Author: Yume Neiji

The sound of the horn echoed through the vast chamber.

Golden magical energy filled the air. Along the platforms encircling the hall, massive ballistae began to shed their rust in an instant, and the dwarves who had been turned to stone breathed life once more.

“Rion…!”

Safi could hear it clearly now.

He is coming. Even now, he is running, drawing ever closer to this place. Several of the massive ballistae immediately came to life, their enormous spearheads turning toward the titan, Surtr.

“Stop that dwarf!”

Serpentbone Jor shouted.

From directly behind came Surtr’s roar, and all around, Safi could sense the golems and monsters surging towards her.

She’s still fifty meters away from the red jewel embedded into the wall.

She threw aside her blacksmith bag, keeping only the hammer, and sprinted forward.

Could I cross that short stretch before the monsters closed in from both sides?

Safi’s heart is pounding. A boulder entered the edge of her vision to the left—if she hadn’t ducked, the thrown rock would have crushed her skull.

(—This way, Safi! Your magic!)

The dwarf king’s voice continued to call from the crimson jewel by the wall. She understood instinctively. That jewel was the power source feeding many of the great ballistae. But it wasn’t enough yet—it has not to set the whole mechanism in motion.

Thirty meters left.

“Grrrrrrr!”

The roar of a beast and the sound of claws running over rock came.

“G-Garmr…?”

Red light flared on her right. It was Alvis’s watchdog, spitting flames.

“Gah!”

A fireball launched, bursting just behind her and blasting her forward. She landed in a miraculous roll and then she pushed into another sprint.

Ten meters left.

As if to tell her it wasn’t the end, a huge hand reached from the side—it was an enemy golem.

“Golems, to me!”

From a high platform, a fat magic engineer shouted.

—However, a different armored golem, smashed the attacker aside.

It was a guard golem.

Guard golems are part of the defensive mechanisms the dwarves had left behind. The melting of the ice must have brought them back to life as well. A giant bow ballista on the upper platform is now also firing spear-like arrows to stall the advancing monsters.

“E-everyone…!”

The crimson jewel is now right before Safi’s eyes.

Behind her, the hellhound Garmr’s flames burst again. Riding the blast, Safi leapt and brought her hammer down on the red jewel.

“Blessing!”

It was a technique for pouring magic into an object. The crimson jewel flared brighter, magic spilling forth in a torrent.

(—Thank you.)

She heard the dwarven king’s voice.

The white dwarves had left the mechanisms, and a black dwarf had carried them into the present.

“I-I know it’s a little late to ask, but… is it you, Your Majesty…?”

(—I had been channeling my magic and consciousness into this jewel. The same way a god once did for that horn.)

The awakening horn, Gjallarhorn, that Rion carried with him was said to be the vessel that the god Heimdall had lodged his own soul in. In the same way, the dwarven king must have imbued his soul into this jewel.

For what purpose? Probably to keep its magical power alive.

(—We didn’t have enough magical power… but with your Blessing— the mechanism will begin to move.)

From the crimson jewel, an enormous surge of magic burst forth, racing along the walls. All across the great hall, magical runes flared to life like a field of stars, and Safi understood at once.

“…..This entire hall… it’s a single, massive tool.”

Yes, it’s a cage of some sort— it is meant to lure in the enemy and set the stage for the final confrontation.

In the dazzling light, she thought she felt a small hand gently stroking her head. Along with the magic, an ancient vision passed through her mind.

The scene in her head was of an age long past.

◆◆◆

It was likely a chamber within the royal palace. The glow of magic stone lamps was far brighter than anything in the dungeon it had become, and the white walls still bore clear patterns from that time.

Gathered in the room were dwarves—

Safi realized these were the ten blacksmiths of the dwarven nation, Alfheim. All of them were white dwarves with delicate wings and long ears. One of them was the dwarven king himself.

It seemed that all ten blacksmiths had been summoned except for Safi.

The king then started speaking.

“A messenger came from the titans and the monsters. If we submit to them, they claim they will spare us even through the End.”

At the king’s words, the blacksmiths exchanged troubled looks and muttered to each other.

—A messenger came?

—Telling us to submit?

—But we cannot win!

—The dwarves’ technology, the technology to create something will be used for destruction…

A sharp pain ran through Safi’s chest.

There was no doubt—this was the moment when the dwarves decided whether or not to submit. It was possible that before Safi or the majority of the dwarves even learned of it, the tide of war had already turned drastically against them.

The nation’s Ten Blacksmiths were the pride of the realm, representatives of all craftsmen. In Alfheim, where one’s strength was measured by skill, they were the ten most accomplished of all.

After some time spent in quiet but heated discussion, the white dwarves reached their decision.

“…..We will lay a trap.”

The king declared.

From a face still youthful as a boy’s, his voice rang with resolve.

“To submit to the monsters to survive… is no true survival. It is the same as being dead.”

Little by little, their plan began to take shape—

They would lure the enemy’s general, the Flamebone titan Surtr, into the palace itself. Then they would strike him down with the great ballistae and the guardian golems.

Afterwards, they would bring down the entire mountain to bury the palace forever.

Their aim was clear— to ensure the monsters targeting Alfheim were destroyed beyond any hope of return. And secondly, to survive the enemy’s inevitable counterattack.

If they buried the palace beneath the earth, it might be possible to make the world believe the dwarves had perished along with their foes.

Of course, the cost would be steep. Many warrior dwarves would fall in the battle to come. But dwarves were born to live underground. Even if the palace were smothered in rock and soil, its deepest levels would not collapse.

