CHAPTER 66: CHAPTER 066: HELA INFILTRATES THE AVENGERS! BECOMES FRIENDS WITH WANDA!

After being forcibly teleported to the Avengers Compound by Lorien, Hela looked around. For the moment, nothing seemed out of place.

Then, in the next instant—

"Beep, beep, beep~~~~!!!!"

The Avengers Compound’s intelligent security system blared to life.

"Bang, bang, bang~~~!"

From the floor to the ceiling, massive alloy shutters began dropping over the windows, sealing off the interior of the compound.

One glance at her surroundings told Hela she had wandered into somewhere she shouldn’t be. With a sharp motion, she pulled on her cloak, waved her hands, and summoned the Nightsword.

Almost immediately, figures began appearing throughout the compound as superheroes arrived one after another.

Oddly enough, only Natasha, Vision, War Machine, and Wanda emerged tonight. The others were nowhere to be seen.

The assembled heroes stepped outside. Natasha, gun in hand, walked forward with the others and called out to Hela.

"Who are you, and why did you invade the Avengers Compound?"

War Machine, who had just wrapped up a press conference and hadn’t yet left, glanced at the report inside the base before speaking.

"She appeared out of nowhere. Might have magic. Stay alert."

He raised the twin machine guns in his hands.

Wanda, however, studied Hela with a faint frown. Something about her felt... off.

"What is it, Wanda?" Natasha asked immediately. As the team’s strongest combatant at the moment, Wanda was under Natasha’s close watch.

"Nothing," Wanda replied, though she hesitated before adding, "I just thought I felt Lorien’s aura."

Her feeling wasn’t wrong. Hela had indeed been teleported here by Lorien.

When Hela heard Wanda mention him, her curiosity was piqued.

"You know Lorien?"

The Avengers exchanged brief glances before Natasha stepped forward.

"Which Lorien? Give us his full name."

"Lorien Su."

That was all it took. Natasha and Wanda locked eyes—so they really did know him. But was that good or bad? What if she was an enemy?

Lorien might be a laid-back Nine-to-Five type, but in a world this vast, there could easily be people who despised him for exactly that.

After a moment’s thought, Natasha lowered her gun but didn’t let her guard down.

"You know Lorien. What does that have to do with you invading the Avengers Compound? State your reason clearly, or leave."

Hela didn’t need it spelled out. From their reactions, it was obvious they knew Lorien—and likely knew him well. If she fought them, she’d essentially be fighting his friends. That would make getting his help later completely impossible.

So, after a moment’s consideration, she dismissed the twin Nightswords in her hands, shifted back into her leather jacket, and offered a smile.

"Lorien sent me. The teleportation wasn’t prepared properly, so there was a little accident. I don’t even know exactly why he sent me... maybe to help me get to know you—and him—better?"

As expected, the moment they heard Lorien’s name, the tension eased. Weapons were lowered. The fact that Hela had already put hers away as a gesture of goodwill helped as well.

It also didn’t hurt that she had changed her hairstyle, outfit, and makeup beforehand. If she still looked the way she had earlier, no amount of explanation would have convinced them.

Still, Natasha remained cautious.

"Identify yourself and tell us where you’re from. And tell me—what is Lorien wearing today, and what car was he driving?"

Everyone present agreed that this was a fair test.

"I’m Hela Odinson, from Asgard," she replied after organizing her thoughts. "Lorien’s car is red, and today he’s wearing a black jacket over a white shirt."

She didn’t know the make of his car, but she remembered the color from when she had pinned him earlier. The clothing was even easier—she’d been close enough when Lorien pinched her cheek that evening to catch the faint, fresh scent of laundry detergent on him, a clean and airy fragrance.

"Hela Odinson? You’re from Asgard!"

The moment they heard her surname and place of origin, War Machine and Natasha immediately realized she came from the same place as Thor.

"What’s your relationship to Thor?"

"Thor?" Hela replied. "He’s my younger brother."

Natasha frowned, thinking it over. She had never heard anything about Thor having a sister. But she had already asked what needed to be asked—there was no hostility from Hela, no sign she wanted to attack.

Keeping both sides in a standoff like this wouldn’t help anyone, so Natasha exchanged glances with the others. Those who agreed to let her in gave a nod, while those who didn’t simply stayed still. In the end, everyone nodded.

