When the afterglow of the setting sun was about to set below the horizon, a distant and desolate drumbeat echoed through the vast banquet hall, pulling everyone into an enormous battlefield within a second.
Traditional Asgardian music is the bugle call for warships setting sail and the war drums for powerful God Clan warriors marching to battle.
The art developed by the longest-standing military state in the universe is always filled with sharp killing intent. The more ruthless it is, the grander and more heart-shaking it becomes.
The lavish and glorious ballroom fell into a brief silence the moment the hasty music began.
Multicolored guests, their faces full of feigned warm smiles, the cold indifference and utilitarianism within their eyes leaked out with the rough strumming of strings. The drumbeat just vacated a beat when countless elegant figures stepped onto the dance floor with civilized steps.
Shoes pointed like swords, skirts swayed like blades, beneath the feast on a broader field of fame and benefit, certainly concealing many more mysteries.
Pair after pair of figures smoothly performed the trending dance steps of the interstellar society. Hela's black hair grazed over Tony Stark's shoulder, another pair of figures swept past the edge of the dance floor behind them.
Loki unusually wore a backless white dress favored by the Asgardian goddesses, her hair braided into several thin braids, gathering into a complete circle at the back of her head, holding a few dewy flowers, with the remaining hair cascading down like a waterfall.
Shiller was in traditional English formal wear, which, even in human society, is seen as extremely formal. Coupled with a monocle hanging from a golden chain, the look became even more old-fashioned.
This doctor rarely attended events in full dress, but for the wedding of the King of Asgard, even the most elaborate attire could not be considered too much.
"What do you think your sister talked about with Tony?"
Shiller was spinning with Loki on the dance floor, however, in this environment, dancing was not the theme. Everyone was using the intimacy of the dance as a chance to talk about what they wanted.
"Ragnarok." Loki answered without hesitation. She sighed lightly and said, "Hela is only interested in this matter now. If it weren't for her being much weaker than Thor, she would never be here."
"I just learned about this legend of the Crown Princess." Shiller retracted slightly, creating space for Loki to spin, his tone filled with a hint of lament, "Do you think there might be a moment when Odin actually feels regret? This beautiful and powerful princess should have been his life's masterpiece."
"Odin has long regretted."
Loki was as determined as ever, her eyes always holding a coldness that other goddesses lacked when she transformed into a goddess. There was a hint of mockery in her voice: "People always thought that when Asgard had another princess, Frigga would be the happiest."
"But I know, every time I appeared in front of Odin as a princess, it was as if I was stirring that thorn in his heart."
"Perhaps this is my greatest act of retaliation. Only regarding Hela, the Father of All Gods cannot utter a word of clear conscience."
Shiller shifted with the beating drums, moved to Loki's side, changing places, and sighed lightly, "Anyway, the former famed princess will never return. Her last legend, the mission to end the fate of the gods by her own hands, also ended the moment Thor became the King of Brightness."
"You don't know what Tony Stark plans to do, do you?" Loki changed the topic.
"Without a doubt, his target is gods." Shiller paused slightly, as if deliberately suspending the suspense. Seeing Loki's brows furrowing, he continued, "But not your type of gods. You are only clans who utilize cosmic power. His goal is greater."
"Aren't you afraid he'll really cause trouble?"
"You asked Tony the same question, didn't you? But your target at that time was me."
Loki was slightly taken aback, and finally shook her head. She said helplessly: "I never thought that one day, I would be begging on behalf of the God Clan to you humans, asking you not to involve Asgard in your crazy struggles."
"There's no such good things in this world." Shiller stared into Loki's eyes, "You want to use human wisdom but don't want to bear their madness. You know how tightly these two are entwined in the human soul. Perhaps now, it's time for you to pay the price."
Loki's gaze went past Shiller and landed on another pair of figures in the dance floor. Those were Thor and Sif.
The newlywed king and queen entered the dance floor amid the cheers of everyone. But Loki knew, including herself, the people of Asgard wouldn't have the opportunity to celebrate the royal wedding so peacefully.
Just like Shiller said, human wisdom changed everything, and they must bear the madness that came with wisdom.
The madness to unite and walk down this path was interrupted due to unrealistic emotional impulses and dissatisfaction, igniting fights amongst themselves.
But perhaps every intelligent lifeform is mad. Their love and hatred compel them to fight forever. Asgard is no different.
Thor withdrew his gaze, again casting his eyes on the slightly worried look on Sif, like a dutiful husband, he wrapped her in his broad arms, allowing her to spin freely in the dance floor without worrying about bumping into others.
