DOTM: Chapter 224: Casket of Ancient Winters

"As an Asgardian with a long lifespan, what do you think about children?"

After glancing around, Diana turned her head and asked Loki, who was standing next to her. He was the only other Asgardian present and the one most similar to her. With over a thousand years of life experience, his perspective held more weight.

“Random.”

Loki took pride in his identity as a god race and often looked at ordinary people with the attitude one might reserve for ants. But that range definitely didn’t include Diana, who could easily beat him into a pulp and was also a god race.

As for Diana’s question, Loki couldn’t actually offer any real advice. He could only share the general view of most Asgardians.

If it happens, fine. If it doesn’t, that’s fine too.

With their long lifespans and extended prime years, they had many opportunities to consider having children. Even if they didn’t have any for a while, it wasn’t a big deal.

Diana nodded. This way of thinking suited beings with long life spans. But right now, she was just a young woman in her twenties. She had only asked out of curiosity and wasn’t thinking about having children any time soon.

So, the conversation quickly shifted to other topics.

Through this breakfast interaction, Selene and Loki gained a preliminary understanding of life on the ship and a rough sense of this world's situation.

Ethan gave Selene a reworked set of learning tools and explained how to use them so she could learn the local language and get a general sense of this world. He also introduced the basic setup aboard the ship.

“Although it looks like a very primitive sailing ship, some infrastructure can still meet basic living needs.”

There were household amenities like automatic water supply and lighting. Although the magic stone-based systems were novel, they weren’t any harder to use than tech-based devices. Even though Loki still mocked the ship’s ‘primitive technology,’ he had to admit it was far better than living on a truly backward sailing vessel.

The Goddess of Dawn also had a lot of tech Ethan had brought back from the Marvel Universe. Maybe it lacked some luxuries, but at least it had a functioning tablet.

“It’s just a pity there’s no internet.”

That minor regret didn’t bother the others. The only one who cared was still asleep in her room.

After explaining the ship’s layout, Ethan also introduced the crew.

Logan, the nominal first mate, was actually the only true crew member. Laura was more of an addition, a decorative piece. Until she grew older, she couldn’t be considered an official member. Ethan and Logan both agreed her job right now was simply to enjoy her childhood.

As a mutant, Logan had an exceptionally strong self-healing ability. Almost nothing could kill him, and he could use his immortal body to deliver devastating counterattacks or even fatal blows in desperate situations.

When Loki heard about Logan’s powers, even he, who normally dismissed “ordinary people,” felt a twinge of unease. He hadn’t expected this rugged, slightly unkempt man to have such terrifying capabilities.

Maybe Logan couldn’t really hurt him, but with that immortal body, he could completely tie him down, giving Ethan time to unleash a variety of attacks.

Loki had already judged that even if Diana clearly stated she would be returning to her own world, it didn’t mean he could do whatever he wanted aboard this ship.

After that, Diana gave a brief introduction. Selene already knew Diana was a demigod, the daughter of the legendary Zeus. She had no particular reaction, except to feel that this world seemed increasingly insane.

After all, she herself wasn’t considered normal by most people. Vampires were already creatures of legend, although clearly a lower tier than the gods.

Loki was also a kind of god, but his lineage was somewhat more complicated.

His father was Odin, but only as an adoptive parent. Loki’s true bloodline was that of a Frost Giant from Jotunheim. However, he was raised in Asgard, inherited Asgardian magical knowledge, and became the most powerful mage in Asgard aside from King Odin and Queen Frigga.

Thanks to his Frost Giant bloodline, his physical attributes were also incredibly strong. His strength, speed, and reflexes were far superior to Logan’s. Years of battle had also honed his exceptional combat skills. In short, Loki's overall strength was formidable.

“By the way, is the Casket of Ancient Winters still in your hands?”

The Casket of Ancient Winters was the treasure of the Frost Giants, kept in Asgard’s vault for a long time. In the first Thor movie, this artifact was stolen by Loki. Given his personality, even after being caught several times, he likely never returned it.

“Are you thinking about the Casket of Ancient Winters? I suggest you give up on that. With your current strength, you can’t control its power.”

