Drift Of The Multiverse: [Marvel] [Resident Evil] [DC] [Bleach] [DB]-Chapter 211: Loki, God of Mischef (BONUS)

Loki looked back at the not-so-comfortable chair and, after hesitating for a moment, finally sat down.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"Why do you think Odin chose Thor as the heir to the throne of Asgard instead of you?"

Loki heard this question just after sitting down, and the hands gripping the armrests of the chair tightened. If he hadn't been very good at controlling his strength, he could have easily crushed the armrests into powder.

"You must think that it's because Thor is Odin's biological son, while you were only adopted... Of course, that reason can't be ignored. But there's also your father, or adoptive father, Odin doesn't recognize your ability. He believes you are incapable of governing Asgard properly, that you cannot become a qualified king of Asgard."

Ethan didn't wait for Loki to respond. Although this God of Mischef often behaves like an attention-seeking child who lacks love, when facing most people, he always puts on the air of a noble god. His pride runs deep.

It was impossible to expect him to answer such a question. Ethan directly stated the answer. With Loki's pride, he would never lower himself to deny such obvious facts.

"Isn't that so?"

Compared to Thor, Loki seems calmer when faced with problems. He tends to analyze various situations in his mind, trying to understand the other party's motives.

This approach isn't exactly wrong, but compared to Thor's straightforward and head-on temperament, sometimes people like Loki are actually easier to deal with. They overthink and are easier to manipulate into following someone else's rhythm.

On the other hand, Thor is the type who, no matter what you say, will just charge ahead like a madman. Trying to persuade someone like that requires sheer strength.

Loki, however, tends to overthink.

"Are you saying this to humiliate me?"

"No, I just want you to understand one thing." Ethan poured himself a glass of juice, then sent it over to Loki with Mage Hand, watching the second prince of Asgard accept it without refusal. Once the glass was taken, Ethan released the spell and continued, "Although some of the reasons you've considered are valid, they aren't the real key."

Loki took a sip of the juice and immediately realized that this was no ordinary drink. It contained rich energy. Even in Asgard, something like this was not easy to come by. It seemed this place was better than he had thought.

"Oh? Then what do you think is the real reason Odin is unwilling to let me inherit the throne?"

He was curious about what answer Ethan would give. Loki had already thought through many possibilities and believed that no matter what Ethan said, he could easily refute him. He was looking forward to seeing Ethan speechless after being blocked by his rebuttal. That would be quite amusing.

"Strength." Ethan had been observing Loki's expression closely. Loki's surprise when drinking the juice did not escape his notice. "The true reason you were passed over for the throne of Asgard is because you are too weak."

"Weak?" Loki nearly threw the cup in his hand at Ethan's face. He almost rushed forward to teach this ignorant, arrogant, and incomparably weak human mage a lesson and show him what real strength was. "You're calling me, the prince of Asgard, the rightful heir of Jotunheim, the son of Odin, the God of Mischef—weak?"

Ethan didn't care about Loki's emotional outburst. Seeing that Loki's water glass remained steady in his hand, Ethan understood that Loki wasn't as agitated as he pretended to be. In fact, he was still comfortably drinking the juice and even grabbed a snack, waiting until he'd finished speaking before Ethan continued.

"Yes, weak. Tell me, Loki, with your current strength, what could you possibly do against Thanos?"

"..."

Loki fell silent. He wasn't stupid. In fact, he was quite intelligent. He immediately understood what Ethan meant.

Asgard was powerful, standing as one of the top-tier civilizations in the universe. It was so powerful that almost no one dared to offend Asgard's territory. Even among the Nine Realms that Asgard ruled, none dared to openly oppose them. Even the war-crazed Kree Empire tried to avoid conflict with Asgard.

This situation gave Asgard's younger generation the illusion that their realm had no true rivals in the universe, and anyone who dared oppose them would be crushed by Asgard's superior might.

Loki used to believe this too. But after traveling through the universe, he realized the world was far larger and far more dangerous than he had imagined. Asgard stood at the top of the cosmic pyramid because their king, Odin, was powerful beyond measure. Even someone as fearsome as Thanos was unwilling to provoke Odin directly.

It was Odin's strength that protected Asgard, allowing it to stand tall for countless years. Because of this, the younger generation of Asgardians could grow up peacefully and happily.

