Chapter 271 : Love Yourself??

["Create? That's nonsense! They're just like us, temporal beings, not some all-powerful Time Keepers." Sylvie listened, her suspicion growing. This "Time Keepers" business sounded like a load of lies.

Before Loki could respond, a voice over the intercom announced the imminent departure of the Ark. They had ten minutes to get on board.

The pair quickened their pace, but as they approached the docking area, the crowd became thicker and more chaotic. 

Everyone was pushing and shoving, desperate to get a spot on the spaceship. As they reached the final stretch, only a few hundred meters from the ship, they found themselves stuck. 

The crush of people was impenetrable.

It was clear that the ship was prioritizing the wealthy, leaving the rest to fend for themselves. This sparked fury among the less fortunate, leading to a riot. 

Realizing they couldn't push through, Loki and Sylvie had to find another way. They decided to try and approach the ship from the back, hoping for a less congested route.

On their way, the two had to constantly dodge falling meteorites while also contending with thugs blocking the road. It made the journey incredibly difficult.

"Too weak." 

"Is this really what you'd call a god?"

In the world of Hokage, Orochimaru, who had longed to be a part of this universe, was itching to take over. The Marvel world felt oddly disjointed to him—the powerful were extremely powerful, while the weak seemed helpless. 

Take Loki, for example. Despite his impressive physical condition, he seemed otherwise ineffective, unlike a mere Jōnin who'd probably already hijacked a spaceship in Orochimaru's world.

Meanwhile, in Asgard, Thor was turning red with embarrassment. The fact that Loki was being held up by a group of rioting ordinary folks was humiliating for Asgard's royal family.

Thor couldn't help but chide him, sounding both resentful and disappointed: "You have the strength, but you can't handle any real hardship. You don't have the heart of a warrior. 

"And what's the point of learning all those spells from Mother if all you do is create illusions to amuse yourself? It's useless!"

Loki had no retort. He couldn't compare to someone like Doctor Strange, who could perform all sorts of high-level attack and defense spells at will. 

Loki, on the other hand, felt like a mere foot soldier, hardly a mage.

It was at this moment that he realized how weak he truly was without the privileges of being Asgard's second prince. 

He'd felt pretty smug after hijacking a ship from Thanos's forces, but now he knew that if it were Thor, he'd have wrapped things up in no time with just a few hammer swings. 

The whole thing felt like walking a tightrope for Loki, always needing to be cautious.

"Father, can I study at Kamar-Taj?" Loki asked, knowing that he wasn't cut out for Thor's berserker style, and Frigga's limited attack magic was more about potions and prophecies.

He needed to find his own path if he ever hoped to match his brother's prowess.

He finds himself drawn to the magic of Kamar-Taj. While calling it a magical sanctuary for the entire universe might be an overstatement, it's certainly a powerhouse within the Milky Way galaxy.

Odin nods with a hint of relief in his eyes. "Maybe it was impossible before, but now I'm sure she'll agree," he says. 

"Given that two significant threats—Thanos and the mysterious Time Keepers—have emerged, the Ancient One won't refuse."

Odin feels a mix of emotions: half happiness and half worry. The future will undoubtedly be challenging, but he's also relieved that both of his sons have matured.

Meanwhile, in another scene, Loki and Sylvie are approaching a spaceship. But just as they're closing in, a meteor the size of a car crashes into it, causing destruction.

The two of them realize they're too late; the outcome seems grim, just like before.

In an instant, chaos erupts in the city. The lively and bustling streets fall silent as despair blankets the faces of its citizens. There's no hope this time; the only thing left to do is wait for the end.

Sylvie wanders into the wilderness, her steps heavy with despair, and sits on a stone. Loki joins her, guilt etched across his face. As they sit together, Sylvie opens up about her past, something she rarely does.

Earlier, on the train, she had mentioned that she couldn't remember her mother—and she wasn't lying. When she was just five years old, sitting in a hallway, the Time Keepers abruptly arrested her, labeling her a time criminal.