There, those unable to fight could be hidden away, to endure in the dark through long years until at least some remnant of their people could emerge again.

“The problem is….”

The king paused.

“It’s Safi—one of our own Ten Blacksmiths.”

At those words, the blacksmiths lowered their eyes.

“We cannot allow even the slightest risk that our plan reaches enemy ears.”

A pang of pain tightened in Safi’s chest. She wanted to shout “I’d never betray you!” to them. But the weight of the blacksmiths’ reply crushed her voice in her throat.

—We would like to trust her.

—But we cannot!

—Would a dark dwarf truly resist the enemy’s offer to ‘make her one of them’?

The king’s gaze was steady.

“Safi’s skill surpasses even the other dark dwarves. If she were to learn our stratagem and then yield to the enemy, our greatest craft would be placed in the monster’s hands.”

And so, she was excluded from the plan.

The one whose betrayal would hurt them most would most likely be from a black dwarf, the one who’s most likely to betray. History bore that fear out— dark dwarves, enamored with power, had more than once turned against their kin.

“An excellent blacksmith is also worthy of passing on his skills to future generations. For those two reasons, we cannot involve Safi in this.”

He looked around the chamber.

“Until the battle is over, we will put her to sleep. The chamber will be guarded with our strongest runes and a ring to seal it.”

Pain knifed through Safi’s heart. What the vision had shown her was a memory far too bitter to bear.

“I’d never do such a thing!”

She cried out. But her voice could not reach the past.

—Agreed. There is no other way.

—Even between blacksmiths, some secrets must be sealed.

—When the fate of the realm is at stake, a dark dwarf cannot be trusted lightly…

They had agreed to put her to sleep. Her skill was acknowledged, yet her blood branded with the shadow of betrayal, made them wary.

Untrusted because of the crime of her race’s past, Safi was left to slumber.

◆◆◆

—The plan was for the white dwarves and the ten blacksmiths to carry out their plot alone.

—With the battle approaching, we just couldn’t bring ourselves to trust the black dwarves.

“I—, If only I could help…!”

Preparations proceeded with the white dwarves at the center. The black dwarves weapon blacksmiths were only a selected few, less powerful than the ten blacksmiths, and were kept under supervision.

However, it seems that in the end, all the dwarves would participate. Once the battle actually began and those who fought and those who fled deep underground split into groups, they would tell everyone.

From the dwarven kings’ perspective, this was probably the greatest risk. The fear of rebellion. Keeping the secret from Safi only postponed the same risk.

But the black dwarves…accepted the white dwarves’ request. Not a single one defected to the titans, and most chose to fight.

―As long as it meant Safi could survive.

―Yeah. She’s still young…

―I’d always thought it was presumptuous of a black dwarf to aim to become one of the Ten Blacksmiths, but how, how…

When the black dwarves found out that Safi had been sealed away first, it seemed their bond had only strengthened. They must have thought that Safi, now one of the Ten Blacksmith, was worth preserving for future generations.

The original plan was to lure monsters into the palace, fight them, and bury them, resulting in many casualties.

By that time, the reason for putting Safi to sleep first had changed from “fear of betrayal” to “protecting” Safi herself ―the youngest of the Ten Blacksmiths.

“This…”

Safi’s eyes began to tear up.

The giant weapons that she had seen in the frozen forge, and the scene of the betrayal in the throne room. It was probably a scene where the plan to lure the titan had been left unfinished.

“It’s too late now…!”

I had been sealed away alone for 1,000 years. Safi’s anger and relief were in conflict, and she couldn’t put it into words. Hot lump of blood just spilled from the corners of her eyes.

Jor shouted from the high platform, her black robe swaying.

“That’s right! Your defeat is certain!”

“Aaaaah!”

The golem approached. A blade of wind pierced its feet.

“Safi!”

A voice called out from the hole in the wall.

Rion, holding a horn in his hand, looked down at Safi. He must have come from the hole in the passageway leading to the lift. Behind him were Mia, Felix, Solana and Thor —the gods themselves.

They jumped down from the hole and rushed to Safi. The gods and adventurers protected her from the army of monsters.

“Sorry I’m late.”

Rion said as soon as he rushed over.

Thor, a giant god over two meters tall, shouted, his red hair flying.

“Haha! Surtr, a giant, a puppet, and a demon dog! That’s quite a generous gesture!”

Safi, still crouching on the ground, looked up at the boy with blurred vision.

“…Why did you come?”

Rion hesitated for a moment.

“I’m sorry, I said I would trust you. When the Dwarf King asked before…I didn’t have the courage.”

“But,” Rion continued.

He pulled out a coin purse tied with a leather cord. It was the trinket Safi had praised as the most heartfelt when they first met.

“I remembered. I said, it wasn’t about the black dwarves or anything like that… I’m going to trust you Safi.”

Rion held out his hand to Safi.

Safi timidly took it. His hands are only slightly bigger than hers, but she felt that they are so warm. His sky-blue eyes warmed her heart.

(—Safi, who is this boy?)

The Dwarf King’s voice echoed from the red jewel.

“He is Rion. He is called the god’s awakener—he’s my… my comrade.”

(—I see)

The Dwarf King replied.

“I’m surrounded by monsters. But now, I’m no longer scared.”

Safi muttered.

——Boy, Rion. Please use that horn once more.

——The jewel’s magical power is sufficient. Now is the time for you to truly awaken it.

Rion nodded and put the horn to his mouth.

The horn resonated.

