In the vast starry sky, a faint shadow drifted, blending with the dark cosmos, nearly impossible to spot.
Within the shadow, an alien with gray skin, medium-length white hair swept back, no nose, and a thin, slightly stooped frame hovered. Before him, Loki sat, gazing toward distant Asgard, silent.
"Loki, when you allied with the Frost Giants before, I warned you your plan wasn't foolproof. In the end, your father turned against you. All you did for him was for nothing. He only cares for your brother Thor. After all, Thor is his true son, and you…"
Before the stranger could finish, Loki cut him off and said, "Ebony Maw, no need to wield your galaxy-famed silver tongue. Its wicked knack for lies and trickery won't sway me."
Clasping his hands, fingers interlocked, Ebony Maw said calmly, "So what's your next move? That lord doesn't like delays."
"Don't fret, just follow our plan. Lend me the scepter, and I'll help you handle Earth's defenses and secure the Cosmic Cube!"
"Excellent, then let's head to Titan now! , master has waited long enough."
…
Boom!
In the forest behind Asgard's palace, a thunderous blast echoed again. The explosion's rumble reached the palace, but the Asgardians inside seemed unfazed, used to the noise.
At this time, Odin sat with Frigga, sipping afternoon tea. Hearing the blast, Odin said with a sigh, "Frigga, what have you taught him? We get two or three explosions daily. Is he truly not afraid of hurting himself?"
"Recently, Sebastian has been exploring how to blend runes with the ancient spell-words he inherited. But these two magical writing systems are hard to master. Combining them often causes magical clashes and explosions. It's just part of studying magic."
After a sip of tea, Odin said, "Frigga, you just said he's finished learning the runes?"
Frigga smiled and nodded, saying, "Yes, he's learned them fully. I must say, even when Loki studied magic with me, he didn't grasp it as quickly as Sebastian."
Mentioning Loki, Frigga's face grew somber. As the old saying goes, a grown son drifts beyond a mother's reach, and even Asgard's queen was no exception.
Seeing Frigga's look, Odin patted her hand to comfort her, then said, "It'll take about half a year to fix the Rainbow Bridge. With the prior half year, that's nearly a year. What magic do you plan to teach Sebastian in the next half year?"
"What do you think of our Asgardian natural magic?"
"Natural magic…" Odin pondered, then lit up, "You mean that Druid stuff?"
"Yes, I think Sebastian will find it fascinating."
"I've no objections. You decide these things anyway. He's Asgard's benefactor. Teaching him some magic is perfectly fine. Plus, he left a copy of his research notes in Asgard's library. He called it a fair trade, but we must remember his aid and generous sharing."
"Yes, exactly. I've always thought he's a fine young man."
"Indeed, just a young man, I nearly forgot…
Oh, by the way, the Supreme Sorcerer of Midgard asked about Mage Sebastian's safety before. She wanted to ensure he was well. It seems Sebastian and the Supreme Sorcerer of Midgard share a strong bond."
"Supreme Sorcerer?" Frigga's expression turned serious, and she continued, "If so, I'd like to warn Sebastian not to accept the Supreme Sorcerer's mantle or learn their core magic. Otherwise, he'll lose all freedom."
"Of course, that's a warning we should give. After all, we're in Asgard, and no matter who those outsiders are, they can't peek into what happens here."
Hearing this, Frigga kissed Odin, rose, and left, heading to Sebastian's laboratory in the mountains behind Asgard.
Due to frequent explosions, Sebastian had moved to this remote forest and built a simple lab.
This was the seventeenth time the lab had been rebuilt. Past explosions were sometimes too strong, wrecking the lab, a mere wooden shack. There was no choice but to repair it.
After waving his wand to fix the damaged parts, Sebastian was about to resume his experiment when he spotted Frigga approaching with four maids.
After tidying himself, Sebastian greeted Frigga with a grin, saying, "Frigga, what brings you here?"
Sebastian and Frigga weren't strictly teacher and student, so they used first names, as Frigga wished.
"Sebastian, I came to check on your experiment's progress. How's your research on blending the two magical scripts going?"
"I still haven't got any solid results. But to say I've found nothing isn't true. I've likely pinned down a promising path. I plan to dig into this direction. Maybe I'll find a way to merge the two magical scripts and use them together."
Frigga chatted with Sebastian a bit, then took three books from the maid behind her and handed them to Sebastian, saying, "Sebastian, these three books are handpicked by me. They hold Asgard's natural magic, which Midgard… that is, Earth's so-called Druid magic, stems from. Start learning this after the runes."
"Of course, then I can still visit you daily, right?"
"Yes!"
After saying this, Frigga prepared to leave with her four maids.
But at that moment, Frigga turned to Sebastian and whispered, "Sebastian, beware the Supreme Sorcerer. Don't agree to become her successor or learn the core magic in her hands, like the spells in the Book of Vishanti. Understood?"
"Thank you, Frigga. I understand. I've never studied the spells in the Book of Vishanti before. I know the risks here. Don't worry."