Player Who Became A Constellation [EN]: Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Cancun took a deep breath and gripped her sword tighter.

Standing next to her, Loki’s eyes gleamed with interest.

‘Oh, she’s really got the stance down.’

She gritted her teeth.

She remembered.

The object of her revenge.

Kudan Ragnal.

‘Why… the betrayal…!’

Why did he, who had always treated her like his own daughter, kill her father, raid her village… and try to take her away…?

She needed to know the reason.

Then, something stirred within her chest.

As a strange energy spread throughout her body, her eyes lost focus and became clouded.

Her sword emitted a faint light and began to heat up.

-Swing it.

She raised her sword high into the sky.

-Just shout [Light Slash].

“Light-”

The sword shone even brighter, and golden radiance burst forth.

“-Slash.”

The surrounding air seemed to contract, then the golden energy expanded and exploded.

The unwavering trajectory of the sword was etched into the air, and the surrounding air explosively pushed outwards.

The slash that flew from the tip of the sword split the earth and raced forward.

Crushing the trees that blocked its path.

A moment of hesitation.

But Cancun could instinctively feel it.

‘It cuts through!’

The slash cleanly pierced through the trees, leaving scars even on the rocks behind them before disappearing.

Cancun’s eyes gradually began to regain their color.

And she paused.

It wasn’t as powerful as the slash Loki had unleashed earlier, but it still showed some force!

Cancun’s expression brightened, and she hopped up and down. Like an excited child, she turned her head.

“Did you see that!? I just did a slash…!”

At that moment, she felt a dizzying sensation.

As she staggered and fell, Loki snatched her by the scruff of her neck.

“Ugh….”

Cancun covered her mouth, and Loki looked satisfied.

“The item’s performance is certainly reliable. But it seems she can’t withstand the recoil?”

“M-My head is spinning.”

“It’s because your body is weak. Level up—, no, train.”

At Loki’s words, Cancun nodded. Even so, she tilted her head with a puzzled expression and looked up at Loki.

“What is it?”

“Th-This, this sword… are you giving it to me?”

Both when they first met and now, Loki showed no sign of wanting to take back the sword. Rather, he seemed to be avoiding it.

“No, I’m lending it to you.”

Lending. Nothing more, nothing less.

There was also a reason why Loki wasn’t taking back the sword.

‘Repulsion.’

Heimdall’s sword, Brutgang.

Additional damage and increased critical hit rate against Loki. Greatly amplifies all abilities of the user.

…It had such characteristics.

In other words, it was a weapon that could inflict critical damage on Loki.

Was that why?

Loki was feeling a strong aversion to Brutgang.

‘The fact that the game’s setting was based on Norse mythology must be one of the reasons.’

In Norse mythology, Loki and the light god Heimdall kill each other in battle.

Perhaps because of the world-view set in that way, in this reality that has become real, he naturally couldn’t help but feel aversion.

Loki pushed Brutgang away as if he were a vampire looking at garlic.

“Um… Loki-nim.”

At that moment, Loki turned his head.

The Nord tribe’s priest, a shaman, approached from the forest and bowed his head.

“We have a guest.”

A guest? Had another tribe attacked again?

As Loki stared at the shaman with a puzzled face, the shaman continued speaking with a troubled expression.

“Dwarves.”

“……?”

“A group of dwarves at the temple….”

***

The leader of the dwarf group, Ruran, swallowed hard and looked around.

He couldn’t take his eyes off the temple’s architecture he was standing in.

A high-soaring ceiling. But there were no pillars where the pillars supporting the ceiling should have been.

This was an architectural structure that could be said to have been designed through precise mathematical calculations.

In addition, the building itself was engraved with patterns and decorations that showed splendor and grandeur.

‘Amazing architectural technology!’

A design method that seemed to consider precise angles, proportions, and the center of gravity.

Ruran looked up at the ceiling and then at the being sitting on the throne before him.

A jet-black helmet.

A helmet with spiraling horns that looked like the skull of a mountain goat.

A being clad in jet-black armor, with a dark brown cloak made of animal fur draped over its shoulders.

This being was called the devil and the constellation of sin by the Nords.

He was looking down at him.

‘Is this the owner of the castle? Before that….’

The dwarf Ruran glanced to the side, sweating profusely.

He saw undead wearing armor and helmets.

As Ruran examined each piece of their equipment, he felt a shiver run down his spine.

‘What on earth is the equipment that the undead have! It’s a metal I’ve never seen before! And weapons that are incredibly well-forged!’

He was a dwarf born as a blacksmith. Moreover, Ruran was a representative figure among such dwarves.

He couldn’t help but be captivated by the new metal, as well as the architecture made with technology he had never seen before.

“Name.”

Ruran raised his head and looked up at Loki.

“I asked what your name is.”

Ruran swallowed hard and opened his mouth.

“R-Ruran. Ruran, son of Auson, I am.”

For a proud dwarf, kneeling and bowing his head, and using honorifics, was a very rare occurrence.

He would never use honorifics to anyone other than his chief or parents, but when faced with the person in front of him, he couldn’t help but use honorifics.

“What business brings you here?”

At Loki’s words, Ruran closed his mouth.

Ruran recalled what had happened a little while ago.

It was purely coincidental.

The dwarf group had moved to the sparsely populated northern frozen lands to escape the slave hunts in the southern continent.

There were also pillaging tribes called Nords in this place, but their numbers were smaller than in the southern continent, and above all, there were fewer cases of dwarves being hunted on a national scale.

