Actually, Odin saw things clearer than anyone.
He wasn't wrong—Thor, as he was now, shouldn't really be called the God of Thunder.
He ought to be called the God of Hammers.
Mjolnir, that hammer, was indeed Thor's most trusty weapon, no doubt about it, but it had also lifted Thor to a height that didn't truly belong to him.
Without the hammer, Thor's fighting strength would shrink big time.
Every worthy warrior, after losing their weapon, would naturally lose some combat power.
But their own strength? That's way more potent than any weapon.
Take a simple example—one straight from Ronan's own experience.
Back when he battled Thanos in the 616 Universe, the terrifying power Thanos showed off still stuck with him to this day.
With the Infinity Gauntlet, Thanos even gave the Avengers a slim chance to stop him.
But without it, he beat the Avengers into a scattered mess.
And mind you, that was an Avengers roster beefed up with heavy hitters like Captain Marvel and Scarlet Witch.
Yet they still couldn't match Thanos.
So yeah, a powerful weapon might boost a strong fighter's edge a bit.
But it could also bring them some serious trouble.
Boils down to this: you've got to forge your own iron.
"Maybe for him, it's all a bit too harsh."
"And Lady Frigga—if she knew I was hiding you here, she'd probably be pretty pissed at me."
Ronan gave a wry smile and shook his head. All in all, Frigga had always been good to him.
But here he was, keeping Odin's real intentions from her and the others.
"No, Frigga will understand me."
"We've been together all these years—she's long known I'd have thoughts like this."
Odin chuckled, like he'd already seen through everything.
When it came to smarts, Frigga was definitely sharp as a tack and could read people like an open book.
"Whew."
"Alright, looks like Thor's really going to have to face these disasters on his own this time."
"No brothers to back him up either."
Ronan shrugged. He decided he wasn't going to try convincing Odin anymore.
Hela might be crazy strong, but Ronan wasn't without ways to deal with her.
If nothing else, keeping Thor alive wouldn't be an issue.
Odin turned his head, fixing his one good eye on Ronan, like he was probing for something.
Ronan just grinned.
"Alright, old man, I know you're fishing for Loki's whereabouts."
"What I can tell you—and all I know—is that he's not dead."
"He's just gone to a place that's strange yet awfully familiar."
"Maybe it won't be long before he's back."
Ronan got what Odin was after.
As for Ronan calling him "old man," Odin didn't mind one bit—in fact, he smirked.
After all these years of being the lofty Allfather, everyone who got close to him had to mind his status.
Only Ronan, in moments like this, could make him feel a warmth beyond the title of "God-K"She's right—you need to go check it out."
Ronan gave a light wave of his hand, and with a flash of light, the ground returned to normal.
"That's good."
"Knowing that much already satisfies me."
"Ronan, I need you to do me a favor."
Odin smiled.
Whatever he was really thinking, at least Loki was still his son in his heart.
Even after all the rebellious stunts he'd pulled.
I mean, what family doesn't have a kid going through their teenage rebellion phase, right?
"Spill it, old man—as long as I can swing it."
Ronan nodded. He had a pretty good guess what it was about.
"When the time's right, tell Thor to come find me here."
"I'll lay it all out for him."
"And to thank you for your help, I'll keep your little secret safe."
Odin winked, like he was hinting at something.
And Ronan knew exactly what he meant.
The "little secret" Odin was talking about was the Reality Stone Ronan had handed over to Asgard.
Truth be told, Ronan had wondered back then if Odin would see through the Reality Stone's secrets.
Looks like Odin had indeed chosen to cover for him all this time.
So yeah, this was a favor Ronan had owed him from way back.
"No problem, I'll let Thor know when the time's right."
"Poor me, though—guess I'll have to drink with Thor till dawn again."
Ronan shook his head and let out a sigh.
Drinking wasn't the issue—it's just that Thor's godly stamina was ridiculous.
The guy couldn't even get drunk. What a hassle.
"Heh."
"Alright, for the rest of the time, let this old man reminisce about his younger days."
With that, Odin turned his gaze to the endless sea stretching out ahead.
Faced with what was basically Odin's polite "get lost," Ronan didn't feel like he was being ditched after being used.
He stood up, brushed the dirt off himself.
A beam of golden light shot down from the sky.
"See ya, old man."
As the golden light swallowed Ronan up, he vanished from the spot.
Feeling the sea breeze brush against his face, Odin broke into a bright grin.
"Thor…"
"Your knack for making friends? Way better than mine."
Because of Odin's disappearance, Asgard fell into a brief bout of chaos.
But to keep things stable in Asgard, the news only spread in a tight circle—no big uproar.
Thor and the crew practically turned the Nine Realms upside down looking for Odin, but no trace of him anywhere.
Honestly, that outcome wasn't exactly a shocker.
If Odin had vanished on purpose, with his power, if he didn't want to be found, they weren't finding him.
But if someone had nabbed Odin?
Yeah, that's a no-go!
That option didn't even exist.
If someone could sneak into Asgard and snatch their Allfather Odin without a peep—
What fighting strength would Asgard even have left?
Odin was the Allfather, after all—no one in the Nine Realms outmatched him.
So, no way that happened.
After searching for a while, Thor finally started to cool off from his initial panic.
He began piecing together the why and how of it all.
Especially when he caught Frigga looking at him with an expression that seemed… different from usual.
So, for once, Thor actually started thinking.
He rounded up his buddies and they started hashing it out together.
Talking about where Odin might be, or why he'd pull something like this.
What he didn't know was that everything he was doing, Frigga was watching.
Seeing Thor slowly starting to grow up, a smile crept onto Frigga's face.
But when she thought back to what Odin had mentioned about his plans, that smile faded fast.
Did the cost of growing up really have to be this steep?
With that in mind, Frigga pressed her lips together and turned to leave.
Thor's growth had quietly kicked off.