"What? You're saying that while I was talking with S.H.I.E.L.D., she snuck inside?"
"Yes, Chairman."
"This is insane... I tried so hard to stop her."
I focused [Observation Color] as much as possible and began searching for Jane. But Jane was nowhere to be found, as if she had already crossed into another space. I went back into the abandoned building to look for her, but again, I couldn't find her. Worried that the Dark Elves might sense my presence, I used [Stealth] and crossed over again.
But this ti, the space I entered wasn't the one with the Aether; it was a different place. Judging by the scenery, it seed to be Svartalfheim, the land of the Dark Elves.
Crackle!
"Kyaaaah!!"
"I'll ask again. Where are you from? And what is your purpose here?"
"Ugh... Earth... I ca here by accident."
As I crossed over, I saw Jane being tortured by Dark Elves. The Dark Elves were pressing sothing like a black staff against her face and arm. Each ti, Jane's flesh bubbled and burned. Then, one of the Dark Elves watching the torture spoke.
"It seems she crossed over by accident due to the Convergence. Dispose of her."
At that command, the torturing Dark Elf put his fist to his chest and bowed his head in salute, then raised what looked like a firearm from his back and aid it at Jane. It was her own fault for insisting on investigating despite being warned, and now she was in this terrible state, but I still had to save her. Just as I was about to move, a beam of the Bifrost fell, and Thor erged from it.
Thump! Thump!
"Ugh!" "Oof!"
Thor knocked away the Dark Elves, then quickly picked up Jane and disappeared through the Bifrost again. He had probably gone to Asgard. It seed Asgard had completely repaired the Bifrost.
I thought about just returning, but then I noticed the damaged Dark Elf mothership and other spacecraft. I put a few into my inventory and returned to the abandoned buildings in England.
When Darcy saw erge from the building, she hurried over, looking worried, and asked,
"Where's Jane?"
I decided to lie. If I told the truth, things would only beco more complicated.
"I couldn't find her. I'll tell S.H.I.E.L.D.; they'll contact you if they find her. So for now, go ho and rest."
"Okay..."
"And I'm telling you in advance, don't do anything reckless like Jane did."
"Okay. I would never do sothing like that."
Looking at Darcy's expression, I thought she probably wouldn't. So I gave her so cash, telling her to buy a al on the way.
"Wow~ Money from Chairman Jin! I'm never spending this!"
"It's for a al... buy sothing to eat on the way..."
"I'll use my own money!"
Darcy excitedly left with Ian. Judging by her expression, she seed to have forgotten that Jane was missing.
"Geez... Anyway, I hope nothing else happens..."
Hoping for the best, I teleported ho. As soon as I arrived, a beam of the Bifrost suddenly fell in the front yard, and Thor appeared. Momo quickly stepped forward, but I stopped her and told her it was Thor. Thor urgently entered the house and looked for .
"Jin!! Jane is hurt; please help her!"
"Long ti no see. What's going on?"
"Jane was found in Svartalfheim. She was severely tortured and badly hurt. Even Asgardian technology might not be able to fully heal her. I was wondering if you could use your magic."
"I see... Let's go."
I imdiately opened a gate to Asgard and went with Thor. On the way to Jane, I heard what had happened. The Bifrost had been repaired, and Thor asked Heimdall to help him go to Earth for the first ti in a while. But Heimdall saw that Jane was not on Earth, and after searching, he found her in Svartalfheim. Thor quickly rescued her.
Was Jane lucky? No, even if Thor hadn't rescued her, I would have.
Thor and I went to the hospital. Jane's condition was quite serious. The black staff the Dark Elves used for torture was apparently a powerful poison. The poison had caused her flesh to rot, and a large part of her face had to be cut away. The sa was true for her arms. Both arms had been cut to the bone, then bandaged.
Fortunately, the Asgardian dical staff were skilled, so her life was not in danger.
She's paying dearly for ignoring my warning.
"Jin, isn't there sothing you can do?"
