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*****
"You actually studied Groot-speak?"
Fini's face was a mask of sheer astonishment.
"Yes, an elective course. At the time, I thought it might be relatively simple to learn, but who knew it would be so difficult!" Thor complained, a hint of regret flickering across his features.
"Can I learn it?"
Fini's interest was piqued. Groot-speak was a language not even his translator had cataloged. However, since the number of Flora colossi was exceedingly rare, its absence hadn't caused much of an issue.
"Uh..."
Thor blanked for a moment, looking at Fini's curious expression with a total lack of comprehension. Nonetheless, he pointed out where the textbooks were located in the library before continuing, "What do you plan to do out in the cosmos?"
"No specific goal. I just want to see some aliens and things like that!"
Fini didn't tell Thor his real motives: grinding for experience points and finding a steady food source for his Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
Thor nodded, showing no particular interest. While he rarely left the boundaries of the Nine Realms, he wasn't entirely a stranger to other star systems.
"There are no issues with the Tesseract or the Scepter, I assume?"
Thor had always worried that those two artifacts would bring disaster to Earth. Yet, as of now, Earth seemed to be the most stable realm in the Nine Realms aside from Asgard itself.
"No issues at all!"
Fini also didn't mention that the Tesseract was essentially gone, having been transformed into what was now "Dragon Food."
As they made small talk, Thor's mood shifted from his earlier excitement and joy to a somber low. Perhaps because he was seeing Fini, he found himself missing Earth—and missing Earth meant thinking about his girlfriend.
Thor was never one for hiding his feelings. The expression on his face made his thoughts so obvious that Fini couldn't help but ask, "Missing your girlfriend?"
Thor shook his head, took a massive gulp of ale, and said slowly, "Heimdall says she's doing very well. She's a professor at that... 'S-ton' University. She's very popular!"
"By the way, don't you have any treasures that can extend a person's lifespan?" Fini asked out of genuine curiosity.
Even if Jane's life were extended by five thousand years, Fini suspected Odin still wouldn't approve of the marriage. But at the very least, it wouldn't be like this—where she didn't stand a ghost of a chance.
Thor's face darkened, and he shook his head. "I know of things that consume a life, but as for increasing one... I asked my mother, and even she has never heard of such a thing."
Fini was slightly surprised by this; it seemed Thor had indeed considered the idea of extending Jane's life.
"I see."
Fini could only sigh. In truth, he actually could extend someone's life now. Using Zafkiel: Dalet, he could reverse a person's time. As long as he kept reversing their time before they died of old age, it would technically be a form of immortality. Of course, the prerequisite was having enough "time" of his own to consume as fuel.
The banquet lasted until very late. Four consecutive days of revelry didn't seem to faze the Asgardians in the slightest, but for Fini, it was exhausting. Fortunately, this was the final round.
The next morning, Fini woke up early. He didn't rush to the library to find the Groot-speak books Thor had mentioned; instead, he went to check on the status of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
For the past several days, he hadn't returned the dragon to its card state, setting a new record for its longest continuous existence.
Fini didn't know exactly how wealthy Asgard was, but the fact that they could build a palace this massive out of gold made it clear they were loaded. Consequently, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon had been living more comfortably than he had, doing nothing but eating and sleeping every day.
Upon seeing him, the dragon let out a soft hiss. While it hadn't developed a fully sentient or independent consciousness, it wasn't a total puppet either.
After thanking the maids and guards who had been caring for the dragon, Fini decided not to recall it to the card. He wasn't sure exactly how the "dragon food" Asgard provided was manufactured, but based on his observations, the energy density wasn't much lower than a small Arc Reactor. If the dragon could eat its way to an evolution right here in Asgard, that would be for the best.
Fini then set off for the library to study Groot-speak, but he was intercepted halfway by the Warriors Three.
"I knew you'd be heading here again today!"
Fandral looked like he'd predicted the move perfectly. He reached out and grabbed a bewildered Fini. "We absolutely cannot let you stay cooped up in that library today. We're taking you somewhere interesting."
After spending the last few days together, their relationship had grown increasingly friendly—mostly fueled by alcohol—which was why Fandral felt comfortable being so boisterous.
"But I actually find your library quite interesting!" Fini said helplessly as Fandral and Hogun each grabbed an arm and began dragging him away.
"That's only because you haven't seen the rest of the city yet!" Volstagg added from the side. "Today, we are taking you to a place where men belong!"
"Oh?"
Fini blinked. Volstagg's words made his heart race slightly. A place where "men belong"... could it be the kind of place he was imagining?
However, when they reached their destination, Fini realized he had been mistaken. Volstagg had brought him to a place resembling a gladiatorial arena. In the center stood a warrior and a massive beast that Fini couldn't name—it was enormous, thick-limbed, and incredibly hideous.
"This is it?"
Fini felt a wave of disappointment. He had expected something more… intriguing. It turned out they were just here to watch people fight, and fight a monster that ugly, no less.
Watching the warrior narrowly dodge a strike from the beast, Volstagg cheered along with the crowd. He turned to Fini and said, "Now this is where a warrior should be!"
Fini rolled his eyes, choosing not to reiterate that he was a mage. He watched the monster's frenzied attacks and allowed a flicker of interest to show.
"What kind of beast is that?" Fini asked Fandral.
"A Frost Beast. A creature from Jotunheim. They possess great strength and speed, though they are a bit dim-witted. They usually prefer cold environments."
Fini took another look at the ugly creature, feeling a bit surprised. The battle in the arena was fierce; the cheering and shouting never stopped. Influenced by the atmosphere, Fini found himself watching with some enjoyment.
The only issue was that both the Asgardian warrior and the Frost Beast seemed a bit weak.
Over the past few days, Fini had realized that not all Asgardians were god-like. Ordinary Asgardian soldiers weren't impossibly strong. The truly powerful ones were those of Odin's bloodline or those who had awakened specific divine powers, like Heimdall or Frigga.
"Speaking of which, you seem to have a massive white dragon!"
Fandral suddenly asked about the Blue-Eyes White Dragon with curiosity. "Heimdall mentioned it seemed to appear out of thin air. No one has ever seen a creature like that before."
"It was summoned by my magic. If I'm not mistaken, it's the only one of its kind in the entire universe," Fini explained. Internally, he couldn't help but think that Heimdall certainly seemed to be spending a lot of time watching him.
(End of Chapter)