Thor Odinson (Part 3)

After finishing his meal, Thor didn't have time to wander around. He still had to continue looking for work because he knew very well that if he didn't have money to pay the rent, Loki would be very happy to throw him out with his luggage. Without his divine power and weapons, he definitely wouldn't be able to defeat Loki.

Besides, Thor felt it would be faster to find a job and earn money to pay the rent than to fight with his brother.

Although S.H.I.E.L.D.. helped Thor obtain legal status, he has no education or certificates, so he can only find work by asking around. The One skills he currently possesses are car repair and moving.

More reputable repair shops and warehouses also require work experience, and Thor currently has no resume to prove his work experience, so he can only look for work in Hell's Kitchen and the outskirts of Manhattan.

He still wanted to find a job repairing cars, but the area where the repair shops were clustered was not far from where he used to work. Thor eventually ended up back in that area.

He had originally planned to try his luck at one of the repair shops at the end of the street, but just as he was about to go in, Thor discovered a person lying next to a shed where miscellaneous items were piled up in the alley at the end of the street.

"Old White! What's wrong with you?!" Thor rushed over and found that lying next to the pile of junk was Old White, who had tried to dissuade him during the day.

Thor strode over and noticed that Old White had a bruised face and was struggling to breathe. He helped him up, and when he saw Thor reaching for his phone, Old White said, "Don't... don't call an ambulance..."

Thor hesitated for a moment, then put the phone back. Old White coughed twice. "Cough... cough, I'm fine."

Thor helped him up and asked, "What happened to you? How did you end up here?"

"I didn't fall here, I..." Old White tilted his head, a look of fear and resentment on his deeply lined face. He said, "...After you left, that bastard took his anger out on me. He got two gangsters to beat me up and dumped me here..."

As he spoke, he shook his head in a daze, then suddenly seemed to remember something. He struggled to sit up and reached into his pocket, turning his clothes inside out to find them empty. Only then did he say, "Well, what was I hoping for? He really did take all my money..."

Old White stood frozen, as if he had been hollowed out. Thor shook him twice, but when he found no response, he took a deep breath and stood up, only to have Old White grab his hand. Old White squeezed out a few words: "No, don't go... get involved with the gang, they'll kill you."

Short, wheezing breaths began to come from his throat. Thor knelt down again to pat him on the back. Old White said, "I knew he was a bastard, of course I knew, so I deserve it..."

"He'll treat us the same way he treats Benjamin, Thor. Listen to me, don't go. He'll only be more brutal to you, he might even hire someone to kill you. There's nothing that bastard won't do..."

Old White closed his eyes, his voice dry like a saw cutting through wood, "When he first opened his repair shop on this street, I was the only one willing to work for him because he was notorious and I was desperately short of money."

"He often withheld wages and would curse at people at the drop of a hat, but people like me couldn't do anything about it. We made a lot of money for him, but in the end, we didn't get a good result. Maybe I shouldn't have worked here in the first place..."

"This isn't your fault," Thor told him. "It's entirely that bastard's fault."

Old White's grip tightened, and he said, "This is all my fault. If I hadn't insisted on buying a car for long-distance driving when I was young, I wouldn't have lost all the savings Mary and I had accumulated, and my son wouldn't have had to drop out of school because we couldn't afford tuition..."

"Fortunately, well... fortunately, my grandson is very promising..." Old White said, "His grades are exceptionally good, and his teachers say he can get into New York University..."

"But... we can't even afford his living expenses."

Old White closed his eyes, Thor had never seen such a sorrowful expression on anyone before.

"You must have ended up here because of some accident, right? I can tell..." Old White tightened his grip and said, "You must have received a good education, or perhaps you're a retired soldier?"

"I can see that you're different from the rest of us. You still have courage, or rather, you still have strength, but we..."

"Don't say that, I'll take you to the hospital first." Thor squatted down and helped old Old White up. Just then, they heard a few voices coming from the intersection. "Go check on that old guy, don't let him die here. If he's about to die, drag him to Hell's Kitchen. We don't have time to collect his body."

Thor turned around and saw several people at the intersection, including the repair shop boss. The boss saw Thor, widened his eyes, and said, "Damn it, you actually dare to come here?!"

"It's him! He's the one who hit me and stole my money! Tell your boss that if you teach him a lesson, I'll give you double the reward!"

Thor had no interest in questioning his distorted claims, because three gangsters had already surrounded him.

These three men were neither as strong nor as good Thor, but the problem was that two of them were carrying guns.

These gangsters aren't just auto repair shop boss; at least they've actually used guns before, know how to hold a gun with both hands, and know how to maintain balance. Even if Thor manages to snatch one gun by surprise, he won't be able to handle the other.

But that was all Thor could do. He turned around and stood in front of Old White. The instant a gang member raised his gun, Thor lunged forward, successfully knocking the gang member down. He then rolled on the spot, and as another gun flashed, Thor grazed past it.

But before he could pick up the fallen gun, a shot rang out, and a spray of blood appeared. Thor turned around and saw old Old White lying in a pool of blood, writhing in agony, unable to even scream. Across the street, the repair shop boss was also holding a gun. He said, "Looks like my marksmanship hasn't gotten much worse..."

Thor felt a rush of blood to his head, his arms trembled, and he lunged forward to pick up the gun.

He had never actually used a human firearm before. As he fumbled for the loading position, another shot rang out, and Thor felt a sharp pain coming from his right shoulder.

"Ugh..." Thor cried out in pain. Fortunately, he was a veteran of many battles and was not distracted by the pain. He staggered to the side and dodged another shot by hiding in a pile of debris.

