Seeing Odin's arrival, Thor's goofy grin vanished instantly. He hurriedly explained, "She entered a certain place earlier and then passed out. I was worried there was something wrong with her body."
Right at that moment, an eldermage healer nearby who had just finished the examination murmured softly, "Your Highness, her body is perfectly healthy. There are no issues at all!"
Hearing this, Thor obviously breathed a sigh of relief, though he looked a bit awkward when he turned back to face Odin.
Odin was clearly even more infuriated by this outcome. He said in a deep voice, "She is a mortal. Illness is a defining trait of her kind. Moreover, she does not belong in Asgard, just as a goat cannot escape its fate of being sent to the dinner table."
"Uh... Me, a goat?!"
Watching Odin walk toward her with an expression of blatant disdain, Jane was clearly displeased as well. She turned her head to look at Thor in confusion and asked, "Who do you think you are?"
Before Thor could answer, Odin spoke up, "I am Odin, King of Asgard, All-Father, and Protector of the Nine Realms!"
Jane felt a bit embarrassed. She hadn't expected this overbearing old man to be the legendary Odin. More importantly, of course, he was Thor's father.
"Uh... Oh, I am..."
"I know who you are, Jane Foster!"
Odin interrupted Jane once again, his single eye scrutinizing her with a sharp gaze.
Not knowing what else to say, Jane could only look at Thor, asking with a trace of underlying emotion, "Did you mention me to your dad?"
Thor didn't know how to answer either. What mattered most was that he could tell Odin strongly disliked Jane, so he immediately said, "She entered a certain place earlier, Father."
"A space that Heimdall had never seen before. Furthermore, there is a seal placed by our ancestors there, and she felt a calling in that place!"
Odin, who was just about to have the guards escort Jane away, halted his steps. He immediately turned back to Thor and demanded, "What did you say? What did the seal look like?"
Thor described the appearance of the space and the monoliths. Odin's brow furrowed instantly. Waving his hand to dismiss the surrounding healers and guards, he stared at Jane and asked:
"Tell me, what did you see there?"
Though deeply displeased with Odin's attitude, Jane answered truthfully for Thor's sake, "The first time, I was sucked inside. At that moment, I felt something seemed to be calling out to me, but I fainted right after entering. Also, it felt like someone caught me in their arms."
"Someone held you?!"
Standing to the side, Thor was also hearing about this for the first time. He couldn't help but ask, a hint of jealousy creeping into his voice, "Who was it?"
"I don't know!"
Jane looked at Thor with a helpless expression and explained, "When I woke up again, I was already back on Earth, and then my friends found me. Oh right, they also mentioned hearing the roar of some ferocious beast!"
"The roar of a beast?!"
Thor asked in astonishment, and confusion flickered in Odin's eye as well.
"I didn't hear it myself. Later, I wanted to go back inside to figure out what was going on, and then you showed up and brought me here."
Jane expressed that her own day had been an utter blur of confusion.
"Take her to rest first. I must go verify something!"
After listening to Jane's account, Odin spoke immediately. Based on Thor's description, he already knew that was the place where the Aether was sealed. Since the Aether was a parasitic entity, he worried that something had gone wrong with the seal.
The Aether was one of the Infinity Stones, harboring immense power. He could not sit idly by.
Seeing Odin's solemn expression, Thor also sensed the gravity of the situation and couldn't help but ask, "Father, what exactly is sealed there?"
Glancing at Jane, who also showed a look of curiosity nearby, Odin replied with only one sentence: "An extremely dangerous weapon!"
With that, he left the healing chambers, no longer bothering with Jane's matter.
After Odin left, Jane relaxed significantly. She then couldn't help but complain to Thor, asking, "What exactly did you tell your father? He really seems to dislike me."
Thor didn't know how to answer. If Odin had even a shred of goodwill toward Jane, he wouldn't have delayed going to Earth for so long out of apprehension. Thus, he could only change the subject:
"Let me take you on a tour around Asgard first. I promise, you're going to love it here!"
Meanwhile, after leaving the healing chambers, Odin went straight to the Bifrost. Looking at the dutifully guarding Heimdall, he didn't hold it against him for bringing Jane over and commanded, "Transport me to that sealed space!"
"Yes!"
Heimdall didn't ask for any reasons and immediately activated the Bifrost.
Upon arriving at the sealed space, Odin carefully examined the seal on the monoliths, his expression growing grim. He discovered that the Aether was no longer inside.
He inspected the surroundings but found no clues whatsoever, so he had no choice but to return to Asgard first.
Back at the observatory, Odin stood directly in place, pondering over the matter.
Although Jane had entered the sealing grounds, her body had checked out perfectly normal during the examination just now. This indicated that the Aether had not used her to escape the seal. According to her description, the person who held her while she was unconscious was highly likely to have obtained the Aether.
Considering that the entrance had appeared from Earth, a suspect instantly sprang to Odin's mind.
"Can you see what Fini Halsatzi is doing right now?"
Odin suddenly turned his head and asked Heimdall, who was standing perfectly straight.
Heimdall immediately cast his gaze toward the starry sky, his eyes glowing as he searched for Fini's figure on Earth. Soon, however, he shook his head in confusion and replied, "He doesn't seem to be on Earth right now!"
Odin's brow furrowed even deeper. He said, "Find him. See where he is right now!"
Heimdall wasted no words and immediately cast his gaze back into the starry cosmos. Fortunately, he had already looked through quite a few places while searching for Jane earlier, so he quickly located Fini, who was currently studying the Aether in Svartalfheim.
Because he lacked the massive perception boost from Incursio, Fini's sensory capabilities were significantly weakened. Coupled with the fact that he needed immense focus to control the Aether, the ultimate result was that he did not notice Heimdall's gaze.
"He is in Svartalfheim. It appears he is mastering a new ability!"
Heimdall did not recognize the Aether, mistaking it instead for a new skill of Fini's.
"What ability?"
Odin pressed on. Hearing that Fini was in Svartalfheim made him feel that something was amiss, yet in his heart, he hoped things weren't as he imagined.
"It looks like some form of dark red energy manipulation!"
Odin's face ultimately turned grim. He spoke up, "Transport him here. I need to speak with him face to face!"
"Right now?"
Heimdall was startled. He glanced at Odin with some surprise, faintly sensing that something was abnormal about this situation.
"Now!"
Odin replied in a deep, heavy tone. The matter of the Aether was of monumental importance. If things were not as he imagined, he was willing to compensate or apologize to Fini.