Episode 15/Chapter 2: Alpha Male (2)
TL: Tsubak
ED:
The trip was smooth. Ragnar took in Siri as expected and even held classes with her and Tae Ho. A beautiful student is better than a black man, that was Ragnar’s claim.
After passing through the space door that was located at the center of the hall, they reached the outer areas that connected Olympus and Asgard.
Heda borrowed a carriage with the name of Idun’s legion and drove it, and the three people behind focused on training the strength of a God.
After two days.
Heda changed seats with Ragnar and then looked at Tae Ho and Siri that were seated in a corner.
The two people had their eyes closed and were operating the strength of a God. It wasn’t strong as an explosion, but it was spread thinly and faintly.
The two of them had talent. It seemed like it was because of Siri’s strong persistence and calm nature that she had few mistakes when handling the strength and Tae Ho handled the power so well it was unbelievable he was an inferior rank.
‘He’s a cheat by several means.’
Ragnar knew about Tae Ho’s saga and where he came from. Although he had an unimaginable saga, before coming to Valhalla he had never grabbed a sword and just played the thing called Dark Age or something in front of a desk.
When he had first heard that, he couldn’t believe it easily. It wasn’t because it was too bewildering. It was because Tae Ho’s existence made it hard to believe in that.
‘He’s overflowing with talent.’
Tae Ho fought well. It wasn’t only because he received the strength and techniques through the strength of the saga with the synchro rate. His battle senses, fast judgments, and the ability to find a path made him a born warrior.
Heda had said that Tae Ho’s world was a peaceful world without any fights differently from Midgard. And perhaps, that would be the reason he wasn’t aware of his talent.
It wasn’t the only talent in fighting, but handling his saga and the power of a God was also outstanding to the point normal warriors would find it hard to do it. In the part of the precise control especially, you could say that he really was born with it.
There were cases like Tae Ho at times. People that came to Valhalla even when they were from another world.
Although he hadn’t met them all, each one of them had outstanding talent.
‘Perhaps it may not be a coincidence but a necessity of the story.’
That shining existence from another world was led to Valhalla.
Ragnar thought of the words he had heard from Sigurd once and looked at Tae Ho. He imagined Tae Ho having born in Midgard and not in the world that the job of a pro gamer existed.
‘He must have become a powerful warrior.’
Although he would have been different to the current him, he would have entered Valhalla with his own saga.
“Stop. We are resting for a moment.”
As Ragnar said in a low voice Tae Ho and Siri let out sighs at the same time and loosened their bodies. The both of them were dripping with sweat.
“The two of you are good. You are fast in learning.”
“Thank you.”
Siri flushed and smiled. If Rolph or other warriors that knew her usual self saw her right now, they would have been really surprised but it was now too familiar for Tae Ho.
Ragnar, that was ignored by Tae Ho until now, put on a good smile and then looked at Siri fixedly.
“Siri, you aren’t planning on moving to Idun’s legion? Then I would be able to keep teaching you.”
“Yes?”
“Oh, that’s a good idea.”
“Hmhm. Gandur won’t like it.”
The one that liked the idea was Tae Ho and the one that cleared her throat was Heda.
Siri got seduced by Ragnar’s direct proposal for a moment, but it seems like she had gotten a hold of herself after listening to Heda’s words and then trembled and said.
“I’m grateful for your words but I’m sorry. I can’t leave behind by comrades.”
“I like you even more. You are a good warrior.”
Ragnar spoke as if he was still interested in her, and Siri forced herself to look at another place. It seemed like she was trying her best to remain calm.
‘So...the hero she admires not only recognized her but also told her to work together?’
Tae Ho understood Siri’s struggle after having analyzed the situation.
‘I’m sorry for Rolph, but it would really be great if she moved.’
Because Siri was a great warrior just like Ragnar had said. Having an ally you could trust your back on a battlefield and not having one, had a big difference.
Even while this happened the carriage reached a forest. It was a really big forest that was naturally connected to a mountain.
“Heda, stop the carriage around here.”
Ragnar tied down the horses from the carriage and then grabbed the reins and said.
“Gryphons like to eat horse meat. We will use these guys as bait. You remember the things I told you, right?”
“Yes.”
“Of course.”
Siri answered immediately. Ragnar took out a knife from his waist and then made the horses bleed a little. As Heda recited a chant, the scent of blood got spread with the help of the wind.
And after a few minutes passed. Ragnar opened his eyes sharply. And the veteran hunter Siri also turned her eyes.
“They came.”
They could hear the noise made by the fluttering of big winds. Three wild gryphons that flew above the trees. The monsters that let out cries like eagles started to gather like a flock of birds.
Ragnar just took a big step back as if he would just watch. As Heda also stepped back, Heda and Siri took out their weapons.
Siri was the first to start. She fired arrows that were smeared with paralyzing poison, and the gryphon that was in the middle lost balance and crashed. While the ground shook, Tae Ho swung the executioner’s sword. One of the gryphons that were trying to take a horse with its hard feet dodged Tae Ho’s sword and flew up again and the other one just grabbed some dirt and flew up.
“They will come again! Go from the ground and the sky!”
As Ragnar yelled, Siri fired one more arrow into the crashed gryphon and put on a firing posture and Tae Ho spread out the hawk wing coat that he took out from Unnir.
Hawk wing coat.
Siri and Heda flinched at the same time.
Siri remembered the thing they had spoken and glared at the gryphons, and Heda that hadn’t heard of the plan didn’t know what to do and moved towards Tae Ho.
However, Tae Ho didn’t look at the two of them. As soon as he wore the wing coat, he glared at the sky and yelled.