"All right, you can come in," Natasha said.

Hela smiled at that and stepped into the Avengers Compound.

As they walked, Hela quickly noticed a pattern—whenever Lorien’s name came up, everyone instinctively looked to Wanda first. Moving alongside her, Hela asked with a faint smile,

"Lorien is a great man, don’t you think?"

The group, mid-step, suddenly paused. Wanda’s eyes narrowed slightly as she studied Hela.

"What are you trying to say?"

Hela immediately realized she’d chosen her words poorly—and just as quickly understood that Wanda must have a close relationship with Lorien. Otherwise, her question wouldn’t have been met with such scrutiny.

"No, I mean he’s very strong, very capable," Hela explained quickly. She needed to gather as much information about Lorien as possible, and winning over his friends was part of the plan. She had learned the value of such alliances in her years of war.

Wanda’s expression softened, and she nodded.

"Yes. Lorien is wonderful. He’s the best man in my heart."

The affectionate words drew reactions from the group.

"Come on, Wanda—if you keep gushing like that, we’re going to get jealous."

"It’s the truth," Wanda replied with a smile.

Hela nodded as well. From what she could tell, Lorien was not the type to be cold in matters of the heart. He treated people with respect, yet was also... romantic. Otherwise, how would Gwen and Wanda both be here?

In Hela’s eyes, the strong could indeed have many wives. Strength was the only true measure. If you were powerful enough, you could do whatever you wanted. What was wrong with marrying more women, so long as you loved them all?

To her, that would only prove you were a charming, capable man with the leadership to manage such relationships—a rare and highly sought-after prize among women.

On this point, she gave Lorien an exceptionally high score.

Once inside, Natasha poured everyone a glass of ice water. They each took a seat on the sofas, chatting casually while subtly feeling out Hela’s intentions.

Of course, everyone knew what topics were safe. They stuck to past events—various crises they had faced. Wanda, having dealt with several recently, did most of the talking, recounting the incidents she and Lorien had been through, from the rat swarms to the lizard and more.

Hela quietly absorbed every detail.

Suddenly, a head appeared above the living room—it was Tony’s 3D projection.

The sudden appearance startled Hela at first; for a moment, she thought someone else had teleported in. The projection was so lifelike it was nearly indistinguishable from reality.

She recognized it immediately, though—because she could sense the presence of life and death. And Tony’s projection... had neither.

"What’s wrong, Tony?"

Noticing Tony’s expression, Natasha immediately sensed something was off.

Tony was about to speak, but when his eyes landed on Hela, he looked around at the others and asked,

"Who is she? There’s no record of her anywhere on Earth."

Natasha glanced at Hela and explained,

"Her name is Hela Odinson. She’s from Asgard—Thor’s sister."

"Thor has a sister?"

Tony froze for a moment, but once he heard she was Thor’s sister, he seemed more willing to continue. Still, he needed to make sure.

"Are you the type to kill indiscriminately—like that reindeer, Loki?" Tony asked.

Hela shook her head. "I can promise I won’t kill indiscriminately in Midgard."

Midgard?

The others exchanged looks. It was something Thor had said before—Midgard was just what Asgardians called Earth.

That was fine by them. As long as she didn’t start killing people here, what happened elsewhere wasn’t their concern.

"Good," Tony said, getting to the point. "We’ve got a situation. According to Friday, Cap secretly took Winter Soldier, Hawkeye, Falcon, and Ant-Man to the Leipzig-Halle Airport in Germany."

War Machine frowned. "What are they doing there?"

Tony’s expression darkened.

"They’re planning to protest the enforcement of the Sokovia Accords. If this happens, the Avengers will take a serious hit, and we might be disbanded entirely. I need you all to rest up now—tomorrow, we’re flying out on my private jet to stop them from doing something stupid."

The room went quiet. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to go—it was the implication. Going meant acknowledging that the Avengers were splitting into two factions: Cap’s liberal side and Tony’s conservative side.

In other words... the Avengers were about to have a civil war.

Tony looked around the room.

"I know you’re hesitant, but this has to be done. You can stay neutral if you want, but the Avengers are my father’s legacy. I’m not letting them fall apart because of Cap."

His words struck a chord. And truthfully, Cap had been the one to act first, taking his team without so much as a discussion.

Why didn’t he talk to them?

