The System Awakens: Rise of the Champion

Without the help of the gods and goddesses who had submitted to Damian, his wives were quickly able to take control over Asgard, Vanaheim, the humans of Midgard, the elves of Alfheim, the dark elves of Svartalfheim, and the dwarves of Nidavellir.

That only left Jotunheim, Muspelheim, Fólkvangr, Valhalla, and Helheim.

Fólkvangr was no trouble since it belonged to Freya, but she did not have authority over the half of Valhalla's souls that ended up in her realm.

As long as Damian managed to take control over the souls of Valhalla and Helheim, he could also control the souls that eventually drifted into Freya's domain.

That left Jotunheim and Muspelheim, worlds inhabited by the ice giants and fire giants respectively.

The two species of giants were immensely powerful beings.

With endless lifespans like vampires, physiques as strong as werewolves, and the nature-linked essence of spirits, they possessed vast energy pools to draw from, making them great threats even to gods.

They were also immensely proud and respected no one, not even the gods.

Because of their spiritual connection to the world itself, attempts to eradicate them could cause catastrophic consequences.

There was a reason the gods rarely interfered with them.

The fire giants, in particular, were known for their aggression against any who were not their kin.

They needed to be subdued with special means, which was why Damian, along with his wives,

Freya, and Frigga, had come to Muspelheim.

"I wonder when I'll be strong enough to handle this myself," Ana asked, glancing at the infernal environment around them.

It quite literally looked like hell.

As far as the eye could see, everything burned.

Rivers of lava carved their way across the land, molten cracks spread underfoot, and the atmosphere itself was so blisteringly hot it would have incinerated them, were it not for Lenora's Divine [Concept of Protection].

Even the vampires, powerful enough to rival gods, looked uncomfortable in such a place.

"I hate places like this…" Kathryne muttered.

"Me too. I prefer colder environments," Tiana added. As someone who could manipulate ice, she would much rather be in a frozen landscape.

Amaya and Lillian, however, were far less bothered. Lillian, with her ability to create and manipulate vampiric flames, found the heat manageable.

Amaya, nearly as strong as Lillian, could withstand extremes of both heat and cold.

"The world of Muspelheim is shaped entirely by [Fire Essence]," Damian explained.

"To the point where no other element can exist. From that very energy, the fire giants were born. In essence, they are fire spirits, but with far greater intelligence.

"The same is true for Jotunheim. It was shaped by [Ice Essence], and from it the ice giants were formed, also possessing higher intelligence. They are counterparts to the fire giants, sharing the same traits, abilities, and even physiology, except each race wields dominion over its respective element."

"But Darling possesses dominion over both," Amaya said with a proud smile.

"Yes… I suppose you could say I am also a spirit in a way, since I possess all the traits of the elemental spirits," Damian nodded as they entered a massive castle made of flame-forged rock.

It stretched thousands of meters wide and towered hundreds of meters into the sky.

Clearly, it was a fortress built by giants, for giants.

The moment they stepped inside, dozens of powerful presences suddenly appeared.

From the shadows, countless burning red eyes opened, staring directly at them with menacing intent.

"Why do they always have to make themselves look intimidating?" Akira sighed.

She wasn't afraid of the giants, not when Damian was with them, but the display was dramatic nonetheless.

Before Damian could even respond, the giants themselves sensed his strange presence.

Most of them halted in place, while the group continued forward toward the throne at the end of the colossal hall.

The massive seat, carved from a single titanic rock, leaked rivers of lava through its cracks, glowing along the walls like veins of molten fire.

There, seated upon the throne, was a giant among giants.

His body radiated burning essence, and three pairs of blazing eyes, overflowing with liquid fire, opened as they approached.

His horns glowed white-hot, as though forged from molten metal, illuminating his immense, flame-clad form.

"Who dares enter my chambers?" a booming voice thundered, echoing through the hall.

The very sound produced a wave of fire, though it did not harm them.

"Why don't you see for yourself?" Damian's calm, manly voice replied, drawing an annoyed grunt from the Fire Giant King.

"Insolent insect!" the giant roared, his voice shaking the very land as he rose from his throne.

His colossal body towered over them, a hundred feet of pure flame, like a living manifestation of fire itself infused with [Fire Essence].

But when his burning eyes landed on the human-shaped figure at the front, a strange familiarity washed over him.

His aggression faltered, and the fire raging around him seemed to quiet.

