As Kratos fought and started using his very own godhood magic that was restored by Zelos, which used the Great World Tree Yggdrasil to power the lost magic of the Ghost of Sparta, Zelos could not help but be amazed.
He observed closely as Kratos fought, the more the raw power of Yggdrasil kept on flowing into his very essence.
As it powered Kratos's essence, it slowly restored it from its previous dormant state, mimicking the time when the land of Greece itself was powering Kratos during his war against Olympus.
'It seems that when Father killed those gods, he took some of their godhoods and absorbed them, enhancing his strength. Maybe he really is like the Doom Slayer, where he absorbed some of the essence of what he killed to empower himself,' Zelos could not help but think to himself.
He looked on as Kratos used his abilities more and more. Kratos punched the ground with a fist wreathed in golden lightning and fire.
The impact created a strong earthquake that directly made the Valkyrie lose her footing, staggering the winged warrior.
When she stumbled, she immediately tried to fly off to regain the advantage of height, but she was too slow.
She was caught on the feet by the searing chains of the Blades of Chaos and was dragged violently back towards where Kratos stood waiting.
When the Valkyrie entered within the striking distance of Kratos, she was greeted by a devastating punch.
Kratos struck her with another concentrated blast of earthquake power, creating shockwaves through the air much like how Whitebeard uses his own Devil Fruit power.
Still, the difference is that, due to Kratos's raw, divine strength, the impact was fatal to her armor. The Valkyrie's helmet shattered instantly, sending shards of metal flying.
This made the Valkyrie collapse to the ground, stunned and defeated.
Kratos stepped forward, placed a boot on her back, and directly ripped out her mechanical wings once again to ensure she could not rise.
Mimir, staring at the back of Kratos, who had just finished his fight with such brutal efficiency, could not help but realize how Kratos's reputation preceded his entire realm.
Mimir understood now that some of the terrifying stories that he had heard about the Ghost of Sparta were not exaggerated for even a little bit.
In fact, it seemed that Kratos's abilities were still being downplayed to some degree in the legends Mimir had studied.
'If that kind of strength were pointed at the Giants of Jotunheim, I do not know if the destruction would even be less than what Thor and Odin had done over the years they had hunted them,' Mimir thought grimly.
He looked at the two sons of Kratos, Atreus and Zelos. They are the only hope that Mimir has.
He knew he could act as a voice of reason, but the boys were the true anchors for Kratos.
If the Jotunns decided to take the children away from Kratos because of his past crimes, especially Zelos, who seemed to hold so much power, Mimir feared the consequences would be catastrophic for the Nine Realms.
As the physical form of the Valkyrie dissolved, her soul then came out of her body. She floated towards the air, glowing with a pale, ethereal light.
"Thank you for freeing me from my prison. This may not be an appropriate thing to say towards my saviors, but I ask you to free my sisters.
The balance of the world has gone askew without our presence, and we must do our missions to sort the dead," the Valkyrie then said.
She turned towards Kratos, who was the nearest person to her. Meanwhile, Mimir, Zelos, and Atreus also came forward to talk with the spirit.
"Geirdriful! Who did this to you and your sisters?" Mimir then asked with deep concern. He stood in front of the Valkyrie, recognizing her immediately.
The spirit turned and looked at Mimir and then let out an incredibly surprised tone.
"Mimir? You are free, but how?" Geirdriful then asked. The last time that she had seen Mimir, he was still imprisoned by Odin in the tree on the mountain summit.
With Geirdriful knowing Odin after serving him for hundreds of years, she knows that there is nothing that would make Odin free Mimir willingly.
"Yes, my lady. It is a long story, and the details are not important right now. But I must ask, did the person I thought did this, indeed do this?" Mimir then answered, as well as asked Geirdriful a little bit of insinuation.
There was some suspicion in his voice regarding whoever did this to the Valkyries.
"Yes. What you thought is true. I must ask you, and your friends, free my sisters," Geirdriful then answered. She confirmed his fears and then asked once again to free the other Valkyries.
But before they could answer or ask for more specific details, Geirdriful suddenly started fluttering. Her form became unstable as she began to dissipate. She could not contain her visible spirit without any corporeal form or a connection to Valhalla any longer.
When she disappeared into the light, Mimir turned towards Kratos.
Atreus, slowly realizing the gravity of what would have happened if the Valkyries remained trapped, also turned towards Kratos.
The Spartan felt the heavy stares of his companions, but surprisingly, he did not shy away or grunt in annoyance this time.
"Brother, I know this is a lot to ask for, but I hope you help free the Valkyries from their corrupted form," Mimir then said and asked towards Kratos.
"Father, the balance of the realm of Midgard is within our grasp. We cannot let them be," Atreus just added, backing Mimir up with his own plea.
This made Kratos consider it more thoroughly. He looked at Zelos, who did not have any immediate reactions and was just quietly looking at the spot where the Valkyrie had vanished.
"Why have you gone quiet?" Kratos said in his deep voice. He stared at his oldest son, who always wore a look of knowing.
This time, Kratos's stare was reminiscent of the look that he had made when Zelos had first discovered that he was a God, searching for the truth behind the silence.
"The Valkyries are not in any danger in the traditional sense. They are just becoming corrupted with magic.
It is the same as the Black Breath that blocked the mountain path, but in this case, it affects their minds and causes them to lose their sanity.
If they had not been suspended in those physical bodies like that, they would fall further and further until the Valkyries became nothing but husks of empty shells, like Draugrs that just attack living beings.
Whoever imprisoned them in this state actually saved them from a worse fate," Zelos then said. He started to explain the true state of the Valkyries to the group.
"They will be freed when they get released from their corporeal form. Whoever did this also ensured that the corruption would not affect the person's soul permanently, only the body," Zelos then added.
This explanation made the three understand what they needed to do.
With Kratos having his previous powers and magic returned to him, as well as the increasing potency of it as he could feel the World Tree fueling him, Kratos is more confident that he can protect both of his sons while taking on this challenge.
He accepted the task, not knowing that Zelos could likely defeat the Valkyries without his help, but allowed his father to take the lead to build his confidence.
The four then continued their adventure towards the top of the mountain.
They left the hidden chamber behind, as now they are going to go to the realm of Jotunheim to scatter Faye's ashes.
They agreed that when they got back from the land of the Giants, they would start the arduous task of hunting down and freeing the remaining Valkyries.