Above all, the frozen lands were also famous for having many minerals.

For dwarves, there was no more suitable haven than this.

As the dwarf group passed through the forest, they heard the sound of hammering.

The crude sound naturally turned their attention, and they saw a village extensively building structures.

‘Tsk, tsk, what pathetic construction technology.’

It was extremely crude.

From the selection of materials to the construction technology.

They wouldn’t even be able to match the dirt under their fingernails compared to their own technology, let alone the technology of the southern continent.

‘They’ll be easily destroyed by monster attacks.’

With that thought, Ruran was about to pass by, laughing at the humans.

But even he couldn’t help but be amazed and shocked by what happened.

It was the temple.

They had discovered Loki’s Valhalla Palace.

The palace, made of unknown rocks and metals that did not exist in this world, exuded dignity and majesty in itself, as if the Nords were not praising it for no reason.

As he looked at its grandeur, he couldn’t help but move his feet.

The dwarf group entered Valhalla Palace in that way, met the shaman there, and were granted an audience with the owner of the palace.

“Oh, master of this great temple!”

Ruran recalled what had happened a little while ago and opened his trembling mouth.

It was a matter of pride for the dwarves, and it was also a word that would tarnish their honor if it became known to other dwarves.

But Ruran wanted to beg to the point of putting down that pride.

That was….

“I wish to learn the architectural techniques and methods of acquiring the materials to create this palace!”

He was asking for teachings from someone who wasn’t even a dwarf.

“Good.”

Ruran was startled and raised his head to look up at Loki.

“I permit it.”

To think he would grant permission so easily!

New architectural technology! New rock and metal materials!

If it were the usual Ruran, he would have scoffed at those words.

That’s because there was no race on this continent that would dare to talk about technology to the dwarves.

But it was different now.

Creations born from new and mysterious technologies were right before his eyes.

It wouldn’t be easy to acquire this technology. No, it would be impossible to acquire such unique technology anywhere else on the continent!

If he were to possess this technology, his name would be engraved in dwarf history for generations to come!

It was when Ruran was greatly rejoicing.

“But I want a price.”

Ruran and the dwarves paused in surprise and froze.

“Wh-What….”

Loki leaned his upper body slightly and looked down at Ruran.

“Labor.”

“…….”

“I will teach you how to make the rocks and metals that can create this palace.”

Loki tapped the armrest of the throne with his finger.

“In return, you will work for us.”

Valhalla Palace had a rock manufacturing plant and a metal refinery to create dungeons.

If they used that place, they could create structures that were not as good as Valhalla Palace, but were comparable to it.

But Loki had no intention of making such things himself.

The game [Ragnarok] had a high degree of freedom.

Originally, players were supposed to gather materials through grinding, manufacture rocks and metals, and build structures or castles.

‘…I hate tedious grinding.’

Loki, who was the developer, had no interest in grinding.

The dwarves who would automate that process had crawled in on their own, so he couldn’t just let this opportunity pass.

“A-Are you saying we should become slaves?”

“Not slaves, but laborers.”

“…….”

“I will provide you with a base to live in this place. I will provide warm shelter, food, and water, and protect you. In return, create what we desire.”

Ruran didn’t even have to think about it.

What he wanted was to escape the humans’ tiresome slave hunts. And to find a base where his clan could live safely.

But the devil in front of him would not only provide such a base for life, but also teach them technology!

“…O-Of course! We must do it. No! Please let us do it!”

He bowed his head and cried out earnestly.

“However, you must not tell this technology to others.”

“Of course! No, even if we told them, humans, elves, or other races would not be able to learn this great technology!”

“…….”

Well, since it was a technology created by the game’s system, they wouldn’t be able to follow it.

“Also, make weapons.”

There were many Nords distributed in this place.

So, they also had to have weapons to protect themselves.

At those words, Ruran became excited.

Weapons made of new metals and rocks?!

This was also a word that ignited the craftsmanship of the dwarves.

***

Time passed quickly after the dwarves began to stay.

And numerous buildings began to be built in front of Valhalla Palace.

Also, Valhalla Palace began to expand its power by accepting Nords who had fled from pillaging.

As the population increased, more workers and buildings were built.

The forest that had been overgrown with trees disappeared, and the city of ‘Valhalla’ was created.

The Nords, who had to find the shaman, the priest, every time they had a coming-of-age ceremony, had no choice but to come into contact with Valhalla.

And they couldn’t help but be fascinated by the ‘safe haven’ they were living in.

Also, by meeting the constellation of sin, they couldn’t help but feel fear and awe at the same time.

It was only natural since the constellation that the Nords worshiped had awakened.

Above all, the fact that the shaman, the spiritual pillar of the Nords, worshiped and followed him also played a part.

Since they had directly witnessed the mythological existence they had believed to be superstition, the embers of their forgotten faith could not help but be rekindled.

As the Nords gathered, the city gradually began to prosper, and a market street was also created through exchanges between tribes.

As he watched Valhalla gradually prosper and grow….

“…Amazing! Are these guys planning to create a country?”

“Y-Yes, brother. This is… the place where Kudan said the devil had descended…! But how could a forest that had nothing develop so much in just 6 months…!”

…Strangers had arrived.

Two strangers of unknown identity.

A gauntly handsome man in his 30s and a burly man who seemed to be guarding him.

The two collaborators of Kudan, who had started the rebellion, had come to Valhalla Palace.

“Now, shall we look for the girl named Cancun that Kudan mentioned?”