Chapter 1

## Chapter Chronology

**The Final Conflict** is the 1st chapter of the "*Shuumatsu no Valkyrie: Record of Ragnarok*" manga series.

## Summary

7,000,000 years of mankind's history is about to come to an end. Is the cause nuclear warfare? An asteroid collision? Or an alien invasion? No. Right now, mankind is being threatened with total annihilation by none other than their own creators, the Gods. Eldest of the thirteen Valkyrie sisters, Brunhilde and youngest of the thirteen Valkyrie sisters, Göll, approach the parliament building of the Council of Valhalla as Göll exclaims that it's starting.

Inside the parliament building, the Prime Minister of Valhalla, Zeus, sits in the center, next to a dragon. After stroking him, Zeus takes the gavel and begins the lecture. Every 1000 years, various Gods in the realms gather to give a lecture on the survival of Humanity. Göll is in astonishment at how many Gods are present while Brunhilde remains silent. Zeus asks the Gods, in regards to mankind's survival, whether they should forgive them or just put an end to them.

God of Creation and Destruction, Shiva, says that they should just end mankind already. He says that, based on the past 1000 years, mankind has shown no intention to repent and he calls it a pain that they have to guide them, each and every time. He expresses his wish to evolve some other animal this time, much to Göll's shock. The Goddess of Beauty, Aphrodite, agrees with Shiva, saying that mankind has turned the Earth ugly in the past 1000 years. The seas are filled with waste and oil, the forests are disappearing and other living beings have gone extinct.

She calls mankind a cancer on Earth and other Gods begin to agree with Shiva and Aphrodite's views. As all the Gods begin to mutter about ending mankind, a scared Göll realizes that Brunhilde was right – the Gods wish to end mankind. There is no way to object to the will of the Gods. If the majority vote to end Humanity, then mankind will certainly perish. As many Gods vote for mankind to be ended, Zeus says it seems they've reached an agreement. He is about to confirm mankind's extinction, only for Brunhilde to interject. The Gods question why a Valkyrie is objecting and Göll, frightened, inwardly says to Brunhilde that she can't just interrupt a ruling of the Gods. Brunhilde expresses how she has something she wants to say but a pair of ravens, Huginn & Muninn warn Brunhilde to watch what she says. They are each perched on the shoulders of the Supreme God of Nordic, Odin.

Huginn & Muninn tell Brunhilde off for interrupting the Gods' conference when she is just a demigod. Brunhilde agrees with the Gods that mankind is vulgar and violent but then says that simply ending them would be too easy. She recommends that, instead of just wiping them away, the Gods should test mankind. Huginn & Muninn wonder how, listing off how they can flood the Earth or even send them into an ice age prematurely. Brunhilde, however, proposes a much more efficient way of testing them: the final struggle between the Gods and mankind – Ragnarok.

She refers to Article 62, Paragraph 15 of the special clause: a 1v1 showdown between the Gods and mankind. Each side has thirteen combatants and the first side to reach seven victories, get to decide the fate of mankind. If the Gods win, mankind will be erased. If mankind wins, their survival is ensured for the next 1000 years. Yet this law has never once been applied since the creation of mankind and that is because there is no way mankind could ever stand up to the Gods. Thus, the special clause was only added as a mere joke by the Gods. Huginn & Muninn tell Brunhilde that her proposal is meaningless since mankind can never win against the Gods and the other Gods in attendance, agree.

Brunhilde decides to provoke the Gods and guesses that they only want to destroy mankind without a fight because they don't want to face mankind head-on.

