Let's Go Take a Look

[Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.]

Coulson had barely relocated and rebuilt the base, with no time even to breathe a sigh of relief, when the hammer flew off again without warning.

Coulson: "Damn..."

With compassion in his heart and the resolve to sacrifice himself, Thor had regained Mjolnir's recognition. He caught the flying hammer, and the wounds covering his face healed in an instant.

Clad in golden armor, he was back in action.

If the Destroyer's beam could destroy everything in the world, did that include the Destroyer itself?

The answer was yes.

Thor spun his wrist, the hammer's afterimages forming a ring as it carried him into the sky.

Churning black clouds formed vortex after vortex of lightning, raining dense strikes onto the Destroyer's body.

The Destroyer pursued Thor, and they chased each other through the vortex.

A searing beam shot straight at Thor, only to meet a blow from his invincible Mjolnir.

Boom!

In the midst of battle, Thor figured it out. He turned his wrist and gave the Destroyer a taste of its own medicine, using Mjolnir to send its entire beam back at it.

The process seemed long, but it was actually brief, over almost in the blink of an eye.

The Destroyer never got another chance. Under the beam's "tender care," it earned the impressive achievement of "killing myself."

The dark clouds dispersed, and sunlight spilled over the land once more.

Thor descended from the sky and slowly approached the others, looking like a true king.

Fischl smiled brightly. Leaning against Oz, she tilted her face up to feel the warmth of the sunlight, languid and content:

"The skies have cleared. This fleeting moment of fair winds and radiant moonlight is like a turning point of fate!"

"I'm so happy."

What came next was the Odinson family's private business. Thor needed to go home and have a good "heart-to-heart" with his brother.

After expressing his willingness to cooperate with humanity to Coulson, who had arrived a little late, Thor went to the Bifrost's landing site.

"What? You're not coming back with me?"

To Thor's surprise, Fischl refused to return to Asgard with him.

Fischl sighed:

"Even a princess, traversing countless universes, cannot escape the weariness of her journey."

"My friend, forget not the words of blessing inscribed within the sacred scripture. No one can bar your path forward any longer."

Oz said, "What milady means is that even the wisest judge cannot settle a family dispute, so she won't be getting involved in the conflict between you brothers."

"All right."

Thor did not insist. Fischl had already helped him a great deal; he would have to handle what came next himself.

He asked Fischl, "What are your plans now?"

"To behold the splendor of mountains and rivers, and savor the beauty of this world."

Oz said, "Lie around and rest."

"...All right."

This was the only plot Lin Ze remembered. That bastard Loki had never intended to start a war between Asgard and the Frost Giants. He would lure Laufey into Asgard using Odin as bait, and Laufey would ultimately die at Loki's hands.

The rest of the movie was just those three family members fighting each other.

Now that Thor had regained his divine power, exposing Loki and dealing with the Frost Giants were only a matter of time.

Since he had a chance to kick back and relax, why wouldn't he take it?

After seeing Thor off and politely declining Jane's invitation, Fischl and Oz said goodbye to everyone and left the town.

Traveling alone was far too lonely, so Lin Ze switched out of his princess persona and returned to being the Traveler.

"That was so embarrassing. So ridiculously overdramatic."

While he was Fischl, Lin Ze hadn't thought much of saying those melodramatic lines. But once he switched back, he was so embarrassed he could have dug out all of Sumeru with his toes.

Shaking off his goosebumps, Lin Ze raised a hand to shade his eyes from the sun and gazed into the distance:

"So, where should we go next?"

"Jane said there's a school not far from here called... Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. Its campus is a historic castle. Why don't we go take a look, Traveler?"

Paimon suggested.

Lin Ze thought for a moment. "A school, huh?"

Thor probably wouldn't leave him much time to roam freely anyway. Since he had nothing else to do, he might as well go take a look with Paimon.

Who would have thought a journey of just a few kilometers would take the two of them until nightfall?

"Ah, I'm so sleepy. It's already dark, Traveler."

Paimon sprawled stubbornly across Lin Ze's back. "Are you sure we won't get lost again this time?"

He wasn't sure. He really wasn't.

Exploring an unknown map meant accepting the risk of getting lost. After walking until he was sleepy and his feet ached, Lin Ze was starting to have doubts himself.

It was getting darker and darker, and he had no desire to spend the night out in the wilderness.

They walked a little farther, and Paimon began softly snoring on his back. The little thing must have been exhausted to fall asleep in a situation like this.

Lin Ze couldn't help giving a wry smile. He had been careless this time and overestimated his sense of direction. A spontaneous trip could end with both him and his companion hopelessly lost when he was this bad at finding his way.

He continued onward with Paimon on his back, feeling rather sleepy himself.

Suddenly!

A flock of birds burst out of the woods ahead. A sharp, piercing sound stabbed through his eardrums, instantly putting Lin Ze on alert.

The shrill scream shattered the silence of the wooded hills, sounding all the more chilling and terrifying in the pitch-black night.

"So loud!"

Paimon covered her ears, her head still buried against Lin Ze's neck. She had been enjoying a perfectly cooked plate of secret-recipe carrot-fried meat in her dream when the sudden scream jolted her awake.

Her eyes filled with terror, and she grabbed tightly onto Lin Ze's long braid:

"Wh-what was that sound?"

The scream continued for a few seconds before abruptly stopping.

"Traveler, look over there!"

Paimon patted Lin Ze's head. Thanks to her higher vantage point, she had spotted pinpricks of light in the distance, especially conspicuous in the darkness.

"I'll fly up and take a look."

Paimon took flight, floating higher to peer into the distance.

Some distance away, she saw several beams of light in the sky. They swayed before all pointing toward the same spot.

"Traveler, there's a lot going on over there! It looks like there are lots of people."

Unlike the excited Paimon, Lin Ze felt uneasy. He had heard it clearly just now. Though the scream had been piercing, he could faintly make out the voice of a little girl.

What could have made a child scream with such terror?

"Paimon, come on! Let's run over and take a look!"