Chapter 338

Chapter 338: Chapter 338

"Who are you? You actually dare cause trouble at the Freya Familia?"

"Woman, are you tired of living?"

"Heh. Why waste time talking? Beat her half to death and throw her out."

"Half to death? Just kill her and be done with it."

The battle-hardened warriors of the Freya Familia closed in with weapons in hand, cold smiles on their faces.

Not a single one showed the slightest hesitation simply because Esdeath was a beautiful woman.

Their gazes carried nothing but the ruthless killing intent reserved for an enemy.

Every member of this Familia was a fanatical devotee of Freya, willing to offer their goddess everything they possessed, from body and mind to their very souls.

It would not have mattered if the person standing before them were Esdeath or another goddess descending from heaven itself.

Their loyalty would not waver.

She was an enemy.

And enemies were meant to be eliminated.

"Those are good eyes."

Esdeath nodded in satisfaction and beckoned toward them.

"I like them. Come on, then. Show me what you’re capable of."

Her condescending attitude was like dropping a spark into a vat of oil.

The Freya Familia’s anger exploded instantly.

"Take her down!"

No one knew who shouted first, but the entire group surged toward Esdeath at once.

Outnumbering a lone opponent?

Nobody here cared.

Even members of the Freya Familia had to remain constantly alert inside Folkvangr.

Everyone within sight could become an opponent at any moment, surprise attacks were commonplace, and every fighter trained as though enemies surrounded them on all sides.

Want to distinguish yourself in the Freya Familia?

Simple.

Throw yourself into Folkvangr.

If you survived, chances were you would emerge transformed.

That was why nearly every adventurer here was a genuine veteran, the kind who charged into battle without fear of death.

Bam! Bam! Bam—!

Esdeath narrowed her eyes and unleashed a rapid barrage of punches.

Her fists struck several of the frontmost warriors almost too quickly to follow, launching them backward.

Their bodies scraped across the ground for dozens of meters as blood poured from their mouths.

"Kill!"

The overwhelming counterattack did not frighten the others.

If anything, it only made their fighting spirit burn hotter.

Before a truly powerful enemy, the greatest respect they could show was to fight with the intent to kill.

Swords, spears, axes, and blades descended from every direction.

Several Level 3 adventurers attacked simultaneously, using weapons of different lengths and angles to seal away every route of escape.

One conviction burned in all their eyes.

’Victory belongs to the Goddess.’

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang—!

Unfortunately for them, conviction alone was not enough.

Walls of ice erupted around Esdeath without warning.

Their weapons struck the frozen barriers and bounced away, unable to penetrate ice as hard as steel.

"What?!"

"Chantless Magic?"

The attackers faltered in shock.

That moment of hesitation was enough.

Thick pillars of ice suddenly grew outward from the walls and slammed directly into their unprotected stomachs.

BOOM!

Several adventurers were launched through the air.

Silence immediately fell over the courtyard.

Everyone stared at Esdeath.

A coordinated attack by multiple Level 3 adventurers had been neutralized as casually as swatting aside insects.

That effortless superiority clearly belonged to someone at least Level 4.

No—she might even be a first-class adventurer.

But that made no sense!

There were only so many first-class adventurers in all of Orario.

Nobody had ever heard of a blue-haired woman like her.

"What?"

Esdeath looked around at their stunned faces, visibly dissatisfied.

"Already scared?"

She smiled when she saw the anger returning to their eyes.

"So much for the strongest Familia in Orario."

Then she deliberately corrected herself.

"Oh, right."

"The former strongest Familia."

She placed obvious emphasis on the word former.

That did it.

"Get her!"

"Stop holding back! Everyone, use everything you’ve got!"

Several Level 4 adventurers roared orders and led squads toward her, while mages farther back had already begun chanting.

"Explosion!"

"Great Hurricane!"

"Lightning Strike!"

Magic poured toward Esdeath as though Mind had suddenly become free.

Crack! Crack! Crack—!

With casual motions of her hands, Esdeath created wave after wave of ice spears, walls, and miniature glaciers.

Not only did they block the incoming spells, but the rapidly spreading ice forced Freya Familia adventurers to leap, roll, and scatter across the courtyard just to avoid being skewered or frozen.

"What the hell? Everyone’s this energetic first thing in the morning?"

"Hmph. We were too gentle on them yesterday. Today we need to train them properly."

"You were the one slacking yesterday."

"What did you say?"

Four fully armed Pallums emerged from one of the buildings while bickering among themselves.

They were the famous Gulliver Brothers, collectively known as Bringar.

The instant they saw Esdeath laughing as she trampled through the Freya Familia’s forces, fury flooded their eyes.

"What idiot dares attack the Freya Familia?"

"The Goddess’s glory will not be sullied."

"Kill her."

"Agreed."

The four Pallums charged simultaneously.

CRASH—!

Esdeath’s ice formations shattered beneath their assault.

A spear, axe, hammer, and sword converged on her from four directions.

Every member of Bringar was Level 5.

More importantly, the four were identical brothers whose coordination bordered on instinctive.

When fighting together, their combat strength multiplied several times over, allowing them to contend with even experienced Level 6 adventurers.

With their arrival, the pressure on Esdeath increased dramatically.

Yet the Ice Queen showed neither anger nor concern.

Instead, a delighted smile spread across her face.

"That’s right."

Her eyes gleamed.

"Come on. Give me everything you’ve got."

"Fight with the resolve to kill me."

Her smile turned savage.

"Otherwise, I might kill you first."

"Arrogant!"

The Gulliver Brothers became even more furious.

Their weapons attacked like a raging tide, assaulting Esdeath from every angle.

Yet no matter how fierce their offensive became, how cunning the angles, or how perfectly timed their attacks were, the blue-haired woman somehow dealt with every strike.

Her combat instincts were terrifyingly sharp.

Almost animalistic.

’She’s the real deal.’

The four brothers immediately discarded whatever contempt they had felt.

Their focus sharpened as they committed themselves fully to the battle.

Their Familia’s home stood behind them.

Their goddess was watching over them.

They could not lose.

"Seriously... do these people ever run out of energy?"

A weary voice came from one of the buildings.

"Can’t they let me rest for once?"

The Freya Familia’s premier healer, Heith Velvet, walked outside with resentment written across her entire face.

And honestly, who could blame her?

Anyone forced into endless overtime because a pack of battle-crazed lunatics insisted on beating each other half to death every single day would eventually look like this.

Then Heith saw the courtyard.

Wounded adventurers were scattered everywhere.

Esdeath was laughing as she fought all four Gulliver Brothers at once.

For a moment, Heith’s mind simply stopped working.

"What happened?"

She hurried to the nearest injured adventurer and began healing him.

"Did someone invade us?"

Once she learned what had happened, her resentment intensified.

"She actually came here to pick a fight?!"

Heith was already overworked every single day.

And now this woman had barged in specifically to create even more patients for her?

Absolutely unforgivable!

Heith raised her staff and began chanting.

"—My name is gold, attendant of the goddess who swore the immortal oath."

"Three times consumed by flame, pierced through the flesh unto eternity. Even within the inferno of blazing spears, brilliance is born anew and death is driven away."

"Blessing, blessing, blessing."

"My body is gold. With the light of resurrection, summon endless struggle once more unto this place."

"Spirit: Gullveig."

A massive magic circle spread across the courtyard.

Healing light surged outward.

In moments, the wounded adventurers who had been coughing blood on the ground were restored to fighting condition.

Heith pointed furiously toward Esdeath.

"Go!"

"Beat the hell out of her!"

Her voice rang with absolute conviction.

"For the glory of the Goddess!"

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