that’s it

“A road only you know?”

[Our goal is to sneak in and meet only Odin and return.]

“Wasn’t Odin the biggest problem?”

[It’s better to stop dealing with it though.]

Well, Hermes would know this better than me.

“All right.”

[Then let’s go.]

Hermes throwing himself into the wall. He crept into the wall without encountering any resistance. The problem was that he was holding my arm.

Naturally, my body also went through the wall.

“Ugh… … .”

I feel like throwing up when my eyes are spinning.

When I was contemplating whether to use ‘floating’, Hermes scattered divine powers over my body. His divine power changed like a protective film and wrapped around my body, and only then did the dizziness disappear.

“thank you.”

[Because you are such a peculiar human being, I forgot that you are mortal. Then we depart.]

“yes.”

[Hold tight!]

bang! shook-

“Ouch!”

Hermes and I soared upward.

* * *

how much time has passed

I’m not sure, but it feels like at least a few hours have passed.

‘When will it arrive?’

At first, I didn’t realize how much time was passing by looking at the beautiful universe visible outside the wall, but I honestly feel a bit tired after watching it for a long time.

[Boring?]

“yes.”

I can’t even say it in empty words.

But Hermes smiled quite awkwardly, perhaps not knowing that I would answer ‘yes’ right away.

[Haha, what is this… It’s kind of like a back road, so it takes some time. You understand.]

“Hey, just being able to meet Odin makes me feel good. But how much further do we have to go?”

[Almost here. Gradually prepare your mind.]

“Is there anything I should be aware of when meeting Odin?”

[Well… Few gods know what he is thinking. Are you feeling okay? Do as you please.]

“Um, okay.”

[ruler! Arrived now… omg! Gungnir? I can’t avoid that!]

Hermes is startled.

There was no need to ask what Gungnir was. I could see the holy spear approaching against the flow from up there.

And the moment we thought we had seen it, Gungnir was already in front of us.

Kwajijik-

power explodes

I was greatly staggered by the aftermath and pushed aside, scratching the wall and continuing to rise.

‘sh*t!’

Below, we see Hermes holding out a winged staff entwined with two snakes to stop Gungnir.

[Good luck!]

As soon as the last words were heard, Hermes disappeared from sight.

After a while, my body stopped. Before I knew it, I had arrived in a new space, not in the cosmic water.

‘Is it a palace?’

The place where I stand is in the middle of the vast Daejeon.

Female warriors in armor lined up on either side, and an old man was sitting on the upper throne in front of him.

The old man who looked at me for a moment opened his mouth.

[Everyone go away.]

At the old man’s command, everyone disappears.

Finally, it’s time for just the two of us.

When the old man waved his hand, my body floated up and flew 3m in front of him. I never thought to use karma. It would be correct to say that I did not have the courage to do so. Facing the only remaining eye of an old man who seems to see through everything, I feel infinitely lethargic.

[Martin.]

“… do you know me?”

[Do you know who I am?]

“Odin, I know you as the god-king of Asgard.”

[You did something stupid.]

atrophied

I bit my lip and asked him.

“… What will become of Hermes?”

At my words, Odin held out his hand. Then, a wall of cosmic water formed, and Gungnir came out of it and entered his hand.

[He was sent back to Olympus.]

I let out a sigh of relief at the thought of being fortunate.

Then Odin spoke.

[He will be safe, but what about you?]

I couldn’t answer easily.

Mouth didn’t open.

It feels like my brain is jumbled up and down.

[Answer me. How do you think it will turn out? What do you think I will do to you?]

In an instant, the answer came out against my will.

“… After talking with me, I think you will let me go.”

A situation caught while infiltrating the Kingdom of God through back roads. It was a shameless answer to give at a moment like this, when there was nothing to say no matter what punishment it was.

As I said, I was embarrassed.

[Shameless.]

Unknowingly, I flinched.

However, Odin’s actions that followed deviated far from my predictions.

Instead of getting angry, he smiled softly.

[But it is correct.]

He waved his hand again, and my body descended like a feather.

When I looked at Odin again after giving my eyes to the marble on the floor where the light flashed, he was not the King of the Gods, who exuded a tremendous sense of intimidation, but an old man.

[Let’s talk comfortably as you say.]

In that moment of blinking, I was transported to a peaceful beach.

I stood side by side with Odin, looking at the beach.

There are children playing freely without any worries.

Watching them, the tension disappears by itself.

“Did you know we were coming?”

[I found out after you broke into Yggdrasil.]

… It’s a back road.

[Don’t blame Hermes. I’ve pretended not to know that I came in through that road a few times, so he wouldn’t have known that I knew that way either.]

“okay… … .”

Odin pointed with his finger at the children playing.

[These children. How does it look?]

It was an unexpected question, but I answered whatever came to my mind.

“You look happy.”

[Then what about this?]

As Odin moved his hand like turning a page, the beach quickly changed.

Children became young adults, then middle-aged, and finally old people.

It seems to fast-forward through life.

He gets sick and dies, fights and dies.

