Loki and the realization

In ancient times, Lu Zhishen uprooted a willow tree; now, an Asgard Prince failed to lift a hammer and roared at the sky.

Coulson watched the man kneeling in the crater, a trace of disappointment in his eyes.

The hammer's origins were mysterious, and even S.H.I.E.L.D., which had taken charge of it, did not know its true purpose.

If that man could lift the hammer, he could help them understand it.

Now, it seemed he was merely another challenger.

Picking up his radio, Coulson ordered, "All right, show's over. Ground teams, move in."

Hawkeye, Clint Barton, put away his bow from his elevated vantage point.

The teams headed toward the crater.

Thor stared blankly at his hammer. At that moment, he understood that he had truly been abandoned.

Even his own weapon had forsaken him, plunging Thor into despair and sorrow.

The proud prince knelt there, muddy water staining his knees.

He let the ground teams handcuff him without resisting, simply staring at the hammer.

"How disappointing."

Coulson was about to question the handsome man who had made his team look worse than second-rate mall security when he heard the voice. Turning his head, he asked in surprise, "When did you get here?"

"I've been here all along." John shrugged as though there was nothing to fuss about. Standing beside Coulson, he said casually, "I thought he'd be able to lift it. Looks like it doesn't recognize him."

"Recognize him?" Coulson caught that remark and immediately pressed him. "Recognize him as what? And you can't just wander around here!"

"Don't be so stingy, Coulson." John paid no attention to Coulson's warning and turned to walk back. "Also, get me another coffee."

Coulson was speechless. He was not John's servant.

He also could not understand why Fury had specifically instructed him to give John so much freedom.

John even had full access to information about this incident, putting his clearance on par with Coulson's as a level-eight agent.

Was it because of Watson Wick?

This man was full of mysteries.

He had suddenly appeared in New Mexico, then deliberately approached S.H.I.E.L.D.

None of it made any sense.

The rain gradually subsided.

The downpour was like a dream, ending when the dreamer awoke.

Thor sat in his chair as though his spine had been pulled out.

The interview room was enclosed in glass.

"Slurp."

Hearing the sound, Thor raised his head slightly and glanced at John, who was also sitting there, drinking coffee.

"Want a cup?" John raised his cup in invitation. "I'm not sure whether you like this stuff. We call it coffee."

"No, thank you for the offer."

Thor was in no mood for it. He preferred beer to that stuff called coffee.

But even if he could drink Divine Brew right now, it would probably taste like nothing.

He hung his head, bereft of any will to live.

"All right." John did not particularly mind. Looking at Coulson as he approached, he said meaningfully, "The man who'll be questioning you is here."

Returning after drying his clothes, Coulson saw John inside and asked the bald man beside him, "You didn't make him leave?"

The bald agent replied awkwardly, "I'm sorry, but he won't leave."

Coulson could not help shaking his head. The man currently had as much authority as he did, so there really was nothing he could do.

He walked over, opened the door, straightened his suit, and stood opposite Thor.

Rather than begin the questioning immediately, he looked at John and asked again, "Are you sure you won't step outside?"

John looked as though he were enjoying a show, his thumb rubbing the white mug. "Don't you find this interesting?"

Seeing that John intended to stay, Coulson decided to ignore him.

Coulson looked at Thor and said, "You made my men, some of the best-trained professionals in the world, look like the cheapest mall security team."

"That really hurts."

"He's not wrong. I'm sure S.H.I.E.L.D. spends plenty on training every year," John added from the side.

Coulson took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to throw him out, and continued, "In my experience, only someone with similar training could do what you did."

His eyes were probing. "Why don't you tell me where you trained?"

He listed several countries. Thor had never heard of any of them and gave no response.

As far as Coulson was concerned, since this man was not the hammer's owner, he must have approached the site with some other objective.

Perhaps he was a mercenary hired by someone else to seize the hammer.

And his origins were a mystery.

Regardless, his ability to take down a S.H.I.E.L.D. team meant he posed a certain degree of danger.

But Thor answered him with nothing but silence.

Coulson's questioning yielded nothing. His approach was too gentle.

He had not even learned Thor's name.

Coulson was staring at Thor when his phone rang.

Taking it out and glancing at it, Coulson exhaled. "Don't go anywhere."

With that warning, he turned and left.

Once he was gone, only two people remained in the room.

No, three.

John drank his coffee, his expression calm.

Before his eyes, a dark-haired man in a green suit jacket appeared.

The man was very confident, believing that the people in the room could not see through his invisibility spell.

Unfortunately for him, he was facing the Wizard King of the magical world.

John betrayed nothing as he watched Thor grow excited.

"Loki, what are you doing here?" Thor was excited to see his younger brother.