Why didn’t he explain?

Why didn’t he make things clear?

That lack of communication felt like a betrayal.

One by one, they exchanged glances and nodded.

"No problem. Tomorrow morning."

After settling the matter, Natasha suddenly remembered something and turned toward Hela.

"You..."

The others followed her gaze, realizing there was still an outsider in the room.

What were they going to do with her?

Hela noticed all eyes on her. There was no way she was going to pass up a chance to be included—especially after what she’d just overheard. They were going into battle. If she could help them, that would mean helping Lorien’s friends... and that could only improve her chances of winning him over.

With that thought, she took hold of Wanda’s arm.

"I can help too. If you need another fighter, call me. You’re all Lorien’s friends—I can help you as well."

The group exchanged looks again. They didn’t know her exact combat ability, but she was from Asgard, same as Thor, and she claimed to be his sister. She couldn’t be weak.

And right now, they could use every fighter they could get.

"All right," someone said. "Rest up with us, then."

...

The next morning, at eight o’clock, Lorien woke up with Gwen in his arms. Feeling that soft warmth again, he couldn’t help but give it another squeeze, a twist, and—cough, cough.

"Mmm..."

Still fast asleep, Gwen let out a soft nasal sound, then reached over to cover Lorien’s hand, stopping him from moving.

She clearly wasn’t in the mood to play anymore, so Lorien withdrew.

Snap!

With a flick of his fingers, the entire room was spotless again.

He got out of bed and headed for a hot shower—not because he needed it, but simply for the comfort. After all, the magic he’d just used had already left even the still-sleeping Gwen perfectly clean.

When he finished, Lorien wrapped a scarf around himself, returned to bed, and pulled out his phone to check for any new messages or news.

As expected, the headlines were predictable.

[Scarlet Witch resolves another crisis! Giant monster decapitated and destroyed!]

[Citizens once again suggest Scarlet Witch leave the Avengers and team up with Spider-Woman to form the Superhero Goddess Alliance!]

[The Superhero Goddess Alliance gains massive public support! A Male God Team also appears, but after heated internal disputes, it disbands!]

Pfft...

Lorien couldn’t help laughing at that last one.

Male God Team fans were always at each other’s throats, while the Goddess Team fans... well, they were all shameless bootlickers. Nothing to fight about there—at most, they’d get into debates over who was prettier.

Still, something about it struck him as odd.

Right now, the Goddess Team had only two members: Wanda and Gwen. One was lying beside him, and the other... well, she was about to.

If that ever came to light, would he still be able to show his face in public? Probably not.

If he were just an average guy, it might not matter. But someone as ridiculously handsome as him? He’d stand out even more.

Yeah... probably best to start keeping a lower profile.

After deciding that, he scrolled through the rest of his messages—and spotted one from Wanda, sent in the middle of the night.

[Lorien, a woman came to the base. She says her name is Hela, from Asgard—Thor’s sister—and that she’s your friend.]

[Cap secretly took people to oppose the Sokovia Accords. Tony’s taking us tomorrow to stop him, and I want to go see for myself.]

[But Hela’s coming too. We’re already on Tony’s private jet, heading to Germany.]

[Hela says she’ll help your friends.]

[I don’t know who she really is, but something about her feels strange.]

Lorien: ...

Wait, what?

What happened last night?

How did you two become friends?

Why is Hela suddenly going to help you fight Cap?

What kind of storyline is this? I’ve never seen this episode before.

He sat there on the bed, stunned. How could the plot change this much overnight?

This was... nuclear-grade nonsense.

Hela, making friends? Shouldn’t she be flying off the handle and "fighting it out" with the Avengers instead?

He’d imagined plenty of possible outcomes—Hela getting kicked out, Hela clashing with the Avengers—but never this.

Hela, friends with the Avengers?

Friends with Wanda?!

What are you doing, Hela?

His gut told him there was only one explanation—Hela had some other motive. And it was definitely connected to him.

"Mm..."

Just then, sensing he was back, Gwen shifted closer in her sleep, wrapping her arms around his thigh.

Lorien gave her a light tap and cleared his throat.

"Aren’t you going to school?"

"It’s a holiday..." she mumbled. "Today’s Saturday..."

Right. He’d forgotten. Students got two full days off. Must be nice.

...

(80 Chapters Ahead)

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