Lucci watched as Odin glared angrily, his beard bristling, and thought quietly of Loki in New York.
He turned to the three beside him.
"What about you? Any plans?"
Jane Foster suddenly snapped out of her daze. She stared at Lucci, hesitation in her beautiful eyes.
When she'd last watched Lucci leave, she'd been filled with regret.
Now, after walking the edge of life and death and witnessing a miracle, her heart was filled with nothing but Lucci's presence.
How could she just go home in this state?
Thinking so, she mustered her courage and glanced at Odin, then asked, "That is… Lucci… could I… come with you to Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters?"
Afraid Lucci might refuse, she added quickly, "I support science! I'm a physicist! The abilities of mutants are fascinating—I want to study them… Yes, purely for research!"
Next to her, Darcy eagerly raised her hand, "I want to go too! That's the X-Men's school, right? I want to see if there are any handsome mutants… uh, I mean, to help Jane with her work!"
Even Dr. Selvig pushed up his glasses, eyes full of curiosity.
"If it's convenient… I'd like to come along as well."
Looking at the three sincere (if slightly silly) faces, Lucci smiled and nodded.
The next second, he activated his spatial powers.
Buzz—
The figures in the deserted factory vanished in an instant, leaving only a few wind-tossed leaves as evidence something had happened here.
….
Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, on the lawn, ripples spread through the air.
The scenery instantly shifted from the London battlefield to the sunlit lawns of the manor's grounds.
Jane, Darcy, and Dr. Selvig all couldn't help but yelp in surprise.
Just moments before, they'd been on the battlefield in London, and now, in the blink of an eye, they stood on the other side of the ocean at the mutant school.
"This is… the school for mutants?" Jane's eyes sparkled as she looked around.
As a scientist, she was fascinated by this population of "X-gene" superhumans.
But Odin saw more than Jane's curiosity.
In his sight, this seemingly peaceful mansion was actually a place of hidden tigers and crouching dragons.
Nearby, a boy who controlled fire played with another who summoned ice.
He saw a young man in red crystal glasses—his eyes sealed with destructive energy, seemingly connected to another dimension.
"So these are Midgard's new generation of mutants…" Odin mused.
"Compared to the primordial awakeners I saw thousands of years ago, this group of children seems even more full of potential.
Midgard truly is a land of variables and wonders."
At that moment, two extremely powerful auras appeared, instantly drawing all of Odin's attention.
Hundreds of meters away, in an open field, two beautiful figures were sparring.
One had flaming red hair and used Asgardian combat techniques. Odin sensed ancient, cosmic power within this girl—enough to make even him wary of what slumbered inside her.
The other wore red, blue, and gold armor, wielding a shield and divine sword, her long black hair and beautiful features radiating a heroic, divine aura.
Each swing of her sword was infused with godly power, the nature of which Odin found extremely familiar.
"Olympian divine power… Zeus's bloodline? An Amazon princess?"
Jean Grey and Diana, who were sparring, both sensed the spatial disturbance and powerful gaze.
"Stop!" Diana called, swinging her sword to block Jean's attack, then turning to look towards Lucci and company.
Jean also turned.
When their eyes landed on Lucci, both smiled joyfully.
But when they saw the golden-armored, one-eyed, white-bearded elder standing beside him, their expressions changed dramatically.
Jean relied on the Phoenix Force's intuition—this elder was an unfathomable existence, like an unscalable holy mountain, his internal energy vast as the stars.
Diana, as a demigod daughter of Zeus, was hypersensitive to "God-King" auras.
At the sight of Odin, her hair stood on end—an oppression that struck from the depths of her blood.
"This divine power is like a bottomless ocean… This elder…"
The only time Diana had ever felt something similar was in the presence of her own father, Zeus!
Though their divine systems differed, the temperament of a supreme ruler was unmistakable.
The two women exchanged glances and stopped their sparring, walking over.
"Lucci, you're back!"
Jean approached, her eyes gentle, though she could not hide her curiosity about Odin.
"And this is…?"
Lucci smiled and formally introduced, "Jean, Diana, let me introduce you.
This is my father, King of the Asgardian Gods."
Though they had already guessed, hearing Lucci confirm it personally made Jean and Diana gasp.
This was the legendary Odin?
Supreme Ruler of Asgard? King of the Nine Realms?
"Your Majesty Odin, King of the Gods!" Diana immediately bowed, out of respect for a true powerhouse and an elder.
Jean, though not a god herself, also bowed respectfully before such a legendary figure—especially since he was Lucci's father.
"Alright, alright!"
Odin looked at the two girls, their beauty, temperament, and power all first-rate, his face breaking into a pleased smile.
He looked at Diana first and nodded, "I sense lightning and divine might in you, child. That old man Zeus raised a fine daughter. The heroism of the Amazons shines brightly in you."
He then turned to Jean Grey, and a deep light flickered in his lone eye.
"You possess a power that can shake even the stars. The fact you can wield it without losing control shows your heart is truly strong."
The more Odin looked, the more satisfied he was. His gaze was almost that of a future father-in-law, making Jean and Diana a bit embarrassed.
Lucci, standing off to the side, coughed lightly before continuing his introductions.
"Jean, Diana, these are friends I met in London—Jane Foster, Darcy Lewis, and Dr. Selvig.
They're very interested in the school, so please show them around and help them settle in."
Only then did Jean and Diana notice Jane, Darcy, and Dr. Selvig beside them.
