Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 113 A Rough Deconstruction of Asgardian Society

Dormammu was disappointed. He had specifically timed it; the guy in sheep pajamas who was supposed to tell him stories hadn't arrived on time, meaning the game of tag wouldn't be possible. But Dormammu wasn't the only one disappointed; Lorna, staying at the orphanage, was too, because Salomon had promised to make her drawing the rainbow pony come to life.

So the question is, where did Salomon go?

"Heimdall, I never imagined Asgard would become like this." Salomon stood at the site of the broken Bifrost, speaking casually to the burly man in golden armor beside him. The reason he stood up Dormammu and Lorna was work. Although the Sorcerer Supreme didn't care about the Destroyer Armor, the subsequent troubles would need to be handled by Kamar-Taj. Mordo had done it, Kasirius had done it, and now it was Salomon's turn. The Sorcerer Supreme thought it wouldn't take him long to go to Asgard, so he sent him here first.

Beneath Salomon's feet, the endless lake surged with white spray, pouring into the void before dissolving into shimmering fragments of light and disappearing into the starry sky. Salomon stomped hard on the Rainbow Bridge; he couldn't imagine how much power it would take to shatter this crystalline bridge, nor could he believe that Thor would actually do such a thing—this was the very foundation of Asgard.

It seems the Sorcerer Supreme's scheme was quite successful; Thor will indeed become a good king. This isn't exactly a compliment. You can be kind, you can be a king, but you can't be a good king; a good king is unfit. However, Odin had no choice but to accept this outcome; the Allfather had neither the time nor the option.

Heimdall completely ignored Salomon, whose tone seemed tinged with schadenfreude. He continued gazing at the distant stars, though no one knew what he was looking at. "Tell me, Heimdall," Salomon said. "I have an audience with the Allfather and to face the nobles and bureaucrats of Asgard. Tell me what the situation is like in Asgard. I'm just here to retrieve some documents and discuss a few things."

"You can talk to me," Heimdall finally spoke slowly. "Maybe I can make the decision."

"What about the Destroyer Armor?" Salomon raised an eyebrow. "Can you decide that? I'm here representing Midgard to discuss this. Let's bypass those idiots who can't do anything but eat and drink, and get straight to work."

Heimdall glared at Salomon before turning and striding toward Asgard. Salomon followed closely behind, the arcane mage, much shorter than Heimdall, having to quicken his pace to keep up. The Rainbow Bridge stretched from the edge of Asgard all the way to the foot of the Golden Wall; only here could Salomon see the impact of the Rainbow Bridge's destruction on Asgard.

Asgard has never had much arable land; its landscape is mostly forests and mountains. However, Asgardians have always consumed a great deal of food because they are heavy drinkers who need to use a lot of grain to brew alcohol. Therefore, they frequently need to travel across the Rainbow Bridge to other star systems to purchase crops. Because they use precious metals for payment, coupled with their strong tradition of martial prowess, many civilizations are happy to trade with Asgard.

However, after the Rainbow Bridge collapsed, new crops could not be imported, and the food reserves of ordinary people dwindled significantly. Fortunately, the Allfather urgently allocated a batch of military rations to the civilians, but this only ensured that the people of Asgard would not starve; the taverns that were once ubiquitous in the civilian districts were now deserted.

Now, only the upper town, where the nobles reside, remains bustling with activity as they celebrate Thor's quelling of the rebellion.

As mentioned before, Asgard is a true feudal society where social order is based on bloodline.

Generally speaking, with the development of productivity and technology, feudal societies usually come to an end. However, technology and magic cannot erase the power gap between nobles and commoners. In addition, the Asgardians are skilled in warfare, and their current level of development is almost entirely due to the war benefits gained from years of conquest. The burdens of commoners are shifted to the commoners of other countries. The commoners of Asgard live a relaxed and happy life, so naturally they have no intention of rebelling.

Now, these benefits no longer flow into Asgard from other star systems. If it weren't for the logistical arrangements made by a group of Vanir officials led by Queen Frigga, Asgard would likely have fallen into rebellion like other realms. It was precisely for this reason that Odin didn't immediately hand Asgard over to Thor, because the Allfather knew Thor was a heartless man, and since this was Thor's doing, he wouldn't allow himself to wield the sword against the common people.