There was movement on the upper floor of the cylindrical hall. The sound of gears driving. What had seemed to be a stone wall caved in, opening up to the left and right, kicking up dust. Hidden inside were even more giant bow ballistas, or weapons that fired magic or iron balls.

——Everyone, fire!

The dwarves’ traps, awakened by the horn, began attacking Flamebone Surtr and the monsters.

The approaching monsters were fended off with Thor’s hammer, Loki’s magic, Uru’s bow, and Valkyrie’s spear.

Solana, the daughter of the Sun, stayed close to Rion and seemed to be strengthening the Golden Flame that resided within the party.

“…Amazing.”

Safi muttered.

Ahead, Flamebone Surtr stood like a fortress. Perched on the platform above it was Snakebone Jor, her face twisted in agony.

Dwarfs, gods, and humans. These three, once separate, now faced off against the Titan of the Apocalypse.

——It’s not too late!

Safi also raised her head and glared back at Flamebone Surtr and Jor.

“Wake up!”

Rion shouted in final force, and the ceiling of the great hall shifted. The existing crack widened, and falling rocks and earth crushed the monsters.

A new wall opened, and a giant arrow pierced the monster.

The crack in the ceiling widened. The moon was still high in the sky. Safi saw a pair of ravens there.

A hooded old man peeked quietly from the crack.

The old man narrowed his eyes at the sight of the dwarves and gods fighting together, then he gently closed one eye and dissolved into the darkness, leaving behind a raven’s feather.

This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.

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The ground shook, and a bright red light shot into the sky from behind the mine.

Safi used the black dwarf’s strength to break free from the warrior corps, then leapt from the temple window and dashed alone into the streets.

Her destination— the mines.

The tremors showed no sign of stopping. The roar, the bellowing—it was as if a giant hammer is trying to shatter the very ground.

“Kuu…!”

Clutching her bag of smithing tools tightly to her chest, her green hair whipped behind her as she sprinted through the midnight mining town.

In truth, she didn’t remember the route from the temple. She’d only ever seen it peeking out from inside a backpack, and the last time she’d returned from the dungeon she had been too dazed to take note. But the moonlit silhouette of the mountain loomed over the town, visible from anywhere.

All she had to do was run towards that place—such was the reliance on her own judgment.

Still, Safi ran. She could no longer trust Rion, the gods, or any other human—because they had chosen not to go deeper into the dungeon. To her, that was a choice to abandon her companions, and to turn their backs on the words of the Dwarf King.

“If I back down here… I won’t be a dwarf, or a blacksmith, anymore.”

Why had she been left behind all alone?

What had everyone left behind in the palace?

A thousand years of time, a frozen forge, and weapons meant for titans. All these uncertainties piled up in her heart, and if she didn’t find the answer, she felt as though her chest would be crushed under their weight.

—Oooooh!

Again, came another roar.

The ground trembled beneath her feet, the distant mine quaking. Clicking her tongue, she glanced around—adventurers were running about in a frenzy, and the remaining townsfolk were fleeing with torches in hand.

“…W-where… is this?”

At times like this, she cursed her small body. Everywhere around her were human-sized houses and walls, a constant reminder that the land of the dwarves, Alfheim, no longer existed. Buildings and silhouettes blocked her view of the mine.

“Don’t tell me… I’m lost…?”

This is not funny at all.

The ring shining on her finger is the Ring of Protection. It will protect Safi from the seal that envelops the world as long as its magical power lasts. She should still have time—but she wanted to reach the dungeon as quickly as possible.

(—This way.)

At that moment, a shadow swept across the sky.

Even though it was night, it was clearly….

“…A raven…?”

A pair of ravens beat its wings with steady power, circling once above her head before flying toward the mountain. There was something strange about it. There’s an inexplicable pull in it, as though a giant unseen hand were beckoning her onward.

Following its lead, Safi found she could move without hesitation. Before long, the wall separating the mountain from the city came into view. Once, it must have been built as a fortification to keep watch over the dungeon.

“Here…!”

The gate was closed now. But time had etched deep cracks into it, and a child—someone Safi’s size—could easily slip through.

A group of workmen with mortar in hand are already gathering to seal the gap.

“Move!”

She slipped through, and from there it was just a sprint toward the mine.

“A kid!?”

“Hey, it’s dangerous——come back!”

Ignoring the voices behind her, Safi followed the ravens as it guided her around to the back side of the mountain.

There, an ancient stone-paved path stretched out, winding around the mine’s base. By tracing it, she eventually arrived at a familiar exit. It was the same passage where Rion and the others had emerged after meeting the Dwarf King.

The mine’s rear side opened into a deep forest. From high up in the trees, the pair of ravens that had led her peered down at her, while the moonlight bathed the rock-framed entrance in a pale, cold glow.

From the hole came a low, keening sound, like the howl of wind. From the mountain ridge, a red glow flared upward into the sky, like the breath of an erupting volcano. Closing her eyes, Safi drew in a deep breath, then lifted her chin and plunged into the dungeon. She passed through the throne room, brushing away the tears welling up at the sight of her petrified comrades, and continued down the passage leading underground.

Partway along, the path merged with a wider road. Her dwarven instincts told her, this tunnel was in use until recently. And strangely, it felt… familiar.

“This… this is the slope I climbed when I first woke up.”

Safi murmured.

It was possible she had been put to sleep much closer to the throne than she’d realized. Or perhaps Rion’s wake up call had unlocked multiple sealed routes down to the lowest floor.

She pressed on through the newly opened corridor. And then, Safi’s breath was caught in her throat.

“W-what… is this…?”

