Episode 38/Chapter 3: Ratatoskr (3)
TL: Tsubak
ED: Julsmul
Ratatoskr ran on top of Yggdrasil with booming sounds.
If Nidhogg was a dragon and Hraesvelgr was an eagle, then Ratatoskr was a squirrel.
But, just as the dragon and eagle weren’t normal, Ratatoskr also wasn’t the average squirrel either.
Beast Ratatoskr.
The only existence that could freely move in the World Tree.
The squirrel, that had ash-colored fur, was bigger than normal dragons. It was tens of meters long from its tail to its head.
In addition, it wasn’t only big. It’s leathery hide, which was laced in black lines, was hard as steel, and its fur was as sharp as a blade.
The root Nidhogg was living in was in a really deep place. The lake of Mimir was connected to one of the roots too, but they couldn’t be viewed as being the same. If the root Nidhogg lived was the 100th floor, then the lake of Mimir was at the 10th.
Ratatoskr pa.s.sed the lake of Mimir and went down to a deeper place. It ran while pa.s.sing the dense fog.
Ratatoskr looked different from normal squirrels, its size aside. It had a long tail that rivaled its body in length and had four legs, but its head and other body parts looked really heinous.
There were sharp stones surging up from its fur. If the stiff fur was like a blade, then the rocks could be compared to huge axes.
But the most peculiar part was its head.
Big, white teeth that could turn hard boulders into dust in an instant were sprouting out. There was a horn erupting from the inside of its nose and two more flanking its head. The one that was in its nose was like that of a rhinoceros, and the ones at the sides of its head were centered so that they made a circle.
It wasn’t that weird up to this point because horns were something that common beasts also had.
The thing that made its head truly gastly was that there was the upper body of a woman melded into its forehead.
The lower body of the woman was the head of the beast, just like a centaur, and the upper body of a human.
The woman had violet skin and had hair composed of hundreds of thin, elongated snakes.
Her eyes held no scleras and were completely black, and the tongue of a snake darted out from her mouth.
Just from looking at its shape, one could say that it was rather beautiful, but the feeling it gave was heinous and atrocious, so it also made one feel fear.
Ratatoskr hummed and ran. It’s claws left new wounds in the World Tree.
The fog grew denser. Human presence disappeared completely, and nothing was heard aside from the steps of Ratatoskr.
And it finally stopped. It wasn’t because it had reached its objective. There was a bit more to go, but it stopped anyways.
The boundary between the root Nidhogg lived in and the one above that lay before it.
The last line that couldn’t be crossed if one didn’t have permission, so it wouldn’t be able to be crossed until Nidhogg’s eventual demise.
How would it bother Nidhogg today?
He thought of several methods in an instant. Among them, there was a fresh curse Hraesvelg had made.
But Ratatoskr shook his head. It was because it wanted to go by the traditional way.
“Shall I go then?”
Let’s bully Nidhogg.
Let’s keep berating the poor dragon that was stuck in the roots and make it resent the world. Let’s dye its white heart with black emotions.
More than a thousand years had pa.s.sed, but the squirrel didn’t grow tired of it. It was rather fun for it.
Because Nidhogg only had Ratatoskr, but it wasn’t the same for Ratatoskr.
It wasn’t talking about Hraesvelgr. Ratatoskr could come and go from the top of the World Tree to the roots however much it wanted, and so hara.s.sing Nidhogg was only one of the tasks it had to do.
It was something that brought it joy whenever it was recalled in its memory, so there was no way it would grow tired from doing it.
Ratatoskr giggled and then crossed the line as its determination grew.
It clenched the World Tree with its claws and pushed itself upside down.
Ratatoskr didn’t call for Nidhogg. It was because, even by walking silently like this, that big and fool-like dragon extended its head like a chick waiting for food and waited for it.
And it wasn’t different today. It had merely went down a hundred meters after crossing the line, but the black dragon extended its head beyond the dense fog and poisonous fog.
“Ratatoskr!”
Nidhogg said. It was Nidhogg that always smiled brightly when starting the conversation but always ended up crying.
Ratatoskr laughed. It was because it was glad to see that the heinous dragon that was 2 kilometers long looked at itself and speak with an anxious voice.
Nidhogg grabbed the World Tree with two of its arms as if it wanted to get closer and pushed its body closer. The scene was overwhelming as it was no different from a mountain scrambling closer, but Ratatoskr didn’t mind it much. There was plenty of distance between the two of them.
