97 Reasons to dislike Loki

'I cannot force you to make peace with Durin but I hope you will at least consider it.'

"I... I'll have to think about it... But for now, allow me to show you how good of a host Sindri the dexterous can be!"

I must admit, the dwarves are a merry bunch and they certainly know how to enjoy themselves but there was one minor issue for me.

Imagine sitting beside a group of dwarves, intoxicated, ravenously eating dwarves. All the while you are a tree, meaning no amount of ale, mead or any drink will cloud your senses and eating is just a superfluous action of politeness that consists of you stuffing tasteless dishes down your throat.

My amusement quickly waned and I excused myself from the few dwarves that were still conscious enough to comprehend what I said.

I left the eastern district and toured the city on my own. Dwarven architecture had many advantages but being particularly pleasing to the eye wasn't one of them. Getting bored of all the similar-looking, boring dwarven buildings, I left Nidavellir.

Yes, I left without telling anyone. Durin was probably busy and Sindri needed some time to think about his future. I was going to head back home without bothering them.

In a passing conversation, I had asked the guide where the normal entrance to Nidavellir was situated and how people were dealt with. Knowing that I could now easily leave through the normal way. Exiting the outer city, I was walking past the line of people wishing to enter when a familiar voice called out to me.

"Lord Eldar! You truly are here. Could I have a moment?"

'Siegfried?'

"Yes, it's me."

'But it's been seventy years!'

My outburst was answered by tinkling laughter and I felt like I'd said something stupid.

"Lord Eldar, I have become a queen maga and I have a dragon's bloodline, it would be quite strange if time had as much of an effect on me as it has on those with far less power."

True enough, dragons were known to age slowly and live for centuries if not millennia. Measuring her age by human standards wasn't the greatest idea.

'What brings you to the dwarven capital? Shouldn't you be handling the aftermath of the undead invasion?'

"That has been mostly dealt with. I've come here in search of you. Father and Loki have found something very important and wish for your presence."

'What did they find?'

"They wouldn't tell me! Loki said you would definitely regret not coming."

'I will regret many things, what's one more to the pile.'

"He said it concerned the secret of this world..."

Ugh. Now I would have to meet him. The secret of this world made me worried and I couldn't leave this alone. Too many things just didn't make sense!

The jade snake dowager guarding the necropolis, a giant group of King level undead who seem conscious and have memories, the Nox Aeterna's warnings and the creation of Nidavellir. It all seemed like there was a piece of this world's history that had just been erased.

'Lead the way. Let's go meet that prick.'

"You shouldn't talk badly about Loki. He is such a nice guy, after the war, he really helped deal with everything. Humanity took a large step forward with his help and can now look eye to eye with anyone else."

'Firstly, I'm not a human so humanity's progress isn't any of my concern. Secondly, Loki's concern seems to only apply for humans so since I'm not one of you I can't expect him to care much for my well being.'

Accompanied by Siegfried I made my way to Midgard hoping to meet Loki there. However, when we arrived only a message was waiting for us. Loki and Sigmund had already left the capital and requested for me to follow him. Our rendezvous would be a military camp at the foot of the southern mountains.

'Since when can the human king enter a military camp within the empire's territory?'

"Loki's influence has grown considerably over the years and the empire has been mellowed down."

'The southern mountains are rather far away and we'll have to travel for a while. Are you prepared for a longer journey?'

"I've always dreamt of an adventure! Father always kept me in the capital and told me to practice more but now I'll travel the world!"

'This journey will be many things but an adventure won't be one of them.'