Diana was a bit stunned after being thrown out.
Lying on the ground and contemplating life for a brief moment, she finally realized: she had just been thrown—by a "normal human."
As the proud and dignified Amazonian princess, her face instantly flushed red with shame, and a surge of anger rushed to her head.
"Raaah!"
The once graceful princess of the Amazons had no trace of elegance left. She threw off her cloak, revealing her red and blue battle armor, and charged forward with a furious roar.
Seeing Diana's overwhelming aura, Todd instinctively took a step closer to Peter.
Fueled by rage, Diana charged straight at Peter.
Boom!
Her fist sliced through the air and slammed into Peter's raised arms.
A blast echoed like thunder between them as the impact shattered the air.
Having failed to land a clean blow, Diana quickly regrouped and stepped back, then launched another punch.
To her shock, this guy was actually able to block her attacks.
Who the hell is this mysterious man?! Could he be... a god too?
Though Diana was deeply surprised, her hands didn't slow down.
She swung another heavy punch toward Peter's chin—fast and forceful.
Peter blocked with his forearm and used the recoil to slide back a few steps.
But Diana didn't relent. She followed up with a close-range, spinning roundhouse kick aimed at his midsection.
Peter tilted his body slightly to evade it.
He didn't use rune magic right away; instead, he wanted to test the limits of his physical body against Wonder Woman's strikes.
Unaware that she was essentially being used as a benchmark, Diana closed in again, unleashing a flurry of punches like a barrage of sledgehammers.
This time, Peter didn't dodge. He chose to meet her close-quarters combat head-on.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Fists collided with muscle, sending shockwaves through the air.
They exchanged several rapid blows. Diana grew increasingly alarmed.
This strength and speed… there's no way he's human!
Her mind raced to figure out Peter's identity.
After a short clash, Peter finally created some distance and began constructing a rune using celestial energy on his hand.
As he completed the Lightning Rune, Diana came charging in again. Peter grabbed her wrist and immediately activated the rune.
Just as Diana was about to knee him, lightning exploded around her in a blinding flash.
Electric arcs enveloped her completely, numbing her body in an instant.
Boom!
She was sent flying, crashing hard to the ground, her whole body trembling.
Staggering back to her feet, Diana gritted through the strange sensation, only to discover that Peter had completely vanished—along with Todd Burley.
Furious, she slammed her fist into the ground.
This shameless bastard… he better hope I never find him again!
After driving Diana back, Peter quickly fled the scene with Todd in tow.
From the earlier exchange, he had confirmed that his physical strength alone was slightly inferior to Diana's.
This Amazonian demigoddess, born of Queen Hippolyta and Zeus, might not match Superman's raw power, but she was still among the best.
While his physical prowess couldn't quite match hers, Peter was confident that with rune magic, he could defeat her.
However...
That woman has a bunch of divine artifacts, a whole army of sisters and godly relatives. If she calls reinforcements, it's going to be a hassle.
Peter fell into deep thought.
If she can call backup, can't I call my son too?
That idea took root instantly.
"Urgh!"
Beside him, Todd finally couldn't take the high-speed movement anymore and vomited everything in his stomach.
Peter frowned at the mess but shoved the idea of "calling his son" to the back of his mind for now. He turned and asked, "Alright, you're safe now. Todd, tell me—what do they want?"
After a few moments of catching his breath, Todd's pale face turned toward Peter.
"They're looking for a woman."
"What kind of woman?"
"A pregnant one. She's my ex-girlfriend. We broke up a long time ago—and the baby's definitely not mine."
Peter: "...?!"
He narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
A pregnant woman being hunted by multiple factions—even Wonder Woman was involved.
What is she carrying… the second coming of God?!
The next morning, at dawn.
John received a call from Peter while at the farm.
"Dad?"
"John, are Loki and Star-Lord with you?"
John nodded. "Yes, Dad. They're upstairs."
"Good. Take both of them and head to Metropolis. I'll call your school to excuse you."
"Dad, did something happen?" John asked, frowning.
"No, just taking precautions."
Peter offered a few words of comfort before hanging up.
Even after the call ended, the worry on John's face didn't fade.
"Star-Lord, Loki—we need to head to Metropolis."
He called out as he walked upstairs.
Star-Lord quickly came down. "Something wrong?"