In the wall gaped a massive hole—as if something enormous had been ripped straight out of the stone, leaving a yawning void behind. She swallowed hard. Beyond the opening seemed to be a vast chamber. It was still dark inside, and she couldn’t make out its depths.

“W-what should I do…?”

Fear wrapped itself around her small chest, but Safi shook her head to fight it off. She is alone now. In this era—there are no other dwarves.

If Safi the dwarf didn’t believe and press on, then no matter what feelings the lost dwarven kingdom of Alfheim had left behind, they would vanish into this mine forever.

Safi could no longer bring herself to run. Afraid to make a sound, she crept forward carefully step by step.

“…A lift?”

What she found at last was a lift—its design based on golem technology. She stepped inside and pulled the activation lever.

CLANK.

The machinery’s racket echoed far too loudly in the emptiness. It was only then that Safi realized—the thunderous rumble she should have heard, the searing red light she should have seen—had both faded away.

The lift came to a halt. Safistepped out into the lowest level. It was a vast, hollow space. The gloom kept its full shape hidden, but a single jagged fissure split the ceiling, letting in a ray of moonlight.

Perhaps the red glow from the mine had been escaping through that crack.

“Hoh? I never thought a black dwarf would come here.”

With that voice came a flood of blinding light. Safi squeezed her eyes shut.

“W-what…”

When she looked up, she saw that a circular platform ringed the space above, looking down into the open area below.

If the chamber’s ceiling was thirty meters high, then the platform sat about halfway up—around fifteen meters. On that platform stood two golems, perfectly still, each holding up a massive magic crystal lamp. The magic stones bathed her in a round pool of light.

“W-who are you?”

Between the two golems stood a woman in black.

“Pleased to meet you. I am Serpentbone Jor—Jor of the World Serpent Jörmungandr, little black dwarf.”

The black-clad woman looked down at Safi.

“…Just you? The ‘horn-blowing boy’ isn’t here?”

When Safi kept silent, Jor let out a quiet sigh.

“…I see. Sigh. And here I even calmed the giant down so we could talk.”

When Jor waved her hand, a fat man rose to his feet behind the golems. Though large in build, he staggered oddly—like a puppet on strings. Yet the way he raised his hand in response was brisk and precise, making the sight all the more unsettling.

“Golem—rise!”

The man’s hollow voice echoed. Then hum of golems filled the space.

It seemed that many of them were stationed along the walkway encircling the plaza. Each puppet-like figure held up a magic stone lamp, and together they flooded the entire space with an overwhelming, blinding light.

“Hii…”

Safi caught her breath.

What the light revealed was—an unbelievably massive giant. Skin blazing like molten metal. Hair alight with searing fire. The half-opened eyes already glowed crimson, and from the mouth, thin wisps of flame crackled and spilled forth.

If it hadn’t been kneeling, its size would have been so overwhelming that she might not have even recognized it as humanoid.

“S–Surtr…?”

There was no longer any room for doubt.

Hands big enough to crush a carriage in their grip. A chest like a fortress wall. If it stood up, it would surely be close to twenty meters tall. A giant beyond even the “Flame Soldier” or the “Incarnation of Rage”—a being utterly outside the norm.

Her teeth chattered uncontrollably. Her hips felt like its going to give way. Her instincts were screaming “don’t look” yet the sheer terror bound her gaze to it.

A soft, mocking chuckle drifted down from above.

“What’s the matter? This is your people’s palace, the back gate. Of course…, it’s been quite heavily remodeled to welcome Surtr.”

The giant stirred. It was then that Safi noticed—Surtr, still kneeling, had both hands and feet bound in ice. The hall was vast, so vast its edges were hard to see, yet even along its distant walls, the ice still remained. Inside that frozen barrier… something was there—creatures, perhaps—held captive.

The gods’ seal must still be holding its power.

—Ooooooooh!

A blast of hot wind erupted.

Safi was blown away—her small body tossed at least five times her own height. She landed headfirst on the ground. She’s now bleeding.

Around the great hall, the ice of the seals cracked in many places, melting away entirely in some spots.

“I had hoped to tell the boy holding the horn and watch the look of despair on his face… but, heh, it doesn’t matter. I’ll tell you first.”

Jor spread her arms wide, almost singing the words.

“In the age of myth… the dwarves betrayed.”

Blood from Safi’s brow ran down, mingling with her tears.

“The terms were simple—the ten blacksmiths of the dwarven kingdom would become monsters. And the rest of the dwarves would keep forging weapons for the giants. That is why the Dwarf King… welcomed Surtr, King of the Flame Titan, into his palace.”

Jor’s laughter echoed through the hollow space.

Monsters are beings that kill gods and humans alike, and laugh as they spread destruction.

And when a being falls into monstrosity, it becomes a twisted living thing. The dwarfs who fall into it became goblins, and like Garmr in the dungeon and the giant soldier, they become evil, hopeless beings. They were the opposite of what a dwarf was meant to be.

A creator turned into a destroyer.

Could it be… that her homeland had truly submitted to something like that?

Safi’s mind is now in a mess. The very foundation she leaned on felt ready to shatter.

Memories—treasures no master blacksmith could forge—were being defiled by Jor’s words.

“So the dwarves, too, were seduced by power. Only…”

Jor’s voice faltered, laced with bitterness.

“But….. just before they could fully submit, the ice of the seal arrived.”

The ice binding Surtr shattered completely.

—Ooooooh!

Surtr began to rise.

But the giant let out a voice of agony, shielding his leg with one arm. Then, with his massive hand, he pulled something from his limb.