The Allfather sighed, feeling his body grow heavier. The forced interruption of Odin's slumber had placed a heavy burden on him. Yet he still needed to sit on the golden throne, for only when he sat there could Asgard be at peace. He was the monarch, he was the nation.

"Allfather of the Gods." Heimdall stopped before the steps of the throne, knelt on one knee, and reported to Odin, "The messenger from Kamar-Taj in Midgard has arrived."

"Bring it up," Odin said slowly.

Heimdall accepted the order and withdrew, leading Salomon, who was waiting outside Asgard, inside. Last time, Salomon had only glimpsed this passage from afar beside the throne, but only now, stepping onto it, did he truly realize its length. If he weren't an arcane mage, and his teacher weren't the Sorcerer Supreme, anyone who walked this passage, gazed up at the towering golden halls, and beheld the magnificent murals would feel a sense of awe.

"Father of the Gods." Salomon did not kneel, for he was not a subject of Asgard; he merely bowed deeply, performing the ritual of a sorcerer. He did not look directly at Odin as he spoke, for he was always very careful in matters of etiquette. "I have come to discuss the aftermath of Thor's descent to Earth, including the handling of the Destroyer armor."

"Salomon Damonet." Odin opened his single eye, looking at the arcane mage below the steps. "Raise your head."

The wizard raised his head and noticed that Odin's weariness seemed even deeper than during the coronation ceremony; it seemed Odin's slumber had not lessened his burden. While the wizard was observing Odin, the Allfather was also observing Salomon. He noticed the four rings on Salomon's hand and the magical aura surrounding him, and knew how highly the Sorcerer Supreme regarded him.

"Why don't you go to the banquet? You're a young man; you shouldn't be hanging out with an old man like me." The Allfather suddenly became very energetic. He said, "Heimdall can decide this matter; you can discuss it with him. Go to the banquet, and invite Sif and Thor along. They need to know how this should be handled."

"As you command," Salomon said, bowing again with a hint of ulterior motive. Heimdall then led him to the banquet in Asgard. Asgardian banquets were long, as their capacity for alcohol was generally high. Even when drunk, the banquet lasted long enough for them to sober up and continue drinking. The banquet continued until all the lamb, beef, pork chops, butter, boiled fish, roast meat, and various sweets and desserts on the table were gone, until no more mead flowed from the barrels, until the bards' voices were hoarse, and until everyone was fast asleep. Only then did the banquet end.

This banquet was held for the heirs of Asgard. Even now, Salomon can still see maids in court attire continuously serving various delicacies to the table. With a quick glance, he also noticed empty wine barrels piled up in the corner of the palace.

"Now, it's time to discuss things," Salomon said, raising his voice slightly, as the noisy guests made it difficult for him to hear himself. Heimdall nodded coldly and found an empty table to sit at (perhaps someone had been there, because Salomon felt as if he had stepped on something soft). As they sat down, the revelrying guests shoved horns into their hands without warning.

"Drink! Drink!" they shouted, "For Thor! For Odin! Drink, warriors! Let us enjoy the feast!"

Then, their drunken stupor vanished, and they spotted Heimdall. The previously noisy drunkards fell silent instantly. Heimdall held a very special position in Asgard; aside from a select few, very few people had a good relationship with him. Because of his gift, his eyes weren't just looking out over other parts of the universe; nothing within Asgard escaped Heimdall's notice. Because of this talent, Heimdall not only guarded the Bifrost but also served as the Allfather's intelligence officer, ensuring that any plot of rebellion would be exposed to his eyes.

The quiet in one small area did not affect the entire banquet. Guests, both men and women, consciously moved away from that area. Heimdall even pulled out the thing from under the table and threw it aside.

"Aren't you going to summon Thor and Sif?" Salomon asked.

"No." He shook his head and took a sip of mead. The mead served at the banquet was Asgard's finest mead, extremely expensive. Although the legends surrounding mead were a bit disgusting, it was undeniable that this mead was still incredibly sweet, far better than any mead on Earth. As for why Salomon came to this conclusion, it was because once he took a sip, he couldn't stop.

"It's fortunate that Thor and Loki didn't cause much damage to Midgard." Salomon poured a bottle of Panacea into his mouth. This alchemical potion could delay the effects of drunkenness and also keep Salomon sober while drinking, ensuring that he wouldn't mess things up when doing business.

