One day later, after flying, they reached the forest.

"Hmm… So this is the miasma." Cirrus said, overlooking the forest from a cliff. "Even from here, I can smell the death and decay in the wind… it’s also heavier than the air, which is interesting to know."

"So much of the forest is gone." Said Riveria. "I feel bad for the elves here."

"That big tree," said Ais. "That is where the source of the miasma is. I can see the density of the poison being more concentrated around that area."

"Then let’s go find the others. Fafnir rest."

"Yes, master." Her body turns to ink-like darkness, returning into his shadow.

"It’s a bit odd to see her do this and not be weirded out," Riveria said. "I guess going on expeditions with you has given me a glimpse of your power."

"Partially." He holds out his hand, and a pinkish-blue hawk lands on it. "Lead the way, Circe."

 

Arriving at the camp, they could see the Freya and Loki Familia together with the eyes of the Odin Familia looking at him.

Those of the Loki and Freya Familia saw Cirrus as a sort of majestic beast that inspires awe and fear. With Ais and Riveria behind him, it brought some relief and ease of mind to know they were here.

For the Odin Familia, they only saw a massive, heaven-scraping mountain that inspires only death in all who wish to climb. They didn’t even notice Ais and Riveria.

Circe had gone back to her tent.

Cirrus enters the main tent, where Freya sat with Ottar by her side and Loki with Narvi.

"Lady Loki, Freya," Cirrus said, nodding.

"We came as well, Lady Loki," Riveria said, with Ais next to her.

"Ooh! My sweet Ais and Mama Riveria are he—Mmph!?" Freya covered her mouth.

"It’s good to know we have you two here, Nine Hells, Sword Princess." Freya smiled and nodded. "Loki here wishes to go and show you two off."

"Maybe later, when the Wu is dealt with," Ais said.

"So…" Cirrus took a few steps forward. "How was he? Was he pissed?" Cirrus said with a smile.

The gods smiled ear to ear.

"You betcha he was!! Hahahaha!!!" Loki was laughing as hard as she could.

"He was really peeved we came, but I’m sure he will, even more, when he sees you," Freya said with a devilish smile.

"Hahahahaha!!!!" The human, goddess of mischief, and goddess of beauty all shared a laugh.

The hatred they have for the one-eyed god runs deep enough for them all to laugh.

"Hah… I think I’ll go and see him after a nap," Cirrus said, stretching.

"We will as well," Riveria said. "The ride here took more out of me than I would admit."

"It has been a long journey," Ais said as well.

"Circe’s tent is the red one, a bit away from everyone else, downwind from a small hill," Ottar said.

"Then I will show you to our tent!" Loki said shooting straight up.

"Narvi, is there a spare tent?" Riveria asked.

"Yes, I’ll show you!" Narvi said.

Cirrus heads out and heads to a red tent; it took him a minute or two to find it.

Once he did, he found Circe working with Heith. She was also working.

"So, how is the antidote progressing?" Cirrus asked as he went to the empty area of Circe’s tent and took out a bed from his shadow.

"Exceedingly well," Heith said. "But I am sure she has already given you the report."

"I have," Circe said. "Odin was kind enough to give me the ingredients for how he made the Eitr."

"And?" Cirrus said, lying on his bed.

"And we will be finished in a few hours or so. Right on time for you to go in and deal with Wu so you can test the antidote."

"How lovely." He closes his eyes. "I’m going to nap now. Wake me up if anything happens."

"Alright."

 

A while later, Cirrus wakes up.

"Mmmm!!" He gets up, stretching his arms. "Welp time to meet that old bitch."

"Aggressive, no?" Circe replied.

"By this 'old bitch', do you mean Lord Odin?" Heith asked.

"That I am." Cirrus responded.

           Heith grinned.

"I am looking forward to his voice reaching my ears."

"When you’re done, come back here. We are just doing the finishing touches on the antidote." Circe said.

"Got it, Fafnir, hand me Gram." Cirrus gets back on his feet.

From the shadow, Gram, in its sheath, popped out. Cirrus quickly got himself ready and had it on his waist.