"It's sudden. Dad told us to regroup with him. Where's Loki?"
"I saw him in his room earlier. Told me not to disturb him."
"Did he…"
John immediately had a bad feeling in his gut.
Thinking of this kid's long list of past offenses, John quickly walked up to Loki's door and bam!—pushed it open with force.
Inside the room, Loki was pacing back and forth, holding a book and occasionally shouting toward the door, "Hey! I'm studying! Go away and don't disturb me!"
At that moment, even Star-Lord realized what was going on.
Loki had tricked them again with another illusion clone.
John's eyes flashed with heat vision, and with a crisp snap, he shattered the illusion Loki had left behind.
"What should we do? Should we tell Dad?" Star-Lord asked John.
"No. We can't."
Though clearly angry, John quickly regained his composure. "He must've sneaked out to do something shady. He'll probably be back soon. We'll just leave him a note."
Right now, John wasn't too concerned about Loki—he was more worried about what was happening with their father.
Meanwhile, having successfully fooled both John and Star-Lord, Loki had already arrived in Georgetown.
Disguised as a young man, he was currently eating at a place called Sunshine Café.
The café had cheerful yellow walls, with sunlight streaming through curtains as sheer as gauze.
Loki casually handed a bill to the waitress. "One latte, please. Also—may I ask, who are those people over there?"
The day before, Loki had wandered around Georgetown, conning quite a bit of money using illusions that blurred the line between truth and fiction. Most ordinary people were no match for his tricks.
Now, he curiously asked the waitress—who had a narrow waist, narrow shoulders, and an enormous backside—"Are they regulars?"
In the corner where Loki pointed, several people in black robes were seated.
"No, they're not. They're from a nearby church. I've never been there, though."
"Church?"
At the mention of the church, Loki's interest was piqued.
It was rumored that The Book of Magdalene had once been hidden by the Church. Maybe these clergy members knew something.
Loki subtly moved closer to the group dressed in ecclesiastical garb, and using his superior hearing, tried to catch snippets of their conversation.
It didn't take long for him to understand their intentions.
These church members were preparing to attend a ritual hosted by Marbury Ayla, a local aristocrat, at his private castle.
But this wasn't any ordinary ritual—these people seemed more like cultists, preparing for something taboo and forbidden.
Intrigued, Loki immediately hatched a plan.
When one of the clergy excused himself to go to the restroom, Loki quickly followed.
Inside the bathroom, the young cleric finished relieving himself and went to the sink to wash his hands.
He pulled back his hood and looked at his reflection in the mirror, squeezing a newly sprouted pimple.
After popping it, he nodded in satisfaction.
Once he'd washed up, he couldn't help but look up and admire his handsome face again.
And that's when he saw something that froze him in place.
Two identical versions of himself were reflected in the mirror!
No—wait!
One of them wasn't in the mirror. One of them was standing next to him.
He swallowed hard and slowly turned to his left.
There he saw someone who looked exactly like him, staring back with an amused smile.
Before he could scream, the doppelgänger clapped a hand over his mouth.
A wave of drowsiness washed over him, and his body went limp.
—
A minute later…
The bathroom door opened.
Loki—now perfectly disguised as the young cleric—walked out and thoughtfully removed the "Out of Order" sign from the door.
After straightening his robe, Loki rejoined the other church members.
Luckily, the person he had impersonated didn't seem very popular, so no one approached him for conversation, keeping his cover intact.
After a quick bite at the café, the congregation—led by their leader—boarded a van and headed for Marbury Ayla's castle in the suburbs.
When they arrived, Loki looked up at the dark, overcast sky.
In this desolate place stood a lone castle, surrounded by pine trees, a few of which had crows perched on them, cawing harshly into the gloom.
Loki tightened the scarf around his head and followed the group into the castle.
As soon as he stepped inside, he was greeted by shades of black and gray.
The castle wasn't the grand structure he'd seen on TV; rather, it was filled with the stench of decay and death.
Charred walls and half-burned debris spoke of a terrible fire.
The clergy began murmuring amongst themselves.
Loki quickly pieced together what had happened here.
A year ago, a great fire had ravaged this place. Nearly all of the castle owner's wife and children perished in the flames.
Even Marbury Ayla himself had been disfigured by the fire.