Jor narrowed her eyes.

“A ballista… bolt?”

Surtr hadn’t been crouching after all.

His massive legs had been pinned to the ground, run clean through by a gigantic bolt.

With a single motion, he wrenched it free and hurled it far away. The spear-like projectile struck the ground, splintering to pieces.

“W-what does that mean…?”

Safi muttered.

Surtr’s flames seemed to spread throughout the entire space.

The back gate of Alfheim, which had been covered in earth and ice, regained its original form. The cave was only a temporary form. It was covered in sealing ice, with earth and sand building up on top of that over eons.

Now, that ice had disappeared. The earth and rocks that had been piled up on top of the ice crumbled, and earth began falling around Safi.

“Kyaaa!”

Billowing clouds of dust filled the air. Through them emerged yet another platform—this one built even higher than the one Jor stood upon. Upon it stood a ring of massive siege bows—anti-giant ballista—all trained directly on the spot where Surtr had been.

Around the weapons stood dwarves.

They were frozen in place, mid-motion as they manned the rusted ballista, their bodies turned to lifeless stone.

“…This is—”

Jor clicked her tongue. The magic-stone lamps held by the golems sliced through the dust.

“Tch. So the dwarves… plotted this, did they?”

Her head was still hazy.

“Plotted…?”

What did the dwarves… what had they done?

Through the drifting haze of dust, Safi spotted it—a red jewel gleaming on the wall, glowing with the same light as the Ring of Protection she carried.

(—Safi.)

A voice seemed to echo inside her head. It sounded so much like the voice of the Dwarf King.

“Y-Your Majesty…?”

Inside Safi’s mind, things began to connect—events that had seemed puzzling before now fitting together like parts of some immense mechanism.

Surtur, lured to the rear gate. The countless ballista aimed squarely at that spot.

The first floor of the dungeon—once the main gate of Alfheim—collapsed and buried, as though the mountain had been deliberately brought down.

“Surround him… strike him down… and bury him…?”

Slowly, Safi began to see what the dwarves had tried to do.

Tears welled in her eyes.

“They… they hadn’t betrayed…?”

She still didn’t know why she had been left behind, nor did she fully understand the dwarves’ intentions. But knowing that they hadn’t simply betrayed—that alone was hope.

A right heart, and the right tools.

The pride that both the white dwarves and the black dwarves had carried was still alive, even a thousand years ago. And that was proof that Safi too, was one of them.

“…I see. But it’s already too late.”

Jor’s words echoed through the space.

Safi bit her lip.

“So what if the dwarves didn’t betray anyone—what difference does that make now?”

The gods had not trusted the dwarves. The chief god, in turn, had not trusted the other gods, and had sealed the world away. And Safi herself had not trusted her current companions either.

After all, if there had been trust, she wouldn’t have come here alone.

The ancient weapons were here, and the dwarves were here. But the awakener was not.

“Mistrust is something that goes in circles—like a serpent biting its own tail.”

It looked as though Jor was biting the tip of her own finger.

“—I’m sorry, everyone.”

In the end, she was no different. She had come alone, and she would die alone.

“Do it, Surtr. This time, let’s have the real—Ragnarok!”

Surtr raised his fist. Wrapped in flame, it made Safi squeeze her eyes shut.

Darkness.

The heat never came.

When she cautiously opened her eyes, she saw something strange. Golden light, like the sun, was pouring down over the entire space. Surtr had stopped his raised hand, glaring into the air.

“…I can hear it.”

The sound of a horn.

Still far away. But somewhere in the mines, somewhere along the tunnels, that boy was blowing the horn for Safi.

(—Safi!)

It felt like someone had just struck her on the back, and she felt strength return to her legs.

“…Rion, you—”

The voice of the dwarf king was coming clearly from the red gem. Perhaps the Awakener’s power was causing the ancient jewel to stir once more.

(—This way! Your magic—use it with the blessing!)

The horn’s call rang out again. Safi gripped the dwarven warhammer and rose to her feet. The golem pointed her out, Jor turned in realization, and Surtr roared.

The monsters freed from the ice also began to move, chasing after her.

“It’s not over yet.”

With the blacksmith’s hammer in her hand, Safi dashed toward the jewel.

She would fight against the Ragnarok.

This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.

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In the unexplored area of the Alvis Dungeon.

The Dwarf King has turned to stone, silent and motionless. We stood before the wall he had told us about. I exhaled a white puff of breath, then I gently placed both of my hands on the cold surface of the wall before me.

“Wake up!”

With my right hand, I released the seal on the passage to the right side and with my left, the one to the left. The stone wall crumbled away, revealing a fork in the path.

Like what the Dwarf King had said, one path likely led underground, the other above ground. The left side descended to the lowest floor, where Flamebone Surtr awaited and the right side leads outside.

We must make a choose.

“I…..”

I hesitated. Because this wasn’t just our problem— the fate of Alvis itself was at stake.

Something inside me was shouting. The fact that the Dwarf King had mentioned the “prison.” That there was an anti-Titan trap on the boss floor. That the guard golems had faced off against the titans.

Can dwarves really not be trusted?

Is that truly the right answer?

Was the country Safiy came from really such a terrible place?

All those thoughts were in my head.

“Let’s retreat.”

The words, spoken as if to cut something off, came in a firm voice. Felix-san’s sharp gaze passed over each of us in turn.

Me, Mia-san, the Raven Warriors, and finally to Safi.

After letting his eyes rest briefly on the dwarf blacksmith, Felix-san turned his gaze back to the passage.

