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Chapter 76: Surprised, The Truth That the Earth Is Safe and Sound
🕑 Added 2025-04-25 19:59:20 +0000 UTCJotunheim—an ancient and formidable enemy of Asgard.
If a real war were to break out, it should have been King Odin himself who led it. After all, a war between realms is akin to a declaration of war between two sovereign nations.
Just like in the real world, declaring war is the responsibility of a nation’s leader. No one else is qualified to do it—not even a prince. Thor, as the crown prince of Asgard, simply didn’t have the authority to initiate such a massive conflict.
And judging from what Thor had said earlier—how he'd had a serious falling-out with his father—it was clear that this was something he had done on his own. The results must’ve been disastrous, enraging Odin completely.
Could this have been a power struggle between father and son?
Military power is a sensitive matter in any system of governance. Thor might’ve overstepped, triggering the rift between him and Odin.
Then again, maybe not. According to Rowan’s diary, Odin had been enduring Thor’s behavior for years as part of a plan to train him. Likely, it hadn't even been that many years. Odin didn’t seem the type to act rashly.
So Thor wasn't a threat to Odin's rule—but rather, the diary hinted that Odin genuinely intended to cultivate Thor into a worthy heir. The problem was... Thor was just too immature. Like a clump of mud that couldn’t be shaped into a proper brick.
Hence, this punishment was also a test.
It wasn’t so much that Odin was angry at Thor for starting a war without permission—it was more that he was furious his son, the future king, was still so unworthy of the throne.
Of course, all of this was just Nick Fury’s speculation—but it felt pretty close to the truth.
History showed that kings were often torn between two fears: the fear that their heir would become too powerful and threaten their rule—and the fear that their heir would be too weak to inherit their legacy.
A constant contradiction.
Which is why being a crown prince was never an easy role.
Still, based on Thor’s words, it was clear Odin was very disappointed. And assuming Odin wasn’t planning to replace Thor, the only other possibility was that this truly was training.
But Thor obviously hadn’t met Odin’s expectations yet.
So what would it take to satisfy Odin?
That was the headache now. Nick Fury had no clue what Odin's true intentions were. If it were anyone else, he wouldn’t care. Let them destroy themselves if they wanted—none of his business.
But this was Thor. He was a future core member of the Avengers. One of the “Big Three.”
Someone like that? Nick had to care.
“Jotunheim? Is that the same Jotunheim from the legends—the land of the Frost Giants?” Hawkeye, a.k.a. Clint Barton, asked.
He remembered hearing old Norse myths as a kid. Jotunheim was said to be the realm of those icy giants.
“Yeah, that Jotunheim,” Thor replied with a nod. “I’ve dealt with them plenty of times. Trust me—they’re not the friendliest bunch.”
“You don’t know this,” Thor added, a hint of pride creeping into his voice, “but Asgard has helped defend Earth from many unseen invasions in the shadows. Over a thousand years ago, I even came to what you now call Northern Europe—to help resist the Frost Giants' invasion.”
He couldn’t help but feel a little smug. Even now, stories of Asgard still circulated in the Nordic regions.
But that was nothing. In the wider universe, Asgard was far more renowned. Countless planets had their own legends about the gods of Asgard.
Thor wasn’t just a big deal on Earth—he was famous across multiple galaxies. Especially since he enjoyed fighting for justice and righteousness in many different civilizations.
The only problem was... Earthlings had no idea.
Then again, that was understandable. Humanity hadn’t stepped into the wider universe yet, so of course they didn’t know about Asgard’s reputation.
“So that’s the reason…” Nick Fury silently made a mental note.
He had always been curious why Earth had never experienced a full-scale alien invasion—besides his one-off encounter with the Skrulls in his youth, there was hardly any evidence of alien activity.
But now the mystery was solved. Asgard had been acting as Earth’s hidden guardian, warding off unknown threats.
That meant the stronger Asgard was, the better it was for Earth.
...asking for flowers...
And if just one pantheon like the Norse gods could protect Earth from so much trouble... what about the others?
What about the Greek gods?
Chinese mythology?
Egyptian, Japanese, Indian mythology? Buddhist deities? Christian angels?
Could all of them secretly be protecting Earth?
Is that how Earth has been able to develop from ancient times to modern civilization—and maybe even, someday, become an interstellar civilization?
Nick Fury’s mind buzzed with possibilities.
If so many mythological pantheons exist, then where are they now?
And why haven’t they shown themselves?
Had China's Divine Spear Bureau—China’s secret agency—ever contacted figures from Chinese myth, like those from the Celestial Court?
Looking at things from this angle, the stronger Asgard was at this moment, the better for Earth. But there was a problem...
Odin was nearing the end of his life. He might not have many years left.
Suddenly, a realization hit Nick Fury—and many pieces of the puzzle snapped into place.
He’d always found it strange: why did so many universe-level crises keep happening on Earth?
From a galactic perspective, Earth was like some backwater mountain village. Probably even less significant than a remote outpost.
In galactic coordinates, Earth was so insignificant it barely registered. Unless a screenwriter was forcing events to revolve around Earth for dramatic effect, there was no logical reason why this tiny planet should be the epicenter of so many cosmic events.
And yet... it was.
Which meant something else was going on.
It had to be Odin—or Asgard—shielding Earth from countless prying eyes across the universe for ages. As the ruler of the Nine Realms, Odin had the power to do so.
But in the near future, another universe-level crisis would occur—again on Earth.
There was only one explanation:
Asgard would no longer be able to protect Earth.
Whatever safeguard had been in place... it would be gone.
And then, everything would change.