Seeing how beautiful Jane and Darcy were, Jean was a bit surprised.
"Wait… he brought back two more beauties?"
Jean's heart instinctively sounded an alarm.
Diana, on the other hand, smiled knowingly. As a long-lived demigod, she was more open-minded about such things, and found Jean's hidden jealousy amusing.
Diana enthusiastically took Jane and Darcy by the hand.
"Come, Ms. Foster, let me show you around the school…"
As the women left, Odin turned to Lucci.
"Where's Loki? Bring that traitor here!"
"Loki? For recruiting the Chitauri army, he's doing labor now," Lucci replied.
"Labor?" Odin was stunned, then snorted coldly. "What kind of punishment is that? Is that brat getting off easy?"
Lucci smiled faintly. "You'll see when we get there."
The two passed through classrooms and arrived at the new dormitory expansion area.
Originally barren land, it was now a construction site due to the recent influx of mutant students.
In the middle of all the construction materials, one figure stood out.
Dressed in dirty green armor, his once neat hair now disheveled and streaked with cement and sawdust, his pale face covered in sweat and grime, he carried a heavy pile of red bricks toward the scaffolding.
It was once the invincible Asgardian prince, the God of Mischief—Loki.
"So this is 'labor'?" Odin stood at a distance, dumbfounded at the sight of his son moving bricks.
He'd imagined countless punishments—dungeons, magic seals, exile to a deserted island… but never seeing his son doing construction work!
"Reform through labor," Lucci explained. "It'll help him build some empathy, experiencing firsthand the difficulty of building homes for mortals."
At that moment, Loki seemed to sense something and looked up.
The next second, he froze.
His eyes widened in terror, as if seeing a ghost.
"An illusion… I must be hallucinating from exhaustion…" Loki frantically rubbed his eyes, blinked rapidly, even slapped himself to wake up.
But when he opened his eyes again, the golden-armored, one-eyed old man was still standing there—staring at him with a murderous gaze!
And he was approaching rapidly!
That familiar oppressive aura, that familiar predatory look…
"Father… Father?!"
Loki shrieked like a cat with its tail stepped on, terror filling his voice.
In that instant, all his usual arrogance and composure evaporated, replaced by pure instinctual fear.
"Run!"
Without thinking, Loki hurled the bricks aside and bolted, running for his life.
Nearby, Professor X, Magneto, and Beast, who were overseeing the construction, watched in confusion.
"What's wrong?" Beast pushed up his glasses, bewildered. "Why is Loki running as if he's seen a ghost?"
But before they could react, a thunderous roar echoed out.
"Loki! Still trying to run?!"
Odin charged forward at an incredible speed, like a furious lion hunting its prey.
Seeing Loki try to escape only made him angrier, and Gungnir became a staff in his hands, swinging down toward Loki.
"Waaaah—!"
A sharp cry split the air, startling flocks of birds from the forest.
"Don't hit my face! Not the face!"
Loki trembled in fear as the Eternal Spear in Odin's hands, wielded with divine might, struck down again and again.
"Conspire with outsiders!" Whack!
"Try to destroy everything!" Whack!
"Lead invaders against Earth!" Whack!
"Cause mischief!" Whack! Whack! Whack!
A magical scene unfolded on the construction site.
The once-proud God of Mischief, Loki, now looked like a cub being disciplined, running frantically around the site, hiding behind columns, cement mixers, even trying to use Beast as a shield.
But who was Odin? The All-Father!
No matter how Loki dodged, the golden spear always found its mark, landing precisely on Loki's most sensitive spots.
Professor X, Magneto, and Beast were all dumbfounded.
"This…" Beast gaped, blue-furred mouth agape. "Who is that old man? So fierce?"
Magneto frowned.
Even if Loki had done wrong, he was still Prince Lucci's brother—who could lay a hand on him?
Thinking so, he activated his magnetic powers.
Buzz—
A powerful magnetic field instantly enveloped the entire site.
Every piece of metal—mountains of steel beams—rose into the air, forming a raging torrent aimed at Odin to stop his violence.
But Odin didn't even look.
He casually swung Gungnir.
Boom!
A wave of golden, divine power radiated out from Odin in an instant!
The next moment, Magneto witnessed a scene he'd never forget.
The torrent of steel, so hard and under his perfect control, instantly vaporized—reduced to molecules at the touch of that golden wave.
All his attacks collapsed in a heartbeat.
Not only that, the aftershocks of that divine power washed over Magneto, crushing his magnetic shield as if it were paper.
He staggered back several steps, leaving deep footprints in the concrete.
"How is this possible…" Magneto's eyes filled with fear.
He was Magneto! A master of one of the four fundamental forces!
Especially after training with Prince Lucci, his power had grown tenfold!
Yet before this old man, his strength was as laughable as a child swinging a twig.
That golden spear not only nullified his control—it was terrifying beyond belief.
Magneto, unwilling, tried to summon even greater power.
"Erik! Stop!" Professor X called out, seeing Lucci approaching and realizing the old man was with him.
He also noticed the look on Odin's face and Loki's terror, and a shocking thought exploded in his mind.
"Could this old man really be…?"
Through telepathy, he sent: "Don't be reckless—Prince Lucci is standing right there."
Hearing this, Magneto halted, saluted Lucci, Professor X, and Beast.
"Greetings, Prince Lucci!"
Lucci waved it off, smiling as he watched Loki flee in embarrassment.
"Erik, this is a family matter—don't worry about it."