"That was a discussion between the Allfather and the Sorcerer Supreme." Heimdall sipped his mead expressionlessly, completely unconcerned about the blackmail implied by Salomon.

"But the Destroyer armor still caused some economic losses." Salomon raised an eyebrow and raised his glass to Heimdall. He didn't seem to care that the weapons didn't belong to him when he said this.

"The Destroyer armor is still in Midgard."

"That was Thor's hammer that broke it. I was there. Midgard has no responsibility whatsoever."

"Asgard is taking back the Destroyer Armor."

"Yes, that's fine." Salomon took the second cup of mead from the trembling maid's hands. "But I'm not responsible for returning it, and neither is Kamar-Taj."

Heimdall squinted.

"Unfortunately, the wreckage of the Destroyer armor was stolen by a rebel organization called S.H.I.E.L.D." Salomon feigned innocence, blatantly lying as if he had no ability to take the Destroyer armor with him. "So, only you, Heimdall, can find the Destroyer armor."

Heimdall took another sip of mead.

"The Destroyer armor was thrown onto Earth by Asgard, so Asgard should be responsible for cleaning it up. Am I right?"

"That was thrown by Loki."

"But you and I both know that Loki still represents Asgard. At least when he threw down the Destroyer armor, he was still nominally the King of Asgard."

"so?"

"I suggest that once the Rainbow Bridge is repaired, we immediately use it to teleport the Destroyer Armor to Asgard," Salomon said. "You know that divining the Destroyer Armor, an artifact of such power, comes at an extremely high price. Asgard has no reason to make the Sorcerer Supreme pay that price. You will have to do it yourselves, otherwise Asgard will never be able to retrieve the Destroyer Armor."

"As for the riots caused by Thor... I think the book I didn't finish reading last time is enough to make up for the cost of my spellcasting."

Salomon was currently enjoying a hearty drink among the crowd. His conversation with Heimdall had been drafted, and now it needed the scribe to issue a formal document, followed by the Allfather's approval before it could take effect. This included the method Asgard would use to retrieve the Destroyer armor—the Bifrost—instead of sending soldiers to Earth. However, since the scribe had also attended the banquet—the unfortunate fellow who had just been lying under the table—Heimdall and Salomon had to wait.

After the scribe finally regained his senses (Heimdall's physics), the document officially took effect after being reviewed by Frigg, the Queen of the Gods, and Odin, the Allfather. Finally, this document, stamped with wax seal, ended up in Salomon's hands, and a similar document existed in Asgard. Salomon was relieved after carefully reading the document, as it was exactly what he had suggested.

In other words, no matter where S.H.I.E.L.D. hides the Destroyer armor, it will be bombarded by the Rainbow Bridge. This document also led to the exposure of S.H.I.E.L.D. bases. Rainbow Bridges descended from the sky, covering S.H.I.E.L.D.'s research bases where the Destroyer armor was stored. Some top-secret bases, such as the "Sandbox" and the "Cold Storage," were exposed. S.H.I.E.L.D. is not the only intelligence organization with satellites.

That was after the Rainbow Bridge was repaired, but Salomon wasn't worried at all that S.H.I.E.L.D. could glean anything from the Destroyer armor. As far as he knew, besides the Destroyer armor's mechanical structure, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s only findings were the spectral analysis of magical runes. Based on the analysis of the rune spectrum, and the reverse engineering done by S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists, the weapon they created by imitating the Destroyer armor was essentially a large fire magic missile—nothing significant.

However, Salomon's revenge against Nick Fury was not so simple; mere top-secret bases wouldn't suffice. After the Sorcerer Supreme brought him back to Earth, Salomon quickly archived the documents, then opened a portal and stepped into darkness—a seemingly ordinary home, the owner of which was very clean, yet Salomon still found a handgun under the glass tabletop. Salomon took the pistol, found a chair, and sat down without turning on the lights or making a sound.

"Agent Victoria Hand," Salomon suddenly spoke after a moment, "I need to talk to you."

I revised the last chapter, please vote for it! I'd love to get some first-day subscriptions when it goes on sale on New Year's Day!

I'm planning to post a bonus chapter tonight.

(End of this chapter)