Asgard stood at the peak of the starry sea. Spires and arched bridges of pure gold flowed with the glow of runes, like melted stars.
The Bifrost pierced through the void, and at its end, Heimdall's observatory watched over the Nine Realms.
The dome of Valhalla reflected the galaxy, rivers of stars flowed beneath one's feet, and distant mountains were shrouded in Odin's aurora barrier.
A cold, austere majesty seeped through. Every inch of splendor in the divine realm was frozen with immortal loneliness.
The old man on the throne panted in anger, unable to calm himself for a long time.
The reason the All Father, Odin, was so furious had to be traced back to several days earlier.
Just as Thor, prince of Asgard, was about to be crowned king, the kingdom's ancient enemy, the Frost Giants, unexpectedly came to cause trouble.
By the time the armory guards became alert, it was already too late. The enemy's target was to seize the divine relic, the Casket of Ancient Winters.
It had originally been a treasure of the Frost Giant race, but their king Laufey had used it to commit atrocities and wage wars everywhere, even threatening to plunge the world into an ice age.
To preserve peace across the Nine Realms, the All Father, Odin, decisively took action, and both sides mustered their armies for a great war.
The power of the Casket was far too troublesome. Even at the height of his strength, Odin had paid the price of one eye to secure victory.
After the army returned in triumph, the Casket was brought back to Asgard for safekeeping.
———
Laufey's treacherous ambitions did not die. On the day of the new king's coronation, he once again sent his men to seize it.
Odin sensed the intrusion of aliens into the vault and summoned the Destroyer, easily reducing the enemies to ashes.
Hot blooded and young, Thor believed that this incident happening precisely on the day of his ascension was clearly the enemy challenging his authority.
"They need to be taught a proper lesson."
Thor intended to do as Odin had once done and march on Jotunheim, to show those hateful Frost Giants who they were dealing with.
But Odin, whose heart was with his people, was unwilling to drag Asgard back into war over such a small matter.
Thus, father and son had their first argument.
At this time, Loki sat beside Thor with an affable smile, quietly performing his con art, "Actually, I think you're right."
Loki's support made the muscle brained Thor even more resolute in his desire to wage war. He decided to head to Jotunheim and completely wipe out the Frost Giants.
The divine generals under his command tried to dissuade him, but Thor stated that his father had once led an army into Jotunheim, and he could do the same.
Seeing that Thor was determined to go, the others had no choice but to follow.
The light of the Bifrost crossed the stars, and the group soon arrived at Jotunheim.
Charging in headlong, they unsurprisingly fell into an ambush.
Outnumbered, Thor and his companions were plunged into danger.
Loki read the situation and promptly urged Thor to withdraw. Laufey also said, "You have no idea what this means. I do!"
"Go back… while I haven't changed my mind."
Helpless, Thor turned to leave, but at that moment Laufey made an ill timed mockery, "Go home, little princess."
This completely enraged Thor. He swung his hammer and sent Laufey flying, plunging into battle with the Frost Giants.
"Next…"
The early phase of the battle went relatively smoothly, with Thor and his followers unleashing their might.
But as Laufey deployed his elite forces, the towering Frost Warriors became unstoppable. Even against Thor, they were not at a disadvantage.
At this moment, the power of Mjolnir manifested. Thor grew more courageous the more he fought, but his subordinates gradually fell into a losing position.
What was fatal was that once an ordinary person was touched by a Frost Giant, their skin would immediately freeze and necrose.
Yet Loki, son of Odin, emerged completely unscathed from contact with the Frost Giants.
The clever Loki realized that his origins were probably not so simple.
This also planted the seeds of disaster for his future actions.
The Frost Giants were already massive in stature, and with a single misstep, an ally would be ambushed and injured.
Loki proposed an immediate retreat.
Upon hearing this, Thor threw his hammer to cover his comrades.
Mjolnir shattered entire swathes of Frost Warriors in a single strike.
Seeing this, Laufey unleashed an even stronger force: Frost Beasts.
Whether in size, combat power, or sheer presence, the Frost Beasts were even more terrifying.
