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Loki stepped out of the doorway right behind Rosh, his signature slick smirk firmly back in place.
The moment his boots hit the ground, a harsh, howling gust of wind whipped across a vast, brutal wasteland. Dust and red grit swirled through the air under a dull grey sky. It was desolate, dead quiet, and massive, the exact kind of place where two gods could tear down mountains without worrying about collateral damage.
Rosh turned around, offering the Prince of Asgard a relaxed, easygoing grin.
"Just a heads up, Loki... you might want to brace yourself."
Before Loki could even formulate a witty comeback, Rosh slowly crossed his arms in front of his chest.
*PING!*
A blinding burst of pure, golden light shot out from Rosh's fingertips, shining so intensely it lit up the barren horizon in a split second.
Loki's dark eyes narrowed into razor-sharp slits. 'Light... He's actually generating pure light. This wasn't an illusion spell or some low-level trick.'
*ZZAP! ZZAP! ZZAP!*
Without a single microsecond of warning, dozens of golden light beams erupted from Rosh's hands like a relentless laser storm. They screamed through the air, filling the wasteland with blinding flashes as they homed in on Loki from every imaginable angle.
But Loki was the God of Mischief. He hadn't survived centuries of cosmic battles by being slow. A swirl of brilliant emerald magic flared around his right palm, weaving into a long, polished spear in the blink of an eye. With terrifying speed, Loki swung into action.
*SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!*
His spear spun through the air, carving lethal arcs of green energy that intercepted the incoming photon blasts mid-flight.
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
Explosion after explosion ripped across the dirt as golden light slammed into green Asgardian magic, sending showers of brilliant sparks flying in every direction. Loki didn't just stay on the defense, though. The instant he spotted an opening, he thrust his spear straight toward Rosh's chest.
*FWHOOSH!*
A hyper-compressed beam of emerald magic tore through the sky, flying with deadly, pinpoint precision. It was a direct kill shot, fast, brutal, and impossible to dodge at close range. It should have pierced Rosh's heart clean through.
Instead... reality completely broke.
Just before the attack made contact, Rosh's physical body shimmered. His solid form dissolved into billions of dancing golden light particles. Loki's deadly magic beam passed right through the golden mist without hitting a single solid thing.
No impact, no flesh, and no blood.
It was like trying to stab a sunbeam with a spear.
*BOOM!*
The emerald beam carried straight past Rosh, slamming into the desert canyon miles behind him. A roaring explosion blasted into the earth, carving a massive crater into the dirt and sending tons of shattered rock high into the clouds.
Loki stared at the spot where Rosh stood, his eyes wide. For the first time since walking into the Home of the Devil Fruits, raw, unadulterated excitement lit up his face.
'It's real... He literally turned into light itself.' In that single second, every tiny lingering trace of doubt in Loki's mind was utterly destroyed. 'If the Light-Light Fruit could grant an unbeatable body like this...'
Then the encyclopedia hadn't lied about a single thing. The Rumble-Rumble Fruit... was real, and it was within his reach.
Loki quickly reined in his awe, forcing his excitement back beneath a sleek, playful grin.
"A cute trick," Loki said, keeping his voice silky smooth and totally unbothered. "I'll admit... you've got my attention."
Rosh just offered a faint, amused smile. "Oh? In that case, I think you're going to love what's coming next."
The second those words left Rosh's mouth, his casual posture completely vanished. His hands blurred into motion.
*ZZAP! ZZAP! ZZAP! ZZAP!*
The deafening sound of a thousand photon blasts echoed across the desert like rolling thunder.
This wasn't just a friendly demonstration anymore; it was a total deluge.
An endless torrent of golden lasers poured from Rosh's hands, multiplying by the second until the sky itself was drowned out beneath a rain of light. A massive, golden flood of photon beams surged toward Loki, closing off every single escape route in sight.
In the blink of an eye, the God of Mischief was completely swallowed by a storm of light.
Loki's cool, aristocratic composure was completely shattered. The overwhelming flood of light gave him zero room to think, breathe, or plan. He swung his green spear like a madman, desperately trying to swat away the dozens of golden laser beams raining down on him from every conceivable angle.
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
Deafening explosions tore through the canyon one after another, drowning the wasteland in a sea of scorching golden light.
No matter how fast Loki spun his spear or how much raw magic he pushed into his defense, there were just too many attacks. Blocking them all was straight-up impossible.
