Chapter 38. A Conversation with Coulson

"Well, Noah, tell us everything you know," said Coulson.

In one of the rooms of the temporary base, three people sat at a table. Noah had already retracted his armor into his belt and returned to his casual clothes.

"Coulson, have you ever heard of Norse mythology?" Noah placed his hands on the table, rested his chin on his left hand, and leaned slightly forward, glancing at both of his companions.

"Norse mythology? Yeah, I know a bit, but it's just a collection of fictional myths," Coulson and Hawkeye exchanged puzzled glances, wondering where this question was leading.

Aside from the three of them, there was no one else in the room. Coulson believed that such classified matters should remain within a tight circle of trusted individuals.

Noah decided it was time to start explaining the story involving Thor.

He had asked Lissandra to gather information on Norse mythology. He pressed a button on his belt, and nanomachines formed a small device. Noah placed it on the table, and the device began projecting an image.

He started the projection, found the necessary materials, and then looked back at his companions, pointing to the display.

"In Norse mythology, there's an immense world tree growing in the primordial void," the projection shifted, showing a colossal tree standing in the cosmic vacuum.

"Around the world tree are nine realms: Asgard (Thor's home), Vanaheim, Alfheim, Midgard (Earth), Jotunheim (the land of the Frost Giants), Svartalfheim, Niflheim, and Muspelheim."

In the projection, the nine realms spun around the tree, and Midgard was identical to our Earth.

"So, what does this hammer have to do with Norse mythology? Are you saying this is Thor's hammer?" Barton asked, looking at the projection.

"Yes, it's Mjolnir, Thor's hammer," Noah created an image of a tall, blond Scandinavian man with a muscular build, holding the hammer, with blue lightning crackling around it.

"What? Are you serious? This is really Thor's hammer? Then where's Thor? Why did he abandon his weapon?" Coulson was stunned. If Noah claimed this was the real Mjolnir, did that mean all the myths were true?

"I don't know. He might show up soon. Or maybe not," Noah shrugged. Thor was probably in a nearby town right now, trying to get his hammer back by the evening.

"Isn't this Thor a threat to humans? And what about the other gods, like Odin? Do they really exist?" Coulson asked, concerned about the potential danger posed by the gods.

"Don't worry, they're not planning to invade Earth. Besides, Midgard, our Earth, is part of their dominion. Long ago, they helped banish the Frost Giants from our planet."

Noah shut off the projection. The Asgardians had come to Earth many years ago and driven out the Frost Giants. Odin had even left the Tesseract, the Space Stone, here. Earth was like a backyard to them, so they weren't likely to intervene unless one of their representatives decided to.

"You know so much about them? Did you see this in the future?" Coulson was impressed by Noah's confidence, as if he knew everything in advance.

"No, Valoran holds many secrets. I just stumbled upon records about Asgard and learned a lot of information," Noah shrugged.

"Well, now we can wait and see when the hammer's owner appears. I heard there's a small town nearby. I'll head over there to grab a bite," said Noah, noticing that Coulson wanted to ask more questions. He stood up immediately, signaling that he didn't want to continue the conversation. Otherwise, it would drag on for a long time, and he didn't want to linger.

"Stay in touch, Noah," Coulson said, understanding that Noah was tired of the questions. He decided to wrap up the meeting as well, exchanging a glance with Barton. They both knew they'd need to give a detailed report to Nick Fury about Asgard, as the news of the existence of powerful Norse gods was too important.

As Noah was about to leave, Coulson called out to him again. He turned and saw Coulson handing him a small bag. Opening it, he found several IDs, the first of which was a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent ID with his photo and the title of Security Consultant. The other IDs were from various U.S. agencies, such as the FBI. S.H.I.E.L.D. agents often posed as FBI agents for their missions.

"What's this?" Noah asked, looking up at Coulson.

"The Director prepared these for you. You can use them if the need arises. Of course, you said you didn't want to join S.H.I.E.L.D., so these IDs are just a formality, and you won't have to take on any obligations," Coulson replied.

"Alright, I'll take them," Noah said. Such documents might come in handy in the future, and he wasn't afraid that Nick Fury might try to use them against him. If Fury dared to, Noah would deal with him.

As he left the room, Noah noticed that some passing researchers and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were staring at him in surprise. To them, he seemed like some kind of Iron Man. One bald agent with glasses was watching him especially closely. Noah looked around and decided to return to Coulson to ask for a car. He felt that flying in his armor would attract too much attention.

Opening the car door, he got behind the wheel. When he grabbed the keys, Coulson asked if he had a driver's license. Noah was already 16 years old, so he could legally get a license in the U.S., and he had done so, although he didn't have much driving experience.

Noah inserted the key into the ignition. Despite not driving often, he wasn't worried. After all, it was just driving, and with his talent, he would manage just fine.

"Bam!"

"Oh, sorry!"

The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents at the entrance were stunned as the black car zoomed past them and crashed into the base's gate. One of the agents even started to open the car door.

"What happened?" Coulson asked, hearing the commotion outside. He went to check, seeing the broken gate, and couldn't help but shake his head.

"Noah?" Lissandra asked, with a hint of surprise in her voice.

"Ahaha, I haven't driven much. That's normal, right?" Noah replied, feeling embarrassed. In his previous life, he had never gotten a driver's license, and in this one, even though he had passed the test, he still drove very rarely, so he wasn't particularly experienced.

"Lissandra, you better take the wheel."

Nanobots flowed from his armor belt, integrating into the car. Once Lissandra took over the driving, Noah relaxed, leaned back in his seat, and started enjoying the view outside the window.

However, the New Mexico landscapes quickly bored him. There was nothing but sand and desert—yep, definitely a desert. After admiring the monotonous scenery for a bit, Noah decided to check his system's mission panel, hoping something interesting had popped up today.

[C-level mission: XXX]

[C-level mission: XXX]

[B-level mission: Deflect/destroy Odin's Destroyer armor]

"What? This mission appeared so soon?" Noah was surprised to see the B-level mission on his panel. He had expected it to show up tomorrow when the four Asgardian warriors and the Destroyer, sent by Loki, would descend upon the town. But the system seemed to have other plans.

"Maybe this is even for the best?" Noah thought.

"Since the mission has no time limits, I'll have the chance to take another mission tomorrow. If everything goes according to plan, I might be able to complete another B-level mission."

He thought for a bit and decided to accept the mission. After all, the system's missions didn't have strict time frames, and accepting it early didn't change anything. The main concern was that someone else, like Thor himself, wouldn't destroy the mission's target first.

Under Lissandra's control, the car smoothly headed toward a small town on the horizon.

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