“Chant!”
Tae Ho became a big hawk and flew to the sky.
Siri let out a sigh of relief unconsciously and Heda flinched again.
“Uh....Should I have told them to fight together?”
Ragnar that had planned the tactic laughed awkwardly and then Heda said with a casual face.
“It’s not like that!”
However, her face was red. The embarrassment you could see from a person that had their thoughts read could be seen from her.
‘Her childish side didn’t change at all.’
Ragnar laughed refreshingly. Because it was glad to see this side of Heda. After ‘that day’ a lot of things changed in Idun’s legion.
“Anyways, let’s keep watching.”
Ragnar moved his eyes to the sky in consideration of Heda that didn’t know what to do.
Tae Ho executed the hawk’s breathing he learned from Ragnar. He flew higher and faster with strong strokes of his wind.
The one Tae Ho was aiming for was the gryphon that had lost its balance for having dodged Tae Ho’s sword.
The strategy was simple. He would get on it however he could.
[Bewildered]
[Wild Gryphon ()]
Just like Ragnar had said, the two of them were female. One of them saw Tae Ho approach them at an unbelievable speed and increased its speed but it was pointless. Tae Ho, that was in the shape of a simple hawk, being faster than the lion-bodied gryphon could be said that it was a natural law of nature.
Tae Ho caught up to the gryphon in an instant and took hold of it with his claws. The moment his claws carved onto it, the gryphon let out a roar filled with pain and twisted its body.
“Chant!”
Tae Ho recited the chant again and hurriedly put strength on his legs. He grabbed its waist tightly and activated ‘the one that handles dragons’.
The red letters started to become white. It wasn’t green yet but he could control it to a certain extent.
Tae Ho took out the rope of the hunter immediately and put it on the neck of the gryphon. And then the eyes of the gryphon turned calm.
A smile appeared on Tae Ho’s face. It was because the white words changed to be green.
However, he couldn’t be satisfied with just this. It wasn’t because there was one more wild gryphon remaining.
In the first place, the real objective Tae Ho and Ragnar were aiming for wasn’t the one he had caught. This was just a bait for the real one.
The remaining gryphon cried towards the direction it first appeared from. Just like he had heard from Ragnar, he made the gryphon he had caught cry. It was a quite bright cry compared to the one in front of them.
“It’s coming.”
Ragnar said from the ground. Siri could also sense it approaching. Its appearance itself were completely different from a normal gryphon.
Papapapapak!
Small birds flew up from the forest and made some noise. They were escaping because of the rage they felt.
Alpha Male.
The strongest male that led a pack.
The gryphons showed a similar ecology from the lions as if their lion bodies weren’t for nothing. One strong male commanded several females and made a group called pride.
The alpha males didn’t usually move. It also didn’t participate in the hunts. Becoming stronger by eating the things the female gryphons brought it was its role.
However, this situation was different.
Tae Ho took its female. And the other one requested for assistance.
If it still didn’t move in this situation, then a pride couldn’t be maintained. And just like Ragnar had expected, the alpha male showed itself.
[Enraged alpha male]
[Wild gryphon ()]
Its size was as twice as big from the female gryphons. Looking it flying with strength made it look like a tank.
Tae Ho gulped dry saliva and glared at it. Not killing it and restraining it wasn’t as easy as it seemed. If he made a mistake he would be the one to die.
However, that made his heart vaguely beat. It seemed like he was challenging a new title.
“But before that.”
There was one thing he had to check.
[Saga: Immortal warrior (Synchro rate 20%)]
The synchro rate increased from 19% to 20%. It was the result of capturing a female gryphon as it was right before going to 20% when he beat the fire giant along with Rasgrid.
It was just like he had aimed for. He could now feel that he could see the mechanism in the increase of the synchro rate.
In addition, he was certain that there would be a change at 20% just like there has been one at 10%.
[Saga: The warrior’s equipment]
The sword of the warrior changed to that. It didn’t stop there and a new small story was added.
[Saga: The hammer of the blacksmith doesn’t slipper]
The saga that was added to the record of the weapons Kalsted used.
The moment Tae Ho saw the title of the new saga, he was about to fall from the female gryphon, but he somehow maintained balance. He understood the effect of the saga instinctively.
‘How crazy.’
He laughed and cursed at the same time. He glared at the alpha male that was still charging at him and activated his saga.
[Saga: The hammer of the blacksmith doesn’t slipper]
The shape of a huge man holding on to a hammer appeared at Tae Ho’s back. The man that had black beard smirked and then hit down the hunter’s rope with his hammer.
Kang~
A light shone on the hunter’s rope with a pleasing sound.
Strengthening of an item.
The devil’s content that also existed in Dark Age!
Kalsted was Dark Age’s best warrior, and countless weapons had passed through his hands. And obviously enough, most of them passed through the strengthening blacksmiths.
Countless weapons got destroyed by the strengthening failure.
There were even weapons he couldn’t retrieve because they got pulverized.
Only a minority succeeded. However, the weapons that survived the hands of the blacksmiths could become much stronger.
The stories of the weapons that piled up like that.
The saga of the broken weapons that could inevitably accompany the ‘warrior’s equipment’.
The shape of the man put on a refreshing smile and disappeared. Tae Ho looked at the hunter’s rope through the ‘eyes of the dragon’.
The blue words became gold, that were a rank above that. Although it was a temporary effect it was enough.
‘Come on, a strengthened weapon is a first for you right?’
Tae Ho removed the rope from the female gryphon and smiled brightly while looking at the alpha male that was starting to make big circles. It was that smile that Siri said it was evil.
< Episode 15 – Alpha Male (2) > End