Facing the increasingly fierce attacks, William quickly realized that the seemingly unreliable little elf, Bell, likely held a high status among these elves.
Otherwise, knowing that their attacks were ineffective and that William had yet to retaliate, these magical elves wouldn't have been so unreasonable as to continue attacking. At the very least, they should have sent someone to negotiate.
Or perhaps this place was their sacred land, something they were willing to defend with their lives, meaning any outsider would be attacked on sight.
If there really was some kind of treasure, William might not hesitate to take it for himself.
However, the situation was unclear, and forcing his way in would undoubtedly result in casualties. Since the elves refused to negotiate, he'd have to force them to the bargaining table.
Confirming that the energy fluctuations in front of him were indeed an energy barrier, William concentrated his mental power on a single point and struck the barrier like a spike.
With a loud "clang," a wave of pale blue energy rippled through the air, spreading out in water-like undulations for hundreds of meters before dissipating back into the barrier.
This wave also allowed William to catch a blurry glimpse of what lay beyond the barrier—a small town with hundreds of various buildings and streets.
"I didn't expect this planet to have a town established by elves."
Far from being surprised, William was delighted. If there was a town, that meant there was potential for communication and trade. There was even a chance that these magical elves possessed valuable treasures or unique products.
Before William could think further, over a hundred reinforcements arrived inside the magical barrier. They joined the guards at the edge of the barrier and launched another wave of magical attacks at him.
Unfortunately for them, these hundred-plus spells merely accelerated the energy recharge of the sentinel robots, which could absorb energy.
"Ungrateful creatures," William scoffed. Once again, he focused his mental power into a spike and struck the invisible energy barrier with another "clang."
This time, the barrier shook even more violently, the ripples spreading even farther. It seemed as though one more strike would shatter it completely.
As William observed the situation inside, he suddenly froze.
With just one glance, he spotted a young girl with long golden hair, dressed in a pure white robe with a hood, holding a gilded staff, and seated atop a giant elk with massive antlers that radiated multicolored light.
However, this stunningly beautiful girl wore an expression of slight fear, looking worriedly at William, who was clad in his golden sentinel armor, and at the five three-meter-tall sentinel robots beside him.
Frowning in thought for a few seconds, she began chanting a spell, and the staff in her hands emitted a beam of light that shot straight into the sky, disappearing dozens of meters above.
Seeing this magic, William immediately became cautious. He activated the "Echo of Aikern," leaving behind a physical doppelgänger capable of casting spells, while his real body instantly teleported several hundred meters away to the valley entrance, hidden from view.
But after waiting for a while, aside from the elves gradually reducing their magical attacks, no powerful spells appeared—something William had initially feared.
Having sent out a distress signal and seeing that William was no longer attacking the magical barrier, the girl on the radiant elk finally breathed a sigh of relief. She removed her hood and lowered her head, speaking to the small elf, Bell, who was constantly apologizing beside her.
As soon as she took off her hood, revealing her pointed ears, William, who had been pondering her identity, was stunned.
He silently recalled Bell's mention of someone named Christine—could she be this elf?
Hmm, according to Norse mythology, golden-haired, fair-skinned beings should be Light Elves.
But weren't the Light Elves supposed to be extinct?
Even if some had survived, their kind was known for their love of beauty. It didn't make sense for them to associate with the small elves, who looked ridiculously ugly.
Meanwhile, in the divine realm of Asgard, Heimdall, standing on the Rainbow Bridge and constantly observing the Nine Realms, suddenly noticed a peculiar light.
In less than a second, he reacted—ordinary light should not have caught his attention.
Looking through layers of darkness and vast distances, he saw the Light Elf Christine riding an elk, as well as the struggling magical elves attempting to cast spells.
Then his gaze fell on the sentinel robots, absorbing magical energy while draining the elves' mana, and on William, surrounded by the sentinels without retaliating.
Inside Asgard's royal hall, the King of the Gods, Odin, sat upon his throne, gripping the eternal spear, Gungnir, as he listened to his subordinates report daily affairs.
Everyone was rejoicing over Asgard's continued prosperity when Odin, who had been maintaining a calm smile, suddenly twitched his ear. He received an urgent message from Heimdall.
With a gentle tap of Gungnir against the ground, a resounding "clang" echoed through the hall. Everyone immediately looked up at Odin, waiting for his command.
"This meeting ends here. You are dismissed."
"Yes, Allfather Odin."
Without question, the Aesir gods bowed and left.
Seated on his throne, Odin, guided by the Rainbow Bridge and Heimdall's sight, witnessed everything happening with the Light Elf Christine.
His expression turned anxious. Without much thought, he began to say, "Summon Thor..."
But the moment he mentioned Thor, he suddenly paused, considering something.
After a moment of contemplation, he raised Gungnir and tapped it against the throne once more.
Deep within Odin's Vault, the Destroyer armor, which had been guarding the treasury, stepped out from its hidden dimensional space.
Without alerting any Asgardians, it was instantly transported into the Rainbow Bridge.
Moments later, Heimdall directly sent it to the elves' valley.
"Cease your attacks."
Upon seeing the Destroyer appear, the Light Elf Christine immediately called out to the magical elves, "Return to your posts and reinforce the magical barrier!"
The Destroyer armor cast a brief glance at Christine before turning toward William's magical doppelgänger in midair.
"Identify yourself, outsider."
William sneered, glancing at the three-meter-tall Destroyer armor. Seeing the Rainbow Bridge appear, a quick look at its boiler-like head was all he needed to confirm that this was Odin's armor.
And the voice speaking—without a doubt, it was Odin himself.
What surprised William, however, was that the Allfather of the Norse gods couldn't see through his identity.
Was it the energy-absorbing properties of the sentinel armor preventing Odin from discerning him?
Or was the vast distance making it impossible for Odin to learn who he truly was, despite his divine power?
As he pondered, the Destroyer armor's head suddenly ignited with flames, firing a beam straight at his magical doppelgänger.
Startled, William immediately ordered the sentinel robots to intercept the beam.
In an instant, four of the five sentinels teleported to the Destroyer's side.
Two of them unleashed thick bolts of lightning at its head, while the other two lunged onto the Destroyer, absorbing its energy at point-blank range.
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