"Vmmm..."
The energy unique to Laufey spread from the heavens, sweeping across the whole of Asgard in an instant.
The grievously wounded and weakened Laufey from moments ago was gone. His aura was now even more powerful than before.
He hovered high in the sky like a blazing blue sun. His overwhelming presence made it impossible for anyone to look directly at him as he unleashed his full power without restraint.
"King Laufey!"
"King Laufey!"
"King Laufey!"
The last time Laufey had stood at the height of his power was countless years ago, when he had led the Frost Giants into battle against Odin and the armies of Asgard.
None of the Frost Giants could remember how long it had been since they had last seen their king so proud, so invincible, and so utterly unstoppable.
Now that the mighty Laufey had returned, his face radiating unassailable majesty, the Frost Giants, who had languished for so long, erupted with renewed fervor.
Aside from those who had already fallen, every Frost Giant had recovered under the power of the Casket of Ancient Winters. Some had even become stronger than before.
They rose to their feet, their earlier dejection after their defeat completely gone, and roared Laufey's name with wild abandon.
This was the King of Jotunheim!
This was their king!
Odin was trapped in the Odinsleep, and Thor was dead. All that remained was the gravely wounded Loki and that Midgardian warrior, who could not possibly turn the tide alone.
The weakened Asgard was destined to become an icy hell beneath their feet once more.
The Frost Giants' murderous intent seemed powerful enough to pierce the heavens. Countless crimson eyes stared fixedly at the Asgardians, even though the gods vastly outnumbered them.
The moment Laufey gave the order, they would swarm forward, drag these once-lofty gods down from their pedestals, and tear them apart. Their flesh and blood would nourish this supreme realm of the Nine Realms.
Meanwhile, the Asgardians' morale had fallen to its lowest point beneath Laufey's oppressive presence.
A mighty ruler capable of contending with Odin could not be defeated through numbers alone.
The gods' faces were ashen. They looked toward Fenris, who stood at the front of their ranks. He had single-handedly reversed the course of the battle earlier, yet even his powerful figure could no longer give them any sense of security.
"Warriors of Jotunheim!"
"Elites of the Frost Giants!"
Laufey's gaze swept across Asgard.
Most of the realm had been destroyed in the previous battle. The magnificent structures that had once radiated divine grandeur had been reduced to ruins.
A deep, scorched ravine carved an unhealing wound across the land. It had been left behind by Fenris's deadly breath, and the sight of it pained Laufey more than any other.
Only the Royal Palace behind him, the absolute heart of Asgard, remained as golden and magnificent as ever.
Barring the unexpected, Odin's temple and the chamber where he slept were both located within.
From the sky, Laufey took in everything below.
He clutched the Casket of Ancient Winters tightly in both hands, as though terrified that he might lose it again.
The tremendous power flowing through his body felt both familiar and foreign. It would take time for him to completely regain his former mastery and wield it as naturally as before, but that no longer mattered.
His absolute superiority in power rendered such concerns irrelevant.
Laufey looked down at the red-eyed warriors gazing up at him with anticipation, waiting only for his command before unleashing a wanton slaughter.
After a brief pause, he spoke. His voice was not loud, yet it carried clearly across the entire battlefield.
"We have suffered beneath Asgard's oppression. Throughout the long years of our subjugation, we have endured unimaginable hardship. Now is the time for our revenge. We will make them..."
"You're courting death!"
"Give me back the Casket of Ancient Winters!"
A thunderous roar suddenly erupted like a bolt from the heavens, cutting through the sky and interrupting Laufey before he could finish.
The triumphant Laufey had never imagined that anyone would dare challenge him at this moment. He instinctively turned toward the voice.
Whoosh!
There was nothing before him except a brilliant streak of silver light soaring from the distant ground. It spun through the air before descending toward Laufey in a devastating arc.
A violent gale erupted.
The silver light flashed through the sky, moving far too quickly for anyone to react. Laufey's vision blurred, and a massive battle-axe was suddenly right in front of him.
A familiar figure followed closely behind it.
The icy light reflected in Fenris's vertical pupils sent a chill through Laufey, making him shudder instinctively.
"Not good!"
The attack had come without warning.
By the time Fenris's voice reached him, the razor-sharp axe blade was already upon him.
The head of the axe glowed with a faint blue light, like the call of death itself. To the Frost Giants, that color, identical to Fenris's Atomic Breath, was synonymous with destruction.
I can't take this attack head-on...
The fierce wind struck his face first. Laufey's heart lurched, rising into his throat.
He had yet to completely regain control over his restored power. Worse, there was nothing elaborate about this strike. It contained nothing except pure, overwhelming force.
Laufey had already experienced Fenris's strength firsthand. The brutally dominant power of that unreasonable body still filled him with lingering dread.
The Frost Giants prided themselves on their strength, but that depended entirely upon whom they were comparing themselves to. Laufey was not foolish enough to meet Fenris head-on under these circumstances.
"Hah!"
With no time to think, he hurriedly raised the Casket of Ancient Winters before his chest.
As Laufey roared, a raging storm of extreme cold surged from the Casket. Blinding white light carrying impossibly low temperatures, countless icicles, and howling winds erupted outward, colliding violently with Fenris's battle-axe.
Boom!
The scene Laufey had expected never occurred.
After a deafening explosion, the razor-sharp axe descended from above and brutally split the torrent of white light in two.
The freezing current had never failed him before. It possessed enough power to encase the whole of Asgard in ice, yet now it could not stop a single axe.
"Hold it back!"
Laufey's expression twisted savagely as he desperately channeled more power through the artifact in his hands.
The white light became even more dazzling. The extreme cold pouring from it caused the moisture in the surrounding air to rapidly condense into thick layers of ice.
The scorching battle-axe continued its descent with unstoppable momentum. Steam gathered around its blade, but it did not slow in the slightest.
"Die!"
Two slender, pale hands overtook the falling weapon and closed around its handle.
Fenris unleashed a roar that hardly sounded human. His eyes burned crimson as he raised the vibranium battle-axe high. Every ounce of strength in his body erupted at once, and he drove the weapon down through the raging storm.
Boom!
A deafening blast shook the battlefield.
Every trace of the storm abruptly vanished. The white light illuminating the sky disappeared in an instant, and a spray of blood splattered across Fenris's face.
"Cough... cough..."
"Midgardian, you... missed..."
(End of Chapter)
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