Those time travelers that year

Thinking this, Shire turned his gaze to the golden orb he held in his other hand. This was the last bit of divine power left behind after Loki's illusionary clone disappeared. And within it was a coordinate—the coordinate of a spatial tunnel. Back then, when Thor was stripped of his powers and fell to Midgard, Loki had secretly arrived in Midgard through this spatial tunnel, without crossing the Bifrost.

And now, the location of this coordinate is in Charles's hands. He closed his eyes and infused it with his mental power. The golden sphere of light quickly dissipated, and then Charles reopened his eyes with a strange expression.

"It's in New Mexico..." Ciel muttered to himself, speechless. "What a coincidence!" Thor was thrown here in New Mexico, and now Loki is telling Ciel that the spatial tunnel connecting Asgard and Midgard is also there. However, unlike the Rainbow Bridge, that spatial tunnel can only accommodate one person at a time, and it has been artificially sealed.

The one who sealed this tunnel was none other than Loki himself. And without his word, no one, not even Odin the Father, could have found the entrance and exit of the tunnel.

"Alright! Next stop—Asgard!"

From here, the Marvel arc enters its final concluding phase. Next, the author will include some original scripts, then proceed to Thor 2, ignoring the plots of Captain America 2 and Avengers 2... finally ending with Doctor Strange! That's it! What a long arc! It's been so tedious! (Word count not included here)

237. Head to Asgard

Somewhere in New Mexico, on a highway, sits a gas station, and next to it is a small supermarket. This is a supermarket with a history of strange occurrences. Several months ago, two idiotic robbers who weren't wearing stockings came to rob the place at night. Then, they were beaten up by a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who happened to be there casually buying some soy sauce.

Today, the female cashier working at this small supermarket, idly leaning on the table, stares blankly at the unchanging New Mexico wilderness outside the glass door. She fantasizes about seeing that kind, nameless, smiling man from that night again!

However, this female cashier accidentally sent a card to Coulson, who was far away and organizing people to travel all over the world—a truly delightful situation!

Ding-dong! Suddenly, the glass door was pushed open, and the wind chimes hanging on the door jingled, startling the cashier who was lost in her daydream.

A young man, still trying to look cool in this sweltering heat, walked in wearing a black leather trench coat. Well, that was the opinion of the cashier with the deadpan expression. After all, in this unbearable heat, wearing so much clothing just looked like a pretentious idiot. Of course, it's one thing to just be pretentious, but what if he's also picked up bad habits like drug use?

Thinking this, the female cashier lay back down.

"Hello, miss!" But at that moment, the young man in the black trench coat walked directly to the counter and asked the female cashier, "Excuse me, where is the restroom?"

"Hmm!" The female cashier looked up and her first reaction was, is this guy a man or a woman? Her second reaction was, oh, he's a man. Her third reaction was, how come he's prettier than me?

"Hello! Miss, what's wrong?"

"Oh!" The female cashier, suddenly jolted awake, quickly scrambled up from the counter, wiped the suspicious traces from the corner of her mouth, and then pointed with a serious expression to a door inside the supermarket. "Over there!"

"Thank you!" The visitor nodded in thanks, then smiled and said, "Then... forget about me, miss!" His dark golden pupils were like a swirling stream of light, instantly captivating the cashier and making her completely dazed.

Seeing this, the visitor smiled with satisfaction, then walked into the supermarket, opened the door, and entered the building behind the small supermarket. There he found the so-called restroom…

"What the hell! Why did Loki leave the entrance and exit of the passage here?" Looking at the restroom door, the newcomer, Charles, said with an embarrassed expression, "Could it be that he's going to learn how to use Kil'jaeden's Toilet?!" Shaking his head, Charles banished those chaotic thoughts, then took out his Mind Scepter and touched the closed restroom door. Tiny, transparent ripples began to appear in mid-air. Then, Charles took a step forward, reached out, grasped the restroom door, and pulled it open.

It wasn't a toilet inside, but a pitch-black tunnel, a passage connecting to a new world countless light-years away. Then, Charles went inside and casually closed the door behind him.

The tunnel was long and pitch black, like a hopeless road with no end in sight. Upon entering, a flash of light appeared, and Sharl ignited a ball of light that floated beside him. Then, he casually drew a slanted F—'Ansuz', a rune representing Odin's thoughts, or perhaps—Loki.

As the golden rune 'Ansuz' flashed across the dark space, a golden ray of light extended from the distant darkness—the correct path. Only by using magic to trace the rune 'Ansuz' could the seal on this path be broken. Loki cast a spell here. Only by writing the correct rune could one find the tunnel directly to Asgard. Without the rune 'Ansuz,' one would never find the exit, only to be lost in the darkness and ultimately forgotten here.