"I had to see you." Loki glanced at the "mortal" sitting there. He had come to visit his brother and bring Thor utter despair.

Thor sensed something from Loki's grave expression. Even in exile, the Asgard Prince still cared deeply about his homeland.

Had Jotunheim attacked Asgard?

Was there a war?

The reckless prince who had once advocated attacking Jotunheim had begun to confront his own rashness after Mjolnir refused to recognize him.

He said, "Let me explain to Father."

"Father is dead." When Loki said those words, Thor could not believe him.

"What?"

His powerful, great father, Odin the All-Father, was dead?

Many thoughts ran through his mind, including the war he had caused.

Grief and remorse assaulted his heart.

Yet Loki would carve another wound into that already battered heart.

"Your banishment, the threat of a new war..." A complicated mix of sorrow and satisfaction flickered in Loki's eyes. "It was too much for him."

"Don't blame yourself. I know you loved him." Whether those words reflected his own inner feelings or his cunning was unclear. Each word struck at Thor's heart. "I tried to tell him that, but he wouldn't listen."

Thor lowered his head, almost unable to bear it. Seeing this, Loki continued his deception. "Putting the hammer within your reach when he knew you could never lift it again... that was cruel."

Even John wanted to applaud Loki.

This was a cunning god, using lies as a sharp blade to kill his own elder brother.

"Hm?"

John was watching this display of "brotherly affection."

Suddenly, his brow furrowed, and he reached up to touch his chest.

Something felt wrong.

The square pattern over his heart was radiating cold, and every beat of his heart released another pulse of chill.

A layer of frost formed over the standing water outside the room.

John's gaze settled on Loki.

Learning that Loki had become the new King of Asgard, Thor had no desire to contest the throne.

He had only one question. "Can I come home?"

But Loki told him, "The truce with Jotunheim depends on your continued banishment."

Thor said urgently, "Yes, but can't we find a way?"

"And Mother has forbidden your return." Those words from Loki utterly destroyed the proud Thor.

Even his own mother would not forgive him.

The guilt of causing his father's death, the sorrow of being forsaken by his mother.

One after another, they crushed the proud Thor into the dirt, leaving him unable to rise.

"I came to say goodbye, brother..."

From the moment he appeared to the very end, the lies from Loki's mouth broke Thor down, step by step.

"Farewell." Loki offered his final goodbye.

He turned to leave, then paused.

Loki's pupils widened. With winter still more than half a year away, his breath had come out in a white cloud.

As Odin's adopted son and the child of Laufey, the Frost Giant King.

He possessed a pure royal bloodline.

After discovering that secret, he had used the Casket of Ancient Winters to confirm it.

When he activated his bloodline, his skin would turn blue.

Now, he looked down at his palm.

A patch of blue spread across it.

He quickly turned back and met a pair of eyes.

His heart pounded, and Loki did not understand why.

That was clearly a mortal.

Why was I reacting?

When their gazes met, Mjolnir reacted within S.H.I.E.L.D.'s layers of security.

Far away in Asgard, Odin's eyelids stirred.

Thor was still immersed in sorrow.

Blue spread across Loki's face, and he hurried away.

"Goodbye," Thor said belatedly.

The door opened again, and Coulson asked in confusion, "I only just got back."

The brothers' meeting ended with Thor in utter despair.

But for Loki, it seemed he had discovered something extraordinary.

"No, impossible." Loki's expression shifted uneasily. "Why is this happening?"

No Frost Giant had touched him, and the Casket of Ancient Winters was sitting in Asgard's vault.

Aside from those, why would anyone else be able to trigger his Frost Giant bloodline?

It alarmed him.

Everything should have been flawless, yet an unforeseen variable had appeared.

"That man..."

John's image appeared in his mind. It was strange; that mortal gave him a different feeling.

And he was certain that the mortal had noticed him.

He was the greatest mage in the Nine Realms, yet some insignificant wizard had spotted him.

"He's approaching Thor. What does he want? Will he help Thor?"

Loki took a deep breath and gathered his thoughts.

His most urgent task was to eliminate any future threat!

A dark glint lingered in his eyes. Loki did not want anyone to know his true identity.

"So you believe him?"

John addressed Thor. Seeing that Thor had not the slightest suspicion, he seriously questioned how Odin had chosen him to become king.

At the same time, John felt something strange within himself. That sensation had brought long-buried memories flooding back.

The Blue Box from back then.

"He's my brother," Thor said heavily. "He wouldn't joke about Father's death."

"A joke?" John let out an incredulous laugh. "You really are naive."

Coulson looked confused. "What are you talking about?"

"We're talking about your man showing up." John pointed outside.

Coulson turned to look, and an agent opened the door and motioned for him to come out.