"Captain America lifted Thor's hammer?"
In a dark corner, Bant, transformed into Ghostfreak, poked his head up from underground.
He witnessed the scene as well. He was surprised, but not exactly shocked.
In fact, Steve had always been worthy.
With Mjolnir, you either lift it or you don't. There's no such thing as lifting it "a little bit."
In Avengers 2, Steve only pretended he couldn't lift it because he and Thor were already good friends and he didn't want Thor to lose face.
But right now, Steve and Thor didn't have that kind of bond.
"I just wonder what expression Odin would make if he saw this."
In truth, Odin had no special reaction.
Because under Loki's pressure, he had already entered the Odin Sleep ahead of time.
Of course, even so, he could still see everything in the lower realm.
In the past, if he saw a mortal laying hands on a treasure of Asgard, he would have been furious. But now, he realized he wasn't that angry.
The spell was set by his own hand. He couldn't violate his own vow.
What's more, this might actually be a good thing for Thor.
That said, letting a mortal simply take Mjolnir away was impossible. Odin would think of a compromise, just not right now.
At this moment, there was someone else watching everything as well.
Loki Odinson.
The culprit behind Thor's banishment and Odin's slumber.
From the very beginning, Loki had been watching his brother's every move. To be honest, seeing Thor suffer made Loki feel wonderfully satisfied.
But that didn't mean he could tolerate a mortal lifting Mjolnir.
In the past, Loki had never cared much about Mjolnir. But after Odin placed his enchantment on it, everything changed. Odin's spell was basically saying this:
Whoever can lift the hammer has the right to become King of Asgard.
Loki needed that right.
Or rather, he wanted to prove he had it.
So the moment he saw Steve lift Mjolnir, he felt true killing intent toward that mortal.
Wearing a horned helmet, the sweeping points looked like a crown, radiating authority.
With a gloomy face, Loki sat on Odin's throne, leaning back slightly.
"I am the King of Asgard!"
He slammed Odin's spear down hard onto the empty hall floor. The Eternal Spear's chilling clang echoed through the luxurious yet dim palace.
New Mexico.
Thor stared at Steve lifting the hammer, his mind turning blank.
"How is that possible…"
He looked like his soul had left his body.
But Coulson's face lit up with joy.
"Captain! I knew you could do it!"
As Captain America's biggest fan, Coulson understood this: if Mjolnir really worked the way Thor claimed, then besides Steve, who else in this world could possibly be worthy?
Sure enough, the hammer that no instrument could move even slightly was actually lifted by Captain America!
"Captain, what do you feel?" Coulson asked hurriedly.
At the same time, he reported the situation to Nick Fury.
Steve didn't answer right away. He simply opened his other hand, and in an instant, blue arcs of electricity began crawling over his fingertips.
"I feel like… I can control all lightning," Steve said with a frown.
This kind of power was something he had never experienced before. He felt like he'd gone back seventy years, back to the moment he first stepped out of that laboratory.
Divine power surged through his body, making him feel like he could do anything.
If he'd had this strength back in New York, those monsters probably wouldn't have stood a chance.
That was what Steve thought.
But at the same time, he turned and looked at Thor.
The Asgardian prince looked completely hollow. He leaned against the wall and slid down to the floor, golden hair spilling over his shoulders, every strand screaming humiliation.
"How can this be…"
"…Mjolnir?"
He called out to the hammer, but it gave him no response at all.
It's over, Thor thought.
He had finally lost everything. Even Mjolnir had abandoned him.
Whoever could lift Mjolnir would gain the power of Thor!
Thor knew he could never take it back now. He was a mortal. There was no way he could defeat Steve, who held the power of Thor.
Yet to Thor's shock, Steve placed the hammer back where it had been.
"So what you said really is true," Captain America said, looking at Thor with a complicated gaze.
The moment Steve lifted Mjolnir, it proved Thor's words were real. But for Steve himself, it was hard to believe he was truly worthy.
After waking up again seventy years later and slowly learning about the world, his heart had already started to waver.
He realized he wasn't as great as the propaganda stories claimed. And the same was true of this country.
Am I really worthy?
He couldn't help asking himself.
But when Coulson saw Steve let go of the hammer, he panicked.
He was clearly worried that Steve Rogers, being too noble, would actually return Mjolnir to Thor. If that happened, Coulson could already imagine how furious Nick Fury would be.
No matter how much he admired Captain America, Coulson didn't forget he was a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.
He stepped in front of Steve and said in a low voice, "Captain, we still can't confirm that everything he said is true, at least we can't prove he's the hammer's owner. Even if he is, we also have to consider whether letting him regain his power could pose a threat to Earth."
Coulson wasn't wrong.
From the start, Thor had looked down on Earth. From his words, it wasn't hard to tell that the so-called Asgard viewed Earth as their territory. Steve couldn't be sure that once Thor regained his power, he wouldn't turn around and launch a war on Earth.
But Steve also couldn't bring himself to simply seize someone else's property.
In fact, ever since he learned what America had been doing in recent years, he'd already had plenty of misgivings.
It was just hard to find anyone he could talk to. So he buried his confusion deep inside.
He let out a sigh and lowered his head.
And at that moment, a sudden change occurred!
Without Steve noticing, the space behind him twisted.
Then a tall, thin figure stepped out. Loki was dressed in a suit and trench coat, disguised as a mortal. He drove a silver dagger viciously into Captain America's lower back.
"Ah!"
Steve cried out as the attack hit. But he reacted instantly, gritting his teeth as he swung his shield backward in a brutal counter.
But his shield hit nothing.
Loki's body warped like a mirage. Then he pulled the bloodstained dagger free and vanished from where he stood, only to reappear at the highest point, looking down at everyone below.
"Loki!"
Thor saw him and tears of excitement spilled out. He actually thought his little brother had come to Midgard to save him.
"I knew it!"
"I knew you wouldn't abandon me!"
No one could imagine how happy Thor was the moment he saw Loki. The nonstop blows he'd taken these days had left him completely discouraged. Now, finally, there was a turning point.
Still, he wasn't happy about Loki ambushing Steve.
That wasn't something a warrior with honor should do.
"Loki, I know you want to save me, but you shouldn't hurt this Midgardian!" Thor waved and shouted. "Midgardians are too fragile!"
Loki gave him a look of pure disdain and didn't respond.
And in the shadows, Bant understood that his chance had arrived.
A chance to obtain both Frost Giant DNA and Asgardian DNA at the same time.
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