Mera felt profoundly uncomfortable. Queen Atlanna's double standards made her feel like she was looking at a stranger. Despite this, she suppressed her unease and introduced Lothar to her.
"Wait, you two are here for the Golden Trident?"
Atlanna was surprised upon hearing Mera explain their purpose in coming to the Trench Kingdom.
Mera was the Princess of Xebel, and Lothar, according to Mera, was the Son of Titan. Of the two, Mera was at least an Atlantean, while Lothar wasn't even of Atlantean descent.
"Yes, Queen Atlanna."
"Atlantis is leaderless after Orm's death. My father is trying to seize this opportunity to completely control Atlantis and launch a full-scale attack on the surface world."
"I can only stop my father if I find the Golden Trident."
Mera concisely explained the breakdown with her father, which caused Atlanna to frown. She noticed Mera's choice of words. It was "she" [referring to herself] and not "he" [referring to Arthur].
"Do you want to become the Queen of the Seven Seas, Mera?"
"No, I don't want to be the Queen of the Seven Seas. But to stop my father, there's only one way."
"I used to be confused, thinking Arthur was better suited for the position of King of the Ocean. But Lothar was right, since I have my own ideas, why shouldn't I try to be the King myself?"
"People shouldn't always place their hopes on others, should they?"
At this moment, Mera was radiant with confidence. Who said only men could be kings? I have the ability, the status; I can do it too!
"My father said that, not me," Lothar added seriously beside Mera.
Mera: "..."
"Since you have that confidence, follow me, child."
Atlanna ultimately didn't ask the question, "Why didn't you bring Arthur?"
Her child was, after all, only her child and had nothing to do with Mera herself. If she asked that question, it would surely make Mera feel like she was being treated as an accessory to Arthur.
Atlanna wasn't that foolish.
"Your conjecture is correct; this is indeed the resting place of the First Atlantean King."
"The Golden Trident is also here."
"However, a terrifying giant beast named Karathen has been guarding it, guarding the First Atlantean King."
"If you want to obtain the Golden Trident, you must pass the trial of that beast, Mera."
Double standards aside, Atlanna was clear on matters of great importance. A war between Atlantis and the surface world was not something she wished to see, so she didn't hide anything and directly led Lothar and Mera to the small island where she resided.
Anyway, with the Trench gone, if Mera failed, couldn't she just suggest bringing Arthur Curry to try?
"There's a small waterfall on this island, and by passing through that small waterfall, you can reach the resting place of the First Atlantean King."
"Listen, Mera, Karathen is very dangerous. If you feel you can't pass the test, don't push yourself."
"Come out immediately. I don't want to see you die, understand?"
Atlanna warned, leading Lothar and Mera to the waterfall.
"Mm."
Having been told countless times about the terrifying nature of the giant sea beast Karathen by Atlanna along the way, Mera only realized her palms were sweating with tension at the very moment they were about to proceed.
"Lothar?"
Mera, who had walked a few steps forward, stopped and turned her gaze to Lothar, who was leaning against a large tree.
"Tch, don't die."
"Don't forget, you're the only one who knows the location of the Mother Box now."
Lothar pouted, adding an explanation about the Mother Box based on the prompt on Woz's display.
Inside the wristband dimension, Woz held a copy of "A Comprehensive History of Romance," adjusted its glasses, and rapidly recorded Mera's and Lothar's every move. This was all new data it hadn't seen before, worth collecting.
Mera's face blossomed into a smile. Just as she was about to pass through the waterfall, she saw Lothar throw something at her.
"From Woz, it can automatically send an alarm if you're in danger," Lothar said honestly, and Mera listened intently.
One spoke frankly, the other didn't believe.
Poof!
Her body, encased in a tight suit, disappeared directly behind the waterfall, splashing water everywhere!
"Lothar, right?"
"How long have you known Mera?"
After Mera entered, Atlanna's gaze shifted to Lothar, who was standing alone.
"Shut up."
Lothar's reply wasn't polite; in fact, it was quite rude.
Atlanna: ???
A chilling aura that radiated "do not approach" left Atlanna utterly bewildered.
She was, after all, the experienced former Queen of Atlantis, and considered herself to have witnessed every kind of situation.
But now she realized, she truly hadn't witnessed this kind of situation. This was far worse than her own child. How did Mera even fall for him?
Atlanna was lost in confusion.
"Alarm, alarm."
"Your Highness Lothar, Lady Mera has encountered the giant sea beast Karathen. Based on the combat simulation model, Lady Mera is in danger of losing her life."
A cerulean, bipedal blue robotic cat appeared before Lothar.
To Atlanna's astonishment, Lothar's figure vanished directly before her eyes.
Water splashed furiously before the waterfall...
"Awoo!!!!"
A loud cry of pain immediately echoed through the waterfall, clear across the entire island!
"Who! Are! You!"
In the incredibly dark resting place of the First Atlantean King, a giant beast wielding several tentacles roared in pain. Its strong body was two thousand meters large, with front claws like a hermit crab, and several tentacles resembling squid tentacles beneath its feet. Before its ferocious and ugly head, the black-haired, black-eyed Lothar floated calmly.
This was the scene Atlanna saw after passing through the waterfall. Mera, who had entered earlier, lay in the ruins, occasionally gasping, clearly having taken a severe beating.
"Woz."
"No relevant data found, Your Highness Lothar." Woz genuinely couldn't find any data on Karathen. This one was from an unusually ancient era.
"Forget it, just kill it."
Lothar glanced at Mera on the ground and allowed Karathen's enraged crab claw to smash into him without dodging... He didn't budge an inch.
"Zzzzt..."
The blue electrical arcs shimmering on Lothar's body sent a chill of fear deep into Karathen's heart, who had lived for an unknown duration.
Whoosh!
Its numerous tentacles prepared to pull it away from Lothar, but its two claws were firmly grasped by Lothar, rendering it unable to move.
"Die."
He looked up again, his eyes now golden with blue irises.
A roaring energy wave, sharp as a blade, directly split the two-thousand-meter-tall Karathen in half, following Lothar's arms!
Splatter!
Blood and gore flew everywhere, even staining the throne behind the Golden Trident!
"Rejoice!"
"The great Son of Titan! His Highness Lothar, revered Lord of the Chitauri Star!"
"At this very moment, the mysterious giant beast Karathen is utterly defenseless before him!"
"This is..."
Holding "His Highness Lothar's Complete Collection of Celebration Lines," and wearing a gray scarf around its neck, the robotic cat Woz excitedly burst out of the wristband dimension. Its long-prepared celebratory speech, delivered with passionate and high-pitched fervor, echoed through the ruins of what was once the Trench Kingdom!
Brilliant!
Woz silently gave itself a thumbs-up for its spectacular performance.
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