Melting Chapter 83: Attack, Inside Job, Hydra? (Patreon)

Even aside from Jean’s shock, Aaron himself was amazed by his own garden.

Originally, though professionally landscaped, it had been fairly standard. But now?

This small garden had turned into a dreamlike space. Each plant seemed to possess a special magic, every cluster of leaves shimmering with a faint glow, swaying blossoms in bold colors, releasing delightful aromas.

Anybody visiting would marvel that it felt practically anime-generated, a paradise come to life.

Clearly, the handiwork belonged to Savannah and Nina.

They were Light Elves, skilled not only in magic but also in decorating and horticulture.

In just the morning that Aaron was away, they worked at full capacity and transformed the place.

Even when Aaron switched on his super-smell and super-senses, he found no flaws. It was as if every detail of fragrance and color had been meticulously polished.

A gentle breeze drifted by under the sunlight, illuminating Princess Savannah with a moonlit glow. Her brilliant blue eyes shone like amber, perfectly matching her face.

Meanwhile, behind her stood Nina in a flowing green dress, wearing a gentle smile and a hint of joy in her eyes as Aaron stepped into the garden.

“Savannah, Nina, is this a gift for me?”

“It’s the best gift I’ve ever received!”

Aaron truly was astonished. He might have reality-bending power and the world’s mightiest brain, but this was genuinely beyond his expectations.

Savannah flushed. “As long as you like it, Brother-in-Law. I just thought this place’s garden didn’t really match your status.”

Nina remained silent, dutifully following Aaron’s steps. Her every move echoed his presence – he was mentioning her too!

“In Alfheim, is it always so beautiful as here?”
Aaron felt a flicker of curiosity about the Light Elf homeland. Maybe someday, when he was thinking of retiring, he’d go live in Alfheim?

Savannah lifted her chin proudly. “Brother-in-Law, I said before—Alfheim’s scenery isn’t a bit inferior to Asgard’s or Nornheim’s. Our forests, mountains, streams… everything is carefully nurtured. It’s delightfully graceful.”

Aaron’s gaze wandered slightly, nodding. “It must be lovely, I can tell it’s been meticulously preserved.”

At this, Nina spoke up: “Your Majesty, in fact, most parts of Alfheim aren’t this breathtaking – our princess is the most talented mage among the Light Elves and also a gifted designer. Only forests she decorates and arranges appear this extraordinary.”

Hearing that, Aaron was even more intrigued. “Then I really must pay a proper visit and see for myself if my dear little sister-in-law’s ‘deft and silky hands’ are every bit as good as advertised.”
Savannah giggled shyly.

“Oh—why have you two come here so soon?”
By Aaron’s calculations, “the banquet must only just have begun. With the scale of that celebration, it’ll go at least three months, I’d guess.”

Even a single minor peacekeeping victory in Asgard could get a month of feasting. For a coronation-level event for the King of the Gods, three months was the bare minimum, half a year not uncommon.

Savannah looked a bit sheepish, while Nina offered a small laugh, boldly maintaining eye contact with Aaron. “Because the Princess found the banquet dull – plus we’ve never been to Midgard before. She wanted to see Your Majesty’s homeland for ourselves.”

(Homeland? Not exactly…) Aaron refrained from clarifying. “Compared to Alfheim, doesn’t Earth let you down?”

Sure, Earth was better off than, say, Svartalfheim or Muspelheim, but it certainly couldn’t compare with a realm of godly Light Elves in terms of scenery or environment.

The difference in plant and wildlife density, air quality, and water clarity was worlds apart. Aaron half worried if Earth’s “lousy” environment might actually poison them. If that turned out to be an issue, he’d have to grant them super-adaptive traits to survive Earth’s “harsh” air.

Savannah shook her head. “Even if it can’t compare to home, it still has a distinctive charm.”

Nina exchanged a conspiratorial grin.

A distinctive charm? She meant His Majesty, of course.

Which girl doesn’t dream of love? Aaron was supposedly mightier than Odin, casually crushing a peak-level Fire Demon. Young, handsome, powerful… with a pleasant aura. Even the picky Light Elves couldn’t complain. They instinctively wanted to draw near. It was a difference in life’s essence. Light Elves love all things beautiful, and in Savannah’s eyes, he was the most “beautiful” existence.