“In this situation, it’s difficult to place complete trust in the dwarves. The dungeon is a den of monsters to begin with, and right now, we must also be wary of dwarven traps. We know that Flamebone Surtr is here. In that case, it would be far more rational for us to return to the surface, have the adventurers and guards prepare, and meet the attack from outside.”

Fighting in a place where traps might be waiting is sheer foolishness. That, perhaps, was what Felix was trying to say.

The gods—especially Thor—were probably thinking the same thing. 

Nothing was coming from the gold coin. I know they are waiting for me.

“B-but…”

I raised my voice, about to argue back at Felix-san.

“What is it?”

Looking down at me, Felix-san’s gaze stopped me from talking. He was a veteran of the Raven Warriors, and his words were sound enough that even the gods had nothing to say in objection.

“No way…!”

Safi’s lips trembled. The dwarf blacksmith’s face had gone pale.

“I… I…”

“We’ve heard enough about the land of the dwarves.”

Felix-san dismissed her. Safi glared back at him.

Yet my heart was still screaming—

—Believe them!

But… believe in what?

Which side?

“……!”

I couldn’t find an answer to that question.

And in the end, I couldn’t turn my voice into my true voice. When we returned, the city of Alvis was in an uproar. The dungeon had been declared off-limits.

Along the old castle walls that lay between the mining dungeon and the city, adventurers and soldiers were already lining up, preparing for the possibility of monsters pouring out of the dungeon.

Having fled back from the depths, we made our way to the Temple of Odis and revealed our identity as the “Raven Warriors.” We spent the entire afternoon issuing orders to the Adventurers’ Guild and informing the lord of the dungeon’s abnormal state. All to prepare for a large-scale monster invasion, like the one that had struck the eastern side of the Royal Capital.

◆◆◆

Right now, we are in the Temple of Odis. Night has already grown late.

I stand and walk over to the window. The mine still looms like a massive wall. From the temple’s high ground, I can clearly see the gentle slope leading up to its entrance. From the dungeon’s gate which was once the main entrance of a royal palace—the slope suddenly steepens.

At the foot of the moonlit mountain, countless torch lights are moving.

『There is nothing for you to worry about. Not a single thing.』

The gold coin vibrated, and Solana’s voice reached me. I take up the coin case Lu made for me and gently run my fingers over the half-exposed gold coin.

『…That kindness of yours, the way you can’t just shut your feelings off—I like that about you.』

Solana’s encouragement usually warms my heart like sunlight. But this time was different. There was a hollow in my chest, and no matter what words were spoken, they just slipped away with the wind, leaving nothing behind.

『In that moment… Felix is right.』

“No.”

I clenched my teeth.

“When I… when we left the Dwarf King’s chamber and head to the surface, when I decided not to go down—to face Surtr and the others…!”

I was presented a choice. To trust them and fight in the deepest layer, or to trust the gods and return to the surface. In the end… I chose to trust the gods.

I didn’t trust Safi, or the dwarves. What I chose was “retreat.”

“…I kept wondering if that was really okay. Safi looked so sad, but I don’t know what the future holds, and I couldn’t bring myself to decide… so…”

From my lips, the weaker side of me slipped out.

“I… I actually felt a little relieved.”

Because—

“…the gods decided for me, instead of me deciding for myself.”

The night was quiet, and perhaps because it was still before spring, not even the sound of insects could be heard. The roars and tremors that had shaken the ground so fiercely before were gone now.

“There were so many things I wanted to say, so many things I wanted to ask, so many things I wanted us all to talk about and think through together… But… the words just wouldn’t come out…”

The outline of the mountain blurred.

…Tears?

Father once said that, back in the dungeon where Ymir appeared, he stood and fought alongside his companions. Now, I could finally grasp just how incredible that was. Even when the Raven Warriors had nearly chosen to retreat, he kept fighting.

—That meant Father had made a decision. He knew what was right, and what should not be done. He had something like an unshakable core as an adventurer… and that’s why he could hold his ground.

“…You are kind. But at the same time, Thor’s way of thinking—and Felix’s—are also correct.”

Facing Solana, I kept my gaze fixed on the cluster of torches moving along the city wall.

They were prepared—keeping watch through the night against a monster assault, and come morning, we’ll be surrounding the dungeon. It’s a two-layered strategy, leaving no room for carelessness.

“I know that, but…!”

I gripped the window frame.

The gauntlet still on my hand gleamed white under the moonlight. I am weak. At the most crucial moment, I hadn’t even been able to show my own will.

It wasn’t enough to just be kind. I had sworn an oath to the goddess because I wanted the strength to uphold that kindness. Swallowing down the lump of shame in my throat, I tore my thoughts away from the past.

I stepped back from the window and sat down on top of the clothing chest.

“…I wonder if Safi’s okay.”

Safi should have been resting where the Raven Warriors were staying. 

I want to go check on her, but… right now, I didn’t really have the energy myself.

“I’m worried too, but…”

Solana’s voice brought back the words Safi had spoken when we returned to the surface. A sharp pain shot through my chest.

—And here I thought the black dwarves and white dwarves had changed.

—They’d started working at the forge together, cooperating with each other…

In the distant past, in Álfheim, the conflict between dwarves had been deeply rooted. So deep that they wouldn’t even work together. But in the frozen forge, both white dwarves and black dwarves had shared the same space.

Safi, a black dwarf, had even been granted the title of Top Ten Blacksmith.

The dwarven kingdom had been changing—or so we’d hoped. But that hope must have been shattered by the reality of their betrayal.