Once the rune 'Ansuz' is drawn, a correct path will appear. Following this path, you can travel directly from Midgar to Asgard, the territory of the Aesir gods.

With a ball of light overhead, Ciel followed the golden ray of light into the depths of the dark tunnel.

——————————Divider Line——————————

Asgard, the territory of the Aesir gods, is now more tense than ever before. Since Loki's rebellion and departure, the nine kingdoms have not been at peace. Jotunheim was nearly destroyed by the Bifrost, and Laufey, the ice giant king of Jotunheim, died on Asgard.

The nine kingdoms were thrown into chaos, especially the giants, who, under the pretext of avenging Laufey, the king of the ice giants, began a rebellion. The fire giant army pressed in, and Tyr, the god of war, led half of Asgard's forces to confront them, engaging in sporadic skirmishes. In Alfheim, the stone giants invaded the elven territory, bringing with them some magical beasts and monsters, launching an invasion of the elven kingdom.

The chaos in the Nine Realms disrupted the daily life of Asgard. However, the valiant Asgardians paid no heed to this, instead throwing themselves into the battle with renewed enthusiasm. Led by Thor, the army that had quelled the rebellion marched towards Alfheim, where Thor once again made a name for himself, and no one questioned his right to the throne of the gods. Victory after victory inspired the warriors of Asgard. Although the war against the fire giants seemed endless, under the leadership of Tyr, the god of war, Asgard's defenses were never breached by the fire giants.

In other words, apart from the Valhalla army remaining under Brunhilde's leadership, most of Asgard's army is currently engaged in battle outside. This is arguably the weakest point in Asgard's defenses; after thousands of years without war, no one, including the gods, believes that Asgard will one day be attacked.

All of this had nothing to do with the young man who was leisurely lying in the Asgardian prison. Dressed in dark green, the young man lay idly in the prison, casually playing with all sorts of illusions.

He is Loki.

Although he wasn't sentenced to death after being captured, he was imprisoned. As for how long, who knows? Perhaps he won't be released until Thor officially takes power.

He had been imprisoned here for some time, and apart from his mother visiting him, his nominal father, Odin, had never come. Similarly, Thor, who had been sent to quell the rebellion, hadn't had time to come either. However, he didn't care; he simply watched it all with a strange smile and a mocking gaze.

Having learned some of the truth, he didn't think it was all a good thing; on the contrary, he felt extremely sad. Apart from Midgard, the other eight worlds were all puppets on strings, arranged within a 'script'. Whether an ordinary warrior or a high and mighty God the Father, they were nothing more than puppets in someone else's hands, pitiful and pathetic.

However, those beings hiding behind the scenes, driving the cycle of reincarnation, are not exactly sacred. They are merely clinging to life, prolonging their lives by driving the endless cycle of 'Ragnarok,' by relying on the spinning wheel of the three Fates, and by using the World Tree.

Unfortunately, even those beings are not 'invincible'. Although God the Father is trapped in an endless cycle of reincarnation, unable to extricate himself, who knows what might happen if someone were to escape the cycle of reincarnation?

With a slight shift in his expression, Loki stood up. He sensed that someone had emerged from the tunnel he had hidden, which connected to Midgard, and arrived in Asgard.

That's his 'ally' arriving!

238. Guess how you infiltrated Asgard!!!

As they reached the end of the dark tunnel, a burst of dazzling sunlight shone into Ciel's eyes. Having walked in complete darkness for almost an hour, someone with a weaker constitution would likely have collapsed long ago. Even Ciel, who wouldn't normally experience such pressure, felt somewhat oppressed after walking continuously in the dark for nearly an hour. Upon seeing the light, he quickly strode forward and stepped out of the tunnel.

Before Shire lay a vast expanse of sky, and at the edge of his vision, a city shimmering with brilliant golden light. Surrounding the city were towering walls, forged by giants in Norse mythology. Beyond the walls stretched a lush, flourishing forest, and beyond that forest, on the other side, a vast ocean twinkled with starlight. And beyond that ocean, the sky was not bathed in bright sunlight, but rather an endless sea of ​​stars, their brilliance dazzling.

"This is Asgard?" Gazing at the scene, Shire took a deep breath. Although he knew the general outline of Asgard, only by actually being here could he truly appreciate its magnificence. This was the place the Vikings sought their entire lives. No wonder the Vikings yearned for valiant warriors, all for the chance to one day set foot in this land.

