"Hmph!"
"I don't need a mere agent like you to teach me how to do things."
After speaking, without waiting for Coulson's response, General Hoffman directly hung up the phone.
Hearing the busy tone in his ear, Coulson couldn't afford to be angry.
Thinking about the cruise missile that would descend in one minute, enough to destroy the entire town of Poonce, every hair on Coulson's body stood on end.
He immediately contacted Hawkeye and other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, ordering them to evacuate Poonce Town as quickly as possible to escape from the doomed border town.
"Are we really just going to leave like this, Coulson?"
On the other side, after receiving Coulson's order, Hawkeye hesitated as he heard faint groans and cries for help coming from the ruins not far away.
"There are still many civilians trapped in the ruins of the town. If we leave like this, what will happen to them?"
"There's no time, Clinton. In just a few minutes, that monster turned Poonce Town into rubble. The monster at the center of the town is a severe threat to the safety of the Federation. The military has already decided to launch a cruise missile in one minute, erasing that creature and Poonce Town from the map. If we don't leave now, we won't make it out either."
"As the commander of this operation, I must take responsibility for your lives."
After explaining to Hawkeye, Coulson immediately shot out the window of a relatively intact pickup truck by the roadside.
He opened the door, climbed into the car, and fiddled with it for a dozen seconds before the aged pickup truck roared to life with the rumble of its engine.
"Not bad."
Successfully starting the pickup truck, Coulson's expression relaxed slightly.
Just as he placed his hands on the steering wheel, Hawkeye, who had been running over from the distance, flipped over and jumped into the bed of the pickup truck Coulson was driving.
But compared to just now, Hawkeye's eyes now held a trace of sadness.
"Let's go."
Through the rearview mirror, seeing Hawkeye get into the truck, Coulson didn't hesitate. He slammed down the accelerator, driving the pickup truck at full speed toward the outskirts of Poonce Town.
Excluding the time it took to start the truck, they didn't have much time left.
He had to leave this border town that was about to be completely reduced to ruins before the cruise missile struck.
And, if possible, he had to get as far away as he could.
After all, General Hoffman never mentioned which type of cruise missile he was using this time.
If the missile's yield was large enough, even escaping outside of Poonce Town might not be safe.
Meanwhile, Hawkeye, filled with guilt, looked silently at the partially collapsed Poonce Town in the distance and muttered to himself:
"Sorry, this is all I can do."
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On the other side.
Inside the Holos Air Force Base.
General Hoffman, who had just hung up the phone, immediately sent the video of the Destroyer's attack that left most of Poonce Town in ruins and its ability to withstand six Hellfire missiles unscathed to the Department of Defense.
As soon as the video was successfully sent, General Hoffman directly called the Department of Defense, sternly stating the threat posed by the Destroyer and formally requesting permission to launch a cruise missile to eliminate the threat.
As one of the nation's most powerful weapons, second only to nuclear bombs, cruise missiles could not be launched lightly.
Even though General Hoffman was only requesting a low-yield cruise missile, the process was no different.
However, after watching the video sent by General Hoffman, the Department of Defense eventually approved his proposal.
They were determined to make the Destroyer, who had ravaged Poonce Town, pay the price.
Although the Federal Department of Defense was known for its efficiency, the intense discussions that followed General Hoffman's proposal still took quite some time.
But this delay provided a slim chance of survival for the remaining civilians who hadn't evacuated yet.
When the cruise missile, trailing a scorching tail, soared into the sky from the Holos Air Force Base...
On the battlefield of Poonce Town...
Thor had once again lost a friend.
Even the only surviving goddess, Sif, was covered in wounds.
Wiping the blood from the corner of her mouth, Sif handed the shield engraved with magical runes in her hand to Thor.
Looking at the Destroyer gradually closing in, Sif gave Thor a reluctant smile.
"Sorry, Thor, but I'm afraid I can't fight by your side any longer."
"But, if our deaths can open your eyes to Loki's true nature, then it's worth it."
"Thor, you are the true king of Asgard. We believe you will shatter Loki's schemes, return, and reclaim your throne."
After giving Thor a firm embrace, Sif whispered in his ear, "Go find Heimdall. He will help you."
With those words, Sif immediately dashed forward, charging towards the Destroyer.
As a goddess of Asgard blessed with divine power, Sif was far stronger than the Warriors Three.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have been the main attacker in the previous battles.
"Earthquake!"
Covering a hundred meters in an instant, Sif stomped her right foot, infused with the power of the earth, just as the Destroyer's body began to glow red, preparing to unleash an attack.
With a flash of earthy yellow light, the ground beneath the Destroyer instantly collapsed, forming a deep pit several meters deep.
Caught off guard, the Destroyer plunged into the pit.
"Good opportunity."
Seeing the Destroyer buried in the pit she had created, Sif's eyes lit up. Without hesitation, she channeled most of her divine power into her right hand and smashed her fist into the ground before her.
Under the force of Sif's divine punch, the ground shattered instantly.
An incomparably heavy punch force penetrated the ground and seemed to gain some sort of power boost, crushing toward the Destroyer in the pit like a tidal wave.
"Tricks of the weak."