Ratatoskr stopped in place and started to speak with light curses. It was only saying that Nidhogg was stupid and only big and acted as a kid, but this much was enough for Nidhogg as it wouldn’t be able to understand hard curses either way.
And Nidhogg started to sob as it had effect.
“Too much, you are too much! Why are you always like this?”
As the distance between the two of them was still great, they conversed through magic rather than with their voices.
Ratatoskr laughed once more. It was because the sobs of the dragon were still heard as a roar, and it was too laughable.
“That is because you are a r.e.t.a.r.d that doesn’t have friends, family, or anything!”
Nidhogg’s big body flinched. Nidhogg said in a dispirited voice again,
“But you are my friend.”
“I’m not. Why would I befriend trash like you?”
As Ratatoskr spoke in a cold voice, Nidhogg flinched once again. Then, Ratatoskr slightly pulled back, as it knew that this was the perfect moment to give additional wounds.
“For trash like you to call me a friend, I will have to leave as you have worsened my mood.”
“Do-Don’t go!”
Nidhogg knocked its head on the floor and begged. Ratatoskr smirked at that and then looked down at Nidhogg’s face.
“Fine. Then copy what I say. If you do, I will stay for a bit longer.”
“Ye-Yeah.”
“Nidhogg is trash that is only big, doesn’t have any friends, and has a r.e.t.a.r.ded head and doesn’t have any right to live. Having been born is a sin of itself.”
Nidhogg opened its mouth but couldn’t say anything. Ratatoskr laughed once again.
“Why, you can’t? I will leave then.”
Ratatoskr really turned around and then Nidhogg yelled hurriedly.
“I….I will do it!”
Ratatoskr slightly turned its head and looked down at Nidhogg. Nidhogg sobbed and opened its mouth.
“Ni-Nidhogg is a big…..r.e.t.a.r.d…..stupid…….”
“I can’t hear you well.”
“Trash. Doesn’t have rights to live. Having been born is…… a sin……”
Nidhogg’s voice became lower and lower, and Ratatoskr’s smile became denser in kind.
“I-I’m done. You will stay a bit more, right?”
Nidhogg forced a smile and said. This was the moment Ratatoskr hoped for the most.
“r.e.t.a.r.d! You really do it because I tell you to do so? I’m leaving!”
Ratatoskr laughed and turned around. He still hadn’t transmitted the fouls words Hraesvelg had requested be pa.s.sed to Nidhogg and also couldn’t make the dragon spit curses to transmit it to Hraesvelgr, but it could do all this later.
Leaving like this today would be the most effective.
Ahh, what kind of expression would Nidhogg make now that it was left alone? How much would it cry?
Just imagining it was fun, and because of that, Ratatoskr didn’t leave Yggdrasil immediately. It pretended to hesitate a moment so that Nidhogg’s hopeful att.i.tude would rise again so he could crush it once more.
And it was at that moment-
Nidhogg pushed its body forward, and Ratatoskr laughed once again at that big movement.
“What are you going to do? You can’t even fly because of how big you are!”
Ratatoskr turned around to hara.s.s Nidhogg. It even got a bit lower as if egging it on.
Just like Odin had predicted after listening to Nidhogg’s words.
‘Go.’
Cuchulainn said. At that command, Nidhogg’s big body, precisely speaking, its big head, split in two.
The thing that surged up was Nidhogg. It’s size, merely 1/20 of its original body, was still a huge, black dragon, and it fluttered its four pair of wings and flew up.
Ratatoskr was stunned at the sudden emergence and tried to turn around, but it couldn’t do so. All four of its legs were tied up to the World Tree and didn’t move.
It was the effect of the rune magic Odin had engraved. As he had installed it in a hurry, it wasn’t able to tie down a beast like Ratatoskr for a long time, but it didn’t matter too much. It was enough if it was able to tie the rude squirrel down even for a few seconds.
Nidhogg fluttered its wings once again as Ratatoskr broke the rune magic, but when it turned around, another magic was activated.
Odin hadn’t installed only one rune magic. He had inscribed a line of them along the path he’d guessed that Ratatoskr would approach and leave the border Nidhogg wasn’t able to cross.
Ratatoskr’s movements stopped again, and Nidhogg flew. The distance between the two grew closer by every pa.s.sing second.
Finally, Nidhogg’s teeth reached Ratatoskr. It bit its tail.
The first plan Odin had come up with was that Nidhogg would drag down Ratatoskr, but Tae Ho’s plan was different. Tae Ho, who was riding on Nidhogg’s forehead, looked at a place beyond Ratatoskr. He looked at the line that Nidhogg couldn’t cross and ordered,
“Fly up!”
