I really didn't want to burn it.

As he spoke, the two soldiers pointed their spears at Li Ang.

As Li Ang assumed a defensive stance, he questioned the two soldiers: "I don't recall the Aesir being so warlike."

"Asgard is at war with Jotunheim, Midgard. No, Jotunheim's spies!" the leading Asgardian warrior sneered. "Orin, Norin, son of Karn! This will be the name of the warrior who takes your head."

"How boring." Instead of using it, Li Ang drew his sword. "Since when have Asgardian warriors had to bully the weak to gain merit?"

Li Ang's voice was filled with anger. He gripped his longsword tightly, took a stance, and prepared to deal with the two Asgardian warriors.

At that moment, he was extremely angry.

Li Ang had initially thought the two warriors he encountered in the courtyard were just exceptional cases, but now...

"What on earth is Thor doing! How can the military discipline be this bad? Does he manage the army with his hair?! I'll take those two. Mash, Ritsuka, you two stay away."

"Be careful!"

Mashu tried to pull Ritsuka away from the battle, but before they could take more than a few steps, the warrior named Norin changed his target and blocked their way, preventing them from leaving.

"You lowly human scum, where do you think you can go?" The man grinned, revealing a gap between his front teeth. "Look, brother. This woman actually came out with a shield. Perhaps she thinks a mortal shield can stop our Asgardian sharp spears!"

"Ah!"

At this moment, Li Ang turned around and rushed over, attacking Norlin, trying to hold the two of them back.

Unfortunately, they failed. Under the cover of his older brother Orin, the younger brother Norin chased after Ritsuka and Mash, who were running towards the edge of the road, with a teasing expression.

"Come on, you scum of humanity! Don't expect that man to save you!" Norlin shouted as he chased after them.

"Don't go!"

Li Ang wanted to give chase, but Oulin gripped his spear tightly with both hands and blocked his attack with a series of precise parries.

Then, Oulin thrust his spear several times, forcing Li Ang to retreat.

"If I had fully recovered..."

Li Ang's mood became unusually troubled.

Because whenever he was about to focus on dealing with the person in front of him, the warrior who went after Mashu would always swear at him, just like someone in an online game would be taunting and cursing him with the whole server's megaphone.

"Human women, you are so small and weak, with no strength in your limbs. How did you even manage to leave your mother's embrace?" Norin mocked.

"Shut up!"

"Mashu shouted."

The other person's words deeply stung the softest part of her heart, this android.

"Haha! Your hands are so thin, is the shield you're holding hollow?"

"Shut up!"

"Mash, calm down!"

Despite being furious herself, Ritsuka tried to calm Mash down.

Norin, on the other side, just laughed. He approached Mash and brandished his spear menacingly.

“Hey, women. You three aren’t orphans, are you? Three people who don’t know their parents and have to rely on each other, wanting to come to Asgard to make a living… How pathetic!” Norin said sarcastically.

"Shut up!"

Anger erupted in Mashu's mind, and she raised her shield and charged forward recklessly.

Boom!

Norin was knocked more than ten meters away by Mashu, and he felt as if his body was about to fall apart.

"I'm going to kill you!" Mash shouted as she charged forward again.

"Norlin!"

The change on his brother's side caught Oulin's attention, and although it was only for a brief moment, Li Ang seized the opportunity.

Pfft!

Leon's longsword struck Asgard squarely, the rune-enhanced sword effortlessly slicing through the man's unarmored neck.

"what----!"

Orin's death screams reached everyone present. His body convulsed uncontrollably for a few seconds before collapsing to the ground.

Norlin was completely stunned when he heard his brother's screams.

When did the mortals of Midgard dare to kill the warriors of Asgard?

Boom!

Before Norlin could react, the black shield slammed into his face again.

"puff----"

Two front teeth, along with blood, spurted from Norlin's mouth. This shrewish guy finally paid the price for his mouth.

"Bastards! Who are you? How did you manage to kill us?!"

Norlin frantically waved his spear, trying to force Li Ang and the other two away.

"Next up is you."

Li Ang spoke calmly and without emotion, his gaze turning icy cold.

Seeing Leon approaching him with a sword, Norlin, having lost all courage, chose to flee.

"What a waste."

Li Ang spat, sheathed his longsword, and took out his bow and arrows.

He certainly wasn't going to let this scoundrel who insulted the honor of Asgard get away with it.

whoosh-

A beam of golden light descended from above and pierced through Norin's body.

Norlin stood frozen in place, his face still bearing unspeakable terror, but his soul was no longer in his body; instead, it had followed his brother to the underworld.

thump.

Looking at Norin's fallen body, Leon, who had just drawn his longbow, felt a little embarrassed.

"I haven't even shot an arrow yet, how did I fall down?"

"Doesn't this make your archery skills look good, Li Ang?"

A blonde, blue-eyed woman descended from the sky and teased Li Ang in a clearly joking tone.

