Chapter 783: 772

Title: Into Eljudnir

"So... did you all get that?" Nik inquired while Loki seemed to be in a deep thought.

"Er..." Janet still retained her form. Compact physique provided more heat, after all. "This dude said that Malekith... tore his soul to send a message. The message contained the route to this realm and a recipe?"

"A sacrificial recipe... no, spell," Morgan narrowed her gaze.

"Am I the only one who's feeling hungry again?" Angela inquired on an unrelated note.

"Strangely, I am, too. I think that with our bodies fighting off the cold, we are in need of nutrition at a more regular intervals," Jennifer stated.

"I cannot eat," Poole whine.

*Krch*

Ignit tore through a scorpion, making Venom shiver while Moon had returned into the Core. She had officially gotten enough of the plain white snowy hills. If she wanted to see something enticing and white, there are plenty of mirrors in the core where she can saunter in front of.

"While we share our collective desire of delicacies, on a related note, why don't we discuss why Malekith would ask his people to sacrifice their life by turning into scorpions and then be squashed by this shaman?" Loki gazed at the unconscious dark elf.

"Well, the moment these magical scorpions die, their entire magical reserves would be pushed through the Hall. So, we have identified them as the source of trouble around the hall," Morgan nodded, "But it is indeed confusing as to how Malekith will absorb these sources of magic and disrupt the mechanism of the Hall. This is, after all, Hel's tightest guarded prison."

Looking at the desolate plane, Loki added, "From the inside, of course."

"Well, we do know the source of the problem. Why not enter this place and straighten up the problem from inside?" Angela inquired.

"Because," a cold voice added as the crisp sound of blazes echoed, "To enter Eljudnir, you must have to commit a heinous crime. A sin... well, as great as those," In her dark leathery outfit, Hela pointed towards the Disir.

"So... we must have sex?" Nik chuckled, his words making Jennifer stifle a giggle herself at the unexpected answer while others smirked.

"Quite the opposite, this is just one of the many ways," Hela narrowed her gaze and focused on Nik once again.

"Amusing," she remarked, "But carnal activities barely add to one's sin, unless forbidden by gods. They did, and the act was committed still. It's a biological need, after all," Hela crossed her arms, "But no, I have the authority to send a single living being into the tower. Of course, this comes with many restrictions. First, a god or one's descendent cannot enter until deemed 'worthy'."

Hela looked at Loki with a derisive smirk, making the Goddess chuckle at the old Asgardian humor.

"Second, any being who is, or was, an apostle to any pantheon of gods and immortals cannot enter."

"Third, any being, who is related to those within even by the slightest may not enter, until, of course, deemed worthy."

"So that leaves us with, Me, Morgan, Janet, Jennifer, and you two," Nik smiled at Poole and Spider.

"On the contrary," Hela smiled.

"All humans are the descendants of one god or another in some fashion. So, none of you can really enter, aside from you," she directed her gaze at Nik.

"It is either you or this lovely specimen," Hela smiled towards Ignit, making the giant salamander bare her teeth at the goddess of death."

"Huh? Then..." Nik rubbed the back of his head and shot an annoyed glare at Loki.

"Didn't we have a clear understanding that you'll be doing most of the work?" He pursed his lips.

"I hear you," Loki said innocently, "But I don't make the rules. Who told my father to attack Asgard?" She shrugged.

"You did. A few years back, you were the one who incited the frost giant to invade Asgard. You were the cause of the damage to the Bifrost. If it wasn't for that loss, the nine realms wouldn't be facing so many wars with Asgardians cleaning after your mess."

Hela replied clearly, making Loki's smile stiff.

"I guess... I did," Loki accepted gracefully.

"Anyway. How do I identify this Malekith? And, what do I have to expect when entering this... prison?" Nik inquired offhandedly. He wasn't truly afraid that he would be left inside. After all, Space Stone wasn't just for the show.

"I'm amazed by the fact that you remain under the assumption that this prison is explorable. Of course, I will let you into Malekith's cell where he is destined to rot for eternity."