*BOOM!*
A hyper-dense photon beam finally smashed right through his guard.
The raw kinetic force hurled Loki backward like he'd been shot out of a cannon. He hit the hard dirt face-first, tumbling and sliding across the sand, leaving a deep trench in the ground before coming to a painful halt.
Dust clouds settled over the crater.
After a heavy moment, Loki slowly pushed himself up onto his knees, coughing up sand. His pristine green robes were covered in dirt, his dark hair was a mess, and the smooth, perfect prince act he loved to put on was nowhere to be found.
"...You've certainly got some power, Merchant," Loki growled quietly.
His face was calm, but inside? His pride was burning alive.
When Rosh had warned him earlier about accidentally hurting him, Loki had brushed it off as empty boastfulness. But standing here now, rubbing his bruised shoulder, he realized Rosh hadn't been bragging at all.
Rosh had been pulling his punches.
The sheer humiliation was almost unbearable. But if there was one thing Loki refused to do, it was admit defeat.
A sharp, dangerous sneer slowly spread across his face.
"Still... raw power isn't everything," Loki said, his voice dropping back into a smooth, mocking drawl as he pushed himself to his feet. "Brute force is cheap. True mastery is winning before your enemy even knows where to strike."
He slammed the butt of his spear into the dirt.
*THUMP!*
A wave of brilliant emerald magic rippled outward in a massive circle across the ground.
In the next breath, reality split.
One Loki became two. Two became four. Four became six.
In a fraction of a second, six identical Gods of Mischief stood in a wide circle around Rosh, completely trapping him from every side. Each copy looked 100% real. Each wore the same arrogant smirk. Each held an identical, glowing green spear.
"Hahaha!"
"Hahaha!"
"Hahaha!"
Laughter rang out from all six figures at the exact same time, echoing off the canyon walls in a dizzying, skin-crawling wave of sound. The synchronized smiles and identical voices were enough to drive a normal opponent to their wits' end with confusion.
Then, every single Loki charged forward at once.
"Take him!"
Six spears thrust straight toward Rosh's heart. From the outside, it was impossible to tell which one was flesh and blood and which ones were pure illusion.
Rosh, however... didn't even blink.
He stood right in the center of the trap, totally relaxed, his hands still tucked in his pockets.
As the six charging Lokis closed the distance, Rosh casually shifted his weight and tossed out a lightning-fast kick to his right.
*BANG!*
His heavy boot connected directly with solid flesh.
"Gah—!"
The real Loki let out a choked gasp as the kick slammed into his ribs, sending him flying across the dirt before crashing hard onto his back.
At that exact microsecond…
*POOF!*
Every single clone dissolved into wisps of green smoke, vanishing into thin air as if they had never existed.
A heavy silence fell over the desolate landscape.
Loki lay on his back, staring up at Rosh with wide, wild eyes. Pure, unadulterated shock washed over his face.
"How..." Loki gasped out, clutching his bruised side. "How in the world did you see through my illusions?!"
For the first time since they met, genuine disbelief cracked through his voice. Illusion magic was his bread and butter, his master art. He had tricked cosmic beings, powerful sorcerers, and entire armies across the Nine Realms with those exact clones.
Yet Rosh hadn't second-guessed himself for even a microsecond. He had instantly targeted the real body. What Loki didn't realize was that visual illusions meant absolutely nothing against Rosh's Observation Haki.
Observation Haki wasn't just about sharp eyesight. It was a sensory power that read living presences, felt hostile intent, and mapped out an opponent's soul far beyond physical form. No matter how perfect Loki's green illusions looked on the outside, they had zero aura.
Against Haki, Loki's ultimate trick was like wearing a giant, bright neon sign pointing straight to the real target.
Rosh walked over, looking down at the thoroughly beaten prince with a calm, friendly expression.
"So, Loki..." Rosh asked smoothly. "Would you like me to keep demonstrating what a Logia Fruit can do?"
Loki immediately scrambled backward and raised both hands in panic.
"No!"
He shoved himself up off the dirt as fast as his bruised body allowed, waving his hands violently.
"No, no! That won't be necessary at all!" Loki wheezed out, quickly brushing the dirt off his robes while trying to reclaim whatever tiny shred of dignity he had left.
"I've seen more than enough!"
That short clash had accomplished every single thing it needed to. In just a few intense minutes, Rosh had completely demolished every tiny shred of doubt lingering in Loki's mind.