Nidhogg fluttered its wings with more strength and charged while still biting Ratatoskr’s tail.
Odin had said that it was impossible to cross the line with all of Nidhogg’s body.
To cross it, one needed Ratatoskr, the only existence that was allowed to do so.
To fly while biting Ratatoskr one needed overwhelming strength and also speed that could cross that line in an instant.
Ratatoskr shook its body as if struggling. It tried to delay Nidhogg’s speed by a little bit.
Nidhogg felt it to be difficult. It felt that it would be impossible to cross the line like this.
But it didn’t stop its wings.
It wasn’t because of the desire that it wanted to cross the line and get out.
Nidhogg wasn’t alone. There was someone granting it strength.
[Odin’s Valkyrie]
Odin had given Nidhogg a t.i.tle of Valkyrie.
The process was a mess as there wasn’t even a ceremony, but it was enough.
Because the minimum requirements were caught.
It now needed a new strength to be added!
[Saga: The Warrior that Rides on Valkyries]
[Saga: The One that Controls Dragons]
[Saga: The Charge of a Warrior is like a Storm]
Tae Ho’s sagas granted further strength to Nidhogg. It enabled Nidhogg, who didn’t have much experience in flying, to be able to draw a perfect trajectory.
Nidhogg raised its head and pushed Ratatoskr in the boundary line. It used Ratatoskr as a shield and pa.s.sed through the invisible barrier!
A sound that was breaking was heard, and Ratatoskr cried out.
Nidhogg’s strength was spent as she pa.s.sed through the barrier, but she still summoned more to fly up again. It stuck its claws onto Yggdrasil and hung on to it desperately.
Nidhogg couldn’t do anything anymore. It didn’t even have the strength to move now. It couldn’t even be happy about the fact that it had crossed the line because of its exhaustion.
Ratatoskr breathed roughly. It couldn’t get out from Nidhogg’s grasp; however, it could push it back below the line.
But its plan was thwarted. It wasn’t because of Odin’s rune magic. Obviously enough, Odin’s rune magic didn’t exist outside the boundary line.
Another one.
A third person besides Nidhogg and Odin.
Cuchulainn didn’t make any advices. Tae Ho surged up by kicking Nidhogg’s forehead and charged towards Ratatoskr.
“Who are you! Who the h.e.l.l are you!”
Ratatoskr got angry and asked, but Tae Ho gripped the air instead of answering immediately. He gripped the Hammer of Clash, one of the weapons Merlin had made to face the giants.
“I’m Nidhogg’s friend.”
“What?”
Ratatoskr blinked at the late reply, and at that moment, Tae Ho swung his hammer. It clashed against Ratatoskr’s head, and a crisp, violent explosion rang out like a thunderclap.
< Episode 38 – Ratatoskr (3) > End
TL note: Thanks for reading~
Episode 38/Chapter 4: Ratatoskr (4)
TL: Tsubak
ED: Julsmul
Ratatoskr couldn’t understand the current situation.
It did understand that Nidhogg had gotten smaller, for an ancient dragon was an existence far removed from its normal brethren.
Actually, it didn’t make sense that it’d maintained a huge body of 2 kilometers in the first place. The reason Nidhogg was able to survive, even when it had that big body, was because Nidhogg’s ‘original’ body was a kind of magic- a magical armor.
The ancient dragon was an existence like a G.o.d just as Odin had thought.
Because of that, one could say that the shape of a woman with long black hair was Nidhogg’s real body.
The shape of the black dragon was only a magical armor Nidhogg was wearing, so it could change it whenever it wanted.
It could wear a smaller armor instead.
It was doubtful how a stupid girl like Nidhogg could come up with that, but it was possible.
But what happened after that was out of Ratatoskr’s comprehension.
Nidhogg had crossed the line. A dragon that hadn’t been able to fly properly because of its big body suddenly drew a perfect trajectory as if it had become a master in flying.
The several rune magics that were engraved in Yggdrasil also filled the squirrel with confusion. The ancient dragon, Nidhogg, could use mystical magic as naturally as breathing, but it could only spit some fire or wind. It was a fool that had power but didn’t know how to use it.
Rune magic was a really developed magic. From whom did Nidhogg learn it when it had only met Ratatoskr?
The focus point of the things it couldn’t understand was the human that’d surged up from atop Nidhogg’s forehead.
Who was that human?