"It's severe... I don't know if it's possible, but I'll try."
I unwrapped Jane's bandages and used Heal at maximum power. I could also use [Mugensen] to heal her completely, but doing so might reveal my abilities. So I decided to try using only [Heal] and [Detox].
After removing the poison with [Detox], I spent about a full hour using Heal. Fortunately, her face was restored, but her arms, which had been tortured more severely, would likely have so lasting disability.
"Phew... this is the best I can do."
"Thank you, Jin!"
"Didn't Odin say anything?"
"He did, but after seeing Jane's condition, he allowed her to stay this ti."
Odin, seeing Jane's serious condition, apparently couldn't bring himself to throw her out.
"I see. I'm glad. Anyway, I'll rest a bit and then go pay my respects to King Odin and Queen Frigga."
"Okay. I'll have soone take you to your quarters."
"Thanks."
I was guided to a guest room in the palace. I didn't actually need to rest, but it was a kind of show to demonstrate that the treatnt had been difficult. After resting a bit, I went to see Odin.
"I greet King Odin."
"Long ti no see. Have you been well?"
"Nothing special has happened to , but there's a strange phenonon on Midgard (Earth) where various spaces are connecting. It seems because of that, Jane was sent elsewhere."
"Hmm... I see. That is likely the Convergence. The alignnt of the Nine Realms. Unfortunately, she must have been sent to the realm of the Dark Elves."
"I see. Could you tell about these Dark Elves?"
Odin briefly explained about the Dark Elves. The explanation was no different from the original story, but Odin's version omitted any ntion of the Reality Stone. Odin seed to be deliberately hiding it.
"Thank you for the information."
"Anyway, since you're here after a long ti, rest well before you go."
"Thank you for your consideration."
After my eting with Odin, I also t with Frigga. She welcod warmly.
"How is Loki these days?"
"He still has many problems, but I believe they will be resolved as ti passes."
"I see."
Asgardians and humans have different concepts of ti, so when Frigga said 'as ti passes', it probably ant several hundred years. After chatting with Frigga about various things, I returned to my room and spent the day.
The next day, I went back to the hospital. Jane was sitting up in bed, having regained consciousness. Thor, having apparently stayed up all night caring for her, was sleeping on a chair beside the bed.
"Ah... Chairman Jin... I'm sorry... for ignoring your warning... I heard about everything. How hard you worked to treat . Thank you."
Jane apologized as soon as she saw . I approached her and examined her arms, asking about her condition.
"How are your arms?"
"Fi-fine..."
Jane, feeling very sorry, said they were fine, but her arms looked very uncomfortable.
"Please tell the truth. If you don't, the treatnt might beco more difficult."
When I said that, Jane hesitated and then told the truth.
"Well... my right arm has less strength than before, but I can still move it normally. My left arm can only lift about a cup of water."
"Sigh... I'll see if I can find another thod."
"I'm so sorry..."
Just then, the sound of our conversation woke Thor. Seeing that Jane had regained consciousness, he was overjoyed.
"You're awake! I'm so glad, Jane."
"I'm sorry. I was stupid."
Jane apologized to Thor, crying and hugging him. Thor hugged her back, comforting her.
"Don't worry. You're safe here."
Thor told Jane about his exploits and helped lift her dark mood. I quietly left the room, not wanting to intrude, and decided to visit Loki after a long ti. With Frigga's permission, I was easily able to enter the prison.
"Long ti no see, Loki."
"Berserker. Why are you here? Co to gloat?"
"No, I just ca to see you since I was in Asgard. Do you need anything? If I can get it, I'll bring it."
"Then, bring Thor's head."
"Geez... You're as twisted as ever. Alcohol might be hard, but I'll have so food sent in for you."
It was good to see Loki after a long ti. After so wordplay with him, I ended the visit and asked the guard to bring in so snacks and als.
