Naturally, Odin was well aware of the situation Arthur was facing.
He exhaled slowly, then offered a faint smile. "You worry too much. None of this was ever your burden to bear."
"…So, is it too late for me to walk away?" Arthur asked.
"Of course, it's too late." Odin barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "The Reality Stone— you're not just going to glance at it and then pretend it doesn't exist, are you?"
"Even if I claim it, it's still going to be a nightmare," Arthur muttered. "The Infinity Stones are powerful, sure, but they're also cosmic landmines. I'm not wrong about that, am I?"
"But you and them are destined to cross paths, one way or another."
Odin's voice was calm yet unwavering. "Whether it's Asgard, war, power— no matter how much you try to step aside, you'll always find yourself drawn into the current."
Arthur's eyes narrowed.
"Don't overthink it. This isn't some grand conspiracy against you." Odin continued. "Nor is it something that can be manipulated or controlled. All of this is happening because of you."
Arthur blinked at those words, momentarily thrown off. He poured himself a drink. "For once, I have no idea how to argue against that."
"Experience teaches better than words ever could." Odin chuckled.
"But everything must have a cause." Arthur met Odin's gaze as he spoke. "Maybe you could give me some kind of explanation."
"What is the center?"
Instead of answering, Odin posed a question.
"The center?" Arthur considered for a moment before replying, "If something is at the center, then it must have a gravitational pull— something that forces everything else to orbit around it. Like Jane right now— she's at the center of the conflict between Asgard and the Dark Elves. The real reason? The Aether. Asgard won't let it become a weapon capable of consuming the Nine Realms, and the Dark Elves will stop at nothing to claim it."
"Well said." Odin nodded, then gestured toward Arthur. "And you— you are also a center."
"So, all this chaos swirling around me… it's not just coincidence?" Arthur raised a brow. "I always thought I just kept stumbling into things. But now you're telling me it's inevitable? Why?"
"Haven't I already given you the answer?" Odin smiled. "You are a world unto yourself."
Arthur wasn't particularly shocked. It was, after all, the only explanation that made sense.
Still, he struggled to grasp why being a 'world' meant he had to be at the heart of everything.
"What orbits around you isn't just events… it's reality itself."
Odin pushed himself up from his seat, the effort more noticeable than before.
Arthur smirked. "Come on, are you really that old now?"
"I've always been old." Odin cast a glance at the drink in Arthur's hand. "If I were a few centuries younger, I might've shared a drink with you. But now? It's not even worth the trouble."
"…A few centuries?" Arthur latched onto that wording.
"A few hundred years, give or take." Odin chuckled. "Does it matter?"
Then, with a wave of his hand, a shimmering sphere materialized before them.
A shimmering sphere of pure energy hovered in the air, its form sculpted entirely by magic. Though non-aggressive, it contained countless shifting patterns within— evolutions that resembled the inner workings of an entire world.
Inside, white light pulsed, flowing in a structured rhythm, forming an intricate network of pathways.
Odin gestured toward it. "Simply put, if this sphere represents our current world, then the white light within it signifies the natural course of events— an intrinsic design, each path unfolding as predetermined, repeating in an endless cycle."
Then, with his other hand, he conjured a second sphere of energy.
Like the first, white light flowed through it, its movement precise and deliberate, following its own distinct pattern.
Odin slowly guided the smaller sphere toward the larger one.
As the two merged, the collision sent ripples through the white light inside the larger sphere. The established paths shuddered, wavering from their original course, veering into the unknown.
"You have entered this world." Odin's gaze remained fixed on the swirling energy. "Had you remained inert, your presence would have barely disturbed the patterns, and, given time, they would have naturally realigned. But you are not inert…"
Arthur watched closely. At first, his sphere rested quietly within the larger one, causing minimal disruption. The once-disturbed patterns even began to realign, as if attempting to restore their original course.
But just as Odin had implied, something changed.
The white light inside Arthur's sphere began to spill outward, intertwining with the light in the larger sphere. Slowly, but undeniably, the patterns shifted—no longer returning to their original form, but instead revolving around this new presence.
It was almost like the butterfly effect. At first, it was a subtle disturbance, but over time, the paths within the larger sphere deviated further, gradually reshaping their flow. The smaller sphere was no longer just an intruder— it had become a center of gravity, pulling everything into a new trajectory.
Eventually, the chaos settled into an equilibrium. The patterns stabilized once more, but what emerged was something entirely different— neither the original structure of the larger sphere nor the natural state of the smaller one.
Instead, what remained was a new design, a unique fusion born from their integration.
"If you had never appeared, nothing would have changed."
Odin observed the shifting lights, his voice steady. "Had you appeared but remained separate, the world would have continued along its intended course. But you didn't remain separate. Had you integrated but remained uninvolved, perhaps everything would have stayed the same… But you did not remain uninvolved. And because of that, the moment you became entangled with this world, everything was set on an unpredictable course— one that no one can foresee."
With a wave of his hand, Odin dismissed the glowing spheres, the energy fading into the air.
He turned to Arthur. "Now, do you understand?"
Arthur did.
The realization settled within him, and yet he couldn't help but let out a wry smile. "One thing is certain— so long as I exist, I can never truly detach myself from the course of this world."
"Or rather…" Odin chuckled, his gaze knowing. "From the moment you became part of this world, change became inevitable. That is why I have always believed you to be fate's chosen— because, in a way, you are reshaping destiny itself, causing fate to revolve around you."
(End of chapter)
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