How could someone besides Nidhogg be on the roots!
Bang!
A loud sound erupted once again. Ratatoskr, that had its head bent back because it’d been hit by Tae Ho’s hammer, was. .h.i.t once again in its right cheek.
Blood and teeth spurted through the air.
Ratatoskr screamed.
“Die!”
An evil aura burst out like an explosion. But it didn’t end there, and the several vipers that were on its head instead of fire flew towards Tae Ho.
Tae Ho acted calmly. The moment he hit Ratatoskr’s cheek, he put back the Hammer of Clash and instead grabbed Caliburn. He blocked the evil aura with Camelot’s glory and entrusted his body to the shock. He got pushed behind naturally and then swung his sword.
Chkat!
He split the head of the vipers alongside a sharp sound. Ratatoskr screamed once again, and Tae Ho kicked the air. He jumped as if spinning and then swung his sword once more. The Wind Split performed by Caliburn slashed the vipers in one go.
Ratatoskr bent back. It retrieved the vipers and opened its mouth widely towards Tae Ho.
The cry of a snake erupted from its throat, and at that moment, purple poison that seemed like it could melt even gold in an instant was fired towards Tae Ho.
It was an attack that Tae Ho couldn’t dodge easily as he could jump in the air but not fly freely. Compared to Nidhogg, Ratatoskr had a little battle experience and spread its poison widely on purpose, so it became hard for Tae Ho to dodge.
But Tae Ho acted calm this time too. He kicked the air once more and then incorporated Scathach’s techniques to Kalsted’s swordsmanship.
Wind Split.
A curtain of wind arose by following the trajectory of the sword. It didn’t only stop Ratatoskr’s poison, it led them away with the wind, and it rather poured down at Ratatoskr.
“Kyaaak!”
Ratatoskr screamed in pain and anger when the poison touched its skin. It did have resistance towards poison, but it couldn’t do anything about its skin melting and the pain it brought.
Tae Ho stepped back instead of charging and summoned the fake Heda. The fake Heda that appeared below him donned the Flying Horse Wing Coat in an instant and transformed into a white horse.
“Let’s go.”
Tae Ho said. The fake Heda became Tae Ho’s wings. She flew at an overwhelming speed and charged towards Ratatoskr.
Ratatoskr looked at Tae Ho and the fake Heda even while screaming. It cursed out and unleashed its aura once again.
Petrifying evil eyes.
It was the strong power of a curse that contained Ratatoskr’s eyes, but Tae Ho didn’t budge even a little. It was because the moment its evil eyes activated, Odin’s rune magic, that was engraved in Tae Ho’s body, activated at the same time.
Odin was someone that took preparations.
He didn’t only wait the past nine days. He had prepared several runes in case Tae Ho returned victorious.
The curse of the evil eyes clashed with the protection rune. A loud sound as gla.s.s breaking was heard.
Tae Ho charged at that moment and swung Caliburn towards Ratatoskr’s exposed waist.
“Kuagh!”
Ratatoskr’s body was at least 50 meters big, but the wound left behind by Caliburn wasn’t shallow at all. The sacred power behind Camelot’s glory burned down Ratatoskr’s aura, and violet blood surged up like a fountain.
“Nidhogg! Nidhogg! Save me!”
Ratatoskr looked down at Nidhogg that was biting its tail and screamed.
Tae Ho, who was taking a turn in the air with the fake Heda, felt absurd at Ratatoskr’s shamelessness, but it didn’t stop.
“Save me! Save me! We are friends!”
Niddhogg reacted at the yell that was close to being a sort of abuse. Precisely speaking, it flinched at the last word.
The strength in Nidhogg’s jaw grew weaker. It was unavoidable. Ratatoskr was the only one for Nidhogg for a thousand years. No matter if it was good or evil, it was still the only one for it.
But that Ratatoskr was begging it to save it. Was yelling that it was its friend.
Nidhogg felt like crying. It was an emotion that was hard to explain. She disliked the Ratatoskr that only said bad words, but her heart beat at the single word of friend.
Nidhogg opened its mouth and in the end let go of Ratatoskr.
“Stupid b.i.t.c.h!”
Ratatoskr yelled its tail and hit Nidhogg’s head. It seemed like it was planning to push down Nidhogg below the line and escape.
“Nidhogg!”
Tae Ho yelled hurriedly.
Nidhogg stumbled after being hit by Ratatoskr. As it was barely hanging, it couldn’t endure it anymore with its own strength.
“Right, with its own strength.”
