Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 1127 Betting (First Update)

The Wakanda royal family provided Emperor Latvinia with a vantage point to watch the entire duel, and under the pretext of this, used his servants to guide him along an alternate route, avoiding excessive interaction with the other Golden Horde nobles. This arrangement seemed petty compared to the treatment he received at the banquet the previous night, and clearly revealed their dissatisfaction with Emperor Latvinia's decision to refuse to meet with any guests the previous night.

As a powerful telepath, Emperor Latvinia not only observed the literal movements of everyone in the palace last night, but also their thoughts and intentions. If Latvinia's technicians had the time and ability to crack Wakanda's communication firewall, the Emperor wouldn't need to go to such lengths to read people's minds.

He immersed his mind in the collective unconscious ocean of thousands of Wakandans' thoughts, then dug out even the smallest fragments or a single, half-discarded, foolish idea from the nauseatingly dazzling outer-dimensional spiritual mire. These fragments would be picked out by the Emperor's eyes from among the masses, prompting intervention and preparation. The idea of ​​using battle robots for assassination was foolish, but not impossible, because the fortress-type battle robots' firing capabilities were like a straight-fire mortar—the perfect tool for pinpoint elimination. All he needed to do was set the target, silence the battering ram and shotgun with magic, and then position the battle robot at the window. Fortunately, perhaps because of the sacredness of the succession duel, they dared not forcibly interfere; the battle robots were not forced to be deployed last night to prevent the tragedy.

Fortunately, most of the nobles of the Golden Tribe were unable to make a decision in advance.

The innermost thoughts of the high-ranking Dora Mirajane members who came to greet the Emperor were easily discernible with a single glance. The Emperor of Latvinia's expression as he observed Queen Ramonda and issued orders to the Dora Mirajane members was so intense that they were completely unaware of the Emperor's thoughts swirling within her mind. For the Emperor of Latvinia, who was traveling to the venue in an anti-gravity flying car, it made no difference. Regardless of the outcome of today's succession duel, there would only be one winner: himself and Bastet, each getting what they wanted.

For many years, due to the Sorcerer Supreme's prohibition, Bastet has been unable to manifest in the mortal realm as before, surviving only through the spiritual power of a few priests and generations of Black Panthers. The descendants of the first Black Panther, Klanga, possess extremely strong spiritual power. Now, T'Challa and Erik Killmonger both have immense potential to provide Bastet with energy; they are arguably the most outstanding Black Panther candidates since Klanga's death. The only one dissatisfied is Hammurabi, because the Wakandas, using religion as a pretext, refused to inform him of the route to the venue beforehand. He was forced to depart early on his hoverbike, skimming low over the path from the palace to the venue before the initiation duel began, his finger hovering near the trigger of the heavy explosives on his hoverbike on his return journey.

"Don't deviate from the course I've set," Hammurabi warned the high-ranking Dora Mirajane member piloting the anti-gravity vehicle. "If I find you using weapons without notice or deviating from the course, I will remove them for you."

"Destroy what? This vehicle?" A high-ranking member of Dora Mirajane rolled his eyes. "I don't believe you can destroy a vehicle made of vibranium alloy in such a short time, not even with a disintegration field."

"I cannot," Hammurabi readily admitted, "but your hands and your head cannot."

The viewing platforms surrounding the coronation ceremony venue not only surround the nobles of the Golden Horde, but also the River Tribe responsible for agricultural production, the Mining Tribe managing vibranium reserves, and the Merchant Tribe focused on commercial activities. The last one is the tribe that has benefited the most from the cooperation between the Immortal City and Wakanda, and is also the tribe most affected by Erik Killmonger's appearance last night.

The succession duel ceremony was attended not only by tribes frequently involved in Wakanda's affairs, but also by the Jabari tribe, who settled in the northern mountains and, in ancient times refused to pledge allegiance to Klanga while adhering to their traditional and primitive way of life. These tribes, who worshipped the white ape god, were surrounded by black panther priests who worshipped the black panther god—the latter harboring intense hostility towards the former, believing themselves to be embodiments of the black panther god's will and obligated to force the heretics to convert or compel them into a more civilized life. However, the former did not want conflict to erupt here and firmly believed that civilized life meant forgetting tradition.

What's even more interesting is that neither of them actually has any faith in their own religion.

The High Priestess of Dora Milaj angrily slowed the car down, and with the help of Hammurabi's halberd whistling through the air, she barely managed to squeeze through the densely packed, noisy, and spine-tingling chorus led by the Black Panther Temple priests, as well as the armed religious warriors chanting F major hymns, and laboriously delivered the Wakanda guest to his destination. After the Emperor alighted, the High Priestess of Dora Milaj seemed eager to retaliate against Hammurabi's earlier taunts, but her duty compelled her to immediately throw herself into security work at the venue, preventing an irreversible conflict between the Jabari tribe and the Black Panther Temple.

"Good morning, Princess Shuri. Today I finally saw a side of Wakanda that no one else knew about."

"Laugh if you want. I really don't understand what the Black Panther Temple and the Jabari tribe have to argue about, and the Jabari tribe isn't completely without technology." Princess Shuri wrinkled her face like she'd eaten a lemon. "Do you see that hammer? That's a hammer that can release infrasound, capable of crushing ordinary metal and causing it to quickly become fatigued."

"This matter is not that simple. Even from the worst possible perspective, I can only conclude that the Jabari tribe wants some privileges and a voice."

"Such dirty politics!" Princess Shuri wanted to spit, but under Queen Ramonda's watchful gaze from afar, she ultimately refrained from doing anything that violated etiquette. "Was it for this reason that you refused to meet with everyone last night? I thought you and T'Challa were very good friends!"

"Even the best of friends are outsiders, so I must remain neutral, at least on the surface."

"That means diversifying your investments to reduce risk."

"From a practical point of view, that's one way to put it. After all, interactions between nations must be profitable, and it's irresponsible to gamble all of a nation's interests on something like this. And I am a responsible leader." Emperor Latvinia acknowledged that his actions were common practice in the international community. "But by sitting here now, I am subtly expressing my support for T'Challa. This is the most powerful statement I can make as a foreign leader."

"I think you can do more, my friend," Princess Shuri said with a sly smile. She pointed to the entrance beneath the waterfall arena. "I've made the decision for you; you'll see soon enough."

T'Challa entered the arena carrying two weapons and an oval shield.

One of the weapons was a traditional Wakanda spear, T'Challa's most favored weapon; the other was a chainsword from Latvinia, the very sword that had wounded T'Challa's thigh, a gift to him at the banquet the previous night, now brought out again in the arena. This sparked debate within the Black Panther Temple. Some priests argued that technological products should not be used in gladiatorial combat, as it was a desecration of tradition. Others argued that the vibranium spear and shield were products of the vibranium refinery, and by definition, a spear was also a machine, therefore using the chainsword was justifiable.

"Look, the gladiatorial combat has been postponed now," Princess Su Rui said with a smile. "Regardless of whether chainsaw swords are allowed in the arena in the end, you're on our side now, old friend."

Emperor Latvinia raised an eyebrow and nodded with satisfaction. "A very effective little trick," he praised. "But no matter how much you delay, the succession duel will eventually begin; you can't postpone it indefinitely. Moreover, postponing the duel will leave the Black Panther Throne vacant for a long time, which means the tribal council will hold power in Wakanda, something even your mother cannot agree to."

"Of course, of course," Su Rui said nonchalantly. "If you can read my mind without magic, I guarantee I can give you a big surprise, a surprise that will make you bet everything on T'Challa."

Please vote for me!

(End of this chapter)