"Get some sleep. A mind not rested won’t work at its best," Cirrus said, walking away.

"Depends. Are you going to make breakfast?" Circe turned to him, an eyebrow raised.

"I will; don’t worry."

"Haaa… Alright, maybe a quick nap. Heith? What about you?"

"Mmm…" She looked at her work and sighed. "After this. Once this is finished, I will sleep."

Cirrus nods as he leaves.

"Ah, it’s nighttime." He says this, walking towards the Odin Familia.

 

Walking through the Odin Familia’s temporary base, everyone quickly drew their eyes to him and even began to wake others as they saw what was around his waist, the first Gram.

Murmur!

Murmur!

Murmur!

Cirrus paid it no mind until a handsome man with pale green eyes and white hair appeared in silver and black armor. Around his waist was a sapphire and emerald blade.

"You there… That blade at your side... hand it over." He said it in an aggressive tone of voice.

"Hah~?" Cirrus said, surprised. "Who the fuck are you to demand my sword? Piss off." Cirrus continued to walk when the man drew his sapphire and emerald blade. Cirrus saw the runes etched into its spine.

"I said hand it over. You are unworthy of wielding it." He slowly holds the handle of his weapon.

Cirrus doesn’t even see him as a threat. More like an angry Chihuahua baring its teeth.

"Move, or I will take your sword from you." Cirrus’ eyes looked down at him with a piercing gleam. "Trust me. You don't want what I can give."

Sigurd’s feet were shaking, but that fear was quickly drawn away.

"You asked for it!!!" he shouted in anger, drawing his sword. "Gram!! Level 2!!"

The runes glowed brightly.

Cirrus could see Sigurd’s eyes focus on him.

"Well? Come on, then?" Cirrus said, gesturing for him to come and get him. "I’m waiting."

'Come on, hurry up and get it over with so I can vent my anger at that old god.'

"RAAAH!!!" He shouted, swinging his sword down on Cirrus.

Swi—Ting~

Cirrus caught the sword with two of his fingers.

"!!" Sigurd’s eyes widen. "Uhh…"

"It seems they don’t tell you much about picking on stronger people out here in the boonies, huh?" Cirrus then glared at him while slowly drawing Gram. "You see, Gram belongs to me. If you want to take it, I suggest taking it off my dead body." He then strikes him with the flat of the blade, knocking him down with his head dazed.

Thud!!

"Gah!?"

"Eh." He sheathed Gram and kept walking.

He made sure to walk around Sigurd, whose face is flat on the ground.

Many who were watching shuddered at how easily Cirrus dealt with their vice-captain.

Cirrus didn’t take his sword, finding that taking it would bring him more annoyance than a benefit. He continued to walk towards where he felt divinity.

 

He kicked open the doors to the hall to find an old, one-eyed god with a black feathered cloak sitting on his throne and a beautiful woman with emerald hair kneeling before him.

"Hey, there you old one-eyed petty-ass god!!" Cirrus shouted, drawing Gram again. "Haa!!!" He flings the sword at such speed that Brynhildr couldn’t catch it.

Thud~!!

It impales near Odin’s head, with his reflection in the sword. The sound of the sword impaling the wooden throne echoed through the hall.

Odin looks at Gram and Cirrus as he walks up to them.

"Lord Odin!!" Brynhildr shouted with her spear in hand, staring daggers at Cirrus.

"That face..." His face grew angry. "That damn Hera!!!!!!!!!!" His voice filled the hall and even reached the ears of those outside. "Who are you!!! Why do you have her face!!"

"My name is Cirrus Zephyr, captain of the Artemis Familia, known by the title of Heavenly Crown. (Sing)." The sword then rips itself out and returns to Cirrus' side. "As well as the son of the Empress and the captain of the Hera Familia."

Odin’s eyes didn’t change.

"Oh… So that is how you got your hands on Gram…" A smug smile grows on his face. "Did you enjoy the curse? I made sure to make it very painful."

"About as much as that white-haired, pale green child of yours with a bootleg version of my sword is eating shit."

