Without the severely injured four warriors, Thor rushed alone to the frontline of the battle between Asgard and the Frost Giants. With Thor’s current speed, he quickly reached the desolate battlefield.
Fortunately, the battle had not yet erupted. In other words, as long as Thor could defeat Loki, he could gain control of the army, and the conflict could be resolved peacefully.
Originally, the Frost Giants had already suffered significant losses in the previous battle, almost depleting their entire race. Therefore, when facing the encroachment of Asgard’s army, the Frost Giants could only assemble a force to defend themselves.
Even the leader of the Frost Giants, Laufey, personally joined the battle. Perhaps Laufey hoped to use Loki’s other identity to secure the future of the Frost Giants.
However, the two armies had been facing each other for two days, and Loki showed no intention of attacking. This puzzled Laufey, but he dared not let his guard down.
He had witnessed Loki’s cunning and tactical expertise before. So, the two vastly different forces continued to stand quietly on the desolate battlefield, with minimal logistical losses.
Whoo~
In the Frost Giants’ army camp, Laufey rested on a throne made of ice. Since his last covert infiltration into Asgard’s palace, where he had been outwitted by Odin and Loki, Laufey had not fully recovered from his injuries.
“Could it be that Odin is truly incapacitated?”
Although Laufey rested on his icy throne, his thoughts revolved around the strange circumstances of this battle with Asgard. He understood the reason for the battle; it was merely Loki taking advantage of Odin’s slumber to seize power and expand Asgard’s territory. However, Laufey felt that Loki’s actions at this particular time were suspicious.
Moreover, what puzzled Laufey the most was that he didn’t believe Loki could easily take the throne of Asgard. When Frost Giants infiltrated Asgard earlier, they had relied on Loki. At that time, Laufey thought Loki didn’t have much attachment to Asgard or even harbored resentment toward it due to his true identity.
However, Loki’s actions at the critical moment made Laufey realize that Loki had only displayed what he wanted others to see all along. In reality, Loki cared deeply for Asgard, and his love for Asgard was second only to the eldest prince, Thor.
Therefore, unless Loki could completely defeat Thor and the elite forces loyal to Odin within the palace, internal chaos in Asgard was inevitable. Thus, Loki had neither the time nor the energy to fight against the Frost Giants.
“Why is this happening? We’ve been in this standoff for three days, and there’s no sign of an attack. Does he intend to wear us down like this?” Laufey opened his eyes slightly and rubbed his aching head, unable to hide his confusion.
Although Laufey was perplexed by Loki’s unexpected inaction despite invading Frost Giant territory, he didn’t dare to let his guard down. Given the current state of Asgard’s army, they could afford to wear down the Frost Giants.
Whoosh~
In the Frost Giants’ camp, Laufey’s disappearance raised questions among the soldiers, as they had been in this situation for days with no further orders from Loki. However, they also knew better than to voice their concerns openly.
They were aware that, in the power struggles of the upper echelons, siding with the victor was the wisest course of action. Loki had recently emerged victorious in the battle against the Dark Elves and the Frost Giant coalition, and now, he held power in Asgard.
However, as the Frost Giants and Asgardian warriors on both sides remained uncertain about the direction of the conflict, the mastermind behind the situation was resting in a luxurious command hall.
As the newly crowned king of Asgard, Loki had the authority to act as he pleased. The advanced commanders outside could only speculate and dare not question Loki openly. After all, Loki had achieved victory in the recent battle against the Dark Elves and the Frost Giant coalition.
While Loki was silently calculating Thor’s whereabouts in response to the effects of the contingency he had left behind in Asgard’s palace, a green bird suddenly flew into the command hall and perched on Loki’s shoulder. The bird turned its head toward Loki’s ear and chirped excitedly.
“Finally… has he arrived?” Loki mumbled to himself after listening to the bird’s chirping.
Then, Loki stood up from his comfortable seat, and Odin’s scepter, the symbol of Asgard’s power, materialized in his hand. Holding the scepter, Loki exuded the aura of a true king.
“Loki! Come out and face me!”
Boom!
Just as Loki had stood up not long ago, a blue-white thunderbolt had already streaked across the sky from behind Asgard’s army, instantly arriving above their encampment. Following the thunderbolt, a furious roar echoed through the sky, accompanied by the sounds of thunder.
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