Chapter Seventy-Seven: The Gem of Reality

Jane Foster was suspended in midair by the power of Malekith, the Dark Elf King, while Thor, his right hand severed by Loki, could only lie helplessly on the ground and watch.

Malekith stretched out his right hand, and a dark red, sand-like substance slowly emerged from Jane Foster’s body, gathering toward his palm. Just as the last of the Aether particles were drawn from Jane, a massive beam of golden energy shot down from the sky, striking Malekith square in the chest!

Arthur, who had been hiding nearby, seized this moment; Loki rushed in to carry Jane away, while Thor summoned lightning to strike the Aether particles.

Boom!

The Aether particles exploded under Thor’s thunder, shattering into countless tiny red fragments. Just as Thor and Loki believed their plan had succeeded, the red fragments stirred.

They gathered toward Malekith, forming a red gemstone before him.

“Hand him over to me!” Arthur said, standing beside Malekith.

At that moment, the Cursed Warrior and the other Dark Elves realized Arthur had somehow appeared among them. Malekith’s eyes turned yellow—clearly, Arthur had taken control of him with the Mind Stone. The red gemstone floated to Arthur, who seized it in his hand.

“No!” The Cursed Warrior tried to stop him, but it was too late. The surrounding Dark Elves, as if petrified, stood frozen in place.

Arthur’s right hand was clad in a green glove set with a yellow stone. He placed the red gemstone into a slot beside the yellow one. Instantly, red energy exploded across Arthur’s body, as he endured a tremendous surge of power.

Just then, the Cursed Warrior seized the opportunity, producing a spatial compression bomb and hurling it at Arthur. The bomb detonated on him! Space contracted violently, and Arthur vanished without so much as a scream.

“No! Arthur!” Thor was devastated by what he witnessed. Loki and Jane were equally shocked—was Arthur truly dead?

Thor rose in anger, charging at the Cursed Warrior and engaging him in fierce combat.

The other Dark Elves broke free from Arthur’s control, regaining their mobility, and moved to surround Loki.

Malekith, released from Arthur’s influence, advanced to deal with Loki, while Jane hid to the side.

Thor was no match for the Cursed Warrior. Even Mjolnir was struck away with a single punch, and Thor was pinned to the ground, battered mercilessly.

Loki, too, was forced back by Malekith and the Dark Elf soldiers, suffering several sword wounds from Malekith.

In this moment of extreme peril, a beam of yellow energy shot from the side, blasting the Cursed Warrior off Thor.

“Imagination is reality! Using it for the first time takes some getting used to.” Arthur appeared in his original place, wearing a golden crown and armor, holding a golden trident.

Arthur’s green glove was now set with both the yellow and red gemstones, glowing faintly.

“Arthur! You’re alright?” Thor was overjoyed to see Arthur alive—it was unimaginable that he had survived.

“The Aether! Impossible! How are you able to wield the Aether?” Malekith stared at the red gemstone in Arthur’s hand in disbelief.

Thor turned to Malekith, spotting Loki lying motionless at Malekith’s feet, a sword embedded in his chest.

“Loki!” Thor caught the returning Mjolnir and, in fury, unleashed lightning to blast Malekith away. He ran swiftly to Loki and cradled him in his arms.

“Loki!! Wake up!” Thor held the lifeless, bloodless Loki in his arms, tears falling as he saw the sword protruding from Loki’s chest.

Hmph, quite the performance! Arthur knew Loki’s tricks—there’s no way Malekith could kill him so easily. Loki must be trying to escape Thor’s control, but Arthur saw no need to expose him.

“Hand over the Aether!” The Cursed Warrior charged at Arthur, aiming a punch at his chest.

As the Cursed Warrior struck Arthur’s chest, Arthur’s body dissolved into countless bubbles, vanishing into the air.

“I’ll play along with you for a while!” Arthur’s figure appeared atop a massive boulder nearby.

With the Reality Stone in hand, Arthur could now experiment with his earlier ideas, using the Dark Elves for practice.

“Water Style! Who built the dam?” Arthur shouted with dramatic flair, his right hand’s red gemstone shining brightly.

The ground trembled, leaving the Dark Elves bewildered. Suddenly, a colossal wave surged from behind Arthur, dozens of meters high, crashing toward them.

How could such a giant wave appear in a land where rain never falls?

Everyone was stunned by the sight; Jane Foster closed her eyes in fright as the wave rushed upon them, sweeping all the Dark Elves away into the distance.

Thor, holding Loki and Jane, stood untouched, the water diverting around them.

Arthur approached Thor, patting his shoulder in reassurance. Jane rose and moved to stand beside Thor.

“Leave them to me,” Arthur said.

The enormous wave carried the Dark Elves far away before dissipating, leaving Malekith, the Cursed Warrior, and the others sprawled on the ground, vomiting seawater.

“Impossible! Impossible!” Malekith could not accept this reality—someone was wielding the Aether directly! He had no idea Arthur’s right hand bore the Infinity Gauntlet forged by the King of Nidavellir.

Moreover, with other Infinity Stones in combination, Arthur was immune to the Reality Stone’s backlash.

“Board the warship!” Malekith led his forces onto the nearby Dark Elf warship, which soared toward Arthur and his companions.

“Fire!” Malekith ordered, and the warship unleashed a barrage of red lasers upon Arthur and the group.

Explosions erupted where Arthur and his companions stood, engulfed by countless red beams.

“Where are you aiming?” Arthur and the others appeared on a distant hillside—the Reality Stone had shifted their location.

Arthur raised his trident, and, empowered by the Reality Stone, the Mind Stone’s energy beam doubled in strength, turning its yellow glow to orange.

A massive orange beam fired instantly at the Dark Elf warship, piercing it and causing a tremendous explosion.

The warship plummeted from the sky, crashing onto the black earth and shaking the ground violently, utterly destroyed.

The hatch opened, and Malekith, bloodied, staggered out, with the Cursed Warrior seemingly unharmed.

Another orange beam shot from Arthur’s trident, striking Malekith in the chest.

Strike while the iron is hot! Arthur acted decisively.

Malekith’s chest was burned through by the high-temperature orange beam, and he was utterly killed.

“No! Your Majesty!” The Cursed Warrior cried out in anguish.

He charged at Arthur, only to be blasted away by another orange beam. His resilience was remarkable—he could withstand the Infinity Stone’s energy.

He produced another spatial compression bomb and hurled it at Arthur; it exploded above Arthur’s head, flames shooting out.

Then he witnessed something extraordinary—the exploded bomb reversed like a video playback, returning to its unblasted state and flying into Arthur’s hand.

“Return to sender!” Arthur tossed the bomb back at the Cursed Warrior, where it detonated, violently compressing space and sucking him in. The Cursed Warrior vanished in a flash.

“Done!” Arthur dusted off his hands and addressed Thor.

…