Chapter 1448 For Asgard!
"You should pay more attention to your opponent, Will," James said as his voice spread throughout the entire battlefield, making those who knew, and didn"t know him, feel as if someone strong had come to lend them his aid. "Getting distracted in a chaotic battle like this might cost you your life, you know?"
James and his horse, Sleipnir, were too eye-catching as they stood on top of the Bifrost Bridge, making everyone look in his direction.
"Gramps." William looked up at the familiar old man, and almost teared up after seeing him. He hadn"t seen James for more than a year, and often wondered where he had gone. "Are you done with your sight-seeing?"
"Yes," James replied. "Miss me?"
"A bit."
"Just a bit?"
James laughed, but his eyes weren"t laughing as it swept the entire battlefield, which was now dominated by the Army of Destruction.
The battle formation of the Alliance had collapsed after the sudden appearance of the powerful Monsters, who tore through their defenses like a hot knife cutting through b.u.t.ter. What made matters worse was that their morale had dropped considerably when three more G.o.ds had made their appearance, making the pressure that they were feeling earlier, double, crus.h.i.+ng them with its weight.
"Erlik, Kakia, and Yaldabaoth," James stated. "It seems that the three of you have grown very bored over the countless millennias. Was it fun to join Surtr"s bandwagon?"
Kakia, who was a plump G.o.ddess wearing revealing clothes, giggled as she looked at the old man who had made his appearance.
"Who were you again?" Kakia asked. "I"m sorry, I don"t remember a senile old man who looked like you."
The G.o.ddess of Vice, Moral Badness, and Abominations, sneered at James. She didn"t lie when she said that she didn"t remember him, because his appearance was now very different from the one he had in the past.
"It"s fine if you don"t remember me," James replied with a smile. "After all, right now, I"m just a n.o.body."
Kakia giggled before raising an eyebrow at the old man who was talking to her as if they were equals.
"I have a very good memory," Kakia stated. "It"s clear that you know of me, but I don"t know you. Are you perhaps one of the people that I killed and somehow luckily managed to reincarnate?"
James didn"t reply and gave Surtr a side-long glance before s.h.i.+fting his attention back to William.
"Boy, you fight the one you want to fight," James said. "I"ll handle Ahriman. You can ignore the other Monsters as well."
"But Gramps, I can"t allow them toa�"" William wasn"t able to finish his words because James pressed a finger over his lips, telling the Half-Elf to not say anything.
"I"ll deal with them too," James stated. "Don"t you believe in your own grandfather? Even if these Bats, these Giants, and Demogorgons were to gang up on me, they wouldn"t stand a chance."
The battlefield came to a complete pause as they all stared at the old man, who just said something unbelievable.
For him to declare that the Army of Destruction which was composed of Giants, the Bats, the Demogorgons, as well as the countless Monsters of Destruction wouldn"t be a threat to him made everyone look at him in disbelief.
"I see, so you"ve also reincarnated," Surtr finally opened his lips as he looked at the bada.s.s old man who still had a faint smile on his face. "It has been a while, All Father. You look weaker than the last time I saw you."
William blinked as he stared at James then at Surtr and back to James again in disbelief.
James didn"t look like the imposing, and dignified All Father in the past. He looked more like a scammer and a con artist, but, after hearing Surtr"s firm words, the Half-Elf"s heart skipped a beat.
"Weaker, yes," James replied. "But, what of it?"
"It means that your appearance here will not change anything!" Kakia, who was just as shocked as William, shouted at the old man, who she now believed was the G.o.d who ruled the Ancient Pantheon of Asgard, which was now lost in the pages of history. "You think you can stop us? You and what army?!"
Balor, who was commanding the Demogorgons on the ground, locked his single eye on the old man, who was ramblings complete bullsh*t while mounted on his eight-legged horse.
Countless Camazotz also screeched in anger as they flew towards James, with the intention to tear him apart because of his arrogance. They were the monsters that represented Death, and they would not allow anyone to look down on them, especially an old man who had one foot in the grave already.
James didn"t move and simply sat on Sleipnir"s back, completely ignoring the screeching bats that were out to take his life.
When the bats were only dozens of meters away from him, countless spells flew past the old man from behind, obliterating the monsters that dared to attack him, causing their bodies to explode mid-air.
"Me and what army you ask?" James sneered at the G.o.ddess, who thought that he was going to fight on his own. "The most powerful army known to the multiverse! The army that protected Asgard and the Nine Realms since time immemorial!"
Dozens of bridges made of light descended from the sky, connecting the land to the Heavens.