Brynhildr got noticeably angry.

"Then the hostility is well founded, hehe—Bahahaha!!" his laughter boomed through the hall. "I wish I could have seen your anguished face!"

"I bet you would, you sore loser." He then sheathes his sword. "You there? I assume you are the captain, right?"

"I am. My name is Brynhildr. Captain of the Odin Familia." She prepares herself to impale Cirrus.

"Ah, your lover is alright. I simply knocked him on the ground after trying to—"

"You bastard!!!" He burst through the hall doors and leaped at Cirrus with his sword drawn. "Gram!! Full release!!!"

"Fafnir," Cirrus said, looking at Odin and Brynhildr. "I should have used more force." He mumbled.

From his shadow, a woman appeared, stopping with her ink-like arm.

"W-what!? Again!?"

"Is this what you and this sword can do? Master’s swing and blade are far better." She then pushed him back as her form returned to her regular human form with shades.

"W-who are you!!" he shouted.

"Sigurd, quiet," Odin said, glaring at Cirrus.

A familiar feeling ran across Cirrus’s mind—the same feeling Circe and Freya can give off.

"You’re looking at my soul, huh? What do you think?" Cirrus slowly approaches Odin.

He has an angry expression on his face.

"So you are her Odr, I see."

"No, I’m not. I’m already taken, one of which is my goddess." He holds out his right hand, showing off the ring. "I am sure you heard of Artemis, right?"

A slight smile grows on his face.

"So you rejected Freya and even have a famed virgin goddess like Artemis, huh? I can see why your soul makes Brynhildr and Sigurd’s look like dim candles to your god-like soul... just looking at it makes me want to have you."

"I’m flattered, but I’m here for Wu. That spirit has been running rampant for too long."

"Yes, that poison spirit... Well, I’m sure you will handle it, but I want to ask you, why is Gram shoddily repaired?"

"It was damaged, and you're lucky Hephaestus and Freya didn’t hear you."

"Baaa!!! How could it possibly get damaged!! That’s damn near unbreakable!! The only thing that could be a… Divine Weapon." His temper simmers down. "The Primordial Fire... you were there, weren’t you?" He looked closer and even sniffed the air. "Elpis," he said under his breath. "You have the power no god can wield?" He sniffs the air again. "Ah no, of course not. You only have half of its unknown power."

"I was, and it clashed with Ethon. Also unknown? Isn’t Elpis the power to bring out one’s zenith?"

"Hah! That is what we can gather from it. I and several of the wisest gods saw it to learn what it was capable of."

"And what? That’s how you lost that eye of yours?"

"Yes." He gently touches his eyepatch as if the pain remained. "Even when I killed myself to be reborn, my eye never returned. Albeit I gained a lot of knowledge from it."

"Then let me ask you, Odin." Cirrus knew he would have a better chance at getting the knowledge Odin gained, but it was as unlikely as Zeus not going after women; it's nearly impossible, so he would ask for that which holds no value for him but also intrigues him from the question alone. "Can Elpis help break me from Ananke’s strings?"

Odin’s eye widens.

"You seek to break from Ananke’s strings!? Bahahaha!!!" He laughed even more boastfully, hitting the sidearms of his throne in laughter. "First you come here, kick open my doors, and throw Gram nearby face. What makes you think I will tell you what you want?"

"How about a deal? Between me and you."

"What could you possibly offer me!? I know more than you, boy! Anything you could give me, I do not want! The only thing worth trading is your cardinal knowledge of the famed Artemis, the virgin goddess you call your wife; even then, I am not interested in such perversions!"

Cirrus walks up to Odin. Brynhildr gets in his way and points her spear.

Cirrus taps his finger on the tip of the spear.

"Ask your children to leave. I would rather not have to use them as examples." He then pushes the spear back.

"!?" Brynhild holds her spear tightly, but she is being pushed back.

Cirrus’ skin was far more durable and stronger than the average, even more so than if he were a level 9.

"Leave her alone!!" Sigurd shouted, still being held back by Fafnir.

