I feel like you still had some moves left..."

It was just a feeling, but she believed in him.

"I guess it wasn't just a rumor that Li Jing was defeated by you."

"Do you know Li Jing?"

"We met once, a long time ago. It was a time when Asgard and the Celestial Realm were in their prime, and Li Jing was active."

Although she knew Brunnhilde, they didn't have a very deep conversation.

It was surprising that the two knew each other to some extent. It was so rare to find a Ranker who knew Li Jing these days.

"The Valkyries will recognize you. Moreover, being recognized by me means being recognized by Asgard."

It wasn't an empty statement.

In fact, Brunnhilde was highly regarded within Asgard.

There were stories that she was more powerful than her given rank, and there were even speculations that she could be a daughter of Odin's lineage.

With Brunnhilde's defeat, no one could ignore YuWon's rank anymore.

No.

One could even think that his rank still didn't match his abilities.

"So, did you get what you wanted?"

"More or less."

A bland response.

Brunnhilde realized that YuWon's expression wasn't any different from before they started fighting.

"I see that there's something else you want."

Brunnhilde turned around.

"Follow me."

"......?"

"The king is looking for you."

Kak-.

With those words, Brunnhilde began leading the way.

YuWon followed behind her, silently.

Following in Brunnhilde's footsteps, YuWon found himself in a room that wasn't the small chamber where Yggdrasil's stem was located.

It was a grand hall, hundreds of meters long, with red carpets, golden walls, and sparkling jewels.

In the vastness of it all, Odin sat alone.

"Come forward."

Odin turned to Brunnhilde.

She bowed before him, then turned around and left the grand hall.

Then the two were alone.

"Have you made a decision?"

YuWon didn't hesitate to ask.

"You're not a very fun guy."

Odin shook his head wearily.

Clearly, he had been thinking a lot.

"I've made a decision. I'm not sure if it's the right one, but..."

Somehow, it seemed too quick to him.

He thought that maybe he wouldn't hear an answer for several years if it was lengthy, but it seemed he was still unsure.

But it didn't matter.

What mattered was that he had made a decision.

"Maybe it's better than doing nothing."

A hesitant decision.

At this point, Odin probably wouldn't move very actively.

However, what was important was that he could start anyway.

"Did you send Brunnhilde?"

"To make sure you're not just a talkative guy."

Odin stroked his chin with one hand and looked at YuWon.

"Still, it seems you have some strength."

To win against Brunnhilde.

Perhaps that was the reason the conflict, which had been at a standstill, tilted slightly to one side.

All Odin wanted was peace, and the only reason he thought about Ragnarok was because of YuWon.

But if YuWon wasn't good enough, Ragnarok wouldn't even be a thought.

"So? Do you like it?"

"You have the skills."

An ambiguous look.

"The problem is the identity of that power."

"The identity?"

"I'm not exactly sure. Brunnhilde wasn't enough."

"Maybe I should have sent Thor," Odin murmured quietly.

Then, turning his gaze to YuWon, he said.

"Anyway, it's more than I expected..."

Ding-.

YuWon's player kit buzzed.

It was his.

Odin frowned at the interruption.

"You don't know manners."

"It's an important call."

The name on the player kit screen was Son OhGong.

He had a job to do and needed to get in touch with him.

"One moment."

After unilaterally requesting understanding, YuWon checked his player kit.

It was a message, not a call.

He wondered why a guy who hated texting sent him a message.

But then....

"...Oh."

The corner of YuWon's mouth twitched as he read the text.

As if he had been waiting for a message like this sooner or later.

[Hey, I'm sorry] (ey, in sorri)

It was a hastily written text with many spelling errors.

In the text that arrived on the kit...

"I already knew."

It was brief, but it was more serious than anything else.

[I had an accident]