"Loki wants to kill you," Valve revealed bluntly.

  "I'm sorry, what?" Ax and E asked him both simultaneously, shocked and fused.

  "Axel and Mithra, they imprisohe gods and humiliated them. And now the Aesir is back with a vengeance," Valve expined.

  Ax's expression is getting mrim as eaent passes.

  "However, that being said. He himself is injured and wounded, much weaker than before, and has no access to Fenrir or J?rmungandr. Don't expect to see him anytime soon, Ax," Valve reassured.

  Ax, somewhat relieved.

  "So, I still have to eventually face off against the literal god of Mischief?"

  Valve was a bit surprised, but then he remembered. "I keep fetting that where you e from, the different pantheons were worshipped. Regardless, I assume you're familiar with the training I'm about to put you through, correct?" asked Valve.

  "And before we begin, may I ask when the Codex revealed itself to you? Heard you're a te bloomer.". Valve finished.

  "You're not going to believe it, Valve," E prepared.

  "It was... after clearing the final, purple door," Ax replied sheepishly.

  "..."

  "Valve? You there?" Ax kept pestering him.

  Valve's eyes were wide in shock, his lips parted and mouth slightly agape at the implications.

  "You... what?" Valve was gagged, still processing. As if he were a puter buffering.

  "Is it that unusual?" he asked him.

  "Eine... she was chosen by the Codex in her first enter. Ax, the most a te bloomer take is about halfway, if they are really skilled," Valve expined.

  Ax's eyes widened.

  "Now you know why that's such a big deal?" E asked him.

  "As ht now, you and Eine are equals in strength, whether it be because of brute force or intellect," Valve finished.

  Ax immediately thought of the castle gate Eine pushed open; to think he was equally as strong as her...

  "That's reassuring. So you're capable of bat, but your body is just not as strong. May I ask how you fought the Dwellers?" he asked.

  "I have an oddity, just like you. Along with that, I have firearms," Ax expined as he showed his revolvers.

  "May I ask what your oddity is?" Valve asked curiously.

  "I'd rather not," Ax replied in a fident voice.

  "Alright, but Ax. Burn this into your mind," Valve anded with a stern voice.

  Ax and eveood silent.

  "The week will be hell on Nexus; I will put you through months of training in a single week. And due to the use, not abuse, of apples, you won't get any time to rest.".

  "What about... Eine?" Ax asked nervously.

  "Don't drag me into this!" she yelped out.

  "She's been training vigorously for the past month. She'll just spar with you and help out when I'm not around."

  Ax gulped in nervousness, his voice meek and his expression full of dread.

  "But what's the alternative?" he asked out meekly, talking to himself. Valve heard it.

  "You'll die," Valve was blunt.

  "Until it's 12 am, run back to the town and here again over and over. Do pushups till failure, spar till your arms fall off. Eat these fruits till the pain stops; train as if your life depends on it. I don't care what you experienced in those doors; what matters is your body getting strong enough to pete against every other mortal in these realms. For every ohat you'll face from today onwards, they are just as capable as you or even stronger; your life depends on it." Valve monologued, making sure Ax uood every word of his.

  "Now, I'll spar with you once every day to see your progress. I'll e baorrow, but for now... I have some busio attend to," Valve said as he put his helmet ba and walked away. The steam obscured their vision as he walked off; it finally dissipated.

  "So? What's your pn?" she asked.

  "I 't just go bae now, I? If I e to Nexus, maybe Nexus e to me," Ax said as he stretched his legs, preparing for another run.

  ***

  Hours have gone by; it's night now. Eine had climbed up one of the towers to see the stars before she went to sleep.

  SHATTERCRACK

  SHATTERCRACK

  SHATTERCRACK

  "...?"

  "Are those gunshots?" Eine asked herself as she jumped off the roof onto the ground below. She then walked towards the noise.

  As she walked closer and closer, cool air sent chills down her spi was almost summer. Why was it cold all of a sudden? In the heart of the source, she sees Ax. His hair obsg his face, tired and sweating. However, he was surrounded by ice, trees frozen in pce, and craters formed all around the area, shards of gss shimmering throughout.

  Ax flicked his revolvers open, reloading them.

  "Ahem," Eiried to make her presenown.

  This caused Ax to jolt in surprise and aim at Eine instinctively.

  "'t sleep?" she asked him, pletely unfazed.

  "Not yet; also, I o shower. Right now I'm practig a rick my friend used to do," Ax expined as he held his guns forward at a slight angle inwards.

  SHATTERCRACK

  As the id gss exited the barrels, due to the a collided with each other. Causing the gss to shatter while being infused with ice, this caused a rge amount of ground in front of Ax to get iced.

  Eine's eyes were wide open, her red eyes refleg the moonlight.

  No wonder Ax was able to clear Floor-0 without the Codex.

  "The... shower's on the sed floor... use whatever you feel like," she guided Ax verbally while looking around the terrain, amazed.

  "Right... I should call it a night," Ax said sheepishly as he walked back to the castle.

  ***

  "Axel and Mithra... who exactly were you?" she muttered to herself, and she felt the crater etched into one of the trees with her left hand.