"Freya."

Li Ang read out the goddess's name.

M78 Nebula 756365104

PS: To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Madoka Magica, the official website has surprisingly announced plans for a new main story.

Based on the tagline in the teaser trailer—"So, let the story continue"—it seems highly likely that the story will continue after the rebellion. =w=

Chapter 261 The Goddess Whose Reputation Was Persecuted

Freya, the goddess of beauty in Norse mythology.

Like Ishtar of Mesopotamia and Aphrodite of Greece, she, as the goddess of beauty, possessed the power of love, procreation, sexuality, and even war.

It seems that in the Western pantheon, goddesses of beauty are always associated with this kind of power.

Of course, it's also possible that it's a continuation of Mesopotamian mythology, the source of Western mythology. After all, Norse mythology took shape much later.

Even though it's late, the Norse mythology system still retains its own unique characteristics.

Besides the fact that gods are not omnipotent, the races of gods are also different from those in other mythological systems. They are divided into the Aesir, the Vanir, and a few giants such as Loki and Skadi who have acquired divine functions.

Perhaps influenced by the naturally brave and warlike nature of the Norse Vikings, there were also many conflicts among the gods.

In particular, there have been more than one battle between the Aesir and the Vanir.

Ultimately, when both sides were exhausted and began to consider giving up, the Aesir and Vanir gods reached an alliance by exchanging hostages.

The Aesir sent Odin's brother Hainir and the wise giant Mimir, while the Vanir offered Freya and her father and brother as hostages.

Although she was sent to the Aesir as a hostage, Freya completely became a core member of the Aesir.

With her kind and beautiful appearance, she is almost the most beloved god in Asgard.

Normally, Freya would dress in bright, colorful clothes, bringing spring to Midgard and Asgard.

When war comes, Freya will don full armor and go into battle, conquering all sides. She may even lead the Valkyries to select the spirits of those who died on the battlefield for Odin.

In some versions of Norse mythology, Freya and Odin's wife Frigg are the same person.

However, in the timeline Li Ang traveled through, they were undoubtedly two gods.

Even with Li Ang's high standards, he had to admit that Freya was undoubtedly a perfect goddess.

"Long time no see, Li Ang."

Freya landed gently on the ground, a gentle smile on her face.

"Long time no see, Freya."

Li Ang awkwardly greeted Freya.

“Yes, it has been a long time,” Freya said with a smile. “It’s probably been several hundred years since we last met.”

"So it's been this long already..."

Li Ang's eyelids twitched.

"Yes, it's been that long. Even if my Odd likes to wander around outside, he's never gone hundreds of years without coming home."

Although Freya's smile remained unchanged, Li Ang could clearly sense the complaint in her words.

“Oh, Li Ang.” Ritsuka nudged Li Ang’s waist with her elbow. “What does this goddess mean? You and her back then…”

Snapped.

Having already guessed what Ritsuka was going to say, Li Ang slapped her on the mouth to shut her up.

“Ritsuka, Mashu. This is Freya, the goddess of beauty and husband of Od, the god of Asgard.”

Li Ang deliberately put Freya's husband's name first to warn the two girls not to talk nonsense in front of others.

Despite being a goddess of beauty, Freya is far more chaste than other goddesses of beauty in other mythologies who are known for their promiscuity.

Apart from her husband Ode, Freya had never engaged in any inappropriate behavior with other men.

It is well known that the god Od is famous for his love of traveling. He often leaves home without a word and doesn't return for years.

Basically, Freya left home partly to go see her unreliable husband.

If this were a goddess of beauty in other mythologies, she would have already been surrounded by gigolos.

But Freya never did such a thing, always dutifully fulfilling her duties as a wife.

Unfortunately, this goddess did not have a good reputation in later generations, especially in Chinese-speaking circles, where Freya's reputation was no different from that of those promiscuous goddesses.

There are two main reasons for this.

One question concerns the origin of the Higaman necklace worn by Freya.

In most popular science articles, the origin of this most beautiful necklace in Norse mythology is basically said to be that Freya slept with four dwarf craftsmen for four nights in order to obtain the necklace.

In fact, this event is not recorded in any authoritative or orthodox Norse mythology.

Actually, the story originates from an expansion of a novel in the manuscript of a Christian pastor.

Although the Norse mythology was compiled by Christian priests after the conversion of the entire Nordic region to Christianity, the background of this novel is more Christian, making it unlikely to be an authentic mythological work.

More importantly, Freya in this story is Odin's human concubine. Even if Freya and Frigg were the same person in their early years, her race is definitely not human.

Another reason for Freya's damaged reputation is related to the magical book "The ABC of Norse Mythology".

Basically, apart from the story of Freya and the four dwarves, all other information about Freya's relationships with male deities other than her husband comes from this book.

And this book is the most famous Chinese-language publication promoting Norse mythology, so...