CHAPTER 119: YMIR IN GLACIERLAND

The wolf-dragon froze at Ymir’s command. Its frost-coated claws dug into the ground, breath steaming out in violent bursts. For a long second, nothing happened. Then its massive head lowered, cerulean eyes burning but... waiting.

Hermes’ breath hitched. "...It listened."

Ymir stared at the creature, his hands trembling. "No. That’s... impossible."

"Impossible?" Magni spread his arms like a preacher at a pulpit. "Behold! The scion of Skadi commands the frostbeast of legend! I could weep! Nay, I shall weep!"

His voice cracked theatrically, and he actually sniffled before slapping Ymir hard on the back. "Your Highness, you are glorious!"

"Don’t call me that." Ymir snapped, though his voice lacked bite.

The wolf-dragon growled, and Hermes flinched, ready to fight again. But the beast didn’t attack. Instead, it lowered its chest to the ground, like it was waiting.

"...No way." Hermes muttered. "It wants you to climb on."

Ymir blinked. "Absolutely not."

"Oh, absolutely yes!" Magni practically shoved him toward the beast. "When fate lays such a steed before you, you do not decline. You mount! You ride! You carve your saga into the frost!"

Hermes pinched the bridge of his nose. "A saga into the frost? You never run out of the most over-the-top lines, do you?"

"Not once in all my blazing life!" Magni declared proudly.

Ymir grimaced, looking at the wolf-dragon again. It rumbled deep in its throat, not hostile... more like expectant.

His jaw clenched. "This is madness. I refuse to—"

The wolf-dragon nudged him with its snout, nearly knocking him over.

Hermes smirked. "Looks like it refuses your refusal."

Ymir cursed under his breath. "Fine. But this is not acceptance. This is survival."

He placed a hand on the beast’s icy hide, hauling himself up its massive shoulder. His boots crunched against frozen scales as he climbed to its back.

The wolf-dragon let out a low rumble, wings flaring slightly.

Magni cheered so loud it shook icicles from the ceiling. "YES! Ride, son of Skadi! Ride as the old bards dreamt! Ice and flame together at last!"

Hermes gave him a deadpan look. "You’re enjoying this way too much."

"Of course I am! If I cannot compose a ballad of this, then what is the point of lungs?" Magni hopped up behind Ymir, slapping the beast’s side. "Forward, noble frostfang! To destiny!"

The wolf-dragon leapt, wings spreading wide. The sudden rush of wind nearly knocked Hermes flat before he scrambled on as well, clinging to icy ridges along its back.

The frozen landscape blurred below them. Jagged mountains, shattered glaciers, and seas of frost stretched out endlessly. The beast soared with terrifying grace, every wingbeat sending storms of snow in its wake.

Hermes’ heart thundered. Against all odds, they weren’t dying. They were flying.

Ymir, tense at first, gradually loosened his grip. He leaned with the beast’s movements, guiding it with small words.

"Left. Higher. Slow."

Each time, it obeyed. His lips tightened, fighting the ghost of a smile.

"You’re enjoying it." Hermes said, half accusing.

"I am not." Ymir shot back instantly.

"Your face says otherwise." Hermes grinned.

Magni threw his head back, laughing. "Do you see it, Brother Modi? The icy prince finally weds his destiny! Hark, I can already hear all of the Void roaring with this tale!"

"Shut up, Magni." Ymir muttered, though he didn’t tell the wolf-dragon to stop.

They soared over the frozen world, the cold biting at their cheeks, the rush of air sharp and freeing. For a moment, it felt like victory. For a moment, it felt like maybe they had control.

Then the air shifted.

The temperature plummeted, sharper than before. The sky darkened, frost crawling across their skin despite the wind. The wolf-dragon stiffened mid-flight, its wings faltering. It let out a whimper, an actual whimper....

And descended, landing hard on the icy plain.

"What the hell—" Hermes started to say but was interrupted before he can finish.

He felt it. A weight. A crushing, suffocating presence that made his heart race and his breath catch.

Frost spread across the ground in veins, spiderwebbing toward them.

The wolf-dragon pressed its head low to the ice, trembling.

Ymir’s stomach dropped. His fingers went numb. He knew this. He knew it too well.

From the heart of the storm, she came.

A figure stepped out of the frost, tall, regal, terrifying. White hair spilled down her shoulders like a glacier waterfall. Her eyes glowed cold blue, piercing, merciless. Her cloak was spun from midnight frost, every edge sharp as broken glass.

The Primordial Ice Goddess. Skadi.

"How pitiful." Her voice was calm, lilting, yet heavy as a glacier pressing down on his chest. "The child who flees his own blood, clinging to borrowed names, borrowed causes, borrowed hope."

Ymir’s legs refused to move.

She tilted her head, eyes narrowing as they slid from Hermes to Magni... and finally to him. A faint, amused smile curved her lips.

"And yet, here you are. Perched atop my beast. Commanding it as though it were yours."

The wolf-dragon whimpered again, pressing even lower against the ground, its massive body shuddering.

Hermes swallowed hard. Magni, for once, was silent.

Ymir’s pulse pounded in his ears. His throat locked up.

Skadi stepped forward. Frost spread with every stride, spiderwebbing cracks across the plain. "Tell me, blood of my blood... Did you truly believe you could deny me? That you could steal my beast, all while escaping your nature?"

Her smile widened. She then raised her hand....

And a bow as large as the moon in the sky, with arrows that were tipped with actual glaciers appeared from thin air.

"Shall we see if you are worthy to keep what you’ve stolen?"

She drew it, aiming directly at Hermes, Magni and Ymir. The wolf-dragon immediately flew away in fear, knowing the immense power that weapon holds.

Ymir could feel his heart racing as memories of his last encounter with Skadi flashed before his eyes. That memory of being alone to face a goddess, like an ant facing not just a human, but a giant....

Trying to defeat her would not just be madness. It’s a suicide.