Thor's heart was a complicated mess of emotions.
He knew full well that Lockhart must be hiding something from him. The previous explanation had certainly not clarified matters completely. No one would have a favorable impression of such concealment—Thor, the God of Thunder, was no exception.
Yet he also understood there were reasons for withholding information. It was unrealistic to expect anyone to tell him everything without reservation. Even his father, even his mother, even his younger brother had their secrets.
Still, he felt a little angry, a little dissatisfied, a little... something else he couldn't quite name.
So Thor's heart remained troubled.
Opposite him, Lockhart opened his eyes for the first time since returning to his body and immediately recognized Thor's expression. He understood the reason behind it perfectly.
Faced with Thor's questioning, Lockhart stepped forward and gave the Thunder God a warm embrace.
"Don't worry, everything has been taken care of," he assured. "The gods are now completely under control. Whether they live, die, or continue to fall into eternal sleep—it doesn't matter. The arrangement can completely satisfy the God King's requirements."
He added with confidence, "As for the Supreme Sorcerer, I am absolutely certain I can persuade him. This time, I have no doubts."
And indeed, he was absolutely certain. By choosing to sacrifice the dream world, he had demonstrated his utmost sincerity. Gu Yi would naturally not dwell on this issue any longer.
After all, Kamar-Taj's apparent desire for the gods' death was merely a facade. What was truly essential was ensuring the future of Marvel's sorcerers would be nurtured among the gods—and Lockhart had made that choice.
Now that Lockhart had accomplished these two crucial objectives, what reason would the Supreme Sorcerer have to refuse?
However, when contemplating the gods, Lockhart couldn't help but purse his lips.
How to explain it? The gods were truly worthy of being a race born divine—their true birth came at the cost of a shattered planet. This was something Lockhart found utterly unacceptable.
If he truly dared to sacrifice the Earth of the Marvel world now, he was absolutely certain that Gu Yi would personally hunt him down and kill him without hesitation.
Therefore, the scene many Kamar-Taj sorcerers had witnessed moments ago repeated itself: the soul and true spirit transformed into mist, floating in the space between realms, continuing to fall into deep slumber. They would wait until a suitable opportunity arose before awakening.
Thor, having heard Lockhart's answer, showed an expression that was difficult to read—neither satisfied nor entirely displeased. He nodded, turned around, and called out loudly to the Asgardians behind him.
"Everyone prepare to return to Asgard!"
Then, raising Mjolnir high, he summoned the Rainbow Bridge. "Heimdall!"
Hearing this, Lockhart quietly relaxed his control over the world of gods, allowing the power of the Rainbow Bridge to enter. To do otherwise would have caused Thor further embarrassment, and as a friend, Lockhart would not permit such a thing to happen.
Soon...
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Under everyone's watchful gaze, accompanied by a thunderous roar, a beam of colorful light descended with lightning speed. It penetrated the world of gods and fell directly upon Thor and all the Asgardians.
The Rainbow Bridge's prismatic light pillars exuded a majestic atmosphere, colorful energy constantly flowing through them.
Lockhart couldn't help but raise his eyebrows in appreciation. The Rainbow Bridge was indeed one of Asgard's strategic weapons, just as he had suspected. He clearly sensed how it penetrated the world of gods and impacted the divine entities there.
Fortunately, he had maintained conscious control over the situation. Otherwise, without preparation, the intrusion could have dealt him a serious blow.
Buzz!
In the blink of an eye, the colorful beam disappeared—or rather, it rapidly contracted upward. The contraction happened so quickly that it appeared to simply vanish.
Thor and all the Asgardians disappeared with it.
Watching the Asgardians depart, Lockhart couldn't help but rub his forehead, already developing a headache thinking about how to communicate with Thor the next time they met. After all, he had persuaded Thor to come here, but what had been the result? A full-scale war.
In the end, he'd tried to salvage what he could, though he wasn't certain how effective his efforts had been. It truly seemed as though fate had played a cruel joke on him.
"Tutor!"
"Teacher, have we won?"
"Master Lockhart, what happens now?"
Barely seconds after the Asgardians' departure, the surrounding sorcerers moved closer to Lockhart, voices overlapping in excitement and confusion. Some simply called out to him, while others sought to understand the current situation.
The chattering grew louder all around.
Lockhart didn't take it too seriously. He stretched out his hands and pressed them downward, signaling everyone to quiet down. Soon, the surroundings fell silent, and Lockhart spoke loudly:
"This mission has been successfully completed! Thank you for everyone's cooperation. No—without everyone working together, the mission would not have proceeded so smoothly."
His voice grew solemn. "The fallen sorcerers will be registered, and Kamar-Taj will provide appropriate compensation to their families, including but not limited to offering qualified children the opportunity to study magic."
Then, his tone lightened. "Tonight, I will host a celebration banquet in the World of All Things. Everyone is invited!"
"Yeah!"
"We won, we won!"
"Celebration banquet, celebration banquet..."
As soon as Lockhart finished speaking, everyone erupted into cheers.
Lockhart observed the crowd's jubilation quietly, a faint smile playing across his lips. He seemed genuinely pleased by this scene.
Despite planning in advance, he had managed to annihilate all the traitorous fallen sorcerers one after another. Yet the fallen sorcerers who had defected were all experienced battle mages or possessed special skills. Achieving a zero-casualty outcome had been virtually impossible.
Some sorcerers had died in the conflict. Fortunately, the sacrifices hadn't been too numerous. Overall, it was considered a tremendous victory.
The evil god's incarnation had been devoured, all the fallen sorcerers annihilated, and fewer than ten sorcerers sacrificed. Lockhart had essentially earned a near-perfect score of 99 points.
After the announcement, Lockhart waved to Ian and Wanda, calling them to his side. He asked them to lead the way back to the World of All Things, and at the same time, he greeted these comrades who had fought alongside him. After all, the battlefield was a shortcut to strengthening relationships.
Lockhart also explained to everyone that his mission was complete and he needed to report to the Supreme Sorcerer. He promised to share drinks with everyone at the evening's celebration banquet.
Late that night, in the World of All Things, the banquet hall lay strewn with leftovers. Robots moved back and forth, cleaning the mess. Other robots escorted thoroughly intoxicated sorcerers back to nearby rooms to rest.
The celebration had been extraordinarily lively, with everyone drinking and enjoying themselves immensely. Fresh from victory after a challenging war, spirits had been high. In such an atmosphere and on such an occasion, even Lockhart—who typically avoided excessive drinking—had consumed quite a lot. His face now showed unmistakable signs of intoxication.
Lockhart was currently attempting to sober up in a nearby tea room. He wasn't alone; Grindelwald sat across from him.
Looking at the unusually inebriated Lockhart, Grindelwald couldn't help but smile. It was rare to see Lockhart in such a state. Though uncertain what had transpired, Grindelwald had clearly sensed at the celebration that Lockhart was genuinely happy—happy enough to forgo any magical means of preventing intoxication. Otherwise, how could he possibly be drunk?
Nevertheless, there was something Grindelwald needed to ask.
"Lockhart, our deal is now completely settled," he said thoughtfully. "There's something I'd like to know about this... When are you planning to return to the wizarding world?"