Proxima Midnight's expression shifted rapidly, but it didn't escape The Other's keen eyes.
"You—"
"Please rest assured, Lady Proxima Midnight. This man's connection with Asgard is far more complex than you might imagine."
The Other grinned, revealing a row of sharply gleaming teeth.
"What do you mean?"
Proxima Midnight had originally intended to simply bring her student to Lothar's old residence to tell her some stories about the man's past, but instead, she stumbled upon The Other, who had the audacity to directly attack Odin's son.
Proxima Midnight no longer intended to leave. Not only would she not leave, but she absolutely had to get to the bottom of this.
Ever since Lothar disappeared from Asgard all those years ago, the Black Quadrant and Asgard had essentially been estranged. The reason for the "essentially" was that after the former Sorcerer Supreme, Agamotto, "passed away," the ruthless Thanos had once personally carried his double-bladed sword to Asgard to have a long-overdue "chat" with Odin.
As it turned out, Thanos not only encountered Odin but also a young bald woman. A gentle-faced, bald woman with a gleaming scalp. With Time Loop in her left hand, Mirror Dimension in her right, and various strange magics, she and Odin together blocked Thanos, who had come seeking revenge, from entering the Nine Realms.
That bald woman's name was the Ancient One. And it was precisely due to the Ancient One's appearance at that time that Thanos abandoned his decision to invade Asgard. Thanos could afford to wait. At worst, he'd just outlast another Ancient One.
Under this overarching strategy, how could The Other, Lothar's former subordinate, possibly return from Asgard carrying Odin's second son, Asgard's second prince?
"His name is Loki."
"Theoretically, he is Odin's son."
"But in reality..."
Thud!
The Other casually threw Loki onto the smooth ground, a fierce glint in his eyes.
"He is the son of Laufey, the leader of the Frost Giants."
The Other, who had been blaming himself for Lothar's disappearance from Asgard, believing he had held His Highness Lothar back, had secretly been watching Asgard ever since.
The hatred in his heart had allowed him to endure the solitude, observing in secret for a thousand years. Now, he had finally found an opportunity. An opportunity for revenge against Asgard.
"Frigga cheated? And with Laufey?" Proxima Midnight's expression was very strange.
Laufey was impressive; if he couldn't beat Odin, he'd just sleep with Odin's wife? If I can't beat you, I'll cuckold you, then have my son join you to destabilize Asgard from within?
"No, he was a child Odin took back from Jotunheim after Laufey's defeat."
In the past, after the battle with Lothar concluded, Odin fell into a deep sleep, and Asgard, under the leadership of Queen Frigga, gradually recovered. Jotunheim, therefore, gained an opportunity for rapid development.
Laufey, whose ambition gradually swelled, wanted to become the ruler, but he encountered Odin after he awoke from his slumber.
Odin, who had decided to be a peaceful monarch, engaged in a fair battle with Laufey. The result was that Odin was unharmed and brought back a frail infant from Jotunheim. Odin named that infant Loki.
"So, the King of the Frost Giants gave birth to a deformed child?"
Proxima Midnight looked at Loki's physique in surprise. He was so thin; she could probably punch ten of him.
"Yes."
"For a long time, Odin kept this secret well, until his two sons began to fight each other."
"Loki discovered his true parentage and was utterly distraught."
"Fighting each other? Why? For the throne?" Proxima Midnight felt something was amiss. Would Odin, that old immortal, let his two sons fight to the death?
"I don't know. Asgard's blockade is very strict. Knowing this much is already my limit." The Other candidly admitted his lack of full knowledge.
"Then how did you find him?" Proxima Midnight grew more suspicious, wondering if this might be a trap set by Odin?
"Under the Bifrost, he wanted to die."
The Other kicked the unconscious Loki, a cold sneer playing on his lips. What a joke, he thought. Could he just die if he wanted to? Had he asked the one who had secretly observed for a thousand years?
"What do you want to do?"
"I don't know, but I know he will certainly be an ace up Lord Thanos's sleeve."
"An ace to deal with Odin."
The hatred that had simmered in The Other's heart for over a thousand years wasn't easily extinguished.
"If possible, I want Odin to die at the hands of this son of his."
"Only then, only then..."
The hatred in The Other's eyes surged wildly, making Gamora, who was following behind Proxima Midnight, tremble with fear.
"All of this..."
"It's all for..."
"His Highness Lothar..."
...
DC Universe, Gotham Ruins.
"Your Highness Lothar!!!"
The grimy Woz's mechanical parts were scattered across the ground, and dense circuit boards crackled with sparks of danger. But it ignored all of it, its eyes still fixed on the direction where Lothar had fallen. Full of worry.
"Cough, cough..."
Lothar's body convulsed as he groaned in pain on the ground. His previously overloaded body was now the greatest obstacle holding him back. The battle with Superman Clark had already stripped Lothar of the capital to fight Darkseid. At least, Darkseid believed so. His golden hair had not yet faded its dazzling color, but lying on the ground, opening and closing his eyes, had become Lothar's routine for the past few minutes.
"You are no match for me."
"You, and your friend combined, will not be."
Darkseid slowly descended to the ground, and Mera, clad in golden armor, was flung beside Lothar.
Clang!
The Golden Trident also crashed to the ground, the kicked-up dust gradually obscuring Lothar's blood-stained eyes.
"Friend?"
"I've never had such a thing."
"Nor do I need such a thing."
"I never place my hope in others, and this woman, she always relies on others for hope."
"She and I walk different paths."
Lothar grimaced, the bright red blood on his white teeth particularly glaring.
"Oh?"
Darkseid stood with his hands behind his back, watching Lothar with interest.
"Lothar... you..." Mera, whose internal organs had almost all shifted, suddenly took a heavy blow. Her eyes widened in an instant, her face filled with disbelief.
Lothar directly kicked her, along with the Golden Trident, far away. The force was heavy; Mera would likely fall unconscious, in Lothar's estimation.
"Now, the nuisance is gone."
His right thumb grazed his bloodied nose, and Lothar grinned, his murderous intent erupting.
"It's no use."
"I already know your limits."
"Are you still going to struggle in vain?"
Darkseid didn't dodge or evade; he raised his right hand and immediately caught Lothar's incoming punch. With a downward twist, Lothar's arm instantly deformed!
"Ah!!!!"
The crisp sound of bones cracking was music to Darkseid's ears.
"Now, I can give you another chance."
"Swear allegiance to me."
Darkseid's eyes flickered. With his hands behind his back, his condescending pity made Lothar laugh.
"Hey, I remember, you bleed too, don't you?" Lothar gasped for air.
"Tell me, are you afraid?"
As Lothar asked this question, an extremely unstable energy fluctuation suddenly emanated from his entire body. It was like a bomb, ready to explode at any moment.
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