After watching the video William provided, both Odin and Kristin immediately realized the truth—this was an alien planet. And with that vast, dense forest, it was absolutely ideal for the World Tree.
Exchanging a look with Kristin, Odin tossed the Ice Hammer into William's hands.
"It's forged with a Uru metal shell, with the Casket of Ancient Winters as its core. This Ice Hammer is not only indestructible, but—like Mjölnir—will respond only to your will.
I've had it inscribed with three enchantments.
First, once you infuse your spiritual power, only you—or someone you designate—can wield it.
Second, the Casket has been permanently fused into the hammer. It can unleash cold and also reabsorb the energy it releases.
Third, even when not in use, it will automatically draw in ambient cold from the universe. And while everything else in space is finite, cold is not. Plus, with Uru's affinity for enchantments, you can add any magic you like."
Following Odin's instructions, William began channeling his spiritual power into the hammer—and to his surprise, the process lasted a full ten minutes. By the time it finished, he was feeling slightly dizzy.
If his spirit power weren't so strong, the hammer might've drained him dry.
Narrowing his eyes, William stared suspiciously at Odin—who just smirked and said cheerfully, "Don't look at me like that. Anyone claiming this artifact would experience the same spiritual drain.
The more you put in now, the harder it will be for anyone to ever override your bond."
Sure enough, once the bond was complete, William could feel the hammer responding to his every thought—as if bound to his consciousness.
Even the ice energy within could be released or suppressed at will.
Gripping it with one hand, he gave it a few practice swings. Then he hurled it toward the outer cliffs of the valley.
With a boom, it flew several kilometers away—and with a single thought, it returned to him at Mach 3, about a kilometer per second.
Just as he was about to test its elemental power—
"Be careful," Odin warned, "This weapon can freeze an entire planet. One wrong move and you might turn Kristin's entire valley into an ice sculpture."
Feeling the vast, nearly immeasurable energy inside the hammer, William decided to try something else.
With the Ice Hammer in his right hand, he used his left—still covered in Sentinel Armor—to conjure a spiraling ice tornado.
Instantly, the surrounding temperature plummeted.
Kristin gasped aloud, and William cut off the spell with a thought.
Incredible. Just holding the Casket-enhanced hammer boosted his ice magic's power by tenfold.
With growing excitement, he tossed the hammer into the air again, then pointed at Odin's Eternal Spear. "Wanna test this baby's physical damage?"
"No," Odin refused flatly.
"If you want to test it, you can borrow the Eternal Spear and hit something yourself," he added.
That made both William and Kristin blink in surprise.
Odin explained, "Any weapon that comes into contact with this hammer will be infected by its cold.
During testing, King Eitri accidentally shattered his ever-burning forge—just from a single clash."
"Seriously?"
William lit up with joy. He immediately hurled the hammer at a cliff a few hundred meters away.
BOOM! The moment the hammer struck, ice spread across the cliff's surface in a sweeping frost.
With another thought, the hammer returned—and the frozen area began to thaw, forming a glowing blue energy orb that flew back into the hammer.
But the sudden temperature shift had already fractured the cliff face. Chunks of rock began to tumble down.
"Now this," William said, his eyes gleaming, "is a real treasure." At that moment, even Odin looked unusually agreeable.
"Let's go, Your Majesty. Time to see my planet."
"Your planet?"
Odin and Kristin stared at him in astonishment. "You actually found a habitable, unclaimed planet?"
Odin quickly added, "And it's not within the Nine Realms?"
William burst into laughter. "Just lucky, I guess. And to be honest, I still don't know the full scope of the Nine Realms, so I can't say for sure whether my planet is inside or outside of them."
Odin only chuckled in response.
William didn't need to think hard. In the Marvel cinematic universe, the "Nine Realms" Odin spoke of weren't even the whole Milky Way—they were likely nine separate star systems scattered across space.
Otherwise, how could all those advanced planets in the galaxy exist outside Asgard's control?
Maybe Odin only realized after conquering the Nine Realms that even if he kept fighting and conquering, it'd be impossible to rule the galaxy—he'd burn through his people before ever reaching that goal.
And the Milky Way itself, 200,000 light-years across, was just a speck in the observable universe.
Human astronomers alone had cataloged more than 100,000 galaxies.
It wasn't that Odin didn't want to conquer the universe—he just realized it was too vast. A man could travel for tens of thousands of years and still not leave a single dent in what was out there.
Even the most ambitious warlord would feel crushed by that reality.
Tossing the Ice Hammer lightly into the air again, William grinned and said, "If you want a smooth ride, put your hand on my shoulder.
Otherwise, no problem—I'm pretty sure I can teleport us all by force, but… I've never tried it before."
Odin just smiled and stepped forward, placing his hand on William's shoulder.
Kristin rolled her eyes and gave her rainbow deer a light kick. The magical beast lowered its head and gently touched its antlers to William's back.
William clicked his tongue. Ever since finding out Kristin wasn't Odin's illegitimate daughter, he'd been feeling… slightly tempted.
With a thought, the three of them vanished.
Back on Asgard, Heimdall—guardian of the Bifrost and all-seeing watcher of the Nine Realms—frowned.
"I've lost track of His Majesty Odin," he said, turning to Thor, who was holding Mjölnir.
"It appears William Devonshire took them far beyond the Nine Realms—possibly even beyond the Milky Way, into another star system altogether."
Thor clenched his jaw. "Damn it. If I'd known, I would've gone with Father."
The surrounding Asgardian generals could only shake their heads helplessly.
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