By normal standards, Hela was a lunatic.
She disregarded lives, and reveled in the thrill of slaughter.
Even her own people—she would wipe them out without hesitation.
She wouldn't even spare the old, the weak, or children—just to satisfy the conquest obsession in her heart.
A madwoman like that…
Now seeing someone who could actually hurt her,
how excited she felt was obvious.
The anger she'd had a moment ago vanished completely.
Right now, to her,
it felt like a cat toying with a mouse—
before killing its prey, it played with it first.
"Very good, mortal. You've successfully caught my attention."
"Even if you scream, your body will still become my puppet, and help me conquer this universe."
Hela spoke with an excited grin.
"Sorry, I'm not interested in that. You're not my type."
Karl replied blandly.
As he spoke,
his finger twitched.
The shield in front of him shot straight at Hela.
Explosions were art.
There was no enemy that couldn't be solved by an explosion.
If an explosion couldn't solve it, that only meant your yield was too small.
With a thought from Karl—
half of the shield fragments rushed at Hela.
Even Hela, seeing that, couldn't help going blank with confusion.
Seriously.
One shield had already broken her guard just now.
Now there were so many.
This kid was ruthless!
But…
Hela didn't look nervous at all.
"Reusing the same trick? You're underestimating me."
"I am the Goddess of Death!"
She said it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
She pointed forward with one hand.
Dozens of miserable green ravens suddenly flew out from behind her,
charging straight into the magical shields.
A dense surge of deathly power flashed.
Those shields that had been glowing gold abruptly dimmed, stained by deathly energy.
Snap!
Karl snapped his fingers.
The remaining shields exploded, but they only wiped out the ravens.
Before Karl could take the next step—
he spun around sharply, golden light flaring in his hand.
A golden chain of energy lashed out from his palm.
Crack!
A crisp sound rang out, and a melted scar appeared on the ground.
Hela stood dozens of meters away, watching him.
"What a sharp kid…"
Hela said, gripping her twin swords.
"No. I'm just cautious by nature."
"But a royal Goddess of Death resorting to a sneak attack… that one surprised me."
Karl's words were faintly barbed.
"On the battlefield, there's no such thing as a sneak attack."
Hela replied coldly.
Karl raised his hand.
A shield spun and flowed around him.
Clink!
A clear, ringing sound.
It turned out Hela had used the shield's rebound—
and once again tried to ambush him with a deathly longsword in her hand.
If Karl were an ordinary person, that strike would've pierced his heart in one blow.
Unfortunately—
Karl had been prepared.
Why did he set the battlefield inside the Mirror Dimension?
This was exactly why.
No ambush could escape his eyes.
A fight
was never separate from timing, terrain, and circumstance.
If he was weaker than Hela, then at any distance—
he had to create favorable timing and terrain for himself.
Karl did that perfectly.
Hela's little ambushes, in his eyes,
were as obvious as a bright speck on a bald head.
Hela didn't know any of that.
She thought Karl's senses were genuinely terrifyingly keen.
"Very good."
"Your strength exceeds my expectations."
"I'll give you one more chance. Kneel. Submit to me!"
"I can spare your life."
Karl's face broke into a bright smile.
The magic chain in his hand whipped straight at Hela.
Hela shifted with it, dodging—
at an unbelievable speed.
"Unappreciative."
Hela said icily.
A longsword formed in her grip.
She charged straight at Karl.
Karl hurled the magic chain at the Hela in front of him.
Crack!
Crack!
Crack!
A barrage of sounds erupted.
The ground filled with red, melted scorch-marks, like rows of spreading fissures.
Hela's silhouette was almost impossible to catch.
Relying on the Asgardians' terrifying physique, Hela moved like a blur—nothing like a mortal.
Asgardian combat skill was pushed to its absolute limit in her hands.
Her sword either deflected—
or she used that monstrous footwork to evade.
For a moment,
Karl's Eldritch Whip couldn't do anything to her.
"Worthy of Hela, the Goddess of Death."
"Combat skill tempered on the battlefield… truly extraordinary."
"Looks like I'll have to use something else if I want to win."
Karl said with open admiration.
Without another word—
red light flashed in his hand.
A crimson band appeared in Karl's grasp,
and it snapped toward Hela.
And under Karl's control, that band twisted and slithered—
like a living serpent, winding toward Hela.
"…Trying to bind me with that? Delusional."
Hela sneered.
She flicked her longsword upward,
trying to knock the crimson band away.
But—
did Karl's attack look that simple?
Not only was the crimson band not knocked aside—
it moved like a true living snake, wrapping around Hela's longsword.
"What?"
Hela froze.
Instinctively, she was about to abandon the sword—
But.
Too late.
In that instant, she exposed a gap.
Karl didn't hesitate.
The Eldritch Whip cracked straight across Hela's body.
She was sent flying.
Her armor was scorched and ruined by the high heat, and burn marks appeared on her skin.
Hela's face was full of shock.
This spell…
was insanely strong!
The reason she had blanked out and exposed that opening—
wasn't because her sword had been controlled.
It was because,
in that split second, she felt several razor-like slashes tear at her shield!
She was Hela!
The Goddess of Death!
Her divine power was endless—overwhelmingly strong.
Yet his power—
in that single moment, forcibly punched through her shield!
How could she not be shocked? How could she not be shaken?
How could this kid's magic be this powerful?
Even the Ancient One back then didn't have power like this!
Could it be this guy, who looked like a young man,
was actually some old monster?
Otherwise how could he possess such terrifying strength?
For a moment, Hela couldn't help doubting.
Deathly divine power erupted from her body.
It blew Karl's follow-up pressure apart.
Then she hovered in front of Karl, staring him down.
She was stunned by this kid's magic.
"Who the hell are you?!"
Hela's face darkened as she spoke.
"I'm just an ordinary sorcerer."
Karl replied with a smiling squint.
(End of Chapter)
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