When Su Ming was searching for Gullveig amidst the chaos, the Queen of Warnerheim was hiding at the back of the battle line, peeking out from behind a large tree, gazing at 'Odin' in the distance.
She was somewhat anxious; the intelligence was clearly wrong. Odin had awakened, and this man was an enemy that even her father Frey and Surtur could not defeat.
She was definitely not a match for him; even just showing her head might get her pierced by Gungnir's strike.
Just like her father's fate back then.
She couldn't help but recall the events of those years...
It was a long, long time ago.
The young Odin came to their home, and her father hosted him with honey wine, while Frigga and she sat in front of the fireplace playing with the wooden dolls Odin had brought.
They were carved from branches fallen from the World Tree, not only lifelike but capable of simple movements by themselves. They loved dressing them in tiny armors, fashioned to look like Valkyries.
Yet, the exchange among the adults was not pleasant; Odin was there to deliver an ultimatum.
He gave Frey two choices, to either submit or face annihilation.
"Do you know, Odin, this means war," Frey said calmly, standing shoulder to shoulder with Odin, watching his two daughters play by the fireplace.
"Ha? War? We will reach a consensus, I'm sure..." Odin said, drinking leisurely.
"No, the Vanir Race will not bow down. We are equals to the Aesir Race, and you want to be the only king? That's wishful thinking."
Frey faced Odin and spoke resolutely.
He refused to submit, unwilling to let the Vanir Race become Asgard's granary and breeding tool.
An enraged Odin immediately slammed down the wine cup, the sound of the horn hitting the ground made Frigga and Gullveig look back, shivering as they watched Odin storm out the door.
"You stubborn fool, stupider than an old elf, our tribes will unite when I plant a spear in each of your heads, won't you agree then? Ha, answer me by dawn."
That very night, Frey quietly left his palace, Frigga chased after him, but Frey only told her to go back to sleep.
"You are just a clever child, and there are things in the world you know nothing about, as numerous as the stars in the sky. Go back, there will be no war."
He deceived Frigga into returning home, then went to the Flame World himself to find Surtur.
Surtur hated Odin and expressed his willingness to assist any enemy of Odin. He granted the Vanir Race more power with his flames, allowing them not only their natural wind and water attributes but also the use of fire and lava.
At dawn the next day, when the morning glow still lingered in the sky, Odin descended upon Warnerheim with Asgard's great army.
"I have arrived! Frey, what is your answer?!"
At this moment, Frey had also assembled the great army of Warnerheim, and each of their eyes burned with the flame.
"My answer? Let everything burn!"
Then the largest godly battle in history unfolded, with Frost Giants and Flame Giants all entering the fray. This battle lasted over millennia, with heavy casualties on both sides.
The Vanir Race alliance once held the advantage, even expanding the battlefield to Asgard.
But then Bor's spirit offered a hint to Odin.
Odin poked out his own eye, hung himself on the World Tree, discovered the Rune Runes, and awakened into the Rune King state.
After that, even with Frey and Surtur joining forces, no creature could stop Odin on the battlefield.
Frey was slain, his body beheaded by Odin and placed on a spear, while Surtur was sealed within a volcano, ending the story.
Odin invaded Warnerheim, took Frigga, and unilaterally declared 'peace.' Everything turned out as Frey had said— the Vanir Race became Asgard's laborers.
Because during the age of divine battles, Midgardians secretly rose to power, Odin originally intended to deal with Midgard but encountered extraordinary resistance from outside the timeline, with the Trinity Emperor of Mount Wei personally intervening, leaving Odin powerless.
The Emperor Vishanti is the Trinity of Holy Mother, Holy Son, and Holy Spirit. Humans adapted his existence into God's legend, and his might was unmatched.
Galactus once tried to devour Earth, and one of the Three Saints, Agamotto, personally confronted one of the Five Gods of Creation. Thinking Galactus was too weak, he transformed into a caterpillar and fought Galactus, instantly exploding him.
Odin was no match for Vishanti plus the Ancient One and the Time Gem, so he returned obediently to the Immortal Palace, contemplating the world's truths under the World Tree daily.
Gradually, the World Tree changed him; he became less belligerent and gained more rune wisdom, turning into a benevolent king, pausing his expansion and invasion.
He even showed immense goodwill, going to Earth to join humanity's hero organization, the 'Ancient Avengers Alliance,' helping Earth fend off cosmic threats as if he had become a different person.
Hence, there were legends about the gods of the Immortal Palace in Northern Europe's Midgard.
But for Gullveig, it was all too late; her father and sister were gone.
