Two figures floated midair.
One was clad in a red Ranger suit with golden armor, the other in Asgardian armor—her ears slightly pointed beneath her helmet, her face radiating a cold, ethereal beauty.
"Infinity Stone," Melissa spoke, her tone solemn.
Zayne was startled, but he forced his churning thoughts to settle as he analyzed her words. Then, he feigned ignorance.
"Hmm… what's an Infinity Stone?" Zayne asked, his expression confused, as if the term was completely foreign to him.
Melissa's eyes widened slightly, but the reaction vanished as quickly as it appeared—unseen by everyone except Zayne, who caught even that fleeting change.
"Hmm… so he doesn't know about the Infinity Stones," Melissa thought to herself. "It seems he's not an enemy. I can be at ease now."
As cold and unconcerned as she appeared, Melissa possessed some of the sharpest interrogation and observational abilities among her people. Though she had acted flustered and even a little cute in front of Zayne, part of it had been deliberate—meant to probe his behavior. Even her question had served that same purpose.
If she had noticed anything suspicious, she would have subdued him instantly and forced the truth out of him.
She was a ruthless Valkyrie, after all.
Shaking off her thoughts, her tone shifted from guarded to more open as she replied,
"Oh… my bad. Only a few people in Midgard and Asgard know about this. I assumed you did, since you're this powerful, but it seems I was mistaken. Please do not take offense."
Hearing her response, Zayne clicked his tongue inwardly.
"Tsk… so she was still suspicious of me. And that 'mistake' attack? Total bullshit. The more beautiful the woman, the more deceitful and dangerous she is. I'll need to be more careful around someone like her.
Then again… she attacked me. I'll have to find a way to return the favor later."
Despite his thoughts, he didn't voice any of it. Instead, he spoke calmly.
"I understand. No need to apologize. I'm just an ordinary Ranger—I can't know everything about the planet, right? You wouldn't mind explaining?"
At his inquisitive tone, Melissa's eyes narrowed slightly. She felt there was something beneath his words, something just out of reach—but since she couldn't pinpoint it, she let it go for now.
"Yes, you're right. Once again, it was my oversight. As for the Infinity Stones, they are cosmic—"
As she continued, Zayne quickly realized there was no difference between her explanation and the knowledge from the comics and shows he had seen in his previous life.
In other words, almost everything she said was useless to him.
Still, to maintain his act, he wore the expression of someone learning something new, occasionally asking questions during her explanation.
Meanwhile, seeing Zayne's eager curiosity, the last traces of doubt in Melissa's mind faded away.
She finally concluded—he knew nothing.
Though she felt a hint of guilt for suspecting a hero of Midgard—especially someone who had indirectly helped protect the Infinity Stone—Melissa believed it had been necessary.
After all, Zayne appearing at the exact right moment was a coincidence she simply couldn't ignore.
But now, she knew she had been wrong.
After finishing her explanation, Zayne spoke.
"So… you're telling me this severely under-secured museum is housing something this powerful?" Zayne asked, feigning astonishment.
"Mm." Melissa nodded, understanding his concern. "You don't need to worry; it might look ordinary on the surface, but the security far surpasses anyone in Midgard."
"Well… except mine," Zayne added internally. "I've already broken into the museum's secret chamber, and there was no Infinity Stone there. Your security is pretty bad."
But he chose not to voice his thoughts.
One, to avoid arousing Melissa's suspicion.
Two… for revenge.
She shouldn't have attacked him.
Unaware that someone was quietly holding a grudge against her, Melissa continued the conversation.
"As for how I knew it was being targeted, I got some help from a friend in Asgard," she said.
The moment Zayne heard that, one name immediately surfaced in his mind—Heimdall. Typically, aside from Odin and Loki, no one else could observe Earth the way Heimdall could.
Then another thought crossed his mind.
"Then again… why would they entrust her with an Infinity Stone?" Zayne pondered. "Is it not that special anymore?"
After a moment, he decided to leave that question for later.
The woman before him carried far too many secrets.
Meanwhile, Melissa studied Zayne's silence, assuming he was still stunned by the revelation of the Infinity Stone. In her mind, it made sense—when she herself had been entrusted with such a treasure, she hadn't been able to calm down for months.
So, to her, Zayne was handling it remarkably well.
Their conversation continued.
Words flowed naturally, stretching on for several minutes. Even Zayne's team, who had been watching from afar, eventually sat down out of boredom as they waited for it to end.
They couldn't hear anything Zayne and Melissa were saying, which made it even worse.
All except Kira.
A faint trace of jealousy flickered in her eyes.
Though she and Zayne hadn't officially started dating, no one would feel comfortable watching their crush engage so deeply with someone as beautiful as Melissa without feeling a little unsettled.
Still, she suppressed it—for now.
As Zayne and Melissa gradually wrapped up their discussion—learning more about each other and, in Melissa's case, sharing bits of her people's history (which Zayne already knew)—his eyes flashed imperceptibly beneath his helmet.
An idea had formed.
"Hmm… Miss Melissa… aren't you going to confirm whether the Infinity Stone is still there?" Zayne asked, his tone calm—smooth like still water.
Melissa frowned slightly at his words, sensing an underlying implication.
"What do you mean by that, young hero?"
This time, her tone was colder than before. If Zayne hadn't spent the past few minutes speaking with her, he might not have noticed the subtle shift.
Zayne replied, completely unshaken.