She questions if they're all chickening out and apologizes as that seems to be the case. Göll warns Brunhilde not to provoke the Gods like this as she'll be killed, only to be surprised when the Gods start to laugh. However, their laughs eventually turn into a stream of curses because of how Brunhilde suggested that they're scared to take mankind head-on. Smiling, Brunhilde inwardly asserts that the Gods are much easier to provoke than Humans. Petting his dragon, Zeus calls her proposal of Ragnarok interesting, only for Zeus' right arm to suddenly grow larger in muscle mass. As Zeus cruelly kills the dragon, he says that her proposal was truly amusing, guessing everyone wants to see the might of the Gods. Zeus decides to go ahead with Ragnarok and do battle with the Humans. It was at this moment that Ragnarok was decided. Later on, Brunhilde and Göll walk through a corridor. Göll falls to her knees and asks Brunhilde why she provoked the Gods like that, pointing out that it's almost like she wants to get killed. Brunhilde notes that, since Göll is the youngest, she doesn't really understand. Brunhilde calls the bond between Humans and the Valkyries deeper than most, which is why she can't abandon them.

Göll recalls how Brunhilde is a tragic Valkyrie that was once a Human, which is why she must have such empathy for them. Göll asks who Brunhilde thinks the vanguard for the Gods will be. Brunhilde is about to answer, only for Incubus to appear, warning Brunhilde to be careful since the Gods are ruthless. Pulling Brunhilde close to him, Incubus swears to protect Brunhilde before licking her face, threateningly telling her that it will be dependent on how obedient she is. Brunhilde suddenly bows and Incubus says that's more like it, wondering what kind of voice would come out of the high-and-mighty Brunhilde.

However, Brunhilde says she isn't bowing for him and Incubus is briefly confused before being killed by a large hammer. Covered in Incubus' blood, Brunhilde greets Thor, the Nordic Thunder God. Frightened by his presence, Göll attempts to bow as well but she can only tremble. Thor walks past Göll and asks Brunhilde what she's planning. Brunhilde claims she doesn't know what he's talking about. After glaring at her, Thor tells her it doesn't matter. If she disappoints him, he'll kill her. After Thor walks away, Göll praises Brunhilde for keeping her calm in front of Thor, only to see Brunhilde huff repeatedly, indicating she was scared.

Standing up, Brunhilde says they should choose their combatants from Humanity's 7,000,000-year-long history. Göll insists it's useless since there's no Human powerful enough to fight Gods like Thor but Brunhilde brings out a tablet and projects the images of many Humans. Brunhilde reveals she already decided on their vanguard and loads an image, calling this man, the most barbaric warrior ever. Looking at the image, Göll exclaims that this man is too dangerous.

Later on, both the souls of Humanity and the Gods gather at the Valhalla Arena, in preparation to watch the first round of Ragnarok. The Watchman of the Apocalypse, Heimdall, celebrates the day he finally gets to use his Gjallarhorn and announces that the first round of Ragnarok is about to start. Heimdall declares that the fight will only end when one fighter is dead. Deciding to start, Heimdall announces the Gods' vanguard. Heimdall says everyone wants to see this man's maximum power. His **Mjolnir** can tear apart the seas and land.

Calling him the Nordic's strongest and the Thunder Berserker, Heimdall reveals that the first fighter for the Gods is Thor. Thor steps into the arena, shedding his cloak. Watching, Odin tells Thor to crush his opponent. Heimdall then prepares to introduce Humanity's vanguard. A soldier rings a large gong and Heimdall asks if Humanity's 7,000,000 years of history is going to end here. Multiple soldiers yell out "No!" A red horse with wild eyes suddenly charges into the arena, carrying a man completely covered with black bindings, holding him back. Heimdall questions to the soldiers if the man will be devoured by the Gods and if anyone has any objection to him being called the strongest since the dawn of mankind's history. Once again, the soldiers yell out, "No!!" As the man breaks out of his bindings with sheer force, Humanity's vanguard turns out to be China's greatest hero: Lü Bu Fengxian. As Thor and Lü Bu face off against each other, Brunhilde catches a monk praying.

She orders him to stop as the ones he is praying to are the ones they need to defeat. Round 1 of Ragnarok – Thor vs. Lü Bu.

## Characters in Order of Appearance

* Brunhilde
* Göll
* Zeus
* Shiva
* Aphrodite
* Odin
* Huginn & Muninn
* Incubus
* Thor
* Heimdall
* Chen Gong (No lines)
* Lü Bu (No lines)
* Red Hare