Chapter 42- Odin’s Story and Mjolnir’s Revelation.
Leo stared at the hammer resting on the stone platform. It was massive—far larger than any he had ever seen. Its rectangular head was etched with runes that had begun to fade, their once-proud lines now worn and ghostly.
The metal was unlike any steel or earthly alloy; it carried the deep, blackened hue of something scorched by unimaginable heat.
Cold. Rough as weathered stone...
Deep cracks spiderwebbed across the head, some slicing clean through. The handle, wrapped in ancient, brittle leather, looked as though it was barely holding its shape, teetering on the edge of collapse.
Dead runes covered its surface—lines and symbols that had once blazed with divine power, now dim, cold, and empty.
Without thinking, Leo reached out to touch it.
Odin’s hand shot forward and seized his wrist an instant before his fingers made contact.
"Don’t touch it," Odin said, his voice sharp as a blade.
Leo jerked his hand back. Odin stepped forward and stood beside the pedestal, gazing down at the broken weapon. He caressed the cracked surface with surprising gentleness, the way one might touch a sleeping child—or a deep, still-bleeding wound.
"It was whole once," Odin murmured, his voice low and heavy. "Forged in the heart of a dying star. Tempered in the blood of giants. It was the weapon of a god."
The cold in the chamber pressed against Leo’s skin, sinking deep into his bones.
"What happened?" Leo asked quietly.
Odin’s hand tightened on the hammer. For a fleeting moment, a murderous glint flashed in his single eye, and the temperature in the room seemed to plummet. Killing intent radiated from the All-Father like a gathering storm.
"The bastards from the Inverse..." Odin growled.
Leo’s blood ran cold. "The Inverse?"
Odin drew in a slow breath, visibly forcing his emotions back under control. "You’ve encountered them too, haven’t you? You’ve seen what they leave behind—the corruption, the darkness. You witnessed it firsthand in the ruins of that forge."
Leo was stunned. He had never spoken of those encounters to anyone—not even Freya. "How do you know that?" he asked, his voice laced with caution and vigilance.
Odin turned from the pedestal. His single eye, ancient and unfathomable, held depths of loss, fragile hope, and desperate resolve.
"Have you heard of the Well of Wisdom?"
Leo shook his head. "I haven’t."
Odin nodded. "You shouldn’t have access to such knowledge yet. You’re still too low-leveled."
He sighed, then continued. "Beneath one of the roots of Yggdrasil—the one that reaches into Jötunheimr—lies Mímir’s Well. The guardian Mímir drinks from it each morning using the Gjallarhorn. It fills him with ancient lore."
"I thirsted for knowledge. I never stopped seeking it across the worlds. I learned that drinking from the well beneath Yggdrasil granted not just wisdom, but true perception. I needed it to prepare for Ragnarök—to protect my people."
Odin paused, then touched the empty socket where his right eye had once been. "I went to Mímir and begged for a single drink. He refused unless I offered something of equal value in pledge." His fingers lingered on the scar. "My right eye. It remains there still, shining up through the water. "
"In exchange, I gained more than knowledge. I gained sight. I see what others cannot—across realms, across time. The eye stays. The price was permanent."
"People began calling me the All-Seeing All-Father," Odin finished.
Leo, who had been listening intently, felt a chill run down his spine. If he can see through everything... does that mean he knows everything about me?
"Yes," Odin said, as if reading his thoughts. "That is how I know everything you’ve been through. There’s no need to be so nervous."
"You can read minds too?" Leo asked, startled.
Odin let out a short laugh. "It was written all over your face. Anyone could tell." His expression grew serious once more. "This eye lets me see through nearly everything. I know more about you than you know about yourself. The Eternal Forge Holders have always been the greatest blacksmiths of their eras. That is why I still hold a sliver of hope that you might be able to repair Mjölnir." He sighed. "Though you are still young... and low-leveled."
A heavy silence settled between them. The cold seemed to press even closer.
"Long ago," Odin continued, "when Asgard first connected with Myth Online—just like your world—we had barely passed the tutorial phase. Our realm had only just gained access to the greater cosmic realms beyond the Nine Realms. The moment we did, the Inverse invaded."
Odin’s voice remained steady, but his hands trembled. The tremor spread through his arms, shoulders, and entire frame.
"Thor led the defense. He was the strongest besides me... and the bravest. He charged into the darkness without hesitation, wielding Mjölnir against beings that had no body, no substance, no true shape."
Odin’s gaze grew distant, as though he were watching the ancient battle unfold once more.
