- Asgard.

Far above Midgard, beyond the veils of clouds and starlit mist, the realm of Asgard stood in serene splendor.

Golden spires pierced through the luminous sky, their peaks glimmering beneath the eternal light of the Allfather's domain.

The rivers shimmered with liquid aether, flowing through floating bridges that curved across the firmament like woven light.

Every breeze carried the faint hum of divine resonance, the living pulse of Yggdrasil flowing through every stone, every breath.

And upon the edge of that sacred horizon stood a solitary figure, unmoving, vigilant, eternal.

Heimdall.

Guardian of the Bifröst. Watcher of Nine Realms. The Eye that Never Sleeps.

Clad in silver-gold armor that caught the light like living fire, Heimdall's gaze stretched beyond what any god or mortal could comprehend.

His eyes... pale as dawn, deep as the world's roots... saw not with sight alone, but through the very vibration of existence. Every whisper of thought, every shift of energy, every spark of life, all flowed through the river of Yggdrasil, and through him.

And yet now… something wrong pulsed through that river.

It wasn't a disturbance... not quite. It was the absence of one.

Heimdall's brow furrowed as his sight focused upon Midgard, the silent realm.

For an eternity, it had been hollow. Lifeless in magic, severed from the flow. But at this moment, deep within that quiet void, he saw a flicker.

No, not a flicker, a presence.

Something, someone, sat calmly amidst a world devoid of Mana, drinking tea beneath a dead sky. He saw three figures, two radiant with light, one shrouded in something he could not define.

The two were familiar, the Princesses of Light, Thalia and Elaria, their essence unmistakable.

But the third…

Heimdall's grip on his greatsword, Hofund, tightened slightly. His gaze sharpened, trying to read the man's nature.

At first, he thought it was a void, a tear in Yggdrasil's sight. But the longer he looked, the more it looked back.

The Watcher of Realms... Is seen.

For the first time in ages, Heimdall blinked.

From the silence of Midgard, the man raised his head, eyes meeting the distant heavens.

He smiled, faintly. Not mockingly. Simply as one who noticed.

And then, as though answering an unspoken challenge, the world around him shifted, not through power, but through Concept. Light bent. Shadow deepened. Time itself seemed to hesitate for a single, imperceptible heartbeat.

In that instant, Heimdall's perfect sight fractured.

Just a flicker, a shimmer in perception, but it was enough to send a chill through even his god-forged nerves.

He drew a long, controlled breath, reasserting his focus. The vision stabilized, but the man was gone. Not moved, not hidden, simply... unregistered.

Impossible.

Heimdall stepped back from the edge of Bifröst, his hand gripping Hofund tighter as divine resonance surged through his armor.

Golden runes flared to life across the rainbow bridge as he reached into its heart, channeling the pulse of Yggdrasil directly toward Valaskjálf, the Allfather's hall.

---

Arriving at the great hall, a vast dwelling roofed with pure silver, its pillars carved from the heartwood of Yggdrasil itself.

Heimdall stepped into Valaskjálf, the seat of the All-Father. The air shimmered faintly with divine resonance; each breath carried the weight of countless worlds.

At the far end of the hall stood Hliðskjálf, Odin's high throne, forged from the essence of stars and shadow, from here, the All-Father could gaze upon all Nine Realms, seeing through mist, distance, and even time itself.

Odin sat there now, draped in dark-gray robes lined with golden runes that pulsed gently, like the heartbeat of the cosmos. One eye gleamed with the wisdom of countless eons; the other, the hollow void where Mímir's sacrifice once rested, seemed to see even deeper.

When Heimdall entered, Odin's gaze shifted slightly, calm, knowing, ancient.

The Guardian knelt, bowing his head. "All-Father-"

"I know," Odin said before Heimdall could speak. His voice was deep, heavy with quiet authority, echoing faintly through the silver hall. "The tremor in Yggdrasil's flow, I have felt it as well"

He paused, his gaze turning toward the horizon seen through Hliðskjálf's vision. "Call Thor. Let him handle this"

Heimdall's grip on Hofund tightened. He hesitated.

There was no need to question Thor's might, the Thunderer was the embodiment of divine strength, unmatched in battle across the Nine Realms. But this… this was different.

"Forgive my insolence, All-Father," Heimdall said finally, his tone respectful yet strained. "I do not doubt the power of the God of Thunder. But this being... even my sight cannot measure his strength. He exists beyond the current of fate, beyond Yggdrasil's pulse itself"

For a long moment, silence filled the hall. The sound of distant storms echoed faintly from beyond the silver walls.

Odin did not answer immediately, his gaze remained fixed upon the void of Midgard, where the disturbance had taken root.

Finally, he spoke, slowly, deliberately.

"…Then ask Loki to accompany him"

The words hung heavy in the air.

Heimdall's eyes flickered with subtle surprise. Loki, the Trickster, the God of Chaos and Deceit. To send both the hammer and the serpent's tongue together meant only one thing: Odin was uncertain.

And when the All-Father was uncertain… the Realms trembled.

--------

- Back with Taufik.

"I can't," he finally said. His tone was still calm, but there was weight behind it, the kind that made even Thalia instinctively reach for her blade.

Then his voice dropped lower. "Because we have a visitor"

The air rippled. A low hum filled the sky, deep and resonant, like the sound of reality straining.