Hela whispered a chant under her breath before a small, black portal appeared in front of Nik.

"Woah, I'm not just going right away," Nik exclaimed. "I need to prepare!"

Hela frowned.

"How long will this take?" She inquired.

"Fifteen minutes... that's the quickest I'll agree," Nik crossed his arms as a bleak expression touched Hela. Clearly, she was more verbally aware than Angela who frowned at the comment.

"Excuse me?" Hela's expression soured, "this is not a comedy."

"Oh, really?" Nik frowned, "Then unlike your other goddess counterpart, how about you tell me what I should do when I get there," he spat with a mocking smirk.

"What else? Malekith wishes to be relieved of his status as a tortured soul. A Goddess of Death took pity on him and sent an executioner."

"Come on, I don't know how to kill a soul."

"You stab him. Or shoot him. Souls, in this realm are as ordinary as mortal flesh. They can be hurt and destroyed," Hela remarked, "Of course, Malekith is a beast and you would need to boast outstanding strength, a prerequisite of anyone's status who can make till here."

'Capture him!' Morgan almost shouted but Nik already had that in mind. This would be his first soul aside from Ray's sister's soul. While the latter was somehow bound to his spiritual world, this one... Nik's gaze flickered. He certainly had no idea to capture a soul. But he had a way to suppress a soul.

"How will you know the task is done? What guarantee is there that you will let me out?" Nik inquired.

"A man who cannot trust a goddess is nothing ordinary. But it is not your trust I require. I stand to earn a group of loyal Valkyries with your assistance. And your group has certainly impressed me with Fafnir's head. Get rid of Malekith once and for all, and I will have rewards prepared for you that Loki can only dream of," Hela smiled.

'Something that I can only dream of?' Loki frowned. Suddenly, her expression turned that of understanding and amazement.

'Truly, I will fight anyone who says she isn't my daughter even after she proclaimed as such! Such a line of thought... truly, amazing!'

"I see. You just want to get rid of Malekith. Sure," Nik stepped into the portal but by the time they were chatting, almost everyone had a protection rune etched on their bodies.

One can never be too careful in front of a Goddess of Death, after all.

---

*Fwoosh*

Nik blinked and observed his surroundings.

The portal behind him still stayed intact but he wasn't in a room. Instead, he was in between a narrow pathway with one side blocked by the portal. He could only move forward.

But as Hela had stated, a prison of this magnitude wasn't really a place to explore and Nik didn't have extreme benefits tied to the act of exploration itself. So, he stepped on the moss layered rocks, something unexpected given the icy exterior. The walls surrounding Nik were carved out.

'A mural,' Nik recognized the medium of communication and saw the carving of an infant held by a young woman. Of course, no features were marked in detail. But one thing was made plenty sure that the characters of this story were a dark-skinned race with bright hair.

The dark elves.

Nik slid his fingers across the carving and began walking. Most of the carvings were covered by dark brown moss. With no source of light, it would have been extremely hard for any ordinary being to observe the carvings but then again, no ordinary being could really enter this location.

'A boy... given to someone else by the mother... what is this, dog food? So, a boy sold for dog food? Neat. A corpse digger, a slave, and then a magician. He killed someone and the left side of his face became even darker. Well, the racists will have a field trip on this type of face. Half dark, and half even darker. Then wars... countless wars.

A warring leader, huh,' Nik realized he was almost at the end of the narrow pathway and there, at end of the path was a shackled being with a torch lit above him, allowing the visitors to see the silver-haired man in advance.

"Kreech!" The man cackled.

"Ah... I forgot this guy speaks the native elven language," Nik rubbed his head. Of course, once he scourged the memory of the man, he did learn the language spoken by the dark elves but it had too many dialects and differences based on the period of time. The elven shaman himself didn't know the entirety of his racial language.

"Eng... lish?" The figure's hoarse voice echoed as he kept his head down.

"No, I can speak a little elven, too..."

"That's a shitty accent..." the figure chuckled while speaking in a perfectly good English accent.

"Oh good... yours is English (British)..." Nik sighed in elven.