"Enough!!!" Odin’s voice silenced everyone and stopped them in their tracks. "Brynhildr, Sigurd. Leave."

"But Lord Odin! What if he—"

"Brynhildr." Odin gazed at her. "He is a far different beast entirely than Freya’s boar. He is something that a young boy wishes they could become, a hero that even Zeus would not have been able to make. So lower your weapons and leave."

The two gripped their weapons tightly and looked down in anger and frustration.

"Tsk!" they both said, lowering their weapons and leaving.

They soon left the hall, leaving it with only Cirrus and Odin.

"You're far kinder than what I would have expected." Cirrus wryly smiles.

"Heh. What did Loki and Freya say? That I was an insane, barbaric whore for knowledge?"

"Well, not those words exactly, but close enough. Fafnir."

Fafnir throws out several Sound Eaters around the hall.

"Hoh~" Odin looks at one of the Sound Eaters, rubbing his chin in amazement. "Fascinating. You made a magic tool that eats—no snuffs out the sound."

"Sound Eaters sound better than Sound Killers. Either way, they do the job that I want."

"Well, you will have to do more than offer me your Sound Eaters."

"Then how about some knowledge*?" Cirrus said it in English.

"—!?!?" Odin shook; he was visibly surprised. "How do you know that language*?" He said it in English. "No, the only way you can—*"

"All-father Odin, the king of the Norse Pantheon. Husband to Frigg, father of Thor, Baldr, and many more*." Cirrus stands at the base of Odin’s throne. "I will give you information; no one but those closest to me. Not even my wives know*."

Odin tilts his head and taps the arm of his throne.

"Tap-tap-tap-tap! Tap-tap-tap-tap! Alright. I’ll bite. You wish to trade me that information for what I know on Elpis*?"

"Throw in your word that what has been learned today will never be spoken again in your name, and we can proceed*."

"On my word as Odin, I will honor that deal*."

"Thank you; you know what will happen if you break it, right*?"

"I know. I would have a better chance of getting Loki and Freya to love me than to think of stopping you*."

"Good, because I assure you I am fully ready to try my spear on you*."

"You even threaten me so brazenly!? Just because you have half of Elpis doesn’t give you the balls to kill me, Moksha—no, Reincarnator*."

That was the only thing that made sense to Odin. No. It was the only way that Cirrus would know and speak English to know of the things he did about him.

"A man can do a lot of things when it involves his kids*." Cirrus slowly began to walk up to Odin. He holds his hand out. "Vesta."

Bwoosh!!

White Night formed in his hand.

"Oh?" Odin looks at White Night with curiosity and a bit of fear as it slowly but quickly dawns on him what it is. "You made your point*." Odin was annoyed that he did not recognize the weapon; he had seen all the gods' Divine Weapons, but the one in his hands was not one of them. "If I tell you what I know, you don’t need to tell me about how you’re a Reincarnator. The price for knowledge on Elpis is the name of this fine weapon you have*?"

"Fine," Cirrus said in Koin. "Shall we speak in Koin? I have gotten rusty in my English." He swung White Night and let it rest on his shoulders as he walked back down to the base of the throne. "Oh, and by the way, just as a little extra for threatening you, I am a Moksha, an artificial one."

"Then it would seem you have Ananke’s string for a reason. Tell me, what is the name of that Divine Weapon?"

"It is called White Night. I made it using the Heavenly Flame."

"That explains your soul... Hm." He looks a bit disgruntled. "That is rather boring. Not you making a Divine Weapon, just that you are literally and metaphorically tied by fate."

"So can Elpis free me from it? Or at the very least, my children?"

"I cannot give you a confirmed answer, just a suggestion. Your only suggestion, Elpis, is your, no pun intended, last hope to cut from your fate."

"Anything else? Any special weapon or item? Some McGuffin?"

"There is none. Elpis, as you know, brings the zenith, or peak, out of anything. That is your key."

"Then what about my kids, huh!? They are a fraction as divine as me!"

"Elpis."

"Really!?"