"What I mean is, you should confirm whether the stone is still secure where you placed it."
That only deepened Melissa's confusion, her thoughts beginning to spiral.
"Hmm… is this what I think it is?"
"But that's impossible. The seals were crafted personally by the All-Father's wife, and even he reinforced them with Asgardian magic…"
Her thoughts clashed, struggling to process Zayne's implication.
"No… no. Even if I trust the All-Father, I still need to verify," Melissa concluded. "He's strong enough to hold off a powerful opponent, after all. His words shouldn't be taken lightly."
Lifting her head to meet Zayne's gaze, Melissa exhaled softly before speaking.
"Fine. We'll confirm it together."
"What do you mean by 'together'? How is this any of my business?" Zayne frowned as he questioned her, already seeing through her intentions.
Her expression remained unchanged as she replied,
"Since you proposed verifying whether the gem is still there, it automatically becomes your business. It's an important artifact that could spell the doom of this planet. And as a Ranger—a hero of Earth—you wouldn't want that to happen, right?"
"Moral blackmail," Zayne chuckled bitterly to himself. "But then again… this is exactly what I want."
Feigning hesitation, he looked at Melissa before letting out a small sigh.
"Sigh~… fine then. For the safety of the planet, this is the least I can do."
"Good."
Satisfied, Melissa waved her hand, dispelling the anti-eavesdropping barrier.
Floating midair, she turned to Zayne and spoke.
"Let's go."
"Mm," Zayne replied, offering no resistance as he sent the Zord and Saba back to his inventory.
They both flew back toward the museum, their figures streaking across the sky like red and gold comets.
Kira and the rest of the team, seeing their leader approaching, stood up immediately, bracing themselves for anything.
Fwoosh!
As Zayne and Melissa landed softly, a gust of wind spread outward, brushing against the Rangers' suits and the unconscious squad lying on the ground.
Only this time, one more figure was among them.
An old man.
This old man was none other than Red, the squad leader.
As for his current state, the sin of greed had drained his life force in exchange for a temporary power boost. Zayne planned to interrogate him once he woke up—and maybe even heal him.
After all, the man's mind had never been normal to begin with.
The rest of Zayne's team gathered in front of him, awaiting instructions.
Though their stance appeared overly serious, the Rangers knew that acting this way ensured efficiency and helped ease Zayne's burden. That was the main reason they were always ready by his side.
Melissa observed the team briefly before turning her gaze to Zayne.
"They won't be following us. It's just you and me."
Kira and Gwen frowned beneath their helmets at those ambiguous words.
Kira turned toward Zayne, her gaze clearly asking what was going on.
Even without seeing her expression, Zayne understood immediately.
So he stepped closer, gently holding her right hand as he leaned in to whisper.
"It's not what you think, Kira. We just…"
He quickly explained everything, seeing no reason to hide it from her—or from his team. It wasn't anything serious.
They already knew far more critical secrets than even Melissa did.
After he finished, Kira, her cheeks faintly flushed beneath her helmet, nodded in understanding.
"Mm, I understand. Just be careful, okay?"
Zayne nodded back before addressing the rest of the team, reassuring them that he was fine and that Melissa wasn't an enemy.
Though they were still somewhat skeptical—especially after how she had attacked their leader earlier—they chose to trust Zayne.
And if things went south, they knew he could subdue her… even if it took some effort.
"We can leave now," Zayne said, turning to Melissa.
"Mm."
Melissa nodded silently and began leading him deeper into the museum.
Minutes later, they arrived at the zoo section.
Alien creatures and aquatic beings filled the area—strange, exotic, yet undeniably beautiful.
But neither of them spared the displays a second glance.
They had no time.
Stopping at a cage that housed an alien cat, Melissa opened it and stepped inside.
Zayne followed without hesitation.
He wasn't worried that Melissa would try anything. He had already scanned every inch of the museum. He knew exactly where this led.
Melissa walked to the edge of the enclosure and cast a spell, causing a golden rune to illuminate in the air.
Creeeak!
Like the groan of ancient metal, space itself shifted.
A hidden passage revealed another vast chamber beyond.
"Cool… space magic," Zayne thought, noting the intricate distortions of space before them.
Melissa stepped forward, gesturing politely for him to follow.
He did.
Twenty minutes later, they had passed through layer upon layer of restrictions—most of them forged with Asgardian magic.
The sheer level of security was absurd.
Finally, they arrived at a special chamber.
The room itself emitted a strange aura, one that subtly tugged at the mind, threatening to drag it into illusion.
Zayne noticed it instantly.
But he remained completely unfazed.
Melissa glanced at him, a flicker of approval crossing her thoughts.
"Very good mental strength… he's a promising prospect."
Chanting an Asgardian spell, she raised her hand. The sealed door vanished.
What lay beyond was revealed.
At the center stood a magnificent pillar, designed to hold something of immense importance.
Only—
That "something" was gone.
All that remained was a faint trace of residual energy… so subtle it was almost impossible to detect.
"What?! The stone is gone!" Melissa's shocked voice echoed through the chamber.
--- ✦ ---
Hey guys. I'm sorry for the constant late updates. It's just that in my country, electricity is not stable, so most of my gadgets are always undercharged. Moreover, it's Ramadan, and I sometimes don't even have the strength to write.
But do not worry, your humble author is trying his best to change to a suitable publishing time, so it would be easier for you, the readers.