Chapter 298: Answer Me, Teach
The Spring of the Underworld, 'Hvergelmir'.
Like the Spring of Warriors, this ancient spring—existing since the birth of Elbaf—had long ago crystallized everything around it over the ages, turning it into a snow-white sandy beach.
But unlike the Spring of Warriors...
Near this sandy beach, countless stones emitting a sun-like brilliance could be seen scattered about.
Those were all 'Sun Stones'.
And beside the Spring of the Underworld stood an ancient castle similar to Orst Castle.
Its name was 'Utgard Castle', and like Orst Castle, it was a long-standing structure built by Elbaf's royal family, symbolizing the status of the 'King of the Underworld'.
And right now, before the gates of Utgard Castle—
"Rest well here."
Seeing that the giant wolf Siflin had collapsed from exhaustion and weakness, Uma spoke casually, then leaped down from its back.
He looked at the castle with its doors standing open, and exchanged a glance with the three Giants beside him, whose expressions were solemn: "You three—is there still a need to respect tradition now?"
"..." x3
The three Giants didn't speak.
They didn't know why Gaban would fight Loki, nor did they know the outcome, but the battle itself was enough to show that some massive upheaval had occurred in Utgard Castle.
So they silently stepped inside.
The pathways within Utgard Castle weren't complicated. Overall, there was only one main path. As for the other corridors and rooms, it was clear that no one had lived in them for at least a century—they were completely covered in dust.
Along the way, Uma and the three Giants encountered no interception.
Soon, they had arrived at the deepest part of Utgard Castle.
From a distance, the centerpiece of the castle's depths could be seen—a massive 'deep well' situated beneath the enormous trunk of the World Tree.
Considering the castle's location, where this deep well led was self-evident—the 'Spring of the Underworld', Hvergelmir.
But what existed within that well was not spring water.
On the contrary, the well seemed to partition the spring water of Hvergelmir below, revealing the objects at the very bottom.
Those were objects resembling massive mountain ranges, and also resembling giant snakes.
Those were 'tree roots'.
Yes.
This open well within Utgard Castle was clearly what the successive Kings of the Underworld had guarded.
It led beneath Hvergelmir, connecting to the World Tree roots that extended into the spring!
Of course, right now, the deep well wasn't even the most striking sight.
What was truly surprising was a small house standing beside the well.
It clearly wasn't originally part of Utgard Castle, but a new structure built here not long ago—the entire house still looked quite new.
Needless to say, Uma understood... the one residing within should be 'Ida'.
This Queen Mother of Elbaf, poisoned twenty years ago, had been in a coma and deep sleep in that small house all these years.
And at exactly this moment—
Thud! Thud!
Heavy, massive footsteps echoed.
"Dorry, Brogy, and you—what rare guests."
Accompanied by a hoarse and deep voice, everyone saw a figure walk out from the small house.
It was a Giant.
He had a massive body far larger than ordinary Giants, and the round helmet on his head extended into twin horns—a characteristic unique to atavistic ancient Giants.
His eyes were wrapped in bandages, and he carried a giant hammer in his hand.
Even without making a move, anyone who saw him could perceive an unbelievably powerful spirit—even the giant hammer alone exuded a terrifying sense of danger.
But fresh battle marks were visible on his body.
There were obvious slash wounds across his frame, and his clothes showed numerous signs of damage.
"Prince Loki!" x3
The three Giants' subconscious, slightly reverent address was more than enough to confirm his identity.
Yes—this was none other than Harald's eldest son, and currently recognized as the 'Strongest' in all of Elbaf.
The Cursed Prince, Loki.
"Zehahaha... cough, cough. I didn't expect you to come here. And this is?"
Loki chuckled low, looking at Uma with some surprise.
"This is Lord Uma of 'The Zodiac'—he has obtained Prince Regent Hajrudin's authorization to come to the Underworld."
Saul hurriedly explained: "We definitely didn't intentionally trespass into the forbidden ground, it's just that Siflin..."
He recounted how the giant wolf had led them into Jotun Snow Mountain.
"I see."
Loki casually set down the 'Lightning' in his hand and grinned: "You don't need to apologize for that kind of thing—I won't blame you."
"Moreover, I've been looking forward to this meeting for a long time."
The three Giants weren't particularly surprised by this.
Although they didn't know the truth behind King Harald's disappearance, when they received Jarul's order to bring Uma to the Underworld, they had more or less heard—Prince Regent Hajrudin and Prince Loki seemed to have been waiting for The Zodiac for quite some time.
"..."
Uma merely glanced at Loki but didn't speak.
But at this moment, the three Giants recalled the matter from before and hurriedly asked: "By the way, Prince Loki—we saw the marks on the snow mountain. Mr. Mountain, he..."
As they asked, they also looked at the scars on Loki's body.
Like the marks on the snow mountain, those were 'axe marks'.
They all knew very well how terrifying the power Loki possessed was.
And to cause such injuries to Loki with an axe—it could naturally only be 'Gaban'.
But hearing this, Loki murmured softly.
"Ah, you mean Mr. Mountain—"
His words seemed to carry respect, yet also a hint of arrogance and complacency.
"He attempted to launch an attack against me, the King of the Underworld of Elbaf—although he is not a Giant, as one of the citizens residing in the Country of Giants, this is also an act of treason."
"So to ensure the safety of Hvergelmir, I defeated him and temporarily imprisoned him."
As he spoke, those bandage-wrapped eyes also looked at the four of them.
"Of course, you're also aware of the recent situation in Elbaf... so I will wait until the 'earthquake' issue is resolved and the intruder is caught before going to the Sun Realm to find Hajrudin and discuss how to handle Mr. Mountain."
He grinned.
The three Giants were collectively stunned.
"Mr. Mountain launched an attack against you?"
They let out an exclamation, then hurriedly said: "This is impossible, Prince Loki!"
"Mr. Mountain is not that kind of person. He is Ripley's husband, and came to the Underworld at Prince Regent Hajrudin's request to track down the source of the earthquakes."
"There must be some misunderstanding here—where is Mr. Mountain? Prince, release him, and I will ask him myself."
Just as mentioned before, Gaban had lived in Elbaf for decades, and the Giants naturally trusted him immensely.
They didn't believe he would do such a thing.
And what they found even more unbelievable was that Loki had actually defeated Gaban in such a short time, and even imprisoned him.
"Of course, no problem!"
Loki grinned: "All of you come over, I'll have Lightning take you to where he's being held."
But at exactly this moment—
"Wait."
Uma spoke up, stopping the three Giants.
Amidst their confused expressions, the gaze beneath Uma's mask settled on Loki.
"I actually have a question I want to ask you as well."
His words were calm, but seemed to have already pierced through to some truth.
"Of course, ask whatever you like—my precious guest."
Loki said with a smile.
"I don't understand. Are you not the least bit moved by your father's ambition?"
Uma asked this calmly.
"As far as I know, he was undoubtedly a hero of the sea—taking whatever he wanted, that was his style."
"As far as I know, you should also be aware of the events of his life."
"But as his son, as the inheritor of that bloodline... why are you so despicable?"
He looked at the 'Loki' before him.
"You've clearly already occupied the body of the strongest person in this country. You've clearly already obtained the power this country has guarded for generations. You're clearly the one who personally caused the earthquakes."
"Why do you still pretend not to know? Why do you still hide in the dark and spout such base lies?"
His words were distinctly razor-sharp.
"Answer me, Teach."
(End of Chapter)
☆☆☆
-> 30 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you