Sigurd, who had returned to Hippolyta's world, opened a portal and came back to Asgard with Hela and Hippolyta.
Hela, appearing on the Rainbow Bridge, looked toward the palace.
"Finally, we're back."
Sigurd looked at Hela's excited expression and knew she had missed her family. After all, this was the first time she had stayed away.
Hela then turned to Hippolyta and said,
"Auntie, come on—I'll show you Asgard."
Hippolyta was a bit nervous, but seeing Hela's excitement, she could only follow. At the same time, Sigurd felt something was off.
Just as Sigurd was wondering what had happened, he saw his brother approaching from the Bifrost.
Odin appeared on the Rainbow Bridge, having sensed the presence of Sigurd and the others.
"Sigurd, you finally found time to come back."
Hearing Odin's words, Sigurd gestured with his hands that he had no idea what had happened.
Then Odin's eyes shifted to Hela and Hippolyta, who were ahead of them.
"Hela."
Hearing her father's voice, Hela—who had been excited—suddenly felt she was in trouble. She turned to see her father.
"Father."
Odin then looked toward Hippolyta.
"So you are my brother's lover. My name is Odin Borson."
Hippolyta looked at Odin, who did not resemble the Odin from her world at all.
"Hello, God King. I am Hippolyta, Queen of Themyscira."
Hearing her words, Odin searched his memory for the realm or place but could not recall it, so he simply nodded.
"You have come at the right time. Let's go—your sister-in-law might be growing impatient."
Sigurd suddenly felt something might have happened.
"Did something happen while I was away?"
Odin looked at his brother and nodded.
"Yes. An angel stole the Casket of Ancient Winters from the treasure vault."
Hearing this, Sigurd showed no emotion.
"That's a small matter, but the Angel Queen attacked Asgard. There should be some punishment for the traitor, right?"
Odin heard Sigurd's words and nodded in agreement.
"Yes. The punishment should be cruel enough to make them remember it for the rest of their lives."
"Oh?" Sigurd turned his head toward Odin. "You have something in mind?"
"Yes. I think the Ten Realms don't look quite right—why not make them Nine Realms?"
Hearing this, Sigurd considered the world's trajectory and thought,
The universe does tend to pull the timeline back on track.
Then he looked at Odin.
"Killing them would be more efficient than banishment."
Odin shook his head.
"Killing would not make other enemies fear us. But erasing their existence from everyone's memory—making it as if they never were—will make the powerful across the universe understand our strength."
Sigurd thought about it for a few seconds.
"Should I do it?"
Odin shook his head and looked toward the Asgardian palace.
"Showing too much strength will also unite them against us. So why bother? I will personally erase them, which will also let them fear your strength—which remains unknown."
Odin then turned to Sigurd.
"I have a feeling we may face ruthless enemies in the near future. Try not to reveal your full strength."
Sigurd looked at his brother's face and said,
"Even if I reveal my strength, they wouldn't be able to fight back. But staying low-key is fine too."
Odin heard this and realized Sigurd might be even more powerful than he had imagined.
"You can stay in Asgard and prepare for your wedding."
Hearing this, Sigurd looked toward Hippolyta and said,
"Okay, let's finish the problem at hand first. I'll stay here. She will also be here for a long time, so we have more than enough time for other things."
Just as they were walking toward the palace, Sigurd saw his mother approaching with Frigga.
"Mother! Grandma, I missed you so much!"
Hela was already running toward them.
Frigga looked at her daughter, who had been away for so long, but she was not in the mood for sweet talk. Still, she nodded.
Bestla watched Hela running over.
"Come here—Grandma missed you too."
Bestla hugged Hela, then looked toward Sigurd.
"You were supposed to come earlier, but you've been running away from home for more than two months."
Hearing Bestla's words, Sigurd could only explain.
"Mother, the world I went to—time works differently there. I lost track of it."
Odin, hearing Sigurd's explanation, now confirmed that Hippolyta was not from this multiverse. But he did not ask about it. After all, if it were necessary, Sigurd would have explained. If it were dangerous, he would not have taken Hela there. So he did not delve further.
Sigurd then looked at his mother and Frigga.
"Mother, this is Hippolyta." He turned to Hippolyta. "Hippolyta, this is my mother, Bestla, and this is my sister-in-law, Frigga."
Hippolyta heard Sigurd's words and greeted them with proper etiquette. After all, Bestla would be her mother-in-law, so she wanted to show her best side.
While Sigurd was planning to show Hippolyta around Asgard, his mother and Hela swept her away to give her a tour.
So he could only follow Odin and Frigga to the meeting hall.
Odin looked at Frigga.
"Frigga, how do you think the angels managed to get their spy into Asgard?"
Hearing this, even Sigurd turned toward Frigga. After all, he had used his magic to seal the spatial voids that served as entry points for outsiders. Yet the angels still entered Asgard, which made him think someone had reopened a void—but when he checked, they were still intact.
Frigga looked at both of them, then cast a spell that showed them a house in Asgard's city where a royal guard walked in. He handed the Casket of Ancient Winters to another person opposite him—who looked like an angel.
The angel warrior killed the royal guard. But what happened next surprised both Sigurd and Odin.
Sigurd turned to Odin as if asking for confirmation.
"Space Stone."
Odin looked at Sigurd and nodded.
"That explains how they could escape Asgard so easily."
Sigurd shook his head. He had always wondered how the Space Stone had appeared in Asgard. So it was a gift the angels had used when they were completely sealed from the outside world.
"Angels are truly foolish. They used this in Asgard."
Odin shook his head.
"Although it is a powerful weapon, I don't think we need it. We can simply seal it and hide it from the outside world."
Sigurd shook his head.
"Yes, but before that, I want to examine something with the help of the Space Stone. When the time comes, I will return it to you so you can hide it."