"Family?"
When Magneto heard these words, he was stunned, as was Beast. Magneto stared at Odin, confusion written on his face, and his voice became a little strange.
"Prince Lucci... who is this old man? Is he really that fierce? He was able to shatter even my magnetic field in an instant?"
Lucci smiled indifferently. Before he could introduce him, Professor X had already taken a deep breath and spoke respectfully, even with awe:
"If I'm not mistaken—unless I'm wrong... this is the legendary ruler of Asgard, the protector of the Nine Realms... King Odin, correct?"
The moment those words left his mouth, silence enveloped the surroundings. Magneto's eyes widened, staring at Odin.
What? The old man who attacked me just now... was Odin all along? The mythical... God-King of Asgard? Did I... actually attack the God-King?
Thinking of this, a chill ran from the soles of Erik's feet to the crown of his head, and his hair stood on end. Only now did he realize that the other party hadn't used any real power at all. Had he done so, it would not have ended with just a few steps of retreat.
At this moment, Odin finally finished his "parental education." He grabbed Loki, whose nose was blue and face swollen, by the collar and dragged him forward.
"Rebel!"
Odin shoved Loki forward, almost throwing him to the ground.
"Say thank you quickly! If Lucci and the mutants of Midgard hadn't stopped your evil deeds, do you think you'd still be standing here?"
Loki: "???"
He raised his swollen face, looking like a pig's head, his eyes blank and disbelieving.
What is going on? On the rooftop of Stark Tower, I was beaten down by Hulk! Just now, you chased me and hit me with your spear—still me!
Why am I being told to say thank you? Is there any reason behind this?
A million muddy wild horses galloped through Loki's heart, and tears of grievance welled in his eyes. But the moment he met Odin's single, majestic, warning eye, all his complaints, anger, and negativity instantly turned into fear.
He was certain that if he dared say "no," he'd be greeted with "fatherly love" a hundred times fiercer than before.
"I... I..." Loki took a deep breath, walked up to Lucci, Charles, Erik, and Hank, bowed deeply, and with a voice more painful than crying, said:
"Thank you... very much... for stopping me..."
After forcing out these words, he felt like the face of the "God of Mischief" had completely disappeared.
Across from them, Charles, Magneto, and Beast all looked at each other, none daring to speak.
"So scary!"
"The God-King is serious!"
Magneto immediately set aside his arrogance and, together with Charles and Hank, bowed respectfully to Odin. It was not just respect for his power, but also for the protector of the Nine Realms.
Odin nodded, the anger on his face dissipating considerably. He looked at Lucci and his tone softened:
"All right, this rebellious matter ends here for now. I plan to take him back to Asgard. What about you? Want to return together?"
Lucci pondered for a moment. There shouldn't be any more trouble in this world for a while. Plus, it had been a long time since he'd seen his mother, Frigga.
"Okay, I'll go back with you."
Lucci nodded, then turned to Professor X, conjured a spiritual mark, and handed it to him.
"Professor, this is a spiritual imprint. If the school faces unsolvable problems or urgent matters while I'm away, use this mark to contact me directly. No matter where I am, I'll receive your message," Lucci explained.
Not only Charles, but Magneto and Beast beside him were also amazed.
This wasn't just ordinary communication; it ignored distance and even dimensions, allowing for instant messaging!
Having this was like letting Xavier's Gifted Youngsters Academy have Lucci's support at any time, more important than anything else.
"Thank you, Prince Lucci!"
Professor X solemnly expressed his gratitude and accepted the spiritual mark.
After giving his explanations, Lucci didn't hesitate any further and nodded to Odin. Odin understood and shouted to the sky:
"Heimdall! Open the Bifrost!"
As his words fell, a dazzling pillar of multicolored light pierced the clouds, enveloping Odin, Lucci, and Loki. With a flash, the three figures vanished from the spot.
Charles, Magneto, and Beast stared at the fading pillar of light, speechless for a long time, hearts still pounding from the irreparable shock.
Is this the power of Asgard?
It's truly far beyond Earth!
Yet, just after Lucci and the others left—
Whoosh!
