Nordic: I Created a Forbidden Land for the Gods

"To actually find a flaw, that kid who looks like a lump of coal is quite interesting."

"Next time you come, I'll give you an even more realistic fake, and see how he manages to tell you're wearing it."

In the marketplace of the spiritual realm, on the third shop of the second street, a phantom figure played with a stone and thought to himself with great interest.

Charles's true form is a mid-level god, which would only make him a minor god in the inland areas. However, as the third-ranking descendant of the Barth family, he is definitely a privileged class. Even gods one or two minor realms higher would give him some courtesy because of his status.

Going even deeper, the Barth family was also a vassal of the Hoder family, albeit superficially, but ultimately they were still connected to one of the twelve chief gods of the Aesir.

Thanks to this connection, Charles was able to obtain inside information about Odin's feat in advance, allowing him to act ahead of time and seize a stall in a market.

They then ruthlessly exploited the other gods who were slow to realize the danger, taking advantage of their eagerness to become stronger by selling fake runes for profit.

What he prepared was a rune called "Dragon Fire," a bait that could tempt even many gods.

This was originally a "fire" rune, with power similar to "lightning." However, a high-ranking deity inscribed it into the bloodline of dragons, and through generations of "experience," it evolved into a different rune.

This rune is immortal; even the primal chill of the Frost Giants has difficulty extinguishing it. The high gods used this rune to achieve many feats of valor, earning high praise from the chief god Loki.

With the help of "Dragon Fire", he made four or five hundred mithril coins in half a day. Due to the rules of the market, even if the customers suffered losses, they could only grit their teeth and leave.

I thought I could get another order, but I didn't expect someone to see through my act so easily with just a few words and leave immediately.

He's just an insignificant kid, yet he actually has some skills?

Charles did have some appreciation for Neil, but that was about it.

So when he saw the other party return, he took it a little more seriously, took out a rune stone that exuded a sharp aura but was actually another one that was made to look more realistic, and planned to fool them again.

But little did they know that he had someone backing him up.

"So you're the one selling counterfeit goods?"

The guard, wearing a horned helmet and carrying a long spear, looked at him calmly and spoke like this.

As he spoke, he released a powerful aura, like an insurmountable mountain pressing down on Charles, making it difficult for him to breathe.

Although he was a spirit, he still felt a cold sweat break out and quickly said no. At the same time, he glanced at Neil out of the corner of his eye, his eyes filled with shock, doubt, and confusion.

Aren't guards all just a bunch of guys who take money but do nothing, and never get involved unless there's a violent conflict? He's never seen many of them actually stand up for the victims.

Even his cousin, a nobleman who was also a distant relative of Hoddle, would only say that the victim deserved it if he bought counterfeit goods and sought legal recourse.

And this kid, who looks like a lump of black coal, actually managed to get the guards to come?

His expression was one of astonishment, and his mind was struggling to process what had happened.

But the overwhelming pressure was still there. Feeling the growing killing intent, Charles could only suppress his laughter, endure the pain, and take out the real rune stone to hand it over.

"Given your previous poor behavior, I will temporarily confiscate this item and return it to you after it has been verified as genuine."

The guard spoke in a businesslike tone, as if he really would return the favor.

This is freeloading!

Charles's lips twitched, but he didn't dare say anything more, forcing a smile as he saw them off.

Not far away, the guard's expression changed from cold to obsequious, and he handed the rune stone to Neil with both hands.

Neil smiled and said thank you, then put the rune stone into his bag and continued with the guard to the next stall.

Neil himself didn't know which powerful figure had favored him, since he had his eyes closed at the time.

Moreover, everything happened in the blink of an eye. By the time he realized what was happening, a mark had appeared on the back of his hand.

But the guards clearly knew, at least the one at the gate knew.

So, adhering to the principle of seeking help from the authorities when there are problems, Neil immediately went back to the door after feeling frustrated and asked for help from others.

Improving the platform environment is everyone's responsibility.

Neil was not proud of his actions.

"Dragon Fire is more powerful than ordinary Lightning, making it very suitable for building positions."

"Moreover, it also helps Slud in terms of characteristics, so I'm already doing well just by getting this."

"Although it's only level one, I can't replicate anything higher, and besides, higher-level ones are unlikely to appear in this market."

Neil murmured to himself, quite satisfied with the runestone.

Over the next period of time, he visited several more stalls to "purchase" items that he had previously liked but had not yet bought.

These were all the stalls that had tried to swindle him before. When they saw the vengeful spirit return, the stall owners instinctively showed mocking expressions.

But upon seeing the guards following Neil, their expressions froze, and they were forced to reluctantly hand over the goods after "friendly" negotiations.

"That's enough. Continuing any further might cause trouble."

Feeling the hostile gazes directed at him, Neil knew it was time to back down.

Bringing guards is a good idea, but it's too conspicuous.

In fact, more than a dozen merchants had tried to scam him, but many of them had gotten wind of it and left in advance, thus avoiding losses.

Those who can set up stalls at this time are either people who have lived in the market for many years, or they are children of influential people with connections.

This can be inferred from the increasingly grim expressions on the guards' faces as each house was looted.

With a powerful figure endorsing him and the fact that he's anonymous, Neil is naturally fine, but the guards in the market might not be so reliable.

Even if the market can protect them to some extent, when multiple forces unite, someone has to take the blame.

Regardless, the other party had helped him a lot, so Neil felt bad about making things too difficult for him.

Even so, he just kept quiet and didn't disturb my looting, which must have been difficult for him to do.

"And the mark is almost gone..."

Neil murmured, feeling the white mark on the back of his hand slowly fade away over time. He felt a chill run down his spine, knowing that the "protection period" would soon be over.

He immediately communicated with the spirit within his body, and his physical form quickly faded and disappeared.

Watching the figure, as black as a lump of coal, disappear from sight, the guard didn't say anything, but he also breathed a sigh of relief, looking as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

"However, I never expected that someone of my status would be able to see the mark of Odin, the Father God."

"No, it wasn't the Father God himself, but it was pretty close."

"That one, Lady Nika..."

The guards had complex expressions, a mixture of longing and awe.

Actually, Neil only found out much later.

In order to unleash his all-encompassing divine power, Odin created multiple avatars.

Nika is one of them.

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Note: Odin does have a clear incarnation, and some sources record that Nika (or Nikal) is the third name among them.

Incidentally, the Nika Fruit in One Piece is probably derived from this, since Norse mythology is closely related to pirates, and the Giants arc, which is currently the climax of the story, is also an adaptation of Norse mythology.