"Putting everything else aside, the presentation is really good..." Ciel muttered. "It's a pity that this is Marvel, not Norse mythology, so it's no wonder that when that bunch of villains came later, they were utterly defeated." Yes, don't be fooled by Asgard's current glory. In the later stages of the Marvel universe, in an era where superheroes and supervillains were as common as dogs, all sorts of cosmic monsters came rushing in. Even Asgard, which had been glorious for thousands or even tens of thousands of years, would still be defeated.

"Forget it, this has nothing to do with me!" Anyway, Ciel didn't plan to stay here until the later, epic battles. He didn't even intend to get involved in the Infinity War; he'd just pull off one more heist before leaving. After all, including his time in the Dota world and the Marvel world, it had already been several years. Of course, he didn't doubt Princess Kamishiro's ability to protect the homeworld. Although the main world had once shone brightly in terms of supernatural power, the strongest beings now weren't even as strong as Princess Kamishiro. Without the debuffs of Command Seals, plot suppression, and the protagonist's halo, Ciel didn't believe that Princess Kamishiro, currently drawing energy from the main world's ley lines, wouldn't be able to defeat some humans who weren't even at the level of Heroic Spirits.

“Hmm, I remember, the route Loki left behind was…” The most urgent thing is to find the prison where Loki is imprisoned, and then see what this god of deception is planning to do, as well as the 'script' he mentioned and the mastermind behind editing the 'script'. “You have to go through the forest, and there is a back door on the other side of the city wall… Also, you must not fly over in the air, and you cannot look at the location of the Rainbow Bridge for too long, or Heimdall will find you.”

Heimdall is the guardian god, the gatekeeper, the god of dawn. He oversees the Bifrost and possesses the ability to see anything light-years away, regardless of distance or time. Only a handful of places and methods can conceal this all-seeing, all-hearing being.

Although in the movie, this renowned god was frozen solid by Loki using the Ice Chamber, that was only because he was careless. Besides, even the Ciel dared not directly confront the Ice Chamber's freezing power; he probably saw it as something simulating the cold desolation of the universe, and he had no intention of experiencing absolute zero. However, this gatekeeper managed to break free of the ice using his own strength, and even managed to open the Rainbow Bridge to bring Thor back, despite his severe injuries. His fighting power was definitely above Thor's current level. The Ciel could ignore Thor, but he couldn't ignore this guardian god who seemed to have no notable achievements.

This is also a key point emphasized in the message Loki left behind: once the Guardian God notices you, no matter how you run, you can't escape his gaze again. Therefore, if the Shire wants to infiltrate Asgard, he must avoid the Guardian God's sight. Fortunately, Heimdall usually doesn't focus his attention on Asgard, but rather on other realms, especially those capable of threatening Asgard.

Similarly, on Asgard, Tyr, the god of war, generally doesn't stay there; he's more often on the front lines of the war against the fire giants. The number of gods remaining on Asgard is small, and those focused on combat are few: Baldr, the god of light; Thor, the god of thunder; Vidal, the god of the primeval forest; and the Valkyries. Among the Valkyries, only a handful, including Brunhilde, truly possess divine status.

Now, Loki's actions have, in his own view, completely pushed Asgard into a disadvantageous position, and it's highly likely that various rebellions will break out in the other Nine Realms. In such circumstances, most of Asgard's fighting force will be deployed elsewhere, making it much easier for the Shire to infiltrate Asgard.

"Crossing the forest? But there's also Vidar, the god of the primeval forest. I wonder if he's here?" Vidar is Odin's illegitimate son, and usually stays in his Landveti Palace. If Sharl intends to cross the forest before him, he'll have to be careful lest this forest god discover his presence. Although Sharl isn't afraid of this planetary god, this isn't Earth; it's the stronghold of the Aesir. Who knows, before he can kill this forest god, Odin's divine declaration might directly challenge him.

"I don't want to fight Odin on Asgard." Although after absorbing the Aether, the Shire was confident enough to fight a Celestial-level being, it would be better to avoid a fight if possible.

Of course, Loki had considered this as well. After all, concealing oneself from a forest god in the forest wasn't easy. However, as long as the forest god didn't suspect anything, disguising oneself as a native of Asgard would suffice. This forest god always preferred to be alone in his palace, lost in thought. Therefore, the message left to the Shire already contained a disguised identity…

"...Wait! What's this?!" However, after reading the information left behind by Loki's illusionary clone, Ciel's expression changed drastically. "Holy crap, Loki, you bastard..."

……

At the same time, Loki, who was in prison, suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hahaha... The True Name Contract has its limitations, wizard. Breaking it comes at a price." Loki laughed as he muttered to himself, "...So, have you forgotten? I'm not just the God of Deception, I'm also the God of Mischief! Hahahaha..."

