The Oriole Behind

"Other than fighting, what kind of nonsense had Thanos been teaching you?"

Hela mocked him mercilessly.

As long as you desired it, fate would stand by your side? What did he think he was?

The center of the world?

Wrapped in a coat made from the fur of some unknown animal, Hela gave Beckett no chance to respond and took the lead. After marking the location on his wristband, Beckett followed close behind, while The Other, holding the Azure Scepter, muttered under his breath.

The biting wind cut off The Other's disdainful grumbling about Hela as the three of them moved farther and farther away from the fleet concealed in the snow.

Their footprints were gradually buried beneath fresh frost and snow. After traveling through the whirling blizzard for some time, the magnificent Frost Palace finally came into view.

"That place is Laufey's palace. From here on, we'll be entering the patrol zone of the royal guards."

"Isn't there some small path that can avoid the patrol zone?" The Other did not want to take this route.

"You can turn yourself into a rat and use that fragile cane of yours to dig out a little path bit by bit."

Hela felt that both master and servant might have something wrong with their heads. One had inexplicable confidence, while the other was a brainless idiot who spoke without thinking.

"This is the key that controls the lives of countless Chitauri, not some cane!" After muttering all the way here, The Other finally could not help baring his teeth at Hela.

"Remember your place, Hela Odinsdottir." Beckett's voice appeared at just the right moment, interrupting The Other's threat.

"You are my prisoner. Don't force me to throw you before the Frost Giants." At this moment, Odin was waging war with his spear in hand. If Hela, Odin's only child, fell into the hands of the giants, the consequences were easy to imagine.

"If you intend to avoid those patrols entirely, then I suggest you turn back now."

"Lead the way."

Hela shook the snow from her coat and led Beckett and The Other closer to the Frost Palace, where Laufey's treasury was located.

Yet only a few steps into the patrol zone, the three ran headlong into a patrol squad that suddenly emerged from around a corner. The Other's heart tightened. He was already prepared to use the scepter in his hand to summon the fleet and launch an attack, but the next second, he saw surging energy pierce through the chests of all six Frost Giants, sending them collapsing to the ground. Quietly, without making the slightest sound, they seemed to have gone peacefully.

"Now, continue."

Beckett withdrew his hands without the slightest change in expression, as though he had casually disposed of some useless trash. He then lifted his chin toward Hela, signaling for her to keep going.

Had this guy's power increased that much?

As a powerful warrior herself, Hela could naturally see how much stronger Beckett's casual strike was compared to their first meeting on the Bloody Plains. She frowned inwardly.

After The Other, a professional corpse collector, converted the bodies of all six Frost Giants into energy stored within the Azure Scepter, Beckett's party continued their stealthy advance toward the Frost Palace.

Soundless energy continually reaped the lives of patrol squads. Beckett's so-called stealth completely overturned every concept Hela had ever held about infiltration.

"Are you sure this is really stealth?"

After Beckett stepped on and wiped out the third patrol squad they encountered, Hela could not help asking.

Beckett glanced at her, too lazy to answer. He merely raised his right index finger and pointed into the unknown distance ahead. The silent pressure forced Hela to shut up and obediently continue serving as their guide.

Having carefully studied the Jotunheim Royal Court, Hela finally reached the side gate of the palace after encountering five patrol squads.

"Generally speaking, Laufey arranges three or four squads to take turns guarding the side gate of the Frost Palace. Each squad consists of six Frost Giants. In other words, you'll need to eliminate at least nine or twenty-two Frost Giants at once."

"Not eighteen or forty-two?"

The Other, holding the scepter, deeply doubted Hela's arithmetic. She shot him a glance. "I'll handle the other half. You'll be responsible for cleaning up afterward."

With her hair combed into a fighter's style, Hela raised both hands, and two black weapons forged of magical metal appeared in her grasp.

Laufey was far too sensitive to Odin's power lingering on Mjolnir. For this low-profile infiltration, Hela had no intention of summoning it.

"You—"

Whoosh!

Before The Other could finish speaking, Beckett and Hela had already vanished from sight. The massive azure bodies stood no chance against the silent waves of energy and the weapons that suddenly appeared in their chests.

Pierced hearts, severed throats. By the time Beckett and Hela stood atop the palace's side gate, The Other had only just raised his scepter.

"Clean up these corpses. This is your reward." As power surged through her, Hela, standing atop Frost Giant corpses, became the proud Asgardian Princess once more, tearing away the disguise she had worn before Beckett and The Other.

"I told you, Beckett, I would make you regret this."

Spreading her arms, Hela allowed herself to leap from the summit of the side gate, her eyes gleaming with triumph and disdain.

Letting her recover most of her injuries had been Beckett's greatest mistake.

Now that she had regained her strength, she could use Beckett's side to draw attention and enter Laufey's treasury. The treasures Laufey had prepared for war against Odin were hers to claim.

"Damn it! His Highness Beckett, what should we do?"

Looking at the corpses scattered across the ground, The Other knew without needing to think that Laufey's guards had likely discovered the enemy attack. That damned woman had actually dared betray Beckett after recovering only such a tiny fraction of her power.

"Of course, we wait for her to lead us to Laufey's treasury." Casually kicking aside a corpse blocking his path, Beckett pressed a button on his silver wristband. An azure holographic screen popped up, displaying one yellow dot and one red dot.

"What is this?"

The more The Other looked at that yellow dot, the more familiar it seemed. Finally, he looked closely. Wasn't that where he and Beckett were standing? And that rapidly moving red dot... Hela Odinsdottir?

"Regaining power comes at a price." The cold smile on Beckett's lips became increasingly apparent as he unhurriedly followed behind Hela.

Brute strength alone would only turn someone into a reckless fool like Cull, with nothing but muscles in his head.

"My father said that as long as I wanted it, fate would stand by my side."

Double update~

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