“This is taking longer than I thought...” Sirka said.0

“You must be patient. Yours took far longer,” Ammut replied as they stood watching Nidhogg.0

A cold wind swept through the air. They were in the Sea of the Afterlife, where a brutal winter had settled in. A heavy blizzard had buried the World Tree in snow. It was a literal nightmare come to life, descending upon the World Tree itself, and not even Nidhogg, who had fled to the tree’s upper reaches, was safe from such bitter cold.0

[Nidhogg, the Serpent that Feeds on the Roots of the World Tree]0

At the moment, Nidhogg was completely sealed away by Sirka’s power, its massive body frozen in place by the Blistering Blizzard she had unleashed. It was not unlike the time Sirka herself had been locked in a towering pillar of ice during her own succession ceremony. A low growl escaped from Nidhogg’s throat.0

And what is all that glaring going to accomplish? What can you do about it? Sirka wondered, finding herself unexpectedly intrigued. She no longer felt the same fear she had when she first saw Nidhogg among the branches. The creature was now unable to move, stuck in the snow-covered tree. Not that this was particularly surprising. 0

The first time she’d encountered Nidhogg, the sheer volume of energy it held had left her staggered. It wasn’t just the size—the primordial darkness it contained exuded a pressure like a cosmic catastrophe. In such a case,...0