"The hammer shattered. The darkness absorbed the impact and hurled it back. Mjölnir broke in Thor’s hands."
The words lingered in the frigid air like frost.
"And Thor?" Leo asked, his throat tight.
Odin remained silent for a long moment, his fingers still tracing the cracks in the hammer.
"He is still out there. Somewhere. Fighting."
Leo’s chest constricted. "Fighting?"
"Before the darkness claimed him, he threw the hammer with his final strength. It flew across the void and landed here, in this chamber." Odin’s voice grew quieter. "That was long ago. We tried everything to repair it. Every master blacksmith from the Nine Realms attempted it—and failed. Some were corrupted by whatever was left within the hammer. Eventually, we gave up hope."
"The competition held every two years in hope of finding the one capable of repairing the Mjolnir became nothing more than tradition, its original purpose all but forgotten. ....Until a boy from Midgard arrived and forged a hammer bearing runes never seen before."
"Midgard?" Leo echoed.
Odin nodded. "Your planet—what you now call ’Earth’—was once known as Midgard, one of the Nine Realms. According to our records, it vanished from the cosmos one day."
Leo reeled from the revelation. So all the legends and myths on Earth... they were true?
Odin’s next words snapped him out of his thoughts.
"I know you cannot leave this world until you repair Mjölnir."
Leo’s eyes widened. "You even know that?"
Odin gave a small nod. "I hold no great hope of your success. But as this generation’s Forge Holder, I will grant you full access to the palace’s knowledge and resources for one week. Study. Learn. Do everything you can."
His voice dropped to a near whisper. "And after that week... try to repair it."
Leo stared at the broken hammer—the deep cracks, the dead runes, the parasitic corruption that had defeated every blacksmith before him. Then he felt the reassuring warmth of the Starfall Hammer against his thigh, steady and unyielding.
"One week," Leo said firmly.
"Begin tomorrow," Odin replied. "You may return to your quarters for tonight and rest."
---
Leo nodded and made his way out. He climbed the stairs alone while Odin remained behind, standing vigil beside Mjölnir, lost in memory.
When Leo reached the top and stepped out of the throne room, he found Freya waiting. She leaned against the wall with her arms crossed, one leg bent and resting against the stone, the other supporting her weight.
He stopped in front of her. "So you knew everything?"
She nodded. "The Inverse. My brother Thor. All of it."
Leo studied her face. "You could have told me earlier."
"I could have," Freya admitted. "But my father needed to tell you himself."
They walked side by side down the long corridor, their footsteps echoing softly.
After a stretch of silence, Freya spoke again. "My father meant what he said. If you fail after truly trying, he won’t hold it against you."
Leo gave a wry chuckle. "I know. He doesn’t have high hopes to begin with. But even if he doesn’t hold it against me, the System won’t let me leave until I fix it."
Freya nodded. "Thor is my brother. He’s been gone for many years. My father has searched every realm, every dimension."
She stopped and turned to face him. Torchlight danced in her eyes—bright, hard, and shadowed with fear.
"You’re his last hope. A blacksmith who can forge with living runes. Who can make metal think."
Leo’s stomach tightened under the weight of her words. "What if I can’t do it?"
Freya’s expression hardened. "If you don’t believe you can fix it, then don’t bother trying." Her voice softened with solemn gravity. "The corruption... it’s not merely physical damage. The Inverse left something behind—a curse. A parasite."
Leo’s blood chilled as memories of the final boss in the ruins flashed through his mind.
"Every blacksmith who tried before you... the corruption consumed them. Some went mad. Some died."
Her hand tightened around her own wrist until her knuckles turned white.
She looked at him, her face once again an unreadable mask. "As for you... I don’t know."
---
Back in his quarters, Leo locked the door behind him. He sat on the bed with the Starfall Hammer resting on his lap and studied it, his mind overlaying the image of Mjölnir’s shattered form.
Six runes glowed softly on its surface: Mnemos. Genesis. Logos. Experience. Curiosity. Harmony.
Six runes. Six fragments of his soul. Each forged in fire and unyielding will.
He thought of Mjölnir’s cracks, its dead runes, and the parasitic darkness that had broken so many before him. He thought of Thor, lost somewhere in the void, still fighting. And then, unbidden, memories of his father and the old smithy back on Earth surfaced.
A hammer to be rebuilt.
Leo closed his eyes. The precise image of the broken Mjölnir appeared in his mind’s eye, every fracture and faded rune crystal clear.
He opened his eyes again.
One week.
It was going to be one hell of a long week.