???

Heimdall's answer landed with a quiet weight, both unexpected and—if Alex was being honest with himself—not entirely surprising.

On one hand, Odin was exactly as Alex had anticipated: not so petty as to be shaken merely because his sons had been beaten bloody. The All-Father's stature, his格局—his breadth of vision—was not so low.

And yet, that truth only deepened Alex's puzzlement.

Why summon him at all? Since arriving in this world, Alex had not once sought out Asgard. He had interfered neither with its throne nor its schemes. Their paths had never truly crossed.

Unless…

His gaze sharpened. Could this be about the Tesseract? Loki had mentioned before that the cube was originally Asgard's property, left on Midgard by Odin countless ages ago.

It fit the pieces. And yet… Alex's instincts told him the matter couldn't be so simple.

"Can you give me a hint?" Alex asked after a moment's thought, his tone casual but his eyes sharp. "What exactly does Odin want with me?"

Heimdall's expression, eternally unreadable, remained a stone mask. He slowly shook his head. "I am but a messenger of King Odin's command. His intentions remain known only to him."

"Tch." Alex arched a brow. "What kind of invitation is this then? A forceful summons… or a genuine request?"

"A genuine invitation," Heimdall replied, voice steady as iron. "You are free to refuse. You may even take time to consider. I can return in several days for your answer."

Alex snorted lightly and waved a hand. "No need."

He had already made up his mind.

Although the reason for Odin's summons remained murky, Alex decided there was no point in stalling. Odin was not a petty schemer. For all his faults, his character was not that of a villain. Alex had no fear of walking into some crude trap.

Besides, he had already glimpsed another possibility in the tapestry of parallel worlds. In one such timeline, he had even struck an agreement with Odin himself.

And truthfully, with Alex's current strength, there were few across the Nine Realms—or even the entire cosmos—who could make him hesitate. Was he stronger than Odin? Perhaps not. But he was unquestionably beyond the likes of Thanos. At worst, the gap between him and the All-Father should not be insurmountable.

And Earth… Earth was no longer defenseless. With beings like Captain Marvel standing guard, Alex dared to believe that Midgard's top-tier strength could already rival Asgard's.

All of this together made the decision almost easy.

"Since King Odin wishes to see me," Alex said at last, his voice calm but carrying weight, "then I will grant him that courtesy."

"In that case," Heimdall inclined his head in satisfaction, "prepare yourself and move to an open location. We will channel the Bifrost through dark energy to bring you here."

"Alex! Alex!"

Raven's voice broke through his trance. She had been watching him, and when he had suddenly stilled, as if listening to a voice only he could hear, worry had spiked through her.

Alex explained Odin's invitation briefly.

Her eyes darkened at once. Unlike Alex, she had no omniscient perspective, no prior knowledge of Odin's nature. All she knew was that both Thor and Loki had clashed bitterly with them. What if the father came not in diplomacy, but in vengeance?

Her worry was plain.

"Don't worry." Alex placed a hand lightly on her shoulder, his tone infused with quiet confidence. "I have my own plans. Tell Charles and Erik that I'm going to Asgard as a guest. I'll be back soon."

Trusting him more than she trusted her own fears, Raven reluctantly nodded.

Turning his head slightly, Alex addressed Heimdall once again, "By the way, take Thor and Loki back with you. You can handle explaining them to your king."

Heimdall accepted the instruction with a single nod before vanishing, his form dissolving into golden motes of light.

"Have someone release Thor and Loki," Alex ordered casually, flicking his wrist at a nearby guard.

Not long after, Thor's bewildered voice rang out, echoing down the corridor.

"Alex, you… you know my father? What is your relationship with him?"

His tone was equal parts confusion and suspicion.

Loki lingered just beside him, his smile returning in full—the familiar邪魅, wicked and charming curve of his lips. His eyes glinted with arrogance, but also calculation.

"It seems we all underestimated him, didn't we, Thor?" Loki said smoothly. If Alex knew Odin personally, then being defeated by him was no longer humiliating—it was, in a way, legitimized.

Alex, however, had no patience for their questions. He shot Thor a perfunctory glance. "Ask your old man yourself."

He wasn't about to waste breath telling them truths they wouldn't believe anyway.

"Wait!" Loki suddenly narrowed his eyes, staring hard at Alex. "If you're going to Asgard… do I have to go as well?"

"Loki—" Thor began, only for his brother to cut him off sharply.

"Don't tell me what to do, Thor! You're not even my real brother. Remember that."

Alex's lips twitched. "Why ask me? Whether you go or not has nothing to do with me."

Loki studied him carefully, weighing every flicker of expression. He found no trace of deceit.

Which meant… Heimdall's earlier words had been genuine. Alex hadn't been sent to fetch them. If Odin wanted Loki's return, he would summon him directly.

"Right," Loki murmured, finally spreading his hands with mock surrender. "It's none of your business. But since it's been a while… perhaps a visit to Asgard isn't such a bad idea."

Alex ignored him.

Instead, he led both brothers to an open farm on Krakoa, where the land stretched wide and unbroken beneath the sky.

"Here will do." Alex lifted his chin slightly. "Heimdall!"

"Understood."

Heimdall's voice answered from the void. Then he vanished again.

Whoosh—

A dazzling column of五彩光, five-colored brilliance, tore through the heavens and enveloped the three of them. The air hummed with raw energy, the earth searing beneath their feet, leaving charred marks etched like scars into the soil.

This was why Alex had chosen the farm—far from the city, far from the fragile ecosystems of Krakoa. The Bifrost was not gentle.

Light swallowed them whole.

The world blurred. Space folded.

And then—

Alex stood in a hall vast enough to contain mountains. Towering pillars of gold and stone rose toward a vaulted ceiling painted with scenes of ancient glory. Every surface gleamed with divine craftsmanship, every inch humming with an aura of majesty.

The air itself seemed heavier, richer, as though saturated with divine power.

And standing before him, clad in his resplendent golden armor, Heimdall awaited.

"Welcome to Asgard, Alex," Heimdall intoned, his voice deep as the sound of a great bell.

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