“Oh, right—Sif said we could stay here for a couple days. And the All-Father Odin asked me to pass on a message: he used Brother-in-Law’s name to grant a general amnesty throughout the Nine Realms. Three days from now, the majority of prisoners in Asgard’s dungeons will be pardoned. He wants everyone to remember your benevolence.” Savannah did an endearing imitation of Odin’s tone, prompting a chuckle from Aaron.

As far as Aaron was concerned, Odin’s meaning was obvious: gather public support, strengthen Aaron’s renown. Aaron spent most of his time away from Asgard; in the long run, rumors alone might not suffice. Better to earn more popular devotion.

And yeah, Aaron wasn’t a glory-hound, but neither would he reject Odin’s gesture. More likely, Odin or others had nudged Savannah to come down. But hey, if two gorgeous women volunteered to show up, Aaron wasn’t going to say no. After all, he’d long heard about how “exquisite” Elves could be. Time to broaden the palate.

“Brother-in-Law, who’s that lady up there?” Savannah asked in a whisper. “Another older sister?” She’d sensed Jean’s prying eyes.
Aaron followed Savannah’s line of sight and saw a flicker of red vanish from a window. “She isn’t yet, but she soon will be…” he said with a cryptic expression.

Savannah understood—she must be an unconfirmed “fiancée,” right? She didn’t mind that Aaron had many women. A man as formidable as he was was allowed a multitude, wasn’t he? That was a fundamental right of the strong. Trying to hold such a being to mortal or typical godly standards was just laughable.

Savannah inhaled deeply. “What a wonderful smell!”

“What smell?” Aaron prompted.

Savannah looked down at her pale toes. Light Elves seldom wear footwear in their forest habitats, liking to be close to nature. Their sturdy frames can handle sharp stones. She’d been busy in the garden for hours, but her feet remained pristine and tender.

Aaron’s gaze drifted over them. Those pretty feet stepping in dirt is such a waste… And there’s a matching pair—one in white, one in green. Interesting.

He was mulling this when a phone buzzed.
Seeing Aaron frown, Savannah’s heart leaped in worry. “Brother-in-Law, what is it?”

Aaron relaxed again. “It’s nothing—just some ignorant ants.”

“Felicia!”

“I’m here!”

Felicia promptly appeared, having waited outside on purpose to give them room to chat.

“These two are Savannah and Nina, Light Elves from Alfheim,” Aaron explained succinctly. “Please see to them, help them settle, let them learn a bit about Earth. I’ve got a small matter to handle.”

Felicia nodded, curiosity drawn to the pair’s delicate pointed ears. Her gaze slipped downward: Their lips are as pink as cherries, with eyes of bright blue like crystal… In the sunlight, the Elfish radiance clung to their porcelain skin. So lovely, so pure.

She wondered fleetingly if she might see them rolling their eyes in embarrassment. Felicia half-smirked, stepping forward to greet them.

“She’s my secretary—akin to a royal assistant—responsible for daily tasks. You can rely on her,” Aaron said.

With that, he touched a finger lightly between their brows. A sparkle signaled he had gifted them super-adaptive ability to handle Earth’s “polluted” environment.

They were magical beings with robust immunity, but better to ensure no hidden hazards. So these sweet Light Elves aren’t forced to endure unpleasant contamination…

Of course, he also quietly “fused” with their abilities:

[Magic Codex (Savannah): You’ve gained knowledge of Illumination spells, Healing, Tracking magic, Plant Revitalization, Growth, Light Barrier, etc.]

[Power of the Light Elves: You’ve inherited the Light Elves’ ancestry. You’re more closely attuned to nature (light, plants, etc.), capable of recovering faster and performing stronger magic in certain environments.]

[Archery: Your arrow skills are infallible, at the pinnacle of mastery.]

Aaron nodded to himself. Another bit of a “godly” realm’s inheritance. That made four of the Nine Realms (counting Frost Giants, Fire Giants, Asgard, and now Light Elves)! A good start collecting the “nine dragon balls.” But this also made him wonder—did fusing them give him a partial “blood tie”? That would be too weird. Better not to think about it.