『I think it’s something that couldn’t be helped though.』

Loki’s voice came.

『…I may have said this before, but distrust and betrayal existed back then as well. In fact, I myself was once suspected of betrayal. Distrust existed even among the gods.』

I wiped away my tears, startled by his words.

“Y-you too, Loki…?”

『Heh. I once traveled far and wide to broaden my magical knowledge. I met with dwarves, and at times even with titans. Long, long before the war, there were still titans you could reason with…』

From the coin, I could feel Loki’s wry smile.

『Rion, just as you wrestle with your choices, the gods can be a little complicated too.』

He let the words hang with a sly air before falling silent.

Then the voice of Sigris, the god of medicine, followed.

『…Even when Loki was suspected, he continued to share the magical knowledge he had gained on his travels. You saw similar technology among the dwarves in the Western Dungeon, didn’t you?』

I see…

The magical rune letters in the Western Dungeon, and even the boss, the Iron Golem—those might well have been based on the knowledge Loki had acquired on those journeys.

『I may have been suspected, but the knowledge I’d gained was useful. Sure, I was down for a while, but they let me stick to my ways—stubbornly, flexibly, you know.』

To carry it through huh…

Father would’ve made that decision in an instant.

I’m still hesitating. Even after being swept along once, I’ve kept on wavering… over and over.

『Rion… Think it through, you have your own kind of strength.』

Solana said.

I touched the horn in my pouch— the Gjallarhorn, the horn I inherited from Father.

Calm down. Steady your breathing. Face forward.

One by one, I picture the words I couldn’t say aloud.

Yes… the dwarf king, he… the horn—

“…Ah.”

Just as I was about to speak, the ground shook.

The things all around me fell with clattering sounds. The clothing chest I was sitting on nearly tipped over, and I clung to the window frame for balance.

A deafening roar rolled across the sky. From behind the mine —from the exit we had used to escape the dungeon —rose a pillar of blazing red fire, like something out of a story about a volcanic eruption.

『Here it comes.』

Thor’s voice came from the gold coin. I tucked my chin, slipped the coin case into my pocket, and tucked the horn into my pouch. Rushing out of the room, I ran straight into a woman from the warrior group.

“Rion-san….”

After hearing what had happened, I must have gone pale. I raced back up the stairs I had just descended and threw open the door to a certain room.

No one was there. Night wind swept in through the open window, stirring the mess left behind by the earthquake.

“.…Safi-dono has run off.”

I was told by a member of the warrior group that she had most likely gone to the mine alone.

This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.

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In a hidden tunnel beneath the Alvis Dungeon.

Ganis’ eyes snapped open. He gulped. Sweat beaded on his frog-like face. His bloated body quivered, and he spoke in a trembling voice.

“A-all the golems on the lower levels… They were destroyed?!”

No. That couldn’t be. It had to be a mistake.

Ganis desperately clung to such denial.

However, his own skill, Puppet Master, and the ability [Golem Master] told him the cruel reality. There were no more signals from the golems just above the mine shaft.

“Kiiiiiii! Impossible! Impossible!”

The test golems stationed in the dungeon’s depths were annihilated. The new batch, brought in to intercept the intruders, hadn’t even caught up to them.

“This is bad… this is very bad…!”

His frog-like face flushed, then paled.

“Too fast…! They’re advancing through the dungeon far too fast!”

Whoever was down there was no ordinary adventurer. This wasn’t just some “boy holding a horn”. That child held terrifying power for sure. Of course, Ganis had no concrete proof that this “boy holding a horn” was the one tearing through the dungeon. He couldn’t be sure until he saw it with his own eyes. But the circumstantial evidence was piling up.

His skill transmitted fragmented data from just before the golems were destroyed. One had been struck by a powerful thunder spell that even Ganis had never heard of. The technique used to avoid the golems could only be said to be too refined to be that of a novice.

No, whoever it was… it could not be just a mere adventurer.

At any rate, the risk of staying in the tunnel any longer is too great. The slave trader woman is closing in on Ganis, intent on punishing him. The “Business Expert”, Rata’s promise to mediate on his behalf was conditional. It is contingent on his success in stopping the boy.

Ganis looked out over the secret tunnel with wide eyes. The icy tunnel is cold enough to make him shiver. Or… perhaps it is fear that made him shiver.

“In that case… there’s only one option. I run.”

Fortunately for him, Rata had already disappeared.

The tunnel, once filled with the rhythm of pickaxes, is now eerily silent. Ganis had returned to the dungeon entrance after meeting with Rata to issue detailed instructions. During that time, the slaves must have fled.

There were originally golems in the mine tunnels used as guards, but many of them had been turned back into golem cores in order to be used in tracking down the “boy holding a horn”. Just to be on the safe side, Ganis had also hired some adventurers, but it seems they have fled along with the slaves.

Then, from above, a beast-like growl echoed down.

A tremor shook the tunnel.

“…Those worthless scum. If they’d stayed, I could’ve used them as shields!”

Ganis clicked his tongue and hurried back toward the lift.

“I have to reach the manor. Burn the ledgers… Forget this research—no, wait…”

Muttering to himself, he rode the lift to the upper floor. And there, waiting at the exit, was a woman.

Ganis collapsed backwards in fear.

“Oh my, hello there.”

It is a woman in black robes.

“J-Jor-dono…? W-what a surprise, meeting you here…”

“Mm, going somewhere?”

Jor stepped closer. Her lips curled in a faint smile. Her black hair curled like coiled serpents. That crimson tongue licking her lips—paired with Ganis’s wide-eyed stare—made it look as if a frog had just caught the gaze of a snake.

