On the Brink

Within the village encircled by the barrier, a blonde girl, who looked only fourteen or fifteen years old, climbed over layer upon layer of mountains, carrying a basket on her back, slowly making her way up to a higher peak.

It's hard to imagine a fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl wearing a dress doing free solo climbing, and even harder to imagine that she actually made it to the top of the mountain. The girl took a deep breath, then put down the basket on her back, knelt on the snow, clasped her hands together, and began to pray.

The people here still think in the past, in the age of gods. For them, offering sacrifices to the gods is a perfectly normal thing. What they don't know is that the gods who could answer their prayers have basically disappeared.

After an unknown amount of time, the girl's hands and feet were frozen stiff; at this altitude, it was difficult to maintain a proper temperature.

A piercing sound came from the sky, and a golden light streaked across the heavens. The girl struggled to open her eyes; her eyelashes were already covered in frost.

The golden light darted and darted like a nimble fish in the sea, moving with incredible speed. The girl thought her prayers had worked, and a hopeful smile appeared on her pale face.

But soon, the light disappeared into the clouds, leaving nothing but the ever-changing cloud cover.

"How could this happen? Was I not devout enough?"

She looked at the rather meager offerings in the basket—just some simple food and a small jar of honey. Somewhat dejected, she packed up the items and prepared to go down the mountain, but her current physical condition was clearly unsuitable for the descent.

A sharp pain shot through her frozen calves, and she felt as if the rocks had sprouted wings and were flying towards her.

There was no scream of terror; she simply closed her eyes slowly and murmured, "God... I am willing to offer myself again."

In a flash, she felt herself being caught. Looking up, she saw a golden light; it was a magnificent horse.

What the girl had just seen was Ortlinde training. She was testing how well she could control her speed, explosiveness, and turning when working with Gullfaxi. Ortlinde was so focused that she would hardly have noticed such a small figure if she hadn't heard Gullfaxi's message.

"Are you from the village down there? Why are you in a place like this?"

"You, you are a divine messenger, right? The legendary Valkyrie, I never thought I would see her so close." The girl who was put down was very excited. She had been listening to the stories of the Northern Europe gods, and now she finally saw the legendary beings.

Ortlinde was somewhat stunned upon hearing the girl's words. She looked at herself, at the Divine Iron Shield and the Pseudo-God's Declaration, as well as the Pegasus that Bai Mo had mentioned earlier as standard equipment for Valkyrie.

Although this horse is a bit too expensive, no matter how you look at it, I am a Valkyrie.

Ortlinde touched her shield in a daze. Having lost her memory and her weapon, and being stranded alone, she felt deep down that she had lost her identity as Valkyrie.

But looking back now, she may be better than any Valkyrie.

Gullfaxi nudged his somewhat dazed master, Ortlinde snapped out of her daze.

"Although I'm not one of those legendary, outstanding sisters, I am indeed a Valkyrie. However, you're not old enough to be a warrior yet; I'll send you back."

Regardless, Valkyrie's loss of her gun and shield was a clear dereliction of duty, and she still harbored resentment. But looking at the girl's shining eyes, Ortlinde really couldn't bear to shatter the girl's beautiful fantasy.

"Um... I'm here to offer a sacrifice."

Only then did Ortlinde notice the basket on the girl's back, which contained some ordinary things. In the Northern Europe pantheon, even simple food or familiar objects could be offered as sacrifices to the gods.

Of course, such a ceremony wouldn't be very extravagant; climbing to the top of a mountain like this usually wouldn't involve using such things as offerings.

"I'm sorry, all I can prepare is..."

"It's nothing. If you encounter any difficulties, you can tell me directly. You should keep these for yourself."

These things could very well be the girl's food for the day.

"Thank you, you are such a kind Valkyrie. My name is Gerda, and I am here because of my family..."

Some time later, Ortlinde looked at the man lying on the bed; his leg bone was broken. As the main breadwinner of the family, this had a significant impact.

Upon seeing such injuries, Ortlinde's first reaction was to look at Gullfaxi. She remembered the Cellular Regeneration ability that Bai Mo had once used.

However, Gullfaxi returned her a cold look.

"I'm just a horse, don't expect too much." Ortlinde deduced this from his eyes.

"It's alright, I can handle this level with my Runes."

Ortlinde activated the Primal Runes and used a single hair from Gullfaxi to reattach his bones. After completing this, she breathed a deep sigh of relief.

The man happily stretched his legs, expressed his gratitude to Ortlinde, and then ran off joyfully.

"Well, it's best to let your injury heal for a while."

Ortlinde, watching the man moving with incredible speed below from the attic, couldn't help but chuckle. Gerda, observing the Valkyrie's demeanor, said with a mixture of curiosity and delight:

"Valkyrie, thank you so much! We offered sacrifices many times before, but there was no response, neither to Lord Tyr nor Lord Forseti. Fortunately, I received a response this time."

Looking at Gerda's clear smile, Ortlinde felt a pang of unease. What could she say? Stop the sacrifices! The only Skadi is already doing her best just to maintain the order. Your sacrifices will be completely in vain.

The Æsir have perished.

As Valkyrie, she found it difficult to say such things, but the thought that these people might sacrifice their meager rations, or even die on the mountain like Gerda, sent a jolt through Ortlinde heart.

Oh well, I've already lost my right to be Valkyrie anyway.

"Stop the sacrifices."

"Huh?"

Gerda was somewhat confused, but Ortlinde's tone was very firm.

"Stop offering sacrifices; it won't get you anywhere. Just try to live your own life. They... are gone."

Just as she finished speaking, a commotion arose outside the door. Many people grabbed baskets and ran outside. Clearly, that guy had told everyone about his miraculous encounter.

Clearly, he wasn't the only one who needed a miracle. He wasn't the only one who had made sacrifices, and Gerda seemed to be the only one who had succeeded. So, everyone headed towards the mountain Gerda had climbed, eager to emulate her.

"How can there be so many? Is it a curse?"

Ortlinde immediately stood up. This density was beyond normal. Just as she was about to go and report, a gentle breeze blew in. It was a very distinct wind, as if it had a life of its own, entering every household.

Those who have experienced this wind all feel that their illness has gone away.

Knock knock, a familiar voice came from the other side of the door.

Bai Mo brought Ophelia to the outside of the house. Upon seeing this, Ortlinde breathed a sigh of relief, said to the girl beside her, "I'm leaving," and then disappeared.

"Is it a curse? This level of power far exceeds what's normal."

"No, the main reason is malnutrition; this place is too small."

Upon hearing Bai Mo's explanation, Ortlinde paused, unsure whether to breathe a sigh of relief or feel sad. Even though Valkyrie was located atop a high mountain, and even though Skadi's palace was entirely in a snowy plain, such a small place was still not enough for thousands of people.

"So we have to solve the problems outside, otherwise, no matter what, there's no future here."

Bai Mo looked at the villages, and even for a goddess like Skadi, maintaining this level of protection for so many years was already a struggle. Yet, even so, Skadi could only save the lives of a mere few thousand people.

For a god, this is already incredible. She has limits, and she's not far from them. Therefore, Bai Mo needs to resolve the Lostbelt troubles as quickly as possible, seizing every opportunity for progress.