I was spending ti in Asgard in case the Dark Elves attacked, but after two days, nothing happened. They must be unable to find the Aether and wandering around. So I decided to commute between Earth and Asgard and was about to leave when Jane and Thor said they would co with . The three of us took the Bifrost to Earth.
But when we arrived, a breaking news report showed the Greenwich Observatory in England on fire. We hurriedly watched the TV. News reports said that aliens had attacked Greenwich, setting it ablaze, and soldiers and heroes were fighting them. The aliens were none other than the Dark Elves. Estimates said the death toll would be at least a hundred.
"Ah... this is all my fault..."
Thud!
"Jane!!"
Jane collapsed, blaming herself. Thor hurriedly caught her. I had only thought about Asgard; it never occurred to that they might invade Earth directly. The spatial distortion was connected to Earth, so perhaps Earth was the first to locate the Stone's whereabouts. Also, Greenwich was a place where all realms and spaces connected due to the Convergence, so they were probably trying to secure it in advance.
I imdiately contacted Natasha.
"Where have you been all this ti! I'll co get you. Tell where you are."
"We're on the outskirts of London, England..."
When she described the location, the Odyssey-class ship arrived in less than 10 minutes, as it had been nearby. I carried the unconscious Jane and boarded the ship with Thor. Once aboard, I saw that all the mbers were there, along with Director Fury, Deadpool, Hawkeye, and even Banner. Banner had even brought the Hulk Striker Mk. 1.
"What exactly happened?"
Director Fury explained what had happened.
"At the location where the anomaly you told us about was occurring, aliens suddenly appeared and attacked. The soldiers and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents fought back. After so fighting, they retreated, and we thought it was over. But the next day, a large mothership and smaller craft suddenly appeared in the sky and attacked Greenwich. That's how it turned out like this. By the way, where have you been?"
"I was in Asgard, eting with King Odin, Thor's father. That's why I wasn't on Earth. And I've obtained information about the phenonon and the aliens."
Everyone looked surprised.
"Really? That's a relief. Please explain quickly."
I told the heroes exactly what I had heard from Odin. Since I told them only what I had heard, the information about the Stones was naturally omitted.
"I see. So this 'Convergence' phenonon is happening, connecting various planets to Earth right now. And they're an ancient race called the Dark Elves... This is no small matter."
Hearing that, Captain Arica asked ,
"Jin, does that an other races besides the Dark Elves could also cross over?"
"Yes. I think we need to be careful of the Frost Giants of Jotunheim, the Fire Demons of Muspelheim, and the Dark Elves of Svartalfheim we just saw. These races are the most hostile. The characteristics of each race are..."
I explained the characteristics of the races.
"I see. Sigh... What a ss."
Captain Arica sighed. Natasha agreed and added,
"Tell about it. From what you said, this happens once every 5,000 years. What terrible luck. Anyway, we'll have to stay in England until this Convergence passes."
I asked about the battle with the Dark Elves. With the heroes and the military gathered to fight them, they simply retreated. Only a few Dark Elf soldiers had been captured. There was no telling where the Dark Elves might appear next.
If I knew this would happen, maybe I should have let things play out like in the original? Now I have no idea how things will go.
We rested and perford maintenance. Even with this many people on board, the Odyssey-class ship still had room in the quarters and storage. I had built it large, so there was no problem. Tony and Banner had created their own space in one of the hangars for easy deploynt. Fury was constantly on his phone, contacting his superiors.
I took the opportunity to call Darcy and let her know Jane was safe. Darcy told that she had picked up Dr. Selvig from the police station after he had run around naked. I thought Dr. Selvig's gravity control device might be useful, so I moved the Odyssey-class ship to his location to pick him up. Of course, I explained this to the mbers beforehand.
"Wow... So this is the Odyssey-class ship I've only seen in toys and on TV..."
Darcy and Ian were impressed to be aboard the Odyssey-class ship. Selvig shook hands with Thor and Director Fury. I gave them the use of the lab. Jane, having regained consciousness, also helped with the research.
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