“And where are you off to?”

“Ah, t-that…”

“Where to, mountain toad?”

Far too fast.

Ganis cursed under his breath.

“R-Rata… that bastard…!”

Rata sounded as if he’d only recently told Jor about it—though in reality, he’d probably tattled on him ages ago.

“Fufu… Ganis.”

Jor grasped Ganis with one of her pale, slender arm and lifted him effortlessly. The strength was clearly not that of a human. She dragged him out of the lift and slammed him against the wall.

“Gu-uh!”

“You used the ashes of the titan without permission. My, my, your greed is even greater than that of a snake.”

As Ganis tried to get up, he noticed the giant face in front of him. By coincidence, the place where Ganis was thrown was very close to the giant’s face embossed on the rock wall. He landed right in front of it.

――Oooooooo…

A searing breath leaked through its cracked lips. Blood-red eyes, as large as human heads, began to focus on him.

Ganis begged.

“I-isn’t this just a vein of ore? W-what have I been mining—!?”

Jor giggled.

“Ufufufu. No way. This—this is no ordinary ore. It is what remains of a titan that lived long ago, before the kingdom of Asgard was founded. He was sealed away and what remained of him was buried under ice and earth.”

Jor reached up lovingly and stroked the stony giant’s face.

The giant face, slightly larger than Ganis’s, was probably nearly two meters in size. If the creature stood upright, it could probably step over castle walls.

“B-buried in ice and earth…?”

Ganis remembered the subsurface landscape.

Finally, he understood. The materials he’d been mining—were parts of this giant.

――Oooooooo……

“Hi-hiiii!”

He curled up, clutching his head in terror, pleading. But Jor’s voice remained playful, even as heat rippled through the air.

“Oh? Seems that the boy with the horn is getting close.”

The dirt and stone peeled off the giant face, revealing the red-hot skin. The passageway began to heat up. The giant face is beginning to glow with flames.

“He’s reacting to god’s presence.”

Ganis could hear it—the crisp sound of his robe sizzling. Sparks scorched his cheeks. His instincts screamed.

“F-flame titan…?!”

Ganis knew neither the true myths nor the race called “Flame Titan.” But the words that slipped from his lips were true nonetheless.

“Correct. This is Surtr Flamebone, king of the flame titans.”

The titan roared. If it weren’t for the magical barrier that Jor had whimsically erected, Ganis would have been slammed against the wall and died. At the very least, his eardrums would have been ruptured.

“Ha, ha, hahaha… hihihihi…”

Ganis wept and laughed like a madman. The fact that he hadn’t wet himself only suggested something in his mind had already snapped.

The titan’s eyes turned upward—slowly.

“Oh my? Not coming after all huh…”

Jor covered her mouth with a delicate hand, chuckling.

“Cautious? Or just cowardly? Either way… the end won’t wait forever.”

Footsteps echoed from the tunnel. Another figure emerged from the exit.

It was another slave trader—Rata. His noble-style garments looked out of place in the dreary tunnel. Despite the heat, his expression was calm and composed.

“The dungeon is in complete chaos.”

He smiled like a kind youth. But his crescent-shaped eyes with cold gleam made that smile unsettling. From their golden depths, he stared into the titan’s burning face.

“That shaking and that roar… Some are calling this the world’s end. Well, it is not far off.”

He turned to face Jor, frowning slightly. He brushed aside his thick chestnut hair with a sigh.

“Jor, you are the only one here? There is no mistake about it—the boy holding the horn is here. They outsmarted us.”

“Ymir-sama won’t be joining us. As for brother…. it’s likely that he won’t be coming either.”

Jor added a small “ah,” as if remembering something.

“By the way, the brother I’m talking about isn’t the boy with the horn.”

She giggled and crouched, locking eyes with the slumped Ganis.

“But you know, Ganis, I am grateful to you. Ymir-sama granted you the Puppet Master skill to awaken the ancient dwarven techniques that lay dormant in this land. You did well—though, yes, a bit too greedy.”

Her eyes gleamed.

Ganis shrieked.

“But still. Since Surtr won’t fully awaken until nightfall… Ganis, I think I’ll borrow your strength a little longer.”

A fire ignited in Ganis’s heart. He wanted to be called a genius. To wield power freely. To have not only the commoners but nobles—even lords—kneel before him.

That greed was drawn out and it grew stronger.

Skill: Seduction was used.

Just as Surtr was cloaked in flame, Ganis’s soul was consumed by the fire of ambition.

“The power of the Serpent’s Temptation… Gideon didn’t need it. But you, Ganis—I’ll grant it to you.”

Jor leaned close to the dazed man, her red lips brushing his ear.

“Now… if this titan becomes your golem… If it were enhanced with your craftsmanship… You’d go down in history, wouldn’t you?”

The flame in Ganis’s almost-extinguished ambition was rekindled. At the serpent’s temptation, the magic engineer laughed like crazy. He stood up with vacant eyes and began to slowly walk back to the lift.

The conversation between the slave traders went on.

“Now, Surtr will fully awaken by nightfall.”

Rata said, glancing at Jor in her black robe.

“Surtr’s body is nothing but the ‘titan’s ashes.’ It seems Thor is also there… perhaps I can finally fight in my true form?”

Rata smiled gently.

“Serpentbone Jor—in the age of myth, you were the world’s largest serpent, after all.”

Jor shrugged and bit her fingertip. Dreaming of a day when her serpent’s maw would swallow the Thunder God, the boy, and his sister—all whole.

This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.

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