Half an hour later, inside a side hall of the palace used for receiving guests.
A small private banquet was underway. Present were Odin and his family, along with Lucas alone.
According to Thor, in several thousand years, there had been fewer than five individuals worthy of being received by Odin in such a manner.
Seated at the head of the table, Odin raised his wine cup toward Lucas and said gratefully,
"Thanks to your help, I feel much better now."
"May I ask—have you fully recovered your energy? If you need any assistance, please do not hesitate to say so."
Lucas raised his cup in return and replied, "Thank you for your concern. I've already recovered."
This was not an attempt to evade Odin's probing—it was the truth.
In the past, even for Lucas, an expenditure of that level would have required over an hour to fully recover.
But after his body had been transformed by the energy of the Cosmic Cube, the recovery speed of his Ki had increased dramatically.
Lucas even felt that as long as he remained within a realm governed by spatial concepts—even in the vacuum of space—he could continuously draw in energy.
"Actually," Odin said after a moment of thought,
"you don't necessarily have to go looking for Hela."
"The artifacts you requested earlier—I can give them to you directly. I can also provide all the information about the Aether without conditions."
"With my current state, I should be able to last another three to five hundred years. That will be enough time for Thor to fully mature."
Thor suddenly interjected, "Father, I don't need that long. I can grow stronger very quickly."
"Child," Frigga said, shaking her head gently,
"the fact that you can say that only proves you are not yet ready to shoulder such responsibility."
Lucas took another sip of Asgard's specialty high-purity energy wine and said calmly,
"No. Since I said I would help you resolve this, I will see it through."
Odin's expression darkened slightly with worry.
"But even now, I cannot be certain how strong Hela has become."
"When she was only a thousand years old, her combat strength already far surpassed Thor's current level."
"I sealed her away hundreds of years before Thor and Loki were even born."
Thor did not doubt this—Odin had no reason to lie.
Loki, on the other hand, felt deeply moved. Even now, Odin still regarded him as his own son.
Yet both of them were shaken by one fact: the sister they had never met possessed power beyond imagination.
"Asgardians grow stronger with age," Lucas continued.
"Thor is about fifteen hundred years old now. Give him another three hundred years, and he would be roughly the same age Hela was back then."
"But that also means Hela is now at least thirty-three hundred years old."
Odin nodded heavily.
"Which is precisely the age when Asgardians reach their peak."
"And what you don't know," he added,
"is that this child was blessed by her grandfather and the previous generation of Aesir."
"As long as she remains within the range of Asgard's divine authority, she possesses limitless power—and an immortal body."
Shaking his head, Odin sighed.
"I was too soft-hearted back then. I should have completely erased her. Now, I no longer have the strength to do so."
"Odin, she is your child," Frigga said softly, stepping forward to comfort him.
"It is only natural that you hesitated."
Lucas spoke with confidence, "Don't worry. I understand what I'm getting into. I am confident I can defeat Hela."
Seeing that Lucas would not be persuaded, Odin stopped arguing and said,
"Very well. Later, I will personally take you to Hel."
"Father, I—"
"Silence!" Odin interrupted Thor sharply.
"At your current level, you wouldn't even survive a single strike from your sister."
"She is the Death Goddess personally appointed by me and your grandfather—the ruler of Hel."
"Do not forget what you carry upon your shoulders."
Thor could only close his mouth reluctantly.
Lucas stroked his chin thoughtfully. In the cinematic timeline, even a fully awakened Thor was no match for Hela.
At that time, she had not even fully returned to her peak—her strength was likely no more than seventy or eighty percent.
If Thor were taken along now and given a chance to awaken his true power sooner, it would provide an extra layer of assurance.
With that in mind, Lucas suddenly said,
"I think Thor should go."
"Why?" Odin asked, stopping Frigga before she could object.
"People need to grow," Lucas replied slowly.
"Let him see what true power in the universe looks like. Let him understand that there is always someone stronger."
"You and I can't stay by his side forever. With me there this time, I can at least ensure he doesn't die—but what about the future?"
"And Thanos," Lucas added.
"Do you really think letting Thor sit idle for a few hundred years will make him a match for that monster?"
"One painful lesson, so he understands the cruelty of the world beyond your protection—I believe that's worth it."
Odin fell silent.
After several seconds, he sighed.
"You've convinced me, Lucas. You're right."
"Thor—go with him."
Thor's face lit up instantly.
"Thank you, Father!"
Looking at Thor's excitement, Odin chuckled softly.
"You remind me of myself back when I served under your grandfather—ignorant, yet fearless."
Turning to Lucas, he said sincerely,
"Thank you. Asgard owes you far more than we can repay."
"From this day forward, Asgard will be your most steadfast ally. With a single word from you, Asgardians will walk through fire and blood on your behalf."
Lucas laughed.
"Haha, I doubt I'll ever need that. Who knows—maybe one day Asgard will be the one relying on me instead."
Odin laughed heartily.
"I look forward to that day."
---
Half an hour later.
Earth. Europe. Norway.
Above a narrow sea strait—
Boom!
A pillar of seven-colored light descended from the sky, revealing three figures within.
Odin. Lucas. Thor.
Odin lightly tapped Gungnir against the ground. The space ahead twisted slightly, and a massive runic magic array appeared before them.
It was densely packed with interwoven runes, exuding an aura of infinite depth and profound mystery.
Lucas could clearly sense powerful spatial laws emanating from it.
Turning his head, Odin said,
"If you encounter danger, crush the rune stone I gave you. I'll immediately pull you out."
Lucas examined the rune stone in his hand—a pebble the size of a strawberry, engraved with intricate runes.
Rune script was the medium through which Odin had comprehended cosmic laws upon the World Tree—said to be the closest writing system in the universe to true laws.
"All right," Odin said.
"You two may enter."
Under Odin's guidance, seven-colored light wrapped around Lucas and Thor, pulling them directly into the magic array.
"I hope," Odin murmured,
"that everything goes smoothly."