Just then, a whooshing sound pierced the air, followed by the sound of several heavy objects being struck. When Thor peeked out again, he saw a figure holding a cane appear on the street.

"Matt!!" Thor shouted, "Here! Come quick! Someone's been shot..."

"I can smell it without you saying it," Matt's calm voice rang out. He walked over to Thor, only to realize that Thor was referring to someone else entirely. Old White had been shot in the leg. Hearing the rhythm of his breathing, Matt came over, knelt down, and placed his hand on his chest, saying, "Call an ambulance."

"But..." Thor clutched his shoulder and said with great difficulty, "He doesn't have the money to pay for the ambulance."

"Is this the time to talk about this?" Matt looked at Thor and said, "You need to go to the hospital too, call them now."

When the ambulance arrived, the nurse looked at Thor and said, "It's you again? And this..."

Matt said to the nurse, "Stop talking so much, there are two shooting victims, get them in the car quickly."

Once in the ambulance, Thor was still in the mood to chat with the nurse. He asked, "What's your name?"

The nurse glanced at Thor, then, remembering how he had helped save people, said, "My name is Jane, Jane Foster."

Thor grimaced, but spoke fluently. Jane was somewhat surprised and said, "You got shot in the shoulder, doesn't it hurt?"

"It hurts? It does hurt quite a bit." Thor's voice was still full of energy. He said, "Well... but it's nothing compared to the injuries I've had before."

Jane was even more surprised. She asked, "The injuries you sustained before? You wouldn't be..." She looked Thor up and down more carefully and said, "You wouldn't be one of those retired special forces soldiers, would you?"

Thor didn't answer. He knew there was no need to explain his background in detail, but Jane was very curious. Having been a nurse for so long, she could naturally tell that Thor wasn't just putting on a brave face, but was a real tough guy.

Upon hearing that Thor was injured and hospitalized, several Asgardian working at S.H.I.E.L.D.. couldn't stay put any longer and rushed over to visit him. To prevent them from causing trouble, Hill followed behind them.

When Fandral saw Thor at the hospital, the bullet had already been removed from his body, and he was lying in a hospital bed. Fandral looked at Thor's wound and said, "Luckily, it's not serious. The All-Father didn't even leave you the ability to regenerate. Isn't he afraid you'll get hurt?"

Thor shook his head and said, "Go check on the patient in the next room. There's a patient named Old White. See how he is."

"Old White? Who's that?"

"He was... an old man, an unfortunate man." Thor swallowed hard, touched his wounds, and gasped.

After the other three left, Sif sat down by Thor's bedside and said, "You look a little down. Why? I don't think a small wound could turn Asgard's bravest warrior into this state."

"...A small wound? Perhaps. Compared to the injury I suffered in Centaurus, this is nothing." Thor said with his eyes half-closed, "But I am Asgardian, while old Old White is just an ordinary person, a human without any special abilities. He was also shot in the leg; it must hurt a lot."

"Why did he get injured like this? I don't know..." Thor said to himself, while Sif just listened quietly.

"He was neither a general nor a soldier. He had not fought on the battlefield nor committed any crimes, but he still had to suffer all of this."

"Those who hurt him were his own kind. If anyone dared to do that in Asgard, I would definitely..."

At this point, Thor closed his eyes, remained silent for a moment, and said, "Why do humans do this? I can't understand it. Their lifespans are already so short, why do they waste their time harming their own kind?"

"Why would that repair shop boss do this? I can't understand it either. His malice has no reason; he just attacks everything around him in a frenzy. I've never seen a person like this before..."

Sif poured Thor a glass of water and said, "The universe is so vast, I think it's not surprising that such people exist."

Her voice was serene, like a solemn divine voice. After changing into casual clothes, the Valkyrie's fierce temperament softened, replaced by the solemnity and holiness commonly seen in Asgard goddesses.

"Are you disappointed?" Sif asked Thor. "Do you think Earthlings aren't worth saving? Do you think that even if you save them, they'll still kill each other?"

Thor pursed his lips and remained silent, but he clearly acquiesced to Sif's statement. He had been eager to reclaim his divine power and weapons because he believed they were the glory of the Asgardian and that he should return to Asgard as soon as possible to fight and protect it.

But now, he began to doubt everything. After being stripped of his divine power and weapons, he seemed to be unable to do anything. And the people on Earth, one of the Nine Realms he had once so desperately wanted to protect, were now taking pleasure in harming their own kind every day.

It's as if neither his past existence nor the things he did have any meaning.

"Perhaps you haven't noticed, Thor, but years of fighting have changed you a bit." Sif looked at him, and Thor saw a hint of emotion in Sif eyes.

"You always think about the results of killing enemies, victory, and honor. Of course, this is a question a warrior should think about, but you will be more than just a warrior... You will also be the King of Asgard."

"As a ruler, you must see not only the result, but also the causes and the process by which they occurred. What you can rely on will not only be your powerful military force, but also..."

Sif pointed to her temple, Thor looked at her. As their eyes met, the only sound in the room was the faint dripping of IV fluid.

As the night deepened, clouds drifted across the sky, dimming the moonlight. After a long while, a sigh came from the ward, sounding like a valiant warrior in sorrow, or a young king lost in thought.

The monthly ticket event has begun! Authors can set a target number of monthly tickets for their works, and there will be a reward once the target is reached. My reward is an extra chapter, but my target is 10,000 monthly tickets (if I can't reach that, then I won't have to add an extra chapter, hehe~).