239+240. A Dishonest Pretense

In the realm of fantasy, the so-called "true name" is a peculiar concept, meaning that everyone is born with a hidden, true name. This name possesses magic; only highly wise and powerful sorcerers, gods, or demons can perceive or come close to the true name of things. This is one manifestation of the essence of the soul. Any cautious wizard considers their true name their most treasured secret, yet also the greatest threat to their life. Once a wizard's adversary obtains their true name, they can kill them or enslave them with any common, well-known magic, no matter how powerful the wizard's magic or how weak and clumsy their adversary.

Of course, using someone's real name to restrict them only works if you know their real name. Similarly, some of the above points are incorrect. Just like the names of gods and demons, even if you know their real names, the so-called real name restriction is useless unless your power approaches or surpasses that of these extraordinary beings.

However, among extraordinary beings, true names still serve another purpose: forging contracts. It's important to understand that when power is overwhelming enough to crush another, contracts or agreements become utterly unreliable. This is especially true for gods and demons, who are themselves extraordinary beings. The demon lord Mephistos can seize the souls of mortals through contracts, but can he seize the souls of gods? No! Simple contracts are completely ineffective against those of equal status.

However, there is another type of contract that can be signed: one using real names. This type of contract has very strict limitations. It can only be signed if both parties are willing, and both parties must be conscious. Any use of mind control, hypnosis, or other means will prevent the contracted party from calling out their real name to sign the contract.

Such contracts can be broken, but the consequences are severe, so severe that no signatory could accept them. Most commonly, the violator will be directly controlled by the other party for an extended period. Other consequences include damage to the soul, decreased power, and so on.

Generally speaking, unless absolutely necessary, people are unwilling to sign a true name contract. However, when cooperating with Loki, neither of them trusted the other. After all, if possible, Loki would plan to use Ciel as a shield and kill him, while Ciel also distrusted Loki and preferred to kill Loki directly and then harvest his soul to obtain everything he wanted.

Then, Loki couldn't defeat the Ciel, whose strength far surpassed that of the God of Deception; and the Ciel couldn't find Loki's illusionary clones—who knows how many hidden clones Loki had left behind on Earth. Therefore, to prevent each other from breaking their agreement, they directly signed a True Name Contract to bind themselves. The consequences of breaking it weren't severe, but they were certainly annoying; both were essentially selfish individuals, and harming their own interests was simply out of the question.

So the contract was signed.

Loki taught the Shire the knowledge of the "Authority," and the Shire helped Loki survive the Battle of New York unscathed and return to Asgard.

Loki's clone takes the Shire to find the Dark Elves' artifact, giving him the power and resources to confront God the Father. The Shire, in turn, must secretly release Loki from Asgard according to Loki's demands and assist him.

From the beginning, Ciel had already guessed what Loki would take him to find: using help to allow him to find the Aether, the Reality Stone among the Infinity Stones, ahead of time. Frankly, it was a mutually beneficial deal. After all, when signing the contract, Ciel had already stated that if they encountered an insurmountable enemy, such as a cosmic being or Thanos who had already begun collecting the Infinity Stones, he would definitely abandon Loki and leave.

However, it seems now...

It seems Ciel has been tricked by Loki, judging from his conflicted and unpleasant expression...

——————————Divider Line——————————

War, war… For the Asgardians, war is not a distant topic, but a mission that has been intertwined with them for thousands of years. Every Asgardian, male or female, undergoes various forms of combat training from birth. Even scholars, priests, and other civilian officials receive specialized training to varying degrees. It can be said that this is a place where everyone is a soldier.

Enjoying victory is an Asgardian tradition. Whenever a victor returns from a campaign, a grand feast is held, where everyone, whether a victorious soldier or a citizen of Asgard, can enjoy delicious food and drinks.

The same day repeated itself! On Alfheim, after a year of struggle, the rebellious army could not escape its fate of being wiped out. Thor led the suppression army and finally crushed the invaders, led by the stone giants. The vast majority of the rebels either died in battle or fled, and a considerable number were captured. These unfortunate captives were now being taken back to Asgard to be imprisoned.

This was a victory to celebrate. The feast was ready, with food and drink prepared. As the victorious Asgardian soldiers marched through the wide streets, prisoners bound by special chains, their weapons raised high as they received the enthusiastic cheers of the crowd. Petals rained down from the sky, swirling and scattering along the victors' path. The cheers, like roaring waves, echoed through the heavens.

