CH 277

[The mighty fortress Valhǫll, armed with the most powerful mace, Mjöllnir, was actually a gateway to defend the Throne of Truth.]

[Now that the Throne of Truth has finally shown itself after a long time, the fortress will once again enable all of its functions to fulfill its purpose.]

[All the defenses of Valhǫll have been activated.]

[Mjöllnir has regained its true power. The mace imbued with the power of lightning will crush any intruders, leaving behind not a single trace. Even if its opponent is a mighty Duke, the Duke will have no choice but to beg for mercy in front of this powerful weapon.]

[Most of the Einherjar are ordinary summons whose minds have just been restored. It is truly surprising that Mjöllnir, under the operation of such summons, is able to easily deal with a Duke.]

[The Howling Spear, Gungnir, has found its true form.]

[The Mystical Spear has moved to the deepest depths, preparing to take on its final form.]

[Normally, with the resurrection of Valhǫll, Gungnir should have become a weapon more powerful than Mjöllnir. However, as the years have passed, the Mystical Spear has lost its past powers, and has now become a decisive weapon that can only be used once.]

[The blow of the Mystical Spear is without a doubt the most intense strike you will ever see. Please be careful when using it.]

Kim Jin-Woo had thought that Gungnir was simply a useful spear, but after its contact with Valhǫll, it became a decisive battle weapon that could be used only once, albeit with formidable power.

[The Einherjar now share their fate with Valhǫll. Although they cannot escape the fortress, each of these warriors who have embraced the glory of the past has become more powerful than a Hero-Grade summon.]

[There is no force in this Underworld that can easily overcome the nearly 100,000 Einherjar.]

[No one who goes against the King’s dignity or has a wicked heart will be able to enter the fortress without permission.]

It was a tremendous power to hold. But even more surprising than Valhǫll’s true power was the power of the Throne of Truth.

[The Throne of Truth is one of the mysteries that make up the Underworld.]

[You have gained access to the Mysteries of the Underworld through this throne.]

[However, even if you are recognized by the throne, peeping into the Mysteries of the Underworld requires a considerable price. Wotan sacrificed one of his eyes to peek at the Truth.]

[Also, there is no guarantee that the Truth you paid such a price for will be what you wanted to see.]

The power to access the mysteries underlying the Underworld was unexpected. However, the price wasn’t small, and considering that it could lead to an incorrect answer despite such a price, it wasn’t something that Kim Jin-Woo could utilize at the moment.

Even if he was curious about the fickle Mysteries of the Underworld, now was the time to fully preserve everything he had and make preparations for what was to come next. It wasn’t an easy decision to make.

[You have obtained a strong fortress, powerful weapons, and many soldiers, but it is still too early to rejoice.]

[You will have to fight monsters who are aiming for the throne that leads to the Mysteries of the Underworld. Wotan also had to fight to protect the Mysteries and Truths of the Underworld from the countless monsters.]

[Although there are not many powerful monsters left, unlike the Ancient Underworld, that does not mean they have completely disappeared.]

[Among these, the monster you should be most concerned about is ‘Night’. Wotan's spear could not finish off this terrifying beast, and could only chase it away into the deepest darkness of the Underworld.]

[After many years, all of Night's wounds have been healed, and now the monster may be hiding somewhere, salivating at the thought of Valhǫll’s resurrection.]

As expected, nothing was for free. In return for obtaining a powerful fortress, Kim Jin-Woo had to face the most terrifying monster as his latest enemy.

“‘Night’, huh…” he muttered.

Finding out that the beast that not even all the mighty Ancient Lords could take down despite their combined efforts was now targeting his fortress, Kim Jin-Woo couldn’t help but feel a heavy weight on his shoulders. But the more he felt that way, the colder his expression became.

Whatever the past may be, this was reality. If he didn't fight, he would be eaten and cease to exist. That was the law of the Underworld, and that was how he had lived.

It was just like how even a wounded dog would fight back against an enemy instead of tucking its tail and running away. And despite how he may have been in the past, the undeniable truth was that it was that same wild dog-like attitude that had brought him to where he was today.

His sense of reality heightened due to the sense of crisis, as if finally waking up from a long nightmare. If he could, he wanted to tear reality’s fabric apart and wreak havoc.

***

Having regained his composure, the first thing Kim Jin-Woo did wasn’t to explore his newly acquired fortress. It was to look for Mimir. It was news to him that the Eternal Treasury was now open, but that was because of his unfinished conversation with Mimir.

“I’m sure the Grand Labyrinth wouldn’t let that sly bastard get his way with things, but I’m still not at ease.”

He wanted to use the Red Castle if he could, but at the moment, Angela wasn’t in good shape. She must have been hurt badly by the fact that she had behaved terribly toward her own master in the face of such terrible fear.

She had a strange, dazed look as her gaze alternated between the Nagas and Dominique, her expression darkened by remorse and self-contempt. On top of that, her sense of deprivation and rivalry further twisted her expression.

“Angela.” Looking at her crooked, jealous expression, Kim Jin-Woo called out Angela by name.

“Yes? Yes!” The look of jealousy vanished from Angela’s face in an instant, and she quickly panicked from the shame she felt.

“Am I still your master?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

“O-of cou…” Angela began. But before she could finish, she quickly turned pale and covered her own mouth. She seemed to have felt that she was being too shameless to answer her master’s question so brazenly.

“You’re mine. Even if you reject that fact, I have no intention of ever letting you go,” Kim Jin-Woo said firmly.

Although Angela might have seemed independent and a bit of a loose cannon, the truth was that the Vampire was highly dependent to a fault, and a bit of an airhead. For someone like her, such coercive words proved to be even more effective in such a situation.