The power of a Logia Devil Fruit was 100% real. No tricks. No illusion spells. No clever mirrors. Just pure, terrifying elemental power.
More importantly, Rosh had flexed a level of strength that completely outmatched him. Loki knew deep down that if the Manager had actually been fighting to kill, the whole thing would have been over in five seconds flat.
That realization hit the God of Mischief hard.
It left behind something Loki rarely ever felt toward anyone else: genuine, undisputed respect, and mixed right into that respect was a healthy, very necessary dose of fear.
For someone like Loki, who questioned every motive and trusted literally no one, earning that kind of respect was almost impossible. But Rosh had pulled it off without even breaking a sweat.
*Creak!*
Another heavy wooden doorway materialized out of thin air beside them. The two stepped through the threshold together, leaving the scorched, desolate wasteland behind and stepping back into the warm, quiet lounge of the Home of the Devil Fruits
This time, however, the vibe in the room was totally different.
Loki still had his posture, sure. He still carried himself with the elegant grace of an Asgardian royal. But the subtle arrogance that had dripped from every sentence since they first met was completely gone.
The moment they sat down, Loki was the first to speak.
"Manager..." Loki began, his voice surprisingly formal. "I believe we are finally ready to discuss business."
His face stayed cool and composed, but Rosh didn't need to guess what was going on in the prince's head. Thanks to Observation Haki, Loki's true feelings were practically radiating off him.
The guy was practically itching to get his hands on the Rumble-Rumble Fruit. He wanted it now. Loki's dark eyes drifted over to the heavy encyclopedia lying on the glass table.
"There is just one detail I find slightly confusing," Loki said, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "The prices listed in your catalog... they aren't in any currency I recognize."
He looked up at Rosh. "Origin Points. I've traveled across the Nine Realms and visited countless galaxy-spanning civilizations, yet I've never heard of such a currency."
Loki leaned forward, offering a smooth, negotiating smile. "I have access to mountains of pure Asgardian gold. I can also easily secure massive amounts of interstellar credits from galactic trade routes. If necessary, I can pay in either. What sort of exchange rate do you use?"
Rosh didn't answer right away. He just leaned back into his couch, a light, amused smile touching his lips.
"Loki..." Rosh asked softly. "Do you honestly think a person like me gives a damn about ordinary money?"
"..."
Loki froze. For a second, the silver-tongued Prince of Mischief was left completely speechless. As the words sank in, Loki felt a sudden, rare flush of embarrassment.
Of course, how foolish of him. Someone who could rip open portals through empty space at will... someone who could transform their body into pure, living light... someone who owned literal fate-altering fruits... why on earth would a person like that care about shiny metal or digital galactic credits?
To a cosmic being on Rosh's level, money was literal pocket trash.
In fact, any ordinary merchant holding items as insanely powerful as Devil Fruits would hoard them like sacred, priceless relics. No sane person would trade god-like abilities for common currency unless they were playing an entirely different game altogether.
That realization made Rosh seem ten times more mysterious and, strangely enough, ten times more trustworthy. After a long, silent moment, Loki leaned back into his chair, his sharp mind quickly pivoting to a new angle.
"In that case..." Loki murmured, his eyes narrowing as he locked onto Rosh. "What exactly are you looking for, Manager?"
His brain was already running through high-value trades. "The royal vault of Asgard holds some of the most dangerous, priceless artifacts in the Nine Realms. If any of those relics catch your interest... I can easily make sure they become yours."
Under normal circumstances, not even an Asgardian prince could just wander into Odin's Vault and hand out ancient weapons like party favors. But right now? The timing was perfect.
Odin was currently trapped deep in the Odinsleep. Thor had been stripped of his hammer and banished to Earth. And Loki was sitting on Asgard's throne as acting king. Stealing a couple of legendary treasures from the vault wouldn't even be a challenge.
Rosh, however, simply shook his head, looking completely unimpressed.
"Those artifacts?" Rosh said smoothly. "They don't hold any real value to me."
A slow, mysterious smile spread across Rosh's face, making Loki's heart skip a beat.
"The currency I'm looking for..." Rosh looked straight into Loki's dark eyes, his voice dropping into a quiet, intense tone.
"...is something that already belongs to you. It's been with you all along."
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Next Chapter: The Price of Becoming the God of Thunder
Next Next Chapter: The Day Thor Lost Everything
Next Next Next Chapter: Thor's Breaking Point
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