Everyone cheered for the victors, from soldiers who hadn't fought to ordinary Asgardian residents and even the Valkyries who had originally guarded Asgard. After all, as the last remaining force protecting Asgard, the Valkyries and their fallen soldiers rarely had the opportunity to fight on the battlefield, except when they were deployed to Tyr's army against the fire giants. In ordinary wars, the Valkyries primarily served as army commanders, rarely seeing the front lines, and their main role was collecting the souls of the fallen and bringing them back to Valhalla.

But loving excitement is in everyone's nature!

So when the victorious army returned to Asgard and was greeted with cheers, many Valkyries, in twos and threes or alone, came to join the jubilant crowd. Some were genuinely cheering for the Asgardian soldiers and happy for yet another victory, while others were simply there to join in the fun or enjoy the atmosphere of the feast.

Every Valkyrie is exceptionally beautiful and possesses considerable martial prowess. While not every Valkyrie holds divine status or is considered a formal deity—the title of Valkyrie is mostly just a title or position—this does not diminish the Asgardians' respect for them. After all, it is a symbol of status, second only to formal gods and above many warriors and scholars.

Therefore, many Asgardians show respect when they see a Valkyrie. Similarly, due to the Valkyries' special status in Asgard (they belong to Odin, the Father, and obey only his commands, making them Odin's subordinate gods), no one would stop them. As long as they don't enter restricted areas, such as the Mimir Well, the Valkyries can move freely without hindrance.

So, at this victory parade, several Valkyries, whom even Asgardians rarely see, suddenly appeared. Some of them were familiar faces, while others were new. After all, the Valkyries had been around for over a thousand years, so it wasn't surprising to have some unfamiliar new members.

For example, the person below...

Her long, black hair cascaded over her shoulders, framing a delicate and handsome face. She wore a silver-white, form-fitting suit of armor, the armor revealing smooth skin at her neck. A pure white cloak with a sky-blue base draped over her back. Although she appeared very young and somewhat immature, and her physique was slightly flawed, her beautiful, dark golden eyes darted around, surveying her surroundings. A one-handed longsword hung at her waist, and the faint aura of divine power emanating from her commanded the respect and reverence of everyone who passed by.

In terms of appearance, this 'Valkyrie' is hard to fault. Although her overall score may be slightly lower due to some regrettable aspects, her heroic spirit is enough to compensate for the lost points. Moreover, the faint aura of divine power she exudes proves that she is not just a pretty face, but a powerful and genuine warrior.

In Asgard, a place that worships heroism, strength and wisdom are what earn respect. Social status doesn't elevate your status, not even for gods. Instead, those with exceptional wisdom, like scholars, and those with unparalleled bravery, are far more respected.

While this 'Valkyrie' seemed unfamiliar, that wasn't a problem. After all, Valhalla was a relatively isolated place, and both the heroic soldiers and the Valkyrie were quite rare sights for most Asgardians. The heroic soldiers were warriors who had died on the battlefield, some of whom were ancestors or friends of the Asgardians. A distance must exist between the living and the dead; this was the decree of Odin, the God-King.

The deceased should not disturb the lives of the living too much, while the living can remember the deceased, but are not allowed to have too much contact with them, mainly because excessive contact between the living and the dead would disrupt the order of the world.

Those who are qualified to come into contact with the spirits of the dead, and who are also Valkyries in the command system of the Asgardian army, are naturally respected by the vast majority of Asgardians.

Besides... this is, after all, a world that judges by appearance.

Even Asgard is no exception!

Moreover, the faint aura of divine power surrounding the 'Valkyrie' and the powerful aura (low-pressure atmosphere) she possessed led many Asgardian residents and soldiers to believe that while she wasn't a formal deity with authority, she was certainly not weak! Judging by her skill, she could probably easily defeat twenty or thirty Asgardian soldiers. Perhaps only formal deities with authority, or the strongest heroic warriors and Valkyries, could defeat her.

Although this 'Valkyrie' wore a cold expression, seemingly out of place in the celebratory atmosphere of the victory parade, other Valkyries present shared the same excited expressions as the surrounding Asgardian citizens. But this was normal; there are all sorts of people in a big forest, aren't there? Just as some Valkyries enjoy joining in the fun, others naturally dislike it. For example, the Valkyrie commander, Brunhilde, was one of those who rarely ventured out, spending most of her time in Valhalla or her own palace.

This person just had a cold face and exuded an aura that kept strangers at bay; he was nothing special!

So some Asgardian soldiers on duty and onlookers respectfully made way for him, then looked him over with amazed expressions before turning back to join the cheers and the upcoming banquet.

What should I say?