After some short pleasantries, Aaron strode out of the garden, vanishing so smoothly it was as if he had never been there. But the faint fragrance he left behind lingered, enthralling Savannah for a long while. She felt slightly guilty toward Sif. “Sif’s been so kind to me, but I’m…well… kind of muscling in?” She blushed deeper. Felicia, noticing her expression, suspected the princess might be “thinking of spring.”

“All right, Princess, let’s get you two comfortable,” Felicia said.

…

Back at the Osborn Expo, Norman Osborn—who’d been organizing evac—now sat on a couch surrounded by guards, having two onsite physicians treat him.

Even without serious medical equipment, Norman insisted on immediate surgery to extract bullets. Blood poured out, yet he merely clenched his teeth and downed a Super Healing Serum. Within seconds, the wound closed, leaving only bloodstains. A quick wipe, and his skin was pristine again. Some color even returned to his cheeks.

“What’s the situation?” came Aaron’s voice as he walked through the path cleared for him by the crowd, taking in the chaotic aftermath with a displeased look. So someone tried to sabotage me while I was enjoying life with the Elves? Fine… then nobody else gets to have fun either!

“Boss, someone took advantage of our momentary distraction to steal our newly-developed New Life products,” Norman explained, head lowered like an employee awaiting rebuke. “To keep it from them, I destroyed the prototypes so they had to flee…”

Aaron saw a few injured staff, but no fatalities. “Any idea who they were?” he asked.
Norman shook his head. “We asked Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D., but nothing definite.”

At that, someone nearby raised a hand. “Boss, I saw one of them had a weird symbol on his wrist—looked like a bunch of circles overlapping!”
“Ten Rings? Or The Mandarin’s ring?”

Tony Stark had once been kidnapped by a group calling themselves the Ten Rings. Or there’s Aldrich Killian’s fake Ten Rings. Then again, there’s the real Ten Rings from Xu Wenwu. Probably not that first group. So either Killian or Wenwu, maybe?

Norman hesitated and quietly told Aaron, “Boss, I suspect an inside job. They knew our layout intimately. They must have done recon, they’re well-trained. One failed attempt and they retreated.”

Sounds like Hydra… Aaron thought. S.H.I.E.L.D. was half Hydra anyway—covert infiltration for decades. So Hydra was the safe guess. No matter what, Hydra’s always the culprit. Great. Tally up one more reason to crush them.

“Get things under control, have Harry come find me,” Aaron told Norman. This “tool man” was doing fine, always calm under pressure, which meant Aaron should give him heavier responsibilities.

Those who can handle burdens should carry more. Norman was exactly that kind of guy. He’d avoided the original “Green Goblin” fate but might become something else. Aaron didn’t mind.

As far as he was concerned, if you serve him seriously, you’ll have all the bread and milk you need. He never “draws a useless blueprint” – his “blueprints” are real.

Norman rejoiced inwardly. He suspected the boss would grant him unimaginable benefits. Meanwhile, about Harry… Norman phoned him.

Within half an hour, a rather befuddled Harry arrived, only to have Norman drag him upstairs to Osborn Tower’s top floor. Staring at the familiar-yet-strange office, Harry looked conflicted. This had once been his father’s domain…

Deep down, Harry resented Aaron. From his viewpoint, his father had been dethroned overnight and turned into a powerless “employee,” all thanks to Aaron.

And Norman, for his part, revered Aaron without question and forbade Harry from badmouthing him. Harry wouldn’t stand for it – he’d even vented to his new friend Peter, promising he’d never meet that man.

But now…

“Dad, do I have to go in there? I don’t want to see him,” Harry said, torn.

Norman’s brow furrowed. “No choice. And when you meet him, remember to call him… Uncle.”
Harry rolled his eyes. He’d heard Aaron was only 22. So that’d mean dropping an entire generation? “I’m not going in. He took everything from you.”

“That’s enough! When we go inside, put on a smile—look pleased. Don’t embarrass me!” Norman barked.

Harry pouted. Wear a smile for that man? I’d sooner jump off this tower. You won’t see me smiling at him for one second!