Episode 30/Chapter 6: The knights of the round table (6)

The Giant of Night Avalt couldn't stand still. He didn't just watch like with Harad.

The distance between Jotunheim, the land of the giants, and the ruins of Erin wasn't short. It wasn't a distance one could traverse in an instant.

Besides, Avalt had his own agenda. While the underlings of the frost giant king, Harmarti, kept retreating and advancing against the forces of Asgard at the front lines, the Magician King, Utgard Loki, protected Jotunheim along with the Five Fingers. Stabilizing and facing Asgard in several battlefields was their task.

But they still had to move. There were still things they could do compared to that time with Harad.

Avalt emerged from the darkness and cast magic in rapid succession to contact the giants at the front lines.

Stopping Thor and the other rescuers was their task, but now they had to change the temperament of their actions.

Balgad needed assistance. They needed to protect him from Idun's warrior, and if that wasn't possible, they had to at least eliminate Idun's warrior completely.

Avalt left the castle of Jotunheim and felt anxious.

The flow of time was unabated.

-

A century passed since Erin's ruin.

The dark, dense clouds blocked the sunlight. Everything was dyed in ash and nothing good remained.

One couldn't find any trace of Camelot.

Erin, once known as a paradise, had completely disappeared.

However, it shone at this moment regardless of its century in shambles. The bright light of the sun fell down on the land dyed in ash.

The giant leading the charge lost his eyesight. Ironically, the strongest, brightest light he'd ever seen since being born had burned out his eyes and plunged him into darkness.

The giant couldn't see. The moment the sword of the sun cut his neck, a vision of light flooded his mind before his soul perished.

"Scatter!"

One of the giants yelled out, but it was pointless. The neck of the first giant rolled on the ground. Tae Ho, who'd stepped into the air, kicked back the shoulder of the collapsing giant and jumped up again.

The blade of Gallatin was shining, but that wasn't all. Slowly, a new blade of light began forming on top of it. The new sword of light was longer than Tae Ho was tall, and it seemed like it was moving on its own.

The sun shone upon Tae Ho. It gave him strength endlessly.

Meanwhile, Balgad had lost an arm to Lancelot's Arondight and couldn't believe the scene in front of his eyes.

Idun's warrior was certainly dying.

He was barely enduring by channeling the strength of the Goddess of Youth and Life.

That being the case, what exactly was this scene in front of him?

Thunder and gale protected the warrior of Idun, and the sword he swung once again cut off the head of another giant.

The giants didn't just die. They couldn't hit Tae Ho directly, but they attacked him by hexing curses on him. They depleted his strength and life by all kinds of negation magic.

There was another small giant like Sigil. Compared to the other giants that couldn't do anything against the small and nimble warrior of Idun, this giant could face him head on. They exchanged blows a few times and then he suppressed Idun's warrior with his overwhelming strength of a giant.

This exchange didn't occur without injury to either side.

Be it a large or insignificant difference, their efforts would deplete the strength and energy of each other.

Gallatin slashed the chest of the little giant. The giant spat out his last curse and collapsed. As he fell, the curse formed a blade of grudges and pierced Idun's warrior.

That's why he had to force himself to fight. As he himself was spending his strength, Idun's warrior was also growing weaker.

Or so he thought. Even though Tae Ho's body was a bloody mess and not unlikely to collapse at any moment, he didn't falter. Rather, Gallatin began emitting an even stronger light. The more they fought, the stronger Idun's warrior seemed to become.

'How?'

'Why!'

The twelve underlings became eight in an instant and the Giant of Earth, Balgad, knew well enough.

He remembered the day of Erin's destruction when he'd fought against the Knights of the Round Table.

This was the Knight of the Sun, Gawain.

He'd grow stronger as the sun rose higher, and when the sun was at its peak, he would be even more powerful than the strongest knight, Lancelot.

Balgad looked upwards unconsciously. He looked at the light of the sun that was splitting the sky and pouring down.

Time, it seemed, had abandoned the side of the giants.

As they fought, the sun rose higher with each passing second.

-

Idun clenched her chest. Her once immaculate form was now sweating rivets and she gasped for air while lying half collapsed on the floor.

Tae Ho was becoming stronger, but that strength was a double-edged sword. It wasn't a strength that Tae Ho's broken body could endure.

Idun had made it possible.

She squeezed out all her imperfect and immature power and sent it to Tae Ho.

The strong power of the sun destroyed Tae Ho's body, but the gentle power of life kept it together.

'My warrior, Tae Ho.'

Idun didn't turn to look at herself.

She reinforced the flood of energy into Tae Ho.

-

The number of giants was further reduced to only six. Tae Ho's breaths were haggard as he looked out in front of him. The body of the giant he had just defeated collapsed on the ground with a heavy rumble.

Tae Ho recalled Harad, the Giant of Strength. He was the first catastrophe he had faced upon entering Valhalla.

The Giant of Earth, Balgad, was someone comparable to Harad.

He wasn't merely a strong existence.

Balgad regained his composure and became decisively calm in the high-strung situation.