"Who are you?... What are you?" the Fire Giant King asked, trying to piece together the strange feeling he was having in the presence of this human.

"Look deeper, Surtr. I'm sure you know exactly who and what I am," the human said.

Surtr tilted his massive head, using his spiritual eyes to peer further.

Suddenly, he felt a small shock, something impossible, spread through his non-existent skin, shaking the very core of his being.

"I-It's... it's not possible... You... you are the Spirit King," Surtr whispered, staring at the human with an expression that even his rocky face could not fully conceal.

"Wow, that's the exact same reaction the Ice Giant King, Ymir had when he realized who darling is," Lillian muttered, slightly astonished at how similarly the giants reacted, even though they were counterparts, each possessing dominion over opposite elements.

Lillian and the other countesses, old as they were, had never dealt with giants or high-level spirits, especially not ones with such intelligence and power, equal to that of gods.

Most elemental spirits were little more than instinct-driven beings, shaped like random monsters.

They didn't speak, nor did they have practical intelligence.

Before coming here to Muspelheim, Damian and his companions had visited Jotunheim.

When Damian appeared before Ymir, the Ice Giant King had spoken the exact same words as Surtr.

At first, Ymir hadn't believed him either, until Damian revealed the very thing he was about to show the Fire Giant King.

"You want proof? I'll give you proof," Damian muttered, activating a particular transformation he had never used before, a form so powerful and nearly invincible that he had never felt the need to rely on it.

[The Nature's Wrath: Developed Transformation Activated]

This form came into existence when Damian merged all nine elemental essences into one energy called [Nature Essence].

The result was a constitution known as [The Emperor of Nature], granting him dominion over all elements of nature.

As soon as the transformation was activated, Damian's physical body vanished.

In its place appeared a strange manifestation, a giant mass of pure mystical and natural energy.

The energy radiated with countless hues, mostly greenish-blue, speckled with sparks of light that glowed like distant stars.

The mass of energy grew larger and larger, surpassing even the Spirit King's size.

Then, as if its will had decided it was enough, it stopped expanding and instead began to take shape.

Slowly, it formed into the shape of a human, two arms, two legs, five fingers on each hand.

Yet, there were no eyes, no mouth, no features, only a glowing humanoid silhouette of pure energy.

"Is this enough?" The voice that resonated from it was so deep that it shook the Fire Giant King's castle, though the words weren't shouted.

It was the elements themselves reacting to the presence of the Emperor of Nature.

Surtr needed no further confirmation.

There was no longer any doubt.

He bowed his head in submission, and, following him, every fire giant in Muspelheim lowered their heads as well.

"Wise," the deep voice rumbled before the colossal energy form began shrinking, compressing until it returned to Damian's tall, pale, noble vampire form.

[The Fire Giant King Surtr has submitted]

[All the Fire Giants within Muspelheim have submitted]

[Your status as the King of Spirits is taking effect...]

[Establishing spiritual connection with the Fire Spirits...]

[Spiritual connection successful]

[You have gained spiritual command and influence over the Fire Giants...]

"Now," Damian said, looking at the Fire Giant King, "this is your world. I won't be like the Norse gods who tried to drive you out. And there will be no more gods who dare cause you problems. I'll make sure of that. So, continue ruling as you see fit, unless I require your aid."

"Thank you for your kindness... my king," Surtr rumbled, bowing his massive head, molten lava spilling down from his crown like a fiery waterfall.

"Sure... Take care," Damian replied with a casual wave as he and his women turned to leave the hall.

"That form you took... what can it do, other than making your presence vanish? Darling, I don't think I've ever seen you use it," Lillian asked curiously once they were outside the castle.

"I'll show you," Damian replied, walking toward one of the rivers of lava.

He dipped his hand into the molten flow and channeled one of the abilities born from his Nature Essence.

In an instant, the burning lava turned to cold water, rippling outward like a spreading wave until the entire river of lava had become a flowing river of water.

"It's transmutation," Damian explained. "As long as it's something born of, or created through, natural elements, I can transform it into anything else. Like this..."

The river of water froze into a river of solid ice.

A moment later, it transmuted again, this time into a river of shining gold.

Then, with another flicker, the golden river dispersed into nothing but wind.

"This is nothing compared to what I can do while actively in that form," Damian continued, smiling.

"If I can transmute a river so easily, imagine what I could do to an ocean... or something even larger."