Chapter 117: The Former Dragon-Slaying Hero of the North, Now a Dragon Himself
Once, Brunhilde had fallen to the world of humans.
It was when she descended from demigod status back into mortality—though not as one of the original humans.
This return to humanity was a trial, a test for her.
Much like Heracles in Greek mythology, who ascended to godhood after completing his trials, she too would undergo a true metamorphosis into a deity if she succeeded.
After beginning her trial in the mortal world, she encountered a human—one who sought to slay a dragon.
At first, Brunhilde had dismissed it as impossible. What human could slay a dragon? Most would freeze in terror at the mere sight of one.
Yet, during an attack by a wicked dragon, he managed to wound it—destroying one of its eyes.
Though he failed to kill it, his actions left Brunhilde utterly stunned.
The power this human displayed was already comparable to that of a standard divine soldier.
And divine soldiers were typically chosen from the mightiest human warriors, brought to the heavens by the Valkyries and transformed through sacred rites.
So, the Valkyrie planned to guide this human to become a divine weapon after her trial was completed.
With his abilities, he would definitely not be an ordinary divine weapon.
Then what was her trial? In fact, that evil dragon was her trial.
She would receive no assistance from the heavens and had to rely solely on her wisdom and strength to defeat this evil dragon—Fafnir.
Thus, she and the human shared a common goal, leading her to propose cooperation.
However, at the beginning, Brunhilde had little power and had yet to awaken her own strength. At most, she could only offer strategic advice.
She could provide information about what might exist in the mortal world to counter the evil dragon Fafnir, but unfortunately, these things were almost all ineffective, unable to truly harm the dragon.
So, this human devised his own plan and successfully forged a sword—Gram.
Gram was a sword, though initially, it was nothing more than a lump of iron. But this was no ordinary iron—it was the very metal meant for Brunhilde's trial, placed in a certain location, and eventually obtained through some mechanisms under her guidance and with his help.
Although Gram was successfully shaped, it still couldn't fully harm Fafnir's scaly body, and the weapon was shattered in the process.
For Gram to truly possess the power to slay the evil dragon, it would have to become a divine weapon.
Then one day, when Brunhilde came to find him, she witnessed him reforging the sword.
It wasn't just hammering and shaping—there was also a magic circle she couldn't comprehend aiding in the process.
This human actually knew magic?
Though it wasn't exactly magic—he seemed to have no inherent magical power himself, but instead borrowed the power of nature to activate the spell.
He used natural lightning to initiate the magic, shaping and tempering the sword.
Then, the sword shattered into countless points of light, making Brunhilde think he had failed.
But these countless points of light seeped into his body. He reached into the void, his body glowing as the light gathered in his hand, forming a sword.
At that moment, Brunhilde sensed the sword's sharpness—it truly could harm the evil dragon.
That day, she witnessed this man's dragon-slaying feat, and he became a hero who slew the dragon.
But what would happen now that the human had defeated the target of her trial?
Unable to complete her trial, she could not return to the heavens.
Yet at this moment, Brunhilde's mind was no longer concerned with the trial.
She forgot the trial and the mission given by the chief god—now, she only wanted to live alongside this human.
Not long after the dragon was slain, on the very day she planned to confess her feelings to him, someone told her that the evil dragon Fafnir was not dead and was still wreaking havoc.
But how could that be? She had personally witnessed this human beheading the dragon, bathing in its blood, and even digging out Fafnir's heart.
Yet when she arrived at the scene, the devastation she saw was beyond anything humans could have done—it could only be the work of a great dragon.
Someone also told her that the evil dragon had always been by her side.
By her side? What did that mean?
Then one day, the person who had told her the dragon had returned came to reveal where the dragon was.
Brunhilde rushed over immediately and indeed witnessed with her own eyes that the evil dragon Fafnir still existed.
She stepped forward to stop it, but she was no match at all and was even mocked. The evil dragon said it loved seeing her powerless like this.
So, she became furious, and her anger awakened her power.
Yet, even as a demigoddess, she was no match for the evil dragon.
Her only option was to find that human and have him slay the dragon once more.
After that, things took a bizarre turn. The evil dragon seemed genuinely afraid of that human and stopped appearing.
Correction—it only emerged to wreak havoc when that human was absent.
On this day, Brunhilde finally found the evil dragon again. This time, she quietly followed it alone, determined to locate its hiding place.
Then, she witnessed something utterly unbelievable—the evil dragon transformed into a human.
Though she couldn't see the figure clearly, there was no mistake—it was him.
Unbelievable, but her eyes wouldn't deceive her. This revelation struck her like a thunderbolt.
The dragon slayer had become the evil dragon. She never imagined such a thing would happen right beside her.
At that moment, her heart was in turmoil.
Later, she understood why he had done this—he wanted to become a true mythological being, and for that, he needed countless lives.
Of course, Brunhilde didn't hear this from him directly. She didn't dare ask. Instead, someone told her.
That someone was the messenger of the Allfather Odin. At the time, she wouldn't have doubted Odin's words.
But the Allfather Odin wouldn't provide her with any support either. She had to figure everything out on her own.
What could she do?
Even now, awakened as a demigoddess, she couldn't defeat him in his dragon form. She couldn't even pierce his scales.
After countless attempts, she finally achieved one thing—forging a pseudo-divine artifact with her own flesh and blood, usable only once.
On the day he said he was leaving for a trip, Brunhilde made her move.
Before he could react, she struck a pale patch on his back.
Even in his dragon form, she had noticed that the scales in this corresponding spot were unusually thick—so much so that it seemed deliberate, as if taunting anyone who thought attacking there would be foolish.
Thus, this became his fatal weakness.
Brunhilde had no choice but to launch this unexpected sneak attack—only this way could she defeat him.
No matter how underhanded, this was the only way to stop him from harming more humans.
The moment she pierced him, Odin's messenger appeared.
The messenger laughed with sheer delight, then shifted forms, revealing his true identity—the God of Trickery.