Chapter 120: An Instant Kill from the Start?
Tales of dragon-slaying heroes exist in many mythologies.
Currently, the most famous is the Norse legend of the dragon-slaying hero.
This is largely due to the unique relationship between that dragon slayer and the Valkyrie, coupled with the fact that this very Valkyrie proposed the battle of Ragnarök. Thus, more gods took an interest in learning about her origins.
Through this, they discovered that the Valkyrie Brunhilde once had a trial to ascend to godhood, which was instead completed by a human.
Now, many believe this battle of Ragnarök isn't just Brunhilde's attempt to save humanity—it also carries a hint of vengeance.
"Sister, you really are useless."
In the Valkyries' viewing area, a beautiful woman dressed like a priestess spoke these words with disdain to her elder sister.
The elder sister, of course, was Brunhilde, making this beauty one of the thirteen Valkyries—her name, Göndul.
"I've decided, sister. If he wins this match, I'll confess my love to him."
Then Göndul, who spoke next, also wore a lovestruck expression.
This display left Göll utterly dumbfounded beside them.
Had their ninth-ranked sister just casually brushed past that dragonslayer and fallen in love at first sight?
And now she was saying such suicidal words in front of Sister Brunhilde?
Ah, Sister Brunhilde was really looking at Sister Göndul with terrifying eyes now.
"Göndul, are you trying to get yourself killed?"
Brunhilde's beautiful face twisted slightly as she spoke with murderous intent.
"Not at all. I'm simply following my heart, unlike you, useless sister~"
Göndul wasn't intimidated in the slightest, responding with a smile.
She was genuinely smitten, truly smitten.
If their cowardly sister still hadn't mustered the courage to confess her feelings to such a man, then Göndul wouldn't hold back.
"You!"
Brunhilde glared at her sister through gritted teeth.
She didn't believe this "love at first sight" nonsense, this sister of hers was purely a looks-obsessed fool.
This was clearly deliberate provocation.
Stay calm. On the arena, Heimdall had already begun introducing the human side. He was about to emerge, making Brunhilde tense as she turned her gaze.
A man with a lion-like mane of hair emerged, clad in armor.
The armor appeared medieval in its knightly design, yet carried a modern, no, almost futuristic sci-fi aesthetic.
Brunhilde recognized it as resembling the set he'd crafted from dragon bones long ago, though its true power remained unknown.
After slaying the dragon, no threat had ever compelled him to don that armor again.
Had he worn it that day, her ambush might have failed.
The memory pierced Brunhilde's heart like a dagger.
Until his dying breath, he'd never looked at her with hatred, never spoken a word—that silence tormented her most.
Her gaze shifted to another figure on the arena—the Trickster God Loki. Her stare could have riddled him with a thousand holes.
"What a fated confrontation! In the dragon-slaying legend, this very hero fell to a Valkyrie's hand through the Trickster God's schemes!"
Heimdall's sudden proclamation left Brunhilde pale-lipped.
Yet the dragonslayer remained unmoved, as if deaf to Heimdall's words.
"Not even a flinch. Don't you know what kind of woman Valkyrie Brunhilde truly is?"
Loki, representing the gods, seemed determined to shake the human champion.
"That woman used you from the start to complete her trial—to become a true god."
"LIES!!!"
A voice strained to its limits interjected—the youngest Valkyrie sister.
"Kukuku... Are my words false? Ask your dear sister yourself whether she exploited this human from the beginning!"
"Big sister would never do such a thing!"
Göll desperately tried to defend her sister while also shooting her a look—urging Brunhilde to say something instead of staying silent, as silence might make others think she was tacitly agreeing with Loki's claims.
"If that's not the case, then why did Brunhilde summon this man here from a time before her betrayal?"
Loki's follow-up remark left many confused at first, but as he elaborated further, understanding dawned.
The Dragon-Slaying Hero currently standing in the arena had no knowledge of his future betrayal by the Valkyrie—nor that he would ultimately die by her hand.
"Sister!"
Göll grew frantic, signaling for her sister to explain immediately.
"Quiet, Göll!"
Instead, she was sharply rebuked, and her sister remained silent.
This reaction didn't just unsettle the gods—even the human spectators began to waver.
"Hey, can we get this fight started already?"
Surprisingly, the Dragon-Slaying Hero, who should have been visibly shaken, remained unfazed. He even urged Heimdall to hurry up and announce the beginning.
"Huh? Oh—right! Then let the final battle between gods and humanity, the fated duel between the Dragon-Slayer and the God of Mischief, begin—NOW!!!"
The moment the declaration rang out, curved blades chained to their hilts erupted from Loki's palms.
In the next instant, with a bizarre shriek, he whipped the blades forward like lightning.
There was no denying it—the sheer speed of the attack left even the gods stunned. Few below the level of a chief god would have been able to dodge.
And yet—
"Wha—what?!"
The blades were caught mid-flight.
In the blink of an eye, Loki found himself hurtling toward his opponent at terrifying speed—yanked forward by the chains.
"THUD—!"
A dull impact echoed as Loki was sent flying back even faster than before.
Like a cannonball, he smashed into the wall, his body nearly embedded in it, his head twisted almost 180 degrees backward.
Had the match ended in an instant?