“Ah…”

It was exactly as Kim Jin-Woo had predicted. As expected, Angela seemed rather relieved to hear his words. Although she was still a bit gloomy, the shadows had disappeared from her face.

“Lead me to where Mimir is,” Kim Jin-Woo said.

Having barely regained her energy, Angela opened the portal to the Red Castle that existed in the Back Floor.

“Wait for me in the Grand Labyrinth,” Kim Jin-Woo ordered the Nagas. “I’ll follow you soon.”

All the Nagas that had somehow been summoned to Valhǫll sent Kim Jin-Woo off.

***

“Damn it, my bad feelings are never wrong.” Kim Jin-Woo grinded his teeth when he arrived at the Grand Labyrinth where Mimir was imprisoned, only to find that the imp had disappeared without a trace.

But it was too early for him to be disappointed. Before Mimir was a cunning messenger, he had been Kim Jin-Woo’s Eternal Treasurer. It was obvious where the sinister imp was headed.

“I’ll go and meet Mimir,” he said.

“Master! Wait!” Angela exclaimed. Kim Jin-Woo was just about to tear open the portal scroll Mimir had handed to him when he stopped. Angela asked, “What happened inside?”

Having finally confessed her own guilt, it seemed Angela was curious about what had happened inside Valhǫll.

“You’ve inherited the True Blood, so I can’t say you’re completely unrelated to this. But for now, finding Mimir is of utmost importance. Let’s talk after my return,” Kim Jin-Woo replied. WIth those words, he tore apart the portal scroll and headed to the Eternal Treasury.

***

“This is how far you’ve escaped to?” Kim Jin-Woo exclaimed.

Indeed, Mimir was in the Eternal Treasury.

“It may sound funny coming from me, but I didn’t escape. I’ve simply returned to my original place,” Mimir replied.

Surprisingly, he was neither frightened nor anxious. His attitude was exactly as he had said—like that of someone who had simply returned to where he was supposed to be.

“Have you resigned yourself to the fact?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

Mimir didn’t respond directly to his question, instead replying, “Coming here means you’re truly qualified.”

“If it’s about the Eternal Treasury, let’s just say you’re right. After all, Valhǫll has already recognized me as the master of the entire Treasury,” Kim Jin-Woo said.

Mimir nodded and replied, “Milord is truly an amazing being. No one thought that Milord would be able to come this far and succeed.”

“Are you belittling me?” Kim Jin-Woo exclaimed. Fragments of the hatred and anger he had barely contained within himself began to reveal themselves.

That alone made Mimir turn pale, as he grabbed his neck and started to panic, stuttering, “H… how could that be? I was just simply telling you my honest feelings.”

That little snout of Mimir’s had told more lies than truth, but Kim Jin-Woo knew he wasn’t foolish enough to tell lies to someone who had acquired the Throne of Truth. Recognizing that fact, he quickly retracted his anger and watched Mimir, who was coughing dryly, with a cold gaze.

“I think you probably have a lot of questions for me. Unfortunately, I don't know much about anything. He didn't tell me much, and I didn't want to get involved either. Curiosity killed the cat, after all,” Mimir said.

The eyes of the imp, who seemed calm as if he had resigned himself to his fate, flashed over his obsession with his own life; Mimir's words were as truthful as his blind obsession.

"I'll tell you everything I know, so will you spare me?" he asked. Even at this moment, he was proposing a deal for his life.

“If it’s a deal you want to make, I refuse. What you should be doing now is begging for forgiveness, not cutting a deal,” Kim Jin-Woo shot back.

But unfortunately, even with the seasoned merchant’s silver tongue, he couldn’t talk his way out of the crisis, and he wasn’t given any other choice.

Mimir was like a prisoner at the gallows, and Kim Jin-Woo was the judge, jury and executioner. Given that it was obvious who the superior being of the two was and how inferior Mimir’s powers were, all the means Mimir could utilize were now worthless.

For the time being, all he could do was to get down as low as he could and beg for forgiveness. He seemed to understand his position and didn’t offer any more deals.

“It was only recently that I learned she was the Ancient Lord who had inherited the name of ‘Immorality’,” Mimir explained.

So-Hee’s true identity, which Kim Jin-Woo had been unable to admit for a while despite facing the harsh truth, had finally been uttered directly from Mimir’s mouth.

“That’s correct. She’s the Usurper who requested me to take care of Milord. She’s the Usurper, whom everyone thought wanted to prevent the Underworld’s restoration more than anyone else, and the person who was in fact behind all the Restorations,” Mimir continued.

It was a fact that Kim Jin-Woo had come to know in the face of Hliðskjálf’s test, but when he received Mimir’s confirmation, he felt the fire within him cool down.

“And when I realized that, I knew Milord was one of the many seeds sown by the Usurper,” Mimir concluded.

“Seed?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

“The seeds the Usurper sowed weren’t just Milord. Most of the seeds didn’t germinate and were buried, and among the seeds that did survive, most of them headed to the surface under the name of ‘Subterraneans’. And among them, some returned to the Underworld where they finally sprouted and bore fruit,” Mimir continued, rather gracefully despite the weight of the heavy truth he was speaking. “Those beings are the newly awakened Highlords, just like Milord.”

It was a fact that Kim Jin-Woo had speculated on, so he quietly waited for Mimir’s storytelling to continue further.

“But it seems that even among them all, Milord was truly special. The Usurper, who had hoped for even just one seed to sprout, seemed to care especially for Milord. I don’t understand why…” Mimir trailed off.

“Because I’m different from them.” Kim Jin-Woo didn’t want Mimir’s explanation to end in doubt, so he didn’t hesitate to reopen his closed wounds. He finally said, “I’m the Wandering Fragment.”