Thor fought alone to cover the others' retreat. As the enemies gradually surrounded him, Thor used Mjolnir to summon thick bolts of lightning and strike back.
Before the overwhelming power of the attack, the ground collapsed over a wide area, temporarily blocking the advancing giants.
Just as the group raced without pause to the edge of a cliff, even more terrifying monsters climbed out of the abyss.
As the others were about to be smashed flat by the giants, Thor rushed in from afar.
Incomparably fierce, Thor pierced straight through the monster's skull, killing it instantly.
But more and more Frost Giants surrounded them heavily.
At the critical moment, the All Father, Odin, arrived on horseback in a blaze of dazzling light.
Thor still tried to persuade Odin to strike together, but was firmly refused.
The Frost Giant leader Laufey came before Odin to demand an explanation. Cunning as he was, he immediately saw through Odin's weakness.
Odin attempted to make light of the matter, but in the face of intruders, how could Laufey let it go so easily.
"Strike while he's sick and take his life."
He launched a sneak attack at Odin, only to be blasted far away by Odin's timely counter.
Seeing that negotiation was no longer possible, Odin opened the Bifrost and brought everyone back to Asgard.
Thor and Odin erupted into their second argument at Heimdall's observatory.
In Odin's eyes, the hard won peace was about to be shattered by Thor, who stubbornly persisted without the slightest hint of remorse.
He angrily rebuked Thor for disgracing the title of future king, for acting on impulse alone, caring nothing for the greater picture, and he personally tore off the God of Thunder's cloak.
At this moment, Thor still did not realize where his problem lay. He only knew that he seemed to have done something wrong and angered his father god.
Seeing his once kind and loving father erupt in fury, Thor finally began to realize that his mistake might be far more serious than he had imagined.
At this moment, Odin's eyes were filled with disappointment. If he truly handed the throne to Thor, it would likely be a disaster for the Nine Realms.
Thus came the earlier scene of Odin withdrawing Thor's divine power and banishing him together with the hammer.
In truth, Odin, wise beyond measure, still gave Thor a chance. He could clearly have exiled Thor to a far more distant place, but he did not.
He also left Thor a trial: the enchanted hammer of Thor.
All so that one day Thor might truly comprehend the wisdom and responsibility of a king, regain his divine power, and return in glory.
But his actions delighted Loki at his side.
Because everything had been planned by Loki from the very beginning.
He could not understand why, as Odin's son as well, he was clearly the more intelligent one, yet had nothing to do with the throne.
Unwilling to accept defeat, he used a small scheme to sabotage Thor's coronation ceremony.
———
The scene shifts.
At this moment, Corin had already arrived in New Mexico aboard a private jet.
The place where the hammer had landed had now been turned by S.H.I.E.L.D. into a temporary base, code named "0-8-4".
This also reflected S.H.I.E.L.D.'s control logic in dealing with supernatural events: blockade, research, concealment.
They used mechanical devices in an attempt to move the hammer, but found that it could not be budged by any external force.
At the same time, they analyzed the runes and energy field on the hammer's surface, but limited by their lack of understanding of Asgardian technology, progress was minimal.
Led by Agent Coulson, Corin finally saw the legendary hammer, Mjolnir.
"Appraisal!"
[Thor's Hammer Mjolnir → Appraised value: 50 billion dollars (non exchangeable)]
He appraised this Asgardian divine artifact at once. The price displayed by the system made Corin's eyes light up, and the non exchangeable result was also expected.
If Thor's hammer were really exchanged for cash by him like this, Thor would probably be in for a world of bad luck in all the subsequent Thor related storylines.
Watching as the crane failed for the N plus one time in front of the hammer, Corin rubbed his hands together, his eyes flickering with eager anticipation.
"Let me give it a try?"
Agent Coulson straightened his tie, thinking that, 'Letting you try precisely because we know you're strong.'
'I wanted to see if you could lift the hammer, but without a commission, you probably wouldn't even glance at it.'
He also wondered whether this one hundred million dollar commission would actually bring him any surprises.
"Be my guest."
Corin rolled up his sleeves and came to the hammer, gripping the handle and slightly adjusting his breathing.
With a sudden exertion of force, "Up you go—"
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