Sif, unusually, was dressed in a magnificent dark gold gown, her hair spun into a complex and intricate bun, with only the hair at her forehead falling down, making her appear mature and gentle.
She looked at her future husband, still handsome, strong and full of masculine charm. The royal attire bestowed an elegant and cultured demeanor that balanced his wild temperament. He is the dream lover of all goddesses in Asgard, Sif thought.
But he is not just her husband, but also the Divine King of Asgard, the monarch of all people in Asgard. The relationship between the royal family and the family household has always been filled with mysterious entanglements, most of which are difficult to reconcile.
"Heimdall…" Sif somewhat struggled to say the name.
"I know, I know, Sif." Thor replied to her, he said: "The Father of All Gods trusts your brother so much, giving him the control of the Rainbow Bridge, the most important weapon in Asgard. But a fleet restructuring and personnel adjustment are inevitable. You should trust me, trust your husband, this is just a temporary pain."
"Of course." Sif lowered her eyes, with another pause in the music beat, she exchanged positions with Thor and then resumed dancing. The future queen subdued her slightly low voice, instead she spoke as gently as possible: "I certainly trust you, Your Majesty, I just worry that my brother has been lonely at home for too long, my other relatives might feel sorry for him."
"So that's how it is, since they have such high hopes for Heimdall, then I believe they would also like to have more important positions in the fleet vacated for Heimdall to fully decide…"
Sif let out a gentle breath, as if to breathe a sigh of relief, she pat Thor's arm lightly. The pain in her brow vanished, she watched Thor's face closely, using the remaining private time in this wedding to appreciate her handsome husband.
"I told you, Sif will learn quickly."
Another pause in the drumbeats, Frigga, still smiling gently, turned twirling lightly, her arm on Odin's shoulder.
Odin's face remained unchanged, he said in his usual low tone: "Since ancient times, no matter which royal family, dealing with relatives is an unavoidable issue. I am glad, I do not have to worry about this during the rapid development of Asgard."
"Yeah, since you killed my entire family, you naturally never had to worry about this." Frigga's smile didn't falter, the gentle goddess just shook her head slightly, she remarked somewhat ruefully: "But you always forget, when I went from being the first mage of the Nine Major Kingdoms to the most beautiful Queen of Gods."
Odin held Frigga even tighter, as if he was seeking some sense of security from this control.
He had known for a long time that his beautiful wife was not as gentle as she appeared on the surface. Odin favored Thor, while Frigga favored Loki. Odin had once scoffed at his wife's choice in his heart.
After all, she no longer had the backing of her natal family, and Loki was physically weak, Odin believed that as long as he held all the power, she and their son would have no chance.
But now, Loki's tactful performance proved that Odin had indeed underestimated Loki. If things were to develop as the Father of All Gods arranged, this younger son would eventually deliver a fatal blow to him.
Without the power of the Divine King, Odin still had to depend on the affection between Frigga and their son, to make these two brothers, and even his eldest daughter, remember his merits other than his failure in family education.
"I have abdicated, let's no longer bring up the past, my dear, focus on dancing." Odin bowed his head and kissed Frigga on the forehead, he said.
The drumbeats became faster, the music louder, the smiles on everyone's faces grew warmer, as if they were enjoying the joy of dancing, or perhaps in these private conversations during the brief moments of intimacy, they were getting the results they wanted.
The hem of the dress slid across the shiny shoe's surface, the metal ornaments shone with dazzling light, the shiny ray trailed over the smooth hair, with the last heavy drumbeat and the high-pitched music falling together, suddenly the entire scene became silent.
The hem was gathered, the hair fell, a perfect dance ended. The guests of all races cast their gaze on the Divine King in the center of the field, and as Thor extended his arm to applaud, everyone joined in applause as the hosts of the banquet.
The enthusiastic applause echoed far away in the empty banquet hall, outside the Fair Palace's colorful glass window, the golden sunset slowly sank below the bridge, the last ray of afterglow in an elegant posture drew the curtain of the night.
Hearing no other drumbeats, the people in the banquet hall knew that the dance was truly over, so they turned and walked towards the dining and beverage tables, intending to discuss the dance with new targets.
Stark and Hela, Shiller and Loki, Thor and Sif, Odin and Frigga, they all turned to different directions and walked away.
But just as the last person turned away, a breeze blew down from the skylight above, followed by a dull falling sound.
"Bang!"
A corpse fell from the sky.
It was the queen of the Shi'ar Empire. Everyone turned back, only to see blood and the hem of the dress blooming on the ground simultaneously, like a flower of golden and red interlaced.