The sunset disappeared into the depths of the sea, and the story gradually came to an end.
Lucas glossed over the part where he disagreed with Matt.
After that, he returned to his bedroom on the seventh floor of the bookstore, ready for bed. Tomorrow at ten, Gwen still had to work, so she needed to rest early.
Although Gwen spent most of her time studying on Earth-65, she hadn't resigned from the bookstore and had been receiving Lucas's salary for the past few months.
It was fine when she had classes, but she couldn't skip work during holidays.
Feeling the Ancient One's consciousness still following him, Lucas asked curiously, "Master, why haven't you left yet? The story is over."
The Ancient One: O_O
Did I say I came to listen to a story?
"Lucas, I have something to discuss with you." The Ancient One's voice echoed in Lucas's mind.
At the same time, she thoughtfully opened a portal to Kamar-Taj for Lucas.
Seeing that Gwen hadn't slept yet, Lucas simply brought her along. The air quality and scenery in Kamar-Taj were better than in New York, and sleeping there resulted in higher quality sleep.
"Master."
"Ancient One."
After greeting the Ancient One, Lucas took Gwen to his residence in Kamar-Taj to rest.
A cool breeze, carrying the scent of wood, wafted over, refreshing and invigorating.
This was the breath of nature.
Surveying the scenery along the way, Gwen asked curiously, "Lucas, is this where you usually train?"
Lucas nodded with a smile.
That's right, my current strength is entirely the result of diligent training.
As for points and talent, can that be called cheating?
After settling Gwen, Lucas went to see the Ancient One. "Master, what do you need me for? I thought you were just there to listen to my story."
The Ancient One directly stated her purpose for seeking Lucas, "Odin has sent an invitation, inviting me to attend Thor Odinson's coronation ceremony, and I would like to bring you with me."
Lucas nodded. "Then let's go together. I also want to see the grand spectacle of Asgard."
The Ancient One nodded. "Good, then we will go together in three days."
"Hmm, Master. If it's just this matter, couldn't you have just sent me a message?" Lucas asked, feeling that things weren't that simple.
The Ancient One explained, "Over the years, the relationship between Asgard and Kamar-Taj has been quite good, and I have some friendship with Odin."
"Odin's body is failing, and he will soon return to Valhalla. My mission is also nearing completion. To continue the friendly relationship between Asgard and Kamar-Taj, I plan to introduce you to Thor."
"Master, are you going to die?" Lucas exclaimed.
If the Ancient One dies, he will have to take over the position of Sorcerer Supreme. Although he had enough strength and wasn't worried about making mistakes, he wouldn't be as carefree as he was now.
The Ancient One shook her head. "Lucas, for an existence like me, the demise of the physical body is not death. On the contrary, the physical body has become a hindrance to me."
The Ancient One was somewhat emotional. A few days ago, when cornering Mephisto, she discovered that her counterpart was more than a little stronger than her.
Lucas nodded with a heavy heart.
He couldn't stop the Ancient One from wanting to get stronger.
'I need to find a way to enhance the strength of the people below me, so I'll have fewer things to worry about.'
Seeing that Lucas had already digested the news, the Ancient One continued, "I have a premonition that this trip to Asgard will not go smoothly. Thor's coronation this time, I'm afraid someone will cause trouble in secret, and at that time, you might have to take action."
Lucas agreed, "Hmm, that's not a problem."
Then he asked, "A small commotion, or a big commotion?"
"A big commotion. Odin knows the strength of Kamar-Taj, but other Asgardians may not. Appropriately displaying strength will be beneficial for future cooperation."
After answering Lucas, the Ancient One thought for a moment and added, "Also, during this time, you should stay in Kamar-Taj and get to know the other sorcerers better."
Thanks to the attached ability of the [Energy Absorption] talent, Lucas was extremely sensitive to energy perception.
Lucas could discern and analyze most spells with a single glance, then replicate them, even without learning their principles and incantations.
For him, imitation was infinitely more cost-effective than learning.
This was also why he rarely went to Kamar-Taj to study. He had already stolen all the spells from the Kamar-Taj Sorcerers. It was just that he usually didn't show it in Kamar-Taj, for fear of discouraging them.
— — —
S.H.I.E.L.D., helicarrier.
Nick Fury, Phil Coulson, Maria Hill, and the Avengers gathered together.
Tony was also there. At the urging of his father Howard's soul, he had agreed to join the Avengers and become a special consultant for S.H.I.E.L.D..
After emerging from the Quantum Realm, Tony chose to nourish the souls of his loved ones with his mental power. Once they awoke and he had caught up with them, he would send them to where the Vishanti resided.
"Didn't Lucas come?" Tony asked, sipping his coffee.
Because of excessive mental energy consumption, he had been recuperating in his mansion for the past few days. He only heard that Lucas had emerged from the Quantum Realm yesterday, but he didn't delve into it further.
Nick Fury and Coulson exchanged glances, their expressions somewhat awkward.
"Lucas refused to join the Avengers."
"He could still attend this meeting, though." Tony wasn't surprised by Lucas's refusal to join the Avengers.
"Could it be some confidential information that cannot be disclosed again?"
"That's not it." Nick Fury explained.
"He came back yesterday, stayed at the bookstore for a while, then caused some commotion in New York last night and disappeared. We can't contact him."
Natasha asked curiously, "His phone is unreachable? In this day and age, does anyone still go out without a cell phone?"
Coulson said helplessly, "His phone is a regular phone, not a satellite phone, so there's no signal."
Upon hearing this, everyone was a bit speechless, but the meeting proceeded as usual.
This meeting was to review the Hank-Mephisto incident, but the most important key figure, Lucas, was unable to attend.
So, information about Mephisto, and how Lucas confronted Mephisto head-on, then retreated unscathed, even making Mephisto suffer a great loss...
These details, even with Coulson's retelling of Lucas's version of the story, could not be fully reconstructed.
They only knew that Mephisto seemed to be restricted in some way when acting in reality, only able to act in the Quantum Realm, or other dimensions outside reality.
However, the information gathered on Mephisto was scarce.
But from Hank, and combining various sources of information, they reached a shocking conclusion.
HYDRA had revived within S.H.I.E.L.D.!
Coulson concluded, "Hope was attacked during a mission, meaning someone within S.H.I.E.L.D. was behind it, leaking information."
"And Stark's parents' 'car accident' was very likely also done by this group, and they covered up the news."
And the person who personally carried out these actions was very likely him—Winter Soldier, Bucky Barnes.