"Destroyer..."

Loki wanted to argue that Thanos had never attacked Asgard, so why bring him up? But he quickly swallowed the words. Did someone like Thanos, a madman, need a reason to attack? The only reason Thanos hadn't touched Asgard was because of Odin.

That was it.

"Do you believe Thor's strength is greater than mine?" Loki asked, though he already knew the answer. There was no doubt that Thor was stronger than him. What truly bothered Loki was that no matter how strong Thor was, he was still far from Odin's level. If even Thor couldn't stand against Thanos, how could strength alone determine the right to the throne?

"Thor's current strength isn't much greater than yours. But his potential is." As a someone who knew the plot, Ethan's biggest advantage was his knowledge of future events.

He knew that Thor's power wasn't granted by his hammer. Mjolnir was just a tool that helped Thor gradually adapt to and control his own strength. It was similar in function to the Battle Cross that Ethan had given to Diana. When the time was right, Thor would understand that the power he had wielded all along was his own. Once he learned to control that power without relying on any tools, he would completely outshine Loki.

Ethan didn't need to explain all of this to Loki in detail. Loki was smart enough to understand the key points from just a few hints.

Talking to smart people was always easier. A few words were enough for them to grasp the core of the matter.

"So, even though Thor was completely unfit to be king at the beginning, Odin still tried his best to train him, helping him shed those flaws and guiding him step by step toward the throne of Asgard."

Ethan finished the juice in his glass, feeling that he had made his point.

"Because Thor has greater potential. Only when he fully unlocks that potential and achieves true strength will he be qualified to sit on Asgard's throne. Only under the protection of a powerful enough god-king can Asgard maintain its place in the universe, and only then can its people continue to live in peace and happiness... You, Loki, cannot provide that."

Ethan stood up, walked over to Loki, and looked down at him, seeing the second prince of Asgard sitting there with a dark expression.

"Because you are too weak. You're so weak that you can't even protect yourself in this dangerous universe, let alone defend your country and people when Asgard faces a true crisis. That is the fundamental reason why you cannot inherit the throne."

There were indeed other factors at play in this situation. For example, the fact that Loki was not Odin's biological son. Even if Loki reached Odin's peak strength, would Odin really pass the throne to an adopted child? But by the time Loki reached such a level of power, it wouldn't matter what Odin wanted. Whether or not Thor inherited the throne would no longer be Odin's decision. free𝑤ebnovel.com

Loki thought through all of this, and he understood. If he were truly strong enough, if he stood at the peak, then even if Odin opposed him, he wouldn't be able to stop Loki from taking the throne.

"So... is it really because I'm too weak?" Loki set down his glass, lost in thought.

"Yes. In a world this dangerous, being weak is a sin." Ethan felt that he had laid enough groundwork. It was time to get to the main point. He had said all of this to reach a consensus with Loki. "So, whatever you want to do in the future, the first thing you should focus on is becoming stronger."

Before Ethan could finish, Loki's figure before him dissolved into a stream of light and disappeared. The next moment, Loki reappeared behind Ethan, pressing a dagger against his lower back.

"Those were some very interesting remarks. I have to admit there's some truth in what you said. But coming from the mouth of a weak human mage like you, given the current situation, it's quite amusing. Tell me, who is the weak one here?"

Ethan remained calm, standing there without moving, allowing the dagger to rest against his back. He didn't even bother to turn around.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you." Loki smiled as if to show goodwill, but his smile was laced with mockery. He didn't care whether Ethan could see the expression from behind. "As long as you send me back, we can consider your earlier words a reminder, and we might even become friends. I think that shouldn't be too much trouble for you."

"I'm sorry, but that really would be troublesome for me." Ethan turned his head and gave Loki a charming smile. The smile sent shivers down Loki's spine. Sensing that something was wrong, Loki immediately tried to retreat.

Unfortunately, he was still half a beat too slow. The hand holding the dagger was firmly grabbed before he could pull back. With a quick spin, Loki was thrown to the ground.

As Loki hit the floor, a ripple spread out beneath him. The entire captain's room seemed to be covered by a layer of glass, cracks even starting to form at the points of impact.

(To be continued.)

***

For every 200 PS = 1 extra Chapter. Support me on patreon to read 30+ advanced Chapters: patreon.com/Blownleaves.