"Bang, bang, bang…"
A series of rapid knocks echoed from outside the door.
After a moment, a slightly hoarse voice answered from within.
"Come in."
The door creaked open, and Ivanka stepped in—tall, striking, her figure exuding that sharp, commanding aura she was known for.
Her face was unusually grim.
"Sir, we have a problem."
Balder looked up, his expression calm yet distant.
Ivanka continued quickly, "According to our surveillance, an artifact containing extraordinary power has fallen into someone else's hands. And the nature of that power… directly contradicts yours."
The moment those words landed, Balder's face darkened instantly.
"Impossible! That being was completely annihilated by me. Even if he left a contingency behind, it shouldn't have manifested so quickly—unless…"
His expression shifted again and again, the light in his eyes dimming into something heavy and foreboding.
After a long silence, he finally spoke in a low, complicated tone:
"It seems… the worst has happened."
Ivanka froze. She had only come to report this incident because it involved something supernatural—but judging from his reaction, the situation was far more serious than she'd thought.
Balder suddenly asked, "Do you know why I descended into this world?"
Ivanka blinked in surprise, then shook her head slightly. "If you don't mind sharing, my lord, I'd like to know the reason as well."
Balder turned to the window, his voice echoing faintly.
"This world is nothing more than a world without magic—a realm of mortals, holding little value. Theoretically, no extraordinary beings should ever descend here."
"But my master, the Divine Lord Balder, sensed unusual activity from his eternal nemesis—the Dark God Hodr. So he sent me to investigate."
At those words, Ivanka's eyes gleamed with excitement.
At last, her and her father's suspicions were confirmed—this being truly served the Norse God of Light, Balder, one of the Twelve Aesir Gods!
Balder continued, "We still don't know the Dark God's true purpose for sending agents into this world, but we can make some educated guesses.
"Possibly… to slaughter the entire planet and use its life force to forge a divine artifact.
"Or… to plunge this world into corruption, guiding it toward utter depravity, and from that chaos, nurture a new demigod."
He paused, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"Either way, since it's the work of a god's faction, there are only two types of envoys that could have been sent: Apostles and Divine Sons."
"An Apostle is a messenger of the gods—a mortal chosen to act in their name.
"But a Divine Son… is a being recognized as having the potential to ascend to godhood."
"The Apostle's strength isn't necessarily weaker. In fact, many Apostles are Divine Sons. But once someone is chosen as a Divine Son, they inevitably possess something extraordinary—perhaps a half-divine artifact, or a unique innate gift."
"I noticed something wrong with that being before, which is why I risked divine backlash to forcibly destroy him."
"If he was just a regular Apostle, his fall should've been permanent. There's no way his power could've recovered faster than mine—or manifested miracles again so soon.
"But now that this anomaly has appeared…"
Balder's eyes hardened. "It's clear. The enemy was no ordinary Apostle—he was the Dark Divine Son."
Ivanka's heart clenched.
She had thought this was merely a supernatural incident. Now she realized it was a divine-level threat.
Trying to keep her composure, she asked softly, "Then… what will happen to this Divine Son?"
Balder exhaled slowly, shaking his head.
"I don't know. I don't even know whether the vessel carries a special gift or an artifact."
"But one thing is certain: dark-aligned powers only embody corruption, slaughter, destruction, or rebirth through possession."
"No matter which path this one follows, whoever inherits his power will inevitably fall to darkness—their strength will skyrocket, and they'll continue carrying out his original will."
"In that process, it's entirely possible they'll grow strong enough to reach the Transcendent First Class."
Ivanka's blood ran cold.
A being capable of reaching Transcendent First Class—and with a dark, destructive nature?
That was no mere terrorist. That was something a million times more terrifying.
"L-Lord Balder…" Ivanka's voice trembled. Her back felt icy cold.
Balder sighed deeply and shook his head.
"Unless the inheritor is eliminated before reaching that level of power, this world is doomed. Don't place your hopes on nuclear weapons—believe me, those are almost useless against transcendents. Some of the Transcendent First Class beings in the Divine Realm literally bathe in nuclear blasts for fun."
He gave a faint, ironic smile.
Indeed, certain "green giants" could do exactly that.
And Thor—well, he once endured the heat of a star for several minutes just to forge the Stormbreaker. Compared to that, a nuclear explosion was little more than fireworks.
Ivanka's expression turned ashen.
"Then… even you can't stop him?"
Balder fell silent.
A faint glow shimmered across his body—and for the first time, Ivanka saw it clearly: beneath the fading light, his divine vessel was riddled with cracks, like shattered glass barely held together by holy radiance.
No answer was needed.
One second. Two. Three.
Time passed in heavy silence.
At last, Ivanka exhaled softly, suppressing the storm in her heart. Her expression steadied into icy resolve.
"…Understood, my lord."
"Please rest assured—we'll destroy the inheritor before he grows to Transcendent First Class strength. Even if it costs us everything the America has."
At that moment, the heiress of the world's mightiest conglomerate radiated something new—an aura of iron-blooded determination.
Balder gave a faint nod.
"Go, then."
"Please, rest well, my lord."
Ivanka turned and left the room.
Balder watched her retreating figure. The solemn mask on his face slowly faded—replaced by a faint, almost amused smile.
At the same time, the "cracks" covering his divine vessel shimmered once more—then vanished completely, as if they'd never been there.
"Heh… what comes next," he murmured, "will be the true clash between technology and the extraordinary."