A red and yellow lightning bolt whirled up like a storm and finally stopped in front of Charles. As the light faded, Barry's figure appeared.
"Professor! Where's Prince Lucci?"
Barry asked, eyes filled with hope and nervousness.
Recognizing the Flash, Charles smiled gently, then looked a bit apologetic.
"Barry, you're late. Prince Lucci just returned to Asgard."
"What?"
Barry's smile instantly froze, his whole being stunned.
"He went back... to Asgard? That's... another world? Then... what should I do?"
Seeing this, Charles asked with some confusion,
"Barry, what's the rush? Is there something important that you need to find Prince Lucci for?"
Barry nodded.
"Yes! Professor, I found the best legal team through Mr. Bruce, and just as Prince Lucci said, I officially filed an appeal. In a week, the court will reopen my father's case!"
Barry's voice carried both hope and worry.
"Prince Lucci once said when the trial started, he would present evidence to prove my father's innocence. But now... now that he's gone back to the divine realm, what if he can't return... then my father..."
Would that last hope be shattered again?
Upon hearing this, Charles suddenly realized and spoke reassuringly:
"Don't worry, child. Before he left, Prince Lucci taught us how to contact him. I'll bring up your matter later. Trust me, Prince Lucci always keeps his promises; he won't ever break his word. He will definitely appear on time in a week."
Barry's eyes immediately reignited with hope.
"Really? Professor, you're sure you can reach him?"
"Of course," Charles nodded confidently.
"Great! Thank you, Professor! Then I'll leave it to you!"
….
Asgard
At the heart of the Bifrost, the golden gears slowly ground to a halt, and the rainbow energy channel connecting the Nine Realms was closed. The light faded, and Odin, Lucci, and the still dejected Loki appeared before Heimdall.
"All-Father! Prince Lucci!"
Heimdall saluted solemnly, sword in hand. When his golden eyes swept over Loki's battered face, he didn't even bat an eyelid. Clearly, he had already seen everything.
"Hmm," Odin nodded, regaining his former majesty.
"How's Asgard in my absence?"
"All is well, All-Father," Heimdall replied respectfully, "but..."
He glanced at Lucci.
"King Eitri of the Dwarves came looking for you, Prince Lucci. If you have time, please visit the forges."
"Eitri is looking for me?"
Lucci nodded lightly, "Understood, thank you, Heimdall."
Leaving the Bifrost, Lucci and the others headed straight for Queen Frigga's palace. Before entering, he heard Thor's loud voice:
"Don't worry, Queen Mother! Lucci is awesome now! No Dark Elf King can take a single step before him! With Loki by his side, everything will be fine!"
The next moment, Lucci, Odin, and Loki entered the palace. Thor and Frigga turned at the sound and, upon seeing the three, broke into surprised smiles.
"Father! Lucci! Welcome back!"
Thor stepped forward with a big smile and gave Lucci a hearty hug.
"My children..."
Frigga hurried over, gently caressing Lucci's cheek with eyes full of love and pride, then turned to Loki.
Seeing Loki's miserable appearance, Frigga was slightly surprised.
"Loki? How did you get so hurt?"
But before Frigga could move—
"Loki!"
Thor was already roaring. His blue eyes flashed like bronze bells, and crackling electricity danced over his body.
"You rascal! You still have the face to come back? Today I have to teach you a good lesson!"
As he spoke, Thor's casserole-sized fist was already raised, giving Loki no chance to argue.
"Wait—don't hit my face—"
Loki instinctively shielded his head.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The dull thuds and Loki's shrieks echoed through the palace.
Odin stepped aside, watching coldly, showing no intention of stopping it. Lucci caught the worried look in Frigga's eyes and couldn't help but smile faintly.
Although it looked like Thor was beating Loki up, it was actually for Loki's own good.
Sure enough, Frigga could bear it no longer:
"Thor! Stop!"
She rushed over and grabbed Thor's arm,
"Loki's already been beaten like this! What more do you want? Do you have to beat him to death?"
