In the villa's living room, the atmosphere couldn't have been more different from Tony's near-maniacal research frenzy in the garage.
Tsuda Takao was half-reclined on a long, comfortable sofa. Skadi was curled up against him like a clingy cat, her head resting on his thigh. He idly stroked her silky white hair now and then. Her icy-blue eyes were half-lidded, and she let out a satisfied little hum.
Mobius—the dangerous Infinity Serpent—claimed the other end of the couch. Unlike Skadi, she didn't fully snuggle in. Instead, she lounged with a lazier, more sultry posture, her dark green hair cascading down like a waterfall. One hand propped up her chin; the other was misbehaving, toying with the buttons of Tsuda Takao's pajama top. Her emerald eyes glittered with mischief as she alternated between looking at him and stealing glances at the obedient Skadi.
"So, my dear little lab rat~" Mobius's voice, sticky with a drawn-out lilt, broke the quiet. "This world looks… hmm, fairly interesting. Besides that noisy little tin man just now and those two big green brutes, is there anything else that might amuse me? Or rather… potential 'experimental material'?"
Her fingertip traced lightly across Tsuda Takao's collarbone, leaving a faint chill behind.
Tsuda Takao caught the wandering hand and smiled helplessly. He knew exactly what Mobius meant by "amusement" and "experimental material"—the kind of things that could make ordinary people, and even superheroes, turn pale at the mention.
"There's plenty of fun here, Snakey. I'm just afraid you'll find it a bit too… lively," Tsuda Takao said, gathering his thoughts before starting to describe this bizarre Marvel universe.
"First up: Asgard. A bunch of aliens who call themselves gods—straight out of Norse myth. That 'hammer guy,' Thor, and his father Odin is even more terrifying. And they've got a second prince, Loki, who loves pranks and stirring trouble. He's a real expert in illusions and schemes."
"Oh? Gods? An alien civilization?" Mobius raised an eyebrow, only mildly interested. "I hope their 'divinity' can stand up to the scalpel."
"Then there are ancient organizations lurking all over Earth," Tsuda Takao continued. "Like Hydra, which worships extra-dimensional dark gods, and the intelligence agency S.H.I.E.L.D.—that place is a swamp."
"Power struggles and secret societies?" Mobius yawned. "Boring. Unless they can produce truly unusual technology or life-forms."
Tsuda Takao kept going. "There's pressure from space, too. For example, there might be a Titan called Thanos, who shows up with an army and the Infinity Stones to commit genocide. Oh—Infinity Stones. Supposedly crystallizations of the universe's fundamental forces. Six of them in total…"
"Infinity Stones?" Mobius's eyes finally lit up, like an explorer discovering a new continent. "Fundamental forces of the universe… That sounds like ultra-high-purity Imaginary internal energy, or the materialized form of some kind of primal authority. Now that is worth 'studying' in depth." She licked her lips, as if she'd already spotted the perfect test subject.
"And there are threats from other dimensions," Tsuda Takao added. "Like Dormammu, the ruler of the Dark Dimension, who wants to swallow all of reality. Or a devil called Mephisto, who loves to toy with soul contracts…"
"A dimensional ruler? A life-form at the level of rules?" Mobius sat up straighter, her emerald eyes filling with a researcher's feverish excitement. "That touches on World Bubble theory and the Imaginary Tree! Wonderful! What else?"
Watching her excitement rise, Tsuda Takao felt like he was reciting a menu for a bottomless glutton—and every dish on it was something that could scare normal people to death.
"And then there are supervillains born from experiments, mutations, or technology," he continued. "Quicksilver, who's insanely fast; the Scarlet Witch, who can manipulate minds and rewrite reality; the original Ant-Man from the Quantum Realm; and in the future, there's a rogue artificial intelligence that Tony and Bruce Banner might accidentally create—Ultron…"
"Artificial intelligence?" Mobius frowned slightly, then relaxed into a dangerous smile. "A data-based life-form? Heh. In front of the Herrscher of Corruption, any electronic network is an undefended backyard. As for the others… mutants and superpowered individuals—those sound like naturally occurring failed 'Fusion Warrior (Mantis)' prototypes, or degraded versions of Stigmata awakeners. Perfect as comparative samples."
As she listened, her fingers crept back up to Tsuda Takao's cheek, gently rubbing it. At the same time, her other hand reached over to pinch Skadi's soft cheek. Skadi shot her an annoyed look, but for Tsuda Takao's sake, she didn't lash out.
"In short," Tsuda Takao concluded, "this world is full of danger, but also full of opportunities. Powerful enemies mean abundant 'research materials.' Snakey, your 'laboratory' is never going to run out of subjects."
Mobius let out a delighted chuckle. She leaned in until their noses were almost touching, her breath fragrant as she whispered, "It sounds like a perfect playground, my dear little lab rat~ Since you brought me here, you'd better see it through and help me find every interesting 'toy,' okay? Of course…"
She flicked her gaze toward Skadi, who was staring coldly at Mobius's hand, and deliberately sank her whole body into Tsuda Takao's embrace. With a provocative tone, she added, "…as payment, I'll 'protect' you properly—and I'll even help you 'take care of' this innocent little Titi~"
Skadi immediately puffed out her cheeks. She didn't say a word, but a faint chill began to seep from her body. She was clearly furious at Mobius's shameless public "competing for affection."
Feeling the crushing, absurdly strong hug from the left and the warm, soft body pressed against him from the right, Tsuda Takao's head instantly doubled in size. He finally understood firsthand just how "blissful"—and how challenging—it was to have both a pure, clingy powerhouse and a dangerous, cunning scientist wife at the same time.
The road ahead was destined not to be peaceful. Strong enemies outside, "harem" conflict inside—Tsuda Takao thought his isekai Marvel life was only getting more and more "exciting."
(End of Chapter)
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