Chapter 171 - CHAPTER 171:Goodbye Hammer

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The atmosphere at the scene had grown tense, thick with conflicting intent.

"Why protect these weak groups?"

Loki's scepter shimmered with ethereal light as he addressed the crowd. "Humans—ever since their inception—have bowed to power. They submit to rulers, to order. Servility runs in their blood, their marrow, their hearts. They were born to be ruled."

At that moment, reporters who feared nothing had already rushed onto the scene, broadcasting live footage that continued to draw more viewers across the globe.

Loki noticed. And it only made his voice bolder.

Yet neither the silently observing One Side nor Misaka Mikoto (Alter) gave any verbal reaction.

Joan of Arc tried to speak, but the casualties from the earlier explosion demanded her attention. Too many to tend. No chance to be cloned.

"Sir, Mr. Stark flew out of the lab." Shen He's calm voice came through the communication channel.

"Tony... are you sure?"

He hadn't stopped Tony. No one could when civilians were hurt like this—any real hero would act on impulse.

"I brought EMP bombs. Unless those explosives were rigged differently..." Tony's voice was low and tense. "What happens if I just kill him?"

Shen He went quiet, then responded with a sobering truth: "It will start a war between Earth and Asgard. Loki may be adopted, but to Zeus, he's still more important than any of us."

Though Zeus styled himself a benevolent monarch, Shen He knew better. The god's mercy was selective. Political.

And one should never underestimate the sentimentality of an aging father.

"Got it." Tony didn't even sound surprised. "But no one said I can't beat the hell out of him."

"Of course," Shen He replied, glancing at the display. "Just remember, you'll have to queue up. Qi Mu will arrive first. Then the Guardians. Then Steve. Then you. It's a full house."

He paused.

A bolt of lightning split the sky, flooding the screen in white.

BOOM.

Thunder rolled.

Loki's speech stopped mid-sentence. He looked skyward and instinctively stepped back.

"LOKI!"

A man descended like divine judgment—tall, blond, statuesque in his golden armor, hammer in hand. He landed with a crash.

Thor, the God of Thunder, had arrived.

"Where is the Tesseract!?" Thor grabbed Loki's shoulder instantly.

Joan of Arc snapped her head up.

BANG!

A shimmer of light blocked Thor's approach. One Side stood before him, and though his frame seemed too slight to counter Thor's strength, the collision left a hollow echo.

Joan's heart, filled with dread, steadied. They weren't too late.

She had to warn him.

"Loki's given orders—his agents will detonate more explosives if he's threatened!"

Thor's eyes widened. Only now did he notice the carnage, the wounded scattered across the battlefield.

"Look what you've done!" he shouted, fists trembling. "I can't believe... this isn't you!"

"That's what you believe!" Loki spat. His mask dropped. "I lived in your shadow, buried the real me, just to grovel for Father's scraps of attention! This—this is me!"

"That's not you. It's your inferiority complex," Thor stepped forward. "Father taught me what makes a true king—he doesn't seek attention. You know nothing of rule, brother."

"Then protect your precious humans!" Loki snarled, shoving Thor back.

BOOM!

"Wait—" Joan tried to stop it again, but she was a second too late.

Three bombs detonated in rapid succession.

Fireballs erupted, roaring outward.

Then... time stopped.

Or rather, it appeared to—at least in the eyes of Qi Mu Nanxiong.

Not wanting to draw too much attention, Qi Mu quietly pulled his hood over his head.

Time, reversed.

The fireballs imploded—collapsing back into points of light—and then the explosives flew upward, propelled into the sky.

To everyone else, only a moment had passed.

"This... this can't be," Loki muttered.

Even in Asgard, where the divine touch was common, time manipulation remained beyond their reach. Yet Qi Mu had just undone a detonation.

"Qi Mu, was that you?" Thor's eyes widened in recognition. He chuckled nervously, then grabbed Loki by the neck. "Next time, I'm bringing him and the Tesseract straight to Shen He."

BOOM.

Before they could depart, a streak of black lightning lanced through the air and intercepted them. A searing metal sphere hovered ominously in front of them.

"You can't take him."

Misaka Mikoto (Alter) stepped forward, her body crackling with violet arcs. Another metal orb floated above her palm.

Thor squinted. "Who are you? Another recruit from Chaldea? I'm Thor—god of thunder and ally to your master!"

His tone stayed friendly—but that was only because she looked like a teenager. Had it been anyone else, his hammer might've already flown.

"Doesn't matter who you are. Loki stays. That's the master's order." Her voice didn't waver.

In matters of lightning, she was second to none.

"She's right," Qi Mu Nanxiong descended from above, landing beside Thor. "Your brother's actions here led to the deaths of more than twenty civilians."

Shen He, watching from the surveillance room, frowned. Qi Mu was angry.

He often claimed to hate trouble. But when innocent lives were at stake, he always stepped in—often exposing his abilities to do so. A contradiction he never acknowledged.

This time, even he arrived late.

Thor looked from Loki to the grim-faced Chaldeans.

"He'll face judgment in Asgard," Thor declared, slamming Loki into the pavement. "But I'll bring him to Shen He first."

"Fine," Qi Mu said.

Seeing Thor cooperate, Misaka Mikoto (Alter) powered down. Deep inside, she still wanted to test herself against the so-called thunder god.

"Cough... ha ha ha..." Loki laughed despite the pain. "You think that's all I planned?"

Before anyone could respond, two shadows dropped onto the rooftop across the square.

People screamed.

Two individuals had appeared.

Qi Mu and Thor moved immediately, but another was faster.

A streak of red soared through the sky—Shockwave Girl locked both in a grappling hold midair while Wanda Maximoff followed up, using her chaotic energy to lower them gently.

The Guardians had arrived.

Though saved, Loki's smile only deepened.

"Three thousand six hundred and forty-two," he intoned. "That's how many lives will be lost this week. You can't stop it. Only I can."

His words were broadcast globally, echoing through live streams.

Thor snarled and delivered a solid punch to Loki's face. Despite his divine resilience, the trickster god dropped like a stone.

"Am I late?" Captain America—fully geared—parachuted from a plane overhead.

"No," Shen He's voice came over the secure channel. "Tony's late. Steve, stay and assist Joan in caring for the wounded. Qi Mu, take Loki. Tony—head to Daofu."

"No." Tony replied over the comms. "I'm staying. People need to see me here."

"Fine," Shen He agreed.

The media would swarm soon. And officially, Loki should be in custody of international authorities—not a private group like Chaldea.

But this was their moment to take that authority.

"You all heard Loki's parting words," Shen He turned to the agents behind him. "Coulson, coordinate with Tony. Decide what goes public."

This incident would spiral larger than the original Avengers timeline.

Without S.H.I.E.L.D., secrecy was no longer guaranteed—but Chaldea didn't need secrets.

"What if the officials step in?" Coulson asked quietly.

They both knew they would.

Shen He gestured for Coulson to follow. They walked in silence until reaching Shen He's office.

"Talk to Fury," Shen He said plainly. "Launch a media offensive immediately. Highlight our competence. Paint their interference as a liability. And then... 'grudgingly' agree to hand Loki over. Publicly."

"That's... devious," Coulson grinned. "But it'll work."

Everyone knew the truth. The government couldn't handle Loki—and would soon be blamed for the failure.

"Exactly," Shen He sighed. "This time, we're lucky we could contain it. Next time, we might not be."

"Leave it to me." Coulson nodded, eyes gleaming. "Honestly, this might be fun."

He wasn't just a government agent anymore.

He was Chaldean now.

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