Gullveig became the 'Regent Queen' of Warnerheim. Strictly speaking, she was merely managing this Kingdom on behalf of Frigga, who was imprisoned in the Golden Palace.
But having the title was enough. Frigga knew the people of the Vanir Race were enslaved, yet she did nothing, and the people no longer recognized her.
Now that the World Tree was set ablaze and the time had come, Gullveig immediately agreed to the terms of her old ally Surtur, using Warnerheim itself as fuel in exchange for total destruction!
She had made up her mind, and the people of Warnerheim could no longer endure the exploitation and enslavement by Asgard, standing firmly behind her.
Even if Warnerheim became a sea of flames in the future, barren and desolate, she was determined to drag Asgard into destruction. The current prosperity and beauty of Asgard were earned by the sweat and blood of Warnerheim.
Surtur gave her some trump cards, beastly giant statues forged of Uru Metal, infused with fire's power, not a bit weaker than the Destroyers of the Celestial Palace.
And there were more than ten of these beasts, currently tunneling toward the Immortal Palace from deep underground. She only needed to wait a little longer, and Odin would surely be caught off guard.
In the years after Surtur's defeat, sealed in the volcano for millennia, he hadn't been idle; he had learned his lesson well and specifically crafted super weapons to counter the Rune King.
Not confident to match Odin, but delaying him was certainly feasible.
As long as Odin was held back, Gullveig would immediately use Surtur's flames to utterly destroy the World Tree, and everything would end.
However, just as Gullveig was waiting for the beasts to arrive, the rear of the Warnerheim army was suddenly attacked.
Some foul-smelling monsters suddenly appeared behind the front lines, crawling out from scarlet Magic Arrays, charging straight at the Vanir Race's army.
They were Demons.
Demons covered the mountains and plains, coming in various sizes. Their skin was blood-red, their tongues like poisonous snakes, wielding bloodstained weapons, madly laughing as they stormed the battlefield.
After slaying someone, they stuffed the body into their mouths, as if they had never eaten before.
Leading this army of millions of Demons was a line of women dressed in tattered gray cloth, their faces shriveled and corpse-like. They were highly skilled in martial arts, starving and insatiable, even capturing people to eat alive.
Their mouths could open like a crocodile's, crushing a person's head in one bite.
Gullveig covered her mouth and turned to the other side of the tree; she recognized them as Destruction Maidens.
They were once Bor's Valkyries, thirteen in total, famous for their valor and ruthless cruelty.
After a battle, Bor couldn't find them anywhere; when he finally did, they were in a cave devouring the corpses of foes and fallen comrades alike.
Bor looked at them, and they, with mouths full of flesh, looked back at Bor.
Enraged, Bor cursed them and exiled them to the edge of the Cosmos, where endless curses and the passage of time turned them into complete monsters.
From then on, Valkyries were also known as Valkyries, meaning 'corpse-devouring women,' an ominous title whose true meaning was forgotten by later generations.
Odin desperately sought to keep this history hidden, and his Valkyries were considered an honor, meant to guide the Heroic Spirits to Valhalla.
But Gullveig knew, and so did Frigga.
Frey and Bor were friends. When these mad women were still normal, they once followed Bor to visit Warnerheim, even holding and playing games with two girls.
Yet now, upon seeing familiar faces again, Gullveig's heart turned cold. They led the Demon Army and attacked Warnerheim's forces, indicating at least one Lord of Hell had joined the war.
Who summoned these Demons, Odin?
No, he detests any Alternate Dimension existence, let alone cooperating with a Demon King, which would be akin to seeking skin from a tiger.
The situation was dire now; Warnerheim's army was caught between the Demon Army and Asgard's forces, enduring a double onslaught, and continued resistance meant imminent collapse.
"Retreat! Retreat to the East!"
She immediately issued the order, and the Warnerheim army broke into smaller units, retreating while fighting in one direction.
But the fire-based weapons and abilities were completely ineffective against the Demons, and these creatures would even display expressions of enjoyment when struck with fire swords.
However, fortunately, they weren't specifically targeting Warnerheim; once the Vanir Race left the battlefield, they did not pursue but instead surged toward Asgard's defenses like a tide.
No matter who it was, they wanted to eat them, but perhaps Asgardians tasted better.
This attitude of slaying everything made Gullveig hesitant. This locust-like army would consume everything; if the Aesir Race perished, the next target would inevitably be the Vanir Race.
What she wanted was equality between the two races, to destroy all symbols of inequality, not for both races to become Demon fodder...