Banquet!

Inside the magnificent celestial palace, a lively banquet was in full swing.

"I tell you, at that time I let out a huge roar, flew at the Iron Giant, and knocked it down in one blow!"

At the long table filled with various delicacies, Volstagg, holding a drumstick, was eating heartily while boasting about his battle with the Destroyer. The people around listened intently, occasionally bursting into laughter.

"Yeah, right. Wasn't it more like you fell flat on your butt?" Vandar mercilessly pointed out, causing everyone to laugh even louder.

"Actually, falling was part of my strategy to lure the Destroyer…" Volstagg tried to defend himself, his belly shaking from laughing so much.

The atmosphere at the banquet was joyous, and everyone was in a good mood. The Frost Giants that had invaded had been eliminated, and even their king had perished in Asgard.

With Thor's return, everyone understood that from now on, the Frost Giants would no longer pose a significant threat to Asgard!

"My friends!"

Everyone turned toward the speaker and saw Thor standing, holding a goblet. He smiled as he glanced around, then spoke solemnly:

"This time, in defeating the Frost Giants, we must thank a guest visiting Asgard for the first time, my mentor from Midgard—Lynch!"

He raised his goblet toward Lynch, who was seated nearby.

"Let's raise our glasses to Lynch!"

Everyone lifted their cups, smiling sincerely as they looked at Lynch.

"To Lynch!" Thor shouted, draining his drink in one gulp.

"To Lynch!" The crowd echoed enthusiastically, drinking their wine.

Lynch smiled as he watched his system screen flash with rising justice points, then took a sip from his cup. It was filled with a unique Asgardian alcoholic drink, low in alcohol but rich in flavors like fruity and floral notes, far more fragrant than boozy.

Sour and sweet, it was quite intoxicating, and Lynch had already finished two large cups. Of course, this was partly because many people, including some beautiful Asgardian women, came over to chat and drink with him.

Both Odin and Thor had publicly praised Lynch's role in defeating the Frost Giant King, emphasizing his mysterious strength. This intrigued everyone, as Lynch's quiet demeanor made it hard to associate him with the power they had heard about. The contrast fascinated many young, beautiful Asgardian women, who were eager to get to know Lynch better.

Yet despite the charms of these youthful and exotic-looking beauties, Lynch wasn't particularly interested. After all, Asgardians lived for thousands of years. Some of these women, who appeared to be in their teens or twenties, could very well be 800 years old!

They could be old enough to be my great-grandmother! Lynch thought.

But… Asgardians' dense and powerful bodies, far superior to humans, did seem…

Ah, stop it, you're being indecent!

Lynch scolded himself mentally but then noticed Thor rising to his feet. Thor, holding a drink, looked morose as he moved to a quiet corner, drinking alone. Lynch, understanding Thor's mood all too well, knew the young god was about to drown his sorrows.

Most people at the banquet were unaware of the full details of the Frost Giant invasion. They only knew that Thor, Lynch, and the Warriors Three had fought together to save Asgard. But Lynch understood Thor's anguish—after seeing Loki fall into the abyss, with the Bifrost Bridge destroyed by his own hands, Thor was deeply saddened, especially since it meant he couldn't see his earthly girlfriend, Jane, again.

As a mentor and father figure, Lynch couldn't just leave Thor like this. The poor kid needed help, after all.

Sighing, Lynch excused himself from the circle of beautiful women and approached Thor.

"If I tell you two pieces of good news, will you cheer up and go back to enjoy the banquet?" Lynch asked.

"What good news?" Thor replied, slightly tipsy, his eyes showing a glimmer of hope.

"First, Loki isn't dead."

"Hm?" Thor's eyes brightened at the mention of Loki being alive.

"Really?"

"Of course. You can even ask your mother if you don't believe me."

Lynch knew that Thor's mother had some sense of Loki's condition but hadn't told Thor yet.

"Where is he? Can we bring him back?" Thor asked urgently.

"I assure you he's not in danger. He'll come back when the time is right."

Lynch held back a sigh. They would meet again, yes, but it might not be the reunion Thor imagined. Loki would return leading a fearsome Chitauri army, descending upon New York. And Thor would end up fighting his beloved brother to protect Earth.

"He's alive, he's alive…" Thor muttered happily to himself.

"And the second piece of good news?" Thor asked.

"It's about your little girlfriend."

"Jane?" Thor's face fell. He had promised her he'd come back soon, but now the Bifrost Bridge was destroyed. Without it, how could he see her again?

"The Bifrost Bridge can be repaired," Lynch said, smiling.

"What? How?" Thor looked confused.

"With the Tesseract."

"But…" Thor paused, thinking. "Isn't that on Midgard?"

"So we'll go get it."

"Huh?" Thor looked at Lynch, puzzled, as if questioning his sanity. How could they retrieve the Tesseract from Earth when the Bifrost was destroyed?

Lynch rolled his eyes at Thor's cluelessness. "You're the foolish one, living for over a thousand years and not knowing a thing!"

"Black magic! Asgard has a form of black magic that can be used for teleportation!"

"Really? How come I've never heard of it?" Thor asked, still confused.

"Do you think I'd lie to you? Ask your father about it tomorrow!"

Ending the conversation in slight exasperation, Lynch gave Thor a pep talk. His head ached from all the counseling, but seeing that Thor was in better spirits, he led him back to the banquet table.

"Come on, let's go back and enjoy the party!"