Stupid Odin

Odin's face was a patchwork of green and white, his mouth working, unsure of what to say. Finally, he stubbornly stated, "Should I not have killed Njord?"

Thanos sighed, "I told you, Njord was able to call upon the power of Vanaheim to fight you because he had gained the recognition of the world's will. Such an enemy cannot be simply killed."

The gods and giants murmured in response.

"Ah, this…"

"Even if you were to kill him, it must be after he refuses to surrender and remains stubbornly defiant. Only then can you kill him."

Odin's eyes turned bloodshot. "Are we just going to let such a fellow mingle among us Aesir?"

In fact, the Aesir were quite xenophobic. Upon hearing Odin say this, these Aesir, whose brains were mostly muscle, felt a little displeased. They nodded slightly, indicating their agreement with Odin's statement.

Thanos's reply, however, was, "That's precisely why I say you're foolish! There are plenty of ways. For example, you could have severed his head, completely destroyed his divine body, and used magic to preserve his life, allowing him to still harmonize the life of the Nine Realms for the world, but unable to do anything else that would threaten the Aesir."

Odin was dumbfounded, and the commotion among the gods and giants could no longer be suppressed.

Odin killing Njord—what kind of ruthlessness was that?

For Njord, death was simply death. But to only leave his head and still make him work for the Aesir, King Thanos's method was truly ruthless!

Frey, kneeling below the steps, and the other Vanir gods like Nesser, were pale with fright.

In reality, Thanos's method was playing out the same scenario from the [Epic] where the two tribes reached a stalemate, and Odin used a borrowed knife to kill the wise giant Mimir, then severed Mimir's head and used magic to preserve it, continuing to use him as a strategist.

With his current level of magic, plus the [Death] and [Magic] divine authorities, he could completely do it.

But when Thanos said it, everyone immediately knew that it was many times more brilliant than Odin's approach.

In the past, Thanos had always considered Odin's reputation, but this time, Thanos wasn't holding back and directly slapped his face.

Hearing his brother's plan, Odin remained stubborn, "Your Majesty, perhaps I am dull, but I really couldn't think of it."

"It's alright if you couldn't think of it. What you truly did wrong was—even if you sensed that what you were doing might be wrong, you never thought to discuss it with me before making the decision on your own."

Odin trembled violently, finally realizing where he had gone wrong. Because he harbored arrogance, he had rejected all of his brother's good intentions and had also failed the trust of his brother and even his parents.

At this moment, even Bor and Bestla turned their heads, unwilling to meet his gaze.

The Aesir and giants in the hall naturally recalled Odin's disastrous and foolish battles over the past three months. The battle prowess of the Paulson brothers might not be as different as everyone imagined, but their handling of matters was indeed worlds apart.

The crowd couldn't help but shake their heads and sigh.

Odin finally lowered his head in shame. "I… I was wrong."

Thanos shook his head slightly.

Odin, I gave you a chance, but you were useless!

"Your actions have disappointed me, but this time, even if you have no merit, you have worked hard. I cannot fail to reward you. So be it, I allow you to become the King of Jotunheim, responsible for forming a branch of the Aesir, guarding the ice plains, eliminating the out-of-control frost giants, and monitoring that cow, relaying messages for the Aesir."

In fact, Thanos already wanted to cut ties with Odin, because one day in the future, when Odin was struck by lightning, Thanos didn't want this guy to transmit the lightning to him. But Odin hadn't done anything terribly wrong, so Thanos had already done the utmost.

Odin's mouth twitched. He wanted to argue, but found himself speechless.

His brother was indeed kind to him.

He led a large army and couldn't conquer the Vanir, and so many mortal troops died, along with several third-rate Aesir and giants like Diaz.

The losses were significant, but the gains were few.

If his brother hadn't helped him clean up the mess, that battle might have been a disastrous loss. Even if he hadn't been tricked, he would still be drinking seawater in Vanaheim.

None of the decisive contributions belonged to him.

He was such a mess, yet his brother still remembered his contribution.

With the title of [King of Jotunheim], Odin had gone from being a direct subordinate of his brother to a vassal with considerable independent authority. This was undoubtedly a qualitative leap.

It was just that his reputation was a bit tarnished, and it was estimated that not many Aesir or giants would be willing to join his command.

If he could eventually lure some demigods with strength close to Valkyries, he should be secretly laughing.

Seeing this, Odin didn't suffer a loss. According to his merits, he could choose a Vanir goddess. He directly chose one of Freya's sisters.

Brother, if you don't give me gods as subordinates, I'll create them myself!

Next, meritorious officials came up one after another to receive rewards, and soon the remaining five daughters of Njord were divided up.

When the distribution drama was almost over, only Nesser, a dozen or so Vanir goddesses with somewhat regrettable appearances, and 7 Vanir gods, including Frey, remained on the scene.

Thanos spoke, "Frey! Are you willing to join the Aesir? If you are willing, I can bestow upon you the title of God of Sunlight and Fertility."

"This…" Frey couldn't quite grasp Thanos's mindset. He didn't know what was so good about fighting for a defeated god like him.

He didn't know, but it didn't mean his sister didn't know.

Freya almost didn't pretend anymore, and she revealed her hand, frantically winking and nodding slightly.

It was completely imaginable how much Freya had sacrificed behind his back…

Frey was out of options.

Without Freya, he would have died in Asgard long ago. It could be said that his life was given to him by his younger sister.

He lowered his head. "Thank you for the generosity and kindness of His Majesty Paulson. I am willing! I only hope that Your Majesty can spare my mother and sisters and not let them suffer."

Frey's words were quite skillful, first agreeing, giving the god-king a way out, and then requesting forgiveness as an inner minister. Thanos had both face and substance.

It must be said that Frey himself was tall, handsome, and extremely marketable. Handsome men and beautiful women are always more likely to be accepted by the other party.

The smart Aesir vaguely guessed that His Majesty the God-King specifically bestowed [Fertility] in order to make Frey work.

So, everyone gave him a fairly warm round of applause, welcoming Frey to directly join the Aesir.

After taking Njord's only son out of the Vanir, Thanos had no more scruples. "I have decided to retain the name of the Vanir. Of course, the Vanir King will be my brother, Vili."

At this time, Frey, who had already been freed from his shackles and stood beside Freya, looked at the extraordinarily handsome Vili and felt a little uncertain.

If this was a powerful Aesir, wouldn't that be the same as wiping out the Vanir?

Who knew that Freya whispered, "Don't worry, he's actually a bit silly and doesn't understand anything."

Frey thought he understood everything: In the end, it was Freya who, seeing that the Vanir were about to collapse, worked hard behind the scenes to whisper sweet nothings, which allowed His Majesty Thanos to spare the Vanir.

Tears of gratitude welled up in Frey's eyes. "Sister, you've worked hard."

"Alas! I hope everything is worth it."