Hearing his mother's voice, Thor finally stopped his fist. He glanced at his mother, then at Loki, who was even more miserable on the ground, snorted heavily, and let go.
"For the Queen's sake, I'll let you off this time!"
Loki lay on the ground, feeling as if his bones were about to fall apart. He struggled to raise his head, his eyes full of gratitude and faint guilt as he looked at Frigga. He had been beaten twice, but strangely, seeing Frigga stand up for him and scold Thor, all resentment in Loki's heart miraculously disappeared.
After the commotion, the family finally sat together.
Frigga tended to Loki's wounds with visible heartache, muttering constantly. Odin and Thor drank nearby, while Lucci chatted with Frigga about interesting things on Earth.
At this moment, Lucci suddenly sensed a fluctuation in the spiritual connection he'd forged. It was Professor X.
[Prince Lucci, forgive my interruption.]
Professor X's gentle voice sounded directly in Lucci's mind.
[Right after you left, Barry the Flash came. He said the appeal was filed and his father's case will be retried in a week...]
Lucci smiled at Frigga as he mentally communicated with Professor X.
[Understood, Charles.]
Through the link, Lucci's thought instantly crossed the sea of stars to the Xavier School.
[Tell Barry to prepare with confidence. I will appear in court on time in a week.]
[Yes, Prince Lucci.]
….
After enjoying the warmth of Frigga's palace, Lucci thought of Eitri.
Eitri and the dwarf master craftsmen had thrown themselves into forging ever since he brought them to Asgard. Lucci had once taught them material improvement techniques and forging theories he'd deduced through "defying the heavens."
To the dwarves, who treated forging as life itself, these skills were as epochal as Columbus discovering the New World.
Thus, unless they encountered a serious problem, this simple and persistent group of craftsmen would never leave the forge or trouble others.
With that in mind, Lucci left Frigga's palace alone and headed toward Asgard's forges.
Before he even got close, waves of fiery energy assaulted his face. The air was filled with the smell of scorching metal and the unique aroma of energy crystals.
The rhythmic pounding of hammers occasionally rang out, bearing a strange cadence as if composing a hymn for new artifacts.
But this heat was like water to a fish for Lucci. He stepped into the massive forge, pleased by the sight before him.
A huge mountain had been hollowed out to form the enormous forge. Majestic energy drawn from Asgard's heart converged into the central furnace through complex rune pipes.
The flame in the furnace was no longer ordinary fire, but pure, restrained stellar energy.
Hundreds of strong dwarven craftsmen, bare-chested and with bronzed, muscular arms, worked with all their might. Some controlled the heat of the furnace, some swung rune hammers weighing ten thousand pounds, while others carefully carved mysterious runes onto cooled weapons.
All the dwarves' faces showed excitement and fanaticism bordering on obsession.
A just-cast long sword sparkled with starlight, its blade sharp enough to easily slice space, and its leaking energy fluctuations far surpassed normal Asgardian weapons.
"As expected of the techniques left by Prince Lucci!"
"This energy conduction... has at least tripled compared to before!"
Eitri and the dwarf masters exclaimed in amazement.
"And this shield!"
A dwarf lifted another shield. After a special liquid treatment, a thin layer of energy shield, like a cicada's wing, formed automatically, able to absorb and rebound external energy shocks.
"The toughness and energy affinity of this material have also been developed to the limit."
Clearly, Eitri and the dwarves had mastered the new forging skills and fused them perfectly with the dwarves' ancient techniques.
At this moment, Eitri noticed Lucci's arrival.
"Prince Lucci! You're here!"
Eitri's bearded face broke into a smile. He put down his huge hammer and came over. His eyes, reddened from years of watching the forge flames, gleamed with respect and gratitude.
With Eitri's shout, the nearby dwarves also stopped their work, turned, and stared at Lucci with fanatical respect, bowing in unison.
"No need to be so formal."
Lucci waved his hand, signaling the dwarves to rise.
"Heimdall said you needed to see me?"
"Yes, Prince Lucci!"
"It's about Nidavellir. We've received word from our kin—a message about the Infinity Gauntlet's design. It's as if someone is after the six stones!"
…