And then it came, a blinding column of prismatic light pierced through the heavens, crashing down not far from where they stood. The ground trembled as the Bifrost Bridge descended, scattering streaks of rainbow radiance across the area.

Taufik said nothing, only watched.

Thalia and Elaria, however, tensed instinctively.

The Bifrost was no ordinary gate, if it had opened here, it could mean only one thing: Asgard had sent its gods.

As the brilliant light faded, two figures stepped forth from the dissipating rainbow mist.

The first was a towering man, broad-shouldered, his crimson hair and beard catching the lingering glow of the Bifrost. His eyes burned with the untamed ferocity of a storm, and in his right hand, he held a hammer of divine craftsmanship, short-handled, yet impossibly heavy with power.

Beside him stood another figure, tall and regal. His features were sharp and unnervingly composed, his red hair gleaming like polished flame.

His eyes, unlike the first's wild intensity, were cold and calculating, fire restrained by intellect. He held a slender staff, its tip forged into the shape of a sword, pulsing faintly with magic.

Elaria's breath caught. Thalia's eyes widened.

There was no mistaking them.

The gods of Asgard had come... Thor, the God of Thunder, and Loki, the God of Deception.

"Hohh~ That's interesting," Taufik murmured, his gaze not on them but on the shimmering remnants of the Bifrost. "So the real thing is quite different from the movies... Lembuswana would've liked this"

A small smile tugged at his lips. "It's a shame he's still not awake"

Thor's brows furrowed. The mortal's tone- no, this being's tone, was too casual, too dismissive. Insulting, even.

The god of thunder lifted Mjolnir, its runes flaring with divine light as he leveled it toward Taufik.

"You," Thor's voice rumbled like distant thunder. "Who are you? What business do you have here? Are you invading the Yggdrasil?"

Taufik turned his gaze lazily toward him and raised a brow. "…And who are you?"

"!!!"

Thalia and Elaria both tensed, disbelief flickering in their eyes. Was he serious?

It was impossible not to recognize the figures before them, Thor and Loki, one is the son of Odin, while the other is the Blood-Brother of Thor's Father, Odin, yet Taufik's expression was one of genuine indifference.

A soft laugh escaped from the so-called Loki, melodic and taunting, which only deepened Thor's irritation.

Then Taufik's eyes shifted, calmly, sharply, toward the hammer in Thor's grip. The runes reflected in his pupils as realization dawned.

"Ah… I see. That hammer, so you're Thor." His gaze then moved to the red-haired trickster beside him. "And the one beside you…"

For a moment, his expression turned thoughtful, then faint amusement crept across his face.

"Hmm~ This one…" he muttered, voice low, "…isn't real, is he?"

Thor blinked. "What?"

Taufik's eyes glowed faintly, his tone steady and cold. "Good deception, but this level won't work before my eyes. Come on," he said, turning his head slightly, gaze fixed somewhere else, far beyond the false image, "…show yourself"

The air shifted.

Even before Thor could react, the "Loki" beside him smiled wider, too wide, and began to fade, dissolving into mist and laughter.

"What?!" Thor spun around, fury igniting. "You're not the real Loki?! Where's that bastard hiding?!"

*Clap* *Clap* *Clap*

A slow round of applause echoed through the forest, soft at first, then rising, resonating from every direction as if the very air mocked them.

"Exactly as Heimdall said…" a voice drawled, smooth and amused. "You… what are you, really?"

The voice was unmistakable, silken, clever, and laced with mischief.

"Loki! Where the fuck are you?! Don't hide, you coward!" Thor roared, his voice booming like thunder across the trees. Lightning crackled faintly along Mjolnir's edge, illuminating the clearing in flashes of blue-white light.

Taufik didn't move. His expression remained calm, though his eyes subtly shifted, tracing the movement of something unseen through the folds of reality itself.

"..."

From somewhere above, a soft groan escaped.

'This stupid son of a bitch…' Loki cursed inwardly, watching from a perch of mist and shadow as Thor's temper boiled over.

"Lok-" Thor started again, but before he could finish-

*Sigh*

The sound came from behind Taufik.

Loki stepped out from thin air, as if peeling himself from another layer of existence. His appearance was fluid, like an oil painting coming to life, robes of emerald and black rippling with illusionary texture, his smirk perfectly poised.

He gave a theatrical bow. "Really... must you always shout my name like a lovesick bard? You'll wake the whole forest"

Thor gritted his teeth. "Stop hiding behind your tricks and speak plainly, Loki"

"Oh, but that was me speaking plainly," Loki said lightly, before turning his attention to Taufik. His smirk faded, replaced with something colder, calculating. "You... you saw through it. Even Heimdall's sight can't pierce my illusions so easily"

Taufik met his gaze, calm and unbothered. "That's because I'm not Heimdall," he said quietly.

For a moment, silence hung between them. Even the forest seemed to hold its breath.

Then Loki's smile returned, faint but genuine. "Fascinating"

Thor frowned, glancing between them. "Enough riddles. If he threatens the Realms, I'll crush him here and now!"

But Loki raised a hand slightly. "No… not yet." His tone had shifted, less playful, more wary. "You might want to think twice before swinging that hammer. This one," he said, eyes narrowing on Taufik, "isn't something you can simply strike down"

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