He layered his own strength as his subordinates perished. He had lost an arm thanks to Lancelot's sword, Arondight, and had suffered a lot of damage because of the other knights' weapons, but he still had remaining strength. Tae Ho's strength was becoming stronger the higher the sun rose, but Balgad was currently still stronger than him.

The number of giants had now declined to four. Gallatin's light shone vibrantly as Balgad finally threw his hulking form towards Tae Ho.

At the forefront, his underlings didn't stand by idly. They fell back to clear space for Balgad and Tae Ho and slowly circled them in anticipation.

The battle between a giant and a human couldn't be compared to a fight between beings of the same size.

Where Harad increased his acuity and dexterity to enhance his battle prowess against comparatively tiny humans, Balgad increased an invisible strength.

The giants went all out. The Giant of Earth swung his fist and a fierce storm whipped up with the intention of shredding Tae Ho. As Tae Ho manipulated himself through the air, Balgad's cronies conjured waves of lightning, fire, wind and light. Taking advantage of their cooperation, Balgad closed in on Tae Ho once more. The profound magic that had accumulated in Balgad's eyes was unleashed and enveloped Tae Ho's body.

The devouring magic encircled Tae Ho as if a huge snake were trying to gulp him down. Within a split second, Balgad's malicious attack had succeeded in completely locking down Tae Ho's movements.

Balgad was now confident of winning. He anticipated savoring the impending sweetness of victory after countless sacrifices.

But it didn't happen that way.

Even through his calculated demeanor, Balgad had forgotten something very important.

The warrior of Idun wasn't alone.

The Knight of the Sun wasn't his only title.

He was King of Camelot.

The King's influence was everything!

Balgad screamed in pain as the several weapons still stuck in his body moved once again.

The souls of the Knights of the Round Table had disappeared after expending the last vestiges of their strength, but their wills remained in this place.

The power in the sentence of the Milesians moved their weapons.

The spear of Perceval pierced further into Balgad's arm and stopped the lightning being fired towards Tae Ho.

The sword of Bedevere carved through the back of Balgad. The magic sword of Agravain doused his flames, and the sword of Lancelot severed Balgad's magic power.

The sword of Galahad shielded Tae Ho's back, and the arrows fired from the bow of Tristan pierced the eyes and necks of the encircling giants.

The weapons of the Knights of the Round Table then gathered next to Tae Ho. They protected their King in the stead of their owners.

From his position, Merlin pushed out more of his magic power. He coated the weapons in his spells to aid in their movement.

He could sense the battle's conclusion was nigh. He knew he'd probably never again see the Knights of the Round Table gather next to the King, but it was enough with this.

Merlin didn't wipe away the tear which slowly passed down his wrinkled face. He thanked the miracle made possible through the knights' efforts, and he'd, in part, connected his magic with their weapons to be with them once more.

The underlings of Balgad had all collapsed. and the injured Balgad roared like a beast.

While Tae Ho couldn't hear the voices of the Knights of the Round Table, he could imagine their figures holding the weapons aiming for Balgad's throat.

Galatin had told him as much.

Tae Ho was a warrior of Valhalla before becoming King of Camelot, and he knew-

Saga.

Each saga retells the unforgettable story of a great hero.

Now that Tae Ho had remembered their names, they wouldn't be forgotten. They would live eternal lives through their stories.

The weapons flew forward.

It was the final assault of the Knights of the Round Table, one which decorated their legend.

Tae Ho also blurred into motion. He didn't fall behind the weapons in speed.

"Idun. Heda."

He muttered two names beneath his breath and added more of his own strength to Gallatin. He then activated a slew of sagas.

[Saga: The Charge of a Warrior is like a Storm]

[Saga: Giant Killer]

[Saga: King of Camelot]

The weapons of the Knights of the Round Table impaled themselves deeply within the body of Balgad. Arondight pierced the chest of Balgad, and the sword of Galahad broke his knee.

Balgad went down on his functional leg and glared at Tae Ho with bloody malice. He reflected all his strength through his evil eyes.

Tae Ho didn't hesitate. The sword of Gallatin surged high into the air before penetrating downwards, destroying the giant's magic power and splitting his body while rupturing his heart.

"Idun's...warrior....."

Balgad spoke for the last time. He was also a great warrior just like Harad had been. He smiled faintly instead of glaring resentfully and then collapsed after vomiting blood.

After a moment, Tae Ho descended to the ground and nearly fell over. He wanted to pass out, but it wasn't the time. He endured forcefully and steadied himself.

Tae Ho faced the cloud of runes that swarmed out of Balgad's body and closed his eyes for a moment. He moved his exhausted body to stab Gallatin in the ground and then looked at the weapons embedded within Balgad's body that lay still.

Tae Ho never really knew much of the Knights of the Round Table, but he remembered their names. He would know their stories through the weapons they'd left behind.

"For Asgard and the Nine Realms."

Tae Ho hit his chest and expressed etiquette.

He engraved the legend he'd witnessed, the last battle of the Knights of the Round Table, deep in his heart.

< Episode 30 - The knights of the round table (6) > End