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….
"..."
The Gatekeeper of Asgard remained completely silent. Which, honestly, was a remarkably wise decision on his part.
Alas, the surprises of this night didn't end there. I made it to the palace without incident, the Golden City slept, the Einherjar kept vigilant watch at their posts, and peace and tranquility reigned everywhere.
However, the moment I allowed myself to assume everything would go smoothly, an unforeseen element was discovered in the throne room.
Thor, probably hungover, decided to hold a late-night vigil on the Throne. He was doing it with such a smart and focused look that I was actually scared for a second that someone had turned him into a stuffed animal while I was gone. I don't know how that association popped into my head. I really don't! But that's what I thought of when I saw him.
"Loki? What are you doing here?" The Thunderer finally noticed me.
"Just dropped by for a couple of minutes to check something," I gestured for the on-duty Einherjar to leave the room. "But what are youdoing in the throne room at three in the morning?"
"I... uh..." Thor gathered his thoughts, watching the Aesir quickly and silently exit. "I am learning... Studying the advice you left."
"Learning? That is good," I nodded, genuinely slightly impressed. "But allow me to interrupt you for a minute, I need to use the Throne."
"Of course, brother, whatever you say," the blond immediately stood up, yielding the seat.
Yeah... Seeing such compliance and remembering what Thor was like just six months ago, the experience of the real Loki started making attempts to throw up a blue screen of death.
A very strange sensation. I was even tempted to casually ask, 'Hey bro, are you an isekai protagonist too?' However, even if he was, I didn't want to know. Seriously, don't care. Not my problem.
"Alright," I sat on the Throne and focused on Midgard, allowing the artifact of Kings to expand and direct my 'inner eye.'
So-so-so... Tibet, there you are... Looking for magic. Oh! There it is, the concealing veil! Powerful, long-lasting, erected no less than a thousand years ago. And the spectrum of spells, characteristic of using the energy of the quantum dimension mixed with the internal power of humans. Yes, I definitely found it! Now let's look at New York, the local sanctum should also have a similar background, and knowing where it is won't be useless to me...
"Alright, I'm done," I opened my eyes a few minutes after starting work. "Thank you, Thor, I've got to run," I got to my feet.
"Where are you going?" the big guy perked up.
"It's all the movement of the plot!" I waved my arms expressively, already striding rapidly toward the exit. "It's happening right now! Too many events, too many! Kiss Mom, say hi to Padmé, and feed Dad's ravens, I completely forgot about them, they're probably angry by now..."
And, leaving my brother in complete bewilderment, I made a flamboyant exit. All in the name of Intrigue, yes!
….
"Can't sleep?" I greeted Yuriko, who had come into the kitchen only to find me ceremoniously pouring myself a glass of freshly brewed cocoa. The mage sanctuary had been found, and that was worth celebrating. And since there was barely any night left anyway, dragging myself back to bed was deemed pointless.
"I wanted to make breakfast," the Asian woman replied with a slight hesitation, clearly not expecting to see me here.
"A noble endeavor," I nodded, already pulling out a second glass. I had brewed a lot, so I could share. "Though as far as I know, the students usually cook breakfast themselves under Jean's supervision. They'll be waking up in a couple of hours."
"I didn't know," the girl apologized, maintaining a stone face and looking away just a tiny bit.
"Sigh," I filled her glass and placed it on the table, closer to Yuriko. "This won't do," I stated, catching her eye. "Let's be serious, you are depressed because you don't understand your place in life, right?"
"I understand it," the girl shook her head negatively, but despite her even tone and control over her face, her words sounded unconvincing to me.
"Take a seat," setting an example, I settled at the dining table with my cup in hand, "we are going to have a soul-saving conversation."
"You don't have to..."
"I have to," I interrupted her, "otherwise you'll keep pacing and worrying over nothing."
Under my demanding gaze, the woman gathered her will into a fist (that's how it looked) and sat on a stool at the opposite end of the table. Yeah, quite the picture: "the decent subordinate before the brainless petty tyrant boss" in full color. As if a feeling of shame was exactly what I was lacking...
"Let's start simple. Who am I, in your opinion?"
"You are a God," Oyama answered without pause, like an exemplary straight-A student or a super-professional secretary.
"The definition is correct, but insufficient," I encouraged her to further dialogue, taking a sip of the hot drink.
"You are..." the girl hesitated a little, "the son of Odin... King of Asgard and Jotunheim... Master of Magic..."
"You are definitely taking this in the wrong direction," I shook my head. "You are listing words describing my status and reputation, not me. Try to formulate what you yourself have managed to notice during our acquaintance, what I represent in and of myself."
"..." the beautiful Asian woman fell into thought for a while, by all indications, approaching the task seriously. "You like to shock the public, joke, have fun, mess around with kids, eat sweets, and display ostentatious frivolity."
"Getting closer, but you are listing external attributes, not the conclusions that follow from them," I nodded, taking another sip. "But I won't torture you. I am a scoundrel, a womanizer, and a rake. That is what you should keep in mind when trying to understand how to behave with me and how to help me. Don't think about the fact that I am a God or some radiant Hero. Look at me as an overgrown slacker, and it will immediately become easier for you."
"I'm afraid I won't be able to do that," Yuriko shook her head, looking seriously into my eyes. "I understand too well that your frivolity is a mask, and in reality, you control everything and calculate several steps ahead."
"That is, of course, very flattering," I smiled at the girl, "but you are mistaken. My eccentricities are not a mask. It is how I feel, my true reactions and emotions. And I far from calculate everything in advance. You simply don't have to be staid and stern to notice what is happening around you and react to it in time."
"Even if you say so," the woman shook her head, "I saw you in action. I saw Asgard. And I won't be able to perceive you as a simple... work buddy."
"Well, at least you understand what I want," I shrugged, taking another sip, "and you're not afraid to express it to me. But, okay, let's try to act progressively. You can't get used to me because you can't perceive me as an ordinary person or mutant, which makes you nervous, keeps you tense, and prevents you from stringing two words together to address me. Did I forget anything?"
"..." a bashful blush appeared under the Asian woman's high cheekbones, but she tried to quickly pull herself together: "Yes. That's all correct."
"Excellent! Then just be around. Brew tea, coffee, bring sandwiches, remind me of the schedule if I overwork myself; in short, try being a simple secretary, and then you'll slowly get used to it."
"Alright, I'll try," Yuriko nodded extremely seriously, perhaps even folding her palms on her knees under the table, as befits a proper girl at a lesson.
"Oh, you give me grief," I shook my head, and she clearly understood why I did it, even got a little embarrassed, but didn't change her posture anyway.
"Drink your cocoa already! The faithful handmaiden of an evil genius must treat her boss's quirks with respect! We evil geniuses are sensitive and tender creatures; we need moral support, otherwise we'll fall apart, so you know."
….
If you want to read ahead by 20+ chapters from here you can visit my Patre-on.
[P] [A] [T] [R] [E] [O] [N]
[email protected]/Yggdrasil_Loki