"What?" Loki jumps to his feet, arms wide open, his expression a mix of confusion and anger.

"She was just sitting there, right in Asgard as a child, not running around or causing trouble. How could that be enough to trigger a time violation?" he exclaims, unable to comprehend the absurdity of it all.

"It's preposterous!"

Perhaps it was because the scene showed a version of himself, but Loki was outraged by Sylvie's fate.

In the world of the Shinigami, Aizen, who had been absorbing Yhwach's power, allowed himself a slight smirk.

Suspicious? Not at all.

The entire timeline was under the watchful eye of the Time Keepers, making it almost impossible to label someone as a time criminal. 

Yet Aizen was nearly certain that this runaway Loki, who seemed unusually conspicuous, was merely a pawn in someone else's game.

In truth, Aizen's interest was piqued by two figures among all the video recordings. The first was the The Batman Who Laughs, and the second was this enigmatic Time Keepers, standing before him.

Aizen was a firm believer that pure strength was not enough to accomplish great things. Wisdom was the true key to success. 

The Batman Who Laughs required little explanation. The Time Keepers, however, was a different story. They seemed to leave no trace of their existence, yet signs of their influence were everywhere.

As Loki listened to Sylvie, he began to understand why she despised the Time Keepers so much. This entity had caused a young girl with a promising future to lose her parents, her life, and her happiness, condemning her to a life of endless wandering. 

Only Sylvie knew how much she had suffered, how many crimes she had endured, and how often she had narrowly escaped death.

Sylvie's lips twisted into a bitter smile.

"You know, every time I travel to a different point in time, it creates a new time branch. That draws attention. It's like I shouldn't even exist."

Loki didn't know how to console her, so he simply listened in silence.

Sylvie laughed, her voice tinged with bitterness. "Eventually, I found the loophole. I discovered the hiding place."

"The end of every world—it's where I grew up."

Loki finally understood why Sylvie recognized this apocalypse so quickly—it was because she had lived through it countless times, witnessing endless cycles of despair.

Sylvie gazed at the broken planet that was filling the sky, her expression somber as she spoke softly, "And now, this is where I end up buried." She paused, reflecting on her life. "Grown up in the apocalypse, destined to die in a future of tragedy."

Loki, unable to watch her fall into despair, offered comfort for the first time in his life. 

"No, Sylvie, you can't die." He spoke with urgency. "You were just a child when the Time Variance Authority caught you, but you defeated an organization that claimed to control time, all by yourself. You're the best!"

He squeezed her hand, his voice filled with emotion. "Sylvie, you're the best Loki. Your life isn't a failure!" 

His words seemed to resonate with Sylvie, who unconsciously tightened her grip on his hand. Loki felt his heart race.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash as a massive meteorite struck a nearby satellite. The impact sent a fiery wave—a tsunami of flame—surging toward them. They had mere seconds before the inferno would engulf them both.

Loki's heart pounded in his chest. He no longer held back. He looked into Sylvie's eyes, feeling the heat of her hand in his. The two leaned in, getting closer and closer.

Just then, two golden portals appeared before them, offering a way out. Without hesitation, they jumped through the gates. 

On the other side, they found themselves surrounded by hundreds of Time Variance Authority agents, ready to take them into custody. Despite this, they had escaped the apocalypse. They were safe, for now.

Many were relieved to see the two of them survive, but the sense of confusion quickly set in.

How did the Time Variance Authority learn about these two?

The answer came almost instantly.

Inside the office, after punishing Loki, Mobius couldn't contain himself any longer. He stared at Loki like he'd just witnessed the most absurd spectacle.

Mobius finally broke the silence and said, "Loki, you truly astound me."

"I never expected you'd be so narcissistic as to fall in love with yourself! Not even an apocalypse can hide this super-charged time anomaly!"

****

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