Faced with Thor's arrogance, the fire giants were furious beyond reason.
This damned war was not over yet.
They had not been defeated.
Countless fire giants roared and charged forward.
But without Surtur, their leader, the fire giants were now nothing more than scattered sand.
The Asgardian army, which had just begun to retreat, turned back the moment they realized Thor had not followed.
After regrouping with the main force, Thor launched a single charge that forced the fire giant army into retreat.
When Surtur woke up, he found himself already bound within the Asgardian ranks.
But the enraged fire giant had no intention of surrender.
If not for Asgard's increasingly oppressive rule over the years, he would never have chosen rebellion in the first place.
And now this Thunder God Thor was trying to subdue them again with sheer strength.
How could he possibly accept such an outcome?
Even with his power sealed, he still erupted in fury.
"Die!"
Surtur roared.
A terrifying surge of strength broke through the Asgardian restraints.
"He broke free!"
Volstagg, one of the Warriors Three, looked shocked.
Fandral shouted in response.
"Get him!"
Without hesitation, he charged forward.
Volstagg and Hogun followed immediately, roaring as they joined him.
The Warriors Three had always fought and retreated together.
If their brother went in, they would never back down.
A magical shield formed as their bodies surged with power.
Even facing Surtur in his full fire giant form, they showed no fear.
But ideals were one thing, reality another.
Surtur, King of the Fire Giants, had once fought all three of them together at the beginning of the war.
The result was obvious.
They were completely overwhelmed.
The Nine Realms under Asgard's rule each had different levels of power, but any realm that could withstand Asgard's conquest for so long was not to be underestimated.
The three of them were decent warriors, but in the end they were still ordinary Asgardian soldiers.
They carried neither Odin's bloodline nor Loki's inherited Frost Giant power.
Their strength, aside from their defensive magic, was only about ten times that of an ordinary human.
Against most beings across the Nine Realms, that was more than enough.
But Surtur was the exception.
A massive explosion rang out.
Fandral was sent flying, his magical shield flickering before stabilizing as he landed safely.
"Fandral!"
Hogun roared.
He raised his blade and slashed down at Surtur.
He landed the hit.
The price was being sent flying immediately afterward.
His attack only made Surtur even more furious.
"Thor! Show yourself!"
Surtur's roar echoed across the entire camp.
Thor frowned.
Surtur escaped?
Without hesitation, Thor reached out his right hand. Mjolnir, resting nearby, flew directly into his grasp.
With the hammer in hand, he stepped out of the tent.
From afar, he saw Surtur rampaging in fury.
The camp was already engulfed in flames.
Surtur's giant form destroyed everything around him, and the scene once again reminded Thor of the nightmare he had seen in his dreams.
"Damn it!"
Thor was enraged.
With him here, he would never allow that dream to become reality.
He raised Mjolnir high. Dark clouds gathered above, lightning weaving through them as he became surrounded by thunder.
An immense power gathered.
"Surtur!"
Thor leapt forward, charging directly at the fire giant while wrapped in thunderous energy.
"Thor!"
Surtur did not hesitate. He charged as well, as if he had no memory of his previous defeat.
The two forces collided.
Thunder and fire dominated the sky.
But in the end, the overwhelming thunder suppressed the flames.
With a single strike, Surtur was slammed heavily into the ground, his body nearly collapsing.
Thor stood amidst the lightning, Mjolnir raised high.
Around him, countless warriors cheered.
He looked like a returning king.
All he could hear were chants of reverence.
"Thunder God!"
"Thunder God!"
"Thunder…"
Not only him, but the Warriors Three also stepped forward and knelt on one knee, lowering their proud heads in respect.
This was the king they had always followed.
Thor felt a surge of pride as he picked up Surtur's crown-like remains.
"I will place this crown in the Asgard vault as my trophy."
But he did not know.
At the edge of the Bifrost, Heimdall had been watching everything through his divine sight.
If Thor were not the prince of Asgard, he would have thrown this idiot into the deepest part of the Nine Realms.
The Asgard vault was no ordinary place.
It stored Asgard's most dangerous artifacts.
The Eternal Flame and the Twilight Sword, both required for Surtur to bring about Ragnarök, were also kept there.
Placing Surtur's crown alongside them…
Heimdall could not imagine what kind of fool would do such a thing.
Of course, if that fool was their prince, he would simply pretend he saw nothing.
So Heimdall closed his eyes.
Choosing willful ignorance.
