Chapter 137
The name of the sixth opponent was Giringg.
Suhyuk exchanged blows with him for about a minute. It was a relatively intense battle compared to the previous ones.
Nevertheless, there were still no significant problems.
Thud.
Giringg’s body, with a pierced neck, collapsed forward. Once again, as Giringg tumbled down the stairs, a familiar message appeared.
『You have defeated the sixth warrior.』
『You have leveled up.』
『Strength increased by 1.』
『Agility increased by 1.』
『Stamina increased by 1.』
A satisfying message.
He had already leveled up twice. It was surprising, considering the opponents weren’t that strong.
“Experience points are substantial.”
Was it because he faced opponents who were copies of gods?
Though they were mere illusions created by the trial, it seemed there was indeed a gap in species.
Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense to have leveled up twice already.
While he felt a sense of joy, a peculiar tension also accompanied it.
“It won’t be easy.”
The fact that he was leveling up quickly in the trial meant the difficulty of the trial was high.
However, the outward difficulty of this trial was not that intense yet.
In other words, something unseen still lurked ahead.
He couldn’t know what it might be at the moment.
Was it a trial of Valhalla? Or was the entire examination of the sixth floor named Midgard?
He would understand its true nature as he progressed.
But before that.
“Teacher Myeo.”
『Mission completed.』
『You have received 3,000 points from ‘Teacher Myeo.’』
“Thank you for the sponsorship.”
Each time he faced a new warrior, minor missions accompanied it.
This time, the mission was “Win without using lightning.”
It wasn’t a difficult mission. The current opponent was manageable with just his sword.
-So boring
-It’s a bit dull without the lightning
-Boring? His sword skills are freaking amazing!
-Seriously, it’s like his sword is possessed by a spirit, lol
Opinions varied about the missions, but it wasn’t a problem.
He could earn points, and a bit of spice added to an otherwise monotonous trial made it more interesting to watch.
Suhyuk continued to ascend the stairs.
As expected, as he climbed higher, the opponents grew progressively stronger.
Unlike To-Um, whom he faced first, the seventh opponent could withstand a degree of his lightning and retaliate.
After defeating the ninth opponent,
“Hoo-.”
For the first time, Suhyuk paused on the stairs.
“Now, the tenth.”
The ninth opponent had been persistent. Even after being struck by lightning several times, they did not fall, ultimately forcing the output to be increased.
“After the seventh one, it’s not easy.”
Hoping to conserve stamina while ascending turned out to be a mistake. At some point, it became evident that the difficulty was escalating sharply.
The consumption of the Heart of Lightning’s power while climbing the stairs had not been insignificant.
As a result, the fatigue accumulated significantly. And now, the tenth opponent awaited just ahead.
“Let’s take a short break.”
And, of course,
“Since we’re going to continue anyway.”
Suhyuk had no intention of stopping at the tenth.
– Okay, okay.
– Even if you rest, this is legit.
– Since it’s come to this, let’s see it through to the end.
The obvious chatter.
The rest was brief. After about thirty minutes of rest, Suhyuk began climbing the stairs again.
It usually took around thirty minutes of walking to encounter each warrior.
Thirty minutes just on the stairs.
None of the warriors he had faced so far had necessitated its use.
After a moment of consideration, Suhyuk answered Heimdall’s question.
“I am not Thor. I am human.”
“Then why do you possess a piece of thunder?”
Extending his hand forward, Suhyuk replied to Heimdall’s curiosity.
“It seems Thor also has something identical to this.”
“For now”, heimdall responded, causing Suhyuk to reaffirm something.
All the warriors here were not real but mere records of their past selves.
“That should have belonged to Thor.”
Heimdall, instead of seeing with his blind eyes, measured Suhyuk with something else.
“You haven’t stolen it, have you?”
“I’m not capable of such a feat.”
“You’re quite knowledgeable.”
Heimdall, deep in thought, crossed his arms instead of preparing to fight.
Although he couldn’t discern what Heimdall was thinking, Suhyuk found it challenging to make any sudden moves.
As Suhyuk observed Heimdall lost in thought with his arms crossed, he gauged the distance between them.
‘Can I win?’
The distance between them was barely ten steps.
It was a sufficiently close distance. If he intended, closing it wouldn’t be much trouble.
However, even at that proximity, Suhyuk had not detected Heimdall’s presence until he spoke first.
‘Something’s off.’
It was one of two things.
Either Heimdall had a special ability, or he was at a level so high that Suhyuk couldn’t dare to match him as he was now.
“Are you curious about what I’m thinking?”
Heimdall spoke as if he could read Suhyuk’s mind.
“Or are you just curious about me?”
It was both.
Why this trial’s difficulty had increased so dramatically and what was going through Heimdall’s mind were both crucial clues for Suhyuk in facing the trial.
“I received two requests.”
Fortunately, heimdall wasn’t a particularly secretive individual.
“One was to ensure that if a human or anyone with human blood appeared here, they should not be allowed to ascend these stairs.”
Heimdall’s face still bore a troubled expression as he spoke.
“And the second request was to warmly welcome anyone who possessed the power of lightning. He mentioned I would understand the reason later.”
At that moment, Suhyuk recalled an image of a man from a previous cutscene.
‘That man.’
The one who said he would pass on the Heart of Thunder to his son.
That man, most likely, was Odin, the great god and ruler of Asgard and father of Thor.
Welcome anyone with the Heart of Thunder.
In a way, it was a very warm-hearted request.
He requested that his son be welcomed should he come to take Valhalla’s trial.
“I came to understand why later. But it’s quite troublesome. You, a human, arrived bearing the Heart of Thunder.”
Now, Suhyuk understood why Heimdall was so contemplative.
He was stationed here at the request of Asgard’s ruler, and the two requests conflicted with each other.
Watching the still-pondering Heimdall, Suhyuk asked,
“Are you here to filter out humans?”
Though he asked somewhat as a joke, heimdall nodded.
Only then did Suhyuk understand the confidence Tyr exuded when he said Suhyuk would never pass the trial.
With someone like Heimdall as the final opponent, it made sense.
‘Odin has intervened in the trial.’
To prevent any human from entering Valhalla.
Whatever magic he used, odin had taken measures beforehand.
“Why do gods dislike humans so much?”
“Dislike...?”
Heimdall shook his head.
“No. It’s not that we dislike them.”
“If you don’t dislike them, then why go to such lengths, almost obsessed, to keep humans out?”
“Obsessed to keep them out, that’s quite accurate.”
“......?”
What on Earth did that mean?
Heimdall faintly smiled at Suhyuk’s puzzled reaction.
“You’ll understand someday. If you meet me in the outside world, I might give you an answer.”
Heimdall, who said this, seemed to have finished his long contemplation.
“I’ve made my decision.”