A moment later, everyone heard the sound of marching.
Then, they appeared.
With the insignia of Asgard coating their silver armors, people of all ages, walked side by side, as countless winged horses, mounted by the maidens of war, flew past them.
Hundreds...
Thousands...
Millions...
Tens of millions...
James wandered the void not to sight see, but to gather the Asgardians, as well as the Einherjars who had been reborn. All of them answered his call, and accompanied him to fight against their nemesis of the distant past.
An unprecedented army that once encompa.s.sed the Nine Realms, and fought alongside Odin in the war of Ragnarok, appeared.
Owen, and the veterans of Lont, stood beside James as they looked at the Army of Destruction.
There was no fear in their eyes.
The only thing that could be seen from their depths was a burning determination to fight the Army of Destruction in front of them, and pay them back for the grudge that they had kept in their soul for thousands of years.
"So beautiful," Erinys muttered as she looked at the army that had appeared during their darkest time.
The Eight Deadly Sins and the Heavenly Virtues all nodded their heads in agreement to her words, as they stared at the army that seemed to radiate a holy light as they marched down the rainbow-colored bridges, taking their battle formations and waiting for James" order to attack.
"The moment I was born again in the world, I knew with utmost certainty that this day would come," James said as his body was covered with a golden radiance.
When the light receded, the old man was covered from head to toe with a golden armor and a red cape rested behind his back.
"Sir, you forgot this," Owen said respectfully as he handed James a black eyepatch.
"Ah yes, this is important as well," James chuckled as he removed his horned golden helmet, so that he could put his eyepatch on properly. Once it was fixed in place, he put his helmet on once more then looked at Surtr with a smile.
"Today is a day that will go down in history," James declared, his voice resounding through the entire world. Even those that were hiding in the Tower of Babylon were able to hear his words that were filled with confidence.
"Today is the day that will be talked about for generations to come. A day of shattered swords, and s.h.i.+elds, as the champions of the world fought side by side to protect everything they held sacred."
The All Father then raised his spear, Gungnir, making it s.h.i.+ne brightly.
"To those who bear weapons in order to protect this world. To those whose hearts bleed, but still continue to fight, to those who are injured but refuse to yield, to all of you who want to fight until the bitter end, by my name as the All Father, Odin, I hereby grant all of you the Power of Asgard!"
A bright light erupted from the tip of Gungnir and descended upon all the warriors of the Alliance, healing all of their injuries, and allowing them to stand once more and fight a battle that they thought was already lost.
"Raise the colors!" Odin ordered, and the countless Valkyries raised their banners high into the air, showing off the insignia of Valhalla.
Helen, whom William called Aunt Helen in the past, Hovered above Odin carrying the All Father"s personal insignia of the two ravens with their wings spread outward, ready for flight.
"Prepare to fight!" Odin shouted. "For Asgard and the Nine Realms!"
All the warriors that were on the ground, and were still on the rainbow bridges all took a fighting stance.
Odin then held Sleipnir"s reins firmly as the eight-legged horse raised its front hooves in preparation to charge.
He had waited for this day to arrive, and this time, there was no prophecy that declared that he would meet his end on the battlefield
There was no prophecy that would save the Army of Destruction from his wrath.
"For Asgard!" James roared as Sleipnir charged forward, alongside the Valkyries who were riding their winged horses.
"""For Asgard!"""
All the Valkyries shouted alongside the All Father as they flew by his side, carrying the banners of their world that had long been destroyed.
"""For Asgard!"""
The Einherjars, who were the strongest warriors of the Nine Realms surged forth like a tide.
Their war cries made the blood of the Alliance boil as they too, charged alongside these mighty warriors that had come from the different worlds in the multiverse to answer the All Father"s call.
An intense silver radiance erupted from William"s body as he charged towards Surtr with a vengeance.
Just as James had said, he would fight the one he wanted to fight, and leave the rest to him. Earlier, he had been afraid that if he used up his G.o.dslaying powers against Ahriman, he would no longer have the ability to contend against Surtr.
Now that this was no longer a problem, he decided to throw caution into the wind, and single out the most dangerous factor in this war for the safety of Hestia.
Holding the silver spear in his hand, the Half-Elf turned into a lightning bolt and streaked towards the G.o.d of Destruction, whose right hand now held the hilt of his sword.
"For Asgard!" William roared as he, James, the Valkyries, the Einherjars, and the warriors of the Alliance clashed with the Army of Destruction, making the entire battlefield tremble in their wake.
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