š Scene ā The Final Shadow Deal
Poseidon and Athena looked at Odin with clear confusion and said at the same time:
"Don't you like Loki or what? Why are you embarrassing him like that?"
Odin glanced at his brothers with annoyance and replied coldly:
"That is none of your concern. Besidesā¦ what you wanted is already done. Loki will arrive in Asgard soon. Are you satisfied now? Now leave. You've stayed far too longā¦ don't you have anything to do? Or did you come just to annoy me?"
Poseidon shot him an irritated look and said:
"If you don't want us here, just say it. There's no need to insult us."
Athena nodded and added with a mocking tone:
"We'll leave you with your plans and manipulationā¦ oh great ruler."
Odin watched them leave, frustration clearly visible on his face. Then he sighed and thought to himself:
"I need to teach them some mannersā¦ they are truly insolent."
š Return of the Dragons
Odin turned his gaze through his ravenā¦
to the Dragon King.
The Dragon King was watching the dragon he had sentāwho had already returned with the flower.
He looked at the raven in surprise, then laughed slightly and said:
"Well done, little one."
Then he turned to the dragon commander and asked:
"Were the demi-humans hiding the flower from us?"
The dragon commander replied immediately:
"I don't think so, my lord. We sensed no strong demi-human aura in the area. Only dark elf energy. I believe they intended to frame the demi-humans so that our anger would fall upon them."
The Dragon King frowned slightly:
"And what is this hostility between the dark elves and the demi-humans?"
He thought for a momentā¦ then shook his head and said firmly:
"Go. Give the flower to the elf priestess treating my son. And tell herā¦ if my son is not healed after this flower, then her fateāand her race's fateāwill be severe."
A terrifying aura burst from his body as he spoke.
The dragon commander bowed and left quickly toward the place where the prince was being treated.
š The Raven's Request
The Dragon King sighed and looked at the raven:
"You spoke the truth. What do you want as a reward?"
The raven replied quickly:
"My lord faces great danger and many enemies. He has a powerful weaponā¦ but lacks proper armor. Could you show mercy and grant him a shield for protection?"
The Dragon King looked at the cunning raven before him, unsure how to respondā¦
But finally, he nodded and thought:
"He has done me a favorā¦ I must reward him."
š”ļø The Sacred Shield
Suddenly, he remembered something.
An ancient shieldā¦
One he had obtained long ago from the dwarves.
He looked at the raven and said:
"I already possess a shieldā¦ a sacred artifact. The dwarves gave it to me as a gift long ago."
He added calmly:
"But I cannot use itā¦ it is far too small for me and completely unsuitable."
He paused briefly, then continued:
"Neverthelessā¦ it remains a sacred shield."
And in that momentā¦
The raven was not the only one smiling in the shadowsā¦
Loki was also stepping closer to the power he sought.
As soon as the raven heard this, it jumped in excitement:
"Will you give it to me?! Will you really give it to me?!"
The Dragon King shook his head calmly:
"No. The information you gave me is important and will save my son. But this shield is far too precious. Do you have anything elseā¦ something more valuable, in exchange?"
The raven thought for a moment, then said in a calm but meaningful tone:
"I can tell you about someoneā¦ who uses ancient forbidden magic in your continent."
The Dragon King's eyes widened:
"Is there really someone doing that?"
After a moment of thought, he raised his hand and said:
"Here is the shieldā¦ now tell me. Who is it? And what race does he belong to?"
š”ļø The Sacred Shield Appears
In the next moment, a silver shield appeared before the raven, radiating a terrifying and ancient power.
The raven stared at it in awe and said:
"I can tell you he is humanā¦ but I cannot tell you who he is."
The Dragon King nodded:
"That is enough."
š¦ The Impossible Swallowed
Without hesitationā¦
The raven flew toward the sacred shieldā
and swallowed it whole.
The shield vanished inside its body in a strange, unnatural way. Then the raven landed again as if nothing had happened.
The Dragon King laughed in surprise:
"You have quite the appetite, don't you, little raven?"
The raven chuckled and asked:
"Why do you not care more about forbidden magic, Dragon King? Aren't you angry? Humans have disobeyed your laws."
š Philosophy of Power
The Dragon King raised his gaze to the sky and spoke calmly, yet with immense weight behind his words:
"I banned ancient forbidden magic to preserve the balance of Miraā¦ and to prevent sorcerers from walking the path of destruction."
He paused, then continued:
"But if only one or two individuals learn itā¦ that is insignificant."
He looked back at the raven:
"What matters in our timeā¦"
He stepped closer:
"ā¦is the existence of those who turn the impossible into realityā¦ and break the forbidden itself."
He added in a chilling tone:
"Do you understand thatā¦ little one?"
And in that momentā¦
It was clear that the conversation was no longer about a mysterious individual aloneā¦
But about something far greaterā¦
(Author's Note):
Hello everyone! Thank you for your continuous support of this novel; your comments and interactions mean the world to me.
Stepping away from our story here for a moment, I wanted to share another project I've been working on with great passion. I have started publishing a webtoon (comic) on the Webtoon platform titled "Me and the Wolf."
It is a [Comedy / Fantasy] story about a miserable young man and a cunning wolf who is constantly getting him into trouble! If you enjoy my writing style and the way I build scenarios, I promise you're going to love this comic.
I would be so grateful if you could go check it out, subscribe to the series, and let me know what you think in the comments there!
š Search on the Webtoon app for: [Me and the Wolf]