I'm in an American comic book, and all my teammates are main characters and bosses.

Chapter 97 The Arrival of Badr

Is Kratos powerful? Yes, extremely powerful.

From a Spartan warrior, he rose through the ranks to become a leader, slaying all his rivals in the struggle for the elixir of life. After discovering he had been tricked by Ares, the god of war, he personally killed him and sealed himself as a god. Then, to defy his tragic fate, he relentlessly slaughtered all of Olympus, piece by piece. The once magnificent Greek pantheon, before Kratos's blade, was reduced to nothing but blood, flames, ruins, and endless corpses of gods.

But Kratos is also vulnerable; all his power, and even all his motivations, stem from a very pure emotion—"anger."

Even up until God of War 4, despite Kratos being considered the toughest protagonist in games, a considerable number of people still felt that Kratos's character was extremely one-dimensional. Many comic book authors and rating websites also believed that Kratos was the most overrated game character.

This assessment persisted until God of War 4. When Kratos, the Spartan ghost who slayed the gods and subsequently slaughtered the Greek gods, became a taciturn father, he finally shed the simplistic image of "anger." His numerous Game of the Year awards are the best proof of this.

But if the theme of God of War 4 is father and son, then the theme of God of War 5 is the past and new life.

It wasn't until the end of God of War 5, when Kratos decided to let go of his past and shoulder the responsibility of rebuilding the Nine Realms and bringing prosperity to the world alongside Freya and others who shared his grief, that the appearance of the Valhalla DLC allowed Kratos to truly let go and accept his past.

Before that... Kratos simply thought he had let go of everything.

"You think you've accepted all of this, let go of all of this. But in reality, you haven't."

Looking into Kratos's eyes, Ron said calmly, "You haven't let go. These memories continue to torment you. Just like the name Atreus... it's a Greek name. You keep reminding yourself not to forget the past; you are still a soul bound by the past."

"..."

Kratos gritted his teeth, his hand on Ron's collar clenching and unclenching repeatedly. But in the end, he simply said coldly, "This is my business, none of your concern."

"That won't do," Ron said calmly.

"Regardless of what happens later, at least for now you're still a member of the team. If you have any bad habits, that's one thing, since I'm not exactly a saint myself. But your problem right now is far too serious."

"Divinity can grant people immense power and immortality, but this spiritual deficiency is far more fatal than physical disability. I don't want to be in the middle of a battle one day, only to have you suddenly become a puppet filled with rage, manipulated by the enemy's mind."

"Besides, I'm not talking to you right now. You don't have to listen if you don't want to." Ron suddenly shouted, "Atreus! What, do you still want to hear it?"

"what?"

Atreus was taken aback when Ron, who was engaged in a heated argument with his father, suddenly called out to him. He then looked to Freya and Mimir for help.

But this time, both Freya, who treated Atreus like a mother, and Mimir, who was used to being noisy and sarcastic, remained silent.

It's obvious to anyone with eyes that this is Kratos's family matter. Although Ron isn't Kratos's family, it's clear that Ron is trying to untangle Kratos's knot... Whether it's good or bad for Kratos is another matter, but Atreus is clearly eager to know more.

Without a doubt, this was the first time Atreus had learned about his father's past experiences.

"Don't look around, follow your heart," Ron said, looking at Atreus beside him.

"When you learn these things, it means you are no longer the protected child you once were. You need to make your own choices, take responsibility, accept everything, and walk your own path."

Atreus hadn't felt it deeply before. But now, after hearing the words "forge your own path," he paused for a moment, took a deep breath, raised his head, met his father's complex gaze, pursed his lips, and for the first time looked directly into his father's eyes with such determination, saying:

"I want to know."

"..."

Kratos clenched his fists, not out of anger, but rather a complex mix of pain, confusion, melancholy, and joy.

After a long silence, Kratos simply released his grip and patted Ron on the shoulder. As he turned and walked past Atreus, he patted Atreus on the shoulder as well and said:

"Once you've made your choice, move on."

It was a very simple sentence, a very simple sentence, but it was this sentence that made Atreus feel such intense joy for the first time.

Hearing these words from Kratos, Atreus was so shocked that he opened his mouth in disbelief. Looking at his father's back as he walked to the side, Atreus felt even happier than when he learned that he was a god!

Still young, Atreus did not know that what made him happy was the respect he received from his father.

"I...I? My father means..."

"That means you're an adult now." Ron patted Atreus's head without any politeness, which made Atreus dodge a couple of times in annoyance. Even so, Atreus did not retaliate arrogantly.

Atreus's arrogance stemmed not only from learning he was a god, but also from his subsequent encounter with the runestones, which granted him a vast amount of knowledge and power disproportionate to his nature. This led to his extreme arrogance, even to the point of openly opposing Kratos.

Now, having only a preliminary realization that he was a god, and before he could even understand what that meant, he learned of his father's past and received his father's approval... The little bit of pride that had finally grown hadn't even had a chance to ignite before it was extinguished by a bucket of hot urine. Although there was still a possibility that it might rekindle, at least for now, Atreus had regained his composure.

Or perhaps, curiosity about her father's past suppressed her inner arrogance.

"Come on, let's continue our previous topic." Ron sat down on the ground and took out some food from other worlds from his spatial storage.