Loki wasn’t mocking Ethan—just stating a fact.

The Casket of Ancient Winterswas different from the Cosmic Cube. The Cosmic Cube was a true masterless treasure. As long as one found the right method, anyone could use its energy.

By contrast, the Casket of Ancient Winters had an access threshold—you had to possess Frost Giant blood to use its power.

If an ordinary person recklessly tried to use it, the most likely result was being frozen by its immense energy.

“I was just assessing your current combat strength. I don’t want to use your power only to find out the King of the Gods has confiscated it.”

Loki looked at Ethan, gently twirling his fingers in front of him. A square box emitting a faint blue light appeared before them.

The moment the Casket of Ancient Winters appeared, everyone felt the surrounding temperature drop. Loki’s body, as he controlled the Casket of Ancient Winters floating in front of him, transformed—his skin turned a pale blue, and his eyes glowed with an eerie red light.

As Loki waved his hands again, the Casket of Ancient Winters disappeared, and the sudden chill vanished like an illusion. The warm sea breeze with a hint of saltiness returned, brushing against them.

Loki’s appearance also reverted to normal. The blue skin and red eyes weren’t exactly a flattering look.

“You should’ve felt the power of the Casket of Ancient Winters.”

Ethan had definitely felt it. While the energy stored in the Casket of Ancient Winters might not match the near-infinite power of the Cosmic Cube, it was far purer and more violent—far more suitable for use as a ‘weapon.’ Of course, it could also be harnessed as a pure energy source, provided one had the skill to control such an intense frost element.

“Very powerful.”

Looking up at Loki, Ethan thought this might be Loki’s most powerful trump card. But he could also tell that Loki couldn’t fully control the Casket of Ancient Winters.

“How much of its power can you actually use?”

From Ethan’s perspective, Loki couldn’t bring out its full potential—he probably couldn’t even use 10 percent.

In the original storyline, Loki only used the Casket of Ancient Winters once, and that moment was fleeting. He didn’t even manage to kill Heimdall with it. Aside from the possibility that Loki didn’t intend to kill him, it was likely he simply couldn’t wield the box’s full power.

At the very least, Loki never used it again afterward. Did he forget he still had it?

Loki said nothing, clearly unwilling to answer Ethan’s question. But his silence was answer enough—he couldn’t unleash the Casket of Ancient Winters’s true power.

“I used to wonder what kind of power would suit you best. But now I realize the greatest treasure is already in your hands. Why not try to fully master the Casket of Ancient Winters's power?”

Loki was stunned. He had never considered that. In his mind, the Casket of Ancient Winters was a powerful relic, and those who met its conditions could use it. The amount of power one could harness depended on their strength and whether they met the casket’s 'requirements.'

He had always assumed he couldn’t unleash the 'Age of Frost' because he wasn’t a 'true Frost Giant.' He had grown up in Asgard, trained with Asgardian magic, and didn’t meet the deeper criteria of the Casket of Ancient Winters.

But he had overlooked something: the most powerful aspect of the Casket of Ancient Winters was its contained energy—and to a mage, energy is energy.

He hadn’t thought of it before simply due to habitual thinking. Now that Ethan, an outsider, pointed it out, he started to consider the possibility.

“The energy in the Casket of Ancient Winters is too violent. My magic can’t control it.”

“There’s no such thing as energy that can’t be controlled. If you can’t do it, it just means you haven’t found the right way.” Ethan might not be more powerful than Loki, but he knew more theoretical frameworks and was backed by the inherited knowledge of Merlin. He firmly believed that if energy could be used, then it could be controlled. The only difference was difficulty.

The energy attribute in the Casket of Ancient Winters was extremely specialized. Among many types of energy, this kind was particularly difficult to manage. But Ethan happened to know a few other types just like it.

Ethan made a movement similar to Loki’s, placing his hands in front of his chest. As he moved, a stream of golden energy emerged from his heart and slowly condensed into a glowing orb between his palms.

“This energy, called holy light, is also very difficult to control. But difficult doesn’t mean impossible.”

(To be continued.)