After decades of time passed, only one old man remained, and even that last remaining old man died shortly after, unable to cross the wall of life span.

It is desolate.

The beach was still there, but everyone who was there was gone.

It may not look like much, but strangely, I had a hard time watching it.

“Please stop.”

right!

Odin snapped his fingers, and the beach was back full of lively children.

“Why did you show me this?”

[A little while ago, what you saw was their fixed future. How is it? Do you still look happy?]

The happy faces of the children now feel empty.

“… Are you trying to tell me that life is fleeting?”

[Hehe, you say something interesting. Why is life fleeting?]

“If the future is fixed, whatever you do will be meaningless.”

This has been one of the topics that have been bothering me lately.

[Then why are you struggling so much?]

I turned my head and looked at Odin. He, too, had been looking at me for some time.

I let out my voice full of my will.

“Because I can’t let it go like that.”

Odin smiled.

[That’s life.]

“You already know why I’m here, don’t you?”

[Of course. If you don’t know that, you’re not Odin.]

The smile on his face was removed in an instant.

[But do you know why you came to see me?]

“To close the rift… … .”

[A door once opened cannot be blocked. That’s impossible even in my country. Will you slow down the opening? What value is there.]

right!

At the snap of his fingers, the horrific scene on the beach repeated itself.

[The children will become old people anyway. They die from disease, die from war, and even if they don’t, everyone will eventually die.]

right!

When he snapped his fingers once again, this time he saw the ‘foreign existence’ he had seen at the association.

It wasn’t just one.

They traveled in groups, destroying the entire universe and obliterating all life. Among those creatures was Odin as well.

[How about it, do you think you can stop that with effort?]

Mouth does not open

I have a lot to say, but it gets tangled up under my neck, unorganized.

It is frustrating.

I want to rip your neck off

Do you want to say that destruction is predetermined due to the ‘existence of the outer gate’, and that struggling like this is worthless?

I can’t admit it

[Do you know Ragnarok?]

“I do not know.”

[Hmm, it’s a pretty famous story, but I don’t know.]

He explained Ragnarok to me like a grandfather telling old stories.

It was the story of Asgard being ruined by Loki and his children, that is, the prophecy of destruction.

[Originally, it was a prophecy that had to come true, not just a story. It’s just changed now.]

It feels like my eyes are opening up.

“How did the determined future change?”

[Since it has changed, it must have been an undetermined future.]

“… Didn’t I say it was a prophecy that would come true?”

Odin’s deep eyes turned to me.

[Who decided that? a prophet? A high-ranking god?]

“… … .”

[You will die in seven days. It is so decided.]

I asked in surprise.

“Is that true?”

[why? Having said that, do you really think that will happen?]

No matter how god-king he is, it’s such a joke.

I can’t stop frowning my face.

“Why the hell are you doing this to me?”

[Don’t you know?]

Of course, I’ve come this far, but I’m not stupid enough to not know his intentions.

“Are you telling me not to be swayed by the prophecies?”

Odin frowned.

[Is that all you feel?]

“… Can’t you just say it out loud?”

[So what does that mean? Unless you realize it yourself, you will be swayed here and there again.]

His words flew like an inescapable gungnir and lodged in my heart.

[Are you that great?]

I have nothing to say.

[To the subject of not being able to properly see what is right in front of them.]

My heart sank at the disappointment in his expression.

“I… I… … .”

It was a time when I was trying to say something.

Something started to show in my eyes.

It was the appearance of a beach that is now gone.

‘what… … .’

see the children Time passes quickly and they age and die one by one.

I saw something in it that I hadn’t seen before.

‘He’s laughing.’

Not just when I was a kid. They were smiling even when they were middle-aged and old.

Even in the face of death from illness, he laughed in the arms of his family, and even when he was stabbed to death during the war, he laughed, perhaps to give courage to his comrades.

Of course, not everyone was laughing. There were also those who died feeling terrible pain. Even in the first scene that I felt enjoyable, not everyone was happy.

-To the subject of not being able to properly see what is right in front of them.

Odin was right.

What I see now is not a manipulated scene. I’m just seeing again what remains on my retina.

Just as he said, I couldn’t see what was right in front of my eyes, and I assumed that they wouldn’t be happy just watching them die.

I didn’t look at them, I only looked at the situation in a general way.

‘Is that so… … .’

What matters is not the future or circumstances.

The most important thing is that the country is an individual.

No matter what the future was set for me, the most important thing was how I thought and acted.

It feels like my eyes are suddenly wide open.

[Feel so good.]

Hearing the sudden sound, he looked to the side and saw Odin smiling happily.

as he said

Really good.

[I can’t stop the door from opening. It will open completely in no time. And the unmanageable ‘existences’ will come over and destroy the universe. This is a predetermined future. How do you feel?]

A similar question to the one I heard a moment ago.

But I answered without hesitation.

“It’s okay.”

There is no such thing as worry or heartache about the future that has not come any more.

Right now I’m really fine.

[That’s it.]

Odin said with a smile he had never seen before.

[Now you’ve become a little more solid.]