Chapter 290 A New Goal
"So, you're telling us that you are not from Vanaheim?"
"Yes, finally, thank you."
The frustration that escaped from Van's mouth echoed throughout the unusually spacious interior of the room he was currently in. Although seeing as Van seemed smaller than everything else, perhaps it would be better to say that he was the unusual one, as his feet could not even touch the floor from where he was sitting.
"Then my initial assessment was right, you are a dwarf? I believe it isn't until the Branch passes through our realm that we needed to pay up."
Van was currently talking with the blue-skinned giant that suddenly showed up in the hamlet. Along with Chief Oleif, the three were currently discussing Van's true identity. Van had already told them his story, about being swallowed up by an endlessly growing ball of light.
He even told them the story about the Seraphs and Olympians, the Portals, the System Holders; the only thing he hasn't told them was the fact of him being a fledgling god. And yet, the only response he got from them was that he had a pretty vivid imagination.
And now, they once again asked him where he was from, pretty much going back to how their conversation started.
He was tempted to see what their reaction would be if he told them that he was born from a god, but that might lead to some dangerous situations, as these people seemed to have been... rather oppressed by these race called a dwarf.
"I am not a dwarf."
"Then what are you then?"
"I am a human, I have been telling you so many times."
"Okay, we will humor you," the blue-skinned female giant called Lorei crossed her arms as she looked Van straight in the eyes, "Let us say you really are human, then that would mean you are already... dead. So, in the end, you really are a High Human."
"You keep telling me I am a high human when I don't even know what that is," Van could only groan as his frustration returned.
"...Are you serious?" Both Chief Oleif and Lorei looked at each other in disbelief, "How come you don't know something like that?"
"I already told you I am not from around here!"
"Fine, fine. No need to get agitated," Lorei shook her head as she let out a sigh, "It is not uncommon for a human to lose parts of his memories after stepping into Valhalla."
Once again, there was a word that Van was unfamiliar with.
"Once a human, whose deeds far exceeded anything that he should have been able to achieve in his short life, dies, then he is taken to Valhalla to be a High Human, to be one of the Vanir," this time, it was Chief Oleif who answered Van, "If you are indeed, a human, then you are not anymore because of the simple fact that you are not in your realm. You must have fallen in an epic battle back in Midgard. Perhaps you might have even been a King?"
"...I was," Van furrowed his eyebrows.
"That settles it then!" Lorei then stood up from her seat as he tapped the table, "Come, lost High Human, I will escort you to the River so that your companions may take you."
"...River?"
"Goodness, you don't even know this? Your kind, as well as the Aesirs, can travel through the different realms using the River. Unlike us, who needs to wait for the Branch to pass by."
More and more, Van was starting to think that he was not actually inside a Portal or in the Olympians' universe. None of these were mentioned by Athena, and the only thing she told him was that their universe was dying.
If not for the 8 Fragmented worlds that littered the sky, then Van would have already thought that he was actually in an entirely different universe.
"..." But perhaps he is? Evangeline was embracing Hermes when he exploded... what's to say the power of the two did not merge? Allowing Evangeline to send all of them to a different universe... to save them?
Van quickly shook his head. Evangeline was strong, but in the end, she was only a copy of the Seraph Azrael. She couldn't have been capable of doing something like that. Van was trying extremely hard trying to hold on to the little bit of sanity he had left. If it wasn't for the hope of Artemis and the others still being alive, then Van might have probably already lost his mind and killed everyone here.
"Fine, take me to this River."
For now, the only thing that Van could do was go with the flow to gather as much information as he could. And so, with that thought, Van followed Lorei out of the chief's house.
There seemed to be a lot of people eavesdropping on their conversation because as soon as they stepped out of the house, he could feel the earth beneath him rumbling as the grey-skinned giants all scurried away.
"We don't see a lot of Vanirs visiting us here," Lorei could only let out a sigh as she gestured to Van to follow her, "You might be the first in a few branches. I don't know how you accidentally got here, but it's good that these people have something else to think of today."
"W--"
"Now get back to work, you fools!"
Before Van could even say anything, Lorei then stomped her foot, causing those who were hiding behind their houses to all jump out as they started pulling some carts, containing what seemed to be...
"!!!"
Van's eyes could not help but widen as he saw the contents of one of the carts, if he wasn't mistaken, then they were definitely Crystals. Van's eyes quickly lit up as he rushed towards the cart, grabbing one of the Crystals that abundantly filled it.
"This is a Gold Crystal…" Van muttered. He even placed it on his forehead, making it instantly disappear as he felt all of his fatigue go away as he absorbed it.
"Did… did I do something wrong!?" The ash giant that was pulling the cart could not help but back away as Van suddenly appeared on top of his cart. He wanted to complain about the Crystal that magically disappeared, but he couldn't just offend a High Human.
"Van!?" Lorei stabilized her breaths as she finally caught up to Van. The truth is, she wanted Van out of their realm as soon as possible. It was a nice honor and all, being visited by one of the higher beings, but their visits usually always end up in trouble.
And seeing as Lorei did not even notice or see Van moving, he wasn't just a simple High Human; he had powers well beyond their understanding.
"These Crystals, where did you get them?" Van queried as he leaped off of the cart, holding a Gold Crystal in his hand, "Are there any monsters nearby?"
"Monsters? No?" Lorei furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, "We usually get it from digging up the fields. And… please don't take anything more, we would get in trouble with the dwarves."
"You… dig up Crystals?" Van blinked a couple of times in disbelief, "What about the monsters? What do the monsters drop when you kill them?"
"...I do not get your question, Van. Am I supposed to say blood?"
That concludes it then, Van thought…
...He was in a completely different world.
"F… fuck," Van breathed as he dropped the Gold Crystal on the ground. Although that did not affect his current situation much, the fact that he was in a completely different universe unnerved him.
Artemis and the others could be anywhere… and right now, they were intruders. The Olympians may be able to fend for themselves, but what about the rest? What about Harvey and the others? What about Andrea?
He hadn't even been here for more than 24 hours, and yet he had already realized that this universe worked completely different from where he came from. What if Andrea was also mistaken as a dwarf and surrounded by one of the giant's tribes? She would have no way to defend herself.
Just how exactly did the glowing ball of light work? Will Artemis, Athena, Evangeline, Angela, and her sister be together since they were near each other? If it worked like that, then that would mean that Van was the farthest one of them all.
He vividly remembers running above the skies and not being able to breathe properly before he was swallowed by the light. It was most probably that he was the last person to be devoured by it.
If that was really the case… then he shouldn't have run away. He should have stayed at Artemis's side. What about their child? Did he just abandon his child?
"...No," Van turned his head upwards as the dreaded thoughts started to swarm him.
"V… Van? Are you alright?" Lorei could not help but stutter, almost wanting to bite her hair as her nerves started to get to her, "Did we do something to offend you?"
"..."
Lorei's nervousness grew even further as Van remained looking at the skies. He remained like this for a few minutes before finally letting out a long and deep sigh. This was not the time to be brooding. His friends were out there somewhere. Artemis and his child are also waiting for him…
"Let's go," he then quickly said as he looked Lorei straight in the eyes, "I want to see Vanaheim."
He must find them…
...no matter the cost.