Friar

[Lania]

No matter how old the stories are, you can always find good advice in folk tales and legends.

Despite the passing of time and mankind's progression, certain fundamentals of life are timeless and will never change.

Hmm...?

Do you need

anything from me?

I will try to help

you as much as I can.

I believe that it's no use having ability or power unless you use that power for the right purposes.

I must have

misunderstood me.

However, feel free

to ask me for help

if you ever need it.

I consider helping others as special training for my spiritual improvement. I hope that you will act with kindness and generosity towards others as well.

Ah, I see.

I can tell you what I know about Sleipnir. Let's see now if I can remember everything about it.

Ah yes.

I remember it now.

Yes, Sleipnir was the

name of Odin's stallion.

In the world of

gods, there were

three legendary stallions: Sleipnir, Svadilfari and Gullfaxi.

Gullfaxi was owned by Hrungnir, the king of the giants. Svadilfari, the stallion that sired Sleipnir, was also owned by a giant.

Okay, now let's talk about how 'Sleipnir' was born. This story gives us a glimpse of the fallibility of gods and giants.

In Asgard, the realm of the gods, there was a huge protective rampart that was almost completely destroyed in a recent war.

However...

Gods being gods,

they were not eager

to rebuild the walls

themselves.

One day, a very

skinny man rode on

a dark horse and offered to rebuild, and even improve, the rampart protecting Asgard.

His offer was tempting to the gods, who needed every protection from their enemies.

This man promised to rebuild

the Asgardian rampart in only 18 months, but in return he wanted the goddess Freya as his wife, as well as ownership of the sun and the moon.

Now, this price was unreasonable for the gods to pay. The Asgardians were all insulted and angered by the stranger's demands. Still, they did want their rampart to be rebuilt.

.....

Are you bored?

If you are, we can

finish this

story later.

I understand that my story was not that interesting. But I will try my best to entertain you next time. Please travel in safety.

Oh alright.

Then let me continue.

The gods were furious with the stranger's ridiculous demands. However, Loki proposed to Odin

that they should let the stranger rebuild their defensive walls.

Loki suggested that if the stranger could complete most of the rampart renovation, but later than as agreed, the gods would not be obligated to pay the stranger any price.

Odin decided to follow Loki's advice, and told the stranger that the wall must be repaired in 6 months, instead of 18 months as the stranger had proposed. He could receive help from no man.

In return, the stranger would be paid as he had asked if he could fulfill those conditions. Since he was just a man, it seemed impossible.

Hmmm...

I know this story is quite long. Did you want to listen some more, or did you need a break?

Ah....

I understand this story is quite long. My apologies. Alright, I'll wait for you to finish writing your notes.

...

......

.........

............

...............

..................

May I continue the story now?

Okay, now

where was I?

I understand that the tale of Sleipnir is pretty long. But if you have the patience, I will try to relate this story to you another time. Farewell~

Oh good.

Then please let me continue.

Now, the stranger insisted that he be able to use his horse to help him do this reconstruction work. Since the horse was rather plain and simple looking, Odin agreed.

Odin didn't think

twice about his

request, and regretted this decision upon observing the stranger's first day of rebuilding the rampart.

Strangely enough, the stranger, using his horse to carry the materials, rebuilt the rampart at a speed that was inhuman.

This upset the gods, since the stranger was actually a mighty giant in disguise. However, this did not violate their agreement,

so the gods could do nothing.

Although the stranger's skills were great, his horse greatly sped up the rampart reconstruction. This was the legendary magical horse, Svadilfari.

The gods grew more anxious as the wall would soon be completed before the alloted six months were up. The Asgardians soon grew very angry with Loki.

Despite this, Loki remained calm and assured the gods that he had a plan. The gods distrusted his craftiness, and grew desperate as the stranger's work speedily progressed.

Then, the reconstruction of the rampart suddenly halted. Both the gods and the stranger were equally surprised, as the horse Svadilfari was now missing.

The stranger would

now need to continue

his work by himself.

Are you still listening? If you're tired, I understand and we can

stop for now.

I know that this story might seem too long. But if you ever want to sit down and hear it again, I'll be glad to go over it again. Thank you for listening, adventurer.

Oh alright,

I'll go on then.

In their curiosity, the gods decided to investigate Savdilfari's disappearance.

Surprisingly,

they found that

Svadilfari fell in love with a beautiful mare, which was why

it did not work on the rampart.

So when the 6 months passed, the stranger almost finished rebuilding the Asgardian walls. Only the castle gate was left untouched.

The gods were happy to tell the stranger that they could not pay him what he requested, since he did not complete the rampart as originally agreed.

In his rage, the stranger accused the gods of tricking him so that they would not have to pay him with the sun, the moon and the beautiful goddess Freya. Then, he revealed his true identity.

He was a

terrible frost giant,

or Hrimthurs as they say.

talk about this

later you know.

I see. Well, stories are meant to be enjoyed and I suppose you're not in the mood to sit and listen.

But if you ever do want to hear about Sleipnir, feel free to visit me once again. Have a good day~

Oh, I'm glad~

Some people would

actually be sleeping

after listening so long~

Anyway...

The stranger turned out

to be a giant training in

stone masonry. Although he was invading Asgard, the gods didn't worry.

Thor quickly killed the giant with his mighty hammer, Mjolnir, by hurling it at the giant's head, which exploded into a thousand pieces.

As for the horse, Svadilfari, it was nowhere to be found for

a long, long time.

If you are, let's talk

about this later.

I see that you really want to keep track of every important detail!

My apologies, I'll wait for you to complete your notes then.

Okay. Hmm...

Now where was I?

Oh, I guess my story wasn't really that interesting. But if you want to listen to this story again, please come visit me again.

Okay then,

travel safely~

After a while, Loki, who looked tattered and worn out, brought a strange looking pony with eight legs to Asgard.

Loki introduced the pony as 'Sleipnir' and presented it to

Odin as a present.

In actuality, Loki transformed into the mare that seduced Svadilfari so that it would no longer work on the rampart.

So 'Sleipnir' was born from the legendary mare Svadilfari, and the god Loki who transformed himself into a horse.

Now, stories that are spread through word of mouth might have differences in the small details, depending on who's telling the story.

Still, the fundamental story line should not be different.

I don't usually get to practice storytelling, and I'm not too confident of the authenticity of my version of Sleipnir's tale.

But I hope you will understand that I did my best. It was the most that I could do to help you.

If you wish to listen to this story again, you're always welcome.

Be safe on your adventures~

In times of agony, please reflect on your past to help you find a solution.

Like the old myths and legends, your experiences are stories from which you can learn valuable lessons.

I told you everything I know. Hopefully, I was of some help to you. Please treat others with the same generosity and kindness.

Training isn't limited to just physical and mental conditioning.

The way you lead your life and interact with other people can also be considered part of your training.

Everyone will learn and benefit differently, depending on how they live their day to day lives.