Although they are gods, and although it is said that sons should be raised frugally and daughters lavishly, it must be said that Kratos' family lived a very simple life.

Their daily life consisted mainly of roasted or boiled meat. Protein came entirely from hunting, vitamins from wild vegetables, and salt was the only seasoning most of the time. While this was partly due to their living conditions, their diet was clearly only enough to fill their stomachs; they were far from truly eating well.

Frigga, being an older woman, had little interest in such fancy fried food, but Atreus was different—only fourteen or fifteen years old, at the age when she was still growing. All her previous food had been boiled in salt water, and now she had absolutely no resistance to this kind of junk food.

"Um, may I try some?"

"You don't have to eat if you don't want to."

"what?"

Atreus seemed somewhat hesitant.

Ron could only lament that Kratos's teachings were almost destroying Atreus's confidence...

"Eat up, buddy. I'm not so stingy as to not share this stuff."

"Oh, thank you!"

Atreus began to eat with great interest.

While Kratos's self-aggrandizing behavior in the game's storyline is annoying, if we're being honest, he's at least half to blame. But thinking about it more deeply, it seems like Kratos isn't entirely to blame. After all, Kratos himself grew up in similar circumstances. Perhaps even worse off than Atreus, because Zeus, that old Pythium, wasn't the kind of guy who'd clean up his messes and provide for him.

Born in Sparta, a place known for its fierce and warlike people, a single mother trying to raise two children... it's only because Kratos is a natural fighter, otherwise he would have suffered so much more.

"But even so, your father's fate wasn't much better," Ron said with a sigh as he ate. "He watched his brother die tragically, killed his beloved wife and daughter with his own hands, and in the end, even your father's mother, your grandmother, was turned into a monster by the gods and then killed by his own hands."

"That's why your father didn't want to tell you that you have divine blood flowing through your veins," Ron said.

"Because your father knows very well how wicked and hateful God's character is. He is also afraid that you will become like that. You can understand, right? Although he hides it very well, he has never truly relaxed or felt at ease."

"...Is that so?"

Atreus seemed to understand why his father was always vague about his past and unwilling to recall it.

"So what should I do?"

Atreus ate while curiously watching Ron.

Although Ron appears to be of the same generation as his father, to be honest, Atreus finds Ron much easier to approach than his father. At least, Ron respects him and is willing to talk about the past that his father is unwilling to discuss or even recall.

"Do what you want to do, but think it through calmly before you do it. Is it because of your own conscience or because of a momentary evil thought? Is it the path you choose or the path you are led astray by others? Only you can control this. Everyone else can only play a supporting role."

Ron's words were simple, almost nonsensical. But for Atreus, there was no need for further explanation. Atreus inherited his mother Laufey's kindness—well, perhaps mainly because Kratos was utterly inept at parenting.

In this situation, no lengthy explanation is needed. Simply making Atreus realize that the divine blood within him represents not only power, but also responsibility. Preventing his long-suppressed inferiority complex from growing into paranoia and arrogance is sufficient.

After all, there's a long road ahead; there's plenty of time to prepare it slowly.

Seeing Ron suddenly laugh, Atreus inexplicably shrank back, feeling that the uncle in front of him was not as nice as he had imagined.

Having finished his conversation with Atreus, Ron stood up and casually walked over to Kratos. Seeing the wistful look on the burly man's face, Ron asked with a smile:

"Atreus is all set, how's it going on your end? You seem a bit down?"

"You know why."

Kratos glanced at Ron, shook his head, and didn't dwell on the matter. He simply said calmly, "Let's leave it at that. Atreus has stabilized, and I have no interest in your long-winded explanation."

Was it a lack of interest, or an unwillingness to face it? Ron didn't ask further, but instead looked up and said, "Someone's coming."

"Um?"

Upon hearing this, Kratos narrowed his eyes slightly, then stood up, drew the Leviathan Axe from behind him, and said in a deep voice, "Who's here?"

"I don't know, it's probably because of your loss of divine control just now." Ron unceremoniously shifted the blame directly onto Kratos—although Ron had more or less guessed that Kratos was unlikely to be able to suppress this resentment and anger stemming from the past.

But when Kratos truly felt anger and lost control because of tearing open old wounds, the power that erupted still genuinely amazed Ron.

It not only blasted a blank space, but also directly shook Freya's spell, drawing the attention of some people who didn't want to show their faces.

And the first person to arrive here, who had been relentlessly pursuing Kratos, was none other than...

He leaped down from the sky, his seemingly slender body exploding with a roar the moment he landed. Staring at the wall woven from vines before him, Badr squinted for a moment, then his eyes revealed a deep excitement.

"Hahaha! So that's where it was! No wonder I couldn't find it! It turns out it was you, woman, who hid them!"

As Freya's biological child, Baldr was extremely familiar with Freya's abilities and aura.

Without physical contact, Freya's unparalleled magical abilities allowed her to remain hidden from the world, undetectable even to Odin. However, in a face-to-face encounter, even Baldr could instantly recognize Freya's magical aura!

Although he was a god, Baldr's physique could only be described as thin and short compared to Kratos.

Even so, the divinity within him remained incredibly violent. His muscles tensed, and he slammed into the wall of vines in front of him.

"All of you, come out here!!"

(End of this chapter)