A strong gravity magic covered Nidhogg’s body and stuck her to Yggdrasil. It was done by Odin that was inside of Nidhogg.
Ratatoskr couldn’t believe its eyes, and Tae Ho didn’t leave it alone anymore.
He charged towards Ratatoskr with the fake Heda like a meteor. When Ratatoskr raised its head, it was too late.
Tae Ho’s sword split Ratatoskr’s head. It fell down instead of the snakes and screamed,
“Ratatoskr!”
Nidhogg yelled in surprise, but it was different for Tae Ho. It hadn’t died yet, although that didn’t mean that it was immortal and could live even if its head got cut off.
‘It’s real body is a squirrel.’
It was just like Cuchulainn had said. The body of a woman that surged up from its forehead was merely a part of its body. But it didn’t mean that it was its essence.
If one used bugs as an example, it was like an antennae.
Tae Ho checked the neck of Ratatoskr with the snakes at the same time and then looked at the head that was below the waist of the human form -Ratatoskr’s real body.
“Tch!”
Ratatoskr had pretended to play dead to try to escape, but it hadn’t worked. It turned its body around, but Tae Ho was a bit faster.
The flashbangs Tae Ho threw like shurikens exploded right in front of Ratatoskr, and at that moment, it yelled in fear as its vision was robbed.
Tae Ho pulled out Caladbolg instead of Caliburn. He jumped down from the back of the fake Heda and landed on Ratatoskr’s forehead -precisely speaking, on the organ that was shaped like a woman at the part he’d severed.
Although its head had been cut, it was still connected to Ratatoskr.
In addition, it was easier to inflict wounds on it as it didn’t have fur or thick, leathery skin covering this part.
Tae Ho slipped off while following the back of the human-shaped form and stabbed Caladbolg into the flesh that connected Ratatoskr and the human. New pain shook Ratatoskr’s head and it struggled, but it wasn’t enough. Tae Ho pushed the blade even deeper and then released lightning.
A soundless thunder swallowed the squirrel’s impending scream.
Ratatoskr couldn’t let out a sound, and because of that, Tae Ho expelled lightning once again.
“Kuaagh!”
Ratatoskr couldn’t endure it anymore. Hanging onto Yggdrasil was also proving to be hard.
“Save me! Save me! I will do whatever you ask me!”
Ratatoskr begged while bowing its head in an inclination. Tae Ho didn’t believe its words one bit but still nodded. This was because he had a method to make it submit whether its words were real or not.
“It’s my turn.”
The one that appeared through a hole in Nidhogg’s forehead was Odin.
“Hik?! Odin?! Weren’t you bitten by the World Wolf and killed?!”
Ratatoskr looked at Odin and spoke with a high-pitched voice.
‘Is that indeed the case?’
Cuchulainn exclaimed with a low voice. It had been ten days since he’d gotten caught in the roots with Tae Ho, so it was understandable that those rumors would have circulated. There was a high probability that everyone in Asgard now believed that the two of them were dead.
Tae Ho frowned. He had crossed the line, but he still couldn’t connect with Idun even if he used ‘Idun’s Warrior’, maybe because he was still near that line.
‘Let’s calm down.’
Tae Ho soothed himself with some slow, deep breaths. Now that he had suppressed Ratatoskr, he had to listen to the situation from it.
Odin said to Ratatoskr,
“I will now engrave runes of obedience in you. Don’t resist and take it.”
It was a rune meant to suppress the adversary and make them obey, just like the name implied.
The one that had the runes engraved within them couldn’t disobey the order of the one that had placed them there, and if they did, they would suffer a terrible pain and inevitably die. It was magic no different than a curse.
In addition, the one using this rune magic was none other than the King of G.o.ds and G.o.d of Magic, Odin. Ratatoskr felt terrible, but he couldn’t do anything.
Odin began to engrave the runes of obedience one by one. Eventually, they numbered nine in total, and each of them possessed tremendous magic power.
Ratatoskr completely erased its thoughts about resisting or escaping. It had no other means than living as Odin’s slave forever.
Nidhogg looked at that Ratatoskr with depressed eyes.
And after a few minutes pa.s.sed-
Odin finished engraving all of the runes and stood up. He then gave Ratatoskr its first order.
“Ratatoskr, tell me all that’s happened during the past 12 days. What’s happened outside of the root?”
Ratatoskr rolled its big eyes before beginning to speak with a sigh.
< Episode 38 – Ratatoskr (4) > End
TL note: Thanks for reading~