In fact, he even felt some relief.
At least Thor was not the only idiot.
Surtur had also casually revealed the source of the power needed for Ragnarök.
What kind of fool does that?
Not long after, Thor suppressed the rebellion and returned to Asgard with his trophy.
He casually placed it inside the vault.
Then he walked toward the throne hall.
The moment he entered, he noticed his father lounging lazily on the throne.
Thor froze.
That was the throne.
The symbol of the highest authority in the Nine Realms.
He had never seen his father act so undignified before.
The "father" on the throne immediately straightened up, as if nothing had happened.
But Thor had already noticed something was wrong.
No wonder there had been so many rebellions recently.
And all of them claimed something was wrong with Asgard's rule.
His father had ruled for thousands of years without issue.
Thor's expression darkened as he walked toward the throne.
On the throne, "Odin" suddenly felt uneasy.
"Thor, has the fire giant rebellion been dealt with?"
Thor did not answer.
"Thor, what are you doing?"
The figure shouted in warning.
But Thor had already made his judgment.
Without hesitation, he swung his fist.
A single punch struck "Odin" and sent him flying.
"Loki!"
Thor roared.
He had known it.
This "father" was Loki in disguise.
There was no other possibility.
Only Loki could imitate Odin so closely.
Only Loki would have the knowledge to do it.
"Thor, what are you doing!"
Loki struggled to stand.
But Thor had already confirmed the truth.
"Stop pretending. Turn back now, or I will not hold back."
Thor's fury made Loki realize his brother was serious.
With a shrug, Loki reverted to his true form.
"Yes. It's me."
The hall erupted in shock.
No wonder so many strange things had happened recently.
So Odin had not changed at all.
It had been Loki all along.
"Where is Father?"
Thor grabbed Loki by the collar.
Loki sighed.
"That old man was already past his time. I sealed him away in the palace."
Without hesitation, Thor dragged Loki away.
When they reached the prison chamber, Loki gestured dramatically.
Thor pushed the door open.
But when he came out again, his expression was even darker.
"Where is he?"
"He was inside!"
Loki rushed in, only to find the chamber empty.
Gone.
Odin had vanished.
"Impossible…"
Loki's mind went blank.
He had personally sealed Odin's divine power.
Even Odin should not have been able to break it so easily.
If he had regained his power, Loki would already be dead.
Yet nothing happened.
There was only one possibility he did not want to accept.
"Do you have any clues?"
Thor's voice was ice cold.
"If we can't find Father, you're dead."
Loki swallowed nervously, thinking back.
"Maybe… Earth?"
Thor paused.
Earth.
That distant memory.
Their homeland, before Asgard's rise.
"…Maybe you're right."
Thor's expression turned complicated.
"Let's go. You're coming with me. We'll bring Father back together so he can judge you."
Loki nodded reluctantly, his thoughts in chaos.
Why hadn't Odin come for him?
Had he not recovered his power?
That was impossible.
But if he had…
Then there was only one answer.
And Loki refused to believe it.
Meanwhile, on Earth.
Odin had already left Locke Technology.
He had reached an agreement with Nolan Locke regarding the education of his sons and the compensation involved.
Both sides were satisfied.
But Nolan was not in a hurry.
According to Odin, his sons would not arrive on Earth anytime soon.
And Nolan had no intention of wasting time.
He was planning to leave Earth.
If nothing unexpected happened, others had already begun collecting the Infinity Stones.
He did not know the location of the Space Stone, but it was most likely still with the Collector.
The Mind Stone was already stored beneath Locke Technology.
And the Time Stone was with Doctor Stephen Strange.
Perhaps it was time to pay the Collector a visit.
With Ancient One gone, it was clear she intended to leave the mess of Thanos to him.
Then he would have to take it seriously.
Without all six Infinity Stones, one could not erase half of all life in the universe.
But each Infinity Stone represented a fundamental law of the universe.
If Thanos gathered even a few of them…
Even the Earth would not be able to stop him.
With that thought, Nolan boarded his ship and left Earth.
He had done this before, but this time was different.
The Collector was no ordinary being.
He had already been killed by Thanos in the main timeline, yet his name still echoed across the universe.
That alone spoke volumes.
Three days later, on the Collector's world.
Nolan landed.
The place was crowded with dangerous-looking individuals, each one clearly not to be trifled with.
Nolan casually grabbed one of them, smiling politely.
"Tell me. Where is the Collector?"