"Yes. Cirrus Zephyr, take this as humble advice from someone who begrudgingly finds you respectable. You who have the same thirst as I for knowledge, albeit yours, are for a goal."

"And yours isn’t?"

"No, I seek knowledge for the sake of it." He grinned proudly. "I know what I am. And so do you. Here is some advice from a god to a hero: Do not fight it. Fate is a greedy, gold-digging whore that won't stop until it gets what it wants. No one likes it, but we are still forced to play along the path they made for us. Trust me on that. I have seen a foolish monkey try to fight fate, and all they got was the god's equivalent of solitary confinement."

"How are you gods fine with being chained down by it? Also, by monkey, do you mean Sun Wukong? Also, another note: you guys have a god jail?"

"We were born with it. Our essence presided over our existence. Also, yes, it was that stone monkey, tch. Crazy bastard, not as crazy as Eris thou."

Cirrus was just going to let that slide for what he was seeking.

"Then do you know where your road ends?"

"Of course. It ends with me being chewed up by a nasty wolf. Am I pissed and dejected if that is how it ends? Nope. I am going to enjoy my life until that moment. I mean, it is just a single moment in an infinity of fun. I say that’s worth it in my eye."

"You’re a lot kinder than what I expected."

"Gekai has worn me down. The same way it did Freya and Loki."

"… Hm."

Cirrus turns and walks away. White Night sinks into his shadow.

Watching him leave, Odin could see a familiar back.

"You know." Odin’s booming voice rang through the hall.

Cirrus turned to meet his gaze.

"What?"

"You look like Epimetheus with your back turned."

"Heh. He is my ancestor after all. Thank you for the talk."

"Fuck you, never threaten me again, or else I will wring your soul when I eventually return to Heaven."

"Try it. Artemis would and will shoot that other eye out. Hell, I'm sure she'll even mount your head, kind of like Mimir."

Odin remained expressionless, letting his words not affect him. He does not want to give him any satisfaction.

"Oh, before you fuck off, tell me, is Gram even working? I doubt you would use a damaged weapon to kill a spirit that drank the Eitr."

"What? Do you want to fix it? I doubt that. Besides, do you think my eyes are shit? I know this sword is fully put back together. Freya and Hephaestus did their best putting this heirloom back."

"Tsk… Then it seems we have nothing else. Fuck off."

"Tsk. Thud!!!" Cirrus stomped on the floor. "Your floor is fucked up; you better get it fixed."

"Get the fuck out of my lodge!"

 

Back at the Loki and Freya camp.

"So how did it go?" asked Freya, with Ottar at her side.

The both of them came up to Cirrus.

"Fun, but it would have been better if I could slap his old, shitty face," Cirrus said.

"He does have that effect on people, and your heirloom?" she said, glancing at it.

"What did you expect?"

"Of course, that arrogant old one-eyed fuck." Freya spoke with venom in her words. "Onto other far better topics." Cirrus glanced at Freya. "How goes the progress go for my prize?" Freya made a smile and was free from any negativity from the previous conversation.

"Of course, all in due time. Dionysus works diligently on it, given that we are all accomplices. But, uh, do you, Hestia, and Ais make a plan on how it’s gonna go down?"

"Yes. it seemed Bell took what you said and picked 18."

"Hmm. Are you jealous? Ais is his Ai?"

"Not at all. A human’s life is so small when compared to that of a goddess. I would also be heartbroken to know he wouldn’t have any descendants in this world... Ottar. How would you feel about being an uncle?"

He thinks about it a bit before a small smile grows on his face.

"I would feel joy."

"That’s lovely. So, Freya, are you gonna marry Bell in a triple marriage kind of ceremony?"

"Oh no, I have something planned for that," Freya said, smirking.

"… I don’t like that smirk. It feels like you're planning something with me in it?"

"Wait and see Cirrus; farewell!" She quickly walks away.

Ottar looks at Cirrus and shrugs.

"I know about as much as you." He then turned and left, following his goddess.

"… Fuuuuuuuuuuck." He said exhausted. "I need another nap."