Half-buried in the pit with only its head exposed above the ground, the Destroyer uttered these disdainful words.
Then, the destructive beam that had been charged up was suddenly unleashed.
The next second.
The destructive beam, imbued with the power of annihilation, clashed fiercely with the attack propelled by Sif's earth power.
Boom!
In an instant, dirt and stones exploded everywhere.
Sif's strike, empowered by the power of the earth, could easily bring down a tall building. But when facing the destructive beam fired by the Destroyer, her initial overwhelming momentum quickly faltered.
Under the relentless force of the Destroyer's beam, Sif's attack was completely overpowered and driven back.
Seeing that his dearest childhood friend Sif was about to be killed by the Destroyer, something within Thor finally erupted.
The thunderous power buried deep within him raged forth under the stimulus of pain and anger, shattering Odin's seal.
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Crack!
Crack!
Over the ruins of Poonce Town, dark clouds rapidly gathered.
Countless silver lightning snakes appeared and converged within the clouds.
Finally.
A lightning bolt as thick as a barrel descended from the clouds, striking straight down upon the figure filled with fury at the center of the town.
Amidst the endless radiance of lightning.
The ordinary clothes Thor had been wearing instantly disintegrated, revealing his powerful, proud physique.
Yet, his body had barely been exposed to the air for even a second before scale-like armor plates began to form within the lightning, enveloping Thor's naked body with a special battle armor.
Under the baptism of lightning, Thor felt an unprecedented surge of power.
Meanwhile, at the temporary S.H.I.E.L.D. base outside Poonce Town, the previously immovable Mjolnir embedded in the ground suddenly began to tremble.
Sensing the familiar power, Mjolnir responded to the call.
It shot into the sky instantly.
In the blink of an eye, several sonic booms erupted around the hammer as it traveled at an unimaginable speed, covering dozens of miles before appearing in the hands of Thor.
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The moment Thor forcefully broke through Odin's seal with his own power, he swung Mjolnir towards the Destroyer without hesitation.
Wrapped in thunder and lightning, Mjolnir smashed directly into the Destroyer's face, interrupting its attempt to kill Sif by knocking its destructive beam off course.
Seeing that powerful figure surrounded by lightning and clad in a red cape reappear before her, Sif's eyes flashed with unmistakable joy.
"Thor..."
············································
With a wave of his hand, Thor called Mjolnir back to him.
Surrounded by raging thunder, Thor looked at Sif and said, "Sif, you should rest. I will handle the Destroyer from here."
At this moment, Thor, who had forcefully broken through Odin's seal by unleashing the powerful divine energy within his bloodline, was far stronger than the Thor in the original story, who had to sacrifice himself to end the battle and earn Odin's forgiveness.
Feeling the raging thunder power swelling within him, Thor's eyes glowed with silver lightning as he cast a cold glance at the Destroyer in the distance.
Having ascended to a whole new level of thunder power, and with Mjolnir now returned to his hand, Thor was confident he could defeat even the mighty Destroyer armor, which had been forged with great effort by his father and had once swept through the Nine Realms.
Thinking of this, Thor stared coldly at the Destroyer and said, "Loki, it's fine if you target me, but you should never have targeted my friends, nor should you have killed them."
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On the throne of Asgard.
Seeing Thor's powers fully restored through the Destroyer's vision, Loki's expression turned grim.
"Damn it."
"Why? I didn't even touch Thor. I only killed a few traitors, yet Thor has awakened?"
"Righteousness? Trials? What nonsense!"
"What he's doing now has nothing to do with justice or kindness."
As he spoke, a hint of indescribable disappointment flashed through Loki's lowered gaze.
"Heh, Father, you are so biased."
"In that case, don't blame me."
Closing his eyes and burying that final trace of hesitation deep within his heart, Loki removed all restrictions on the Destroyer and gave his order:
"Destroyer, kill him. Kill them. Kill everything alive before you."
"Understood, Your Majesty."
Hearing the cold, mechanical voice coming from the Destroyer, Loki handed over all authority concerning Earth to the Destroyer, which had long since developed a will of its own.
As for himself...
He had something even more important to attend to.
Leaving the palace, Loki rode to the Rainbow Bridge and, without wasting any time, used the Casket of Ancient Winters to freeze Heimdall, who guarded Asgard's gate, solid at the entrance.
Looking at Heimdall, who was now encased in ice, Loki said coldly, "I suppose you've already seen the fate of Hogan and the others. Secretly allowing traitors to descend to the mortal realm, Heimdall, the crime you committed this time is no less than theirs."
"In consideration of your thousands of years of guarding the gates of Asgard, I will give you one more chance. But if you fail to grasp this opportunity, don't blame me for finding a new, impartial guardian for Asgard."
··································
Just as Loki became utterly disillusioned with Odin's favoritism and resolved to carry out his plan...
A fierce battle was simultaneously unfolding on Earth.
With all restrictions lifted, allowing the Destroyer armor to act freely, its combat ability, augmented by Odin's previous battle experiences, was far superior to what Loki could achieve while controlling it.
Even when facing the immensely enhanced Thor, the Destroyer fought on equal footing.
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(End of Chapter)
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